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Topic: Alternative to BossTone? |
Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Posted 6 Feb 2018 11:21 am |
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I'm currently using an old BossTone for cello and violin emulation. Does anyone know of a good floor pedal that will do the job at least as well, if not better? I find the BossTone a little flaky and unreliable.
Thanks,
Jim
_________________
www.JimCohen.com
www.RonstadtRevue.com
www.BeatsWalkin.com |
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Jon Light
From:
Saugerties, NY
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Posted 6 Feb 2018 11:58 am
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Jim--this came to mind only because I remembered the cello in the name. I wouldn't say it's the most cello-like sound nor is it a sound that a lot of OD pedals can't do but...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZ5wYA6zrj0 |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Chris Tarrow
From:
Maplewood, NJ
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Posted 6 Feb 2018 1:48 pm
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| No personal experience, but I have heard that the Voodoo Labs Bosstone is a decent clone. The quality of their products in general is excellent. |
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Richard Sinkler
From:
aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana
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Posted 6 Feb 2018 3:28 pm
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I use an Electroharmonix Mel9 when I want string sounds. Much easier than a bosstone. No alternating picking of strings and turning the treble on your amp way down with the reverb way up. The Mel9 may not be perfect, but I think it sounds way better.
_________________
Carter D10 8p/8k, Dekley S10 3p/4k C6 setup,Regal RD40 Dobro, NV400, NV112 . Playing for 54 years and still counting. |
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Len Amaral
From:
Rehoboth,MA 02769
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Posted 6 Feb 2018 6:20 pm
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An Ebow sounds nice for violin or Cello sounds but you can only use one string at a time. All distortion or overdrive pedals sound like a bees nest. I have tried many and have yet to find one that sounds good with typical steel guitar gear.
Last edited by Len Amaral on 7 Feb 2018 12:51 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Michael Brebes
From:
Northridge CA
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Posted 7 Feb 2018 6:31 am
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You can also try the Danelectro French Toast. It's a recreation of the old Foxx Tone Machine and can get some very creamy singing tones for emulating strings from an old school perspective.
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Michael Brebes
Instrument/amp/ pickup repair
MSA D10 Classic/Rickenbacher B6/
Dickerson MOTS/Dobro D32 Hawaiian/
Goldtone Paul Beard Reso
Mesa Boogie Studio Pre/Hafler 3000
RP1/MPX100 |
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Pete Burak
From:
Portland, OR USA
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Posted 7 Feb 2018 7:58 am
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The Boss HM-2 gets a pretty wild sound kinda like that.
It has nice tone shaping circuitry for an inexpensive pedal. |
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Stefan Robertson
From:
Hertfordshire, UK
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Posted 7 Feb 2018 9:01 am
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The Boss ME 25 or GT1 any of their new Multi-effects ranges do the job and is easily programmable.
I love my Multi effects pedal
_________________
Stefan
Bill Hatcher custom 12 string Lap Steel Guitar
E13#9/F secrets: https://thelapsteelguitarist.wordpress.com
"Give it up for The Lap Steel Guitarist" |
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Paul Arntson
From:
Washington, USA
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Posted 7 Feb 2018 9:30 am
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Pardon my ignorance, but could someone point me to some further examples on YouTube or recording of the sound under discussion?
_________________
Excel D10 8&4, Supro 8, Regal resonator, Peavey Powerslide, homemade lap 12(a work in progress)
Last edited by Paul Arntson on 7 Feb 2018 9:46 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Jim Sliff
From:
Lawndale California, USA
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Posted 7 Feb 2018 9:44 am
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Jim -
I use a 1/4 size Hotone "Fury" with my Fender 400 for the same type of effect. It has several fine-tuning adjustments that make it far more usable than a Bosstone for me. I can get a very "smooth" sound with no sputter and a low s/n ratio.
_________________
No chops, but great tone
1930's/40's Rickenbacher/Rickenbacker 6&8 string lap steels
1921 Weissenborn Style 2; Hilo&Schireson hollownecks
Appalachian, Regal & Dobro squarenecks
1959 Fender 400 9+2 B6;1960's Fender 800 3+3+2; 1948 Fender Dual-8 Professional |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Pete Burak
From:
Portland, OR USA
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Posted 7 Feb 2018 11:13 am
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Pete's examples are good for one way to use the BossTone but don't give an example of the string (violin and cello) effects that I'm seeking to achieve. Unfortunately neither do the YouTube demos I've found of the various pedals suggested above. If anyone has any examples of pedals being used specifically to emulate strings (as opposed to a hornet's nest), I'd love to see them.
Thanks.
_________________
www.JimCohen.com
www.RonstadtRevue.com
www.BeatsWalkin.com |
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Len Amaral
From:
Rehoboth,MA 02769
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Posted 7 Feb 2018 12:55 pm
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| I would love to get a "Bad to the Bone" tone with a pedal but it's been elusive so far. The tube crunch and inefficient speakers moving air are critical to the overall vibe. |
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Pete Burak
From:
Portland, OR USA
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Posted 7 Feb 2018 3:32 pm
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| I have had guys tell me they thought they were hearing violin when using various distortions. I think making the sound of the the pick hitting the string dissappear by using the volume pedal to hide it, is one violin-ee technique. |
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Paul Arntson
From:
Washington, USA
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Posted 7 Feb 2018 6:31 pm
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Thanks - I see what you mean now.
Back when I had an Aleses Quadraverb on 6 string, I found a very violiny tone by using the eq as almost a bandpass filter after distortion.
_________________
Excel D10 8&4, Supro 8, Regal resonator, Peavey Powerslide, homemade lap 12(a work in progress) |
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Jon Jaffe
From:
Austin, Texas
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Posted 7 Feb 2018 7:02 pm
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| The effect you want is made by distorting strings in unison, as you know. The problem with the BossTone is that it does not have a level control. When engaged with enough distortion, the volume can be too much. Any distortion device with a level control should work. I prefer the Mad Professor Simble Overdrive. (about $125 on Reveb.com). There should be plenty of stores in the Cheltenham and NE Philly area that will let you try them out, or buy and return with a credit card. How about our Birds! |
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Stephen Abruzzo
From:
Philly, PA
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Posted 8 Feb 2018 6:30 am
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| Jon Jaffe wrote: |
| How about our Birds! |
Jon, today is Parade day here in Philly. Just dropped the kids off at the El. Expecting 2-3 million. The city is electrified.
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Four Pettingills and a Clinesmith Aluminum. Fender Blues Junior. Quilter Mini-101. |
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Mike Neer
From:
NJ
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Posted 8 Feb 2018 6:34 am
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E-Bow. Of course, not a pedal, but offers and excellent opportunity to emulate strings, especially bowed pizzicato.
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http://www.steelinstruction.com/
http://mikeneer.com
Last edited by Mike Neer on 8 Feb 2018 6:36 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Posted 8 Feb 2018 6:35 am
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Jon, my BossTone does have 2 controls. One is "Volume" and the other is "Attack".
The effects I'm looking for would be for single string, not unisons. I think the BossTone does it well enough for my purposes (you might disagree after listening to my video?) but the controls are a little dicey -- too sensitive so hard to dial it in where I want it.
Mike, I do use an eBow but I find it to be too clean; needs to have some fuzz on it to get the sound I want. Of course, I could try it together with a fuzz pedal but I'd rather have one unit to do it all, if I can.
_________________
www.JimCohen.com
www.RonstadtRevue.com
www.BeatsWalkin.com |
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Jon Jaffe
From:
Austin, Texas
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Jack Hanson
From:
San Luis Valley, USA
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Posted 8 Feb 2018 7:28 am
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I've had two different Bosstones, a Jordan from the '60s and the Sho-Bud reissue from the '70s, and could never get a handle on either of 'em.
Two well-known players showed me how to set the controls, and to play unison strings (usually the 2nd string lowered to C# along with the 5th string raised to C#).
Never could make it sound musical, much less like violin(s). Just a lot of extraneous noise. Folks with different hands had the touch to pull it off, but I just never did get the hang if it. |
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Stu Schulman
From:
Ulster Park New Yawk (deceased)
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Posted 8 Feb 2018 9:47 am
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Jim,I have something in the dungeon that will probably do what you need.
_________________
Steeltronics Z-pickup,Desert Rose S-10 4+5,Desert Rose Keyless S-10 3+5... Mullen G2 S-10 3+5,Telonics 206 pickups,Telonics volume pedal.,Blanton SD -10,Emmons GS_10...Zirctone bar,Bill Groner Bar...any amp that isn't broken.Steel Seat.Com seats...Licking paint chips off of Chinese Toys since 1952. |
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Jim Sliff
From:
Lawndale California, USA
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Posted 8 Feb 2018 9:59 am
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| Quote: |
| The effect you want is made by distorting strings in unison, as you know. |
Errr - huh? I don't "know"/agree with this at all.
Unison strings aren't needed to create a violin tone - it's less consistent and far more problematic than single-string playing. If tuning or bar position/pressure is off just a hair the sound easily turns into "beating" chaos. Multiple strings can work for short "stabs" but are less practical for sustained, cello-like sounds unless created through multi-tracking.
I've used a fuzz with steel - both pedal and lap - for decades and rarely, if eve, play more than one note at the same time. For examples of this type of sound listen to just about any "fuzz" work by Sneaky Pete Kleinow, who also recommended only playing single notes with fuzz.
The Flying Burrito Brothers' "Christine's Tune" is his earliest recorded example. On other recordings it often sounds like he played multiple notes, but those were created through overdubbing - not simultaneous playing.
_________________
No chops, but great tone
1930's/40's Rickenbacher/Rickenbacker 6&8 string lap steels
1921 Weissenborn Style 2; Hilo&Schireson hollownecks
Appalachian, Regal & Dobro squarenecks
1959 Fender 400 9+2 B6;1960's Fender 800 3+3+2; 1948 Fender Dual-8 Professional |
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