Expression Pedal Advice

SubKrypt

SubKrypt

Member
Hey Guys, I'm new to the whole expression pedal thing. I've noticed a lot of people get two expression pedals - one for wah and one for other expression duties. Can someone explain the need for this? I dont use a lot of wah, now and then - so couldnt I just do all of this with one expression pedal? Cheers
 
I use only a single Fractal EV-1 and I can wah pretty well with it. It takes a moment to readjust your movements but once you did that, it feels super natural. I have the presets setup so in one it does volume for swells and in the other just typical wah.

Works perfectly fine.
 
I have 2 full size and 1 mini expression pedal. The mini is always a volume control. Of the others, one is a spring loaded Mission pedal and the other is a regular Boss. So, I basically just have 2 so I can have both kinds.
 
You can do it all with one, but it takes a little routing and programming if you do. Typically, one would use the multiplexer with the volume and wah in two parallel rows, both attached to the same pedal as a modifier. Your switch to turn on the wah would actually be a multiplexer channel selection.

Next step would be 2 expressions, one for wah and one for volume. No routing/programming/multiplexer needed.

Then you get to wanting an expression for things like delay time or feedback, whammy/pitch shifting, modulation speed, or other special effects (e.g. multiple parameters linked to the same expression in a specific program). Then you might want more than 2, need to do the multiplexer thing with different blocks, or some midi-controller trickery.

A Ben.Last pointed out, sometimes it's useful to have different types of expressions for different purposes. I really like a long throw for volume to get fine nuance than a typical crybaby throw. But I've come to realize that some wah techniques (e.g. fast pseudo-vibrato) work best with a traditional wah throw.
 
You absolutely can get by just fine with 1 pedal. I got a second just because for many of my presets I do like having the option of both volume and wah, and two pedals lets me just have both without having to do any tap dancing. But it's really just convenience, I'm not really using it to enable anything that I wouldn't be able to do with one pedal.
 
I've been using a volume pedal on my guitar rigs since the late '70s, so these days I have an expression pedal assigned as a volume control on all my presets. I have two other expression pedals that get assigned to whatever I need for that specific preset. I only use a wah on one preset, so most of the time it's for something like delay feedback or mix, rotary speed, or looper/synth volume. Lately I've been using the third pedal on most presets as a 0 to 4 dB clean boost at the end of the signal chain, using a null filter.
 
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Great, thanks for all the responses guys! I’ll probably just go with one pedal and see if that’s enough.
 
The Mission Engineering SP-1 has a toe switch, just like a normal wah pedal, which you can program to switch between volume and wah (or other effects).
 
I started with one but soon added a second. Every one of my presets has a Vol/Pan block controlled by EV-1 and Wah, Whammy controlled by Mission Engineering SP-1, made switchable using a Multiplexer block.
 
I wanted a dedicated wah pedal because I’m a wah junkie and am just too used to the Dunlop enclosures at this point. I use a Fractal EV-1 for everything else, but mainly volume/Whammy/delay mix and it changes on a scene to scene basis.
 
I use a expression pedal to go back and forth between amps. I dont know why but I just prefer it. I have another set to morph into a wetter setting for some solos....
And then there is one for wah, whammy, speed of the trem, etc...

But yes, you can do it all with just one pedal.
 
If you get a Mission pedal with a switch and change it to a momentary type, you’ll add exponentially to your one pedal options.
 
luke said:
If you get a Mission pedal with a switch and change it to a momentary type, you’ll add exponentially to your one pedal options.
Click to expand...

How are you using yours? I have a Mission SP-1 on the shelf that I've been looking to put to use, or trade for something else. I already have an EV-1 and a spring loaded mission EP-1, that I use for wah, so I have a hammer that's looking for a nail :)
 
can anyone tell me how to set expression peadl so it works the rotary .seems all they talk about is the wah ,volume.thanks
 
If you are editing from the Axe, navigate to the parameter you want to control in the rotary block (speed) and press the C knob (controller) you can then select which modifier (e.g. pedal 1) that you will control it with, in addition to setting the minimum and maximum values. This is the same process as attached an expression to wah or volume, just a different parameter. From Axe-Edit, you will do the same by selecting and right clicking (on PC) the parameter you will attach the expression to.

Personally for changing speeds on the rotary, I set one channel to my slow channel and another to the my fast, and then switch between the two channels to switch speeds. That way I can also vary other parameters like depth, drive, width, and mix to get the exact tone I want.
 
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