Best Expression Pedal Guitar (2024 Update)

I'm on my second one and it's broken again. I never get more than a few years out of them, which is no good for the price. Last one the cable broke, as they always do, so I added a jack so I could use my own cable, which worked well for a while. Now the pot is broke and I'm not buying another one of these. Believe what people are saying, these are real junk.DemChanges

I own many different WaHA pedals and expression pedals but I wanted this pedal which is controlled by my Boss amp amp. I have to say as a waha it’s amazing and with slight movement controls the frequency to give my guitar lots of impressions. It is light to the foot so not a lot of force needed to make the slightest impressions to the frequency.STEVEAUX

I've been using these control pedals for at least two decades! They're the best! Light in weight, unlike other 'cast-iron' pedals, they are surprisingly sturdy in construction. I'm still buying them, as my arsenal expands.arkgabriel

Although rather pricey for a very simple passive device, this is a first rate complement to the Headrush Pedalboard. The construction feels military spec. Even more rugged than the body of a crybaby. The pedal action is easily adjusted for personal taste with a supplied Allen key. It works seamlessly with the onboard pedal after a simple change in the global parameters page. I have it permanantly set to use for performance as an output master volume control but it can be assigned to almost any required parameter.MR G.

Used alongside a Zoom G3 It functioned very well – the actual usgae instructions are pretty poor but once you've got your head around it, the thing is super versatile. Combining effects on one pedal is quite amusing. Cons – poorly made IMHO and not particularly ergonomic – always felt high on the footplayingwithfireguitars

Overall: First of all, this pedal does EXACTLY what it's supposed to do… which is to turn into a volume control for the G5 (or whichever pedal you may be hooking it up to). My expectations had been that I would be able to program the G5 to have this pedal do whatever I wanted to assign, but it doesn't work that way. It turns into the volume pedal, and that's pretty much it. I was a little disappointed, but then I started using it and it's much handier than I originally thought. With the G5, you can assign many different parameters to the onboard pedal, but it operates in such a way where it is a volume pedal until you press the toe-down button and then the pedal operates whatever it's assigned to. The issue is that, say you're playing with the volume helway between full and off and you want to switch to your wah… to press the toe switch you have to take the volume all the way up first, leaving your wah sound at full volume and much louder than the previous tone. This pedal takes the place of the volume control, rendering the onboard pedal ineffective UNTIL you press the toe switch and presto… complete control over BOTH parameters using both pedals! Very handy to have!Brian

I was debating with myself if I should get this pedal or not. After all, it's only an expression pedal, and there are some cheaper alternatives out there. However, if you pay just a little more, you can get a pedal made out of metal(aluminum maybe), and the reliability of Zoom. I have used their pedals for many years, and they are simply awesome. I bought it in order to be paired with my Zoom G3. I never wanted the expression pedal built-in version, as I like to use the G3 as a desktop while the X pedal is on the floor. Although the FP2M is made out of metal, the rack itself is made out of sturdy plastic. these can outlast the steel racks of heavies such as the CryBaby etc. Even if it broke or damaged, you can get these type of parts from Zooom America. I have received several parts such as knobs and battery covers for free. The pedal works great with the G3 and I am quite happy with the overall quality as expected.Bopshop

I'm on my second one and it's broken again. I never get more than a few years out of them, which is no good for the price. Last one the cable broke, as they always do, so I added a jack so I could use my own cable, which worked well for a while. Now the pot is broke and I'm not buying another one of these. Believe what people are saying, these are real junk.DemChanges

I own many different WaHA pedals and expression pedals but I wanted this pedal which is controlled by my Boss amp amp. I have to say as a waha it’s amazing and with slight movement controls the frequency to give my guitar lots of impressions. It is light to the foot so not a lot of force needed to make the slightest impressions to the frequency.STEVEAUX

I've been using these control pedals for at least two decades! They're the best! Light in weight, unlike other 'cast-iron' pedals, they are surprisingly sturdy in construction. I'm still buying them, as my arsenal expands.arkgabriel

Fantastic expression pedal for Kemper. Configured and used properly this enables me to control volume, wah, pitch or morph (amount of gain is how I apply this) depending on what I have in the rig (I tend to only use one or 2 of these at a time and I proritise the one I want as stomp A in the Kemper for the appropriate rig). The additional beauty is the switch under the pedal so if you press on the toe portion of the pedal you can turn on/off the effect in stomp A – which, while it sounds simple, gives a lot more flexibility on the fly for how the expression pedal can be applied and potentially saves a rig slot too. Well built, looks cool and works great so can't fault it really!Reviewed by SX Pro customer

Built like a tank. Plug and play with my Line 6 Firehawk FX. Does everything expected. Note – The guy that complained about it not having a toe switch misses the point of an expression pedal. It doesn't need a switch. You assign the parameter to the pedal, save the patch in the state that you want it to default to when you switch to it, then the pedal does nothing until you actually use it, no matter where the pedal is at, up or down. But once you move the pedal, it is active and does its thing. A toe switch would just screw up the ease of use.Grinch

I am ordering a second EP1-L6 to go along with another EP1-L6 and the EP1-Helix to use with the Helix Control and Helix Rack. I was using 2 Roland EV5s in place of the EP1-L6, but after the 7.71 update those became erratic as controllers but still work just fine with my Roland FC-200. These are solid, road worthy construction for any professional setup. Smooth treadle, works flawless with the Helix Rack/Control. Designed to work with, and look great with, any Line 6 product that uses an expression pedal input. To other reviewers: The EP1-Helix has the toe switch to turn an effect on/off. The Helix only has one input for this function, but has 3 other expression pedal inputs. These are designed to work with Line 6 products only. If you have another brand device, either get the dedicated pedal from Mission (like the EP1 for Avid, or Kemper) or use the standard EP1. I would guess that this is why my EV5s stopped working correctly with Line 6, but works just fine with other equipment.sshogrin

Does not work very well. The volume range is full on, down to 98% and then off… not very practical at all. Disappointed.cmorgan9501

Unless you have a lot of space on your pedalboard, and don't mind paying a lot for a known brand, passive volume/expression pedals don't have to be large and expensive. This is a perfect pedal for people with a small board and a tight budget. Time will tell if the pedal is durable, but I think as long as you don't abuse it, it will last for some time.grimmy608

I love the fact that there's actually an LED to show you when the pedal is engaged. Using an A/B switch, it's not obvious when using a traditional Cry Baby. The sound is great and you can adjust it with easeReviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Absolutely loving this pedal. It takes a little while to get used to, especially if you're more used to a regular wah however the applications for this are great. It's easy to use and so much fun when used with other effects. You'll really have a great time with this. My only issue was with the fact that the one I bought, inside packaging had been opened and box was a little dented but for the price I couldn't complain. Pedal works great and I'm really pleased with it. Very worthwhile purchase!Steven L.

Overall: Here it is, the signature wah from the love him or hate him wah master himself, Kirk Hammett. For this review we'll just exclude Kirk, his playing style….or overuse of the wah itself and stick to the sound and use of this wah. After trying out the Dime wah, and a few others (still going to buy the Slash wah later) I decided on this one in particular for a few reasons. One it handles so well with a lot of gain going on, it does not get thin or cut out or sound like tin. This is great when it comes to that. Secondly, the graphics, while those aren't overall important I love the look of this pedal. Now, the downside is that is does not have that wide of a sweep, but the tone and great construction of the pedal make up for it. If you are in a Metallica cover band I say get it, I play a Gibson Les Paul, Fender Stratocaster through a Marshall Code 100 half stack (classic metal setting is near perfect) and can get those killer, sick wah sounds. Check one outJohn

I have been wanting to get this pedal for awhile and I am so glad I did. This pedal is amazing, not only the graphics and paint are second to none especially under the lights on stage, the basic design of this pedal is solid and you can customize your solos with this thing. The build of this pedal is sturdy and Dunlop did a year job with this. Kirk has these pedals spread throughout the stage when he is playing and I can see why, if your looking for a fabulous and amazing sounding wah pedal, you must get this!! Metallica and Kirk hammett fans this pedal is for you as well.Dave

The ONLY reason I gave this pedal 4 out of 5 stars, is that the TRS cable is hardwired to the unit. This causes at least two issues; if the cable goes bad, I have to either replace the unit, or hack it for a TRS jack. Second, it comes with a six-foot cable. I only need about 2 feet of cable from my pedalboard. So, I have to wrap up the excess and tuck it somewhere out of the way. I like to keep my pedals and cables neat, so this doesn't help. Other than that, the pedal works great. The sensitivity knob on the side is smooth and feels like it will hold up well. The pedal itself is surprisingly solid and travels smoothly. For $20, you really can't go wrong with this.seasidemessiah

I currently use this as my 2nd expression pedal with the Headrush. Before that I used 2 of them with the Boss GT-1000. Things I love: nice feel, low profile, lightweight, looks nice, on the smaller side so good for pedalboard (or in my case, cramming next to the huge Headrush). Personally, I would prefer it didn't have the long-ish attached cable because I'd like to use my own shorter patch cable, but it's a minor issue and I could alter it if I really cared that much. Don't let the super low price fool you, it's a legit alternative to bulkier, heavier, and pricier options, coming from someone who has owned Ernie Ball, Dunlop, Moog, and Line 6 pedals for this same purpose.Matt F

This Multi effects box is awesome. It has stereo effects which what I was looking for, I'm building a stereo Guitar amp. It has soo many effects, I can't understand how this works. It has Pages, Patches, and types. It has Tuner, and looper. I like that it doesn't have a foot pedal on it. You can plug a newer foot pedal into it allowing you to keep the unit at waste level for adjusting it and, and the foot pedal on the floor. Then later you can place on floor. I've had it several weeks and I am still finding all the different bells and whistles. There are a few corny effects, but then, some people my like them.ccwrwr-hi9bu9je

Overall: this thing is built like a brick sh*thouse, and seems to be very well done. the owner's manual is pathetic. i've had this thing for almost two weeks and haven't managed to get a single patch created. the manual either skips a few steps or is just horrible in general. i took it to a friend who is an excellent guitar player, and runs all his many guitars through an axe-fxIII, and even he couldn't figure it out. I've emailed Zoom and so far i have gotten absolutely nowhere with them. i really want to make this unit work, because it's replacing amplitube in my ipad (which turned out to be a huge disappointment). So far Zoom has not been any help at all. i downloaded their Guitar Lab software and some patches from their website, but Guitar Lab won't let me drag and drop them into it. I am extremely frustrated with this product so far.Kevin

I have a Boss Katana 100 and, being that im not a computer guy, wanted more effects and control from an actual unit. Im also on a tight budget. I own a zoom R8 multitrack and have had great results just plugging in and using the amp models – so i thought id try a zoom multi effects unit. Im glad i did! This thing is built like a tank – feels like a piece of military field tech. The intuitive navigating system , once figured out(took me a couple of hours lol), is very cool. Im sure there are some units easier to just "plug in and go" but at this price id rather have the sound and build quality – both are here. I tried it in the effects return of the katana, but it sounds better going straight in. The amp and cabinet models sound fantastic in front of my katana on the acoustic chanel, set flat. I also get great results on the katanas clean chanel(which i love for its warmth and clarity) just using the zooms drive and effects(without the models). I am able to enjoy my amps natural sound with enhaced effects or, using the acoustic channel, enjoy rich amp and cabinet models with effects. Tje katanas delay and reverb sound fine witb the zoom as well ( of course that depends on how you set up the chain). My effects loop is still fRee if i want to add something else. There are only five amp models and five cabs on this unit, BUT man they sound great. I must point out that though i bragged about the zoom R8, this G3xn sounds much better than that. These sounds are very alive under my fingers. The vox amp model will make you cry. Its cool to be able to fotswitch the boost of the modeled amp. The wah models are fantastic. Great cabinet simulaters. The reverbs are nice. The univibe is awesome. Ive found great sounds using the modeled OD pedals in front of the amp models. You can download additional amps from zoom. Ive only had this a day and Im buzzed by the build quality and amazing sound. If you can afford another 100 bucks i would get the g5 with the two extra switches. Ive never played a line 6 but im so satisfied with this purchase dont really feel the need to shop anymore. Havent even tried the looper yet. AMS is great, very easy to deal with. Im a blues, classic rock guy and dont gig so i cant tell you how it sounds in a band or how it shreds, but for 2 hundred bucks you should try it!Tim

Still the best. Price increased only by $10 since inflation hit the pedal market, so not too bad. Tried many others. Still my go-to pedal. Heavy, fits my foot nicely. Not to small or large. L/R in/out, plus exp jack. Tension setting helps for fine tuning volume control. Recommend remove base plate and blow out rheostat once a year or so. Use compressed air (Office Depot/Office Max)mud1105

I needed a pedal to help me get my volume right at shows….Using the gtr volume control and or a volume pedal in front of my pedal board just changes the drive into the FX. I get everything nicely balanced in the studio or at home, and then each venue has odd sound characteristics and sometimes I am too loud in my rhythm and too soft in my leads & no time to get everything adjusted just right. So I wanted a simple master volume pedal after all the FX and before the amp…(did not want to hassle with more cables needed for the FX loop). I have tried them all…none worked well for me….Well, here is what I learned: This pedal has a min volume control which allows more accurate setting of the pedal to the volume I need mid-song. This control was key, allowed me to zero in on the volume easily as small changes in the pedal position did not produce huge changes in volume. The pedal does not cut the quality, at least not in noisy bars and restaurants. So it's very good. But the real point is after years of not doing the volume thing well with my right foot I discovered that I was much better at the task using my left foot…and I am right handed!! This has changed everything. Turns out, the issue was my right leg is way sturdier to stand on and control the volume with my left foot. If you have a problem with this type of thing, just try your other foot. The pedal and this simple foot change basically solved the issue. I am not perfect, but way better than before and I get better with each gig!!BC 123

Our keyboard player also plays steel guitar. We built a stand that integrates with the keyboard, so she can switch between keyboard and steel very quickly. We now own two of these volume controls. The first one is mounted to the effects pedal attached to our keyboard. The other is a spare. We use channel 1 for keyboard volume control and channel 2 for steel guitar volume control. It saves us from cluttering our board with two pedals. I wish we could run stereo keyboard, but we forgo that for practicality. We like the overall feel of the FV-500L Stereo Volume Pedal. The only drawback we can find is its size. It's about a foot long. But overall we like it.Uncle Ronnie

The build quality strong, I'd expect nothing less of Boss. Running two pedals at once lends to versatility with less physical adjustments on the pedals. Setting the individual range of expression for each pedal is a definite bonus. I recommend this Pedal ALL DAY.Ryan C.

Excellent build quality. Dual out is very useful and allows some smart configuration when using midi. Definitely a good but for a pedalboard user.AZCoyoteGear

There are a number of volume pedals on the market at present some more suited to specific instruments than others. The Boss dual pedal has 2 independent inputs/outputs which may not be suitable for some keyboards. There is not an input/output jack as one would expect but 2 outputs. I have overcome this by changing the leads into the amp. The jacks are stereo so the in/out is incorporated over the 2 stereo channels. However the unit is sturdy and should give reliable service for many years.alplays1or2tunes

Used alongside a Zoom G3 It functioned very well – the actual usgae instructions are pretty poor but once you've got your head around it, the thing is super versatile. Combining effects on one pedal is quite amusing. Cons – poorly made IMHO and not particularly ergonomic – always felt high on the footplayingwithfireguitars

Overall: First of all, this pedal does EXACTLY what it's supposed to do… which is to turn into a volume control for the G5 (or whichever pedal you may be hooking it up to). My expectations had been that I would be able to program the G5 to have this pedal do whatever I wanted to assign, but it doesn't work that way. It turns into the volume pedal, and that's pretty much it. I was a little disappointed, but then I started using it and it's much handier than I originally thought. With the G5, you can assign many different parameters to the onboard pedal, but it operates in such a way where it is a volume pedal until you press the toe-down button and then the pedal operates whatever it's assigned to. The issue is that, say you're playing with the volume helway between full and off and you want to switch to your wah… to press the toe switch you have to take the volume all the way up first, leaving your wah sound at full volume and much louder than the previous tone. This pedal takes the place of the volume control, rendering the onboard pedal ineffective UNTIL you press the toe switch and presto… complete control over BOTH parameters using both pedals! Very handy to have!Brian

I was debating with myself if I should get this pedal or not. After all, it's only an expression pedal, and there are some cheaper alternatives out there. However, if you pay just a little more, you can get a pedal made out of metal(aluminum maybe), and the reliability of Zoom. I have used their pedals for many years, and they are simply awesome. I bought it in order to be paired with my Zoom G3. I never wanted the expression pedal built-in version, as I like to use the G3 as a desktop while the X pedal is on the floor. Although the FP2M is made out of metal, the rack itself is made out of sturdy plastic. these can outlast the steel racks of heavies such as the CryBaby etc. Even if it broke or damaged, you can get these type of parts from Zooom America. I have received several parts such as knobs and battery covers for free. The pedal works great with the G3 and I am quite happy with the overall quality as expected.Bopshop

Very solid build and hinge. Something went wrong with the cogs inside mine though. Andertons arranged a replacement promptly.Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

With light use, two of the plastic gears in this mechanism broke. They would have to be replaced and the unit rebuilt to fix it. I would like someone from Harmon/DOD to contact me about this. I will also try to contact them.curbdogmusic

Sturdy, ergonomic, effective and visually engaging. It works very well with the RJM range of MIDI and pedalboard controllers.mcvittym

Sturdy, ergonomic, effective and visually engaging. It works very well with the RJM range of MIDI and pedalboard controllers.mcvittym

This expression pedal is very flexible and functional for the price! The sensitivity dial on the side lets you fine tune the amount of wah/fx sensitivity with little effort. The pedal itself is balanced really well, meaning it is easy to get a feel for it quickly. The quality is pretty good. The only minor downside I see with this pedal is it is a little loose. If it had a tiny bit of resistance, i would give it 5 stars.Fretless For Life

Overall: Considering the price, the flexibility and quality is excellent. Although made of a plastic material it feels rugged. I stomp back and forth on this thing constantly to throw analog delays out of whack in conjunction with pitch shifting, so I've put this pedal through its paces and Im very impressed, especially for the price. The ability to tweak each expression individually so they work together is an excellent and intuitive feature. IF they made a model with the ability to A/B/both the expressions, that would be only thing I would find superior to this expression pedal. I will be buying more of these. If they made mini version of these pedals, I would buy them as well, in a heartbeat.Tylor

Works amazingly and 5e action isn’t superb. Very impressive piece of kit, it’s a stand alone unit so you will need to have or purchase a power supply and appropriate trs/rts etc cable. It’s very very quiet in all aspects so 5 stars for sound.Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Really loving this, getting back to playing after about 20 years away, got this multi effects pedal and I’m playing every day, plenty amp sims and effects to play with, got about 5 favourites already, not played about enough with the blank slots so can’t say too much about that. Drum beats are good for jamming along with and keepin time. Love the looper, really cool for dual parts ( I play a lot of iron maiden) and for noodling over your own backing track. Went for this one with the expression pedal, not using it much but that’s probably my style more than anything, it works. I’m using a standard mini usb to power, not tried recording yet, busy playing and having fun. Using headphones mostly, sounds great, put it through my 30 year old Marshall when I get the chance, sounds awesome. Bottom line, I’m just messing about in the spare room, having fun. Not a performer or gigging or anything. This has everything I need/want and the rest. Price is pretty good for what your getting. Would definitely recommend for anyone looking to try some different sounds and just have fun.Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Should actually get a refund on this. Seemed like a good product but tried to connect with Guitar Lab to add effects. I got connected, added a couple of FX but lost some factory effects that were pretty good (Comp). Then, tried to connect again to get these back but can't connect anymore. Tried 2 computers as well, many times. Anyway, the box is stuck with FX it has now so, not good. Poor product if you can't get it to function properly.Zoom Man

It works well, covers a lot of different effects (including amps and cabinets), and the user interface is pretty easy to learn. There are some limitations in its capabilities (for instance, there's little memory available to add effects unless you uninstall some of the defaults, and some combinations of effects can't be used because it doesn't have enough processing power), but at this price you have to expect that. One thing they could improve without adding cost to the device is the documentation; expect to use your favourite search engine a lot while figuring this thing out.Steve