Skip to main content
MusicRadar MusicRadar The No.1 website for musicians
UK EditionUK US EditionUS AU EditionAustralia SG EditionSingapore
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Artist news
  • Music Gear Reviews
  • Synths
  • Guitars
  • Controllers
  • Drums
  • Keyboards & Pianos
  • Guitar Amps
  • Software & Apps
  • More
    • Recording
    • DJ Gear
    • Acoustic Guitars
    • Bass Guitars
    • Tech
    • Tutorials
    • Reviews
    • Buying Guides
    • About us
Don't miss these
The Electro-Harmonix ABRAMS100 is a compact, guitar amp head with 100-watts, 3-band EQ, effects loop and bright switch, and it has a yellow control panel and black dials.
Guitars Electro-Harmonix presents 100-watts of solid-state power in a compact guitar amp head weighing just 2.5lbs
Fender has made an exacting replica of Tom Morello's 'Arm The Homeless' guitar, the mongrel S-style made from parts that became the cornerstone of the Rage Against The Machine guitarist's sound.
Artists Tom Morello’s favourite 'Arm the Homeless' electric guitar has just been recreated by Fender
Dirty Boy SilverBOY: This high-end all-analogue preamp pedal was inspired by a digital plugin
Guitars Dirty Boy turns the tables on guitar’s digital revolution with an all-analogue preamp pedal inspired by a plugin
Strymon Fairfax Class A Output Drive: the first in the Series A range, this is an all-analogue pedal inspired by the Herzog unit made famous by Randy Bachman
Guitars Strymon debuts Series A analogue pedals range with the Fairfax – a “chameleon” drive that can “breathe fire”
JHS Pedals x Electro-Harmonix Big Muff 2: This limited edition fuzz pedal was created from a long-lost blueprint that was unearthed while researching the upcoming book about the NYC pedal brand.
Guitars Electro-Harmonix and JHS Pedals team up for a Big Muff based on schematic that had been lying forgotten for 50 years
A Fractal Audio VP4 Virtual Pedalboard multi-effects pedal on a concrete floor
Guitar Pedals Best multi-effects pedals 2025: Our pick of the best all-in-one guitar FX modellers
The DOD Badder Monkey is a redux take on the DigiTech Bad Monkey overdrive, but it adds two all-new circuits, plus a wooden barrel knob for blending them. It is painted green and has an illustration of a chimpanzee on the front of the pedal, which is an ape, not a monkey.
Guitars DOD reimagines a Gary Moore overdrive favourite as the Badder Monkey – think the DigiTech Green Monkey, only badder
A PRS McCarty 594 on a hard case
Electric Guitars Best electric guitars 2025: Our pick of guitars to suit all budgets
Fender and Jackson's Iron Maiden 50th Anniversary Collection: FMIC has unveiled a signature guitar and bass collection to celebrate 50 years of the British metal institution.
Artists Fender and Jackson celebrate 50 years of Iron Maiden with limited run signature collection
The Compulsion Drive is Brian Wampler's take on on of his favourite drive pedals, the Fulltone OCD, but it's quite a different proposition with an expanded control setup.
Guitars Brian Wampler just reimagined a bona fide modern classic with The Compulsion Drive – but is this OCD-inspired dirt pedal an overdrive, distortion or both?
MXR FOD Drive on wood floor
Guitar Pedals It’s an open secret that the MXR FOD Drive is the Dookie Drive circuit under a different name, and for just $99 you can get the tones from Green Day’s best album on your pedalboard this Cyber Monday
Seymour Duncan Dino Cazares Machete: the new pickup looks passive, but it's a fully active design, with bite, clarity and nice cleans too.
Guitars Seymour Duncan teams up with Dino Cazares for signature Machete humbuckers – and their versatility might surprise you
Victory The Duchess Deluxe MKII Head
Guitar Amps Get the most out of your pedals and save £422 on one of the best pedal platform amps I've played - the Victory V40 Duchess Deluxe MKII Head
Fuchs Audio Joe Bonamassa JB-ODS: the new signature 100-watt combo is inspired by the Dumble Overdrive Special but has key differences, such as reverb – and it has Bonamassa's signature Celestion speaker
Artists Joe Bonamassa just teamed up with Fuchs Audio on a signature tube amp that might just save you spending $175,000 on a Dumble
 universal audio
Plugins “We built Paradise to make any guitarist feel like they’re playing in a dream studio": Universal Audio releases Paradise Guitar Studio – and it's 25% off for Cyber Monday
More
  • "The most expensive bit of drumming in history”
  • JoBo x Fuchs
  • Radiohead Daydreaming
  • Vanilla Fudge
  • 95k+ free music samples
  1. Guitars
  2. Guitar Pedals

NAMM 2013: Fender releases Competition Series effects pedals

News
By Joe Bosso published 6 January 2013

Four new versatile, affordable stompboxes

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Fender Distortion pedal

Fender Distortion pedal

Fender is proud to announce the Competition series pedals, a whole new line of effects pedals designed and built to provide inspirational tones in a reliable package at an astounding value.

First up is the Fender Distortion pedal, which drives tube or solid-state amps into thick distortion and singing sustain, evoking the edgy hard-rock tones of the '70s and '80s. Great with many different amplifiers, it's responsive enough that a guitar's volume control can be adjusted to the exact amount of distortion desired, from aggressive crunch to full-on saturation. It can be used to create a distorted tone or as a boost for higher-gain rhythm and solo tones.

Page 1 of 4
Page 1 of 4
Fender Drive pedal

Fender Drive pedal

The Fender Drive pedal creates a warm overdrive reminiscent of classic ’60s and ’70s rock and blues tones. It can be used to push tube or solid-state amps, creating harmonically rich crunch and sustain. With an old-school design that matches its vintage warmth, it makes an ideal choice for the musician looking for rich, harmonic overdriven tone.

Page 2 of 4
Page 2 of 4
Fender Chorus pedal

Fender Chorus pedal

The Fender Chorus pedal will remind guitarists just how cool and indispensable the lushly spatial effect can be. Add sparkle to clean open chords, to animate strummed passages and to thicken distorted power chords. Get just the right amount of chorus desired, cleanly and quietly. Operates in mono or with stereo outputs for vibrantly huge sound while creating wide, sweeping modulation effects or shimmering 12-string sounds.

Page 3 of 4
Page 3 of 4
Fender Delay pedal

Fender Delay pedal

The Fender Delay pedal creates richly resonating echo effects from short slap-back rockabilly sounds to longer repeating echo perfect for huge, soaring guitar solos (it’s great for other electronic instruments too, such as keyboards). Dedicated delay time, feedback and level controls give you complete command of your sound’s spatial characteristics. Operates in mono or with stereo outputs for two-amplifier setups.

Page 4 of 4
Page 4 of 4
Joe Bosso
Joe Bosso

Joe is a freelance journalist who has, over the past few decades, interviewed hundreds of guitarists for Guitar World, Guitar Player, MusicRadar and Classic Rock. He is also a former editor of Guitar World, contributing writer for Guitar Aficionado and VP of A&R for Island Records. He’s an enthusiastic guitarist, but he’s nowhere near the likes of the people he interviews. Surprisingly, his skills are more suited to the drums. If you need a drummer for your Beatles tribute band, look him up.

Read more
Fender Hammertone Boost and Breakup Drive pictured in close-up, with the background out of focus.
Fender adds analogue heat to the Hammertone lineup with the budget-friendly $99 Breakup Drive and Boost pedals
 
 
Strymon Fairfax Class A Output Drive: the first in the Series A range, this is an all-analogue pedal inspired by the Herzog unit made famous by Randy Bachman
Strymon debuts Series A analogue pedals range with the Fairfax – a “chameleon” drive that can “breathe fire”
 
 
Fender's American Professional Classic series photographed against the side of a chrome tour bus [L-R]: Jaguar in faded Sherwood Green Metallic, HSS Stratocaster in Faded Lake Placid Blue, Stratocaster in Faded Firemist Gold, Telecaster in Faded Butterscotch Blonde, Precision Bass in Faded 3-Color Sunburst.
Fender gives its US lineup a retro-modern makeover with the American Professional Classic range
 
 
Fender Vintera II Road Worn 60s Telecaster
Fender’s Vintera II Road Worn series has Golden Era vibe, tone and feel with era-correct pickups and aged nitro finishes
 
 
A Fractal Audio VP4 Virtual Pedalboard multi-effects pedal on a concrete floor
Best multi-effects pedals 2025: Our pick of the best all-in-one guitar FX modellers
 
 
Warm Audio's Tube Squealer is a greatest-hits of Tube Screamer circuits, three-in one, while the Throne Of Tone, the new dual-overdrive twofer from the Texan pedal company channels not one but two classic pedals, which in a way were both inspired by the classic Marshall "Bluesbreaker" amps used by Clapton back in his John Mayall days.
Warm Audio channels the greatest hits of classic overdrive with the regal Throne Of Tone dual-drive and the 3-in-1 Tone Squealer
 
 
Latest in Guitar Pedals
JHS Pedals x Electro-Harmonix Big Muff 2: This limited edition fuzz pedal was created from a long-lost blueprint that was unearthed while researching the upcoming book about the NYC pedal brand.
Electro-Harmonix and JHS Pedals team up for a Big Muff based on schematic that had been lying forgotten for 50 years
 
 
Crazy Tube Circuits Orama: the orange/peach coloured pedal combines classic preamp and fuzz circuits and promises a wide range of sounds
Crazy Tube Circuits squeezes out another sweet twofer with the Orama preamp/fuzz pedal
 
 
Strymon Fairfax Class A Output Drive: the first in the Series A range, this is an all-analogue pedal inspired by the Herzog unit made famous by Randy Bachman
Strymon debuts Series A analogue pedals range with the Fairfax – a “chameleon” drive that can “breathe fire”
 
 
The DOD Badder Monkey is a redux take on the DigiTech Bad Monkey overdrive, but it adds two all-new circuits, plus a wooden barrel knob for blending them. It is painted green and has an illustration of a chimpanzee on the front of the pedal, which is an ape, not a monkey.
DOD reimagines a Gary Moore overdrive favourite as the Badder Monkey – think the DigiTech Green Monkey, only badder
 
 
Dirty Boy SilverBOY: This high-end all-analogue preamp pedal was inspired by a digital plugin
Dirty Boy turns the tables on guitar’s digital revolution with an all-analogue preamp pedal inspired by a plugin
 
 
The Compulsion Drive is Brian Wampler's take on on of his favourite drive pedals, the Fulltone OCD, but it's quite a different proposition with an expanded control setup.
Brian Wampler just reimagined a bona fide modern classic with The Compulsion Drive – but is this OCD-inspired dirt pedal an overdrive, distortion or both?
 
 
Latest in News
Seymour Duncan Dino Cazares Machete: the new pickup looks passive, but it's a fully active design, with bite, clarity and nice cleans too.
Seymour Duncan teams up with Dino Cazares for signature Machete humbuckers – and their versatility might surprise you
 
 
Suzie Gibbons/Redferns; Ross Marino/Getty Images; Michael Putland/Getty Images
Mick Hucknall says he was simply green with envy when he heard George Michael's duet with Aretha Franklin
 
 
Sabrina Carpenter speaks onstage at Variety Hitmakers 2025 on December 06, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
Sabrina Carpenter offers her songwriting advice as she accepts Variety’s Hitmaker of the Year award
 
 
Brian May performs live with his Red Special, and on the right, his old pal, Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi, plays the custom-built Red Special replica that Iommi got him as a festive gift.
Brian May just got Tony Iommi the best Christmas present ever
 
 
Josh Freese
“It was all done on GarageBand – it’s live drums, but over this goofy funk drum loop I’d done on my laptop out on tour”
 
 
push
Ableton and Arturia reign supreme as Reverb reveals best-selling synths, samplers and drum machines of 2025
 
 

MusicRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google
  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...