how to get reverb and distortion
- Thread starter Lisakanon
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Jim Hanks
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Depends on your goals. You can get started with something as simple as a Roland MicroCube amp which has several different kinds of distortion models as well as basic delay and reverb effects. There are similar options by the likes of Line6 and others. A trip to a local guitar shop would probably be useful.
Bill Sheehan
Well-known member
I'll "second" Jim's response !! I have a Roland Cube "Street" that is very portable and can operate on either batteries or AC power; it has a mic input as well as an instrument input with a nice reverb and several selectable "modeled" amp settings, a couple of which feature a good edgy distortion. I haven't actually used it with a uke yet, but I'll bet it would serve you well!
cyber3d
Well-known member
There is a company called Plus Pedal.
They have two very cool F/X pedals. One is their Plus Pedal:
The PLUS Pedal is more than just a stomp-box – it is a vast extension of your instrument that bridges the gap between rhythm and lead parts, and lets all musicians explore completely new territories.
Besides being a powerful arrangement and compositional tool, The PLUS Pedal can also be used for creating interesting and unique sound effects that would otherwise be impossible to achieve in real-time.
Whether you are a composer, solo performer, sound designer or part of a band – the ability to instantly turn any melodic sound produced by your instrument into a layer of continuous sound will completely change the way you approach music.
Their other pedal is Plasma Pedal.
The PLASMA PEDAL is a revolutionary approach within the realm of overdrive and distortion, as it is a new and previously unexplored method of achieving signal clipping. Instead of using LED circuits, transistors or vacuum tubes to produce overdrive, the PLASMA PEDAL transforms your instrument’s live signal into a series of continuous high-voltage discharges within a xenon-filled tube.
In essence – you are playing a bolt of electricity, and the electrical discharges produced by your instrument are instantly converted back into an analog audio signal, producing a quick, responsive, and extremely heavy distortion with TONS of unique character!
Very cool stuff. Check it out: https://www.gamechangeraudio.com/pluspedal/
I'm strapped for cash otherwise I'd grab each of these.
They have two very cool F/X pedals. One is their Plus Pedal:
The PLUS Pedal is more than just a stomp-box – it is a vast extension of your instrument that bridges the gap between rhythm and lead parts, and lets all musicians explore completely new territories.
Besides being a powerful arrangement and compositional tool, The PLUS Pedal can also be used for creating interesting and unique sound effects that would otherwise be impossible to achieve in real-time.
Whether you are a composer, solo performer, sound designer or part of a band – the ability to instantly turn any melodic sound produced by your instrument into a layer of continuous sound will completely change the way you approach music.
Their other pedal is Plasma Pedal.
The PLASMA PEDAL is a revolutionary approach within the realm of overdrive and distortion, as it is a new and previously unexplored method of achieving signal clipping. Instead of using LED circuits, transistors or vacuum tubes to produce overdrive, the PLASMA PEDAL transforms your instrument’s live signal into a series of continuous high-voltage discharges within a xenon-filled tube.
In essence – you are playing a bolt of electricity, and the electrical discharges produced by your instrument are instantly converted back into an analog audio signal, producing a quick, responsive, and extremely heavy distortion with TONS of unique character!
Very cool stuff. Check it out: https://www.gamechangeraudio.com/pluspedal/
I'm strapped for cash otherwise I'd grab each of these.
Croaky Keith
Well-known member
+1 for the Roland Micro Cube amp. 
I have a Vox Mini Amp which has all these effects and more built into it. Good enough for what I do.
One thing to realize is that in order to get full distortion, it will hardly be enough to just use a regular uke with nylon strings and a saddle pickup. Sure, it will probably pick up some distortion, but not as much as you'll get with steel strings and a magnetic pickup, like on an electric guitar. There are some ukes like that on the market, e.g. Risa or Vorson/Clearwater, to name just a couple. These are built exactly like an electric guitar.
One thing to realize is that in order to get full distortion, it will hardly be enough to just use a regular uke with nylon strings and a saddle pickup. Sure, it will probably pick up some distortion, but not as much as you'll get with steel strings and a magnetic pickup, like on an electric guitar. There are some ukes like that on the market, e.g. Risa or Vorson/Clearwater, to name just a couple. These are built exactly like an electric guitar.
Oldtoolie
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I have a Roland Cube30x bought on eBay some years back for my son's effort on guitar. It has a sackful of sounds and works fine with electric ukes. Best is with the steel string Clearwater (Vorson in USA) but the nylon string ukes sound pretty crazy too. Roland has a big selection in the Cube range but many other guitar amps offer an array of effects. Since 9 out of 10 people trying to learn guitar don't last more than a year, there are lots of second hand amps available.
bacchettadavid
Well-known member
As Jim asks, what are your goals?
For reverb, there are a few different types: spring, plate, room, hall, etc. as well as additional features such as shimmer and slapback. Each has its own character and is better suited to certain sounds.
For boost/overdrive/distortion/fuzz, I recommend trying a few light overdrives first and seeing if any of them can accomplish the sound you desire. If you want more distortion, try a heavier overdrive before moving into the realm of distortion and fuzz effects.
I'd be glad to make some specific recommendations, but first: What kind of ukulele are you amplifying, what is your effects budget, and what kind of sound are you trying to create?
For reverb, there are a few different types: spring, plate, room, hall, etc. as well as additional features such as shimmer and slapback. Each has its own character and is better suited to certain sounds.
For boost/overdrive/distortion/fuzz, I recommend trying a few light overdrives first and seeing if any of them can accomplish the sound you desire. If you want more distortion, try a heavier overdrive before moving into the realm of distortion and fuzz effects.
I'd be glad to make some specific recommendations, but first: What kind of ukulele are you amplifying, what is your effects budget, and what kind of sound are you trying to create?
kissing
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Pretty much the same way you would for guitar.
Plugged in, guitars and ukuleles behave more or less the same.
Obviously being a nylon-strung and piezo pickup instrument does make it a bit different, but nothing you can't get around with tweaking settings.
Vox and Roland amps, like many have stated, offer these effects built-in.
There are individual effects pedals as well as multi-effects pedals around that can achieve the same.
Over the years, I've owned both Roland and Vox portable amps.
Lately, I find that Vox performs a bit better than Roland - my personal favourite being the Vox SoundBox Mini
http://www.voxamps.com/soundboxmini
If you'd rather go down the pedal route, a nice inexpensive option is the Mooer Pogo effects pedal:
http://mooeraudio.com/?product/201409191196.html
It does distortion of many types, reverb and other effects, and also has a drum-beat machine built in.
cyber3d
Well-known member
Check this Kala article featuring Marlowe. She uses ZVEX effects pedal.
Kala recently had the opportunity to partner with artist MARLOWE and ZVEX Effects. Demoing on her 2KOA-TG, the Box of Metal pedal is the heaviest sounding pedal in the ZVEX lineup. The sweet sounds of the Koa ukulele are transformed with a massive amount of distortion, making an excellent complementary instrument to any rock cover band!
https://kalabrand.com/blogs/tech-and-how-to/how-marlowe-captures-gritty-rock-tones-with-her-ukulele
Kala recently had the opportunity to partner with artist MARLOWE and ZVEX Effects. Demoing on her 2KOA-TG, the Box of Metal pedal is the heaviest sounding pedal in the ZVEX lineup. The sweet sounds of the Koa ukulele are transformed with a massive amount of distortion, making an excellent complementary instrument to any rock cover band!
https://kalabrand.com/blogs/tech-and-how-to/how-marlowe-captures-gritty-rock-tones-with-her-ukulele
When you say “electric ukulele” are you talking about a solid body with coil or humbucker pickup? I think there might be different recommendations if so.
I have been bitten by the EFX pedal bug well and truely. What I’ve learned so far is a pedal that sounds great on a steel string electric guitar doesn’t necessarily work well for a nylon string Uke. I suggest that you search the Uke Talk section for “pedalboard “. There is a good thread that contains a video of Jake talking about his pedal board. It’s a good place to start. Be careful though, EFX pedals are a whole universe of Acquisition Syndrome Disorder.
I have been bitten by the EFX pedal bug well and truely. What I’ve learned so far is a pedal that sounds great on a steel string electric guitar doesn’t necessarily work well for a nylon string Uke. I suggest that you search the Uke Talk section for “pedalboard “. There is a good thread that contains a video of Jake talking about his pedal board. It’s a good place to start. Be careful though, EFX pedals are a whole universe of Acquisition Syndrome Disorder.
photoshooter
Well-known member
An amp with built-in effects is an easy way to try out those effects.
My desire to experiment led me to buy a few inexpensive pedals; a Behringer Reverb and a Donner Blues Drive pedal for modest distortion. I think they were both in the $30-$35 range. However you should heed hollisdwyer's advice...a couple of pedals quickly turns into...
My desire to experiment led me to buy a few inexpensive pedals; a Behringer Reverb and a Donner Blues Drive pedal for modest distortion. I think they were both in the $30-$35 range. However you should heed hollisdwyer's advice...a couple of pedals quickly turns into...
Yes, my Pedal Acquisition Syndrome is totally out of hand. Here a photo of my version 1.
I now up to version 4.
ripock
Well-known member
For reverb I just use the built-in function in my amp, a Blackstar. For distortion I use the amp's overdrive augmented by ZVEX Fat Fuzz Factory
cyber3d
Well-known member
I just ordered the SuperEgo Plus from Electro-Harmonix. Fun, Fun, Fun.
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...monix-superego-plus-synth-engine-with-effects
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...monix-superego-plus-synth-engine-with-effects
EHX make great pedals. I’m very happy with my micro POD.
Rllink
Well-known member
I started with a Vox mini with the effects built in and I still use it for busking sometimes, because it is small and runs on batteries. But I after a couple of years I bought a Kustom acoustic amp for a little more reach in other venues and quickly started accumulating pedals. For sound, I prefer the latter set up with the pedals. It is a lot more versatile. For convenience, I still like the Vox. But pedals are easy to come by. I hit the pawn shops regularly and pick up pedals to mess around with for twenty to thirty bucks. I even have one pawn shop that I've gone into so often that they let me take them home and try them out first. I also think that it is kind of fun to run all of the cables and hook them all up. I've learned a lot more about effects and amplification by using pedals then by setting a knob on my Vox.
