What is the difference between a whammy pedal, octave pedal and tremolo?

[danny458]

Hi all, could someone please explain the difference between these pedals? Also will the octave and whammy pedal allow me to make my guitar sound like a bass if i go down a few octaves but also allow me to up to higher octaves to allow me to play high notes like in Pink Floyd's Marooned? Thank you

[El Dunco]

Re: What is the difference between a whammy pedal, octave pedal and tremolo?

An octaver limits you to an octave down intended to be blended with the original signal. Using the straight octave down signal will be rather glitchy and probably not what you're after. The older whammy's are kind of glitchy. I hear Jack White uses the whammy for the psuedo-bass sound in Seven Nation Army. A newer whammy or multi-fx with a decent pitch shift algorythm might do the trick and lets you bend back up to normal pitch with the expression pedal. As close as you might get, you might as well spend the money on a real bass.

[Obsessive Compulsive]

Re: What is the difference between a whammy pedal, octave pedal and tremolo?

Hi all, could someone please explain the difference between these pedals? Also will the octave and whammy pedal allow me to make my guitar sound like a bass if i go down a few octaves but also allow me to up to higher octaves to allow me to play high notes like in Pink Floyd's Marooned? Thank you

Yes sure, more like synth bass. I used to do that with DOD Octoplus. I think you should roll off the tone and reduce the original signal.

Whammy pedal is like a pitch shifter. Joe Satriani uses it a lot.

[Aceman]

Re: What is the difference between a whammy pedal, octave pedal and tremolo?

Octave - usually allows the guitarist to ADD a pitch, an octave above, or below the main pitch. Set for lower, play bass notes on guitar, and get bass guitar notes. Or play mid notes and get thick doubled sound.

Whammy - allows you to dive bomb notes like with a Floyd, except without having one. You COULD use it to play lower notes on the fly. Don't know that I would.

Tremolo - fluctuates the volume deeper/shallow on/offs at a particular rate. Shape of the on off can impact the sound significantly from a subtle warble to hard stutter effect.

[Boogie Bill]

Re: What is the difference between a whammy pedal, octave pedal and tremolo?

Ace got it.

Great example of tremelo is on a song called "Never My Love" by a '60s band, The Association.

Leo Fender really messed things up by getting tremelo and vibrato backwards on his products. The VIBRATO in his amps is actually a tremelo circuit. The "Synchronized Tremelo" on his Strat is actually a vibrato that changes the pitch of the note.

The old "tuck and roll" Kustom amps of the '60s had a true VIBRATO circuit, adding a touch of pitch-shifting waver. Check out John Fogerty and Creedence Clearwater Revival. Boss has a new pedal that does this effect. Compare it to their TREMELO pedal.

The Digitech whammy does exactly what Ace described. It can do the deep "dive bombs" of the Floyd Rose Vibrato.

Take a look at the Boss line of effects. I had an older Boss Octaver pedal, and it would add a note one or two octaves below the fundamental note. I would occasionally use it with my guitar to reproduce a bass riff. Adds a lot of thickness, but you will want an amp and cab that can handle all that low-end. Wouldn't want to use for a gig to replace a bass player. Can be a little "synth-y".

One that I have on my pedalboard now is the Boss Pitch Shifter/Harmonizer. I use mine for two songs where I want to simulate a twin-guitar harmony lead. People ALWAYS ask me how I did that! You MUST set the key of the song. Then, select the harmony...2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc., above or below, and then adjust the blend of the fundamental to the harmony note. You can also do octave up or down. I am currently working on a song to use this feature. Mine lives in my Mesas' efx loops, before the delays. Can be glitchy; you MUST play precisely--single notes. Can be a little "synth-y".

Some fuzz pedals have an octave up feature. Then there is the MXR Blue Box...what goes in may or may not be what comes out, lol! Check out ring modulators if you like mayhem. And there are other fun pedals like E-H POG, etc. The E-H "9" pedals can create keyboard tones. And the Roland/Boss VG-88 that can turn your Strat guitar into a Rickenbacker 12-string and your Fender Deluxe Reverb into a VOX AC-30! Oh the insanity!!!!

Look at some of the Boss videos, and you can get a good idea of what the Vibrato, Tremolo, Octaver and Pitch Shifter can do.

Good luck!

Bill

[Johnny the Kid]

Re: What is the difference between a whammy pedal, octave pedal and tremolo?

Hi all, could someone please explain the difference between these pedals? Also will the octave and whammy pedal allow me to make my guitar sound like a bass if i go down a few octaves but also allow me to up to higher octaves to allow me to play high notes like in Pink Floyd's Marooned? Thank you

For bass, you only need to go down one octave and most octaves will do this. Whammies definitely will too, but I've never played a real Whammy ( only pitch shifters in my mfx) so I don't know about the drawbacks.