Download Example 1 Bass: 1987 Kramer Striker into a a Gallien-Kreuger 700 RB-II bass head to a 1970 Orange 8x10 cabinet. Download Example 2 Guitar: Cycle through 4 settings.
Download Example 1 Bass: 1987 Kramer Striker into a a Gallien-Kreuger 700 RB-II bass head to a 1970 Orange 8x10 cabinet. | |
Download Example 2 Guitar: Cycle through 4 settings. 2008 Fender American Standard Stratocaster into a Fender Twin Reverb reissue |
Echoes of the Past
It’s no wonder that the Bass Octave Fuzz’s main inspiration is the Bass Brassmaster pedal, which originated in the late ’70s. The Brassmaster has been used by some of rock’s most famous bassists, including Chris Squire of Yes and the Who’s John Entwhistle. Since the Brassmaster’s debut in the heyday of aggressive and progressive rock, it has become a highly sought-after collector’s piece, likely commanding hundreds of dollars. Its sputtery, sometimes synth-like sound defined an era of rock ’n’ roll when bassists began to take a stronger role in a world dominated by huge guitar tones.
The Bass Octave Fuzz employs the same control scheme as its ancestor, using three knobs and two toggle switches to manage its wide range of tones. The Bass control is effectively a mixer control to balance the effected and dry signals, and I was happy to have this simple but useful feature available on the Bass Octave. It allowed me to alter the mix of clean bass tone with the distorted signal for plenty of nuanced tonal tweaking, and my desired mix really came through with only slight adjustments—depending on the amp and bass being used. It’s an indispensable control and thankfully being added to more and more bass effects manufactured today.
The other two knobs—Drive and Fuzz— work in tandem to produce the pedal’s fuzz effect. The Fuzz control doesn’t affect the amount of fuzz as it implies, but rather controls the volume of the fuzz tone itself. It’s the Drive knob that manages the additional signal gain needed for the desired distortion.
The Filter and Harmonic toggle switches are the unique features of the Bass Octave. They’re designed to react in the same fashion as the Brass and Harmonic switches on the original Brassmaster, altering the harmonic range and intensity of the octave-up effect. Using different combinations of range and intensity can produce tones that not only sound drastically different from one another, but also change the playing feel considerably.
Getting Down to Brass Tacks
Grabbing a 1987 Kramer Striker USA bass, I plugged the Bass Octave into a Gallien-Krueger 700RB-II bass head cabled to a 1970 Orange 8x10 cabinet. Both of the toggle switches were set to their left positions, and all of the controls were set directly at noon. A massive wall of fat fuzz hit me in the back after plucking the low E string, with the grit and snarl of unwieldy early ’70s fuzz tones. Interestingly, the pedal was dead silent as I turned the Drive knob up to higher settings. It also remained super tight on the low frequencies—even while doing chord work.
The Orange cabinet has strong midrange tendencies, and in some cases, the sheer amount of air that the cabinet was pushing with the pedal engaged was almost too much. This is where the simple mix control came into perfect play, allowing me to easily dial back the raunchy fuzz tone and have it sit nicely on top of the smooth and naturally clean tone of the rig.
Once I achieved the tone I was happy with, I moved into further sonic exploration by switching the toggle controls into various combinations. The left position of the Frequency toggle seemed to let the natural high end of the fuzz cut through a bit more than the right position, which slightly rolled off the sharpness of the effect. The tonal change resulting from switching the Harmonic toggle back and forth was much more evident. Some really trippy, lo-fi tones with scooped mids can be coaxed out of the pedal with the Harmonic switch in the left position. When toggled right, the switch coaxes the pedal into some utterly bizarre, space-age tones with increased volume and harmonics.
The key to getting a great sound out of the Bass Octave is to approach it with a conservative and “not-so-knob-happy” attitude. Just a touch of drive will go a long way with this pedal, so rely on your fingering or pick attack for producing subtle dynamics. All said, really pushing the Drive control will give you some extremely aggressive sounds, reminiscent of the opening dirge to King Crimson’s "Red," by bassist John Wetton. But if you’re in the mood for adding fuzz as more of a texture, start with lower settings and use different combinations of the Filter and Harmonic toggle switches to find what you’re looking for.
The Verdict
Though gear companies traditionally haven’t given bassists the amount of attention bestowed on guitarists, bassists have had a few gems to call their own in the past—such as the original Maestro Bass Brassmaster. Like its predecessor, the modern-day Black Cat Bass Octave Fuzz produces a powerful, detailed, and—most importantly—unique fuzz tone that harkens back to that famous bass grind of the ’70s. Though the pedal can be dialed back and tamed, it’s not meant to be a smooth-sounding device, meaning these tones are not for everybody. But that’s what made the original Brassmaster pedals so popular in the first place—tones that stand out from the crowd.
Buy if...
you’re in the market for a vintage Brassmaster, but are shy on the scratch it takes to get one.
Skip if...
you need a smooth, subtle overdrive.
Rating...
Street $225 - Black Cat Pedals - blackcatpedals.com |
Stompboxtober is rolling on! Enter below for your chance to WIN today's featured pedal from Peterson Tuners! Come back each day during the month of October for more chances to win!
Peterson StroboStomp Mini Pedal Tuner
The StroboStomp Mini delivers the unmatched 0.1 cent tuning accuracy of all authentic Peterson Strobe Tuners in a mini pedal tuner format. We designed StroboStomp Mini around the most requested features from our customers: a mini form factor, and top mounted jacks. |
Many listeners and musicians can tell if a bass player is really a guitarist in disguise. Here’s how you can brush up on your bass chops.
Was bass your first instrument, or did you start out on guitar? Some of the world’s best bass players started off as guitar players, sometimes by chance. When Stuart Sutcliffe—originally a guitarist himself—left the Beatles in 1961, bass duties fell to rhythm guitarist Paul McCartney, who fully adopted the role and soon became one of the undeniable bass greats.
Since there are so many more guitarists than bassists—think of it as a supply and demand issue—odds are that if you’re a guitarist, you’ve at least dabbled in bass or have picked up the instrument to fill in or facilitate a home recording.
But there’s a difference between a guitarist who plays bass and one who becomes a bass player. Part of what’s different is how you approach the music, but part of it is attitude.
Many listeners and musicians can tell if a bass player is really a guitarist in disguise. They simply play differently than someone who spends most of their musical time embodying the low end. But if you’re really trying to put down some bass, you don’t want to sound like a bass tourist. Real bassists think differently about the rhythm, the groove, and the harmony happening in each moment.
And who knows … if you, as a guitarist, thoroughly adopt the bassist mindset, you might just find your true calling on the mightiest of instruments. Now, I’m not exactly recruiting, but if you have the interest, the aptitude, and—perhaps most of all—the necessity, here are some ways you can be less like a guitarist who plays bass, and more like a bona fide bass player.
Start by playing fewer notes. Yes, everybody can see that you’ve practiced your scales. But at least until you get locked in rhythmically, use your ears more than your fingers and get a sense of how your bass parts mesh with the other musical elements. You are the glue that holds everything together. Recognize that you’re at the intersection of rhythm and harmony, and you’ll realize foundation beats flash every time.“If Larry Graham, one of the baddest bassists there has ever been, could stick to the same note throughout Sly & the Family Stone’s ‘Everyday People,’ then you too can deliver a repetitive figure when it’s called for.”
Focus on that kick drum. Make sure you’re locked in with the drummer. That doesn’t mean you have to play a note with every kick, but there should be some synchronicity. You and the drummer should be working together to create the rhythmic drive. Laying down a solid bass line is no time for expressive rubato phrasing. Lock it up—and have fun with it.
Don’t sleep on the snare. What does it feel like to leave a perfect hole for the snare drum’s hits on two and four? What if you just leave space for half of them? Try locking the ends of your notes to the snare’s backbeat. This is just one of the ways to create a rhythmic feel together with the drummer, so you produce a pocket that everyone else can groove to.
Relish your newfound harmonic power. Move that major chord root down a third, and now you have a minor 7 chord. Play the fifth under a IV chord and you have a IV/V (“four over five,” which fancy folks sometimes call an 11 chord). The point is to realize that the bottom note defines the harmony. Sting put it like this: “It’s not a C chord until I play a C. You can change harmony very subtly but very effectively as a bass player. That’s one of the great privileges of our role and why I love playing bass. I enjoy the sound of it, I enjoy its harmonic power, and it’s a sort of subtle heroism.”
Embrace the ostinato. If the song calls for playing the same motif over and over, don’t think of it as boring. Think of it as hypnotic, tension-building, relentless, and an exercise in restraint. Countless James Brown songs bear this out, but my current favorite example is the bass line on the Pointer Sisters’ swampy cover of Allen Toussaint “Yes We Can Can,” which was played by Richard Greene of the Hoodoo Rhythm Devils, aka Dexter C. Plates. Think about it: If Larry Graham, one of the baddest bassists there has ever been, could stick to the same note throughout Sly & the Family Stone’s “Everyday People,” then you too can deliver a repetitive figure when it’s called for.
Be supportive. Though you may stretch out from time to time, your main job is to support the song and your fellow musicians. Consider how you can make your bandmates sound better using your phrasing, your dynamics, and note choices. For example, you could gradually raise the energy during guitar solos. Keep that supportive mindset when you’re offstage, too. Some guitarists have an attitude of competitiveness and even scrutiny when checking out other players, but bassists tend to offer mutual support and encouragement. Share those good vibes with enthusiasm.
And finally, give and take criticism with ease. This one’s for all musicians: Humility and a sense of helpfulness can go a long way. Ideally, everyone should be working toward the common goal of what’s good for the song. As the bass player, you might find yourself leading the way.Fuchs Audio introduces the ODH Hybrid amp, featuring a True High Voltage all-tube preamp and Ice Power module for high-powered tones in a compact size. With D-Style overdrive, Spin reverb, and versatile controls, the ODH offers exceptional tone shaping and flexibility at an affordable price point.
Fuchs Audio has introduced their latest amp the ODH © Hybrid. Assembled in USA.
Featuring an ODS-style all-tube preamp, operating at True High Voltage into a fan-cooled Ice power module, the ODH brings high-powered clean and overdrive tones to an extremely compact size and a truly affordable price point.
Like the Fuchs ODS amps, the ODH clean preamp features 3-position brite switch, amid-boost switch, an EQ switch, high, mid and low controls. The clean preamp drives theoverdrive section in D-Style fashion. The OD channel has an input gain and outputmaster with an overdrive tone control. This ensures perfect tuning of both the clean andoverdrive channels. A unique tube limiter circuit controls the Ice Power module input.Any signal clipping is (intentionally) non-linear so it responds just like a real tube amp.
The ODH includes a two-way footswitch for channels and gain boost. A 30-second mute timer ensures the tubes are warmed up before the power amp goes live. The ODH features our lush and warm Spin reverb. A subsonic filter eliminates out-of-band low frequencies which would normally waste amplifier power, which assures tons of clean headroom. The amp also features Accent and Depth controls, allowing contouring of the high and low response of the power amp section, to match speakers, cabinets andenvironments. The ODH features a front panel fully buffered series effects loop and aline out jack, allowing for home recording or feeding a slave amp. A three-position muteswitch mutes the amp, the line out or mute neither.
Built on the same solid steel chassis platform as the Fuchs FB series bass amps, the amps feature a steel chassis and aluminum front and rear panels, Alpha potentiometers, ceramic tube sockets, high-grade circuit boards and Neutrik jacks. The ICE power amp is 150 watts into 8 ohms and 300 watts into 4 ohms, and nearly 500 watts into 2.65 ohms (4 and8 ohms in parallel) and operates on universal AC voltage, so it’s fully globallycompatible. The chassis is fan-cooled to ensure hours of cool operation under any circumstances. The all-tube preamp uses dual-selected 12AX7 tubes and a 6AL5 limiter tube.
MAP: $ 1,299
For more information, please visit fuchsaudiotechnology.com.
Jackson Guitars announces its first female signature artist model, the Pro Series Signature Diamond Rowe guitar.
“I‘m so excited about this new venture with the Jackson family. This is a historic collaboration - as I am the first female in the history of Jackson with a signature guitar and the first female African American signature Jackson artist. I feel so honored to have now joined such an elite group of players that are a part of this club. Many who have inspired me along this journey to get here. It’s truly humbling.” says Diamond.
Diamond Rowe is the co-founder and lead guitarist for the metal/hard rock band Tetrarch. Since co-founding the band in high school, Tetrarch has become one of the most talked about up-and-coming bands in the world - with several press outlets such as Metal Hammer, Kerrang, Revolver, Guitar World and many others boldly naming Diamond Rowe the world’s next guitar hero. Tetrarch has connected with many fans while performing on some of the world's biggest stages garnering spots alongside several of the heavy music world’s biggest names such as Guns N’ Roses, Slipknot, Lamb of God, Disturbed, Avenged Sevenfold, Sevendust, Rob Zombie, Trivium, and many many others. The Jackson Pro Series Signature Diamond Rowe DR12MG EVTN6 is based on Jackson’s single-cut Monarkh platform and is a premium guitar designed for progressive metal players seeking precision and accuracy.
Crafted in partnership with Diamond, this model boasts a 25.5 “ scale, Monarkh-styled nyatoh body draped with a gorgeous poplar burl top, three-piece nyatoh set-neck with graphite reinforcement, and 12˝ radius bound ebony fingerboard with 24 jumbo frets. The black chrome-covered active EMG® 81/85 humbucking bridge and neck pickups, three-way toggle switch, single volume control, and tone control provide a range of tonal options. The Evertune® bridge ensures excellent tuning stability, while the Dark Rose finish with a new custom 3+3 color-matched Jackson headstock and black hardware looks simply stunning.
To showcase the Pro Plus Signature Diamond Rowe DR12MG EVTN6, Diamond shares her journey as a guitarist, delving into the inspiration behind her unique design specifications and the influential artists who shaped her sound within a captivating demo video. This video prominently features powerful performances of Tetrarch’s latest release, “Live Not Fantasize,” and “I’m Not Right” showcasing the DR12MG EVTN6’s unparalleled tonal versatility and performance capabilities.
MSRP $1699.99
For more information, please visit jacksonguitars.com.