I don't remember all of them, but usually I get bad results when I try cheap guitar overdrives/distortions on bass, the worst was a joyo pedal but I don't remeber which one was it...
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
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.
Worst pedal you ever bought!
- Thread starter HugoBazZ
- Start date
IMO you should talk with this guy to see if he can fix all the issues with your mixer.
There's nothing wrong to say to someone that he did a bad job if you choose the right words.
Look at this way : If he can fix your pedal, you'll get the gear you paid for and he'll learn to do a better job in the future.
Boss CEB-3. Didn't really have the shimmer I was looking for. Not terrible though.
I've had a bassballs, LMB-3 and a BBM. I don't really think any of them were that bad. None of them stayed very long before I flipped them but I would still probably recommend them for the price.
I've had a bassballs, LMB-3 and a BBM. I don't really think any of them were that bad. None of them stayed very long before I flipped them but I would still probably recommend them for the price.
Although I can't say its my worst ever bougth (I posted mine earlier), I can honestly say its my biggest disappointment, for the same reasons mentionned above (at least, with the rig I had at the time). I'm a huge MXR fan, so I thought I'd like everything they make. Turns out pedal-love can't be blind. After benching for a while, I put it back on active duty as a light OD and I must admit it did that rather well. Still flipped it though.
In 3rd place - MXR El Grande
In 2nd place - Boss SYB-5
But the winner by a mile as the 'Worst Pedal I Have Ever Had The Misfortune of Using' is the utterly dreadful MarkBass Super Synth.
Good God I LOATHED that hateful thing!
I'm glad someone else mentioned this one. It had a lot of potential but since you could only adjust the presets via a laptop the thing was damn near useless when it came to using it with a band. The octaver that it was dualled with was completely pointless as well. And the price....£300? That one still hurts.
A few people have mentioned the ODB-3, but I've heard some bands make good use of it. It's pretty full on, so if you're looking to emulate Marcus Miller et al then it will not be for you!
Behringer overdrive pedal. Price is like a toy, sound is like a toy, materials are like a toy. Color is like a toy. This stuff should be sold in toy shops only! Biggest mistake ever.
The BDDI is advertised as such on their website: "Much more than just a direct box, the SansAmp Bass Driver DI is capable of dialing up big vintage tube tones, bright modern slap sounds, gnarly distortions, and all in between."
I don't feel that is true when it makes me sound like a giant muddy pile of ice-pick crap whenever the Blend is engaged above 20%. And for that price, if I wanted to EQ my highs/lows, I'd just get a proper EQ pedal (or just use my amp's EQ?!)
I would agree with you that it's not the most versatile thing. The way I use it, it's a tool to take a typical passive bass pickup's output, and allow you to add the things that you need to sound better in a modern rock mix - more bass, a little presence, some drive and compression. It's a well-made tool for that job, hence its generally good rep.
I've not really had problems with it being muddy or ice-picky, although it does have a wide range of control. What bass were you using it with?
Not the worst I've bought, I was severely disappointed in the darkglass b7k... eq points didn't work for me and it cost an arm and a leg... I was bummed.
It seems like there was a bunch of these proliferating the classifieds a few months after release. Was there a glitch?
Goes to show you, it's all relative. I would NEVER sell this pedal. Maybe if I lost a hand. That would probably be the only way.
No, just a few people getting REALLY excited and others feeding off that excitement. Then realizing they were not really into that sound.
Another vote for the EHX Bassballs. Now if I had never heard a Moog or a Mutron, it might have sounded ok, but....
Another one that I found pretty disappointing was the Boss OC-3. I like the sound of my older OC-2 so much better.
Another one that I found pretty disappointing was the Boss OC-3. I like the sound of my older OC-2 so much better.
The EHX bass balls is def an acquired taste and a one trick pony. But I liked mine a lot when I had one. I had the black and blue Sovtek one though. So maybe that's why. I thought it did some really cool sounds. Id still use it if I had it. Sucks I lost it over the years. It was one of my first pedals.
Another vote for the El Grande - Sounded great in the store, not so much at home. No punch and I didn't like getting my face seared off when turned on (gain at 9:00). While the tone knob had a great sweep to it, I did not find a single position useful.
Boss ODB-3 for reasons already stated. The MXR Micro Flanger. Now, don't get me wrong, everything I own/owned is pretty much all Dunlop/MXR except for two pedals. However, while the Micro Flanger is a great pedal, it just did not work for me. It had a great tone, good price, and a variety of setting; yet I found nothing that inspired me when playing. Also, I was not very fond of the volume spike. I ended up returning it.
Boss ODB-3 for reasons already stated. The MXR Micro Flanger. Now, don't get me wrong, everything I own/owned is pretty much all Dunlop/MXR except for two pedals. However, while the Micro Flanger is a great pedal, it just did not work for me. It had a great tone, good price, and a variety of setting; yet I found nothing that inspired me when playing. Also, I was not very fond of the volume spike. I ended up returning it.
Pigtronix Mothership.
Wanted to like it, didn't track the bass at ALL. Thought I got a dud, returned it for another, same junk. I'm sure it works well on keys, guitar...not bass, sputtering, mushy mess.
Wanted to like it, didn't track the bass at ALL. Thought I got a dud, returned it for another, same junk. I'm sure it works well on keys, guitar...not bass, sputtering, mushy mess.
