While the super-famous Whammy represents the purest sense of pitch shifting – using the expression pedal to bend the pitch in a distinctive way – there are a number of ways to alter the pitch of the note you’ve played for any number of interesting effects. Octave pedals and harmonizers change the pitch while leaving the original signal in place, so you can build musical layers of your guitar tone. Choosing which of these you need all depends on the effect you’re going for. For on-the-fly pitch changes, dive-bombs, and even subtle harmonies, learn more about the 15 best guitar pitch shifter and octave pedals.
Might as well start where it all started. A version of the pedal that started it all. The Whammy currently available is the fifth version, which is also the first with polyphonic tracking and true bypass. If you’re looking for that certain Whammy sound, there’s still no better alternative than going to the source.
For controls, you get, of course, the built-in expression pedal. You also get a switch to choose between Classic style and Chords, which is where the polyphonic capabilities come into play. The rotary knob lets you choose your harmony, which also includes a new Detune setting. A midi port allows you to remotely control the Whammy.
Of course, DigiTech haven’t left it up to just modifying one unit. There are now a handful of Whammy-related pedals with varying functions. The Whammy DT adds both drop tune setting and a momentary switch. The drop tune function is available in the standalone DigiTech DROP, while you can now get all the Whammy-style fun from the much more compact Whammy Ricochet. It’s a choose-your-own-adventure of Whammy effects.
The Bax Music demo serves as a nice introduction to this pedal that hardly needs one.
With so many versions over the years, you should have no trouble finding a used one on Reverb, but be forewarned that the earlier models are becoming collectible and can sometimes go for more money than new.
Electro-Harmonix have never let themselves be left out of any pedal game, and released the Pitch Fork to aim for Whammy territory. It more specifically competes with the Ricochet model, given its small footprint and lack of included expression pedal.
Though the range is similar, this one doesn’t have the nifty LED readout that the Ricochet does, if that’s something that interests you. Still, the tracking on this is quite good, with only a few millisecond delay that all but fades under heavy drive.
Controls include a Blend knob so you can always control how much of your original signal appears along side the pitch shifted note. The Shift knob controls the pitch, from with 11 positions including the 17-cent shifted Detune, Minor 2nd to Minor 7th, and three octaves.
The small switch on the front chooses whether you’re transposing up, down or dual, which is both at once. The Latch switch can change the footswitch to momentary mode. Depending on which you’re using, this will mean that your expression pedal is controlling the pitch shift or the glissando.
This is a fairly robust option in a small package and would be a good alternative if you find the tracking on other pitch shifters to have latency issues.
The lengthy Andertons Music demo should tell you all you need to know about this pedal.
Those first two options are very good pitch shifters. They’ll give you what you want (eventually, after some time re-familiarizing yourself with intervals). If, however, you want your pitch to be shifted in a bizarre, even uncontrollable way, this is the pedal for you.
This is one of EarthQuaker Device’s stand out pedals, as it is made for truly unique sounds and (relatively) beautiful chaos. This isn’t for controlled pitch bends or detuning, this is for setting your guitar free. It’s fundamentally a chorus pedal, but it quickly becomes much more than that.
Controls include Pitch, which ranges from a 4th down to a 3rd up. Primary controls the volume of the pitch shifted signal, with unity around 2 o’clock, boosting above that. Secondary is an octave from the Primary shift, with one octave below fully counter-clockwise to one octave above fully clockwise. Tracking determines the amount of time between the dry signal and the wet shifted signal. Tone starts a full signal fully clockwise and rolls off the highs turning back.
Magic controls the…magic. This knob reads the positions of the other knobs and sets off out-of-control effects based on those parameters. This is separately selectable with the Magic footswitch in case you don’t want that sort of thing. That’s kind of the point, though, so use it as you would a boost for a lead passage. When an expression pedal is added, it controls the Pitch knob.
EarthQuaker also makes another polyphonic pitch pedal called Arpanoid. This is a guitar arpeggiator rather than a true pitch shifter, but hey, while you’re at it, you might as well know such a thing is possible. Or you could try their organ emulator, the Organizer, the Tentacle octave-up pedal, or the monophonic harmonizing madness of the Data Corruptor.
As for the Rainbow Machine, watch the JustNickMusic demo for a walkthrough.
The POG2 is very likely the industry-standard octave effect. It’s the classic solution for generating octaves and throws in a few effects for good measure. If you weren’t crazy about any of the synths above, but still have an occasional need for something that sounds like an organ, this will fill that gap for you, as well.
Each parameter is controlled by a fader, including Dry Output, two octaves below through two octaves above. The Attack parameter acts as a swell knob to slightly delay the sound of the octave behind the dry signal. LP Filter is a low-pass that fades out the highs as you turn it down. Detune controls the slight note shift that creates a organ effect.
The Q button adds resonance and top end in three stages, indicated by the brightness of the LED above it. By turning on the Dry FX, the parameters of the effects sliders are applied to the dry signal. There’s also a bank of eight preset options that you can save your parameters to, which you can cycle through with the Preset footswitch.
Of course, this is Electro-Harmonix, and they’re not afraid of giving you variations. To begin with, you can get smaller versions of the Pog sound in the Micro Pog and Nano Pog form factors. Controls-wise, there’s no difference between the two, so unless your ears can discern a reason to go for one over the other, I think the Micro Pog is the way to go.
If you need every octave possibility available, opt for the massive HOG2, which has a whopping ten octaves and a Freeze built-in. There’s also the Octave Multiplexer, which is a monophonic bass tone generator. If you’re in need of a drive pedal as well, you could try the Soul POG, which combines the Nano POG with their Soul Food. They also make an octave fuzz, the Octavix.
Watch the Prymaxe demo to get familiar with the control interface.
This Boss unit is incredibly powerful. For less than the previous pedals, you get a host of different modes and uses with more subtle variation between each. You even get a little flavor of Whammy in here using S-Bend mode, which again features a momentary footswtich setting to give you more dynamic playing.
Controls depend a bit on function, but for Major, Minor, Pitch Shifter, and Detune mode, the Balance knob is a wet/dry mix. Shift chooses the type of voicing and includes a few three-voice harmonies for any setting.
Key sets the key you’ll be shifting to, while Mode chooses the kind of pitch shift. In S-Bend (Super Bend) mode, the Balance knob becomes Rise Time and Key becomes Fall Time, which changes the length of time it takes to shift to the extreme of the pitch and come back to the actual note.
For the best range of practical shifting, this is probably the one go to with. It’s also pedalboard friendly, which is nice.
Boss also makes the MO-2 Multi Overtone, which is a harmonizer/detuner/pitch shifter that sort of ends up sounding a little bit like a less-crazy Rainbow Machine. It’s a little bit synth-like, a little bit organ-like.
The Dawsons demo will tell you what you need to know about the PS-6.
Used examples on Reverb go for far less than new, and you can also search up previous versions, like the PS-2 and the PS-5 Super Shifter.
While the Boss is excellent, it doesn’t have everything you could ever dream of. This Eventide unit almost certainly does. If changing pitch is even remotely involved — and yes, that includes a tuner — this unit can do it. It’s expensive as it is difficult to master, so you would choose this if you found all other options lacking. If you’re still looking for it after you’ve tried this, it might not exist yet.
Controls are abundant and give you finite adjustment of the many parameters at your disposal. There’s an over all Mix for the unit as a whole, as well as a Pitch Mix. There are two knobs apiece for Pitch and Delay, as well as Depth/Key, Speed/Scale, Xnob, and Ynob, whose functions all change depending on which of the ten pitch-based modes you’ve chosen.
There’s a tap tempo, and inputs include stereo 1/4 inch ins and outs, external aux and expression switches, and USB that allows for MIDI use. You can change the inputs and outputs to instrument/amp or line.
The unit comes with 100 presets, but an unlimited number are available via MIDI. Like all of the Eventide Factor pedals, this is basically a rack unit condensed into a stompbox, so the sound quality is studio-level. If you can spare the cash and pedalboard space, this will certainly deliver everything you need.
If you want even more than that, opt for the Eventide H9, which takes up less space on your pedalboard, but includes all algorithms from the company’s pedals. It will also make considerable room in your bank account.
The Gearwire demo is about 15 minutes long and is but a sampling of what it can do.
Boss again has a straightforward unit for octave. Unlike the POG2, this offers only two octaves, both below the played note. They call it polyphonic, but that’s only true in Poly mode, which leaves out the three high strings and is more of a bass accompaniment.
That’s true of this pedal on the whole — since the octaves are down only, this isn’t for calling up organ tones or for creating lush sounds, but more like EHX’s Octave Multiplexer, turning your guitar into a heavy bass machine. The Poly mode is an improvement over the OC-2, as is the dedicated bass input.
Controls include Direct Level and Oct 1 Level to dial in the octave effect. The third knob is a parameter knob that changes based on the Mode chosen with the fourth knob. The parameter knob will let you decide what strings get the octave in Poly mode, while in Oct 2 mode, it controls the second octave. In Drive mode, it controls the amount of the savage, fuzz drive this pedal can deliver. It’s a specific sound, but if you like it, it’s available to you.
The only octave pedal on this list with access to hundreds of other tones, the Sub ‘N’ Up features three modes of octave. With TC’s TonePrint, you can beam infinite different presets to your pedal so you will likely never run out of octave options. They’ve also included a classic monophonic mode in case all you need is the vintage-style octaves.
All the controls are simply level knobs for the various notes, including Dry, Up, Sub, and Sub 2. The switch in the middle determines if you’re using the Polyphonic setting, Classic, or a TonePrint imported tone. Pretty simple, just get to tweaking.
Part octave, part sequencer, part tremolo, even part synth and pitch shifter, this is a truly unique device based primarily around rhythmic patterns that add a ton of interest and depth to your playing.
Standard Octave Up and Octave Down are two of the auxilary modes of this device, which also include No Shift for tremolo-like use, Random for bouncing randomized octave up and octave down, and of course Both for octave up and down at the same time. The rest of the settings on the Subdivision knob set the note value of the sequencer.
The Shape knob sets the waveform for the sequencer or the volume of the octave in the auxiliary modes. Dry Mix sets your original signal volume, while Drive sets the amount of overdrive at the ouput, which is set to automatically retain the same output volume for consistent levels from preset to preset. Tone controls the high-end roll-off.
There are a multitude of preset options, including complex factory settings and the ability to edit on your DAW or external MIDI sequencer and send them to the unit via the MIDI In. There’s also a MIDI Out, Expression jack input, tap tempo, and a hold to freeze the last note played. The LED readout on the right indicates the pattern as it plays across the octaves.
This is an incredibly powerful device meant to give you the full complement of octave and tremolo with advanced patterning to take your playing to new and unexpected places.
The Knobs demo will tell you everything you need to know and probably relax you at the same time.
The Marshmallow finds the sweet spot (no pun intended) between the EarthQuaker Devices Rainbow Machine and their Arpanoid, combining a great deal of pitch shifting madness with a little bit of chorusing, arpeggiation, ring modulation and delay.
This is a fundamentally pretty weird pedal with two pitch shifters inside meant to bring out truly strange sounds. There are six modes:
MOD is a dual pitch shift with adjustable modulation. The Voice and Two knobs control the pitch intervals, while Mod and ALT control the depth and rate. ARPY is an arpeggiator, where Voice, Two and Mod control the intervals and ALT controls the speed and direction.
RAND is a dual pitch shift with random modulation, RING is a dual pitch shifter with panning between the two signals capable of an aggressive ring modulation sound. DYNA is a pitch shifter that responds to how quietly and loudly you play, switching between two set pitches. The last mode is Cloud, which is delay-like with pitch shifting to create feedback textures.
There’s also a Pitch Lock feature which will allow you to choose between four different settings: Unlock, or fully variable pitch; Chromatic, which locks to semi-tone intervals; Major, which locks to major scale intervals; and Minor, which locks to minor scale intervals. This allows you to get more musical pitch shifting instead of just randomness.
All of these can be saved via presets, which is probably for the best since a lot of alternate knob functions are required to make the most of this unit. A Warp switch also allows additional expression by switching between two modes when pressed.
This is complicated but really fun and takes pitch shifting to a whole new place.
Watch the Andy Martin demo wherein he makes it seem pretty useable.
The Chase Bliss approach to pitch shifting is primarily built around delay. Within each delay repeat is the shifted pitch, which is manipulated by the company’s signature in-depth control set. Fundamentally, this is an analog delay pedal built around the old-fashioned MN3005 BBD chip, but by setting two intervals, you can dial in any number of wild sounds.
For the pitch shifting usage, much of the pedal is based around what the INT 1 and INT 2 knobs are set to, each capable of five intervals above and bleow the played note, down to two octaves below. The Glide knob controls the transition time between them from instant to long enough that it might not reach the second interval, depending on what you play. There’s a Mix knob that can achieve 100 percent wet or 100 percent dry, while the Regen controls the amount of repeats. LPF is a resonant low pass filter that interacts heavily with the Regen control.
The three toggle switches select the note subdivision and ultimately determine the time of the delays and pitch shifting. These are so involved that the manual for the pedal recommends that you watch the Knobs demo to get your head around it. Needless to say, there are limitless possibilities therein.
This can also be used as a straightforward analog delay with multiple modulation options. It’s fully MIDI capable, has an expression input, the ability to save presets, and those distinctive Chase Bliss dip switches on the back to control various ramping parameters and alter the function of the knobs, if you should need that.
This harmonizer is at once really simple to get to grips with and very powerful. The controls on the face are pretty simple to grasp, letting you quickly dial in harmonizing additional voices as needed, but by using TC’s TonePrint, you can maximize what it’s capable of.
Controls include Key, with an attendant natural or sharp switch, and Scale with options for Ionian Major, Dorian Minor, Phrygian Minor, Lydian Major, Mixolydian Major, Aeolian/Natural Minor and a Custom setting which ships set to Locrian Minor, but which can be edited via TonePrint.
There’s also a Mix knob and the Harmony selector, with options for 3rd, 5th, and 6th above and below, as well as 3rd+5th and 3rd+6th together, as well as three TonePrint slots.
It’s also expression capable in two ways: First, you can set the footswitch to be either Latching or Momentary, allowing you to only turn on the harmony for short passages, if desired. Second, the MASH function ships mapped to pitch bend the note up one scale degree. Using TonePrint, you can also customize what the MASH function controls.
This also features analog dry-through, stereo ins and outs, and a three year warranty. They also make a very similarly laid out pitch shifter called the Brainwaves if you’re looking for one of those.
An evolution of the EHX POG2, this offering from Walrus Audio also gives you independent level knobs for four octaves, two down and two up. The apparently-simple control set hides the fact that there are more interesting sounds hidden beneath.
In addition to those four knobs, there are three knobs that let you dial in modifications to the octave sounds. First is the attack control, which affects a swell of the octaves. All the way down is instant octave sounds, with a longer fade in as you turn the knob up.
The Filter knob controls a low-pass filter which can give you an envelope feel and respond to your playing. Finally, the Flutter knob adds tremolo to the octaves for a modulated sound. The expression pedal input can control any of the controls except Filter.
There’s also a Wet/Dry mix control, storage for up to three presets, and a bypass switch with a momentary function.
Watch the Rabea Massaad demo to hear the organ-like textures he gets out of it.
There are plenty of used options on Reverb in both the original and the second version that can save you a decent chunk of change from new.
This offering from Dwarfcraft begins with a standard pitch shifter when the Speed knob is at zero. There’s also a Mix control to set your dry and wet levels. The Pitch knob has a range of an octave below to an octave above.
Everything else takes it further away from a standard pitch shifting device. The Speed control crossfades between the wet and dry signals, somewhat akin to a vibrato pedal. The Bender switch engages what the company calls a “doppler type effect”, which responds to the input signal decay. The Steps toggle causes the fading to snap to the pitch rather than glide, which is like a random arppeggiator, with the rate still set by the Speed knob.
This is really aimed at more experimental uses, clearly, but it can function as your traditional pitch shifter when you don’t need weirdness, too. For more functionality and totally hi-fi audio, you could also consider the Witch Shifter, which has a fuzz circuit, as well.
Pitch-based pedals tend to be somewhat expensive, so if you want to add simple octaves to your signal or experiment with the sound, you might want to opt for one of the Chinese manufacterers first. Mooer makes a pretty good, relatively simple octaver for less money than a lot of the competition.
To that end, it’s on its second version now because the first version lifted software directly from EHX’s Micro POG. They were forced to change the pedal and this is the result, which, according to some players, doesn’t track quite as well as the first version. Still, it’s inexpensive and worth trying if you need an octave sound.
There are volume knobs for the Sub and Upper octaves, as well as a Dry mix knob. There’s also a three-way toggle at the top to give you a few different modes. The Fat mode prioritizes and boosts the low end and rolls off the highs, while the Tight mode rolls off the lows and slightly boosts the upper mids. The Swell mode is entirely different, swelling in the octaves below your dry note for a lusher, larger sound.
It’s very simple and straightforward, but if you want more functionality than this, you can upgrade to the Tender Octaver Pro, which allows you to save presets and make a few more tweaks and is still cheaper than almost everything else on this list. Mooer also makes a harmonizer/pitch shifter called the Pitch Box.
