The 7 Must Have Guitar Pedals (April 2018)

I think you’ll agree with me when I say:

Having the right effects pedals on your pedalboard will massively affect your sound.

But you’re probably wondering:

What guitar pedals are absolute essentials for your rig?

In this post, you will learn how to optimize your pedalboard to get the ultimate sound.

So what about those so-called “must have” guitar pedals?

These are the effects pedals that, when combined, give you an extremely versatile sound.

Kind of crazy right?

In a sea of different kinds of effects pedals …

You will be able to cover most of the sounds you are after with only these 6 pedals.

Trying to find the right information can be challenging …

But don’t worry, you have come to the right place.

We’ll cover all the must have guitar pedals and present them in an easy, digestible format.

We understand that each pedal has its own unique characteristics and that different pedals are a better fit for different music styles.

We have handpicked these effects pedals for their dynamic abilities.

That’s why these guitar pedals are a must have for every guitarist.

Many of these are the best guitar effects pedals for beginners, as they are simple to use.

7 Must Have Guitar Pedals 2018

First up is the …

1. Overdrive Effects Pedal

A guitarist can get a distorted sound out of an amplifier in two ways;

by the amplifier,
or by an effects pedal.

It is definitely recommended to use an effects pedal, instead of the amplifier.

This will benefit you in the variety of sounds and overall convenience.

”Why the heck are you talking about Distortion? You’re supposed to discuss Overdrive!”

Basically, there are two guitar effects pedals that do the exact same thing to the guitar’s signal, before it reaches the amplifier.

The Overdrive and Distortion pedal are both clipping the signal.

So why not calling them the same you’re asking?

The two effects pedals are doing the same, BUT give completely different tones.

An Overdrive effects pedal has got a grungey sound…

Whereas the Distortion pedal is more like its extreme brother and would be an essential guitar pedal for metal.

Here’s what makes the Overdrive pedal so special:

The Overdrive effects pedal is widely used in a large variety of music styles, therefore a must have guitar pedal for every guitarist.

This really is one of those must have guitar pedals for blues.

2. Reverb Effects Pedal

The next must have guitar pedal on our list is the Reverb effects pedal.

When you’ve added an Overdrive pedal to your rig, then this is what you should do:

You will definitely need something to make the sound “thicker”, the Reverb pedal is perfect for that!

The Reverb pedal is basically simulating the sound as if you were to place your speakers in a large chamber, it creates an echo.

A Reverb effect can also be simulated on some amplifiers.

However, the range of possibilities are very limited and inconvenient when wanting to turn the Reverb on/off whilst playing.

The Reverb pedal is used in a wide variety of playing styles and a must have guitar pedal.

Whatever your budget is …

You will able to find something that suits your needs.

The best thing with Reverb pedals is:

You can go very basic and minimalistic …

Or you can go very high-end to get all the settings a guitarist could ever wish for.

3. Delay Effects Pedal

The Delay pedal is the next must have guitar pedal on our list.

Although this pedal sounds a lot like the Reverb pedal, it is also completely different.

So what is it?

Remember:

The Reverb pedal is simulating an echo …

The Delay pedal is also a “Time” pedal, but does this slightly different.

When the signal from the guitar enters the Delay effects, this splits the incoming signal from the guitar.

One signal is used for the immediate sound and the other signal for a delayed sound.

The Delay pedal is a must have guitar pedal for its wide usage in both old and new music, plus you can get really creative.

My recommendations:

Low-end price range: Donner Yellow Fall – Very compact pedal, with limited settings, but good value for money.
Check out latest price and user reviews

Mid price range: MXR M169 Carbon Copy – Very good quality pedal with analog delay and up to 600 milliseconds of delay time.
Check out latest price and user reviews

High-end price range: Boss DD-500 – Crisp clear sounds, with pre-programmed delays and endless possibilities with the settings.
Check out latest price and user reviews

4. Looper Effects Pedal

Now, this next guitar pedal is truly essential if you want to be a better guitar player.

The looper effects pedal should be on top of any bedroom guitarist’s wish list.

What it does, it records the part you play in between the first two times you tap it.

This recording will start looping, so you can start adding overdubs or solo over it.

The looper pedal will help improve your rhythm playing and soloing.

Here’s something you should know:

The looper pedal isn’t a must have for live playing, although you could use it when live playing.

However, it’s truly a must have guitar pedal for any bedroom guitarist that feels like he’s plateauing.

5. Wah Effects Pedal

Next up, in the list of MUST HAVE guitar pedals and my personal favorite, the Wah pedal.

The Wah pedal, or also called the Wah Wah pedal, has got a very distinctive sound.

The Wah pedal is quite unique in its usability.

When you are using a Wah pedal, you need to move your foot up and down to create the unique sound.

When doing this, the high and low frequencies are influenced, creating the classic ”wacka-wacka” sound.

This pedal is the perfect add-on to your pedalboard, to spice up your playing.

A Wah pedal is a must have guitar pedal to achieve eargasms during soloing …

But is also used for the rhythm part, especially in funk.

My recommendations:

Mid price range: Dunlop Cry Baby – Wide frequency range and good quality, while still affordable.
Check out latest price and user reviews

High-end price range: Fulltone Clyde Deluxe – Very wide frequency range, many changeable settings plus easily able to play with Fuzz.
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6. Chorus Effects Pedal

The Chorus effects pedal is the next on our list of must have guitar pedals.

This amazing pedal creates the effect, that it sounds like one guitar, is actually multiple guitars!

The Chorus pedal does this by copying the first signal of the sound and adding it to the output signal, just a hair off tune and out of time.

”So you are trying to get me to sound off tune and out of time!?”

I know, this sounds worrying.

However, the Chorus pedal does this SO subtlely, that it sounds just like there really are multiple guitarists playing.

This is a great pedal for both soloing and playing the rhythm section.

My recommendations:

Low-end price range: Donner Tutti Love – Very compact pedal with limited possibilities, but good value for money.
Check out latest price and user reviews

Mid price range: Boss CH-1 Stereo Super Chorus – Deep and rich sounds combined in an indestructible pedal.
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High-end price range: EarthQuacker Devices Sea Machine V2 – This bad boy has got everything you would dream of, even an animation for the modulation rate.
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7. Tuner Pedal

The Tuner pedal has the honor, to be part of and finish the list, of must have guitar pedals.

To be really honest, this feels really lame to place the Tuner pedal in this list …

”So then why not leave the pedal out!?”

Well, this tells you something, this pedal has really got to be a must have for every guitarist.

The Tuner pedal takes the signal of the guitar and analyses the pitch, the highest and lowest of a note, this is measured in Hertz.

The pedal then shows the guitarist if he is flat or sharp relative to the note.

More often than not the pitch is indicated by a bar deviating from the center.

Here’s why it’s so important:

Especially when starting to play around in any band, where there is a lot of surrounding noise …

This pedal is an absolute essential for every guitarist.

My recommendations:

Low-end price range: KLIQ TinyTune – A very compact pedal that easily fits on your pedalboard with fast and accurate tuning.
Check out latest price and user reviews

Mid price range: Korg Pitchblack – Good quality tuner with adjustable settings for an ultimate user experience.
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High-end price range: Peterson VSS-C Stomp Classic – Extremely accurate and robust tuner that is also a perfect fit for checking your intonation.
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That’s it for now …

I hope you’ve gotten something out of this.

But the list of:

The 7 Must Have Guitar Pedals That Rock Your World!

Has now been concluded.

If you were looking for an add-on to your pedal board or you’ve just started playing electric, undoubtedly a lot of pedals listed above are an amazing fit for you.

I hope I’ve given you a better understanding of what you can find on the market.

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