Effects Questions: Not A "Best For" I Promise

[wcoffey81]

i am just starting to build my bass cab so i have had no need for effects pedals until now. i think i would like to start with a fuzz/distortion/overdrive and a chorus pedal. those two seem like decent starting point just to play around with. i spend quite a bit of time online and see deals on used/b-stock/clearance pedals from various manufacturers.
are there any pedals that you guys/gals can suggest that work well enough to start out on? i am not looking for expensive keep forever type pedals but decent bargain starter type pedals. i don't have any money to throw away so i want to lean on your experiences to avoid any disasters in pedal purchases.
as i'm sitting here writing this part of an old saying came to my mind. something about no matter how much you polish a horse turd, it's still just a horse turd not a gemstone.

thanks again for everyone's help!

[Laurent]

For a budget option here is what I would do:

Boss Bass Overdrive
EH Bass Big Muff
Boss CE-5
I have listed two pedals for fuzz and OD because no pedal covers the whole spectrum well.

If you only want two pedals:
Way Huge Pork Loin
Boss CE-5

If you have more budget than these two
Way Huge Pork Loin
MXR Bass Chorus deluxe (you get a flanger as an extra with this pedal)

Starting with pedals is like opening a pandoras box. You've been warned!
Best of luck in your quest.

[wcoffey81]

well this question died a quick death. i guess i should have done a "best for" after all.

[kreider204]

Can't go wrong with Boss. The ODB-3 takes some playing around with, but there are good tones to be found. If you want subtle chorus, get the CEB-3; if you want something more over the top, the CE-5.

[MSUsousaphone]

Just go with the one that you'll end up with and get a smallsound/bigsound Team Awesome! Fuzz Machine. The sound is for the pros but it's easy to use enough for beginners.

As for the chorus. The sound I would suggest would be the Iron Ether Polytope.....but I'm not sure the ease of use is beginner level......if it were me looking back, I'd suggest my younger self to get a Neunaber ChromaChorus.

[cheapbasslovin]

Originally Posted by wcoffey81

well this question died a quick death. i guess i should have done a "best for" after all.

It's a big question and not easy to answer, especially since one mans turd IS another mans gemstone.

I'd suggest a Zoom B3. It covers a lot of bases fairly well and isn't unholy expensive. I always liked old DOD pedals and they're dirt cheap, but they can be hit and miss.

Your tastes will probably change as you learn to use effects, also. When I first started using effects I went and auditioned a Bassballs and a Micro QTron for all my filter pedal needs. I hated the Bassballs at that time and loved the MicroQ, but a few years later I gave the Bassballs another shot and now it's my favorite filter. /digression

[cybersnyder]

Look for an Ibanez CS-9 chorus pedal and a Hardwire CM-2 Overdrive. I think there is a CM-2 on TB for sale for $50, can't beat that.

[odineye]

Originally Posted by Laurent

For a budget option here is what I would do:

Boss Bass Overdrive
EH Bass Big Muff
Boss CE-5
I have listed two pedals for fuzz and OD because no pedal covers the whole spectrum well.

If you only want two pedals:
Way Huge Pork Loin
Boss CE-5

If you have more budget than these two
Way Huge Pork Loin
MXR Bass Chorus deluxe (you get a flanger as an extra with this pedal)

I'd have to second this as the best place to start looking.

Originally Posted by Laurent

Starting with pedals is like opening a pandoras box. You've been warned!
Best of luck in your quest.

And laughingly reinforce this...

"Remember the cave Luke..."

[Bassmike62]

If you're looking for starters instead of long time keepers, check out the Digitech BassDriver (it does, OD, dist and fuzz) and the Danelectro Cool Cat chorus. Inexpensive pedals that do well what they're sposed to. The Digitech ended up being my dirt GAS killer, but that's me.

[epic!]

GFS pedals from guitar fetish. Great pedals for cheap

[Roko369]

From my experience i can say that i owned boss odb-3. It was way too sandy.
But now i use Joyo Us Dream, it`s cheap guitar pedal, but it`s just so awesome. I compered it to fulltone ocd pdeal, and i swear, it was the same. Just finished recording it on my bands new album if you are interested i can send you some examples after the mix is done.

[spufman]

The Digitech Bad Monkey is another decent inexpensive overdrive. Chorus is cool but squashes playing dynamics. You might have more fun with something like an Electro Harmonix Micro Q-Tron.