Minimal pedal setup for extreme metal bassist

[five7]

My b3k does it for me and my bongo and mesa 800

 

[stigbeve]

I loved the ODB-3 in a practice setting with two guitar half stacks and no pa support from any of us.

When we were playing a show if the bass signal with the ODB-3 got sent to the house it sounded like fuzz more than overdrive. The same went with tracking.

 

[Microbass]

I own a BDI21 and it's one of my favorite pedals. I'd definitely recommend it. It stacks nicely with dirt pedals and I'd suggest getting a decent one to stack.

My current band is post-hardcore.
This is my always on pedal. It's a great buy, doesn't ruin your low end (actually have to dial the bass back a small amount). In my experience it doesn't really do real dirty, but a nice grit. I have a B3k feeding into it which is on for around 50% of our set now, for the newer more metal'ish tunes.

I picked up the B3k Invalid Link Removed which looks to be the best price. From all the 'standards', such as Boss, Aggie, EHX that I tried, the DK stuff definitely will give you dirt without compromising your tone and place in the mix. Best bet is to try one and if you need to buy the remaining pedals in one go save up another month... I don't have any experience with the DOD and other boutique dirt pedals though..

 

[HawldieMPB]

I had an ODB-3 and it was the worst pedal. I couldn't make it sound good. And no matter how you set it disappears in a mix.
Spend all your money one really good drive. darkglass seems to be the go to in this category

 

[hintz]

If you're looking for cheap and awesome I'd recommend a used DOD FX 91 Bass Overdrive over the BOSS one(they both came out at the same time). $50 used, set everything at noon and you will cut thru the mix with no problems. I believe it's based off a Tubescreamer circuit, but much nicer... here check it out, this demo is very accurate! You'd have to get a used one BTW

 

[Tao_of_Bass]

Idiotbox effects bass blower box is what you seek!

Wow!!!

I am a Big Voivod fan and this pedal really seems to capture the Nothingface Era bass sound.It sounds nice overall. Voivod, Coroner and Psychotic Waltz are among my very favorite metal bands.Thanks for letting me know about this pedal ¨)

 

[Tao_of_Bass]

MetalZone

I have experimented with a Metalzone, i usually like it paired with guitars, for a sound similar to Slaughter of the soul by AT THE GATES, but it sounded kinda mediocre on bass...(for my taste ofc)

However i really wonder why there are no Bass specific mods for such a classic pedal.

 

[Haak1979]

I don't have a metalzone...but if you like it, maybe use it with an LS-2? Think the LS-2 would be nice for the Joyo and DOD too.

 

[ColonelZulu]

I have experimented with a Metalzone, i usually like it paired with guitars, for a sound similar to Slaughter of the soul by AT THE GATES, but it sounded kinda mediocre on bass...(for my taste ofc)

However i really wonder why there are no Bass specific mods for such a classic pedal.

At about 19:00

 

[kesslari]

I happen to have an Idiotbox Blowerbox in the Classifieds here - no idea what it would cost to ship to Athens, though...

 

[kleinenenten]

Wow!!!

I am a Big Voivod fan and this pedal really seems to capture the Nothingface Era bass sound.It sounds nice overall. Voivod, Coroner and Psychotic Waltz are among my very favorite metal bands.Thanks for letting me know about this pedal ¨)

Blower Bos I should great. Very gritty if you like that. I prefer the Volt Thrower for RAT style dirt, but both are more than capable.

 

[JeezyMcNuggles]

Hello Guys, its my first post here : )

I need your help and opinions about a small setup, i mostly play thrash death and black metal,and i am about to buy a few pedals (used) and try to shape my personal sound.

Played only with clean signal so far, and my trustworthy Squire PJ sounds pretty decent on its own.I am playing fingerstyle with aggressive plucking over the split coil and a healthy amount of fretbuzz. Standard tuning.

I am most possibly going for ODB-3 for some reasons i ll quickly mention.

.Fairly priced
.Built like a tank
.2 band EQ
. Enough(more than enough) gain
.Blend knob

Do you think that i might need something else to tame the beast ?

I often see it paired with LMB-3, another famous workhorse ! Or maybe GEB-7 would be a more versatile pick overall ?

I d like a 3 pedal setup, something similar to Tuner-Overdrive-and What else ? comp or eq ? The ODB-3 can provide some Eq-ing and the bass head has at least a 3 band eq too...but GEB-7 is a nice 7 band tool.

excuse for only mentioning Boss Pedals,but i genuinely like them : )

thank you for your time reading my post, I am waiting your replies and suggestions.

Its nice to be here with you fellas, i have learned a lot through this forum over the years.

Cheers !

Behringer Bass OverDrive. For real, it's not bad at all, and 20 bucks. Tuner...same. 20 bucks. Then, I'd get the Sansamp Paradriver v2...because.

 

[_One//Man//Mutiny_]

Wow!!!

I am a Big Voivod fan and this pedal really seems to capture the Nothingface Era bass sound.It sounds nice overall. Voivod, Coroner and Psychotic Waltz are among my very favorite metal bands.Thanks for letting me know about this pedal ¨)

You’re welcome, it’s definitely much more versatile than originally designed the guy that makes them seems like a good guy too!

 

[Tao_of_Bass]

Guys ! i ve just returned back home from an extensive soundcheck-testing on some boxes

The list:
Boss ODB-3/BB1-X
Behringer bdi21/BOD 400
Mxr m 80 +
EHX battalion
Ampeg scr Di

the D.I 's are actually what i am looking for...Adding some character to the sound and a mild grit if needed,along with nice connectivity options.

i ll write a few words for each one of them.

Behringer BDI 21: sounded really nice to me for the money,and their OD pedal too, but as soon as i plugged the other boxes i ve noticed it was actually my least favorite.I can buy their whole line of bass pedals with 200euros though hehehe

MXR m80+: When i actually plugged this box, it was the moment i started gravitating more towards buying a DI instead of a single OD.Nice Eq, nice construction, a lot of connection options, modern distorted sounds that can deliver.The Gate was imo somehow chocking my sound in a way i did not like.Maybe i didnt dial it properly. Color button was yummy.

EHX Battalion:I ve tried this box being very sceptic about it and i found out i didnt like neither the comp nor the gate on it,and it generally sounded kinda thin and way too bright to me.Its distortion options are nice (pre-post-dry) but i didnt managed to dial it a way close to my sonic vision.

Ampeg scr: Was even more sceptical when i saw it was made in China,but as soon as i plugged it, i realized i was getting the warmer tones so far.It was soooo easy to dial a good sound with it, almost impossible to dial a bad sound.Scrambler side was sounding nice, and blend control is always handy.By the time i pressed ultra low, i was thinking, wow this is sounding killer.Headphone out is also nice for home usage. I really like this Ampeg feature.

I am among MXR(169e new) and AMPEG(198e new)

Any extra thoughts and feedback on those 2 ? i ve read a lot of other threads regarding them,but still cant decide...

Fin tou’re talking black metal, you’ll need some serious distortion. Any specific style of black metal? Are you going for the old school style (where bass is often almost inaudible)? Or more modern, and typically better mixed black metal? Any bands/clips you could point to?

For me, any type of metal besides doom screams distortion. And that means B3K in my book. That’s a bit much for your budget it would seem. My second choice would be the Dunwich ODB-3, which is an OCD clone. Also too pricey. So, I’d go for the Joyo Ultimate Drive. It’s a dirt cheap OCD clone, and well-reviewed. You should be able to find a workable tone in that box.

I really wanted to answer this, indeed i play a lot of black metal.Old school and modern too.I ll send you a link with a bass sound i really like


thank you again guys,waiting for some more feedback on the subject, i plan to add a comp and tuner to the D.I and start from there

PS. i found the clean tone in Boss BB1X pretty organic and rich, but i was dissapointed by the lack of XLR out,and the lack of a really good high gain sound.Gain is enough only when you have more to dial in.

 

[AdamR]

I used the MXR for years. I really liked it with my GK 700RB. I ran it on the dirt channel but kept the blend really low. The color button scoops the mids, so you may need to dial in some more o=mids in a guitar heavy mix. Also, The color button it always on if you are on the distortion channel.

 

[el murdoque]

the D.I 's are actually what i am looking for...Adding some character to the sound and a mild grit if needed,along with nice connectivity options.


Behringer BDI 21: sounded really nice to me for the money,and their OD pedal too, but as soon as i plugged the other boxes i ve noticed it was actually my least favorite.I can buy their whole line of bass pedals with 200euros though hehehe

Have you tried the original Sansamp the Behringer is modeled on?
The BDDI v2 is a bit above 200 and hard to find used, but the Programmable BDDI is usually easy to find around 150.

 

[Tao_of_Bass]

Have you tried the original Sansamp the Behringer is modeled on?
The BDDI v2 is a bit above 200 and hard to find used, but the Programmable BDDI is usually easy to find around 150.

i did not try the BDDI v2, it was out of stock (maybe for a reason). I wish i could try Ampeg and Sansamp side by side.

 

[kleinenenten]

Guys ! i ve just returned back home from an extensive soundcheck-testing on some boxes

The list:
Boss ODB-3/BB1-X
Behringer bdi21/BOD 400
Mxr m 80 +
EHX battalion
Ampeg scr Di

the D.I 's are actually what i am looking for...Adding some character to the sound and a mild grit if needed,along with nice connectivity options.

i ll write a few words for each one of them.

Behringer BDI 21: sounded really nice to me for the money,and their OD pedal too, but as soon as i plugged the other boxes i ve noticed it was actually my least favorite.I can buy their whole line of bass pedals with 200euros though hehehe

MXR m80+: When i actually plugged this box, it was the moment i started gravitating more towards buying a DI instead of a single OD.Nice Eq, nice construction, a lot of connection options, modern distorted sounds that can deliver.The Gate was imo somehow chocking my sound in a way i did not like.Maybe i didnt dial it properly. Color button was yummy.

EHX Battalion:I ve tried this box being very sceptic about it and i found out i didnt like neither the comp nor the gate on it,and it generally sounded kinda thin and way too bright to me.Its distortion options are nice (pre-post-dry) but i didnt managed to dial it a way close to my sonic vision.

Ampeg scr: Was even more sceptical when i saw it was made in China,but as soon as i plugged it, i realized i was getting the warmer tones so far.It was soooo easy to dial a good sound with it, almost impossible to dial a bad sound.Scrambler side was sounding nice, and blend control is always handy.By the time i pressed ultra low, i was thinking, wow this is sounding killer.Headphone out is also nice for home usage. I really like this Ampeg feature.

I am among MXR(169e new) and AMPEG(198e new)

Any extra thoughts and feedback on those 2 ? i ve read a lot of other threads regarding them,but still cant decide...



I really wanted to answer this, indeed i play a lot of black metal.Old school and modern too.I ll send you a link with a bass sound i really like


thank you again guys,waiting for some more feedback on the subject, i plan to add a comp and tuner to the D.I and start from there

PS. i found the clean tone in Boss BB1X pretty organic and rich, but i was dissapointed by the lack of XLR out,and the lack of a really good high gain sound.Gain is enough only when you have more to dial in.

Of my suggestions, I’d likely go for an OCD of some kind based on that tone. Grittier to me than the B3K, which sounds more processed in comparison.

 

[Uncle Hanky]

If you’re into DI boxes/preamps, I use an Eden World Tour preamp/DI and it’s magical.

 

[Ethereal Thorn]

If on a tight budget get used pedals try to score a behringer bdi21 for pre/Di a boss ns2. Noise gate and a decent compressor the rest will be just fun stuff like fuzz or distortion, modulation,and delay ect.