I'm starting up a two piece band (drums and bass) and am trying to compensate the lack of other instruments with some decent pedals which will make my bass sound dirrrrty. Delays, modulators, distortion, whammys...anything would be useful. Go!
I'm starting up a two piece band (drums and bass) and am trying to compensate the lack of other instruments with some decent pedals which will make my bass sound dirrrrty. Delays, modulators, distortion, whammys...anything would be useful. Go!
Play guitar instead
Noooo
I can't play guitar that well, nor do I own one. It's not an option!
What i mean is
I think bass guitars with effects sound really, really rubbish and you should just play the guitar instead. But yeah, if you don't play guitar, then you can't do that lol. Personally, if i had to have effects, i'd keep it as minimal as possible. Like a big chunky bass distortion and nothing else. Depends on what sort of music you're playing, i suppose. Do you have good tunes/songs and want to obliterate them? Or are you making up for lack of tunes by just making a big messy noise? ;)
I know what you mean
I'm a big Lightning Bolt fan and Brian Gibson has achieved a mega beefy sound which also varies quite alot, but I don't want my bass to sound like that (I'd be a fraud). I don't want to make a messy noise either, but the songs I have are quite noisy and quite poppy. I was thinking about getting a really chunky bass distortion but also wanted to add something else for shits and giggles.
bass is gonna break out of this mindset-----^
I know what you are saying but the bass can be just as freaky as guitar anyday- and should! Go Bass Go!
I think that the mention of Lightning Bolt
has just proved your point about effects on bass wrong. It all depends how it is done. Effects on guitars sound shit if they are done badly too!
I hate Lightning Bolt though
I didn't make a point anyway, i just stated a preference. There's a difference isn't there?
He hates lightning bolt!
*lights flaming torch*
After him!
I use(d)
a Boss Distortion pedal and a Line6 delay unit. Don't buy combo units specifically designed for bass because they tend to sound fucking horrible. The Line6 sounds great through a bass, I'd really recommend it.
Get some sort of Bass Fuzz immediately
Electroharmonix do some good ones.
Then get an envelope filter. I remember back in the day when I used to obsess about these things that the one DOD did was good.
Then get a star-shaped bass... and learn slap bass really well... *dreams*
what I have and like:
First off I love wah but hadn't had any luck finding a decent one till I bought a Boss ME-50B Multi Effects Bass. This multi effects unit has a "expression pedal" which is also an incredible wah! The unit is loaded with everything (except tremolo). It is fairly easy to use. You can bank effects for gigging but I haven't figured that out yet. It's a tuner, it really is amazing- not like most cheesy "multi" units that have a bunch of crappy sounding preset effects- you can really dial this in and get your own UNIQUE sounds. I can't say enough good about this thing. It is a little daunting some times trying to work it in the loop but I alway seem to make it get along with other pedals.
I also have a ZVEX Wolly Mammoth "Fuzz Pedal". Mine is a pricey limited edition (only made 10) but you can get excellent Japanese made editions for $150.00. The Wooly Mammoth is a great pedal made just for bass players (but also sounds good on guitar, low neck stuff).
I have a Boss DD-6 digital delay- awsome, it even has a cool "reverse" mode that I haven't quite figured out what to do with. The DD-6 is highly regarded by guitar players.
Boss Super Octave OC-3. great pedal but my multi effects has an octaver built in .
Electro-Harmonix Wiggler. I got this to make up for the tremolo that my multi doesn't have. I'm still trying to totally like the Wiggler. It is very cool though (as most E- Harmonix are). It has two exposed tubes (I guess for "warmth") built in the top with a guard piece covering them and it looks cool. Like I said I am still working on the wiggler.
^the answer I was looking for
Thanks! Have you ever used any pedals from noisefx? I'm slightly tempted by some of them but I think they're built for noise artists...
I haven't heard of noisefx but I'm going to look into it now.
: )
you can get vexter woolly mammoths?
Yeah
I got one.
http://www.zvex.com/effects.html
go here and you can download cool demos, just click on wooly mammoth + loads of other cool effects.
i've heard it. i've had 2 mammoths over the years
but sold 'em both. fancy another one but fairly broke at the moment. a cheapo one would be a treat.
I've settled on
an odb distortion (not the greatest, look for one ofthe other alternative's here), and a chorus.
I've added a whammy to the whole thing..not the bass whammy-the guitar whammy 4.
It works very well with the bass.
my signature bass WILL have a whammy bar.
: )
i reckon
you need to do something like
splitting the signal, taking one channel through a digitech whammy (octaving it up and stuff) and through some sweet distortion like a proco rat or whatever and then into a guitar amp, and then teh other signal into a fat bass amp. you can put it through a big muff bass distortion or something fat and wooly, and maybe use something like that sweet electro harmonix bass synth modeller or somthing
YEAH
in fact you can totally go overboard with that treble channel
put delays, tremelos, phasers, whatever on it. go on a spree buying shitty behringer. this way you have a proper defined bass sound and bassline going on and then you can just make noise scree with the top line
YEAH
you should totally listen to me.
as for splitting the signal, i've always just done it with my stereo delay pedal, but there have got to be better ways
talking of which
definitely get something like the digitech xdd for the top line and use it for microloops and drones, under which you can chug and pop.
ooh im coming over all excited like
That requires thinking
Would it sound okay if the guitar amp was a practice amp, say, 20 watts?
yeah definitely
i've always done it with my ten watt amp on top of a respectably sized bass amp. just needs mic-ing
and you can probably use
the cheap transistor distortion from the practise amp and not have to buy a distortion pedal
wow
this is the kind of knowledge I wish I had. I'm innovative but not enough knowledge to be innovative with. How did you learn about technical electronic stuff?
i dont know that much
this is just my particular speciality. just learnt this stuff through my early teens spent listening to records with a particular friend discussing the effects we were hearing, and my late teens and early twenties buying crap and playing around with it.
then there's my general levels of genius
I, see.........
erm,
yes,
This sound exactly like my experience but I suppose you just paid more attention. Then there is the genius factor- I am a bear of normal brain.
even though you're using a higher octave
it's still dangerous putting hte bass through the guitar amp.
the pedals do not convert to line level, so the original bass signal is there and you the amp still requires as bass amp level of voltage to pass it.
and it can still fuck up a guitar speaker.
I'd do the same thing you outlined, but through a di box with speaker emulation into the mixer.
You can get a coolswitch for about 30 quid that will split the signal.
but great idea meate..i was doing a similar thing with a guitar (but signal split to amp and laptop) but I'm gonna try this with bass!
good points
as i've said up there, the guitar amp that i use to do this is a complete piece of shiet squier sp10, so fucking it up has never been a big issue for me :)
for fuzz there's only three things i've ever heard sound any good
lovetone big cheese (£££)
the octave fuzz side of a lovetone ringstinger (£££££££££)
zvex woolly mammoth (££)
don't touch the boss bass ODs with a barge pole. they blow. some big muffs can sound okay but they have a habit of being very flabby and they tend not to cut through the mix very well. proco rat is passable but not excellent.
i'd veer away from modulation effects in general for bass.
get an electro harmonix bass micro synth. they rule.
You don't sound like
you actually know where to start. If that's the case go for a multi like the Korg B2.1u - it'll give you a good idea what the various effects sound like and you can take things from there.
Word of warning about fuzz/distortions though - people will recommend every unit under the sun because they like it. But distortions are more down to taste than any other unit. One mans Wolly Mammoth is another mans ODB3. There's really no way to sort out what you like
other than by trying it.
You're right, I have no idea
But thanks for the tips. I'm just trying to get a really solid setup so I can start pretending to be in Lightning Bolt :D
guitar distortion
the cheaper the better + a behringer bass eq means you can run the full gamut from tinny distortion to heavy distortion
I used a behringer distortion once
It was shockingly bad.
behringers are bad
if you are kind of herb who cares about "tone shaping" and "build quality" of pedals otherwise they are cheap nasty and fun, bass eq pedal is really useful
I don't really know anything about tone shaping
or build quality, but really, it was horrible.
and not in a good way.
no, behringers are bad
if you don't want to sound like you're playing through a tv
you make this sound good....
DO IT
The Korg B2.1u sounds interesting.
I once got a guitar multi ( a huge digitech) that I hated and I swore them (multis) off but I trialed the Boss ME-50B Bass unit and fell in love with it instantly. It is like a little testing ground and has given me loads of ideas and inspirations. I just couldn't resist this green metalflake Wooly Mammoth though- just screamed to be bought and for the most part it is exactly the retro fuzz sound I was going for. I have problems sometime dialing it in to get long sustain, that'll just take some practice.
i'm currently
playing in what would look like a trad. jazz trio with trumpet, drums and bass.
I am putting the bass through a boss digital delay and a George Dennis Wah pedal. Occasionally I am putting it through a Rat pedal if distortion is needed.
The Delay works a treat, as I can get a nice rhythm going and use my free hands to play synthesiser
from the kind of music you like
I'd assumea a trashy all behringer setup would be your thing ;)
but like alcxxk said...make sure you have a solid channel with a well defined bass, with only a good distortion and a compressor.
Then the othe singal where you but all the cheapo shit for a noisy scream on top...i wouldn;t use an amp like alcxxk said..i'd di to mixer.
Bored at work, so here's my MS paint masterpiece knock-up
http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/739/setupcn9.jpg
the mixer/guitar amp/laptop are options.
mixer or laptop are better
Awesome
Nice sheep ;)
secret weapon