Guitar Effects Pt 2

Effects can add a whole host of dynamics to your playing and also allow you to get more out of your instrument, as well as being fun to use and experiment with!

Continuing onwards from our previous post on the types of guitar effects available, today we’re going to have a look at three more commonly used effects.

In this second blog post, we will again break down some very popular guitar effects briefly detailing what they do as well as where you might have heard them before!

Wah Wah: Imagine quickly rolling your tone controls backwards and forwards, from heavy to bass to sweet top end and there you have the essence of what a Wah pedal does. However it has much more tonal variation then you’d be able to get with your hand, as you’d use your foot to rock it back and forth. Listen to any guitar solo from Kirk Hammett of metal legends Metallica to hear it in action!

Flanger/Phaser: A very popular effect in progressive and rock music, this effect can add a sweeping noise to your tone and in extremes can turn your tone to totally weird and almost unrecognisable as a guitar. Phaser/Flanger adds a swirling effect mimicking the sound of a rotating speakers. A favourite of guitar hero Jimi Hendrix.

Tremolo: A simple volume effect that increases and decreases the volume of the guitar signal rapidily, adding a shimmering effect to your chords. Great for arpeggios the effect was big in the 50’s and early 60’s and is enjoying a resurgence in more recent times. Check out any 50’s era surf rock to get a insight into how cool this effect sounds!

All the effects covered in these blog posts can be used individually or can be combined with other effects to create even stranger and more fantastical sounds. You can even get multi-effects processors that have 100’s of combinations of every effect, although they can seem a lot more complex compared to the standard stomp boxes, they are popular with modern players for the sheer versatility.

As you can see the possibilities are endless, so come on down to your local store and let us help you make the right decisions.