Buying Guides
Guitar Effects Pedal Buying Guide: What Do I Need?
Guitar Pedal Buying Guide: Genre by Genre
by Jim Button September 26, 2025 5 min read
If you're looking for a list of boutique guitar pedal brands in the UK, you've come to the right place!
Here at Boost Guitar Pedals, we know that the UK guitar pedal scene is not dominated by one or two large manufacturers, but is instead enriched by many small builders.
We want to provide a truly useful resource for everyone, so below you'll find our list of all active pedal brands in the UK as of 2025. Have we missed any? Probably! Let us know...
From super-high end build quality to forward-looking circuit topologies and eye-popping artwork, we’ve never had it so good. The British boutique pedal scene is enjoying a golden age, with seemingly endless releases of exciting and sought after pedals from established as well as new guitar pedal companies.
BLEAK DISTRICT ELECTRIC TERRA
The UK has been at the forefront of guitar effects pedal design since the 1960s, when pioneers including Roger Mayer created some of the first guitar pedals. Many of the earliest pedals were Fuzz pedals, a primitive form of distortion. It was not long until Fuzz was all over the airwaves, changing the course of musical history forever.
Mayer made his name as Jimi Hendrix's effects wizard, modding existing pedals and creating new designs such as the Octavia which went on to define Jimi's legendary sound.
Of course, the UK's influence didn't finish at the end of the 1960s, and other builders have built rock-solid reputations, perhaps none more so than Pete Cornish, who took on Mayer's mantle as pedal guru to the stars in the 1970s.
Fast-forward several decades and many boutique pedal builders today are still captivated by heritage circuits from the early days of the effects pedal, sourcing rare NOS components to replicate the originals as closely as possible. Others, meanwhile, prefer to focus on modern designs and new sounds.
Below you'll find a map of guitar pedal brands in the UK. The plan is to make it as comprehensive as possible, so we'll endeavour to keep it updated.
Whether you're into vintage-correct Tone Benders or multi-clipping modern Distortion, it's fair to say that the burgeoning guitar effects pedal scene in the UK has you covered!
We've picked some of the most exciting UK pedal brands to work with. Below you'll find a selection of our bestselling UK-made guitar pedals...
[product=fredric-effects-verzerrer]
The Fredric Effects Verzerrer may be made in London, but it's based on the only cold war-era East German distortion pedal, originally produced in the 1960s and '70s. It veers from distortion into spitty fuzz and full on velcro mode and sounds remarkably unique.
"It’s just pure nastiness. This pedal nails the splutter-fuzz effect as well as any we’ve tried" - Guitarist Magazine December 2019
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[product=bleak-district-electric-miraj-v2]
Offering the best of Phase 90 and Univibe sounds without breaking a sweat - along with much, much more - the analogue Miraj V2 is the key to unlock a wealth of different textures and sounds that will suit many different genres, from Heavy Blues to Classic Rock, Shoegaze to Metal.
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[product=stompnorth-clipshear-getter-drive]
Made in Scotland, Stompnorth's flagship Clipshear Getter Drive combines valve and MOSFET circuits with optional silicon and germanium clipping diodes to achieve a multitude of low to mid-gain tones. Stompnorth founder Duncan MacKinnon designed the Clipshear Getter Drive to be an integral part of your rig, an "always on" pedal that enhances your core tone. It provides up to 17dB of clean boost that can easily push the input of your valve amp.
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[product=raygun-fx-dual-soda-drive]
From Southend-on-Sea, the Raygun FX Dual Soda Drive+ is a super-flexible drive pedal which ranges from boost to dense distortion. It combines two Soda Drive+ circuits in a single pedal, with the option to run each channel independently or stack them for more tonal variation. Both channels have a 3-way toggle switch, allowing you to select from Dirty, Boost (less gain, more volume) or Fuzz (a germanium diode) modes.
[/product]
[product=bleak-district-electric-antistatic]
Bleak District Electric is based in Derbyshire. Phil has cleverly designed the Antistatic as a combined CMOS fuzz and micro-looper. It's a phenomenal little package that's great for experimental synth layers or expansive soundscapes: pair it with a good delay and/or reverb and you're good to go!
[/product]
[product=tate-fx-raise-the-dead]
Located just up the road from Boost Guitar Pedals HQ, the Tate FX Raise The Dead is a single-knob design based on a 1960s Colorsound fuzz. Founder Stuart is a stickler for attention to detail, and he has gone all out with the components for this pedal. After feedback from early versions, he has also included a small input transformer to simulate the inductance and resistance from a guitar pickup to allow it to work perfectly anywhere in a signal chain - particularly after buffered pedals.
[/product]
| Pedal Builder | Location | Website |
| 4114 Custom Effects | Bradford | 4114CustomEffects.co.uk |
| AM Effects | London | |
| Ashdown Engineering | Heybridge | ashdownmusic.com |
| Audio Kitchen | London | AudioKitchen.co.uk |
| Bad Penny FX | Newhaven | badpennyfx.com |
| BG Harding | London | bghpedals.com |
| Bigfoot Engineering | Leominster | bigfootengineering.com |
| Black Country Customs | Halesowen | laney.co.uk/effects/guitar-effects/bcc-pedals |
| Blackstar Amplification | Northampton | blackstaramps.com |
| Bleak District Electric | Glossop | bleakdistrict.co.uk |
| Bluewhale Pedals | Bude | bluewhalepedals.com |
| Boo Instruments | London | BooInstruments.com |
| British Pedal Company | Doncaster | BritishPedalCompany.com |
| Butterfly Effect Pedals | Bedford | ButterflyEffectPedals.com |
| Butterfly Effects Pedals | England | butterflyeffectpedals.com |
| Buzz Electronics | Polegate | BuzzElectronics.co.uk |
| Buzzing Bugs Audio FX | Truro | buzzingbugsfx.com |
| Castledine Electronics | Coventry | Wah-Wah.co.uk |
| Cog Effects | Sheffield | cogeffects.co.uk |
| Coggins Audio | Weston-Super-Mare | cogginsaudio.co.uk |
| Colorsound | London | Stompboxes.co.uk |
| Cooltone Pedals | Bude | cooltonepedals.com |
| Cornell Amps | Southend-on-Sea | CornellAmps.com |
| Cosmic Loop FX | Polesworth | cosmicloopfx.com |
| D*A*M | South Yorkshire | Stompboxes.co.uk |
| Demiurge | Brighton | reverb.com/uk/shop/demiurges-gear-bazaar |
| Design Retro Works | Rossendale | DesignRetroWorks.co.uk |
| Dickinson Amplification | London | dickinsonamps.com |
| Echoline | Surrey | echolinepedals.com |
| Effectrode | Staffordshire | Effectrode.com |
| Emmergy FX | Bridgwater | emmergyfx.co.uk |
| Expresso FX | Manchester | expressofx.com |
| Flattley Guitar Pedals | Staunton | flattleyguitarpedals.com |
| Forest Effects | Bracknell | forest-effects.com |
| Fredric Effects | London | fredric.co.uk |
| Ghost Effects | Birmingham | ghosteffects.co.uk |
| Glowfly Pedals | Lancashire | wraa.bigcartel.com |
| Gojira FX | Ayrshire | gojira.co.uk |
| Great Eastern FX Co | Cambridge | greateasternfx.com |
| Green Carrot Pedal Company | Wakefield | GreenCarrotPedals.co.uk |
| Hamstead Soundworks | South Cambridgeshire | HamsteadSoundworks.com |
| Heaby Pedals | Belfast | |
| Hello Sailor Effects | Offshore | hellosailoreffects.com |
| Holy Island Audio | Cardiff | holyislandaudio.bigcartel.com |
| Homegrown Devices | Chelmsford | homegrowndevices.com |
| Horrothia FX | Falmouth | horrothia.com |
| Hubcap John | Skegness | hubcapjohn.wixsite.com/hubcapjohn |
| Hudson Electronics | East Riding of Yorkshire | HudsonElectronicsUK.com |
| JFET Life | Bath | jfetlife.com |
| JSA Effects | Derby | reverb.com/uk/shop/jsa-effects |
| Krachwerke | Greenock | www.krachwerke.com |
| Latent Lemon Audio | Hastings | latentlemon.co.uk |
| Lazy Bear Effects | Northwich | lazy-bear.co.uk |
| Leyland Pedals | Leyland | leylandpedals.co.uk |
| Life Is Unfair Audio | Wales | lifeisunfair.co.uk |
| Lottie Canto | Birmingham | lotticanto.com |
| Made By Mike | Edinburgh | madebymike.co.uk |
| Magnetic Effects | London | MagneticEffects.net |
| Marshall Amplification | Bletchley | marshall.com |
| MWFX | Somerset | mwfx.co.uk |
| NE Electronix | Newcastle | facebook.com/NEelectronix |
| Nine of Swords Effects | Leicester | thefuzzshack.com |
| North Effects | London Borough of Hackney | North-Effects.co.uk |
| NRG Effectts | Eastbourne | nrgeffects.com |
| Origin Effects | Buckingham | OriginEffects.com |
| Owen Electronics | Manchester | OwenElectronics.co.uk |
| Pete Cornish | East Sussex | PeteCornish.co.uk |
| Pickletech | Suffolk | Etsy.com/uk/shop/Pickletech |
| Pigdog Pedals | Surrey | PigDogPedals.com |
| Pigeon FX | Hastings | PigeonFX.com |
| Rainger FX | London | RaingerFX.com |
| Raygun FX | Essex | fuzzboxes.co.uk |
| Reactor Pedals | Nottingham | reactorpedals.co.uk |
| Redbeard Effects | United Kingdom | redbeardeffects.com |
| Reeves Electro | Kettering | reeveselectro.co.uk |
| Ritual Devices | Pontypridd | ritualdevices.co.uk |
| Roger Mayer | Surrey | Roger-Mayer.co.uk |
| Rothwell Audio | Bolton | RothwellAudioProducts.co.uk |
| Sine-Effect | Glasgow | sineeffect.com |
| Sleeping Dog FX | Lincolnshire | SleepingDogFX.co.uk |
| SM Fuzz | Tarrant Rushton | smfuzz.com |
| Snake Oil Fine Instruments | United Kingdom | snakeoilfineinstruments.co.uk |
| Sola Sound | London | Stompboxes.co.uk |
| SoundLad Liverpool | Liverpool | soundladliverpool.co.uk |
| Stompkins Pedals | United Kingdom | facebook.com/stompkins.pedals |
| Stompnorth | Edinburgh | |
| Stone Deaf FX | Manchester | www.stonedeaffx.com |
| Sutton Instruments | Beverley | suttoninstruments.co.uk |
| Tate FX | Maidenhead | tatefx.co.uk |
| The Zero Fret | Wokingham | thezerofret.bigcartel.com |
| Thorpy FX | Wiltshire | thorpyfx.com |
| Time Travel Audio | Edinburgh | TimeTravelAudio.co.uk |
| Vein Tap | Plymouth | Vein-Tap.com |
| Wee Lush FX | United Kingdom | WeeLushFX.webs.com |
| Williams Audio | United Kingdom | williamsaudio.co.uk |
| Wraa Labs | Machester | wraalabs.wixsite.com |
| Zander Circuitry | Essex | ZanderCircuitry.co.uk |
If you're a guitar pedal builder, or you know a guitar pedal brand in the UK that isn't on the list already, get in touch and we'll add them on!
Originally published August 2021
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