Mixing expensive and not expensive effects, will it work?

[BassBrass]

It's all about bypass. Noise can be coped with, once the sound starts it isn't audible. I used to use bypass loops for old guitar effects, now it isn't necessary because there are so many great bass effects.
btw, Aftershock, for me, being digital (and I swear I can hear the difference in sound and attack envelope) is way down the list. I'd rather use a ssbs Mini to get It's 4 or 5 better sounds than any 50 sounds on the Aftershock and the Mini is comparable price here, under $150. To have jfet distortion with starve voltage control and full bass freq. is the epitome of convenience. (the Mini) I reserve digital to time delay/reverb and synth effects and if I have to spend more than 15 minutes getting a sound, I'm starting a new project. I use TC's Toneprints but SA's system is too mobile telephone related for me.

 

[Bassbeater]

once the sound starts it isn't audible.

In between notes it can be an issue. Also an issue with loud amplification or during recording. Noise gates can help. I put a noise gate on noisy dirt loops(when I use them) for just this reason. Additionally the types of pedals that make clean signals sound better(compression/boost) can make a noisy signal chain unusable. For me it's trial and error with new pedals and what I can get away with.

 

[BassBrass]

In between notes it can be an issue. Also an issue with loud amplification or during recording. Noise gates can help. I put a noise gate on noisy dirt loops(when I use them) for just this reason. Additionally the types of pedals that make clean signals sound better(compression/boost) can make a noisy signal chain unusable. For me it's trial and error with new pedals and what I can get away with.

Oh I agree, but what is this "in between notes" you speak of? I use a Joyo Orange Juice ($39) which hisses like a buggah (MA accent) After a ssbs TAFM because That combination sounds awesome, like a 15" no tweeter cab sim, but in between notes playing stoner fuzz Should be hissy so it's fine. It's a mistake to leave the OJ on in between songs. (It also sounds great after an envelope follower, makes a nice vintage dirty envelope)

 

[ELynx]

Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t consider the Zoom to be a “cheap” brand in the first place. I see plenty of them on TGP boards.

Me neither, this is why I don't use that word. Especially now when I am just figuring out what effects I want to use at all it does what should and then more. I can have a couple pedalboard worth of experiment space, all in one unit. With recent software it got creating presets is really easy.
Thus I call it inexpensive: it does a lot for a price tag.

on AS

 

[ELynx]

Also side note, there are thousands of free VST effects many of which sound great and are very versatile and unique. And you could absolutely mix them with fancy expensive pedals and get amazing results. Whatever sound goods works.

I do have a decent recording interface. I might do exactly that, at least for learning purposes.

 

[ELynx]

btw, Aftershock, for me, being digital (and I swear I can hear the difference in sound and attack envelope) is way down the list.

My main desire to test it is because I have possibility to dual mono P and J pickups and run different "engines" on each with AS. I doubt I will find a sonic holy grail, but hey, at least I have something to run dual mono, gives a reason for crafting it in first place.

 

[Ronbeast]

I use a zoom ms50g on my guitar board, right at the end and I’ve never considered it a “cheap” effect. I consider it a Swiss Army knife in that it saved me hundreds of dollars in not having to buy dedicated delays, reverbs, tremolo, plus it’s nice to not have to buy another tuner. It’s just a great pedal to have on your board and it happens to share space with a $20 dynacomp clone, a few midrange ehx, boss and mxr pedals, and then it’s topped off with a Harben Audio Octave Fuzz, the most expensive pedal I own.

Its really down to the pedals you’re using together, where they’re located in the chain, and how much time you spend tweaking it to work. In the end, the price is irrelevant.

 

[BurtMacklinFBI]

You'll be fine, you won't run into any problems that you weren't already having with the inexpensive gear. That's not to say that inexpensive gear can't cause problems necessarily, just that you won't magically have some new problems specifically because of mixing expensive and inexpensive gear.

 

[ItsmeSantiago]

I paid $50 for my most used pedal, a tuner, and $230 for my least used pedal, an EQD Transmisser. Point being, I had to pay up for that one specific sound, but I'm content using more "standard issue" pedals. In my experience, the noise issues start to arise when you crank it up. I have a Tomsline chorus pedal and it sounds great in my room but was unusable live, so it's my practice chorus :- )

 

[sawzalot]

All of these opinions are crap. Of COURSE you need to line them up in dollar order, preferably cheapest first, based on the original MSRP adjusted for inflation and amortization minus depreciation until you sell one and then you have to adjust the pedalboard for capital gains.

 

[TheLowDown33]

The problem of mixing pedals, cheap or otherwise, tends to come from sharing power supplies. Cheaper digital pedals tend to have issues because they introduce clock noise to daisy chains. Give them their own isolated power and all is well. Use what sounds good, just dont skimp on power.

 

[micguy]

A chain is only as good as it's least expensive link.

Seriously, I have bought and returned pedals that were expensive. I have bought and returned cheap ones. I have some of each I've kept. Below a certain dollar amount, it becomes difficult to make a good housing, jacks and pc board, much less the parts, so if you're cruising the real bargain basement stuff (often the stuff that claims it "sounds like...."), you shouldn't expect too much, but with most pedals nowadays it's hard to argue that price and quality are highly linked.

 

[BassBrass]

My main desire to test it is because I have possibility to dual mono P and J pickups and run different "engines" on each with AS. I doubt I will find a sonic holy grail, but hey, at least I have something to run dual mono, gives a reason for crafting it in first place.

Oh you people from Saint Petersburg are so smaht. (this is true, I knew a publisher from there who got me a first job. And the music education, unparalleled) I'm sure your efforts with these "engines" will be worth the effort just in fun received. You can put a Muff on the P and a Rat on the J! wow.

 

[bearfoot]

It will most likely work fine.

I'm not an FX wizard, but another option to chaining them together is to put them on separate aux sends on a mixer.

 

[mcnach]

I specifically did not use word "cheap" because when something has good bang/buck ratio it is not so bad.

My current GAS list is very short, I dream of Source Audio Aftershock. What I have is Zoom B1Xon processor which I use to test out different effect types and combinations. I also use it as a practice station.

Question is, if I ever buy Aftershock, will it make sense to put my Zoom into same signal chain with it? E.g. as compressor or EQ.
In general, if I buy one expensive effect, should I buy only same $ level gear afterwards, or I can build from whatever I have at hand, and if it is not a piece of junk in itself it should be fine. Maybe going $$$ -> $$ -> $ order make sense, or reverse.

This is aimed at people who ever did this, because I want to map my "growth strategy" for possible future pedalboard.

why do you think that price may influence your choice that way?

Judge each pedal for what it does. We're not talking hi-fi here, but *effects* pedals. So as long as the signal is transformed into something pleasing, that's cool.

I've mixed them for as long as I remember... but if a pedal is low quality it goes (noisy switches, degrades too much the signal even when in bypass, hum...) price is irrelevant.

 

[red_rhino]

Any self-respecting effect of proper breeding and expense will refuse to share a pedalboard with a cheap, low-life effect that could be had by anyone. They will often unplug themselves from the signal chain or simply refuse to function.

 

[Sunset Shalom]

I do have a decent recording interface. I might do exactly that, at least for learning purposes.

Check out this site, it's probably the best resource for VST's: Invalid Link Removed

Great site, lets you browse just free or paid VST's, search by operating system and type, also has a great advanced search for finding specific stuff. Not every link works but most do, and you can always google specific ones to see if they are still available. Some older ones are gone forever it seems sadly. But there are still thousands of them.

 

[BurtMacklinFBI]

The problem of mixing pedals, cheap or otherwise, tends to come from sharing power supplies. Cheaper digital pedals tend to have issues because they introduce clock noise to daisy chains. Give them their own isolated power and all is well. Use what sounds good, just dont skimp on power.

This is very good advice. I tried to cut corners buying cheap power supplies and regretted it. Don't make the same mistake, buy a great quality power supply with more capacity than you think you'll need right now. You'll be glad you did.

 

[ELynx]

... I knew a publisher from there ...

Saint-Petersburg Russia
You might be thinking some other Saint-Pete. I checked Craigslist once, "global" directoty, then found my city, and found some ads that indeed were local (and really strange, few people know CL here) and some ads that were definitely "other" SP.

 

[EastCoastThump]

If it doesn't work, give the cheap pedal to a friend, and buy it back at the same price you paid for the expensive pedal. Now your pedals will be perfectly price-matched.

You might be tempted to "give" the more expensive pedal to a friend so you could buy it back for the price of the cheaper one, but then both pedals would sound cheap.

(BTW, you see now how pedalboard addiction gets expensive so quickly.)