Manufacturers

Abasi Concepts is the gear company founded by Animals as Leaders guitarist Tosin Abasi, best known for extended-range guitars built for progressive and technical playing. Their small guitar pedal lineup extends that same design philosophy — the Pathos distortion, co-designed with Brian Wampler, and the Micro-Aggressor compressor were both built to complement extended-range instruments with organic, amp-like dynamics rather than sterile, transparent processing.

Aguilar Amplification is a New York-based company best known for its bass amps, cabinets, and pickups, alongside a dedicated line of bass-focused effects pedals. Their stompbox lineup — including the Tone Hammer preamp, Octamizer octave pedal, and Agro overdrive — is built specifically around low-end tone shaping, preserving clarity and punch where many general-purpose effects lose bass definition.

Beetronics FX is a Los Angeles-based boutique pedal builder known for hand-painted, bee-themed enclosures and playful, insect-named effects — from fuzz and overdrive to chorus, phaser, and delay. Many of their circuits are built with unconventional multi-mode footswitching and vivid, colorful graphics that make each pedal as visually distinctive as it sounds.

Behringer is a German audio equipment company known for producing affordable clones of classic gear. Their effects pedals are entry-level alternatives to more expensive originals.

Boss is the world's leading manufacturer of guitar effects pedals, producing durable, reliable stompboxes since 1976. A division of Roland Corporation, Boss pedals are used by millions of guitarists worldwide, from beginners to touring professionals.

Budda Amplification was a California-based boutique amp and pedal maker known for warm, vintage-flavored tones. Acquired by PRS Guitars in 2010.

Catalinbread is a boutique guitar effects company based in Portland, Oregon, founded in 2003 by Nicholas Harris. Known for their amp-in-a-box designs and deep vintage recreation circuits, Catalinbread pedals are handmade and celebrated for capturing the authentic character of classic amplifiers and vintage gear. Their lineup spans overdrives, delays, reverbs, fuzzes, and modulation effects.

Chase Bliss Audio is a Minneapolis-based boutique effects company founded by Joel Korte. Known for pedals that combine analog circuits with digital control — every knob and switch is controlled by a microprocessor, enabling presets, MIDI, and features impossible in purely analog designs. Their pedals are celebrated for their depth, musicality, and beautiful industrial design.

DigiTech is an American manufacturer of guitar effects pedals and processors. Best known for the Whammy pitch-shifting pedal, used by artists including Tom Morello and Jack White.

DOD Electronics is an American effects pedal brand founded in Salt Lake City in 1975, now part of the DigiTech/Harman family. Renowned for classic analog circuits like the 250 Overdrive Preamp, Phasor 201, and Bifet Boost, DOD's modern lineup blends faithful reissues of those originals with a new Designer Series of collaborations (Boneshaker with Black Arts Toneworks, Looking Glass with Shoe Pedals, Wah-ocTo-Fuzz with Morley) and refreshed classics like the Gonkulator ring modulator and Badder Monkey overdrive.

Dreadbox is a Greek electronics company based in Athens, best known for analog synthesizers like the Erebus and the Polyend-collaboration Medusa. Their smaller guitar pedal lineup carries the same analog, synth-inspired design philosophy into stompbox form — modulation, filter, and dynamics pedals built around the same VCA, OTA, and BBD circuitry found in their synths, and often just as usable on synths and drum machines as on guitar.

DSM & Humboldt Electronics is a boutique pedal company best known for the Simplifier series — 'zero-watt' amp-in-a-pedal designs that recreate a full preamp, power-amp, and cabinet signal chain in stompbox form, including a Dumble-inspired amp modeler built after studying an original 1970s Dumble Overdrive Special in Tokyo. Their catalog also spans studio-grade compression, high-gain distortion, and dedicated bass preamp/DI pedals.

Jim Dunlop Manufacturing is an American musical accessories and effects company best known for Cry Baby wah pedals, Dunlop picks, and the MXR and Way Huge brands.

EarthQuaker Devices (EQD) is an Akron, Ohio-based boutique pedal company known for their creative, often unconventional effects. Every pedal is hand-built in the USA and they are celebrated for pushing the boundaries of what guitar effects can do.

Electro-Harmonix (EHX) is a New York-based effects company renowned for their creative, often experimental approach to tone shaping. From the Big Muff Pi to the POG, EHX pedals have shaped the sound of rock, indie, and experimental music for over 50 years.

Empress Effects is a Canadian boutique pedal company based in Ottawa, known for sophisticated, deeply programmable effects like the Reverb, Zoia, and Nebulus.

Ernie Ball is an American manufacturer of guitar strings and accessories. Their volume pedals — used by legendary players from Steve Cropper to Eddie Van Halen — are the industry standard for on-stage volume control, pan effects, and expression pedal applications.

Eventide is a pioneering audio technology company founded in 1971 in Little Ferry, New Jersey, renowned for inventing the harmonizer and shaping the sound of studio and stage effects for over five decades. Their stompbox lineup — from the H9 and H90 multi-effects units to the dot9 series and classic Factor pedals — is prized by professional guitarists for studio-quality algorithms, deep MIDI/software control, and boundary-pushing pitch, delay, modulation, and reverb effects.

Fender is one of the world's most iconic guitar manufacturers, responsible for the Stratocaster, Telecaster, and Precision Bass. Their effects pedal lineup brings Fender's legendary tone shaping to the pedalboard.

Fulltone is a Los Angeles-based boutique effects company founded by Michael Fuller. Known for their meticulous handcrafted construction and musical designs, Fulltone pedals like the OCD overdrive have become modern classics.

Ibanez is a Japanese musical instrument manufacturer best known for their guitars, but their Tube Screamer — introduced in 1979 — is one of the most celebrated and widely cloned overdrive pedals in history, used by Stevie Ray Vaughan and countless others.

IK Multimedia is an Italian music technology company best known for the AmpliTube guitar amp/effects software and, more recently, the TONEX line of AI Machine Modeling hardware pedals. TONEX pedals capture the full tonal fingerprint of real amps, cabs, and stompboxes as playable 'Tone Models,' giving players an entire modeled rig — amp, cab, and effects — in a single stompbox.

JHS Pedals is a Kansas City-based boutique effects company known for their high-gain drives, modified vintage pedals, and educational YouTube content. Founded by Josh Scott, JHS has become one of the most respected voices in the pedal community.

JOYO Audio is a Chinese effects pedal company known for producing affordable clones and originals with surprising quality for the price.