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Most useful pedal?

What would you reccomend as the most useful pedal onstage? I play i a rock covers band and have always played effects free. - but would like to experiment a bit.

I have Boss OD and Syb5 (never used)and any reccomendations for favourite settings on these would be interesting too.
 
A mute pedal is hella useful onstage, and so is a tuner. But that's not very exciting. You should ask yourself "what am I trying to achieve with my sound?" And then look around to see what effect (if any) will get you that result. I guarantee, absolutely NO effects are useful if you don't have a use for them. :) Maybe if you told us what sort of "rock covers" you play, that could narrow it down; for example, if you play 80's pop then you might want a chorus, but if you play dirty blues-rock you might want an overdrive.
 
I play a lot of funk-oriented jam music, so an envelope filter is my pedal of choice. There are lots of different kinds available. I've got a Meatball shipping to me right now, but I'd recommend the Emma DiscumBOBulator if you're into that kind of sound.

My other favorite effect is the octave divider. It creates a note an octave below the one you play. The EBS Octabass is the best one I've come across. It really thickens your sound.

In mainstream rock, I don't use any effects, although you might want to look into flangers. They create a cool swishy effect. Boss makes a pretty nice one.

Hope this helps!

Spencer
 
...if I could only have 1 box (thank goodness I don't), I'd make it an octaver, specifically an EHX POG...

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...another choice might be OD/distortion/fuzz, take your pick, or find a pedal that cover as much territory here as possible...I'd suggest a Studio Electronics Wolftone Chaos...

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http://www.pedalgeek.com/cgi-bin/ne...d=SoHL9QAA1171629205&uzc=&command=link--sewtc

...perhaps a filter (Maxon AF-9)...

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http://www.pedalgeek.com/cgi-bin/new_shop.cgi?config=&uid=SoHL9QAA1171629205&command=link--af9

...or some sort of modulation (a million options, but a suggestion or two):

phaser (EHX Small Stone or Moog MF-103)...

http://www.pedalgeek.com/cgi-bin/new_shop.cgi?config=&uid=SoHL9QAA1171629727&command=link--ehssus

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vibe (Retroman Uber)...

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flanger (Maxon FL-9)...

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chorus (Analogman Clone Chorus w/Deep Switch or EHX Small Clone)...

http://www.analogman.com/clone.htm

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tremolo (Cusack Tap-A-Whirl)...

http://www.cusackmusic.com/?page=details&type=Products&item=Tap-A-Whirl

leslie (DLS RotoSim)...

http://www.dlseffects.com/roto_sim.php

...or delay (DLS EchoTap, Boss DD-20)...

http://www.dlseffects.com/echotap.php
http://www.bossus.com/index.asp?pg=1&tmp=121
 
A mute pedal is hella useful onstage, and so is a tuner. But that's not very exciting. You should ask yourself "what am I trying to achieve with my sound?" And then look around to see what effect (if any) will get you that result. I guarantee, absolutely NO effects are useful if you don't have a use for them. :) Maybe if you told us what sort of "rock covers" you play, that could narrow it down; for example, if you play 80's pop then you might want a chorus, but if you play dirty blues-rock you might want an overdrive.

+1

Boss TU-2. You must play in tune, as Bongo said, it isn't very exciting, but I never gig without mine. Apart from the tuner, I'd say an overdrive/fuzz and octaver for just general rock. Maybe an envelope filter if you get funky, maybe a comp if fancy a squeeze, but the most important thing to do is ask yourself, will this sound work in the band?

But in my honest opinion, the tuner is the pedal that will never leave your board or be away from your toes.
 
Sounds like some kind of overdrive would do th etrick. The Boss is OK. I think there are better ones, bu it's not overly expensive, and does have nice controls - tone, overdrive, mix or blend.

Lots of poeple like their Fulltone's. More expensive. I've never tried one.
 
All I use is:

Boss TU-2 Tuner (mutes when activated which is really handy when playing live)

A 2 button footswitch that came with my amp. I have set it up with button A being mute and B engages/disengages the built in EQ.

That's it!

Oh, I bought a $20 used DOD Chorus recently on eBay to play around with but I doubt it will get much use.

If my amp didn't have a built in EQ, I would likely buy a Boss Bass EQ.

I like my guitar effects (electric 6 string), but not a big fan of them when playing bass.