Down tuning with Pitch block, III vs. II

For those missing the attack, use the VOL block trick for letting 2-3 ms of the unchanged (no pitch) attack through via a short adsr trigger on the VOL modifier. Brings back the immediacy to the drop-tune.

(Adjust threshold to get it working properly. For me, it’s somewhere a between -30 to -15 dB.)

I used to do it on two, and now I do it on the three. Solves that problem ASAP.

Could you please explain how to do this... Im having the same problem... I would like to try this but im not sure where to start...
 
Yeah, the latency is not enjoyable. We only do one song with the downtuning and I use guitars with floyds, I've been trying to avoid bringing two more guitars to every gig for one song. I have done the whole 'bring one more guitar, using the downtune patch as a backup in place of a second guitar' thing, and between inconveniences, just using the patch is the lesser of two evils for me. I'll probably reconsider, if we start doing more downtuned songs in the set.
It's not even the latency for me. I didn't discern much difference with The Drop. It was the quality of of the dropped sound that turned me off. Again I tried it during soundcheck at full volume. I had multiple people to A/B the sound between the AXE3 and the Drop pedal. Everyone noticed the difference and preferred the Drop. I played around with the tracking and a few other parameters and was not able to get what I need. Which is fine with me. The AXE3 excels at everything else.
 
Could you please explain how to do this... Im having the same problem... I would like to try this but im not sure where to start...

here's what you do...

put a volume block in parallel with the pitch shifter
bypass the pitch shifter with bypass mode set to mute
attach the adsr to the volume block "volume" param
set the attack of the adsr to 1ms
decay to 3ms
sustain to 1ms
release to 1ms
level to 100%
and set the threshold so that when you hit the strings you hear the attack portion on each hit (should be around -25db)

unmute the pitch block
 
For those missing the attack, use the VOL block trick for letting 2-3 ms of the unchanged (no pitch) attack through via a short adsr trigger on the VOL modifier. Brings back the immediacy to the drop-tune.

(Adjust threshold to get it working properly. For me, it’s somewhere a between -30 to -15 dB.)

I used to do it on two, and now I do it on the three. Solves that problem ASAP.
I've been doing it by adding an envelope controller to mix on the pitch block with modified start/stop/scale... Similar thing: initially use the original signal and then very quickly mix in the dropped signal which ramps rapidly to 100%. I picked up the idea from a thread on the II forum probably the same discussion. Being a long time Fractal fan has its privileges LOL.
 
Am I the only one who's never had a problem with the Axe pitch block? I've tried the Drop pedal and I can't really tell any difference in terms of shift sound quality. And the Drop doesn't have the fine-tuning options the Axe does.

Nope, you're not the only one. I typically use it for +/- 3 half-step shifts. I only play live, so in the mix any imperfections aren't consequential...at least to me and any audiences I've played for.
 
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Nope, you're not the only one. I typically use it for +/- 3 step shifts. I only play live, so in the mix any imperfections aren't consequential...at least to me and any audiences I've played for.

I usually only use it for a 1 or 2 whole-step momentary downshift, when I want add a bit more range to a riff. Otherwise, sometimes it's fun to play the treble strings downshifted an octave (or two!).
 
I use the XL pitch block to downtune 1/2 step for a song and in a live situation, it sounds fine, which is what really matters. I can tell at home by myself though that there's some artifacts and imperfections.
 
I made a post in this topic but it got deleted or censored somehow? Not sure what happened.
 
Does the H9 do drop tuning well?
It’s not something I do...but probably the pitch tracking is great.
The Eventide stuff doesn't really do polyphonic pitch shifting. So no, the H9 cannot do drop tuning well. PitchFlex algorithm is kinda polyphonic, but it's not passable for drop tuning usage if you want to play anything other than power chords.
 
For those that ARE having success with say drop tuning a 1/2 step to Eb....what pitch block option are you using and what are your settings?

Thank you!
D
 
For those that ARE having success with say drop tuning a 1/2 step to Eb....what pitch block option are you using and what are your settings?

Thank you!
D


Fairly straight fwd.

Pitch/Dual Detune
  • -1 semitone on the pitch on voice 1 (leave voice 2 alone except for next step)
  • VOL 1=100 and #2 at 0.
  • Tracking usually default (6.17? iirc), but try playing with it for your own tastes.
  • Block Mix to 100%.
  • Add vol block trick for attack if needed (see earlier post)
 
Fairly straight fwd.

Pitch/Dual Detune
  • -1 semitone on the pitch on voice 1 (leave voice 2 alone except for next step)
  • VOL 1=100 and #2 at 0.
  • Tracking usually default (6.17? iirc), but try playing with it for your own tastes.
  • Block Mix to 100%.
  • Add vol block trick for attack if needed (see earlier post)
Excellent, thank you! Those have been the settings I have been using with the exception that the tracking may be slightly different. I will test in around the 6.17 Mark.

I haven't tried the vol block trick though...

Thanks,
D
 
Fairly straight fwd.

Pitch/Dual Detune
  • -1 semitone on the pitch on voice 1 (leave voice 2 alone except for next step)
  • VOL 1=100 and #2 at 0.
  • Tracking usually default (6.17? iirc), but try playing with it for your own tastes.
  • Block Mix to 100%.
  • Add vol block trick for attack if needed (see earlier post)
....and I assume you are referring to "Dual shift" as "Dual Detune" doesn't allow the -1 for 1/2 step. Also, where are you placing the pitch block within the signal chain....at the beginning?

Thanks,
D
 
....and I assume you are referring to "Dual shift" as "Dual Detune" doesn't allow the -1 for 1/2 step. Also, where are you placing the pitch block within the signal chain....at the beginning?

Thanks,
D


Most likely; I was just recalling from memory/an aging brain box. Yes, I recall that one won’t do semitones, only cents. So it must be as you say - Dual Shift. Thanks for the correction.
 
No stupid questions here. It can be a complex device, depending on how deep you want to go.

ADSR: Attack, Decay, Sustain, Release. (FWIW, Most tone generators use this model to build a sound on something like a synth.)

These are the key components of a signal envelope i.e. note(s) played.

It so happens that every preset has 2 ADSR controllers which you can adjust to control a modifier in a block (along with all the other modifier types e.g. Pedal, Footswitch, Envelope, LFO, etc.)

In the VOL block example, you are allowing a couple of milliseconds of attack/decay/sustain of the guitar through to the preset signal path (to get that snap attack lost in the Pitch shift block).

I’m sure this ADSR stuff in the manual and wiki. You might review those for far more information vs. what I've provided. Good luck!
 
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