Jack White’s Effects Pedals

Written by admin on February 4, 2009 – 10:51 pm -

Jack White defines the sound of the White Stripes with his unique playing style, and haunting vocals. For all of us guitar players trying to achieve similar guitar tones, an overview of the effects pedals he plays is a great place to start. Although he plays a wide range of distortion and various effects pedals,  the true essence to his sound, is his skill, that cannot be found in a pedal.

The defining feature of the White Stripe’s is the member line up, consisting only of Jack White on guitar and Meg White providing the rhythm section on drums. This arrangement though comes with challenges when playing live, and that is why Jack White uses such a variety of pedals to reinforce the sonic presence of their live shows. Below I have highlighted some of the most important effects pedals that Jack White uses to achieve his signature sound.

The DigiTech Whammy IV – Jack uses this pedal to achieve rapid  pitch modulations during his solo playing.

Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Distortion – This pedals provides a very fuzz like distortion with almost endless sustain. This is Jack White’s primary distortion pedal, and I can speak from experience that this pedal is awesome. It is the one that I use and could not imagine playing without it.

MXR Micro-Amp – This effects pedal is used to boost your signal when playing. It is primarily used for Jack’s solo work, and can add a considerable amount of gain. It is great when some signal loss occurs because of long effects pedal chains.

Polyphonic Octave Generator (POG) – This pedal creates a polyphonic octave effect that Jack uses to thicken his sound. It’s effect is ultimately making a 6 string guitar, sound like a 12 string. The most noticeable use of this pedal is heard in the White Stripe’s song, “Blue Orchid”.

These pedals aren’t guaranteed to make you sound just like Jack White, but they are definitely enough to inspire your playing. Take the sounds they create and make them your own. After all, defining your own guitar playing style is what being a true musician is all about. Plug in and have fun!

The video below shows Jack White’s effects pedals in action. It is a great performance of the song, Blue Orchid.

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Tags: Distortion, Fuzz, Jack White, Octave
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