Introducing Helweg Pedalboards

I’m really excited about this business – Helweg Pedalboards. Here we have an individual with a background of furniture repair who is also into guitars. This would probably lead to fine bench electric guitars or really bad ass pedalboards. Thank goodness it’s the later. Michael Helweg, owner of Helweg Pedalboards, is making some outstanding pedalboards.  When I look at his designs, he’s really putting together a very “vintage” feel and a super clean design. His pedalboards are made of wood (wedge shape profile) with an enclosure area below the pedals where power could be nicely tucked away. He also put some nice features on there like a power connector and input/output jacks directly on the board.

I sent a few questions to Michael, and this is what he had to say

So what you led you to start building these pedalboards?

I was working for a furniture repair company and doing some building in my free time.

In the market for a pedalboard myself, I found several companies building wedge shaped boards with the ability to mount a power supply underneath. Really cool stuff, but they had few options and questionable quality for the price. I thought, “Wow, I could go so much further with this”.

What did you want to achieve/accomplish with your pedalboards?

I love the small boutique guitar, amp, and pedal companies we have to choose from these days. My goal was to build pedalboards that measure up to that kind of quality gear.

What separates your boards from the rest of the pedalboards being built out there?

Ordering from us is like having your own effects tech. “Custom” typically means you get to  choose your size, color, and inputs. Here, I love to work with our customers to create something that is tailored to their exact needs and style. Our “Options” page is intended to get the imagination going, but not as a complete list of what can be done. Combine that with our huge list of existing options, and you have an infinite amount of possibilities available.

What feature are you most proud of about your boards?

We’re doing a lot of things that you can’t find anywhere else. To choose just one… I  would say the Pull-out Bottom Cover.

Many guitarists keep their pedalboard sitting in the bottom half of a flight case during shows to protect the power supplies underneath. I developed our bottom covers to protect inner-mounted gear while out of the case. Now you can show off your killer pedalboards!

How custom can people can get with the boards? colors? material? options? etc

Wow! If you can dream it, and it’s physically possible…  Right now I’m working on mounting a Boss TU tuner with true bypass into a pedalboard. This is just the beginning.

How long does it take to get a board built?

It depends on the order and how many orders we have at one time. A simple board may take two days to build. An order that includes a full case, lacquered tweed, piping, and pre-soldered patch cables can take six or seven. We usually estimate 2-4 weeks from the time of order to shipment.

How do your board compare to the rest of the market?

The idea was to combine all the best designs and features from other companies and add or improve anything lacking. This led us to exclusive features such as our innovative case system, piping and beading, input panels, hardwood frames, and internal female-end patch cables. It also led to some practical choices as far as design and materials. We employ dove-tail joints for our frames and cases, Velcro brands highest quality hook for our tops and standard IEC connectors that use a typical power supply power cord. We also offer complete custom wiring which is a huge advantage for our customers.

Again, the quality of these boards seem very top notch, if you get a chance, please check out Helweg Pedalboards to order yours today. Helweg Pedalboards is also on Facebook and Twitter.