For explanations of various features see the page on MIDI pedal boards/foot controllers. There's also a Midi board tutorial at www.musicplayers.com, as well as a Midi board comparison chart in PDF format.
The information on this page is taken from the manufacturers' websites, online manuals and other sources. Some important aspects are not listed, such as price, reliability, number of foot switches and programming flexibility. Please help me correct any errors and omissions.
No single foot controller offers every possible feature. The most flexible solution would perhaps be to choose a foot controller with a big display and phantom power and then connect external expression pedals and MIDI relay switches to it.
A low-budget solution is to use the switches on a floor multieffect (to the extent it supports MIDI), though the preset changes may not be as seamless as a newer dedicated board.
| Brand/controller | Phantom power | Display shows | Expression pedal | Analog amp channel switching |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ADA MPC (discontinued) more info | Yes (7-pin cables) | 3 digits | No | No |
| ADA MXC (discontinued) info more info | Yes (7-pin cables) | 4 digits | 2 external | No |
| ART X-11 (discontinued) | No | 2 digits | No | ? |
| ART X-12 (discontinued) | No | 2 digits | 1 external "AP-1" | ? |
| ART X-15 Ultrafoot (discontinued) | No | 3 digits | 2 built-in | Yes |
| Axxess MFC5 | Optional (5- or 7-pin cables) | 3 digits | No | No |
| Behringer FCB1010 | No (built-in power supply) | 3 digits | 2 built-in | Yes |
| BOSS FC-50/GFC-50 | No | 1 digit | 2 external | No |
| Brandtstaetter & Rebholz FP1 | Optional(?) (5-hole contact) | 2 digits | 2(?) external | Yes(?) |
| CAE RS-10 | No | 3 digits | 2 external | No |
| CAE RS-10 MkII | No | 3 digits | 2 external(?) | No |
| Digitech PMC 10 (discontinued) | No | 20 characters | 2 external | Yes |
| Digitech Control 7 (discontinued) | No | 4 digits | No | No |
| Digitech Control 8 | No | 4 digits | 1 built-in | No |
| DMC (now Voodoo Lab) Ground Control (discontinued) | Optional (5- or 7-pin cables) | 12 characters | 2 external | No |
| DMC (now Voodoo Lab) Ground Control Pro | Optional (5- or 7-pin cables) | 12 characters | 2 external | No |
| Brand/controller | Phantom power | Display shows | Expression pedal | Analog amp channel switching |
| Engl Z-10 | Optional (5-hole contact) | 2 digits | No | No |
| Engl Z-12 | Optional (5-hole contact) | 2 digits | No | No |
| Ernst The Navigator MkII | Optional (7-hole contact) | 16 characters | 4 external | No |
| Fender Cyber (discontinued?) | ? | 3 digits | 2 built-in | No |
| Fractal Audio Systems MFC-101 | Optional (7-hole contact) | 20 characters | 4 external | No |
| G LAB GSC-5 | Yes (proprietary) | 6 separate displays with characters | 4 external | Yes |
| G LAB GSC-3 | No | 3 characters | No | Yes |
| GORDIUS Little Giant | No | 128 x 64 | 4 external | "Under development" |
| Keith McMillen SoftStep | Yes (through USB or the separate SoftStep Midi Expander unit) | 4 characters | 1 external | No |
| Kitty Hawk Flight Path | ? | 2 digits | ? | Yes |
| Korg FC6 (discontinued) | Possibly (5-hole DIN) | 3 digits | 2(?) | No |
| Lake Butler MIDI Mitigator RFC-1 (discontinued) more info | No | 16 characters | 1 external | No |
| Lexicon MPX R1 | Optional (7-hole contact) | 3 digits | 1 built-in, 1 external | Yes |
| Liquid-Foot Pro | Optional (7-hole contact) | 16x2 characters | 4 external | No |
| Liquid-Foot Jr | Optional (7-hole contact) | 16x2 characters | 2 external | No |
| Nobels MF1 | Optional (5-hole contact) | 3 digits | No | No |
| Nobels MF2 | Optional (5-hole contact) | 3 digits | 4 external | Yes |
| Peavey PFC-10 (discontinued?) | Optional (8-hole contact) | 20 character by 2-line | 2 external | No |
| Philip Rees MM5 (discontinued) | No | 6 characters | 2 external | No |
| Brand/controller | Phantom power | Display shows | Expression pedal | Analog amp channel switching |
| Proel MS16 | Optional (7-hole contact) | 3 digits | No | No |
| Proel MS32 | Optional (7-hole contact) | 16 digits(?) | 2 external | Yes |
| Prostage X10pro/X10 | Mandatory (XLR contact) | 3 digits | Any number of the proprietary XCC pedal | No |
| Prostage X07 | Mandatory (XLR contact) | 3 digits | Any number of the proprietary XCC pedal | No |
| Prostage X01 | Mandatory (XLR contact) | 3 digits | Any number of the proprietary XCC pedal | No |
| Rocktron MIDI Mate | Optional (7-hole contact) | 8 characters | 1 external | No |
| Rocktron All Access | Optional (7-hole contact) | 3+13 characters | 2 external | No |
| Roland FC-200 | No | 2 digits | 1 built-in, 6 external | No |
| Roland GFC-50 | No | 1 digit | 2 external | No |
| Rolls MP128 MidiBuddy | Optional (5-hole contact) | 3 digits | No | No |
| Rolls MP1288 MidiWizard | Optional (5-hole contact) | 3 digits | 8 external | No |
| T-Rex Big Foot | No | 16(?) characters | 2(?) external | No |
| Skrydstrup SC-1 | Optional (7-hole DIN contact or 6-pin XLR) | 12 characters | 2 external | No |
| Tech 21 Midi Moose | Optional (5-hole contact) | 3 digits | No | No |
| Voes MC-5jr | Yes (7-hole contact) | No display | 1 | No |
| Voes MC-5 | Yes (7-hole contact) | 2x16 characters | 1 | No |
| Voes MC-10 | Yes (7-hole contact/Ethercon) | 2x16 characters | 2 | No |
| Voodoo Lab Ground Control Pro | Optional (5- or 7-pin cables) | 12 characters | 2 external | No |
| Yamaha MFC05 (discontinued) | ? | No display | ? | ? |
| Yamaha MFC06 (discontinued) | ? | No display | ? | ? |
| Yamaha MFC10 | No | 3 digits | 1 built-in, 4 external | No |
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