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ULTIMATE CHORUS THUNDERDOME

Sir Sly Ry

Sir Sly Ry

Guest
May 21, 2013
279
29
#1
So I've done a lot of searching on these forums and I'm trying to find a righteous chorus pedal. I sent my POG2 back because I just wasn't getting the sounds out of it I wanted, but I could get a chorus effect that I liked. So I want a dedicated chorus pedal.

So far, the Tech 21 Bass Boost Chorus is what I'm thinking about the most. Everyone who one has seems to be satisfied, and one forum-goer said it worked well in a band setting too.

The MXR Bass Chorus Deluxe appealed to me because of the crossover switch, but watching videos on youtube the chorus effect seems too subtle and I also heard it gets lost in the mix in a live setting.

I also saw a video today of the T-Rex Sweeper Bass Chorus, which seems to have a *wonderful* tone, but I wonder if you lose any of your low end with that? (it seemed like he did in the demo but I also may just not understand chorus yet)

Also the Earthquaker Sound Machine seems intriguing, but I know that's not designed for bass.

ALSO: I tend to play chords a fair amount or play a lot of opens which allows me to do some melody while having a more full sound. I'm bit worried a chorus pedal without a crossover will make things too muddy.

Please share your thoughts! Also I have no idea if having a bass with active pickups will matter. I've put all my focus on playing and writing, so I really know nothing about gear, just so you know.
 
#2
I used to have the MXR Black Label Chorus(same as the analog non-bass version)and it sounded great on bass. No low end loss that I noticed and it has a mix knob to blend in some cleans and high and low knobs to adjust the frequency that gets affected. Might be worth checking out the non-bass specific MXRs.
 
#5
Dr Scientist Cosmichorus and Iron Ether Polytope. You'll see a lot of vids on these where they're doing whacked out crazy stuff but they do the normal better than most, too. Amazing sounding pedals. So much shaping can be done with these two you won't be lost in the mix.

The Strymon Mobius is bad ass, too.......but way more. My bass is active. It messes with delay, fuzz, and tube grit but I haven't noticed issues with chorus.
 
#6
You didn't give us a budget you want to stay within, so I'm going to recommend you look at the Strymon Ola...Extremely versatile and loaded with cool features...it can go from very subtle to shimmery to slurpy and all points in between. You are looking at around $300 for a new Ola...
 
#8
I've been using the Source Audio Orbital Modulator to replace my CE-5 that I had for 15 years or so.
It has Chorus, Flanger, Phaser and you can add tremolo to any of these. Lots of control over the sound and 2 presets. Very flexible
 
#9
Would anybody be able to weigh in on a predicament I'm currently having?

I want to get a chorus/modulation (in other words, something that can do more than just a nice chorus) pedal and I'm currently stuck deciding between the Source Audio Orbital Modulator and the Iron Ether Polytope.

The Polytope does its static detuning thing that I find extremely intriguing, as I am interested in dialing in bass synth sounds (a la Nerve, Bubble Chamber, etc.) for an electronica band I've recently started. The Polytope also does vibrato and flanger-ish sounds, as well as a lot of wackier stuff with the extreme detune and LFO speed settings.

The Orbital Modulator's main advantage is that it has way more possible sounds that I could see -myself- using on both bass and guitar. It is also cheaper, has presets (expandable beyond 2 with the upcoming Source Audio "Scene Saver"), and will integrate well with my other Source Audio products (HH3, Expression Pedal and, eventually, their MIDI "Scene Saver").

My main concern then is whether or not the Orbital Modulator's chorus sounds and wide-ranging controls could allow for a satisfying alternative to the static detuning of the Polytope when used as the final stage of processing after octave, dirt and filtering.

Any thoughts?
 
#10
Sir Sly Ry said:
...
So far, the Tech 21 Bass Boost Chorus is what I'm thinking about the most. Everyone who one has seems to be satisfied, and one forum-goer said it worked well in a band setting too.
...
Click to expand...

I like it, have gone from EBS UniChorus to MXR Bass Chorus Deluxe and finally to the Tech21 and this I think will stay. It doesn't have a flanger mode, which I don't use anyway, but it is a more versatile chorus. The detune function is very nice. Only drawbacks are price and size.
 
#11
Bassmike62 said:
I've been playing the MXR Stereo Chorus (big yellow 18v box) and find it's the best chorus I've played. Perfect for my board, warm, sorta sparkly, my Jazz sounds great with it. Love it.
Click to expand...
if I recall, that one seemed all right. No low end loss?

Also, I probably don't want to go over 200 for a single effect pedal. I'm sure you get what you pay for though.

That Strymon Ola seemed promising but I'd like to hear it on bass.
 
#13
Sir Sly Ry said:
if I recall, that one seemed all right. No low end loss?

Also, I probably don't want to go over 200 for a single effect pedal. I'm sure you get what you pay for though.

That Strymon Ola seemed promising but I'd like to hear it on bass.
Click to expand...

No end loss that I can hear. It has a bass filter button that preserves low frequencies and a 2-band eq. Plenty of bass, actually have to roll back the bass knob around 9 o'clock on most settings. 170 $ new and can go 100-120 $ on the used market, although you don't see them there often. Great chorus, IMO.
 
#14
The orbital modulator seems promising. I checked out the Dimension Reverb by Source Audio and that seemed impressive, but I've also heard reverb on bass easily gets lost in a band setting.

As cool as these Source Audio pedals seem, my goodness are they complicated. I would probably be overwhelmed by all the options.
 
#15
I checked out the Polytope but holy hell it was a bunch of weird ass sounds. I was not digging it. Not sure how a less crazy sound would work. I think I'm looking for something that has a watery sound. Shimmer? Not exactly sure.
 
#17
Thanks for the link. That's a good demo. I think though the Polytope, from what I've heard, sounds like it goes psycho too easily. And I don't dig the pyscho sounds you get out of it. I think I'm looking for a sound that can be a little more.....dreamy? This is one reason why I hesitate on the Tech 21 bass boost chorus....it seems really quality and people say good things about it, but I haven't heard that kind of dreamy sound out of it that I think I'm looking for.

The Orbital Modulator is at the forefront of my mind right now, but I'm not sure how tweakable each effect is. It has a lot of effects for sure, I guess I'd need to hear more from the actual chorus options though.
 
#19
All right, I know zwkoch will sing the praises of the Orbital Modulator, anyone else digging it for a live setting? I think it's pretty much down between that and the Tech 21. Both would be a good choice. But I want something that will be useful for more than just bass solos, in case I do start playing with other people. Just something that won't get washed out in the mix if I leave the effect on. (This is all hypothetical I just want to be prepared.)
 
#20
Sir Sly Ry said:
Thanks for the link. That's a good demo. I think though the Polytope, from what I've heard, sounds like it goes psycho too easily. And I don't dig the pyscho sounds you get out of it. I think I'm looking for a sound that can be a little more.....dreamy? This is one reason why I hesitate on the Tech 21 bass boost chorus....it seems really quality and people say good things about it, but I haven't heard that kind of dreamy sound out of it that I think I'm looking for.

The Orbital Modulator is at the forefront of my mind right now, but I'm not sure how tweakable each effect is. It has a lot of effects for sure, I guess I'd need to hear more from the actual chorus options though.
Click to expand...

I chose the Polytope after demoing various chorus pedals and having used chorus effects for years. It does have tons of crazy effects, but it's easy to dial in a more standard chorus sound (mainly, by keeping the "detune" knob relatively low). I use it almost entirely for relatively standard chorus sounds.

I'm not sure what you mean by "dreamy," but the Polytope to me is the best pedal for a clean, chime-y chorus with plenty of high-end that projects well in the mix. The EQD Sea Machine is great for a watery, wobbly chorus, and any of the MXR choruses (bass versions or otherwise) are good options for deep, round, warm chorus. Those are the three main "genres" of chorus sounds that I've come across.

Edit: You could likely make any chorus pedal "dreamier" by adding reverb, which is one of my favorite effect combos. The Sea Machine has a reverb-ish function, although that pedal's chorus tone is quite distinctive. Also, to address another issue from your original post, I use active basses and have never noticed any issues with chorus pedals.
 

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