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I've been wondering about getting a proper pedalboard instead of my homemade gorm board, especially as I'm having to consider taking my effects out of the house for practice but wondered what would be a good board for around 6-8 pedals? Are the cheap ones by stagg or similar cheap boards any good or do I need to get something like a diagio? What are others using? Budgets are tight at the moment so that is one of my main considerations at the moment as well but I could check out the used market.

Used Market is a great place to start. I got my Pedaltrain Pro used with a hardcase for $100 off retail. Pedaltrain makes several size and case options (hard or soft) that are pretty reasonable when found used.

http://prostagegear.com/products/pedalboards/

A pedaltrain Jr or PT1 might work, depending on the size of your pedals. I have several monster pedals so I had to get a huge board, but if you have smaller pedals you can fit more pedals in a small space.

Pedaltrain is not the only game in town and you should research what features are most important to you before purchasing. I went with the pedaltrain so I could mount the power supply under the board, clean up the cabling, and get more pedals on the board. Lots of other great pedalboards out there to chose from.

The Stagg cases are cheap as chips, and look and feel it. I wouldn't write them off, though. I've been using one for years and just recently carved up a nice piece of MDF to make an actual slatted board to stick inside it, too. It's ghetto fabulous, but still serves me well. This week I applied velcro to it as well and it's a pretty pro-looking setup if I do say so myself. I'd say that this whole setup probably cost me in the region of £50 or so for the case, the wood for the board and the velcro. I guess maybe an extra few pounds for the black spray paint I used to cover the board. Weigh that up with the ridiculous new AND used prices for Diago or pedaltrain stuff (which I agree is terribly nice) and it looks like a good deal.

DIY. It's what real men do.

You might want to check out Lyte pedalboards. I think they are made of .5" starboard, a really great polymer. You can get a sheet 12"x27" for under $30 shipped to US. That and some Velcro carpet like lyte sells would make an awesome board.

ekwatts wrote:DIY. It's what real men do.

lorez wrote:I've been wondering about getting a proper pedalboard instead of my homemade gorm board...

Right there in the first line.

h8mtv wrote:You might want to check out Lyte pedalboards. I think they are made of .5" starboard, a really great polymer. You can get a sheet 12"x27" for under $30 shipped to US. That and some Velcro carpet like lyte sells would make an awesome board.

lorez

Joined: 16 Dec 2009
Posts: 2725
Location: Bristol, England

Not quite so obvious but still there.

My point was that there's nothing wrong with a DIY board or a cheapo case as long as it's done right.

ekwatts wrote:My point was that there's nothing wrong with a DIY board or a cheapo case as long as it's done right.

i was wondering about maybe fasnioning a case as well after seeing what you did Ek. at the moment I have to take off the pedals and pack them all in a bag and then assemble when I get to practice. I just want something a bit easier and lazy I guess. I also considered using cable ties as well as velcro to keep pedals fixed to the board whle moving it about but some padding to protect the pedals might be good as well.

When I looked at the measurements of the Gorm stuff none of it really fit the Stagg boxes. They were usually too long and not wide enough to fit the various sizes. You could perhaps source a box from somewhere and then make the Gorm board fit by hacking bits off here and there. Maybe a Diago board would be a good size to house your Gorm. I'm not keen on Diago boards anyway because I don't like flat pedalboard surfaces. I need the underground stuff so I can loop all my cables around with having them stick up, just ready for my clumsy foot to kick a patch cable and break it.

I would point out that the only reason I went with the DIY route was that I've been unemployed for a while so the idea of spending upwards of £100 on a pro board was way out in the bizarrosphere. Necessity really is the mother of invention and all that, or at least utilisation of a bandsaw and some scrap wood. If you actually have the money to bag yourself a pedaltrain (I actually prefer the look of those T-Rex tone trunks) then go for it. But I get a great feeling when I look at my board and think: "I did that. Well, most of it. But I still did it."

mainly the same reasons as you Ek for why i made the gorm board, It cost me around £5 for the board and all the rest of the bits were lying around. I like the slope and I like the fact I have all the leads stashed under it as well. I can't really afford most of the stuff out there but now my needs are different and I need to take the pedals to practice. I might have a look for an old suitcase that would fit the board and I can add padding.

I know what you mean about the t-rex ones, they do look very nice.

I've used a Diago showman for a few years now, its done a pretty good job but is starting to get a bit tattered. The only downside is the weight, its properly heavy which is a shame. I'll probably downsize to a Pedaltrain Jr with a soft case at some point for ease of transport, pending on if I can find one on eBay/having enough money.

I used a Diago Showman for years and it was perfect for the job at the time. That said, as mrperson mentioned it's not lightweight, but it is solid as hell. When is downsized on the pedal front I got a pedal train mini which is ideal for me and the 6 mxr sized pedals I now use. If I were to start using more pedals again I'd like to check out one of the larger pedaltrain boards, but they are not cheap.

ekwatts wrote:The Stagg cases are cheap as chips, and look and feel it. I wouldn't write them off, though. I've been using one for years and just recently carved up a nice piece of MDF to make an actual slatted board to stick inside it, too. It's ghetto fabulous, but still serves me well.

My first pedalboard was a Stagg board and it served me well for quite a while until my effects collection grew, then I sold it to my bass player and board other more expensive flight case type boards. Now as i've slimmed my collection down I bought the old Stagg back off my bass player and, like ekwatts, put a slab of MDF in it (get an offcut from homebase cut to size) to fix my pedals to using Johnny Shreadfreak fixings. The Stagg boards do look and feel cheap but I have never had a problem with mine, I have the weight of 12 pedals in mine plus the weight of the MDF and I have never had any issue with it breaking, bending or failing in anyway. More expensive pedalboards such as the Diago ones are good and strong, but with that comes weight, if you regularly travel to gigs using public transport (as I do) saving weight is a very large bonus. Plus the Stagg boards are so much cheaper than Diago et al and come lined with velcro friendly material.

I still like my Gator case. Its a convenient size, portable and the pocket holds leads and a 4-way. I have THIS but you'll probably be able to score one on ebay for about £25 squid.

I know I go on about how good it is to make your own pedalboard but I realise you said that you wouldn't mindmaking a lid to go on yours. It's really not that difficult as long as you get the measurements spot on. I've posted these photos a few times before too but just so you get an idea... mine is built exactly like the ikea/gorm boards with the exception that it has a panel on the bottom of it and has the power supply mounted in there too. I love it and would never consider spending money on a Pedaltrain...

been using a PT1 for some number of years now. no problems except the hardcase is warping. The Rondo ones seem well enough, even with shipping to uk

Simon wrote:I know I go on about how good it is to make your own pedalboard but I realise you said that you wouldn't mindmaking a lid to go on yours. It's really not that difficult as long as you get the measurements spot on. I've posted these photos a few times before too but just so you get an idea... mine is built exactly like the ikea/gorm boards with the exception that it has a panel on the bottom of it and has the power supply mounted in there too. I love it and would never consider spending money on a Pedaltrain...

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Did you make your own case/surround? I have mounted the power under my Gorm and if it was easy to transport I wouldn't of posted.

Fran, that looks sweet and a good price, what number of pedals do you get on? I have 6 and a few that are larger than boss standard size (EHX size ones).

lorez wrote:Fran, that looks sweet and a good price, what number of pedals do you get on? I have 6 and a few that are larger than boss standard size (EHX size ones).

I've had four (Boss size), one Wah and a DC Brick on it before. If you put your power pack underneath there would be more room but not sure you would get six on including larger EHX stuff.

Fran wrote:

lorez wrote:Fran, that looks sweet and a good price, what number of pedals do you get on? I have 6 and a few that are larger than boss standard size (EHX size ones).

I've had four (Boss size), one Wah and a DC Brick on it before. If you put your power pack underneath there would be more room but not sure you would get six on including larger EHX stuff.

cheers Fran, I was thinking that might be the limit and might look at the next one up. They definitely look value for money though

I like the Gator pedal tote. It's like £40 and is big enough for 8-ish pedals. The board can be left in the heavy-duty nylon (I guess) tote bag, or taken-out. That pedal board with all the sharp edges would scratch the interior of my car to buggery.

5-10 years ago there were no decent readymade pedal boards out there. That floppy one from Electro Harmonix was about it. Now there's a good few and they can be got cheap.