Octaver pedal for slap bass

[barcelomi]

Hi! I want try octave pedals for the first time. I play the thumpin, the plucking, and occasionally the strummin, which are your pedals of choice for this tecniques?

 

[TOOL460002]

I love slap and I love effects but I don't know about the pitch combo. I tried a few settings on my Digitech Bass Whammy and I cannot find a use case for any intervals to be honest. If you do wish to try it out you'll want something polyphonic. Unless you're heavily muting and going staccato slapping you will have multiple notes ringing at the same time.

Now, for an octave down, you definitely limit how low you can play unless you're fine with a little lag/uncleanness. So think about open string hammer-ons and you lose a clean open E. It does "work" going up octaves or 5ths etc, but it does not sound good to my ear as a concept.

Slap also has a lot of speed, dynamic range, and ghost notes to it which really feels like the opposite of an ideal pitch-shifting input signal. Hopefully someone has a better answer or just go experiment and come back with your results/opinion.

 

[Zbysek]

For slap, I would use Compressor and EQ. I wouldn't use octaver.

 

[L-u-A-R]

If you really want to try; a digital octaver that's polyphonic with excellent tracking is your best bet for keeping up with strums and different techniques.
EHX Pogs come to mind.
A compressor will likely still be very helpful.

 

[barcelomi]

For slap, I would use Compressor and EQ. I wouldn't use octaver.

the octaver would be for messing a bit and doing different things, larry graham used a mu-tron

 

[BassBrass]

For the "strummin" (sounds like Pratchett's Nak Mc Feegle speak), which I assume you mean strumming Chords, no octave down can make sense of it, but a 5th up works great with 2 note chords, I use an EH Pitchfork, and octave up is cleaner than down. 3rd down is ok too.

 

[SC Bassboy]

Getting an octave pedal to track slap parts is just about impossible. You would have to play as cleanly as possible, probably no notes lower than the A string and you can't play too fast. My MXR octave works best when I play slower and pluck above the neck. It also tracks fretless better than fretted, which seems to just be an octave pedal thing. So, it's possible but you won't have much luck playing any Mark King slap parts with it without weird artifacts. Ben Carrey from Pigeons Playing Ping Pong is a master at using octave effects while following the funk. They released a live album last year and it's all over it. Give "F.U." a listen.

 

[MultiScaleMale]

Boss OC-3, GUITAR input, POLY Mode, When the RANGE is straight up, it will octave double anything below 12th fret on the G string, adjust to taste with that starting point. So the upper clicks from popping can be removed from the octaving and you just get more "thump".

 

[HolmeBass]

the octaver would be for messing a bit and doing different things, larry graham used a mu-tron

Mutron envelope filter, not octave divider, right?

Plus I'd say his use of fuzz was his primary contribution to effected bass tones.

 

[bassbrad]

Consider a Source Audio Spectrum for your octaver and envelope needs all in one that also includes distortion to add dimension and crunch with the ability to mix clean with effect, plus there are also LFO effects for phase and other filter options. Spectrum tracks down to E and below for me with the right touch. Spectrum covers the coveted OC2 tones admirably and offers the sounds of other popular and vintage octavers as well.

 

[TeaTime]

If you find a solution, do please do a how-to post here, I'd really like to see it.

I've settled into compression, eq, and envelope filter.

For octaves I tried splitting the signal into various frequency groupings so I could more finely apply the effects, still couldn't get it to work in a way I'd want to use in front of an audience. There are always multiple things ringing, confusing tracking. When really getting into a faster groove there are too many things changing far too quickly for accurate tracking.

 

[Michedelic]

Hi! I want try octave pedals for the first time. I play the thumpin, the plucking, and occasionally the strummin, which are your pedals of choice for this tecniques?

EHX Pitchfork, TRex Quint, and TC Sub'n'Up mini, all with comp at a mild setting before them.

 

[jtg]

Stick an hpf after to control those ultra low end transients. All the sweet tone, without the bill for replacement drivers.

 

[barcelomi]

Mutron envelope filter, not octave divider, right?

Plus I'd say his use of fuzz was his primary contribution to effected bass tones.

my mistake, but i think he use it too

 

[BARBOL_BASS]

the octaver would be for messing a bit and doing different things, larry graham used a mu-tron

If you want to experiment, maybe try a BassWhammy, something that gives you control with your foot. For example, you could do a pop and then go up octave, and then back down to the pitch. That's one idea. Now, if you want to keep the low octave engaged all the time for slapping and strummin, it will create a somewhat thick sound that isn't recommended because you lose intelligibility. However, if you achieve a balance with some pre- or post-octave EQ, You could get somewhere good.

If you come up with something interesting, share it with the forum so we can see your success.