The past 20 years have seen an explosion in the popularity of guitar effects pedals, and the range and options available continue to expand.
It used to be that if you wanted several different effects to stack and blend, you’d have to run a giant board of pedals through a ton of lead and patch cables.
This is expensive and cumbersome, and all that cabling results in signal loss, robbing the true tone of your guitar and amp.
Thankfully, with digital pedal technology getting better and cheaper all the time, many producers are making exquisite sounding with some of the best cheap multi effects guitar pedal.
Our Recommendation of Best Cheap Multi Effects Guitar Pedal
These are five of the best cheap multi effects guitar pedal on the market today:
- TC Electronics Plethora X5 (Best Overall)
- BOSS MS3 Multi Effects Switcher (Best for Professionals)
- Eventide H9 Core (Best Add-On)
- Zoom MS50 (Best Budget Option)
- Mooer GE-200 Multi-FX (Best Compact Design)
1. TC Electronics Plethora X5
TC electronics has made a solid name for itself in the pedal market over the past ten years. They excel in producing high-quality sounds in compact form, and their TonePrint technology allows users to dial in and save a library of custom settings and cloud-based editing.
It’s no surprise that they’ve offered one of the best low-cost guitar multi-effects pedals out there. The Plethora X5 features their most popular pedals in one neat package, including the Hall of Fame 2, the Flashback 2, the Helix, and many more.
Each effect can be customized with TonePrint. You can stack up to five effects per board preset, and you can store up to 127 different board layouts. Each button also features the MASH function, which can control up to three programmable functions for the effect.
If you want to add your own outboard pedals into the mix, like an analog overdrive or a favorite modulation, the Plethora X5 has an FX loop that can be integrated as well.
It has a loop station with up to 80 seconds available recording time, outputs for USB and an expression pedal, and programmable knobs that can act like traditional pedal knobs for on-the-fly tweaking.
The Plethora X5 is intuitive, powerful, compact, and affordable. For best cheap guitar multi effects pedal, this one is hard to beat.
2. BOSS MS3 Multi Effects Switcher
When you think of guitar stompboxes, you think BOSS. They’ve been crushing the pedal game for nearly 50 years now. So many BOSS pedals are considered classics and must-haves, it’s hard to know where to begin.
That’s why the BOSS MS3 is so exciting. First, it has 127 BOSS pedals to choose from. Everything can be found here, from the classic DS1 to the latest in the BOSS lineup like the Tera Echo and the sitar simulator.
You can stack up to six pedals internally per preset. Not only that, but BOSS has also included three FX loops that you can program into presets as well, so if you want to run that vintage Big Muff into the mix, it’s easy to do.
It has a built-in tuner, cloud-based editing, USB and MIDI outputs, and two outputs for expression pedals. You can program channel switching for your amp, and it’s got noise suppression and global EQ built-in.
BOSS also thought to add programmable knobs for on-the-fly tweaking, just like a traditional pedal. Anything you can think of that you’d want the best cheap multi effects guitar pedal to do, this board will do.
Also, being BOSS, the sounds on this board are top quality and iconic; it is built for players. BOSS has always made the most indestructible pedals on the market, and this one is no exception.
Classic sounds, powerful capabilities, and a great price are what this beast is all about.
3.Eventide H9 Core
This offering from Eventide is a bit different from the others on the list. Rather than replacing your whole pedalboard, the Eventide H9 Core is a multi-effects pedal designed to be in line with other pedals.
However, the H9 only runs one effect at a time, so why is it on the list?
Simply put: This pedal produces the most luscious, studio-quality effects to be found. The algorithms that Eventide has developed are the best, bar none. For anyone that’s ever used an Eventide pedal, it’s well understood what these pedals can do.
The H9 comes loaded with several Eventide’s most iconic effects, including the ModFactor pedal’s tremolo/pan and chorus, tape echo, vintage delay from the TimeFactor pedal, shimmer, hall reverbs from the space pedal, and more.
It also introduces a new Ultra Tap Delay, and you get a voucher for a free algorithm download. More on that next.
Along with the sounds included, you can load up the H9 with whatever additional effects you want at $14 each or purchase whole bundles through the Eventide downloads site.
This gives you the a-la-carte capability to get exactly the sounds you want without paying for effects you’ll never use.
It has a USB out and MIDI in-out-thru, cloud-based editing via an app, and 99 preset spaces. The H9 gets you all that Eventide has to offer without spending thousands of dollars.
4. Zoom MS50 Multi-Effects Pedal
For those out there looking for a stackable multi-effects pedal in a small package, the Zoom MS50 fits the bill.
The MS50 sports 47 effects, along with eight amp modelers. It runs on two AA batteries and will take a 9V adapter, although you will want to make sure you find one that can handle 500ma.
It’s stackable up to six sounds per preset, with 50 preset slots available. Editing is done through an LCD screen and three knobs that will serve various functions depending on the effect.
The sounds on the MS50 are surprisingly rich, considering the size of the pedal. What’s more, at this price with what it has to offer, this is the most budget-friendly of the bunch.
This pedal is definitely worth a look if you are looking for a small, stackable best cheap guitar multi effects pedal that can even replace an amp for recording purposes.
5. Mooer GE200 Multi-FX
With 70 effects, 55 amp modelers, and 26 cabinet modelers, the Mooer GE200 boasts a wide array of options for a one-stop tone-shaping machine. This is a great all-in-one option for any player who wants to plug in a virtual guitar setup directly into their DAW.
The addition of a built-in expression pedal is a nice feature of the GE200, and the distortions and overdrives mainly are much more nuanced and sensitive than what you might expect for a low-cost guitar multi-effects pedal.
It has a USB output for editing and connecting to your DAW, making it incredibly simple to use for recording song ideas. Its compact design means that you can take a studio setup wherever you go.
This pedal is a good option for anyone looking for simplicity and portability at a really low price point.
What’s Next?
Whether you are looking for studio-quality effects in a single box, a virtual board to replace everything in your pedal chain, or a one-stop stompbox to make signal processing and recording a one cable endeavor — you can find the right low-cost guitar multi-effects pedal for your needs on this list!
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