EQ pedal - do you use one?

Elwood

I've been playing with the idea of getting one to allow me to add mids and help balance out the difference between pickups/guitars.

Does anyone here use one & if so what do you use it for and how effective to you find it for shaping your signal.

d8m

I've often thought about getting one but don't think I really need it. 

I'm sure I read that Tom Morello has one with all bands set to max that he uses as a boost.

ICBM

I use an MXR 6-band EQ set to a 'breaking wave' shape to stop my Strat sounding so thin and shrill much like a Strat.

Phil_aka_Pip

My HT-Boost has Bass & Treble controls which I back off a bit so that when I kick it in, it boosts the mids more than the rest. The guitars I play are all HB-loaded Gibson-esque designs so I don't really need to balance between different guitars. So no, I don't use one but that's no reason why you shouldn't try it if you're interested. The Behringer jobbie is cheap enough to try for an experiment, and if you like the idea, you might find it necessary to get something a bit more robust later.

Drew_TNBD

I used to yeah, but pickup changes made it redundant, so I flogged it on. Started with the Boss GE7, and then the Source Audio programmable EQ - which was killah!

hugbot

I use an eq pedal set for rhythm tone shaping, at a slight volume cut, then for a solo boost you can just turn it off.

thisisguitar

@d8m - I think your right, he has a DOD. 

I use mine GE-7 for various things, clean boost, post fuzz tone shaping, mid boost for soloing, and to get help get a pleasant feedback at any volume above bedroom (think Sorrow - Pink Floyd).

Voxman

I use a Behringer EQ700 stomp EQ in the fx loop of my Vox Valvetronix AD120VTX, and for straight amps I have a Boss GE7 at the end of my board.

Wouldn't be without them...way more tone shaping than just from the onboard amp EQ and can be used as a boost too.

not_the_dj

Modded GE-7 in my FX loop to liven up a dark sounding Blackstar HT50 head.

ThePrettyDamned

ICBM;474204" said:

I use an MXR 6-band EQ set to a 'breaking wave' shape to stop my Strat sounding so thin and shrill much like a Strat.

I looooove the sound of a strat!

Drew_fx;474226" said:

I used to yeah, but pickup changes made it redundant, so I flogged it on. Started with the Boss GE7, and then the Source Audio programmable EQ - which was killah!

I really nearly got the source audio one. Was it quiet? I tried the boss and it hissed like mad, which I know is fixable to make it supremely excellent but still...

Drew_TNBD

ThePrettyDamned said:

ICBM;474204" said:

I use an MXR 6-band EQ set to a 'breaking wave' shape to stop my Strat sounding so thin and shrill much like a Strat.

I looooove the sound of a strat!

Drew_fx;474226" said:

I used to yeah, but pickup changes made it redundant, so I flogged it on. Started with the Boss GE7, and then the Source Audio programmable EQ - which was killah!

I really nearly got the source audio one. Was it quiet? I tried the boss and it hissed like mad, which I know is fixable to make it supremely excellent but still...

Yes mate, very quiet. Wasn't that fussed about the auto-rotate feature though!

ICBM

ThePrettyDamned said:

I looooove the sound of a strat!

I *can* love the sound of a Strat when the amp is set up right for one, but the problem is that when the amp is set up for any other guitar, plugging in a Strat always sounds thin and shrill. So I use the EQ to fix that. I suppose I could do the opposite, but EQ'ing a Rickenbacker so it sounds right when the amp has been set up for the Strat just adds a lot of hiss...

samzadgan

i've had the MXR 6 band one and the 10 band KFK one in the past. 

But over the last few years, i've decided that if an amp or guitar or other piece of gear doesn't sound the way i want, then its not for me...rather than trying to improve it with an EQ pedal.

ThePrettyDamned

Drew_fx;474339" said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

ICBM;474204" said:I use an MXR 6-band EQ set to a 'breaking wave' shape to stop my Strat sounding so thin and shrill much like a Strat.

I looooove the sound of a strat!

Drew_fx;474226" said:I used to yeah, but pickup changes made it redundant, so I flogged it on. Started with the Boss GE7, and then the Source Audio programmable EQ - which was killah!

I really nearly got the source audio one. Was it quiet? I tried the boss and it hissed like mad, which I know is fixable to make it supremely excellent but still...





Yes mate, very quiet. Wasn't that fussed about the auto-rotate feature though!

Yeah, that's pretty bonkers - even the demos don't really make great music of that!

mike_l

I had a Boss GE-7 (Which went to Drew).

Really usefull in a number of ways.

In the loop as a volume/mids boost.

Infront as a tone-shaper.

Infront as a volume/tone boost.

I liked a mids/treble boost, with the bass set to neutral and a slight increase on the volume for a nice The Who type sound.

Flanging_Fred

I've used a Danelectro fish n chips for ages. Really quiet and super useful. I couldn't decide whether to use it as a scooped tone, a mid boost, a flat boost or various others. So I got a Source Audio Programmable EQ.

With the 4 presets it's really great when looping as you can set each loop at different EQ curves so it doesn't get all mushy in the mid range when playing back.

I think people underestimate what a good EQ can do for you. The source audio is like a pedal board tone multiplier.

Sassafras

Tried a GE-7 but I spent way too much time tweaking it. Now I just rely on the amps EQ or the AC boost controls, plus some other pedals that have got reasonable EQ. If I'm playing through a very dark sounding amp I'll use the AMT F1 to brighten it up.

randomhandclaps

I have two GE-7 (both modded for low noise).  Used really subtlely you can get a great Adam Jones growl by just mildly boosted the upper mids into a crunch amp without having to pile on too much gain.  With a similar setting into a decent Russian Big Muff you get a beautiful Gilmour lead tone really simply.

I use EQ pedals the same way I use EQ when mixing, i.e. to subtlely tweak, accentuate and enhance rather than fix a sound.

exocet

ICBM said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

I looooove the sound of a strat!

I *can* love the sound of a Strat when the amp is set up right for one, but the problem is that when the amp is set up for any other guitar, plugging in a Strat always sounds thin and shrill. So I use the EQ to fix that. I suppose I could do the opposite, but EQ'ing a Rickenbacker so it sounds right when the amp has been set up for the Strat just adds a lot of hiss...

My solution to the Strat "issue" was to solder a 680 pF cap directly across the output of the Bridge Pickup. This brings the resonant peak down to the 2 - 3 Khz range. Works a treat and leaves the Neck pickup tone intact. The Seymour Duncan Pickup Booster has a switchable feature that does the same thing but it screws your Neck pickup tone if you leave it engaged all the time.

guitarfishbay

They can work nicely infront of an amp instead of a Tube Screamer.  You can get a much cleaner result.  I experimented with knocking off some bass before going in to the front of my old Roadster and it worked great because you could choose to not have the simultaneous mid boost if you didn't want it, with a TS you're kind of stuck with it. 

ICBM

exocet said:

My solution to the Strat "issue" was to solder a 680 pF cap directly across the output of the Bridge Pickup. This brings the resonant peak down to the 2 - 3 Khz range. Works a treat and leaves the Neck pickup tone intact. The Seymour Duncan Pickup Booster has a switchable feature that does the same thing but it screws your Neck pickup tone if you leave it engaged all the time.

My Strat has a fatter bridge pickup anyway, but the whole guitar is just too thin and bright (and quiet, which the EQ helps with as well) compared to the Rick - neck pickup included.

I think my fundamental problem is that I just want everything to sound like a Rickenbacker .