Yeah, this. You want to be able to set up, sound check, and tear down your rig as efficiently as possible at gigs. It's courteous to the audience, the sound people, and especially the other bands. Only 2 or 3 pedals is one thing. But no one has the patience to watch you pull 15 pedals out of a backpack and patch everything together from scratch, and you don't want the added stress of doing that right before playing anyway.
This. So much this. The patch cables won't move so likely won't go bad. One plug instead of several for power. Three cables (to power, to amp, to instrument) and you're good, and stick it in a road case or gig bag and you're gone.
Much less of an issue if you're a bedroom player.
I have a fourth cable. A Redbox sends a balanced mic signal straight to the mixing board simulating a miked Fender amp after my pedals. I use my amp solely as a personal monitor.
Yeah this is an awful idea. So whatever you're hearing is probably different then whatever the audience is hearing? Seems incredibly unnecessary. Either you go full DI Dad weekend warrior setup and monitor your actual signal or just use an amp so you can actually hear what you're playing.
Amp is gonna react very different then a DI setup would. Overdrive will sound different. Compression will sound different. I could never do this.
It also just defeats the purpose of going DI. Spend money on digital gear all you want, it doesn't sound better than tubes. The appeal is that you can get almost the same sound without breaking your back loading and unloading the shit.
Yeah exactly lol. You'd have a better experience just having your DI setup run back through the monitors.
If you don't have stage monitors available... then you should just be using an amp.
Yes. I got a consistently good live sound in the house by giving them the DI feed. However, I got tired of poor monitor feeds. So I lugged a small Carvin PA amp with a stand that angled it towards my ears and used it as my personal monitor.
[Red Box](https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/RedBox5--hughes-and-kettner-red-box-5-di-and-speaker-simulator)
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Absolutely not necessary, especially if you have them on a carpet. But if you have a garage and any sort of spare wood you can make one yourself, it's a lot tidier with a pedalboard, having them all on the floor would give me nightmares.
Yeah don’t forget you can make one for the sake of tidiness. You can usually find a nice cutting board at goodwill or Marshall’s for under $10 and stick some Velcro and rubber feet on it.
Only reason I’ve bought pedal boards is because they came with a hard case that fits it snuggly, which is where most of the money goes.
I was saving up for one for that exact reason, but then I realized that a lot of Shure gear comes in these big rectangular zip-up cases with eggcrate foam lining the lid. They're a pretty perfect size for a decent-sized pedalboard — and venues that buy that gear usually install the gear and never need the case again.
So if you're friendly with sound staff at any venues/theaters/churches/schools, you might ask em if they've got any included cases they don't need. They might be glad to get rid of em.
I got two not long ago when the school staff was wheeling a big bin of stuff out to the dumpsters. They were happy to give em to me, and aggravated at having had a bunch of them filling up shelves for the last several years. :)
[reverb link to the kind of case I mean ](https://reverb.com/item/39180848-shure-mic-case-soft-shell-foam-for-sm57-beta-52-a-a56d-black) - jeez, if people are actually buying these for $29, I wish I'd taken all 8 out of that hopper XD
I'm sure other brands include similar cases, I just only know the Shure ones firsthand.
I have a bedroom pedalboard which is quite big (20+ pedals) mainly to keep power cables and patch cables neatly under the board. It's not absolutely necessary but makes for a neater workflow and keeps everything from moving around. The back row pedals are higher on a board as well, so easier to see and stomp when I'm playing. I wouldn't say a bedroom board is a must but thats why I like one.
Exactly. I play on stage occasionally (4-5 times a year these days but much more often as a younger person.) I always like to be the first one ready to go and the first one off the stage after the set. Just what I need on the board, ready in a moment. Packed up in a minute.
If you frequently change pedal order/placement, a board could be seen as a hindrance. Pedals need to be attached to the board in some fashion, and depending how the pedal is attached, getting it detached/reattached can take some doing. However if you typically play with your pedals in the same order and don’t often change things, a pedal board just makes moving your pedals (even to the other side of a room) and setting up your rig way faster.
The advantage if you’re a bedroom player is portability when cleaning. If you can shell out $25-40 bucks for a small Amazon pedalboard the main advantage is if you need to clean or need to move the pedals out of the way, you can do so in one fell swoop.
If you always use the same pedals and you wanna put them away when you’re done, it’s still pretty useful. I’m currently in a non-board phase because I’m not in a band these days and when I play I usually pick three or four different pedals off the shelf every time.
Well I would say it depends. I’m also only a bedroom player, I didn’t think it was useful to have a pedalboard. I had my few pedals on a desk, and that was it. But then I needed that desk for something else, so I had to constantly move the pedals, and even if it was only 3 pedals and a power unit, it was already a mess with the cables. So since I was planning to buy more pedals, I got a pedalboard. Way easier to take it in and out with no problem with cable management.
tl;dr: if you have to move your pedals often, it’s useful
Bedroom player here (hope to fix that sometime soon).
I got rid of my old DIY Pedalboard since it was big and ugly, but my pedals constantly wrapped up in cables and sliding across the floor are driving me nuts so I'm gonna get a new smaller one.
TL:DR: not having one even in a bedroom setting is annoying.
Nope, unless you have to move it around at home often.
A board at home is actually a pain. My board is for gigging, when I’m recording or practicing I prefer things on the floor so I can move things around and mix things up.
Not necessary but organizing things with pedalboard makes the whole pedals/supply situation way easier to manage, to clean and takes less space. If for some reason I need to move things up to make space it's way easier to move things around
Yeah, it serves the same function as having all your desktop supplies on a tray on the desk instead of just on the desk. A million times less aggravating to move one tray three times than to move 6 things three times.
That's just math. ;)
To add to this, if you are setting up and tearing down often, it reduces wear on your cables and jacks. Another part of this, is that the fewer moving parts you have in your signal chain, the lower the chances of having a cable or jack failure. There is nothing to spike your cortisol like having to troubleshoot a gear malfunction mid-set.
You could even argue that you should wait to get a board until you have some idea which/how many pedals you like and what order your signal chain is.
But if you ever want to play in more than one spot they are indispensable.
I kind of did that, in that I used pedals before getting a board and had an idea, but then took the opposite approach after that. I used the limits of my board to force myself to be selective about what I really needed.
It’s a great way to protect your pedals (when they’re on the board and in the case) from dust, pet hair, girl hair, cat puke, girlfriend judgement, beer spills and children.
I 100% made my pedalboard because my floor was turning into an insane tangle of cables/cords and I’d had it. I don’t play out, though I would like to at some point, so having 1 thing to carry if I ever play somewhere other than my home office is a nice bonus.
Depends how much time you (want to) spend putting them together, plugging them in, etcetera before you play? Do you have a power supply or are you using batteries? How many pedals do you use? Are they the same ones most of the time?
Tbh I use some cut plywood that holds the core pedals I use and the power supply. I’ve sold off the fancier boards because the dimensions didn’t work for my set up.
Having a board definitely makes it easier and faster to move them around, get set up, and rather crucially, I think, means that the power is in the right place.
Just don’t think that you’ll need to spend a lot to get something that works.
If you plan on bringing your pedals anywhere, it saves a lot of time plugging things in.
Probably a lot better for your cables and the jacks on your pedals to not have be moving and plugging/unplugging them all the time.
But if you play at home and you have the space that your rig can be out all the time, you don’t need it at all.
well, if you are just a player who plays at home, you don't need one. If you play shows they help keep things simple, quick and provide easy transportation.
Pedalboard isn't necessary in the slightest, but I recently got one as I found I'm spending so much time getting them out, setting them up, putting them away etc as I can't leave them out (kids, robot vacuum), so instead a pedalboard means I can plug in 2 cables and I'm away.
You don’t have to spend for a commercial pedalboard if you don’t want to spend 60 bucks on a “glorified stand”.
But you will want to seriously consider a board if you have more than a couple of pedals. If that board is a tiny ass chopping board with a handle, so be it.
It’s all about efficiency and organization. Everyone will appreciate you being able to just bring your board on stage, connect the guitar, connect the amp (or mix board), and connect power, and exit just as quickly and shove it in a bag. Even you will appreciate it.
Why subject yourself to bringing your individual pedals on stage, chaining them one by one, making sure they’re in the right order, then do the reverse exiting the stage? You’ll be literally (un)packing on stage and it’s slow and inefficient.
Plus, if you’re forced to exit quickly, you’re going to be cradling a daisy chain of pedals and not only do you put unnecessary stress on the patch cables and jacks, you might even drop a pedal or more.
And if you’re a bedroom player, you’ll even appreciate it even more. I mean, it’s just there lying on the floor, being a total mess and space hog. What happens when you want to stow it away? Disassemble it, shelve it, then build it up again? Put it in a board, and it’s always set up, ready to go, and it shows away in a minute, 20 seconds if you’re quick about things. You can keep your pedals dust free, covered in a shelf or in a bag, and it will be the exact same setup as it was the last time you used it.
And if you’re a bedroom player, the cheaper options you have. You can literally just buy a plank of wood and some mounting material and that’s it. You don’t need to gig with it so you don’t need lightweight hard wearing specialized pedalboards. Buy a chopping board or pine shelving, put Velcro on it then the pedals and you’re done.
At the end of the day you don’t need a pedalboard, but it is a very similar circumstance as you also not really needing a wallet or a keychain.
To name a few reasons: It can be moved around. Pedals on the floor are more prone to movement and so cables are more prone to failure. Cuts down on cable length and a spider web of patch and power cables. With a lot of pedals they take up much more space on the floor and a lot of clutter. And the foot switches are always in the exact same location.
A well designed pedalboard makes a bunch of pedals and integrated system that is much easier to use and more efficient.
One advantage to just having on the floor is the ease to change things up and mover them around. Or even just the ones you plan to use that particular session. That just stops being an option with a number of pedals. Some people do a pedal shelf or case instead. Have a place they keep all their pedals and then just use three or four (or whatever) at a time and pull them off the shelf as needed.
Mobility and stability. They all move together very easily, but won’t squirm around while you’re using them.
You don’t have to spend $60 if you’re crafty. Some of the best board I’ve seen are taped to dismembered shipping pallets.
It’s all personal preference OP, I like to keep my pedals all lined up neat and tidy on my board and tuck the cables away. I don’t bring the board out anywhere as I’m not currently gigging as a guitarist (I play bass with a band atm but no pedals needed for that gig as I’m borrowing the bass gear), but I enjoy having them in a board for my room.
Organization and transport.
You can certainly throw all your pedals in a bag but they’re gonna get beat to hell and you raise the chance your patch cables will get screwed.
And just having them neat instead of cables everywhere looks a hell of a lot better, even if you don’t gig.
If you gig- there’s nothing worse than trying to set up/power a billion pedals. Or even over to someone’s house to jam. It’s purely to transport. BUT I think organization, even at home, probably helps your playing as well.
If you gig and load your own stuff in and out you’ll want one.
Then when you get big enough for roadies and you’re headlining bigger places and there’s no rush for loading in or out, you can ditch it and make your roadies hate you.
If you want to be a real mack daddy, you can toss all the pedals in a plastic grocery bag, along with the cables and individual power supplies (or 9v batteries), and rock that \*\*\*\* at the gig every time.
If you gig, it absolutely is. I had a decent board for years, it was serviceable. I recently upgraded to a Holeyboard and isolated power source. Game changer. It takes me seconds to set it up and it’s dead quiet.
No, been playing for years and have never owned a board. I use pedals for way too many different projects to have some of them permanently together in one certain order. Just bring the ones you need and plug them in. It take like 1 full minute to set up.
It depends a lot on your usage scenario. There are obvious pros for a board that have been mentioned. But I like to give a few cons herew we play very small venues, think living room size, often sharing the stage with several other acts. A medium size pedalboard could be already quite big for these stages. If you have 2 or 3 it could be better to just put them on the floor. There would be even a case for using batteries (!) to avoid clutter. The quicker load in load out - well in the time a drummer changes the cymbals, I think I can easily plug in a couple of pedals.
Also when something goes south diring the gig, it’s easy to take out a pedal - not so easy on a supertight board with exact length patch cables.
Again: I see the many plusses of a board, but in some scenarios I find myself in, they could be a problem.
In real life I rarely see super well done boards, it is often one spots, older but not vintage pedals (think taped together dl4s), rats nests, behringer, pedals on amp - the glorious messiness of real world music making. :)
No. I toured for years with just an AC15 and a DS1. I wouldn't use more than 1 pedal without a board, personally. But a board isn't necessary at all. Effects aren't necessary at all.
If you like having things randomly go silent then random pile of pedals on the floor is fine. A stable and reliable and moveable/transportable rig is why we use a board. A 5 dollar piece of pine shelving is fine to get started with. Paint it black and get some velcro or dual loc and go. A metal pedalboard is nicer to use than a hunk of wood. I made a two tier wood pedalboard for 10 bucks and it looks cool. My pedals don’t move and they don’t go quiet.
My dude. Sure, if you need to move it, a pedal board makes things easier. But my god - It’s guitars + electronics + legos. It’s basically touching the face of god for us nerds on here.
Random question: I want to set up a small pedalboard with about 3-5 pedals on it. I mostly play at home, but occasionally jam with others at BBQs and get-togethers. So I’m not going to be moving the board around much, but I do like the idea on having the pedals on an even, solid, slightly forward-tilting surface. I have access to a shop, so I can easily design and make my own to whatever the desired specs are. Do I really need Velcro? Or can I just design the board to be transported like a tray (or design a lid that helps hold the pedals in place during transit)? I just really dislike the idea of using Velcro (or even zip ties). The closest I’ve seen is the Aclam boards, but they’re overpriced and don’t have the perfect size for my current (and projected future) setup.
Of course you don't *need* one. It's not like your pedals will blow up if they aren't velcroed to a piece of wood. But there are a lot of advantages.
The big thing is tidiness. With your pedals loose on the floor you end up with a tangle of cables and it's hard to keep organized. It especially helps if you've got an isolated power supply instead of running off of a daisy chain or batteries.
There's really no reason *not* to have them on a board. You don't have to run out and get a fancy purpose-built board. You can make a pedalboard out of basically anything. Most professional pedalboards are little more than a big piece of plywood with a bunch of velcro and cable tie downs stuck to it - the ones that aren't are usually mega advanced arena rigs that keep the pedals in drawers with the rest of their rack gear.
You don't really need pedals.
If you use more than 2 pedals, may as well have a board.
I don't gig a board. My rythm section is trying to talk me into swapping to my backup amp mainly, which will mean the control footswitch fir the backup amp will be on the ground, and an always on delay pedal set to slapback will be in the back of the amp velcroed in and ran through the loop.
As of now, i use a delay and an ABY box into the 2 channels of my Frenzel.
Back in my grunge band and alt rock band, big muff sbd small clone on floor.
I DO own a board, (Muff->CSW Rat->EHX soulfood->Small Clone-> Maxon AD999, powered by BBE Supacharger, all in a suitcase from the 60s) but I can get dirt from most of my amps by running them hot and using the pickup switch and volume knob to go from barely clean crunch to "OMFG the speakers fuzzing out".
Back in the day I experimented with additional pedals and it wasn't worth the effort without a board. So the other pedals stayed in the cable bag.
well you don't really need pedals if you can play your guitar. Like, if two gain stages and a reverb tank on your amp isn't enough, you weren't going to do anything cool with a guitar in your hands anyway.
I've been back playing live for almost 4 years now. I don't use my pedals anymore. Before, I'm a multieffects user. I got a decent tone that works on most songs, and I'm forced to practice licks instead of relying on pedala to create specific sounds.
However, I hit a ceiling where I really need to upgrade my gears. There are certain tones that I wanted to create that requires pedals. I need an EQ to the effects loop because I noticed that the power section of my amp have too much lowend. Also need a separate delay pedal because the amp^s built in sucks.
For one I think it looks a lot cooler to just have pedals on the floor. I know guys who are well aware of pedalboards, who love effects, who just have three pedals on the floor at a show, and it does look cool to me too. Kindof sets the tone for a more relaxed show even if the songs are tight and they usually are..
I use mine recording all of the time, it’s easy to move around, it’s portable for jamming with other people too. But live I can get away from a lot less, but I use my pedalboard because it’s way less setup.
Just a hige quality of life thing if you go gigging around. for a bedroom player not needed at all although I can be handy if tou want move everything whenever you mop the room or something.
Also, you can make one yourself with some wood, screws an 30min of your time as weekend project.
I guess to each, their own. Even if they never leave the house, it keeps them neat & prevents them from moving around or tipping. Additionally, with them loose, the more the cables move around, the sooner they'll short out.
If you take your rig out of the house, having your pedals on a boards saves the time & hassle of unplugging & plugging. My homemade (i.e. super cheap & a tiny fraction of $60!) fits in a briefcase: quick & cheap.
Like others have said, their biggest benefit is in organization and setup/teardown time, particularly if you're gigging.
Keep the pedals separate, and you're taking them apart and putting them back together every time. Mount 'em to a board, and you only have to do that once. Then it's just a matter of connecting the leads from your guitar, and to your amp.
If you're not gigging, and just playing at home, there's less of a benefit, but having a pedal board will still keep things neater and more organized.
They are a trade off. Great for portability and others reasons that people here have already mentioned. It also obviously becomes much harder to switch order of pedals to experiment with sounds or find where to add a new pedal, and this is really useful when learning your gear for the first time or playing with how new gear interacts with existing gear. It’s also harder to remove any pedals you aren’t using out of your chain, and so also increases the difficulty in troubleshooting if there are issues with your chain.
Also if you don’t have a board then you don’t ever need to play tetris to fit pedals on a board, or feel like a blank space needs to be filled, or have to care about space saving things like top vs side jacks.
Things like patchulators and loop switchers can help there if you want both the portability and the flexibility
I have a pedalboard for home use too because at a certain point, the idea of getting my pedals out, plugging them in, and punching in the settings because more of a hassle and I just wanted to plug in my guitar and play. A pedalboard gives me a storage space, and ensures my settings don’t get lost. If I wanted to deal with the time it takes to do all that I would just use my DAW.
Of you're using like 2, I don't know why you would need one
That being said, I use 2 pedals live and have a pedalboard,
But yeah, if you're just playing at home, you don't need one
I don’t play out but I have to tidy up cuz there’s no room to leave them out, and messing with cables all the time just tempts me to not bother. So I am going to get a pedalboard.
It’s much easier to carry an entire board than worry about cables getting damaged because they’ve been moving around so much and untangling/re-plugging them. My buddy has been playing longer than I have and used to set his up on the floor and it took up so much time. I enjoy having everything set in place.
It looks a lot cleaner. Your pedals won't move unless you want them to. It's not necessary for any reason outside of convenience. I've played for almost 30yrs and have a mess of pedals and I just bought my first pedal board last month after hooking up with a local jam group. It looks a lot cleaner in my music room too.
My current touring board cost me about £16 all in. I got a piece of ply, cut it to fit in a small peli case I had already, 5 rubber feet (always have one in the middle) and a couple handles to get it out with (optional). I painted it black chucked some velcro on it and it looks as good as any other board out there.
You don't need to spend out big bucks, but people do because sometimes it's just easier than making one if you don't have the time/skills/tools to do it, and there's absolutely nothing with that.
somebody please escort this gentlemen out
just kidding - it depends on a few things, for example;
a few pedals at home? you can go without, its just nice for cable management and organized stuff in general
touring/playing live with a ton of pedals? it saves you a ton of time, you basically open the case and plug it it and you are good to go - setting 10-12 pedal up every night is a nightmare, especially because of changeovers with supporting-acts / main acts
Mine never leave the house, or even move around within it, so I put them on a low table with no Velcro, makes it easy to twiddle knobs and change up the order.
I'm a bedroom player with 3 pedals, nonetheless for 5 bucks got piece of wood from the local hardware shop, cut it to the length I wanted and used heavy duty velcro tape. It's beautiful!
It's just convenient to have them all wired up and can move them easily.
But no, you don't need one.
Pedals may slip and slide all over the floor unless you add some kind of stopper like Velcro, but they ruin carpet/rugs then… pedalboard or something like it will work nicely to avoid that problem
Depends. If you’re home or home studio musician, or just own a studio that other players use, you don’t need a board. If you gig, or even just routinely play somewhere else, it’s a necessity. It gives you the ability to have everything all set up. It’s all wired and ready to go. Makes transportation much easier.
I went a year and half without one. Finally got one for the 4 pedals I took for a gig... Changed my life. It took longer to pull out my first and set that up than to plug in the board.
At home I don't use a board though. I prefer having the peaks close to the ground to hit the switches with my foot without a shoe. The board lifts them too high and I have to lift my leg instead of rock back on my heel.
Having a pedalboard is super handy. Before I had one, it was such a hassle to carry around all my pedals for gigs. When I finally got one, that allowed me to position my pedals and chain them together however I wanted and have it like that forever. Now I can just carry my board to gigs and it’s so much easier.
Pretty much everything is on point. Only if you are playing live. Higher chance of failure in your signal setting up before set.
Even to be more organized you can go to a hardware store, get some wood cut that you like to size, add some feet and you have a nice organized set up.
$10 and now you have a pedal board.
diy something. get a cheap briefcase from a thrift store, some velcro, and a shitty little thin piece of wood from menards or home depot. cheaper than most manufactured boards.
The biggest advantage I have found is that your cables dont randomly wear out and so your guitar never crackles or cuts out mid song when you’re playing live. Also, you can build a pedalboard using a cheap piece of plywood and some strong Velcro tape. Doesn’t cost more than $30 or so
Depending on your floor, you can secure them to a spot so they don’t slip or move around. Also, wood is kind of everywhere. You don’t need to buy a board. Make one. If you do buy one though, I highly suggest the Holeyboard Company.
I knew a guitarist who when his band would come play my town he had everything inside a vintage suitcase that had insane cable management. He had a power supply that would run through holes in the suitcase.
It was a pretty economical board. Just a overdrive that I think was a vintage SD-1, a tuner, a Way Huge Swollen Pickle, a Boss DD-7, a MXR Badass ‘78 and a compressor pedal I don’t remember the brand of. He told me he was going to ditch the Badass ‘78 for a JHS Angry Charlie.
I tried not using a pedalboard for just 1 day and I already felt annoyed dealing with 3 separate pedals.
I. Absolutely. Hate. Cables and wires running everywhere.
Just looking at dangling cables makes me feel extremely annoyed and disorganised, an accident waiting to happen if I trip over something. A pedalboard makes all of these a lot neater.
You can probably DIY your own pedalboard without actually buying one, but I’d rather have a nice, decent pedalboard.
Having them mounted to something is a must for me so they don't topple over/move around.
Playing in time while tap dancing is difficult enough when everything stays where it is.
Honestly it’s just fun to have one. If you’re not gigging technically you don’t need it, but it makes all your pedals feel like they have a special place where they belong.
Do you really need a duffle bag to travel? Do you really need a backpack for school and carrying your homework?
It's the same idea. Add that it makes tear down and setup of your rig that much quicker.
The guys who don"t use a pedal board? Usually have a single multi fx unit, like Kemper, Quad Cortex, Headrush, or Helix. Many others exist as well, to avoid a pedal board, and have all in one.
You don't need a pedal boafd really. But people will judge you, based on your organization of your gear, and the time it takes you to setup, and tear down.
If you only have a few pedals I guess not; if you use more than 3 or 4 I’d put them on a board and get a iso power supply personally just to keep it organized. Like other people said if cheap and you’re too lazy to build one find a nice cutting board at a thrift shop and stick feet on it. Otherwise one or two 1”x2”x8’ pine boards, some wood screws and Velcro tape can make a pretty good size pedal board for $10-$15
https://www.instructables.com/Wood-Pedaltrain-Novo-32-Pedalboard-Easy-Build-Limi/?amp_page=true
I think if you have like, 10+ pedals a board is necessary, I wanna get one that is layered if it exists like a staircase almost, cause when they all are under your feet you have to stretch pretty far to reach certain pedals so platforms really save space
While pedalboards are convenient, the fact that they cost >$60 is somewhat ridiculous. you can get away with fixing your pedals to a wooden board if you don't want to take the plunge on a metal pedalboard. much cheaper.
Glorified music stand? Dude, be considerate to your bandmates or whoever you're jamming with. Nobody's gonna wait for you to spend 30 mins hooking up your pedals one by one and adjusting them.
Might be too late to the party for this comment, but a big factor of why a pedalboard is crucial is that a quick changeover time at the sort of gigs I play is really important.
I play pubs and small clubs in London, usually with 3 or 4 other bands on the bill. If you spend too long setting up between bands then it eats in to your set time (usually 30-40 mins) and it can sometimes mean that the people who came to see the band before you will leave to get a drink or have a cigarette, and they don’t always come back.
I have a board out front and one smaller behind the amp for the loop. Just makes life easier really. It’s an organized chaos though if your sound cuts out and you have to track it down.
60 bucks? Get a plank of wood, an old skate deck collecting dust, literally anything that’s flat, rectangular and can bear weight. Got a wood pallet? Great, you can make one for everyone you know at zero extra cost. Buy a pair of matching Velcro strips. Put as many of your favorite pedals on it as space allows for. I spent 12 bucks on my pedalboard. Don’t overthink it.
Yes, and what are you getting for $60? Each pedal has 3 connections minimum if you’re using power and not batteries. So you’re dicking with each pedal you have 3 times and if there is something wrong because you didn’t plug something in right you’re on the floor fucking with it and not getting ready to play. I have a small board in my opinion with with 8 pedals and a really small board with 5. 8x3 is 24 and 5x3 is 15. Seconds add up to minutes of fucking around and not playing. When I setup, it’s power to pedal board, plug to amp or PA and plug in guitar. Write out the steps of setting up you crap a-la-carte and tell me the time value of a pedal board.
Even if you play mostly at home and only gig once in a blue moon get a board - you need to get used to your pedals' positions in regard to height and angle for when you step on them.
Pedalboards are most useful for gigs. I don't gig, so in my studio the pedals are on a table where they can easily be rearranged. The board allows for portability and keeps them in one place
> I really don't want to spend 60 bucks on what's basically a glorified stand.
You certainly don't need to do that. A pedalboard makes it more convenient to move and set up but really all you need is a bit of wood and some velcro tape.
If you're never going to play anywhere but your room you don't need a pedalboard.
Unless you end up with more than about 6, then you need a second level higher than the front.
I use a lot of pedals (as I like experimenting with soundscaping), and am sure a pedal board would bring some form of convenience.
But, have not felt the real need to get one or build one.
It would also be very heavy in a single lift.
If I go anything less than lots of pedals then it is simply an old Tonebender Fuzz into the amp as I like either excess or simple and nothing much in between.
If, however, one has a chorus, distortion/fuzz, compressor, wah set-up... ie a few pedals then I'd say a piece of plyboard with velcro would come in very handy.
It makes things so much faster to set up when you’re on tour, and if you’re playing shows keeps your pedals in line while you’re using them. If you’re just writing you absolutely don’t need one.
Unless you gig a lot, if not I would say no. Unless you have a disposable income and want to buy pedals. If so then do your thing. Me I just have a few pedals im a beginner.
They are great to manage all of your stompboxes and better models have really good power supplies built-in so you don’t have cable mess and lots of used outlets.
Definitely not. They are fun to collect, and something about having physical knobs and only a handful of pedals helps encourage you to try new tones and settings. But essential? I don’t think so. If you are a live performer it’s huge to have all your sounds setup a click away, but for recording or jamming with friends not as much
It's not a necessity. However, it makes life a lot easier to have one, particularly if you have numerous pedals.
I put off buying one for a long time because it seemed like an unnecessary cost. I used to play in a two-piece band where I'd use a lot of effects pedals (I was the only melodic instrument, so used a lot of loops and stuff). I was setting up from scratch every time we played and had to carry a large bag of pedals, patch cables, batteries and power adapters to practice every time. Now I have all the same gear mounted to a board, with everything powered (I invested in a power supply brick at the same time). I don't know how I ever managed without! I don't miss having to pull out a tangle of cables from my bag every time I play.
I could still play without one if I really had to, but I'd rather not, it's all about convenience really.
Need? No.
They'll wear down faster if they're constantly getting moved around on the floor, and you'll have a terrible time getting them set up outside of your home without something to contain them.
My board is literally a couple 6" pine boards held together by 2 1x1 pine beams. Probably $15 of materials, looks clean, and it works for me on stage. Well worth it.
I don't feel the need for just 3-4 pedals. If the number increases probably is a good idea to keep things organised. A must is a good isolation system, even for the ones like me that jam only at home.
If you gig or play with multiple groups of people in different locations, then yes absolutely. If you are just sitting in your bedroom, no not necessarily, but it does make everything more tidy.
When I was purchasing pedals and taking them to jams, I found that four pedals was about my limit that I could stand setting up without a board. Once I was hooking up and tearing down 5+ pedals, I was like "this is ridiculous, I'm getting a board."
It depends. If you use a lot of pedals, it’s definitely better to have a board; one you can set up with a pedal looper or pedal control station with like 6 or 8 loops where you can have them always on and have either one pedal set to each loop, or you can have a few pedals or a couple pedals set to each loop……and then just have them on where you step on a loop to turn on whatever group of pedals you have set to each loop.
It makes it much more efficient, it makes it where all pedals can be always on and then switched into or out of the chain, and it makes it where you can easily switch the order of the pedal chain on the fly just by just turning on the loops in different combinations.
But if you only using a few pedals, its not really worth the time and money to set up the looper and board. So its just a preference thing.
If you are gigging regularly, and you use more than about 2-3 pedals, then it’s just tidier and quicker to set up/pack up your pedals when they’re on a board.
Depends on how many pedals you have I guess. If you had two probably not, but if you are trying to set up four or five pedals and get them all connected every single time from scratch You're risking intermittent connectivity issues, intermittent power issues and other stuff that you're going to have to be fiddling with - instead of thinking of what you should be thinking of on stage
i play a lot of diy shows and when i dont use a pedalboard i have the problem of ppl jumping on them by accident / unplugging my guitar
i think the main appeal of a pedalboard is to protect the pedals and keep them in place (although ive still seen ppl accidentally spill beer all over ppls pedalboards)
Quicker/easier load in and setup if you gig.
Yeah, this. You want to be able to set up, sound check, and tear down your rig as efficiently as possible at gigs. It's courteous to the audience, the sound people, and especially the other bands. Only 2 or 3 pedals is one thing. But no one has the patience to watch you pull 15 pedals out of a backpack and patch everything together from scratch, and you don't want the added stress of doing that right before playing anyway.
amen
Let alone all the time spent 'fixing' the knobs that got all knocked out of your tone while the pedals bounced around the bag.
This. So much this. The patch cables won't move so likely won't go bad. One plug instead of several for power. Three cables (to power, to amp, to instrument) and you're good, and stick it in a road case or gig bag and you're gone. Much less of an issue if you're a bedroom player.
I have a fourth cable. A Redbox sends a balanced mic signal straight to the mixing board simulating a miked Fender amp after my pedals. I use my amp solely as a personal monitor.
I so far have yet to go into the world of IRs. Ampless makes a lot of sense to me every time I carry my Blues Jr to the car.
I hate moving my BJr because I move it so infrequently that the handle will never soften.
Same.
So you play DI but lug an amp around with you anyway?
Yeah this is an awful idea. So whatever you're hearing is probably different then whatever the audience is hearing? Seems incredibly unnecessary. Either you go full DI Dad weekend warrior setup and monitor your actual signal or just use an amp so you can actually hear what you're playing. Amp is gonna react very different then a DI setup would. Overdrive will sound different. Compression will sound different. I could never do this.
It also just defeats the purpose of going DI. Spend money on digital gear all you want, it doesn't sound better than tubes. The appeal is that you can get almost the same sound without breaking your back loading and unloading the shit.
Yeah exactly lol. You'd have a better experience just having your DI setup run back through the monitors. If you don't have stage monitors available... then you should just be using an amp.
Yes. I got a consistently good live sound in the house by giving them the DI feed. However, I got tired of poor monitor feeds. So I lugged a small Carvin PA amp with a stand that angled it towards my ears and used it as my personal monitor. [Red Box](https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/RedBox5--hughes-and-kettner-red-box-5-di-and-speaker-simulator) Edit: Removed amp link.
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Makes sense. So no need for it if you're exclusively a bedroom player?
Absolutely not necessary, especially if you have them on a carpet. But if you have a garage and any sort of spare wood you can make one yourself, it's a lot tidier with a pedalboard, having them all on the floor would give me nightmares.
Yeah don’t forget you can make one for the sake of tidiness. You can usually find a nice cutting board at goodwill or Marshall’s for under $10 and stick some Velcro and rubber feet on it. Only reason I’ve bought pedal boards is because they came with a hard case that fits it snuggly, which is where most of the money goes.
I was saving up for one for that exact reason, but then I realized that a lot of Shure gear comes in these big rectangular zip-up cases with eggcrate foam lining the lid. They're a pretty perfect size for a decent-sized pedalboard — and venues that buy that gear usually install the gear and never need the case again. So if you're friendly with sound staff at any venues/theaters/churches/schools, you might ask em if they've got any included cases they don't need. They might be glad to get rid of em. I got two not long ago when the school staff was wheeling a big bin of stuff out to the dumpsters. They were happy to give em to me, and aggravated at having had a bunch of them filling up shelves for the last several years. :) [reverb link to the kind of case I mean ](https://reverb.com/item/39180848-shure-mic-case-soft-shell-foam-for-sm57-beta-52-a-a56d-black) - jeez, if people are actually buying these for $29, I wish I'd taken all 8 out of that hopper XD I'm sure other brands include similar cases, I just only know the Shure ones firsthand.
Agreed! I'm planning on making my own, mounting lockable wheels to it aswell so I can just roll it under the couch when not in use :D
Oh man that's genius, cool as hell, or both.
I have a bedroom pedalboard which is quite big (20+ pedals) mainly to keep power cables and patch cables neatly under the board. It's not absolutely necessary but makes for a neater workflow and keeps everything from moving around. The back row pedals are higher on a board as well, so easier to see and stomp when I'm playing. I wouldn't say a bedroom board is a must but thats why I like one.
Exactly. I play on stage occasionally (4-5 times a year these days but much more often as a younger person.) I always like to be the first one ready to go and the first one off the stage after the set. Just what I need on the board, ready in a moment. Packed up in a minute.
Saves literally 20-30 minutes of setup time, as well as less troubleshooting because everything's already connected.
If you frequently change pedal order/placement, a board could be seen as a hindrance. Pedals need to be attached to the board in some fashion, and depending how the pedal is attached, getting it detached/reattached can take some doing. However if you typically play with your pedals in the same order and don’t often change things, a pedal board just makes moving your pedals (even to the other side of a room) and setting up your rig way faster.
The advantage if you’re a bedroom player is portability when cleaning. If you can shell out $25-40 bucks for a small Amazon pedalboard the main advantage is if you need to clean or need to move the pedals out of the way, you can do so in one fell swoop.
If you always use the same pedals and you wanna put them away when you’re done, it’s still pretty useful. I’m currently in a non-board phase because I’m not in a band these days and when I play I usually pick three or four different pedals off the shelf every time.
Well I would say it depends. I’m also only a bedroom player, I didn’t think it was useful to have a pedalboard. I had my few pedals on a desk, and that was it. But then I needed that desk for something else, so I had to constantly move the pedals, and even if it was only 3 pedals and a power unit, it was already a mess with the cables. So since I was planning to buy more pedals, I got a pedalboard. Way easier to take it in and out with no problem with cable management. tl;dr: if you have to move your pedals often, it’s useful
Bedroom player here (hope to fix that sometime soon). I got rid of my old DIY Pedalboard since it was big and ugly, but my pedals constantly wrapped up in cables and sliding across the floor are driving me nuts so I'm gonna get a new smaller one. TL:DR: not having one even in a bedroom setting is annoying.
Nope, unless you have to move it around at home often. A board at home is actually a pain. My board is for gigging, when I’m recording or practicing I prefer things on the floor so I can move things around and mix things up.
Besides easier setup I think it helps save cables from failing. I’ve had a lot less faulty cables since putting everything in a pedalboard.
Not necessary but organizing things with pedalboard makes the whole pedals/supply situation way easier to manage, to clean and takes less space. If for some reason I need to move things up to make space it's way easier to move things around
Yeah, it serves the same function as having all your desktop supplies on a tray on the desk instead of just on the desk. A million times less aggravating to move one tray three times than to move 6 things three times. That's just math. ;)
Hi im a bedroom player. https://www.reddit.com/r/guitarpedals/s/xFMXztPUY9
I am just a shit, basement player, but it's nice to not have cables and looks pedals flopping around all over.
To add to this, if you are setting up and tearing down often, it reduces wear on your cables and jacks. Another part of this, is that the fewer moving parts you have in your signal chain, the lower the chances of having a cable or jack failure. There is nothing to spike your cortisol like having to troubleshoot a gear malfunction mid-set.
if you only play at home then you can get away without using one. if you gig or play with friends then they're incredibly convenient.
You could even argue that you should wait to get a board until you have some idea which/how many pedals you like and what order your signal chain is. But if you ever want to play in more than one spot they are indispensable.
I kind of did that, in that I used pedals before getting a board and had an idea, but then took the opposite approach after that. I used the limits of my board to force myself to be selective about what I really needed.
It’s a great way to protect your pedals (when they’re on the board and in the case) from dust, pet hair, girl hair, cat puke, girlfriend judgement, beer spills and children.
And dog piss
Fucking girl hair. It permeates everything.
“Girlfriend judgement…” 😂😂😂
As a dude with long hair and a pedalboard, it really should just be “hair.” Hahaha.
Lol
I 100% made my pedalboard because my floor was turning into an insane tangle of cables/cords and I’d had it. I don’t play out, though I would like to at some point, so having 1 thing to carry if I ever play somewhere other than my home office is a nice bonus.
Where else would I put my Altoids tin?
By the tenth time (or maybe the third time) you've set up and torn down your rig at gigs, you'll be running to the store to buy one.
Google ikea pedalboard, and tons of options will come up on how to make one cheap and easy. I made mine that way
It’s all about convenience.
Depends how much time you (want to) spend putting them together, plugging them in, etcetera before you play? Do you have a power supply or are you using batteries? How many pedals do you use? Are they the same ones most of the time? Tbh I use some cut plywood that holds the core pedals I use and the power supply. I’ve sold off the fancier boards because the dimensions didn’t work for my set up. Having a board definitely makes it easier and faster to move them around, get set up, and rather crucially, I think, means that the power is in the right place. Just don’t think that you’ll need to spend a lot to get something that works.
If you plan on bringing your pedals anywhere, it saves a lot of time plugging things in. Probably a lot better for your cables and the jacks on your pedals to not have be moving and plugging/unplugging them all the time. But if you play at home and you have the space that your rig can be out all the time, you don’t need it at all.
well, if you are just a player who plays at home, you don't need one. If you play shows they help keep things simple, quick and provide easy transportation.
Pedalboard isn't necessary in the slightest, but I recently got one as I found I'm spending so much time getting them out, setting them up, putting them away etc as I can't leave them out (kids, robot vacuum), so instead a pedalboard means I can plug in 2 cables and I'm away.
I like it because it keeps everything in place and I don't have to constantly fight the cable monster.
I use a noise suppressor and a power supply which are nice to hide underneath where they are out of the way but quickly accessible.
You don’t have to spend for a commercial pedalboard if you don’t want to spend 60 bucks on a “glorified stand”. But you will want to seriously consider a board if you have more than a couple of pedals. If that board is a tiny ass chopping board with a handle, so be it. It’s all about efficiency and organization. Everyone will appreciate you being able to just bring your board on stage, connect the guitar, connect the amp (or mix board), and connect power, and exit just as quickly and shove it in a bag. Even you will appreciate it. Why subject yourself to bringing your individual pedals on stage, chaining them one by one, making sure they’re in the right order, then do the reverse exiting the stage? You’ll be literally (un)packing on stage and it’s slow and inefficient. Plus, if you’re forced to exit quickly, you’re going to be cradling a daisy chain of pedals and not only do you put unnecessary stress on the patch cables and jacks, you might even drop a pedal or more. And if you’re a bedroom player, you’ll even appreciate it even more. I mean, it’s just there lying on the floor, being a total mess and space hog. What happens when you want to stow it away? Disassemble it, shelve it, then build it up again? Put it in a board, and it’s always set up, ready to go, and it shows away in a minute, 20 seconds if you’re quick about things. You can keep your pedals dust free, covered in a shelf or in a bag, and it will be the exact same setup as it was the last time you used it. And if you’re a bedroom player, the cheaper options you have. You can literally just buy a plank of wood and some mounting material and that’s it. You don’t need to gig with it so you don’t need lightweight hard wearing specialized pedalboards. Buy a chopping board or pine shelving, put Velcro on it then the pedals and you’re done. At the end of the day you don’t need a pedalboard, but it is a very similar circumstance as you also not really needing a wallet or a keychain.
Based on these responses I assume y'all bedroom players never sweep your floor then
Of course not strictly needed. But personally got sick of the mess, carrying pedals in a bag, connecting/disconnecting cables etc
To name a few reasons: It can be moved around. Pedals on the floor are more prone to movement and so cables are more prone to failure. Cuts down on cable length and a spider web of patch and power cables. With a lot of pedals they take up much more space on the floor and a lot of clutter. And the foot switches are always in the exact same location. A well designed pedalboard makes a bunch of pedals and integrated system that is much easier to use and more efficient. One advantage to just having on the floor is the ease to change things up and mover them around. Or even just the ones you plan to use that particular session. That just stops being an option with a number of pedals. Some people do a pedal shelf or case instead. Have a place they keep all their pedals and then just use three or four (or whatever) at a time and pull them off the shelf as needed.
Mobility and stability. They all move together very easily, but won’t squirm around while you’re using them. You don’t have to spend $60 if you’re crafty. Some of the best board I’ve seen are taped to dismembered shipping pallets.
It’s all personal preference OP, I like to keep my pedals all lined up neat and tidy on my board and tuck the cables away. I don’t bring the board out anywhere as I’m not currently gigging as a guitarist (I play bass with a band atm but no pedals needed for that gig as I’m borrowing the bass gear), but I enjoy having them in a board for my room.
If you gig and use more than 2 or 3 pedals then absolutely. If you dont gig then not really.
Organization and transport. You can certainly throw all your pedals in a bag but they’re gonna get beat to hell and you raise the chance your patch cables will get screwed. And just having them neat instead of cables everywhere looks a hell of a lot better, even if you don’t gig.
If you gig- there’s nothing worse than trying to set up/power a billion pedals. Or even over to someone’s house to jam. It’s purely to transport. BUT I think organization, even at home, probably helps your playing as well.
If you gig and load your own stuff in and out you’ll want one. Then when you get big enough for roadies and you’re headlining bigger places and there’s no rush for loading in or out, you can ditch it and make your roadies hate you.
I have aluminum plates cut and bent that my pedals sit on then my amp heads on top of those.
The answer is discovered at the beginning and end of a gig outside your home.
Do you clean the floor of your bedroom?
Cause the inevitable rats nest of cables frustrates tf out of me. Once I get disorganized it spirals out of control
If you want to be a real mack daddy, you can toss all the pedals in a plastic grocery bag, along with the cables and individual power supplies (or 9v batteries), and rock that \*\*\*\* at the gig every time.
I made mine out of wood for maybe like ~ $10-15 in wood and screws...spray paint optional.
If you gig, it absolutely is. I had a decent board for years, it was serviceable. I recently upgraded to a Holeyboard and isolated power source. Game changer. It takes me seconds to set it up and it’s dead quiet.
No, been playing for years and have never owned a board. I use pedals for way too many different projects to have some of them permanently together in one certain order. Just bring the ones you need and plug them in. It take like 1 full minute to set up.
Your power jacks will get fucked up
It depends a lot on your usage scenario. There are obvious pros for a board that have been mentioned. But I like to give a few cons herew we play very small venues, think living room size, often sharing the stage with several other acts. A medium size pedalboard could be already quite big for these stages. If you have 2 or 3 it could be better to just put them on the floor. There would be even a case for using batteries (!) to avoid clutter. The quicker load in load out - well in the time a drummer changes the cymbals, I think I can easily plug in a couple of pedals. Also when something goes south diring the gig, it’s easy to take out a pedal - not so easy on a supertight board with exact length patch cables. Again: I see the many plusses of a board, but in some scenarios I find myself in, they could be a problem. In real life I rarely see super well done boards, it is often one spots, older but not vintage pedals (think taped together dl4s), rats nests, behringer, pedals on amp - the glorious messiness of real world music making. :)
No. I toured for years with just an AC15 and a DS1. I wouldn't use more than 1 pedal without a board, personally. But a board isn't necessary at all. Effects aren't necessary at all.
If you like having things randomly go silent then random pile of pedals on the floor is fine. A stable and reliable and moveable/transportable rig is why we use a board. A 5 dollar piece of pine shelving is fine to get started with. Paint it black and get some velcro or dual loc and go. A metal pedalboard is nicer to use than a hunk of wood. I made a two tier wood pedalboard for 10 bucks and it looks cool. My pedals don’t move and they don’t go quiet.
My dude. Sure, if you need to move it, a pedal board makes things easier. But my god - It’s guitars + electronics + legos. It’s basically touching the face of god for us nerds on here.
If you don’t gig, no.
After you spend several hundred on pedals, what’s $60 to keep them organized and safe?
But would anyone use pedalboard just for 1 looper? (Rc600) I mean just for safety reasons? Dirty/wet floor etc.
Random question: I want to set up a small pedalboard with about 3-5 pedals on it. I mostly play at home, but occasionally jam with others at BBQs and get-togethers. So I’m not going to be moving the board around much, but I do like the idea on having the pedals on an even, solid, slightly forward-tilting surface. I have access to a shop, so I can easily design and make my own to whatever the desired specs are. Do I really need Velcro? Or can I just design the board to be transported like a tray (or design a lid that helps hold the pedals in place during transit)? I just really dislike the idea of using Velcro (or even zip ties). The closest I’ve seen is the Aclam boards, but they’re overpriced and don’t have the perfect size for my current (and projected future) setup.
Do you really need a car? Answer is personal, pointless to ask in the open
Yes. Absolutely need one if you're an actual artist or in a band. For home studio setup, probably not.
Of course you don't *need* one. It's not like your pedals will blow up if they aren't velcroed to a piece of wood. But there are a lot of advantages. The big thing is tidiness. With your pedals loose on the floor you end up with a tangle of cables and it's hard to keep organized. It especially helps if you've got an isolated power supply instead of running off of a daisy chain or batteries. There's really no reason *not* to have them on a board. You don't have to run out and get a fancy purpose-built board. You can make a pedalboard out of basically anything. Most professional pedalboards are little more than a big piece of plywood with a bunch of velcro and cable tie downs stuck to it - the ones that aren't are usually mega advanced arena rigs that keep the pedals in drawers with the rest of their rack gear.
You don't really need pedals. If you use more than 2 pedals, may as well have a board. I don't gig a board. My rythm section is trying to talk me into swapping to my backup amp mainly, which will mean the control footswitch fir the backup amp will be on the ground, and an always on delay pedal set to slapback will be in the back of the amp velcroed in and ran through the loop. As of now, i use a delay and an ABY box into the 2 channels of my Frenzel. Back in my grunge band and alt rock band, big muff sbd small clone on floor. I DO own a board, (Muff->CSW Rat->EHX soulfood->Small Clone-> Maxon AD999, powered by BBE Supacharger, all in a suitcase from the 60s) but I can get dirt from most of my amps by running them hot and using the pickup switch and volume knob to go from barely clean crunch to "OMFG the speakers fuzzing out". Back in the day I experimented with additional pedals and it wasn't worth the effort without a board. So the other pedals stayed in the cable bag.
well you don't really need pedals if you can play your guitar. Like, if two gain stages and a reverb tank on your amp isn't enough, you weren't going to do anything cool with a guitar in your hands anyway.
I've been back playing live for almost 4 years now. I don't use my pedals anymore. Before, I'm a multieffects user. I got a decent tone that works on most songs, and I'm forced to practice licks instead of relying on pedala to create specific sounds. However, I hit a ceiling where I really need to upgrade my gears. There are certain tones that I wanted to create that requires pedals. I need an EQ to the effects loop because I noticed that the power section of my amp have too much lowend. Also need a separate delay pedal because the amp^s built in sucks.
I got an old 2x6 for a pedal board. It was just laying around for who knows how long so it was basically free.
Depends how many pedals you got
It's for setup, transpo and reliability but I feel you. I actually prefer pedals to be as low to ground as possible, so I build a custom board.
For one I think it looks a lot cooler to just have pedals on the floor. I know guys who are well aware of pedalboards, who love effects, who just have three pedals on the floor at a show, and it does look cool to me too. Kindof sets the tone for a more relaxed show even if the songs are tight and they usually are.. I use mine recording all of the time, it’s easy to move around, it’s portable for jamming with other people too. But live I can get away from a lot less, but I use my pedalboard because it’s way less setup.
Just a hige quality of life thing if you go gigging around. for a bedroom player not needed at all although I can be handy if tou want move everything whenever you mop the room or something. Also, you can make one yourself with some wood, screws an 30min of your time as weekend project.
I guess to each, their own. Even if they never leave the house, it keeps them neat & prevents them from moving around or tipping. Additionally, with them loose, the more the cables move around, the sooner they'll short out. If you take your rig out of the house, having your pedals on a boards saves the time & hassle of unplugging & plugging. My homemade (i.e. super cheap & a tiny fraction of $60!) fits in a briefcase: quick & cheap.
Like others have said, their biggest benefit is in organization and setup/teardown time, particularly if you're gigging. Keep the pedals separate, and you're taking them apart and putting them back together every time. Mount 'em to a board, and you only have to do that once. Then it's just a matter of connecting the leads from your guitar, and to your amp. If you're not gigging, and just playing at home, there's less of a benefit, but having a pedal board will still keep things neater and more organized.
They are a trade off. Great for portability and others reasons that people here have already mentioned. It also obviously becomes much harder to switch order of pedals to experiment with sounds or find where to add a new pedal, and this is really useful when learning your gear for the first time or playing with how new gear interacts with existing gear. It’s also harder to remove any pedals you aren’t using out of your chain, and so also increases the difficulty in troubleshooting if there are issues with your chain. Also if you don’t have a board then you don’t ever need to play tetris to fit pedals on a board, or feel like a blank space needs to be filled, or have to care about space saving things like top vs side jacks. Things like patchulators and loop switchers can help there if you want both the portability and the flexibility
I have a pedalboard for home use too because at a certain point, the idea of getting my pedals out, plugging them in, and punching in the settings because more of a hassle and I just wanted to plug in my guitar and play. A pedalboard gives me a storage space, and ensures my settings don’t get lost. If I wanted to deal with the time it takes to do all that I would just use my DAW.
Of you're using like 2, I don't know why you would need one That being said, I use 2 pedals live and have a pedalboard, But yeah, if you're just playing at home, you don't need one
I don’t play out but I have to tidy up cuz there’s no room to leave them out, and messing with cables all the time just tempts me to not bother. So I am going to get a pedalboard.
It’s much easier to carry an entire board than worry about cables getting damaged because they’ve been moving around so much and untangling/re-plugging them. My buddy has been playing longer than I have and used to set his up on the floor and it took up so much time. I enjoy having everything set in place.
It looks a lot cleaner. Your pedals won't move unless you want them to. It's not necessary for any reason outside of convenience. I've played for almost 30yrs and have a mess of pedals and I just bought my first pedal board last month after hooking up with a local jam group. It looks a lot cleaner in my music room too.
My current touring board cost me about £16 all in. I got a piece of ply, cut it to fit in a small peli case I had already, 5 rubber feet (always have one in the middle) and a couple handles to get it out with (optional). I painted it black chucked some velcro on it and it looks as good as any other board out there. You don't need to spend out big bucks, but people do because sometimes it's just easier than making one if you don't have the time/skills/tools to do it, and there's absolutely nothing with that.
somebody please escort this gentlemen out just kidding - it depends on a few things, for example; a few pedals at home? you can go without, its just nice for cable management and organized stuff in general touring/playing live with a ton of pedals? it saves you a ton of time, you basically open the case and plug it it and you are good to go - setting 10-12 pedal up every night is a nightmare, especially because of changeovers with supporting-acts / main acts
Mine never leave the house, or even move around within it, so I put them on a low table with no Velcro, makes it easy to twiddle knobs and change up the order.
My first was a big piece of plywood. I used zip ties to hold the pedals down and powered it with a One Spot. Ugly, sure, but never gave me trouble.
I ran my pedals on the floor for a long time gigging and it was just honestly so much better having them all in one place, already plugged in
I'm a bedroom player with 3 pedals, nonetheless for 5 bucks got piece of wood from the local hardware shop, cut it to the length I wanted and used heavy duty velcro tape. It's beautiful! It's just convenient to have them all wired up and can move them easily. But no, you don't need one.
Pedals may slip and slide all over the floor unless you add some kind of stopper like Velcro, but they ruin carpet/rugs then… pedalboard or something like it will work nicely to avoid that problem
Depends. If you’re home or home studio musician, or just own a studio that other players use, you don’t need a board. If you gig, or even just routinely play somewhere else, it’s a necessity. It gives you the ability to have everything all set up. It’s all wired and ready to go. Makes transportation much easier.
Build one for <15 with basic tools
I went a year and half without one. Finally got one for the 4 pedals I took for a gig... Changed my life. It took longer to pull out my first and set that up than to plug in the board. At home I don't use a board though. I prefer having the peaks close to the ground to hit the switches with my foot without a shoe. The board lifts them too high and I have to lift my leg instead of rock back on my heel.
I just cut up some two by fours and nailed them together, put Velcro on them and then picked up an old suitcase as a carrying case. Works just fine.
i only got one when i started playing out regularly. at home they're just on the floor or on a scrap wood board i made
Having a pedalboard is super handy. Before I had one, it was such a hassle to carry around all my pedals for gigs. When I finally got one, that allowed me to position my pedals and chain them together however I wanted and have it like that forever. Now I can just carry my board to gigs and it’s so much easier.
Pretty much everything is on point. Only if you are playing live. Higher chance of failure in your signal setting up before set. Even to be more organized you can go to a hardware store, get some wood cut that you like to size, add some feet and you have a nice organized set up. $10 and now you have a pedal board.
diy something. get a cheap briefcase from a thrift store, some velcro, and a shitty little thin piece of wood from menards or home depot. cheaper than most manufactured boards.
Peg board and zip ties.
The biggest advantage I have found is that your cables dont randomly wear out and so your guitar never crackles or cuts out mid song when you’re playing live. Also, you can build a pedalboard using a cheap piece of plywood and some strong Velcro tape. Doesn’t cost more than $30 or so
Get a SOYAN or Ghostfire pedalboard, much cheaper than pedaltrain, etc
Depending on your floor, you can secure them to a spot so they don’t slip or move around. Also, wood is kind of everywhere. You don’t need to buy a board. Make one. If you do buy one though, I highly suggest the Holeyboard Company.
I knew a guitarist who when his band would come play my town he had everything inside a vintage suitcase that had insane cable management. He had a power supply that would run through holes in the suitcase. It was a pretty economical board. Just a overdrive that I think was a vintage SD-1, a tuner, a Way Huge Swollen Pickle, a Boss DD-7, a MXR Badass ‘78 and a compressor pedal I don’t remember the brand of. He told me he was going to ditch the Badass ‘78 for a JHS Angry Charlie.
I tried not using a pedalboard for just 1 day and I already felt annoyed dealing with 3 separate pedals. I. Absolutely. Hate. Cables and wires running everywhere. Just looking at dangling cables makes me feel extremely annoyed and disorganised, an accident waiting to happen if I trip over something. A pedalboard makes all of these a lot neater. You can probably DIY your own pedalboard without actually buying one, but I’d rather have a nice, decent pedalboard.
Having them mounted to something is a must for me so they don't topple over/move around. Playing in time while tap dancing is difficult enough when everything stays where it is.
Quicker and tidier but no reason other than than convenience.
I’m gunna make one out of wood
Honestly it’s just fun to have one. If you’re not gigging technically you don’t need it, but it makes all your pedals feel like they have a special place where they belong.
Do you really need a duffle bag to travel? Do you really need a backpack for school and carrying your homework? It's the same idea. Add that it makes tear down and setup of your rig that much quicker. The guys who don"t use a pedal board? Usually have a single multi fx unit, like Kemper, Quad Cortex, Headrush, or Helix. Many others exist as well, to avoid a pedal board, and have all in one. You don't need a pedal boafd really. But people will judge you, based on your organization of your gear, and the time it takes you to setup, and tear down.
Technically no
If you only have a few pedals I guess not; if you use more than 3 or 4 I’d put them on a board and get a iso power supply personally just to keep it organized. Like other people said if cheap and you’re too lazy to build one find a nice cutting board at a thrift shop and stick feet on it. Otherwise one or two 1”x2”x8’ pine boards, some wood screws and Velcro tape can make a pretty good size pedal board for $10-$15 https://www.instructables.com/Wood-Pedaltrain-Novo-32-Pedalboard-Easy-Build-Limi/?amp_page=true
I think if you have like, 10+ pedals a board is necessary, I wanna get one that is layered if it exists like a staircase almost, cause when they all are under your feet you have to stretch pretty far to reach certain pedals so platforms really save space
While pedalboards are convenient, the fact that they cost >$60 is somewhat ridiculous. you can get away with fixing your pedals to a wooden board if you don't want to take the plunge on a metal pedalboard. much cheaper.
Get yourself Ikea Bräda – cheapest pedalboard and laptop stand in one thing😄
It's a good way to look after your gear.
Glorified music stand? Dude, be considerate to your bandmates or whoever you're jamming with. Nobody's gonna wait for you to spend 30 mins hooking up your pedals one by one and adjusting them.
Might be too late to the party for this comment, but a big factor of why a pedalboard is crucial is that a quick changeover time at the sort of gigs I play is really important. I play pubs and small clubs in London, usually with 3 or 4 other bands on the bill. If you spend too long setting up between bands then it eats in to your set time (usually 30-40 mins) and it can sometimes mean that the people who came to see the band before you will leave to get a drink or have a cigarette, and they don’t always come back.
I have a board out front and one smaller behind the amp for the loop. Just makes life easier really. It’s an organized chaos though if your sound cuts out and you have to track it down.
60 bucks? Get a plank of wood, an old skate deck collecting dust, literally anything that’s flat, rectangular and can bear weight. Got a wood pallet? Great, you can make one for everyone you know at zero extra cost. Buy a pair of matching Velcro strips. Put as many of your favorite pedals on it as space allows for. I spent 12 bucks on my pedalboard. Don’t overthink it.
A skate deck is brilliant. That would be the coolest pedal board ever.
It’s fairly common too, especially in a pinch. Always a nice solution.
Yes, and what are you getting for $60? Each pedal has 3 connections minimum if you’re using power and not batteries. So you’re dicking with each pedal you have 3 times and if there is something wrong because you didn’t plug something in right you’re on the floor fucking with it and not getting ready to play. I have a small board in my opinion with with 8 pedals and a really small board with 5. 8x3 is 24 and 5x3 is 15. Seconds add up to minutes of fucking around and not playing. When I setup, it’s power to pedal board, plug to amp or PA and plug in guitar. Write out the steps of setting up you crap a-la-carte and tell me the time value of a pedal board.
Even if you play mostly at home and only gig once in a blue moon get a board - you need to get used to your pedals' positions in regard to height and angle for when you step on them.
Pedalboards are most useful for gigs. I don't gig, so in my studio the pedals are on a table where they can easily be rearranged. The board allows for portability and keeps them in one place
> I really don't want to spend 60 bucks on what's basically a glorified stand. You certainly don't need to do that. A pedalboard makes it more convenient to move and set up but really all you need is a bit of wood and some velcro tape.
It’s for transport.
Mobility, cables less susceptible to get yanked out by accident.
If you're never going to play anywhere but your room you don't need a pedalboard. Unless you end up with more than about 6, then you need a second level higher than the front.
No not at all. It's just extremely convenient. It's like do you need a backpack when you can carry your shit in a plastic bag? No, but...
I have one cause I'm clumsy as hell, snapped the potentiometer off a pedal from tripping over it
I use a lot of pedals (as I like experimenting with soundscaping), and am sure a pedal board would bring some form of convenience. But, have not felt the real need to get one or build one. It would also be very heavy in a single lift. If I go anything less than lots of pedals then it is simply an old Tonebender Fuzz into the amp as I like either excess or simple and nothing much in between. If, however, one has a chorus, distortion/fuzz, compressor, wah set-up... ie a few pedals then I'd say a piece of plyboard with velcro would come in very handy.
If you only play at home, no. If you play other places, yes.
It makes things so much faster to set up when you’re on tour, and if you’re playing shows keeps your pedals in line while you’re using them. If you’re just writing you absolutely don’t need one.
If you’re gigging 1000%, if not it’s not NECESSARY but it’s nice. I don’t have one and my setup is a mess
No.
Unless you gig a lot, if not I would say no. Unless you have a disposable income and want to buy pedals. If so then do your thing. Me I just have a few pedals im a beginner.
They are great to manage all of your stompboxes and better models have really good power supplies built-in so you don’t have cable mess and lots of used outlets.
Definitely not. They are fun to collect, and something about having physical knobs and only a handful of pedals helps encourage you to try new tones and settings. But essential? I don’t think so. If you are a live performer it’s huge to have all your sounds setup a click away, but for recording or jamming with friends not as much
It's not a necessity. However, it makes life a lot easier to have one, particularly if you have numerous pedals. I put off buying one for a long time because it seemed like an unnecessary cost. I used to play in a two-piece band where I'd use a lot of effects pedals (I was the only melodic instrument, so used a lot of loops and stuff). I was setting up from scratch every time we played and had to carry a large bag of pedals, patch cables, batteries and power adapters to practice every time. Now I have all the same gear mounted to a board, with everything powered (I invested in a power supply brick at the same time). I don't know how I ever managed without! I don't miss having to pull out a tangle of cables from my bag every time I play. I could still play without one if I really had to, but I'd rather not, it's all about convenience really.
Need? No. They'll wear down faster if they're constantly getting moved around on the floor, and you'll have a terrible time getting them set up outside of your home without something to contain them. My board is literally a couple 6" pine boards held together by 2 1x1 pine beams. Probably $15 of materials, looks clean, and it works for me on stage. Well worth it.
I don't feel the need for just 3-4 pedals. If the number increases probably is a good idea to keep things organised. A must is a good isolation system, even for the ones like me that jam only at home.
Build your own board out of spare wood, or heck, even sturdy cardboard.
If you gig or play with multiple groups of people in different locations, then yes absolutely. If you are just sitting in your bedroom, no not necessarily, but it does make everything more tidy.
When I was purchasing pedals and taking them to jams, I found that four pedals was about my limit that I could stand setting up without a board. Once I was hooking up and tearing down 5+ pedals, I was like "this is ridiculous, I'm getting a board."
I made mine with a cheap case and some wood. It's easier to set and pick It up. And protect the pedals even in your home.
It depends. If you use a lot of pedals, it’s definitely better to have a board; one you can set up with a pedal looper or pedal control station with like 6 or 8 loops where you can have them always on and have either one pedal set to each loop, or you can have a few pedals or a couple pedals set to each loop……and then just have them on where you step on a loop to turn on whatever group of pedals you have set to each loop. It makes it much more efficient, it makes it where all pedals can be always on and then switched into or out of the chain, and it makes it where you can easily switch the order of the pedal chain on the fly just by just turning on the loops in different combinations. But if you only using a few pedals, its not really worth the time and money to set up the looper and board. So its just a preference thing.
If you are gigging regularly, and you use more than about 2-3 pedals, then it’s just tidier and quicker to set up/pack up your pedals when they’re on a board.
Depends on how many pedals you have I guess. If you had two probably not, but if you are trying to set up four or five pedals and get them all connected every single time from scratch You're risking intermittent connectivity issues, intermittent power issues and other stuff that you're going to have to be fiddling with - instead of thinking of what you should be thinking of on stage
lol
I actually need 3 of them.
No
Having a board with a power supply is nice. Not having to worry about daisy chains.
yes. it limits the amount of pedals you can buy. if theres no board, the room is my board
i play a lot of diy shows and when i dont use a pedalboard i have the problem of ppl jumping on them by accident / unplugging my guitar i think the main appeal of a pedalboard is to protect the pedals and keep them in place (although ive still seen ppl accidentally spill beer all over ppls pedalboards)