Octave pedals

[Inazone]

Since my band hasn't found a bass player yet, I decided to bend on my self-imposed GAS regulations/New Year's Resolution by getting the pedals needed to "cheat", a Morley ABY and a used DOD Octoplus. I run the Morley's A output to my regular guitar effects and amp, and the B output through the Octoplus to my bass amp, so that I have a clean signal for the bass. I use it sparingly, only in places where the song calls for the bass to follow the lead guitar, and it actually works pretty well...or the concept does.

The DOD, as I expected, does not track very well. That's not really a big deal, as it's close enough for me to work on the songs, but do any of the more common octave pedals really perform much better? Buying a $30 DOD was not a tough decision, but shelling out three or four times that for a minimal improvement wouldn't be worth it. Any good or bad experiences with octave pedals?

[Newc]

Re: Octave pedals

The only thing I know that will work better is an Eventide. Everything else (from the first-hand reports I've heard from others) has tracking problems.
Your best bet really is to crank the bass on the drums and guitar till you find a bassist. Unless you wanna tapdance on a set of Moog bass pedals [img]graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

Newc

[YetAnotherOne]

Re: Octave pedals

None of the Digitech 21XX rack gear I've had tracked well so I'd imagine you can cross off everything in the DOD/Digitech line.

[Inazone]

Re: Octave pedals

The guy at the shop was praising the Boss Octave, but I also know from past experience that he talks out his ass quite often. However, none of the shops I usually visit carry ANY decent effects gear, so my only option for trying anything out is if Music Go Round has a used piece. I'm no fan of DOD/Digitech products, but at least now I have something to experiment with. It actual sounds fairly convincing, when used in moderation.

The rhythm guitarist has more low end dialed in than I do on my guitar amp, but there are places where the songs just sound empty without the bass, so I'm learning to match them with the above setup. Since my artwork and website guys both went MIA, I'm tied up doing a lot of non-musical stuff myself. Teaching a bassist my parts doesn't sound very appealing right now, and most listeners (at a live show) wouldn't miss the bass as long as they hear some low end. I just wanted to present the songs as close as possible to the live versions. I'm thinking the Octoplus may actually work in that limited role.

[Riffmeister]

Re: Octave pedals

I tried the Boss out once and when I started playing anything fast, it sounded weird, and really sounded weird if I bent any strings. [img]images/icons/frown.gif[/img]

[BigDaddyD]

Re: Octave pedals

The Boss is very cool, but some units are better than others. It also depends on how you set it. I have had a Boss octave as part of my rig for over a decade.