In many games, the most valuable card is not the Ace or the King but the Joker: lacking a fixed identity, that (supposedly) funny guy can be whatever you want it to be.

In the pedal realm, Hotone’s XTOMP Bluetooth Modeling Effects Pedal covers that same role: a smartphone-hosted “Bluetooth Modeling” app can transform this pedal into a growing number of high-quality, extremely realistic emulations of existing effects (currently 170+, and all come free!).

Hotone recently introduced a compact version of the pedal called XTOMP mini that sells at $149.99. At that price (versus the $250 of the bigger one), this pedal packs an awful lot of bang for your bucks, in particular for studio musicians who need to be able to provide a wide variety of tonal options (currently 140+ for the mini version) depending on the session at hand.

Both units can reproduce one pedal (or cabinet) emulation at a time (the regular XTOMP has some additional “Combo”, “Signature” and “Special” options), and hold 20+ models in memory for quick recall.

Check out these videos for some samples of the various emulations, and try the XTOMP in person at the 7th Brooklyn Stompbox Exhibit!