The EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle is an EarthQuaker Devices octave pedal. Close alternatives include the Roger Mayer Octavia and the Behringer Octavia Octave Fuzz. It pairs well with the Marshall Plexi 1959SLP and the Dumble Overdrive Special Amp Head.
EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle
EarthQuaker Devices · pedal
The EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle is a simple analog octave-up guitar pedal from Akron, Ohio boutique manufacturer EarthQuaker Devices, generating a single upper octave harmonic above the fundamental guitar pitch through an analog rectifier circuit. The Tentacle has only a single Level control, making it the simplest pedal in the EQD lineup. Produces the upper octave fuzz-octave character associated with Roger Mayer Octavia-style circuits. True bypass.
What stands out
“Use-case wise it suits players who want Octavia-style upper octave for lead and experimental playing at EQD quality”
— from the community notes
“The Tentacle delivers simple analog upper-octave generation with a single Level control for players who want classic upper octave fuzz-adjacent tones”
— from the community notes
“the earthquaker devices tentacle is a simple analog octave-up guitar pedal from akron”
— from the listing
“True bypass”
— from the listing
“Its standout strength is the simple analog octave-up with single Level control at EQD boutique quality”
— from the community notes
Trade-offs
“In the signal chain octave effects sit first before drive”
— from the community notes
- octave
- octavia
- simple
- bypass
- octave fuzz
- pitch
- fundamental
- experimental
Genres the EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle is commonly used in
- Alternative Rock
- Experimental
Amps that pair well with the EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle
Marshall Plexi 1959SLP
amplifier
16% matchMarshall Plexi 1959SLP's own aggressive character is the real reason this is worth trying
Comes later in the signal chain
Dumble Overdrive Special Amp Head
Dumble
15% matchDumble Overdrive Special Amp Head leans toward dynamic, and that's a real, usable character to pair with
Comes later in the signal chain
Pedals that stack with the EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle
MXR Distortion+
MXR
10% matchMXR Distortion+'s own gritty character is the real reason this is worth trying
Comes later in the signal chain
Beetronics Swarm
Beetronics
10% matchBeetronics Swarm's own fuzzy character is the real reason this is worth trying
Comes later in the signal chain
Roland SDE-3000D
Roland
6% matchPut Roland SDE-3000D after EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle in the signal chain, where it won't crowd EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)
Comes later in the signal chain
Walrus Audio Mako D1 High-Fidelity Stereo Delay V1
Walrus Audio
6% matchRun Walrus Audio Mako D1 High-Fidelity Stereo Delay V1 after EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle in the signal chain, where it won't crowd EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)
Comes later in the signal chain
Alternatives
Roger Mayer Octavia
Roger Mayer
69% similarity“Produces the upper octave fuzz-octave character associated with Roger Mayer Octavia-style circuits”
Behringer Octavia Octave Fuzz
Behringer
68% similarityShared character: one octave, true bypass, lead
Fulltone Ultimate Octave
Fulltone
67% similarityShared character: one octave
Mooer Tender Octaver MKII
Mooer
61% similarityShared character: one octave
KMA Machines Mandrake
Kma Machines
61% similarityShared character: one octave
Beetronics Whoctahell V2 Low Octave Beeast
Beetronics
59% similarityShared character: one octave, overdrive
Roger Mayer Octavia Classic
Roger Mayer
58% similarityShared character: each note, one octave, lead
smallsound/bigsound Buzzz
smallsound/bigsound
55% similarityShared character: one octave, lead
Tycobrahe Octavia
Tycobrahe
54% similarityShared character: experimental playing, one octave, lead
Walrus Audio Luminary
Walrus Audio
49% similarityShared character: one octave, lead
Death By Audio Robot
Death By Audio
48% similarityShared character: one octave, simple, alternative
EarthQuaker Devices Bit Commander Analog Octave Synth
EarthQuaker Devices
46% similarityShared character: each note, one octave
See all alternatives to the EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle (cheaper + boutique) →
Questions people ask
What are good alternatives to the EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle?+
The closest matches in character are the Roger Mayer Octavia, the Behringer Octavia Octave Fuzz, the Fulltone Ultimate Octave.
What pairs well with the EarthQuaker Devices Tentacle?+
Strong matches from rig and tone-complementarity evidence: Marshall Plexi 1959SLP, Dumble Overdrive Special Amp Head, MXR Distortion+ — Marshall Plexi 1959SLP's own aggressive character is the real reason this is worth trying.