Whats On Your Pedalboard?

[It's All In My H3ad]

Hey guys, I'm planning on buying a pedalboard and I need some pedal advice on what to get and whatnot. I mostly play modern metal (a la In Flames, Lamb Of God, Meshuggah, Chimaira). I have an Ibanez RG3120, a Peavey 5150 and a Behringer 4x12 cab that I'm going to pick up tomorrow. I need to know what things to buy to make my rig sound killer. Thanks in advance. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[JACKSONFREAK]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

There's so much gain on the 5159 that a distortion
pedal is almost pointless. I would go with an eq pedal like a Boss QE7 or if you can find one a used PQ4 parametric eq pedal. You mught want to try a sonic maxamizer of some sort too like the BBE 362 in the loop of the 5150 to help with some signal phase issues. It'll give you more oomph to your tone too. And Do Not Dime the gain on the 5150 it makes it sound like ass and all hissey.
Then maybe a nice chorus like a CH1 or a CE5.
and a delay pedal. If you want even a Boss flanger to round things out.
I suggest boss because they are the best of the "mass produced pedals" TC is cool to but expensive. Some of the Ibanez tone lok series are cool too and sometimes cheaper than the boss stuff.
Gil

[Boxcar Willie 84]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

I agree with Jacksonfreak, I'd get a BBE Sonic Maximizer and an equalizer...the Boss GE7 is a good pedal one that you can use in your loop(probably the best place for it in your situation), I use a Furman PQ3 parametric eq...I hear Rane makes good eqs too. Maybe a delay pedal for your smokin' leads would be nice...another essential item is a noise gate, especially if you're using high gain and an eq. The rest is just taste really...do you really want a wah, flanger, phase, ring modulator, etc? I notice most guys that play in the bands you mentioned have pretty simple setups, but just experiment til you find out what works best for you!

[It's All In My H3ad]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

Yeah. I don't really need a lot of effects. Just want the basic stuff. What does that BBE Sonic Maximizer do?

[Boxcar Willie 84]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

Basically it corrects imperfections in the speaker signal...you can add natural bass and treble if you want to. The easiest way to explain it is that it makes it sound like you took a blanket off your cabinet. Makes a big difference, I recommend it.

[It's All In My H3ad]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

Sounds interesting. Does this come in rack or in pedal-like form? Right now I'm considering buying this:

Pedalboard
EQ
Noise Suppresor
Compressor
Chorus
Wah
Delay

[Cleveland Metal]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

Most of the big rack guys have used the BBEs, and eventually pulled them from their racks. Sorta personal taste I spose, but most eventually tire of them and get rid of it. They sound sorta sythetic to me and I think a good amp and maybe an EQ is much more the ticket.

I have three, the 422A being the nicest sounding for guitar IMO. Sadly, they sit on a shelf and get checked out every once in a while and just get put back after I recertify I was right in shelving them, haha.

I found they seem to sound best when you play by yourself as they give you what seems to be a bigger sound. I don't like to use them loud, and with a band. They seem to help you to get lost in the mix easier I think.

However if you're using the 5150, they really do sound good for that amp. Other wise they sound boomy, sizzly, and screw with the harmonics a bit. You're better off with a good EQ. They do some correction in frequency response. and a good rig really doesn't need it.

The BBE software for the PC is pretty cool though.

As for my "pedal Board" I have an Ernie Ball Volume pedal, a Crybaby Q95 Wah, and a Rocktron MidiMate Controller.

[slo100]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

I have always preferred buying amps that have the tone I am looking for with as little outboard gear as possible. If you like the tone of the 5150, you will keep your tone clearer and less muddied the less you add to it. Most of my pedals stay off the majority of the time.

If you use pedals, be sure to use quality interconnects and minimize your net cord length wherever possible. I also added my amps' footswitch to my board that eases setup & teardown. It if velcro'd so if I decide to go without the effects I can do so easily.

I also run a delay/echo through the loop and I can turn that on and off remotely with the amps footswitch. Delay type effects work much better through my amp in the loop as opposed to the front end.

Here's mine:

[Wizard of Ozz]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

You shouldn't need too much. I'd limit it to:
</font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Wah</font>[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">EQ</font>[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Good OD (not distorion)</font>[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Chorus</font>[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Delay</font>[/list]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">

[Boxcar Willie 84]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

My friend has a Fulltone that is broken, so I've never tried it out(i gotta set up this dude's soloist today that his dad got him for christmas if that says anything). I tell ya what wah I tried and loved, was the Jimi Hendrix wah...sounds deeper than a normal Crybaby-I really like the frequency range.

[It's All In My H3ad]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

Boxcar....I was thinking of buying one of those SKB pedalboard that power the pedals, but I've heard they're quite noisy. Your idea is pretty good though, building my own pedalboard, but I know jack-shit about building things. Do any of you guys know like some website that has plans for it? I want a pedalboard with a case. And I've read what you guys have said and it's true. I don't need that much pedals. I'm now considering an EQ, delay, wah, chorus and maybe a noise supressor. I really like the tone of the 5150. I'm driving it through an Ibanez RG3120. I don't like the pickups that it has (evolutions), so I'm changing them on Monday to a Dimebucker and a 59'. I hope I'm satisfied with this comb.

[Venomboy]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

Check out the pedalboards at www.pedalpad.com

A friend has one and I saw them at NAMM. Nice stuff. The board with the power supply and loop usually goes for around $250-275 in stores. Very sturdy and supposedly pretty noise free.

If you're looking for an EQ, try the MXR M108 10 band eq. I have it. Very low noise, true bypass and 10 freaking bands!!! MXR just released the KFK eq, which is the Kerry King model. It has a flame graphic on it and 2 outputs but otherwise it's the same thing as the M108.

[Boxcar Willie 84]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

Another thing...don't bother with buying a "pedalboard" per se, like SKB and Boss make. Just get a piece of wood and put some velcro on it to hold your pedals down...you'll save money. If you want to get fancy you can put some channeling iron on the edges and secure it with a screw...my pedalboard is a piece of plywood spray-painted black with a Crybaby and a Boss tuner pedal on it, plus a power supply for them and a powerstrip for that and my MIDI controller.

Hey Cleveland Metal, how do you like your Crybaby 95Q?

[Lev]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

Dunlop Crybaby and a Boss Delay..

[Cleveland Metal]

Re: Whats On Your Pedalboard?

The 95Q is "ok". I think it is sorta "so so" as far as tone, but I'm not a big Wah guy really so it works good for my needs.

I don't think it sounds as near good as my old Thomas Organ Wah, but that is thing way too noisy.

The 95Q is pretty quiet. You really don't notice the booster in it for some reason. The cool thing is you can adjust the "Q" on it and later some characteristics of the wah sound. So, it's ok.

I hear the Fulltones are one of the best sounding Wahs. Neddy swears by his. Considering the 95Q is around $100 if you're buying one new, I'd look around for a used fulltone maybe. Especially if a wah is important to you in what you're playing.