what does envelope filter does for a bass ?

[mitch]

Hello all, i'm just wondering what does an envelope filter does for a bass. I've recently tried playing EHX Doctor's Q on a bass but i cant tell the difference when the effect's on or off, meaning the effect sounds very subtle on the bass. It could be either DR Q works on a higher frequency or I just dont know whats happening.

I'm just curious cause my friend recommended me to get an envelope filter as it sounds better when i'm slapping and popping and also the basslines i play's kinda coloured with modulating effects and what not.

I own a Dunlope crybaby wah, Boss Bass Chrous, Small Stone ( phaser ), Boss Flanger, Boss LMB-2 and Boss DD-6. So will an envelope filter still do much help to my sound ?

Thanks for the help! So sorry if this question had been raised earlier on.

 

[TidesOfBlood]

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=QpncRw7ridE

Electro Harmonix Bassballs demo by Peter Stroud.

 

[shinobi]

envelope filter = auto wah

that might answer a couple of your questions at the same time, since u prob know what a wah does 8)

 

[TidesOfBlood]

oh ummm... i should've mentioned this earlier, but a chorus + envelope does wonders to tone. it's a matter of preference, of course. definitely worth a shot of you're into very dry funk.

 

[mitch]

hey

Alright thanks for the help. So anyway, is it still practical to have an envelope filter ( auto-wah ) when i already own a crybaby wah ?

 

[itzs]

they are slightly different, check out the EBS wah one samples on their product page.

http://www.ebs.bass.se/

It has a low pass button that changes it from a normal Wah to an envelope filter.

 

[shinobi]

it is more difficult to explain this kind of thing without using jargon that anyone (or even i myself) can understand, than just to hear the effect in action.

A typical auto-wah circuit uses an envelope follower to produce a voltage representing the overall volume of the input. This signal is then used to sweep the cutoff frequency of a filter. The filter usually has a low pass or bandpass response.

not exactly layman's terms eh? it's bloody textual quicksand

it's just like asking the difference between phaser and flanger; you could spend hours reading, but it would be meaningless without actually hearing the effect

with regards to the wah vs. envelope filter, it really depends on application. i believe envelope filters are sensitive to things like dynamics, so it depends whether you would want to consciously monitor your wah or whether you would want the effect to do it's magic for that particular situation.

for example, if what you want is for the wah to kick in everytime you hit a hard note (and i do understand the wonders of compressors but picking dynamics is something we really could and should manipulate), then the envelope filter will suffice. but if you only need the sweep to emphasize certain notes in a solo, you will need a wah pedal.

i don't use envelope filters but i do use a filter, specifically the filter matrix on my stereo electric mistress. i only use the filter matrix after a fuzz, to colour my tone, to awesome effect. the devi ever bass fuzz is an example of a pedal that uses filter control instead of a tone boost/cut.

you can try it out by getting a fuzz (idea of the year!) and put your wah after it. guitarists like to put their wah's before the drive, but they are after a different kind of effect, a kind of distorted swell i think. you can rock your wah and listen to how the fuzz tone varies. if you find a tone you like you can leave your wah in that position, and enjoy the fuzz madness.

cherns recently brought in the ACG filter preamp, and among many of it's capabilities, i believe you could use one of the filter controls as a wah

 

[e4t3n]

env filter is 'wah' that is determined by the picking strength..

and you mentioned you didnt hear the difference when you activated the pedal. thats probably coz you set the 'threshold' too high, which would require a high amt of picking strength to activate the wah.

hope this helps

 

[shinobi]

^^ i dunno about dr.Q but another possibility is that the fx is just not sensitive enough for low frequencies... especially if they were designed specifically for guitar. but i think you can mod your way around it

 

[rottenramone]

filters are great, filters are fun. if u wanna get a killer slappy one, bassballs should settle your sound. esp when u said u wanna slap.

i learnt a lot about filters when i bought a moogerfooger low pass filter. at first i thought it was a useless piece of overpriced junk when i plugged it in and played. but the more i read about it and applied it, it made more sense. its like the final stage of all processed synth sounds.