Effects Pedals? (Page 1 of 2)

OH Amy, you've opened a can of worms with this one!

I like Boss stuff, it's pretty much bullet proof, reasonable priced and there are loads about. It all really depends what you want to spend.

Your son likes classic rock so how about a distortion pedal. He'll need two leads, (one from the guitar to the pedal and another from the pedal to the amp. You'll also need a power lead for the pedal.

Or alternatively, for a bit more money what about a Boss multi effects unit. This will give him a choice of effects and a chance to play around. A nice unit is the Boss ME25. You'll need the same stuff as for a single pedal.

For little less money the Danelectro Cool Cat range are pretty good. Metal bodies and some really nice effects. Same stuff applies regarding the extras that you'll need.

Jerry

  Thanks for the tip Russell!  My only dilemma is my husband is a NOTORIOUS last minute shopper... so I'll have to talk him into this very soon if it's to get here in time for Christmas!  I'm going to do a little research today and talk with him and get back to you asap. 

Jerry - Thanks for the response.  It's good to know that Boss is top of the line (especially since that's what Russell's selling). 

So if I get this right... guitar plugs into pedal then you need the same type of chord to go from pedal to amp... and pedal also needs power.  So really, we'll just need ONE extra lead because he obviously already has one that he uses from the guitar to the amp.

yes Amy it only requires 2 guitar chords the unit has a ac/dc converter power chord so it runs on either 8 ccc batteries or it can be pluggen into an outlet  

There is no transformer the power source is a AC/DC converter and its included.

The best thing you can do to satisfy an ADD teenager's whim of the moment tone fix is with a multi-effects pedal.   The quality of the tones won't be as sweet as if you buy specialized pedals, but if you buy a specialized pedal, it is going to produce the one tone it produces really well, but that's it.  Nothing sounds quite like a Big Muff, but when he decides he needs to compose the Epic Love Song for his sweetie, it's not going to do him much good.

Something like this http://www.digitech.com/en/products/rp255  will give him all kinds of options for a pretty good price and keep him occupied for hours.   

You'll also want to get him a good set of headphones, unless you want to listen to it all day. 

The Rig that Russell is selling is really good kit, too.

I have Line 6 (guitar effects), Boss (loop), and Zoom (fer THUNDERSTICK!!!). They're all good.  Haven't used Digitech but I've no reason to assume anything other than goodness there, too.

If you are looking for something under 100 bucks you might want to look into the Zoom Multi-effects pedals. This one seems to be a good one with the most good reviews of any of them, ( I too am looking for a cheap multi-effects pedal and am going to get this one if I can).

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Zoom-G1XN-G … 1712747.gc

If you are willing to spend more I would get the BOSS system that Russel has for sale. The price is unbeatable and the reviews for his system are the most positive of those in that retail category, (Not Russell's price but the retail price for a NEW BOSS multi-effects like his).

I have that ability with my Behringer yet I would rather have the pedals. I don't like to have to stop playing to change sounds ( I use my chorus on my acoustic amp to produce distortion...It works to a fashion). I would rather use the pedals to make the changes and leave my hands to play the guitar.

My electric guitar is a Behringer iAXE629. It has the USB port so I can play directly into my comp if I have the amp program. I just use my amp.

WOW!  Ok... so I talked with the hubby last night and he was thinking that since individual pedals can be had so cheap (like around $20) ... and we don't REALLY know for sure what effects the boy is looking for... maybe the best thing to do is just take him shopping.  I wanted to surprise him, hubby wants to allow him to shop, I want him to have the present to play with it ON Christmas, we're pretty back and forth on this.  I think maybe this is a decision best left up to the user... much like an acoustic guitar purchase! 

It's been a while since we've set him loose in the guitar stores and just let HIM look (we're mean, usually we are looking and make him keep an eye on his sisters so they don't destroy anything).  I do think Russell's set up is an AMAZING Value, especially after looking at the reviews and prices of used units available... but I'm going to have to pass.  You guys have all made my head spin a little.  There's so many options!  Yep... I think we're just going to go take him shopping and see what he picks.  I think I'll tell him, "Pick something assuming you only have $50.  Now something assuming you have $150.  Now something assuming you have $250-350"  And see just WHAT it is he really wants!

If anyone has more suggestions or ideas, please keep them coming!  I am going to show the hubster all these suggestions.  When I'm ready for sure to say we're going shopping, I'll show him too so he can make an informed shopping decision of his own.  I want to make sure he's going to be happy as I think this will be his main present this year.  That means, electric gear and some socks.  LOL!  Teenagers are so hard to buy for, everything they want is just so expensive!  My two little girls are going to be thrilled to death with each little $5-10 item they open.  I miss when he was little and so much easier to please!

I think what Patrick is talking about is an "expression" pedal.   On "stomp boxes" the pedal is just a switch to turn the effect on or off.  An expression pedal allows you to control the amount of effect with the pedal.  Think in terms of a wah pedal, for example. The effect is always on, and the pedal controls the tone.

My Zoom B9's pedal is completely programmable.  For any given effects chain I can have it control any of the particular effects.  It also has a sweet "z-dimension" feature.  The pedal not only moves vertically like a normal pedal, but the top slides horizontally as well, allowing me to control two features with it.  I've re-programmed most of my patches to have the "Z" be a simple volume control.  Pretty handy.

Back in '89 I bought a Korg effects pedal. It has 60 different effects and I can write 60 more. My 1960 Gibson sounds great using each effect. I play through the selection using different licks to get the most fun out of each effect.
Gigging, I have a number in red ink written on each song page to recall the effect I selected for it. It really helps change up the sound for a single song guy act. If I wasn't retired, I would add a wah-wah pedal, a volume control pedal and a looper.
I did splurge on a vocal harmonizer. I try not to use it too much.
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