New to effects, wanted to get your opinion.

Buddah999 · #1 12-22-2007, 11:34 PM

So I am new to this whole effects thing. I've been a purist for a while, but I have heard wonderful things about compression. I thought I'd try it out and see what the fuss is. Also I wanted to explore various sounds and things. But I am still a fan of the pure tone of a bass.

So I hear that the best sound is done from single pedals. But I dont know what I like yet. So I was thinking about getting a multi effects procesor. (possibally the Boss GT-6??)

Is the multi effects processor the way to go? Bassically all I could ever see myself using would be compression, mabye a delay effect, maybe a distortion. I dont know. There are not many effects I could see myself using on a regular basis. Is it worth having all that stuff I more than likely will never use??

Any enlightnment on the subject folks?

MyUsernameHere · #2 12-22-2007, 11:49 PM

The GT-6 is nice, but I don't think you'll find many people who say any multi will ever sound as good as if you were to buy high quality individual effects.

If you want to try out a pretty good multi without spending $350 you could also try a Korg AX3000. I don't know if its as good as the Boss, but its only $195 new and its a good unit.

bongomania · #3 12-22-2007, 11:49 PM

Couple things- First, yes, many people recommend buying a multifx unit first so you can get an idea what each of the types of effect "is" or "sounds like". That way, once you know you like X but not Y, you can go out and shop for the best X. Second, I recommend reading a bunch of pages of this forum. We talk about all kinds of effects, and there are often soundclips to hear, and many enlightening arguments. That's a good way to get your feet wet as well, as it will raise questions for you that you didn't previously know to ask. Check it out.

Andrew McGregor · #4 12-23-2007, 12:15 AM

If you like the natural sound of bass, you can come up with FX that you like, but beware. Many FX units eat the tone of your bass, so don't buy anything without auditioning it and seeing if the bass tone makes it through.

Marson · #5 12-23-2007, 12:27 AM

The Boss gt-6b is a bit complicated , so if your starting out on effects you might want to steer clear of that first for the simple fact it can get frustrating and turn you off effects permanently. If you'd like to start trying out effects simple shopping around at your local music shop is usually the best option because you get to try them out and see what they're like and tweak knobs to your liking.

speak_onion · #6 12-23-2007, 06:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Buddah999

So I am new to this whole effects thing. I've been a purist for a while, but I have heard wonderful things about compression. I thought I'd try it out and see what the fuss is. Also I wanted to explore various sounds and things. But I am still a fan of the pure tone of a bass.

So I hear that the best sound is done from single pedals. But I dont know what I like yet. So I was thinking about getting a multi effects procesor. (possibally the Boss GT-6??)

Is the multi effects processor the way to go? Bassically all I could ever see myself using would be compression, mabye a delay effect, maybe a distortion. I dont know. There are not many effects I could see myself using on a regular basis. Is it worth having all that stuff I more than likely will never use??

Any enlightnment on the subject folks?

If you are really sure that you're only interested in compression, delay and distortion, than there's no need for the multi. If you think that given the chance to experiment with others you might change your mind, than the multi is a great idea. I will agree with the above suggestion of the Korg over the Boss. Even though I have only music-store experience with both, I found that the Korg is a lot easier to use than the Boss, so it lends itself to an experimentation box much more.

If it turns you decide that comp, dist, and delay are IT for you, then you're way ahead of the game since you came here before you went out and bought the first pedals of those types that crossed your path. You'll find that some pre-search (get it? it's like pre-research!) will save you time, anger, and $$ in the long run. The FAQ has links to distortion and compression megathreads, and searching delay will turn up a ton of info.

slingusahook · #7 12-23-2007, 06:22 AM

I originally bought a multi fx, boss me 50b, it's a nice little unit but i hate the drive and I use drive alot! So I'm building up some stomp boxes boss odb 3, boss ceb 3, EHX Bassballs etc.

It all depends on how you want to sound, if you don't use tons of effects like me, in my opinion its best to make em' sound good when you do use them, thats why I like stomp boxes better but others may have different opinions.

Swift713 · #8 12-23-2007, 09:31 AM

A decent multi can be had for $100 (maybe less used). I use the Zoom B2. Multi's require a great deal of tweeking and twiddling but I wouldn't say they're hard to use, maybe less straight forward. You can also go to a music store and most will have a pedalboard or two set up with Boss and/or Digitech pedals that you can futz with to see what effects you might like. Then you can buy better ones.

I like to support the local merchants in hopes that they will persist so I can continue to try stuff out in person.
Go to Guitar Center and make them let you try out everything.

Buddah999 · #9 12-23-2007, 09:37 PM

I have to say, this is the best site on the planet. Every question I have you guys answer, and lead me in the best path... usually twards an angle I didnt see up front.

I think I'm gonna go with the multi effects processor. As far as difficulty of figguring out how to work the GT-6b, I got a buddy that owns one. That one, and I have a nack for shiny things. I can work my guitarists pedalboard better than he can, and I dont even know what the hell half that crap does.

Also, even if you told me the name of half of those effects, I wouldnt remember what they are when it came time to choose from the pleathra of crap at the store. And I also wanted quality sound, which I've been told boss has very good quality effects.
Also if the price of one good pedal is $100, then with 4 effects, thats $400, and I'm sure I can get the GT-6b for less than $400.

Thanks again for the advice folks!

Lowpro · #10 12-23-2007, 09:56 PM

Some multi effects out there sound good recording, GT-8 in a studio works well, using the X3 pod and bypassing my head just using my cab is nice but they don't give a decent push with that. U

Individual stompboxes kinda are the better way to go, but if you go that route you have to get some good quality ones. True bypass is great, get em if they're available. One fav pedal of mine is the MXR phase 90, sounds great on bass.

assboglin · #11 12-24-2007, 12:20 AM

A multi effect can be a good way to see what you do and don't like, but also be advised that in general, at least in my opinion, the effects you'll find on a multi effect don't compare well to what you can find in good single effects, which means that you may be turned off by a certain effect on a multi effect that you might actually like in a more decent version. So I would advise you to keep an open mind about experimentation and to try as many things as you can get your hands on.