This is the best video on this pedal. A friend of mine gave me one and tbh I played with it a bit but didn't take a deep dive, it didn't really intrigue me. This video really opened up the possibilities, it's back on my pedalboard now. Thanks!
Best review! You just gave me all the reason I needed to get one. Getting to the feedback control that Trey Anastasio has without freaking out the neighbors would be impossible… hope this tool will help me taming it without having to try again and again with the amp cranked up. Subscribed due to this video!
i just got mine in today, because my band has a song where i’m supposed to do a whole feedback thing and it’s so inconsistent as I do it. this is so exciting to me to try, i appreciate you going over the knobs and describing them all with examples. Thank you!!!
This pedal is VITAL to my overall sound. It is almost always on, Gain at about 10 o'clock, Onset at about 3 o'clock, Feedback Type on Natural Low. I record completely direct at very low volume monitoring thru Computer monitors, and this pedal makes anything I play sound like I'm cranked thru a very loud amp. The only drawback is that it only "grabs" one note and turns it into feedback, rather than a whole chord.
Oddly enough, I've never really used this pedal as an always-on pedal... I'm looking forward to trying those settings and just leaving it on... thanks for the tip! Sometimes, I get a bit myopic with my approach, so thank you for sharing how you use it :)
This is exactly what I wanted to see. I wanted to see how someone applies it to what they do rather than a normal generic pedal demo. Liked and subscribed.👍 I love that faux ebow sound. It’s pretty damn cool. And you described things really well. Looking forward to seeing more of your content.
Thanks for the feedback, it's REALLY helpful.. I'm always slightly nervous that my videos aren't valuable, so hearing this makes my day. And thank you for subbing!
I’ve been using this and also a Boss FB-2 on my board for the same reasons you describe: being able to fill those expressive moments. Can be used to great effect with delays and reverb after to really make a guitar come alive and fill up what would otherwise be empty space.
Haha - the Daniel Ash quote was right on the spot - the wailing feedback on "Telegram Sam" with Murphy's angry vocals - perfect! Great demo, Aaron - keep them coming!
Exactly, that song is a perfect example! So much of that approach in early Bauhaus, and it's all still so good. I think Rosegarden Funeral of Sores is 50% feedback, and it's brilliant. Thanks for checking out the video Walter!
Had one a couple of years ago but bought another today. Looking at some vids and this is by far the best. Well done. Totally agree that note perfect playing is not right - a moment of chaos... spot on. Nice to hear from a fellow Daniel Ash fan.
Thanks for checking out the video, and I hope you love the pedal! Yes, I love how musical Daniel's use of feedback is. It's great to hear from another Daniel Ash fan... he's so underrated, in my opinion.
This is an unique pedal and I have it despite having a guitar with Sustainiac and an Ebow too, it offers something the other 2 options don't have so it's complementary to both, Blue Cat's AcouFiend offers the same functionality on a plugin but for live use this FreqOut is essential
Wow, thanks for showing how you're creative with this effect. I enjoy using feedback, but have trouble wrangling it. Looks like this pedal gives a lot of control, and less risk of damaging synth modules / speakers and ears.
What a great find you are. I just received the Freqout and was just searching for where to place it in my pedal chain and stumbled onto this great video. Subscribed 👍😎
Hi Aaron! I just found this demo by (happy) chance: I had stopped looking for FreqOut demos a while ago (*I'm having a bit of trouble finding a musical use for it) and YT just suggested I check yours out. Very interesting your two settings (I'll try them out). Thumbs up!
I enjoy the explanation of feedback... definitely great in shoegaze,grunge all the way to Queen etc ...this subject does remind of the last few notes of the song "innuendo" by: Queen.
I just listened to Innuendo, and I totally agree... I think the feedback adds tension at the end, almost like playing a note that doesn't quite resolve.
Not only is this the clearest, most concise and useful demo of this pedal, Aaron is intelligent, humble and seemingly born to do this. This is how it's done! 🤘🏼
You’re more than welcome, Aaron. I meant to subscribe earlier, but I have remedied that now. I’m looking forward to more of your videos. Good luck to you in growing your channel and in general. ✌🏼
You just convinced me to spend the money on a feedbacker pedal instead of paying one of my bills this month. Lol. Seriously though, in Vegas I'm regaled, or moreover, scoffed at for being the loudest guitar player on any stage next to George Lynch. I would also throw Jake e Lee in there because he is un freaking godly loud. But I guess I am too and that's why this is said. Anyways, I have scaled down my rig including my volume so that I have a 1x 12 cabinet for my guitar pedal board instead of running two half stacks. This freak out pedal will help in bringing back the genuine raw power sound without having the volume where it not only knocks my pant leg around, but also defines everybody at the front of the crowd including my wife. This is exactly what I've been looking for, and I love the options and the controllability as well. Thanks for a great review!
Thank you for watching, I think you will love the pedal-it's ideal for that very scenario! Even though I've had the FreqOut for a while now, I still love it and it never leaves my board.
Great explanation of the features and how to use this pedal. I have it and have not been using it, but just mounted on my new pedal board along with a Lehle Volume pedal, an Eventide H9, and a Dunlop Wah. Let the chaos begin! 😁
Nice review and nod to Daniel Ash's use of feedback on In the Flat Field... Dark Entries etc. that's one of the reasons why I bought one. FYI - an old 80's BOSS Compressor pedal will do something similar with single coil pickups
I really like your very natural way of describing why you like this pedal. And it definitely convinced me to buy one for my pedalboard. I must admit I've been a huge fan of Ted Nugent's feedback for 45 years now. 2 questions : I read somewhere that the Freqout isn't really suited to tube amps! What do you think? And second one 😊: in the pedal chain, where did you place the FreqOut? Before all the others (distortion, modulation, etc.)? Greetings from France.
Thank you!!! I use mine in front of my tube amp all the time. The only thing I haven't considered is-what happens when you crank your tube amp, get some natural feedback going, and then kick in the FreqOut? I wonder what that sounds like-might be ugly, but theres a lot of beauty in ugly sounds too, so now I'm going to have to try that. But yeah, I have zero hesitancy about using the FreqOut with my tube amp. As far as placement, it's always first in my chain... I like it there best :) Thanks for watching!
Hi Javier! Thank you for the kind words, and for watching the video :) I've never tried the FB2, so I'm very glad to hear the FreqOut is more natural. I'm still surprised at how close this pedal gets to an actual amp's feedback.
I never thought I will be interested in a pedal that does that but man, you gave me a serious GAS attack! That ebow moment is really interesting. Oh, and that Caroline fuzz is...mmmmm...delicious👌🏻
Thanks for watching! Yeah, the FreqOut is pretty amazing.... I really love how much the pedal can do. And I love my Caroline Shigeharu... it's so damn good :)
Aaron. Thanks for the great video, settings and demo. I use mine all of the time in similar ways. Curious about how you got your sound with that tele. Was it the Caroline fuzz by itself? Reverb or delays? It was such a cool big sound. I’ve loved “Ash” inspired sounds since I saw him on the Earth Sun Moon tour right when I started playing myself. Great channel, I just subscribed.
Hi there, sorry for the slow response. I barely used any pedals in that video, so all you heard was the Tele into the FreqOut>Shigeharu>Avalanche Run>Iridium. I did kick in the Avalanche Run at times, but I didn't do any post-processing on the guitar. I think you are mostly hearing the Shigeharu. That pedal is REALLY good. I sold off all of my high-gain pedals after I bought that, and haven't really seen a need to buy any others. And it plays very nicely with the FreqOut. This video is a few years old now, but I still use the FreqOut and the Shigeharu all the time. It does pull off that nice full compressed Daniel Ash sound nicely :) Thank you for watching, and thank you for the kind words!
Thank you very much for the video. Been looking to use this with my Helix and your overview has made me decide to go for it! Where would you recommend putting it in the signal chain?
Awesome review, So Aaron, would you say that this pedal is better than having the Fernandez Sustainiac pickups in your guitar ? I have the sustainiac pickup in one of my guitars, but I am really interested in this pedal. cheers. Ed
Hi Ed, so sorry for the late response. I have very limited hands-on experience with the Sustainer pickups (unfortunately)... but I would say this pedal isn't going to recreate all the cool things the Sustainer pickups can do. I actually prefer my eBow over the Freqout as well for that "held note" sound, because it just gives me more control. That being said... the FreqOut is still one of my "can't live without" pedals. Hope that helps!
Great video. Just wondered if you had a preference with where in the signal chain you put it. Looks like in the video it’s before the overdrive. Have you tried it in different spots?
I've moved it around in the chain in the past, but I really prefer it very early in my signal chain. These days, my signal chain tends to be Tuner/buffer->FreqOut->Everything else. Thanks for watching!
I know, this pedal would really make a great plug in! Check out the Spitfire Audio channel, they integrate guitar pedals as outboard gear for their virtual instruments. I feel like that will be my next journey :)
Hi there. I'm very sorry I missed this comment and took so long to respond! To answer your question, chords do not really work in the faux ebow setting-the pedal just plays a single note of feedback if you play a chord. Anytime I want the "faux-ebow" effect with a chord, I use my EHX SuperEgo-but unfortunately, that doesn't generate the weird eBow harmonics, so it's not quite the same. But I think mixing the two pedals could approximate that sound. Thanks for watching!!!
Thank you for the kind words! I normally run the FreqOut as my first pedal and from there I have my Fuzz or Overdrive. My fuzz pedal is a Caroline Shigeharu, and it doesn't seem to care whether it's first in the chain or not... but I know some fuzz pedals want to be first due to impedance, so that might be a consideration depending on what you have. The FreqOut is True Bypass, so it won't add a buffer in front of the fuzz. I wish I had some fuzz pedals to experiment with to give you a better answer, but I'm a Fuzz Luddite and only have the Shigeharu right now. I'd suggest playing around with the order to make sure your fuzz isn't thinned out by not being first in the chain. I hope that helps!
@@esmoroglu Thank you for the tip, that is great to know! One of these days, when my reverb and delay obsession dies back a bit, I'm hoping to get some different fuzz pedals. That DS Audio pedal is a great idea!!!
Hi Aaron..hey, I have about 4 drive/distortion pedals on my board, and wonder..what position should this pedal sit in..I start with noise gate, wah, whammy 5, compressor, screamer, evh 5150 pedal, xotic effects rc booster, eq pedal, animals delay, then the cavern delay, to the front end of a tune amp...fm3 in the amps effects loops for the main verbs n delays....where do I put the freakout?
Hello! I think there are several good answers to that. I tend to always put the FreqOut at the beginning of my chain, as I like it before my gain pedals-but I don’t currently use a wah or a whammy pedal. I think the whammy and the wah may sound very cool if they affect the feedback sound. If it were me, I’d test it out in 3 spots to see what I like best-before the wah, before the whammy, and before the compressor. Hope that helps :) And thanks for watching!
Thanks for the video! Really informative and I like your how down to earth that you present yourself. One question, what do you power it with? I’m not sure (can’t remember)if it came with a proprietary power 2+ supply. I had it on my board and thought that I used a Voodoo Lab Pedal Power2+, but I recently tried it again and can’t seem to make it work. I’m using the 250ma out.
Hi Randy! Apologies in advance for the lengthy response :) Currently, I power all of my pedals with a CIOKS DC7/8 setup. Those send out 9V and 600mA. Before I had that, I was powering the FreqOut with a Voodoo Labs 4x4 and feeding it from the 9V 400mA output. I've never had an issue with the pedal in either of these setups. The manual for the pedal lists the power requirements as "235 mA typical", and that word "typical" makes me wonder if your particular pedal needs a bit more amperage. I have had this problem in the past with pedals that had power requirements just under the rating of the power supply, (one reason I went to the CIOKS is I was tired of dealing with that particular issue). Unfortunately, the pedal doesn't come with a power supply, and the manual lists this AC Adapter/wall wart: "HARMAN PS0913DC POWER SUPPLY" as the one they suggest. I'm sorry you are dealing with this issue, power issues are always annoying! Hopefully the issue is the power supply, and not a problem with the pedal itself. I hope that helps! And thank you very much for the kind words, and for watching the video :)
Hi there. I think it can get in the ballpark. It can pull off the feedback note (the 5th setting seems to be the one to go with), but there's a nuance to it on the recorded version that I'm unable to reproduce. Part of this is likely my complete inability to play an Eddie Van Halen guitar part properly, so that might be affecting things...
I bought one a few years ago....for the life of me I can't get anything decent out of it. I'm sure I'm doing something wrong but I'm damned if I know what. I've looked at recommended settings and nothing works.
I'm sorry to hear that! Is it just sounding bad, or does it not meld well with your playing? Off the top of my head, I'd say the main things to look into are picking the feedback type that works for you, and then tweaking the heck out of the range knob to get the pedal to behave with your setup. Also, I don't remember if I covered this in the video, but the pedal does require a 235 mA power supply, so I'd double-check your power supply to make sure it is sending enough power. I hope that helped!
@@seanwelch1503 Hi Sean, I always stick the FreqOut first in the chain. Yikes, a constant hum, that's not good. Just out of curiosity, what power supply are you using for the FreqOut? Your issues sounds like either a bad power supply, or a damaged pedal. I'm a complete idiot when it comes to how the actual electronics work, so I wish I could provide more insight... if it isn't a power issue, then my only suggestion would be to contact Digitech.
@@AaronRusch the sound I get is a hum but not a constant hum as you mentioned I get other weird sounds but i have zero c9ntrol over it and ive tried ALL the settings. It lacks the guitars actual tone, almost like its blocking out or just changing the guitar signal to a drone. All my other electric gear is fine....im in the UK, I'll check out the power supply.
I had one, but I didnt like that it cuts the feedback abruptly after a few seconds.. you can't sustain it for very long.. but I plan on buying this thing again and try with compressors, or something
Hmm, that's weird, I don't seem to have that issue with mine, but maybe I'm just used to it?... once I get back to my studio, I'll have to check and see if I can replicate that problem.
Great demo Aaron! Would this be suitable for Robert Fripp parts in Bowie’s Heroes? I play in Bowie tribute and don’t want to go down ebow route. Obviously slides and bending involved and overtones as well. Would this pedal be able to capture this? Thanks
I think it will work very well for those Robert Fripp parts. I listened to that RU-vid video where Tony Visconti isolates the Robert Fripp parts, and I think you can definitely re-create those sounds with the FreqOut. Another great example of how musical feedback can be :) Thanks for watching the video! Playing in a Bowie tribute band must be a blast :)
Thanks for reply Aaron. I’ve ordered one so can’t wait to put it through its paces. Yes, the Bowie band is a blast as you can change things about and not upset anyone.Just like David did!
@@frannyp46 I think it will work nicely for that part, especially if you turn off dry and set the onset to be very low. I just tried some Fripp-style vibrato and bends, and the pedal tracks nicely. Mick Ronson is one of my all-time favorite guitarists, and I've always felt David Bowie was very underrated as a guitar player, so I can imagine how fun that band is :) I hope the pedal exceeds your expectations!
Hi Sam, I always have the FreqOut pedal first in my pedal chain. It just seems to feel and sound a bit better to me before any distortion. I know some fuzz pedals and boost pedals want to be first in the chain, and if I were using something like that, I might move the FreqOut after those pedals ( although I use a Caroline Shigeharu Fuzz pedal, and I do place that after the FreqOut).
Hey Aaron, I just found your video here for the first time to check out the different views of people using this pedal. Im an instrumental guitarist, and i heard a few sounds from this pedal that i first thought i needed to look into because it sounded cool.. BUT! through further study, i have found that aside from the feedback and the Ebow sounds? There is nothing more this pedal offers, and for $230 plus dollars for that? I clearly do not need it.. The constant feedback sounds would annoy me, and only get in the way of the musical expression i make with my guitar. Originally i was looking for a sustainer pedal and this popped up several times. I dont hear any sustain with it though, just feedback that honestly after several videos now, has become irritating to me. You cant use feedback throughout a song more than maybe once! it just ruins the composition to my ears.. The eubow sounds good and i think can be very useful, but again, not for $230! I can use a delay pedal for that sound. ( or just get a real eubow) which i think im going to do now that i have heard it on your video... MORE IMPORTANTLY im writing this message to encourage you to go ahead and make all those videos on all your older pedals, BECAUSE I THINK THE POINT IS THAT THIS IS YOUR CHANNEL, YOUR PERSONALITY, AND YOUR VIEWS, FEELINGS AND INTERPRETATIONS OF THOSE PEDALS THAT YOUR FANS ARE GOING TO WANT TO SEE AND ENJOY! AND THAT IS WHAT YOU SHOULD WANT! PEOPLE TUNING IN TO YOUR CHANNEL TO SEE WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY ABOUT VARIOUS GEAR, IN THE WAYS YOU WOULD SAY IT! AND, YOU MIGHT BE MAKING PEOPLE AWARE OF PEDALS THEY MAY NEVER HAVE KNOWN ABOUT BEFORE! SO THATS GOOD TOO! OK THATS ALL I WANTED TO SAY! ALL THE BEST WITH YOUR CHANNEL, AND MUSIC! I gave you a thumbs up too! by the way....
Hi Rocky, thanks for the response! I totally get what you are saying.... this is a niche pedal that isn't for everyone, and honestly I hope my videos allow people to make informed choices more than anything else. Getting an eBow is a great choice... I've had an eBow for several decades now, and I still use it constantly. And thank you very much for the kind words of encouragement. I'm actually editing a demo video now on a slightly older, but very cool pedal. I do sometimes worry that I should only demo the latest newest pedal every time and nobody cares about my 2-year old pedals... but honestly, I'm worrying less and less about that. Thank you for watching, and thanks for the great feedback!!
Hmm, I don't have a Helix so I'm not able to answer your question. I looked through the list of Helix effects and didn't see anything like a feedback generator, but maybe there's one buried in there somewhere that I'm unaware of?
I actually play amp-less nowadays... I run everything into the Strymon Iridium, so volume isn't a concern anymore (I tormented my neighbors for years, so I'm sure they were happy when I went amp-less)
The Infinite is more of a freeze/sustain pedal-so it doesn't really mimic feedback. Instead, it sustains a note or chord for as long as you wish, so you can play over the frozen notes. The FreqOut is much more expressive and dynamic, in my opinion. Thanks for watching! :)
I’m wondering if its at all possible to achieve the feedback at the VERY end of nirvana’s smells like teen spirit, right before the song ends. or even the long feedback after the solo with this pedal
Hi there, I think it will work on any audio you run through it. Full disclosure... I don't have a synth that I can run through it (yet), but it grabs audio from a guitar and a bass... high and low notes... on both instruments. So I'd imagine it will work well on a synth, but that's also a guess. I'd say the trickiest part may be how the feedback layers with the synth's sound. I can imagine it sounding simply like a disconnected layer over certain patches. I do intend to get a synth sometime this year so I can incorporate that into the pedal demos. I hope that helps, thanks for watching the video!
HI, I'm so sorry to take such a long time to respond. I'd say you could get in the ballpark, but you might have to voice the chords in certain ways to get the pedal to play the feedback you want. If you set it to "5th" type, you can approximate that super-squealy sound like on "You Trip Me Up." I guess this is a bit of a non-answer... IMHO, I'd say it can get you close, but you might have to do some pedal dancing and knob turning if you are doing a cover. I hope that helps!
