The UnitBasse creative effects

Synth Volt · The bass synth

What it does to the sound

The Synth turns your bass into a synthesizer. It listens to the note you play, recognizes its pitch, and generates two new voices that follow it: a square wave an octave lower, with the hollow, nasal sound typical of synths, and a smooth wave two octaves lower, very deep. Their volume follows how hard you play.

All of it goes through a resonant low-pass filter, like the ones on analog synths: it removes the highs above a given frequency, and the resonance emphasizes that frequency, all the way to a whistle. On top of that, the filter opens on every attack, like an envelope filter: every note goes “wow”.

In pedal terms, this is the bass synth family, which combines pitch detection, oscillators and a filter. Like them, it needs single, clean notes to track well.

Its controls

Try it

Play a funk or electronic line one note at a time, in the middle of the neck. Start from the Synthwave factory preset, which uses it with MIX 50%, OCTAVE 60%, SUB OCT 30% and RESONANCE 40%, followed by a Chorus and a Delay.

Its place in the chain

Right at the start of the chain, after the compressor and the octaver, before the filters and the amp: it needs the cleanest note possible.

Tape Reel · The worn-out tape

What it does to the sound

Tape mimics a tired old tape recorder. It brings together everything tape does to sound:

• gentle compression, which squashes the loud notes;
• tape saturation, rounded and slightly asymmetrical, warmer than a pedal’s;
• wow and flutter: the tape never runs at a perfectly steady speed, so the pitch wavers, slowly (wow) and with a faster tremble (flutter);
• wear: aged tape loses its highs;
• hiss, that soft background noise of cassettes.

In pedal terms, this is the family of tape simulators and lo-fi pedals, which go after that warm, slightly unstable sound of old recordings.

Its controls

Try it

For a lo-fi sound, or to warm up a line that’s too clean. Start from the Lo-Fi factory preset, which uses it with MIX 60%, SATURATION 50%, WOW/FLUTTER 40% and AGE 30%, with a Compressor.

Its place in the chain

Toward the end of the chain, after the modulations and before the delay and reverb: like a tape you’ve recorded the sound onto.

Swarm Hive · The swarm of voices

What it does to the sound

Swarm copies your note into several voices, from two to six. Each voice is slightly detuned, and each one wavers slowly, at its own speed. Together, they never quite agree: the sound widens, moves, and buzzes like a swarm.

It’s the chorus principle, pushed much further: a chorus adds one copy, Swarm adds up to six. Gentle saturation can melt them together, and a shimmer control adds a metallic sparkle on top.

In pedal terms, this is the family of multi-voice choruses and ensemble effects, which mimic several instruments playing the same thing.

Its controls

Try it

For pads, an intro, a slow passage played in long notes. No factory preset uses it: start with MIX low, 4 voices, a little DETUNE.

Its place in the chain

After the saturation effects and before the classic modulations, in the UnitBasse order.

Warp Bend · The sound that bends

What it does to the sound

Warp combines two movements. First a flanger: a very slightly delayed copy of the sound, whose delay varies, with part of it sent back into the effect; the spectrum gets notched and sweeps. Then a pitch wobble, driven by the same oscillation: the sound seems to twist and bend.

Saturation can harden the whole thing. The result is an unstable, wavering sound, somewhere between a flanger and warped tape.

In pedal terms, it’s reminiscent of extreme flangers, vibratos and lo-fi warp pedals.

Its controls

Try it

For a texture, an effect on a few notes, a sound that “melts”. No factory preset uses it: start with MIX low and SPEED slow.

Its place in the chain

After the saturation effects, right after Swarm, before the classic modulations.

Plasma Ion · The electric sound

What it does to the sound

Plasma is a ring modulator: it multiplies your sound by a sine wave at a fixed frequency. That multiplication creates new frequencies that aren’t harmonically related to the note: the sound becomes metallic, electric, like a bell or a robot voice.

On top of the modulator, Plasma adds a dose of chaos, which makes the wave drift and sends part of the sound back into the effect, a pulse that makes the volume throb, and tube saturation.

In pedal terms, this is the ring modulator family, the noise effects par excellence. On bass, they completely change the note: use with care.

Its controls

Try it

For an effect on a long note, an intro, the end of a song. No factory preset uses it: start with MIX low and FREQUENCY low.

Its place in the chain

With the saturation effects, after the amp, behind the fuzz.

Fracture Shard · The broken digital sound

What it does to the sound

A digital sound is described by a series of values, taken thousands of times per second. Fracture deliberately damages that description, in two ways:

• it reduces the bit depth, that is, how finely levels are described: the sound becomes grainy, like old video game consoles;
• it reduces the sample rate: by keeping fewer values, it brings out stray, metallic frequencies.

What makes it special: the damage can follow your playing, stronger when you dig in, or the other way round, when you play softly. Saturation and a gate complete the package.

In pedal terms, this is the family of bitcrushers and decimators, widely used in electronic music and lo-fi.

Its controls

Try it

For electronic music, hip-hop, an “8-bit” passage. No factory preset uses it: start with MIX low, CRUSH in the middle, SAMPLE at zero.

Its place in the chain

With the saturation effects, after the amp, last in that family.