Pedalboard Essentials?

[Silenced Fred]

Pedals or effects that "everyone" should have to cover a wide variety of music, primarily from blues to heavy rock

 

I'm thinking tuner, an OD, delay, and then maybe on octaver and some modulation effects, not sure what though

[Andre S]

Pedals or effects that "everyone" should have to cover a wide variety of music' date=' primarily from blues to heavy rock[/quote']

 

Wah overdrive delay fuzz.

[S t e v e]

Pedals or effects that "everyone" should have to cover a wide variety of music' date=' primarily from blues to heavy rock

 

I'm thinking tuner, an OD, delay, and then maybe on octaver and some modulation effects, not sure what though[/quote']

 

all the above and a wah

[Silenced Fred]

Any recommendations for pedals? Brands or models?

[Murph]

I like the Hardwire DL-8 Dealy/Looper.

 

Not a big effects guy, but it has a pretty nice analog, and decent reverb. Not much into looping.

 

The Ibanez Tube Screamer is a must for me. It stays on most of the time.

[matiac]

I only use one pedal.

[Shnate McDuanus]

Well, I'd say that an OD or distortion box or two if you're running through a clean amp, and a wah is pretty good to have, and maybe a clean boost, and maybe a reverb and tremolo if those aren't on the amp. Beyond that, I think most of the other things are a little silly unless you need them for specific songs. Every effect has its uses, but those uses have to be found by the musicians who use them. I think that the ones I mentioned above (OD/Dist, Wah, Clean Boost, Reverb, Tremolo, in order of usefulness IMHO) are really the "essentials," but like many of us on the forum, I don't use any pedals. I mean, sure, there are definitely pedals that I want, but I don't really need any of them. And I can't really imagine (unless I'm doing VH covers or something of the sort) ever needing a Flanger or a Phaser.

 

The most important part, I think, for doing any sort of music where an amplified signal is necessary, is to have a good amp--one that sounds good and is versatile enough to "get the job done" on just about any material. When you want more than just "getting the job done," that's when a pedal might come in handy. But this is all just obvious stuff.

[S t e v e]

ooh nearly forgot! never...ever! leave out the BOSS ns2 noise supressor

 

[SHO]

For me, if I wanted to cover a wide variation of styles and sounds, it would be

 

2 channel amp

 

A wah pedal.

 

An overdrive/boost pedal.

 

A nice sounding chorus.

 

A delay.

 

A good power supply.

 

That would be my basics to start out with. Next thing to add would be a good compressor. As for brands and models, I'd give the old answer of going out and trying as many as possible and decide for yourself. But, I guess I can list a few units I like and why. Maybe you will like them too.

 

Wah: I like the basic Crybaby by Dunlop. I'm curious about Voodoolab's Wahzoo though. It sounds good in demos and it also has an auto-wah function, which would be handy for me.

 

OD/boost: I like the BB by Xotic. Ok I admit it, I got one because of Andy Timmons using them, but it really does sound good. But, you can't go wrong with any tubescreamer clone of any sort either.

 

Chorus: I have an old TC Electronic pedal I got used for cheap and it will follow me to the grave. Are the new ones worth the price? Probably not. Are the vintage ones worth the insane price? No.

 

Delay: I like the Deluxe Memory Man. I like analogue delay. I like it to have a modulation knob on it. Gives a nice shimmer to the delays and makes it sound less... mechanic.

 

Power: Voodoolab, but I'm sure others can build a functional supply as well. I want it to have isolated outputs, so I don't get ground loops.

 

As general tips, I like to stay analogue if possible. Nothing wrong with digital though, but I've had better luck with analogue. I'd stick to the basic and well known manufacturers for the most part if I were you. All the boutique pedals are really tempting, but in general I feel you end up paying a lot more for those slight improvements, differences and handmade "quality" that you'd be better off using the same money to buy two plain brand name pedals and have more sounds to play with.

 

Oh yeah, I guess a tuner would be handy as well.

 

Good luck!

[L5Larry]

effects that "everyone" should have to cover a wide variety of music' date=' primarily from blues to heavy rock[/quote']

 

TALENT

[milod]

I use a Zoom 707II that does much of what you're looking for - but it's an old model and frankly, most of it has no real value to me. It's handy because of the tuner and a combination of effects that add juuuuust a little bit of thickness to an electric guitar with light strings going through a solid state amp with only a 10-inch speaker.

 

If one were so inclined, the thing functions as a volume or tone pedal, can click off some drum beats for practice sessions, etc., etc., etc.

 

When I'm in a B3 mood, I have a Leslie emulator.

 

To be honest, though, I've about concluded that most of the Zoom potential doesn't have a lot to do with what I bought it for - the stuff mentioned in the first paragraph. In theory it has a "12-string" sound, and a set of electronic gadgetry that supposedly make an electric sound like an acoustic. I don't think so. <grin>

 

It seems as though the pedal companies come up with "new and improved" faster than laundry detergent companies do, so in a sense, it's probably a matter of paying yer' money and takin' yer choice. If I were in the market now, I think I'd likely just keep an eye on the Internet stores to see what's on sale, then read the heck out of the reviews.

 

m

[Silenced Fred]

Does anyone have or used the Blackstar pedals? The dual one looks pretty cool, keep it moving gradually, one for subtle OD, and one for burning distortion.

 

Seems cool, but 250 is pretty pricey...

[cwness]

Just get the Tone Lab LE. I got one off CL for 250 and 2 months old. Like

AXE® and TG have said it's the BOMB. You can have that much in 2 pedals.

 

CW

[NeoConMan]

Are we talking about essentials or not?

 

Essential for me is my tuner.

 

 

 

I can live just fine without everything else mentioned in this thread so far.

 

 

 

 

 

Nice to have?

 

I really like my Fulltone OCD plugged into my Fender Hot Rod DeVille using the clean channel.

 

 

 

 

But I played for 30 years with no effects pedals whatsoever.

 

 

I have a couple A/B/Y switches that I use to tie different amps together for switching.

But that's just for goofing around at home.

[NeoConMan]

TALENT

Not trying to be a **** or hijack the thread - I've told this story before;

 

I was with two high school friends in about 1980' date=' went into a guitar shop.

First time for me to ever actually be in a "guitar" shop.

Until then, I had only been to the music store selling band instruments.

Paid $100 for my acoustic there.

 

My two buddies could actually play some licks on their junky electrics, so I thought they were the smart ones.

Anyhow, I was looking at the Les Pauls, Strats, Teles and such trying to figure out which did what.

I could recognize a few names I was reading on the headstocks, but I had no idea what any of it meant.

 

My buddies had their noses pressed against the glass display cases drooling over all the effects pedals.

I just didn't see what the appeal was - their cheap rigs sounded like sh!t no matter how many pedals they had.

Yeah, they could play, but it didn't sound like AC/DC or Led Zep on the radio.

I'd been to a few concerts, and those live shows sounded much better as well.

 

Anyway, there were two guys working in the store.

A young guy was allowing my buddies to closely examine different pedals from the display case.

 

An old (fifties) gray-haired pony-tailed guy walked out to the floor where I was by the expensive guitars.

Asked if he could help me with anything.

After seeing the price tags ($$$$$$) on the merchandise, I said "No, thank you."

I had no business touching those guitars.

 

He hovered around for a minute, straightening the display guitars and wiping off dust.

 

I walked back over where my buddies were by the pedals, and the Old Dude walked back behind the counter.

After my buddies had asked for the hundredth time which pedal was "best" the Old Dude set them straight.

 

Said something along the lines of;

"Why don't you learn how to play the guitar first? Till you do, all the pedals in the world won't help you."

 

 

He wasn't really sh!tty in the way he said it, but he didn't sugar-coat it.

My buddies were speechless.

I could tell they were getting pissed, so I started walking to the door.

It was very obvious to me (but not them) that they had worn out their welcome with those guys.

 

As we walked to the car, they were both getting mouthy.

"Fxck that Old Dude!"

"Yeah, he don't know what he's talking about!"

"Yeah, I'll buy my pedals somewhere else!"

 

 

Later, I had to mention to both of them that - in my humble estimation - the Old Dude was right.

Their $99 guitars and lunch-box sized solid state amps were NEVER gonna sound like Jimmy Page.

Seemed to me those other ($$$$$$) guitars and amps were priced that way for a reason.

 

To this day, that Old Dude crosses my mind EVERY time I see a pedal.

 

Things have come a long way with technology.

Guys playing gigs need the versatility to create the correct tones for their setlist.

Playing lead guitar on lotsa different solos requires a boost pedal at the very minimum.

Depending on your setlist, without the required flanger, wah, delay, chorus, reverb, etc. you're gonna suck.

 

I bought a wah because some of the songs I like to play use it.

I found myself staring at my foot all the time, so I gave it to the boy.

 

 

I decided I would make sure I had enough guitars and amps to cover everything I needed first.

And learn how to play guitar.

 

When I'm finished learning, maybe then I'll buy some effects.

 

[biggrin]/

[Silenced Fred]

Neo- that story you relayed is important information for everyone. Nothing beats a good guitar with a good amp. Sure I stole my signature from that wanker on the Orange Amp demos, but its true.

 

I want an OD, not too happy with my Sunn's OD. It sounds good up until about 6 on the gain, then gets all nasty. The OCD or something like that would be ideal. I want a Wah, just cuz. Delay sounds cool to me.

 

Pedals don't make the player, I still have stuff to learn.

 

Thanks

[milod]

Nathan... Any picker should want to always learn...

 

I use a pedal rather gently because it's one way to get a sorta sound I want.

 

But I didn't even play an electric until I got into a rock band in the late fall of 65, roughly 2 1/2 years after I'd started playing guitar...

 

In fact, although I bought a couple thingies in the late 1970s, I never used them through my tube amps.

 

I did use a Fender Leslie when I got that B3 call. <grin> Some of the time I also used a floor volume pedal - but I think I'd prefer a master volume on the guitar I could wiggle with my pinkie. It can give interesting variations on attack and sustain, and you have the control rather than a machine. At least, that's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

 

When I got my first small solid state amp around six years ago, I discovered it lacked the "thickness" of the tube amps no matter what I did with eq, chorus and reverb, so I got the Zoom pedal. It still doesn't sound like a tube amp through 12-inch speakers, but... better with the magnetic pickups. I didn't get it to make the guitar sound like a saxophone.

 

Frankly I was a little disappointed that the "acoustic" switches didn't make an electric sound "acoustic," nor did the 12-string setting sound like a 12-string. But it mostly did what I really wanted.

 

I'd add that I did do some practice messing around that I recorded, and that convinced me I'd back off on most of the strength of effects.

 

m

[Silenced Fred]

Nathan... Any picker should want to always learn...

 

I use a pedal rather gently because it's one way to get a sorta sound I want.

 

But I didn't even play an electric until I got into a rock band in the late fall of 65' date=' roughly 2 1/2 years after I'd started playing guitar...

 

In fact, although I bought a couple thingies in the late 1970s, I never used them through my tube amps.

 

I did use a Fender Leslie when I got that B3 call. <grin> Some of the time I also used a floor volume pedal - but I think I'd prefer a master volume on the guitar I could wiggle with my pinkie. It can give interesting variations on attack and sustain, and you have the control rather than a machine. At least, that's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

 

When I got my first small solid state amp around six years ago, I discovered it lacked the "thickness" of the tube amps no matter what I did with eq, chorus and reverb, so I got the Zoom pedal. It still doesn't sound like a tube amp through 12-inch speakers, but... better with the magnetic pickups. I didn't get it to make the guitar sound like a saxophone.

 

Frankly I was a little disappointed that the "acoustic" switches didn't make an electric sound "acoustic," nor did the 12-string setting sound like a 12-string. But it mostly did what I really wanted.

 

I'd add that I did do some practice messing around that I recorded, and that convinced me I'd back off on most of the strength of effects.

 

m

[/quote']

 

Everytime I feel like I need pedals, I get happier and happier just going straight into the amp...

 

Everytime I get happy going straight into amp, I wish I had pedals...

[NeoConMan]

When I got my first small solid state amp around six years ago

 

Hah!

 

Milod, that's hilarious!

 

How many guitar players around today started on tubes and then moved "up" to solid state amps?

 

Ah, the passage of time does change things, eh?

[milod]

Neo...

 

I didn't think of it as moving "up," but more like "downsizing" and "accommodating for recording practice sessions."

 

Packing an 80-90 pound amp stopped being fun, and that's a gross understatement. I still have it. It just ain't gotten out of the house in ages.

 

I haven't picked up a Deluxe Reverb in years, so I don't remember how much lighter they may be. If it had a "line out," I think it's about the perfect amp in ways. I used mine with a mike in one section and guitar in the other. Worked fine. Even running a mono turntable through it was a gas. <grin>

 

Seriously, I think what happened to my head is that I started to think about what I really would be using, and how I'd be using it. The little acoustic amp fit the bill just about perfectly and, what was nice is that it's very inexpensive and does just exactly what I want - with a little bit of extra thickness from a box outside. The Leslie emulator pedal is pretty much the same sorta thing: It doesn't perfectly get the B3/Leslie sound like I kinda useta could get, but it's a heck of a lot easier to haul around.

 

m

[Josh James]

I like to use my OD either as a base tone or to boost another Distortion or Fuzz, that way I have a little versatility in the falvors of distortion I dial up. A Wah and Flange/Delay are all musts.

 

 

 

 

J

[milod]

Betwixt comments I've been working on photos and a sudden flash of light occurred to me.

 

As an old guy <grin> I came to realize that a lot of the stuff in photo programs like "PhotoShop" have never been done in an old style "wet" darkroom with film and photo paper.

 

As a result, those using digital stuff know there are neat effects, but they don't know its provenance. For example, the "fuzz" is in ways a means to duplicate a "dirty" saxophone as opposed to being a native guitar sort of sound.

 

But even as we went through a period of people diddling madly with digital cameras and the software that came free with the little machines, it was more a matter of relatively unschooled photographic experimentation and exploitation that quickly became passe and folks are back to mostly making pictures that reflect reality.

 

In a sense, I think Nathan is an example of where electric guitar is going. We've become rather saturated in available music in which guitar doesn't sound like guitar, but it doesn't really sound like much of anything else, either. So as a guitarist, does he play with a more "pure" guitar sound, or does he seek electronic augmentation?

 

I think in ways the fuzzed guitar is a different instrument even more than slide guitar may be seen as such.

 

Nathan, again, is kinda an example of where we're going, and he reflects his age group's musical experience.

 

For example, the Josh James comment is one unimagined in the '60s. OD, base tone, boost, distortion or fuzz... wah and flange/delay.... Heck we never heard of such stuff in the olden days of experimentation of guitar sounds brought Les Paul's tape decks and reverbs and Link Wray punching holes in his amp's speaker to get a more raw and fuzzed sound ... and from then on it was a matter of learning to increase electronic alteration of guitar signals to the amp.

 

I dunno. It's kind of interesting...

 

m

[NeoConMan]

As a kid I hated sax - I can tolerate it now.

Never understood what all the excitement was about.

 

Distorted guitar?

Ooooohhhh yeah!

 

(I don't mean distorted like Pantera, I'm talking sixties/seventies rock.)

 

Took a long time for me to appreciate the dynamics of the sax, and realize it was the slightly seedy instrument.

Back in the Squeaky Clean Music days - Big Band to fifties rock - it was the same thing to popular music that

electric guitar and big riffs became a decade or two later.

[Silenced Fred]

Most of the songs I like are fairly simple, but use a lot of technique and sound changes. Biggest influence on me would Pearl Jam, and Foo Fighters. Both find a good way to employ nice changes in song texture, Foo Fighters especially, going from clean, to heavy, back to clean. That's what I like the most, so I might just go for a good OD, take a look at the Blackstar stuff, and maybe a Wah, or just get a Tonelab ST for everything in between

[ChanMan]

Pedals or effects that "everyone" should have to cover a wide variety of music' date=' primarily from blues to heavy rock

 

I'm thinking tuner, an OD, delay, and then maybe on octaver and some modulation effects, not sure what though[/quote']

 

 

Perhaps if I rephrase your question, you can gain some insight:

 

"Spices and flavors that "everyone" should have to cover a wide variety of foods, primarily from Cajun to Southwestern.

 

I'm thinking salt, some cumin, black pepper and then maybe some garlic powder and some dried onions... not sure what though".

 

 

 

 

 

The spices you'll need will depend on the dish you are preparing, so something like the ToneLab LE would be very much like the "World's Most Awesome Spicerack".