Mark SpeerKhruangbin Pedalboard, 2018
Mark Speer's 2018 Khruangbin pedalboard contains six effects: Cry Baby wah, Boss PH-3, Boss DS-1, Dyna Comp Mini, Holy Grail and Strymon El Capistan. Premier Guitar states their signal order. A later Guitar World interview describes the parked, always-on wah, Holy Grail spring reverb and DS-1 with level fully up but tone and distortion rolled off — not maximum distortion.
Khruangbin touring board
Order evidence: A source states the sequence
Inside the rig · 6 units
Pedal roles & evidence
How each unit fits Mark Speer's 2018 setup. Board-specific roles and the evidence behind each identification and position.
Source-described orderIdentity and position are evidenced separately. Reconstructed positions are not observed connections.
Filter & EQ
Cry Baby Wah
Front of amp
Role in this rig
Parks in a fixed treble position to shape every note, the filter Speer never turns off.
Speer: "I started doing that in the mid-2000s... park the wah [in the sweet spot]." Premier Guitar places it first in the chain.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Documented
Modulation
PH-3 Phase Shifter
Front of amp
Role in this rig
Adds phase movement early in the chain, before the distortion.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Documented
Gain
DS-1 Distortion
Front of amp
Role in this rig
Supports sustained lead passages with a less guitar-like timbre.
In Guitar World, Speer describes maximum DS-1 output with the tone and distortion controls turned down. He combines this with pickup selection and a wah held at a fixed position to sustain notes with a synth- or wind-instrument-like timbre.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Documented
Dynamics
M291 Dyna Comp Mini
Front of amp
Role in this rig
Evens out level and lengthens sustain behind the distortion.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Documented
Reverb & Ambience
Holy Grail
Front of amp
Role in this rig
Supplies the spring reverb that is the aural glue of Khruangbin's sound.
Speer identifies Spring as his regular Holy Grail mode in Guitar World. He distinguishes the pedal from an additional physical spring reverb used on recordings; that studio layer is not another unit on this touring board.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Documented
Delay & Echo
El Capistan dTape Echo
Front of amp
Role in this rig
Provides delay with foot-controlled feedback for short echoes or prolonged repeating passages.
Guitar World documents foot control of the delay feedback, allowing Speer to vary the number of repeats while playing. Premier Guitar names the expression controller as a Roland EV-5.
- Identity
- Documented
- Position
- Documented
Documented equipment · Documented order · Serial path
Premier Guitar states the order outright rather than leaving it to inference, so the chain is recorded as source-described. Guitar World's interview four years later independently names the same path and supplies the settings the rundown does not: the DS-1 runs with its level maximised and tone off, the Holy Grail sits on spring, and the Cry Baby is never switched off but parked in its trebly sweet spot. The Roland EV-5 controlling the El Capistan and the Cioks DC5 supply are documented but omitted here, as the archive draws audio effects rather than controllers and power. Guitar World does not mention the Dyna Comp Mini; only Premier Guitar places it, so its position rests on the rundown alone.
Cited sources
MethodologyQuestions about Mark Speer's 2018 pedalboard
- What pedals did Mark Speer use in 2018?
- This dated entry lists 6 units: Cry Baby Wah, PH-3 Phase Shifter, DS-1 Distortion, M291 Dyna Comp Mini, Holy Grail, El Capistan dTape Echo. 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 Mark Speer's pedals in?
- A cited source states the order: Guitar → Cry Baby Wah → PH-3 Phase Shifter → DS-1 Distortion → M291 Dyna Comp Mini → Holy Grail → El Capistan dTape Echo → amplifier.
- Is this Mark Speer's full guitar rig?
- No. This dated entry covers 6 units in the effects path, not every piece of gear Mark Speer 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?
- April 2018. Khruangbin tour. 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 Premier Guitar, Guitar World. Among them a rig rundown and an interview. The units are recorded as documented equipment, and the page was last audited on 2026-08-15.