Guitar Effects Pedals vs Rack Mount Guitar Effects Processors

If you play electric guitar or even if you're just a fan, you've undoubtedly asked yourself how your favorite artist gets "that sound" on one of your favorite tunes. There is a dizzying array of guitar effects processors available these days and finding the right combination of guitar effects pedals and rackmount gear can be a daunting task that requires a certain amount of experimentation before finding the combination that works best for you.
Larger touring rock bands often have racks full of processors and a stage littered with pedals to switch between effects patches. Still, JOYO JF-03 have found the old-style stompbox guitar pedals to offer the best bang for the buck. Although digital multi-effects processors offer some distinct convenient advantages, allowing guitar players to build combinations of effects -i.e. Chorus + Delay + Reverb + Distortion - into patches and banks for easy recall and switching later, there are some drawbacks to this approach. The combination of effects that's written to a patch and the associated parameters (amount of delay, reverb decay etc.), generally can not be changed on the fly. In addition, when switching between effects in a live gig situation, oftentimes there is a slight sound dropout which makes it impractical to use while sustaining a long chord for instance.
The stompbox guitar effects pedal set up, however provides much greater flexibility, allowing the guitar player to switch on and off individual effects at will. In addition, many guitar players prefer the "warmer" tone provided by some of the older analog effects pedals. For convenience, you can purchase a pedalboard style case that will allow you to keep standard sized JOYO JF-37 together, so you don't need to continuously reconnect everything each time you play. Many of these pedalboards also provide power supplies to connect all guitar effects pedals as well, so that batteries don't need to be constantly changed.
In the end, the best way to find what works for you is to experiment. Individual guitar effects pedals, multi-effects pedals and rackmount processors, along with various midi switching devices can be bought fairly inexpensively on sites like Ebay, if you take the time to look around and do your homework. If you find something that doesn't work for you or your setup, you can always find someone who will be willing to buy it from you.

Boss SE-50 Multi-Effects Processor

Boss is a manufacturer of electronic musical instruments and accessories based in Japan. The company is a subdivision of Roland, one of the largest producers of musical instruments in the world. Over the years, Boss has released a number of popular products, ranging from guitar distortion pedals to drum machines and samplers. One of its most enduring products, which is still widely used today despite having been first released over two decades ago, is the SE-50 multi-effects processor.
The SE-50 was the first half-rack multi-effects processor created by Boss and was especially designed with guitarists in mind. The effects unit is outfitted with an array of effects typical of such units, including distortion, chorus and flanger. Unusual, however, is the inclusion of a 7-band digital vocoder. In total the unit offers 28 preset algorithms, nine of which are reverb-only effects.
Although the Boss SE-50 was originally conceived as a guitar multi-effects processor, in recent years it has gained popularity among many harsh EBM bands. These musicians use the unit's pitch shifter effect to process vocals both live and on recordings. The SE-50's pitch shifter (patch 112), offers four frequency bands, each of which can be detuned independently. This effect, and by extension the SE-50 itself, has come to define the processed vocals of a number of modern electro-industrial bands. Widely-used settings include pitching the top two frequency bands up one to two semitones while at the same time detuning the lower bands by a similar amount. This is then combined with vocal styles similar to those used in some forms of extreme metal, such as high or low-pitched screams and growls.
Users should note that the SE-50 stores presets using an internal battery, similar to those found in watches and other consumer electronics, which has a lifespan of less than five years. When this power supply fails, which is to be expected due to the SE-50's age, all user-defined parameters will revert to factory presets. Replacing the battery will restore the SE-50's ability to save user presets, though settings which were not stored on an external backup system may not be retrievable.
Despite the unit's shortcomings, the fact that it is widely obtainable at prices less than $100 has ensured its widespread use among various guitarists and electronic musicians. Bands that have used the SE-50 include Nine Inch Nails, Duran Duran, Kraftwerk,:wumpscut:, Information Society, Suicide Commando, Die Krupps, Grendel and Tactical Sekt.

How to Assemble a Pedalboard

Assembling a professional quality pedalboard is easier than ever, given the variety of pre-made pedalboards and power supplies currently available. This article will help you tackle some of the larger questions you need to address.
First, you must decide whether you want to purchase a pre-fabricated board or make one yourself. The advantages to the former are a professional appearance and the saving of time and effort. Companies such as Pedaltrain, Furman, SKB, Stompin-Ground, NYC Pedalboards, Pumaboards, and Trailer Trash are just a few of the manufacturers of professional quality pedalboards, some of which will custom make a pedalboard to your exact specifications.
Of course, building your own pedalboard is always an option. For less than $50 and a trip to Home Depot, you could craft a gigworthy makeshift pedalboard with little effort. Tone-meister Eric Johnson uses a simply piece of plywood with velcro strips to hold down his pedals, and no one complains about his tone. Still, a professionally made pedalboard has many advantages and is probably the best option for most people.
Before you even decide on your pedals, you should figure out how you are going to power your board. You basically have 4 options: batteries, individual power supplies, a switching power supply, or individually isolated power supply units. The first two options are either expensive or messy. The best options are the last two: a switching power supply (such as the Visual Sound 1-Spot) or individually isolated power supply units (such as the Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 2). Each has its distinct advantages. Personally, I use both depending on the situation, though my main pedalboards are both powered by Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 2 units.
The heart of your pedalboard, obviously, is the effects themselves. Depending on your needs, you may have only 2-3 effects up to a couple dozen. I recommend using only a few effects but using them well and knowing them inside out. The following choices will afford you great versatility and offered in "traditional" order of connection in the pedalboard itself: Wah, Compressor, Overdrive/Distortion I, Overdrive/Distortion II, Volume, Chorus, Flanger/Phaser, Delay. Note that I recommend two different overdrive and/or distortion pedals for a variety of sounds.
In the end, you are the best judge about what kind of pedalboard and effects you need. No everyone needs to have a refrigerator sized pedalboard like the Edge to get the sounds you need. A couple of pedals might suffice. Don't buy more than you really need and use the gear you have to come up with your own sound, which is what really matters in the long run

Electric Guitar Effects Pedals - Using Guitar Effects Pedals With Keyboards - Improve Guitar Voices

I recently read an editorial stating that although Keyboards are primarily used with computer DAW's, (Digital Audio Workstations) most musician users are in fact guitarists. However, for me it's the other way round as my problem as a keyboard player has been my inability to record guitar tracks, due to my lack of skill as a guitarist. As Keyboard technologies are developing continually, the Guitar voices on modern instruments are sounding more and more authentic. However, these voices still do fall short of the real thing especially when it comes to Guitar Rock solos.

Fortunately, with the advent of superb guitar software plug-ins and effects I can, with careful programming and canny use of the pitch and modulation wheels, use my keyboard to produce some pretty convincing guitar tracks when I am writing music or creating backing tracks.

Practical application for 'live' work

Using a computer on stage is impractical, so how can I adapt these new found skills in my 'live' work - and why should I need to anyway? The answer is Electric Guitar Effects Pedals.

But first, let us look at the Keyboard player's lot.

Hands up all those Keyboard Players who have struggled during a gig, to be heard over the Guitarist, whose only aim in life is to make your ears bleed.

Yep, thought so.

Also, having to provide piano, strings, brass, second lead etc., we tend to feel a bit unappreciated when the guitarist only has to play one power chord for all the males in a venue to roll up there eyes in ecstasy, and start playing 'Air Guitar'. Don't get me wrong, I have worked with some brilliant guitarists, but I have also worked with some whose only concept of balance, is not falling off the stage while totally wasted. So, back to my original question - why would I adapt my new 'keyboard/guitar' skills for live work?

No Band. No Guitarist

In my case, I also play as a soloist or with another musician in a duo. Both of these combinations have a rock influence, and as such, each requires those guitar licks and solos - but I don't have a guitarist. So I have programmed my keyboard to send the Keyboard guitar voices out via an assignable spare output and have connected that to a Guitar Multi-effects Pedal.

Many Keyboards now have spare audio output jacks that enable you to patch any voice on your keyboard via that output. This nicely separates that voice from the keyboards normal stereo output. I use a Yamaha Tyros for most of my live work, and My Korg M3 also has the ability to assign voices separately. By using a multi-effects pedal I have a wealth of Guitar effects voices at hand, and by connecting to a separate channel(s) on the PA the increased ambience and dynamics of the guitar sound is greatly enhanced to spectacular effect. Obviously, you could use a specific single Effects Pedal instead - e.g. Compressor or Overdrive pedal - to equally good effect. But personally I would go for the Multi-Effects Pedal.

The types of Keyboard Guitar Voices I use are generally the straight acoustic guitar voices which modify nicely with the Effect Pedal. I also use the clean electric guitar sounds as well, which are also very effective. Experimentation is the key.

When playing, make good use of your pitch and modulation wheels to imitate those pitch bends and vibrato techniques, and you will soon hear some pretty convincing sounds - especially during your solos. I would also add that using the Effects Pedals is not exclusive to your Guitar sounds. Assigning other voices through the pedal can produce some excellent results too. For example, try out the Hammond Organ sound with some distortion effects on your pedal - WOW - Deep Purple man. I know that all keyboards have their own inbuilt DSP (Digital Signal Processor) effects that you can apply to your internal voices, but diverting that sound separately through your PA via the Effects Pedal is really cool.

So, using my new found studio skills has now resulted in some great sounding live Guitar solos.

Conclusion

At a recent gig I had my first 'air guitar' player. Yes fellow 'Keyboardists', while playing the guitar solo to Thin Lizzys' Whiskey in the Jar, I looked up to see a guy - legs apart, eyes rolled up, actually standing in front of me 'THE KEYBOARD PLAYER', playing Air Guitar.

I had finally become a Guitar Hero. Well, the euphoria lasted almost until lunch the next day.

The thing is; as a Keyboard player, have I sold out? Do I even care?

Having an ego as big as any band member (yes, even the drummer), my answer has got to be. 'Darn it - if it works, don't knock it'.

If you are interested in more information about Electric Guitar Effects Pedals there is a great site which describes some of the various types of Guitar Effects Pedals and which also features YouTube videos which demonstrates these various effects in action.

The site also features many pedals available today with specifications on each, plus some great deals.

Personally, as a keyboard player, I have found the videos very instructional for determining which types of pedals and effects would suit my keyboard, plus watching the playing techniques is very informative for developing a convincing Guitar performance from my keyboards.

How to Order Your Guitar's Effects Pedals

It is important to follow a few basic guidelines when you begin running multiple effects pedals for you guitar in a series. Improperly ordering your effects chain or pedal board can result in poor tones and unwanted noise. Remember, these effects pedals are actually altering the signal of your guitar, so when placed in a chain, an effects pedal could be processing a signal that has already been altered many times. This is what makes the order of them so vital to your sound.
1st Position - Chromatic Tuner / EQ
I always recommend placing a chromatic tuner (if you have one) , first in your chain. This ensures that the pedal is getting the strongest signal possible, which will make accurate tuning much easier. Now is a good time to also add your EQ pedal to your chain. This allows you to shape your sound before it starts to have effects applied.
2nd Position - Distortion/Overdrive/Fuzz
It is important to have your distortion pedals as the leaders of your chain because they are what your guitar tone is based on. Placing these pedals first in your chain ensures that you are only distorting your true guitar sound.
When you start playing with multiple effects, this keeps the integrity of the more complex effects pedals like chorus and flange in tact. These pedals carefully alter your guitar's signal, and distorting them could taken away from their tone.
3rd Position - Wah Pedal
There are some guitar players who prefer having their Wah Pedal in front of their distortion pedals (Jimi Hendrix), but I have found that I get the best results by placing it after them in the chain. A Wah Pedal is basically an EQ that sweeps the high ends, and low ends of your sound, which will cause the signal going to the distortion pedal to be altered if it is placed before it. Placing your Wah pedal after your distortion pedals will provide a nice linear sweep because you'll have one steady signal coming into it.
4th Position - Delay
At this point in your effects pedal chain we have shaped the tone of your guitar, and added the foundations of distortion. Placing a Delay pedal in this position will result in only the signal coming into it to be repeated, thus preserving the sound of the modulation effects that will come after it. You do not want to add delay to effects like flange, and chorus. If you were to place these before your Delay pedal, the effects they create would also be delayed. You want these to be consistent while the core sound of your guitar is being delayed.
Position 4 - Modulation
Modulation effects consist of flange, chorus, phase, envelope filters, etc. All of these add color, and depth to your sound. As we noted earlier, it is important to keep these signals as true as possible on their way to your amplifier. Running a flanger effect before a distortion, or overdrive pedal would distort the flanger's sound, and would harm the subtlety of the effect.
Position 5 - Volume Pedal
This position should be reserved for any pedal that is going to take away from the sound of your guitar, primarily a volume pedal. You want to place your volume pedal in this position so that you can accurately decrease the effect volume for ALL your pedals. If you were to place it in the middle of your chain, you would only lower the effect volume for all of the pedals that come before it. This is also an acceptable position for a Tremolo pedal.
Position 6 - Reverb
Reverb is an effect that usually occurs naturally. For this reason, you want to place this effect after all of your modulations, distortions and EQs have been applied so that the Reverb can shape your sound as realistically as possible.

So that is all there is to it. Those are the basics to effects pedal ordering and I hope they can help you organize your pedal chain or pedal board so you can get the best sounds possible.
I do want to note though that the great thing about creating music is experimentation, and that there is no "set in stone" way to order your pedals. The ordering I have provided for you is what I use, and it is what creates the best tones out of all the combinations I have tried. If you have any questions, or would like to add your own opinions on effect pedal ordering, please leave a comment.

Types of Bass Guitar Effects Pedals

Are you playing the same old song on your guitar every day? Aren't you improving in the least bit? Well, the main problem is that you lack the fun of playing the six strings and instead you can try out the new guitar effects pedals. These pedals enable you to mix and match up the sounds with everything that you do, and thus gradually you'll have a much better time playing your guitar now. These effects pedals are packed and sold in various ways like individual pedals, built in effects on amplifiers, guitar multi-effects pedals, etc.
Now, the effects described on these pedals are almost similar for electric and bass guitars. Among the various types of bass guitar effects pedals, here are a few:
- Bass wah wah pedal- This effect on an electric guitar is the result of the use of a foot pedal which is of the rocking treadle type. Here, custom EQ circuitry has been enabled, which is best suited for playing rhythmic melodies ranging from warm to subtle, to even punchy.
- Overdrive distortion pedal- The main function of this type of pedal is to enhance the resulting sound output between warm and rich, making it more aggressive. These pedals are varied in their complexity. But they have some complaints regarding the high noise level which makes them inefficient for recording in studios.
- Bass chorus pedal- Usually these pedals are used for emulating the illusion of involving the multiple bass notes being played in unison, and the creation of variations in the chorus effects. Up to sixteen sounds can be emulated at a time, and randomization of the voices will help thicken the sound.
- Octaver pedal- This octave is used in cases where the requirement involves the production of one full octave and mostly used in case of Funk and R&B. Many even are good enough in coping up with more than two note chords. It is used in creating 'live' altered pitch, but the pedals need to possess a fast and unique tracking capability that can be used well in rapid playing techniques.
- Bass compressor pedal- This enables the bass guitarist to play styles covering a huge range- including normal rhythmic to a greater dynamic. All these can be done smoothly by variation of the sound output resulting from the amplifier. This pedal, though the hardest to use, is only able to produce a bland performance.

Effects Pedals and Processors - Using the Effects Loop

When I first discovered the coolness of stomp box guitar effects, I think I was 11. I would venture down to the local music store where the gentleman that owned the place, Bill, would greet my friend Jimmy and I at the door with the resounding "How's it going there gold dust?" Bill was a great guy and we would literally visit his shop every Saturday without exception. He was great about letting us pull guitars off the rack and cranking up the noise, as a matter of fact he encouraged it! It was there that Bill showed me a Harmonix Bad Stone Phase Shifter, the first guitar effect I had ever seen. He showed me how to hook it up, and from the first note I hit with that bad boy on, I knew I had to have this thing. It's what started my endless obsession with tone, and overwhelming desire to match it up correctly with the piece being played. I'm not the only one though. This is pretty much what comes with the territory when you decide to play guitar seriously. Now days of course there are so many choices and different directions you can go to carve out that perfect sound, that sometimes it can get overwhelming. Over the years there been a few consistent discoveries that I have found to narrow down what my preferences are. These of course are my thoughts presented in an editorial context and may or may not reflect your own feelings.
To start with, the style or genre of music is important when deciding what effects will be needed. The second decision is whether to use an all in one processor or to use separate effects chained together. There are some pros and cons to both, and I will go over some of those. My own experience with guitar processors starts with the first time I bought one. It was the Line 6 "kidney bean" POD. This was the stuff when it came out. It acted as a direct box and guitar amp modeler. I could make my amp sound like a number of different top-notch set-ups. It also had some effects built-in, chorus, delay, and reverb. After a while I graduated to the POD XT Live, a stage version that had more bells and whistles. It had a wah pedal, more amp models, effects and options, all in a unit that could be set in front of you while on stage. I used that for 5 years playing gigs, and it worked great until I broke the wah pedal in the middle of a show. I had it repaired, but it was never the same. I wanted to go a different direction anyway with my sound so I started experimenting with single effects pedals. There are a lot of individuals that will just string together the effects with chords, plug the last output into the input on their amp, and their guitar into the input of the first effect in the chain. That will work for some effects, like distortion, compression, and wah pedals, but they don't work so good for ambient effects like chorus, delay, phase shifters, signal boosters, and flangers. For those, you need to run them through the effects loop, usually on the back of the amplifier. You simply connect the effects together as you normally would, with the outputs connected to the inputs, and run a chord from your "effects send" jack to the input on your first effect. The "effects return" jack should be connected to the output jack of the last effect in the chain. There is usually a control knob for the effects loop that controls how much effect from the effects loop gets put into your sound. This set up will give you the distortion, wah and such before the signal is amplified, by running them in the front of the amp, and the ambient effects for the signal after it has passed through the amp on its way to the speaker. As an example of why this is the way to do it,, try running a power boost, like for instance a Boss GE7 EQ in front of the amp. When you step on the effect, which has a 15db boost (or cut) it won't do anything but muddy up the signal. Put it in the effects loop, and viola, you get a killer boost that will help you cut through the mix during solos. This is important stuff to know and something all teachers should add into the online guitar classes.
So in conclusion, the pros with a processor, they are all-inclusive in one unit and generally cheaper than a properly set up effects array, and they generally have a lot of options for amp models and tone. The cons? You can't run the ambient effects through the effects loop, nor can you control the order they are set up in, and that can make a big difference. The pros with an a la carte effects set up, are complete control, reliability, and versatility. The cons? They are much more expensive to set up. To do it right you'll need to mount all of your effects on a powered pedal board, so that you can just open it up, lay it in front of you, and plug the chords in. My personal set up was over $1100, and I have just 6 effects. They can also hum, although you can eliminate that with a simple filter. Again to avoid learning by trial and error, make sure you ask your instructor during your online guitar classes or in-person lessons about this important aspect of tone creation.

Boss Effects Pedals - A Brief Review

For many years, guitar players have been supplementing the sounds available from the traditional guitar and amplifier setups. Often, guitar players can be seen stomping on foot pedals to get that signature sound through their amps. Boss effects pedals have been giving guitar players and bass players a reason to tap their feet for over 35 years. Founded in 1973, Boss has primarily focused on items for guitar players and bassists, including the renowned Boss effects pedals.
The first Boss effects pedal came out in 1976, the CE-1 Chorus. It came with an AC adapter and was considered the greatest effect of its time. After that overdrive pedals came out, the phaser pedal was introduced. Every time a new guitar sound was heard on vinyl Boss was the pioneer. After the sound changed again in the 80s, a flanger pedal was crafted and then their famous delay pedal hit the scene. By now, Boss effect pedals have been stomped on by millions of bass and guitar players.
Their distortion and overdrive pedals seems to be their biggest sellers because of their versatility. Heavy metal music relies greatly on the sound that Boss produces and anybody who plays hard rock or metal probably has a Boss pedal within stepping distance. They are built tough and the circuitry is clean when switching channels, which is important when recording or playing live.
Depending on what sound you want, Boss effects pedals have got you covered. If you play blues or want an overdrive you can pick up a BD-2 Blues Driver or OD-3 OverDrive pedal. Subtle overdrive to full metal distortion are all available through Boss; they practically make the sounds you've heard in all brands of popular music. They change with the musical landscape and create the effects we all marvel at.
Boss also offers pedal with reverb and delay, pitch shift and twin pedals that offer multiple control over your effects. If you play bass guitar then they offer flanger, EQ, chorus, overdrive and synthesizer effects. Even drum machines are covered under the Boss umbrella.
The Boss DS-1 is their most basic but most popular model. It has three knobs: tone, level and distortion. This little monster has been used by Nirvana, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai and John Petrucci of Dream Theater. Most recent users are bands such as The Killers. This Boss effects pedal has seen more action than any other model. It's simple yet very effective and is a popular candidate for hot-rodding and modifications, as seen in the popular Keeley and Analog.Man modifications.
Many guitar players keep coming back to Boss because they are built sturdy and deliver a distinct sound. Every guitar player is looking for their signature sound and Boss makes a pedal for just about any sound you want. One of their newest pedals is the Fender FRV-1; if you haven't heard the sound of a 63 Fender then this pedal will take you there. They also come with a Bassman pedal and Deluxe Reverb pedal for a trio of damage.
Boss effects pedals are easily recognizable by their sturdy design and the bright colors. You can even find one to match your guitar. They are built to withstand touring and the constant abuse they take under an aggressive stomp. Their design hasn't changed so when guitar players buy a new Boss effects pedal, they will feel like they're meeting an old friend.

Best Guitar Multi-Effects Pedals For Live Use

The first digital multi effects pedal that I became familiar with was the elderly Digitech RP1. Only a few dared to play live with these without a guitar amp, I mean through a PA. They had the proper settings for different types of power amps, but the sound they produced in this manner was not fascinating.

That left plenty of of us tainted, but in the last few years I have seen plenty of live performances, chiefly at bars, where multi-effects pedals are connected straight to a PA without a guitar amplifier. And the sound was actually excellent in my view.

In my experiences these are my top three:

The Digitech RP1000: used straight to a PA by a mate of mine that plays in a punk rock band. When Digitech came out with the DNA chips my interest in this brand was rekindled. I had lost faith with the RP series, but this pedal has impressed me lately.

The Vox Tonelab LE: at a party dedicated for the 25th anniversary of 'Appetite For Destruction' I mate of mine played a whole set with of these pedals straight to a PA. This pedal in my view is the fattest sounding when connected to a PA, although it might not be the most versatile.

To play live with a multi-effects pedal you must set the right output for of these three possibilities:

The Boss GT8: used by a cover band that I use to sell instruements to. The sound of Boss GT Multi-effects straight to PA's is not my favourite, but this guitar player surprised me by carefully using EQ and setting suitable presets for every song.

*Plugging it in to the front of an amplifier, "No Amp or Cab Emulation Ought to be used".

*Plugging in to the power amp of a guitar head or combo, "No Cab Emulation Ought to be used".

An affordable ways to play live with a multi-effects pedal and have plenty of volume is with a live powered monitor.

*Plugging straight to a mixer in a PA or a powered monitor, "Cab Emulation Ought to be used".

Guitar Effects Pedals Essentials

If you're a beginning guitar player are you happy with your guitar and amp set up? Are you trying to imitate the sound of your favorite guitarist but having problems recreating that sound. It's because most professional guitarists don't just use a guitar and amp, there are few like Angus Young of AC/DC who plug directly into the amp with no extra effects, but that's a rarity. Most guitarists use a combination of at least three effects to get their sound, distortion, delay, and chorus. You can use multi effects pedals to get your sound or you can use dedicated guitar effects pedals. Let's take a look at what they do and why you should have them in your guitar effects pedal board.

Distortion

Distortion is the most popular effect added to an electric guitar, it's "the" sound people think about when they think of electric guitar. Different styles will call for different types and different levels of this effect. If you're playing metal you want a heavy "crunchy" sound, if you're playing blues or "guitar rock" you might want a warmer sound. Even country players use distortion, they'll add just a little bit to their clean guitar sound, not enough to be really evident as distortion, but just enough to give their sound some bite, so that it cuts through. The Boss distortion pedal, the DS-1 is probably one of the most used of all times. Kurt Cobain used it in his stage rig (although he'd switched to a DS-2 by '94), and someone as diverse as Joe Satriani has also used the DS-1 pedal.

Delay

Delay is another basic guitar effect, it's related to reverb. Think of delay as the sound of the room your in. If you're in a big room it sounds boomy, if you're in a small room it sounds brighter and more distinct. The sound of a room is related to the sounds reflected off the walls. In any size room you'll hear the original and then the sound that is reflected off the walls. That delayed sound is what lets your ears know how big the room is. Reverb is similar, it's just that the sounds bounced off the walls aren't as distinct. Most guitarists use delay pedals set to a short delay time, (slapback delay). It sort of sounds like being in a concrete stairwell, a good example is a country "chicken picken" sound. Other guitarist use delay times so long that their are distinct echos, The Edge in the band U2 being a good example. What delay does is make you perceive the sound as being "thicker" almost like there were two guitars playing. Some pedals can create a delay and reverb sound.

Chorus

The third bread and butter guitar effects pedal you should have is a chorus. What a chorus does is split your sound and slightly delay one one of the signals. Imagine two people were playing guitar together. They can never play perfectly together, one will always start a split second late or early. That's what a chorus does. You're probably thinking what's the difference between that and a delay? Well, if you set your delay times small enough you will hear a chorus type sound. A chorus will also detune one of the signals by a minuscule amount increasing the effect of their being two guitarists playing. The perceived effect is a thicker guitar sound. Both delay and chorus can be used with a clean sound or a distorted sound.

So, those three guitar pedals are the bedrock of an electric guitar sound, you can find at least one of them in most guitarists pedal board. It's hard to say what is the best guitar effects pedal, it really comes down to a personal preference. There are some effects used by famous guitarists, other people buy that pedal to copy that sound. After awhile that sound kind of becomes the "standard", that makes it popular, but what's the best guitar effects pedal is up to you.

David Verde plays guitar and sings a little, he likes to write about guitar playing and song writing. Here's some more information about guitar effects pedals, and what to look for in an acoustic guitar tuner.

Guitar Effects Pedals - An Introduction and Buying Guideasd

Effects pedals for the guitar have been around since the 1960s, when electric guitar based music and rock 'n' roll were on the rise. Roger Mayer, an engineer, is believed to have created the first guitar effects pedals, which were the "fuzz box" (today known as distortion or overdrive) and the "wah-wah" pedal. Mayer created pedals that were used by the likes of legendary rockers Jeff Beck, Jimi Hendrix, and Jimmy Page (for whom Mayer, his friend, reportedly created the first pedal in 1963 or 1964). Today, numerous effects are widely used by electric guitar players.
Effects pedals are used to give the guitarist more tonal colors or, that is, an expansion of timbre on his instrument's palette. It's possible to use an amplifier's settings to create these different tonal colors, too, but the amplifier is limited to what effects it can give, plus its settings would have to be changed only between songs, whereas guitar players frequently want to change tonality and color in the midst of playing a single song, and often many times over. Just as the invention of the electric guitar and the amplifier gave the guitar player a far more powerful voice and greater sustainability of notes, so the effects pedals gave him a far wider range of expressive options.
Today, even some acoustic guitar players and classical guitar players use effects pedals although the distortion and overdrive pedals used by electric guitar players aren't usually part of their tonal palette. Since the first pedals were created, other guitar effects called rack mounted effects have been invented. These are widely used, too, but they require a more sophisticated and time-consuming approach (not to mention considerably more money) than the simple pedals. Rack mounted effects are themselves triggered by pedals.
So, armed with their pedalboards and an array of effects, electric guitar players have only to "stomp" to activate their effects (hence the name stompbox) to instantly switch on or switch off an effect. The wah-wah pedal is a little different than the others, as we'll see below. For instance, the ubiquitous distortion tone of hard rock and metal guitar players can be instantly switched off and the guitar's "clean channel" allowed to be played, to give a different feel to different sections of a song. Another simple stomp, and the distorted tone comes roaring back.
Guitar players go through a great deal of effort to tweak the settings on their guitar, their amps, and their configuration of effects pedals to get their "just right" or signature sound. What are their basic effects pedal choices today?
1) Distortion/Overdrive. The most widely used guitar effect in the world. Of course, this one is often left on for most or all of a rock song. This is the famous (or infamous to many people) sound of heavy metal. Metal guitarists typically use a type of overdrive called distortion, which can distort their tone even more than standard overdrive pedals. Distortion works by adding in tons of overtones to the actual note played. Popular distortion & overdrive pedals included offerings from Fulltone (such as the OCD or Fulldrive), Boss (DS-1, BD-2), and Ibanez Tubescreamers and their host of clones. Distortion and overdrive pedals are without a doubt the most popular type of pedal, so it would be impossible to list them all.
2) Volume and "wah-wah" pedals. Hendrix probably did the most to pioneer the wah-wah pedal. Unlike other effects pedals, this pedal is used by way of keeping your foot on it and applying more or less pressure. A volume pedal, while operated in the same way as a wah pedal, allows a guitarist to rapidly sweep the volume of his instrument from full to completely silent. This is the pedal that is used to create an electric guitar's "violin sound", such as on the first part of Rush's "Xanadu." The wah pedal creates the "chugga-chugga" and "crying baby" sound (like Stevie Ray Vaughan's or Hendrix' intro and outro to "Voodoo Chile"). Popular wah pedals included the Dunlop Crybaby, the Vox Reissue Wah, the Teese Wizard Wah, and the Fulltone Clyde Wah. The Ernie Ball volume pedal is popular, as are models by Visual Sound and Boss.
3) Compression. Basically speaking the compressor pedal is used to make soft notes louder and loud notes softer. This is often used in conjunction with distortion/overdrive to help balance out the guitar player's sound and give him consistency. Popular compression pedals included the Keeley Compressor, the MXR Dyna-Comp, and the Boss CS-3.
4) Chorus. The chorus pedal is popular among guitar players who need or want to create a "spacious" sound. Like distortion, chorus adds overtones to the note played, but they are more widely spaced out and they are on a very slight delay, meaning they sound very, very slightly after the original note. Chorus and distortion can be used together to give a guitarist a gargantuan sound, or chorus can be used to make a clean channel sound feel richer and fuller. Popular chorus pedals include the Boss CE-3 and Visual Sound H20.
5) Flangers. Flangers are offshoots of the chorus pedal. With the flanger, the guitarist picks one note, but two of them sound; except, the second note sounds on a very, very slight delay. Flangers are used to create deep resonance in a guitar player's sound, but some guitarists insist that if you use a chorus you don't need a flanger. The Boss BF-3 is a popular flanger pedal, as is the Fulltone Choralflange.
6) Phasers. Another take-off of the chorus, the phaser pedal is used similarly to a flanger, but it gives a different sound because it doesn't harmonically relate the two notes. Instead, it takes the original notes and puts it "out of phase" as a second, additional note, meaning that it's mathematically shifted across the frequency spectrum. Phasers can give "other-world" effects or make distortion that much more mind-boggling. The MXR Phase 90 is a very popular phaser pedal, as are the Red Witch Deluxe Phaser and the Electro-Harmonix Small Stone Phase Shifter.
7) Delay. Delay pedals are used to give a very prominent echo-effect. They, too, operate like a flanger, except the delayed signal is substantially more delayed, perhaps even by a full second or two. Popular delay pedals include the Line 6 DL-4, the Boss DD-3 and the Visual Sound H20.
8) Pitch shifters. Also known as Harmonizers or Octave pedals. These produce overtones that are one, two, or three octaves above the original note, or they can be changed to produce harmonic notes at specified intervals. These can give the effect of the guitar player accompanying himself. The Boss PS-3 is a popular pitch shifter pedal, as is their OC3 Octave pedal.
9) Tremolo. This gives an effect like very rapidly turning the guitar's volume control up and down. It's not the same as "vibrato", which as an effect is typically created using the "whammy bar" on the guitar. Popular tremolo pedals include the Fulltone Supa Trem, the T-Rex Tremster, and the Boss TR-2.
10) Vibrato. This is usually accomplished with a "whammy bar" on the guitar itself, which was made famous by Hendrix and Ritchie Blackmore. However, there are pedals for this, too. This is used to give some very dynamic effects, from an exaggeration of a bent note to a squeal to a "dive bomber" effect. Rather than a very rapid change in volume, it produces a very rapid change in pitch. Popular vibe pedals include the Fulltone Mini-Deja Vibe and the Voodoo Lab Micro Vibe.

Pedal to Anywhere!

Bicycling, along with being the most proficient mode of human travel, is also one of the best all-around activities for improving fitness. From head to toes, cycling’s health benefits are hard to beat.
6 Health benefits of cycling
1. Reduces body weight when done often. Cycling increases calorie consumption and raises the metabolic rate, which can help in shedding weight.
2. Prevents heart disease. Cycling is connected with better cardiovascular health, as well as a drop off in the risk of coronary heart disease. Regular cycling halves the chance of suffering from heart disease.
3. Improves muscle strength. Cycling is a non-weight bearing motion and regular cycling directs to improved muscle strength and enhanced mobility.
4. Reduces anxiety, depression and stress. Cycling is good for mental health.
5. Cycling is excellent for immune system. Cycling can strengthen immune system and could watch against certain types of cancer.
6. Cycling is admirable for coordination. Moving both feet around in circles while steering with both hands and body’s own weight is a good exercise for the coordination skills.
The average daily cyclist has the fitness level of someone 10 years younger! The effortlessness, cost-effectiveness and ease of use of the bicycle have put in to its global use and reputation.
Saran Developers, a leading real estate company in Bangalore has launched Mulberry Woods, 4 bedroom condos, off Sarjapur Main Road. Mulberry Woods boasts of 70% green area ensuring enhanced health and environmental conditions. Saran Developers renders the most stylish living space with excellent specifications and first-class amenities to its customers. The project is equipped with the world-class amenities like gymnasium, swimming pool, steam and sauna and children’s play area. One of the top amenities offered by Mulberry Woods is the demarcated bicycle parking area. Whether it's to boost your fitness, health or environment concern, taking up cycling could be one of the best decisions you ever make. Mulberry Woods is in close vicinity to all the IT majors like Wipro, Cisco, Accenture, IBM to name a few and the list just continues. Mulberry Woods is en-route to a lot of best-known schools in town (Indus International, Gear International, TISB, DPS etc). So, you can pedal to anywhere! Also, India's third-largest software exporter Wipro is building its largest campus that can house at least 30,000 employees near Sarjapur, Bangalore. Mulberry Woods is in immediacy to this new campus. Thereby, providing an excellent living solution from those rural menaces! While driving can lose its novelty when you are sitting in traffic day in and day out, bicycling continues to offer fun and freedom. Enjoy the outdoors like a kid again and hop on a bicycle.
If a good and healthy atmosphere along with luxurious living and access to facilities is your priority, you may consider looking into these airy condominiums.
Saran Developers was initiated by a bunch of young and accomplished individuals from different backgrounds such as Real Estate Development, Agro-farming Technology & Landscape Development, Development of Gated Communities, Information Technology, Management and more. The diverse mix brings a unique wholesomeness to the knowledge pool of the organization. The same is instrumental in building all-round value for the customers of Saran Developers.

Would you Like The Top Ten Most Effective Ab Exercises?

1) Bicycle Exercise - 1. Lie face up on the floor and lace your fingers behind your head. 2. Bring the knees in towards the chest and lift the shoulder blades off the ground without pulling on the neck. 3. Straighten the left leg out while simultaneously turning the upper body to the right, bringing the left elbow towards the right knee. 4. Switch sides, bringing the right elbow towards the left knee. 5. Continue alternating sides in a 'pedaling' motion for 15-25 reps.
2) Vertical Leg Crunch - The vertical leg crunch is another effective ab exercise that targets the rectus abdominis. The vertical leg crunch also works the obliques (side of the abs). To perform the vertical crunch correctly: 1. Lie face up on the floor and extend the legs straight up with knees crossed. 2. Contract the abs and lift the shoulder blades off the floor, as though reaching your chest towards your feet. 3. Keep the legs in a fixed position and imagine bringing your belly button towards your spine at the top of the movement. 4. Lower and repeat for 15-25 reps.
3) Captain's Chair Leg Raise - The captain's chair leg raise is the second most effective move for the rectus abdominis as well as the obliques. You can do a variety of exercises on the captain's chair, which is a rack with padded arms that allows your legs to hang free and can be found in most health clubs and gyms. The key to keeping this move safe and effective is, first, to avoid swinging the legs or using momentum to bring the legs up. Second, keeping the knees bent will help you focus more on the abdominals and less on the hip flexors. To do it right: 1. Stand on chair and grip handholds to stabilize your upper body. 2. Press your back against the pad and contract the abs to raise the legs and lift knees towards your chest. 3. Don't arch the back or swing the legs up. 4. Slowly lower back down and repeat 15- 25 reps.
4) Exercise Ball Crunch - The exercise ball crunch is an excellent exercise for targeting the rectus abdominis. To do the exercise crunch correctly: 1. Lie face-up with the exercise ball resting under your mid/lower back. 2. Cross your arms over the chest. 3.Lift your torso off the ball. 4. Pull the bottom of your ribcage down toward your hips as you curl up. Note: keep the ball stable (i.e., you shouldn't roll). 5. Slowly in a controlled fashion lower your body back down, getting a stretch in the abs. Repeat for 15-25 reps.
5) Torso Track - The Torso Track is a advanced ab exercise and should be done with extreme care otherwise an injury can occur. To perform the torso track correctly: 1. Grip the handles of the Torso Track and pull the abs in without holding your breath (as though bracing them). 2. Exhale and glide forward as far as you comfortably can while still feeling stable. Caution: If you collapse in the middle and feel it in your back, you've gone too far. 3. While contracting the abs pull your body back to the starting position. Repeat as many as you can and perform to failure.
6) Reverse Crunch - The reverse crunch is a great exercise that works the entire abdominal area. To perform the reverse crunch correctly: 1. Lie on the floor and place hands on the floor or behind the head. 2. With the feet together or crossed, Bring the knees in towards the chest until they're bent to 90 degrees. 3. Contract the abs to curl the hips off the floor, reaching the legs up towards the ceiling. 4. Lower and repeat for 15-25 reps. Important Note: the reverse crunch movement is a very small movement, so try to use your abs to lift your hips rather than swinging your legs and creating momentum.
7) Ab Rocker - Although I am not a huge fan of ab machines, the ACE Study found the Ab Rocker to be #9 on the Top 10 Ab exercises. To perform the ab rocker ab exercise correctly: 1. Sit on the Ab Rocker and grab the bars in each hand. 2. Contract the abs and rock forward, originating the movement from the abs rather than using momentum. 3. Release and repeat for 1-3 sets of 15-25 reps. Note: the key to this exercise is to perform the ab movement slowly to reduce momentum and increase the tension on the abs. Another important tip is to focus on the abs and not use the arms.
8) Plank on Elbows and Toes - The plank exercise although ranked number 10 in the ACE study is a extremely effective exercise for building a strong core. The Plank on Elbow and Toes ab exercise is a great exercise that helps build a strong core, since besides working the abs the Plank on Elbows and Toes also works the back and several core stabilizer muscles. To perform the plank on Elbows and Toes correctly: 1. Lie face down on mat resting on the forearms, palms flat on the floor. 2. Push off the floor, raising up onto toes and resting on the elbows. 3. Keep your back flat, in a straight line from head to heels. I develop >personal training programs designed to strengthen the core and doing planks are one of the best!. You must tilt your pelvis and contract your abdominals to prevent your rear end from sticking up in the air. 5. Hold for 20 to 60 seconds, lower and repeat to failure.
9) Long Arm Crunch - The long arm crunch is an ab exercise that emphasizes the upper part of the abs. To perform the long arm crunch correctly: 1. Lie on the floor, bench or mat. 2. Extend the arms straight out behind the head with hands clasped, keeping the arms next to the ears. 3. While keeping the arms straight contract the abs and lift the shoulder blades off the floor. Note: If you feel neck pain, take one hand behind the head while keeping the other arm extended. 4. Lower and repeat for 15-25 reps.
10) Full Vertical Crunch - To perform the vertical crunch correctly: 1. Lie on your back and extend the legs up towards the ceiling. 2. Place hands behind your head (lightly cupping it, do NOT Grab behind the head). 3. Contract the abs and lift the shoulder blades off the floor, while simultaneously pressing your heels towards the ceiling. The goal is to create a 'u' shape with the torso. 4. Lower back to the starting position slowly while keeping a tight core. Repeat for 15-25 reps.