The TS9 Tubescreamer from Ibanez, a popular stomp box adding vacuum tube-like distortion to the output signal from electric instruments.

A stomp box is an effects unit in a small metal chassis containing a circuit that modifies the signal from an electric instrument such as a guitar. It can add effects such as distortion, fuzz, overdrive, reverb, wah-wah, octaving , flanging, phaser and others. The "stomp" refers to the switch, which is activated with the foot.

Usage

A stomp box is connected to the signal chain utilizing two mono 1/4" jack plugs (in/out). Some stomp boxes have stereo out via two mono out signals, and a few have stereo jacks for both input and output (though this is quite uncommon). Several stomp boxes can be linked together in a chain. The signal can be routed through the stomp boxes in every which way, but it is most common to put the signal distortion or wah wah pedal at the start of the chain; pedals which alters the pitch or color of the tone in the middle; and boxes which modify the resonance — like delay, echo, and reverb units — at the end. Stomp boxes can also be used together with other effects units.

Examples

Many psychedelic rock and heavy metal musicians particularly experiment with the wah-wah/distortion combination, to give some very distinctive sounds, especially in guitar solos. Jimi Hendrix in particular was well known for doing this.

Other

"Stomp Box" is also the title of a song from They Might Be Giants' 1994 (see 1994 in music) album John Henry.

External links

• Colorsound/Sola Sound
• Danelectro (www.danelectro.com)
• DOD Electronics (www.dod.com)
• Electro-Harmonix (ehx.com)
• Ibanez (www.ibanez.com)
• Jim Dunlop Manufacturing (www.jimdunlop.com)
• Roger Mayer (www.roger-mayer.co.uk) - maker of guitar effects for Jimi Hendrix
• Roland Corporation (www.rolandus.com) - maker of the popular BOSS stomp boxes.
• Digitech (www.digitech.com) - Digitech effect pedals