Guitard Effects

[mrtcat]

Sorry this isn't a bass fx issue but wonder if anyone can help? Our guitarist is really solid and a great rock player. As a band we used to do just classic rock stuff and he didn't seem to need pedals he simply used to adjust the drive on the amp and use different channels. Problem is we're now venturing into a far more varied field of party rock covers (queen - darkness - arctic monkeys etc etc) and he agrees he's going to need some effects to help him vary his tone.

As he's not used them before we wondered if anyone can help suggest what he might need? What are the effects you'd expect to find at the core of a guitarists rig. Does anyone else do this type of music and know what their guitarist uses?

Thanks

[Lozz196]

For the majority of guitar work, especially if the band has only one guitar, reverb (though that is likely to be on his amp). Adding delay can really bring changes into a song, and is very versatile. Adding short amounts of delay on solos can really add depth to them, adding long delay can make them very haunting. Chorus is great for both Queen style work, and a great effect on acoustic-style songs. And a must for solos is a wah-wah.

There are of course many others, but for me - and I have dabbled on guitar - reverb (if amp doesn`t have it) chorus, delay, and a wah-wah would be the first on my list. I`d then establish whether I wanted/needed anything else from there.

Oh, don`t forget some form of boost, to make solos stand out, if the amp doesn`t have this facility.

[GarethFlatlands]

I agree with the above, apart from wah. I hate wah on guitar (apart from RATM - Bulls On Parade).

I play guitar and bass in equal amounts and after years of buying pedals, always come back to the same handful of effects. My current board is:-

Ernie Ball volume pedal
Proco Rat (modded)
Boss BF2 Flanger
MXR Carbon Copy delay (long spacey delays)
Boss DD3 delay (set for short slap back delay for fattening the sound out, useful for the lone guitarist)
Hardwire Reverb
Planet Waves tuner

I try more 'out there' effects every so often but they never last long. Personally, I'd got for flange over chorus. If set subtly, you can get a chorus type sound out of the flanger and you've the option of turning the dials up for interesting noises.

Boost is also a good idea. I don't have one as I can't do solos. A volume pedal is another option, keep it below max for the main parts and kick it up to full for solos/single note lines. I just use mine for swelled notes.

[mrtcat]

Thanks so much guys this is all really helpful. I think delay and chorus will be a good start. I personally love wah but I'll let him make that call. His amp has a good reverb build in and a footswitchable boost but a volume pedal could be handy as we like to vary the dynamic a bit and it's often tricky to get the volume right down for him.
Much appreciated chaps

[GarethFlatlands]

No probs. Warn him that getting into pedals is a slippery slope. Within a year or 2 he'll have 12 and claim each is essential!

[Al Heeley]

+1 for delay, chorus, overdrive - 3 essential pedals for any guitarist

[ezbass]

Chorus, overdrive, delay, wah at a pinch, sorted.

[jimmyb625]

[quote name='GarethFlatlands' post='1062933' date='Dec 18 2010, 08:50 PM']No probs. Warn him that getting into pedals is a slippery slope. Within a year or 2 he'll have 12 and claim each is essential![/quote]

Isn't that the truth!!!


[quote name='Al Heeley' post='1063313' date='Dec 19 2010, 10:47 AM']+1 for delay, chorus, overdrive - 3 essential pedals for any guitarist [/quote]


[quote name='ezbass' post='1063400' date='Dec 19 2010, 11:52 AM']Chorus, overdrive, delay, wah at a pinch, sorted.[/quote]


Definitely agree with this. Wah is ok in small doses, but it can become tiresome if overused.

I'd also take delay over reverb any day of the week. Although reverb sounds great in isolation, it can muddy things too much in a live setting.

[Al Heeley]

[quote name='jimmyb625' post='1064085' date='Dec 19 2010, 10:14 PM']I'd also take delay over reverb any day of the week. Although reverb sounds great in isolation, it can muddy things too much in a live setting.[/quote]
+1 for this - theres enough reverb in most rooms you gig in to start to muddy up a guitar sound, why add more? Most guitar amps have reverb in anyway - not something I ever use playing live, a little bit on vocals sometimes help smooth out proceedings, but that's all.

Disclaimer: entirely depends on the type of music you play and the sound you are after, but a good rule of thumb is don't let your guitarist use any reverb live and dont let him have any more than 3 pedals at a time.

[Ghost_Bass]

I say everyone's first pedal should be a multi-fx. The zoom's are fairly good at a reasonable price. After playing with it for a while your gutarrist will have a good idea of what fx he uses more and what he would like in each of them and can start buying separate pedal for each fx.

This is the advise i give to everybody adventuring in the fx world, there are so many out there it's easy to spend huge amounts until you find the right gear for the roght sound!

[Jarhead]

Line 6 M13.