Clean blend pedals

[fuzz_factor]

A lot of people mention clean blending when discussing bass overdrive, distortion, fuzz, etc.

I play a P Bass with flats and like a warm, fat, thumpy B-15 tone, but every now and then, I'd like to get some grind going. So far, using a VT Bass with the gain up, a Catalinbread SFT, 90's Rat and SUF Civil War Muff clone just don't sound right with my setup - a GK 700RB-II with a Raezer's Edge 15". Too... farty? Muffled? Unsatisfying?

I really like the tone of my amp, and I like the VT Bass set pretty clean. Things just sound 'meh' when I click on any overdrive/distortion/fuzz pedal (and I've tried a bunch, more than mentioned above because I'm mainly a guitar player and have too much dirt ). Like most of you, I dig the sound of a cranked Ampeg; I'm just not hearing it with the VT Bass (too crunchy) or the SFT (too muffled and middy).

I'd like to try a clean blend pedal that has an effects loop and ability to set the wet/dry blend (or just setting the 'effected' level is fine).

Doing some searching, I see the Radial BigShot MIX Effects Loop Mixer and the Boss LS-2. I'm leaning towards the Boss because, well, Boss pedals are great and have a good form factor. Are there any others I should check out? Any advice for getting the most out of these types of setups? Any tips for getting a good dirt sound with my rig? Thanks!

[bongomania]

I strongly recommend getting a blender with a phase-inversion switch. Wounded Paw and Xotic are the two brands I know of making those ATM (well, there are other related products by other brands, but I'm talking strictly blender loop pedals). I use the Xotic, but if it ever died (unlikely) I would want to try out the Wounded Paw.

Radial's a good brand, but that BigShot Mix is a dud because it only allows blending between 50% wet and 100%--nothing below 50%.

[fuzz_factor]

Thanks bongomania. The Wounded Paw looks good. Priced right and pedalboard friendly. I probably wouldn't have found that one on my own, nor would I have thought about phase issues.

[bongomania]

Yeah when blending dirt pedals, it's common to have problems with low-end loss due to phase cancellation.

[kevteop]

As a cheap solution I would suggest a Boss LS-2 with a Digitech Bad Monkey in one of the loops. You won't get any phase issues with that setup.

I can appreciate where Bongo is coming from though, it's frustrating when you try to blend a sound from a pedal that flips the signal phase, and you would be surprised how many do it. I wish they would just ****ing fix that before they declare their pedals market-ready, it really messes with bass players.

[reddi]

Originally Posted by kevteop

As a cheap solution I would suggest a Boss LS-2 with a Digitech Bad Monkey in one of the loops. You won't get any phase issues with that setup.

I can appreciate where Bongo is coming from though, it's frustrating when you try to blend a sound from a pedal that flips the signal phase, and you would be surprised how many do it. I wish they would just ****ing fix that before they declare their pedals market-ready, it really messes with bass players.

Agreed, it's a pet peeve of mine as well.

[Mr.Hat]

Anybody know if the ebs unidrive flips the phase ?

[mozarwasagenius]

These pedals have built in blends of clean and distortion/fuzz:

MXR M80
Tech21 Bass driver di
Tech21 para driver di

All of them are great pedals

[BassBrass]

Originally Posted by mozarwasagenius

These pedals have built in blends of clean and distortion/fuzz:

MXR M80
Tech21 Bass driver di
Tech21 para driver di

All of them are great pedals

as do MXR/Dunlop Bass Blowtorch, Wounded Paw Attack Goat, Take Flight Pedals The Goose, Team Awesome Fuzz etc., Iron Ether Oxcide, Chuck Brown Dog, Source Audio Multiwave, Crowther Prunes & Custard, OXfuzz Bass, and ProCo Rat bass Juggernaught. I'm sure there are more.
I use my Xotic blender mostly for a DE Ruiner; sounds so good that way it's worth the board space. (Ruiner, being 2 darkboosts, does not invert phase. One Dark boost does...)

[Rockin Mike]

Can you do a clean blend with something like an Ernie Ball Stereo Volume/Pan pedal?
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/deta...FQWnnQodAD0AKg

I'm thinking split the signal out of my compressor, one side stays clean, other side goes through the pedalboard, then combine them in a stereo TRS plug and go into the Ernie Ball. Use the EB as a pan pedal and get a variable wet/dry mix on whatever's active in the pedalboard?

Is such an idea good, bad, or ugly?

[Rockin Mike]

Oops this was already discussed in posts #17 and #18 here:

Who makes & Where to get a Blend pedal?

Ernie Ball Pan Pedal is reportedly not a good blender.

Anybody know of a good expression-pedal type blender?

[Rockin Mike]

Again, should have searched.

Found this in another thread :P

http://woundedpaw.com/fx/index.php?m...products_id=14

[johnk_10]

IMO, Runoffgroove's 'ginger' or 'flipster' pedals can sound like a clean SVT, an SVT cranked to the threshold of distortion, and beyond with no low end loss, and neither one requires a clean blend. a fairfield circuitry 'barbershop' is also great for that as well.

I also have the SFT and VT bass pedals but I rarely use them for the exact same reasons that you mentioned.

[Dazonbass]

Gemini drive is a clean boost with a great sounding overdrive... tragically no longer in product but thought it was worth a mention.

Also +1 on the ginger

[Meddle]

Real men don't use clean blends.

[Low Sound Love]

I used to use an Xotic X-blender to restore some punch and low end to my dirt pedals. Nowadays I just use dirt pedals that keep the punch and low end alive, without the blender ...

[johnk_10]

IMO, a great pedal doesn't really need a blend.

[BassManMike73]

Originally Posted by Rockin Mike

Oops this was already discussed in posts #17 and #18 here:

Who makes & Where to get a Blend pedal?

Ernie Ball Pan Pedal is reportedly not a good blender.

Anybody know of a good expression-pedal type blender?

I build pedals, and a blend is one that I've been doing for a while. If you want one built into an expression enclosure, that's something I could easily do. PM me if you're interested!

[Meddle]

Originally Posted by johnk_10

IMO, a great pedal doesn't really need a blend.

I'm tired of videos on Youtube of new bass distortion/fuzzes where the player uses a blend of 20% dirt to 80% clean. There is one for an MXR pedal where it looks like Cheech is playing the bass and I think it sounds like a clean pedal most of the time.

Is bass distortion a new concept or something? I don't mean the Boss ODB-3 style distortion that accentuates roundwound 'zing' with some rumbly stuff thrown in, I mean a fuller 'Marshall' distortion.

[cheapbasslovin]

Originally Posted by johnk_10

IMO, a great pedal doesn't really need a blend.

Maybe, but one external parallel looper can make a bunch of middling pedals sound great.

Badger Schism is another option.