Best Pedals of 2022: Top 5 Stompboxes you should check out
My Top 5 new stompboxes from the last 12 months
4,0 / 5,0 | 
The Best Pedals of 2022 is a list of my favourite five new stompboxes that were released this year. As ever the world of effects pedals is forever expanding and so these five pedals were the ones that really stood out for me.
Best Pedals of 2022
First, I must state that choosing only 5 effect pedals was always going to be a nightmare. I love pedals and could probably choose 50 or more that I liked from this year! Therefore, getting this list down to only 5 was always going to be a compromise for me.
There were a lot of great multi-effects this year, including releases from Eventide, TC Electronic, Meris, etc. These I didn’t include, as I wanted to concentrate on specific effect types that had really stood out as being useable and hopefully creatively inspiring.
I would love to know what your top 5 best pedals from 2022 were; let me know in the comments section below which ones were your favourites.
Gamechanger Audio Bigsby Pedal
Gamechanger Audio’s Bigsby Pedal is essentially a retro Whammy-style effect that does subtle ’50s vibrato and a heck of a lot more.
I love the idea that you can get a Bigsby-style warble without having to screw on a bug hunk of metal to your favourite guitar. I’ve owned a lot of Bigsby-equipped guitars in my lifetime; occasionally I have removed the Bigsby, as it killed sustain or caused tuning issues. Having a “Bigsby in a pedal” makes a lot of sense to me….
Gamechanger Audio Bigsby Pedal · Source: Gamechanger Audio
The Gamechanger Audio Bigsby Pedal should be a great creative tool, both live and in the studio. You’re freed from the hassles of the original vintage design and the hassles of keeping 1950s technology running smoothly. It could also prove interesting for non-guitarists, as you can run anything through it, not just guitars.
The Bigsby Pedal took a long time to develop and I was glad to see an official release in 2022.
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Boss Slicer SL-2
The new Boss Slicer SL-2 is a time-based effect that slices up your sound rhythmically. I own the original, now discontinued, double-pedal version and so I was pleased to see Boss bring the effect back and make it more compact. Plus, they have expanded it and added a USB port, which makes it even easier to use.
Boss Slicer SL-2 · Source: Boss
Again, this a very creative effect that can be used by guitarists, bassists, keyboard players, loop performers and DJs, etc
All of this adds up to earn it a place as one of the best effects of 2022. Certainly, an effect to check out if you need some creative inspiration!
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Line 6 DL4 Mk II
The new Line 6 DL4 Mk II takes that now classic green delay pedal and updates it for the modern musician. I think this effect will be a super useful tool for many applications, and not just for your guitar.
Line 6 DL4 Mk II · Source: Line 6
It has two onboard loopers, 30 delay modes and expandable loop time via Micro SD cards. Again, this is a great effect for both live work and studio use, which should inspire creativity.
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Boss DS-1W
Yes, it is another Boss effect and also another reissue of a classic pedal. I think the Boss DS-1W is a great all-around drive effect and I can see it being super usable in many situations. There is a reason so many musicians have used the original little orange distortion pedal; it is a classic because it is so good.
The trick with the DS-1 has always been to learn how to dial it in with finesse, rather than just turning everything up full!
Boss DS-1Wo may · Source: Boss
The DS-1 stacks really well with other pedals and additionally, works great on synths and drum machines, too. This newly refined version is a great update to the much-loved design and so I had to include it on my list.
I also love that being from Boss, it is not boutique or limited in numbers. This makes the DS-1W easy to find and accessible, not a limited edition unobtainable distortion effect in a funny paint job!
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Soldano SLO Pedal
Sometimes, you just want a boutique high-gain amp tone and surely the Soldano SLO tone is exactly that. Now the SLO Pedal gives you a great approximation of this in a compact pedal format and without the huge price tag.
Soldano SLO Pedal · Source: Soldano
The amp control layout is perfect and it has the tones to back up the SLO name. The side-mounted deep switch also ensures the deep bass punch that the Soldano Super Lead Overdrive amp heads are known for. As a guitarist, I like that in 2022 we can get this tone without having to lug a heavy 100-watt tune amp around with us, or relying on a software computer plugin.
Just pop one of these in your gig bag and off you go; molten high-gain tones are yours for the taking!
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2 responses to “Best Pedals of 2022: Top 5 Stompboxes you should check out”
A top notch!
Man I can’t say any of these were deserving of this mention other than the Bigsby for at least being unique. Of course, they dont sound nearly like a real vibrato… but this was disappointing to see mostly re-releases or copies of other things as best of the best.