GASing for a new pedal. Octaver?

scottfeldstein · #1 11-06-2011, 12:20 PM

It's looking like it'll be a while (Spring perhaps) before I can get the new bass I want (Ibanez SR505), so... my GAS attack has moved on to the pedal board.

I'm pretty new to pedal effects, but I've been really enjoying my MXR envelope filter. And now that I've downsized my SansAmp bass driver DI to the non-programmable one, and reclaimed 3 inches of my board, I think I could squeeze another small pedal in there.

I would really, really like to get something synthy sounding, but after reading a lot of reviews and listening to a lot of stuff on youtube, I don't think I'm going to be happy until I buy a $250 tripple-sized, extremely complicated unit. And that's not what I can afford or fit right now, so...

Octaver?

Could be pretty cool to thicken things up a bit when the guitarist in my 3-piece band goes for a solo. I could play my riff an octave up and have the pedal put a low one on top of it.

Also, I'm interested in how I might use it in conjunction with the envelope filter. Could be pretty cool.

I have read some reviews (here) and listened to some youtube demos with my headphones on and... so far the MXR 288 Bass Octave Deluxe is looking like a frontrunner. (Their whole "Bass Innovations" line is really pretty awesome.) But there's also the Aguilar Octamizer. If I had to choose right now, I'd go MXR. I see Markbass has a new octaver out, too. There aren't any demos to listen to that I can find. Plus, it goes one and TWO octaves below your signal. Not sure if I can dig that. I could see if it went one below and one ABOVE. But two below?

Anyway. Thoughts on how you use your octaver in a band situation? Preferences on brands/models?

kevteop · #2 11-06-2011, 12:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scottfeldstein

Octaver?

Could be pretty cool to thicken things up a bit when the guitarist in my 3-piece band goes for a solo. I could play my riff an octave up and have the pedal put a low one on top of it.

Also, I'm interested in how I might use it in conjunction with the envelope filter. Could be pretty cool.

I find the idea of using a pedal to 'thicken things' when someone solos to be a bit of a poor justification for having a new sound available to you. Also octavers tend to have quite limited high frequency content so they don't sound very spectacular when paired with an envelope filter.

All that said, my Boss OC-2 is the pedal I use the most, and I use it because it sounds excellent. So I would say to you: Get the one that you think sounds excellent on its own, and then any other pedals you find you can pair it with for other sounds you like, well that's just gravy.

bassplayerbob · #3 11-06-2011, 12:31 PM

I use the MXR envelope filter also. It sounds pretty good after my Boss OC-2 octave pedal.

If you havent seen this: MXR Bass Envelope - YouTube go to the 7 minute mark and he combines the 2 pedals.

scottfeldstein · #4 11-06-2011, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevteop

I find the idea of using a pedal to 'thicken things' when someone solos to be a bit of a poor justification for having a new sound available to you.

What do you mean?

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevteop

Also octavers tend to have quite limited high frequency content so they don't sound very spectacular when paired with an envelope filter.

Not sure what this means, either.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevteop

Get the one that you think sounds excellent on its own

That bit I can understand. So far for me it's the MXR. I love the Growl knob.

bassbrad · #5 11-06-2011, 12:35 PM

+1 on da OC2, nothing has the same vibe, even with all it's foibles it's still the bomb.

slaps76 · #6 11-06-2011, 12:41 PM

I have both the MXR envelope filter, and the octave pedal. I really don't use both at the same time, but they can sound pretty cool together.

I'm in a cover band...I use the octave pedal paired with my Boss chorus during "Billie Jean" as it gives it sorta a synth texture. I also use it in American Girl from the solo to the end, that does fill out the overall sound pretty nice(I play the higher octaves there). You said you'd play it along with higher notes...that's the limitation, at least in my case it would sound pretty bad if I were playing anything lower than a low B in my band, so you definitely have to pick your spots with it. Even though it's very limited where I use it(same with envelope), it's not a pedal I'll be getting rid of, I really like it.

scottfeldstein · #7 11-06-2011, 12:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bassplayerbob

If you havent seen this: MXR Bass Envelope - YouTube go to the 7 minute mark and he combines the 2 pedals.

Rock! That's brilliant.

Knettgummi · #8 11-06-2011, 12:52 PM

I've been playing with my new MXR BOD for couple of days now, and I'm very happy with it. It tracks well for an analog octaver (not perfect, mind you, but quite well), and it sounds absolutely killer.

I'm in a three man band, and I find that having an octaver can be really useful for filling out the bottom end in parts where I'm playing higher notes.

scottfeldstein · #9 11-06-2011, 01:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Knettgummi

I'm in a three man band, and I find that having an octaver can be really useful for filling out the bottom end in parts where I'm playing higher notes.

Exactly what I thought I might do with it! It would be nice to get a bass effect pedal that had a pre-determined practical use like that.

Knettgummi · #10 11-06-2011, 01:19 PM

You should definitely give it a try. My immediate reaction was "why didn't I get one of these before?"

.

WJGreer · #11 11-06-2011, 01:36 PM

I dig the octaver + filter combination a lot - especially if you get an opportunity to solo here and there.

Here's a clip from a live thing we recorded way back in 2007; at that time I had a Boss OC-3 and a Tonefactor 442 Filter on my pedalboard; both are gone now. I have a little solo in the middle of the track and I add both of those effects at 3:54.

That's a big file; be patient with the download.

Enjoy; I hope this gives you a sense of how that effect combo may work for you.

scottfeldstein · #12 11-06-2011, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WJGreer

I dig the octaver + filter combination a lot - especially if you get an opportunity to solo here and there.

Here's a clip from a live thing we recorded way back in 2007; at that time I had a Boss OC-3 and a Tonefactor 442 Filter on my pedalboard; both are gone now. I have a little solo in the middle of the track and I add both of those effects at 3:54.

Deeply righteous. I'm not a soloy bass player--but maybe I should become one!

WJGreer · #13 11-06-2011, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scottfeldstein

Deeply righteous. I'm not a soloy bass player--but maybe I should become one!

Well, it certainly doesn't pay very well. But thank you.

kevteop · #14 11-06-2011, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scottfeldstein

What do you mean?

I mean: Don't think of pedals as being something you use to cover up something or make up for something missing. Think of them as different sounds you can use on the bass to give some sonic variety and add a certain colour to certain songs / sections.

Quote:

Originally Posted by scottfeldstein

Not sure what this means, either.

An octaver produces quite a bassy note with no strong overtones / harmonics. Envelope filter effects are most obvious when they are fed signals containing high mid / treble frequencies, and octavers don't really produce any of those frequencies. If you mix in your regular bass signal then you'll still have all the treble content from that, but if you use just the octaver signal you won't have much for the filter to chew on at all, and the effect will be very subdued. That's basically what I was getting at.

scottfeldstein · #15 11-06-2011, 05:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevteop

I mean: Don't think of pedals as being something you use to cover up something or make up for something missing. Think of them as different sounds you can use on the bass to give some sonic variety and add a certain colour to certain songs / sections.

I think it's perfectly fine to think of pedals in both of those ways. And some other ways, too. Whatever floats your boat, as far as I'm concerned.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevteop

An octaver produces quite a bassy note with no strong overtones / harmonics. Envelope filter effects are most obvious when they are fed signals containing high mid / treble frequencies, and octavers don't really produce any of those frequencies. If you mix in your regular bass signal then you'll still have all the treble content from that, but if you use just the octaver signal you won't have much for the filter to chew on at all, and the effect will be very subdued. That's basically what I was getting at.

Makes sense. But I don't think it's common practice to use an octaver for just the effect tone. I mean, the whole point of it is to get two octaves going at once--yours and the effects.

Laurent · #16 11-06-2011, 07:00 PM

I would recommend the MXR Bass Octave Deluxe M-288.

newbold · #17 11-06-2011, 07:06 PM

My OC-2 does me well. You might just like the Digitech Bass Synth Wah. It covers octave, synth, AND envelope territory IIRC.

DeltaPhoenix · #18 11-06-2011, 07:17 PM

I have and use a MXR BOD 288 as well and I love it. I have had an OC-2, it was cool but on my pedalboard there is only room for one and I decided to keep the MXR because it can get synthy on the growl setting. Plus it still has the Girth side for a more natural sounding octave, much less mixing them and the mid button is cool to. I also have used a CoPilot Cubic, it is cool, it gets synthier but in my opinion the knobs go to far, after 2/3 of the way around strange things happen. Also my MXR tracks really well, I can get it to hold an F# on the E string for almost 4 seconds. None of the other pedals could get near that.
Be prepaired to become quick at muting strings and make sure you play very cleanly if you want to get the best out of the effect. I play finger style and have learned how to use the pinky and the backside of my right hand as a "muter".

scottfeldstein · #19 11-06-2011, 07:43 PM

I have to say, the fact that you can blend your signal in with the octave, plus the fact that the Growl knob is awesome, plus the fact that it has a mid-range boost, plus the fact that everyone says it's one of the better tracking analog units... all this definitely makes the MXR the frontrunner.

I hate to be MXRs beotch, but after doing thorough research and listening to a lot of pedal effects, It looks like I'm going to have three of their bass innovations pedals on my board before I'm done. They should compensate me for saying all this. (But I guess they kind of have--by making excellent gear.)

**A Strohman** · #20 11-06-2011, 08:20 PM

I've had the OC-2, OC-3, MXR BOD and most recently, the Aguliar Octamizer. I keep wanting to like octave pedals. Demos make them sound so cool and I always think I'll find a use for them in live situations but the truth is, octave pedals just end up taking space on my board and rarely get used outside of my home studio. But in terms of the octave pedals I've used, I think the Octamizer was probably the best sounding and most versatile of the bunch. Being able to control the octave level and clean level made it very simple for me to dial in the octave tone I liked best. The MXR was decent as well but I liked the overall tone quality of the Aguliar much better and also thought it tracked better (but I didn't do any sort of scientific comparison on the tracking between the two).