Best Pedalboards – Reviews and Buyer’s Guide
What are the best pedalboards out there?
| Model | Dimensions | Materials | Capacity |
| PT-CLJ-SC Pedaltrain Classic JR | 21.5 x 16 x 5.9 inches | Aircraft aluminum | 6 pedals |
| RockBoard | 24 x 14 x 5 inches | Cold-rolled aluminum | 10 pedals |
| Gator Cases G-TOUR Series | 28 x 15.5 x 7.5 inches | Aluminum & plywood | 14 pedals |
| Gator Cases Guitar Effects | 17.5 x 6 x 31.5 inches | Plywood | 6 pedals |
| Voodoo Lab Dingbat | 27 x 17 x 7 inches | Aircraft aluminum | 10 pedals |
| Pedaltrain Nano | 14 x 5 x 5.1 inches | Aluminum | 5 pedals |
| Aclam Smart Track S2 | 23.2 x 11.8 inches | Anodized aluminum | 8-10 pedals |
| Gator G-Tour Large | 24 x 11 inches | Aluminum & plywood | 10-12 pedals |
| Harley Benton SpaceShip 40 | 17.7 x 3 x 12 inches | Aluminum | 12 pedals |
| Warwick RockBoard TRES 3.1 | 24 x 14 x 5 inches | Aluminum | 8-10 pedals |
| Boss BCB-60 | 26.3 x 14.5 inches | Aluminum | 4-6 pedals |
| Temple Audio Duo 17 | 18 x 13 x 4 inches | Aluminum | 6-8 pedals |
| SKB PS-8 Powered Pedalboard | 19 x 12 x 2 inches | Wood or aluminum | 8 pedals |
| Holeyboard New Standard | 25.5 x 18 inches | Aluminum | 8-10 pedals |
| Schmidt Array | 17.7 x 5 inches | Wood or aluminum | 6-8 pedals |
PT-CLJ-SC Pedaltrain Classic JR — Middle grounder
RockBoard TRES 3.1 — Versatility is the key
Materials. The construction features just one folded aluminum sheet. No weld seams mean stronger construction and sleeker feel to the pedalboard. You can easily carry it to a local gig or on a tour: the construction is very lightweight.
Additional features. The design lets you hide the cables underneath the board to keep things clean and organized. The board comes with a soft case with a strap for easy carry.
Gator Cases G-TOUR Series — Durability champion
Design. The manufacturer definitely went for a more premium look here. The board provides lots of storage for pedals, cables, and accessories. It also has an impressive capacity: you can fit up to 14 pedals here. The case is robust and features retractable tow with wheels for easy transportation. The lower portion of the case has some space to store cables or some other stuff you may need during the show.
Materials. The exterior is made out of aluminum with a plywood frame — be sure that your pedal won’t get damaged. Also, there is an EVA foam interior to help with shock absorption. On top of that, rubber grip handles are spring-loaded with recessed butterfly latches.
Additional features. You will be able to install your pedals with 3M Dual Lock Fastener which comes with the product.
Gator Cases Guitar Effects — No need to break the bank
Design. This is one of the most affordable solutions here. This particular pedalboard has a more simplistic design with not much going on. It does have some space underneath for power supply, but the angle of the board is not wide enough to fit a lot of stuff. The pedals are attached with velcros.
Materials. The main material is plywood, you won’t find any metal here.
Additional features. The pedalboard comes with a nylon carry case. Nylon is a strong material, but it lacks the impact-absorbing spots and just not as sturdy as hard cases of some other setups.
Voodoo Lab Dingbat Medium
Design. This pedalboard features a simplistic design with the ability to fit around 10 pedals. The hook-and-loop tapes that come with the product will allow you to easily assemble your setup.
Materials. American 6061-T6 aircraft-grade aluminum provides both ease of transportation and durability.
Additional features. The gig bag is included here as well, and it offers enough in terms of protection. Anyone needs to be careful when carrying the board around since we don’t have any impact-absorbing elements in here.
Pedaltrain Classic Pro — an Honorable Mention
Design. Pedaltrain manufactures a wide range of modular pedalboards — those which are similar in their design but come in different sizes. The size of the pedalboard depends on the number of pedals you’d like to install on the board. For instance, Pedalboard Nano can fit only 4 pedals.
Here we are talking about Pedaltrain Classic Pro — it is a pretty large model, with the ability to fit up to 13 differently-sized pedals. The pedal has Pedaltrain’s classic five-rail “pro” design with traditional rail spacing. With the open front and elevated angle design, it is very convenient to mount the power supply and switching system.
The pedalboard also comes with 160″ of Professional-Grade Hook-and-Loop and zip ties for fast and easy setups.
Materials. Even though it doesn’t look impressive, the pedalboard will surely get you through years of rough usage. Pedaltrain Classic Pro is built from aluminum alloy for the combination of durability and lightness.
Additional features. There are two case options to go with: soft case and wheeled tour case. The soft case is made of heavy-duty cordura nylon, with the solid panels sewn inside the sides — that’s a quite good amount of protection we’re talking about.
Another case option also features reinforced stress points, and its construction is enhanced to be 35% lighter than previous iterations.
Pedaltrain Nano — Small But Mighty
Design
The product features a very small and compact soft-case body. There are no feet underneath the board, so you will have to come up with your own solution to fit a power supply.
Materials
The primary material of that pedalboard is aluminum. It makes the pedalboard light and sturdy.
Additional features
Due to its small footprint, the boards can only house one row of pedals.
Aclam Smart Track S2 — Everything You Could Ever Want
Design
That pedalboard follows the modular trend with its design. Instead of the Velcro, you can mount your pedals on the board using Smart Track fasteners.
Materials
The product guarantees sturdiness with its aluminum build. It is great for traveling, when carrying conditions are never perfect.
Additional features
The pedalboard offers switchable bed with a larger set of rails for pedal mounting.
Gator G-Tour Large — Heavy-Duty Option
Design
The pedal has a straightforward design with no quirks — just a simple bed with rails to mount pedals on. On the further side of the board, there are three stands that help elevate it from the ground.
Materials
The primary construction material here is aluminum.
Additional features
The product also offers retractable handle wheels, which are great for touring with the setup. The pedals are mounted on the board with the help of Velcro.
Harley Benton SpaceShip 40 — Budget King
Design
This is a string built with an elevated back that features rails for fastening the pedals.
Materials
The sturdiness of the product is covered by its closed aluminum build.
Additional features
The feet have an adjustable height.
Warwick RockBoard TRES 3.1 — Modern Solution
Design
The product has a case-like design where everything fits right in.
Materials
The build is plastic, which does not command the high sturdiness of a metal product, but it still can take a beating. Another benefit is the low weight of the board.
Additional features
The pedal can be purchased with customizable patch bays and different power supply options.
Boss BCB-60 — Minimalist Choice
Design
Here we have another compact metal build with both sides of the pedal elevated from the floor.
Materials
Aluminum.
Additional features
The pedal has I/O connectors, send and return jacks, and a power supply. There is plenty of space for various pedal setups.
Temple Audio Duo 17 — Customizable Product
Design
That particular pedalboard skips over the conventional design for something a bit more simple. There are no Velcro fasteners and the pedal has enough room for two rows of pedals.
Materials
The pedalboard build features strong metal. It also has a perforated top panel, which makes the board lighter.
Additional features
The pedal can be customized to feature a variety of end panels, I/O connectors integration, and so on.
SKB PS-8 Powered Pedalboard — Plug and Play
Design
The design of the product features plate construction for mounting pedals. The pedalboard section is covered with hook-and-loop fastenings for pedal arrangement.
Materials
The vendor opted for an injection-molded eco-friendly rubber instead of a traditional metal. This makes the board even more lightweight.
Additional features
The board has room for eight pedals with 9VDC outputs built-in for power.
Holeyboard New Standard — Practical Product
Design
Here we have a very ergonomic form factor, with the whole body of the board curved for easier access to the pedals. The holes on the front bed help to lower the weight of the product.
Materials
The primary materials of the pedalboard are wood and aluminum.
Additional features
There is a lot of space for mounting pedals in two rows.
Schmidt Array — The Boutique Variant
Design
The design highly depends on what option you get — there are all kinds of finishes, connectors, and sizes. Nevertheless, all of them have integrated hard cases for ease of transportation and added protection.
Materials
Metal
Additional features
The decks for pedals are completely replaceable. On top of that, the board has integrated I/O connectors.
What is the best all-around pedalboard?
There you have it — some of the most balanced pedalboards on the market right now. Your choice depends on your setup, the number of pedals you need, the amount of travel, and so on. But here’s what we can outline to make the choice easier:
PT-CLJ-SC Pedaltrain Classic JR — that will definitely meet most people’s requirements. The design is solid, it fits a good number of pedals, and you can choose from two cases to have it shipped with.
RockBoard TRES 3.1 — this pedalboard is for tech pedal savvies. The design allows to have various pedals, and it is very durable for its price.
Gator Cases G-TOUR Series — premium solution. The case provided is durable enough to survive the wildest and the longest tours. It fits up to 14 pedals.
Gator Cases Guitar Effects — the least feature-packed, but the most affordable. The material is lightweight, and the pedals can be easily installed with velcros.
Voodoo Lab Dingbat — another quite well-balanced pedalboard. Quite durable with a decent capacity, it comes with a spacious case with some protection.
Multi-Effects Pedals vs Individual Pedals
FAQ:
First of all, you need to understand that the sizes of guitar pedals vary. The length of one device can be up to 19 inches. If you take the pedals from the “Boss” company as a standard, then you will be able to install up to 5 pedals in a row. There are a total of 10 small pedals because of two rows.
The PT-CLJ-SC is a versatile pedalboard. Almost all pedals are easily mounted on its surface. However, to be on the safe side, just enter the name of the desire pedalboard in any search engine and find the desired pedalboard with your pedal among the pictures.
This hole is for installing a special “RockBoard” device. At the moment there are 6 devices for which this hole is intended. They are all patch bays. The simplest of these is patch bay for five channels. This means that you can connect five pedals, which will feed the signal to five independent amplifiers. The second device is also a patch bay, but with the ability to connect to a computer and equipped with a MIDI interface. Another variation of “RockBoard’s” patch bay is the patch bays for singers and acoustic guitars. A distinctive feature of this device is the presence of a large number of XLR inputs. The most original patch bay from “RockBoard” is a Wi-Fi receiver. The company produces two varieties of Wi-Fi patch bays. The most useful is a patch bay with built-in effects and DI box option.
Compared to other manufacturers, the “Gator Cases” from “G-TOUR Series” are quite heavy. The weight of one pedalboard is 12.2 lbs. . This is a lot if you have to constantly carry the pedalboard in your hands. Its indisputable advantage for use on tours is the presence of a top cover that protects the pedals from damage during transportation. You just need to put the pedalboard on the floor and open the lid. After that, the entire stack is ready to work. Therefore, if you do not need to carry the “Gator Case” in your hands, this is a great solution for traveling musicians.
The “Gator Cases” company has been producing equipment for professional musicians since 2000. The headquarters and factory are located in the United States in Florida.
In terms of size, the wide version will definitely do the trick. Nevertheless, the company “Gator Cases” produce cases specifically for Line 6 Helix effects processors. The advantages of the cases from “Gator Cases” include a paraffin coating on the inside of the lid, which will protect the expensive effects processor from damage.
Unfortunately, the strength and versatility of the Gator Cases pedaling design is offset by the lack of a cable solution. They just bulge out of the back, as if the pedals were right on the floor. For this reason, being inside the case under the pressure of the foam rubber pad, the wires are frayed and need to be changed more often.
In a bag from “Voodoo Lab” pedalboard, in addition to the pedalboard itself, wires or several pedals can easily fit. There is a lot of space left. In terms of usability, the bag is easy to carry in your hands or behind your back. The bag itself weighs very little. And the durable, water-resistant material will protect your pedalboard for years.
The AC adapter built into the “Voodoo Lab Dingbat Medium” pedal board can power up to six guitar pedals, which consume a current of 9V.
For this, special velcro straps are used. One side is attached to the pedalboard surface using an adhesive surface. The second part is attached to the pedal. The advantages of this method include versatility. Regardless of the presence or absence of mounted holes, any pedal can be installed on the “Pedaltrain Classic PRO”. The disadvantage of this method is the constant need for velcro straps. You should always have a few in reserve.
