Pedalboard Runthrough - May 2026
After four new pedal releases in the space of a few weeks, I thought it would be interesting to do something slightly different and run through the pedalboard I’m actually using at the moment.
Firstly, thank you to everyone who’s picked up one of the new Core or Faded pedals, the updated versions of Embers and Twin. Seeing people connect with these in real-world setups is really cool.
This board is constantly changing. I think a lot of guitar players are probably the same, pedalboards get rebuilt, rearranged, simplified, expanded, then simplified again. Mine especially shifts around because a lot of my playing happens either in church environments where you end up needing to cover a huge range of sounds while still keeping things musical and practical, or in recording sessions, or in tiny venues which I have to get the train to, or are acoustic rigs!
At the moment, this setup is designed around an in-ear rig where I was playing lead guitar in a full band. Everything runs through the HX Stomp, which is also how I record most of the sounds you hear on the YouTube channel.
For this setup I’m using my Casino, now fitted with a set of Mojo Pickups. This was the first time I’d played it live with these pickups and I came away really pleased with how they sat in the mix. They still feel open and dynamic, but with a bit more depth and clarity than the stock setup.
Signal Chain Overview
The chain currently looks something like this:
Hotone Soul Press 2
Hamilton Effects Embers
Tube Screamer
Hamilton Effects Faded Twin
Boss Blues Driver
J Rockett SOS buffer
HX Stomp
Boss DD-500
Boss RV-500
The DD-500 and RV-500 are both running in the HX Stomp’s stereo effects loop.
From there, everything runs direct to FOH.
Soul Press 2
I’m using the Soul Press 2 mainly in volume/wah mode. I didn’t actually use the wah much, but I really like having the volume control underfoot.
Embers as a Texture Drive
The Embers on this board isn’t being used as a huge fuzz sound most of the time. Instead, it’s functioning more like a textural gain stage that adds character, harmonic texture and grit when stacked with other drives.
Because Embers has the built-in pickup simulator, it works perfectly happily after buffered pedals, which makes it much easier to integrate into whatever rig.
Current settings were roughly:
Cut: around 2 o’clock
Body: around 2:30
Bias and Gain: around midday
Volume: fairly high
I wasn’t using the full fuzz mode much live, but when stacked into the Twin and Blues Driver it creates a really expressive, slightly ragged edge that still stays dynamic.
Faded Twin + Blues Driver
The core of this board’s gain sound is actually the combination of the Faded Twin and a Blues Driver. The Blues Driver has basically been “always on” for most of my guitar-playing life. There’s just something about the feel and slight grit it adds that feels like home to me at this point.
The Faded Twin is running in parallel mode with both controls around noon. That setup gives a really dynamic push into the amp model without collapsing everything into compression. With just the Twin engaged, the sound stays clean but fuller and more responsive. Add the Blues Driver and things become richer and slightly more aggressive without losing articulation.
That’s the kind of gain structure I naturally gravitate towards - dynamic, touch-sensitive and stackable.
J Rockett SOS Buffer
I don’t need another buffer on this board because there are already buffered pedals earlier in the chain, but the SOS stays is because of the top-end presence control. I have that set fairly high and it adds just enough clarity and upper harmonic detail to help everything feel more immediate without becoming harsh.
HX Stomp Setup
The HX Stomp is handling amps, utility effects and routing.
Most of the time I’d normally run dual amps hard-panned stereo, but at the moment I’m using a more mono-focused amp setup while still keeping stereo delays and reverbs through the external loop. The base amp sound here is essentially an AC30-style patch.
Within the HX Stomp I’m also using:
Poly Capo octave-up for lead parts
Optical tremolo synced via MIDI tap tempo
Retro Reel for tape-style movement and texture
Harmonic tremolo for subtle motion
DD-500 Delays
The DD-500 is handling all of the delay sounds on the board. One of my go-to sounds is a stereo dotted eighth setup where the left and right sides are intentionally slightly different - different modulation, different repeat feel, slightly different movement.
I think this comes from the same instinct that makes me enjoy dual-amp setups. I like subtle variation between left and right rather than perfectly mirrored stereo.
Other delay sounds include:
Vintage digital-style dotted eighth delays
Warm analogue-style quarter/eighth combinations
Reverse and oscillating ambient textures
Longer rhythmic delays for atmospheric sections
The DD-500 still feels incredibly flexible for this kind of thing, especially when building stereo patches that stay musical rather than overly polished.
RV-500 Reverbs
The RV-500 is handling all the ambient and reverb sounds. My current favourite setup is actually fairly unconventional - a reverse-style reverb running into a dark plate reverb. The reverse reverb gives space without producing massive obvious tails, so it almost behaves more like a gated ambience than a traditional wash. Then the darker plate behind it fills things out without becoming distracting.
Reverb Hold & Ambient Playing
One thing that’s becoming a much bigger part of how I play is reverb hold and freeze-style textures. I use them a lot at home, but increasingly I’m bringing those ambient elements into live playing as well. Not in a huge cinematic way, more as a way of adding movement, tension and atmosphere underneath normal guitar parts.