Is it just me?

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dragonworks

dragonworks

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When I was younger I had played with all kinds of effects, delay, wah, fuzz, phase, flange, etc. I guess after about thirty years of playing I had sold them off one by one or lost them or they were stolen or I gave them away and I kinda just quit using them.
Now after forty years of playing I figure ok, lets get some effects. I had only been using a touch of reverb over the last ten fifteen years or whatever.
Now when I use an effects I cringe and I have to turn it off. I listen to other guitar players who use them and say wow, that sounds great, but as soon as I turn on the fx, its ugh, gotta go.
I went and bought the high end lexicon rack mount unit, lots of dough, said now Im set, turned it on and started playing and said, ugh, gotta go.
What is wrong with me? I am down to a wah and a comp, the comp I had never used before, and that is about all I can take?
 
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That's an interesting question. I'm kind of a purist, too. But when I did a bunch of Rumbles, I started experimenting with FX since I was using a Digitech RP50 to record anyway. It seemed that the wilder FX I used sounded poopy by itself, but when it was mixed into the backing tracks, it was pretty cool. I'm still trying to understand it.
 
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Oh, and good morning, sir! I need to put on a pot of coffee. Company's coming today.
 
apl said:
That's an interesting question. I'm kind of a purist, too. But when I did a bunch of Rumbles, I started experimenting with FX since I was using a Digitech RP50 to record anyway. It seemed that the wilder FX I used sounded poopy by itself, but when it was mixed into the backing tracks, it was pretty cool. I'm still trying to understand it.
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There you go Sir!! That is the anwer eh?..............It sounds cool on recordings, not when you play with them the whole night.

I dig them, but I have not rackstuff, just simple pedals which I can patch anywhere where I like.

To be honest the sound of a good acoustic or just a plain amplified good electric cannot be beaten, and you do not have to be old to experience that kind of feeling.

I guess we could say the same about amps. I just like a plain amp without all the bells and whistles, if I need them [Heh, when do you really need them???] you just add some pedals.

A few days ago I was jamming with a student of mine, he had a new line6 amp [forgotten model but does not really matter, yes it had all the bells of heaven on it........] Well he used his ephiphone SG and I used his Kramer Striker [which he had on loan..........]

Now the Kramer [ we all know them eh?.........] they are a Rock affair, and I had never played one before, anyway, took about half an hour to get the tuning happy [Hello Mr Floyd................!!!] and the action was too low [Loan guitar, what can I say, should I leave my own tastes at home when I play someone else's gtr.????!!] But...........once I had it plugged in I loved what I heard.

My pupil was using his Line 6 with a lot of effects, and I used his small practise amp with just a tiny bit of dirt and very powerful pick-ups from the Kramer. Felt like the sound I had was soooo much better than the sound of the Line6.............

Off course, you need to dial in the right sound to get a meaningful comparison: He played with way too many effects, so his notes were lost, but still, that tiny little amp sounded big: Great pick-ups, the right settings, right notes, and ..........off you go.

Okay a bit of subject, but I am sure it will fit in somewhere...........oh yeah, and way too much bla bla bla from me, so I will shut up now and just listen.

Cheers. :)
 
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It's good to know that someone else has matured beyond the need for multiple efx. I used to be into them (i think at one point I had more invested in efx than in other gear) but as my taste changed and (hopefully) my playing improved I used efx less and less. About all I use anymore is reverb, occasional delay, chorus on some songs and compresseo/limiter. If I want distortion I would rather get it from the amp. Maybe I'm a pack rat, when I started getting rid of my efx pedals I started accumulating guitars. The little differences between each guitar more than makes up for a whole box full of pedals.
 
I have never liked effects really, I can listen to other people use them like you said, but I can't stand them for myself. The first amp I got had a built in chorus, and well... I got sick of it after about 5 minutes. When I bought a wah pedal I stopped using it completely after about a month. I don't mind subtle reverb at all, but my current amp doesnt have it. I've never used a compressor, but I am building one myself so incase I get sick of it after a week I won't be out a hundred bucks.
I think it might have something to do with how I started out playing acoustic, or just most of the music I listen to doesn't have that many effects in it. Either way, I dont mind not having to carry a pedal board around with me :p
 
Yup, I've gone through this too over 15 or so years of playing. I go through phases of getting pedals and then selling them all.

And I've thought about why I do this. My current thought is that it is a matter of novelty. When you first play through a flange with a 5 minute delay on top of it, it sounds really original and cool, but I think that the novelty wears off.

And I think that a young player is more likely to try a dramatic effected sound and think, "say, this is cool..." and be happy noodling with that for a while. A more experienced player will think of an effect in the context of their style. When I first started playing, I didn't have a distinct style, I was happy to let an effect determine my style of playing. Now I get annoyed if I'm playing through a heavy, creamy distorted sound. Not because it isn't cool, it just doesn't suit my playing style.

or maybe that's just me...
 
You're just old and getting that "I'm retired in Oklahoma attitude."
 
I always liked a little delay as an effect. Distortion and wah are the other rocks.
 
In MY experience pedals (even the most respected ones) have only robbed my tone.

The only effect I use is whats in my amp which is reverb or tremolo.

Good guitar + Good tube amp + good playing = ALL YOU NEED
 
gbondo9 said:
.................................. Distortion and wah are the other rocks.
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Can we consider "distortion" an effect?

We all like a little dirt when it comes to rock eh? Some like it big, some like it bigger and some like to get it multi-mega big..................

But really distortion, or overdrive for a better phrase, is just the amptone when it is driven to the max. Using a pedal as overdrive or distortion is just for usercomfort or additional tonal nuances................just plain knobfiddeling :D
 
distortion pedals suck for the sound I want, either the amps natural distrotion or gotta go clean.
 
I dunno. The lead guitarist in my band uses different effects setups for each song and I really appreciate the spice it adds. Usually its a blend of different distortion types, amp sims, delays, EQ and reverb... but he's really tasteful with it and it almost seems to help shape and define the character of each song. Its not that the effect dominates, it enhances.

In my own gutiar playing (mostly rythm) I tend to avoid effects. (shrug) Its an art like playing in itself and I never really bothered to get into the finesse of it.

Chris
 
Man I keep reinventing "my sound".

I started out old school...just a guitar and amp...then came the pedals...lots and lots of pedals...then, the modellers...then back to the amp. I still couldn't find the right combo so I just bought more and bigger amps.

Now...I'm back to the basics...my trusty little Univalve, Avatar 2x12, OD pedal, Delay/Reverb pedal and a Wah. Never sounded better but, my latest obsession seems to be tubes...I'm collecting them like they're going out of style :D
 
punkin said:
Man I keep reinventing "my sound".

I started out old school...just a guitar and amp...then came the pedals...lots and lots of pedals...then, the modellers...then back to the amp. I still couldn't find the right combo so I just bought more and bigger amps.

Now...I'm back to the basics...my trusty little Univalve, Avatar 2x12, OD pedal, Delay/Reverb pedal and a Wah. Never sounded better but, my latest obsession seems to be tubes...I'm collecting them like they're going out of style :D
Click to expand...

Yep like you said, it is a never ending circle with no rights and wrongs.

tubes going out of fashion? They will find another way to make some money, but there still seem to be lots of them around, just do not look at the pricetag...................
 
Chris Shaeffer said:
I dunno. The lead guitarist in my band uses different effects setups for each song and I really appreciate the spice it adds. Usually its a blend of different distortion types, amp sims, delays, EQ and reverb... but he's really tasteful with it and it almost seems to help shape and define the character of each song. Its not that the effect dominates, it enhances.

In my own gutiar playing (mostly rythm) I tend to avoid effects. (shrug) Its an art like playing in itself and I never really bothered to get into the finesse of it.

Chris
Click to expand...

Yep the effected sound needs to bend in with something, just on its own it may be too overpowering and to noticeable, just mix it in with other sounds and it may do its job.

A recording is something you should be able to listen to again and again and again, and it is fun to hear new elements in songs you listen to over and over again. Playing live, on the other hand, is just a "one-off" affair, just get a right sound, play and entertain and they will love you, start fiddeling with your knobs and...............you will loose the connection with the audience and they will just wander off leaving you thinking like "Ghee what did I do wrong here :confused: ".......................
 
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