EPIC Octave Pedal Shootout (Boss OC-5 vs My Favorites for Violin)

Музыка

I think every electric violinist needs a good octave pedal, or maybe more than one! As a looper I find monophonic bass pedals have some extra sauce for "violin bass," i.e. pizzicato parts supporting an arco melody line. These pedals are usually analog and glitchy, and they require some wrangling to work, but they tend to be BEEFIER in sound. Worth the hassle, in my opinion!
For years my go-to was the Boss OC-3 Super Octave, and then I upgraded to the U-235 Suboctave Generator, made by Parasit Studios in Sweden. It's MAGICAL and has earned a permanent spot on my studio board. There are times when I want some polyphony, though, so I usually use the Meris Enzo in Dry Mode as my "cello button."
With these two pedals, surely all my pitch shifting needs are met, right? 😅 G.A.S. is real, folks.
After seeing @HarmonyWithHunter demo the Boss OC-5, I decided to check it out. In this video I put the new pedal through its paces, and compare it to both the Enzo and U-235, as well as the older OC-3 and the MXR Vintage Bass Octave (an OC-2 clone which also sounds great).
What do you think? Which one is the 'do it all' pitch shifter? Or do you use more than one pitch shifter pedal? Leave a comment below!
Timestamps
00:00 Intro
02:46 U-235 vs Enzo vs OC-3
04:48 Fuzz Please
05:43 OC-3 in Mono (OC-2) mode
07:11 Monophonic Range Test
08:46 Unboxing the OC-5
10:37 OC-5 in Vintage Mode
11:10 OC-5 Range Test
12:03 OC-5 Polyphonic Mode
13:48 Add Phaser and Fuzz
15:35 Lowest Note Feature
16:26 OC-5 vs Enzo for Triple Stops
17:39 MXR Vintage Bass Octave
18:10 MXR with Mids switch
18:38 Add Fuzz
18:54 Conclusions and Outro
Watch Hunter's video on the OC-5: kzread.info/dash/bejne/mZ2Kz9Gpn92ylaw.html
Pedals Featured In This Video:
Boss OC-5 www.boss.info/us/products/oc-5/
Boss OC-3 www.boss.info/us/products/oc-3/
MXR Vintage Bass Octave www.jimdunlop.com/mxr-vintage-bass-octave/
Parasit U-235 Suboctave Generator www.parasitstudio.se/u235.html
Meris Enzo www.meris.us/product/enzo/
Rainger FX Bleep Fuzz www.raingerfx.com/product/bleep-igor-controller/
GFI System Synesthesia www.gfisystem.com/product-page/synestesia
Thanks as always to my Patreon supporters, especially Remake Music, LLC! If you'd like to support my work, please check out Patreon.com/RobFlax

Пікірлер: 30

  • @PhearNoneGearGadgets
    @PhearNoneGearGadgets2 жыл бұрын

    I still like the pitchfork. But the pedals you introduced are nice too. Great review!

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    2 жыл бұрын

    Pitchfork is a classic! Thanks 🙂

  • @SteffenZeichner
    @SteffenZeichner2 жыл бұрын

    Awesome overview! Now you've got me lookin into that 235.. great sound. I'm still using the POG mostly, fairly natural tone

  • @michaelbonesmusic
    @michaelbonesmusic7 ай бұрын

    my OC3 is still on my board - OC2 mode for plucked bass and poly for cello-like sounds. Yes it can be glitchy but with adjusted technique sounds good! For violin it is sometimes worthwhile to double up on octave effects for fatter, deeper sounds. I will have to do a video about my violin bass techniques

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    7 ай бұрын

    Amen! Love the monophonic synthy fatness, especially for pizz.

  • @HarmonyWithHunter
    @HarmonyWithHunter2 жыл бұрын

    Great video dude! Appreciate you linking my OC-5 vid, very kind of you. Yeah I find myself mostly using the Poly setting in lowest range mode as a sort of makeshift bass + guitar/violin in my looping setup when the song doesn't allow time to layer a bass line. Remarkably handy for that. Would be super curious for your thoughts on the EHX Bass9. It's pricey, but so far it's the closest I've seen/heard to an actual cello/upright bass sound. And it has a whole crapton of other settings, synth octaves, etc. Think I'm gonna have to start digging into your fuzz files vids, I've started adding a little distortion to some violin parts here and there; spiccato and pizz seem to work fine with the OMG setting on my tech 21 RK5, but I've yet to find a distortion I like with legato playing.

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    2 жыл бұрын

    Ahhh yes! Smooth legato distortion is a weird creature. Every fuzz is subjective, and really polarizing-you either love it or hate it-but I love the weird sounds! Bass9 is definitely on my agenda!

  • @padmahemanth100
    @padmahemanth100 Жыл бұрын

    good playing

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    Жыл бұрын

    Thanks so much!

  • @JustFiddler
    @JustFiddler2 жыл бұрын

    bagus sekali ..! matur suksma

  • @faithbrackenbury8106
    @faithbrackenbury8106 Жыл бұрын

    Great video, thank you. I'm going to look for one of those U-235's now....:)

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    Жыл бұрын

    Awesome! Check out all of Parasit Studio's stuff... they do all kinds of wild synth stuff. Also worth a look is the Montreal Assembly PurPLL, in case you can't get a U-235... Cheers!

  • @faithbrackenbury8106

    @faithbrackenbury8106

    Жыл бұрын

    Is the U-235 a DIY kit only ? 😳

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    Жыл бұрын

    @@faithbrackenbury8106 At the time I bought the pedal I got a pre-assembled version. Check what's available on the Parasit website, or maybe shoot him a message.

  • @KolodziejczykKuba
    @KolodziejczykKuba2 жыл бұрын

    Thanks for this. I liked the enzo at first but after hearing those chords - yeah oc 5 is better but also the sound quality itself is nicer.

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thanks! The Enzo has a lot of other amazing sounds and remains on the board, but I totally agree 🙂

  • @RobertRoweMusic
    @RobertRoweMusic Жыл бұрын

    Just starting to look into octave pedals for violin (and 'uke, hopefully). I was originally going in the direction of EHX's Intelligent Harmony Machine or the Bass9 Synth, but haven't tried anything yet...

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    Жыл бұрын

    My friend @Harmony With Hunter is a big fan of the Bass9. Worth a try!

  • @RobertRoweMusic

    @RobertRoweMusic

    Жыл бұрын

    @@RobFlaxMusic He's the one that made me curious about the Bass9

  • @cathdavis3488
    @cathdavis34882 ай бұрын

    Great video, many thanks! I'm experimenting with the octave down on the ME80 (the effect on the expression pedal) which is ok. Is there any way to hear less of the 'ambient' sound on my electric violin - all I hear is octaves rather than just the octave down pitch.

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    2 ай бұрын

    Thanks for watching! If I'm reading correctly, you'd like less of your dry signal, and more of the suboctave? If yes, you can control the balance of each octave using the three knobs in that Comp/FX1 section-more of the first two knobs (-1 and -2 oct), and turn down the third knob (direct). Hope that helps!

  • @guywitten
    @guywitten2 жыл бұрын

    Thanks for an intresting overview. you are also an awesome player. I am looking for an octave pedal that will make my violin sounds close to a "strings" sound, playing both uppoer and lower octave together. WHat will you recommend. Is the T-rex octavius is a good option? or pog? TNX

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thanks! I've never tried the Octavius but the POG is fantastic. I'd try that.

  • @Firstinversion899
    @Firstinversion8992 жыл бұрын

    Hey Rob, have you used the EH Bass9, esp the precision patch. I find that tracks much better than my pitchfork. I’m still working on taming EQ w/ an octave pedal. If you ever want to talk about tips for EQ of fiddle on an octave pedal, I would be interested.

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    2 жыл бұрын

    You're like the fifth person to suggest it! I would love to try before I buy... We'll see if I can get my hands on one 🙂

  • @Firstinversion899

    @Firstinversion899

    2 жыл бұрын

    @@RobFlaxMusic This guy did a great review it convinced me to check the unit out. So far, I am only interested in the Precision patch, but that’s because I don’t really have a handle on the EQ of bass parts yet. By the way, I just picked up a Grace design Bix, & a Boss EQ-200, and I am setting up the two channels of EQ with one in the Bix fx loop, & and the other post, going into the Bass9. Much experimentation to come. kzread.info/dash/bejne/mH6t08Ovl8ayZrg.html

  • @adriangoyachallenges4739
    @adriangoyachallenges47399 ай бұрын

    Can you put the link to your bow, please?

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    8 ай бұрын

    Thanks for watching! This video was filmed using my JonPaul Avanti bow, which I've played on since about 2007. (I since have upgraded to a couple other bows-check out my "Ferrari bow" video for more on the new one...) Cheers!

  • @PhilipLederer
    @PhilipLederer Жыл бұрын

    oc-5? mxr? still not sure....

  • @RobFlaxMusic

    @RobFlaxMusic

    Жыл бұрын

    Worth a look: the POG, Micro POG, and Nano POG are beloved favorites for a reason. I wanted to try the OC5 and think it's fantastic. Another favorite of many a violinist is the Pitchfork, which has more features/intervals available than just octaves, leading to interesting harmonic possibilities, but that's a different tool for a different job. If I were you I'd consider either an OC5 or a Micro POG. OC5 is a little "warmer," POG is a little "beefier" maybe. Super subjective terms, that will change wildly depending on the amp you plug into. YMMV!