Need Some Advice (Distortion Devices)

[Hungryfreak]

I'm not a guitarist or anything, but from messing around with my friend's distortion pedal for his guitar, I've discovered a love of messing around with it. Do any of the musicians out there know of any great programs or devices that I can use to just play around with distortion and create drones or noise type things? Can someone at least tell me what types of gadgets I would be looking for for this type of thing? Something cost-efficient would be preferable.

[afterstasis]

hardware...

Electro-Harmonix Classics USSR Big Muff PI - http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/product/ElectroHarmonix-Big-Muff-Pi-DistortionSustainer-Pedal?sku=153300

Dunlop Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face - http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/product/Dunlop-Dallas-Arbiter-Fuzz-Face-Pedal?sku=151214

Voodoo Lab Sparkle Drive - http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/product/Voodoo-Lab-Sparkle-Drive-Overdrive-Pedal?sku=153508

software...

Izotope Trash - http://www.izotope.com/products/audio/trash

Any Amplitube Modules - http://www.ikmultimedia.com/Main.html?guitarbasssoftware/index.php

Ohmicide Melohman - http://www.ohmforce.com/ViewProduct.do?p=Ohmicide

[WhiffleBallTony]

Hmm. I think you might need more equipment to do so if you want to use pedals and such. You'll need something that goes into the pedal to create the sound (i.e. a guitar) and something for the pedal to go into (i.e. an amp). If you do want to go that route, I would recommend first to get an Orange Crush pack (http://www.orangeamps.com/products.asp?Action=View&ID=107) (Orange makes some really great amps and this is a cheap practice amp/guitar pack). If you get that, I wouldn't really recommend getting a distortion pedal since that should have something good enough built right in. If you want something that is INCREDIBLY fun to mess around with, get an analog delay pedal. You can make some really crazy sounds with them. Specifically, I would suggest an MXR Carbon Copy (http://www.jimdunlop.com/index.php?page=products/pip&id=366&pmh=products/p_and_e_detail). I've got one and it's one of the best purchases I've ever made.

[timmay9]

That will be the second pedal I get. I have a Vox Wah right now.

[Hungryfreak]

I don't think I'm willing to spend on a guitar (unless that orange crush pack is cheap. Can't seem to find a price). If there were some other devices I could input, though, that would be great.

Actually, I just realized that if I get certain devices, I can hook them up to anything. A while back, I went to a music store (in France, of course) and bought some percussion stuff. The guy modified a cord for me so that I could tape it to any surface and plug it into an amp, meaning I can amplify or distort a good range of things.

Thanks a lot guys! I'll have to save up a bit, but some of this stuff looks really fun.

[timmay9]

When I want to get a nice amp, I can't decide if I want to get an Orange, Vox, or Marshall.

[afterstasis]

i fixed those links for you, dude...

also, if money is an issue there are some rather nice software alternatives or you can just use a cheap mic to source your own sounds.
you won't get anything clean sounding this way, but it's good for budget experimentation.

it's amazing how much fun you can have with a delay/loop pedal and a few extra effects.

[ThrobingCane]

Just dont buy a death metal pedal, I hate that pedal. As for programs, if you have a DAW (sonar, pro tools, grageband, live, cubase) you could download an amp emulator and those have some alright distortion efects.


I can use to just play around with distortion and create drones or noise type things?

What do you mean by this? Cause if you want to make noise type things you could just buy a synth and mess with the ocillators to create noise.

If you want a cool pedal to make noise or other effects check out the Roland GR-33 and the MIDI pickup to go with it the GK-2AH both are on Ebay.

[Hungryfreak]

I mean that I really want to be able to output different types of distortion, record and layer, maybe add some of my occasional drumming, to create some nice droning tracks among other things. Also, using distortion in conjunction with different instruments via my one cord would be nice. I want something that I can play around with for that sort of thing


i fixed those links for you, dude...

also, if money is an issue there are some rather nice software alternatives or you can just use a cheap mic to source your own sounds.
you won't get anything clean sounding this way, but it's good for budget experimentation.

it's amazing how much fun you can have with a delay/loop pedal and a few extra effects.

Thanks. That might be worth checking into. Even if it isn't quite clean, it may make it better in some cases, haha. How much does a cheap mic run for? Until I find a job, I don't really have a lot of cash.

[afterstasis]

Thanks. That might be worth checking into. Even if it isn't quite clean, it may make it better in some cases, haha. How much does a cheap mic run for? Until I find a job, I don't really have a lot of cash.

it really depends on what you call cheap.

i use this (http://pro-audio.musiciansfriend.com/product/MXL-V69-Mogami-Edition-Tube-Microphone?sku=271017) and this (http://pro-audio.musiciansfriend.com/product/AKG-C-1000-S-Condenser-Microphone?sku=271131) for my higher end recordings, but just as frequently use this (http://pro-audio.musiciansfriend.com/product/Behringer-XM8500-Microphone?sku=270490).

[Hungryfreak]

Yeah, I think I'll stick to the $20 one for now as someone who is just learning. My brother may have left one hanging around the house for all I know. Worst comes to worst, I can probably take the Rock Band mic, plug it into my computer, and try to work with that. Thank you.

[afterstasis]

what do you intend to use to record and/or host vst's?

www.reaper.fm supplies a nice program for $0 down! :)

[Hungryfreak]

I'm not actually sure. I'm really just getting into this stuff so my knowledge of it all is little to none. That's why Im mostly looking for cheaper things to experiment with before I really start getting into more serious stuff. Worst comes to worst, I can try recording on Garageband and messing around with that, but I don't really like using it.

[afterstasis]

reaper is free, easy to use, and supports VST's...

i'm also fairly experienced with it so i can help out, whereas i used garageband for about 5 minutes before going back to acid pro.

kvr-audio is a really good place to learn more (and find a wealthy source of free vst effects and instruments).

[Hungryfreak]

Looks like a nice program, but I'll need to play around with it to figure out what everything does and how to work anything. Thanks again.

Also, one more thing for now. Where's a good place where I can learn what everything does? I know basics of distortion, but want to figure out what the other various effects do.

[afterstasis]

Also, one more thing for now. Where's a good place where I can learn what everything does? I know basics of distortion, but want to figure out what the other various effects do.

http://www.kvraudio.com/wiki/?id=Effects

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guitar_effects

[Hungryfreak]

Ah, thanks again!

[ThrobingCane]

If you plan on doing recordings you might want to get some sort of recording interface. If you dont own one already.

[Hungryfreak]

The software generally has recording ability. I can't say I've tested it, but I should mess around first before recording anything seriously, so I have some idea of what I want to record. Thanks, though. Advice is always appreciated!

[ThrobingCane]

Yeah but how are you planing on inputing it into the computer.. 1/8 inch headphone jack??

[Hungryfreak]

I've got a lot of techno junk lying around the house. If I don't have a converter, I could probably buy one just as easily.

[ThrobingCane]

OK, I understand, you dont have much money to spend on this hobby...thats fine but if you do get serious about doing recordings you should really fork over the 100 bucks for a cheap recording interface.

Funny story... when I didnt have all my recording equipment I just used an iPod earbud as a mic and pruged it straight into my laptops sound card, didnt sound that bad, except there only being one chanel and having to record old school acoustic style.

but good luck:)

[afterstasis]

if you're wanting to go even cheaper than $100 for a beginning interface my friend swears by this little dude... http://pro-audio.musiciansfriend.com/product/Behringer-Guitar-Link-UCG102?sku=241228

i have a little trouble recommending it because i've heard very mixed reviews, but this guy has recently sent me some rather nice sounding demos recorded with it (bonus points since he's basically using it to run his guitar, bass, and drum machine through VST's to make drone-doom).

[Hungryfreak]

Yeah, I really need to get a job to start funding myself, haha.

$40? That's not bad at all. Even if it doesn't work the best, it doesn't matter as much since for now, I think the most basic stuff is fine to figure out whether or not I'm actually going to seriously pursue this.

Does the Rock Band mic work for recording? I got the original 360 one, so it's USB. If that's they case, I can start messing around easily.

Also, asked at a music store about this sort of stuff and was shown the DigiTech RP150 (http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/product/DigiTech-RP150-Multi-Effects-Pedal?sku=156606&src=3WWRWXGB&ZYXSEM=0). Does that seem like something I would want, or could I do better with software? Looks nice and simple to use, but as I've made clear enough, I don't have the experience to judge for myself.

[AKALink]

When I want to get a nice amp, I can't decide if I want to get an Orange, Vox, or Marshall.

Get a Vox, Marshall, or Roland.

[afterstasis]

Yeah, I really need to get a job to start funding myself, haha.

$40? That's not bad at all. Even if it doesn't work the best, it doesn't matter as much since for now, I think the most basic stuff is fine to figure out whether or not I'm actually going to seriously pursue this.

Does the Rock Band mic work for recording? I got the original 360 one, so it's USB. If that's they case, I can start messing around easily.

Also, asked at a music store about this sort of stuff and was shown the DigiTech RP150 (http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/product/DigiTech-RP150-Multi-Effects-Pedal?sku=156606&src=3WWRWXGB&ZYXSEM=0). Does that seem like something I would want, or could I do better with software? Looks nice and simple to use, but as I've made clear enough, I don't have the experience to judge for myself.

i just plugged my RB mic in and it automatically downloaded a driver and was working in acid pro immediately...
it actually doesn't as bad as i expected, though it's really quiet (easily fixed).

i'm not a fan at all of multi-effects pedals, but they can be good for beginners and if it doubles as a recording interface i think it would indeed be a good buy.

[timmay9]

I use the Rock Band mic for my recording stuff. Cheap, because I already had it. :)

[ThrobingCane]

i just plugged my RB mic in and it automatically downloaded a driver and was working in acid pro immediately...
it actually doesn't as bad as i expected, though it's really quiet (easily fixed).



Very interesting. I was always under the impresion that it wouldnt work for some reason, so I never tried it, but now I might try it.

A while back I was just going to cut the cord and solder an XLR to the mic, glad I didnt.

[Hungryfreak]

Thanks again, people. I may look into the multi effects pedal just to play with it better before going for specified, better quality, more expensive pedals. I should be fine with cords and stuff for now and I can use my dads electric guitar to experiment. Also still checking out and messing around with the software. I'll probably go with an Orange amp if I need one, though I can't say the full pack would be worth it for a non-guitarist like myself.

For now, Ill need to save up money to buy some things for my experiments, but hopefully within a couple of months I'll come up with something listenable, haha.

[AKALink]

I got this line 6 pod that works great. I don't know how much it cost since it was a gift.

[DasKonstruct]

I do all my recording through a USB converter similar to the one posted earlier into my laptop. I run it through Native Instruments Guitar Rig software and record directly. Guitar Rig allows for several amp emulations as well as pedals. Tried it with Adobe Audition but they didn't sound good together. Now it works well and I get a good sound after a while of tweaking and figuring out I needed to ground the damn quarter inch cable.

Drum sampling cheaply you have one option really and that's through software. They come in 2 varieties loops and patches. For patches you'll need a midi controller keyboard and samples you just loop together via software. I personally use Reason for that.

[Hungryfreak]

Thanks, always good to have more input on this. The Guitar Rig stuff looks pretty nice. I'll probably start worrying about drum sampling stuff after fiddling around more with other things, but it's good to have some basic knowledge of what I should do.

[Shredder87]

Metal Muff!!! It's the best thing to happen to distortion pedals since sliced bread!!!! It's really diverse on distortion.