Distinct, Memorable and Instantly Brand-Identifiable Compact Pedal Enclosures

Controls - Out, Tone, Buzz, Fuzz.

There are a few companies that have dabbled with wood panel facias - but none as successfully as Anasounds - who started off with a few different woods - but soon got into their stride with the blonder bamboo - where the designs are sort of etched in using pyrography or more correctly - 'pyrogravure'. This design is universal across the whole range - and instantly identifiable as Anasounds - I've selected my favourite Anasounds pedal here - the finest of octave fuzzes - the Crankled Bitoun!

Controls - Overdrive, Level, Tone, Clipping : LED + Mosfet + Silicon + Germanium (15 Combinations), Bright Switch, Dirty High Gain Switch.

This is probably the first of my idiosyncratic choices - as to date only a single pedal exists in this format - while another one is set to officially join it within a month - where we will see the final iteration of the Grand Classic. What makes the Quad Screamer unique is not just the trapezoidal enclosure - but the colour-coordinate control topology of knobs and push-buttons. There is a forthcoming version of the Quad Screamer with 5 knobs and 4 push-buttons - which will be almost identical in format to the imminent Grand Classic. The graphics on the pedal are kind of an irrelevance - it's the single-colour controls and shape that makes this distinctive. The Quad Screamer is instantly identifiably - while I appreciate that for many this is not a well-known brand!

Controls - Volume, Gain, Dual-Mode Footswitch : Gated Fuzz (FUZZZZ) / Upper Octave Fuzz (STINGER).

Readers should know by now that I typically can't stand pedals with knobs mounted on their top edge. I was ambivalent when the Fatbee launched - but warmed up and got onboard with the Vezzpa - and own both those editions now. It is a distinct smaller enclosure - I wanted to include Beetroincs in some way in this listing - and while the larger enclosures are somewhat more generic - the combination of 3D-printed facia plates, and hand-painted custom enclosures really makes this one stand out. The edge-mounted knobs are slightly angled - which is the deciding factor. The control choices here are slightly unergonomic - while everything else is very distinctive and highly memorable. Also the larger Beetronics enclosures are slightly over-sized and don't fully qualify as compact although I frequently include them in those roundups. Really cool enclosures pretty much any way you care to slice it though - and with smart interior art too!

Controls - Gain, Tone, Level, D1 : Lo / Hi, D2 : Lo / Hi, Instrument : B / G, (Crunch > Overdrive > Distortion > Forbidden Fuzz).

Surely as iconic an enclosure as we've seen to date - obviously there is the much larger Arbiter Fuzz Face Discus / Mic Stand - while this polished aluminium enclosure is surely cooler. I've chosen my favourite version of the actual Bixonic Expandora line - the 2000R with the mode switches externalised. Obviously the Expandora Pedals company has recently revived this format - and they're now doing the drum enclosure in various different colourways - orange, green and purple I think.

Controls - Gain / Hold for Gain Type : Crunch [Green LEDs - as pictured above] > Overdrive [Orange LEDs] > Distortion [Red LEDs] > Fuzz [Purple LED] / Bass EQ, Tone / Hold for EQ Mode / Mid EQ, Accent : Dynamic Range / Compression / Hold for LED Brightness, Level / Hold for Low Frequency Profile Mode : Guitar [Red Footswitch LED / Bass [Blue Footswitch LED], Save Preset Button, M1 Preset, M2 Preset, M3 Preset, Bypass Switch : Buffered [White Footswitch LED] / True Bypass.

So the Expandora Pedals company bought the IP for the Expandora - so that the revived Bixonic had to do something significantly different for its new Axentrix A1 product - and I feel they've hit a home-run with this inverted teardrop shape enclosure - it looks fantastic up close and personal - especially with all of those lit-up buttons - a future classic in the making for sure!

Controls - Tone, Mode : Standard / Custom (Fat Mids), Level, Distortion.

In my opinion the most legendary of all compact enclosures - it was the first to introduce a 'Check' Status Led, smart battery compartment, and built like a tank! In fact so iconic are these enclosures that they're still made the same more than 40 years later on. Lots of other pedal brands copied this enclosure to a degree - in shape if not the full mechanics - which is why I've discounted some of the earlier Ibanez's for instance. There was a time when I considered this enclosure a little old-fashion - while the proper word is 'timeless'. The only weakness is the inability to carry dual footswitches - where I even did an article about that some years ago. While there is so much that is absolutely right about this design - so robust and reliable, there's no wonder that these are every journeyman musician's typical weapons of choice!

Controls - Gain, Level, Damping : Thick > Aggressive, Tone.

According to one of my insider friends - the prototypes for these enclosures had been doing the round for at least a couple of years before they went into production. The curved-sloping front and how the two halves meet is really slick. In fact the only misstep is the huge Carl Martin logo on either side of the pedal - that somewhat detracts from the elegance of the flowing lines of the enclosure. I was one of the first to feature the whole range revamp. I actually really like the form-factor - could do with more distanct knobs really though - while the modern enclosure is fantastic.

Controls - Time, Mix (Ramp), Length, Modify (Spatial / Wet), Clock : 2K-64K, Modify (Looper), Modifiers (Spatial / Wet) : Reverb / Delay / Slip, Routing : Input Signal Only / Both / Looper Signal Only, Mofifiers (Looper) : Envelope / Tape / Stretch, Engage Spatial Footswitch, Presets, Engage Looper Footswitch, + 16 Dip-switches.

So while the shape of the enclosure is fairly generic - it's the layout and arrangement of controls and jacks even that makes this style of enclosure so significant. In fact if you look at the recent Walrus Audio Mako series - that owes everything to the Chase Bliss Compact Topology - to the degree that you think 'Oh - a Chase Bliss style pedal!' - so slightly more esoteric than having specific shape and format visual markers - here it's chiefly the 'arrangement' of the pedal that is so significant. I'm sure some will disagree - and will be interesting to hear the rationale of the gainsayers!

Controls - Level, Tone, Distortion.

A really distance rounded and articulated / corrugated enclosure - alas with top-edge knobs - but overall such a memorable and distinct aesthetic - would be hard to misconstrue this as anything else - even at a distance of a hundred paces!

Controls - Level, Distortion, Octave : On/Off, EQ.

Another iconic Danelectro series - known as the DJ, Food or Mini Series respectively - to me the shape of the enclosure looks like and owl - so I've always referred to them as the Owl / Food series. The Food connection being the various names of the pedals. Vintage Americana style - I guess as is the FAB to a degree - I see these and I immediately thing of jukeboxes and large-finned Cadillacs! This French Toast is definitely a pedal I've considered getting in - while the construction of these isn't particularly robust, and a lot of these are somewhat scratched and dented nowadays - highly idiosyncratic and distinct!

Controls - Volume, Treble, Gain, Bass.

This is memorable for me because of the obvious visual association - as when I first saw these - I thought "someone's made a computer mouse into a pedal". Surely that's where this aesthetic is derived from - and already well-known and memorable shape - well suited to being a pedal enclosure. There have been various actual pedal-shaped computer mouses over the years - including some Boss ones - so it's only fair too that you have computer mouse shaped pedals! Note also the really cool and unique knobs on these!

Controls - Volume, Thickness, Gain.

My good friend Daniel has created an instantly distinct and iconic enclosure here - which kind of evolved during several enclosure experiments in and around 2015. Daniel tried out various colours, silver and diagonal facia plates - before he settled on his then squared up 2/3 to 1/3 Copper to Black colourway - which later - and for the Berserk II changed to gold facias. The Metal facia panels are a Metal + Transparent Resin Wafer - and part of the metal is etched away and backlit by LEDs - where we have symbols in place of text labels, All-round a killer concept - and still totally unique and instantly identifiable.

Controls - Volume, Grit, Fuzz, Power/Off, Input Pad Off.

Possibly a controversial choice - where 2 aesthetic elements really are key to this look - the stepped proportions of the enclosure format and the wavy outline which surrounds the controls. For me at least I can instantly sport a Foxrox enclosure in a crowd - while I appreciate that this brand doesn't necessarily have such a broad impact of late. For me these are still pretty distinctive.

Controls - Level, Tone, Drive, TBS, Mode 1-3, Sensitivity.

The most distinctive of the Guyatone enclosures as far as I'm concerned - with a Protective bar - like on the Amptweaker - but this time protecting secondary switches and mini knobs in the centre of the pedal. I'm not sure how many of these made it to this side of the pond - not seen any of these in circulation recently - and when Josh Scott covered Guyatone he covered a series with more generic enclosures - I still think this Mighty Micro Series looks cool - it's always a little sad when these sorts of things get discontinued!

Controls - Level, High / Low, Mid / Freq, Gain, Tight / Looser switch.

A hinged plate design - similar in structure to the Boss enclosure - while I feel that DigiTech / HardWire did enough to differentiate their enclosure - it has quite different proportions, chopped / slanted corners and actually a few more detail touches in how the different elements come together - where the whole construction - including the knobs is very harmonised from an aesthetic viewpoint. I've always thought these looked cool and sufficiently differentiated - while some will say that they're too close to the original Boss template!

Controls - Level, Tone, Distortion.

Actually this one looks a little like a computer mouse too - more of gamer's mouse - with those divots - a little plasticky in appearance - while the original versions of these had proper steel enclosures, The plastic ones weren't particularly robust and lots of those are now in dubious condition. Quite distinctive though and different to most everything else that was available at the time - Ibanez's original budge line as such - also know as the '5' series.

Controls - Drive, Lo-EQ, Hi-EQ, Level, Void : Off/1/2, Edge : Sharp / Smooth.

Based on a really cool idea which was prevalent in hi-fi equipment from an earlier era - the ability to push in and 'lock' the controls out of reach once you've set them. Great for gigging musicians who want to preserve their settings. Alas I believe the quality of those switches / pots wasn't quite up to scratch as far as I've been led to believe. I guess there were additional costs with manufacturing too - as I can't recall any other manufacture doing similar. It's a very industrial and utilitarian aesthetic  - which is pretty stand-out with its recessed switches and all-grey colorway. In some ways a little bland - but still stand out in that crowd - I don't thing you would confuse it for anything else!

Controls - Distortion, Level, Bass, Middle, Treble.

Probably my favourite Ibanez series overall - obvious it birthed John Mayer's favourite Tube Screamer and the even more legendary Mostortion - which weirdly only existed in this range. This is another combination play really - as the aesthetic elements combine distinct knobs, bright colours, and a distinctive and differentiated enclosure shape - which kind of subverts the Boss template with additional vertical graphical elements.

Controls - Volume, Gain, 6-Band Post Gain EQ : 100hz, 200Hz, 400Hz, 800Hz, 1.5kHz, 3.2kHz.

This is probably an outlier for most - it combines J Rockett's even smaller than compact enclosure format with an extended 6-Band EQ. A combination play - for the diminutive size plus those lit-up faders. I have all 3 of this series - the Comp edition is already retired - they certainly look striking on your pedalboard.

Controls - Volume, Type : Si / Ge, Mode / Voicing : Fat / Zonk / Vintage, Bias, Fuzz, Dip-switches : 6 : Vintage / Boost (def), 5 : Fatness (def) / Classic, 4 : Tone 1 (def) / Tone, 3 : Tone 2 (def) / Tone, 2 : Buff Off (def) / Buffer, 1 : Buff On / Buffer (def).

Yet another outlier probably - but an unmistakably well proportioned rounded corners enclosure with cool laser-etched detailing and rounded off with a wood-topped knob. The new slightly wider enclosure size is more imposing - especially in that sort of lightly brushed almost champagne finish. I have The Duellist in similar format - and both look really superb. I was hoping they would do a sliver version of the Octaland too so I could complete my trifecta - but that does not look to be appearing any time soon!

Controls - Mix, Repeat, Time, Mod, Mode : Normal | Tap Qtr / Tap Triplet / Tap Dotted Eighth / Slap / Swell / Ducking / Multi 1 / Multi 2 / Ping Pong / Reverse, Type : Tape / Digital / Analog, Tap-Tempo : Tap Lightly, Trails : Off/On.

There's much to admire about Line 6's Tonecore series - its modular nature - its really distinct styling and often extended feature set - especially in the case of this Echo Park Delay - which is a much overlooked gem from those early 2000's. Line 6 then sort of moved away from those compact dimensions with increasingly larger formats - possibly it's time it does a "Strymon' like they did with their recent Cloudburst!

Controls - Speed, Tone : Bright / Normal / Dark, Depth, FX Level, Mode : CHO1 / FLA1 / VIB1 / CHO2 / FLA2 / VIB 2 / Tone Print.

I guess this one is for the more sharp-eyed among you as the TC Electronic enclosure is very subtly differentiated. It has a nicely rounded corner enclosure - not as rounded as the recent King Tone ones, but elegant for sure - and with what I call a 'cinched waist' as if tailored by an English tailor - this allows the side-mounted jacks to be slightly recessed - and makes the pedal look like it has shoulders and a waist obviously - but it's all very subtle detailing. This is specifically for the so-called TonePrint style of pedals. Recently the owner Behringer has rather diluted TC Electronic's aesthetic with some very generic looking enclosures - which are totally at odds with the elegance of the former mainline series!

Controls - Sustain, Treble, Volume, Bass.

Even though Thorpy goes back to 2014/15, it wasn't until 2018 that we finally saw the current format of the compact enclosures - where they were shrunk down by nearly 20% of their former slightly over-compact size. I campaigned long and hard for the smaller actual compact size enclosure and I got my wish in 2018 - where I saw the full Thorpy Pedalboard in that new size at the Olympia Guitar Show I think it was. Laser-etched steel facia plates with some cool military-related motif - in homage to Thorpy's former munitions career. This is one of the most instantly recognisable and distinct enclosure out there - in many ways unique in its field - in how different this is presented, Clever colour choices too - while there are some legibility issues with the laser-etched legends, and you need to polish your pedal up every now and again - but they look indisputably glorious!

Controls - Level, Fuzz, Feel : Silicon > Germanium Transistor Feedback Mix, Tone, Germanium Bias - Externally accessibly trimpot.

The Stella Artios of pedals really - reassuringly expensive in price and looks - and underlined by those solid looking brass enclosures. Here it's very much the different metal that is the signature move. The knobs are fairly standard, as are the graphics - this is all about the heft of the body really!