Envelope Pedals For Bass

[Shadoweclipse13]

You know what I wonder? I bought the EQD Night Wire so it could do some of the attack-mode stuff and to have it as a tremolo on my bass board too. I wonder if running a regular, pulsing tremolo into the Night Wire in attack-mode would do kind of what I want. Hmm...

[Zork]

What I'm really looking for is partly like the envelope follower in the Craig Anderton pedal. I'm not looking for something to sweep a filter, I'm really looking for something that changes the attack and decay of your signal, kinda like the Malekko Sneak Attack. I like what the Sneak Attack does, but it's kind of a pain to use. I guess, maybe more like a Boss Slow Gear/volume swell thing? I really do dig the adjustable attack and decay, I just prefer something that's a bit more user-friendly.

I know exactly what you mean!
I've wanted a Sneak Attack for a long time but eventually stepped away from it because too much money for a very limited use: slow attack is the only thing I'd want from it. So I bought a Mooer Slow Engine. It's basically a Boss Slow Gear clone. I will recieve it in a few days.

The best solution on the market imo is a very different approach: The EHX Superego+
Unless the original Superego, it lets you dial in attack and release for your endless sustained or freezed notes. You can even set a portamento time for the freezed notes and combine all of that with filters, pitch shifters or vibrato from the multi-fx part of the pedal. Honestly: it doesn't get more synthy anywhere else. I'm pretty sure this is the pedal you've been looking for.

[Shadoweclipse13]

Damn, I forgot about the Superego+! I always forget about EHX in general to be honest. Haha. It'd be cool to have a flip-flop footswitch for your other effects: one position they would be in the loop of the Superego, and the other they'd be out of it. Hmm. The only thing about the Superego is that I'm not a huge fan of too many functionality (hidden menus, etc.), but it is all pretty much on the surface and not banks of menus.

Also, definitely let me know what you think of the Slow Engine! The Mooer stuff is really reasonable price-wise. I could see grabbing one if it sounds good!

Thanks Zork!

[fuzzjunkie]

Yeah, it's too bad that something like this isn't available in a pedal:

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail ... gLGK_D_BwE

Too often envelope followers are tied to a filter and you get an envelope filter for auto-wah and that's it, but envelope followers can control phasers, flangers, pitch shifters and vibratos too.

If I remember correctly Craig Anderton's could be built as a separate unit. I think he had the option to add it to his phaser and a couple other projects as well.

[Zork]

The thing is, synthesisers don't have envelope followers but envelopes with parameters for time of attack, decay, sustain and release. Once you set your envelopes they are the same for every note. That's why I don't get why all the synth pedals for guitar or bass use envelope followers where the values are changing all the time depending on your playing dynamics. It doesn't make sense at all and that's the reason I never got happy with these effects. I even sold my bananana matryoshka. Only the Digitech Dirty Robot and EHXs Micro Synths use consistent time values for filter sweeps and the Slow Gear and the Sneak Attack do this for volume. The rest is just usable for that funky quack sounds but not for a serious synth emulation. I'm wondering why there aren't more pedals with normal adsr envelopes. The demand seems to be out there...

[Shadoweclipse13]

The thing is, synthesisers don't have envelope followers but envelopes with parameters for time of attack, decay, sustain and release. Once you set your envelopes they are the same for every note. That's why I don't get why all the synth pedals for guitar or bass use envelope followers where the values are changing all the time depending on your playing dynamics. It doesn't make sense at all and that's the reason I never got happy with these effects. I even sold my bananana matryoshka. Only the Digitech Dirty Robot and EHXs Micro Synths use consistent time values for filter sweeps and the Slow Gear and the Sneak Attack do this for volume. The rest is just usable for that funky quack sounds but not for a serious synth emulation. I'm wondering why there aren't more pedals with normal adsr envelopes. The demand seems to be out there...

Exactly! In synth terms, it's a very handy thing! I should look into getting a ADSR Eurorack module that runs on 9VDC and just mount it to my board with a bypass loop The demand definitely seems to be out there. When Juan (Alderete) uses his vintage modded Microsynth that way, it just blows me away. Honestly, after hearing his, I'm not sure I want to mess with the new ones either. I should write EHX: they seem like the kind of group who might put out the envelope follower side of the Microsynth as a stand-alone pedal.

If I remember correctly Craig Anderton's could be built as a separate unit. I think he had the option to add it to his phaser and a couple other projects as well.

A phaser with an envelope follower would be epic. I might have to look into that...

[Zork]

The POG 2 does the attack thing as well.
An envelope phaser is available from Pigtronix:
https://youtu.be/Ra0fww4idLM
And in the old Line6 multis (M9, MM4) you can use the envelope to control the speed of tremolo and pitch vibrato.

[Shadoweclipse13]

The POG2 always looked cool, but it does so much other stuff, stuff that I probably wouldn't use, that it would feel like a waste to have. Originally, I was looking for things that were separate, so I could use things independently without changing settings, which I why at the time I decided on the Sneak Attack and EQD Night Wire.

Thanks for the Pigtronix suggestion! Another brand I don't think of very often. They also have a envelope trem too, which is the sound I was originally after!!! I might have to very seriously look into that one!!!

[rkharper]

hands down, Source Audio Manta Bass Filter!

I use it on my experimental bass board. it can be whatever you want - envelope controlled, auto controlled, pedal controlled, or even controlled via hothand, like I do on following video. check from 2.20min.

https://youtu.be/bCdZam10ahQ?t=2m20s

[Shadoweclipse13]

hands down, Source Audio Manta Bass Filter!

I use it on my experimental bass board. it can be whatever you want - envelope controlled, auto controlled, pedal controlled, or even controlled via hothand, like I do on following video. check from 2.20min.

https://youtu.be/bCdZam10ahQ?t=2m20s

That sounds huge! I take it that's you playing?

What does your singer (Anna?) have around her neck?

[rkharper]

hands down, Source Audio Manta Bass Filter!

I use it on my experimental bass board. it can be whatever you want - envelope controlled, auto controlled, pedal controlled, or even controlled via hothand, like I do on following video. check from 2.20min.

https://youtu.be/bCdZam10ahQ?t=2m20s

That sounds huge! I take it that's you playing?

What does your singer (Anna?) have around her neck?

yeah, that was me. Actually, she's not MY singer, as it's not my band, I was just a session bassist for this australian tour back then. But we used to play together in queit a famous metal band some years ago. (Eluveitie).

https://youtu.be/iijKLHCQw5o

She plays hurdy gurdy, that's a medieval instrument.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurdy-gurdy

[Shadoweclipse13]

It says the video is disabled...

Thanks! That would be driven me nuts. I've heard of the hurdy-gurdy, but don't think I've ever heard one.

[Zork]

Also, definitely let me know what you think of the Slow Engine! The Mooer stuff is really reasonable price-wise. I could see grabbing one if it sounds good!

So, the Slow Engine does the job absolutely fine. It reacts very good, there isn't any adjusting in your playing technique to use the pedal, it's really just plug and play. Before I recieved it I was a bit worried about the slowest possible attack still being to fast but it's absolutely all you would ask for, really. With a very sqashed compressor in front you can get very synthy tones. I would recommend it. It just looks a bit silly in between its bigger brothers:

[Shadoweclipse13]

So, the Slow Engine does the job absolutely fine. It reacts very good, there isn't any adjusting in your playing technique to use the pedal, it's really just plug and play. Before I recieved it I was a bit worried about the slowest possible attack still being to fast but it's absolutely all you would ask for, really. With a very sqashed compressor in front you can get very synthy tones. I would recommend it. It just looks a bit silly in between its bigger brothers:

It does look a little small, but you do have some pretty big pedals on there too! Haha. Glad to hear it does well, I might look into one for my bass board!

What's that Broadcast pedal, second-from-the-left on the front row? Is that a tremolo?

[Zork]

The broadcast is one of these: http://copilotfx.com/broadcast.html
I added a few pots and switches to it to have three different lfo speeds and to switch between lfo and my expression pedal. It controls the cutoff frequency on the moogerfooger.