What effects don't work for you

[Biggbass]

for bass....all of them.
Gawd I can't stand the sound of a flanger.

 

[Wretched Banana]

My takeaway from this thread is there's a near-universal hate for flangers here.

 

[Pings Bass]

Answers are going to vary depending on what kind of music you predominantly make.

This is intriguing to me as a player who's never used effects on bass, having learned from teachers and engineers in the 80s that "effects are for guitar." I'm not saying "get off my lawn," but I have a strong bias for a clean bass tone making it possible to hear every note distinctly. But then I'm not a rocker so YMMV.

 

[obimark]

Octave pedal- they always intrigue me but never really do what I wanted them for which was to simulate a 5 string bass lower notes like C#-
just sounds weak and artificial regardless of how much money the pedal is.

 

[cnltb]

What effects could you live without
All of them.

 

[seanm]

I could live without any of them... I currently don't use any pedals live.

So I have trimmed it down to a couple of dozen pedals Don't want to trim down more or I might not meet the minimum for posting in effects.

I mainly like overdrive/distortion pedals. Or using synth on inappropriate songs

 

[stigbeve]

All of them except overdrive.

 

[2112]

I could live without them all. I just wouldn't want to.

Seriously, I would very much much my Digitech Drop, because then I'd have to bring 2 more basses to every gig. And it includes an sub-octaver that I use on a growing number of covers. I would miss everything else alot less, but since going DI/IEM, I find myself spending an increasing amount of time getting fiddly with my pedals, so it's likely that how much I'd miss them will increase going forward.

 

[kmon]

I find these ones useful. Could certainly live without all of them. Welll...actually I have gotten pretty attached to the comp and the soul food.

 

[Yaralag]

All of them. Easily. I like 'em too much, though. That said, **** phasers. Whenever I think of phaser on bass I inevitably think of "Stranglehold". Which is cool cause it's a good song. By extension, however, I think of Ted Nugent. That is NOT cool.

I like Ted

 

[Michedelic]

I think I read recently that David Gilmour actually played bass on “One Of These Days.”

It was actually both of them. Then, after the beginning part, there’s the hard tremolo section, which I’d think inspired a lot of later synthesizer sequencer bass lines.

 

[Killing Floor]

I keep seeing commercials for drugs where a possible effect is "Unpleasant Taste".
I'm thinking Crocs and socks or pork pie hats.

 

[sawzalot]

What could I live without? All of em. I really like a few. I have never been much for phasers, flangers, chorus or reverb though.

 

[Killing Floor]

I can live without reverb on bass.

 

[Pdaddy1978]

I've always been a card carrying member of the " stomp boxes are for guitars" club.
I like the sound of my bass, and my amp.

 

[Michedelic]

I figured this would bring out the luddites and fundamentalists. Yawn. Why should guitarists have all the fun? It’s like cooking; the right spice in the right amount at the right time can make or break a meal. Squire’s “The Fish” opened up a lot of possibilities.

My takeaway from this thread is there's a near-universal hate for flangers here.

Au contraire, for years there were many examples, due to the entire mix getting the treament, of flanged bass(just ask the Axis), but when I heard “Pictures Of Matchstick Men” in particular, I thought “I want some of that”. Had to wait ten years, but I was first in line for the original EHX Electric Mistress. In the interim, there was the related sound of phase shifters(O’Jay’s “For The Love Of Money)and double tracked chorusing(from the Yardbirds to Jaco)on till the electronics caught up with the Talking Heads, Wire, Joy Division, and The Cure(“Primary” for a flange example, dig the swirl). Moderation for modulation is the key, unless you’re purposely going for noise.

I like Ted

Never not been an assclown.

 

[Gilmourisgod]

Distortion, for sure. Overdrive with a little "grit" maybe, but I rarely hear full-blown distortion that sounds good through a bass. I don't find myself wanting a phaser much either.

 

[Altitude]

Hot take: reverb does not work on bass at all

Somebody needs to tell Janek Gwizdala.

 

[Charlzm]

All effects. I need some overdrive/distortion to be happy, but my amp gives me that so I don'[t know if that counts. Same story with compression.

But as far as effects like chorus, flange, tremolo, synth etc... don't need them. I like a little chorus once in a while when I'm playing fretless but I live without it just fine.

 

[Ellery]

I consider HPF a utility rather than an effect, that's the only one I always use. I often use overdrive but would be fine without it. For context, I tailor my sound to mix well with rock drums and one or two distorted guitars. Focusing on the fundamentals that actually get through is different than a good solo sound.