Everyone’s guitar tone sometimes needs a little assistance, especially playing with a band. To the rescue comes the TC Electronic Spark, ready to give you a range – actually, a huge range – of tonal choices from clean to dirty, plus a whopping volume boost.

What makes the Spark a competitive choice? First, it sounds killer. Just click the footswitch and your weak, flabby signal finds vibrance and girth – the de facto “spark.” For muscle, the Level knob offers a whopping 26dB of clean boost, plenty for cutting through the band and taking a hot solo. Also, the Spark’s controls couldn’t be simpler. You’ll find an active EQ of Treble and Bass knobs to adjust frequencies to boost or cut with pinpoint accuracy. A mini switch chooses tone profiles of Mid/Clean/Fat – another useful sonic dimension. Also look for true-bypass circuitry, metal housing, and a choice of 9-volt battery or DC power.

The cherry on top is Gain, which delivers textures from fully clean to seriously beefy overdrive. The combination of the massive volume boost, overdrive, and tonal shaping also comes in under $70, making the Spark hard to resist. It might not be the only booster/overdrive pedal on your board, but you may wonder how you ever lived without it. The buzzwords “tone sculpting” are overused, but fit the Spark perfectly.

This article originally appeared in VG’s October 2022 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.