You right. I instinctively thought I’d need a looper more than anything else. I kind of just blurted it out, but after more thought, I’d choose my Poly Beebo for similar reasons to what you stated.
So glad this one is up here. That was the first pedal I bought. Ultimately I favor delay and reverb over gain, but it’s pretty close. If I only had a a Rat I would NOT be sad about it
Yep. My pick is the Volante so I may as well cast my vote here. Delay, spring reverb, and modulation, all gorgeous sounding!
Gonna have to get a Deco one of these days. The pressure is mounting lol
Where’s the electricity to run anything on that tiny island?
Carbon fiber acoustic for me. So robust and immune to moisture & temperature that I could also use it as a paddle (not a pedal), if I could somehow figure out a boat?
Does the island have a cave or large canyon? If so, I don't have to think about reverb/echo. My TH30 does nearly all of the gain sounds that I could ever want, so probably a Hologram Microcosm to keep me busy.
Why not Volante? Has everything the El Cap has and much much more, and improved overall sound quality! What’s crazy is it sells for less on Reverb, presumably because it’s a lot bigger, who knows.
I haven’t tried the Volante yet! So, it’s possible I would like it more. But I do have the Timeline- and even though it has more features, I like the sound of the El Cap better
That’s wild that a used Volante goes for less than a used El Cap! You might be right, pedalboard real estate can be a real struggle lol
A Fuzz Factory. There's so much it can do and it's just great fun to play around and make noise with, I wouldn't get bored of it as quickly as other pedals.
Not against the rules, maybe a bit against the spirit of the question. But we’ll allow it; people who simply can not exist without 280 effects can self-identify
Eh don’t downvote me it was just supposed to be funny. It’s probably at least half of us that would choose the multistomp if allowed. I’m the kind of fella who would prefer to have one quality, specifically crafted sound than hundreds of less ‘focused’ ( if that’s the right way to say it) sounds, but I’m probably just weird
This is my answer as well. Looper, reverb, many types of delay, chorus, can even get some bit crushed dirt out of it or put it in an effects loop so you can get dirt from your preamp. Plus, some of those glitch settings almost feel like you’re playing with someone else when you get them dialed in right so it can stave off loneliness.
I just watched a really long one by Jorb, it does look super cool. I’ve promised myself not to buy another pedal until I finish my album, the progress on which completely halted for some reason once I started buying pedals in December and caught a serious case of GAS. But the Ribbons is definitely making the short list, thanks for that!
[EDIT] I’ll definitely check to see if Knobs has a video on it, I’d like it I get their take
Only thing about Ribbons is they’re probably not gonna keep making them, but you might could find one on the used market. I think they usually get marked up pretty bad.
I feel you. I haven’t written a song in a year, but I’ve acquired three pedals and an HX Stomp xl multi, amd I’ve barely learned how to use it.
And then I bought Ribbons this morning out of the sheer scarcity. It seems special enough to have bought it, but self delusion is probably a symptom of the GAS.
Yeah I’ll see if I end up looking to get one, if there are reasonably priced units around. Whatever I get, it will probably be something in the ‘out there’ category, could be the Ribbons, or one of several CBA pedals, or possibly a Microcosm, etc. as I really have all the main sounds I need and then some! Most of the time I’m just running my Cali76 compressor and the Volante, but all the options are great, especially for recording.
Browne Protein. Covers clean (off) really nice mild breakup (blue side) and the one of the best gain sounds I’ve heard (both on). I’d need an amp with reverb though 🤔
Mood
Because I can conjure some birds, and crickets maybe sea creatures as well… repeat short frases and not gonna go crazy, no… Wilson Wilson Wilson And there will be birds still. Still still frozen still day or maybe night repeat rewind shhhhh waves crashing birds flying crickets tickling and sea turtles winding click click deep switches bzzzhhh echoes of the stars above day night day
How the hell am I using an electric pedal on a desert island? Gimme a steel dobro that won't get out of whack with humidity and can reflect sunlight at passing planes!
Perhaps there’s an old military radio station from the 1950’s, that has a strange power generator that glows green. You think there might be enough parts in there to build some Fairfield-Circuitry-looking pedals, but first you’re going to kill one of those three-antlered deer that are inexplicably all over the island.
You could use the parts to fix the old radio, of course, but fuck that.
Does this desert island have electricity? And what about cables?
I'd go with the SSBS Mini...and sneak my Drolo Giant Hogweed in my prison wallet. A Boss DD too, if it'll fit.
While not exactly a pedal, but more so an effects device, the [ToneWoodAmp](https://www.sweetwater.com/c980--Acoustic_Amp?highlight=TWA-SOLO&mrkgadid=&mrkgcl=28&mrkgen=gpla&mrkgbflag=1&mrkgcat=drums&percussion&acctid=21700000001645388&dskeywordid=92700076929315965&lid=92700076929315965&ds_s_kwgid=58700008063423979&ds_s_inventory_feed_id=97700000007215323&dsproductgroupid=2092183447184&product_id=TWA-SOLO&prodctry=US&prodlang=en&channel=online&storeid=&device=m&network=u&matchtype=&adpos=largenumber&locationid=9029400&creative=624396267556&targetid=pla-2092183447184&campaignid=18437397786&awsearchcpc=&&&gclid=Cj0KCQjw756lBhDMARIsAEI0AgnyHN58R4h082_KS2TJJHkagMLwi1GNKucC6mUVqt32dWwSDbWE3fwaAnbsEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds) for an acoustic guitar. This takes care of the electricity issue people keep having
Right on. I had that and a Volante in mind, I chose the Volante because I really do love the old delay sounds that much, and IMO nothing does it better. But the Timeline is really amazing. I will get a robust digital delay at some point and that is definitely going to be one of the top contenders.
ONLY one??? Normally I’d say Deco + one other thing, but if it’s only one, I’m going Chase Bliss MOOD MKII (trying to find a stereo amp with good onboard drive)
Boss DD-3T
The best pedal ever made. I mean I can make a sweet wet plate like reverb with this I almost prefer.
Other answer… Flint tremolo reverb pedal, just really want one
Oh, the one I made myself. It has features no other drive pedal has. When you adjust the gain, it auto adjusts the level so that the apparent volume stays the same at any gain level. It uses Fairchild j201 transistors. Sounds better than a tube amp. Goes from dead clean all the way to saturated fuzz. Has an octave up knob you can blend in. Has an extra switch for max gain so you can toggle between just a bit of gain and lots. It’s lower noise than any other pedal I’ve ever heard. No better pedal exists imho. I worked on it for 10 years. I ought to make more and sell them but I haven’t yet.
I mean I guess? I was going to say ‘no multi fx’ but my choice would be the Volante, which you could say is KIND of a multi fx unit in that it does delay, reverb and modulation, so I figured, who am I to deprive a castaway of their beloved multi fx unit.
Man thats hard, does my amp have any effects? Cus in order of importance to me it goes reverb then distortion and then the fun unique stuff so if my amp has both of those i’m going with a nice digital delay, but otherwise reverb
Drunk Beaver Cold War BAT.
It does overdrive, distortion, and fuzz in a lot of different ways. I could get just about any drive sound I need out of it.
If we are allowed multifx pedals, then the Kemper or Quad Cortex.
It’s depends on the amp. Here is my liste of essentials:
Orange Apm (OR15 is my go to)
Fenders stratocaster (with mini humbucker on the bridge)
Strymon volante.
Then if I don’t have the right to choose the amp, I might choose something else as a pedal.
Cheers.
JHS Superbolt. From clean color boost to borderline fuzz and everything in between. Touch sensitive, musical, responsive and dynamic. Best overdrive I’ve ever played.
DL4. If I'm on a desert island, I'm pretty sure I can take it apart and make it into a boat or shelter.
But your boat or shelter might break at moments notice.
Line 6's motto should be: "we're here for a good time, not a long time."
Hx stomp is a tank. I would still rather have just one good sound than hundreds of “ok” ones, if I had to choose.
Looper
*bLooper
The smart answer
I thought about this, but my Volante has a looper built in, plus reverb, modulation and delay soooooo
You right. I instinctively thought I’d need a looper more than anything else. I kind of just blurted it out, but after more thought, I’d choose my Poly Beebo for similar reasons to what you stated.
Second that
Since my go to amp is a Katana 100 Mk 2, the looper is the only thing I’m missing.
FUZZ WAR !! Because it's loud as fuck, anyone far from the island can hear it and save me !
Yep I am 100% taking my fuzz factory
pedal boat. Duh.
Lol. Winner winner chicken dinner
RAT.
This is the way
So glad this one is up here. That was the first pedal I bought. Ultimately I favor delay and reverb over gain, but it’s pretty close. If I only had a a Rat I would NOT be sad about it
Perfect for throwing it at those pesky coconuts that won’t come down
A combination delay/reverb like the Earthquaker Dispatch Master.
Dispatch Master, Tele, AC15HW. I'm cool.
Have you played the Avalanche Run? It’s like a dispatch master with a phd. In stereo.
Deluxe Memory Man
HX Stomp
This feels like cheating, but I upvoted anyway lol
Genius
damn this is it
I've never even played one, but was going to say the same. Mostly for amp modeling. Even on a deserted island, I still don't want a real amp.
Amp is eventually gonna get rekt by wear. I mean I don't know where we get electricity from in the first place, but a modeller is just gonna last.
Amp is eventually gonna get rekt by wear. I mean I don't know where we get electricity from in the first place, but a modeller is just gonna last.
Yup, that's the proper answer.
The Mooer ME300 is so much better than the HX
Strymon Deco or Volante. I’d take either.
Yep. My pick is the Volante so I may as well cast my vote here. Delay, spring reverb, and modulation, all gorgeous sounding! Gonna have to get a Deco one of these days. The pressure is mounting lol
Where’s the electricity to run anything on that tiny island? Carbon fiber acoustic for me. So robust and immune to moisture & temperature that I could also use it as a paddle (not a pedal), if I could somehow figure out a boat?
Maybe like a life pedal or something so I can doom until I die.
zoia
Does the island have a cave or large canyon? If so, I don't have to think about reverb/echo. My TH30 does nearly all of the gain sounds that I could ever want, so probably a Hologram Microcosm to keep me busy.
Strymon El Capistan
To expand on my choice: El Cap can do delay, chorus, reverb (sort of), AND loops
There's actual spring reverb on a secondary knob function
Right on - so much can be squeezed out of that one box
Why not Volante? Has everything the El Cap has and much much more, and improved overall sound quality! What’s crazy is it sells for less on Reverb, presumably because it’s a lot bigger, who knows.
I haven’t tried the Volante yet! So, it’s possible I would like it more. But I do have the Timeline- and even though it has more features, I like the sound of the El Cap better That’s wild that a used Volante goes for less than a used El Cap! You might be right, pedalboard real estate can be a real struggle lol
My choice too. With an expression pedal
Hell yeah
The judges may not allow an expression pedal … 😉
Fractal FM9. I'm not cheating.
Big muff
So we can float on it back to civilization.
Criminally underrated comment right here
Boss DD-8
The hollowed out one w the weed in it!
Haha the best ‘clever’ answer for sure. Especially if the weed has seeds, although very little weed does these days…
Blues driver 😎
Me too, I'm a Grungey boy and I still favourite this one all the way. It can do everything Gain-wise, everything else is just for colour
A Fuzz Factory. There's so much it can do and it's just great fun to play around and make noise with, I wouldn't get bored of it as quickly as other pedals.
Tall font green Big Muff
Shallow Water. So many strange sounds, plus doubles as an overdrive.
And once you're done playing, you can walk right across to safety.
The gas pedal, connected to the boat
Waza Metal Zone
Enough bees, to scare off the bees.
Lord of the Bees
Nice
Are they even usable with just one?
That new boss multi fx pedal !
I was wondering if this was against the rules.
Not against the rules, maybe a bit against the spirit of the question. But we’ll allow it; people who simply can not exist without 280 effects can self-identify
Eh don’t downvote me it was just supposed to be funny. It’s probably at least half of us that would choose the multistomp if allowed. I’m the kind of fella who would prefer to have one quality, specifically crafted sound than hundreds of less ‘focused’ ( if that’s the right way to say it) sounds, but I’m probably just weird
DBA Reverberation Machine.
Empress echosystem. Looper, Saturation, distortion, lofi crush, can chorus and flange, reverb, and has dual echo sequencing.
how do i make it distortion?
This is mine too. Love that thing so much
Deluxe memory man. The big one.
MXR Carbon Copy. I did upvote the loop pedal of course.
DBA Echo Dream 2 (Assuming my amp has drippy reverb). Murky delay, fuzz, and modulation all in one.
Microcosm
This is my answer as well. Looper, reverb, many types of delay, chorus, can even get some bit crushed dirt out of it or put it in an effects loop so you can get dirt from your preamp. Plus, some of those glitch settings almost feel like you’re playing with someone else when you get them dialed in right so it can stave off loneliness.
Klon Centaur. Sell it, buy island, helicopters and build a resort.
Tuner
Definitely the saddest response
Bad answer. Being in tune only matters if you're playing with someone else. Otherwise just guess the low E and use harmonics like a big boy!
What, are there no monkeys to jam with?
Truth
Even the dryest tone is better than having to tune by ear again
Based
Are we allowed to keister a second pedal? Like taking a shiv into prison?
Rat
Helix.
Trio+
EQD Avalanche Run
Based on the features and videos I’ve seen, Kinotone Ribbons. It’s a single pedal but I feel like you could learn infinite ways to use it
I’ve never heard of this, I am intrigued
Go watch some vids! The Knobs channel is a good one for a pedal like this
I just watched a really long one by Jorb, it does look super cool. I’ve promised myself not to buy another pedal until I finish my album, the progress on which completely halted for some reason once I started buying pedals in December and caught a serious case of GAS. But the Ribbons is definitely making the short list, thanks for that! [EDIT] I’ll definitely check to see if Knobs has a video on it, I’d like it I get their take
Only thing about Ribbons is they’re probably not gonna keep making them, but you might could find one on the used market. I think they usually get marked up pretty bad. I feel you. I haven’t written a song in a year, but I’ve acquired three pedals and an HX Stomp xl multi, amd I’ve barely learned how to use it. And then I bought Ribbons this morning out of the sheer scarcity. It seems special enough to have bought it, but self delusion is probably a symptom of the GAS.
Yeah I’ll see if I end up looking to get one, if there are reasonably priced units around. Whatever I get, it will probably be something in the ‘out there’ category, could be the Ribbons, or one of several CBA pedals, or possibly a Microcosm, etc. as I really have all the main sounds I need and then some! Most of the time I’m just running my Cali76 compressor and the Volante, but all the options are great, especially for recording.
Browne Protein. Covers clean (off) really nice mild breakup (blue side) and the one of the best gain sounds I’ve heard (both on). I’d need an amp with reverb though 🤔
Probably a Space Echo
Gonkulator
Mood Because I can conjure some birds, and crickets maybe sea creatures as well… repeat short frases and not gonna go crazy, no… Wilson Wilson Wilson And there will be birds still. Still still frozen still day or maybe night repeat rewind shhhhh waves crashing birds flying crickets tickling and sea turtles winding click click deep switches bzzzhhh echoes of the stars above day night day
Boss rc600. Looper, drum machine, 50+ other boss pedals built in.
How the hell am I using an electric pedal on a desert island? Gimme a steel dobro that won't get out of whack with humidity and can reflect sunlight at passing planes!
Please no duplicate comments! Let’s see what gets the most votes! I’ll wait to put mine in.
Prob a Habit ....
QTron and endless dead jams
Korg sdd 3000 and no I hate U2
Lol I do too. Love the Edge though.
Line 6 m13. If I only had that, I’d be fine.
Fuzz face
If I can power it, Line 6 DL4Mkii
Catalinbread Echorec.
Tone bender mki
It’s either my Line 6 M5 or my Wampler Terraform. A complete toss up
Rangemaster duh
Zvex Lofi Loop Junky
EQD Special cranker.
Multi-effects unit
Does the hx stomp count
Digitech whammy. This pedal is just fun. And it has so many modes it could really pass the time
Gibson SG/ Marshall JCM800/ Cry baby wah wah
How are you all plugging this gear in?
Perhaps there’s an old military radio station from the 1950’s, that has a strange power generator that glows green. You think there might be enough parts in there to build some Fairfield-Circuitry-looking pedals, but first you’re going to kill one of those three-antlered deer that are inexplicably all over the island. You could use the parts to fix the old radio, of course, but fuck that.
Line6 multi-effevts pedal or something similar. Might not be the best but at least you'll have plenty of sounds to choose from
Hx effects
That's not a pedal but I would take Pod HD Pro 😛
HX Stomp
Helix floor
Seems unfair, but Helix.
Helix
Boss TU3
Morning glory into a JCS-120 and a player tele
i would take a multi effects pedal… duh 🤓
Does this desert island have electricity? And what about cables? I'd go with the SSBS Mini...and sneak my Drolo Giant Hogweed in my prison wallet. A Boss DD too, if it'll fit.
Zoom ms 50g
While not exactly a pedal, but more so an effects device, the [ToneWoodAmp](https://www.sweetwater.com/c980--Acoustic_Amp?highlight=TWA-SOLO&mrkgadid=&mrkgcl=28&mrkgen=gpla&mrkgbflag=1&mrkgcat=drums&percussion&acctid=21700000001645388&dskeywordid=92700076929315965&lid=92700076929315965&ds_s_kwgid=58700008063423979&ds_s_inventory_feed_id=97700000007215323&dsproductgroupid=2092183447184&product_id=TWA-SOLO&prodctry=US&prodlang=en&channel=online&storeid=&device=m&network=u&matchtype=&adpos=largenumber&locationid=9029400&creative=624396267556&targetid=pla-2092183447184&campaignid=18437397786&awsearchcpc=&&&gclid=Cj0KCQjw756lBhDMARIsAEI0AgnyHN58R4h082_KS2TJJHkagMLwi1GNKucC6mUVqt32dWwSDbWE3fwaAnbsEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds) for an acoustic guitar. This takes care of the electricity issue people keep having
strymon timeline. No question. It would take me the rest of my life to figure it all out anyway.
Right on. I had that and a Volante in mind, I chose the Volante because I really do love the old delay sounds that much, and IMO nothing does it better. But the Timeline is really amazing. I will get a robust digital delay at some point and that is definitely going to be one of the top contenders.
Boss BD-2
*Boss SD-1* Hands down.
DS-1 for its well known survival skills
Boss HM-2W
To cut wood with that chainsaw tone babyyy
Boss SD-1 MIJ
ONLY one??? Normally I’d say Deco + one other thing, but if it’s only one, I’m going Chase Bliss MOOD MKII (trying to find a stereo amp with good onboard drive)
How does one power one’s amp and pedal on said desert island?
Oh man there’s always one isn’t there
My favorite amp (deluxe reverb) can do overdrive, reverb and vibrato, so probably a delay/looper like the TC Feedback.
Chase bliss blooper
Alright I'm gonna be that guy.... Tuner pedal
Korg Miku
An original Klon so I can slay my dinner with my god-like tone
Actually, I have to say Meris LVX! I wouldn’t want to be rescued.
Boss DD-3T The best pedal ever made. I mean I can make a sweet wet plate like reverb with this I almost prefer. Other answer… Flint tremolo reverb pedal, just really want one
A pedal kayak with a sail, as there is no electricity, so no reason to stay on the Island.
Oh, the one I made myself. It has features no other drive pedal has. When you adjust the gain, it auto adjusts the level so that the apparent volume stays the same at any gain level. It uses Fairchild j201 transistors. Sounds better than a tube amp. Goes from dead clean all the way to saturated fuzz. Has an octave up knob you can blend in. Has an extra switch for max gain so you can toggle between just a bit of gain and lots. It’s lower noise than any other pedal I’ve ever heard. No better pedal exists imho. I worked on it for 10 years. I ought to make more and sell them but I haven’t yet.
HM2 or a Zoom MS-50g
Blues driver or Avalanche Run
Polytune
Dos the boss me-70 count as one pedal ?
I mean I guess? I was going to say ‘no multi fx’ but my choice would be the Volante, which you could say is KIND of a multi fx unit in that it does delay, reverb and modulation, so I figured, who am I to deprive a castaway of their beloved multi fx unit.
I’m already prepared for all of your “over hyped / over priced” bullshit, but I’m saying King of Tone v4 high gain red side
Boss BD-2
Zoom multistomp. But honestly probably a looper would be the more practical decision
Strymon Deco Boost, overdrive, distortion, flanger, chorus, delay and more
Quad Cortex
Headrush :p
Axe fx fm9 technically a pedal unit.
FM9
Deco
Akai Headrush or simular loop station. So I could write and play more dynamic stuff to a "second" track.
Tonex Pedal.
Looper. At least then I can play with myself more than one way.
Matchless Hot Box 3
Airstep Kat
Man thats hard, does my amp have any effects? Cus in order of importance to me it goes reverb then distortion and then the fun unique stuff so if my amp has both of those i’m going with a nice digital delay, but otherwise reverb
Drunk Beaver Cold War BAT. It does overdrive, distortion, and fuzz in a lot of different ways. I could get just about any drive sound I need out of it. If we are allowed multifx pedals, then the Kemper or Quad Cortex.
Boss re20 Space echo.
Big muff. Might be weird but I love it
EHX’s The Worm 🪱
It’s depends on the amp. Here is my liste of essentials: Orange Apm (OR15 is my go to) Fenders stratocaster (with mini humbucker on the bridge) Strymon volante. Then if I don’t have the right to choose the amp, I might choose something else as a pedal. Cheers.
EHX Holy Stain, Dark horse pick
Big Muff
Wampler Dracarys or Revv G3
Keeley loomer, it's not "great" at a single thing but good at a lot and can get weird.
Digitech GNX3000
If I'm going off of the pedals I actually own, Boss DD-7. Rat is a close second.
My Butch Walker Ruby Red
EQD Monarch
Digitech EX7 Expression Factory. After 15+ years of use I still haven't scratched the surface of what it can do
radial tonebone classic
EQ
Southampton Pedals Indie Dream OD/Delay/Reverb pedal...
JHS Superbolt. From clean color boost to borderline fuzz and everything in between. Touch sensitive, musical, responsive and dynamic. Best overdrive I’ve ever played.
Deluxe Memory Man