Octave pedals & pitch shifters

[psychic_driver]

Looking for recommendations on versatile octave/pitch shifter pedals.

I have a two piece project where I run stereo rig & use a mxr bass octave to drop the guitar signal before running it into a bass head. I am my own bass player but the tracking kinda sucks when playing big chords or really fast.

I would like a cool pitch shifter too that can add notes or double leads.

I'm thinking the pitch fork is the move to accomplish both in one pedal ... Anybody have a better idea ?

 

[Braciola]

There's the Eventide Pitchfactor/ H9/ H90, the Meris Hedra, DigiTech Whammy, Pog, etc...

This was just released.

Some things modifiable on a per voice basis:

• Mode (poly, key, detune, arp, mod?)
• Pitch
• Level
• Tone
• Pan
• Swell (envelope, think attack decay)
• Effects
  • Rate & Depth (modulation)
  • Time & Feedback (delay)
  • Drive
  • Tremolo
  • Mix

 

[Uzi Nein Millimetah]

2nd vid is seriously cool!

I need that...

 

[nightlight]

Sounds kind of horrible to me in isolation, but so does the H3000. Like really cheesy 80s hair metal.

That said, I bet it would sound awesome in a full band or in a mix.

 

[napalmdeath]

https://www.jimdunlop.com/mxr-poly-blue-octave/

 

[psychic_driver]

https://www.jimdunlop.com/mxr-poly-blue-octave/

Damn this looks crazy. Bet its sick for leads but might be overkill for being my own bass player ?

 

[napalmdeath]

Damn this looks crazy. Bet its sick for leads but might be overkill for being my own bass player ?

I had one, its a killer pedal. Grab a used one. I'd call it versatile vs. overkill, but yeah. Lots of options.

Another great one is the Electro Harmonix Pitch Fork. They make 2 versions. I got my brother the higher end one that you can program presets. It's nuts, and full of killer options.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...monix-pitch-fork-polyphonic-pitch-shift-pedal

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...Nqdo7Shb-HD_vfHfabpkvbg7nP3mRQ1hoCYuAQAvD_BwE

 

[psychic_driver]

I had one, its a killer pedal. Grab a used one. I'd call it versatile vs. overkill, but yeah. Lots of options.

Another great one is the Electro Harmonix Pitch Fork. They make 2 versions. I got my brother the higher end one that you can program presets. It's nuts, and full of killer options.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...monix-pitch-fork-polyphonic-pitch-shift-pedal

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...Nqdo7Shb-HD_vfHfabpkvbg7nP3mRQ1hoCYuAQAvD_BwE

Yea the pitch fork was my first thought. Seems like it's got great tracking for being my own bass player on a split rig but could also get crazy doubling effects, layering freaky intervals over top of leads

 

[Nigel]

Boss OC-2 might be worth checking out.

 

[psychic_driver]

Boss OC-2 might be worth checking out.

Do those older pedals have good tracking for bigger chords ?

 

[Nigel]

Do those older pedals have good tracking for bigger chords ?

Single note only.

 

[psychic_driver]

Single note only.

Ah bummer. How's it sound on power chords ?

 

[BeZo]

Chords might be the wrong approach for that setup. Playing chords on an actual bass rarely works because of how much closer the frequencies are compared to guitar frequencies (in hz). Your problem might not be a pedal problem, but a math problem.

I considered doing something similar, but I would play single notes on bass and pitch them up into chords. The math there is more friendly.

 

[psychic_driver]

Chords might be the wrong approach for that setup. Playing chords on an actual bass rarely works because of how much closer the frequencies are compared to guitar frequencies (in hz). Your problem might not be a pedal problem, but a math problem.

I considered doing something similar, but I would play single notes on bass and pitch them up into chords. The math there is more friendly.

I don't typically play big chords. Its a grind/death project, mostly power chord riffs & single note tremolo.

I am asking the question more to gauge how the pedals work than to apply to my songs. Especially cause all of us using words to describe sounds we are not hearing is inaccurate at best

 

[psychic_driver]

Chords might be the wrong approach for that setup. Playing chords on an actual bass rarely works because of how much closer the frequencies are compared to guitar frequencies (in hz). Your problem might not be a pedal problem, but a math problem.

I considered doing something similar, but I would play single notes on bass and pitch them up into chords. The math there is more friendly.

That's a good tip on the hz tho I never considered the math angle

 

[BeZo]

That's a good tip on the hz tho I never considered the math angle

Just take a basic power chord in standard E for example.

E = 82.41hz
B = 123.47 hz

The difference is 41.06 hz, which is about half of the root note and reinforces the root. That difference is noticeable enough to hear a difference in the notes, and the chord sounds rich and full.

Now do that on bass:

E = 41.2
B = 61.74

The difference is 20.54, which isn't a far compared to the guitar chord. The harmonic frequency there is below where a bass cab can produce, and translates to the chord sounding muddy and unclear.

Basically, even with the best tracking, or even playing the same thing on a bass, those chords will sound muddy. Most pitch shifter do a great job, but will sound like shit if you ask this of them.

 

[psychic_driver]

The difference is 20.54, which isn't a far compared to the guitar chord. The harmonic frequency there is below where a bass cab can produce, and translates to the chord sounding muddy and unclear.

Basically, even with the best tracking, or even playing the same thing on a bass, those chords will sound muddy. Most pitch shifter do a great job, but will sound like shit if you ask this of them.

Why does the ability of the speaker to produce the difference in the frequencies matter? Does asking a speaker to generate 41hz and 62hz at the same time cause it to also generate a 21hz frequency?

I understand that the frequency difference between two notes informs the character or emotional quality of the note - rounder numbers and easier ratios like the 1:2 of the power chord are more consonant and pleasing to the ear. Each note played contains more harmonic information than the fundamental note, but I thought these extra harmonics influence the timbre and tone of the note played and contribute to the distorted sound at higher levels of gain, not the clarity of the fundamental notes being played.

 

[BeZo]

It doesn't. It's more correlation than causation. Essentially, the brain doesn't hear the difference of 20 hz very well and we hear a muddy mess instead of a full chord. Keep in mind that the root and fifth are the most ideal chord, as they are the best ratio to each other. Between the root and the fifth, the brain won't even hear two notes. It will just hear "Something wrong" bass.

Basically, instead of getting an octave pedal for bass parts, you might be better off getting a bassist. They cost about the same, but they take up a lot more room on stage. Some of them can be nice though. The best tracking pitch shifter will make your low end sound like mud, where the bassist is going to go, "Woah woah! One note at a time. Duh... I'll just play the lowest ones."

 

[psychic_driver]

you might be better off getting a bassist. They cost about the same

I hate cleaning out the litter box tho

 

[psychic_driver]

I've seen a filter knob on the newer boss octave pedals that will prevent the pedal from producing an octave past a set frequency. Might be the move to clear up some of that low end mud