We’re into the third month of our multiple pedalboard giveaway—the America’s Saddest Pedalboard Contest, which is running through December. If you think you have the jankiest, most ill-equipped pedalboard in America, then all you have to do to enter the contest is take a picture of it and share it on social media with the tags #JIMDUNLOP, #SADBOARD, and #METAL. If your photo gets the most votes, you’ll win a brand new, fully stocked pedalboard. We’re giving away a different pedalboard each month. Head over to the contest page for all the details.
Last month, we gave away the Bass Board. November’s prize is the Modern Metal Board, and it has everything you need to wield copious amounts of gain and downtuned/extended range guitars with precision and finesse. Have a look-see.
MXR® Ten Band EQ
This pedal lets you adjust 10 different frequencies as well as input and output levels so you can shape and refine all the sonic power generated by your new setup. Noise-reduction circuitry helps keeps all those extra dBs under control, and a second output lets you run two separate signal chains If you’re into that kind of thing.
Echoplex® Delay
The Echoplex Delay delivers crisp and clear delay tones with external tap tempo functionality. If you want more of a vintage sound—a la the effects of worn-out echo tape—use the Age control to add that classic modulated wow and flutter.
MXR® Analog Chorus
When it’s time to switch off the dirt and weave some clean, melodic tapestries, you’ll want to step on this pedal to add in some lush, liquid analog chorus tones. It has Low and High controls so you can tweak the tone of the effect as well as its intensity.
MXR® Tap Tempo
The MXR Tap Tempo Switch comes connected to the aforementioned Echoplex Delay, allowing you to set the tempo of your repeats so you don’t have to bend down and mess around with the Delay control mid-set.
MXR® EVH® 5150™ Overdrive
This pedal delivers a full range of hyper-driven MOSFET saturation with a full complement of controls that gives this pedal exceptional sonic flexibility. The Boost switch bumps up the gain and compression while the Gate control—powered by the Smart Gate® circuit—tames unwanted noise.
Horizon Devices Precision Drive
Built by MXR for Periphery’s Misha Mansoor, this pedal was designed from the ground up for players who ply their craft with tons of gain and extended ranges. Whether you’re playing a 14-string multi-scale monstrosity or a downtuned six-string, the Precision Drive can give you everything from a touch of harmonic coloration to gnarly full-on distortion. And because of the potential for overdrive pedals to add noise to an already high gain system, this pedal has a built-in noise gate. If all you want to do is transparently cut noise, keep the Gate control at lower settings, but cranking it up will give you that tight and choppy palm-muted sound. The Attack control tames and tightens up the low end and allows the midrange to step forward.
Players with digital rigs, worry not—this pedal plays nicely whether your setup is analog or digital. Oh, and there’s a reason we put this pedal in front of the 5150 Overdrive—the Precision Drive can push that pedal’s MOSFETs amp-style for some very rad results.
John Petrucci Cry Baby® Wah
This pedal is based on the Cry Baby Rack Wah system, so it has a bevy of tone-tweaking potential. Notice a theme here? Just remove the bottom plate to access Volume, Q, and EQ controls that shape the tone of the wah effect across six different frequency bands.
DVP3 Volume (X)™ Pedal
The Volume (X) Pedal allows you to change your output level on the fly so you don’t have to stop playing, and it also allows you choose where in your signal chain to adjust volume. Relying on only on your instrument’s volume control for output dynamics can result in a weaker signal being fed to your pedalboard, so this pedal helps you keep the input from your guitar signal nice and even. And it’s built to take be used and abused, so use it to your heart’s content.
Sonic Research Stomp Box Mini Strobe Tuner
The Sonic Research Turbo Tuner ST-300 is a true stroboscope. Its LEDs are driven directly by the analog input signal and electronically strobed, providing instant response and high accuracy.
MXR® Iso-Brick™ Power Supply
You need a reliable power supply, so we tucked the lightweight and pedalboard-friendly Iso-Brick Power Supply underneath the pedalboard, where it has ten fully isolated outputs ranging from 9V to 18V, including two variable 6V-15V outputs. The two variable outputs can be used to emulate voltage sag, a drained battery effect sought by many vintage tonechasers.
Temple Audio Design DUO Series Pedalboard, 24″
This pedalboard, courtesy of Temple Audio Design, is stylish and sturdily built, and it uses a unique locking system that keeps your pedals securely in place and makes it easy to move them around when you’re ready to.
We’re giving away one pedalboard each month from September to December. Head over to the America’s Saddest Pedalboard Contest page for details and rules.
