John MayerPedalboard, 2023
John Mayer's compact board for the December 2023 Blue Note Tokyo shows: a PolyTune 3, a Katana clean boost, two Ibanez TS10 overdrives around a blacked-out Centaur, an RC-500 looper, an Aqua-Puss, a Chrono delay and a Strymon Flint.
Compact electric board
Order evidence: No source publishes this sequence; the order is reconstructed
Inside the rig · 10 units
Pedal roles & evidence
How each unit fits John Mayer's 2023 setup. Board-specific roles and the evidence behind each identification and position.
Reconstructed orderIdentity and position are evidenced separately. Reconstructed positions are not observed connections.
Tuner
PolyTune 3
Role in this rig
The electric guitar enters here. Its buffer stabilizes the long cable run that follows.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Reconstructed
Gain
Katana Clean Boost
Role in this rig
Pushes every drive pedal after it while preserving the attack of the guitar.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Reconstructed
Gain
TS10 Tube Overdrive
Role in this rig
The lower-gain TS10 sits before the Centaur and can push it into a more focused lead sound.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Reconstructed
Utility
Box It Later
Role in this rig
Adds level and provides a controllable insertion point inside the gain section.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Reconstructed
Gain
Centaur Overdrive (Dark enclosure)
Role in this rig
Forms the core drive voice, with a TS10 available on either side for different gain stacks.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Reconstructed
Gain
TS10 Tube Overdrive
Role in this rig
Boosts the output of the Centaur, producing a more compressed and saturated lead stage.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Reconstructed
Looping
RC-500 Loop Station
Role in this rig
Captures phrases after the complete drive section while leaving delays and ambience downstream.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Reconstructed
Delay & Echo
Aqua-Puss MkII
Role in this rig
Provides the tight slapback echo that appears throughout Mayer’s clean and edge-of-breakup sounds.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Reconstructed
Delay & Echo
Chrono Delay DLY-4
Role in this rig
Handles tempo-synced and longer repeats after the analog slapback delay.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Reconstructed
Modulation
Flint V1
Role in this rig
Closes the board with amplifier-style tremolo and reverb before the signal reaches the amp.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Reconstructed
Documented equipment · Reconstructed order · Serial path
The pedals are documented from the December 2023 shows. Parts of the cable run pass beneath the board, so the published signal order includes informed reconstruction.
No source publishes this sequence. The units are ordered by conventional signal-chain practice, and any documented routing zone is kept as recorded.
Cited sources
MethodologyQuestions about John Mayer's 2023 pedalboard
- What pedals did John Mayer use in 2023?
- This dated entry lists 10 units: PolyTune 3, Katana Clean Boost, TS10 Tube Overdrive, Box It Later, Centaur Overdrive, TS10 Tube Overdrive, RC-500 Loop Station, Aqua-Puss MkII, Chrono Delay DLY-4, Flint V1. This is the recorded inventory, not a claim that every connection or model identification is confirmed; see the evidence and routing notes.
- What order were John Mayer's pedals in?
- The complete order is reconstructed, not observed. The layout follows the cited routing constraints and the archive's signal-chain convention where the sources are silent: Guitar → PolyTune 3 → Katana Clean Boost → TS10 Tube Overdrive → Box It Later → Centaur Overdrive → TS10 Tube Overdrive → RC-500 Loop Station → Aqua-Puss MkII → Chrono Delay DLY-4 → Flint V1 → amplifier.
- Is this John Mayer's full guitar rig?
- No. This dated entry covers 10 units in the effects path, not every piece of gear John Mayer owned or used. Floor pedals, rack units and routing devices are included only where recorded; omitted equipment and uncertain connections are explained in the notes. It is not a complete or current rig inventory.
- When and where was this pedalboard used?
- December 2023. Blue Note Tokyo. This is one dated setup as documented, not a career-wide gear list.
- How does the archive know what was on this pedalboard?
- 2 cited sources, listed above with the date each was read, including Guitar Magazine Japan, Guitar World. Among them a rig rundown and a written article. The units are recorded as documented equipment, and the page was last audited on 2026-07-18.