Looking to add some interesting synth-like instrumentation to your music but only have a guitar to work with? Rather than spending your rent on a nice synthesizer or relying on software, try plugging your guitar into a synth pedal.
In this article, we'll discuss the top 10 best synth pedals in the world. There will be 5 pedals for guitar and 5 pedals for bass, though we can certainly swap instruments and plug into any of the 10 to great effect.
Let's discuss each in greater detail and discuss why they've made this list of the top 10 best synthesizer pedals for guitar and bass.
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Most pedals have circuits that process the guitar signal at the input and produce the desired effect for the output. Typically, the signal goes into the pedal, is processed by the pedal's circuitry, and the effected signal is outputted.
Synth pedals, conversely, use the waveform of the guitar signal at the input to control their circuits. These pedals have actual audio synthesis circuits built into their design.
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The input signal in the synth pedal controls the input parameters (note/frequency values, dynamics, etc.) of the synthesizer. This is much like a keyboard would control the note values and dynamics of a regular synthesizer.
So then, synth pedals designed for guitar should work optimally with a clean guitar signal at their input. Similarly, a bass synth pedal should work optimally with a clean bass guitar signal at its input.
Of course, bass and guitar are similar enough that synth pedals will work with either. Because synth pedals work optimally with clean guitar and bass signals, they are best-positioned at (or at least near) the front of the signal chain.
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For more in-depth information on synth pedals, check out my article What Are Synth Pedals (Guitar/Bass FX) & How Do They Work?
We're starting with a bang with the Boss SY-300 Synthesizer (link to check the price on Amazon) from the legendary Japanese pedal manufacturer, Boss.
The SY-300 is perhaps the most powerful synth pedal that does not require any special GK pickup and 13-pin cable. Plug your guitar, bass or other instruments in via the 1/4-inch jack, and you're ready to go!
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This analog-style digital synth pedal works with a powerful polyphonic synthesis engine with three separate sections. Each oscillator can be set to any of the following wave types:
The pedal offers a step sequencer (with tap tempo control) to help create dynamic melodies and arpeggios by simply feeding a single note into the pedal.
The Blender function allows us to mix and match synth settings from other patches to produce awesome and novel sounds with a press of a button.
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The high-speed DSP of the SY-300 provides zero-latency processing in the pedal, which is awe-inspiring considering everything that's going on within its analog and digital circuitry. The superb tracking of the SY-300 allows users to express themselves just as they would without having any pedals, only now with a synth-like output.
Other pedals in the signal chain can provide each of the effects mentioned above. To learn more, check out my article Full List & Description Of Guitar Pedal Types.
By looking at the pedal, we can also see that it has a graphic LCD display to tell us what patch we're currently using. It also has a dedicated on/bypass footswitch along with 3 assignable footswitches.
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The SY-300 comes with 70 ready-to-play preset patches and 99 user patches for storing custom sounds. We can also create/store and download patches with BOSS Tone Studio editor/librarian and BOSS Tone Central, respectively.
Performing with such feature-rich pedals can sometimes be a pain. This is not so with the SY-300. Set the patches up the way you like them and scroll through seamlessly. Set the footswitches to control three different parameters of your choosing on each patch.
The Thru output allows us to send the dry signal to a separate line of pedals or directly to an amp. It can also be used as an effects loop by plugging the Thru chain back into the pedal via the Return jack.
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Two stereo outputs offer additional routing capabilities, while the MIDI I/O is great if we want to interface the synth pedal with switchers, drum machines, and other MIDI gear.
On top of all that, the SY-300 is also fully compatible with DAW software via its USB connection. This opens up a few opportunities:
We can choose to record SY-300 directly or the dry (unaffected) guitar sound while simply monitoring the synth effect. We can also resynthesize our recorded dry guitar signal (or any other digital audio signal) through the pedal after the fact to really tweak our tone to get it just right (or to adjust parameters in real-time).
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If that wasn't enough, the USB connection allows us to build, organize and download patches in Boss's Tone Studio software for later recall in the pedal.
From unique lead textures to rich, evocative soundscapes, the Boss SY-300 will open up a whole new world of sonic possibilities and inspiration to guitarists, bassists and anyone else who can afford one!
The Boss SY-1000 (link to check the price on Amazon) should also get an honourable mention on this list. This pedal is like the SY-300 on steroids! It's Boss's, and perhaps the world's, most powerful guitar/bass synth and modeling processor ever.
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The catch is that to get the most out of this pedal, we'll need to install the aforementioned GK 13-pin guitar pickup on our guitar to interface with the pedal properly. The 1/4-inch guitar/bass input is mainly for blending and Dynamic Synth processing.
Boss is featured in the following My New Microphone articles: • Top 11 Best Guitar/Bass Effects Pedal Brands To Know & Use • Top 11 Best Guitar Amplifier Brands In The World • Top 11 Best Pedalboard Brands On The Market
Boss also snags the second spot (third if you count the honourable mention of the SY-1000) on this list with their more compact Boss SY-1 Synthesizer (link to check the price on Amazon).
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This pedal looks less intimidating than the previous Boss pedals. However, the number of inputs, outputs and labelling make this compact pedal seem much more in-depth than a typical compact foot pedal.
Looks are not deceiving, in this case. The SY-1 is less intimidating than the SY-300 and SY-1000 (if we couldn't tell by the name). However, there's a lot packed into this small package.
The SY-1 is a wildly powerful and surprisingly simple polyphonic synth pedal. It's built Boss's legendary synth technology is a compact pedal that fits easily into any rig.
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There's little access to “under the hood” adjustments (envelopes, LFOs, additional effects), which may make this pedal a bit dull for the tweakers among us. However, this greatly reduces cost and simplifies the pedal significantly. You don't need any background in synth programming to take full advantage of this superb pedal.
Though the SY-1 is designed for guitar (we'll get the SYB-5 bass version shortly), the pedal does work rather well with bass, even polyphonically (multiple notes at once)
Plugging into the SY-1 is easy: plug in with a typical 1/4-inch cable like you would most other pedals. The DSP of the SY-1 takes care of the input signal, using it to control the synth engine with zero latency whatsoever.
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The 121 patches offer a great deal of colourful sonic options for your enjoyment. These patches are organized into 11 banks holding 11 patches each and are selected via the two right-most knobs. The banks include:
The Tone/Rate and Depth knobs allow us to adjust various parameters of each patch to our liking. The expression input allows us to connect an expression pedal to have more dynamic control over the Tone/Rate parameter.
The Send/Return loop allows us to blend other pedals in parallel with the SY-1. The Send output can also be used as a direct out, which lets us route the dry guitar sound and the wet synth sound separately.
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To really understand the Boss SY-1 (and every other pedal on this list), you'll have to check out a demo or try it for yourself. I always recommend the practice of “trying before buying, ” though I have included affiliate links in this post if you're fully convinced of purchasing a pedal on the spot.
Meris Enzo is a powerhouse of a synth pedal. This multi-voice synthesizer tracks guitar with perfection in 4 different selectable modes: dry, monophonic, polyphonic and arpeggiated.
It does so, all without any special pickups. Plug your guitar (or any other electric instrument for that matter) into the 1/4-inch input and open up the vast world of sonic possibilities the Enzo has to offer.
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After the filter, the signal flows into a ring modulator circuit with a variable carrier frequency and the ability to link to the Filter Envelope as the modifier wave.
Finally, the signal flows through the two tap delay line and modulation circuit before reaching the stereo output. The pedal offers a maximum of 530 ms delay time.
Whether we're looking to achieve thick bass synth,
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