12 of the Best Currently Available RangeMaster / Treble Booster Pedals

Controls - Level, Range : 70's / 80's / 90's.

Brian May is one of the best known users of the Range Master along with his original inspiration one Rory Gallagher. This KAT Treble Booster is a pedal format of the kind of Treble Booster Brian Uses himself - albeit his is an inline version which is attached to his guitar strap. This supposedly covers all the key eras and Treble Boosters Brian May has made use of during key periods of his career. This remains as one of my top targets. It's a little pricier than I would like - but it is very well made. My friend Joe Halliday of Hello Sailor Effects made his own version of the Brian May Boost - which I will mention in the Hello Sailor Effect segment.

Controls - Heat (Gain), Range, Boost, Attenuate.

A modern Silicon Transistor take on the RangeMaster. Catalinbread don't mention the Transistor they use - which gives them more flexibility in manufacture, This one is a nice to have for me, not one of my current priorities!

Controls - EQ : 1/0, Boost, Input : High / Low, Range, Low, High, Sustain.

This one is engineered quite differently to all the others - using an Integrated Circuit / OpAmp design of circuit - it's built up quite differently but has that same kind of impact. A version of that Treble Booster is also on DryBell's The Engine preamp pedal. I have the limited edition red version of this - and it's been on the board for over a year now.

Controls - Range, Master, Impedance (for Pickup Simulator), Pickup Simulator Off / On, Bias, Bias Volage Display (3.15 > 0.63).

This is a proper genius take on a Range Master - with core Range and Master (Boost) controls, but also Impedance, Pickup Simulator and variable Bias Voltage - which shows on the adjacent LED screen. Vitalii always delivers more - the Soviet Ge Transistor selected here sounds fantastic too - the Π402. This is a great version to own. Right at this minute they are sold out, but these are an active release - and another batch will be around real soon - these tend to sell out very quickly - superb value as always!

Controls - Level, Range : Low > Mid > High.

I own the rarer OC44 variety of Expresso FX Germanium Boost, but I later decided that I actually seemed to prefer the OC141 variant - which has remained on my wishlist for a number of years now - I keep meaning to get that OC141 type - but other priories get in the way. Everything Sof makes sounds superb - and it's very well priced for the level of quality and inclusion of rare components. This will surely happen soon enough. Northern Stompboxes is offering a Pelham Blue version of this - as pictured - which is an excellent option!

Controls - Range : Full / Lo-Mids / Mids / RM-1 / RM-2 / Highest, Level.

I came very close to getting one of these at the time of release - I had intended to spring for one, but not long after launch Mike Fuller decided to shutter the business. These are now available once more courtesy of manufacturing partner Jackson Audio - which makes this an active target once more. The transistor here is more commonly used for early variants of Tone Benders (MKI, MKI.V and MKII).

Controls - Master Volume, Treble / Mid.

This is a fairly classic take on the RangeMaster - using a Transistor that is often associated with latter varieties of Germanium Fuzz Faces. Really good value for sure - and definitely a target for me - as I typically prefer Germanium varieties, but not always!

Controls - Ge / Si Transistor, Boost, EQ - High / Mid / Low.

I don't own the HSE RangeMaster featured here, that's a variant I don't yet posses, while I have 5 different varieties of HSE RangeMasters already - including on my Free-Range, a Brian May Boost, a Honey Bee Dual Stackable Ge and Si, a Sziklai Hybrid Transistor Pair variant, and a Ge/Si variant on my recent Pink Rebel Abbey Road Fuzz-Ranger. I probably have enough of Joe's RangeMasters already - while there are a couple more variants of his - expanded variants - which I'm quite keen on too. I deliberately chose a fairly simple and elegant variant of HSE RangeMaster for this article.

Controls - Range, Boost, Top Cut : More / Less.

I have collaborated with 'Joe Doc' before, and I had hoped to cover off more of his pedals on the site - while he's kept himself somewhat distant over the last few years. I've reached out to him a couple of times - and he has reached out to me too - but there doesn't seem to be a will to commit. I am always keen, while a collaboration needs both partners to be actively engaged. I was hoping that I would have done more by now - but 'Joe Doc' seems to prefer being somewhat elusive. He does make really great stuff - and has an original OC44 variant of his Boost - which is the original RangeMaster Transistor.

Controls - Drive, Mid : Hi / Flat / Lo Mid, Volume, Lows, Highs.

This is another that's been on my wishlist for the longest time - I keep meaning to grab one of these, but other priorities always conspire to get in the way. Had I done this article later in the year I would probably have had the time to add a few more of these, while I already have other priority projects in progress over these next few months. More will be added soon enough - and this will definitely be among their number. An essential part of Tony Iomi's signature sound alongside his Modified Laney Supergroup - the essence of Black Sabbath!

Controls - Boost, Range / Profile : Dallas RM / Modern RM / Modified RM / Mid Boost / Extra Mids Boost / Full Range Boost.

R2R is often lauded for making the very best RangeMaster variants. Superb quality for sure, but rather pricey! All of these are made to order - so you need to save up, and show some patience - as it will take you a while to get your hands on one. Looks great with those Marconi winged knobs - very elegant take. It's pricing means that this is unlikely to be my first choice - while it is still a target for me!

Controls - Range, Bright switch, Boost.

I'm a huge fan of Markus Reeves and his point-to-point wired circuits. His take on the RangeMaster is obviously a Silicon one - which the Transistor type he prefers. He's using a high gain BC108C here to great effect - with his usual acid-etched enclosure. Beautiful pedals for sure in look and sound - but also a little pricey. These are released in highly limited batches - where the timing doesn't always suit me as I've often long blown that month's budget and contingencies by the time a Reeves Electro release materialises. I still have a few of Markus's to get - including this one, his fuzz face take, and his octave fuzz take! Fantastic artisan quality pedals here - finished to the highest standard!