Top 8 Boost Pedals – Adding More Power To Your Signal Chain

Last Updated Nov-11-2018.

Boost pedals are one of the most underutilized and overlooked tools a guitar player has at their disposal. In a world where we are constantly on the lookout for that perfect tone, we are often blinded by the complexity of some effects to when simple approach might be the right one.

Today we are going to talk about boost pedals in detail. We have selected some of the best pedals from this category, which we think you should check out. Afterward, we will get into the story of boost pedals and how they can help you out in everyday situations.

8 Best Boost Pedals

Image	Guitar Pedal / Rating	Summary	Check Price
+ -	MXR M133 Micro Amp Total of 4.83/5	Micro Amp is among the oldest and most organic sounding boosters available.	Amazon Full Review
+ -	Xotic RC Booster Total of 4.88/5	Lots of transparency, range and gain that is available on tap instantly.	Amazon Full Review
+ -	Electro-Harmonix LPB-1 Total of 4.93/5	A legend that was there since the beginning, and still kicks strong.	Amazon Full Review
+ -	Xotic EP Booster Total of 4.92/5	Model that brings lots of features and performance despite its apparent simple design.	Amazon Full Review
+ -	J Rockett Audio Designs Archer Total of 4.92/5	Dual purpose boutique booster pedal that delivers somewhat new and refreshing experience.	Amazon Full Review
+ -	TC Electronic Spark Mini Booster Total of 4.95/5	This little analog beast is capable of giving you lot's of gain.	Amazon Full Review
+ -	Donner Boost Killer Total of 4.83/5	Loose cannon among booster pedals that only a few handle with ease.	Amazon Full Review
+ -	Zvex Vexter Super Hard-On Preamp Booster Total of 4.88/5	Pure boost that is among the most transparent ones available right now.	Amazon Full Review

What Exactly Are Boost Pedals?

For some guitar players out there, boost pedals are about the same as alchemy. They are these mysterious stomp boxes that do something, but not many are sure what. Despite all that mystery, a boost pedal is a very simple device. The whole idea behind this type of ‘effect' is to add more power to the signal, before that signal reaches an amplifier. But wait, you might say, don't many other effects pedals do the same thing? They definitely do, but not in this way. If you'd like to learn more about distortion pedals, check out our guide dedicated to this effect.

Here's the thing. Boost pedals are meant to add more juice to the signal, but without affecting it any other way. That last part is super important. You can always add more gain with a decent distortion pedal, however that implies having that signal distorted. This inherent simplicity of boost pedals is exactly what keeps them out of the spotlight. They are essentially scalpels in a sea of sledgehammers, with a very niche purpose that many might benefit from, but only few actually need.

It is fair to say that most guitar players who use boost pedals have quite a few years of experience under their belt. There are also some beginners who go head first into boosters, but that is fairly rare. In essence, we could summarize boost pedals as devices that unlock more of the tone you have already dialed in.

How Are Boost Pedals Used?

For such a niche type of pedal, boost pedals have plenty of uses. The more you spend time with one, you will start to realize the true potential a boost pedal has to offer. In this next segment we will discuss different ways a boost pedals can be helpful in your every day life as a guitar player. Some of the ways might be obvious, but others not so much. Let's get right into it.

Adding Girth To Your Tone

One of the most popular uses of a boost pedal is to add more girth to the already dialed in tone. Since transparency is imperative for a boost pedal to be any good, you can pretty much expect zero coloration as a result of using a boost pedal. This means that the only actual effect would be more gain and more power in the signal itself. In practical terms, you can make your overdrive sound far more organic than it does right now. It gains tangible width that can absolutely spice up the flavor.

On a similar note, a bit of added boost does wonders for solo sections as well. No matter what kind of pedals or settings you are using for your solos, just pressing that foot switch on a booster will make those solos more attractive in numerous ways. It is really hard to explain, but try to imagine how a tube amp sounds on extremely low volume. You are hearing the notes, but they sound pretty hollow. Let's say that this is your regular guitar tone. Compared to that, adding a boost pedal would be like pushing that amp into its optimal power band. In other words, it is still the same tone but it sounds full now.

Creating Natural Overdrive

If we were to look at the nature of tube amplifiers, we would find that creating actual overdrive would imply pushing that amp past its optimal operating conditions. Those who own tube amplifiers know that not many things out there can replace the feeling of pushing a tube amp that hard. However, there are consequences. In some cases, in order to reach that fuzzy portion of tube's power band, you have to crank the volume past comfortable levels. If you are using the amp at home, it doesn't take much to figure out how this can be an issue.

By adding a boost pedal into the signal chain, you are infusing all of that gain long before the signal reaches the amp. By doing so, you don't have to crank the volume too much at all. This effect is more or less linear as you add volume.

Overcoming Hardware Limitations

One of the less known uses for boost pedals is to solve hardware issues. Playing guitar on stage and using a complex pedalboard can be tough. You have to set everything up just right, and then activate the pedals as you play. However, there is one more issue you need to think about while you are up there. Cable length can prove to be deadly for your tone. The longer the guitar cables are, more power is necessary to keep the signal intact until it reaches the amplifier.

With a boost pedal, you are pumping all that necessary power into the system, thus ensuring that your signal reaches the amp in perfect condition. While this scenario might sound far fetched for most of us, it's necessary to remember that cables on professional stages can be over 20 feet long when you count in everything.

Another form of hardware limitation has to do with pickups in different guitars. For example, a Stratocaster has a much different nominal volume than a Gibson SG. By hooking up a booster while using a Strat can easily push it to the same level of power as Gibson SG.

Is There A Such A Thing As Clean Boost?

Here's where we reach a somewhat controversial part of the story. On paper, most boost pedals are completely transparent. In other words, they are marketed as pedals that have no impact on the nature of the tone aside from adding more power. In reality, boost pedals generally add some type of coloration to the tone. It might be miniscule, bit it is often there.

With that said, it is somewhat deceptive to market pedals as clean boosts. The good thing is that this effect is in many cases reduced to a minimum. On the other hand, a good number of guitar players actually appreciate that tiny bit of discoloration. Especially considering that most people use boost pedals to drive a tube amplifier.

What Makes A Good Boost Pedal?

Unlike most other guitar effects pedals, there are only two conditions that need to be met for a boost pedal to be deemed good. First one is its ability to offer significant gain boost, and the other is transparency. If you really want to nitpick it, we can count in a proper bypass switch as well. The first condition is arguably the easiest one to meet. Since boost pedals are essentially preamp stages packed into a pedal format, it's not all that difficult to make one powerful enough.

However, making a boost pedal transparent enough is where things get tough. Looking at some of the earliest boost pedals, we will see that the circuitry inside is incredibly simple. Simplicity is not something that is exclusive to older designs. There are plenty of simplistic boost pedals in circulation today. With that said, achieving proper transparency requires a far more complicated approach sometimes. Some of the most transparent boost pedals have extremely complex circuitry. At this point, designing a transparent circuit is truly bordering with alchemy. Having that true bypass is also important, especially if transparency isn't on a high level. Without it, the pedal would add some coloration to the signal even when it was completely off. As you can imagine, that is not something you want to have. The byproduct of this search for ultimate transparency leads to fairly expensive boost pedals hitting the market. It is easy to understand why some guitar players are turned off by this. Boost pedals might perform a fairly simple task, but they are anything but simple under the hood.

Why Not Just Use An EQ Pedal?

As awesome as EQ pedals are, they are definitely not something you want to use as a booster. The whole idea of using an EQ to add some gain comes from the fact that EQs have that ability. However, all of that additional boost is channeled through specific frequencies. Even if you were to push all sliders to the max, you wouldn't get a nearly similar result due to the lack of, you guessed it, transparency.

EQ pedals are there to add a bit of punch to specific portions of your frequency range, not all of it. Additionally, comparing the amount of additional gain a boost pedal offers to that of an EQ is unfair. Boosters are generally far more powerful. Since we are already talking about using other effects in place of a boost unit, it is worth mentioning that several other effects are somewhat similar as well. However, the reasons why they don't work in this capacity are more or less the same.

Hybrid Pedals

Among the large number of various boost pedals, there are also interesting hybrids in there. In most cases, you will see an overdrive being fused with a booster. That is most likely due to the fact that every overdrive, distortion and even fuzz has an integrated boost sections in there. As great as some of these hybrids are, they are limited in their performance as boosters. The moment you add a whole new function to the mix, retaining any kind of serious transparency becomes increasingly difficult. However, if all you want is something that will saturate your distortion or overdrive, a hybrid could be the perfect option. Using these pedals to enhance a clean channel is where you will probably run into real issues.

Conclusion

Boost pedals are a very useful piece of kit, but one that you need to master. In order to properly use these pedals, you need to have a thorough understanding of what they do, but also of your gear. Once you get to that level, you'll find that boost pedals are a true game changer. Models we have chosen for this purpose are easily some of the best in you can get. There will always be some obscure boutique designs that are incredible, but those also tend to come with exclusive prices. We went with proven value deals that work.