Volume pedal suggestions

if you go passive (no amps in the pedal and for hi impedance circuits => 250 kohm and up), the the Ernie Ball pedals always rate at the top for operation and tone (least amount of 'suckage' among the passives) they are also serviceable, as the frames are indestructible and all moving/wearing components are replaceable. the mono pedals also feature a contour switch to select between smoother and more abrupt swelling, as well as a tuner-out jack to allow for 'toe-up" silent tuning. but be warned: these sucker are heavy. I've been using one for years. good stuff.

if you buy one of these, be careful, as Ernie Ball also makes a 25kohm volume pedal, for use with active electronics. it is not a buffered pedal, but a made to work at lower "line level" impedances such as those provided by active pups. basically, it has a different pot in it. also a good pedal, just for a different application (and possibly what you need).

EB also makes stereo volume/panning pedals and also offers some models in a slightly smaller, lighter "junior" form factor -- supposedly just a good as the original.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/navigation?q=Ernie+Ball+volume

$80 to $125 USD

Thanks Gnease.. I am not sure I understand the difference between active and passive. I am definately interested in controlling the swell rate.

Jim

I have been using an Ernie Ball vol pedal for years now. works great. nothing can really go wrong. the string really is strong.
it is passive...meaning not powered.
I do know that most pedal steel guitar players prefer an active vol pedal. Hilton is highly regarded.
EB is affordable and very serviceable. beer and glitter from a wild stage gig did it in.
Ernie Ball himself passed away a year or so ago. his son has taken over duties.

and that's another testimonial!

I brought up the active/passive as it's somewhat confusing with respect to EB pedals. as Dogbite says, all EB volume pedals are themselves passive (no internal buffering), but there are two flavors of each EB product: for passive pups/electronics and for active pups/electrons. at one time EB referred to the versions meant for use with active electronics as "active volume pedals" or something like that. it was only an indication of compatibility, as those pedals contained 25k ohm pots, while the "for passive" pedals contained 250k ohm pots (mono) or 500k ohm pots (stereo panning). I believe they have finally changed the description to fix reduce confusion. if you have a guitar with passive pups, you will want a 250k ohm (or 500k ohm stereo panning) pedal.