Volume Pedals

[ropepuller]

Recently read a post by Jason interviewing Steve Rodby, of Pat Metheny fame. Steve made a curious statement: "I can't understand why any acoustic bassist in modern music wouldn't use a volume pedal."

I got to thinking...hmmmmm....this would probably help on my gigs with drummer, latin percussionist, electric piano, and vibraphone as my colleagues on stage. I could set the volume pedal at a comfortable blending volume, and then kick it up a notch or two for my solos.

However, I would want a good volume pedal that is as close to completely transparent as possible - doesn't change tone and sound.

Thoughts? Experience? Pedal Recommendations?

[tornadobass]

You might also consider an EQ pedal, such as the Boss GEB-7. It has a 1 meg input for impedance matching, a gain slider and 7 bands of EQ.

You could kick in a little EQ sweetening plus volume to help your solos stand out.

It's also good for balancing pizz and arco playing, which is why I bought the pedal.

[Ric Vice]

Originally Posted by tornadobass

You might also consider an EQ pedal, such as the Boss GEB-7. It has a 1 meg input for impedance matching, a gain slider and 7 bands of EQ.

Tornado,
I owned one of these little boxes for years. I had no idea that it
had a 1 meg ohm input. I need to read the fine print more often. It would have saved me the cost of several other boxes.

Ric

[jtlownds]

I used an Ernie Ball volume pedal with my Schaller mag pickup, and it worked just fine. I never did try it with the Full Circle or my carved bass. I have a mandolin with a Fishman piezo pickup built into the bridge, that I have also run thru the pedal. It worked just fine. I always found it to be a bit awkward, standing on one foot, trying to adjust the volume with the other foot, and balance the bass at the same time.

[Pat Harris]

I have an Enrie Ball volume pedal that I've used to balance out the gain difference between pizz and arco playing. I run it wide open when playing pizz, and then roll it back for arco. However, trying to dial in the right amount of signal can be a bit of a pain, especially if there isn't a lot of transition time. I'm in the market for an EQ pedal so I can have my arco setting with one click of the foot rather than trying to find that sweet balance spot.

[Bob Gollihur]

I've had two different generations of Morley pedals over the last 35+ years, they were quiet and do a nice job. However, I agree that use can be awkward depending on the situation, and prefer to use a pedal with a preset, if practical, like a Radial box or EQ pedal w/volume.