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Envelope Filter with Good Sensitivity?

#21
johnk_10 said:
i just made three quick and dirty clips of my three autowahs [snip]



hope this helps..............;)
Click to expand...

John K to the rescue. Great clips, man, and thanks!

The MXR definitely has a nice vocal sound. I found myself mouthing "wow-whoa-wow" while listening to it. Great "wooo-ow" on the slide, too! You also managed to get some good quack out of those flats.

The Digitech sounds a little thinner, but brighter. More of what I think of as a Bootsy solo sound.

I think the Q-Tron is just too bubbly for me. Cool sound, though.

Here's some great Bootsy tone: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Sh9cezHNec&feature=related. His sound really pops out and quacks while he's slapping, but blends nicely when he's playing fingerstyle during the sax and guitar solos.

Looks like the the MXR is at the top of the list right now. Can anybody compare its sound to the Xerograph deluxe? And is the Xerograph worth the extra $75.00-$100.00 if I'm not a diehard, knob-twistin' filter junkie? :D
 
#22
Same here, I've been thru plenty & just sold a GR2. I vote heavily on the MXR BEF. Also, my old Hwy 1 Jazz loved that Q-Balls pedal, but it was a lil finicky & I was playing my Lakland Decade quite a bit more. Try the Q-Balls, it might do it fer yer flats/P... if not, surely the MXR can bring some quack! I've kept my Emma DiscumBOBulator too. So, bass filters are down to the Emma & MXR.
 
#24
Charley Umbria said:
Can anybody compare its sound to the Xerograph deluxe? And is the Xerograph worth the extra $75.00-$100.00 if I'm not a diehard, knob-twistin' filter junkie? :D
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I had the MXR and liked it a lot, until I got my Xero D. Soundwise, the Xero is gonna get you a lot closer to the Mutron, which is what Bootsy used back in the day. It can be quacky or thick and aggressive. The sensitivity control on the Xero has a wide enough range to accommodate almost any input level. For me it comes down to quality of sound, and there is this weird resonant peaky thing that happens with the MXR on the decay of the note that I was unable to dial out. No such issue with the Xero, it sounds amazing. The Xero also features a downsweep mode, which Bootsy also used on his Mutron a lot. Plus, you can add a $40 Moog expression pedal and have a fully adjustable, awesome sounding wah.

Both pedals are very easy to get a good sound out of (I found it to be easier to tweak the Xero personally), so you definitely don't have to have a ton of filter experience. I don't think you will be disappointed if you get the MXR, unless you try the Xero first.
 
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#25
I did not like the MXR. It was too quacky and as M Sterling said it does a weird peaky thing that I could not dial out either. It also sounds God awful after fuzz(to me with my gear anyway). I'm still trying to find the filter for me. It think the Xero deluxe is going to be my next purchase. I have a Micro Q-tron right now and it's ok but I'm not 100% in love with it either. Just looking at all the options the Xero has makes me drool. The Source Audio BEF Pro looks really nice too but I don't know if I can get past its GIGANTIC SIZE though.
 
#29
johnk_10 said:
i currently have a Q-balls, a digitech bass synth wah, and mxr M82. IMO, they're all very good, but i right now the mxr is my favorite.
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Great clips, thx for sharing !

I also have a BSW (which I use mostly as an octaver, but sometimes as a filter) and an M82, which I instantly fell in love with.

I really love what you get out of the Q-Balls. Do you think we can get a similar bubbly sound out of the MXR ?
 
#32
Bassmike62 said:
Great clips, thx for sharing !


I really love what you get out of the Q-Balls. Do you think we can get a similar bubbly sound out of the MXR ?
Click to expand...

i haven't really spent that much time with the M82, but i haven't be able to duplicate that bubbly sound with it yet.
 
#34
Well, I bit the bullet and took a chance on the MXR. So far, it's exactly what I wanted. The pedal plays well with my flat-strung P-Bass (no lack of quack!) and also works nicely with my other two passive instruments.

IMGP2447-M.jpg


I tried placing the BEF in a few different places in my chain. To my ears, it sounds like ass when run before dirt pedals. However, I also found that the filter wasn't quite as responsive when placed after a buffer or compressor, so I ended up putting it as close to the front of my chain as possible, with only a few true bypass pedals in front.

I've been able to dial in a couple of `70's envelope sounds with very little difficulty and the DRY/FX controls do a great job of keeping the fundamental tone of the bass intact. This may not be the pedal for someone who wants to do all kids of crazy synth-bass stuff, but for a straight-up envelope filter in a compact package, I can't imagine wanting anything else.

Also, thanks to JohnK and mmbongo for posting the sound clips. Being able to hear the pedal in advance was a huge help!
 
#35
right on Charley.
yeah, i thought that you'd like the MXR. there's just so many to choose from these days it's hard to make a decision as to which one to try. i remember the days when there were only about 5 distortion (Jordan bosstone, Maestro FZ1, vox tone bender, MXR dist + and a fuzz face) pedals, two phase pedals (phase 90. Musitronics phasor) and the mutron or seamoon funk machine for the autowahs. now it seems that there's 100's of fuzz and and dozens of autowahs!
 
#37
GroovinOnFunk said:
do you have your decay set pretty low? like around 9 o'clock or lower?


nice playing, and cool tone. your dry tone could totally cop a Geddy Lee feel and this awesome pedal lets your dry tone shine right through.
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Hey thanks man! Yeah I like that Geddy fella pretty good :)

My settings are pretty much like this:
Dry and Wet 12 o'clock
All others around 1 o'clock. Sensitivity may go up or down depending on the bass or my mood that day, but usually stays around 1. Funny how that worked out :)
 
#38
I love the DOD FX25, it sounds pretty bassy but when you turn up the high mids a bit, or when i pair it with an old russian bass balls, filter sounds fantastic!

Usually playing an older fretless jazz with flats, an older L2000 with dead nickels, or a brubaker brute MJX-5 with new stainless steels.
 
#39
thorplaysbass said:
I love the DOD FX25, it sounds pretty bassy but when you turn up the high mids a bit, or when i pair it with an old russian bass balls, filter sounds fantastic!

Usually playing an older fretless jazz with flats, an older L2000 with dead nickels, or a brubaker brute MJX-5 with new stainless steels.
Click to expand...

Cut from the same cloth. I use the DOD FX25, it's so much fun.
I play with a Squier Standard Jazz with Ernie Ball Group II flats, but I just started using an Epiphone EB-3 with the same strings.

Quack Whoomp Quack Whoomp so the pedal goes.
 
#40
No clue why I'm replying to this (zombie thread to the max) but maybe it'll help someone on a search. I play a j bass and Lakland skyline decade, both with flats.

I didn't like the MXR BEF bc it is bandpass, and all knob adjustments affected only one type of sound from the pedal. I couldn't get other sounds out of it, no matter what settings I chose, just varying degrees from those settings.

The Emma Discumbobulator v2 is the best envelope filter I've played. Dynamic, responsive, versatile, and many sounds--from cocked wah, to laserbeams, to quacks, and beyond--can be found in the pedal. It also has a boost footswitch with dedicated knob to adjust level. The boost can function independently from the filter. There's also downsweep/upsweep options.

I've tried the MXR, the EHX micro qtron, EHX bassballs, Aguilar filter twin. The Discumbobulator wins hands down.
 

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