What effects go well with what style of music?

[ashtray]

I play classic rock and "regular rock", and keep a clean bass line. I've used compressors before, set transparent, to control any volume spikes and give a little more sustain, but I've shyed away from that too recently.

Was thinking about adding an effects pedal for tonal variety, but couldn't think of what I could use in a classic rock band where the guitars are blaring loud, and the bass only cuts through so much (nuances get lost).

I could see metal bassists using overdrive, and funky bassists using synths and envelope filters and wahs - but was wondering what effects people typically use for what style of music.

Thanks!

[kevteop]

Overdrive, flanger, er...

Well that's me out of suggestions.

[ashtray]

Originally Posted by kevteop

Overdrive, flanger, er...

Well that's me out of suggestions.

What style of music would you use a Flanger? What about the overdrive?

Trying to get a feel for what people use - maybe I'm not thinking outside the box enough.

[nad]

Originally Posted by ashtray

I play classic rock and "regular rock", and keep a clean bass line.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

I play plain ol' rock and use a buttload of effects, but that's because they do what I want to achieve tonally. It's not the style of music, it's the style of me.

[RickenBoogie]

Originally Posted by nad

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

I play plain ol' rock and use a buttload of effects, but that's because they do what I want to achieve tonally. It's not the style of music, it's the style of me.

Exactly. I'd guess that most bass players, in most genre's, use none, or near none fx. Individual tastes and styles dictate what gets used where and when. Bottom line is, no effects are needed to play any certain style of music, but sometimes it adds a little spice to the mix. (Bootsy-style funk excluded)

[wnelson]

Originally Posted by RickenBoogie

Exactly. I'd guess that most bass players, in most genre's, use none, or near none fx. Individual tastes and styles dictate what gets used where and when. Bottom line is, no effects are needed to play any certain style of music, but sometimes it adds a little spice to the mix. (Bootsy-style funk excluded)

agreed...
i recently just started adding effects..never needed them till i joined a progressive rock band....but after buying/trading a few.you get a better idea of what to look for next and what works well for you and compliments the music...thier extremely fun to through into the mix....but only when YOU feel like adding them...anyway,have fun.

[Diddii]

I play in 3 band

Classic rock: Overdrive, chorus, autowah(not often), compressor, Octave
Thrash metal: Muff / overdrive, Octave, compressor
Jazz group, Compressor, Stomp-EQ

[sarcastro83]

post-punk = chorus

[christmetal]

i played in a thrash band i occasoinally used some fuzz or distortion but i agree with some people that said this earlier
most people dont use many effects
i have a metal zone mt-2 if i just want it to sound really brutal and i have a flanger for softer stuff or solos and stuff
and then i have a BP 200 multi effects for messing around
but i play almost every show without effects
i keep it straightforward most of the time

[iamoldschool]

Originally Posted by ashtray

What about the overdrive?

Play any ZZtop?

[baalroo]

I'm not sure why it matters what people "typically" use since it should be irrelevant to what anyone else uses, but I'd say the most common effect used by ANY guitarists (regular or bass) is easily overdrive/distortion/fuzz.

I get a little annoyed when people start asking what sounds are appropriate for what kind of music, since that's the entire point of creating music in the first place... picking out what sounds you want to go where. Whatever you decide is appropriate, is appropriate.

[Etbass]

My advice is to get a cheap $200 or so multifx pedal for bass... the Zoom BFX 708II was the one I got. As long as you can set the parameters, it's a good buy.That will get you knowing what effects in what combos sound good to you. And when you figure out what you like, go all out and buy the expensive awesome ones.

Just my two cents.

[nad]

Originally Posted by baalroo

I get a little annoyed when people start asking what sounds are appropriate for what kind of music, since that's the entire point of creating music in the first place... picking out what sounds you want to go where. Whatever you decide is appropriate, is appropriate.

Yep. It's like all the "does a Jazz/Precision/MTD/Sadowsky/Elrick/Zon bass sound good for metal/pop/rock/noise/jazz/punk?" threads. Does it sound good to you? If so, then yes. If no, then no.

DO WHAT THOU WILT.

[ashtray]

Hmm - interesting points. I never considered overdrive for classic rock... not even ZZ Top, and we play some ZZ Top! I like the solid booming low end of the clean bass on those songs - the guitarists in my band add enough overdrive for all of us.

I was just asking b/c while I know I can experiment and use whatever I want for whatever style - it's nice to have a starting point that most people reference, so I don't have to reinvent the wheel. When I want to, I will though!

I have a bunch of guitar multi-effects units, and I've tried them with the bass and have been less than impressed. Maybe bass-specific pedals would sound better. I still can't think of using an overdrive pedal for my bass guitar though - even though there's a ton on the market, so people must be using them!

[opivy3056]

post rock-volume pedal, 3 fuzzes, 2 delays, a pitch shifter/delay, another fuzz/reverb, chorus, and reverb.

epic yeh?