Best-of-Class Effect Pedals? Your opinion for a confused soul!

ThoughtCancer · #1 10-05-2008, 10:16 PM

Hi TB'ers,

I recently had a discussion with a friend of mine who gigs in the same circuit I do, and we got on the topic of the "best pedals" for bassists. Now, of course this is a huge topic, with as many opinions as there are bassists, but I was wondering what opinion you guys might have on this topic

What started the whole thing, though, was how he swore up-and-down that his T-Rex Squeezer was the best bass compression pedal in the world, ever. I've been looking for a new compression pedal (and distortion and wah) for a little while, and it was the first time I'd spoken to another bassist about which pedals would help sculpt the "best" sound.

To give you some background, I'm in the Eric Avery/Bill Laswell school of bass guitar sound, and usually try to keep my signal chain as simple as possible, while my friend is a pedal nut and has more pedals in his pedalboard than the guitarists he plays with. But we both would only want the "best" pedal of any given kind in our rigs.

So, what do you think are the "best-in-class" pedals for any given category? Best Compressor? Best bass-specific Distortion? Best bass Wah? I'm really interested in what everyone else thinks the "best" is!

Cheers!

SnakeAnthony · #2 10-05-2008, 10:26 PM

Its all an extension of each player's needs. The best fuzz for some bassists might be a Woolly Mammoth, for others it might be a B:Assmaster or some Muff variant.

I would post what my 'bests' are, but I really haven't been fully convinced one way or the other on just about any pedal category yet. But I have a feeling I will be soon in many of them.

bassteban · #3 10-05-2008, 10:31 PM

Best OD: Guyatone Flip Bass Driver(or Mesa/Boogie D-180)
Envelope Filter: DOD FX-25b
Chorus: Boss CEB-3
Delay: Pearl AD-09
Compressor: Ask Bongomania
These are the best in my little world.

bongomania · #4 10-05-2008, 10:32 PM

Ack. You already know there are as many opinions as bassists, so why ask? Everyone will just answer with either the best one they own or the one that they have read the most hype about on the web.

In all seriousness, there are many, many 'bests' in every category. Your best bet if you actually want to know, and aren't just idly wondering for the heck of it, is to search on each of the categories you're interested in. You'll find a lot of dross, sure, but you'll start to see certain names sifting to the top.

Also note that we regularly have "dream pedalboard" and "wuts the best chorus" and "new pedal GAS" threads, and they are full of 'bests'.

BTW I kicked the T-Rex Squeezer out of bed, I hated it; so it's not the best in the world for everybody.

theunknowndude · #5 10-05-2008, 10:37 PM

bongomania said it all,...

I tend to like a mix of the 'far out' pedals and some that are subtle so my 'bests' would hardly be included on some lists! (not to mention low income = sticking with ibanez/boss/MXR)

ThoughtCancer · #6 10-05-2008, 10:45 PM

Well,

I was half wondering-out-loud and half interested-in-TB'ers-opinions. While there are as many opinions on this topic as bassists, I ask as someone with no pedals to speak of, save one (a Sansamp Bass DI, the three channel one). Right now, my rig consists of my steinberger and my warwick fna jazz plugged right into a carvin b615. I can hear my current sound screaming for help, and I know a compressor would be a great place to start (hence how the initial conversation with my friend got started).

So, I figured there might just be a consensus on at least compressors amongst us all. I'd hope to start there and really narrow down the pedals to look at. I'm really looking for that mid-90's Laswell sound (like he had on those Golden Palomino records), and that polarbear-era Avery sound (circa chewing gum).

bongomania · #7 10-05-2008, 10:58 PM

Laswell was doubtless using either a Urei LA2A or a Urei 1176, or something along those lines. The "best" compressors cost $1K to $3K typically, and as a bigshot studio engineer he had access to a selection of those 'bests'. That said, if you are also using his other techniques for ultra deep fundamental boom, there are a number of cheaper compressors that will help flatten it all out for you.

Jared Lash · #8 10-05-2008, 11:00 PM

A Steinberger? That's not the best bass. You should get a Sadowsky.

Ok, not really, just an example of why a question like this won't give you a "consensus" answer. Also, like some threads on effects I've seen, I'm suggesting a bass that I've personally never played. And it's the same with pedals as (like basses) there are going to be "good for their price range" type pedals as well as a number of boutique/high end ones that everyone can agree are quality though that doesn't mean they suit every application. I have played a Fodera and while I would say it's reputation is well deserved, it simply isn't the bass for me. MTD too.

Your last post does help though. Once you give some suggestions on what you play and the kinds of sounds you want, it makes it easier to suggest pedals that might suit your needs. For example, the Maxon is a compressor that I am interested in for one of my gigs where I need punch and clean compression, but that doesn't sound like it would be your cup of tea even though it is regarded as a great pedal compressor.

If you are looking for a pedal compressor, I think the Demeter Compulator might work for you, especially if you are planning on getting envelope filters at some point. Check out the reviews in bongo's sig for a wealth of information.

As for a wah, it sounds like you want thick and funky rather than a more "rock" oriented sound. In that case, I'd recommend the Dunlop 105q. I haven't played it, but the Wilson wah has been getting good reviews lately too.

Distortion is a tricky one because tastes vary so much. It also depends on whether you are really looking for a bit of grit (overdrive), high gain dirt (distortion) or synthy and/or smooth fuzz. At the moment I own 8 different gain pedals and have two different ones on my board with a third pedal coming that will also do fuzz sounds. Sound clips or references to specific songs/tones would help narrow things down.

bongomania · #9 10-05-2008, 11:26 PM

I hadn't heard of Avery/Polarbear/Chewing Gum before, so I had to do some searching. Hot tip for everyone: when asking "how did Joe Finklestein get the sound on the B side of that single he released in Japan in 1994", please post a link to that track. It's one thing if you want to know about a super-well-known bass sound, but seems like every other day we get somebody who wants to know how some obscure band from a few years ago got their bass tone, without providing a sample of that tone. Rant over.

First I searched on "Avery Chewing Gum", and got this awesome track:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCNKLzUD7CU

Then, figuring as cool as that synth bass tone was, it probably wasn't what the guy had in mind, I searched "Avery Polarbear". OK, now we're getting somewhere. Avery was the bassist for Jane's Addiction at one time, and sometime later he had a band called Polarbear. But no mention of Chewing Gum until I read in the comments on like the third Polarbear video I clicked on: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-YlA8CDmI8
And I'm not even sure if the song there is actually "Chewing Gum era" or if the kids were just talking about that EP in the comments.

Anyway, the sound is so lo-fi that there's no way of knowing what sort of compressor might have been used. Odds are the tracks were heavily treated in post-production anyway, for the lo-fi vibe. Pretty much any comp with a high ratio will get you there.