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finally weaned myself off pedals.

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  • finally weaned myself off pedals.

    For the last few years i have been using less and less gear to get the sounds i like onstage by relying more on nice sensitive, nuanced amps (fenders mostly) and the volume controls on my guitar. The difficult thing of course is to get the right amount of overdrive at stage volumes.
    I spent a long tine using just one fuzz pedal, then after making a couple of prototypes, settled on a special home recipe overdrive. This was good, because i enjoyed having reverb from the amp (and trem sometimes). However i still wanted more responsiveness, nuance and harmonic clarity.
    Anyways, a few weeks back ordered and received a beautiful hand built amp. Loosely based on a JTM bluesbreaker, but with the addition of a master volume control. No reverb, no trem. Just pure sweet, rich all tube tone.
    Ive used it at a bunch of gigs already thru a 2x12 cab and been loving the simplicty of just plugging straight in. It is so rich and nuanced, i don't miss the reverb. It makes me sound better, and it has the benefit of making me play better also. It is clear enough that i can hear every note and nuance whether i'm gently stroking the strings for complex chords on the neck pickup, grinding out some crunchy riffey, or slicing some lead lines thru the band mix.
    So last week i thought, i'll just bring along my NKT275 fuzz face to give myself a little extra grunt and fuzz texture when required. Its a really nice pedal as anyone who has used one will tell you. I used it for about 30 seconds until the into of the song was over, then switched it off. Next set break i removed it and went back to a single cable straight into the amp. I actually prefer the tone with literally nothing between me and the amp, it feels like diodes, transistors or anything between the guitar and the tubes is just getting in the way of what i want to do expressively.
    So yeah. Just a little anecdote about how i got past the need (or desire) to use pedals.
    With the right guitar and amp combination for the job at hand, there is nothing more needed.

    I'm not saying ill never use pedals or effects again and i know that for a lot of sonic textures and ambiance various effects are a must (especially in the studio). I also recognize that for a lot of players various effects are an integral part of their creative process. For me personally tho, right now and for the bulk of things i play live, they are no longer necessary or missed.
    Last edited by Chickenwings; 09-07-2014, 05:47 PM.
    "Technique is really the elimination of the unneccessary ... it is a constant effort to avoid any personal impediment or obstacle to acheive the smooth flow of energy and intent"
    Yehudi Menuhin

  • #2
    Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

    Congrats man. I'm glad you like that new amp too. I built a small board a while ago and found I was only using the reverb so now it's back to just the reverb and the guitar/amp combo. Simple is better for many situations.
    Originally posted by Good Will Hunting
    Real loss is only possible when you love something more than you love yourself.

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    • #3
      Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

      Do you mind disclosing the name of the builder?
      I am so close to retirement that I could play in a band full time. All I have to do is figure out what to use instead of money, improve my playing, learn some songs, and find some other musicians more talented than me who will do exactly as they're told. .

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      • #4
        Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

        the amp is a valvetone. Its sitting on a 2x12 with a texas heat and private jack. I reckon the real key for me to getting the right touch response is the fact that it has a master volume. Bassmans and JTM's dont have that option so they are quite limited for a lot of club gigs.

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        Last edited by Chickenwings; 09-07-2014, 08:10 PM.
        "Technique is really the elimination of the unneccessary ... it is a constant effort to avoid any personal impediment or obstacle to acheive the smooth flow of energy and intent"
        Yehudi Menuhin

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        • #5
          Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

          Well Done.!
          Nothing "wrong" with pedals.
          But ditching them for awhile, and concentrating on the dynamics of your picking hand, and the use of the Guitar Volume Knob, will make you a better player in the end.
          That is what owning a tube amp is all about...driving the tubes into compression, and them backing off on the guitar to accommodate a cleaner tone when needed.
          Lets also not forget about the importance of your amp turned up loud enough to beat the crap out of a pair of speakers...that is another important factor to consider.
          In the end...it is good to know both ways. Education is a freedom train.
          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gY73mb28orM
          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35mZ4BAvEbg
          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nToonE52DG8
          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMl-ddFbSF0

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          • #6
            Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

            They'll be back, and in greater numbers.

            Director of Arizona Young Voters Initiative

            https://www.azyoungvoters.org


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            • #7
              Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

              yeh prolly!
              ....or just more amps!
              "Technique is really the elimination of the unneccessary ... it is a constant effort to avoid any personal impediment or obstacle to acheive the smooth flow of energy and intent"
              Yehudi Menuhin

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              • #8
                Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

                I did the same sometime ago.
                While I still do stuff in the pedalworld, I do not use them much anymore.
                Pedals changes sound, they have always done so, it is always down to the way they changes sound that make them work or not.

                Dirtpedals have totally vanished as an always there function, I use an echo/delay and a tuner....
                Sometimes I sneak a fuzz or something like that in, but yeah I use my volume and toneknobs alot now.
                Keep the amp with plenty to give, and adjust with the volume and picking/fingers.

                It has long since become second nature to do it that way, and playing even more acoustics now also made me pay more attention to the overall scheme!

                Thanks for the insights, always cool to read the thoughts and implements from others, we are different and it is very good that it is so!

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                • #9
                  Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

                  You must get great tone with that! Now you just need a chorus pedal to fatten up your sound, then maybe a delay for cool rhythmic stuff, then a clean boost for solos, and a compression pedal for funk and and and and..

                  Pretty much how my thought process goes every time I wean myself off pedals.
                  Originally posted by BigAlTheBird
                  I just got oiixed in the mung by a Canadian.

                  Timmy - 1
                  Andrew - None

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                  • #10
                    Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

                    Weirdo....
                    Warmoth Group @ Flickr : SDUGF group @ SoundCloud : Basic Guitar Setup

                    Blog @ Izdihar.com : Pics @ Flickr

                    I dream of a better world, where chickens can cross the road without having their motives questioned

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                    • #11
                      Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

                      You play a traditional style of guitar that happened before the age of pedals... not sure why you ever played any in the first place.
                      Best amp tech I've ever had and hands down one of the best electronic/sound wizards in the NC Piedmont.

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                      • #12
                        Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

                        Originally posted by dominus View Post
                        They'll be back, and in greater numbers.
                        yes! pedals are not the enemy

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                        • #13
                          Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

                          That's a sweet setup right there. I've done almost the same thing. I still have a Crybaby out front with my pedal tuner but that is it. I own one other store bought pedal, a delay, and I use that mostly with my Marshall.

                          What do you use for a tuner in live situations? A headstock tuner?

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                          • #14
                            Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

                            yes headstock tuners.
                            "Technique is really the elimination of the unneccessary ... it is a constant effort to avoid any personal impediment or obstacle to acheive the smooth flow of energy and intent"
                            Yehudi Menuhin

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                            • #15
                              Re: finally weaned myself off pedals.

                              Originally posted by zenmindbeginner View Post
                              You play a traditional style of guitar that happened before the age of pedals... not sure why you ever played any in the first place.
                              Good point!
                              All of the stuff i play, whether its the classical stuff, jazz, blues or rock (to an extent) would fit into that category i guess. For the first two, ive never used pedals becuase i only needed a clean sound. Its the blues and rock that required the grit.
                              The pedals were really just an attempt to get the cranked amp sound. I really like the sound of cranked up fender amps, and that's fine for recording because of isolation booths, but its not feasible live because you need to blend with the rest of the band as well as keeping the crowd and the sound engineer happy.
                              Using a fuzz was in that ballpark too i guess even tho its a different sound to pure amp overdrive. I like the fuzz because its more responsive to the guitar knobs than most overdrive pedals in terms of dynamic range.
                              I really love the sound of those big reverb tanks in fender amps and for a long time thought that i could not live without it.
                              The secret to getting past that kind of addiction is to replace it with something more enjoyable to play. Many guys here already know, a really well tuned and simply constructed amp gives you so much harmonic richness and touch sensitivity that stuff like reverb and whatever else become unnecessary. So in the end, weaning oneself off pedals means you need to have the right amp for the job, and to be playing the kind of music that doesn't require them (ie not playing in a U2 tribute band).
                              "Technique is really the elimination of the unneccessary ... it is a constant effort to avoid any personal impediment or obstacle to acheive the smooth flow of energy and intent"
                              Yehudi Menuhin

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