Best Effects Pedal For Acoustic Guitar (2024 Update)

I’ve been searching for multi effects/DI pedal to compliment my Weissenborn style acoustic guitar. My sound hole passive pickup does a great job except for a somewhat weak output. Enter The Zoom AC-3 to the rescue. Now I have output headroom to spare. Everything about it is top shelf. Extremely flexible effects (kudos to ZOOM for using knobs rather than menu driven). And, it’s build quality is terrific. Very solid unit. I’m very glad I decided to try the ZOOM AC-3. BTW, the AMS payment options are unbeatable!SC n NC

I needed a DI box that could also boost the signal to the PA for solos and the Zoom does that well; the stage tuner is helpful, though I still use headstock tuners from habit and have accidentally muted my guitar stepping on the tuner switch when I wanted the boost switch. Providing presets for guitar body style should be useful, but once an effect is chosen I'll likely stick with it and use the equalizer knobs instead. Rarely use reverb playing with other instruments through the PA. The anti-feedback function and lift button haven't been needed though that was a big problem with my old DI box. Not using batteries, but two AA ones probably wouldn't last long.Mike

Makes a 200 dollar guitar sound like a 1000 dollar guitar. Makes a 1000 dollar guitar sound like a 2000 dollar guitar and so forth. The tape delay and tremolo sound so lush and amazing. The other effects sound amazing too, but I love the tape delay. What is amazing about this pedal is that it gets your little nuances and fixes them by smoothing them over. It's hard to find this pedal under 300 dollars, but if you have to own just one pedal for an acoustic then this is the one.satu87121

Look, if you REALLY have to have a Martin D-45 sound, guess what Of course this pedal will never do that. BUT, if you need something that sounds somewhat acoustic-like in a band mix and don't want to carry an extra (not to mention fragile) instrument, then this will work just fine. Not authentic, not great, not amazingly life-like, just FINE. With realistic expectations this pedal is as good as any for what it intends to do. I use this in an A/B/Y rig. Tha A side goes to my regular pedalboard and amps. The B side goes to this pedal and a volume pedal direct to FOH via a direct box. I get the "acoustic" sound fed back to me through my monitor (or ears if that applies occasionally). I can have straight electric, straight "acoustic", or use the Y option to blend the two to my liking. Works for me, YMMV. I play "for-hire" mostly and my clients love the versatility of my setup. Also, DO NOT run this pedal through a tube amp if you want the best results. It will definitely work best either run straight to FOH or through a clean solid-state amp. Hope this helps some of you who may be on the fence.steveheroan2010

Have read many reviews both positive and negative about this pedal. The negatives were not specific but didn't hear their guitar and amp give an acoustic sound with this pedal. The positives were sometimes vague but they liked it. Then some went on to say they liked it not through a tube amp but through an acoustic amp or a PA system. I HOOKED IT up through a very small practice amp set clean and used the emulation out into a mixer then into a low power full range PA type system. Sounded excellent with neck single coil. Didn't try it with the middle single coil nor the bridge humbucker. I am very happy to have this pedal.Kenmorek

After trying several set ups that sell for hundreds more, I decided to give the sonicake a try. I'm very impressed with the tone quality and effects from this small rig. Add a tuner and this makes a perfect set up for small or large gigs.aaaabo

Overall: I was looking for something that would give me compact unit that would leave me prepared for any eventuality.This box with its outstanding effects for acoustic, and great options for output, leaves me feeling prepared for any eventuality. No direct box needed!Its very small footprint gives me a lot of functionality in a very small space, without chincing on quality. IT feels durable and substantial without being a tank.My Taylor K14C sounds awesome through it!Its hard to comment on customer service when you have had no need to contact the Mnfg. so don;t consider my rating on that since I cant really commentJoseph

I love this thing! Pairs well with my Taylor 110. The preamp is responsive, the boost is a nice touch, and the chorus and reverb are lush. Tap tempo delay is great. I will use this weekly for worship guitar at church. My only bone to pick was the power adapter was bad right out of the box. I had another so it worked out, but still. Great unit and you definitely get what you pay for.Imnotluckyjustsaved

I play mandolin and guitar in the church band and I have long since found that going direct through the P.A. system is the most efficient and quickest way to get a fidelity acoustic tone into the mix. The great thing about the Trace Elliot is that it is a quality direct box with XLR outputs with quality effects. I love the simplicity of the controls which allows me to individually dial in the effects such as reverb, delay, chorus, and, since I often take solos, a dedicated boost stomp for the extra punch I need for taking the lead with distinction. The simplicity of the controls allows me to make individual tweaks right on stage, unlike my Zoom A3, which has to go through several computer digitized manipulations, and actually requires pre-programmed patches. The Trace Elliot eliminates the digital windows through plain straightforward simplicity.randalcummings

The Mooer Acoustikar does pretty good. Take little tweaks to get it to do what it will do. Use it with my Gretsch hollow body electric g5122. I use the Acoustikar for rhythm and use the bridge pickup to help clarity and set the Acoustikar flat with the selector switch to normal or jumbo. Doesn't sound like an acoustic guitar but fills the part. Better than some others I've tried.timtim.mmvafuz2

I use this for my Taylor 412 acoustic – going directly to P.A. (I use a Fishman pre amp as well) I play in various acoustic trios and I needed something to boost volume for solos – plus add a little sustain/overdrive as needed. I was pleasantly surprised with the tone, and I had NO feedback problems at all. It really helps put my acoustic leads in the same proficiency level as my electric leads. It takes a bit of tweaking to find the sweet spot between enough sustain – yet not too much distortion – but the sweet spot is very much attainable. There's a slight pop when you click it on – but not enough to be overly noticeable or annoying. I'm VERY happy with this pedal !!Tom P.

The pluses: its solidly built and it has nice blue lights on the individual knobs. The minuses: not inexpensive and did not approach electric sounds for my piezo Epiphone acoustic. Maybe if you have a great pickup system? Or if you already have a magnetic soundhole pickup then this thing can give some sounds. Instead I just grabbed my cheapo Zoom multifx pedal and created a patch with eq–>overdrive—>compressor—>eq and it sounds a zillion times more realistic.Go_Pats

Excellent sound. Lots of tweaking possible to get the souns right and avoid feedback. Footswitch a bit clunky, and glue on rubber feet useless, but they are the only negativesMark S.

the size was perfect for the space I had left on my board, it doesn't sound exactly like an acoustic guitar, but it does take a lot of the high end off single coil guitars and provides a lower sounding effect for strumming.636_hill

Pro's Had this pedal for a few weeks now, very pleased as I can plug my passive solid body electric violin straight in and it seems to balance the impedence just fine, so I don't lose the lower frequencies. Battery life is surprisingly good, also there is an eco function that makes the screen less bright for longer life. First thing I did was test it with cheap pound shop batteries, which lasted for a good few hours, so I was impressed as none of my other pedals can handle that. There is a very useful editor which you can download and gives full access to all of the various fx. Was also surprised that Zoom seem to keep adding these individual plug-in type effects. There is one set of patches that you can load in from the editor, created by a Japanese EV player. They are interesting and can be useful. The fx appear to be in a chain, but some seem parallel to my mind, as there is a mix control with some that seems to be a by-pass of some kind. There are quite a lot of different fx and some are aimed at getting that piezo squeek under control, which is important for EV players as the bow hair noise can be a distraction. The EQ fx seem to be aok at filtering out the annoying frequencies. The looper is quite handy for setting up, the frequency response to my ears seemed ok without any noticeable compression. Not many battery loopers out there, so this is ok for a street jam if that is your thing. It's just basic record, overdub x however many you want, stop or delete. This pedal worked well through my amps and like most pedals works well in that situation for live gig work. For studio, I could record DI straight into my DAW, but to gain a really natural sound used additional IR reverb and IR convolution snapshots that I've made. I also have the Zoom A2.1u pedal which is built like a tank but is less easy to program. I wasn't sure about the plastic base of the A1. However, it has a got a solid metal base and feels really strong+ it's light and a handy size, not too big. Unlike some of the floor guitar pedals I've got that take up a whole gig bag. I can set up my favourite patches in any order that I like, the editor makes this very easy. I can overwrite the presets, or re-set back to makers original settings. Makers patch 29 is one of the best octavers I have come across in a pedal like this. Makes a regular EV sound just like a Cello. Cons: There might be IR on this pedal but you can't load in your own and there is no way to get access to edit the convolution fx. I was overly impressed with the Violin pre-sets, but that's true of most pedal presets, you need to put you own to together to suit different EV's you might own. Overall I like this pedal and can see myself using it a lot because it is light, I can edit on the fly, good battery life, good price, ongoing support via the editor. I bought this pedal from Scan computers in Bolton and their service was excellent and they offered the most competitive price, so all good imo.Peak

This is NOT an acoustic guitar pedal! It has useless settings for sax, harmonica, trumpet, WHY ? They're just a bunch of unusable effects for a guitar, maybe a half dozen are useful. The looper is useless, you have to use your hand to get to it, it ONLY records a 30sec loop, not 24 seconds not one measure , 30 sec. And it doesn't start with sound activation, so the delay from when you turn it on stays in the loop, as does the remainder of the 30 seconds !!! What good is that ? And the pedal is right next to a control footswitch, that you WILL keep hitting and changing the setting as you play. There is no rhyme or reason to the lack of organization in the effects order, there isn't any. Bottom line, DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY !Badartdog

The main reason I bought this is that i had a Zoom 405 acoustic effects years ago and loved it. This has the same quality effects. The preset guitar types is surprisingly good, the EC preset is very very good. The rhythm is ok, standard level and useful for sure. The looper however is very average, very limited in control and capacity. Overall a very good effects unit for acoustic guitar. Forget the looper!itc_productions

I’ve been searching for multi effects/DI pedal to compliment my Weissenborn style acoustic guitar. My sound hole passive pickup does a great job except for a somewhat weak output. Enter The Zoom AC-3 to the rescue. Now I have output headroom to spare. Everything about it is top shelf. Extremely flexible effects (kudos to ZOOM for using knobs rather than menu driven). And, it’s build quality is terrific. Very solid unit. I’m very glad I decided to try the ZOOM AC-3. BTW, the AMS payment options are unbeatable!SC n NC

I needed a DI box that could also boost the signal to the PA for solos and the Zoom does that well; the stage tuner is helpful, though I still use headstock tuners from habit and have accidentally muted my guitar stepping on the tuner switch when I wanted the boost switch. Providing presets for guitar body style should be useful, but once an effect is chosen I'll likely stick with it and use the equalizer knobs instead. Rarely use reverb playing with other instruments through the PA. The anti-feedback function and lift button haven't been needed though that was a big problem with my old DI box. Not using batteries, but two AA ones probably wouldn't last long.Mike

Makes a 200 dollar guitar sound like a 1000 dollar guitar. Makes a 1000 dollar guitar sound like a 2000 dollar guitar and so forth. The tape delay and tremolo sound so lush and amazing. The other effects sound amazing too, but I love the tape delay. What is amazing about this pedal is that it gets your little nuances and fixes them by smoothing them over. It's hard to find this pedal under 300 dollars, but if you have to own just one pedal for an acoustic then this is the one.satu87121

Look, if you REALLY have to have a Martin D-45 sound, guess what Of course this pedal will never do that. BUT, if you need something that sounds somewhat acoustic-like in a band mix and don't want to carry an extra (not to mention fragile) instrument, then this will work just fine. Not authentic, not great, not amazingly life-like, just FINE. With realistic expectations this pedal is as good as any for what it intends to do. I use this in an A/B/Y rig. Tha A side goes to my regular pedalboard and amps. The B side goes to this pedal and a volume pedal direct to FOH via a direct box. I get the "acoustic" sound fed back to me through my monitor (or ears if that applies occasionally). I can have straight electric, straight "acoustic", or use the Y option to blend the two to my liking. Works for me, YMMV. I play "for-hire" mostly and my clients love the versatility of my setup. Also, DO NOT run this pedal through a tube amp if you want the best results. It will definitely work best either run straight to FOH or through a clean solid-state amp. Hope this helps some of you who may be on the fence.steveheroan2010

Have read many reviews both positive and negative about this pedal. The negatives were not specific but didn't hear their guitar and amp give an acoustic sound with this pedal. The positives were sometimes vague but they liked it. Then some went on to say they liked it not through a tube amp but through an acoustic amp or a PA system. I HOOKED IT up through a very small practice amp set clean and used the emulation out into a mixer then into a low power full range PA type system. Sounded excellent with neck single coil. Didn't try it with the middle single coil nor the bridge humbucker. I am very happy to have this pedal.Kenmorek

I looked everywhere for an amp, pedal, anything to make my acoustic sound natural. Finally LRBaggs did it with this pedal. I can't express enough if you play acoustic guitar you need this voice print di. I use mine straight to the mixer with the handy XLR out it has. The anti feedback works great, seems to take some of the thickness away though, but I probably just don't know how to fix it yet. I paid 400. Worth every penny.Craig W.

I've had this pedal for about maybe 5 months, great pedal. The best thing to do is to always read your manual because this particular pedal shuts off. That feature is to save you battery power, or just being on too long when you walk away. I hadn't gotten use to that at first. It pays to read the manual to figure out how to do it. But the Selections in where the layout is for the different tones, for rock and roll, blues, heavy metal, and R&B is it great pedal.astringmusic

It' easy to blow an afternoon exploring the wide variety of sounds this pedal can produce. While many of the effects are great there are quite a few duds mixed in there. You just have to play. There doesn't seem to be that much logic as to how the effects are grouped. You really need to write down your favorites. Out of 100 effects I think almost anyone can find 20 that they really like. Great pedal for the money.Lenny G.

I like the sound of my guitar live…
The likes stop there… the vocal processor is extremely subpar for a unit costing this much.
The looper, even with updated firmware, is way to short to use practically…I use my 75.00 dollar pedal with 3 hrs of loop time. The volume on mine does wonky things, starts out pretty good…then jumps loud…tried it in recording situation….good god no….sounds like a diesel truck… worth about 1/4 the cost….scott monthony

It has been really fun to try the different presets. The harmonies are very nice and clean. To my ear they sound great. I haven't played a gig with it yet….so we will see. There are some basic things that I wish i had known about the interface. Some fundamental orientation videos would be good. I had the most basic problem with not understanding that the buttons were so sensitive. It is almost comical! I would PRESS the button and nothing would happen! But i finally discovered just to TAP the button and everything worked fine. Seriously. Holding the button firmly down did nothing. Just tapping it though… .and it worked as it should. 🙂 Really weird to me! But overall, I think the guitar effects and voice are very good. i'll enjoy this thing I am sure.mhs9417

I bought this used through Guitar Center to boost the output of my Eastman 815 acoustic-electric mandolin, which has an internal microphone but was too quiet. I'm a hobbyist but play in worship settings. I was able to EQ the output to sound like the natural mandolin tone and to boost the volume which was important to me, since, on occasion, I play outdoors or in a large church sanctuary. The tuner is a great asset, making clip-on tuners unnecessary. The tone boost gives the mandolin even more volume for those times when you want to play a solo. The unit runs on a 9V battery or a 9v DC adapter. I happened to own already own a 9v DC adapter, and it gave the unit much more power than the battery, which was great. I definitely recommend getting a 9v DC adapter. This was a good buy!Jamie

Just plug your phone in and use the free toneprint app to add up to three custom toneprints! Several already in their database or create your own. Pedal can do 2 simultaneous harmonies, above and/or below the note you are playing. Button has built-in expression function which is pretty cool and useful! Awesome pedal!aaronplaysguitar247

First impressions. Fast tracking and good options. Well laid out pedal. Would be more useful w/ different scales rather than just major modes, but the modes are a fun way to interact. Tone reproduction seems very synthetic. (Used on sax not guitar). The mash pitch bend is a great idea, however the tone of the harmonised notes is so plastic that it's not worth it for me. The Digitech DHP55 harmoniser i had in the mid 90s killed this. But that was a high end rack mount multiFX unit. Maybe on distorted guitar this would be a lot more effective. This is a well designed user friendly pedal at a great price that I'm sure will be a lot of fun for plenty of players. EDIT: those were first impressions on the day it arrived. After playing around a bit more today I found adding reverb after the Harmonizer really helped. Still sounds plasticy but its a fun effect. The modes setting is actually is a good way to interact. Tracking is superb and it also does a good job of harmonising chromatic/non diatonic notes.27jjk

Let me start with… The only good features of this pedal are the esthetics and nothing else. Having tried out other tc electronic models this is a real disappointment. The pedal features C D E F G A B tonal options with # toggle with and mash for infinite tonal possibilities however… When it comes to the scales it offers 10maj, Dorian, Phygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian and a custom form if you ever get them to work in the toneprint app. From the harmony perspective it offers -6th, -4th, -3rd, 3rd, 5th, 6th, 3rd and 5th, 3rd and 6th and 3 tone print options if you ever get to make them work. I downloaded the tone print app on my apple Mac and I never got it to work. However the iPhone and iPad apps work only if you invest on a 35$ on a convertor-cable. After careful playing around with then tone print app the toneprints never saved any of my custom presets. The minor thirds never latched on properly, the feel is plastic and not organic, even though it is a versatile pedal it really lacks in quality. The octave does not sound deep and round as other brands, the only good solid song are 5th or dual 5ths. I wanted to use this pedal for harmonizing either Iron Maiden or Queen riffs but I would suggest to jam it out with a buddy because this will definitely provide that sweet double guitar harmonized tone.Rickingo

Very helpful staff even while very busy with other customers. Was able to try both the Fender Downtown Express and the Fly Rig V2. Yes the Fly Rig was more expensive but it also had more features. Plus the Downton Express produced a nasty pop when switching the compression in/out and it didn’t have a tuner. Very happy with my Fly Rig purchase and the price match. Thanks!Poida B.

I bought this because I'm a huge fan of the RK5 Fly Rig, but I wanted something that was programmable and MIDI controllable, to integrate with my pedalboard. The PSA2 does all that perfectly but it's the sounds that have blown me away. It sounds incredible. Every Marshall tone is achievable and authentic, so are Fender and Mesa tones, and anything in between. And it really responds well to picking dynamics, and when you back off the volume on the guitar it cleans up perfectly. And…it just feels and sounds better than digital – my HX Stomp is now for effects only. I couldn't be happier, it's exactly what I needed. Thoroughly recommended!rossmacrae777

Sounds great. Also surprising versatility with the HP/LP settings. One criticism is that its very loud. Slotting in after 2 boosts and an OD, then before a fuzz has played havoc with my gain structure as, with those other pedals operating within normal vol ranges, I've found the volume on the OCD needs to be most of the way down when using drive greater than 12-o-clock which is even more noticeable on the HP setting. Btw, that's into a highish headroom amp so if you were using the OCD to further drive an already breaking up amp into much more compression then probably not that great an issueReviewed by Andertons Music Co.

I needed something to stack along side of my TS that did not overpower the sound of the other pedal or sound too thick on its own. This pedal sounds fantastic with single coil pickups and pairs extremely well with other OD pedals. I like the fact it can run on either battery, 9V, or 18V AC connections, making this a great choice if you have limited ports on your power supply. On its own, it stands out very well when dialing up the drive settings and it sounds absolutely great coming through a properly dimed tube amplifier. It is no coincidence you see these pedals on the boards of many great professional players… This box just has excellent tone and all their products are handmade in the USA with plenty of care involved–making them a quality purchase. I am looking at collecting a couple of other earlier versions as some have tonal differences that work better with other set ups. Overall very satisfied with this purchase.built_for_speed

I've owned the Fulltone OCD for just over a week now and I can confidently say it's the best overdrive effects pedal I've ever had the pleasure of using. It has a sturdy build, it's versatile, it retains the original tone and colour of your guitar/amp combo and it's LOUD! I wanted a pedal that would fit compliment my '65 Twin Reverb Reissue amp and Telecaster, I love the tone of my setup but I really needed some bite in the shape of a good overdrive. After doing some research and seeing the name Fulltone OCD pop up again and again I started to get very curious about this pedal, the clincher was when I saw it on the pedal board of a guitarist on youtube who was showing off some of my favourite licks! I'm glad I chose the OCD. The fact that new OCD stock routinely goes out of stock shortly after going on sale on most websites should tell you everything! Recommended.Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Excellent pre-amp with many features and very well-constructed. It has both reverb and chorus effects built-in, so for me that eliminates the need to use any additional pedals before the amp (a big bonus!).mixalis0209

Świetny preamp, już przerabiałem kilka tego typu przedwzmacniaczy akustycznych i ten sprawuje się najlepiej. Preamp z regulacją 3-zakresową+pogłos+chorus- Więcej nie trzeba do grania, także 'na żywo'. 3 wyjścia sygnału, idealne rozwiązanie w każdej niemal sytuacji. Jak będzie niezawodnie działał, to idealny sprzęt! Polecam w 100% produkt jak i Sklep.Przemek

With an expression pedal it gives a lot of sounds for the money and the basic sound of the preamp, a copy of the Echoplex preamp, sounds great. I only wish there was an option to turn the delay down to 30ms. 80ms is just a bit to big for ambience.Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Overall: This is purely a review on the quality of the product itself not based on the sound. For the price I am beyond disappointed on the quality of this pedal. The knobs are gritty, and make a noise when you twist them. They are so tall that your toes will hit them every time you turn the pedal on and off. The on/off buttons feel fragile, they won’t last very long. One the most infuriating things about this pedals design is the expression switch. It’s a inch away from the on off switch and like with everything else on this pedal feels fragile and will most likely get stepped on and broken off. The box is grey and the labeling is light blue which makes reading the pedal harder than it should have to be. Over all I’m feeling stupid for spending $400 after tax on this pedal.Nick

Overall: I installed this item on my guitar and plugged it in. Immediately, there was a bunch of static. I traced it to the jack on the bottom of the unit where the line from the input jack plugged in. I can't move my guitar without the noise. The pickup is unusable, and zZounds refuses to allow me to return the unit. I am very disappointed in both the Acoustifex Go and zZounds.Jim

I was debating whether to buy a new acoustic electric guitar. But I love my yamaha acoustic and only wished it was acoustic electric. I was going to buy a cheap pickup and I decided to invest in this pickup. I feel it was worth the money. I've been recommending it to my buddies and can't wait to show it off to family when this pandemic is overSalTheBeardedBrewer