Flangers.....Where to begin.....

J E C

J E C

New member
Yes it's me again.... Wow I could turn that into a song! Oh wait....never mind. So on with the show.
FLANGERS...There are so many.... I don't even know were to begin, other than....
What do you use, and why? What is it about that make and model that you like?....other than, I like the sound of it.

Thanks John
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

I currently have a vintage Japanese made Boss BF-2. It's really a place holder until I can get my hands on an Electric Mistress. I wish I could give a better explanation than just saying I like the sound but I can't quite put my finger on it.

One thing I dislike on the BF-2 is the way the Manual knob works. I turn it all the way off in an attempt to get it to behave more like the EM. One thing I do like about the BF-2 is that unlike the newer Boss pedals I've experienced it doesn't suck the highs from my tone in bypass, which I assume is due to a better buffer.
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

I use a Danelectro Hash Browns Flanger. It's a placeholder, until I remember what I'm supposed to be using a flanger for and/or want something different. I tried a fancy new model the other day and couldn't get it to sound anything other than weird and unnatural. I like that the Danelectro is just three knobs -- easy to use -- and sounds good for what I paid.
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

I learned a bit more about flangers hanging out with Frank Falbo, who was the SD product mgr. We listened to all flangers, along with my 78 ADA, and what they all do differently.

I'd like to see SD finally come out with one, but EVH/MXR, ADA, Fulltone Choralflange, Boss, etc.....there's many. Just listen to clips to point you where you want to be.
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

Have two old Ibanez flangers....FL-305 and a FL-301 Narrow box.
One Guyatone Moving box flanger....copy of an old MXR really.

Also on the look for a Foxrox Paradox TZF2 :)
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

Boss BF-2. Why? Because it was $50, and to me, a flanger is a flanger. I only wanted standard flanger sounds, mainly the options of dialing in psuedo chorus, metallic, and jet engine sounds. It does the job, and I don't put it in the chain unless I know I will be using it - in which case it is always on. I mainly use it for rhythm tracks.
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

Depends on your budget. I love my MOOG clusterflux it is the best flanger I have ever owned. If I was going for one on the cheap the Boss BF-2 would be it.
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

Hit up a GC if there's one near you,usually their used pedals are pretty reasonable,& you'd get to try some out(if they have any)...
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

I have a BOSS BF-3 I picked up a while ago, use it very rarely, and when I do, I use for a subtle effect.
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

Lots of cool flangers on the market. Do you know what sounds you want? BF-2 is a great base model to get your feet wet. The MXR is classic, great for jet plane swooshes heard on EVH albums. The Electric Mistress is another classic, heard by Gilmour on The Wall and Andy Summers. (Very light, almost chorus-like flanging) The Ibanez Airplane Flanger is an extreme pitch bending one that Paul Gilbert uses. The Boss HF-2 (Hi-Band Flanger) is an interesting variation on the BF-2, but only having the effect on the higher frequency bands it's a little less extreme than the BF-2. The Ibanez DFL is used by Tom Morello, nice middle ground between MXR and Electro Harmonix.

For the Electro Harmonix Electric Mistress tone, the Hartman Flanger is REALLY good, I like it a lot for Gilmour type usage. Also, I replaced my vintage MXR with an EVH. (Got it for the same price as a standard) it's almost as good, but can be powered off an 18V Pedal Power and the switch is more reliable.
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

I really like the MXR Flangers, yeah, for that early VH sound. The Electric Mistress and ADA are a different kind of flanging, as said before, more Hendrix-ish or Gilmour-ish if you will. I don't have a lot of experience with the Boss or Ibanez ones.

You kinda have to decide what kind of flanger sound you want, and the best way to do that may be to go somewhere that you can try out a few different ones.

FTR, I picked up a used TC Vortex Flanger, and I love most of TC's stuff, but I couldn't really get the sounds I wanted out of it. I get a better sound out of the Vintage (MXR) flanger in my Zoom G3, but I think a Micro Flanger is in my near future so I can put it in front of my preamp instead of in the loop (where the G3 is).
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

I've got the Mooer Eleclady. I like the more subtle EHX type flanging, but that unit is probably as big as my board. The Mooer sounds practically identical (a tad brighter maybe), is true bypass and is about the size of half an MXR enclosure.
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

I love Flangers, and as more time has passed I've found that I reach for a flanger far more often than a chorus, when I'm going for that type of sound. They're always going to be less subtle than a chorus, and on higher depth settings a flanger can sound really metallic as it passes through certain frequencies, whether you like that or not is up to you, I love it. I've especially been falling for the really watery sounds of the flangers in my Strymon Mobius (Especially the sounds from 1:24 in the video, which is probably my most commonly used setting on the actual pedal.)

There are two (and one other notable mention) schools of flanger that are worth investigating as a beginner to the effect. PFDarkside gave a very good overview on them, but these are the two that I would look into FIRST if I didn't know much about the effect. The EHX Electric Mistress is a lush sounding flanger that does a very lovely chorus sound, think early Police, Wall era Pink Floyd. The MXR Flangers do that swooshey jet sound, think Van Halen's Unchained or Heart's Barracuda.

The third category is of course the original tape flange, or through zero. The original flanging process of taking a doubletrack tape machine and pushing down on one of the tapeheads to slow the signal and get an extreme whooshey plane taking off effect. Think the end jam of Bold as Love by Hendrix.
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

Little Pigbacon said:
I use a Danelectro Hash Browns Flanger. It's a placeholder, until I remember what I'm supposed to be using a flanger for and/or want something different. I tried a fancy new model the other day and couldn't get it to sound anything other than weird and unnatural. I like that the Danelectro is just three knobs -- easy to use -- and sounds good for what I paid.
Click to expand...

The Danelectro stuff is surprisingly good for the price. I have the Fish & Chips compressor. I think it's based on the Ross compressor. For $20, I couldn't go wrong but like you, it's a placeholder until I find something I like better. If you like the Danelectro Hash Browns but hope to find a better quality version do some research to find out if it's based on anything else (the Dano Stuff usually is). That may help narrow down your search.

Personally, I'm actually thinking about keeping the Fish & Chips even if I do find another compressor. It'll basically be another option... Maybe I'll keep it for my second pedalboard when I get that started. Lol
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

El Supremo said:
I've got the Mooer Eleclady. I like the more subtle EHX type flanging, but that unit is probably as big as my board. The Mooer sounds practically identical (a tad brighter maybe), is true bypass and is about the size of half an MXR enclosure.
Click to expand...

This is what I'd get if I found one locally and could do a trade for my BF-2... Although the longer I have the BF-2, I'm starting to figure out how to get something similar to that Electric Mistress sound. I may just keep it and grab the Mooer too... God, I have to stop this, next I'll be contemplating my 3rd or 4th Tube a Screamer variation. Lol
 
Re: Flangers.....Where to begin.....

Oh boy, that Strymon Mobius sure sound good..... BUT, OH BOY THE PRICE.... LOL
Sounds like you could get pretty close to a lot of sounds from EVH, Rush, Trower, Travers, Hendrix, Floyd.....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top