Any suggestions on a good volume pedal for the beatbuddy? Sick of bending down to adjust everyother song.
Behringer FCV 100 is ok, good feeling, impedance ok, adjustable minimum volume, not expensive. Last two months I use it with my colleague in acoustic guitar duo, and we are satisfied.
Thanks
Would a Roland EV-5 pedal work as a volume pedal for the BeatBuddy?
I have mentioned this before but the http://optionknob.com/oknob/ is what I use and it is great for quickly adjusting the level of a song. However, if you want extreme control like fading out a song- I am sure a volume pedal set in the chain would work better.
Follow up question as well in addition to whether the Roland EV-5 pedal would work as a volume pedal.
For any Volume Pedal, how would you set it up to work? Would it basically be:
output of the Beat Buddy to
input of the Volume pedal to
output of volume pedal to
mixer channel?
(If so than the Ev-5 pedal won’t as there is no input/output)
The EV5 is an expression pedal so it doesn’t work as a traditional volume pedal does. Check these links for a review of volume pedals:
http://equipboard.com/posts/best-volume-pedal
https://wiki.ezvid.com/best-volume-pedals
Keep in mind that several users have shared their experience that volume pedals seem to be too finicky: they felt that there was no real in-between/easy way to change the volume in increments—the pedal either sweeps all the way up in volume or all the way down (off). Here’s a link http://forum.mybeatbuddy.com/index.php?threads/individual-song-volume-setting.6720/#post-29549
My opinion on what type of volume pedal to consider (if any):
- One with a 25K pot probably works best.
- I don’t think you need an active (buffered) volume pedal.
- Determine whether you need a mono or a stereo volume pedal; this is dependent on the type of drum kits you’re using now or planning to use (read below).
- I would not recommend a Dunlop Volume (X) as I think it’s a 250K impedance pot.
- Although a combination volume/expression pedal sounds attractive, you may not get much use out of it unless you have other expression-enabled pedals.
Stereo or mono volume pedal? If you intend to use Phil Flood’s stereo output drum kits, that shouldn’t stop you from using a mono volume pedal as you can join both outputs of the BeatBuddy into a single mono 1/4" patch cable that plugs into the volume pedal. You could also connect the headphones mini-jack into an adaptor plug from mini to 1/4" to the volume pedal input.
If all you’re doing or planning on doing is to use mono output drum kits that are not stereo output such as Phil’s NP Standard Pro Bass or NP Vintage Ludwig Bass, then a mono volume pedal is fine.
Once you’ve narrowed your list of choices, recommend that you take your BB pedal (and mixer?) to a nearby music store and test it with several different volume pedal brands and see which one works best for you.
Several different ways to connect a volume pedal but the left output of the BeatBuddy to the input of the volume pedal and output of the volume pedal to the mixer is one technique. There are others.
Some random parting shots:
- forum users have discussed testing a compressor pedal to see if that helps manage the volume.
- BTW, there is a hack to turn a volume pedal into an expression pedal but AFAIK, there’s no hack to change an expression pedal into a volume pedal.
- you can check Reverb or TGP Emporium for used volume pedals.
Let us know what you settle on.
The Roland EV-5 will not work, neither will any other “expression pedal”.
You have a few options for controlling the volume of your songs. As usual, the tradeoff is ease of use versus complexity.
First, you can just tweak the knobs either on your BeatBuddy or on your amp. Lots of one man bands have access to their mixer on a stand or table next to them so that they don’t have to bend over to do exactly this kind of thing. They might need to adjust the levels of their mic, instruments, and things like the BB between songs. If you’ll be tweaking knobs the OKnob mentioned above might be a good option for you. Whether you use an OKnob, a mixer stand, a table, or just strain your back, you will only be able to change the overall volume for each song at the beginning of the song. You will not be able to adjust the mix of instruments or do fade-ins and fade-outs.
The next option is to use a volume pedal, not an “expression” pedal which is used to change multiple types of parameters depending on what it’s plugged into, but a VOLUME pedal. There are many and it can be confusing because some can be used as either a volume pedal, an “expression” pedal to control other parameters, or both. You’re looking for one that has an input from the thing whose volume is being controlled and an output. Something like this:
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/EB6180
https://media.sweetwater.com/api/i/f-webp__ha-d05122e4be81a215__q-82__hmac-3b2b18c2dab0f2478612af9facef75b39097c297/images/closeup/750-EB6180_detail3.jpg.auto.webp
You would plug the output from the BB into the “IN” jack, then the “OUT” jack to where you were plugging in your BB.
Before:
BeatBuddy -> Amp
After:
BeatBuddy -> Volume Pedal -> Amp
This option allows you to change the volume dynamically during the song. It allows you to fade-in and fade-out, or just set the overall volume, but you do have to practice with it to get the feel of where the different volumes are for each of the songs. And, of course it gives you one more thing to have to manage with your feet.
Another option is to use a MIDI controller. To send MIDI control signals to the BB. In addition to being able to trigger all of the stored sounds through MIDI, essentially being able to “play” the BB with another MIDI device, the also BB recognizes all MIDI control signals like Tempo, Volume, Program (Song) Change, etc. So you can, for instance, use a MIDI aware lead sheet app for your tablet to select songs, set tempo, volume, etc, when you select a different song on your tablet. But, you can also use a programmable MIDI controller like the Behringer FCB1010.
The Behringer lets you send MIDI signals to any MIDI and it’s completely programmable. You could for instance, map button #1 to “Start Song” or “Go Directly to Part 1 Main Loop” or “Go directly to Song #1 on my List”. You can also map the expression pedals to send any MIDI signal like volume, tempo (so that you can do retards), etc. The Behringer MIDI Foot Controller is relatively inexpensive - $150, but it does require you to have some knowledge of MIDI programming in general, and the MIDI command structure of the BB. Lots of control, and lots of flexibility, but there is a fairly steep setup curve.
Finally, another option is to edit the patterns in your songs. If there is a song that you know you always turn down because the bass or crash is too loud, you can edit the patterns in BB Manager. If you use the same beat for multiple songs, but you need it at different volumes, you would export the beats, import them into a new song, and modify the beats for that song. There is no overall volume adjustment for the patterns. If you want to change the overall volume, you would have to adjust the volume for every note in the song - an arduous task. This isn’t such a bad option if you just want to lower the volume of ONE instrument for that song, like an overly aggressive crash cymbal. This option is in some ways the most difficult to set up, but it has lots of benefits. First, you don’t have to do anything once it’s set up. When you select the song, it will play at the volume that you set. Also, it gives you the most control over the volume because you can control individual instruments, not just the overall volume.
Thanks for all the advice. Borrowed a multi-effects board which had a volume pedal at a gig last night. It worked just how I thought (and all of you) predicted it would. So I ordered one this morning and am going to work on making my own little pedal board for the Beat Buddy and pedals. Should be fun!
Im doing the same!
That the expression pedal ? I have one and I couldnt get it to work.
No. The Roland EV-5 will not work. A “Volume Pedal” is basically just an input, a volume knob on that input that you control with your foot, and an output.
An “Expression Pedal” is a controller that sends a signal to something that knows how to interpret the signal. That something might be a synthesizer (control volume, pitch, tremolo, or vibrato rate, etc.), an effects board, or a smart amp, that knows how to interpret the signal.
Looks a great option got to be worth a try
I agree a cheap and simple pedal although quite large