cool new effects

[Dannyalcatraz]

12 hours ago, surfergirl said:

I don't know anything about Boulevard pedals other than what I've read on reverb. Mostly they replace something I already have, so probably a pass. 

(edit)

 

Back to Boulevard pedals. I'm in a quandary about cheap pedals. I like things that cheap, at the same time I don't like under cutting. I look for sales, returns or blemished from companies I know.

 

I’m mostly OK with cheap gear as long as;

 

1) it’s not counterfeit or stolen

2) it does what it says it does

3) it’s well-made enough to be suitable for the intended purpose.

 

And make no mistake: decent, gig-worthy gear is probably cheaper now (relatively speaking) than ever before.

[Winston Psmith]

@surfergirl- I have two concerns with cheap import pedals. One is that I don't really want to support a nationalized industry ripping off designs by independent makers. This is also why a lot of people aren't fond of Behringer, either, but that's another subject . . . 

 

The second part is dependability. Cheap is as cheap does: If something doesn't last, it's not really a bargain, and the real cost is greater than the money you threw away on it. 

 

At risk of ranting here, but . . . If someone buys a $25 pedal because it's just $25, and then it doesn't last, it's not just their $25 that's been wasted. It's all the time, and human labor, and materials dug out of the Earth, so someone could send a piece of disposable crap halfway around the world, just to have it wind up as toxic waste in a landfill somewhere.

 

[surfergirl]

3 hours ago, Winston Psmith said:

@surfergirl- I have two concerns with cheap import pedals. One is that I don't really want to support a nationalized industry ripping off designs by independent makers. This is also why a lot of people aren't fond of Behringer, either, but that's another subject . . . 

 

The second part is dependability. Cheap is as cheap does: If something doesn't last, it's not really a bargain, and the real cost is greater than the money you threw away on it. 

 

At risk of ranting here, but . . . If someone buys a $25 pedal because it's just $25, and then it doesn't last, it's not just their $25 that's been wasted. It's all the time, and human labor, and materials dug out of the Earth, so someone could send a piece of disposable crap halfway around the world, just to have it wind up as toxic waste in a landfill somewhere.

 

Maybe cheap wasn't the right choice of words. I don't mean Amazon cheap, Affordable would have been a better choice of words. I like Boss, MXR and EHX. Almost everything I own or have owned was either on sale, used or blemished. I would love to be able to afford boutique, but I can't. I do have one cheap pedal, I replaced it on my board with a pawnshop Micro Amp. 

[hurricane hugo]

yes, these pedals have patchbays:

[Winston Psmith]

Interesting . . . I have to wonder if they're compatible with the voltage of Modular Synth rigs, or other pedals with patch connections, like Konami's pedals?

[hurricane hugo]

4 hours ago, Winston Psmith said:

Interesting . . . I have to wonder if they're compatible with the voltage of Modular Synth rigs, or other pedals with patch connections, like Konami's pedals?

yes! 

 

 

[Winston Psmith]

Dynamics-driven effects are not an entirely new concept, but I haven't seen it taken to this level with Guitar effects, until now.

 

Part of the beauty, and insanity, of a Modular Synth system is the interactivity of all the various Modules, or components. Guitar effects chains are linear; the signal starts with your Compressor, or OD, goes through your Mod effects, into your Delay/Reverb effects, then out to your Amp. Turning a knob on your Phaser may change your overall sound, but it won't change any of the settings on your other pedals.

 

Modular systems reach forwards and backwards. In a Modular Synth rig, turning a knob on any given Module can also have an influence on other Modules, depending on how you've arranged all those Patch Cables: turning up the Rate on a Phaser might also increase the Density of your Reverb, or decrease the Gain on your OD, and this are just some straight-forward examples. A dear friend once warned me that a Modular Synth wasn't merely an Instrument, it was a way of life.

 

While I'm not sure how many Guitarists will embrace this, it seems to me to be a logical extension of what's happening with Guitar effects, and the resurgence of Modular Synths. I'd be very interested in patching the Chorus or Delay pedals to my Semi-Modular Synth, and turning some knobs.

[Dannyalcatraz]

7 hours ago, Winston Psmith said:

While I'm not sure how many Guitarists will embrace this, it seems to me to be a logical extension of what's happening with Guitar effects, and the resurgence of Modular Synths. I'd be very interested in patching the Chorus or Delay pedals to my Semi-Modular Synth, and turning some knobs.

I can’t point to any names in particular, but the guitarists who show up in videos from Coffee & Riffs or the The Vigeland Mausoleum shows (and their acolytes) would be among MY primary suspects for diving into this stuff without regard for their personal safety.

 

Then there’s guys like Helios Creed whose lifeblood is manipulating their sound in unexpected ways through labyrinthine signal chains.

[Winston Psmith]

Helios Creed offered one of the best, and most pertinent, pieces of advice for Space-Rock Guitarists: "Tune up before the hallucinogens kick in."

 

I'll be very interested to see how other Guitarists integrate their Guitars and effects into the signal paths of Modular Synths. Many Analog, and Virtual Analog Synths have an Audio In jack, that allows you to use your Guitar, or just about anything else, as an Oscillator. It does not, however, quite turn your Guitar into a Synth. In a very real sense, you're using much of the Synth as a Signal Processor.

 

Unlike patching together a chain of effects pedals, which are then in a fixed order, "patching" as an active verb is a large part of playing and using a Modular system. You can change the order of the various Modules, and how one or more Modules influence the others, depending on where they are in the signal path, and how they're patched into one another. Think about trying to switch the order of your effects pedals IRT, while playing live: even with one of those Loop Switchers on your board, you probably can't change the order of your effects pedals themselves, and unless you have an Expression Pedal controlling some of the parameters, you probably can't change any of the settings on your pedals IRT, without turning knobs.

 

OTOH, Modular systems are a knob-twirlers paradise . . .

 

@Dannyalcatraz- At one point, you'd shown me a video of a Guitarist with his Guitar plugged into a Neutron Semi-Modular Synth, and that's what he'd done, plugged his Guitar into the Synth's Audio In.

[hurricane hugo]

 

[Winston Psmith]

I feel like he really gets it, in terms of that initial excitement, that "OH, WOW, it does THIS!" factor you should get when plugging into a new pedal.

[hurricane hugo]

I know overdrive pedals don't have a lot of fans here, but I actually like this one.

 

 

[Caevan O’Shite]

9 hours ago, hurricane hugo said:

I know overdrive pedals don't have a lot of fans here...

I've actually found them more and more useful, I have several that I love and there's at least one more that I will definitely be getting as soon as I can
 

.

9 hours ago, hurricane hugo said:

...but I actually like this one.

 

 

That sounds great and I like his backing-track choice, as well! In particular, the wide range of the Volume control and the VERY wide range of the Gain control!

[hurricane hugo]

cool old effect

 

 

[Larryz]

@hurricane hugo, Why do people like to sing in the shower?  Because of the natural reverb effect.  It makes everyone sound better.  I have to have a little reverb on my guitar and vocals as it just makes me sound a little bit better, (I need any help I can get LoL!)...😎👍

[p90jr]

On 1/30/2024 at 10:42 AM, surfergirl said:

Maybe cheap wasn't the right choice of words. I don't mean Amazon cheap, Affordable would have been a better choice of words. I like Boss, MXR and EHX. Almost everything I own or have owned was either on sale, used or blemished. I would love to be able to afford boutique, but I can't. I do have one cheap pedal, I replaced it on my board with a pawnshop Micro Amp. 

I am "budget-minded" too, and it's funny that a lot of people look at my set ups at gigs and say "whoa... someone is a cork-sniffer gearhead!"

Even the prestige stuff goes on sale at some point... and this world is full of people who have to have every new thing that comes out, then sell it in a month or two because they've already ordered the next new thing... I buy that stuff at a discount from those people. And it is currently a buyer's market for music gear. If I just look at something on Reverb, not even add it to a watch list but just open the listing and view it, I start getting discounted offers from that store and other stores on that item.

[Winston Psmith]

Much agreed. I have a number of "boutique" pedals that I picked up for decent "used" prices, by watching and waiting.

[hurricane hugo]

I don't know how many people here play in stereo, but if you do or know someone who does, you seriously need to consider this. If I still had my old stereo guitar rig, I'd have one of these already.

 

 

[hurricane hugo]

not sure this counts as an effect, but it's here because wow!

 

 

[Sparquelito]

I must say that I am smitten with the DigiTech Mosaic guitar pedal.

It's designed to emulate the sound of a 12 string guitar.
And it does that, brilliantly.

But I have noticed that it also adds an ambience of a church organ in the background of whatever you are playing.
My band and I played a gig in mid-December, and I stepped on it for Bob Dylan's Knockin' On Heaven's Door.
The sound was deep, wide, and amazing!

I love this pedal.
🙂

[Larryz]

Here's a demo:

 

 

😎

[surfergirl]

I thought I would like DigiTech Mosic more than I did. I thought the Boss MO-2 had better 12 string sound. 

I tried to post a video from Sweetwater, but no luck☘ 

[surfergirl]

Delete post.

What happened to delete? Did it go away or can I  just not find it?

[Larryz]

@surfergirl, Here's a demo from YouTube:

 

 

😎👍

[Dannyalcatraz]

16 hours ago, Larryz said:

Here's a demo:

 

 

😎

I’d love to own an actual 12-string, but right now, I emulate that sound using an EHX Epitome (which has a POG in it).  But something like this would let me free up the Epitome for other stunts.

 

Speaking of EHX…

 

[Caevan O’Shite]

11 hours ago, surfergirl said:

Delete post.

What happened to delete? Did it go away or can I  just not find it?

Your Post may have timed-out, dropping the Delete Post option. I do not know how long that takes,.
 

 

9 hours ago, Larryz said:

@surfergirl, Here's a demo from YouTube:

 

 

😎👍

I used to get a LOT of miles out of my Foxrox Octron (100% all-analog Octave-Up and Octave-Down Fuzzes, plus a Direct/'clean-blend'), Overdrive or Distortion, and my Boss RT-20 Leslie-sim for very satisfying faux-organ sounds.

 

7 hours ago, Dannyalcatraz said:

I’d love to own an actual 12-string, but right now, I emulate that sound using an EHX Epitome (which has a POG in it).  But something like this would let me free up the Epitome for other stunts.

 

Speaking of EHX…

 

I bet I'd really enjoy that S9! I like many of the HX "0" series pedals, they're a lot of fun!

[hurricane hugo]

With a name like "Air Child," it's pretty obvious what the goal is, and I like it a lot.

 

 

[hurricane hugo]

I have to hear this in action:

[Caevan O’Shite]

11 hours ago, hurricane hugo said:

I have to hear this in action:

 

 

 

[Larryz]

Interesting but at 2 to 3 grand each, the two Yore effects are well above my pay grade LoL! 😎👍

 

ps. I do love Spring Reverb...