With so many different types of guitar pedals available today, it can feel overwhelming when you decide to get your first guitar pedal. Not knowing the basics of guitar pedals can not only cause you headaches but can give you a bad tone.
In this short guide, I’ll explain everything you need to know to get started with your first guitar pedals. You’ll learn how to plug in your first guitar pedals, use the correct power supplies to avoid damaging your pedals, and different ways you can use your pedals.
When you buy your first pedal, your first job is to correctly plug it into your guitar and amp. This is incredibly easy but requires a few things. Normally, we plug our guitars directly into the input jack on the amp. When we add a guitar pedal to the rig, we need to change the way we plug in our guitars.
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You need two guitar cables for each pedal you buy. One cable to plug into the input of the pedal and another cable to plug into the output of the pedal. Most pedals will label the input and output jacks, but the standard is for the input to be on the right side of the pedal and the output on the left side. If you only have one pedal, you’ll only need two cables for your entire rig.
Tip: learn all about guitar cables and other types of cables you’ll encounter as a guitarist here. Includes recommendations on guitar cables and patch cables.
Plug your guitar into the ‘input’ jack of your pedal. Then plug the other cable into the output jack of the pedal. This cable then connects to the input on your guitar amp. Most amps have the guitar input on the front, while others have the input on the top or back.
Design Lessons From Guitar Pedals
I recommend you buy long cables for both the input and output cables for the pedals (eg: minimum 10ft / 3m). Longer cables mean you can position your pedal away from your amp if you want. For example, if you plan on performing on stage, you can have your pedal at the front of the stage while your amp is at the back of the stage. It doesn’t hurt to have an extra long cable spare just in case you want a bit more room to move.
If you have more than one guitar pedal, you’ll need more cables. For example, if you have two guitar pedals, you’ll need three cables: one to connect the guitar, one to connect the two pedals together, then a third cable to connect to the amp.
When connecting guitarpedals together, you can buy something called ‘patch cables’. Patch cables are very short cables designed to connect pedals together. These short cables keep your pedalboard nice and tidy. The more pedals you buy, the more important it is to keep your pedalboard tidy. Check out recommendations for patch cables here.
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As you can see in the above image, you need three cables to connect two pedals to your rig. Two long cables, and one short patch cable in the middle to connect the two pedals together. If you ever plan on adding another pedal to your rig, you simply need to buy another patch cable for each additional pedal (they usually come in packs of 4-6 cables).
Most pedals will have one input and one output. These pedals are mono and most guitar rigs run in mono. But some pedals can be run in either mono or stereo. The Flashback Delay pedal shown below has four jacks:
There are two inputs on the right side of the pedal labeled ‘Mono’ and ‘Stereo’. If you plugged this pedal into a normal mono rig, you would simply plug one cable into the Mono input, then another cable into the Mono output. But if you wanted to run a stereo rig, you would plug either one or two inputs in (depending on your other pedals) and two output cables.
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What is a stereo guitar rig? A stereo rig is when you use a stereo guitar amp or two amps at the same time. At some point, your guitar signal is split into two paths. You can run the two signals into stereo guitar pedals or into two amps to mix together two different amp sounds. The key point with a stereo rig is you need either a stereo amp or two amps.
If you’re just starting out with pedals, keep things simple and run your pedals in mono. Stereo pedals work perfectly fine in normal guitar rigs. In the future, you may decide to experiment with stereo rigs and these pedals can be very handy.
After you plug your pedals into your guitar and your amp, you should think about how you will power your pedals. There are two ways guitar pedals receive power. Almost all guitar pedals accept external power from a power supply. Some pedals use an internal battery to power the pedal. A lot of pedals offer both options. Let’s look at each option so you know what to expect from any pedal you might buy.
Setting Up Your Effect Signal Chain
If you want a complete guide on how to power your pedals and the different options available to you, read this guide.
Many guitar pedals allow you to power the pedal with an internal battery. Most pedals use a single 9V battery but there are some pedals that will require more. Batteries can work well if you only have a couple of pedals and you don’t play all the time. For example, if you perform live regularly, I wouldn’t recommend relying on batteries. Having a battery die in the middle of a song isn’t something you want to deal with.
In the photo above, you can see that the back of the pedal opens up to insert the battery. Some pedals open easily, while others require you to open them with a screwdriver. The above pedal had to be opened with a screwdriver to access the battery compartment.
Build A Power Supply For Your Guitar Pedals
A lot of compact pedals are so small they can’t fit a battery, so if you like the idea of using batteries to power your pedals, watch out for these compact pedals. The below pedal is an example of a compact pedal that doesn’t have room for a battery. If you buy compact pedals like these, keep in mind you will only be able to use them with external power (explained below).
If you want to use batteries to power your pedals, you can choose between normal batteries or rechargeable batteries. If you find that normal batteries die too often, rechargeable batteries may suit you better. Check out these rechargeable 9V batteries and charger(link to Amazon for price) for an example of what to get.
In the photo below, you can see a small power jack at the back of the pedal where a power supply can be connected to power the pedal.
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Powering your guitar pedals with an external power supply means you won’t need to worry about batteries dying while you play. The downside is you will need to have another wire running along the floor to connect the pedal to a power supply.
You have two choices when it comes to external power supplies. The first option is to use a power supply that connects directly into your wall socket. This works well if you will only be using one or two guitar pedals. The photo below shows what these power supplies look like:
Many guitar pedals come with these power supplies, so you might not need to buy anything extra to power your pedal. If your pedal doesn’t come with one of these power supplies, you can easily buy one. Make sure the power supply you buy matches the power requirements of the pedal.
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Most pedals require 9V and less than 100mA. You’ll find these details next to the power jack on the pedal. There are three things to look for:
The above pedal requires 9V, has a current draw of 100mA, and uses a negative center pin. The power supply shown earlier is rated to 200mA at 9V with a negative center pin, so it will work.
If you have more than one pedal, you can either use multiple power supplies or chain your pedals together with one power supply. Read through this guide to learn about daisy chaining your pedals together. The below photo shows an example of daisy chaining pedals together with one power supply:
Guide To Setting Up Your Guitar Pedal Board — Noisegate
The other option with external power supplies is to buy a dedicated power supply that can power your entire pedalboard. Even if you only have one or two pedals now, if you plan on building a large pedalboard, these power supplies are incredibly handy. The Voodoo Labs Pedal Power 2 Plus(as shown below) is the most popular option and it can be found on many famous guitarists’ pedalboards.
These power supplies allow you to connect many pedals to the one power supply. As some pedals have different power requirements, you’re able to match the pedal’s needs with the correct power supply.
If you’re considering buying your first guitar pedal, you might be
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