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Best Bass Synth Pedal

Jake Massey

Jake Massey

Jul 20, 2018
14
2
25
Liverpool
#1
So I'm in the market for a Synth Pedal. I would use an actual synth but I'm a terrible keys player. I love the various Sounds from The EH Bass MicroSynth but you can only have one sound dialled in at a time. I have seen Panda Audio Future Impact Synth which would be ideal as you can have different presets and all that but to me (at least on the demos I've seen of it) the sounds aren't really looking for. Does anyone know a pedal that would have basically classic synth sounds built in that has presets that can be changed by a button instead of having to scroll through menus or change any settings on stage at all?
 
#3
Jake Massey said:
So I'm in the market for a Synth Pedal. I would use an actual synth but I'm a terrible keys player. I love the various Sounds from The EH Bass MicroSynth but you can only have one sound dialled in at a time. I have seen Panda Audio Future Impact Synth which would be ideal as you can have different presets and all that but to me (at least on the demos I've seen of it) the sounds aren't really looking for. Does anyone know a pedal that would have basically classic synth sounds built in that has presets that can be changed by a button instead of having to scroll through menus or change any settings on stage at all?
Click to expand...

If you get a midi controller...then the Source Audio C4 is an obvious choice. So is the Future Impact...both great synth pedals.
 
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#4
I have the Future Impact and the Source Audio C4, both stellar bass synth pedals which reward poking around with their editing software. The FI has 99 presets which you can access using the footswitches. The C4 has 6. Both have lots of presets made by users. The C4 has a great mobile/desktop app for trying out presets or controlling it live. Or you can use midi footswitches or controllers to change sounds.

But for ease of use on stage I think you should look at the Boss SY-1 - not programmable but easily tweaked.
 
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#5
Source Audio C4 paired with a Disaster Area DMC Micro. 128 pre sets of fat, synth bass goodness.
You can also use the pre sets from the SA Spectrum Filter.

I got mine a.month ago and haven't even made it through all the Community Patches yet, probably close to 1000 to choose from.....then there's making your own. What a rabbit hole to dive down.

Great pedal and the tracking is the best I've played.
 
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#6
I own several synth pedals and have tried a bunch over the years (full disclosure: still have not had the opportunity to try the C4 or the SY-1) and the one that I keep coming back to as my favorite for doing all the meat&potatos MiniMoog basslines -- and which also meets OP's requirement for presets (9) -- is the old Korg G5. Find a used one of those and tear the roof off the sucker!
 
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#10
First 5 best options in order are C4, C4, C4, C4, C4.
Plan on a "break in" period learning the app (phone, tablet or computer). It's intuitive but there is a lot. If you understand synth, if you have some basic comfort with synth terms and operations it will not take much to get used to it. Also totally recommend a MIDI switch or controller, the Disaster Area DMC Micro is low cost and easy to manage. That will save you the steps of hand toggle to change presets.
Super fun will be had by all.

And +1 on the EH Bass Micro, it's a blast. But the C4 does all that with switching and up to 128 patches so it wins. But all due credit to the EH maniacs, they swim in an aquarium filled with Tang and LSD! I used the EH a ton and have smashed all the sliders off of several over the years, much love.
 
#11
EHX Synth9 is a lot of fun, and has some great options. But tracking below Open A is dicey.
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#12
The Boss SY-1 has unbelievably good tracking and is polyphonic. Key point to bear in mind though is that the SY-1 is not a synth waveform generator in the way that a C4 or FI is; it's more a synth emulator.

In fact, it's so good at tracking that I've ditched my octave-down pedals - this thing can go lower without glitching than anything I've come across (and I've tried a few octave pedals in my day, believe me!). And to not have to worry about glitching or having to modify playing style to keep your pedal happy, in a band mix is just fantastic.

But what I particularly love about it, is it its immediacy - everything it can do you can control via the dials. Plug and play!

No complex PC editing, neurohub, or midi issues to have to think or worry about. (Now I appreciate that for a bunch of folk those three things and the greater depth of control they offer are exactly what they want in their pedals - but sadly I've only got so much PC editing head-space and have resolved to keep mine free for my two multifxs - Helix and Zoom. :))
 
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#13
Al Krow said:
The Boss SY-1 has unbelievably good tracking and is polyphonic. Key point to bear in mind though is that the SY-1 is not a synth waveform generator in the way that a C4 or FI is; it's more a synth emulator.

In fact, it's so good at tracking that I've ditched my octave-down pedals - this thing can go lower without glitching than anything I've come across (and I've tried a few octave pedals in my day, believe me!). And to not have to worry about glitching or having to modify playing style to keep your pedal happy, in a band mix is just fantastic.

But what I particularly love about it, is it its immediacy - everything it can do you can control via the dials. Plug and play!

No complex PC editing, neurohub, or midi issues to have to think or worry about. (Now I appreciate that for a bunch of folk those three things and the greater depth of control they offer are exactly what they want in their pedals - but sadly I've only got so much PC editing head-space and have resolved to keep mine free for my two multifxs - Helix and Zoom. :))
Click to expand...
I agree, best interface of them all and immediately more options that track well than you can deal with, just under one knob position I have most of the sounds I need. With the same amount of digital acuity (very little but I can run a RedPanda Particle like a pro) the Source Audio pedal is 3 sounds and 3 more accessed by a hidden switch function I can't get to work consistently or quickly, so 3 sounds effectively. I can hear a great tracking octave down mixed into those C4 presets, but I'm not looking for a sound like that from the Regan era.

If all other convenient effect interfaces became infected with a virus I could learn the source audio system, but it's like work and I have other work.
 
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#14
Al Krow said:
The Boss SY-1 has unbelievably good tracking and is polyphonic. Key point to bear in mind though is that the SY-1 is not a synth waveform generator in the way that a C4 or FI is; it's more a synth emulator.

In fact, it's so good at tracking that I've ditched my octave-down pedals - this thing can go lower without glitching than anything I've come across (and I've tried a few octave pedals in my day, believe me!). And to not have to worry about glitching or having to modify playing style to keep your pedal happy, in a band mix is just fantastic.

But what I particularly love about it, is it its immediacy - everything it can do you can control via the dials. Plug and play!

No complex PC editing, neurohub, or midi issues to have to think or worry about. (Now I appreciate that for a bunch of folk those three things and the greater depth of control they offer are exactly what they want in their pedals - but sadly I've only got so much PC editing head-space and have resolved to keep mine free for my two multifxs - Helix and Zoom. :))
Click to expand...
Agreed, it's a great pedal and hard to beat for the price. The FI and C4 are clearly superior for most tones and have ton more features but there is something to be said for old fashion knobs IMO. That being said I am keeping all 3 if them. I have been running my FI and OC2 in the fx loop of the SY1 and getting some awesome tones blending them in parallell. OC2 with the octave down soloed, fuzz, POG etc mixed with the SY1 is something everyone should try. The pedals in the loop still work when the SY1 is off. Plus there is stacked knob to adjust volume for SY1 and the loop. Then I run them all through my Xerograph Deluxe.
Yeah, I know maybe over the top but the best synth pedal option for me is all of them :)
 
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#17
Well, NED, got a Future Impact and a C4 both arrived today, have them both hooked up in parallel - wow! Yes, lots of sonic territory... I was kind of "bleah" about the C4 at first, unimpressed, then I hooked it up to the app - yeah, that's the stuff! Amazing!
 
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