LS-2 Advice

[shutt24]

I've been trying to incorporate more octave fuzz and heavy overdrive into my sound. Unfortunately my octave fuzz pedal doesn't have a dry knob, so I tend to lose a lot of low end content when the fuzz is turned up. I've been thinking about getting an LS-2 to allow for one "always-on" clean channel and one dirty channel, with distortion or octave fuzz. Does anyone have experience or advice with this setup? I'm just hoping to retain all the low-end fundamental content while also allowing for more dirty experimentation. I'm just worried about if the LS-2 will do a good job of letting both sounds "breath" and get the same amount of dynamics as possible when not using the LS-2. Thanks!

 

[Phe]

It's a good idea to add some light dirt to your clean channel as well and maybe add a compressor or yet another light dirt after the blend to glue things together.
I used to experiment with LS-2, but I prefer my dirts without a blend and I'm okay with losing a bit of low end.

 

[K2000]

The LS-2 was the solution I found, when I was having trouble getting a bass fuzz sound that was "just right". In the LS-2 "Mix" mode (channel 1 + 2) you can use the volume knobs to adjust the balance. I've tried a heavy fuzz with bass boost on one channel (Mountainking Megalith) and the other channel clean, and also with a grindy fuzz on the 2nd channel. Both ways give good results but I usually just leave channel 2 clean.

I went through all my fuzzes looking for a one-pedal solution. Some were too muddy, others cut the sustain, etc. I couldn't get what I wanted with just one fuzz.

This is definitely worth a try if your dirt pedal doesn't have a clean blend.

 

[SteveCS]

I've been trying to incorporate more octave fuzz and heavy overdrive into my sound. Unfortunately my octave fuzz pedal doesn't have a dry knob, so I tend to lose a lot of low end content when the fuzz is turned up. I've been thinking about getting an LS-2 to allow for one "always-on" clean channel and one dirty channel, with distortion or octave fuzz. Does anyone have experience or advice with this setup? I'm just hoping to retain all the low-end fundamental content while also allowing for more dirty experimentation. I'm just worried about if the LS-2 will do a good job of letting both sounds "breath" and get the same amount of dynamics as possible when not using the LS-2. Thanks!

You might want to consider the EHX tri-parallel mixer. It has 3 parallel loops and each return has a tilting EQ which will help you to remove some of the bottom end from the fuzz tone and maintain some 'separation'. It also has a phase switch which might be useful if your fuzz inverts the signal - which plenty do.

Tri Parallel Mixer | Effects Loop Mixer / Switcher - Electro-Harmonix

Alternatively, if you stick with the LS-2, maybe consider an EQ before the fuzz to (again) remove some of the bottom end to maintain low-end clarity in the final mix.

 

[crguti]

There are some fuzzes that invert the phase. Blending 2 signals and if 1 is inverted will result in some frequencies canceling out. It happens with my Swollen Pickle (actually is the Dirty Donny) and LS-2.

 

[Mr. voodoobass]

LS-2 is an excellent mix pedal, and I’ve used it alot in the past. It does however need some help sometimes.
Like already mentioned…
Best results are with an eq pedal together with the fuzz in first channel, to remove some bass.
Then another eq and a compressor in second channel, and remove some of the mids and treble to glue the tones together.
It does add up to lots of gear and I would rather recommend the ehx tri-mixer.
You might get it to work with just throwing your fuzz in one path of the LS-2. But some just wont work without flipping phase, and you wont know before you try.

 

[groooooove]

I've been trying to incorporate more octave fuzz and heavy overdrive into my sound. Unfortunately my octave fuzz pedal doesn't have a dry knob, so I tend to lose a lot of low end content when the fuzz is turned up. I've been thinking about getting an LS-2 to allow for one "always-on" clean channel and one dirty channel, with distortion or octave fuzz. Does anyone have experience or advice with this setup? I'm just hoping to retain all the low-end fundamental content while also allowing for more dirty experimentation. I'm just worried about if the LS-2 will do a good job of letting both sounds "breath" and get the same amount of dynamics as possible when not using the LS-2. Thanks!

yes, LS-2 can do this and much more. it's well worth the money.

I have one that is somewhat temperamental (have to step on it twice to get it to work?) that i'd be willing to sell very very cheap if you were interested.

but nonetheless, it's a great option. i've used it to add lows to a guitar model fuzz face, and all sorts of other stuff. great to mix two different signals, which can be not just fun but legitimately sound good.

there are other pedals that can do similar stuff, and some may have advantages depending on what you are looking for.

 

[henryjurstin13]

yes, LS-2 can do this and much more. it's well worth the money.

I have one that is somewhat temperamental (have to step on it twice to get it to work?) that i'd be willing to sell very very cheap if you were interested.

but nonetheless, it's a great option. i've used it to add lows to a guitar model fuzz face, and all sorts of other stuff. great to mix two different signals, which can be not just fun but legitimately sound good.

there are other pedals that can do similar stuff, and some may have advantages depending on what you are looking for.

I used to have this issue with an Ibanez TS9DX, lil bit of Deoxit was good as new (and has been for years since). If I were looking to try out a LS-2, this seems like a legit option to get started...

 

[Derek Williams]

I'd definitely look for something that can invert phase, especially if you want to blend an octave fuzz. It's very common for octave fuzz to reverse phase, which will cause some cancellation with your clean signal.

 

[Zbysek]

There are better blenders for blending Bass, imho.

I use Broughton FFXL and Byte Heaven Sugar Britches.

You might also look into the following:
Damnation Audio dirtfixer
Damnation audio Bloop (discontinued)
Tylecek

What I find important:
Phase switch
LPF on the clean channel
HPF on the wet channel

 

[JimmyM]

I’d much rather use a fuzz that doesn’t need a blend. I don’t like blends.

 

[Hamrlik]

I used a LS-2 for years with no noticeable phase cancellation and without a bunch of additional pedals to "correct" the sound. That's an online forum dilemma. It's a great utility pedal that will work well for your purposes.

 

[Derek Williams]

I used a LS-2 for years with no noticeable phase cancellation and without a bunch of additional pedals to "correct" the sound. That's an online forum dilemma. It's a great utility pedal that will work well for your purposes.

It happened to me well before I was on a forum. Would have been very helpful if someone had pointed it out to me so i didn’t have to wonder what was broken.

 

[Hamrlik]

What was broken, exactly ? Did you not get paid for a performance or just not hear that gorgeous, unattainable sound in your head? You can deep dive and spend more money all you want but the LS-2 is perfectly fine for this application plus more.

 

[Derek Williams]

What was broken, exactly ? Did you not get paid for a performance or just not hear that gorgeous, unattainable sound in your head? You can deep dive and spend more money all you want but the LS-2 is perfectly fine for this application plus more.

Ah, you’re a troll. Thanks for the warning. Bye!

 

[220_Hz]

Damnation audio dirtfixer is essential in this application for heavy music

 

[SteveCS]

What was broken, exactly ? Did you not get paid for a performance or just not hear that gorgeous, unattainable sound in your head? You can deep dive and spend more money all you want but the LS-2 is perfectly fine for this application plus more.

It is well known, and can be easily proven by analysis of schematics, that some analogue pedals invert the phase of the signal. In series and without blend this is not normally a problem. But putting them in a parallel path can, depending on the individual blend levels, cause cancellation problems when mixing back with the original input signal. Well-designed loop controllers have phase switches because they are useful and solve a problem, not to make them look sophisticated or expensive.