Pedal board advice

[JamesBass]

I'm finally looking to get in to the world of pedals and effects, and need a bit of guidance, what would people say are necessary pedal types to have on your board? So far I've got distortion, comp, phaser, octave, tuner, delay, and chorus. Is there a type of pedal I'm missing?

Also what is a goad pedal board and power supply?

[elephantgrey]

Some effects types you havnt listed off the top of my head:- reverb, synth, bitcrusher, (envelope)filter, noisegate.

I got a mate of mine to turn a shelving into a board (got him to get it to fit a flight case i had laying about). There are threads abotu making boards out of ikea shelves if you search (gorm shelveas i think).

As for power, i would suggest [url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_powerplant_junior.htm"]This[/url] supply if you can power all your effects off it, or the gigrig system for anything more elaborate/power thirsty.

[dannybuoy]

I wouldn't say any of those are 'necessary' except the tuner and some kind of drive pedal. Depends on what music you're playing though!

You are missing envelope filter or wah though!

Edited November 19, 2015 by dannybuoy

[Naetharu]

I've recently been through the same process so I hope I can offer a bit of help:

First, a really nice power-supply is the Thomann own-brand [b]Harley Benton Power Plant[/b]. It comes in the full or Jr. version depending on how many pedals you are planning on running. It dosn't cost very much and the build quality is fantastic. You can find them here: http://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_powerplant.htm

Now, when it comes to pedals there are more options that you could possibly want. My advice would be as follows:

(1): If you're totally new to pedals then get yourself a Zoom MS60-B/B3/Something else that does the same thing. That way you have pretty much all the basic effects you could imagine in one box and you can try them out. You may well decide to move it on and replace with individual pedals in time (I did), but having the chance to try out different effects and see what they sound like is really useful. You can get the these really cheap (I think there is a B3 for about £80 in the for sale section right now) so it is a great way to try stuff out without paying hundreds.

(2): If the above does not appeal, then I would suggest starting simple, and working up as you need to. Some kind of overdrive/distortion/fuzz is probably a good staple to start with. After that I would suggest perhaps a sub-octave which would be nice to thicken up your sound when playing higher notes and maybe a chorus for a bit of an interesting shimmer. To be honest the tonal options that just those three would offer are massive. Beyond that it really is a matter of seeing what works for you.

If you're into playing funky slap then something like an envelope filter can be great to get a nice Bootsy Collins sound.

[elephantgrey]

If your new to effects, i would suggest a multiFX (id lean towards the zoom b3/ms60b/b1on), they come with a load of effects, so you can see what fits together for you. They are also one of the only ways to get a cab sim.

Also i would suggest looking at 'utility' type pedals, those pedals that dont change your sound themselves, but change the way other pedals work, examples are loop pedals (options here include blend, feedback, crossover) expression pedals, LSO/envilope/step pedals.

Oh and looper pedals (the other type) are fun, they are much like a delay, but instead of playing back what you play but behind you a second or two, they play back a bar or two forever (until you stop it). If nothing else, they are great creative/practice tools.

[JapanAxe]

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1447953529' post='2911813']
I wouldn't say any of those are 'necessary' except the tuner and some kind of drive pedal.
[/quote]

This! Try a few and see which excite you or make you play different stuff.

[xgsjx]

Learning which effects do what is important. A multi fx unit is a good way to learn.
As for suggestions, that's like suggesting what sort of transport you need to go to work without giving any further info.

A drive pedal might be a good choice, but then it might be the worst pedal you could have, depending on what you're playing.

I used to play electronica & had various filters, dirt, octave & chorus. But I wanted my bass to sound like a synth.
Now I play just clean bass in a blues rock band. No fx, not even a tuner. It's down to what You want your bass to sound like & the best bit is trying different fx & having fun in the process (especially when it comes to trying out all sorts of signal paths for the fx).

[ratman]

I'd say try a multi FX first. You'll get an idea of what kind of effects you like and what you don't. The effect models are usually named after the original effects, so you'll know what to buy when you find what you do like. Like a lot of us here, you'll find the journey with pedals is ever evolving and you could spend lots of money in the long run. But it is worth it when you find yourself with a board you're really happy with.