Building up a pedalboard...

VTheHTyphoon · #1 07-31-2011, 04:01 PM

I'M BUILDING A PEDALBOARD!!!!

But, I need all my ducks in a row, and in this case my ducks happen to be effect pedals.

So currently I have an idea what pedals I want in my stable... of ducks... or whatever and I need some opinions on them and in a couple cases how to place them/use them.

So anyway my effects that I am looking at or have already

Dunlop Bass Wah: Got it/love it
EVH Flanger: Got it/love it
MXR Bass Blowtorch: Got it/love it

Tuner pedal: Thinking about the Boss TU-3

Reverb Pedal: looked into the RV-5, tried it out and it seemed to suck alot of volume out of my signal

Phaser Pedal: Unsure it one would be better than another for me, very limited use mainly on chordal stuff. Figured the Visual Sound Garagetone would be fine although I was looking at the EVH Phase 90 as well

Compressor Pedal: This one really has me stumped. the only compressors I have dealt with are the ones that were built into my amps. I had a Behringer combo that I used the compressor on and my Line 6 head has a compressor, but they are only a single knob on the face. I know MXR just came out with a bass compressor and Boss has the Limiter/Enhancer, and sound clips and videos are nice, but most of the time I really can't tell the difference.

So thats about it, oh wait order...And helpful opinions are nice on where to place stuff. I left the compressor out since I have no idea where to place it.

Bass>Bass Blowtorch>Phaser>Flanger>
Reverb>Tuner>Wah>Amp

Any opinions on if you don't like pedals listed or know a better one are welcome, just know I am pretty much all set on the 3 I already own.

-Matt

AdamJames306 · #2 07-31-2011, 04:12 PM

Alphabetical order is traditionally agreed upon as the best order to put your pedals. And if a pedal starts with an "A," it has to go before your bass. Because bass starts with "B"

Here's the deal man. Everyone on here is gonna say two things. First, they're gonna say that you should do bass-->tuner-->filter (wah/phaser)-->overdrive-->modulation-->time-based effects. That's the standard school of thought.

But THEN, they're gonna say "But you should try em in different orders and see what you like best." Which is true too.

So you've got two options. There's a reason that the standard chain order is the standard. But experimentation never hurt nobody, and never broke a pedal.

AdamJames306 · #3 07-31-2011, 04:16 PM

Oh, and then they're gonna tell you to use flatwounds and/or get a Big Muff :-)

VTheHTyphoon · #4 07-31-2011, 04:31 PM

and to trade my Jazz bass in for a P-bass and make sure I never change my flats when I get it and get a rusty box and a vt bass deluxe etc etc haha.

Heres the way I see it. I currently have my 3 effects in blowtorch/flanger/wah and it works well.

I am more curious about the pedals I don't have like if any reverbs or phasers are better for bass, and what about a quality compressor

Kobaia · #5 07-31-2011, 04:41 PM

Line6 M9... would be all you need

AdamJames306 · #6 07-31-2011, 04:58 PM

Youtube is fantastic for things like that. Do a google search, say, "Bass Compressors."

Google will then spit out a list of the best known compressors for bass. Now just go to youtube, do a search for each one, and I'm sure you'll be able to find at least a couple videos showing you what each pedal can do. It's not as good as playing the pedal yourself, but it's easier, and quicker, especially when it comes to harder-to-find boutique brands.

VTheHTyphoon · #7 07-31-2011, 05:14 PM

Those videos are nice, but I can't really tell what the compressor is doing... I know what it is supposed to do, but I can't hear it and I don't know how it will react to my other pedals or where to put it

Bassmike62 · #8 07-31-2011, 07:02 PM

Why not give this a shot:

BASS > Tuner > Wah > comp > Blowtorch > Phaser > Flanger > Reverb > AMP.

Basic rules already mentionned. You gotta go with what's good to your ears.