Pedals vs Processors AND/OR Analog vs Digital

Discussion in 'Guitar Gear Talk Forum' started by varunmm4, Apr 1, 2011.

  1. varunmm4

    varunmm4 New Member

    Who uses what and why?

    Who has made a switch from one to the other and why?

    I'll go first -

    Switched from processor to pedals. Played on PODs and Boss GTs and nothing sounds even close to the analog pedal sound. Vintage or modern, pedals give me GOOD tonal options.
     
  2. deepsal

    deepsal New Member

    There is no right or wrong in this
    some prefer digital over anlouge
    for example i prefer digital delays over anlouge ones
    and pod's are not dedicated multifx they are modelers
    try a tc electronic gmajor/gmajor 2 and you wont complain
    another problem with anlouge pedals is tap dancing which i hate
    but digital effects like od's suck nothing can replace the good ol anlouge overdrive pedals
     
  3. wylder

    wylder Member

    Have played on quite a few processors earlier Zoom 606/Korg AX1500G/Boss GT-6... The thing about it is that the processors sound quite different on headphones/practice amps and PA. So you end up setting a crunchy tone on your processor but when it plays on the PA, it sounds crappy.
    In my current rig I use analog pedals going in to a mic'd tube amp. This makes a world of difference in tone and you end up sounding pretty close to what it sounds like in practice.
     
  4. varunmm4

    varunmm4 New Member

    Agreed there's no right or wrong. Just trying to find out what setups people are using.

    Yup I know PODs are modelers but they're still digital (hence the thread title).

    Yeah it's all personal taste at the end of the day. Let's see what people are using - oh and you need not tapdance if you plan out pedals well :)
     
  5. varunmm4

    varunmm4 New Member

    That's a good point. I've actually faced that problem quite a few times earlier. The GT8 has a system of selecting your output medium (phones/amp/PA etc) and it claims to adjust the sound accordingly but now that you mention it, it's seldom worked while gigging.
     
  6. deepsal

    deepsal New Member

    well many dont know but 90% of the anlouge pedals are digital
    generally the ones costing 10k plus are truly anlouge
    the ones you get below that like boss delays are digital at the hardware but they are made to sound like anlouge
    so dont get fooled by the stand alone pedals
     
  7. wylder

    wylder Member

    I guess as you said, digital has its advantages for some things like delays as they tend to be a lot more clear and preserve the high end much better than tape delays. Some people call that lack of warmth but I love digital delays. The same goes for other delay based effects like chorus and flange.

    But digital overdrive / distortion can be pretty awful and I feel most of them sound pretty fizzy and artificial..
     
  8. deepsal

    deepsal New Member

    you cant say that with an axe fx :p
     
  9. flood

    flood New Member

    for me: analog for pretty much anything except delay. i like the options digital delays give me. do not like digital distortions at all (unless it's a lo-fi or bitcrushed sound i'm after). i do own a simple analog delay too though, and it's dirtiness is something i love.

    the axe fx sounds great for cleans and high gain, but i'm not all that impressed with the medium-gain sounds to be honest. it's a fantastic tool though, so kudos.

    never owned a processor, probably never will. can'T replace the fun and flexibility of individual pedals. 20+ so far, let's see how big the collection gets!
     
  10. varunmm4

    varunmm4 New Member

    yup, its a different high discovering new sounds with pedals. never gets old.

    flood, which pedals do you have? i've just begun building my rig and i might wanna ask for your feedback if you own any of the ones im looking at.
     
  11. bcrich

    bcrich New Member

    I also will never own a processor. I have an MT-2 Metal Zone Pedal right now, and I'm gonna sell it with my Line 6 Spider III 15 soon. I will then purchase a BE3 Solution 18 w/ the Vintage 30s, a Sansamp GT2 and the GCB-95 wah till the end of this year.

    Is my purchase plan any good?
     
  12. shailm

    shailm New Member

    +1 for (mostly) analogue pedals. analogue dirt just cannot be beat. though digital delay is awesome, most reverb pedals are digital, so are most pitch shifters.
     
  13. bcrich

    bcrich New Member

    I repeat!

    I also will never own a processor. I have an MT-2 Metal Zone Pedal right now, and I'm gonna sell it with my Line 6 Spider III 15 soon. I will then purchase a BE3 Solution 18 w/ the Vintage 30s, a Sansamp GT2 and the GCB-95 wah till the end of this year.

    Is my purchase plan any good?
     
  14. alpha1

    alpha1 I BLUES!

    Your plan is as good as your playing skills and musical creativity.
     
  15. rickkkyrich

    rickkkyrich Guest

    Sansamp GT2 is a very good pedal. I got one recently and i'm loving it.. Crybaby wah is unquestionable.. amongst the best wah's available.. Never used a BE3 but i think it shud be really worth it as Ansar is a very genuine guy and he'll not overcharge you and will make a quality amp surely. I got cables built by Ansar recently (thats the only deal i did with him till now)..
    So all in all your plan looks decent to me...
     
  16. rickkkyrich

    rickkkyrich Guest

    faaak playing skills faaak musical creativity... its the quality gear i crave for... :p: j/k
     
  17. flood

    flood New Member

    here's my list at the moment:

    effects (purchased):

    nobels ODR-1 (original green issue)
    boss metal zone MT-2 (waiting for mods)
    zoom trimetal TM-3
    electro harmonix small stone (1970s, true bypass mod)
    boss CE-3 chorus
    ibanez tube screamer TS10
    danelectro DJ-14 EQ
    korg kaoss pad mini
    biyang delay (modded)
    no-name russian chorus
    russian lel! digital modulating delay, like a memory man on digital drugs
    1970s hillwood fullrotor rotating speaker simulator
    some weird indian (true!) analog delay that ibought for 1k or something. awesome for gritty dirty self-oscillating dub stuff... going to use it with reason or something soon.
    korg DT-10 tuner
    digitech WH-4 whammy
    some crap volume pedal by a company called "lead foot" that i picked up in 2001 in germany for next to nothing

    effects (self-made):
    red llama overdrive
    tone bender MKII
    zvex fuzz factory
    zvex woolly mammoth
    mxr blue box
    infinite cruelty machine (feedback loop w. photo eye, devi ever clone)
    mxr envelope filter
    two skreddy-like BMP clones

    got a whole bunch of effect PCBs ready that need to be housed up. here's some of my work: https://s812.photobucket.com/albums/zz44/flood81/Stompbox DIY/
     
  18. varunmm4

    varunmm4 New Member

    holy shiz shailm that is some gear there. overloading on the boutique mods and the ehx stuff. say, hows the zvex treating ya? i'm considering getting a vextron.
     
  19. ronnieanand

    ronnieanand n00bier th@n th0u

    With Analog, I dont see any tap dancing for most uses. If you are a Wierd Al Yankovich you'd be doing tap dancing even with Acoustic Guitar.... If you really know what you want, then nothing can beat Analog. Its very simple to use more than any processor. If you want a wide range of stuffs either bcos you're like a sessions artist who needs a palette of tones or bcos you have no clues what you want... Processors can work out way cheaper than pedals if you are really not sure what you want. You wont end up in this buy / try / sell loop....
     
  20. flood

    flood New Member

    shailm's gear is super-badass. the only thing missing is the sunn 100W model-T head and the two orange 4x12 cabs to go with it....
     

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