Re: Whammy

["kim corbet" <kcorbet@mail.smu.edu>]

In response to...

> I covet more elaborate pitch tweakage. .  How about a discussion
> >of moderately priced pitch shifting/harmonizing/whammy-ing devices?

> What about the digitech whammy pedal?  That thing seems to do alot of 
>pitch
> shifting and whammy.  Kind of looks cool too!!

....................I have 2 Whammy IIs and love 'em.  They're wonderful 
with a
mic...or anything else I've put them through.  When I have both in the set 
up, I
generally have one as a frontline processor (it has a nice little preamp 
for 
remote ampage) and put the other one right after my rang to be able to 
warp out 
the loopage.  One iteresting effect is playing the rang loop back at 
half-speed 
and shooting it up an octave on the trailing whammy so the pitch is the 
same as 
the original but half the original rate...duh.  you can imagine the 
variations.

The whammy has good tracking, better than anything else I've seen in the 
$150 - 
$200 range and has a variety of stepped through stages.  The pedal part of 
the 
pedal allows you to smoothly gliss up and down various intervals (up to 2 
octs) 
and to play several harmony intervals.  I especially like using trombone 
to 
create steel guitarish lines as I rock between m3 and M3 or 5ths and 6ths, 
etc. 

I have minor complaints about the interface (you can only step Forward 
through 
the stages and there oughta be a slight center notch on the pedal to be 
able to 
(for example) find exact unison when you're given the choice of oct up or 
oct 
down harmony.  And, while I'm being picky, when I'm using a mic, I have to 
always be aware of how much I'm bleeding the rest of the band through my 
mic.  
Some folks go ballistic when they hear their own hard fought sound coming 
out in
strange intervals through someone else's stage monitor.  I generally find 
if I 
set up on the opposite side of the stage from the lead guitarist, I get 
fewer 
sore ribs from agressive necks probing my space.  Of course, there's an 
effect 
mute switch, the use of which is determined by my attitude toward the gig 
and 
any potential disturbed bleeders.

That said, I'm awfully glad to have found the Whammy.  I've played several 
sessions using trombone to exactly mimic trumpet or tuba.  And the two 
octave up
is so etherial...I often use it on bass to get above the rest of the band 
for 
solo and pad stuff...and that's all I have to say about that - Forest 
Gump.