I’d recommend a cheap multi fix too, not because it’s really any good but because it’s good enough to learn what effects you would like to try a high quality version of.
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A tuner pedal is the most practical, but tuning can be accomplished with clip ons for the most part.
A clean signal booster is the least exciting, but it can add a lot to your sound even though most people won’t know you have one.
Or maybe your bass is already active, and in that case, I would suggest MXR Bass Octave Deluxe mini or large, probably large if you are only using one pedal (mini pedals tend to fall over on their own.)
A clean signal booster is the least exciting, but it can add a lot to your sound even though most people won’t know you have one.
Or maybe your bass is already active, and in that case, I would suggest MXR Bass Octave Deluxe mini or large, probably large if you are only using one pedal (mini pedals tend to fall over on their own.)
I recommend that you figure out what you are trying to accomplish and then pick the pedal that fills that need. Buying pedals at random just because some stranger on the internet recommends them can be expensive and disappointing. If you have no idea what you are trying to accomplish, get a good multi-effects pedal and figure out what sound you are looking for.
My first and only pedal is a Darkglass B7K ultra v2. Awesome EQ, a ton of great gnarly OD settings, direct out, has headphones-out/aux-in so I can use it as a quiet practice rig at my desk, etc. Kills a flock of birds with one stone for my purposes. Only things I want for pedal-wise are a tuner pedal and a fuzz, but both are lower priority for now.
I’ve been one of those “no pedal” guys for ages.
However I recently bought a Source Audio Spectrum. Lots of fun dialing in funky filters plus it’s got some good octave options, OD & fuzz, plus some delicious phasers and chorus sounds - among many other wild & synth type sounds I may not use much if at all.
It’s quite a bit of tweaking to personalize it - best for me on a desktop computer - but what else do we have to do with all these gigs cancelled?
However I recently bought a Source Audio Spectrum. Lots of fun dialing in funky filters plus it’s got some good octave options, OD & fuzz, plus some delicious phasers and chorus sounds - among many other wild & synth type sounds I may not use much if at all.
It’s quite a bit of tweaking to personalize it - best for me on a desktop computer - but what else do we have to do with all these gigs cancelled?
If I had to choose one pedal from my board, I'd use a clip tuner, and this would be the one.
I consider tuners, HPFs, clean boosts and most compressors to be utility pedals that don't add much "fun factor" to the sound, so I'll leave those out.
So, if you play pop or covers or if your band is a 3-piece, I would get an octave pedal. I'm partial to the analog options, but the POG or Pitchfork are also good and some people hate the glitchiness inherent to analog octave pedals. It can really fill out the sound and make your bass/band sound huge.
If you play rock or country, a nice overdrive pedal can be nice. Something that will get you some fatness and harmonic richness without too much filth or sounding too aggressive. Fifth Gear, Bearfoot Queen Bee, Barbershop, Pork Loin.
Last, if you have any use for a more aggressive dirt sound, get something based on the venerable ProCo RAT. It does a really nice low gain sound, but can also get really aggressive and nasty. Great all-around distortion that is useful through the whole range of the gain pot. I like the Fuzzrocious Cat Tail and MXR Bass Distortion, but the kings IMO are the Dunwich Volt Thrower and the Broughton Locust Star, both of which are much more difficult to obtain.
So, if you play pop or covers or if your band is a 3-piece, I would get an octave pedal. I'm partial to the analog options, but the POG or Pitchfork are also good and some people hate the glitchiness inherent to analog octave pedals. It can really fill out the sound and make your bass/band sound huge.
If you play rock or country, a nice overdrive pedal can be nice. Something that will get you some fatness and harmonic richness without too much filth or sounding too aggressive. Fifth Gear, Bearfoot Queen Bee, Barbershop, Pork Loin.
Last, if you have any use for a more aggressive dirt sound, get something based on the venerable ProCo RAT. It does a really nice low gain sound, but can also get really aggressive and nasty. Great all-around distortion that is useful through the whole range of the gain pot. I like the Fuzzrocious Cat Tail and MXR Bass Distortion, but the kings IMO are the Dunwich Volt Thrower and the Broughton Locust Star, both of which are much more difficult to obtain.
If your amp doesn't have one a compressor my second choice would be a bass driver DI pedal like Sans Amp
Always good to have if some day we get back to live performances and your have to go direct.
Always good to have if some day we get back to live performances and your have to go direct.
Oh, that's easy for me: overdrive/distortion (pay no attention to my TB handle, I don't do fuzz).
I use a little to a lot depending on what style of music I'm playing, but with very few exceptions I always use at least a little. This remains true for every genre: pop, oldies, trad country/bluegrass/jazz, etc. I still dial in noticeable overdrive, but make sure the top end doesn't sound metal.
I own quite a few overdrive/distortion pedals for variety, but could get by with just one.
If you're not sure about overdrive, go on YouTube and surf through isolated bass tracks. You'll be surprised how many are dirty. Just one example:
It seems like a lot of suggestions so far might be from people who have had at least moderate experience with effects, or the "What's my 'Desert Island' Pedal?" view, and not about what would be good for someone who has no pedal experience at all. To be clear, there's nothing wrong with either as there are some very good suggestions so far. Some of my most used pedals across all gigs are the "not so fun" ones... compressors, EQ and preamps.
But if *I* could have only one? (as someone who started on a Zoom 506 and has been into effects for 20 years)... It would be the Source Audio C4, without a doubt. I play in a couple cover bands and it covers so much ground there, plus it's also just plain fun. I can lose hours just tinkering around and making sounds. It's certainly good just by using the stock sounds out of the box or plugging in sounds from the Neuro Community, but it's also a highly in-depth pedal that requires time investment and understanding of how effects (and synth!) work to truly get the most out of it.
For someone with no experience in effects, the suggestions of a decent multi-fx are the way to go. They'll give you a great starting point to explore effects you like, and then you can further explore the land of Oz from there. The Zoom B1 Four that people have been mentioning would probably be a great one to start with, but I'd suggest popping for the extra $20 to get the B1x Four and have the expression pedal. It'd totally be worth it IMO to see if an expression/volume control is something you'd use as well.
5sg.
But if *I* could have only one? (as someone who started on a Zoom 506 and has been into effects for 20 years)... It would be the Source Audio C4, without a doubt. I play in a couple cover bands and it covers so much ground there, plus it's also just plain fun. I can lose hours just tinkering around and making sounds. It's certainly good just by using the stock sounds out of the box or plugging in sounds from the Neuro Community, but it's also a highly in-depth pedal that requires time investment and understanding of how effects (and synth!) work to truly get the most out of it.
For someone with no experience in effects, the suggestions of a decent multi-fx are the way to go. They'll give you a great starting point to explore effects you like, and then you can further explore the land of Oz from there. The Zoom B1 Four that people have been mentioning would probably be a great one to start with, but I'd suggest popping for the extra $20 to get the B1x Four and have the expression pedal. It'd totally be worth it IMO to see if an expression/volume control is something you'd use as well.
5sg.
It’s hard to know what one pedal would be best to start with, but these thought experiments are fun.
There are utility pedals worth having if you need them - tuner, preamp/DI, maybe a compressor could be added in this category for certain uses.
I would guess that a drive pedal would be nice to start with. There are so many out there that it may take some time finding one that works for you. You will get many recommendations. My personal favorite is the Vulcan by Pike Amplification: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] I am able to get sounds that I like from it that suit my taste. And if I had to choose only one, for most of my gigs an OD is the one pedal I would need more than any other to catch the vibe for certain songs.
There are utility pedals worth having if you need them - tuner, preamp/DI, maybe a compressor could be added in this category for certain uses.
I would guess that a drive pedal would be nice to start with. There are so many out there that it may take some time finding one that works for you. You will get many recommendations. My personal favorite is the Vulcan by Pike Amplification: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] I am able to get sounds that I like from it that suit my taste. And if I had to choose only one, for most of my gigs an OD is the one pedal I would need more than any other to catch the vibe for certain songs.
I’m so new to pedals I didn’t really know how to ask my original question. I’m wanting a effects pedal with preferably a built in tuner no EQ or preamp
Thanks
Thanks
I think any of the Zoom small footprint multieffects have a great flexible selection of effects for you to experiment (and have a tuner too, of course). I'd go MS-60B for the smallest footprint (literally one pedal) or B3 if you want XLR out and a sound interface (+ exp. pedal connection) and more options for switching patches. I've stuck with the previous generation after getting a B1X Four I didn't like much (noisier and real boxy sounding in comparison). Also the B1on/Xon are worth a look (also own a G1Xon myself), sound exactly the same as my MS-60B/B3. With either generation there's also the posibility to "customize" your firmware (your available effects really) with effects from other (i.e. guitar) models. All in all plenty of fun and power in such small cheap units (and great tone if you're willing to spend the tweaking time).
