Bass Octave to replace a Boss OC3

johnnyseven · Post by **johnnyseven** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 10:32 am

The bass player in my band has been using a Boss OC3, which actually belongs to me, but wants to get a better bass octave pedal. Not being a bass player I don't really know much about what is out there, can anyone recommend anything?

kim · Post by **kim** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 11:24 am

maybe if the oc3 isnt's insane/versatile enough check out an ehx pog or something.

if it's 'too much' check out a boss oc2 or even a behringer ps600 which does pitch shifting both up and down and is pretty cheap but nice.

i sold my boss oc2 and don't miss it because i can go from octaves down to up and other things on a cheaper behringer ps600 and it does the job just fine but i can imagine if you need a 'subtle' sounding pedal it might not be your best option.

btw if he needs more subtle and focused on bass don't forget EBS effects, they have a sub octave peda too and it's supposed to be really good for that subtle and natural sounding sort of sub octave.

i liked the sub octave on my ashdown mag300 top to, it's a nice feature on an amp but if you're happy with your amp it's not really an option i guess.

micro pog ?

just came across these, seem interesting if you want a pedal mainly built for bass use

whoa check this, if i still would've been playing bass in a band i'd want to check this

johnnyseven · Post by **johnnyseven** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 11:52 am

Thanks for that.

Do you the EHX Pog and Behringer PS600 work well on bass as (I believe) they are primarily designed for guitar. I have the micro pog which i use for guitar and it rules.

I also like the look of the MXR pedal, I may persuade him to get one of those. I'll also check the others out.

Anymore suggestions would be welcomed.

kim · Post by **kim** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 12:01 pm

i think really most pedals work just fine on either on guitar or bass but it depends on what you prefer in sound and the music you make. for instance, that behringer copy of the boss pitch shifter (behringer US600..it tend to say ps600..my bad

) sound a bit nutty compared to for instance a more subtle octaver like an oc2 (eventho oc2 only does sub octabe but you get the point, it glitches less and just follows the bass line). i prefer the glitching and unpredictable things going on but for certain types of music i guess it would be out of place.

i've no experience with the ehx pog but i think there are some bass demos on youtube and if that's not enough he should go check it out for himself at shops. seeing as you live in london i don't think that's a problem

i think the mxr is pretty new, i stopped playing bass in a band i think about two years ago because of some unfortunate 'band' choices so i'm not really checking new bass gear anymore like i used to but that mxr seems cool.

i think if he wants nutty sounding bass octaves he should check out pogs (micro, regular wahtever else there is and the budget) or more subtle (ebs, aguilar etc).

you can't know unless you try for yourself, perfect would be to 'borrow' an effect and try it at rehearsals though

johnnyseven · Post by **johnnyseven** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 12:37 pm

Cool. I pass the suggestions on to him and he can decide. It'll be good to get my Boss OC3 back off him so that I can sell it and make some money, I don't like the pedal at all. I would let him try my Micro Pog but it's screwed to my pedal board and i'm too lazy to take it off.

stewart · Post by **stewart** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 1:07 pm

POGs work fine on bass. obviously there's a lot that it can do, and a lot of the capability might not be best used on bass; in a functionality-to-price ratio type way he might be better getting something cheaper and simpler. if he's got the cash though, they're cool.

ultratwin · Post by **ultratwin** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 3:37 pm

I'm with Stew on this one.

I've played the OC-2, Ampeg Sub Blaster, and EBS Octa Bass, and hated them all for poor tracking on chords and for fudging up due to harmonics on open strings. EHX got it right, mostly I reckon because it's decent digital technology at work, not a delightful analog leftover a la teh Blue Box. I ended up getting a Micro POG a while back, and use it all the time, from penny whistle to mandolin(for pseudo-bouzouki action).

I made a li'l video tonight to show how well it tracks, although I admittedly squirted chorus and delay all over it as well:

[youtube][/youtube]

hugh · Post by **hugh** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 3:53 pm

I read on the talkbass forum that the POG tracks better than the POG2. I'll try to find the thread for ya.

hugh · Post by **hugh** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 4:03 pm

/\ /\ /\
I cannae find it.
The Bass Synth Wah by digitech seems to be go to cheap octave pedal there though. Apparently the octave down mode is good.

avj · Post by **avj** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 11:09 pm

Another option for him to go for is the EHX Octave Multiplexer, which is analog and monophonic. It only does octave down though.

► Show Spoiler

I had a Micro POG for a short time before getting a POG2, and as ultra showed above, I found it to work pretty great on bass -- and it's polyphonic (and digital), so it can track more than one note at a time without freaking out. I believe the Micro POG and POG2 are the only proper mass-produced polyphonic shifters in pedal form, but I could be wrong.

Given what it does, I think the Micro POG represents the best value of the current choices.

Jahsoul · Post by **Jahsoul** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 5:01 am

POG is the only think that tracks chords and perfectly.