Electric guitar effects 101 - what's a necessity iyo?

I'd throw distortion into the essential pile unless you already get a good overdriven sound from your amp. I really like Fulltone distortion pedals.

Also in the recommended pile, I'd add compression and noise gate.

Or you can get a modelling amp that has all that stuff built-in. Not quite as good as analog pedals (imo) but a lot more convenient, cheaper and good enough for practice.

I'd say buy affordable multi-effect unit that's a revision/generation or so out of date so you can take advantage of the cheaper cost. I just did a Google search on a Boss ME-70. It can be had via multiple sources for under $200 because the ME-80 is the current version.

The ME-70 has dozens of effects in it, from the most used/common/popular to bizarre case-specific effects. I gigged and recorded with a ME-70 in my last band, relying on all my tones, even distortions/ODs, from it, and I never got booed or corksniffer'ed off the stage over it. Not as good as my Boogie half-stack, but good enough and a helluva lot easier to set up and break down.

Use a multi unit like this to decide what you really want/need/like, then pursue those individual effects tailored to your tastes.

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I think we need some more information. Are you going to do a traditional Guitar -> Effects Chain -> Amp setup? Or are you going to play through a PC or other setup where you're listening on headphones?

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I was planning on getting an amp.

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Now, having said that, if you have a very specific tone in mind and will largely stick to that, then research how that guitarist got that tone and look at options from there.

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Ive started doing this a bit.... thanks

Who really needs a wah pedal? That’s not essential in the least.

Essential:
Reverb
Delay
Fuzz/overdrive
Compressor/EQ

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Everyone needs a wah.

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What kind of music are you playing that never uses a wah?

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in rock 'n roll, you don't need a gosh darn wah medal.

I agree that chorus is not essential for blues or country, but it’s extremely useful and fun for literally everything else. It also mixes well with other pedals.

I definitely agree with everyone that said to get a cheaper boss effects processor to find out what kinds of effects you like.

When you’re ready to step up to investing in real pedals, here’s a couple I recommend.

For reverb, one cannot go wrong with the holy grail or the hall of fame, but my favorite (for the price) is the rougaroux banshee.

Phaser is Phase 90 all the way.

Behringer makes some cheap delay pedals that are excellent for the price.

I don’t like recommending distortion or overdrive pedals because everyone has different tastes and goals. I recommend trying every pedal you can until you find what you like. Some common pedals I enjoy particularly include:
Pro-co rat distortion
MXR prime distortion
Boss Blues Driver
Electro harmonix big muff
Boss metal core

These might be some good ones to try out and play with as you figure out what tones you really like and want.

Fender Mustang II has a lot of onboard effects that can be fun for finding your desired direction. It’s a great practice amp with enough volume for playing gigs in small rooms until you can afford to upgrade to something nicer with tubes.

As for amps, I like fender’s tube amps and orange’s solid state amps because both have solid clean settings with excellent onboard reverb as well as serviceable overdrive.

Reverb and overdrive.

Though you can get a combo amp with these and more built in like a fender champion. Granted you can only use one effect at a time.

Also a Looper pedal is useful if you mostly play by yourself.

The older i get the less I seem to want between my guitar and the amp. I have had dozens of pedals over the years, but now all I seem to need is my TS9 tube screamer i bought in the early 80s, and a cheap analog delay, my amps all have reverb so that is covered. i play country, Blues, classic rock, and some jazzy instrumental stuff.

If your amp doesn't have a built in reverb, then a reverb along with these guys:

Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer:


Boss DD3 Delay:
LINK