• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Polyphonic Infinite Sustain Pedal Options

JES

JES

Supporting Member
Dec 12, 2003
3,780
5,880
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
#1
Hi All,

I was in a store to buy a Moogerfooger MF-101 and heard a Moog guitar for the first time. Totally mind bending. Of course I'd love to have a bass like that but since I don't have an insane amount of money to drop on hiring someone to invent it for me, it got me wondering about polyphonic infinite sustain options for bass. In other words, I want to be able to hold chords.

It looks like the Pigtronix Attack Sustain might be the ticket but I wonder if more experienced people might have already been down this road and whether it actually works. A search for infinite sustain on the board gives me a lot of threads on ebows, but I want polyphonic so I can do chords and textures through a delay.

Thanks!
 
#8
There are also some synth pedals like the Boss SYBs that have a "Hold" function, and will hold the note you are playing. The caveat is that it has to be the synthesized note- it won't hold a clean note. I don't know if those pedals are polyphonic or not.
 
#15
Bryan- the SYB's are monophonic but the hold function works well.

The Zcat pedals look cool, though they have considerable latency unlike the EHX 'shifters. I think it should also be said that the EHX 'polyphony' is quite limited, and I dont find that functionality to be usable due to heavy warbling on chords; only powerchords are reproduced without too much issue, so for other applications it works very well, just not the types of things I personally enjoy playing. That said, I love the HOG and the freeze/gliss is good-times, but if polyphony was the focus, I'd consider that and maybe try one at a shop first.

If you just want sustain, consider the Pigtronix Philosophers Tone; under $150, upgraded compressor circuit from the AttackSustain, very clean and a distortion option, seemingly infinite sustain-at the price of your playing dynamics, but sounds like it would suit you very well. There is a clean blend as well for adding sustain in a subtler manner. They are also releasing a 'Philosopher King' which is something like an AttackSustain+PhilosophersTone compressor, though it is much larger and will be more expensive of course.
 
#16
OP I looked at the Pigtronix Attack Sustain because the company claims it has "infinite sustain." That's bull -- it has the same sustain as most compressors, near as I can tell. I was very underwhelmed. There's a distortion mode that can sustain almost as long a big muff, but my bet is it's just an amp feedback assist - not sure as I tried it at low volume. Also, it is now discontinued.

The Pitchfactor has a couple ways of holding notes indefinitely long. Some are smooth, some glitchy, most are darn cool.
 
#20
This is not a pedal, exactly, but I have achieved the holy grail of infinite sustain inside the computer. With low enough latencies, it would be usable live.

Equipment needed: MIDI keyboard, sustain pedal, host software, audio inferface, computer, bass, TimeFreezer (http://timefreezer.net).

What I used/did:

Bass into Apogee Duet input
Host=Plogue Bidule
Keyboard, Novation Remote SL Compact with Automap
I open the Automapped TimeFreezer (which allows all sorts of cool control of the plugin)
I use MIDI learn to assign the "freeze" function to the sustain pedal. A momentary footswitch would also work.
I twiddle the controls on the plugin. I can make it sound realistic or synthy.

Timefreezer uses granular synthesis, so the sound of your instrument is the raw material for the tone (as opposed to another oscillator or generator).

I had fun.

It would be great if a pedal could do this, but more and more I'm interested in playing live through a combination of hardware and software effects anyway.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back