Boutique boxes - no more for me

[ZeeW]

Just a statement... I've finally sold the last of my boutique stomp boxes! For years I've been chasing tones, waiting months (sometimes a year) for a pedal, bought clones and paid out a sh*t load of hard earned cash.

I decided to do this after taking the time to 'really' assess what I needed to get my tones. I was spending far too much time looking searching for perfection, spent far too much time listening to efxs snobs and even chasing vintage kit.

I've realized as far as I'm concerned that the modern equivalent of a vintage pedal, tends to be so much more reliable and often without the inherit vintage reliability issues.

What triggered all this change? I spent some time with some touring guys and was amazed at all the MXR, Boss and dead standard gear they used to create great sounds. No exotic kit, just standard off the shelf stuff that they could get anywhere in the World if it failed.

I'm now going to spend the money I've made on selling a load of efxs!

 

[synrgy]

With rare exceptions, I'm usually really impressed by how simple the rigs of my favorite players are. You listen to guys like Adam Jones or the dudes in Circa Survive and it's easy to presume there's a rack full of shit happening at all times, but then it turns out it's just a run of the mill amp and a few easy to find pedals.

 

[faceforward_007]

+1 - i agree, there are so many players who use simple rigs onstage, most of the tone comes from playing style or fingers

 

[Thep]

$20 DIY mods on used Boss pedals makes me a happy camper. I was considering replicating my pedal board with boutique equivalents, but realized I'm quite happy with the stuff I have right now.

 

[ZeeW]

I've been lucky in that the pedals I've bought over the last few years have appreciated in value or at the very least I covered my costs.

I just wished I'd not got on the "boutique" automatically = better tone route.

Another thing that triggered all of this, was my search for fuzz and fuzz polarizes opinion! Not going to mention the builder, but I emailed them loads.... heard nothing for months, then got a message saying - hey I have made some pedals wanna buy them. In the mean time I'd bought a Swollen Pickle (after advice from here) and it rocks - totally works for me and saved me loads of $$$s.

 

[ArtDecade]

Good guitar. Good amp. Good volume... Thats all you really need in the end.

 

[Thep]

Good guitar. Good amp. Good volume... Thats all you really need in the end.

Not if you want to be Kirk Hammet. wah deedly wah deedly wah deedly waaaah!!!

 

[Konfyouzd]

With rare exceptions, I'm usually really impressed by how simple the rigs of my favorite players are. You listen to guys like Adam Jones or the dudes in Circa Survive and it's easy to presume there's a rack full of shit happening at all times, but then it turns out it's just a run of the mill amp and a few easy to find pedals.

True...

See I've never had the issue OP mentioned bc the person that taught me to play was very much against effects so I pretty much learned to play with the bare minimum as far as effects go (distortion and reverb or slight delay). Thus the idea of using a ton of pedals was completely lost on me. I have only recently begun to buy pedals and even then I only have an Ibanez TS9 and a Boss NS2 (Something...? I don't remember the damn model number).

Another thing I noticed is that some ppl have all the effects in the world and still sound bad I so just assumed they weren't needed (Not entirely true...)

 

[ZeeW]

True...

See I've never had the issue OP mentioned bc the person that taught me to play was very much against effects so I pretty much learned to play with the bare minimum as far as effects go (distortion and reverb or slight delay). Thus the idea of using a ton of pedals was completely lost on me. I have only recently begun to buy pedals and even then I only have an Ibanez TS9 and a Boss NS2 (Something...? I don't remember the damn model number).

Another thing I noticed is that some ppl have all the effects in the world and still sound bad I so just assumed they weren't needed (Not entirely true...)

I too was taught to play with the absolute minimum, but tone chasing became quite addictive I started playing the Blues and rock and had nothing but a guitar, amp and TS!

As I got more 'involved' my rig became more complex and costly - what I'm saying is that I bought into boutique pedals, blew a load of cash, spent far too much time researching boutique kit...

I still have my TS, gate/comp, fuzz and delay BUT they cost a fraction of what I had before and I sound just as good - honestly

 

[Digideus]

I guess Im lucky. I came to this realization about 10 years ago.

Ive used a Boss GX-700 as a preamp and effects unit for about 13 years now. I got it with an FC200 foot controller thrown in a bundle. For a 1U rack unit, it has more effects than I will ever use. I can plug it into any amp, from a combo to a high gain head & use it in the effects loop with no trouble. The only other thing I have is a tuner pedal which I use as a kill switch between songs.

If I want pure tube tone, I will use a tube head and use the Gx as an effects unit. I can pretty much achieve any sound I need with it. I have considered buying a newer box, but I am unwilling to spend £1000 for something that I already have just because the snob brigade reckon their stuff is "better" than mine. One day, I will have to replace it (its showing signs of wear and tear these days) but when I do, Im going to stick to that formula.

Like Bruce Lee once said "IF IT WORKS FOR YOU, USE IT!"

 

[ZeeW]

I wish I had worked it out ten years ago! Anyway, it works for me now!

 

[gunshow86de]

Oh yeah??? I'm currently assembling an entire rig made out of nothing but boutique stompboxes. No really, I am.

 

[ZeeW]

Oh yeah??? I'm currently assembling an entire rig made out of nothing but boutique stompboxes. No really, I am.

I should have sold you some of mine

 

[getaway_fromme]

Ya, I hear you OP. Just recently I've been relying on 2 channels for band practice recently....With excellent results...Probably better than with all of the fx, but then again that's live in a band setting, in the studio however...I don't mind going FX crazy...a little.

 

[Sepultorture]

the only pedal i wanna try would be either a keeley moded ts9 or a Keeley overdrive, other than that i like what the stock TS9 does. tightens up shit and adds mids \m/

 

[gunshow86de]

I should have sold you some of mine

Were they brightly colored with goofy hand-painted graphics??? I'm a sucker for those.

 

[SirMyghin]

I just watch demo after demo and buy the pedal I liked best in that class.. That is how I ended up with an El capistan, beside a bad horsie wah (albeit that one is more for mechanics)

 

[Guitarmiester]

I'm glad I stopped wasting my money on rare, over-priced, and over-hyped pedals. You can easily get similar, if not better, results with run of the mill pedals.

With rare exceptions, I'm usually really impressed by how simple the rigs of my favorite players are. You listen to guys like Adam Jones or the dudes in Circa Survive and it's easy to presume there's a rack full of shit happening at all times, but then it turns out it's just a run of the mill amp and a few easy to find pedals.

Circa Survive was the first band to pop into my head. They have awesome recorded and live tones, yet run such a simple, no frills rig. It's bands like that that keep me on track with a simple, effective rig.

 

[XEN]

I hear ya! I'm down to my amps and an MXR Carbon Copy delay. I have an MXR 10 band EQ I'll only use when The Mark IV is not in use, and a wah I just ordered, but that's it, and I couldn't be happier.

 

[Default_M]

I find it odd that people mention Circa Survive because when they played in the UK recently I was at the front and could look at the (none bald) guitarist's pedalboard and it was packed with expensive pedals.
I remember him having an Empress Super Delay and a few other similar delays because I left thinking that at the volume they were playing you just couldn't tell them apart from something like a Boss DD3.

It was that band that made me have similar thoughts to the OP in that you can have all these expensive pedals but the audience at a gig really can't tell a difference.