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How many bassists use pedals frequently?

How many pedals do use?

  • None/tuner only

    Votes: 27 17.3%

  • 1 (i.e. always on overdrive)

    Votes: 16 10.3%

  • 2 or more

    Votes: 113 72.4%
  • Total voters
    156
  • Poll closed .
#21
I like the idea of tone changes with pedals, have a Sans Amp Bass Driver, a Boss CEB-3 Chorus, and a MXR Octave Deluxe but I use them kind of infrequently though. I also use the KORG Pitch Black pedal tuner (highly recommended).

The Sans Amp Bass Driver gets used more than the others when I want an overdrive tone. Having the three different presets is terrific, starting from a slightly thicker, yet clean "Bassman" tone on the left footswitch through to a more wooly and thick O/D, to a more aggressive overdrive with boosted midrange on the right.

The one "pedal" I do actually use a lot is the footswitch on my Genz Benz heads (GBE 750 & ShuttleMAX 6.0). It's the same configuration footswitch for both and it gives me:

  • Channel change (SS or Tube)
  • Mix (SS Plus Tube)
  • LF Boost
  • Scoop
  • HF Attack

No pedalboard yet.

3833942938_c72e20168a.jpg
 
#24
I started using an EBS compressor about four months ago and find it indispensible now -- really brightens up things and of course adds to sustain. I'm in church band now and there's little reason for me to use anything else, but back when I played rock in the clubs, I used a Morley Power Wah Fuzz, a Mutron III and a Mutron Phaser along with Moog Taurus I pedals. I just heard the Decemeberists live and was very impressed by his use of the EH Bass Microsynthesizer for fuzz -- a very controlled "clean" fuzz, if you know what I mean. I wish I could find a situation to use that sound in church. I run a set of Roland bass pedals controlling an Alesis Micron for added rumble, and I might be tempted to use chorus now and then, too, but for the most part, no one would notice. When I was in Yes cover band, I used the Maestro Bass Brassmaster and some kind of tremolo pedal for that "Starship Trooper" sound.
 
#26
Ah Jared, ever the sharp one. :smug:

I'm still playing with my setup, few pedals as I have, and I doubt that any of my pedals will be always-on. I thoroughly enjoy the sound of my bass with layered effect on top of layered effect, and I enjoy the sound of my bass clean. For the MUSE cover band I want to start by the end of this year, the White Russian and Chunky Cheese are going to be staying on consistently, but there are a couple songs in which I'll be laying off the effects a bit (Screenager, Soldier's Poem, a few clean sections in songs here and there).

For your thread question, you can count me among the ones who do.
 
#28
If the question is, what pedals are always on, in a general sense I can say that it's either a compressor or nothing.

But specifically in my dub band I've got a nine pedal board and five of them are used for what I would consider "basic" tones with the other four used sparingly as "effects".

As always, use the tools that get you the sounds you need for the music you play. I love effects and use them when I can, but I have two current gigs where I generally go bass-->cable-->amp.
 
#29
I always use a compressor but it is built into my amp. So does that count? I have the VT Bass pedal that I use for certain songs and an Elextronix Submarine pedal that I use to boost overall output for a few songs. Mostly though I prefer a nice clean bass tone.
 
#30
for about six years, all I used was a (not always on) overdrive/preamp/DI pedal. Over the last six months I built up an actual pedalboard, and now I have eleven pedals that I carry around wherever I go.
 
#31
Well, normally I have my bass running though my "grit" set up (Ashdown LoMenzo Hyperdrive), although I normally couple this with something like a flanger/phaser/chorus or wah, same with my "distortion" set up (Blackstar HT-DistX). Although I have taken a liking to using the Boss rackmount effects unit my guitarist lent me, & I'm planning to pick up a rackmount tuner, EQ & compressor (I'm thinking dbx for all of those)
 
#36
roysloco said:
Not all pedals stop a tone being 'clean' though, and not all 'clean' bass tone is 'good'.

By far the worst bass tone I've heard came from an otherwise 'nice' bass played by one of the best bass players I know, with no processing at all between pickups and pa (a very good pa!). Compared to the other bases through the same system it sounded like a weak fart on a windy day. Horrible to the point of distracting! :rollno:

One of the nicest bass tones I've heard came from a £130 musicman copy through a rubbish little PA system - again, no processing at all. Sounded awesome, but could've maybe done with a wee bit of compression to even it out a bit when he got over excited. :hyper:
Click to expand...

I think that too many bassists are too hung up on "tone". I just plug the friggin thing in the amp and let the notes speak for themselves. Tone is such a guitard term to compensate for lack of talent.
 

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