Guitar Pedals for Ambient/Experimental Music: Part 1

This video was much requested, and it got bigger and bigger.

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Pedals used:
Moog Minifooger Drive
Behringer Ultra Vibrato
Behringer Ultra Tremolo
Digitech Digidelay
EHX BIG MUFF
EHX Frequency Analyzer

[idj]

That is so cool.

The other day, I turned VLC player on my desktop PC and then kept hearing this strange ethereal feedback coming out of my speakers which kind of spooked me out. I then realised that I had left the webcam on and it's microphone was picking up the background sound from the PC's speakers via VLC and I worked out that using VLC's own sound adjustment levels I was able to crudely change the parameters of the feedback.

[ace-smith]

Tremolo pedal: Adds tremolo
Vibrato pedal: Adds vibrato
Delay pedal: I T ' S M O R P H I N T I M E

[Jasonweckard]

My favorite quote about pedals are that they are "Poor Man's Outboard Gear" and I really love them for that reason.

[localtechnique]

That Frequency Analyzer is a beast! I do love the frequency shifter in my Field Kit FX.

The first music I recorded back in the 90s was with a bass through a few pedals into a tape recorder. Think freestyle industrial noise. It was a lot of fun but everyone thought I was mad in the head when they heard it back.

[khalylehagood]

I've gigged with enough behringer pedals to know they won't break as long as you don't slam your foot on them like you're trying to smash a can or a gourd or something.

A trick you can use the digitech that I use is really, really short loops. Sub second loops. You get these wild stutters. I usually throw a modulation pedal after it, but it's great for snatching stuttery stuff. Highly recommend.

[kalikotronix]

I was quite surprised in the end when you brought out the bass guitar and mentioned QOTSA, didn't know that you were a fan of the fuzz bass sound of stoner rock! Respect! Keep it up!

[thelostart]

nice work. thank you for this channel, been enjoying it a lot since i found it recently. inspiring and relaxing at the same time....

[EclipseAtDusk]

Pedals have always been one of my favorite parts of playing electric guitar, and I'm very excited to work them into synth playing as I start experimenting with that. One of my favorites is the Ibanez Echo Shifter ES2 - it's an analog delay with very lo-fi repeats, meant to emulate a tape delay, and it's VERY playable. The delay time is anywhere from slapback fast to almost a second between repeats, it has built in modulation, and an oscillate switch that automatically makes it feed back on itself for infinite repeats and spaceship noises.

I also quite dig the Small Clone chorus for adding a little extra space to a sound, and the Swollen Pickle fuzz is SUPER tweakable.

I really want to mess with the EHX Frequency Analyzer and Electric Mistress though, especially given you can use both as manually sweepable filters

[kenschestok]

you have made me rediscover my kalimba and my once forgotten stash of vintage lapel mics! thank you!! hooked them up this past weekend as well as my grandfather's old shortwave radio and messed around for a few hours... sounds horrible, but was fun!

[porcimeaeinfloare]

17:36 bass+fuzz does that to you! :) Thank you for your videos and music, I'm so glad I found them!

[matthiasnicolai]

Lieber Hainbach! Als treuer Abonnent und Daumenheber wollte ich Dir schon lange mal für Deine kompetenten aber auch unterhaltsamen "Seminare" danken. Ich fühle mich dabei immer gute 40 Jahre jünger, als ich am Konservatorium Freiburg und am Experimentalstudio des SWF modulare Klangerzeugung lernen durfte. Der SWF hatte damals das erste Moog-Modularsystem (Ausbaustufe "Emerson") Deutschlands bestellt. Und wer brachte es vorbei? Prof. Bob persönlich mit einem 2-tägigen Hardcore-Seminar. Welch ein Erlebnis! Heute arbeite ich auch als Schriftsteller und möchte Dir deshalb als Dank ein kleines Gedicht von mir widmen:


Ein Ton erklingt.
Es ist ein Sägezahn.
Steil steigt die Welle.
Senkrecht fällt sie wieder ab.
Ich frage mich, ob ich begriffen hab,
dass dieser Ton (es ist ein Sägezahn)
elektrisch ist von ein paar Volt erzeugt.
Und dieser Ton,
solang er tönen kann,
sich schmunzelnd nur
vor der Natur verbeugt /|...


In diesem Sinne: Weiter so und nochmals 1000 Dank!

[stuartchapman]

Excellent work as ever Hainbach, I use 2 banks of pedals (including one of my own designs), tape loops, 2 turntables (mainly for spoken word), my homebrewed drone synth and virtual dj (for my own edits and samples of classic ambient samples). I have recently bought a delay circuit board to box up, for a third feedback loop, I would love to buy a SE 20 but its out of my price range. Thanks to your video I have discovered the amazing Digitech Digital delay, that continuous delay loop effect is exactly what I'm after. I'm going to sell this new delay circuit on and buy one straight away, I am very grateful, keep up the good work, I can't wait till this evening to watch part 2.

[vkdrummer]

I'm in love with that Digidelay! It sounds so nice when paired with a kalimba

[angeloxboss]

I've had my behringer echo machine for 2 years, she's doing just fine and sounds great. No cracks

[buckrogez]

The vibrato is pretty sick, never owned the original VB-2 But from what I've heard and seen online it's pretty spot on. That digi delay has been blowing my mind lately too...i initially hated that series of pedals but there are a few worthy exceptions. The digi delay being one of them, specifically for these out there psychedelic experiments.

[HitmanJenkins]

The Boss PS-2 is my favourite guitar pedal. I use it a lot for prepared guitar and no-input mixing stuff, I've yet to see another pitchshifter work in a microtonal way like this one does (besides possibly the Digitech Whammy, but I don't think it can go from one octave down to one octave up like the PS-2 can. It's delay not only gets thinner with each repeat, but it also gets nice and bitcrushy when it self oscillates too which I've never seen any other delay pedal do. Truly a unique beast.

[vicesquadpunk]

Reminiscent of original Forbidden Planet film atmospheres : 06:48 very good indeed ✊😊

[josephf]

Don't sleep on the Empress Echosystem! Dual effects engines running in serial or parallel, plus presets. I run mine into a Boomerang Looper and I love it.

[accidentallyfasting]

I'm just getting into this kind of music making now, but I have a Electoharminix Stereo memory man w/ hazarai that i'll be using for extra looping/delay, etc. Really powerful pedal. Can't wait to get started.

[tbone]

What’s this?! An ambient/experimental list without Eventide Space Reverb or a Big sky? Really appreciate the video that isn’t just the same parroted gear.

Also for a pretty solid budget delay I love the Donner Yellow Fall. $39 on amazon but does its job pretty damn well. Love your content.