Crowther Audio Pedals Have Arrived!!

[René_Julien]

Very interesting Idea. Only thing that would concern me is feasability of production and or marketability for others.

God Bless, Ray

Why would that matter in any way for an idea like this?

I am not Uli Behringer.






A boutique remote controlled signal looper to help people in your situation.
Why not?
I see no reason not researching the possibilities in this.

 

[LilRay]

Why would that matter in any way for an idea like this?

It Doesn't really but I always like to try and find a use for everybody. Invite Everybody to the Party ya know

I am not Uli Behringer.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!

A boutique remote controlled signal looper to help people in your situation.
Why not?
I see no reason not researching the possibilities in this.

Absolutely and By all means research, Please! I'm very interested.

Most Gracious,
God Bless, Ray

 

[Cameron Mc]

the prunes and custard is truly an awesome pedal. almost one of those secret weapon pedals you dont want to share. one thing about the pedal is that you can remain articulate while using it. the mix knob is invaluable. the pedal may seem like a glam overdrive, but i have found a host of usable sounds and textures, and you know how i love my textures. it has a lot of character, and i look forward to exposing those things. maybe we'll do clips, but wont tell you the settings. that is half the fun!!! hold your breath

 

[RocketMusic]

I still can't wrap myself around the idea of pedals, but I had to chime in and compliment our man Greg on the recording. Great playing and now you've got me all into the holiday spirit.

OK, Jerry - once you get your fistfuls of holiday cash, you need to come see brother Greg about an octave pedal. You can fly under the radar with an octave pedal in ANY gig situation, and it's especially great in small group situations where your guitar accompianist drops out (say to go take ANOTHER frickin' solo). You stomp on the octave pedal, and all of the sudden nobody notices that the rhythym guitarist has left the building. You just consumed your sonic space and his.

The Woodshed is ostensibly a dyed-in-the-wool blues band (we're not really, but that's how some in the band perceive it). When I soundcheck and run through my pedals, I get heckled by the geetards with "that pedal is a $10 fine, that one's $25", etc. But on the gig, I can slip in the octave pedal without anybody even knowing I'm doing it. Everything just gets phat all of a sudden and everyone feels good...

The EBS Octa-Bass is cool, but the MXR M288 is even cooler... and at $149, it's practically free I think you'd lose your mind with the amount of fun you can have with it.

And please bare in mind that this is all coming from a guy who played 20+ years before he bought his first pedal... and then promptly bought his next dozen within 6 months

Pedals to me are all about bringing different textures to the table. When my tone changes, my ear wants to hear me play differently. So it's a great way to coax different stuff out of yourself.

 

[RocketMusic]

OK, I'm on dialup at home, so Cam and I effectively posted at the same time... so see? it's all about TEXTURE...

Fretless to me is just another texture. So is an octave pedal, or an envelope filter, or a phaser, etc... they all have a voice that our ears want to hear played a certain way... and if you never introduce that texture into your sonic landscape, you might never play that way...

 

[Ryan L.]

Hmmmm...... I never thought about using an octave pedal to help fill the (sometimes) voids that happen in a three piece band.

And, since my new band is a 3 piece, that might be just the ticket.

So, what is it that makes the MXR better than the EBS?? And is the MXR true bypass, and if not, is there much tone sucking going on when it's switched off??

(and I don't feel one bit bad about derailing ANY threads in the Rocket Music or Roscoe forums----hell, the owners of the forums are sometimes the biggest derailers!!!)

EDIT: Never mind about the true bypass, I see that it is. So my only question is why is it better than the EBS?? And which one is more "user friendly" to someone who is very challenged when it comes to effects?

 

[RocketMusic]

The MXR just cuts a little bit better, it's got more adjustability with regards to the midrange. First there's a push-button switchable mid boost (which the EBS does not have), and then inside the pedal there are two more mid-related adjustments: an internal gain pot that controls how much mid-boost as well as a switch to choose between two different mid frequencies.

 

[René_Julien]

Greg,

What is your opinion on the EHX POG... and other EHXes in this series?
I'm a big fan of the POG/HOG pedals.

I don't have experience with analog octavers.
If I can find a BOSS OC-2 someday I'll pick it up.
Any chance of comparing the MXR and EBS to an OC-2?

 

[RocketMusic]

Personally, I wouldn't bother with the BOSS... the MXR and the EBS track better and are polyphonic. The Boss sounds really nice when it works (it's got a nice growl to it), but it gets ugly when you outrun it or play chords.

The POG is indeed cool, you can get some nice organ sort of sounds thanks to the available octave up as well as down. The POG also tracks very well and is polyphonic. I wouldn't use the POG for what I do with an octave pedal (getting a thick, growly tone), the POG is a little on the polite side tonally. But I would own a POG if I needed to get that organ sort of tone. Yep, I could envision having two octave pedals on my board... I've got it bad...

 

[Darkstrike]

I love the Boss OC-3, on polyphonic mode, through the guitar input, has great tracking then too, still want to try an MXR one, though.

 

[LilRay]

The POG is indeed cool, you can get some nice organ sort of sounds thanks to the available octave up as well as down. But I would own an POG if I needed to get that organ sort of tone. Yep, I could envision having two octave pedals on my board... I've got it bad...

I dunno Greg, Having the ability to make a bass sound like an organ would be pretty cool. 'Specially if you could get a decent "leslie" effect to pair with it. And you were playing blues/soul type stuff

God Bless, Ray

 

[Cameron Mc]

Greg,

What is your opinion on the EHX POG... and other EHXes in this series?
I'm a big fan of the POG/HOG pedals.

I don't have experience with analog octavers.
If I can find a BOSS OC-2 someday I'll pick it up.
Any chance of comparing the MXR and EBS to an OC-2?

well since you asked

The EHX series of octave pedals in my opinion has a whonky clank to it. like greg said, it's got a sort of organ tone to it, but i'm not sure how usable it would be. i couldnt really get a texture out of it that i liked.

the oc-2 is analog and the oc-3 is digital. they both were the standard for a while, and in all honesty, i really enjoy both of them. That reason being this: if you play a string very hard fingerstyle, it sounds like you had popped the string.. that overdriven punch. the boss pedals have a certain level of separation of their notes so that even while the effect is engaged, you can still capture that texture while you're playing. it's really nice for dynamic playing with an octave pedal. they also have a certain type of growl to them that is stank nasty. Oteil Burbridge comes to mind. i've got some audio files i may be able to post for examples. i still miss it to a degree...some days more than others.

the ebs is a very smooth sounding octave. it tracks pretty well, but the texture isn't rough enough for me. it almost sounds too smooth. One thing about octave pedals, is that it's best to try and hear them played live, or with some air moving. I think all of the manufacturers or the sound files you hear are putting up sound reviews of pedals that are going direct to sound cards.. which is a nice way to hear things, but not really a realistic representation of what it really sounds like. the prunes and custard as well as the octave effects and many others really require some air moving to hear what they sound like, as well as what textures they offer for playing applications. another thing about the EBS is that it has those switches. 2 octaves below is pretty useless in my book, but some people like it. the octave up is a bit gimmicky for me considering there are other options for lead line bass parts.

the MXR is a great alternative in my opinion. it doesnt offer 2 octaves below, since no one uses it anyway, but it provides 2 different octave textures.. the growl of the boss series, and the smooth fatness of the ebs. blending the two makes for some nice flavor as well. it has a mid switch which adds practicality to live applications since your mids do drop out once those subsonic frequencies start rumbling around. I like to boost the dry knob quite a bit, as this octave pedal tracks so good, that it doesnt have that same separation that the boss series has. I just got used to that sound over the years, and when I got my MXR, i sat down for a while and found the setting that provided the same texture as I had my Boss set up. however, it's like 99.5% the same. You can still overdrive the string and get that pop, but the octave effect is stuck on it like glue.. so all in all it's still incredible, and the octave texture has some nut to it. I got great reviews from band mates, as they were like.. "i heard a different kinda rumbling over on your side of the stage tonight, what's up?" kinda thing. so it delivers for sure. Greg swears by the mid switch and keeps his on, but I honestly go back and forth for different applications. Sometimes i want that vacuum bass tone

last on the list is the Aguilar Octamizer. I dont think i like how it sounds based on all of the sound samples and marketing that they've been doing.. And people on here seem to love it, but I just can't get along with the hype. I think i hear a different sound in my head when i think Octave. So i'm glad so many people are happy with what they've found, but that grit is where it's at!

hope that helps, for what it's worth

 

[René_Julien]

well since you asked

The EHX series of octave pedals in my opinion has a whonky clank to it. like greg said, it's got a sort of organ tone to it, but i'm not sure how usable it would be. i couldnt really get a texture out of it that i liked.

the oc-2 is analog and the oc-3 is digital. they both were the standard for a while, and in all honesty, i really enjoy both of them. That reason being this: if you play a string very hard fingerstyle, it sounds like you had popped the string.. that overdriven punch. the boss pedals have a certain level of separation of their notes so that even while the effect is engaged, you can still capture that texture while you're playing. it's really nice for dynamic playing with an octave pedal. they also have a certain type of growl to them that is stank nasty. Oteil Burbridge comes to mind. i've got some audio files i may be able to post for examples. i still miss it to a degree...some days more than others.

the ebs is a very smooth sounding octave. it tracks pretty well, but the texture isn't rough enough for me. it almost sounds too smooth. One thing about octave pedals, is that it's best to try and hear them played live, or with some air moving. I think all of the manufacturers or the sound files you hear are putting up sound reviews of pedals that are going direct to sound cards.. which is a nice way to hear things, but not really a realistic representation of what it really sounds like. the prunes and custard as well as the octave effects and many others really require some air moving to hear what they sound like, as well as what textures they offer for playing applications. another thing about the EBS is that it has those switches. 2 octaves below is pretty useless in my book, but some people like it. the octave up is a bit gimmicky for me considering there are other options for lead line bass parts.

the MXR is a great alternative in my opinion. it doesnt offer 2 octaves below, since no one uses it anyway, but it provides 2 different octave textures.. the growl of the boss series, and the smooth fatness of the ebs. blending the two makes for some nice flavor as well. it has a mid switch which adds practicality to live applications since your mids do drop out once those subsonic frequencies start rumbling around. I like to boost the dry knob quite a bit, as this octave pedal tracks so good, that it doesnt have that same separation that the boss series has. I just got used to that sound over the years, and when I got my MXR, i sat down for a while and found the setting that provided the same texture as I had my Boss set up. however, it's like 99.5% the same. You can still overdrive the string and get that pop, but the octave effect is stuck on it like glue.. so all in all it's still incredible, and the octave texture has some nut to it. I got great reviews from band mates, as they were like.. "i heard a different kinda rumbling over on your side of the stage tonight, what's up?" kinda thing. so it delivers for sure. Greg swears by the mid switch and keeps his on, but I honestly go back and forth for different applications. Sometimes i want that vacuum bass tone

last on the list is the Aguilar Octamizer. I dont think i like how it sounds based on all of the sound samples and marketing that they've been doing.. And people on here seem to love it, but I just can't get along with the hype. I think i hear a different sound in my head when i think Octave. So i'm glad so many people are happy with what they've found, but that grit is where it's at!

hope that helps, for what it's worth

Thanks Cameron. Really helpful.

I am a big fan of the EHX POG/HOG, I own both. But I don't look at them as octavers.
More like organ emulators.... I love it... the metallic sound.
And the HOG is something special on its own (harmonizer, envellope filter, whammy alternative,...).
I love it....
... but I don't use it in my band. We've got a keyboard player so I don't need to emulate other instruments.
So I just concentrate on delivering the most suited bassguitar sound for our music. (effects that I use are volume pedal and delay)


So I have no experience with clean straight forward octavers... if that makes sense, or analog octavers.

2 reasons I might be interested in a different kind of octaver:

- (starts at around 0:40
I'm an exclusively fretless player and find this amazing.

- I want a sort of analog synthesizer emulation.
Something to blow the Moog Little Phatty of its socks.
(my keyboardist is GASsing for a Little Phatty... I'm a bit worried. But a great instrument so what the hey. )


Based on your description the MXR would be something I could enjoy.
I was thinking for recording use only.
But if it's that amazing... my bandmates better beware.


I'm off to my local store tomorrow.
... to buy a keyboard actually

I'm going to see if they have the MXR BOD in stock.
I know they have the EBS.

 

[Darkstrike]

- (starts at around 0:40
I'm an exclusively fretless player and find this amazing.

I expected a Pino track, when you mentioned the fretless aspect, what I did not expect was to be awe struck, and stopped dead in my tracks, now excuse me, I must pick up my jaw, and find my octaver.

 

[René_Julien]

I expected a Pino track, when you mentioned the fretless aspect, what I did not expect was to be awe struck, and stopped dead in my tracks, now excuse me, I must pick up my jaw, and find my octaver.

The exact same feeling I had.




You know... for a fretless player I don't know anything about Pino. :scowl:

 

[Darkstrike]

The exact same feeling I had.




You know... for a fretless player I don't know anything about Pino. :scowl:

I only started with Pino recently, like weeks, funnily enough, as another Tber was showing me what a fretless and octaver could sound like.

 

[RocketMusic]

Cameron REALLY wanted to show off the versatility of the Prunes & Custard, so he busted out a Herbie Hancock classic that now features three tracks of bass with different P&C settings. The bass line has one setting, the second half of the rhythm track has another, and then the lead track has yet another. You can hear the clean bass on the first half of the rhythm track, not that you can tell much in this clip.

The drums are very drum-machine-ish on purpose, as is the borderline synthesizer bass tone. This is 80's jazz-funk-pop at it's finest!

So without further ado, here is Cameron McLaughlin on Herbie Hanckock's "Chameleon":
"Chameleon - Take 1/Mix1"

And for those of you who are curious, here are just the bass and drum tracks:
"Chameleon - Bass & Drums Only"

And here are the rhythm, bass and drum tracks:
"Chameleon - Rhythm, Bass & Drums Only"

The bass we used is the newly arrived Roscoe PoachDog PD-3005 Signature model, and I've got pics of that bass that I'll get up before I leave tonight...

 

[LilRay]

Very Flatulent

Close to P Funks Knee Deep but I think Bootsy ate more Grits n Gravy

Cam's a helluva player, Care to venture a B side of "Flashlight"?

God Bless, Ray

 

[RocketMusic]

But doesn't the Roscoe sound great?!?

 

[Darkstrike]

Very nice indeed, funky, groovy, tasty.


I think I'll have to get you to send me one, after Christmas, I need a Joe Barden bridge J anyway, so I can kill two birds with one stone.