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Bass synth?


lloyd
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I have a Behringer BSY600 that I bought cheap on eBay (maybe £30...? Can't remember exactly).

Like most Behringer stuff the build quality is quite crappy, but I can get some nice sounds out of it with a little patience and good luck. It's fairly fussy about the input signal however (as I suspect most pedal synths are) and tends to work best after a compressor and with no other FX in the signal chain.

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I’d honestly suggest saving a bit more and getting a Source Audio Manta and an octaver. Obviously that’ll set you back more (£90 used for the Manta, plus similar price for a good octaver (of which there are many)).

I must confess I’ve never played the Digitech.

Might be worth looking at the Boss SYB-5 too; I’m pretty sure I’ve seen those go for £35. 

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Depends what you mean by synth.

If we're talking moog type sounds then I'd go with a combination of individual pedals. A cheap OC2 clone (or EHX octave multiplexer. I had a chord OC-50 which has a drive/distortion option which ALMOST negates the need for a fuzz), a cheap gated fuzz (an ebay woolly mammoth clone, or cheap muff clone, but the gated fuzz really helps) and an EHX micro or mini qtron (in that order) will be much better for these sort of sounds than any synth pedal I've found, and you'll get a good variety of sounds for little outlay, with the bonus you can use them individually.

For more spacey stuff the boss, behringer or digitech pedals would be better.

Or you could try the synths on one of the zoom pedals, B3, MS60B or B1on. They're ok...

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30 minutes ago, Bigwan said:

Depends what you mean by synth.

If we're talking moog type sounds then I'd go with a combination of individual pedals. A cheap OC2 clone (or EHX octave multiplexer. I had a chord OC-50 which has a drive/distortion option which ALMOST negates the need for a fuzz), a cheap gated fuzz (an ebay woolly mammoth clone, or cheap muff clone, but the gated fuzz really helps) and an EHX micro or mini qtron (in that order) will be much better for these sort of sounds than any synth pedal I've found, and you'll get a good variety of sounds for little outlay, with the bonus you can use them individually.

For more spacey stuff the boss, behringer or digitech pedals would be better.

Or you could try the synths on one of the zoom pedals, B3, MS60B or B1on. They're ok...

Yep, gated fuzz is really great for copping synth sounds and gives the right kind of attack and quick release. I recommended the Manta as it has a gated fuzz built in, however I’d highly recommend the Zvex Mastotron fuzz as it does a much better job.

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4 minutes ago, Quatschmacher said:

Yep, gated fuzz is really great for copping synth sounds and gives the right kind of attack and quick release. I recommended the Manta as it has a gated fuzz built in, however I’d highly recommend the Zvex Mastotron fuzz as it does a much better job.

I use a Mastotron clone I built and it sounds SICK! Gated fuzz is the best if you can get it, but to get you started any fuzz (or even a heavy distortion a la Scott Devine's favourite pedal) will do. 

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The Digitech is a fun pedal if you can pick it up cheap - although I think the basic filter (setting 1 and 2) is the weakest thing about it.  I'd say 'worth £50' but if your are into this kind of thing, you'll want more flexibility almost immediately. I find I can get some pretty sick sounds out the vocal formant settings by really sitting on the sensitivity, so it only releases the formant as the note starts to decay, but for standard moog type sweeps, you are much better off with the analog octave/gated fuzz/filter approach IMO.  I've also found gated fuzz into a Boss PS6 (or presumably any 3 voice harmoniser) can sound absolutyel epic (provided you don't need to suddenly change key, in which case it can all crash and burn spectacularly...). Add a little delay to the end of the chain for maximum effect. 

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Would I be correct in saying that if you want a really good synth sound you need: octave + gated fuzz + filter (and probably in that order)?

Probably also fair to say that you won't find a single 'synth' will all three of these which are all done really well?

Therefore if you have the ££'s (and obviously buy second hand if you can) then something like: COG T16 (or Aggie Octamizer) --> Zvex Mastotron --> SA Manta could be just the ticket? 

 

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19 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

Would I be correct in saying that if you want a really good synth sound you need: octave + gated fuzz + filter (and probably in that order)?

Probably also fair to say that you won't find a single 'synth' will all three of these which are all done really well?

Therefore if you have the ££'s (and obviously buy second hand if you can) then something like: COG T16 (or Aggie Octamizer) --> Zvex Mastotron --> SA Manta could be just the ticket? 

 

I do need to add that running the fuzz in parallel to the octave sound way better so an LS-2 or Cog-T65 (with its own loop) are worth looking at. LS-2 is so versatile that you’ll find loads of uses for it. 

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9 minutes ago, Quatschmacher said:

I do need to add that running the fuzz in parallel to the octave sound way better so an LS-2 or Cog-T65 (with its own loop) are worth looking at. LS-2 is so versatile that you’ll find loads of uses for it. 

Interesting comment.  I have an Okto Nojs, which has an octave and gated fuzz in parallel. In fact the fuzz has has an additional sub harmonic so you sort of get a taste of series/parallel. I'd been led to believe that his was not the ideal way to do it. I think it sounds great though, into even the very basic filter I'm using. 

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Some great suggestions here, most of which fail the 'cheap' requirement by some distance.

I'd go with Bigwan's suggestion of the MS60B or B1on. There are a couple of OK synth patches, which can be surrounded in the chain with the other bits and pieces to make them work  better ie octaver, EQ to help with tracking, chorus and delay to fatten up the sound a bit. Or you can chain together the various fuzz, envelope filter and octave effects.

Another option might be the Ibanez SB7 in the Effects For Sale section.

Or do the sensible think and buy a cheap keyboard synth.

Edited by pete.young
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38 minutes ago, Quatschmacher said:

I do need to add that running the fuzz in parallel to the octave sound way better so an LS-2 or Cog-T65 (with its own loop) are worth looking at. LS-2 is so versatile that you’ll find loads of uses for it. 

Would you need something as capable as the LS-2? Any reason this more compact / cheaper alternative wouldn't work - running A (gated fuzz) and B (octave) into Y (filter) - or am I missing something?

Image result for mooer aby mk2

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25 minutes ago, pete.young said:

Or do the sensible thing and buy a cheap keyboard synth.

"Sensible"?? Doesn't that mean you're now a keys rather than a bass player and have to swap instruments mid set to get your desired synth sounds? (Please shoot me down if I am being very dim here). Not sure that is going to work 'live'.

And a keyboard synth certainly wouldn't fit on my pedal board...

 

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2 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

Would you need something as capable as the LS-2? Any reason this more compact / cheaper alternative wouldn't work - running A (gated fuzz) and B (octave) into Y (filter) - or am I missing something?

Image result for mooer aby mk2

That’s for switching channels, eg switching between two different basses or amps, or playing both at once. Remember that if using two fx pedals, the signal needs to be split, sent to both and then combined back into a mono signal. This pedal doesn’t appear able to do that. 

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34 minutes ago, radiophonic said:

Interesting comment.  I have an Okto Nojs, which has an octave and gated fuzz in parallel. In fact the fuzz has has an additional sub harmonic so you sort of get a taste of series/parallel. I'd been led to believe that his was not the ideal way to do it. I think it sounds great though, into even the very basic filter I'm using. 

I have one too and you’re absolutely right. The gating isn’t as tight as the Mastotron though.  

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1 hour ago, Al Krow said:

Therefore if you have the ££'s (and obviously buy second hand if you can) then something like: COG T16 (or Aggie Octamizer) --> Zvex Mastotron --> SA Manta could be just the ticket? 

 

Which is why I had Tom at COG make me a custom Mastotron/T65 combination in the one box to run in the loop of my 3Leaf GR2. An AWESOME setup for all sorts of synthy goodness. All gone now alas, and I was sorely tempted to buy back the COG when it was on ebay recently, but the guy wouldn't budge much on his price, and knowing what it sold for a few times after I sold it it was just too much money considering you could do something similar WAY cheaper.

The COG had a series/parallel switch and I found I always preferred the octave in series with the fuzz to take advantage of the gating. The effects loop of the GR2 is good too as all the dynamics are taken from the pre-effected input, rather than from the post octave+fuzz signal. Much more expressive!

Edited by Bigwan
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1 minute ago, Bigwan said:

Which is why I had Tom at COG make me a custom Mastotron/T65 combination in the one box to run in the loop of my 3Leaf GR2. An AWESOME setup for all sorts of synthy goodness. All gone now alas, and I was sorely tempted to buy back the COG when it was on ebay recently, but the guy wouldn't budge much on his price, and knowing what it sold for a few times after I sold it it was just too much money considering you could do something similar WAY cheaper.

Hmmm...I think @Quatschmacher has had similar ideas for a COG product. Sounds like you two should exchange notes! And if it turns out to be a 'killer' synth engine, I suspect there may well a market for more than just one...

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1 minute ago, Al Krow said:

Hmmm...I think @Quatschmacher has had similar ideas for a COG product. Sounds like you two should exchange notes! And if it turns out to be a 'killer' synth engine, I suspect there may well a market for more than just one...

I think Tom made a second for his demo board...

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19 minutes ago, Quatschmacher said:

I have one too and you’re absolutely right. The gating isn’t as tight as the Mastotron though.  

Some control over the gating would be nice, but it was a minor compromise. I wanted the Octave and figured the fuzz came for free at that price. I'd originally intended to use the octave into a bitcrusher, but as it turns out, using all three together is where the magic is. Something about the gating really interacts with the Scrutator. It gets pretty industrial.

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12 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

Hmmm...I think @Quatschmacher has had similar ideas for a COG product. Sounds like you two should exchange notes! And if it turns out to be a 'killer' synth engine, I suspect there may well a market for more than just one...

Yes, I’m trying to persuade Tom to build me a variation on the T-70 which includes a filter and AD or ADSR envelope generator and has a Mastotron circuit in there. 

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14 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

Hmmm...I think @Quatschmacher has had similar ideas for a COG product. Sounds like you two should exchange notes! And if it turns out to be a 'killer' synth engine, I suspect there may well a market for more than just one...

We’ve already been in touch as I spotted the Terminator and had seen his ad wanting it back. 

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