EQ Magazine - September 2007 - (Page 50)

GUITAR TRAX 10 TIPS FOR GETTING THE MOST OUT OF YOUR PEDALBOARD by Phil O’Keefe 1. SET A TUBE AMP’S GAIN TO WHERE IT’S JUST STARTING TO BREAK UP, THEN SLAM THE FRONT END WITH A BOOST PEDAL. This delivers instant crunch, and a whole new world of overdrive tones from your amp. I particularly like the HBE Germania, as it can be set as either a treble booster or as a full-range boost for extra tonal options. EQ and overdrive pedals with the gain turned down, and the volume knob turned up, can also provide suitable boosts. 2. RUN MULTIPLE GAIN STAGES. If one dirt box is good, why not two — or even three? You can achieve a lot of unusual colors by running multiple overdrive and distortion pedals simultaneously, and experimenting with different settings. 3. USE A WAH AS AN EQ FILTER. You might be surprised by how many guitar tracks have been recorded with a wah pedal “parked” in one position for the entire track. Engage the wah, and slowly sweep the pedal until you find a setting you like, then leave it. 4. BYPASS NOISE AND TONE-SUCKING ISSUES. Got a pedal that you love, but it’s noisy or sucks tone when bypassed? Use a true bypass looper pedal to take it out of the signal path completely when not in use. 5. RUN THE OUTPUTS OF A STEREO CHORUS OR DELAY TO TWO DIFFERENT AMPS. But be warned: Once you go stereo, you may never go back. 6. IF YOUR EFFECTS HAVE EXPRESSION PEDAL JACKS, USE THEM. On my Diamond Memory Lane analog delay pedal, an expression pedal lets me adjust the amount of feedback on the fly. On my Line 6 MM4 Modulation Modeler, it allows switching between a slow and fast rotary speaker setting, or adding a little vibrato on key notes in a phrase. Why take a static, “set and forget” approach when you can have far more expressive effects? 7. LOOK FOR LESS OBVIOUS FEATURES, AND EXPLOIT THEM. Another Memory Lane feature I really like is the ability to plug a 1/4" TRS to dual 1/4" TS “insert cable” into the expression pedal jack, and use it as an effects loop to process the delayed signals with other effects. Flanged echoes anyone? Or maybe you’d prefer clean original notes, with distorted and bandpass filtered echoes? No problem. 8. TWO DELAYS ARE BETTER THAN ONE. Run one delay for short slapback echoes, and a second one for longer delays — either to separate amps, or in series. If your delays offer tap-tempo controls, you can quickly set different rhythmic values for each delay, resulting in some exciting polyrhythmic echos. 9. DON’T GO OVERBOARD. Use your effects musically, and not just as gimmicks. Sure, sometimes a part calls for something over the top and crazy, but, many times, the music is better served with something more tasteful and subtle. And, sometimes, the best “effect” is just a guitar plugged straight into an amp. 10. CRUISE ONLINE FORUMS. I get a lot of ideas and suggestions from my friends on the Harmony Central Effects forum — everything from tips on effects order to board-building ideas to the cool pedal of the month. You should also check out the EQ and Guitar Player magazine forums for inspiration and help. My wallet may be thinner as a result of all the gear talk, but I’ve learned a lot. BUILD A LILLIPUTIAN AMP/ISO CHAMBER COMBO Most guitarists know that Jimmy Page recorded much of the mammoth guitar sounds on Led Zeppelin by plugging into a tiny Supro amp. For many players, this was the first lesson that big guitar sounds don’t necessarily come from snarling Marshall stacks or other highwattage monsters. Never one to let go of a great idea until it’s pushed to its most ridiculous apex, I endeavored to not only plug into an ultra-teensy amp, but also to build a mini isolation chamber to record it in. The kick is that this setup can actually produce some unique guitar tones. Here’s how it works. DOWNSIZE. Get yourself a “toy” mini amp. To capture some punchy grit, I went with a Fender Mini Tone-Master ($32 street), but many other models are available. ISOLATE. Buy a 21.5"x15"x12" plastic storage bin with a double-hinged top from Home Depot for around $6.99. ACCESSORIZE. To simulate a variety of acoustic environments inside the bin, purchase some squares of carpet, linoleum, mirror glass, and wood. Place the materials at the bottom (or sides) of the bin in any combination to produce a dead (carpet), live (glass or linoleum), or live/dead (all) recording “space.” I grabbed my bits and pieces at Home Depot for under $30. RECORD. Place your favorite dynamic or condenser microphone inside the bin with the mini amp — I perched mine on a Radio Shack Desk Mic Stand ($9.39) — and trail the mic and guitar cords out the top. Crank up the mini amp, move the mic until you hear something fabulous, and close the lid. (Using a $69 Crown Sound Grabber II PZM presents some interesting sonic options, as you can simply lay this “boundary mic” on the bottom, or against the sides of the bin.) To deaden some of the roar, wrap a packing blanket around the bin. I “borrowed” mine from my mom, but honest types can purchase one for about $15. I’ve produced some really cool guitar textures and ear-candy parts with this wee setup without adding significant noise pollution to my living space, or spending more than ten minutes dialing in sounds — and all for less than $79 (mics not included). It’s also a great mobilerecording rig, because all the goodies fit in the storage bin. —Michael Molenda For an aggressive and organic roar, brutalize the front end of your tube amp with a clean-boost pedal, such as the HBE Germania. 50 EQ SEPTEMBER 2007 www.eqmag.com http://www.eqmag.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of EQ Magazine - September 2007

Contents Talk Box Sounding Board Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly Ben and Vesper Kaiser Chiefs Toolbox Ozma Porcupine Tree Rush The Software Power User Guide Guitar Trax Bass Management Key Issues Drumheads Vocal Cords Mix Bus Cheat Sheet Chameleon Labs TS1 and TS2 Primera Bravo Se Disc Publisher Roland MC-808 Magix Samplitude Professional 9.1 Massey Tape-Head Big Fish Audio Revolucion Reggaeton Sonivox World Beats Sony Pocket Diva Adobe Audition 2.0 Cakewalk Sonar 6 Room with a VU: J Street Recorders, Sacramento, CA

EQ Magazine - September 2007

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