agoulding Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 Im having a bit of trouble with this pedal, it seems to cut out (the effect not the whole signal) and distort. Ive tried it with different basses, new battery, different cables and two different amps and it seems to do the same thing. any ideas? how can i fix this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dread Bass Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 Does it cut out and distort when you play certain notes on the neck or does it not matter just wondering if it cant handle what your playing? i have never tried this pedal though so just a total guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agoulding Posted January 6, 2009 Author Share Posted January 6, 2009 i can be anything. i could play the 7th fret on the A string let it ring and the effect cut out halfway through the ringing note, not the whole signal, just the effect. if that makes sense Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kev Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 never tried it, but this could just be normal, usually a common feature of cheaper octavers though i would think, not an ebs... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sshorepunk Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 I had a similar problem once with a stingray, 7th fret on the G-string, seemed to lack the sustain of other notes and as a result, it screwed the effectiveness of the EBS octave effect! I never fixed it, my current stingray seems to do the same, not to the effect, just sounds similar, maybe its the way I set em up? T Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agoulding Posted January 7, 2009 Author Share Posted January 7, 2009 it happens in general not just the 7th fret of the a string. totally puzzling me still. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanOwens Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 Is there an input gain pot anywhere on the pedal (or inside)? It sounds like maybe the pedal's just not getting enough juice to do the calculations properly... Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisnameistaken Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 How long can you sustain a note? For the sake of example let's pick that E on the A string - does it track it OK for a second or more? It sounds to me like it might be just typical tracking quality for an analogue octaver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agoulding Posted January 8, 2009 Author Share Posted January 8, 2009 [quote name='TheBrokenDoor' post='374128' date='Jan 8 2009, 03:17 PM']Is there an input gain pot anywhere on the pedal (or inside)? It sounds like maybe the pedal's just not getting enough juice to do the calculations properly... Dan[/quote] Its an interesting point. The controls are "normal" for, obviously the clean signal level and "octave" which is the same but for the effect, no real "input gain control. I have a pretty high output bass (yamaha trb) so i dont see that as the problem. [quote name='thisnameistaken' post='374149' date='Jan 8 2009, 03:41 PM']How long can you sustain a note? For the sake of example let's pick that E on the A string - does it track it OK for a second or more? It sounds to me like it might be just typical tracking quality for an analogue octaver.[/quote] Its strange, with a pedal this thing sounds pretty good, by its self it doesnt seem like it can hold any effected note properly, the effect just cuts out randomly while i play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alun Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 [quote name='agoulding' post='374351' date='Jan 8 2009, 07:35 PM']Its strange, with a pedal this thing sounds pretty good, by its self it doesnt seem like it can hold any effected note properly, the effect just cuts out randomly while i play.[/quote] It does sound like fairly normal octaver behavious - my OC2 goes a bit nutty on sustained notes The only things I've found that are fairly well behaved on sustained notes are the ElectroHarmonix POG and MicroPOG. Cheers Alun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisnameistaken Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 (edited) [quote name='agoulding' post='374351' date='Jan 8 2009, 07:35 PM']Its strange, with a pedal this thing sounds pretty good, by its self it doesnt seem like it can hold any effected note properly, the effect just cuts out randomly while i play.[/quote] OK, well, let's try the usual tricks for getting the best tracking you can get: 1) Solo the front pup (if you only have a 1-pup bass then skip to #2). 2) Pick nearer the neck than the bridge. 3) Don't pick too hard, or at least try to avoid pick noise and fret rattle/clang. 4) Avoid dead spots (probably somewhere between the 5th and 8th on the G string). Analogue octavers are great for finding dead spots you never knew you had. 5) Expect any note below B on the A string to crap out very quickly. 6) Don't feed it a distorted sound, give it the cleanest signal from your bass you can. 7) Make sure you play only one note at a time - no sloppy muting, no accidental open notes ringing, no stray harmonics. I think that's about it. Don't expect miracles though - analogue octavers don't track so great even given ideal conditions. It doesn't sound like your pedal is broken though. Have you tried boosting the signal going into it? Does your bass have a particularly weak output? It might be worth putting an overdrive (on a low drive setting) or clean boost before it to see if that improves things. It might not help though. Edited January 8, 2009 by thisnameistaken Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kev Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 (edited) yeah i think its as i originally said, its just the way the pedal is. By the sounds of things your bass has plenty of output so that shouldnt be a problem. Maybe a digital octaver is more up your street hell id even take a trade for the red llama Edited January 8, 2009 by BassManKev Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanOwens Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 I just thought I'd conclude with everyone for the hell of it!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agoulding Posted January 8, 2009 Author Share Posted January 8, 2009 i appreciate all your replies. I believe my dynamics have alot to do with this. Im contemplating selling it for a digital one. Any ideas for what i could go for? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisnameistaken Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 The Micro POG is the one to have if you want bomb-proof note tracking, it's miraculously good. It sounds like a digital harmoniser though, a bit stark and plain. You won't get that warm synthy purr you get from an analogue octaver. Maybe you could warm it up with a more organic-sounding pedal after it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete.young Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 This is the EBS Octabass? I have one and it doesn't behave quite as badly as yours. It's fine down to the 5th fret on the E string (A) and certainly doesn't misbehave at 7th fret on the G. Sustained notes don't present a problem. I do find that a bit of compression seems to help it track below the 5th fret on the E. I managed to break a beer glass with a low 'A' a couple of gigs back! I also have a Digitech Bass Synth Wah and that tracks fine all the way down to the bottom E, though it's pretty useless as a synth! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agoulding Posted January 9, 2009 Author Share Posted January 9, 2009 yeah it is the ebs one. The plan is this - Im buying the AMT Slap bass compressor and a drive pedal. Ill see if anything mkakes a difference Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisnameistaken Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 [quote name='pete.young' post='375614' date='Jan 9 2009, 08:28 PM']This is the EBS Octabass? I have one and it doesn't behave quite as badly as yours. It's fine down to the 5th fret on the E string (A) and certainly doesn't misbehave at 7th fret on the G.[/quote] That's a common place to have a dead spot on a bass guitar, which will completely **** tracking on an octaver. [quote name='agoulding' post='375761' date='Jan 9 2009, 11:15 PM']yeah it is the ebs one. The plan is this - Im buying the AMT Slap bass compressor and a drive pedal. Ill see if anything mkakes a difference[/quote] Honestly I doubt they'll make a measurable difference. If it's not working for you - with various basses - then either you need to tidy up your technique using the points I raised above, or you're expecting too much of it, or it's broken. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toasted Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 It really sounds like it's broken to me, I must be honest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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