{"id":880,"date":"2011-07-28T07:07:36","date_gmt":"2011-07-28T14:07:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sixstringsensei.com\/?p=880"},"modified":"2023-05-17T11:13:15","modified_gmt":"2023-05-17T18:13:15","slug":"the-absolute-one-stop-guide-to-the-guitar-pedal-board","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sixstringsensei.com\/880\/the-absolute-one-stop-guide-to-the-guitar-pedal-board\/","title":{"rendered":"The Absolute One Stop Guide to the Guitar Pedal Board"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Tiered
Tiered Six String Sensei guitar pedalboard build using a Creation Music Company Aero 24×16 board and FIX bridges.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

UPDATE: May 17, 2023 – A lot has changed in regards to guitar pedalboards in over a decade since I first wrote this guitar pedal board guide. This pedalboard guide was written in 2011. I will be completely updating it with all new and relevant details. I\u2019m working on it.<\/h3>\n

Over the last decade new pedalboard manufacturers have emerged. Some of the older ones are still around and some have vanished. We now have new star pedalboard builders like my friends from Goodwood Audio and Brian Omillion from Omillion Audio. We also have LA Sound Design who\u2019s as strong as ever and Vertex Effects amongst others.<\/p>\n

The actual pedalboard platforms have evolved greatly. We are seeing some amazing stuff being made by Creation Music Company\u2026 which is currently my preferred platform to build on. On the extreme high end Schmidt Array has become one of the top companies. Voodoo Lab is making some awesome newer boards and bags with their Dingbat series.<\/p>\n

New switching systems have been created. We now also have very impressive MIDI switching and MIDI control solutions. Some of these include the PBC series by RJM Music and the MC8, MC6, MC6 Pro and MC3 by Morningstar Engineering.<\/p>\n

New patch cable plugs have taken over the market. The Switchcraft plugs are still great. However, we now have compact connectors like those from Squareplug. Power supplies have also evolved greatly. The ZUMA and Ojai lineup from Strymon and the ones from CIOKS are some of the top contenders these days.<\/p>\n

Lastly, routing has made leaps over the last few years. Stereo rigs have gotten more sophisticated. Wet-Dry and Wet-Dry-Wet rigs are not more prevalent. Routing solutions for these types of guitar pedalboards now also have ways to fix phase and lift grounds to avoid hum. Looping rigs are far more sophisticated as well.<\/p>\n

Lastly, ampless rigs and silent stages are more prevalent than ever before. Our pedalboards these days have all kinds of amp modeling solutions. Some of these include the Strymon Iridium, Line6 HX Stomp, Line6 Helix, Universal Audio amp pedals and the DSM Humboldt Electronics Simplifier. Oh, I can\u2019t miss the Walrus Audio ACS1. That one\u2019s really popular as well. We also have amps that include modeling solutions within that allow for direct recording or connecting directly to front of house without the needs for a cab. One example is the REVV D20.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m working on a full update. Stay tuned and bookmark this pedalboard guide.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Guitar
Busy wiring up a MIDI pedalboard using a Morningstar Engineering ML5.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Guitar
Here I am finishing up the power routing and setting up the planning for the MIDI routing.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Original Text from 2011 Starts Here.<\/h4>\n

Building the perfect Guitar Pedal Board is an art in itself. Just like playing guitar.<\/h3>\n

Guitar pedal boards are an essential element in the rig of countless effect loving guitarists out there. In other words, a great deal of you. Since I love gadgets so much and effects pedals are such an essential part of my love towards guitars, sixstringsensei.com would simply be incomplete without a big feature on them. So this is it! This is the big feature. What follows is purely awesome effects pedalboard info than you NEED.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s start with the reason why you want that board anyway\u2026 You start playing guitar and are having a jolly good time at it. One day, you buy a tuner pedal just for the convenience of always being plugged into your tuner and being able to tune on the fly. Then you realize you want more distortion than your little Marshall wannabe-big amp can muster up, so you buy the best distortion pedal<\/a> money can buy. Then you want a bit of ambiance for your solos and buy a delay pedal and a reverb pedal<\/a>. Finally, one day you realize you\u2019re good enough to play outside of your bedroom. As you are getting ready to load the stuff into your soon-to-be-touring van (or car, or bicycle) you realize, \u201cHoly crap! What I\u2019m a going to do with all these loose pedals?\u201d There you have it! You need a board to put your pedals on. Not only will it make the task of traveling with them a lot easier and cleaner, but setup and tear down times at shows are greatly reduced.<\/p>\n

Where to Start on Your Pedal Board Assembly Mission<\/strong><\/p>\n

There are 2 questions you need to ask yourself before you go about setting up a pedalboard:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. How many pedals do I have?<\/li>\n
  2. How many pedals do I wanna have?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Once you figure that out, you can have a better idea of how big a board you\u2019ll need. If you are a fan of John Petrucci, Joe Satriani, The Edge or you\u2019re 14, you\u2019ll likely opt for \u201cthe more the merrier\u201d approach. If you are like me and you\u2019re tired of lugging crap around thanks to 15 years of drumming, you might opt for less pedals. But either way, it\u2019s what you want that matters. That\u2019s what makes us all unique.<\/p>\n

    It\u2019s a good idea to draw up a little sketch of your board\u2019s layout to make sure you can fit all the pedals you want comfortably. It\u2019s also good if you leave a little room for error just in case you screw up a measurement or you want to add a pedal or two later. A pencil sketch on a piece of paper is just fine, but you can also get as technical as me and draw a scale vector drawing to make sure it all fits. Check out one of my earlier pedal board layout designs. I created this in Adobe Illustrator\u00ae using bits and pieces from pedals of various companies.<\/p>\n

    \"Guitar<\/a>
    Detailed scale diagram I put together in Illustrator design software to make sure all I wanted on my first pedal board would fit.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    DIY vs Hiring a Pro<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Once you\u2019ve decided on how big a board you need based on how many pedals you want, you can decide on which route to take for the actual board. You can take the DIY approach and build the thing yourself. This can be cheaper than buying one, but oftentimes costs even more depending on what you are trying to achieve. If you don\u2019t mind if the setup looks like crap as long as it works then you can certainly save some money buy doing it yourself. If you are meticulous and want an awesome setup that looks good too it will cost a bit more and take quite a bit more time to build. Remember, for a lot of us, time is money. In other words, a $150 board bought off a music store is cheaper to many of us than a $50 DIY board that took 7 hours to build! It\u2019s all in your priorities, but a well-done DIY project can always be well appreciated.<\/p>\n

    Below is a good platform starting point. With something like this you can DIY, but not have to build the actual platform itself — just the wiring for your pedals. Plus, this pedalboard also includes a soft case making it ideal for gigging.<\/strong><\/p>\n