Help me spend some money

[RW James]

Okay we have two music stores where I live - one charges full list price for everything - and the other has nothing over $99 (kind of cool if you need an entry level guitar)

So I'm driving down to Sacramento, California on Friday on other business and I will have about an hour to kill and I want to go to Guitar Center (near the Interstate and I don't where else to go anyway.) I've never been there before and I don't want to waste time aimlessly wandering around the store drooling.

I have GAS and a little bit of money. What should I buy?

I play rock/alternative (I'm not very good with genres). I have a Crate GFX65T with the onboard DSP effects things - which are good to a limit - but I can't adjust them at all.

I currently have a Dunlop CryBaby and a DOD Flashback Fuzz (it was on sale and I needed it for a song we were doing)

I have room for 3 or 4 more pedals. Cost is an issue so I've been looking at DOD, Digtech, and Boss.

I don't feel I really need any distortion or overdrive pedals because I'm pretty happy with the sound the overdrive channel produces on my Crate.

So I'm thinking of phasers, delays, choruses, or anything along those lines... or even compressors or whatever (I'm open to suggestions - what can you not do without)

I've also looked at the Digitech multi effects pedals... but I have concerns - I guess they only allow one effect at a time - but I'm not sure that is really a problem. I'm concerned that I would have trouble changing effects without either turning the thing off completely or falling over - I don't know, it just seems overly complicated and has a lot more features than I would ever use. But the bang for buck is definetly there.

So - bottom line
1. Should I consider a multi-effects pedal? If so which one?
2. Am I better off with single effects? Suggestions

I'm going to use plastic - so it's not like I'm spending real money or anything - but I'm thinking of staying between $100 and $200.

Of course - if I see my dream guitar there - all bets are off!

Thanks for any suggestions,
Rick

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Help me spend some money

Get the Line 6 Modulation Modeler (blue w/4 buttons). It's like having every pedal from the 60's and 70's packed into one pedal. $250, but it takes the place of a LOT of pedals, and sounds very good. If you ever want a certain sound, you simply find it on the rotary dial, tweak the knobs, then hold down the button for 14 seconds, then it's stored. The green Delay is equally cool, so you'll have every delay sound ever invented, like Echoplex's and Space Echo etc.

[Kac]

Re: Help me spend some money

Alex, re-read the title of the thread, and maybe the actual thread..

Rock On Bro!

[Nite_Maresz_25]

Re: Help me spend some money

Alex, re-read the title of the thread, and maybe the actual thread..

Rock On Bro!

ooops....wow...i need to pay more attention........


yup, still agree with Mr. gear ho over there.

[RW James]

Re: Help me spend some money

Thanks for the Line 6 tip... I've heard some good things about Line 6 but probably wouldn't have considered it because of the price - about the same as I paid for my amp and for my guitar (before all the mods).

There's a part of me that thinks it's silly to spend so much on a pedal. But I guess I need to think of it as an integral part of my instrument - at least as important as the amp.

Now I hope Guitar Center has it.

So I guess I missed a reply... oh well, thanks for the thought, anyway.

Rick

[JacksonMIA]

Re: Help me spend some money

It's just a personal preference, but I like seperate pedals for each effect. That way you can turn each on and off as needed.

Example: I was using a friends multi-FX pedal (don't remember which one) three or four years ago playing live. Just before we started one of the songs, I got the idea that it would sound great with a little delay in just one part of the song. I didn't have time to program another preset that was identical except the addition of the delay, so it was either with or without for the whole song. I would have loved to have been able to stomp a box and turn it on and off.

All of that's coming from a guy that has a VAMP-2 for his only effects, so take that for what it's worth, which isn't much. If you're only playing at home, or you don't ever change your settings once you get them dialed in, you'll be fine with a multi-FX pedal - and that Line6 is a pretty good one. If you want a little more versatility on the fly, if you play live a lot and like to change things at a moment's notice, you might want to consider getting seperate pedals.

I'm not trying to steer you in one direction or the other. There are advantages to both.

[MikeS]

Re: Help me spend some money

I'm not a fan of DOD, so I'll recommend sticking with Boss. The compressoin/sustainer is a great little pedal that I use a lot when playing clean (I think the model is the CE-2, but I'm not sure. I do know that it's blue in color).

I also really like the new Line6 pedals. The Echo Park is a lot of fun to play around with but it is expensive for a single function pedal. The Tap Tremolo is also a very well made and good sounding tremolo pedal if you are in to that sort of thing. If nothing else, check them out.

I've also been wanting to go try out the SD pickup booster and Tweak Fuzz. I know you said you were happy with you overdriven sound, but you never know what a new pedal may do for your sound.

[RW James]

Re: Help me spend some money

It's just a personal preference, but I like seperate pedals for each effect. That way you can turn each on and off as needed.

I certainly appreciate what you saying here - and I pretty much feel the same way you do. But the Line 6 pedal looks like it is essentially 4 pedals - each programmable. If I bought 4 pedals, I would only have 4 pedals available during a gig. So it would be pretty much the same thing. Only with the Line 6, if I get tired of one of the pedals, I can program a different one in.

Additionally, at $250, that's just over $60 a pedal. Most good single function pedals cost more than that - so I'm probably not saving any money. I have to admit that when I first started this quest I was looking at $40 pedals - and may still end up there. But I know that these low-end pedals aren't going to have the versaility of the more expensive ones (or the Line 6 stompbox).

Somebody please correct me if I am totally off here.

I'm not a fan of DOD, so I'll recommend sticking with Boss... I also really like the new Line6 pedals.

Thanks, this is the kind of stuff I wanted to hear. To be honest, the DOD pedals attracted me with their price tag. I have their Fuzz, and I like the sound - but I know that's not a particularly sophisticated effect.

Yeah the SD boxes look interesting - but beyond my price and need at the time. I'll check out the Boss pedals - but as I stated above, just in terms of economics, it looks like the Line 6 will give me a bigger bang-to-buck ratio.

Thanks,
Rick

[marvar]

Re: Help me spend some money

Hey! I'll be glad to help you spend some money! Send it to me! I love spending money!!

[RW James]

Re: Help me spend some money

Hey! I'll be glad to help you spend some money! Send it to me! I love spending money!!

That may be my best bet

I went to Guitar Center with my list and my credit card... they had NOTHING that I wanted - NOTHING! I was so dissappointed

So I guess I'll try to order the Line 6 box through one of my local stores and hope they'll give me street price and not list.

[Zerberus]

Re: Help me spend some money

That may be my best bet

I went to Guitar Center with my list and my credit car... they ahd NOTHING that I wanted - NOTHING! I was so dissappointed
....

Donīt be, thats an integral part of the GC/MF experience, disappointment over availability or getting gouged.. I think its even in their Terms of Service somewhere "Thou shalt Overpay and Thou shalt wait" or something like that