Pedals, effects and the like...

[AndyMopley]

I'll admit I've never had (or felt) the need to get some of the additional hardware some people buy (compression, sustainer, pre-amp etc.).
I have always found that what I can control on my bass and what I can manipulate on my amp works fine, for most (pubs, cafes, small club) situations.

I presume that the type of music played will influence the need to have a specialised sound - but this said, are they usually "nice to have" rather than must have? How much influence can the amp have over the shape of your sound?

PS - I've often wondered if the pursuit of one's own sound (specific to bass) is a task that may be dissipated on the general audience (but not on fellow musicians).

Regards to all

 

[JonathanPDX]

Every amplifier has a preamp, you cannot run an instrument signal direct into a power amp.

Most club gigs don't need a compressor and I'm not sure what you mean by "sustainer" as it's usually a tool guitarists use, unless you're referring to tools like the Freeze pedal, which is a pretty niche and uncommon pedal to see in the clubs.

Some people do use an additional preamp pedal to toggle a totally different EQ setup from their amplifier/bass tone, though it's hardly necessary and I'd say the vast majority of bass players don't do this live.

Effects really come down to the sounds in your head and what you want your instrument to sound like. If you're listening to a lot of old Bootsy Collins records you might search for sounds that your bass can't produce without an envelope filter or other effects. If you only listen to The Beatles you probably don't even have an idea of what the purpose of such a pedal would be.

Personally, I play gigs where I have to double for a key bass player so at times I want my bass to match the synth tone. I have overdrive, octave down, envelopes, and various other tools to match different synth tones as needed.

 

[Krakmann]

Salud!

I used a SansAmp because I loved the mild saturation of the drive and other sound sculpting options. As some songs required the odd octaver/chorus/distortion/etc., I changed it for a Zoom B6, then a HX Stomp (for size). I really like the sound of the bass through an amp sim, apart from the other effects.

I really think bass tone doesn't matter that much past a certain quality minimum, but if a song needs an octaver or a fuzz, well, it needs it.

 

[ardgedee]

I prefer to think of the whole signal chain, from bass to speaker, as a single instrument. Changing any component alters the nature of the instrument.

If your instrument doesn't need effects for what you do, that's great! Right tool for the right job, and all that.

 

[Nuisance]

I've always been of the school that the bass chain should be simple. Bass>>>>amp. Possibly a compressor.

Much else seems to get lost in the mix. However, I do not feel that way about my guitar gear and there are entire threads up here devoted to bass effects.

If you don't love or need effects, count it a blessing. More money to blow on basses (and amps).

 

[Ritter667]

Depends entirely on the music you are playing.

For some music additional effect are totally unnecessary, while for other music they would be crucial.

Personally I use an "amp-less" setup, mainly for consistency of tone whether I am practicing at home, recording, rehearsing/jamming with band, or playing a gig, so for me pedals are my setup, that is absolutely crucial, even for just my basic "clean" tone, in other words part of my pedal setup is my entire rig.

As for whether the audience care, again that depends on the type of music you are playing, personally I don't play music for people who doesn't actually listen and pay attention.

And I don't really understand why some people would, beyond paying their bills, or for their own enjoyment, and if it is for own enjoyment, why not also actually have a rig YOU enjoy playing through and the sound of, whatever that might take?

I don't want to go into the discussion about artist versus craftmanship, but quality art and craftwork would both seek to strive deliver the perfect product/piece, no matter if the customer/audience notice/care for it or not, simply out of professional pride, why would bass players be any different in that regard?

That is not to say that you can't get the perfect tone out of just a bass directly into an amp, but again that would entirely depend on personal preferences and what type of music you are actually playing.

 

[Deleted member 394181]

I never used Compression. After over 35 years of playing, i started using it. A revelation.

 

[Zooberwerx]

I never used Compression. After over 35 years of playing, i started using it. A revelation.

That would be my first "step from the lion's head" (Indiana Jones) in terms of maximum impact. A character pedal (BDDI, etc.) can also be a lot of fun. Good news is both can be very affordable and, in some instances, rolled into one single pedal. Come to think of it, I have three low-dough offerings at my disposal....Tech 21 Bass FlyRig (v1), EHX Battalion, and a Sonicake B Factory.

Riis

 

[Ostie]

When I first started playing bass almost fifty years ago, I used a compressor and a chorus. Amps weren’t as sophisticated, and pedals weren’t as popular or available back then, but those sounds were popular, especially in the 80s. As I grew older I started chasing tone more through the instrument than through a pedal. This applied to all of my instruments, to the point where I now prefer acoustic guitar to electric, and I’m very aware of the tones of say, Fender compared to Gibson compared to Rickenbacker compared to MM, etc. I’m not implying that everyone should do this, I’m just relating how my journey unfolded.

 

[Dottore]

How about a chorus on a fretless? Sometimes even a little reverb? Can be great when you have a lot of space in the mix like in a balad. For the rest I would not use any effects. They tend to destroy the original tone you went for when you originally chose your particular bass guitar. Just like Ostie is saying.

 

[el murdoque]

These pedals are mere tools and how you use them is entirely up to you.

I can use a hammer to drive a screw into a drywall. The result will not exactly be pretty, but the screw will be "in".

There certainly are a few things you can't play without using pedals, but that's rather niche. Off the top of my head - when you're attempting to play Tool, it's a good idea to bring a delay pedal.

You can do an entire career of plugging straight into your amp and never use a stompbox, no problem - just steer clear of silent stage bands that use IEM.

 

[Jason Hollar]

I’ve always been a minimalist with basically bass > amp.

However, I also played mostly active basses.

Since I switched to passive basses, I started dabbling with pedals. I find at the very least, an EQ with HPF is very beneficial. And I recently rediscovered the Keeley bassist comp / limiter.

I’ve got a new lil pedalboard I’m going to take out this year and see how it goes. That said, I can still go au natural when it’s a quick hit or crappy load in.

 

[stingray69]

When I first started playing, I had zero desire to have any kind of effects pedal whatsoever. Thought I had no need for them. But slowly, I learned that there are some basic tools that are extremely practical & just make sense - compressors, parametric EQ's, HPF's, etc.

These days, I use a Zoom multieffects pedal & my speakers & my tone thank me for it. I still don't have much use for 80% of the effects available in it such as flangers/wahs, synths, etc, (although nice to have if needed), but the basic sound sculpting tools are indispensable to me now.

 

[waveman]

Can you get by without pedals, sure. But that is boring.

Edit: From a creative standpoint adding effects is cool and adds special sauce when recording. Also think about folks who cover several genres in one night. Having pedals helps sculpt tones for each style. Then there are times where a bass player is covering synth lines, pedals are necessary to cop that synthy thing.

 

[S-Bigbottom]

Pedals are now doing what rack gear did in a smaller box.

For Amp less stages, it is nice to have atleast a preamp with eq, a highpass filter, tuner that mutes and a DI box all in a small board configuration and sometimes a single pedal box instead of a four rack space case.

 

[Atshen]

My most precious pedal is my preamp 'cause my amp doesn't sound very good by itself. But the pedals that are the most fun are my octaver, my chorus/flanger, and of course my wah!

 

[Savage_Dreams]

PS - I've often wondered if the pursuit of one's own sound (specific to bass) is a task that may be dissipated on the general audience (but not on fellow musicians).

A unique, individualized sound may not be directly noticed by an average audience member, but it is part of what can add up to a overall unique sounding band. The general audience may not know why the band sounds interesting, but it can add up to the overall sound of a great band.

It also doenst matter if anyone notices what you have going on. If it inspires you to do something better, that is what will draw people in regardless of if they get it or not.

 

[NickyBass]

I'm pretty deep into effects. And I will recommend specific effects for specific situations. But, I always look at the situation first. My approach is less to do with the desire to add something new, and more to do with feeling that something is missing that could be resolved by effects.
Of course that doesn't mean that I haven't tried a ton of pedals for the experience. There was a good 25 year run that I had a board full of pedals that I never gigged. It wasn't until I started to play music that I felt would benefit from OD, octave and distortion that I started to bring them out. Couple that with going ampless, and it made sense.
On the other side of the coin, I also feel that NOT using pedals because I want to "keep it simple" would make me miss out on all sorts of cool and useful tones.

But, there are many ways to approach it. Some people use them for inspiration or for solo projects or any number of situations. So, I would say---nice to have or need to have? Depends on the situation.

 

[Old Fart]

I am currently going down the effects rabbit-hole. I do need different sounds, sometimes very different sounds, in my current project which includes funk, disco and rock. Pedals are nice to have, particularly compression, and a pedal board allows quick-switching. I do not have time to adjust EQ knobs on my amp/preamp. My preamp is still a Mesa head (WD-800 or TT-800) and I can add a stage cabinet if needed but otherwise I am cabinet-free and direct to the board.

Like others say here, it all depends on what you are trying to do. In my past projects I needed nothing more than a P-bass and a decent-sounding amp. If I returned to that, then I would not need pedals. But I am pretty much done with ancient Classic Rock.

 

[WG Plum]

Depends on what you do. Do you need pedals? Only you can answer that. If you're happy with your sound without them, great!

I happen to find pedals a ton of fun and they're a big part of my sound, but what I do isn't what I would call broadly appealing. I almost never used pedals back when I was in proper bands and gigging/recording with them, but now, all these years later, when I'm doing what I want to do, yeah, PEDALS!