Do I really need to use pedals ... and if so, which one(s)?

[LiptonJigglers]

Hello,

This is a strange question I guess but here is my situation. As I wrote in another post I'm in my 70s and hadn't gigged in nine years but was asked to fill in for a local band through the summer. I've played five gigs and have eight more and then the season is done. I don't know what will happen after that but I doubt I will play bass again, at least not for pay.

We play typical songs but nothing really past hard rock ... and even the softer side of that. We've play mostly at RV places and restaurants, so mostly outside or under a pavilion. There is one more bar on our gig schedule and I don't know much about it except that it in an upscale section of a resort town.

So far I've been getting by basically no pedals except for a tuner. I've also used some of the bass presets on my Sonicake Matrix (version 1) which I sort of like ... but at a recent gig it just didn't seem to want to work.

I've been using an old Fender Bassman 150 that has a four-dial EQ settings for mids ... which I still haven't figured out very well. It also has a built-in compressor (which I understand is pretty tame) and a contour switch and other controls. I've switched over to an Ibanez TMB100 which has those active bass and treble EQs controls so it does have a lot of diverse settings.

Finally my question: Do I really need to buy a pedal of some sort ... especially because in all likelihood it will be an expense for an item I will use for our eight gigs and then never use again. Of course I can sell it but I doubt I'd ever use it again. Nobody in the band has complained about my spartan setup ... but I sort of would like to "go out with a bang" in my last gigs. Our next gig is the band's most important ... in about 10 days at the county fair.

I don't really use effects on bass. When I started playing in the mid-1960s nobody seemed to use pedals. It was just the player, his or her bass, and an amp. And' I've tried to follow that minimalist approach to my gigs in the ensuing decades.

But if I WERE to add a pedal .... what would you folks recommend? I'm thinking maybe something with some presets and there really is no single effect I want to try.

20+ years of playing bass and I still don't use pedals even though I have several (fuzz, distortion, overdrive, 2× eq, noise gate, tuner and considering preamp/di for rehearsals only)
If I had to suggest a pedal, it'd be an equalizer, 7 band is ample.

 

[Ralph124C41]

Yep that was my pivotal point ... need vs. "be nice to have"

As someone who absolutely LOVES pedals and always has all sorts of them on numerous boards, it sounds like you don't really need one. If there's no specific tone you need, and the band is happy with your tone, I think you're set. However, if you're looking for a decent pedal that will work in all sorts of situations, I'd go with an OD pedal. Probably one that's relatively tame. (Since you already have an EQ and tuner, as well as a simple compressor on your amp.)

Some OD suggestions:
Way Huge Pork Loin (modded, preferably - a simple 1 cap swap)
DOD 250 - an absolute classic, and only two knobs!
Way Huge Green Rhino - this one's a bass-friendly Tubescreamer
Joyo American Sound - super affordable, versatile, and recreates old Fender amps (if memory serves)

I don't like distortion ... in bass or guitar ... at all. For my guitars I have several O.D. pedals and I occasionally use one that is just a slight boost, a Caline Pure Sky. And that is very random.

I did try using that American Sound, set for a clean sound, and I just didn't like the sound it made. Plus it has a lot of hiss so I had to use a noise gate and the results were just not what I liked. That rather surprised me as the Sound is an "always-on" effect (at a clean setting) when I play electric guitar.

 

[Ralph124C41]

We play a lot of breweries. The buildings are usually concrete floors with cinder block walls and metal ceilings so I have a Low pass / high pass filter on my pedal board. I also have a compressor and a VT bass pedal. The only other pedal is a tuner. Some of the other places we play have very small stage areas and usually I don't use any pedals at these places.

Why that pedal? I ask because the band has some gigs (such as our last one) outside on a concrete floor. I did think about tilting the Bassman or elevating it a bit but I did neither. I don't like the sound as much when it's tilted back, although it does make it easier for me to hear but I think some of the bass response from that 12-inch speaker is reduced.

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

Pedals are for guitar players. There is no need for pedals for bass.
I will get flamed, but I don't care. I've tried several and never found that any add anything.
It may be different for you, depending on what music you play. I play classic rock, blues, and country.

 

[Ralph124C41]

Buying pedals without having any idea what you want the pedals to do MIGHT be fun but it will also most likely also be one of the most stupid investments you can make. Adding random pedals just for the sake of it will degrade your tone 99% of the time. At least in the context of a band/mix, which is really what matters. If you have a tonal issue that needs solving, tell us about it and we can MAYBE start to think about pedals.

Also, based on your post it doesn't seem like you've learned how to use the eq and compressor on your amp. I think it would be a good idea to learn how to use your current gear before you think new gear will solve any problems, if there even is a problem, which from you description doesn't seem to be the case.

FWIW, if I had to upgrade anything in your signal chain it would be the pickups in the TMB100. They are rather sterile sounding. Pretty much ANY alnico PJ-pickups will be an improvement on these cheap ceramics IMO. Personally I would also rip out the preamp and re-wire the bass passive. Partly because I prefer passive (which is of course just a matter of personal taste) and partly because the preamp in these basses isn't particularly great. It might be worth mentioning that I've seen some reports about standard J-bass bridge pickups being slightly too wide for these Talman basses, which makes things slightly more complicated. I replaced the pickups in my Talman without any problems, but the bridge/J-pickup was a VERY tight fit.

You're right about learning how to use the amp ... especially those controls. I downloaded the manual and it didn't help me understand too well how that 4-button mid EQ section works. The compressor I understand.

As for pickups I understand ... but as I said before this likely will be my last rodeo. After the season is over I likely will sell the TMB100 and go back to using my other bass, the one I've been using for 20 years. It's just a clone of a "Beatle bass" and I bought the TMB100 as as backup and for a bass that offers more sonic possibilities. I use flats on the clone and I think it sounds pretty good on most songs. I always take it to my gigs and would like to play it on some of the songs but I don't want to slow down the band's action by changing basses between songs.

 

[davedamage]

Pedals are for guitar players. There is no need for pedals for bass.
I will get flamed, but I don't care. I've tried several and never found that any add anything.
It may be different for you, depending on what music you play. I play classic rock, blues, and country.

It is different. For lots of people. Probably should have prefaced that with, "IMNSHO"

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

It is different. For lots of people. Probably should have prefaced that with, "IMNSHO"

I think I made that pretty obvious.

 

[hrodbert696]

Hello,

This is a strange question I guess but here is my situation. As I wrote in another post I'm in my 70s and hadn't gigged in nine years but was asked to fill in for a local band through the summer. I've played five gigs and have eight more and then the season is done. I don't know what will happen after that but I doubt I will play bass again, at least not for pay.

We play typical songs but nothing really past hard rock ... and even the softer side of that. We've play mostly at RV places and restaurants, so mostly outside or under a pavilion. There is one more bar on our gig schedule and I don't know much about it except that it in an upscale section of a resort town.

So far I've been getting by basically no pedals except for a tuner. I've also used some of the bass presets on my Sonicake Matrix (version 1) which I sort of like ... but at a recent gig it just didn't seem to want to work.

I've been using an old Fender Bassman 150 that has a four-dial EQ settings for mids ... which I still haven't figured out very well. It also has a built-in compressor (which I understand is pretty tame) and a contour switch and other controls. I've switched over to an Ibanez TMB100 which has those active bass and treble EQs controls so it does have a lot of diverse settings.

Finally my question: Do I really need to buy a pedal of some sort ... especially because in all likelihood it will be an expense for an item I will use for our eight gigs and then never use again. Of course I can sell it but I doubt I'd ever use it again. Nobody in the band has complained about my spartan setup ... but I sort of would like to "go out with a bang" in my last gigs. Our next gig is the band's most important ... in about 10 days at the county fair.

I don't really use effects on bass. When I started playing in the mid-1960s nobody seemed to use pedals. It was just the player, his or her bass, and an amp. And' I've tried to follow that minimalist approach to my gigs in the ensuing decades.

But if I WERE to add a pedal .... what would you folks recommend? I'm thinking maybe something with some presets and there really is no single effect I want to try.

It's an electric instrument, whatever tone you get is due to a signal running through circuits of one kind or another. Whether to get a pedal is basically a matter of whether you want some of the circuit in a box at your feet rather than (or in addition to) circuits elsewhere. If the bass and amp already house all the circuits you need for the tone you want, then you're all set.

Myself, I like the control of having a preamp at my feet. Besides that, I usually have an OD pedal, maybe a compressor, and individual effects if needed for particular songs. For instance, I want a chorus if we're playing Poker Face, or an envelope filter for Man in a Box (since the guitarist doesn't have a squawk box).

 

[CascadeBass]

I'll just leave this here,

I did not know these existed! I have my Sansamp BDDI, but we're in the wine business so I think I need to pick one of these up, lol.

 

[Parzival]

I did not know these existed! I have my Sansamp BDDI, but we're in the wine business so I think I need to pick one of these up, lol.

It's not a bad little box at all. I didn't like the drive sound as well as a BDDI, but it's a decent substitute. I will say I did not use it as a DI to FOH so I can't speak to that aspect of it.

 

[kleinenenten]

I don't like distortion ... in bass or guitar ... at all. For my guitars I have several O.D. pedals and I occasionally use one that is just a slight boost, a Caline Pure Sky. And that is very random.

I did try using that American Sound, set for a clean sound, and I just didn't like the sound it made. Plus it has a lot of hiss so I had to use a noise gate and the results were just not what I liked. That rather surprised me as the Sound is an "always-on" effect (at a clean setting) when I play electric guitar.

Then it sounds like you don't need a pedal to me. I sometimes wish I could enjoy playing without all my pedals - it would certainly be simpler and more affordable, though the pedal bug has drastically lessened lately. I think I'm pretty well set for the foreseeable future. Hiss bothers me too, but I always have a noise gate/loop for my dirt pedals AND one in my amp's FX loop. Both set fairly low so they don't make anything choppy and aren't noticeable. They keep my rig dead silent - until I play!

 

[Nuisance]

No, you don't need any pedals. Most effects on bass can't be heard in a rock mix anyway.

 

[lowfreqgeek]

No.

 

[LowendG]

It makes the headstock uglier and looks kinda amateurish. I know I will die on this hill alone.

You're not alone. But they do look good with cargo shorts and comfort sneakers.

 

[RandomKaren]

It makes the headstock uglier and looks kinda amateurish. I know I will die on this hill alone.

I hadn't realised being in tune was amateurish

You're not alone on that particular hill btw, many a war has been fought on it.

 

[REV]

Why that pedal? I ask because the band has some gigs (such as our last one) outside on a concrete floor. I did think about tilting the Bassman or elevating it a bit but I did neither. I don't like the sound as much when it's tilted back, although it does make it easier for me to hear but I think some of the bass response from that 12-inch speaker is reduced.

I have four pedals listed in my response to your post. Which pedal are you referring to?

 

[Ralph124C41]

I did not know these existed! I have my Sansamp BDDI, but we're in the wine business so I think I need to pick one of these up, lol.

Btw, I live near the wineries in upper state New York and a lot of bands play at those. I have not and I don't know if this band has ever played there but I don't think so.

 

[Ralph124C41]

I have four pedals listed in my response to your post. Which pedal are you referring to?

Sorry ... I meant the low pass/high pass filter.

 

[pfschim]

Feel free to disregard, I just find them too ugly for a stage and I don't expect too many people to agree on this

Cool, consider it disregarded

 

[Fuzzbass]

Hello,

This is a strange question I guess but here is my situation. As I wrote in another post I'm in my 70s and hadn't gigged in nine years but was asked to fill in for a local band through the summer. I've played five gigs and have eight more and then the season is done. I don't know what will happen after that but I doubt I will play bass again, at least not for pay.

We play typical songs but nothing really past hard rock ... and even the softer side of that. We've play mostly at RV places and restaurants, so mostly outside or under a pavilion. There is one more bar on our gig schedule and I don't know much about it except that it in an upscale section of a resort town.

So far I've been getting by basically no pedals except for a tuner. I've also used some of the bass presets on my Sonicake Matrix (version 1) which I sort of like ... but at a recent gig it just didn't seem to want to work.

I've been using an old Fender Bassman 150 that has a four-dial EQ settings for mids ... which I still haven't figured out very well. It also has a built-in compressor (which I understand is pretty tame) and a contour switch and other controls. I've switched over to an Ibanez TMB100 which has those active bass and treble EQs controls so it does have a lot of diverse settings.

Finally my question: Do I really need to buy a pedal of some sort ... especially because in all likelihood it will be an expense for an item I will use for our eight gigs and then never use again. Of course I can sell it but I doubt I'd ever use it again. Nobody in the band has complained about my spartan setup ... but I sort of would like to "go out with a bang" in my last gigs. Our next gig is the band's most important ... in about 10 days at the county fair.

I don't really use effects on bass. When I started playing in the mid-1960s nobody seemed to use pedals. It was just the player, his or her bass, and an amp. And' I've tried to follow that minimalist approach to my gigs in the ensuing decades.

But if I WERE to add a pedal .... what would you folks recommend? I'm thinking maybe something with some presets and there really is no single effect I want to try.

It's been said, but: "need"? You've made it clear that you do not need them. Want? Completely up to you.

FWIW I don't need pedals, and play some gigs without 'em, but I love 'em. My favorite tone was my 70's SVT head run so loud that the power tubes were overdriven. These days it would be ridiculous for me to lug that big rig to gigs, or play it that loud even if I did. So I use a couple/few pedals to simulate that "goes to eleven" tone. Most important is overdrive/distortion for the power tube clipping, and while it's optional, a close second is a compressor pedal to simulate that 8x10 cab being pushed close to maximum, and also the sustain (near-feedback) that comes from that kind of volume.

For a long time I only ran overdrive and occasionally compression, but I just joined a Cheap Trick tribute so I got a octave and chorus pedals to simulate 8/12-string bass (not an exact clone, but close enough... I'm not buying a 12 string).

But that's just me.

Keep in mind that FX are an enormous rabbit hole. You don't even know what kind you might be interested in, so it'll take time to figure that out. Once you do, it'll take more time to sift through the numerous options available for that effect.

I'm not trying to talk you out of FX. To the contrary, I encourage your curiosity. No one will force you to buy anything you don't want, and the knowledge you acquire will be useful even if you decide not to use any FX at all. Never say never: you might be invited to join a lucrative band where you're asked to simulate synthesizer bass (to cite just one possibility).

Best of luck, and have fun!