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Can someone recommend a good bass envelope filter? I'm considering a few, MXR M82, Q-balls, MXR bass auto Q, EBS bass iQ. any others? I have a digitech syth wah and was considering an upgrade.
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Mar 5, 2010 15:26
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Golden War posted:Can someone recommend a good bass envelope filter? I'm considering a few, MXR M82, Q-balls, MXR bass auto Q, EBS bass iQ. any others? I have a digitech syth wah and was considering an upgrade. MXR Auto Q isn't really an envelope filter... more of an auto-wah. I have the Enigma and absolutely love it. But definitely check out the M82 as well. Enigma has more versatility in its controls, can do Low, Band, and High pass where the M82 is bandpass only but has both wet and dry volume control (enigma has a blend knob). They're voiced pretty differently so it's really just gonna depend on which you prefer. The EBS is alright, a lot of people use it. But I've never heard any sounds from it that would make me want to switch from my Enigma. And keep the synth wah. It's different enough to where it won't really be "replaced" or "upgraded" by an envelope filter. Scarf fucked around with this message at 15:35 on Mar 5, 2010 |
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Mar 5, 2010 15:31
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Scarf posted:MXR Auto Q isn't really an envelope filter... more of an auto-wah. I thought an envelope filter WAS an auto-wah 
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Mar 5, 2010 19:34
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plester1 posted:I thought an envelope filter WAS an auto-wah The two are often used interchangeably, but an auto-wah's sweep sets to a defined rate like on a phaser or flanger. Envelope filter's sweep responds to dynamics of your playing. edit: Apparently with the MXR Auto Q, the rate controls the "shimmer," so this pedal may be a kind of mix between an auto-wah and an envelope. But the differences between an auto-wah and an envelope filter still stand. Scarf fucked around with this message at 19:41 on Mar 5, 2010 |
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Mar 5, 2010 19:36
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Scarf posted:an auto-wah's sweep sets to a defined rate like on a phaser or flanger That is definitely not what I have understood auto-wahs to be. I thought it had more to do with the sorts of things that each were capable of, not that an autowah is an LFO filter while an envelope filter isn't. Envelope filters can emulate some wah sounds, but they can also do really cool stuff that wahs can't do at all. Could you link some example pedals so I can get a better idea of the distinction you're pointing to?
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Mar 5, 2010 20:33
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Agreed posted:That is definitely not what I have understood auto-wahs to be. I thought it had more to do with the sorts of things that each were capable of, not that an autowah is an LFO filter while an envelope filter isn't. Envelope filters can emulate some wah sounds, but they can also do really cool stuff that wahs can't do at all. I'd always made the distinction by means of just how the filter was controlled... Auto-wah = Driven by an oscillator Boss AW-2 and to an extent the Zvex Seek Wah: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk0Mg7aS_Tw (I think you can hear the boss near the very end) Envelope Filter = Driven by an envelope. MXR M82: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9j_WqyHJaoQ The envelope's sweep respond to the dynamics of the attack while the auto-wah(s) are a set rate. Edit: Again, not saying all this is right or wrong, but just how I've always come to make the distinction. Scarf fucked around with this message at 21:07 on Mar 5, 2010 |
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Mar 5, 2010 21:04
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I think you're right, especially considering the actual name "auto-wah" and how it was probably originally used. It's just odd to me since sims going back to the old Zoom 505 units have had "Autowah" modules that are definitely envelope following wah-type filters. And in, for example, Amplitube 2 onward (not sure if before), the Wah pedals have an "Auto" mode, which makes them envelope controlled. Do you think the distinction holds up or has it decayed to the point of primarily historical significance? I mean, really, the difference between "wah" and "filter" is a little bit semantic in itself, this isn't something we should worry too much over, I do think it's interesting how the terminology changes with time though.
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Mar 5, 2010 21:09
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Agreed posted:I think you're right, especially considering the actual name "auto-wah" and how it was probably originally used. It's just odd to me since sims going back to the old Zoom 505 units have had "Autowah" modules that are definitely envelope following wah-type filters. And in, for example, Amplitube 2 onward (not sure if before), the Wah pedals have an "Auto" mode, which makes them envelope controlled. Do you think the distinction holds up or has it decayed to the point of primarily historical significance? Kind of like how a Tremolo unit on a guitar has nothing to do with tremolo at all?  Honestly I think it's just semantics at this point between auto-wah and envelope filter... but anytime anyone asks me about my Enigma or anything and refers to it as an auto-wah, I make the distinction. Also when someone is asking for advice on a pedal... I want to make sure they're getting what they're looking for.
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Mar 5, 2010 21:10
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Scarf posted:From what I've heard in youtube examples I think the Enigma is my favorite as well. I'm definitely planning on keeping my synth-wah, it does all kinds of fun stuff but I think the envelope filter on it is weak. Do you know anything about the MuTron III pedals that are available now? I've heard they're nowhere near as good as the original production.
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Mar 6, 2010 02:52
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Golden War posted:From what I've heard in youtube examples I think the Enigma is my favorite as well. I'm definitely planning on keeping my synth-wah, it does all kinds of fun stuff but I think the envelope filter on it is weak. Do you know anything about the MuTron III pedals that are available now? I've heard they're nowhere near as good as the original production. No clue... But honestly, I think there's much better stuff out there. And I've actually been given some settings for the Enigma that ballpark the original Mutron III sounds.
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Mar 6, 2010 03:54
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I dunno how I missed this so I'm a week late now. But going back to the talk on octave fuzz pedals, the Fulltone Ultimate Octave is amazing. It can function as a fuzz only or a fuzz+octave as there's a seperate switch for the octave. It can cover a lot of ground from thick and sludgy to really bright and spiky, the tone control is very sensitive. Pretty majorly different sound from the also excellent Fulltone Octafuzz so I'd really reccomend checking out both if anybody's shopping for octave fuzz.
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Mar 11, 2010 20:43
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Does anyone make a pedal that will take 2 effects and reverse their order in the chain with a switch? I thought I remembered seeing something like that online. (maybe some dude that makes a bunch of different switchers, kill switches, and stuff like that?) I'm getting a tremolo pedal, and I think it will sound cool in front of my input volume sensitive fuzz, but I would also want it at the end of the chain for tremoloed delay oscillations and stuff like that.
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Mar 14, 2010 03:26
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Narwhale posted:Does anyone make a pedal that will take 2 effects and reverse their order in the chain with a switch? I thought I remembered seeing something like that online. (maybe some dude that makes a bunch of different switchers, kill switches, and stuff like that?) I'm getting a tremolo pedal, and I think it will sound cool in front of my input volume sensitive fuzz, but I would also want it at the end of the chain for tremoloed delay oscillations and stuff like that. Dan at This1smyne is a very helpful guy who makes this thing called the "Flip Flop" that does basically what you describe. The thing to remember, though, is that it will flip the direction of the send and return. So if you have Tremolo > Fuzz > Chorus > Delay, it will make it into Delay > Chorus > Fuzz > Tremolo, which could leave you with some effects combinations you're not too fond of.
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Mar 14, 2010 03:42
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Gorilla Salsa posted:Dan at This1smyne is a very helpful guy who makes this thing called the "Flip Flop" that does basically what you describe. The thing to remember, though, is that it will flip the direction of the send and return. So if you have Tremolo > Fuzz > Chorus > Delay, it will make it into Delay > Chorus > Fuzz > Tremolo, which could leave you with some effects combinations you're not too fond of. That seems close to what I want, but not quite. I use too many pedals for a full reversal to really be feasible. I was envisioning something more like a switcher with two loops where I could put the tremolo in one loop and the rest of my signal path in the other. Then I could switch between B>A and A>B. Actually it sounds like the Toadworks Roundabout Turbo might do this without a footswitch, but it also does a lot of stuff I don't really need. If I can't find a viable solution I'll put my electrical engineer guitarist to work on it  .
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Mar 14, 2010 03:53
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Narwhale posted:That seems close to what I want, but not quite. I use too many pedals for a full reversal to really be feasible. I was envisioning something more like a switcher with two loops where I could put the tremolo in one loop and the rest of my signal path in the other. Then I could switch between B>A and A>B. Actually it sounds like the Toadworks Roundabout Turbo might do this without a footswitch, but it also does a lot of stuff I don't really need. If I can't find a viable solution I'll put my electrical engineer guitarist to work on it You mean this? I already bought two different loopers at LoopMaster and I can really recommend them.
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Mar 14, 2010 19:54
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That's exactly what I was thinking of, thanks.
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Mar 14, 2010 23:22
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I've got a Deluxe Electric Mistress, and a friend who's an electrical engineering major. So, of course, I decided to see if he could mod my pedal for true bypass and to fix the volume drop. I found directions to make the Electric Mistress and my new Russian Muff true bypass, but the volume drop fix is hard to find. I found a few directions for fixing it on the original EM, but I don't know if those will work with the Deluxe version. We don't actually go to the same school so I was planning on talking to him about it over spring break so I don't know if he could look at it and know whether it would work. I found some wiring diagrams for him too. So does anyone have any advice or help to give me about this volume drop fix?
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Mar 18, 2010 06:06
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Good reverb pedal for about $100 or less? My amp doesn't have one built in, and using a Holy Stain as a crutch isn't cutting it anymore.
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Mar 22, 2010 18:32
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Hadlock posted:Good reverb pedal for about $100 or less? My amp doesn't have one built in, and using a Holy Stain as a crutch isn't cutting it anymore. Sell you my favorite one, a Marshall Reflector, for $60. It's a fantastic pedal, but I'm going all in-the-box.
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Mar 22, 2010 21:52
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Agreed posted:Sell you my favorite one, a Marshall Reflector, for $60. It's a fantastic pedal, but I'm going all in-the-box. You'd be a fool not to take this offer.
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Mar 22, 2010 22:18
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Agreed posted:Sell you my favorite one, a Marshall Reflector, for $60. It's a fantastic pedal, but I'm going all in-the-box. If you're still serious about selling it, let's take this out of the thread; I don't have platinum for PMs but you can email me at ... and we can sort out the details. Hadlock fucked around with this message at 04:01 on Mar 25, 2010 |
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Mar 24, 2010 19:24
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i picked up a frostwave sonic alienator - it is absolutely amazing. my chain is now pretty much just that and a couple of moog pedals and then a lexicon verb. the only problem is i haven't really done anything since getting it other than 'playing' with sounds and tweaking. oh well
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Mar 26, 2010 11:08
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I have a weird tone-suck issue that someone can maybe shine some light on. Backstory is that I've never been into effects very much, but over the past little while I've branched out quite a bit musically and am enjoying the variations that my ever growing pedal collection provides. Here's my current setup: Guitar -> Ernie Ball Jr VP Volume Pedal -> PolyTune -> Fuzz Factory -> Octane3 -> Box of Rock -> 2 knob compressor (custom build/true bypass) -> Bad Horsie Wah -> EHX Micro Synth -> Voodoo Labs Octavia (I realize it's technically in the 'wrong' spot on the board, but I like the synth->octave effect) -> Voodoo Labs Tremolo -> Seymour Duncan Shapeshifter Tremolo -> EHX Ring Mod -> Nova Delay -> MXR EVH Flanger -> MXR 10 Band EQ -> Amp (Generally a Tiny Terror, Rocker100 or Vox AC30). I've been playing around with placement and pulling pedals in and out of the chain, but it seems that no matter what I do, there's a VERY noticeable drop in tone and volume whenever I'm going through the board. I've been using the EQ to compensate but that seems to be defeating the purpose of good equipment overall. Do I need a buffer of some sort somewhere in the chain or is something in particular just a piece of tonesucking poo poo?
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Apr 23, 2010 00:16
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iostream.h posted:I have a weird tone-suck issue that someone can maybe shine some light on. I had a similar problem, and adding a buffer as the first pedal (in the form of a TU-2, which is buffer off and on) basically fixed it.
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Apr 23, 2010 02:22
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Hubis posted:I had a similar problem, and adding a buffer as the first pedal (in the form of a TU-2, which is buffer off and on) basically fixed it.
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Apr 23, 2010 03:07
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iostream.h posted:Will a buffer up front affect the way my dirt pedals react to volume changes on my guitar? (I guess I'm asking if a buffer would work like a compressor in front of them.) Short answer: It shouldn't, unless you've got some really odd (or vintage) pedals. A buffer should be totally sonic transparent, imparting no compression or filtering. Long answer: A buffer is basically a transparent, 1:1 amplifier circuit that disconnects the load coming into it from the load going out. This involved a lot of different things electrically that I won't go into, but what it means is that your signal will be passed through just as it comes in, and that the electronics on each side of the buffer won't interact with one another. Despite being "True-Bypass", most pedals are actually buffered to prevent these interactions (which is a good thing, since you probably don't want your compressor, dirt, and flange pedals behave totally differently if they're placed in different orders). The "true bypass" refers to the fact that when the pedal is off, the signal is routed straight from the input to output, avoiding the pedal circuitry and buffers; when the pedal is on, the signal is still buffered at the input (and probably output). The only exception to this is that some fuzz pedals (as I understand it) are actually designed to interact with the load in the pots/pickups, so that when one changes the volume the way the pedal reacts changes as well. But I think that's a vintage-only thing.
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Apr 23, 2010 04:22
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Thanks for the help, I guess at this point I just need someone to recommend a good buffer for a bigass board.
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Apr 23, 2010 05:14
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iostream.h, you should know that the Micro Synth isn't true bypass, and actually affects your tone quite a bit. When I had it, I ran it with a true bypass looper because of this. EDIT: Not saying this is specifically your issue, but it can't help.
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Apr 23, 2010 13:49
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iostream.h posted:Thanks for the help, I guess at this point I just need someone to recommend a good buffer for a bigass board. Before I got my TU-2, I used an EHX LPB-2 that I just always left on.
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Apr 23, 2010 15:46
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Hubis posted:Before I got my TU-2, I used an EHX LPB-2 that I just always left on. I use my compressor (Barber Tonepress) set pretty transparently as my first-in and it does a decent job buffering, although it affects the tone slightly, but in a good way I think. The MXR microamp is super transparent and might work for you. Other people use the MXR boost/line driver for this purpose. No buffers on my effects loop though, and not sure if that makes a difference or not.
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Apr 23, 2010 23:22
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Boss pedals are all buffered and there are always lots of used ones around. And in my experience they have a good truly transparent buffer. So if you can find any Boss pedal you are at all interested in, that could be a cheap way to try out this put-a-buffer-in-front idea. Their lower gain overdrives (SD-1, OD-3) and digital delays (DD-3, 5, 6, 7) are always for sale used all over because they are so common. If you wind up rarely using the actual effect you still have the buffer when it's turned off. For this kind of experimentation I reccomend buying used gear. That way if you wind up with something that isn't helping for what you wanted it for, you can probably resell it for the same price you paid.
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Apr 23, 2010 23:57
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I'm looking for a good reverb pedal to use for bass. I use to play an Ampeg combo that had a reverb effect built-in that I was quite fond of. I've moved on from that combo but I do miss that reverb effect on bass. Im aware of the EBS dynaverb and mark bass pedal, just wondering if there were some cheaper guitar pedals that might do a good job as well.
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Apr 26, 2010 22:56
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So I just posted this in the small questions thread but it actually makes a lot more sense in here, so here it is again: I posted an ad on craigslist asking for a used EQ pedal and so far have two offers. One is an MXR M108 with power supply for $90 CAD, and the other is a boss EQ-20 for $150. I really like the idea of the boss, especially since I can also use it for bass. Also I have a lot of guitars and play a lot of styles; a programmable EQ just seems like a good idea to me. If there's anything bad about it though (like lovely bypass or generally inferior sound) I'll just go with the MXR because frankly it seems hard to go wrong. Apologies if this has been covered already, I did scan the last bit of the thread for EQ-chat.
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Apr 26, 2010 22:59
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This talk about EQ pedals gave me an idea. You'd need some sort of auto A-B switch that had an adjustable oscillating (square wave) rate, sort of like a tremolo, but it would cut between A&B, which would feed into two EQs, each with different settings. My guess would be that you'd end up with a slight warble halfway between a phaser and a tremolo. For shits and giggles you could add in a toggle switch to change the wave from square to sine , and then a depth knob to blend the dry signal with the EQ'd signal. I fully expect Agreed to have modeled this and posted a link to tindeck by the time I get back here 
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Apr 27, 2010 03:45
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Thanks for all the advice, I have a single-unit bypass loop for the micro-synth on the way and I'm looking for something mini to hide under the Pedal Train to give an overall boost to the signal as a whole.
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Apr 27, 2010 04:29
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Hadlock posted:This talk about EQ pedals gave me an idea. You'd need some sort of auto A-B switch that had an adjustable oscillating (square wave) rate, sort of like a tremolo, but it would cut between A&B, which would feed into two EQs, each with different settings. My guess would be that you'd end up with a slight warble halfway between a phaser and a tremolo. For shits and giggles you could add in a toggle switch to change the wave from square to sine , and then a depth knob to blend the dry signal with the EQ'd signal. Too late for me to gently caress around with this right now, but I already know how to do it in Guitar Rig 4. Should be possible in some other software, as well, Overloud TH1 for sure, maybe ReValver. What's required is a signal splitter. Guitar Rig 4 makes it easy because it includes an excellent splitter and also a variety of synth-style control options. Either an aggressively clipped LFO or an analog-style sequencer (might be using the wrong terminology, but it's not a step sequencer, it's the one that allows you to define the value for each subdivision - sorry, it is late and I am tired) would work here, assigned to control the signal split A/B slider, with the differing EQs set up in each. Boom, done. I'll have an example up tomorrow 
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Apr 27, 2010 05:33
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Hubis posted:
I used to have a Zoom ultra fuzz that did this. It would self oscilate and when you turned your guitars tone pot the pitch of the oscilation would change. Good times.
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Apr 27, 2010 11:27
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Welp, bought the MXR EQ. Pretty happy with it- stuck in the effects loop of my ValveKing it's very helpful at low volume levels, and that's just from dicking around. I haven't downloaded the manual yet, I've heard that the recommended presets are pretty useful. I'll also probably tote it around to acoustic gigs. I'd like to have the same functionality for bass but maybe I'll build one some time. As effects go this one seems to have a pretty high bang to buck ratio, would recommend.
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Apr 27, 2010 15:51
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Hadlock posted:This talk about EQ pedals gave me an idea. You'd need some sort of auto A-B switch that had an adjustable oscillating (square wave) rate, sort of like a tremolo, but it would cut between A&B, which would feed into two EQs, each with different settings. My guess would be that you'd end up with a slight warble halfway between a phaser and a tremolo. For shits and giggles you could add in a toggle switch to change the wave from square to sine , and then a depth knob to blend the dry signal with the EQ'd signal. I'm at home this afternoon and got curious so whipped up a couple of clips myself in Guitar Rig 4. Both are a Les Paul (bridge pickup) -> EQ splitter -> High White (Hiwatt) amp model. I also added a touch of Ableton compressor after GR. It does remind me a bit of both a tremolo and a phaser (also of the effect you get toggling a pickup select switch back and forth rhythmically), and unsurprisingly sounds best with sustained, harmonically rich notes. Clip 1: Mild (modeled) tubescreamer up front, split into two Graphic EQs with moderate boosts in different bands. Near the end I switched the LFO around between square wave (which is most of the clip), sine wave, and sawtooth (I really like the pulsing of the sawtooth wave). Clip 2: Replaced the tubescreamer with a fuzz (the Big Muff style model) to really bring out the harmonics, into a Split with two drastic shelving EQs (one all low end, one mid-high end) h_double fucked around with this message at 18:48 on Apr 27, 2010 |
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Apr 27, 2010 18:46
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drat, beat me to it. Well, that's what it sounds like  Remind anyone else of a comb filter or a bandpass without resonance? Agreed fucked around with this message at 19:19 on Apr 27, 2010 |
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Apr 27, 2010 19:15
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