Octave Pedal Blowout
At The Pickup Test, we tend to shy away from effects and pedals for two reasons:
- These tests tend to be really subjective
- There are a million Youtube guitar/bass videos that demonstrate all the basic features of any pedal on the market, and most of them are great!
So why do a pedal comparison/tutorial for octave pedals?
Octave pedals, like any other type of effect, respond to the bow and piezo pickups very differently than they do to the electric guitars and basses that they were designed to interact with. Octavers are also, in our experience, the most misunderstood in terms of what they can and can’t do and how to approach them musically as a string player. That’s why we designed a special video that’s one part shootout of the major players in the market from Boss, Digitech, TC, and Electro Harmonix, and one part tutorial on how to get the most out of these little boxes of joy!
Introduction
Chapter 1a
The Boys break down the basic features of each of the major octave pedal brands on the market including the Boss OC3, Digitech Whammy 5, TC Sub N’ Up, and EHX Pitchfork. We weren’t trying to review every feature but address the philosophy of use and give a general overview from a string player’s perspective.
Chapter 1b: Violin Shootout
Chapter 1b: Cello Shootout
Chapter 2: Three Ninja Tips
The boys break down their 3 favorite Ninja Tips to help you get the most out of your octaver pedal as a bowed string player and how to get the most musical results!