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Author Topic: which EQ?  (Read 4991 times)

LazyNinja

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which EQ?
« on: January 11, 2007, 10:40:42 AM »
I'm thinking of getting an equaliser when I get my new amp, which will probably be a VH100R. Im not sure if I'll need it, but something like an EQ is useful to have anyway I'm sure I'll find some use.

The ones I've looked at so far are: MXR 6 and 10 band eqs, Fish'n'chips, Boss GE-7, Behringer EQ700, behringer FBQ1502, and a GLX one.

I thought the idea of a 10 band EQ sounded cool, but what I noticed was I could buy the behringer fbq1502, a rackmount dual 15 band eq for half the price! How does that work? For the same price I could get Boss ge-7, which I'm sure is tried and tested, but is it actually worth the price? Is it any better than fish and chips or GLX? And is the little behringer anything more than a toy?

What I'm also worried about is if I could cope with 10 band or 15 band eq, bearing in mind I have no experience of graphic equalisers. But they just seem so much more versatile than 6-7 bands.


Your thoughts?

Mr Ed

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which EQ?
« Reply #1 on: January 11, 2007, 10:55:58 AM »
Either of the MXR's.

I have the 6-band now and it's amazing, I had the 10-band and it too is fantastic but it's a little harder to use obviously because you have more bases to cover but, because of that, it'll give you more versatility when shaping your sound.

TwilightOdyssey

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which EQ?
« Reply #2 on: January 11, 2007, 02:20:33 PM »
If the amp doesn't have a solo boost, an EQ pedal through the FX loop is a great boost!

I like the BOSS for this purpose, but I've not really experimented enough to draw any kind of comparison between the BOSS and any of the others you mentioned.

Mr Ed

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« Reply #3 on: January 11, 2007, 03:37:45 PM »
I didn't like the Boss - the GE-7 can be notoriously noisy and I prefer the ultra-solid reliable construction/switch of an MXR.

TwilightOdyssey

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which EQ?
« Reply #4 on: January 11, 2007, 04:05:36 PM »
^ Firstly, that reputation is ill-founded. Some BOSS EQ's have been found to be noisy in front of an overdriven amp, certainly not all of them, and BOSS would never have kept making a pedal that was "notorious" for being noisy.

Have you found the GE-7 to be noisy? Did the switch on your GE-7 prove to be faulty? (In which case you would probably be the first person in hsitory to have this happen) Or are you just parroting an incorrect urban legend that's been perpetuated through the likes of message boards and forums? Just because it appears on the internet does not make it true!!

Secondly, used in the manner I prescribed above, the GE-7 is dead quiet.

Nolly

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which EQ?
« Reply #5 on: January 11, 2007, 05:02:12 PM »
^I agree-even if I have the GE-7 going into the front of my amp (as I often do), along with a tubescreamer PLUS some hefty gain on the amp itself, the noise levels are very low!

Obviously if your amp is noisy on its own then boosting the signal with any graphic EQ is going to cause even more.

True the MXR pedals are built like tanks but it's hardly like the Boss ones will just fall apart! So many professional guitarists use the GE-7 on the road that I doubt that it would have reliability issues!

I think you will find that a 6-7 band EQ will give you plenty of tweaking power for most applications. Still, it's up to you, any graphic EQ is a useful piece of kit, and I'm sure you'll be happy with whichever you go for!

BloodMountain

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which EQ?
« Reply #6 on: January 11, 2007, 05:24:08 PM »
this thread may help you, i was looking at the same pedals myself =)

http://www.bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6089

in the end, the fish & chips or any MXR eq pedal (6 or 10) won the day.
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LazyNinja

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which EQ?
« Reply #7 on: January 11, 2007, 09:26:27 PM »
Quote from: BLOODMOUNTAIN
this thread may help you, i was looking at the same pedals myself =)

http://www.bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6089

in the end, the fish & chips or any MXR eq pedal (6 or 10) won the day.


Hey thanks BM, and that's a good news to me to coz I just bought a mint fish'n'chips on ebay for £10! Bought it after reading reviews and hell it's tenner. eBay bargains do exist don't they  :D

something not so much of a bargain here:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/mesa-boogie-v-twin-pedal_W0QQitemZ250070012671QQihZ015QQcategoryZ22669QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

seriously what the @#&% happened there?  :? Dont they go for about 230 normally? for that kinda money you could just get a second hand DC series or something.

BloodMountain

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which EQ?
« Reply #8 on: January 11, 2007, 10:10:37 PM »
wow £10!!!! tell me how you get on with it! i want one now... i never got around to buying it and now i have no money cause of a new guitar  :(

haha £450!!!! i saw one go for 220 today!
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Kilby

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which EQ?
« Reply #9 on: January 11, 2007, 11:03:02 PM »
Quote from: TwilightOdyssey
If the amp doesn't have a solo boost, an EQ pedal through the FX loop is a great boost!

I like the BOSS for this purpose, but I've not really experimented enough to draw any kind of comparison between the BOSS and any of the others you mentioned.


Dave Gilmour uses 2 boss EQ pedals for boost so you are in good company.
Goodbye London !

HTH AMPS

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which EQ?
« Reply #10 on: January 11, 2007, 11:12:03 PM »
wow, £450 for a V-Twin - someone must've wanted one BAD  :o

as for EQs, I've used a Behringer rack EQ and it didn't work very well at all with amps.  otoh, I've used an old MXR 6-band that was excellent and the MXR 10-band KFK EQ I have is excellent (especially the ability to set the input AND output gain independently).

 :twisted:

_tom_

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which EQ?
« Reply #11 on: January 11, 2007, 11:15:35 PM »
Hmm I'm considering getting a different EQ. Currently using a Behringer EQ700 and even with slight adjustments it sounds kinda "fake" and not natural. Is this just the nature of an EQ or do some sound less fake?

edit - this is when running in the fx loop just adding some slight mids and cutting bass a bit.

Nolly

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which EQ?
« Reply #12 on: January 12, 2007, 02:17:08 PM »
Well a graphic EQ pedal should be as transparent as possible, in that it shouldn't colour the tone at all. It should act as though you were just twiddling the EQ knobs on your amp, only with more control.
I can't say I have used the Behringer, but it's probably worth trying the others mentioned in this thread (Boss, MXR, Danelectro) and see if you notice the same thing.

gwEm

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which EQ?
« Reply #13 on: January 12, 2007, 02:52:08 PM »
_tom_ : i dont think that the MXR 6band eq sounds in the least bit fake... unless you do something silly like boost one frequency to the max, and cut the others to the minimum ;)
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_tom_

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which EQ?
« Reply #14 on: January 12, 2007, 03:01:06 PM »
Yeah, all I really want it to do is act like a secondary amp eq,  the behringer doesnt seem to do what I want though (and the sliders dont "click" into the zero position which I find kinda annoying for some reason).