Octave up pedal that is natural?

[JimBobTTD]

Hello

I have come to the conclusion that the band I am in needs a bigger and thicker sound. We play 80s thrash, and it's a three-piece. When the guitarist heads off into a solo, the rhythm sound (ie me and the drummer) is lacking. I have tried kicking in a bass distortion and, although this sounds wicked, it is a little thin.

What I am looking for is an octave up pedal. It would be used very heavily, so it would need to be a natural-sounding pedal, and it has to track well, ideally the entire range of a 5er. I've had a play on some fuzz-octaves (on guitar) and they just don't sound natural and they didn't track well on the lower registers of a guitar, so I'm worried that I will come up empty handed.

Is the EH Micro Pog as good as it seems? I've heard some YouTube examples, and I can't make up my mind. If I were to go that route, I would likely take the octave up signal and put it through a distortion and perhaps a light chorus before mixing it back in with the original bass signal.

Sorry to ask such a common question, but the old threads here don't quite satisfy my curiosity. And besides, technology moves at a fast pace!

Thanks in advance!

[crez5150]

Have you tried the Akai unit?

[JimBobTTD]

The Unibass? No, I haven't tried it. It looks like it could be what I'm after, though. Does it deliver what it claims? A decent octave above (with fifth and fourths, too) that sounds natural?

[Mr. Foxen]

Doesn't sound at all natural. I don't think any really do. The Foxrox Octron does a good enough octave up, it is what JoeGarcia uses after a lot of messing about with things. Running the Akai output into a Sansamp GT2 gave the best result from that though.

Considered an 8 string? Or a better drive sound, or going twin amp? 100hz high passed guitar rig in addition to a bass rig is really awesome, you can get away with a fairly modest sized guitar rig if you aren't asking it for any lows (not Doom).

[JimBobTTD]

I haven't considered an 8 string, mostly because I am so comfortable on my basses and I really do not want to change.

It's a shame the Unibass doesn't sound natural (and I hear it cannot be powered off a standard power supply - this makes it pretty much a no-go), but again it is relatively old. The micro POG, on the other hand, seems to be more recent. I might be completely wrong here, though. The Foxrox sounds like it could be good - a quick skim didn't show up any bass examples; I'll carry on looking, even though the price tag puts it [i]way[/i] out of my reach.

Any POG owners here who use it in a similar way and are able to comment? I hear mixed reviews...some that it is excellent and tracks really well, others that it tracks so-so and sounds fake.

[tayste_2000]

Pog's don't sound natural, best bet is something with Eventide written on it.

The Foxrox octron is not a clean octave up nor is the Unibass but they do sound pretty guitar like.

Other option is play higher and get an octave down which is much easier to get natural sounding.

[tayste_2000]

[quote name='JimBobTTD' post='918802' date='Aug 8 2010, 03:31 PM']I haven't considered an 8 string, mostly because I am so comfortable on my basses and I really do not want to change.

It's a shame the Unibass doesn't sound natural (and I hear it cannot be powered off a standard power supply - this makes it pretty much a no-go), but again it is relatively old. The micro POG, on the other hand, seems to be more recent. I might be completely wrong here, though. The Foxrox sounds like it could be good - a quick skim didn't show up any bass examples; I'll carry on looking, even though the price tag puts it [i]way[/i] out of my reach.

Any POG owners here who use it in a similar way and are able to comment? I hear mixed reviews...some that it is excellent and tracks really well, others that it tracks so-so and sounds fake.[/quote]

There are bass examples of the Octron in the Talkbass Effects Wiki

[JimBobTTD]

Most things with Eventide written on are £300 too expensive! I'm looking for high quality, don't get me wrong, but I can't go over £150 with a clear conscience.

[JimBobTTD]

[quote name='tayste_2000' post='918807' date='Aug 8 2010, 04:39 PM']There are bass examples of the Octron in the Talkbass Effects Wiki[/quote]

Thanks! It sounds huge - especially [url="http://www.talkbass.com/wiki/index.php/Effects_Clip_Database#Foxrox"]the first clip[/url] with chorus and distortion. This is pretty much what I am looking for! But at a little over $200 plus customs...ouch! I'd best see if I can dig up some cash!

[billphreets]

microPOG does a decent octave up if you dont mind a sterile digital sound and latency..
octron all the way..

[JimBobTTD]

[quote name='billphreets' post='918828' date='Aug 8 2010, 05:21 PM']microPOG does a decent octave up if you dont mind a sterile digital sound [...][/quote]

I can probably work around that. Distortion covers up a multitude of sins, especially a good one.

[quote name='billphreets' post='918828' date='Aug 8 2010, 05:21 PM'][...] and latency..[/quote]

Ah. Not acceptable, really. Thanks for the info - it's invaluable.


What I am going for is this, with all the permutations it offers (ie pedals switched in and out):

[Happy Jack]

I'm struggling with this now. You're going to put the octave'd signal through a fuzzbox [i][b]and [/b][/i]a chorus but you're worried about it sounding "natural"?

Just go with the Unibass. Great box and there's no particular problem with power supply AFAIK.

[JimBobTTD]

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='919004' date='Aug 8 2010, 09:06 PM']I'm struggling with this now. You're going to put the octave'd signal through a fuzzbox [i][b]and [/b][/i]a chorus but you're worried about it sounding "natural"?

Just go with the Unibass. Great box and there's no particular problem with power supply AFAIK.[/quote]

Nope. I'll occasionally put it through a distortion and a chorus, but not all the time. If it sounds horrendously unnatural before the effects, it will likely sound bad after them. If it only sounds good with effects, then it reduces the tonal palate considerably.

[Happy Jack]

In that case, I'd go with Steve's (Tayste) advice.

I have the Unibass. It comes with a built-in distortion control because Akai recognised from the start that it was never going to sound like a guitar if completely un-effected.

I use mine when playing as a 3-piece (Brentford Nylons) to provide some beef while the slide guitar is solo-ing. In that situation it sounds enough like a rhythm guitarist to pass muster, but you'd never even consider listening to just that sound.

If you use the 4th below / 5th above modification (which I do) then you also need to keep your bass lines reasonably simple.

[JimBobTTD]

Can you use the Unibass with a standard 9v dc adapter? If one does use the 5th above and 4th below, is just single note bass lines simple enough, or do they need to be slowish tempo too?

Sorry for the questions, but I'll never know otherwise!

[Happy Jack]

Haven't looked in ages (it's wired into my board) but I'll check when I get to the studio tomorrow.

The 4th/5th modulation is fine and doesn't need you to play slowly or anything, but there are plenty of basslines (including pretty much ANY walking bassline) where adding either of those will make it sound like Gregorian Plainchant!

Used in a Quo / ZZ Top fashion it sounds excellent.

[JimBobTTD]

Ta very much for the info! I'll keep an eye out for one of them too.

[cheddatom]

I used to think i'd need an octave up or down, or some sort of harmony pedal to help fill out sections. Getting my distortion sounds right, and using a guitar amp as well disuaded me (although I have a whammy on my board). Maybe try playing some chords?

[smudge]

[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2YHS6wEGnQ"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2YHS6wEGnQ[/url]

the uni bass.... you can of course set the level of the mix, distortion, dry signal against processed and run through two amps.

Hope this helps.

[Nickev]

I use the Unibass in a three piece to beef up behind guitar solos and, as already stated, you wouldn't want to listen to that sound in isolation, BUT, provided you only want to use it to thicken the sound rather than to be prominent, it is more than adequate. The pedal also has the facility to split the signal, so depending on the gig, I send the 'guitar' signal to a guitar combo, giving me more control and getting a more 'guitarry' sound. Tracking is good as long as you play cleanly and firmly. I only ever use the octave as I found the added 4th and 5th too much at times and it highlighted any slight tracking out.

As far as power supply goes, when my original gave up after 4-5 years I just sourced one on ebay with the correct specs for around £7 and have been using it a couple of gigs a week for the last 2 years or so

[JimBobTTD]

Thanks all for the great replies!

I have managed to get my mitts on a Unibass. And I'm a lucky thing too - there was an article in Bass Guitar Magazine about them (Essential Effects)...I can't help but notice that the last two I saw on Ebay have gone for a good deal more than I paid for mine!

I have not been able to play it in a band setting yet, though, but will get to use it in rehearsal in a little over a week from now. It sounds great with the fifth when played at home with headphones. Score!