When I was first starting to learn about pedal boards you could say I was a lil bit overwhelmed. Growing up playing country with my dad, he always used a multi-effects pedal (he has a Boss ME-80 which sounds great and is perfect if you want to keep things simple!)! However, meeting my now husband, John, in college, he got me into alternative and Christian music which uses way more reverb-y delay-y space type effects. Though we all teased John as his interest grew into more of an obsession and his room constantly sounded like ocean documentaries.
Then I realized, pedals are FUN!
There are a million different types that help you create every sound in your head and you can find and trade them on Craigslist the second you get bored! I'm not going to lie though- in the beginning there are a few things that took some time to learn.
I am going to be posting more in the future on pedal boards if you are interested, but I thought today I would just start with an intro to building your board from the bottom up!
1) Where do they come from?
Did you think of Cotton Eyed Joe too? (If so, I already want to be your friend!)
Like I mentioned earlier, I am a HUGE fan of Craigslist (especially in Nashville) if you can find what you are looking for. If not, I buy a lot in local music stores, on Amazon, and at Musicians Friend. All my links from here will be to Amazon!
My favorite music store in Nashville!
2) The Board Itself
You can find some great pedal boards on Amazon. I have this Pedal Train 2, which is not only the perfect size but is also lightweight and easy to pick up (which is important to me!). If you know a wood worker, they could also make you one. So this is the bare bones!
3) The Power
This is what will give power to all the pedals on your board! You put it underneath the board and connect it to all your pedals using these small cables. I like/ have this Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 2 and these cables that go with it.
4) Connector Cables
AKA baby cables! These little guys connect all your pedals together. I will be coming out with more blogs post soon on the order/ pedal options etc. These are a good set to start with (buy more depending on how many pedals you get).
5) Two Long Cables
Now all you need it one cable to connect your pedal board to your amp and one to connect your pedal board to guitar.
6) Velcro Tape
We all know you missed velcro from your childhood, so making a pedal board will give you a great outlet to get re-acquainted with your roots! You will first use the velcro tape on each row of your pedal board. Then on each pedal you buy, stick the tape to the underside of the pedal to stick it on your board. Here's one!
So now you have the most basic components you need to start building your pedal board! There are obviously a ton more options and other opinions of the best gear than I used on this blog, but I tried to give you all universally liked and used options in a reasonable price range.
Voila!
Let me know if you have any thoughts or questions on putting together your board and if you are in Nashville and wanting to take electric guitar lessons we can build your board together! Thanks for reading!
