Why stompbox effects?

[Markay]

I am not getting your point. When a patch in MS is recalled and an effect, for example a virtual guitar stomp box is 'on' in the patch saved state, and you have a button on your controller mapped to switch the effect on or off, the button will be illuminated in your MS layout.

 

If half way through the song you want to turn the effect off, press the mapped button on the controller, the effect is off and the button will not be illuminated in the onscreen layout.

 

If you are using an effects pedal it is also either on or off. The only difference is before you start the next song you may have to do some tap dancing on the pedal/s, as their state does not automatically change from song to song.

 

So are you saying it is better that effects are not programmed to change as required per song?

 

Some guitarists use effect racks to switch effects and amp channels just like MainStage and they think that is a good thing, when compared to dancing on pedals between songs.

[Tonysounds]

Different strokes. I get the "more stuff, more stuff" problem. I do live performance now for ME...and stomp boxes are crucial if you're a 'spontaneous' player. If I feel some lines need a tail, I can't dip in and start tweaking, but I reach over and hit the stomp box. I can tweak in real time. Can't do that with menus. Nord was the only company who understands that need, and they do it well.

 

That said....if you think the Nord delay, or the delay in your Kronos or your ______ sounds as good as a Strymon El Capistan, then we really don't even have a discussion here. And if you want to play with distortions....I haven't found any of the onboard ODs that do anything for me.

 

My advice: if you're not a stomp box guy now, then turn around and don't look back. You'll get out cheap!

 

[burningbusch]

When you switch to a new program, does MS reset the controller to the position of the FX in that program? Or could the FX in MS and the current position of the controller be out of sync?

 

Busch.

[aronnelson]

> That said....if you think the Nord delay, or the delay in your Kronos or your ______ sounds as good as a Strymon El Capistan

 

The kronos can make a delay that everyone thinks sounds like a good delay - you dont need a Strymon to make a delay. And if you think the Strymon delays are as good as my EH Memory Man, then we don't have a discussion here either :-)

As far as a digital tail, just assign a button to the fx on something like the Kronos.

A Stymon is digital - just a little while ago - people were hating digital, so the stompbox guys are just as bad.

A distortion pedal on the output of a synth is radically different from a distortion that is before the sound manipulation of a synth - at least something like the Kronos. Unless you have an fx loop, the distortion after the keyboard is not the same.

 

Anyway, my point was when you had a keyboard that _could_ do the same things as the external boxes. Not for keyboards that are obviously ill equipped for fx.

Anyway, good discussion. Thanks!

[Doerfler]

My advice: if you're not a stomp box guy now, then turn around and don't look back. You'll get out cheap!

 

Excellent advice. Unfortunately too late for me.

[SpPiano]

Lots of good points above. I'd add that sometimes you can find stompboxes that do weird things that you won't find on a workstation. I've only got one pedal on my board that does standard verb and delay, everything else is more experimental. Tunable verbs, granular delay, stutter, killswitch, etc...

[aronnelson]

I got your kill switch mod right here..... (powers the drill!) :-)

[Markay]

When you switch to a new program, does MS reset the controller to the position of the FX in that program? Or could the FX in MS and the current position of the controller be out of sync?

 

Busch.

On the controller No, on the screen in the layout in performance mode Yes. You are never in any doubt as to the state of the effect provided you have mapped it in the layout screen.

 

On screen visual representation of the controller is a unique feature of MainStage compared to other VI hosts like Forte or Cantabile. Had you chosen either of those, or most other work stations for that matter, to use in your example then your point would be valid.

 

MainStage comes with a full set of Logic effect pedals built in and a guitar effects layout template that shows a visual representation of each pedal and its controls on screen.

 

There are probably more guitarists using MainStage with a midi footswitch as a substitute for an effects rack or collection of pedals on a pedal board than there are keyboard players using MainStage.

 

If MainStage was subject to all the short comings you suggest I doubt that would be the case.

 

I choose not to use MS for guitar as I use a limited number of stomp boxes, such as Chorus. My valve amp has real spring reverb built-in and I don't need pedals that model OD or distortion to then feed through an amp that already does that the old skool way. But I do have to remember to switch channels or tap pedals on or off.

 

[CEB]

Everybody needs one of these pedals.

 

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