NFT: BBI Guitarists - Pedals

Axe Fx. It's all-in one effects. Think Edge's entire setup in something the size of a VCR. Then maybe a liquid foot pedal board.

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Though maybe it shouldnt be

of all the equipment you'd buy and it might not be that much more.

Also maybe get second hand?

... and loading them on to a board with a carry case like a Gator, etc. Buying and trading pedals is a less expensive way to assuage my G.A.S. and you can load up a board with a bunch of different things and change them out one at a time to try new stuff.

DO NOT go down that rabbit hole.

When you say one size fits all, do you mean a multi effect?

...but I have a close friend, whale of a player who RAVES about the ZOOM Multi-Stomp.
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(and auto/wah, envelope filters) should go before distortion/OD through the pre-amp and not through the effects loops, as a general guide.

I don't bother with an effects loop as I haven't found it to make as much as a difference as is claimed, and it is just easier to switch from my amps that have them to the ones that don't, by moving one cable.

I used to be a big fan of multi-f/x pedals and more of a digital approach, but I have found you end up with a lot that does nothing well. I used to use the Korg AX-30 and then the Boss ME-70. The Boss did do a fair amount of things reasonably well, but I found after years of trying different things, that the only way to really get the control, tone, bypass, flexibility, is to buy individual pedals and keep buying/selling and tweaking until you get the set-up you love. I have not found it necessary to buy a new pedal in close to a year.

I am now considering expanding my acoustic set-up with a much better looper pedal (to use for live performances), along with a DI/Pre-Amp, reverb, delay.

Start with a great tube amp and work from there. Sounds like you are on your way.

I have a ton of pedals now on my rig, but have found that the ones that I really use are just Boss BD-2, TC Alter Ego X4, and the TC HoF Reverb. I also use a volume pedal and tuner a lot, but not including for tone alteration.

I suggest trying various OD/Fuzz/Distortion pedals until you find the one or two that give you the best tone and versatility, spending a lot on a great delay pedal that does a lot of things and has presets. Of course, a lot of this has to do with the style of music you are playing. I use about 12 pedals, but 6 are just for covering certain artists for cover tunes (e.g flanger/phaser for Gilmour, Envelope Filter for Garcia). The core pedals for me are OD/Delay/Reverb and a looper for practicing over chord progressions, which is the greatest practice tool I have used in 35 years of playing.

I know almost no one that uses multi-F/X other than people looking to learn what they all do as an entry level learning experience. There are some slight exceptions when you get into the higher end like the AXE referenced above.

But if you are going to go that route, I would strongly suggest getting the Kemper Profiler and then you will be able to do anything you want, including amp modeling. But you have to really want to get into the thing technically and I have found that it is best to spend time practicing playing and not screw around with making things overly complicated.

Here's a link. A few people I know that used to use the Axe or other rack units (some with pedals controls, like the Kemper has), have replaced it with this.
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you plan on using the dirt on your amp, or pushing the front end of the amp, or unless you're trying to run modulation in stereo, then the loop is helpful.

For your needs, probably not.

In comment 13244620 Johnny5 said:

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... and loading them on to a board with a carry case like a Gator, etc. Buying and trading pedals is a less expensive way to assuage my G.A.S. and you can load up a board with a bunch of different things and change them out one at a time to try new stuff.

Exactly. Getting locked in, unless you really know exactly what you want and don't plan to change hardware, sux.

Either way as I said I love (and prefer) playing with / experimenting with (and changing constantly lol) separate pedals on a board with case. So many great pedals and builders out there.

Also if it helps, I don't like time/delay/pahse type stuff flavoring the sound before it goes into the amp. I'll put these in a separate loop that runs through the effects loop (if the amp I'm using at the time has one). Any boost / Dist / volumes I'll hit the pre-amp with (basically guitar > dist/boost > amp input).

That's just a general rule of thumb though. Some stuff sounds better in front of the preamp, some stuff doesn't. It's fun to experiment and move them around.

My Boss BD-2 is and always has been my go to OD/Boost. I love the brightness it can add (and the dirt) without the mid hump! I love that pedal in all it's flavors... stock, Analog Man or Keeley modded!

with a voodoo lab pedal power mounted beneath. No complaints.

The Death By Audio Fuzz War, ProCo Rat, and Boss (Roland) Space Echo.

It's inexpensive used, and in my opinion, is a hidden gem of value.

Check out these two old Ibanez rack units... The UE 400 and 405.

They are basically all of the analog pedal effect that Ibanez made in the late 70's early 80's, in a rack unit. You can find each one for under $200 bucks (make sure it has the footswitch, they are paperweights without them):





I have both of these, and they started me down the vintage rack rabbit hole.

They are AWESOME. You get in each:

UE400: Compressor, Phaser, Overdrive, Chorus/Flanger
UE405: Compressor, Stereo Chorus, Parametric Equalizer, Analog Delay

Both have adjustable "insta patch" features that allow you to order the effects in any sequence you like. There is also an input for an external effect (any pedal you'd like to add to the sequence), which can also be placed anywhere in the order via the instapatch.

You get both of these, you have an insta-rig with a small footprint on the floor.

I have been through 10 different distortion/OD and fuzz pedals over the last 3 years or so. That was the first one I had bought in years and the only one left standing the whole time. Have sold:


2 TS-9s
1 ProCo Rat
1 Big Muff Pi (replaced with Fulltone '70 Fuzz - spectacular. Maybe doesn't do the full harmonic craziness of the Pi for Gilmour, but that is all that thing is good for. Now I have Neil Young, Elliott Randall on Reelin' in the Years, and many others)

a bunch of others I have forgotten.

The BD 2 is the best for the early-mid break-up for so many classic tones. And seems to work well with all amps, incuding the modeling on my Fender Champ head.

I have a ProCo Rat R2DU Rack Unit (which is basically two stackable 80's Rats)

Gaspedals Dumbbell

I just got a Way Huge Camel Toe and I'm loving it.

I absolutely love it...

I also have Bias FX from Positive Grid... awesome as well!

great review on it... its a bit pricey.. $1500 but it does everything...
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I haven't used a rat in quite a while but I have had many Way Huge effects travel through my boards through the years lol.

That Helix looks interesting, if there is one thing about Line 6 their time based effects are really great. DL4 has always been a main stay on my boards, especially with the expression pedal.

Though now since I'm 100% acoustic for gigging the last few years a lot of my effects are collecting (thick layers of) dust. I always use my looper though (Boss RC30) and will pick some pedals out when I'm screwing around with the electric. Just picked up a double cut 2015 Les Paul for a STEAL. Hey I needed to scratch a p90 itch... lol

I used to have an old digitech rack that did a lot of the effects. That was 20 years ago. I found my old wah and Big Muff and have been playing with that. I used to play a lot, in a band etc.., then stopped for a long time (kids/career) and have gotten back into it.

Used to have a nice mesa boogie rig but it was so loud, it was hard to play at home. I sold a bunch of stuff and have been rebuilding since. Had a nice little line 6 with tons of effects built in but the tone just doesnt cut it anymore. So i picked up the Fender Hotrod.

I found my old crybaby wah and Big Muff but guess I want something to do all the other functions. Having a bunch of different boxes isn't really practical. I have been reviewing lots of different "all in one" types and some synths which I think are awesome. Would love to write a full on piece with different instruments through a guitar.

Also guess I dont have a true effects loop like I used to with the Mesa. Have the pre-amp in/out. I read that for wah and distorion you are better off going straight from the guitat to wah to distorion to amp. Use the preamp for the other effects.

I posted this thread to see what others are doing. and get some thoughts

My old one was lost on the road, and they're no longer made : /

...

In comment 13244672 Britt in VA said:

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I have a ProCo Rat R2DU Rack Unit (which is basically two stackable 80's Rats) Gaspedals Dumbbell I just got a Way Huge Camel Toe and I'm loving it.

Britt- The Dumbbell is really intriguing. Not easy to find. Seems like it adds amazing touch that would be something you would always use, if not very versatile, which is fine.

And on the other hand, the Camel Toe looks like it has everything you would ever need in one box.

Damn...now I want both. Looks like there are some great alternatives to the Dumbell, for the Dumble OD tone. The Bogner Ecstasy look pretty good too. I also came close to getting a Zen Drive a while back.

It is really amazing how much equipment there is out there. I have to constantly remind myself that it's the playing, amp and guitars that really matter, but damn, the pedals are so much fun.

Been playing mostly acoustic lately, but I think I need to plug in and play some electric tonight and this weekend. Been a while.

that I did (somewhat) recently get the EHX Mel 9. I just always loved the sounds from Beatles and others, especially the cello.

I have been looking for a way to add string sounds to my compositions for my originals moving forward. I don't play more than a couple of fingers of keyboards and don't have much desire to learn.

I thought about the other EHX pedals like the B9 and/or C9, but the Mellotron just really grabbed me with the diverse orchestra, choir and other instruments.

So far I am thrilled with it and it has really added great dimensions to my originals.

Pedals like this are another reason I feel it is a reason to stay away from multi-effects. No matter what you get, you are always going to need to spend $ to get unique, cutting edge synthesis-type pedals that fill a void. I just think best of breed are the way to go after doing this for so long. And it's easy to at least sell the ones (usually for a slight loss) that you grow out of, or decide to replace.

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Will add more later. But on the cheap, me-80 for analog feel, m8 line 6 for multifaceted modeling and.options

I know this has.turned into a general gear thread, but I have good suggestions for OP. I used to worl ibn a music shop and miss this. Whats your.price range?

Ignore typos. Phone sucks

In comment 13244862 wigs in nyc said:

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My old one was lost on the road, and they're no longer made : /

If you don't already, keep an eye on the TalkBass Classifieds. It is easily the best place I've ever found to get good used bass gear. Especially vintage, and rare stuff. I've purchased a few unique, and hard to find pedals through that site over the years. ;)

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Would suggest the Line 6 M series. Biggest one is 12 stomps, but IMO the M9 (which is 6 stomps) is plenty. FX loop connections, loop recorder, and combines ALL the L6 stomps (DL4, MM4, FM4 etc) in addition to adding drive FX

5 yrs back it was $500 for the M13 (the 12-er). IMO the M9 is perfect, esp since you aren't likely going to use JUST that - still can loop in your other FX

Couldn't say how it compares to new devices - im sure they've improved the modelling overall in the industry. But that thing IMO covers all your bases well

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some multi-fx units and even pedals are noisy and too bright with respect to tone and higher fidelity, choose carefully.

Guess it depends on the genres of music you play but if going the individual pedal route you may want to consider putting a drybell vibe pedal on that board and perhaps one or more high quality delay and reverb pedals. These and some of the device you mention are the staples of serious guitar playing beyond the 1 trick pony pedals. The rest is in your hands.

Nemesis delay and Strmon El Capistan are very versatile as is the Timeline. Neunaber makes a great verb pedal that can do traditional reverb and the all that new fancy stuff if into polyphonic textures. If a traditionalist from a verb perspective you can't beat a EBS dynaverb (the bass version into guitar amp) and use it for guitar. It is not too bright f'ing with the tone. That verb into your kind of setup with a plexi voicing kills. Another great oldy that is solid is the Digitech Hardwire DL8 delay (intelliverb algorithms).kind of clunky but.very solid in front and in loop. I run that through my wizard loop it kills as does the Neunaber and Strymon El Cap or Timeline.

For distorted tone choices you have one of the best platforms for versatility, in that you have clean power setup (Fender) that gives you the ability to chose one of many AIAB (Amp in a box pedals). Each of these pedals are tailored around the voicing of various important iconic preamp circuits. Depends on what you are looking for but you can have multiples of these pedals and they are compact. Choose your favorite guitarists and filter against those choices. As an example for plexi tones, JCM800, hot rod marshall you can look through Catlinbread (Dirty Little Secret), Carl Martin(plexi-drive), Wampler(Plexi Drive, Pinnacle), MI Crunch Box and the Friedman BE (great pedal). Again so many of these pedals out there. Find a few tones you like and snatch them off reverb try them out and sell the ones you don't like.

For overdrive, boost, tubescreamer (SRV, etc). Highly recommend the Cusak Screamer (on my board). If into country or Def Leopard (lol) and need compression take a look at diamond and Origin effects Cal76. All great but depends on what you like in compression standards.

above all this, think seriously about using a buffer/interface box to connect this stuff and isolate the high impedance stuff like vibes, fuzz and wah as they are a pain when integrating into the overall chain but can be done if careful. Key is to have those early in the chain (I like vibe before Hendrix/Gilmore type fuzzes(many choices). Then you could connect the other effect types through a buffered interface send and return. If going crazy you could add looper switch or those expensive multi-effects switchers like the Musicomm EFX or the new Boss one.

One thing to also look into is a great company called JamPedals out of Greece. I have a small multi-effects box that is all analog in one integrated artistically designed box with 10 footswitches, with a footprint the size of a sheet of legal paper. Incredibly it has 2 fuzzes, 1 compressor, tubescreamer, vibe, phaser, and echo. Some great demos of Greg Koch up on the web tearing it up with demos.

Lastly, one really surprising option that is cheap and I have as well is the Tech21 fly rig units with distortion, boost, reverb, and delay. They have plexi version and the signature Ritchie Kotzen model. They sound great, compact, and lives up to the billing.

I like the last 2 when I need to run out the door and plug into odd stuff at gigs, otherwise I have my main board at home for recording purposes.

So many choices, enjoy. Experimenting, changing and evolving your tone is part of the musician experience.

Probably no more then $500 but could go beyond for the right piece.

I'm a tone-a-phobe, generally I am VERY picky with tone. I'm not a tube amp snob but I HATE an overly processed sound (probably why I am 95% acoustic now). The engineer that recorded produced the first 2 CDs I did with my pop (Sundad) was actually an engineer that designed some cool things, he started a company with a local luthier (Player Instrument Corporation ) that featured a guitar that used a "swappable" pickup system. They had a prototype at the original East Coast Music Mall, It was pretty cool for trying out new pickups.

Anyhoo, he did a lot of work with Al Dimeola and he and Dimeola both absolutely SWORE by ART products for rack effects (at least back in the day). He recorded the one electric solo I did on the first CD through an his ART effects processor. Sounded pretty damn good. ART is defunct now (unless someone bought the name) but you can find older units all day long used on Ebay for like $100 bucks, and that old ART stuff lasts forever.

totally agree on the "processed" sound. I don't like the tone of that sound at all. I know it sounds "professional" and high quality, but it sounds so fake.

Art products are definitely still around. They make an amazingly cheap single 12-AX7 pre-amp that I use for vocals and acoustic recording. And a lot of other things.


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I see you hinted that the name might be just being re-used. Either way, they are still used widely.

Here's the cheap pre-amp I have that is a legend on the entry level circuit for recording. It needs a tube upgrade and can be noisy, which I have really noticed now that I have gotten away from 4 track recording to interface, but a bit of adjustment can get the noise manageable.

I will probably upgrade it to something bigger and better in the near future.
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...for British style OD. All of Wamplers pedals are excellent as well as Catlinbread. A couple other good ones recently released are the MKIII version of the Ramble FX Marvel Drive and the Bogner LaGrange. Thr LaGrange is insanely versatile and has the unique ability to adjust gain level on the fly with an expression pedal. I'm heavily considering snagging one.

For fuzz check out Wren and Cuff's line.

I think the coolest modulation pedal that's come out in maybe the last 20 years is the Neo Instruments Ventilator. It's a rotary speaker effect that's just ridiculous. Not cheap at $399 I believe but Inbelieve they've since released a scaled down version as well. Check out Pete Thorn's demo of it on Youtube. His channel is great and he does by far the best pedal demos out there.

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I think the coolest modulation pedal that's come out in maybe the last 20 years is the Neo Instruments Ventilator. It's a rotary speaker effect that's just ridiculous.

That's a good one, nails that interlude on Clapton's badge, and numberous Jimmy Page lines (wanton song). A friend of mine like the Hammond Leslie G pedal best, never tried it. I got a good deal on the Neo a while back and it is very good for Hendrix Axis tones as well. Combine that with a ZTF (Zero Thru Flanger)..ie FoxRox, Vortex, Catlinbread, Strymon Mobious, or Source Audio you can some really tripped out 70's Hendrix, Marino, Trower vibes.