A stomp box is a foot-played percussion instrument whose internal pickup turns each stomp into a bass drum, snare or hi-hat sound through an amp, mixing desk or PA.
About Stomp Boxes
A stomp box is an electric percussion instrument that sits under your foot. Tap or stomp in time and an internal pickup turns each hit into a deep, drum-like beat through your amp or PA, letting singer-songwriters, buskers and duos add a solid rhythmic foundation without a drummer. An acoustic stomp box works as a foot drum behind guitar and vocals, making it a natural fit for folk, roots, country and blues sets. Not to be confused with effects pedals, which share the stompbox nickname: for those, head to our guitar pedals range.
Our Peterman stomp boxes use a passive circuit, so they are true plug and play devices with no batteries or external EQ needed to produce a full, rich sound. They connect with a standard instrument lead or XLR, running into a mixing desk, powered speaker or acoustic guitar amp, and emulate bass drum, snare and hi-hat sounds with ease. Grab a spare guitar lead for your setup, or browse the wider range of guitar accessories and acoustic guitars at SWAMP.
Stomp Box FAQs
What is a stomp box?
A stomp box is a small percussion instrument played with your foot. An internal pickup converts each stomp into a deep bass drum style beat through an amp or PA. It is different from a guitar effects pedal, which is often nicknamed a stompbox but changes your guitar tone rather than making percussion sounds.
Do stomp boxes need batteries or power?
Peterman stomp boxes are passive, so no batteries or external power are required. Plug in a standard instrument lead or XLR and they are ready to play, which makes them reliable for busking and live shows.
What do you plug a stomp box into?
Any amplifier, powered speaker or PA system with a spare input works. Because a stomp box produces low, bass-heavy sounds, a speaker that handles low frequencies well, such as an acoustic amp or PA sub, gives the most convincing drum tone.
