Martin
1146 posts
Apr 18, 2017
4:42 PM
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The quest for that organ sound is perennial. EHX Pitch Fork seems to be popular, but it´s a little bit out of my budget range, and quite frankly, when I tried one out I wasn´t too impressed. (I leave it open that it can take some time before you find the proper settings. I only had around 20 minutes.)
Still, I´m interested in something that performs along those lines
Any good suggestions for less expensive alternatives?
Last Edited by Martin on Apr 18, 2017 4:44 PM
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Bilzharp
143 posts
Apr 19, 2017
9:52 AM
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Have you tried the EHX B9 or C9 pedals? I think there was a thread here on the B9. I've got a B9 that I sometimes use with lap steel and monkeyed around with harp a little. I liked what it would do but for now I'm sticking with my dry harp sound. I've heard that the C9 pedal has less of the Hammond "click" percussion that irritated some players. Plus it has more varied keyboard sounds than the B9. Don't know if there are any youtube harp videos but you could check out some of the guitar videos to get an idea of what they do.
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Martin
1147 posts
Apr 19, 2017
11:46 AM
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@Bilzharp: No, haven´t tried them myself but have watched YT vids with the B9. (And yes, it´s been mentionend here and some precautions have come up.)
So far, as I´ve been able to see, nothing with the C9 and harp.
However, the "less expensive" condition goes right out of the window when it comes to them, unfortunately ...
Thanks anyway.
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Raven
91 posts
Apr 19, 2017
2:32 PM
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Martin: If you have a limited budget range, none of the EHX series 9 pedals (B-9, C-9, Key-9) will be affordable. They are all MAP priced at $221, whereas you can get a Pitchfork for around a hundred bucks. Also, you'll find that EHX and TC pedals are excluded from any of the coupon deals you may receive in your e-mail. You may want to spend more than 20 minutes playing around with a Pitchfork and also try it in combo with a delay or chorus. All my pedals are from EHX and TC Electronics, which includes a Pitchfork that can also give you a calliope effect...if you like that sort of thing. Personally, I think it's kind of cool when I'm playing out on my pool deck in the summer and the ice cream truck is coming by!
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Martin
1148 posts
Apr 19, 2017
3:59 PM
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I hear you, Raven. Sadly the Pitchfork goes for about twice that price here in Sweden and that somewhat exceeds my budget limits. (You gotta eat before you can get to sound like an organ.)
But you are probably right that 20 min wasn´t enough for the Pitchfork -- still, after that I was wasted: trying out stuff in music stores is one of the most stressful experiences in life.
About TCE I have nothing but the highest regards (I´ve got their reverb pedal) but unfortunately they are also in that same price region -- despite being produced in a neighbouring country.
I´m now looking at Mooer and a few others, and I will have to find a store that keeps them. This is not the kind of thing you buy online.
I fully realise that all these octave sounds must be used with discretion but the calliope effect sounds kinda interesting (although I haven´t heard it with harmonica).
Many thanks for your input!
Last Edited by Martin on Apr 19, 2017 4:02 PM
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Gus
47 posts
Apr 19, 2017
8:55 PM
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You may want to try the EarthQuaker Devices Organizer pedal. There are some demos in YT.
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Martin
1149 posts
Apr 20, 2017
5:32 AM
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Thank you Gus, but once again, "less expensive alternatives" was sort of a condition: the Eartquaker is even more expensive.
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Arrick
32 posts
Apr 20, 2017
5:12 PM
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I use a Mooer Tender Octaver and LW Harp Delay. WIth a helluvah lot of vibrato, it's quite convincing. They don't make the Tender Octavers anymore, but they popup used frequenly on eBay and Reverb.com. They're a POG clone (I'm convinced they're the same). Any combination of octaver with some reverb/delay and vibrato/tremolo gets the job done (in my opinion).
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Arrick
33 posts
Apr 20, 2017
5:14 PM
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NOTE: The Mooer "Pure Octave" pedal replaced the "Tender Octaver", but it's not the same and gets generally poor reviews. I haven't tried it personally.
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Martin
1152 posts
Apr 21, 2017
6:03 AM
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@Arrick: Thank you very much.
I´ll check the channels here in Sweden for the Tender Octaver, while wondering why so many of the pedals people seem to appreciate are discontinued and replaced with substandard alternatives ...?
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Killa_Hertz
2296 posts
Apr 21, 2017
6:32 PM
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If you want a good octave pedal your going to have to spend the money Im afraid. Personally I like the Micro POG better than the pitchfork, but that's me.
I haven't tried EVERY pedal obviously, but I have tried Many cheaper octave Pedals .. and the problem with the cheaper octave effects is that they have poor tracking. They work ok for guitar single notes, but not so much for chords. And they are mostly all garbage when it comes to playing harp through them.
It is pretty expensive for an effect that is not used all that much. ( Not as much as delay or distortion. ) but when you have played a few of the crappy ones ...you ll really appreciate the beautiful sound and crisp excellent tracking of a pedal like the Pog. It really is a great effect.
Last Edited by Killa_Hertz on Apr 21, 2017 6:32 PM
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Martin
1153 posts
Apr 22, 2017
2:21 AM
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@Killa: You are probably right. At least I have no reason to doubt you. In in my hierarchy of priorities harmonicas comes first, then mic, then amp, then reverb, then ... well other stuff. Organ sound would be fun, but it´s not a sine qua non for harmonica playing. (And yes, those POG´s are pretty expensive. Maybe I´ll go for a better chorus instead.)
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Arrick
36 posts
Apr 22, 2017
4:21 AM
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The Mooer Tender Octaver really is the same as the POG. They stole the design/circuit from the POG and got sued, so they had to discontinue the pedal. Any others will track poorly. I found mine used on eBay.
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Martin
1154 posts
Apr 23, 2017
5:12 AM
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Aha. That sounds like a familiar story. But as a poor SOB I have to go where my wallet leads me so I´ll definitely keep my eyes open for a used one.
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Harmonica Lewinskey
159 posts
Apr 24, 2017
5:56 AM
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Ive gotta agree with Killa on this one. You are not going to find anything worth a damn for less than a hundred bucks. This seems to be true for most effects pedals, but maybe thats just me.. The POG seems to track the best of the reasonable priced ones
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dougharps
1412 posts
Apr 24, 2017
8:09 AM
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Low budget approach:
Tremolo/vibrato effect + delay + PLAY octaves
You could try adding chorus, too, if you have one!
Unless you are going to imitate an organ a whole lot, it isn't worth the price of the pedal. Play the octaves...
Lower cost pedal alternatives do not track chords well.
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Doug S.
Last Edited by dougharps on Apr 24, 2017 8:11 AM
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Martin
1157 posts
Apr 24, 2017
8:40 AM
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@HarmonicLewinskey: I find myself more and more in the same positions as you -- when it comes to "organ" pedals. I own a Joyo American Sound that cost less than $40. A useful little thing.
@dougharps: It will have to be that way. (With chorus.)
Last Edited by Martin on Apr 24, 2017 8:40 AM
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HarpNinja
4245 posts
Apr 24, 2017
10:00 AM
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IMO, playing harp with a rotary pedal is a better sound. It sounds more organic and less synthy.
Cons of this method are you have to really know your harmony and octaves to pull it off. Playing single notes like this sounds bad, IMO.
The master of this approach is John Popper from the 90's - since adding a keyboard player, he doesn't use the rotary effect as much.
There are many rotary pedals to try in many price ranges...but you have to really pay attention to how you phrase and use chords, power chords, and octaves.
The pros of the octave up/down pedals is you can get away playing single notes.
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Mike
My Website
My Harmonica Effects Blog
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hvyj
3273 posts
Apr 24, 2017
8:22 PM
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This is not within your budget, but you can get an organ sound that will fool professional musicians by running a MicroPOG into a Strymon Lex followed by a Carbon Copy Delay or other good delay pedal. The Hammond Leslie G Pedal is almost as good as the Strymon Lex in this regard.
But, yeah, you've got to be real careful about what chords you play with this sort of set up.
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Martin
1161 posts
Apr 25, 2017
4:47 AM
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Mike: What rotary pedal do you use?
I bought one a while back, but it was Chinese cheap stuff and I´m not terribly impressed by it.
Of course you are right when it comes to what to play -- as well as *how much* to play: I heard a recording a while back of myself, backing a singer/guitar player, where I´m completely slaughtering an otherwise impeccable performance of the Irish tune "Carrickfergus". We had no time for a soundcheck, and this rather loud and insistent harmonica is all over the place. A sobering experience.
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Martin
1162 posts
Apr 25, 2017
4:49 AM
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@hvyj: yes, a bit outside of my budget, unfortunately. But I believe I´ve heard a YT clip of you playing some similar set-up, and sounding really good!
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Arrick
38 posts
Apr 30, 2017
8:45 AM
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I just got my Mooer Soul Shiver rotary/vibrato/chorus pedal. I like it. Might suck a bit of low tones, but paired with my Tender Octaver (Micro POG clone) it gets the job done well. I also use a LW Harp Delay at the end of my chain. Sometimes I mix in a Big Muff fuzz pedal for some interesting vibes. I got my two Mooer pedals for about $100 total.
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Harmonicatunes
212 posts
Apr 30, 2017
7:45 PM
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Try the Richard Hunter Patches with with corresponding relatively low cost device. Details at http://www.hunterharp.com/buy-richard-hunters-huntersounds-patch-set-for-zoom-g3g3x/
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Tony Eyers
Australia
www.HarmonicaAcademy.com
everyone plays...
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Martin
1163 posts
May 01, 2017
7:44 AM
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@Harmonicatunes:
Thank you. I own a RP 150 with Hunter´s patches. I know that it´s low in the food chain, but still.
It´s been useful when recording; for gigging though, I find it tough cycling through patches and so on, so it stays at home. (There is one organ sound, perhaps a little bit over the top, but interesting if you´re going for something slightly weird.)
Maybe I´ll update it to one of the newer models one of these days, but I think there´s a point in the ability to modifiy things "in situ".
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