Pedalboards

[Johnny the Kid]

Re: Pedalboards

I used to have delay pedals, reverb, flanger, chorus and all that crap, but I got sick of dealing with 9V batteries that die after 5 hours and tripping over a web of tangled wires/cables that I only use either a single dirt pedal + occasional wah now. Effects have great uses, but I much prefer being without all that stuff. I'd rather rely on just the base setup - it's less stuff to go wrong (it still will go wrong, but less often), I spend less money on gear, and it's less restricting. Too much noise? Lower the gain instead of buying different noise gates. Need to go between clean and dirty? Use the volume knob/picking dynamics instead of rushing to hit a pedal with your feet but falling on your face when you trip. I also don't have to worry about certain pedals not playing nice with each other via mucked up grounds, different power sources, different impedances, time based effects placement, etc.

I respect people who can do that sort of setup because I wouldn't be able to do it myself.

It also goes to show that pedal switching even with MIDI is an artform unto itself and utilizing the different effects is an art that not everyone is interested in.

 

[ThisDyingSoul76]

Re: Pedalboards

I was once told by a few older musicians that I use effects very tastefully... I'm not even sure what using effects tastefully is.. I just use them in a way that is pleasing to my ears.

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

Re: Pedalboards

I just have a slightly different take... I have no use for time-based effects, and have never been drawn to the sound of delay/modulation/flange/chorus/phaser etc... Never felt I needed it to thicken/add texture, unless I was "doing it wrong" with my amp/guitar. The most I tend to use is reverb from the amp. No need to crowd with that.

Distortion/overdrive/fuzz pedals result in me often having a very redundant pedalboard, on the other hand. At present I have just about all of mine thrown on one board, but then again I'm not touring with it, I just like playing around... When I was more serious, I only had a tuner, an overdrive, and an EQ.

Same here. I can't stand delays, let alone flanger and phaser. I reckon they were invented solely to fill the void when a guitar player runs out of ideas...kinda like the whammy bar, just f**kin land on that thing and you have a solo.

The only reason I bought the Lexicon, BBE and TCE racks is they are nice to look at. Most of the time I only use distortion and reverb.

 

[LLL]

Re: Pedalboards

My (brutally - what else? :naughty: ) honest opinion on pedals:

9 times outta 10 they're purchased to satisfy the craving for something/anything new gear-wise, because the price is right (very affordable in many cases)... not because they actually help your rig sound better. And usually the pedal winds up collecting dust on a shelf or pedalboard... or getting re-sold on Craigslist/E-bay because it fails to deliver the goods.

In other words, it's buying just for the thrill of buying (aka consumerism trap).

It's a rare pedal that hits all the right spots.

 

[Little Pigbacon]

Re: Pedalboards

^ As someone who has bought a lot of pedals over the years, I will readily admit this.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Pedalboards

I tend to use pedals as part of the compositional process (loopers, etc).

 

[ThisDyingSoul76]

Re: Pedalboards

My (brutally - what else? :naughty: ) honest opinion on pedals:

9 times outta 10 they're purchased to satisfy the craving for something/anything new gear-wise, because the price is right (very affordable in many cases)... not because they actually help your rig sound better. And usually the pedal winds up collecting dust on a shelf or pedalboard... or getting re-sold on Craigslist/E-bay because it fails to deliver the goods.

In other words, it's buying just for the thrill of buying (aka consumerism trap).

It's a rare pedal that hits all the right spots.

I have to admit, there are a few select pedals I can't seem to keep off my board for long because they are that pedal that hits all the right spots... The rest satisfy a niche sound that I really have to be in a certain mood to be inspired by them.

TrueTone Jeckyl and Hyde V3, Visual Sound Open Road; TL Pedals King Klon, Ram's Head and Honker... These are my pedals that get the most use and very quickly find a space on one of my pedal boards after it's been off for more than a couple of weeks. They're the ones that either form the basis of my sound when the amp's gain is not used, or they are the ones that stack well with the most pedals for a secondary sound.

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

Re: Pedalboards

My (brutally - what else? :naughty: ) honest opinion on pedals:

9 times outta 10 they're purchased to satisfy the craving for something/anything new gear-wise, because the price is right (very affordable in many cases)... not because they actually help your rig sound better. And usually the pedal winds up collecting dust on a shelf or pedalboard... or getting re-sold on Craigslist/E-bay because it fails to deliver the goods.

In other words, it's buying just for the thrill of buying (aka consumerism trap).

It's a rare pedal that hits all the right spots.

Consumerism crap. Definitely true. The same goes for new guitars, pickups, etc. Having stuff makes you happy.

Meanwhile people keep throwing money on those pricey Strymon Blackholes and I don't know...those fancy Windows-based effects from TC, out of the endless search for the holy grail...

 

[Demanic]

Re: Pedalboards

I run 4 gain pedals. Three are Keeley's. The fourth is an old Boss. I have backups to them. And an Ibanez Weeping Demon if I want to add wah.

Sent from my MotoE2(4G-LTE) using Tapatalk

 

[BriGuy1968]

Re: Pedalboards

I was once told by a few older musicians that I use effects very tastefully... I'm not even sure what using effects tastefully is.. I just use them in a way that is pleasing to my ears.

Usually means that you don't use too much... like the flange is just "there" but not overpowering, etc. Effects are like salt for a lot of people... a little bit brings out the flavor, but too much makes it taste like $#!+!!

I love my multi-effect unit (Zoom G5). Small footprint, less cables, fast setup, and access to more effects than I typically would either want or need. I play in a classic rock cover band, so having access to some different effects is nice for picking up the flavor of the original recordings. Nine times out of ten I'm just using one of two different distortions with some reverb, noise gate, EQ, and wah, but I have it set up to be a stomp box so I can grab some other wetness when the time is right. Most of the time I just stick to the basics (no effects), but it's nice to have them there and ready when I want them.

 

[skyydogg01]

Re: Pedalboards

My old co-guitarist from my old band hated effects. He'd only use a touch of chorus and reverb (that were built-in to his amp) on clean. Nothing on his gain channels.

He wanted me to do the same. I tend to keep the same mentality now. I keep it minimal. I need some modulation so I keep a Boss BF-2 for that. I like a little reverb, too, so I tend to use the amps reverb but I plan on getting a Boss RV-6 in the near future. I do have an SD-1 on my board right now and I don't think I'll use much else. I'm gonna be running a Micro Dark in the next couple days.

 

[ThisDyingSoul76]

Re: Pedalboards

Usually means that you don't use too much... like the flange is just "there" but not overpowering, etc. Effects are like salt for a lot of people... a little bit brings out the flavor, but too much makes it taste like $#!+

Maybe that's it. They see a board brimming with pedals and expect the worst...wild sounds in every song and not a single moment with nothing more than an overdrive or pure, uneffected clean tone. I will use effects for wild sounds, but primarily use it to enhance a sound to make it stand out in the mix without totally dominating the mix.

 

[Matt42]

Re: Pedalboards

Maybe that's it. They see a board brimming with pedals and expect the worst...wild sounds in every song and not a single moment with nothing more than an overdrive or pure, uneffected clean tone. I will use effects for wild sounds, but primarily use it to enhance a sound to make it stand out in the mix without totally dominating the mix.

I've been told that I use effects tastefully a lot, and I think you're right. I show up with a board that has 7-8 pedals, and people think I'm going to be stepping on them constantly and using crazy sounds. But, I mostly just use tremolo, drive, and compression. The other pedals don't get used very much (well, other than the tuner). They expect the worst, and are surprised by what they get. In the case of the band I'm with now, I think a lot of them just remember playing with their friends in high school and college and having that one friend that was a wah abuser of Kirk Hammett magnitude or just had to have an obnoxious phaser/flanger/ring modulator on everything and got burned out on effects because of it.

 

[PFDarkside]

Re: Pedalboards

Yeah, just because you have a Whammy doesn't mean you go Whee-Oooh Wheee-Oooh every song. :chairfall

I keep a Univibe, Chorus, Flanger and Phaser but I use the flanger, phaser and Vibe on maybe one song, then the chorus as a rotary on one or two? A variety of ODs give you a few flavors depending on the song.

 

[Taz Rules]

Re: Pedalboards

I find I have a strong preference for the sounds that my pedals make when they are set way down. Just a minimal effect added, but still there. I play better when the effects aren't cranked. That said, I do sometimes use my distortion to hide my sloppy fretting technique. I must break that habit.

 

[EDX]

Re: Pedalboards

perfect opportunity to spam a pic of my board, i'm all about the gainz, also have a wah for toying and stupidying around trying to write a good riff that uses wah...




but really i think the last great use of wah on rhythm i've heard was dimebag, i don't recall any guitarist that appeared after him using the wah for rhythm on a tasty musical way

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: Pedalboards

but really i think the last great use of wah on rhythm i've heard was dimebag, i don't recall any guitarist that appeared after him using the wah for rhythm on a tasty musical way

My favorites ever are White Room (duh) and the Stones' Heartbreaker.

 

[EDX]

Re: Pedalboards

very tasty uses of wah nonetheless but i'd really like to hear some recent bands and players using the wah on tasty riff and not just spamming it on solos

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: Pedalboards

very tasty uses of wah nonetheless but i'd really like to hear some recent bands and players using the wah on tasty riff and not just spamming it on solos

Agreed.

 

[Johnny the Kid]

Re: Pedalboards

There is something to be said for a pure driven sound or a pure clean sound, but that being said, I still enjoy what a bit of chorus or phaser can bring. I think people who immediately shrug off effects as being cover ups for poor gear don't always understand that there's more sonic territory to be explored than just clean or dirty.