Help - this morning I only had a tuner pedal. Now I have 2 others.

panama · #1 06-12-2010, 08:49 PM

So, today I stopped in at GC in search of an overdrive pedal. The pickings were slim: Boss Bass Over Drive, Fulltone Bassdrive Mosfet, and a Sansamp Bass Driver.

I didn't really want to drop more than $100 on it. I didn't even try out the Sansamp ($200) and I actually preferred the Boss ($100) over the Fulltone ($150). So Boss it was.

Then I decided to plug into the EHX Big Muff. I played this pedals longer than I played the overdrive just because it was so FUN.

They had one used for $50, so I bought that too.

Now for my question:

I've never had more than a tuning pedal and I am an effects n00b. I am wondering if there is a certain order that these effects should be or need to be placed in? Is this a stupid question?

Thanks

Herbie 80's · #2 06-12-2010, 08:54 PM

You should've bought the Sansamp. I'd be so bold to say that it's the most widely used bass pedal in the industry. Great sound, great everything. Makes any amp sound a million times better.

And no. Changing around their positions in the signal chain can change the sound, but it's all personal preference.

panama · #3 06-12-2010, 09:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Herbie 80's

You should've bought the Sansamp. I'd be so bold to say that it's the most widely used bass pedal in the industry. Great sound, great everything. Makes any amp sound a million times better.

And no. Changing around their positions in the signal chain can change the sound, but it's all personal preference.

I didn't have $200, so the sansamp was totally out of the question.

arginator · #4 06-12-2010, 09:14 PM

Check out the classifieds here and you can find used sansamps for much less.

panama · #5 06-12-2010, 09:23 PM

Guess what guys?! I didn't buy the sansamp!

CindyB · #6 06-12-2010, 09:29 PM

well, since you didn't buy the sansamp, your life is over so it doesn't matter...

LOL!! Sorry, couldn't resist!!

Generally, the tuner goes first. After that try different combos and see what works. Have fun with your new toys!!

Unrepresented · #7 06-12-2010, 09:46 PM

There's something to be said for cascading gain pedals into one another, and I've been doing it lately a little bit to ad some additional breakup to increase the "warmth" of my fuzz tone.

In general the only reason you'd want to change the order of effects is when you're using more than one at a time. If you don't plan to use the them simultaneously it won't be an issue yet. Although once you start adding a filter and a delay and a tremolo and a flanger and....

**jmattbassplaya** · #8 06-12-2010, 09:52 PM

There`s no right or wrong way but this is a typical order to follow:

Tuner > (EQ)(Compressor) >Octave > Filter > OD, Dist, Fuzz > Chorus > Phaser, Flanger > (EQ)(Compressor) > Delay

I put EQ and compression down twice and in two different places as I`ve found them to have benefits in both areas of your chain. Having your EQ run first will allow you to shape your tone before your signal is effected. Having it after, however, can help boost in some lows that may be lost do to your effects. Likewise, having compression before your chain can help even out your sound so that the dynamics of the effects stay somewhat consistent, which I find important for filters and octaves. However, having it at the end can also help keep your effects under control after the fact.

panama · #9 06-12-2010, 09:53 PM

The only thing I plan on adding to this is a VT Bass. I assume this would go 2nd after the tuner?

**jmattbassplaya** · #10 06-12-2010, 10:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by panama

The only thing I plan on adding to this is a VT Bass. I assume this would go 2nd after the tuner?

No, it would go at the end because it`s an amp emulator.

TheWoodShed · #11 06-12-2010, 10:38 PM

Is it a Bass Muff? NYC?

faceinbass · #12 06-12-2010, 11:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Herbie 80's

You should've bought the Sansamp. I'd be so bold to say that it's the most widely used bass pedal in the industry. Great sound, great everything. Makes any amp sound a million times better.

To the OP: I'm glad you used your ears and got the BOSS.

cheapbasslovin · #13 06-13-2010, 09:39 AM

I don't really care what you get, but I had the SansAmp and really didn't care for it. Tried it in the store, didn't care for it. Got one used later for a steal, didn't care for it. Tried it in my band, didn't care for it. Tried running it direct, didn't care for it. I could get a ton of different sounds, none of which I liked that much.

This is not to deride owners of the SansAmp who love it, just an anecdote that shows it is not everything to everyone.

There is no rule on effect order. Even when people can agree that effect orders have a 'tone' they can't always agree which tone is better. Time to play

.

warwick.hoy · #14 06-13-2010, 10:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmattbassplaya

There`s no right or wrong way but this is a typical order to follow:

Tuner > (EQ)(Compressor) >Octave > Filter > OD, Dist, Fuzz > Chorus > Phaser, Flanger > (EQ)(Compressor) > Delay

I put EQ and compression down twice and in two different places as I`ve found them to have benefits in both areas of your chain. Having your EQ run first will allow you to shape your tone before your signal is effected. Having it after, however, can help boost in some lows that may be lost do to your effects. Likewise, having compression before your chain can help even out your sound so that the dynamics of the effects stay somewhat consistent, which I find important for filters and octaves. However, having it at the end can also help keep your effects under control after the fact.

Conversely,...since compressors can have an effect on your dynamics (depending on how you use a comp) I'd keep any envelope filters before a compressor. Putting a comp before an envelope filter may prevent you from getting the full qualities of the filter. YMMV

In the end figuring out signal chain really comes down to experimenting. Putting in the effort to figure out your signal chain is half the fun.

panama · #15 06-13-2010, 11:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by faceinbass

To the OP: I'm glad you used your ears and got the BOSS.

Thanks for the support. Everyone on these forums has the same response when someone asks about basses: "go try it out and decide for yourself!" This should apply to pedals too.

Sure, maybe the Sansamp would have sounded better than the Boss, but I couldn't afford it. That's like telling me I should have bought a $2000 bass when I only had $1500 to spend.