How Often Do You Use Effects?

[fretlessrock]

It is pretty much ether/or for me. One gig has been 4+ years of bass-cable-amp and I love that. Another is a very effects heavy gig. It is all good. I don't think that the use of effects has anything to do with my approach to playing without effects. It comes down to what the gig requires.

 

[poptart]

I have been playing in bands for over twenty years and have a great selection of effects units over the years. FX on bass is a tricky area as most of the time all that is required within a group sound is a solid fundimental sound to pin the overall sound down.

If there is tonally space in the music then chorus/flange/phase etc can sound great, as can some of the great synth bass sounds available on many units. I feel that these are used best in moderation and only when the bass is to be prominent in the mix.

I do alot of live sound for up and coming bands in the UK and am amazed at the lack of understanding of how bass sounds work and fit in with the overall sound of a band. Distortion is also a greatly overused effect and IMO is best left to the guitarist - this tends to leave the bass sound weak and thin, great if that's what you want. A slight amp distortion like Entwistle uses can be more effective.

I think that varying your sound from your technique is the best way forward and will prove more useful in the long run. I use a BP50 on stage and use it on two songs for a fat synth sound and a ready synth sound - which is usefull and easier than dialling in on my bass. However the pedal is mostly there for the tuner.

 

[Magical_Max]

I use more effects when i'm playing solo, i.e. whammy, delay, modulation, etc. I have a small 'band' board that just has an OD, distortion and a chorus, just the basics...
I quite enjoy making pips, squeaks and white noise but thats not very pratical in a band situation espicially when my guitarist doesn't approve...

 

[Altitude]

I've got a half rack compressor that is always on, although that qualifies more as a signal processor than an "effect" per se.

Other than that, I've got a Bassballs that I might use on three songs in a three set night, but the effect is really special and I'm glad I have it.

I have a Boss OC-3 that I use here and there. I like to turn it on sometimes for a fingerstyle solo, because it seems to make people perk up - they sense they're hearing something different. I also notice that the octave effect forces me to concentrate more on my note selection and less on playing fast.

I've got a 20 year old Boss Chorus that I never use, and an old DOD Bass EQ pedal that I sometimes use to EQ my Carvin fretless (since the pre-amp isn't too impressive).

 

[Masterbasser71]

My distortion is pretty much on all the time, if not then I must have chorus on. But if I'm feeling like going slap-tastic, nothing stays on, or if my guitarists get annoyed and say, "dude your distortion + my distortion aren't mixing, turn ur distortion off." Wah can prove effective, especially overdrive for the BAMF factor, and chorus and wah can make it sound really nice. Flanger can sound great with distortion, provided you run it through your effects loop. Synths work nicely for making monophonic tones for say funky stuff, or if you want some sort of synth line going while your guitarist lays down some heavy metal riffage. Delay, well. Delay can get some very spacy tones, and can sound like a horror flick when you combine distortion and wah. Distortion+wah+delay=absolute terror. Just some thoughts. We were gonna do something for my band's recordings, haven't gotten to it, but I will be in charge of making the trippin stoner/industrial noise. YES!

 

[SundanceChile]

I like to think that when i purchase my bass, that i purchase it for that tone that only it has. I never have had a need for effects, nor do i think i ever shall. Then again, wah + fretless still sounds really reallly cool.

 

[nappingcracker]

with my projects, tons of ridiculous effects -- with the band, /maybe/ a dash of wah

 

[uly_]

Leaving my guv'nor on almost all the time for a light-gritty tone mixed with clean.

Kicking in my fuzz/heavy overdrive when the songs need to sound heavy (instead of a 2nd guitarist)

Rarely using my wah

Guess it's pretty tim c inspired, but hell.. it works

 

[nun lover]

i have a digitech multi-pedal...i like programming my own effects, but i don't like having to step on 2 pedals to turn it on or off - i always screw up and either hit up or down.

when i do use it, i use a combination of delay with reverb for tapping, or a phaser with reverb. i guess even with individual pedals i'd have to step on 2 if i wanted the same thing i have now. :/

 

[tplyons]

Very seldom. It depends on what the song calls for.

 

[Joe P]

Boss CS-3 compressor - all the time
Aphex Bass Xciter - all the time
Boss NS-2 noise supressor - all the time
Boss ODB-3 distortion - maybe five songs in a show (was much more often with the Classic Rock band - now I'm in a Funk/dance band)
Boss CEB-3 chorus - uhh.. maybe one in three or four songs..

Next, I think I'm getting this freaky-sonding real light overdrive I tried, called "Xray Bass" by Black Box. It has a strong natural compression; it brings-out low harmonics, and makes double-stops sound wierd and cool. At the same time, though, it does this without really clipping. It can also give the tone of the notes sort of a changing vowel kind of sound - like a real-light envelope follower. I figure I'd use that for maybe half a show. It can also do a growly light distortion that I like.

Joe

 

[phxlbrmpf]

If you count compression as an effect, I guess I, too, use effects in every second of every song.

I usually use them for the handful of "bass only" breaks our songs have. I also use a very slight distortion for three songs, some heavier distortion with octave up for one song and a bit of octave down for the main riff of one song.

 

[Alun]

It depends on what the song calls for.

Same here.

Alun

 

[keb]

Most of the time it's straight up bass. Once in a while I'll kick in a phaser or flanger or something for a little Emeril-style BAM! on a phrase or run, but that's about it. I like a very slightly overdriven sound that's on the verge of breakup, but I don't really consider that an "effect."

On guitar, it's a whole other matter. I love delay and chorus, as my guitar playing has some definite Alex Lifeson and Andy Summers influence.

 

[KB]

I use them a lot with my current band to help fill out the sound since we are a 3 piece trying to pull off music with more complex structure and sounds

 

[EricF]

There's nothing that I'm running all the time and mostly I'm just running a clean signal to my SVT, but as needed for the song I could be using heavy OD, mild OD, or any variety of reverb and/or chorus.