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Effects pedals are traditionally most commonly associated with guitarists, and for most of them…pedals are just a set-and-forget kind of deal. You tweak the knobs, find a sound that you like, then whack it on-or-off with the foot-switch throughout your set as required.
Simple.
However, for many of us, that just isn’t enough. We crave more. Sure, effects pedals can be fun on their own, but there is a whole world of wonderful madness waiting to be explored by manipulating the parameters while playing. Think about how even simple acts like tweaking the time knob on a delay, opening and closing a filter, or increasing and decreasing the amount of reverb feedback can have a significant effect. Even subtle variations can greatly enhance the dynamics and interest in your sound—not to mention performance.
As I am sure you are aware, though, tweaking multiple parameters on a stomp box is a bit tricky to do when you are busy shredding mad licks on your Les Paul, or tickling the proverbial (probably plastic) ivories. You can’t exactly stop to bend down and turn the knobs constantly mid-song—and most of us aren’t in a position to afford to pay somebody to crawl about on the floor or sit side-of-stage with an expensive rack-based system to do it for us.
This is where expression pedals come in.
At their heart, expression pedals are simple devices. They usually work much like an attenuator, providing variable resistance to a fixed-voltage signal; or, in some cases, they directly produce a control voltage which can be used to control a particular parameter on your effects pedal. At their most basic, they can be thought of as a hands-free extension or remote control for particular elements of your effect. Perhaps the most common, recognisable example is the classic "wah-style" pedal, which you control by rocking your foot back and forth. You’ve almost certainly seen (or at least heard) this before…but they are also capable of doing more. Much more.
Alternatives
Expression pedals have a long, proud history—and are a favorite of both guitar and keys players across the globe. However, they are also inherently limited. Most of the traditional options require physical interaction with your foot…which can be tricky if you have a lot to pay attention to onstage, or perhaps if (like me) you aren’t all that coordinated. Trying to get everything going at the right time without falling over can be a bit like spinning plates…where you are effectively acting as a one-person-band, which feels an awful lot like work rather than fun.
Thankfully, there are an increasing number of creative alternatives out there that allow you to control your effects in weird and wonderful ways. These can often be programmed or automated in some fashion, or at least make the process simpler—to let you focus on your performance. Pedal manufacturers have begun to push the envelope, allowing for deeper and more extensive hands-free sonic manipulation. This development is almost certainly inspired and informed by the world of modular synthesis, where Modulation is King, and each parameter of an effect can (and arguably should!) be manipulated with control voltage. While the power that this offers sonically is great, not everybody wants or needs to fall down the pricey Eurorack rabbit hole: and so, having some of this power in pedal form is an incredibly convenient and welcome evolution.
So what kind of things are out there? Let’s take a look…
Hands-On Control Alternatives
Old Blood Noise Endeavors Expression Slider
Perhaps one of the simplest alternatives to the traditional foot-controlled expression pedal is the Expression Slider from Old Blood Noise Endeavors. It consists of a single fader, which can control devices which support a TRS expression input.
You might be wondering what possible practical use there could be for such a thing—and that would be a fair question! But as it turns out, the answer is…actually quite a lot. You can use it to break out a particular parameter, adjusting it to taste while recording…or perhaps strap it to your keyboard stand for easier access in a live environment. The markings on the fader also allow you to more readily identify and dial in the kind of sound you want, in a way that might be much more difficult with a pedal knob.
Oh, and plenty of pedals now have "hidden" functions or macro control options which aren’t mapped to a particular control. With this, you can then have a dedicated, hands-on control. It's a straightforward, smart idea in a tiny package, and doesn’t even require power! Oh, and it’s cheap too. Which helps. All around, it's a really cool wee thing.
Endorphin.es x Loopop PLUS 3
Endorphin.es and YouTuber Loopop have recently teamed up to produce the Plus 3, a desktop expression and sustain controller much along the lines of the previously discussed OBNE Expression Slider, but with some special tricks up its sleeve. In addition to slider-based expression control, it offers a tactile switch for interfacing with your MIDI controller's sustain input jacks, pedals with expression inputs, and even modular equipment.
Using the included breakout, you can use the Plus 3 as a CV attenuator with the expression slider and for gate control with the sustain button. The sustain section also offers a drone switch, allowing you to hold the sustain signal indefinitely.
Whether you use pedals, modular gear, MIDI controllers, hardware synths, a DAW, or some combination of the above, the Plus 3 from Endorphin.es and Loopop is an elegant, valuable, and downright robust tool.
DF Audio Nano E Expression Slider
Do you like the idea of a standalone slider, but don’t need it housed within a pedal-style enclosure? DF Audio has got just the thing for you. Specifically designed to sit neatly on the side of a keyboard to be played like a mod-wheel, the Nano E Expression Slider even comes with solderless interchangeable faders that allow you to tailor the response curve to your own particular preference.
It is tiny, lightweight, and gives you added tactile control for synths, pedals, or any other instruments that accept CV. Sure, it might not be a pedal, but it’s still pretty smart—and worthy of a place on this list.
Chase Bliss Audio EXP Expression Roller Pedal
You know what’s cooler than faders? Rollers. For whatever reason, there is something deeply primal and satisfying about changing values with a spinning roller, especially one as solid and well-designed as the EXP Roller from Chase Bliss Audio. Beautiful in its simplicity, this thing is equally at home on your desk or battering about the floor amongst your other pedals.
Controlled by your feet, hands, or… elbows…(?) this provides a tactile connection unrivalled by many other expression-based devices. As an extra bonus, the EXP Roller contains not one but two separate outputs. These can be used to control different effects simultaneously, and can also be inverted from each other, allowing for some really interesting creative possibilities.
Perfect Circuit doesn't carry the Expression Roller at this time, but it's a rad option that we couldn't help but include on this list.
Automating Your Effects
Old Blood Noise Endeavors Expression Ramper / x3
Another option from the wizards at OBNE, the Expression Ramper comes in the same mini-housing as the Expression Slider, but provides automated modulation through the use of a built-in LFO. The way this works is that you set a knob position for selections "A" and "B," then the pedal will transition between the two of them using the LFO. You can choose from several different LFO shapes (triangle, square, or one-shot), and also control the rate or speed of the movement, with the foot-switch triggering the movement.
One Expression Ramper not enough for ya? Then how about THREE?! The delightful Expression Ramper X3 stacks three of OBNE’s Expression Rampers together, then adds a host of additional features like new LFO shapes and tempo synchronization options for a truly mad-cap box of expression possibilities. This feels like a shoegaze artist’s dream come true. If you're looking for a way to create a truly knotted web of pedal parameter modulation madness, this is one of the coolest and most fun options out there.
Electro Harmonix 8-Step Program Analog Expression / CV Sequencer
For more complicated arrangements, Electro Harmonix have brought the concept of step-sequencing into a pedal-friendly format. Here, you create patterns with different values spread across 8 discrete steps, which can run forwards, backwards, be set to bounce around, or run randomly.
You can set the tempo manually, with the dedicated "tap tempo" footswitch, or even sync up to an external MIDI clock if you need everything to be really tightly linked. This pedal packs in a bunch of extra functionality with controls over parameters such as glide…and you can even save and switch between patterns with capacity for 10 presets by default—a number which is expandable up to 100 with the purchase of an additional footswitch controller.
This is a really simple but powerful way to get granular control over your expression—at a price which is probably lower than you might expect…and definitely lower than Eurorack equivalents.
Old Blood Noise Endeavors MTET
As you are probably gathering by now, Old Blood Noise Endeavors are Kings when it comes to weird and wonderful approaches to expression, and the MTET delivers another raft of possibilities for the creatively minded.
Known by its Sunday name as the MIDI to Expression Translator, this small black box does exactly what you might expect: it takes MIDI CC messages via a MIDI DIN input, and converts these into four separate expression outputs which can then speak the language of your pedals. In addition, there is also a built-in MIDI THRU DIN port to let you daisy chain other compatible devices. This smart wee device is awesome, and especially useful for those of us who are operating hybrid synth and pedal setups—opening up the potential to have far more complicated arrangements and interactions. Think of the possibilities if you were to hook this up to Ableton for your live sets…
Again, this pedal is also very reasonably priced for what it does, and delivers great value—with a clear functional purpose.
Mission Engineering Expressionator
The Expressionator from Mission Engineering claims to be the "world’s first programmable multi-expression controller." It provides a solution for those folks who might want to control various different effects with an expression pedal, but who have limited space on their board.
The way it works is by taking the input of a single expression pedal, and acting as a kind of expression "hub"—multiplying and routing that expression signal in different, configurable ways. This means that you can plug in a standard volume pedal, rock it back and forth, and modulate up to three different effects in different ways simultaneously from a single action. There is a significant amount of depth here, as you can dial in the amount or range of expression for each channel (depending on the effect that you want to achieve) and trigger tremolo-style square LFOs.
This one might take a bit of time to wrap your head around, but once you do, the possibilities are pretty impressive. If you want to take things even further, you can always plug in one of the other weirdo expression pedals that we’ve talked about above into the Expressionator’s input. Cue. Madness.
Express Yourself
We hope that this article has given you a bit of insight into some of the options that are out there to take more control over your effects mid-performance. With so many creative possibilities available, it should now be clear that modulation isn’t limited to the modular enthusiasts, and there is really no excuse not to add some dynamics to your playing.
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