lowdowner Posted June 20, 2018 Share Posted June 20, 2018 I always hold bass players with HUGE pedal boards in some awe. Partly because they look cool, but largely because I don't really know what they're 'for' and think that if you use them in gigs you must be special... But given that half the punters don't actually listen to what you're playing half the time, do they really have much effect? Which pedal should I get first to wow the crowds? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted June 20, 2018 Share Posted June 20, 2018 Tuner 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdowner Posted June 20, 2018 Author Share Posted June 20, 2018 Just now, stingrayPete1977 said: Tuner I have a clip on thingy-ma-jig for that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Krow Posted June 20, 2018 Share Posted June 20, 2018 Zoom B3n multi-fx. Will give you a feel for a load of different effects and let you decide which ones are appropriate for your sound, without breaking the bank. You can then get dedicated pedals (if you want to) for any particular effect that you're going to be using a lot. The B3n also doubles up as a HPF to protect your speakers from sub audio crud / tighten up your low end, a tuner if you don't want to be using that clip on thingy-ma-jig and a headphone amp at home to play your new weird and wonderful effects patches through without annoying housemates / family! Btw - if you do go for this make sure to download the free ToneLib editor which makes creating and saving effects patches a doddle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukeFRC Posted June 20, 2018 Share Posted June 20, 2018 (edited) 27 minutes ago, Al Krow said: Zoom B3n multi-fx. Will give you a feel for a load of different effects and let you decide which ones are appropriate for your sound, without breaking the bank. You can then get dedicated pedals (if you want to) for any particular effect that you're going to be using a lot. The B3n also doubles up as a HPF to protect your speakers from sub audio crud / tighten up your low end, a tuner if you don't want to be using that clip on thingy-ma-jig and a headphone amp at home to play your new weird and wonderful effects patches through without annoying housemates / family! Btw - if you do go for this make sure to download the free ToneLib editor which makes creating and saving effects patches a doddle. +1 this is a really nice bit of kit EDIT: though the new Zoom software I think does everything that TineLib does too now? How you finding your B15 model? Edited June 20, 2018 by LukeFRC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kodiakblair Posted June 20, 2018 Share Posted June 20, 2018 Year before last I bought loads of pedals,was gonna use the christmas holiday to learn what they do. Still no idea 😀 The 10 band EQ pedal gets used most of the time. £30 Caline thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quatschmacher Posted June 20, 2018 Share Posted June 20, 2018 1 hour ago, lowdowner said: I always hold bass players with HUGE pedal boards in some awe. Partly because they look cool, but largely because I don't really know what they're 'for' and think that if you use them in gigs you must be special... But given that half the punters don't actually listen to what you're playing half the time, do they really have much effect? Which pedal should I get first to wow the crowds? What kind of sounds are you trying to create? Do you have any examples of effects uses on records that have caught your ear? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T-Bay Posted June 21, 2018 Share Posted June 21, 2018 Another vote on the B3, mine has now gone but it was a useful way to work out what I wanted. I have still gone through a good few pedals that I thought would be what I wanted but didn’t work how I hoped. The ones I still use all the time are compressor, overdrive/ distortion, chorus and a small killswitch. There are others but they aren’t essential really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdowner Posted June 21, 2018 Author Share Posted June 21, 2018 8 hours ago, Quatschmacher said: What kind of sounds are you trying to create? Do you have any examples of effects uses on records that have caught your ear? The problem with this is that I don't know whether the sound I'm hearing is due to the bass itself or a pedal (well, unless it's a really strong effect like a vocoder or similar). Maybe I can hook up with a bass playing friend and try some out to see if I can find out what's available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gs_triumph Posted June 21, 2018 Share Posted June 21, 2018 I went through a journey of no effects to a zoom. B3 (didn't get on with it), to a couple of pedals that turned into about ten at one point, sold those that didn't see much, if any, use. Then set about replacing the ones I did use with better/different versions. Until I settled on what I have and am pretty happy with. It's a bit of a mine field but experimentation and buying second hand - in the BC marketplace for example - Is the way to go. I've probably had about 25 pedals pass through my hands, some stayed for a while then got sold on. Some didn't last a day. But I don't think it's cost me much more than postage costs. One pedal is the holy grail defining sound to one player but complete mush to the next... And that's before you start looking for drive pedals. That's a whole other mountain to climb. Good luck in your quest and don't be afraid to try things that don't necessarily appeal. Everything sounds different once the band kicks in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quatschmacher Posted June 21, 2018 Share Posted June 21, 2018 (edited) 1 hour ago, lowdowner said: The problem with this is that I don't know whether the sound I'm hearing is due to the bass itself or a pedal (well, unless it's a really strong effect like a vocoder or similar). Maybe I can hook up with a bass playing friend and try some out to see if I can find out what's available. Post links to some clips and we may be able to help identify effects. Where are you based? If you’re near Sheffield I’m happy to let you try out some stuff. Edited June 21, 2018 by Quatschmacher Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdowner Posted June 21, 2018 Author Share Posted June 21, 2018 11 hours ago, Quatschmacher said: Post links to some clips and we may be able to help identify effects. Where are you based? If you’re near Sheffield I’m happy to let you try out some stuff. Cheltenham, or i'd take you up on that offer. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted June 22, 2018 Share Posted June 22, 2018 First pedal I bought was a dirt cheap distortion thingy. It was awful. Awful! But it put more sustainable on the notes and made me play differently so it had some use. If you're looking to wow the audience I'd go for a fuzz/ drive/ distortion. If I could only use one single function pedal that would probably be it. It's noticeable when bass goes from clean to dirty and it can thicken up the sound for the whole band. My overdrive gets used more than any other effect. However for the new price of one good stand alone pedal you can probably get a decent second hand zoom pedal and play around to find what you like. I had a BFX-708 many, many years back (17 years ago? Maybe more?) and it was good for the time, the newer stuff will be on a whole new level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdowner Posted June 22, 2018 Author Share Posted June 22, 2018 I like the sound of a FUZZ pedal - just checked and there's a whole range of them... looks like some fun experimenting ahead! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz39 Posted June 22, 2018 Share Posted June 22, 2018 I had a Zoom 4040 back in the late 90s. It cost a fortune (£300?), but I could get pretty much any noise out of it - came with an expression and a volume pedal so there was terrible strangled-cat wah, auto-note generator, crazy delay and reverb - I think the best patch I made was extreme metal distortion with arena-style reverb - basically Motorbikes in Space a la Smashing Pumpkins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quatschmacher Posted June 22, 2018 Share Posted June 22, 2018 (edited) 1 hour ago, lowdowner said: I like the sound of a FUZZ pedal - just checked and there's a whole range of them... looks like some fun experimenting ahead! As a starting point, check out a Source Audio Aftershock or OFD as they have 12+ different fuzz types in them, mostly modelled version of classic fuzz pedals. It’ll give you a good idea of what kind of fuzz sound you like and you can explore from there. Edited June 22, 2018 by Quatschmacher 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skybone Posted June 23, 2018 Share Posted June 23, 2018 Pick up a second hand Zoom B3, it's a good place to start, then just experiment. There are some alternatives, like the Boss GT6B, the Line6 PODxt & Bass PODxt (especially the Live version), there's the Vox Stomplabs, etc. These will help to get an idea of what effects will work for you, and then you can either take the plunge into either various single pedals, or more sophisticated multi FX units. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cattytown Posted June 29, 2018 Share Posted June 29, 2018 The other thing you can do - where are you seeing players like that and what level are they? If smaller venues and predominantly hobby bands (by that I mean people with day jobs mainly gigging for the love of it) they are often very approachable and welcome some interest. Say hi, say something nice about them/the band and ask directly about their pedal board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Posted July 4, 2018 Share Posted July 4, 2018 On 23/06/2018 at 10:08, Skybone said: Pick up a second hand Zoom B3, it's a good place to start, then just experiment. I second this. I think the B3 was the firsst multi effects unit that sounded and worked as well as 'proper' pedals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quatschmacher Posted July 4, 2018 Share Posted July 4, 2018 47 minutes ago, Jack said: I second this. I think the B3 was the firsst multi effects unit that sounded and worked as well as 'proper' pedals. There was one for sale on here yesterday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
operative451 Posted July 4, 2018 Share Posted July 4, 2018 I'm having loads of fun with the B3n. I still think digital fuzzezes sound more 'bitcrusher' than fuzz, but it doesn't have a bitcrusher, so... Otherwise, fuzz, octave, autowah. Maybe see if you can get hold of a used Digitech Bass synth wah? Although everything it did is on the B3n which is why i sold mine. Fuzz into BSW being a octaver and auto-wah makes a noise like an earthquake. That you can play notes on.. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Japhet Posted July 5, 2018 Share Posted July 5, 2018 To address your 'What are they for?' question, Personally I like to run my amp with a clean sound. That means not driving the preamp into breakup or distortion. I then use pedals to create the sound I like which is a bit of distortion when I'm playing rock. The reason for this is that I can keep that same core sound at any volume near enough. I have more than one drive pedal - one to give the core tone and then another one later in the chain to give more grit and a bit more volume for specific songs. I also use a bit of compression (always on) and an octaver and a chorus pedal for a couple of bits in the set. I never really used pedals until I was in a 3 piece blues/rock setup where I found that when the guitarist dropped out of the rythme stuff to play solos, the sound suddenly became too thin and I needed to add something to fatten it up a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave_bass5 Posted July 6, 2018 Share Posted July 6, 2018 On 20/06/2018 at 21:48, lowdowner said: Which pedal should I get first to wow the crowds? Hold on, i thought the crowd were incapable of noticing the bass player's tone 🙂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted July 6, 2018 Share Posted July 6, 2018 11 minutes ago, dave_bass5 said: Hold on, i thought the crowd were incapable of noticing the bass player's tone 🙂 Depends on the sound man/ person Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CliveT Posted July 6, 2018 Share Posted July 6, 2018 I take a tuner and octave to every gig. A little chorus on a couple of songs but that's about it. I've been through fuzz, distortion etc but in the end the octave is the one that the punters hear from my experience. Unless you get to have a solo I found the drives get list in the mix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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