Dumping the multieffects for single pedals: Boss vs. others

I agree with Greg, also. My thinking is the old adage - KISS, Keep It Simple Stupid. I am trying to get the best out of using two amp from an A/B pedal and a Wah right now. There are so many possibilites with the 4 amps I have. I actually have a way to use all 4 amps at once and the different sounds I get that way are certainly intruiging, but I keep going back to that keeping it simple. I think it is harder for those of us with many different musical influences. We want to be able to capture so many different sounds and try to master them. Remember simplicity is really got a lot going for it.

Actually Joe, you still owe me an article, on guess what? Effects.

Looks like you have a good begining here.

And the articles in the forum thing only applies to unsolicited posts. If someone asks you something, expound away.

Nick

Yes, I still getting things together. What I'm mapping out is to talk about and explain each type of effect, then have a mp3 clips of different idolized sounds from them, and what songs were famous for using each particular effect. Some of my vintage effects are in a box called Stomp heaven and need some TLC and a couple need much more. A few have been set out on the bench getting tested one at a time.

Hoping to have all the pages, images and mp3's finished. then I'll upload them to a server and you can be the proof editor and make it more presentable. Oh your won't be getting off the hook that easy either....Remember I play guitar not editorial writer..lol

Been trying to do one a day and other band members at the studio have been great to help me on this endeavor.
Here's a sample Can You Guess This Effect

It's a lengthy process when your a perfectionist.

Joe

I thing a dictionary of different effects would be very helpful to everyone. I often wonder what effects are used in songs and (if I had a certain pedal) how I'd use it. To this day I don't know what flangers or phasers sound like. Further, I would not even know how to use them.I think one of the parts of playing guitar is to first off, get good with actual playing, then get gear that will accentuate your good playing.

I can attest right now I'm using about 0.001% of the capabilities of the box I'm working with. That's because I've not been shown how to tweak certain things. I wonder if there are instructors out there (like guitar teachers) who would forgo teaching how to play but to show how to incorporate certain effects. That would be well-worth the money spent.

Joe, seeing how you are an accomplished musician, you'd be the man to tackle that project. I must say, when I've jammed with dudes who've been playing for decades I've seen them use very minimal gear (read: little or not pedals) and just come through an amp. Maybe that has to do with the fact that:

1. They don't want to lug all their stuff to the jam.
2. They really play that way at home or out.
3. In a group setting they don't need much to add a little

I don't know, but all of us newbies need to learn how to use effects. To make it even more intensive, I'd love it if you made specific suggestions as far as brand. Like “if you use a humbucker guitar I'd use X” and “if you use a single coild guitar I'd use X overdrive pedal.” Just a thought. I'll patiently away your article. Seems like it will either be one really long one or a Part I and Part II later.

All in do time. Yes, for small to medium venues I have narrowed mine down to a 4 space rack setup. With a 1 space power conditioner, 2 space tube preamp (built in effects), 1 space tube power amp, connected to an attenuator to a either a 1x12 or 2x12 cabinet, On the floor connected to the preamp is a midi pedal with 2 continuous controllers, on the floor from the a preamp out is a boss RV3, Morley Wah, Morley volume connected to an overdriven Gibson tube amp (GA 19 RVT), with an attenuator to the amps built in 1x12 open back. And 4 Shure M57's for Mic's. You've hear the Mp3's I've posted this setup Rocks.

For the big venues and the studio it's way more intense and to much to list here. This setup depends on what they want. Stacked Marshall's is top on the list.

Here's the effects you asked about.

Click for Flanger Wav

Click for Phaser Wav

Joe

Ah-ha! Joe uses an attenuator! That explains why he prefers his all-tube set-up without extensive effects.

Basically, an attenuator lets you play your amplifier really loud without all of it going to the speaker, so you get all the tone at a reasonable volume.

One of the reasons that amp modellers are becoming popular is that they can simulate the loud tube tone without cranking it up. Of course, the model is not as good as the real thing.

Joe - attenuators used to be expensive. Any better now?

-Laz

Thanks for the links. That flanger sounds pretty wild and out there. I could see myself using the phaser since it's more sublte.

I don't know if you know anyone who has a website you could use to post pictures of your gear, too. It would be nice to have the article, the pictures, and a diagram of it. I know you've seen diagrams in the guitar mags of a guitar guru's gear. No matter what I'm looking forward to anything on the subject.

Man I give all the good tricks away huh, that many guitar players have keep secret. Because the amp is being driven harder, you can crank the amplifier up to make the output tubes distort. Output valve distortion sounds a lot better than pre-amp tube distortion.

The images, sound clips, idolized songs using a certain effects. I'm going to upload them to server space I have and let Admin decide from there where they want to move everything to. Getting it all finished has turned out to be larger than I had originally thought. I want not to leave out anything. there's a lot of effects to cover. I'm trying to get the most used one firsts and go on from there.

All in time which there never seems to be enough of.

Joe

I have a plan. This plea goes out to all you GN'ers out there. If each of us goes out an buy's a pack of Vivarin (200mg caffeine per pill) and send it to Joe we can keep him awake for months. See Joe, we can get you some time! :roll:

LMAO. I'm in. :)

I recently sold my ME-30 Multi-Effects on eBay because I thought it was poorly designed and didnt like it at all. Instead I am using a Boss Metal Zone MT-2 pedal and CryBaby Wah which sound great and are very durable. However, Boss single pedals are way overpriced!!!

one pedal i really love is the ibanez tube screamer, but it can be rediculously expensive! It adds killer sustain, and a really warm tone that bleeds into overdrive very smoothly. I wouldn't use it as an exclusive distortion, not enough OD for playing metal. Right now, my crappy setup goes like this:

guitar--tube screamer--crybaby wah--digital delay--peavy rage transtube amp (not quite sure of the wattage)(the settings are: clean volume:7.5 overdriven:pre 7.5, post 3.5, bass 10, mid 2.5, high 4) I get an alright tone out of it, considering I connect it to a little circuitboard splitter thing from inside a broken gigantic speaker box that divides the signals to the proper speakers.the designated bass speaker is the original speaker for the amp (10 inch),the mid goes to 2 X 4.5 inch mids i pulled out of the speaker box and the high freq. goes to 2X 2 inch tweets (also form the speaker box). Im pretty sure that's how it works.. it was kind of an experimental thing, and it didn't blow anything up, but it isnt really that great. It'll do until I save up enough to get a nice 50 watt all tube head and a small cab. I'll be getting an attenuator, of course. I had my eye on a certain mesa-boogie, and a marshall also caught my eye, but it'll be some time before i get my hands on that monster.

can't wait till your article, forrok. :D

Yea, I can't wait!

Interesting, my guitar teacher has that orange Tube Screamer. I guess they must be pretty popular, eh?

I go through phases. Lately, I have been using single effects again. I'm a big fan of Danelectro. They sound just as good as others (to me) for half the price.

Right now I'm using a Boss TU-2 Tuner (the best), Danelectro Milkshake Chorus, Danelectro Fab Tone (modern distortion), Danelectro Daddy-O (overdrive), Danelectro Pepperoni Phase, and a Vox V847 Wah. I also ordered a Danelectro PJ & B Echo/Delay today.

I have been going down to an Open Mic every Wednesday. I just take the little Premier Twin 8 amp I just picked up. It is only about 5 Watts, so I have to mic it. I have been hooking up all my pedals to it. It screams. It is unreal. I don't sing too much at Open Mic, so I can concentrate on the guitar and effects.

I hook up all these pedals at gigs but use them sparingly. At a gig you want form, but at Open Mic you can go wild.

The little Premier has a great Tremelo built in, so that's one more effect I'm using.

6 months from now, maybe I'll put them all in the bag, but right now I'm on the effects again. (Sounds like an addiction doesn't it?).

Hey, man, all the gear is an addiction. I am trying to hold off on the gear buying right now so I can buy a house later this year. Then, when I have my studio built sometime next year, we'll see where my bad case of GAS takes me.