Bass guitar pedals provide an extra dimension to your tone. In addition to ensuring your bass won’t sound muddy, these pedals can also give you interesting and unique sounds that will spark your creativity.
Some pedals can offer multiple effects in a single unit, making them more cost-effective and saving space on your pedalboard.
Octave
Octave bass pedals are great for adding a huge amount of low end to your tone. They are also useful for creating sounds like organs and mellotrons. Fortunately, there are many different types of octave pedals available. The best one for you will depend on the type of sound you want and your budget. Analog octave pedals tend to have more natural sounding frequencies, while digital ones offer more versatility and control options.
The TC Electronic Polyphonic Sub ‘N’ Up is an impeccably designed octave pedal with a tonne of amazing features. It can create a whole symphony of sound by combining octaves with modulation, creating huge, full and rich tones. It has a TonePrint function that allows you to craft your own custom octave sounds, as well as a drive mode that provides distortion for fatter and more aggressive tones.
Another solid option is the Behringer UO300, which offers a variety of settings and controls for your octave sound. The pedal’s octave up and down controls can add an octave above or below the original sound, while the filter and tone knobs give you lots of control over your bass tone. The unit is compact and easy to store, with a 9V battery input on the top panel.
The EarthQuaker Double Down is a more affordable octave pedal that offers an impressive 11 octave combinations and a compressor circuit, as well. The unit has a few small drawbacks, including a tricky internal trim pot that can be difficult to reach. However, the price tag is very low, making it an excellent choice for those on a tight budget.
The MXR OctaBass Blue Label is an analog octave pedal that has a very easy-to-use layout and a number of great settings and voices. Its octave voices have their own volume fader, and the pedal’s effects section can add reverse effects, swells, and more to your tone. The unit also has a low pass filter and a pitch modification slider. Its output can be connected to the next pedal in your chain via a quarter-inch jack.
Fuzz
Whether you want to add some extra grit to your sound or create an aggressive growl, a fuzz bass pedal is an excellent choice. This type of pedal can be used in a variety of musical styles, from metal to punk and even gothic rock. It can also be used to create a more distorted sound for lead guitar. In addition, some pedals can be used to create a lower or higher-octave effect. These effects work best when they are positioned earlier in the pedal chain so that they do not interfere with the pure bass signal.
Some pedals use a germanium transistor to produce distortion, while others utilize silicon transistors. Both types of transistors have different characteristics, so it is important to consider what kind of sound you are after before deciding on a specific pedal. Choosing one that uses germanium transistors can give you a more vintage-sounding distortion, while silicon transistors may be better for producing a harsher sound.
A good quality bass fuzz pedal will have a control that allows you to adjust the amount of distortion. The pedal should also have a ‘Blend’ control that allows you to mix the original and distorted signals together. Depending on your needs, you may also want to consider getting a pedal that features a ‘Pre-Equalizer’ circuit that attenuates lows prior to saturation.
The MXR M287 Sub Octave Bass Fuzz Guitar Effects Pedal is a great option for bass players who want to have a lot of flexibility with their tone. This pedal offers two different modes of distortion – classic and bright. The ‘Blend’ control allows you to mix the distorted and original signals together, and the ‘Sub Octave’ control is used to create an octave below your bass guitar.
This pedal comes in a sturdy orange and black cardboard box and weighs 0.73 pounds. It is equipped with a patch cable and a folded user manual. The orange and black color scheme makes the pedal stand out on any pedalboard, while the white accents on the knobs and switches make it easy to read. The pedal has a blue halo light ring installed, which diffuses the light and prevents you from being blinded by it when you are playing live on stage.
Compressor
A compressor bass guitar pedal takes the peaks out of your playing, tightens up the low end and gives you more definition in all the notes you play. This pedal is essential for any bass player who wants to sound professional and control their volume levels on stage.
Whether your bass is full and punchy for rock music or warm and deep for jazz, a good compression pedal will keep the overall level of your performance consistent. It does this by squeezing out the loud notes and letting the soft ones pass. It’s important to remember that compression will amplify noise and add some distortion so be careful about using it too much.
A basic compressor pedal will have a threshold, attack and release (the amount of time it takes for the compression to kick in) controls. Some pedals may also have a knob for the ratio (which controls how much compression you get) or an EQ function to shape the tone. The Origin Effects Cali76 Compact Deluxe and the Boss BC-1X are both great examples of a good compressor pedal for bass.
When it comes to compressors, there’s no one-size-fits-all. However, a few tips can help you find the right compressor pedal for your bass guitar. A high attack time will reduce compression early and give you more sustain, while a slow release will increase the dynamics of your bass by keeping the output level closer to the threshold after it’s been compressed.
Another thing to consider is that compressors can make your bass sound brittle and metallic if used too often. So, be sure to use it sparingly and experiment to find the right settings for your specific bass guitar.
Having an understanding of compression and what it does to your bass guitar signal is a big help when shopping for a pedal that will do the job well. Most pedals with compression will have most, if not all of these controls, so it’s important to know what each knob does before buying it. If you don’t, you could be buying a pedal that does more harm than good!
Chorus
Chorus is an effect that can be used for a variety of different sounds, from subtle to intense. It is similar to vibrato in that it produces a shimmering or phasing effect on your signal by varying the delay time and modulating the copy. This effect can be used in conjunction with other pedals, such as a flanger or reverb, for more complex effects, but it is also a great sound on its own.
The Mooer JF-05 Classic Chorus is a simple pedal with only three knobs, two of which are typical for a chorus pedal (Rate and Depth). Using these controls with the Deep switch disengaged produced a nice clean chorus effect that was very delicate. It did not seem to muddy up the bass notes, even when used on higher strings. Unlike some less-expensive pedals, turning the pedal on and off did not result in an immediate drop or boost of volume as you would find with some other processors. Activating the pedal to begin or end musical phrases also worked well, without any hiccups.
This pedal has a smaller size than many of the other chorus pedals on the market and this makes it easy to fit onto most pedalboards. It also has an on/off switch and a LED indicator that shows the status of the effect. This is a good option for bassists who are looking to add a nice chorus effect to their sound, but do not need a full-featured pedal that will take up a lot of space on their board.
Another big selling point of the TC Corona is that it is TonePrint compatible, meaning that you can load custom settings into the pedal from your computer. Using these custom settings will allow you to create unique chorus effects that are perfect for your own sound. This pedal is also ideal for chordal playing, as it can affect lots of different frequencies at once. This can give your chords a sense of depth that can really stand out in a mix.
Chorus pedals are usually located after the dynamic, pitch-shifting and synth effects, but can be placed anywhere in your pedal chain depending on what you are trying to achieve. They are particularly effective when combined with other time-based effects, such as reverb and delay.