Advice for first-time effects user

Fine Cut · #1 08-08-2008, 11:25 PM

welp, i've been playin' for about 3 years now, gigging pretty steadily, and with graduation coming up; which means graduation present time haha, i think i might wanna start getting myself a pedalboard together...i wanna try to keep it fairly cheap, tho...somethin that will do the job decent, but still not cost much, since i'll just be getting used to the effects game...

here's what i'm feelin'...

chorus
compression
Flanger (maybe)
pedal tuner
volume/wah

i'd love to keep this around $200-250, i'll be looking for used pedals first. advice on what brands i should look into would be great, as there isnt a huge selection at the local shops nearby. Also, any other reasonable pedal suggestions for Alternative/Funk/freestyle playing?

SnakeAnthony · #2 08-08-2008, 11:33 PM

My advice: Use the search function to search each of those and see what you get. Take a cruise around ToneFactor and similar sites in each of those sections, pick some, then search those again. Pretty much everything you could ever want is already on the forum, you just have to find it.

Also, if anyone is going to get more specific with you, we need details on the sound you're going for with each pedal.

rhcp32291 · #3 08-08-2008, 11:39 PM

I would definitely buy all used if you want all those pedals for that price range. It will be tough to stick to that but eBay and the classifieds here might get you there.

Some generally accepted suggestions:

Electro Harmoix Electic Mistress- excellent chorus/flanger combo
Dunlop 105q- Funky bass wah and I don't know of any bass friendly wah/volumes
Aphex Punch Factory- cheap but good subtle compressor
Korg PitchBlack Tuner- failry new so hard to find used but a used boss tu2 is a good alternative

You will also need a board and a power supply!! so if you wanna do this I suggest instead of buying a bunch of pedals start slow and just get a board, (possibly a used pedaltrain jr??) a 1spot power supply with the daisy chain adapter and search for Bongomania's compressor reviews to find a compressor for you because IMO thats where you should start.

goodluck and congratualtions on your graduation

Fine Cut · #4 08-08-2008, 11:51 PM

wow, fast responses FTW! haha, and thanx for the Congrats!

i did some searching, and found alot of pedals mentioned, but didnt find many details as far as "this pedal does this", that kind of thing...just names.

all in all, i'm just lookin somethin to "fatten" my tone. i do alot of fast fingerstyle and slap-funk playing, but i like to mellow out everynow and then and just groove, so i'm lookin to vary my tonal boundaries, if you will lol. the jazz bass has a great sound, but sometimes, i'm just looking something a little "different".

also, i'll be building my own board, raised enough to fit a power strip underneath. probably velcro to hold the pedals

rhcp32291 · #5 08-08-2008, 11:57 PM

Sounds like a great idea

I still suggest the 1spot power supply and a compressor sounds perfect for fattening your tone. I use an electro harmonix black finger, its a tube compressor that warms and fattens my tone. It can also be set to make an overdriven tube tone. I also play a lot of finger style and slap and it did wonders for my tone.

Take a look here to pick the perfect compressor for you

http://www.ovnilab.com/index.html (work of compressor guru Bongomania)

Thunderscreech · #6 08-08-2008, 11:57 PM

Get you some of this:

Morely Power Volume Wah: A combination Volume/Wah
BOSS CEB-3 Chorus: A good bass chorus
BOSS TU-2: a nice tuner
BBE Opto Stomp: a surprisingly good compressor
MXR El Grande Bass Fuzz: an excellent bass fuzz

Check craigslist. You'd be surprised at the good deals you'll find on there occasionally.

TrevorOfDoom · #7 08-09-2008, 12:01 AM

Demeter Opto-Comp FTW!!

and once you have what you want... turn 'em all on at the same time and blast it loud!

Fine Cut · #8 08-09-2008, 12:37 AM

thanx for the suggestions guys!

after lookin' round, i've deff decided on the Opto Stomp and a Fender PT100 tuner pedal...now to figure out what chorus/flanger i want...

chicago_mike · #9 08-09-2008, 12:46 AM

try an old dod bass stereo flanger.

Fine Cut · #10 08-09-2008, 01:17 AM

here's what i have so far...

BBE OptoStomp Comp.
Fender pedal tuner
Line-6 Overdrive (just remembered it's been in my car for months now)

i believe once i decide on a chorus/flanger, i'll stop

thinkin about a cheap Danelectro chorus, just to play with and see if i like the idea enough to spend more...

also, how do you guys think i should go about powering it? i dont wanna go wiring a big ole extension plug into the side of it like some guys here have done, but i really dont know anything powerwise...suggestions?

one · #11 08-09-2008, 04:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fine Cut

all in all, i'm just lookin somethin to "fatten" my tone. i do alot of fast fingerstyle and slap-funk playing, but i like to mellow out everynow and then and just groove, so i'm lookin to vary my tonal boundaries, if you will lol. the jazz bass has a great sound, but sometimes, i'm just looking something a little "different".

Wow, i'm surprised noone has mentioned a filter yet! This seems to me like a perfect reason to pick up a filter.

bigchiefbc · #12 08-09-2008, 03:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fine Cut

thanx for the suggestions guys!

after lookin' round, i've deff decided on the Opto Stomp and a Fender PT100 tuner pedal...now to figure out what chorus/flanger i want...

How about the EHX Stereo Electric Mistress? It has a chorus and one of the most unique flangers on the market. The filter matrix mode allows you to freeze the flange effect at any frequency, which gives you some awesome metallic, ring-mod type tones as well.

rhcp32291 · #13 08-09-2008, 03:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigchiefbc

How about the EHX Stereo Electric Mistress? It has a chorus and one of the most unique flangers on the market. The filter matrix mode allows you to freeze the flange effect at any frequency, which gives you some awesome metallic, ring-mod type tones as well.

+1 Thats what I said too

Zappstorius · #14 08-10-2008, 03:03 AM

Because you say that you gig a bit, having seperate chorus/flanger pedals might make it easier at shows.

You can pickup a boss bf-2 (flanger) on ebay for $40 or so.

Chorus-EHX Small Clone?

bassman03 · #15 08-10-2008, 08:04 AM

Hey, i'm rather new to effects also, but i got some stuff. One thing that you might also wanna consider is a DI pedal - a pedal that will shape your tone and let you plug directly into a PA system. The SansAmps are usually around 200$ so that's prolly a bit more than you wanna spend. Hartke makes on thats around $70, i also saw one in the classifieds for $50. There is a link below for both of them.

http://www.zzounds.com/item--HTKATK -> new
Hartke bass Attack preamp/DI $50 shipped -> classified one. Good luck!

Fine Cut · #16 11-19-2008, 12:42 AM

hmm, been a little while since i started this thread, but since then i've learned alot about what i want in my board

back when i bought my P bass, i pickup up an old Boss Bass Limiter (It's gotta be old, cuz i cant find it for sale anywhere), but it works great for smoothing out some peaks in my sound and has a nice enhance feature, i keep that on almost all the time. I also just picked up a Dano Cool Cat Fuzz from a guitar buddy of mine, and it sounds heavenly on bass

next, probably a Dano tuner pedal and a Dyna Comp or Opto-stomp

theunknowndude · #17 11-19-2008, 02:23 AM

also try a weeping demon for bass, it tends to be more rock / metal than funk but I love mine

warwick.hoy · #18 11-19-2008, 02:48 AM

have you checked out the TB Wiki Effects Clip Database at all? It's stickied in the EFFECTS Forum Rules and FAQ.

http://www.talkbass.com/wiki/index.p..._Clip_Database

Bongomania's Compressor Reviews are invaluable. I have that page bookmarked in my browser.

I've been in the same boat as you except I've been playing for going on 15 years and only recently got into FX in the last six months or so. I also use a Boss LMB-3. It does the job but I think I'll be looking for a more musical sounding compressor rather than a limiter in the future. Also I find the enhance knob to be more of a "suck" knob to quote bongomania. I usually leave it off.

Like a bass, start with beginner pedals before moving on to more expensive boutique stuff. Boss, Digitech, DOD are workhorses for sure and those dominate my board for the moment. My philosophy with FX is that you can always stash them away for a rainy day. Sell if they been gathering dust for too long.

You may want to try delay as well. I'm going with a Boss DD series for the moment and then may try to find a more analog sounding delay.