Freqbox Alternatives

[TheBrokenDoor]

Hi guys. I've lurked here for a while but in the past two days a couple of threads have come up that have really made me appreciate the thorough knowledge of the posters here. It is in that vein that I ask this:

In my setup I have sine and square wave generation adequately covered but what about sawtooth? I know the freqbox can do it but what else?

I saw a clip of the pigfoot mothership that sounded great (especially with that glissando mode), but I can't find a UK dealer and I imagine its not cheap!

Ta,

Dan

[fightthepower]

Do a search using the title of this thread: 'Freqbox alternatives' --- there was a thread recently on 'freqbox alternatives'

The Pigtronix Mothership is no good on bass. Pretty much a unanimous decision on that one.

The Freqbox and the Octavius Squeezer are the only true sawtooth generators(VCO's) available. The Freqbox does it much better than the OS-- the tracking is much better and therefor much more useable. It is also fatter and sounds better, in my opinion, as well as being cheaper and in a much (larger) easier to manipulate package. I love the Freqbox, Im thinking about adding a second one to the rig.

[TheBrokenDoor]

Man I feel like an arse for not searching. Sorry and thanks!

[fightthepower]

No worries, the discussion can certainly still go on, but you'll definitely find some clues in the other thread as to some pedals that can get you some good textures. That damn wink smiley pissed me off sometimes, so I feel like an arse for using it haha.. my bad

What are you using for wave generation/emulation right now? -what does your rig consist of? Types of tones you're trying to achieve, budget, space on board, etc?

[bigchiefbc]

Actually FTP, that's not quite true. The Boss SYB (and its behringer clone) is a real oscillator that generates a true sawtooth wave. And I actually think it sounds great. I assume you meant to say the Freqbox and the OS were the only analog generators, since the Boss is digital.

[kevteop]

Originally Posted by fightthepower

The Freqbox and the Octavius Squeezer are the only true sawtooth generators(VCO's) available.

FWIW the Korg G5's sawtooth sounds pretty good and the tracking is brilliant. It's digital, a bit fluffy around the edges, the box is huge and you'd have to hunt around to find a seller, but the sawtooth is the one thing the G5 does well. I sold mine because it was too big for one good sound, but I do miss the tracking performance, it was a total no-brainer to play.

Originally Posted by fightthepower

The Freqbox does it much better than the OS-- the tracking is much better and therefor much more useable. It is also fatter and sounds better, in my opinion,

I hereby rebut your claims in a half-hearted way and insist you provide audio evidence of this superior tracking performance. All the FreqBox demos I've heard have featured scratchy/glitchy note attack artefacts - I take it you've found a way to avoid this? Samples plz.

To me the O.S. sounds great, and it's hugely beneficial to be able to save a patch with a waveform and a filter setting associated with it. Tracking is fast and accurate (pretty much on a par with an analogue octaver) but it does require a clean picking hand technique. And tracking should improve in future with firmware updates - they're currently working on improvements.

[fightthepower]

Originally Posted by bigchiefbc

Actually FTP, that's not quite true. The Boss SYB (and its behringer clone) is a real oscillator that generates a true sawtooth wave. And I actually think it sounds great. I assume you meant to say the Freqbox and the OS were the only analog generators, since the Boss is digital.

You're correct, I wasn't thinking of any of the digital options.

Originally Posted by kevteop

FWIW the Korg G5's sawtooth sounds pretty good and the tracking is brilliant. It's digital, a bit fluffy around the edges, the box is huge and you'd have to hunt around to find a seller, but the sawtooth is the one thing the G5 does well. I sold mine because it was too big for one good sound, but I do miss the tracking performance, it was a total no-brainer to play.

I hereby rebut your claims in a half-hearted way and insist you provide audio evidence of this superior tracking performance. All the FreqBox demos I've heard have featured scratchy/glitchy note attack artefacts - I take it you've found a way to avoid this? Samples plz.

To me the O.S. sounds great, and it's hugely beneficial to be able to save a patch with a waveform and a filter setting associated with it. Tracking is fast and accurate (pretty much on a par with an analogue octaver) but it does require a clean picking hand technique. And tracking should improve in future with firmware updates - they're currently working on improvements.

Youre correct in that the G5 did have a nice sawtooth- that was about all I found suitable on the unit, but the tracking was spot on.

Yes, I have found a way to make the Freqbox track well! Its my new favorite pedal now that I have

Clips can be found at the bottom of the 2nd page of this thread:
Sawtooth and Ramp Up Waveforms?

And then more info regarding the tracking in this one-- When I was making the above clips, I hadn't quite figured out the buffer-thing- but I reference those clips in this thread below:
Tracking weirdness involving the Freqbox and Boss buffers


Basically, if you stick a buffer in between an octaver and the Freqbox-- it will track just about anything you play! You can also get good results with an eq boosting lows and cutting highs-- whether or not it has a buffer. Right now Im using a GEB-7 with great results. Im using it in just about everything now!

[kevteop]

Originally Posted by fightthepower

Yes, I have found a way to make the Freqbox track well! Its my new favorite pedal now that I have

Clips can be found at the bottom of the 2nd page of this thread:
Sawtooth and Ramp Up Waveforms?

That does sound pretty good in terms of tracking single notes. How is it when playing a bass part though?

The oscillator sounds great too.