I want a harmonizer pedal

[UnattendedGolfcart]

Hey dudes, I'm considering getting a harmonizer pedal. I'm the only guitarist in my band and I want to add some flavor to some of the riffs. I want to get a harmonizer pedal that can do non-diatonic harmonies as well as diatonic harmonies. I'm playing death metal so I want something where I can mainly just add some fourths or fifths to fast single note riffs or solos, for instance to get that Decrepit Birth harmony sound.

I haven't seen that many, the EHX Pitch Fork is the only one I've seen so far in my budget ($160 is about the max) It sounds good but I haven't heard many demos beyond total octave harmonies and 100% blend on the pedal. Are there any other pedals I should be looking at, or would this be a good pedal to check out? I would mainly use it for the purposes I mentioned above and then also use it for swells when I get my reverb and start building an ambient rig.

Any experience with the EHX Pitch Fork or other harmonizers?

 

[Konfyouzd]

There's a dude named Rick Seidletz (sp?) on Facebook. If you don't find anything, try asking him what he can cook up for you. People really seem to like his pedals.

 

[Bloody_Inferno]

A Boss PS6 or used PS5 should be good for your needs.

Don't have any experience with the Pitchfork.

 

[MetalGuitarArmoury]

I've played around with a Boss PS6 and was pleasantly surprised. It actually sounded way more organic than I was expecting. Brand new, it's about $170 I think, but you should be able to pick up a decent used one for well under your maximum price point.

 

[TonyFlyingSquirrel]

Even a Line 6 M5 or M9, and you have endless options, presets that you can create per key/song.

 

[Given To Fly]

Hey dudes, I'm considering getting a harmonizer pedal. I'm the only guitarist in my band and I want to add some flavor to some of the riffs. I want to get a harmonizer pedal that can do non-diatonic harmonies as well as diatonic harmonies. I'm playing death metal so I want something where I can mainly just add some fourths or fifths to fast single note riffs or solos, for instance to get that Decrepit Birth harmony sound.

I haven't seen that many, the EHX Pitch Fork is the only one I've seen so far in my budget ($160 is about the max) It sounds good but I haven't heard many demos beyond total octave harmonies and 100% blend on the pedal. Are there any other pedals I should be looking at, or would this be a good pedal to check out? I would mainly use it for the purposes I mentioned above and then also use it for swells when I get my reverb and start building an ambient rig.

Any experience with the EHX Pitch Fork or other harmonizers?

I have experience with a few harmonizers, including the PitchFork, and if you keep it simple, the PitchFork is probably your best option. Simple would be 4th's, 5th's and octaves. I realize EHX says the PitchFork capable of much more but in reality those capabilities are not useful or you have to limit how you play to accommodate the pedal. The same thing is true of the Digitech Whammy pedal, unless Digitech has improved it.

4th's, 5th's, and octaves sound decent on the PitchFork (and the Whammy pedal) because the mathematic ratios between the note you play and the generated harmony are rather simple. For example, and octave has a ratio of 2:1. Analog circuitry and digital circuitry can handle that pretty well. The Micro Pog has rock solid tracking no matter what you play because it only needs to generate an octave up/down or both. The Micro Pog is $213 and only does a fraction of what the PitchFork can do...but it tracks better and sounds better.

The best harmonizer pedal available is the Eventide PitchFactor. The second best harmonizer pedal is the Eventide H9. The third best harmonizer would be another guitarist...assuming there are no keyboard players around.

 

[Alex Kenivel]

I've used a Boss Super Shifter for such applications. I've since moved on to an HD500x

 

[UnattendedGolfcart]

I've played around with a Boss PS6 and was pleasantly surprised. It actually sounded way more organic than I was expecting. Brand new, it's about $170 I think, but you should be able to pick up a decent used one for well under your maximum price point.

The Boss PS6 looks nice too, a new one is in my price range, but that's as far as I could go. Does that have non-key based pitch shifting, such as having a perfect fifth above any note I play? I can't really tell from looking at the pedal and the description. I do like that it has the in-key harmonies and the super bend seems like a fun occasional use.

If the Boss PS6 has the straight pitch shift feature and not just having to be in key, then I would probably get that. If not, then I would get the Pitch Fork.

 

[TheWarAgainstTime]

The Line 6 M series is a good option, or if you can push the budget a bit more you could get a used TC Electronic Nova system, which has the intelligent pitch, for about $200, along with all of the other delays, drives, reverbs, modulation, and eq effects it offers.

 

[mongey]

The Boss PS6 looks nice too, a new one is in my price range, but that's as far as I could go. Does that have non-key based pitch shifting, such as having a perfect fifth above any note I play? I can't really tell from looking at the pedal and the description. I do like that it has the in-key harmonies and the super bend seems like a fun occasional use.

If the Boss PS6 has the straight pitch shift feature and not just having to be in key, then I would probably get that. If not, then I would get the Pitch Fork.

I have an older boss ps5 and yes you can either do diatonic pitch shifting to a key or it can do straight intervals.

I imagine the ps6 is the same.

 

[UnattendedGolfcart]

I honestly think the Pitch Fork sounds better in some applications than the Boss PS-6. The Pitch Fork is simpler for my uses, I wouldn't use a lot of the settings on the Boss like the Detune or Super Bend controls, and looking at the knobs without the interval names on them would annoy me in the long run since I would end up forgetting what most of them were...and I just think that the Pitch Fork sounds nicer from the demos I've heard.

I'll have to check one out and play it before I get anything, but I'm more likely to go with the Pitch Fork than the PS-6. I wanna check out the Line 6 M5 as well.

 

[Alex Kenivel]

The PS-6 definitely has both harmonies in keys and in chromatic steps, it even has a flutter setting.

The pitch fork looks cool, and had more range than the PS 6. They both accept expression pedals, too...

 

[FireInside]

I really like my Digitech Harmonyman: