What's the Deal with Pedals?

[matante]

There are two pedals I think everyone should own.

1. Tuner - gotta play in tune
2. Compressor - every recorded sound you've ever heard has been compressed. It can provide some nice tonal benefits, or it can help even out your dynamics a little, or it can be used as a very noticeable effect.

Lots of bass players play with overdrive, distortion, and/or fuzz.

We're in the golden age of pedals where you can hear all kinds of them on YouTube and then find cheap versions online to try. Hell, order from Amazon and return it if you hate it, Uncle Jeff doesn't need any more money.

Every recorded drum kit is compressed but that doesn't mean a drummer needs to own a compressor. Recommending compression to someone just starting out is irresponsible.

To start, the continuum from near essential to very context dependent:
For bass the only ones I would say are near essential, i.e. people will shake their heads at you for being a noob are:
1) A tuner...being able to tune accurately and silently on stage is a near must. I love and you'll see many people over here loving the Strobe Tuners by Sonic Research FYI

2) A DI with an amp sim. Many venues will want you to go direct. Without endorsing that practice, I'm just noting you'll invariably run in to it. So having a DI that gives you a basic amp/cab sculpted tone will be a must. Lots of people love the Sansamp ones for this. More metal guys often love the Darkglass. I am more of an oddball and like a DSM Humboldt Simplifier because it actually models a Hartke which is my cab of choice.

Everything else is a 'Maybe you need it maybe you don't.' Much of this depends on style. I played Americana for years and never needed anything but a tuner, DI, and compressor. But if you're playing shoegaze, maybe probably yes, you'll want some additional pedals.

Exactly what is hard to say and I'll give you one big tip up front to save you a ton of money in the long run. Don't buy a bunch of pedals until you know what your specific needs are. Instead get a multi effect pedal (and some, notably, also have DIs, amp sims, and tuners built in). Try the virtual pedals there until you know what you need. Then you'll be ready to know what you might want in a more bespoke setup.

Many people, when you get to a pedal heavy genre will eventually settle on something that revolves around
1) some core pedals they use a lot. e.g. their favorite overdrive, their favorite compressor AND
2) a Multi-effect pedal for the other stuff they use less often.

Another thing to study up on is understanding power supplies and options therein. Hey, this is important not to break anything!!! Most pedals use a standard 9 volt, center negative power. The mA (i.e. the current) will vary. Often for digital pedals it will be higher.

Rules:

• Voltage - You can't usually exceed voltage. A 9 volt pedal and a 12 volt power supply usually means - smoke. The rare pedals you can, will say so.
• Current - You can exceed current, but don't under power. A pedal needing 100mA and a power supply with 1000mA = no problem. A pedal needing 300mA and a 200mA power supply, might not work, but isn't likely to harm anything. This also becomes important to keep track of if you are daisy chaining anything. e.g. for a simple board of analog pedals, a OneSpot will work fine. Often, daisy chaining digital and analog will cause some noise*.
• Polarity - don't cross the streams. And if anyone asks you if you are a God, say yes. Seriously though, don't mix up polarity. Center negative is standard. Learn the symbols. Read the manual.

*Which is part of why many people will multiple pedals will use a pedalboard with a multi-out power under it. Like those made by Voodoo Labs or Cioks. PedalTrain is a very popular pedalboard maker. But you can also DIY a pedalboard if you're handy until you know your needs better.

Another thing to think about in general is control schemes. You can go a LOT of ways with this. But at the simplest, you might want to start with a Multieffects unit and an expression pedal. HX Stomp is popular for good reason.

But, for a more elaborate future thinking example, with my pedalboard monstrosity, it is all MIDI controlled. So to switch songs, all I actually have to do is scroll to the song patch on the left two button switch and the Boss MS3 changes presets and turns pedals on and off. All I have to do in songs is usually push one or two buttons on the MS3. Because it is all MIDI controlled. And my expression pedal can control anything on the MS3, Empress Zoia, Sy200, or the Moog drive. In short, I have a studio's worth of effects BUT, once programmed, I don't have to futz with anything while playing.

You can tune your bass without a tuner pedal.

You don't need amp or cab sim either. The majority of pro bass players use standard DI boxes like Radial or Whirlwind. While some genres do use amp sims more than others it is by no means necessary to use them. This goes for both for live and recording.

Sure, most pop music is overcompressed by design, but so are recordings that do not sound compressed. If you think you can tell whether an album or track is compressed or not, you're wrong. If the goal is transparency, you will not hear it.

"Every recorded sound" being compressed was a bit of an overstatement, but there are few exceptions. The reason it's nearly universally done both live and in the studio is to allow the audience to hear all instruments better in the mix.

What producers do to recordings irrelevant.

 

[SAlcott]

A compressor is probably the worst pedal you could use as a beginner. Learn to play with dynamic/timbre control using your (assuming right-handedness) right hand whether with fingers or a pick.

 

[MultiScaleMale]

Just a suggestion that many of us have done when starting out. Don't try to make up for an inadequate amp with pedals. You don't have to buy and SVT with 8x10 and there are a lot of goo choices out there at an inexpensive price. Individually, pedals are cheaper and it's tempting to get the SVT pedal of the month, but hooking it up to a 20W 6" starter combo is not going to sound good no matter what you do. The old rule of thumb was 300W and a 15" cab is a good place to start, but cab technology has advanced a lot and maybe 200W and a 12" is now a good suggestion as a place to start.

 

[JohnnyChatter]

Just buy a decent amp/cab and bass and learn to play. I have a ton of pedals and have paid a ton for them but only really use 2-3. I have probably lost more money reselling pedals than money I have invested into the pedals I currently own. A pedal for tuning is handy but not imperative unless you need a quick way to tune live. I personally hate most compressors except for the Cali76 bass pedal but you don’t need one if you have good technique. Preamp pedals are cool but not necessary either. As always just my opinion and I do have several but most were bought out of boredom and not necessity.

 

[MtManiac]

Hello everyone! I started learning bass last week so I'm pretty new to the whole thing, would anyone mind giving me a decently comprehensive rundown on pedals? I know that using a lot of pedals with bass has the potential to muddy the sound, which can be good or bad depending on what you're going for. My 2 guitarist buddies always go nuts for pedals (they're shoegazers) and throw around a bunch of terminology when talking to each other that I never understand.

any info is apperciated, thxxxxx

There are a lot of folks replying here saying some variation of “as a beginner, focus on X instead of pedals” or “I’ve been playing for 20 years and don’t use pedals.” These people are drawing from their own experience but are also projecting their aspirations *and their limitations* onto you.

As someone who’s been playing for 40 years as of last fall and who spent most of that time not using any pedals at all, I’m going to give you contrary advice.

My advice is that if you’re drawn to something in music, chase it down and explore the crap out of it. Whether it’s dirt, fuzz, reverb, chorus, delay, filtering, synth, hitting your strings with a tuning fork, messing around with feedback, using a slide, whatever - if you’re curious about it, just do it! Exercise your curiosity! This is the *best* way to learn. Chase it down and embrace whatever you find that you deem worth keeping - who knows where you’re going?? Certainly not someone who’s been playing Mustang Sally in dive bars since 1984 - and I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with that scene either or that there’s nothing to learn there. But this is *your* experience that you’re building, and who knows, maybe you’ll eventually create your own scene altogether - new music doesn’t come from doing things the way they’ve always been done.

I say take $100 and go to Amazon and buy 2-5 Chinese pedals from Joyo or Caline or whoever, and see what you can do with them. Try them one at a time, try them all together, rearrange their order, crank up the level of one as it feeds into another one and see what happens. Try high notes, low notes, double stops, chords, slide, slap, picks, whatever.

Yeah spend some time learning the fretboard, and arpeggios, and sight reading, and time, and all of the fundamental stuff too. But don’t listen to anyone who tells you to *not* learn something, even if it’s just to not learn it yet, just jump in dude. The only boundaries around you are the ones you put there or allow other people to put there.

 

[matante]

There are a lot of folks replying here saying some variation of “as a beginner, focus on X instead of pedals” or “I’ve been playing for 20 years and don’t use pedals.” These people are drawing from their own experience but are also projecting their aspirations *and their limitations* onto you.

As someone who’s been playing for 40 years as of last fall and who spent most of that time not using any pedals at all, I’m going to give you contrary advice.

My advice is that if you’re drawn to something in music, chase it down and explore the crap out of it. Whether it’s dirt, fuzz, reverb, chorus, delay, filtering, synth, hitting your strings with a tuning fork, messing around with feedback, using a slide, whatever - if you’re curious about it, just do it! Exercise your curiosity! This is the *best* way to learn. Chase it down and embrace whatever you find that you deem worth keeping - who knows where you’re going?? Certainly not someone who’s been playing Mustang Sally in dive bars since 1984 - and I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with that scene either or that there’s nothing to learn there. But this is *your* experience that you’re building, and who knows, maybe you’ll eventually create your own scene altogether - new music doesn’t come from doing things the way they’ve always been done.

I say take $100 and go to Amazon and buy 2-5 Chinese pedals from Joyo or Caline or whoever, and see what you can do with them. Try them one at a time, try them all together, rearrange their order, crank up the level of one as it feeds into another one and see what happens. Try high notes, low notes, double stops, chords, slide, slap, picks, whatever.

Yeah spend some time learning the fretboard, and arpeggios, and sight reading, and time, and all of the fundamental stuff too. But don’t listen to anyone who tells you to *not* learn something, even if it’s just to not learn it yet, just jump in dude. The only boundaries around you are the ones you put there or allow other people to put there.

I agree but you can get a decent multifx unit for under $100. As you said, if you're curious, explore. Good advice.

 

[pabs]

I play in a Shoegaze band

Does your band have anything out on streaming platforms? :0

 

[micguy]

27360201[/URL], member: 19740"] The reason it's nearly universally done both live and in the studio is to allow the audience to hear all instruments better in the mix.

Being able to hear all the instruments more clearly is precisely why I avoid compression while mixing. Squashing everything makes a “denser” mix, which sometimes sounds good, but it definitely makes it more difficult to pick out individual instruments.

 

[pabs]

They often have a DI out. You can do multiple things with them in multiple parts of your signal chain.

What does DI mean?

Thanks for responding, you've been very informative!

 

[vvvmmm]

"DI" means "direct inject". It's shorthand for using a direct box to go right into the mixing board or compressor or preamp or whatever links to your recording setup.

Also, I reco a clip-on tuner, surprised no one else has.

 

[Earl Jam]

Does your band have anything out on streaming platforms? :0

Not yet! We only formed a few months ago. We have enough songs already for an EP and should start recording some time this summer.

 

[Fuzzbass]

Being able to hear all the instruments more clearly is precisely why I avoid compression while mixing. Squashing everything makes a “denser” mix, which sometimes sounds good, but it definitely makes it more difficult to pick out individual instruments.

It's unfortunate that so many equate compression with squash. Squash only happens when comp is used incorrectly, or as a deliberate effect. When properly applied, compression can enhance dynamics (and I'm speaking in general; I wouldn't know how you use compression).

A compressor is probably the worst pedal you could use as a beginner. Learn to play with dynamic/timbre control using your (assuming right-handedness) right hand whether with fingers or a pick.

The OP wants to learn about FX, and compression is definitely one that he should investigate, especially given its steep learning curve. I don't believe anyone's said he should use it... the OP can eventually decide for himself whether or not he wants to. And I give him the benefit of the doubt that he knows he should keep FX usage separate from technique practice.

 

[monsterthompson]

What does DI mean?

Thanks for responding, you've been very informative!

DI as @vvvmmm pointed out is for going direct. They adjust the unbalanced instrument signal (the cable out of your bass) to a balanced signal, generally carried by XLR cables or TRS cables which plug into a mixer or audio interface.

The simplest DI boxes have no tone shaping controls. However, many preamps are combined with DI functions. The preamp is used to boost instrument level signal sometimes up to to line level, which helps push the signal through long cable runs which might otherwise degrade the source signal. Additionally these DI+Preamp units often have EQ and distortion built in. Some of these “pedals” (not all are pedalboard sized, nor do all have foot-switch operations) have various combinations of features and inputs/outputs. I’m casual discussion it’s not uncommon to hear/read DI or Preamp as a device that has some of these elements, though technically not all preamps have DI outputs, and not all DI boxes have gain or EQ control.

 

[Solude]

You want a tuner, a drive and a compressor to start. Tuner is self explanatory, drive will get you heard by adding grit and a compressor will even out note volume, slow note decay and push you forward in the mix.

That'll cover a ton of musical ground. I personally use a modeler since it provides a lot more than that and doesn't go up in price as you add more pedals to your virtual board

Last piece of advice, turn the volume way up. Like, when you play hard it's way too loud, so you're forced to learn to play light and let the amp do the work. You do that and you can get your string action/height way down without buzzing, making it even easier to play which feeds back into further progress.

 

[monsterthompson]

27360579[/URL], member: 98390"]A compressor is probably the worst pedal you could use as a beginner. Learn to play with dynamic/timbre control using your (assuming right-handedness) right hand whether with fingers or a pick.

I’d say compressors are a tough place to start, simply because the audible effect isn’t easy to identify for untrained ears. Some have distinct voices and characteristics, but others are quite transparent and subtle. Turning up the gain of a distortion box will clearly have an observable effect on the output. Adjusting the threshold or ratio of a compressor might not seem like anything is happening. Compressors with visual feedback are quite helpful.

As for controlling dynamics via picking, that’s certainly worth being mindful of, but every genre/style/sound is a little different, and sometimes compression is part of the sound. There are definitely things a compressor can do that technique can’t. The question is - what’s the application? Recording a slap funk part is going to be different from live grindcore riffing.

 

[Solude]

Compressors without metres are not kind to the untrained ear. Me included

 

[vvvmmm]

Other than a tuner, and mebbe before any other pedals, I would suggest a cheap recorder that you can use without overloading it, to capture the band in the room and see how yer bass sits in the mix.

I been doing this a while, but when I started recording practices (using a Walkman cassette recorder!), it caused a giant leap forward.

 

[pabs]

Not yet! We only formed a few months ago. We have enough songs already for an EP and should start recording some time this summer.

If you guys have an instagram page I'll give it a follow! And if you don't then I recommend you guys make one asap lol

 

[rjovin]

There are a lot of folks replying here saying some variation of “as a beginner, focus on X instead of pedals” or “I’ve been playing for 20 years and don’t use pedals.” These people are drawing from their own experience but are also projecting their aspirations *and their limitations* onto you.

As someone who’s been playing for 40 years as of last fall and who spent most of that time not using any pedals at all, I’m going to give you contrary advice.

My advice is that if you’re drawn to something in music, chase it down and explore the crap out of it. Whether it’s dirt, fuzz, reverb, chorus, delay, filtering, synth, hitting your strings with a tuning fork, messing around with feedback, using a slide, whatever - if you’re curious about it, just do it! Exercise your curiosity! This is the *best* way to learn. Chase it down and embrace whatever you find that you deem worth keeping - who knows where you’re going?? Certainly not someone who’s been playing Mustang Sally in dive bars since 1984 - and I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with that scene either or that there’s nothing to learn there. But this is *your* experience that you’re building, and who knows, maybe you’ll eventually create your own scene altogether - new music doesn’t come from doing things the way they’ve always been done.

I say take $100 and go to Amazon and buy 2-5 Chinese pedals from Joyo or Caline or whoever, and see what you can do with them. Try them one at a time, try them all together, rearrange their order, crank up the level of one as it feeds into another one and see what happens. Try high notes, low notes, double stops, chords, slide, slap, picks, whatever.

Yeah spend some time learning the fretboard, and arpeggios, and sight reading, and time, and all of the fundamental stuff too. But don’t listen to anyone who tells you to *not* learn something, even if it’s just to not learn it yet, just jump in dude. The only boundaries around you are the ones you put there or allow other people to put there.

My favorite post of this thread. Good job!

 

[rjovin]

My favorite part of these troll bait type threads is always the "I've been playing this amout of time" posts, like it makes them some kind of expert.

To the OP, I also recommend getting a multi effects. It is truly a great way to figure out what you like and don't like.
It's also a great way of discovering what sounds stack well with others. Plus, they almost always have a tuner built in!