Are you looking for the best JOYO pedals for your guitar? Well, then you have come to the right place to get all the essential information to make the right decision.
Classic sounding, incredibly user-friendly, and pocket-friendly JOYO pedals, have steadily increased in popularity, having a dedicated user base. JOYO Technology has designed, developed, and launched Original, Vintage, Ironman, and Revolution Series (Series 1, 2, 3, and 4) guitar effect pedals to date.
Every series optimally exploits state-of-the-art technology for efficiently reproducing the signature sounds of tube- and solid-state amps and guitar effects pedals.
In this review, we take a close look at Series 2 (Classic/2nd generation) JOYO Pedals featuring a lightweight yet durable aluminum alloy sheath. Based on yesteryear’s superlative vintage tube amps’ design, these Series 2 JF pedals come equipped with effective overdrive, distortion, delay, gain, and modulation effects for delivering vintage rock tones.
The 6 Best JOYO Pedals (Comparison Table)
| Image | Model | Price |
|---|---|---|
| JOYO JF-02 Ultimate Drive (Top Pick) | Check Price |
 | JOYO JF-09 Tremolo (Close Runner-Up) | Check Price |
 | JOYO JF-13 AC Tone | Check Price |
 | JOYO JF-36 Sweet Baby | Check Price |
 | JOYO JF-16 British Sound | Check Price |
 | JOYO JF-15 California Sound | Check Price |
1. JOYO JF-02 Ultimate Drive (Editor’s Choice)
As its name indicates, JF-02 Ultimate Drive is a versatile overdrive pedal catering to the expectations of almost every guitarist. The JOYO JF-02 Ultimate Drive, better known as the “Obsessive Compulsive Drive (OCD) pedal,” comes equipped with ‘high’ and ‘low’ settings enabling full-on flexibility. Setting the toggle at ‘high drive’ transforms the JF-02 into a fire-breathing dragon transporting you back to the timeless Classic Rock age.
Alternatively, pushing the drive toggle to ‘low’ allows you to enjoy the amazingly subtle yet sweet and soothing tone with a slight gain. An incredibly user-friendly overdrive pedal without any noticeable background noise, the JF-02 brings out your instrument’s natural sound quite smoothly. If you want to see the JF-02 Ultimate Drive rock, then pair it with the JF-01 Vintage Overdrive upfront or turn up the ‘volume’ and ‘drive’ knobs.
Designed painstakingly to replicate a tube amp’s tone, the Ultimate Drive offers you the best of both worlds-valve –and solid-state amps. Sporting an aluminum alloy- casing with the stoving finish, robust controls, and high-quality connectors, JF-2 seamlessly blends construction, sound, and aesthetics.
Pros
- Prewired and configured for true bypass
- Outdoes a diode tube amp in performance
- Create your signature sound using the ‘tone,’ ‘level,’ and ‘gain’ controls
- High/low tone toggle for enhancing tonal brightness
- Setting the channel switch right up to 10’0 clock offers sparkling overdrive, robust overdrive between 10-12 0’clock, and beyond that, everything is a distortion
Cons
- Even at low gain, you’ll feel a discernible background buzz (requiring you to use a noise gate)
2. JOYO JF-09 Tremolo (Close Runner-Up)
If you still have one of those vintage tube amps set up in your bass rig, then you’ll warm up to the JF-09. The JOYO JF-09 Tremolo features identical photoelectric tremolo tube circuitry that used to be a standard feature in yesteryear valve-amps. In addition, the JF-09 Tremolo’s onboard ‘intensity’ and ‘rate’ controls allow you to modulate the tone and character as per your preferences.
The ‘intensity or depth knob comes in perfectly handy, enabling you to control and fine-tune the dynamics as a whole. On the other hand, the rate control lets you monitor and regulate the volume surge’s speed rises and falls. You’ll also be able to make the most of the LED on/off indicator pulsations (with signal modulation rate) when it comes to setting the rate tempo before starting string picking.
So if you’re into recording or live gigging rhythm sounds, then this LED indicator pulses functionality proves immensely helpful. True bypass, aluminum alloy casing, and rock-solid ¼” connectors make the JF-09 Tremolo incredibly durable and resilient and guarantee excellent modulation and signal consistency.
Pros
- Emulates vintage tube amps’ tremolo effect
- Electric guitar effect pedal puts out superb tone thanks to true bypass
- Features high-tech and hardwearing shrink-wrap sheathing
Cons
- The footswitch becomes unbearably loud when pushed hard
- Tremolo pulse remains constant throughout
3. JOYO JF-13AC Tone
The JOYO JF-13 AC Tone captures and recreates the Vox AC30 amp’s unmistakable sound, which vintage British rock players rave about. The JF-13AC Tone’s design is modeled on the legendary AC-30 valve amp and, with inputs from two shaggy bob multi-instrumentalists, has transformed and modernized the electric bass’s sonic.
The JF-13AC Tone dexterously captures those sounds that modern-day guitar notes are deficient in natural overdrive to aggressively temperate and subtle tones.
Take full advantage of the ‘Voice’ control knob for dialing in distinctive and unique tones. The six knobs embedded on the face of the JF-13AC Tone pedal allow you to experiment with near-infinite tonal permutations and combinations. In addition, you can push the JF-13AC to its limits for achieving your personalized sound thanks to the pedal’s top-quality controls and bypass conductor.
Pros
- A veritable workhorse that emulates the classic Vox AC-30’s signature sound
- Aluminum alloy sleeve with stoving varnish
- ‘Low,’ ‘mid,’ ‘high,’ ‘level,’ ‘voice,’ and ‘drive’ controls allows bassists to get the best out of this effects pedal
- Natural warm, distorted tone with marked refinement
Cons
- It doesn’t exactly reproduce the overdrive or distortion effects of a Vox AC30 or a topnotch amp simulator pedal (but comes real close)
4. JOYO JF-36 Sweet Baby
The JF-36 Sweet Baby by JOYO almost lives up to its name as it appears cute, calm, and cool from the outside but boisterous inside. Extremely performance-oriented- and supremely affordable guitar effects pedal, the JF-36 Sweet Baby dials in the heady ‘60s/’70s overdrive sounds. The versatility of this high-quality JOYO overdrive pedal is substantiated by its significantly powerful output, which is considerably higher than other standard overdrive pedals.
Featuring true bypass, the JF-36 facilitates full integration of your original signal when you keep the gain circuit switched off. The Sweet Baby is an immensely dynamic overdrive pedal enabling you to thrust your clean channel transporting you into uncharted overdrive territory depending upon your string picking dynamics. It’s JF-36’s ‘Focus’ knob that sets this pedal apart from other similar pedals, allowing you to tweak ‘playing’ and ‘touch’ sensitiveness by your preferred tone.
Pros
- Performance-driven overdrive effects pedal with exclusive ‘focus’ control for uninhibited distortion tone molding
- Aluminum alloy covering and standard stoving finish for extended durability and resilience
- True bypass conductor for delivering crystal clear sound
Cons
- A battery compartment door would have added to its versatility
5. JOYO JF-16 British Sound
If you’re looking to recreate that booming British sound reproduced by a Marshall, Laney, or Vox amp, then bring home the JOYO JF-16. This overdrive guitar effects pedal is your passport to nailing that ‘over the top’ vintage rock sound. With the JF-16 overdrive pedal in your rig, you can duplicate the output of the above legendary amps.
Packed to the hilt with practical features, this British Sound guitar effects pedal outperforms your tube-amp simulator, delivering harmonic warm overdrive reminding you of the ‘70s classic rock sound. Press the JF-16 for rhythm projects covering the music of celebrated rock bands from Pink Floyd to Aerosmith to Rolling Stones. But, of course, you also have the leeway to dial in some extra gain for replicating the drive channel of those illustrious bands.
Use the ‘mid’ control for reaping the benefits of clean distortion and mix-and-match the other controls for improvising unique sounds.
Pros
- Being a guitar effects pedal amp simulator, you can substitute it for your amp
- ‘voice’ and 3-band EQ control for dialing in a wide variety of tones
- Span the realm of the early 60s Marshall amp to the high-gain JCM 800 & 900 series with effortless ease
Cons
- At higher gain, there’s a repulsive solid state-style roughness
- Perfectly balancing the bass, treble, and midrange could be a tall order
6. JOYO JF-15 California Sound
The JOYO JF-15 California Sound overdrive/boost pedal is your best bet if you’re looking to register intensely vivid overdrive tones. The JF-15 overdrive pedal goes a long way in immaculately imitating the Boogie MK-II amp’s soundscape. You can bank on this boost pedal for strumming organic and focused rock tunes.
The JOYO California Sound overdrive will slowly but surely find its groove in your pedalboard, eventually offering you the flexibility to experiment. All you need to do for dabbling with an extensive tonal range from steaming hot tunes to scooped out midrange sounds is tweak the six knobs. You don’t need to look any further for crafting a wide gamut of tones, including gain-stacking sounds from your pedalboard.
Pros
- Perfectly reproduces sounds of rhythm- and high-gain lead channels
- Built-in cabinet reproduction for a smooth transition to mixing console, DAW, or PC
- Regardless of whether you use it as overdrive or DI, huge low-end sonic is assured
- Pairs equally with electric guitars and acoustic basses
Cons
- If you’re looking for a hi-fidelity, up-to-the-minute tone, look elsewhere.
FAQs About JOYO Pedals
Where Are JOYO Pedals Made?
JOYO pedals are produced in China and tend to be hugely popular with their user base, whose numbers are growing exponentially. All JOYO products, including metronomes, tube amps, pedal controllers, and effects pedals, are well-known for their simple but practical design. However, many guitarists, bassists, and musicians assume that since JOYO pedals are Chinese made they’re of inferior quality.
However, nothing could be farther from the truth. Rather than being mass-produced heap imitations, JOYO pedals are amply demonstrating their versatility to musicians worth their salt. For example, suppose you search your internet browser using the keywords ‘affordable, high-quality pedals’. In that case, you’re sure to spot URLs dedicated to JOYO pedal on the very first search engine results page.
Why Are JOYO Pedals So Cheap?
JOYO pedals, like most other items and products manufactured in China, are incredibly affordable because they are produced in bulk. In addition, JOYO Electronics makes pedals that, for the most part, tend to be clones or replicas of universally popular guitar effects pedals.
For instance, the 6 JOYO pedals reviewed above are carbon copies of Fulltone OCD, Diaz Tremodillo, Tech 21 SansAmp Character Liverpool, Mad Professor Sweet Honey, Tech 21 SansAmp Character British, and Tech 21 SansAmp Character California, respectively.
Are JOYO Pedals Reliable?
You certainly won’t break your bank to go for something that catches your fancy. But of course, that doesn’t imply you’ll compromise on the quality front simply for the sake of saving a few hundred bucks. Because the cheaper model goes kaput, you may have to spend double the product’s price for repairing the same, which is as good as buying an altogether new piece.
This principle holds especially for guitarists and musicians who’re always on the lookout for bargain deals on instruments and accessories. So if you’re browsing for budget-friendly pedals, you’re sure to come across JOYO pedals. But, unfortunately, a quick glimpse of the selling prices of these pedals will make you wonder are they reliable enough?
Answering the question as honestly as possible, yes, JOYO pedals are remarkably worth their salt gave their basement-level prices. To put it as briefly as possible, their pedals tend to be versatile, their down-to-earth price points notwithstanding. Whether JOYO pedals will appeal to you or not is an entirely personal matter; as they say, the proof of the pudding is in the eating.
Conclusion: The Best JOYO Pedal Is…
So there you’ve it-the six top JOYO analog pedals that’ll comfortably work their way through your guitar or bass rig, enabling you to concoct your mojo. Their simple yet workable design reinforced with advanced technology and user-friendly layout appeal equally to pros and greenhorns. Given their abysmally low prices, you bet you won’t find better-sounding pedals.