Using Hardware Effects with Keyboards & Synths
Though DAWs and digital interfacing can open a world of sonic opportunities, one unavoidable truth tempts us to dispel all of those... Read more »
TS9 News
Mar 12, 2026, 1:15 PM
Mar 3, 2026, 4:10 PM
Best Guitar Pedals for Beginners
Building your first pedalboard can be overwhelming. But Sweetwater has your back. This list compiles our favorite pedals in seven categories to... Read more »
Jan 1, 2026, 12:00 PM
Best Guitar Pedals in 2026
Rejoice, effects pedal nerds! We live in a golden age of stompboxes. Though it’s not difficult to imagine that guitarists decades in the future... Read more »
Apr 25, 2025, 3:57 PM
Stacking Dirt Boxes for Hard Rock & Heavy Metal
Stacking overdrive devices is nothing new. Back in the day, when amps had no gain control and you had to crank them to 11 just to get an... Read more »
Jul 28, 2023, 3:00 PM
5 Songs with Unique Guitar Tunings
Alternate tunings have long been used to spark tasteful melodies and craft ear-catching, complex chords. And though blues, folk, metal, and... Read more »
Oct 22, 2022, 10:00 AM
Why the Tube Screamer Rules
In the oversaturated world of guitar pedals, the Ibanez Tube Screamer stands alone. Sweetwater’s Nick Bowcott walks us through the crunchy... Read more »
Jul 10, 2022, 9:22 AM
27 Tube Screamer-style Pedals Compared – Which Is Right for You?
There’s quite a story and a lot of history, both fact and conjecture, around the little, green overdrive pedal designed by Susumu Tamura of the... Read more »
May 9, 2022, 10:00 AM
Cable Management for Pedalboards
Building a pedalboard is fairly easy. You take an armful of your favorite stompboxes and put them on a board, wire them up, and usually, it’s... Read more »
Apr 26, 2022, 8:00 AM
5 Tips for Stacking Distortion Pedals
Have you ever used more than one distortion pedal at a time? If so, you’ve officially stacked — it’s that easy. Depending on your pedals and... Read more »
Aug 19, 2021, 8:00 AM
How Many Distortion Pedals Do You Really Need?
Ah, yes, the eternal, burning question practically all guitarists and bassists face during their playing endeavors. Those of you familiar with... Read more »