Pedals have provided some of the most viscerally thrilling guitar sounds in history, from Purple Haze to Comfortably Numb. To celebrate decades of stellar sounds, we asked over 40 top players to name the pedals they couldn’t live without. We also join Dan and Mick of That Pedal Show to discuss some of history’s most revered stompboxes – and how to get the best from them...
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ALLEN HINDS
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“I’ve used one since the early 80s. Even the pedals I use now are a version of that pedal, such as the Xotic AC Comp. The Tube Screamer just works at all levels, in any position. It helped mellow out all the varieties of pickups and amps back in the 80s. In front of a Marshall it’s magic.
“My second choice if I could have one would be an old Buddha wah from the 90s, purple colour. It’s also magic.”
ANDY TIMMONS
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“I have to answer this one generally first, then specifically! Echo devices have been a big part of my tone since the early 80s: I’ve used everything from the Maestro EP-3, Roland Space Echo, Deluxe Memory Man, Strymon TimeLine and endless stompboxes and rack units looking for the ultimate echo sound. But now (shameless but very proud plug alert!) I now have my ultimate dual echo signature pedal, the Keeley Halo.
“The Halo isn’t specifically replicating any of these vintage units but rather combining all the things I love about them individually into what my ultimate vision of what great echo tone can be. I rely heavily upon on this ‘Halo’ effect – a very tape-like modulated dual echo that diffuses into a reverb-like aura around the note – and I leave it on all the time. It allows me to have a singing, vocal-like quality to my melodies and also acts as kind of a sustain pedal on a piano for my chord
