Different guitar sounds through pedals and whatever

JonnyPistachio

So I've been playing guitar off and on for a few years and never took it too seriously until this last year. And unfortunately this has made me a little stuck in my ways and less adventurous in finding different sounds through settings and pedals.

I dont know shit about pedals, but my amp in a line6 with reverb, flanger, tremolo, delay, and a few other things built in. These amps have settings described as blues, crunch, clean, insane, and recto. I have programmed a foot switcher to switch between only about two different sounds.

That being said, I am the only guitarist with a drummer and a new bass player, and i dont really solo or do much outside of rhythm guitar. But i've recently seen a lot of people using a digitech whammy, and huge pedal boards that look like they could float half of haiti over to miami...anybody have any suggestoins if I sould venture into pedalboardland?

BinFrog

Depends on what you need to play man, there's no easy answer. Try out as many different styles of pedals as you can and find what works.

You might do well with a looper pedal if there are only 3 of you.

Stone Is God

JonnyPistachio wrote:

So I've been playing guitar off and on for a few years and never took it too seriously until this last year. And unfortunately this has made me a little stuck in my ways and less adventurous in finding different sounds through settings and pedals.

I dont know shit about pedals, but my amp in a line6 with reverb, flanger, tremolo, delay, and a few other things built in. These amps have settings described as blues, crunch, clean, insane, and recto. I have programmed a foot switcher to switch between only about two different sounds.

That being said, I am the only guitarist with a drummer and a new bass player, and i dont really solo or do much outside of rhythm guitar. But i've recently seen a lot of people using a digitech whammy, and huge pedal boards that look like they could float half of haiti over to miami...anybody have any suggestoins if I sould venture into pedalboardland?

It's all what you prefer. I suggest that you go to a music store and mess around with some pedals to get the feel of what they sound like compared to what you have.

Even if you do start a pedal board it doesn't have to be over the top. Some people like more effects, some don't.

I'm right in the middle, I believe. I only have a tuner, wah, chorus, delay, phase, and an acoustic simulator. I also have the foot switch for my amp that switches clean to distortion. There's also a "solo" switch on the amp pedal that cranks up the gain.

Check out e bay and craigslist to if you decide the pedal board route. I got most of mine off of those 2 and I've been extremely happy.

Novawind

If you're playing in a 3 piece band, I can't stress the utility of a looper pedal enough. It's sooooo useful. On my Boss RC-20xl, I can record phrases and the pedal will hold them until later. So if you yourself like playing rhythm, you could record the rhythm and take your time working out a solo over if you like. Can also be used in live situations to do the same thing OR simply layer multiple rhythm parts. Only thing though is if all your effects including distortion are in your amp, the pedal won't record those because it's connected before the amp input. If your amp has an effects loop, I would suggest using that.

Piper At The Gates

I would fully explore all of your settings on your Line 6 before going out to buy any pedals. It sounds like your amp already has many effects built into it already.

BinFrog

Piper At The Gates wrote:

I would fully explore all of your settings on your Line 6 before going out to buy any pedals. It sounds like your amp already has many effects built into it already.

Amp effects are ok and all, but if you want to change things on the fly while jamming, they are entirely useless.

JonnyPistachio

Thanks for all your responses!
I guess i'll hit the music store and mess around a bit with the looper and maybe the whammy.
funny, i have been playing along with our recordings to just find second giuitar parts and/or solos.

btw, the footswitchre connected to the amp gives 4 opportunities for pre-saved settings, so I think that covers a lot of pedals i sometimes see.

xtremehardy388

Like everyone has said, it's all about taste. There's talk of a looper and I think the BOSS DD6 and Digtech Digidelay loops for a few seconds. They also are GREAT delay pedals. Another idea is a BOSS TU2 Tuner. It's a good tuner/mute pedal. If you're mainly playing rhythm, a chorus pedal might fill things out. The DOD Ice Box Stereo Chorus is on my board and my favorite. I'm about to update my photobucket with pictures of my pedalboard, if you're interested here's the link. I agree with BinFrog and amp effects (other than reverb) are useless if you're jamming.


http://s162.photobucket.com/albums/t263/xtremehardy388/2008%20gear/?action=view&current=n1256850009_30053049_6998.jpg

mccreadyisgod

I'm going to play a little devil's advocate here...

Every player with a string instrument that doesn't have perfect pitch needs a tuner pedal. The Boss TU-2 is a great one, as is the new Korg Pitch Black. Even the cheaper Fender tuner will do the job.

After that, it's all a matter of taste. If you don't know of any pedals you need, then don't get any pedals. If you find a pedal you'd like to try, then go try it out. If you find a pedal that you can use, then buy it and use it. Too many players get distracted by pedalboard-land, and forget to concentrate on playing. So many iconic guitar players used one or two effects, if that. Many were known for plugging straight into their amp. That makes you concentrate on playing dynamics in ways that you never would with a bunch of pedals. The guitar's pickup selector, volume, and tone controls can allow a myriad of sounds without ever touching a pedal, rack effect, or even multiple amp channels.

Most players today need two sounds: clean and distorted/overdriven. Master those two (and the aforementioned tuner) and then work on playing. Over time, some effects will call to you. Get them one at a time, and learn to use them appropriately. You may end up with two or three pedals, you may end up with ten, you may end up with none. Let your hands and ears be your guide.

jcmark611

I looked at Johnny's profile and he is 34 years old. Being 30, here is my advice to you Johnny.

Only buy pedals if you WANT to buy them. If you are happy with your sound now then just keep playing with what you have. It sounds like you just enjoy jamming with your friends more than being a serious band so, just keep it light. When you really want to take it to that next level, let us know and we will advise you but, I suggest you do what makes you happy.