Guitar Pedals / General Guitar + Amp Thread • Page 8

I'm not familiar with this one. From what I'm hearing on one or two videos, I think it could get old pretty quick. Effect wise, there doesn't seem to be much variation, whether you play it for leads or chords. It all sounds the same, but perhaps I'm completely wrong and need to try it to judge it fairly.

 

I always think this with Dr Black pedals. That guy releases so many fucking variants that it just puts me off all his pedals entirely. Why bother getting one if within half a year there’s a better/alternate version with new features yours now lacks? I swear there’s like 10 versions of his Supermoon or Bloodmoon (I forget the name) alone. It’s super discouraging.

With Walrus Audio and that 1981 pedal too. Limited editions need to die. Every other Reddit post is some special edition Julia pedal or whatever. Like stop it please...you spit out enough and it’s just like eh. Why bother when they’ll only release a cooler version right after you get it. And even then that’s if you can get them before the price is jacked up on reselling sites.

Also the fully blacked-out Black Friday limited editions of pedals SUCKED! Sorry but like. You can’t read any of the text on any of the pedals I’ve seen. Chase Bliss did some too and it’s like...I get it - cool - but super impractical when you have to squint to see the controls.

 

It’s very...I guess organ-like? For church bands and the like, I guess this stuff is fantastic. But for me I just can’t get into it at all. It sounds plastic and tacky to me somehow.

 

I'm still new when it comes to actual gear but I do get the frustration. In the broader sense Pedal (or guitar gear) culture looks like a toxic mess from the few places I've explored. Many facebook groups I'm part of turn into bragging posts where people look down on poorer people. I hate that word but it can be very echo-chamber-y instead of being welcoming. It kind of puts me off.

It does, but also because I remember trying Guitar Rig when I was 15, getting the exact same sound in a few minutes, and getting bored with it right away so...

I should look into Stephen Brodsky's gear as it suddenly makes me think of a few Cave In songs.

 

Yeah...the Reddit for guitar pedals is essentially just bougie pedal Instagram. I’m guilty of seeking out almost entirely boutique pedals myself - but it isn’t a dick-swinging competition. I just love discussing pedals haha.

 

That's exactly what it looks like. Influencer culture infecting musicians somehow?

I tried ultimate guitar back in the day, and it was already snobby in parts. I'd just love to find a place where discussing pedals can be done without anyone shaming your music tastes.

 

Honestly that’s what I was going for with page. Show off all you want...but discussion is key and I know I’m not about judging. Always really interested to hear about people’s rigs and what inspires it etc. Stumbled on some really clever and original ideas regarding pedal usage through forums and it’d be fun for that to be a thing here too.

Plus I was bloody clueless about pedals back in like...2013 or so. Forums helped me understand so much and really opened my mind. Whether it was power supplies, cabling, the ways certain effects work, etc. Never thought I’d be this far down the rabbit hole haha.

If anybody here hasn’t seen it already, I’d HIGHLY recommend watching the Ed O’Brien episode of That Pedal Show. It’s a masterclass in the MENTAL possibilities pedals offer you from an incredibly inspiring musician.

 

Also what was everybody’s first pedal and why?

Mine was an Electro Harmonix Cathedral. It was on a ridiculous sale at a nearby store. We’re talking like 70 quid off a brand new pedal, because the store was closing up.

That was my gateway drug into reverb and effects. The flerb mode made me research what flanging was and bam! I’m obsessed with modulation and time-based effects now.

I started looking into pedals once I’d heard The xx’s debut record. And my first experience of modulation was an onboard chorus on a cheap af bass amp I had. I didn’t even know what chorus was. All I knew was that when I cranked it, it sounded pretty.

 

Emerson Em-Drive. I saw the Hotelier use it and was a fan. Great transparent overdrive that I leave on pretty much all the time. Paired with a fender deluxe reverb I'm in heaven.

 

Jonesin for a deluxe reverb but Asia hasn’t discovered walls that aren’t paper yet so I’m using a headphone rig til then sadly haha.

 

Ya it is LOUD when turned up past 2 haha. Luckily I play mostly clean and it sounds great at lower volumes (1-2). The amp breaks up around 4 and I haven't found a sound guy that will let me turn up that loud haha. That's where the em-drive helps out a lot.

Also you might want to check out fenders new tone-master series. It's a deluxe reverb but solid state. It honestly sounds great. You can achieve awesome tones at low volumes with that thing if you're strictly a bedroom player.

 

Hahaaa yeah I’d kill for the real thing, but being a bedroom player it kind of seems redundant. That and I guess it’s kind of a self-conscious thing where I want to experiment and do dumb shit without the gf hearing and feeling like she’s judging haha. I play loops over like a million times and it’s do her head in!

Wicked that you’ve found a decent drive - it was a nightmare trying to find one for me!

Good recommendation with the Tone Master stuff. It’s a toss-up between that and maybe a Jazz Chorus (when in Rome...) if they do models that aren’t ridiculously big. Ideally a headphone jack is a plus but I can’t see many of those big boys having one.

 

you can do the Generation Loss sound for cheap and better with just a vibrato and an EQ or a filter.

check out the EHX Grand Canyon’s looper instead of the Mood. you can slow the clock of the loop down fluidly to any speed and reverse it. all the other loopers out there are stuck at half or full speeds or fixed intervals.

 

Ah, I have the EHX 720 looper and it does half-speed and reverse. The MOOD has an absurd amount of potential that literally no other box is capable of, which is why that’s high on my list. Pretty cool that the Canyon does that though. Was really impressed reading about both that and the bigger version.

Regarding the Gen Loss, it’s irritating because I have an Instant Lofi Junky from ZVEX and while it’s brilliant, there’s this horrible clipping at the start of every note when you use the compressor side. Everyone keeps saying that’s part of the charm but it’s so grating to my ears that I can’t stand to use the pedal. I’ll probably sell it. Additionally my Dark World has a Gen Loss reverb setting which satisfies that itch until I can stumble on either the CBA or Cooper version. I just really want those separate wow and hiss controls haha.

Feel like I’ve been achieving things I’ve been after with workarounds since day one and I guess I’m trying to treat myself...eventually...

 

yeah I just don’t see it with the Mood - it’s just a micro sampler with a reverb. get an iPad and use it as a sampler. get a looper and play a short loop. maybe there’s something I’m missing.

the lo-fi sounds like the Gen Loss ARE super cool though. I have a Shallow Water that’s great for half the price if you have to have randomized vibrato - but I find twiddling an EQ to taste and pairing it with any old vibrato (and a quiet compressor) gets me exactly where I want to be but with more control over the EQ obviously.

 

Haha far from just a sampler. It’s ridiculously complex and capable of insane things but we’ll agree to disagree. Already have a looper and just doing short loops with the reverse and half-speed is not the same at all. Covers that ground but takes it to another level. Ramping and the level of control is key here.

I actually have a Shallow Water back in the UK and it’s probably my favourite pedal. Just couldn’t fit it on the board. Glorious thing that’s far more convincing regarding tape than any other box so far. The Gen Loss I’m after for the almost bit crush lofi kinda stuff. White noise and the like. Yes...achievable with fuzz and EQs but I’m tired of half-arsing it with workarounds and certain pedals are just ones I’ve pined after for a damn while haha. With workarounds I’m losing the control I’m after.

 

explain to me what the Mood does - I’ve watched videos. like I said maybe there’s something I’m not getting. Or explain to me how you would use it.

since your tastes are expensive - wanna buy the OP-1 that I have for sale?

 

What’s the OP-1 sorry?

MOOD? Always on looper - I’m a bedroom player. I don’t have to think about actively planning a phrase or loop, I can just noodle about and if I like something I can immediately access and build on that without having to recreate it. The clock control is far more extensive than on any other pedal I’ve ever seen - I can alter the pitch, length and sample rate with that alone. Passing your loop back and forth through the myriad effects in series and parallel. Ramping - huge appeal of ANY Chase Bliss pedal to me. For example - on my Dark World I can actually achieve chorus modulation, phasing, tremolo, pitch-shifting and volume swells by having any or all of the dials ramp back and forth independently. The level of control on these pedals is fucking insane.

Workarounds get you close to things sure, but it is far from the full picture.

 

wow, yeah, i do !!

 

Oh damn, you gonna hate me

 

I DO I REALLY DO

 

SIGH

 

If ever you fancy letting go of it for the love of god hmu @oncenowagain

 

I like the Strymon Deco for flanger or the Boss one

 

Which Boss? I was looking at the BF-3 but passed after hearing the 2 was better. Played the 3 in a store last week against a Dimension C...left needing a Dimension.

But I gotta get a MOOD first. And a Spectre. I asked Joel from CBA if they’re remaking it and he said that and the Gen Loss are shelved permanently :’(