diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 457b9b3263..3bd6a7641e 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -56,6 +56,7 @@ Ref: https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/
 
 ### Bug Fixes
 
+* (evm) [tharsis#746](https://github.com/tharsis/ethermint/pull/746) Set EVM debugging based on tracer configuration.
 * (app,cli) [tharsis#725](https://github.com/tharsis/ethermint/pull/725) Fix cli-config for  `keys` command.
 * (rpc) [tharsis#727](https://github.com/tharsis/ethermint/pull/727) Decode raw transaction using RLP.
 * (rpc) [tharsis#661](https://github.com/tharsis/ethermint/pull/661) Fix OOM bug when creating too many filters using JSON-RPC.
diff --git a/app/app.go b/app/app.go
index 0e6b4c52a1..a998acaaff 100644
--- a/app/app.go
+++ b/app/app.go
@@ -345,7 +345,7 @@ func NewEthermintApp(
 	app.EvmKeeper = evmkeeper.NewKeeper(
 		appCodec, keys[evmtypes.StoreKey], tkeys[evmtypes.TransientKey], app.GetSubspace(evmtypes.ModuleName),
 		app.AccountKeeper, app.BankKeeper, app.StakingKeeper, app.FeeMarketKeeper,
-		tracer, bApp.Trace(), // debug EVM based on Baseapp options
+		tracer,
 	)
 
 	// Create IBC Keeper
diff --git a/init.sh b/init.sh
index e9a13d1d4b..5b80f348f0 100755
--- a/init.sh
+++ b/init.sh
@@ -87,4 +87,4 @@ if [[ $1 == "pending" ]]; then
 fi
 
 # Start the node (remove the --pruning=nothing flag if historical queries are not needed)
-ethermintd start --pruning=nothing $TRACE --log_level $LOGLEVEL --minimum-gas-prices=0.0001aphoton --json-rpc.api eth,txpool,personal,net,debug,web3,miner
+ethermintd start --pruning=nothing --evm.tracer=json $TRACE --log_level $LOGLEVEL --minimum-gas-prices=0.0001aphoton --json-rpc.api eth,txpool,personal,net,debug,web3,miner
diff --git a/server/config/config.go b/server/config/config.go
index a0192e9995..4a5f9c564c 100644
--- a/server/config/config.go
+++ b/server/config/config.go
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ const (
 	DefaultJSONRPCWsAddress = "0.0.0.0:8546"
 
 	// DefaultEVMTracer is the default vm.Tracer type
-	DefaultEVMTracer = "json"
+	DefaultEVMTracer = ""
 
 	DefaultGasCap uint64 = 25000000
 
@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@ const (
 	DefaultTxFeeCap float64 = 1.0
 )
 
-var evmTracers = []string{DefaultEVMTracer, "markdown", "struct", "access_list"}
+var evmTracers = []string{"json", "markdown", "struct", "access_list"}
 
 // Config defines the server's top level configuration. It includes the default app config
 // from the SDK as well as the EVM configuration to enable the JSON-RPC APIs.
@@ -138,7 +138,7 @@ func DefaultEVMConfig() *EVMConfig {
 
 // Validate returns an error if the tracer type is invalid.
 func (c EVMConfig) Validate() error {
-	if !strings.StringInSlice(c.Tracer, evmTracers) {
+	if c.Tracer != "" && !strings.StringInSlice(c.Tracer, evmTracers) {
 		return fmt.Errorf("invalid tracer type %s, available types: %v", c.Tracer, evmTracers)
 	}
 
diff --git a/tests/solidity/init-test-node.sh b/tests/solidity/init-test-node.sh
index b00c3e549c..7e1f7981b7 100755
--- a/tests/solidity/init-test-node.sh
+++ b/tests/solidity/init-test-node.sh
@@ -58,4 +58,4 @@ ethermintd collect-gentxs
 ethermintd validate-genesis
 
 # Start the node (remove the --pruning=nothing flag if historical queries are not needed)
-ethermintd start --pruning=nothing --rpc.unsafe --keyring-backend test --trace --log_level info --json-rpc.api eth,txpool,personal,net,debug,web3
+ethermintd start --pruning=nothing --rpc.unsafe --keyring-backend test --log_level info --json-rpc.api eth,txpool,personal,net,debug,web3
diff --git a/x/evm/keeper/grpc_query.go b/x/evm/keeper/grpc_query.go
index 4f34d85b3e..31f26ff025 100644
--- a/x/evm/keeper/grpc_query.go
+++ b/x/evm/keeper/grpc_query.go
@@ -523,7 +523,7 @@ func (k *Keeper) traceTx(
 		}
 		tracer = vm.NewStructLogger(&logConfig)
 	default:
-		tracer = types.NewTracer(types.TracerStruct, msg, ethCfg, ctx.BlockHeight(), true)
+		tracer = types.NewTracer(types.TracerStruct, msg, ethCfg, ctx.BlockHeight())
 	}
 
 	k.SetTxHashTransient(txHash)
diff --git a/x/evm/keeper/grpc_query_test.go b/x/evm/keeper/grpc_query_test.go
index 7ccdcb7ed2..404e5636b6 100644
--- a/x/evm/keeper/grpc_query_test.go
+++ b/x/evm/keeper/grpc_query_test.go
@@ -593,7 +593,6 @@ func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestEstimateGas() {
 }
 
 func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestTraceTx() {
-	ctx := sdk.WrapSDKContext(suite.ctx)
 	// TODO deploy contract that triggers internal transactions
 	var (
 		txMsg        *types.MsgEthereumTx
@@ -617,7 +616,22 @@ func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestTraceTx() {
 				predecessors = []*types.MsgEthereumTx{}
 			},
 			expPass:       true,
-			traceResponse: []byte{0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x5d, 0x7d},
+			traceResponse: []byte{0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x30, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x30, 0x32, 0x39, 0x36, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x43, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x64, 0x65, 0x70, 0x74, 0x68, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x31, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x61, 0x63, 0x6b, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x5d, 0x7d, 0x2c, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x32, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61},
+		},
+		{
+			msg: "default trace with filtered response",
+			malleate: func() {
+				txIndex = 0
+				traceConfig = &types.TraceConfig{
+					DisableStack:   true,
+					DisableStorage: true,
+					EnableMemory:   false,
+				}
+				predecessors = []*types.MsgEthereumTx{}
+			},
+			expPass:       true,
+			traceResponse: []byte{0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x30, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x30, 0x32, 0x39, 0x36, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x43, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x64, 0x65, 0x70, 0x74, 0x68, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x31, 0x7d, 0x2c, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x32, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x30, 0x32, 0x39, 0x33, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67},
+			dynamicTxFee:  false,
 		}, {
 			msg: "javascript tracer",
 			malleate: func() {
@@ -634,11 +648,15 @@ func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestTraceTx() {
 			msg: "default trace with dynamicTxFee",
 			malleate: func() {
 				txIndex = 0
-				traceConfig = nil
+				traceConfig = &types.TraceConfig{
+					DisableStack:   true,
+					DisableStorage: true,
+					EnableMemory:   false,
+				}
 				predecessors = []*types.MsgEthereumTx{}
 			},
 			expPass:       true,
-			traceResponse: []byte{0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x5d, 0x7d},
+			traceResponse: []byte{0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x30, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x30, 0x32, 0x39, 0x36, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x43, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x64, 0x65, 0x70, 0x74, 0x68, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x31, 0x7d, 0x2c, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x32, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x30, 0x32, 0x39, 0x33, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67},
 			dynamicTxFee:  true,
 		}, {
 			msg: "javascript tracer with dynamicTxFee",
@@ -669,7 +687,7 @@ func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestTraceTx() {
 				predecessors = append(predecessors, firstTx)
 			},
 			expPass:       true,
-			traceResponse: []byte{0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x30, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x5d, 0x7d},
+			traceResponse: []byte{0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x30, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x30, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x39, 0x31, 0x39, 0x36, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x43, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x64, 0x65, 0x70, 0x74, 0x68, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x31, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x61, 0x63, 0x6b, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x5d, 0x7d, 0x2c, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x32, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73},
 			dynamicTxFee:  false,
 		},
 	}
@@ -692,11 +710,17 @@ func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestTraceTx() {
 				TxIndex:      txIndex,
 				Predecessors: predecessors,
 			}
-			res, err := suite.queryClient.TraceTx(ctx, &traceReq)
+			res, err := suite.queryClient.TraceTx(sdk.WrapSDKContext(suite.ctx), &traceReq)
+			suite.Require().NoError(err)
 
 			if tc.expPass {
 				suite.Require().NoError(err)
-				suite.Require().Equal(tc.traceResponse, res.Data)
+				// if data is to big, slice the result
+				if len(res.Data) > 150 {
+					suite.Require().Equal(tc.traceResponse, res.Data[:150])
+				} else {
+					suite.Require().Equal(tc.traceResponse, res.Data)
+				}
 			} else {
 				suite.Require().Error(err)
 			}
@@ -707,7 +731,6 @@ func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestTraceTx() {
 }
 
 func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestTraceBlock() {
-	ctx := sdk.WrapSDKContext(suite.ctx)
 	var (
 		txs         []*types.MsgEthereumTx
 		traceConfig *types.TraceConfig
@@ -726,7 +749,7 @@ func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestTraceBlock() {
 				traceConfig = nil
 			},
 			expPass:       true,
-			traceResponse: []byte{0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x73, 0x75, 0x6c, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x5d, 0x7d, 0x7d, 0x5d},
+			traceResponse: []byte{0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x73, 0x75, 0x6c, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x30, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x30, 0x32, 0x39, 0x36, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x43, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x64, 0x65, 0x70, 0x74, 0x68, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x31, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x61, 0x63, 0x6b, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x5d, 0x7d, 0x2c, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x32, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a},
 		},
 		{
 			msg: "filtered trace",
@@ -738,7 +761,7 @@ func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestTraceBlock() {
 				}
 			},
 			expPass:       true,
-			traceResponse: []byte{0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x73, 0x75, 0x6c, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x5d, 0x7d, 0x7d, 0x5d},
+			traceResponse: []byte{0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x73, 0x75, 0x6c, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x30, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x30, 0x32, 0x39, 0x36, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x43, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x64, 0x65, 0x70, 0x74, 0x68, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x31, 0x7d, 0x2c, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x32, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61},
 		}, {
 			msg: "javascript tracer",
 			malleate: func() {
@@ -759,7 +782,7 @@ func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestTraceBlock() {
 				}
 			},
 			expPass:       true,
-			traceResponse: []byte{0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x73, 0x75, 0x6c, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x5d, 0x7d, 0x7d, 0x5d},
+			traceResponse: []byte{0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x73, 0x75, 0x6c, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x30, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x30, 0x32, 0x39, 0x36, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x43, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x64, 0x65, 0x70, 0x74, 0x68, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x31, 0x7d, 0x2c, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x32, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61},
 			dynamicTxFee:  true,
 		}, {
 			msg: "javascript tracer with dynamicTxFee",
@@ -786,7 +809,7 @@ func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestTraceBlock() {
 				txs = append([]*types.MsgEthereumTx{}, firstTx, secondTx)
 			},
 			expPass:       true,
-			traceResponse: []byte{0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x73, 0x75, 0x6c, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x5d, 0x7d, 0x7d, 0x2c, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x73, 0x75, 0x6c, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x30, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x5d, 0x7d, 0x7d, 0x5d},
+			traceResponse: []byte{0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x73, 0x75, 0x6c, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x34, 0x38, 0x32, 0x38, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x65, 0x64, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x66, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x72, 0x65, 0x74, 0x75, 0x72, 0x6e, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x65, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x72, 0x75, 0x63, 0x74, 0x4c, 0x6f, 0x67, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x30, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x22, 0x50, 0x55, 0x53, 0x48, 0x31, 0x22, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x30, 0x32, 0x39, 0x36, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x67, 0x61, 0x73, 0x43, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x74, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x33, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x64, 0x65, 0x70, 0x74, 0x68, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x31, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x73, 0x74, 0x61, 0x63, 0x6b, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x5b, 0x5d, 0x7d, 0x2c, 0x7b, 0x22, 0x70, 0x63, 0x22, 0x3a, 0x32, 0x2c, 0x22, 0x6f, 0x70, 0x22, 0x3a},
 			dynamicTxFee:  false,
 		},
 	}
@@ -810,11 +833,16 @@ func (suite *KeeperTestSuite) TestTraceBlock() {
 				Txs:         txs,
 				TraceConfig: traceConfig,
 			}
-			res, err := suite.queryClient.TraceBlock(ctx, &traceReq)
+			res, err := suite.queryClient.TraceBlock(sdk.WrapSDKContext(suite.ctx), &traceReq)
 
 			if tc.expPass {
 				suite.Require().NoError(err)
-				suite.Require().Equal(tc.traceResponse, res.Data)
+				// if data is to big, slice the result
+				if len(res.Data) > 150 {
+					suite.Require().Equal(tc.traceResponse, res.Data[:150])
+				} else {
+					suite.Require().Equal(tc.traceResponse, res.Data)
+				}
 			} else {
 				suite.Require().Error(err)
 			}
diff --git a/x/evm/keeper/keeper.go b/x/evm/keeper/keeper.go
index 414f38d733..b735310ca1 100644
--- a/x/evm/keeper/keeper.go
+++ b/x/evm/keeper/keeper.go
@@ -56,9 +56,6 @@ type Keeper struct {
 
 	// Tracer used to collect execution traces from the EVM transaction execution
 	tracer string
-	// trace EVM state transition execution. This value is obtained from the `--trace` flag.
-	// For more info check https://geth.ethereum.org/docs/dapp/tracing
-	debug bool
 
 	// EVM Hooks for tx post-processing
 	hooks types.EvmHooks
@@ -73,7 +70,7 @@ func NewKeeper(
 	storeKey, transientKey sdk.StoreKey, paramSpace paramtypes.Subspace,
 	ak types.AccountKeeper, bankKeeper types.BankKeeper, sk types.StakingKeeper,
 	fmk types.FeeMarketKeeper,
-	tracer string, debug bool,
+	tracer string,
 ) *Keeper {
 	// ensure evm module account is set
 	if addr := ak.GetModuleAddress(types.ModuleName); addr == nil {
@@ -96,7 +93,6 @@ func NewKeeper(
 		storeKey:        storeKey,
 		transientKey:    transientKey,
 		tracer:          tracer,
-		debug:           debug,
 		stateErr:        nil,
 	}
 }
@@ -383,5 +379,5 @@ func (k *Keeper) PostTxProcessing(txHash common.Hash, logs []*ethtypes.Log) erro
 
 // Tracer return a default vm.Tracer based on current keeper state
 func (k Keeper) Tracer(msg core.Message, ethCfg *params.ChainConfig) vm.Tracer {
-	return types.NewTracer(k.tracer, msg, ethCfg, k.Ctx().BlockHeight(), k.debug)
+	return types.NewTracer(k.tracer, msg, ethCfg, k.Ctx().BlockHeight())
 }
diff --git a/x/evm/keeper/state_transition.go b/x/evm/keeper/state_transition.go
index ef4dfaad6f..cd05a1d9d4 100644
--- a/x/evm/keeper/state_transition.go
+++ b/x/evm/keeper/state_transition.go
@@ -70,17 +70,22 @@ func (k *Keeper) NewEVM(
 	if tracer == nil {
 		tracer = k.Tracer(msg, cfg.ChainConfig)
 	}
-	vmConfig := k.VMConfig(msg, cfg.Params, tracer)
+	vmConfig := k.VMConfig(cfg.Params, tracer)
 	return vm.NewEVM(blockCtx, txCtx, k, cfg.ChainConfig, vmConfig)
 }
 
 // VMConfig creates an EVM configuration from the debug setting and the extra EIPs enabled on the
 // module parameters. The config generated uses the default JumpTable from the EVM.
-func (k Keeper) VMConfig(msg core.Message, params types.Params, tracer vm.Tracer) vm.Config {
+func (k Keeper) VMConfig(params types.Params, tracer vm.Tracer) vm.Config {
 	fmParams := k.feeMarketKeeper.GetParams(k.Ctx())
 
+	var debug bool
+	if _, ok := tracer.(types.NoOpTracer); !ok {
+		debug = true
+	}
+
 	return vm.Config{
-		Debug:       k.debug,
+		Debug:       debug,
 		Tracer:      tracer,
 		NoRecursion: false, // TODO: consider disabling recursion though params
 		NoBaseFee:   fmParams.NoBaseFee,
diff --git a/x/evm/types/tracer.go b/x/evm/types/tracer.go
index cbf5261a94..28dfd74550 100644
--- a/x/evm/types/tracer.go
+++ b/x/evm/types/tracer.go
@@ -21,10 +21,10 @@ const (
 
 // NewTracer creates a new Logger tracer to collect execution traces from an
 // EVM transaction.
-func NewTracer(tracer string, msg core.Message, cfg *params.ChainConfig, height int64, debug bool) vm.Tracer {
+func NewTracer(tracer string, msg core.Message, cfg *params.ChainConfig, height int64) vm.Tracer {
 	// TODO: enable additional log configuration
 	logCfg := &vm.LogConfig{
-		Debug: debug,
+		Debug: true,
 	}
 
 	switch tracer {
@@ -90,6 +90,7 @@ func FormatLogs(logs []vm.StructLog) []StructLogRes {
 			Depth:   trace.Depth,
 			Error:   trace.ErrorString(),
 		}
+
 		if trace.Stack != nil {
 			stack := make([]string, len(trace.Stack))
 			for i, stackValue := range trace.Stack {
@@ -97,6 +98,7 @@ func FormatLogs(logs []vm.StructLog) []StructLogRes {
 			}
 			formatted[index].Stack = &stack
 		}
+
 		if trace.Memory != nil {
 			memory := make([]string, 0, (len(trace.Memory)+31)/32)
 			for i := 0; i+32 <= len(trace.Memory); i += 32 {
@@ -104,6 +106,7 @@ func FormatLogs(logs []vm.StructLog) []StructLogRes {
 			}
 			formatted[index].Memory = &memory
 		}
+
 		if trace.Storage != nil {
 			storage := make(map[string]string)
 			for i, storageValue := range trace.Storage {