Pedalboard Malaise

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somanytoys
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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by somanytoys » Wed Jun 12, 2019 9:22 am

Honestly, I've been pretty happy with the Throback's tones, and I think that all of my guitars are probably pretty close to each other. That trimpot is good to know about, though, in case I ever want to try to experiment with the sounds. Internal trimpots can be cool and handy or they can be a disaster waiting to happen, especially if you don't think to note where it was set before messing with it.

No, I've never tried the SD-9, I haven't really even used the TS-9 I have all that much. I had tried to use it for distortion, and it was never all that heavy on distortion unless my amp was really driven. I bought other chips to swap out in the socket, and it was cool but it never really just grabbed me.

I really only pulled those 2 out to try together because they haven't been used much in quite a while, and since I'd always used them specifically as dirt pedals , I wanted to try the clean boost out with them. Each one is okay on its own, but it just seems to be a little better sound together, the mixing of their unique sounds, even clean.

I've been using them with each volume slightly down from max and pretty low on the tone knobs to keep the volume just a little above unity. But that was also for lower overall volumes while I played out side, with light gain on the amp. On a louder, more driven amp, it may sound better with both volumes tanked, considering the idea is to really push the front of the amp. It could give a whole different sonic footprint, where I don't need the tone knobs so far down, but that BD-2 really is a bright pedal. I'll have to try them out on a louder and more driven amp soon, see what's what.

But I was super impressed with the sound of the Throback replacing them, even at the low volumes. I think that helped me get a better feel for the pedal and the settings. I think it's one of the only pedals that I have with silicon, so that option makes it pretty versatile for using it later in the chain. Most of my other heavier pedals are germanium, and they have to be first in the chain, or they pout.
-David

It's a boost booster, to boost your boost - it makes your tone much muchier.

chemattstry
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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by chemattstry » Fri Jun 14, 2019 6:57 am

I sold almost every pedal I own and bought a Helix LT last year. I’m finding that even with that thing, I still only use an EP style booster, a Klon style pedal and copious amounts of delay and reverb. If I ever go back to pedals, that’s all I would buy. And a tremolo pedal for bridges of songs.

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somanytoys
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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by somanytoys » Fri Jun 14, 2019 9:07 am

That thing seems nice, I really wouldn't mind having one of those. But I am too oldschool to get rid of amps and pedals, especially completely. There's just something about the actual hardware. I'm good with digital stuff, it's clear and very powerful, but it's fascinating to me when things are done in analog.

Those are some good choices in effects.

I've also started using my EP booster at the end of the chain, it helps to further round out the sound of the TS-9 and BD-2. And I use a Keeley 30MS pedal just before that, for the modulation, reverb and delay. It's amazing what you can do with such a simple setup. After all of the pedals that I've bought, I think that's what's impressed me so much lately, is how simple you can really go.

I tried using that setup the other night on my old '70's Traynor TS-10 solid state amp, instead of the all-tube Bugera , and it seemed to sound just as good. At low volumes, anyway, but the tone is there. The difference in tone without the pedals on is night & day.

Maybe going dry or at least minimalist for a while will help some people get more of an appreciation for other effects again. I enjoy playing that little setup, but I also still enjoy firing up the pedalboards. Maybe it's about time for me to bring out some other pedals again, maybe think about swapping a few around on the boards. I do like my current setups a lot, this is probably the longest they've stayed static for a while, because I feel like this is the result of where I've been heading for a long time.
-David

It's a boost booster, to boost your boost - it makes your tone much muchier.

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marqueemoon
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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by marqueemoon » Fri Jun 14, 2019 9:16 am

I’ve been considering adding a noise gate to my board because single hot P90 guitar is pretty goddamn noisy. But it’s just another thing to fuss with and pay for and to break so I probably won’t bother.

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panoramic
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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by panoramic » Fri Jun 14, 2019 10:35 am

marqueemoon wrote:
Fri Jun 14, 2019 9:16 am
I’ve been considering adding a noise gate to my board because single hot P90 guitar is pretty goddamn noisy. But it’s just another thing to fuss with and pay for and to break so I probably won’t bother.
i would probably just use the volume knob instead, generally i veer away from gear acquisitions unless it's big now
I used to be cool, now I just complain about prices.

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somanytoys
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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by somanytoys » Fri Jun 14, 2019 11:10 am

marqueemoon wrote:
Fri Jun 14, 2019 9:16 am
I’ve been considering adding a noise gate to my board because single hot P90 guitar is pretty goddamn noisy. But it’s just another thing to fuss with and pay for and to break so I probably won’t bother.
With all of the on-board effects that amps often come with, reverb and tremolo being the most common for retros, and sometimes with digital everything built-ins on more modern ones, it's a little surprising that this isn't one of the more common ones. It would be convenient, one extra knob on the amp for the threshold at the input.

I may try using an ISP Decimator at the amp head, instead of on the board, and see how that works. Those are supposed to be placed last anyway.

So many good ideas come from this website...
-David

It's a boost booster, to boost your boost - it makes your tone much muchier.

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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by Jaguar018 » Fri Jun 14, 2019 11:14 am

I associate noise gates with church/worship bands and prog rock dreamcore metal. Not my thing.

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somanytoys
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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by somanytoys » Fri Jun 14, 2019 12:53 pm

Haven't heard any church/worship bands, and not sure exactly what that other genre is. I can see something like the music from that cartoon network show Metalpocalypse or whatever. I'm not very big on shredding, especially in that style (or Yngwie), and it seems like I remember the noise gate being a pretty big part of getting that sound.

I never used it that way - I'm not even sure if the ones that I have can do that kind of thing, actually. I would just use it to cut the craziness down when I stopped playing, either until the next part or when I can kick the hissy/noisy pedals off.

That's kind of the reason of why those aren't on my board anymore, I put things that I could use to make new or different sounds in the place of the ones that I used to briefly suppress annoying sounds.

There are probably people (especially neighbors) that would have loved to dime the squelch on it, because the sounds of my playing annoyed them.
-David

It's a boost booster, to boost your boost - it makes your tone much muchier.

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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by øøøøøøø » Fri Jun 14, 2019 3:32 pm

To me, a gate is a poor solution to noise issues.

If I'm in a situation where I can't embrace the noise, I will choose a quieter guitar, or figure out what the gain staging issue is that's giving me problems.

A gate can be interesting as an effect to chop off tails of notes, or fronts of notes (with a slow attack time). But I've come to operate with the understanding that a noisy rig is just noisy. And sometimes noisy is okay. And when it's not okay and I know that ahead of time, I'll prioritize non-noisiness over some other factor if need be.

And if it's not okay and I don't know it until later, and it's a recording... well, that's what iZotope RX is for.

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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by marqueemoon » Fri Jun 14, 2019 3:46 pm

panoramic wrote:
Fri Jun 14, 2019 10:35 am
marqueemoon wrote:
Fri Jun 14, 2019 9:16 am
I’ve been considering adding a noise gate to my board because single hot P90 guitar is pretty goddamn noisy. But it’s just another thing to fuss with and pay for and to break so I probably won’t bother.
i would probably just use the volume knob instead, generally i veer away from gear acquisitions unless it's big now
Right. Basically I’m happy with my setup and this is the only thing I can really think of to tinker with and it’s kind of a dumb thing.

As had been mentioned the noise is pretty easy to mitigate in a recording situation.

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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by Paco » Sat Jun 15, 2019 10:16 pm

I used to play on a band that gigged regularly throughout the country (México) and I traveled with a very controlled, travel-friendly rig. I limited myself to traveling with 2 guitars and my old PT2 pedaltrain, no more. I was always thinking in weight, space and comfort, so for years I had a rigorous, established pedalboard, switching few things here and there (depending on the songs and material we were playing), but practically not moving anything around. During these time I was focusing on writing and playing, so for a time I even stopped looking for new stuff and just relied on my old, trusty rig. I can't say it was a bad time, really.

My band broke up recently, and just taking away the pedals and cables on my trusty PT-2 gave me an incredible, and unexpected, sense of peace. I hadn't realized how strict I was being about my rig, almost like if I was conditioning my playing to fit on a certain space and weight. Some of those pedals had years without being moved, not an inch. I didn't even know I felt like that, but discovering it was liberating in many ways.

I'm not gigging regularly, so why should I have an established and strict rig? I'm only gonna jam with my friends or play at home, so I try not to worry much about size or weight issues. And I don't even worry if the pedalboard itself makes any sense, so I put 8 fuzzes on a row, or an only modulations kind of thing without thinking it too much. I even find it inspiring, it has helped me now that I'm writing and recording on my own. It keeps me thinking and re-thinking.

I guess it really is a cycle, and maybe it doesn't make any actual sense. It'll go up and it'll go down. :fp:

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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by MT » Sun Jun 16, 2019 1:03 am

chemattstry wrote:
Fri Jun 14, 2019 6:57 am
I sold almost every pedal I own and bought a Helix LT last year. I’m finding that even with that thing, I still only use an EP style booster, a Klon style pedal and copious amounts of delay and reverb. If I ever go back to pedals, that’s all I would buy. And a tremolo pedal for bridges of songs.
Moving to a Helix LT earlier this year killed any pedal GAS I had. I haven’t sold all my pedals (sold quite a few though) and I still use analogue fuzz pedals in front of the LT, but I haven’t really lusted after new pedals since.

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Re: Pedalboard Malaise

Post by chemattstry » Sun Jun 16, 2019 12:19 pm

MT wrote:
Sun Jun 16, 2019 1:03 am
chemattstry wrote:
Fri Jun 14, 2019 6:57 am
I sold almost every pedal I own and bought a Helix LT last year. I’m finding that even with that thing, I still only use an EP style booster, a Klon style pedal and copious amounts of delay and reverb. If I ever go back to pedals, that’s all I would buy. And a tremolo pedal for bridges of songs.
Moving to a Helix LT earlier this year killed any pedal GAS I had. I haven’t sold all my pedals (sold quite a few though) and I still use analogue fuzz pedals in front of the LT, but I haven’t really lusted after new pedals since.
Yep, definitely another plus to owning one. With the updates, we get new pedals once in a while, too, so my gas is currently low!

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