Very cool in-depth demo ! Once again with EQD, it's a cool pedal with a lot of character that does retains low-end freqs better than most, but it's still more a guitar pedal than a bass one. Just a note for the general viewers : I love Earthquaker Devices but don't fall into marketing hype. Without a clean knob or a bass boost, OD Pedals on bass will always shrink your low end freqs. That's what gain drive is all about by compressing your signal. And yes it's the same logic for the EQD Plumes (marketed as a "bass friendly tubescreamer"). Of course It will works well and sounds rad in your bedroom, but don't except an OD pedals like the Special Cranker to work well in a band mix or on a live set. A common solution used by many pros is to add an EQ pedal after it or use a signal mixer like the boss LS-2 however.
Yes I think it does have more lows than the Plumes, i think bass players are either going to love it or hate it but I think its pretty cool. Sounded much better on guitar than bass in my opinion though, so i sold it.
Great demo!!! While retaining low end is a concern for bassists, tightening up the low end on bass in a band mix leaves room for the synths and kick drum. The mid frequencies are far more important to the bass having distinction in the mix, so a cut in the deep lows isn’t the worst thing for me in a drive/fuzz. A lot of bassists run a parallel clean or LPF channel to retain that original low end anyways, so a tightening up of lows is fine in a circuit.
I agree with you that a bit of low cut isnt the worst thing in the world (especially for the reasons you mentioned above) and a high-pass around 30-40 and even 50hz can be really beneficial in tightening up things and also reducing amp/speaker exertion/improve efficiency. I also agree with you on the importance of mids. As a fan of the Big Muffs on bass, I know as well as anyone how a lack of mids can make you dissappear in a mix even when the lows are represented well. The Special Cranker in the real world, in my opinion is okay on bass and great on guitar....it does cut lows and that is what helps make it effective on guitar. It's really well priced and sounds good to my ears. My issue isn't that the SC cuts low end (thats pretty normal for a guitar overdrive), its that by marketing it to bass players (by means of demo videos, ad copy etc), its implied that it wont. This was my experience with the Plumes and the Terminal too. The Special Cranker increasingly cuts lows from around 200hz down and whilst I do like the SC and have bought two more EQD pedals since doing this video, I just wish they were a little more transparent with their marketing or at least put a little more R&D in giving the Special Cranker an option to flatten out the low cut.
@@TheoAndHisPedals Westwood is likely their best bet on bass due to its ability to boost bass frequencies. Still, there’s something magical in how Plumes reacts with a bass. Run a separate clean channel if you’re worried about low end and it really brings your playing to life in a mix.
@@TheoAndHisPedals for $99, it’s hard to lose with one in the arsenal. Definitely not the greatest standalone drive for bass, but if you have a mixed signal setup or a preamp/EQ after it, it can be amazing.
I very much enjoy the graphics with the frequency response at different settings. I think you should do this with more pedals going forward... I'd even really like to see this kind of thing with some of the stuff you've demoed before.
Thanks! Yeah i'm doing it with everything going forward. It's really interesting for me. I'm working on puting a page together where i can log the images so that people can refer back to them AND i have an excuse for doing it with my pedals i've already done videos before.
What a killer demo Theo!! Lot of work recording and editing... thanks for sharing that videos... I've uploaded Jhs Superbolt v1 bass demo on my channel if you wanna see! Take care!
I don't get it? Why would any bassist want a dirt pedal that thins out the low end when cranking the overdrive? Earthquaker should've at least added a dry blend to retain low end when overdrive is cranked?
I used to work at a guitar shop many years ago and the owner would always write "for guitar and bass" when listing any pedal for sale online. I queried it with him and he was like "technically it is for bass too...... You might not like how it sounds but that's not up to me". Whilst he was technically right, it seemed like a bit of an excercise in adding a new demographic to your customer base without actually having to do anything to account for them. I don't think EQD are that cynical but one of their pedals most promoted as a bass overdrive is a tubescreamer. They also have plenty of pedals that i honestly feel DO retain low end (like the Hoof) and they make plenty of pedals that i just love (Hummingbird, Night Wire) but personally.... I think a little switch to erase the Special Cranker's low cut OR a clean blend would have gone a long way to giving me more confidence.
Probably a) because this pedal is not marketed toward bassists but ALSO b) because they wanted this pedal to use this enclosure as an economy measure. They have several pedals in their lineup that use this enclosure, but no pedals that have a 4 knob + 1 switch layout. Adding the blend would require having a new enclosure made. For what it's worth, I wish they had a blend too, but really, you have to use your ears on this one. The reality is that the lows are not thinned out as much as the graph suggests. The 80hz range stays pretty much the same throughout the gain range, and that's the spot that matters far more than anything lower or higher for bass to sit right in the mix. Gain maxed out does give a considerable mid hump, but I'd have liked to see how the graph looks at more points than just 0%/50%/100%. Because sometimes the spectra of gain structures can change at different points in the knob travel-- a good example is the Brassmaster fuzz, where it has no tone control because the harmonics change so much as you turn the gain up that it's just about the same as having a tone control. Dirt pedals that are perfectly usable without a clean blend are few and far between, but do exist, and the key is often retaining more of that 80hz range than the lower stuff.
Can you link that pink noise file?
Sure! I just put these together: imgur.com/a/dK4Y7q7
This is easily the best bass pedal channel on RUclips
Thank you for the kind words!
this video is really solid and scientific, thank you!
Very cool in-depth demo ! Once again with EQD, it's a cool pedal with a lot of character that does retains low-end freqs better than most, but it's still more a guitar pedal than a bass one.
Just a note for the general viewers : I love Earthquaker Devices but don't fall into marketing hype. Without a clean knob or a bass boost, OD Pedals on bass will always shrink your low end freqs. That's what gain drive is all about by compressing your signal. And yes it's the same logic for the EQD Plumes (marketed as a "bass friendly tubescreamer"). Of course It will works well and sounds rad in your bedroom, but don't except an OD pedals like the Special Cranker to work well in a band mix or on a live set. A common solution used by many pros is to add an EQ pedal after it or use a signal mixer like the boss LS-2 however.
Excellent video! love the frequency graphs.
Do you think this have more bottom end than the plumes?
I have the plumes - need more bottom!
Yes I think it does have more lows than the Plumes, i think bass players are either going to love it or hate it but I think its pretty cool. Sounded much better on guitar than bass in my opinion though, so i sold it.
As a dirt pedal I think it sounds pretty gritty, as you mention. I dig this rough character though!!!
Great demo!!! While retaining low end is a concern for bassists, tightening up the low end on bass in a band mix leaves room for the synths and kick drum. The mid frequencies are far more important to the bass having distinction in the mix, so a cut in the deep lows isn’t the worst thing for me in a drive/fuzz. A lot of bassists run a parallel clean or LPF channel to retain that original low end anyways, so a tightening up of lows is fine in a circuit.
I agree with you that a bit of low cut isnt the worst thing in the world (especially for the reasons you mentioned above) and a high-pass around 30-40 and even 50hz can be really beneficial in tightening up things and also reducing amp/speaker exertion/improve efficiency. I also agree with you on the importance of mids. As a fan of the Big Muffs on bass, I know as well as anyone how a lack of mids can make you dissappear in a mix even when the lows are represented well. The Special Cranker in the real world, in my opinion is okay on bass and great on guitar....it does cut lows and that is what helps make it effective on guitar. It's really well priced and sounds good to my ears.
My issue isn't that the SC cuts low end (thats pretty normal for a guitar overdrive), its that by marketing it to bass players (by means of demo videos, ad copy etc), its implied that it wont. This was my experience with the Plumes and the Terminal too.
The Special Cranker increasingly cuts lows from around 200hz down and whilst I do like the SC and have bought two more EQD pedals since doing this video, I just wish they were a little more transparent with their marketing or at least put a little more R&D in giving the Special Cranker an option to flatten out the low cut.
@@TheoAndHisPedals Westwood is likely their best bet on bass due to its ability to boost bass frequencies. Still, there’s something magical in how Plumes reacts with a bass. Run a separate clean channel if you’re worried about low end and it really brings your playing to life in a mix.
You're making me want a Plumes again
@@TheoAndHisPedals for $99, it’s hard to lose with one in the arsenal. Definitely not the greatest standalone drive for bass, but if you have a mixed signal setup or a preamp/EQ after it, it can be amazing.
Okay, when my Hudson Sidecar sells (also a tube screamer) that's what I'm gonna get!
I very much enjoy the graphics with the frequency response at different settings. I think you should do this with more pedals going forward... I'd even really like to see this kind of thing with some of the stuff you've demoed before.
Thanks! Yeah i'm doing it with everything going forward. It's really interesting for me. I'm working on puting a page together where i can log the images so that people can refer back to them AND i have an excuse for doing it with my pedals i've already done videos before.
What a killer demo Theo!! Lot of work recording and editing... thanks for sharing that videos...
I've uploaded Jhs Superbolt v1 bass demo on my channel if you wanna see! Take care!
Dig the invisible cables...
I actually think i should paint them green at this point.
I don't get it? Why would any bassist want a dirt pedal that thins out the low end when cranking the overdrive? Earthquaker should've at least added a dry blend to retain low end when overdrive is cranked?
I used to work at a guitar shop many years ago and the owner would always write "for guitar and bass" when listing any pedal for sale online. I queried it with him and he was like "technically it is for bass too...... You might not like how it sounds but that's not up to me". Whilst he was technically right, it seemed like a bit of an excercise in adding a new demographic to your customer base without actually having to do anything to account for them. I don't think EQD are that cynical but one of their pedals most promoted as a bass overdrive is a tubescreamer. They also have plenty of pedals that i honestly feel DO retain low end (like the Hoof) and they make plenty of pedals that i just love (Hummingbird, Night Wire) but personally.... I think a little switch to erase the Special Cranker's low cut OR a clean blend would have gone a long way to giving me more confidence.
Probably a) because this pedal is not marketed toward bassists but ALSO b) because they wanted this pedal to use this enclosure as an economy measure. They have several pedals in their lineup that use this enclosure, but no pedals that have a 4 knob + 1 switch layout. Adding the blend would require having a new enclosure made. For what it's worth, I wish they had a blend too, but really, you have to use your ears on this one.
The reality is that the lows are not thinned out as much as the graph suggests. The 80hz range stays pretty much the same throughout the gain range, and that's the spot that matters far more than anything lower or higher for bass to sit right in the mix.
Gain maxed out does give a considerable mid hump, but I'd have liked to see how the graph looks at more points than just 0%/50%/100%. Because sometimes the spectra of gain structures can change at different points in the knob travel-- a good example is the Brassmaster fuzz, where it has no tone control because the harmonics change so much as you turn the gain up that it's just about the same as having a tone control.
Dirt pedals that are perfectly usable without a clean blend are few and far between, but do exist, and the key is often retaining more of that 80hz range than the lower stuff.