I have played fingerstyle electric guitar for a long time, no pedals, straight into a tube amp. This has always given me my favorite tones along with the best control of the amplifier through playing dynamics. Every time I add guitar effects pedals I lose some of that feel and control, and usually a ton of the tone along with it.
When I started playing pedal steel, I initially played without a volume pedal, and I still do sometimes. However I do understand and appreciate how useful a volume pedal is for pedal steel. So if I'm going to use a pedal anyway, and that's how I control the gain on the amp, then it's game on for guitar effects pedals!
So here's a few questions for fun:
What are your favorite effects pedals for pedal steel? I assume reverb and delay, but anything else?
Are there effects pedals made specifically for pedal steel that you find useful?
Do you use the stereo split on your volume pedal with to have different signal paths for different effects, or to play through two amps at once?
A volume pedal controls the gain and volume on the amp if you cable it Guitar>VP>Amp Input. If you cable it Guitar>Input and connect the VP>Effects Loop separately, the VP will only control the volume level, while the gain will be full on (at whatever level you have set) all the time.
One drawback of using a volume pedal in front of a guitar amp input is the loss of high end frequency from the tone. I have 3 different volume pedals (Goodrich, Stage One, Ernie Ball), and they all do this. Placing the VP in the amp’s loop takes care of most of that problem. There are other ways of breaking through the high impedance barrier that causes tone suck, but I like the fx loop method.
There are effects made specifically for pedal steel. I don’t use any, so I am not an expert on them. Overdrive in front of the preamp, Chorus, Delay, and Reverb after it.
I think a graphic equalizer pedal is a great thing to have on pedal steel so you can adjust your overall tone and mid structure, to move forwards and backwards in the mix. Phaser can be fun too!
I have a Goodrich Steel-Bro unit I am refurbishing that gives a Dobro sound to your pedal steel. Other pedals like this exist like the Resonator II or using a Boss GE-7 equalizer pedal with a specific setting.
I do not see a use for splitting output from a volume pedal to different signal chains. I would rather see a stereo delay or chorus pedal split the signal if I want to use 2 amps.
Fred Treece wrote:A volume pedal controls the gain and volume on the amp if you cable it Guitar>VP>Amp Input. If you cable it Guitar>Input and connect the VP>Effects Loop separately, the VP will only control the volume level, while the gain will be full on (at whatever level you have set) all the time.
One drawback of using a volume pedal in front of a guitar amp input is the loss of high end frequency from the tone. I have 3 different volume pedals (Goodrich, Stage One, Ernie Ball), and they all do this. Placing the VP in the amp’s loop takes care of most of that problem. There are other ways of breaking through the high impedance barrier that causes tone suck, but I like the fx loop method.
There are effects made specifically for pedal steel. I don’t use any, so I am not an expert on them. Overdrive in front of the preamp, Chorus, Delay, and Reverb after it.
That's a great point, Fred, thank you for this! I'm going to try out the VP in the FX loop as both the amps I use have one.
Bryan Parnell wrote:I think a graphic equalizer pedal is a great thing to have on pedal steel so you can adjust your overall tone and mid structure, to move forwards and backwards in the mix. Phaser can be fun too!
I have a Goodrich Steel-Bro unit I am refurbishing that gives a Dobro sound to your pedal steel. Other pedals like this exist like the Resonator II or using a Boss GE-7 equalizer pedal with a specific setting.
I do not see a use for splitting output from a volume pedal to different signal chains. I would rather see a stereo delay or chorus pedal split the signal if I want to use 2 amps.
More good points! I was thinking an EQ or compressor might be useful for the Wet side of a Wet / Dry rig for the reasons you mention. In my experience I always like having access to the original signal though.
As for splitting I always use a buffered A/B/Y box to split when I play regular guitar and it makes an enormous difference compared to a passive Y box, as each signal comes out as a full strength copy of the original. I just noticed that lots of volume pedals made for PSG (my Goodrich Omni for example) have stereo outs and I wondered what PSG players typically do with them, besides drive straight into two amps.
The effects use is wide open. Even Buddy Emmons dabbled with various effects. Reverb and delay is most common and my favorite. Stereo steel sounds awesome but has fallen out of favor to lighten the load. A phaser is fun and some of the Harmonix Organ and piano boxes. Volume pedal is critical and good use is highly effective.
i like to have a tuner, volume, compressor (to tighten it up and even it out), dirt (usually an overdrive), delay, reverb (currently spring) and a modulation pedal (currently an mxr phase 90). the compressor, delay, and reverb are almost always on to some extent.
carter d-10, bass, guitar, keys, drums, vox, mando
I guess most players know this, but I’ll mention it just to be thorough.
Placing an overdrive/dist unit in front of the volume pedal allows the fully overdirven sound to pass through the signal chain at any volume level. I believe there is an obvious advantage to setting it up that way. If you prefer the volume pedal to control the amount of dirt in the path (as well as volume), then place the unit after the VP.
I don't like the term "volume" to describe the pedal we use. It's actually an expression device which aids the sustain and shapes the phrases. Volume (average perceived loudness) is controlled on the amp.
A severe effect like overdrive or a synth box which is part of the intended sound goes before the pedal. An environmental one like reverb goes after it, or in a loop if your amp has one.
Make sleeping dogs tell the truth!
Homebuilt keyless U12 7x5, Excel keyless U12 8x8, Williams keyless U12 7x8, Telonics rack and 15" cabs
I use a King Of Drive overdrive pedal in front of a Telonics volume pedal, a Source Audio EQ pedal after the VP into the amp and two delays, an Echoplex pedal and a T.C. Electronics Bucket Brigade pedal in the effects loop. I also use a Peterson Stomp Tuner that is not in the signal chain. This gives the cleanest sound without robbing tone from the guitar.
Johnny "Dumplin" Cox
"YANKIN' STRINGS & STOMPIN' PEDALS" since 1967.
Wow Johnny thanks for the info and pictures, looks great!
Thank you all for the information there's a common theme and lots of agreement, it's very helpful. And Ian I agree, I think organists have it right calling it an 'expression pedal' but 'volume pedal' just seems to have stuck for PSG.
Following the theme, Fred your advice of putting the VP in the FX loop is like treating the preamp as a Drive pedal. I plan to do something like this, since I use pre-amp gain sometimes, but don't currently own a drive pedal:
I think I'll parallel mix the delay and reverb into the loop too so the dry signal is still available. Very cool! If I get an EQ pedal I can put it right before the amp, and if I get a trem I'll put it in the loop too. Harrison you said you use a compressor, and if I start doing that I'll put it right after the guitar.
Whew lots to think about thanks again for all the info!
I'm not very "old school" even though I'm 70. But awhile back I bought a Line6 Helix for my guitars and since that purchase have stopped mic'ing amps. Some may gasp..but I do a lot of recording and find the end result is never bad because I'm using a modeler. It has an uncountable list of amps and FX.. and parameters to adjust almost everything, if you're a tweaker. You can adjust things from bias to amp sag to mic placement and the list of FX typically has 6 or more choices of each FX in all the different emulations and flavors.
I like it because it's fast, VERY easy to use, sounds incredible, has a natural tube amp feel and you can create your own creations, in any order. I even like using the expression pedal for volume, as you can custom tailor the sweep rate and place it anywhere in the chain.
I'm actually kinda surprised people still stick to their guns and would rather lug around a Twin.
That said, I Love Hall reverbs with subtle but super log tails...especially a ducking verb that swells up when not playing. Light chorus always.
Chris Harwood wrote:I'm not very "old school" even though I'm 70. But awhile back I bought a Line6 Helix for my guitars and since that purchase have stopped mic'ing amps. Some may gasp..but I do a lot of recording and find the end result is never bad because I'm using a modeler. It has an uncountable list of amps and FX.. and parameters to adjust almost everything, if you're a tweaker. You can adjust things from bias to amp sag to mic placement and the list of FX typically has 6 or more choices of each FX in all the different emulations and flavors.
I like it because it's fast, VERY easy to use, sounds incredible, has a natural tube amp feel and you can create your own creations, in any order. I even like using the expression pedal for volume, as you can custom tailor the sweep rate and place it anywhere in the chain.
I'm actually kinda surprised people still stick to their guns and would rather lug around a Twin.
That said, I Love Hall reverbs with subtle but super log tails...especially a ducking verb that swells up when not playing. Light chorus always.
I tend to agree for recording quick things especially. I plug in to a DI box to my computer and then use software plugins like Neural DSP right inside the DAW (which I can do with headphones at 2 am if necessary). The Neural DSP stuff is so good for the reasons you mention that I'm considering getting their Quad Cortex so I can just plug in to the board at gigs and save everybody the headaches.
Really what I'm discussing with all the amps and hardware is the rig I pull out for special occasions. I do find the real amps far more inspiring when I get to play them and I do believe that while the listeners may not know the difference they do feel it, even if it's just through my increased excitement of playing.
