Recording - July 2021 - 58

INSIDE
THE BOX
with Joe Albano
VIRTUAL
STOMPBOXES
ast year in our issue dedicated to guitar recording, we looked at using
virtual guitar amps in the box. This year I thought virtual stompboxes
would be the perfect follow-up. Pedals are an integral part of a guitarist's
signature sound, and everyone has their favorites, but not all artists/producers
working inside the box are guitarists themselves, so a brief overview of the range
of guitar pedal FX available nowadays in the land of 1s & 0s might be helpful.
L
The players
Despite the bewildering array of pedals available, most stompboxes fall into
a few basic categories: overdrive/distortion, modulation (chorusing / flanging /
phasing), delay/echo, and reverb. To that, you can also add compression (aka 'sustain')
and other pedals, like wah-wahs, glitchy manglers and more. Like emulations
of guitar amps (and studio processors), virtual stompbox options tend to lean toward
physical/circuit models, bringing a distinctive analog character to the table.
Most companies that make virtual guitar amps also offer virtual stompboxes,
either included with the amp models (IK AmpliTube, NI Guitar Rig, Waves
GTR3) or as separate dedicated FX collections (Positive Grid Bias FX2, Universal
Audio Distortion Essentials Bundle, Audified MultiDrive Pedal Pro). Some
offer generic virtual fare, while others provide spot-on emulations of the classics,
often with thinly veiled, altered names due to trademark restrictions, but
easily identifiable by the graphics and the sound. Most DAWs also include a
range of virtual guitar stompboxes.
Crunch, buzz, fuzz
Distortion is probably the most widely used guitar effect, and virtual stompboxes
provide the same options you'd find in the real world. While the edge
and distortion from a cranked classic guitar amp comes mainly from the preamp
and power amp tubes, stompbox distortion is all about transistors. It's easy
enough to design a generic distortion plugin, but the most popular stompbox
58 RECORDING July 2021
distortion pedals have well known, distinctive
tonalities, thanks to the different types of transistor-based
distortion circuits utilized-that's
why players gravitate to particular units and
hopefully to well-emulated virtual models of the
most popular classic circuit designs.
Distortion pedals can be broken out into
three main categories: overdrive pedals provide
a more subtle amp-like crunch; distortion
units usually have a harder, brighter, more
transistorized edge; and fuzz boxes typically
provide the heaviest, thickest, 'fuzziest' distortion-hence
the name.
The oldest distortion pedals used germanium
transistors, but these initially had a finite shelf
life and were eventually superseded by silicon
transistors. When overdriven, germanium circuits
have a distinctive edge to them. They're
the secret ingredient in some of the most popular
classic stompboxes, like the Arbiter Fuzz
Face (popularized by Jimi Hendrix). Just about
every virtual stompbox collection includes a
model of this pedal. Its round physical shape
usually makes it easily recognizable even
when it's not identified by name.
Silicon transistors are the prime ingredient in distortion
/ overdrive pedals, like the 'punky' ProCo
RAT, while op-amps provide the edge in others,
like the ubiquitous Ibanez Tube Screamer-more
of an overdrive pedal (popularized by Stevie
Ray Vaughn) used to enhance amp distortion.
Recording - July 2021

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