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What is everyone's favorite octave generator?

Thx Smeet, and I do kind of agree with you, except the way I use it mostly (simulate an 8 string or 12 string bass), you don't hear those artifacts because the lower octave covers them up.
 
Sound great JimmyJ, double microPog sounds very close to an harpsichord.

I think a midi sistem could be the solution for Jake, Miroslav Vitous, years ago, uses a midi PU on DB and it works great, maybe there is infos somewhere in TB.
 
The Pitchfactor will definitely do it, but it probably fails on the OP wanting something simple, cheaper, and no digital sounding.

This sounds like a job for the Eventide Pitchfactor if you've got the coin. I'm curious to hear the Double Micro Pog though.
 
I have long experience with the db, it is a very specific animal, even leaving aside the problems that are encountered for the type of construction of the instrument (designed in 1600 ... long before electricity).
It is normally amplified using piezo PU, which have their own peculiarities, as you all know, I do not think that there are chances of getting a credible sound (and range) of a violin or anything like that without adopting a midi system, which of course is not cheap and not easy to handle.
Maybe I'm wrong ...
 
OK, finally got it, at least I hope. First section is clean, second is single Micro Pog, third is double Micro Pogs. Sorry, but everyone went to bed before I got to record, so I had to use an electric, but at least I played something classical ;)



I dug that clip!

My best advice is to get a EHX H.O.G. (I own the first one and it has a LOT of tonal range both lower than and higher than a bass. It can do anywhere (if set right) from -3 to +5 octaves and anything in between with an exp pedal. Here is a crappy video showing off its oct/step bend features

 
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These have all been great responses. At a library, so can't check Jimmy's recording yet, but I think for the moment I am returning the Mico POG to my friends and he'll have to wait. I messed around with it some more last night and got closer to the sound I wanted by adjusting my playing, but I'm going through by Orange amp (due to my GK blowing up) so nothing sounds right.

Gear woes is me.....Thanks to everyone though. I will check out the HOG and POG2, it sounds like those are my best choices in this case because I'm way to technologically ******** to use a midi setup.
 
Jimmy's double POG clip is what a bass sounds like after sucking down a large balloon of helium :D
Now I want to hear a side-by-side comparison of the +2 octave on the POG2 versus double MicroPOGs.
 
Jimmy's double POG clip is what a bass sounds like after sucking down a large balloon of helium :D
Now I want to hear a side-by-side comparison of the +2 octave on the POG2 versus double MicroPOGs.
Someone send me a Pog2 and I'll be happy to whip one up...and I was thinking the exact same thing about the helium ;)
 
Best of luck with your quest Jake. I'm very much interested in effects on DB, so I lurk on the BG side of TB with regularity. I recently picked up a Line 6 M5 to mess around with (it was on sale and my wife encouraged me to get it, lucky me). I'll have to try the octave settings tomorrow on my DB.

Please continue to post regarding your experiences with octave generators.

@JimmyM: Thanks for the double Pog demo. Very harpsichord-like. Sounded great, though I can understand it may not tickle everyone's ear.

Cheers,
FF
 
Thanks Feral Feline. If'n I get this gear in the soonish I'll try to record but as I said earlier gear woes is me...

Finally got home to listen to Jimmy's recording. It's about how I imagined it would sound with the bass guitar. I can hear the helium comparison, but I also hear potential for what I'm looking for. It seems a POG would be cheaper way to generate this effect, no?

Also I heard really great things about the Whammy 5, thought that route could be even more efficient as well. True by-pass, tons of potential, the 2+ as well as classic sounds I could use on regular guitar (where I only really want to play Bill Frisell/Sonny Sharrock type stuff)
 
Two Micro Pogs are $420. Pog2 is like $325.

Whammy 5 is VERY interesting to me because it does chords now. Too bad it's a pedal I've got zero practical use for. Used to have one and really wanted to keep it, but I just couldn't work it in.
 
Another vote for POG, POG2, HOG or HOG2.

I enjoy the pitch shifting on my M13. Kills my old Whammy IV and PS-5. But still has that classic glitch. Which is something I like, but sounds like you're avoiding. You couldn't get that kind of glitch and warble from my old HOG or my band mate's POG2. They sound almost too perfect to be used for the same tasks.

I haven't played the Whammy V yet. But the Polyphonic mode intrigues me.
 
Just to fill in everyone I ended up buying the Whammy 5. I tried out the POG2 but it glitched just as hard nearly as the miniPOG. They both sound very synthy. The Whammy 5 sounded instantly better on the chords setting. It still sounds slightly unnatural, as to be expected in the process of what I'm doing.

Little things help out the sound, like I got my good wooden bow cleaned (I had a fire and the hair absorbed a lot of smoke) which made it sound more natural than using the carbon fiber bow. I suspect maybe a little TubeMP or preamp EQ could help even more. I'm going to try mixing amps tonight with a little GK.

But overall I'm very happy with it and it's doing precisely what I wanted! I've today added my Russian Big Muff Pi distortion pedal over the Whammy to see what the distorted violin sound can do. I have a gig tonight, so hopefully I get this stuff together by then. If I get my zoom recorder working again (lost it's USB cable in the fire as well) I'll post recordings.

So far I the only song to use all three pedals (the Line 6 Delayer, Whammy 5 and Big Muff) is Frank Zappa's "Treacherous Cretins."