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Thread: effects

  1. #1
    music with whales Jim Nollman's Avatar
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    Default effects

    I'm looking at several different floor effects to use with my Godin electric mandolin amplified through a Fishman Loudbox amp. The effects that have my interest are the Strymon delay, the Line6 Pod 300 multi effects box, and the Boss RC3 looper. I'm curious if anyone else here is using these "guitar" effects with a mandolin. In general, I've always had a hard time getting a tone through my electric mandolin that is even in the ballpark to what guitars get using pickups made for guitars and amps made for guitars. My main question is twofold.

    1. In general how do any of these floor units SOUND on mandolin

    2. and what effects in particular are folks here using. Include specific brands if that applies. And what about them turns you on? For example, I own an inexpensive multi-chorus, and there's something about the way it mashes the higher frequencies of a mandolin that doesn't work for me, although i love it when used with a guitar.
    Explore some of my published music here.

    —Jim

    Sierra F5 #30 (2005)
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    Portuguese fado cittern (1965)

  2. #2
    poor excuse for anything Charlieshafer's Avatar
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    Default Re: effects

    My experience is in two different avenues. When goofing around for myself with a sold-bodied electric mandolin, they're lots of fun and sound great. I use a Boss RC3 looper and a couple of Electro Harmonix phasers and choruses. When I play an acoustic/electric hybrid (Ovation here) they sound sort of strange, as the acoustic sound is loud enough to compete with the processed signal through an amp, so it's less satisfying, and sometimes downright confusing. On stage, we have had a number of performers use an acoustic/electric with pedals, and the pedal board does not go through an amp, but into a D.I. and then directly into the board, so essentially 100% of what the audience hears is the processed signal, and it sounds great.

    Here is something I was turned onto by an electric cellist in New York, and I had a ball playing with this thing. It's computer software, so that's the processor, and you get the controller pedal board for it. The effects are really high-quality, and there are a tone of different phasers, choruses, etc, and you can do a heck of a lot with them. While the software and board are not cheap, they're still less than trying to accumulate half the pedals separately. This will give you years of experimenting, and incredible versatility.

    Native Instruments Guitar Rig

  3. #3
    man about town Markus's Avatar
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    Default Re: effects

    My looper [RC30] sounds like whatever I feed into it [small tone/clarity loss from digitization IMO]. I feed vocals, percussion, acoustic guitar and mandolin, keyboards, bass through a mini mixer ... I don't notice any degradation/negatives. It sounds like what you send down the 1/4".

    I would think that a test-drive of this would be do-able at a GC.

    Beyond that, I have nothing positive to point you at for effects beyond [if the music and playing fits] delay pedals, which I've played with but don't truly know.
    Collings MT2
    Breedlove OF
    Ellie eMando
    Schmergl Devastator

  4. #4
    Destroyer of Mandolins
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    Default Re: effects

    I've played around a few times with effects. Like charlie, I use an Ovation. I've had the least success with 'time dependant' effects like phasers and flangers that rely on the guitar's long sustain. You might also check in the electrics forum, as the solid-body players talk about effects all the time there.
    Dedicated Ovation player
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  5. #5
    music with whales Jim Nollman's Avatar
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    Default Re: effects

    Thanks for a few savvy tips:

    1. Route all effects through a DI and then straight into the board.
    2. Avoid effects that depend on a guitar's sustain.
    3. There's inevitable clarity loss from low-res loopers. So what's a good baseline? 24 bit? 32 bit?
    Explore some of my published music here.

    —Jim

    Sierra F5 #30 (2005)
    Altman 2-point (2007)
    Portuguese fado cittern (1965)

  6. #6
    Destroyer of Mandolins
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    Default Re: effects

    Jim, I'm sure you know this, but I'll mention it for those reading along. Try to get to a shop and check out the effects before you buy. Adapting guitar effects to mandolin is not as easy as it sounds, and you can waste a lot of dough shipping failed attempts back to an Internet dealer.
    Dedicated Ovation player
    Avid Bose user

  7. #7
    music with whales Jim Nollman's Avatar
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    Default Re: effects

    yes, thanks. a friend who collects pedals is giving me a tour of what he has next week. Also, I've started monitoring the electric mando forum.
    Explore some of my published music here.

    —Jim

    Sierra F5 #30 (2005)
    Altman 2-point (2007)
    Portuguese fado cittern (1965)

  8. #8
    coprolite mandroid's Avatar
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    Default Re: effects

    Occasionally, I use the Efx loop like out and back in to put a Y'ha AG stomp
    in the back of my AC 60 .. it's got a bunch of additional delay reverb things to offer.

    the DG version has a bunch of Electric guitar effects ,
    so the single string instruments benefit more then.

    But The weekly Jam is acoustic, [less gear PIA] so that is home toys, for now..
    writing about music
    is like dancing,
    about architecture

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