EQ
What eq pedals do to the signal, where the chain planner places them, and what to read next.
An equalizer reshapes the balance between frequency bands — boosting or cutting bass, mids and treble relative to each other — without adding gain in the sense a drive pedal does, though many EQ pedals include an overall level control alongside the tone-shaping bands. It is a corrective and a shaping tool rather than a distinct sound of its own, which is why its placement in the chain changes what it is actually shaping more than most other pedal types.
The types in this family
- EQ (rank 70): An EQ after the gain stages shapes what the drives produced. The same pedal in front of them changes what they distort, which is a different job — see the alternative.
Where it sits in the chain, and why
Placed after the gain stages, an EQ shapes the finished, already-distorted tone the drive pedals produced — cutting boxy mids out of a distortion sound, for instance. Placed in front of the gain stages instead, the same pedal changes what the drive stage itself receives and therefore how it distorts: cutting bass ahead of a fuzz tightens what that fuzz clips, and boosting mids ahead of a distortion pedal pushes it into a more mid-forward breakup. Both are legitimate, commonly used positions for the same pedal — the conventional slot is after the drive block, with before-the-drive standing as the alternative.
Power notes
A passive or simple active EQ pedal typically draws very little current, comparable to a buffer’s needs, since it is shaping frequency content rather than generating new gain. More elaborate parametric or multi-band EQ designs can draw somewhat more. Check the individual pedal before assuming either figure.
General guidance for the family, never a specification for any individual pedal — always confirm voltage, polarity, current draw and isolation from the maker’s own documentation before wiring a real board.
Every rank and reason above is quoted straight from pedal-chain-planner.js's PEDAL_TYPES — the same taxonomy this site's chain planner runs and docs/gearwarrior-pedals-contract.md documents. No second table.