10 Legendary Pedals You NEED to Check Out on Bass

These 10 pedals have definitely earned their place in history providing some of the most legendary and influential tones of all time. And you might be surprised at how good they sound on bass.
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Featured gear:
Ibanez TS808 Tube Screamer Reissue Overdrive Pedal:
www.zzounds.com/a--3970972/it...
Ibanez Tube Screamer TS9 Overdrive Pedal:
www.zzounds.com/a--3970972/it...
Boss CE-2w Waza Craft Chorus Pedal:
www.zzounds.com/a--3970972/it...
Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi Distortion Pedal:
www.zzounds.com/a--3970972/it...
MXR M101 Phase 90 Pedal:
www.zzounds.com/a--3970972/it...
Pro Co RAT2 Distortion Pedal:
www.zzounds.com/a--3970972/it...
JHS PackRat Distortion Pedal:
www.zzounds.com/a--3970972/it...
Electro-Harmonix Nano Deluxe Memory Man Analog Delay Pedal:
www.zzounds.com/a--3970972/it...
Boss DS-1 Distortion Pedal:
www.zzounds.com/a--3970972/it...
Dunlop GCB95 Original Cry Baby Wah Pedal:
www.zzounds.com/a--3970972/it...
Wampler Tumnus Classic Overdrive Mini Pedal:
www.zzounds.com/a--3970972/it...
We make a small commission on any product purchased through our affiliate links. If you would like to support The Bass Channel on your next gear purchase, whether it be strings, cables, picks, or these pedals, check out zZounds! Using our link doesn’t cost you anything extra but it helps us quite a bit. Thank you!
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0:00 Intro
1:19 Tube Screamer (TS 808 & TS9)
4:35 CE-2 Chorus (CE-2w)
6:32 Big Muff Pi
8:30 Phase 90 (block)
10:53 RAT (RAT2 & JHS Packrat)
14:08 Deluxe Memory Man (Nano)
16:10 DS-1 Distortion
18:43 Cry Baby (GCB95)
20:30 Klon Centaur (Wampler Tumnus)
23:14 SansAmp (BDDI v2)
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[@patrickhunter]

Wait...there's no Metal Zone??? YOU PHONIES!

[@jeebsa4m3]

That was an awesome video. Thanks for the tip on the metal zone

[@davedixon2167]

We could certainly try to add it to a second list - it's definitely legendary as well. LOL thanks Patrick.

[@oaklandish-metalboy1194]

You can sound like Audie Pitre of ACID BATH if you get the Heavy Metal one!

[@JM.COSMIC]

There's no point, it sounds like a bunch of bees lol

[@abnerhassenbelleicherene6750]

Metal zone is a efect tone to play anesthesia puling teeth

[@SteveV74]

You guys are Bass Nerds, I love it! Gotta say there is a bunch of gear i own because of you guys, I like how u guys try pedals and gear that are not exactly made for bass but work awesome anyway…AND, most importantly you try different basses through them,keep em comin…..BTW, Im a Bass Nerd too.

[@chrischilton8455]

The Sansamp is the go to for me. I've had or still own a bunch of the others on your list but the Sansamp is my portable gig rig. Love it.

[@OMARA.OFFICIAL]

Yes the “JacksinBacker” is back can’t get over that bass had to get one for the studio myself. 🤘🤘

[@ileutur6863]

Although you're completely right that people make a big deal out of pedals that cut low end, bass in some genres really can't afford that loss. I've played in bands where a driven Tube Screamer tone would be ideal, but in my current prog band it would make me disappear

[@oldunclemick]

That's where my Trace Elliot is handy having an effects loop so I can blend. I once had a recording engineer checking all his gear trying to find what was distorting the bass!

[@howler9171]

​@@oldunclemick My ampeg portaflex has a clean blend for the effects loop too, it sounds killer with my DS-1 in there. The problem is though, if you want to use a tube screamer to boost the front of your amp, you can't have it in the effects loop after the preamp

[@hewiebecker6165]

Have a look at a Boss Line Selector as well. You can blend in what would be your attack tone with an empty loop which would be your fundamental tone.

[@JohnnyArtPavlou]

Now THAT’S true bypass.🤪

[@JohnnyArtPavlou]

Or….bybass…

[@NathanielValdivia]

Thanks for going straight to the point! This is awesome

[@ladyjulia4038]

I love the phase 90 on bass. Sounds great with some distortion in front of it too!

[@Abos_Studio]

Yeah that sounded cool and the cry baby

[@prestachuck2867]

“If you want to sound like The Edge, U-2 should get this pedal.” 😂

[@IYF_Productions_SL]

The Boss DS-1 is a good distortion pedal and Josh just made it great by adding the his own distortion to the mix. Rock on Bro!!! \m/

[@LikeTheBirb]

The Sansamp bass driver is the only one of these I own, and the only one that sticks out to me. I love its sounds so much, so flexible for funky or heavy styles

[@rorschach1]

I used the bass driver forever until I finally switched over to the ParaDriver

[@trfmusic902]

Sansamp bass driver is my “always on” pedal. I use it as my boost (equalizer pedal, with some drive) and then i have my odb-3 bass overdrive for my main drive and thats always on too.

[@craigmoran893]

@@rorschach1 i have both, they both sound awesome - but the paradriver does some cool stuff too.

[@andresmartinezgomez3629]

Nice, love that Kiss bass line!! Beautiful sounds ;D

[@AceFurley]

my brush with greatness was borrowing kurt's ds-1 from my bandmate mighty joe preston (of melvins/thrones/etc) to do some 4 tracking! The weird thing is that i looked at the concert pic used in this video, and that's ME (with the beatles hairdo and a can of something I was most likely to young to be drinking!) in front of kurt right up front!!! I spent the whole set not touching the floor, I was crunched up against the stage using my knees to keep from being crushed from behind!!! I had no idea this pic existed, yet here I am, over (oh lord help me!) 35? years ago!!!

[@hardcore302]

Far out!

[@merciless2032]

Proco Rat is THE PEDAL for me :D Thank you for including it!

[@Messerjocke90]

My personal favorite pedal (specifically for bass) is the ebs micro bass 3 that i stumbled across by accident when I was looking for darkglass and other preamps, because I wanted some dirt in my tone, without loosing the low end. Haven't regret the purchase at all and that's basically all you'd want in a pedal like that.

[@paulbeharrell]

Thank you gentlemen for this great video! I was looking at the Tumnus as a “works on guitar and bass” drive pedal and there aren’t many good bass demos out there. Cheers 🍻

[@alexskibicki2262]

Awesome demo 😎🤘🏻🎸 I’ve always liked using pedals on bass. My personal favorite effects has always been distortion, chorus, and flanger. Other than that here’s my top favorite pedals on this clip. 1. Ibanez tube screamer 2. Boss ce-2 chorus 3. Electro-harmonix big muff pi 4. Boss ds-1 distortion 5. Sansamp bass driver Not an easy choice especially since there’s a lot of good pedals on this demo, but these pedals are my top 5 favorites. And f.y.I: Peter Steele from type o negative uses a boss ds-1 for his killer distorted bass tone along with other boss pedals.

[@liozeon643]

Awesome video about different pedals for bass. And JHS channel has very educational and informative videos all the time.

[@Vigilante_Typewriter]

Great vid guys 👍, just wondering why you didn't use the bass versions of some of the pedals, eg. Big Muff and Ibanez.

[@flatgroundtv7097]

"He has the box" The Bass Channel, you guys are awesome. ✊🏽

[@tekkau2]

OMG man, I never thought of the rat and tube screamer could sound that great on bass . Thanks for this awesome video :)

[@robmyers9702]

The Turbo Rat sounds even better than the standard version on bass .

[@tekkau2]

@@robmyers9702 wow. Thanks man . I will give it a try :)

[@harryh5620]

Marcus Miller has been touring with an OCD on his board for years.

[@tekkau2]

@@harryh5620 WOW ,thanks for sharing this ,man !

[@Bagusys]

Like 90% of Justin Chancellor of Tool’s tone is The Rat and Sansamp

[@ks23770]

A good alternative to the Tube Screamer is the Westminster Effects 1689. On top of multiple clipping options, it also has a blend.

[@CesarAnthony001]

A good alternative for the tube screamer is the Earthquaker Devices Plumes, has a slightly better low end, 3 modes and is 100$. You can also use an EQ pedal to bring in the lows if your drive sucks them out

[@skrillah6259]

I think a splitter pedal is a must have for bassists, you can use any pedal and still get good low end, great for the ts9 for example

[@CesarAnthony001]

@@skrillah6259 do you have any suggestions I should look out for?

[@elverdaderojavier]

@@skrillah6259Or you can just turn up the bass EQ on your amp or at the desk. It's that simple.

[@skrillah6259]

@@elverdaderojavierif you like your tone to sound like mud sure

[@SUNNofODIN]

@@skrillah6259can you explain how that works? I’d like to try it. Is it a different outcome from something like how the Rat Juggernaut has a “Mix” knob?

[@JunacCRO]

I have the v1 of the bddi sansamp and i have had it for about 8 years now. AMAZING and useful pedal as a D.I or as a coloring tool....Hail the presence knob.

[@ElricX]

Sansamp bass driver is my favorite bass pedal. It's always in my signal chain.

[@matthewbeckwith663]

In terms of the tube screamer sound, I really dig using the Way Huge Green Rhino.

[@HondoFelder]

Was literally about to make a video almost EXACTLY like this 🤬. I hate you guys LOL. Great job! 🤘🏽Made me fall back in love with these pedals.

[@Otenphotography]

Ibanez ts808 Tube Screamer 🫶🏻🌟🎸 Great great video 🎉

[@Owen-ne6pe]

We need a few more parts of this with other legendary pedals like the fuzz face and mxr distortion too

[@davedixon2167]

We definitely started thinking that when we were trying to settle on only 10 for this one!

[@chaosclg]

Sansamp bass di is amazing, toured with one for years you can get a behringer copy that is exactly the same but the case is plastic and it costs like 20 quid. I've got both side by side there is no difference

[@Durkhead]

Going the other war around the best chorus pedal for guitar with distortion is boss bass chorus ceb-3 you can apply chorus to only the high end and makes awesome lead tones

[@Gubbinsmcbumbersnoot]

Tube screamers have always been mandatory on any rig of mine. Bass or guitar.

[@1thess523]

I use a Berhinger Vintage Tube Overdrive T0800 on my bass and it adds a nice touch, I tried my boss SD-1 but that was a little too trebly for me

[@davidlewis8814]

Hoo-wee, I love that G-3 - sounds good on every take!

[@t.j.meechan682]

I got the Tosin Abasi pedal for guitar primarily, but as a distortion pedal for bass it is perfect. Similar to Darkglass, but not exactly. Worth checking out if you're on the market for a distortion pedal.

[@JVMC_ZR1]

That's good to know. I got the Revv G3 for guitar too... and it turns out it's also great on bass.

[@kalidesu]

That makes perfect sense how Tosin slaps his down tune 8 string guitars.

[@mintdragon9548]

Bought a Laney pedal for a pre-amp, then open to anything after that. I like the SansAmp sounds, currently preferring the BassPod pedal to pull out sounds for my live gigs. Normally just trying to match live gig covers. For originals, run the Laney for passive basses through my Mesa amp, then DI to record for originals. Live is a pedal board with Laney-BassPod-Sansamp and stomping when needed, but only using each when needed, nothing is ever 'always on'.

[@Bigscott4130]

All the signature Tech 21 DI boxes should make a "Modern Legends" list (dUg Pinnick, Steve Harris, and of course Geddy Lee). Darkglass' Alpha/Omega series would make it as well. Maybe the EHX Micro POG?

[@axelleaxl.5315]

Thanks for this vid :) in this vid, is this the pedals sounds alone or did you blend dry bass signal with it ? see ya !

[@bradwolfe1999]

I own a tech 21 Geddy Lee YYZ and it is my favourite pedal.

[@JamrockVybzTV]

Good stuff. Thank you fam

[@MusicLand53]

I love MXR pedals. So, I might include, off the top of my head, MXR Distortion Plus, MXR Blue Box, MXR M134 Stereo Chorus and MXR Dyna Comp. They aren't all for bass guitar. But, they are legendary.

[@robertotakahashi9950]

Great video. I’d like to see things like Fuzz War, 4Wheeler, Diamond Bass Comp, Black Sheep, Barber Shop…

[@raymcgirr7143]

Used to run a sansamp with my darkglass pedals and it sounded massive. Really might pick up another sansamp for old times sake

[@jean-philippemorin1176]

Sansamp rocks, bddi or gt2 is nice. The rat is pretty neat too. And at home I always play with a delay on my board

[@BassRacerx]

digging the Tumnus sound!

[@Kai-Peter.Schellhase]

The Tumnus was my definite favourite. I thought it sounded good on bass even without the clean blend.👍 Might just have try one out for myself.

[@TheBassChannel]

I was also pleasantly surprised by the Tumnus

[@Bobby-wn5yr]

Tumnus works, another klonish that works well surprisingly is the Sick As by Bondi. I bought it for my guitar, but it now lives on my bass board 🤷‍♂️ Of course, EHX make a bass version of a soul food too which is worth mentioning.

[@almostliterally593]

@@Bobby-wn5yr my unpopular opinion, klons are better for bass

[@F3502000]

Sansamp is a must get!! 😀👍

[@andrewpappas9311]

Some of my favourite pedals to use on my bass are my EHX Big Muff, Boss OD-1X, DS-1 and Cry Baby and are great for emulating some of the most iconic bassists in rock history (and the ones I love playing), including: - Cliff Burton (Tube Screamer/Big Muff + Cry Baby: Anesthesia (Pulling Teeth), For Whom the Bell Tolls, Call of Kthulu, Orion) - Krist Novoselic (Rat: Breed) - Peter Hook (CE-2W: Love Will Tear Us Apart) - Roger Waters (Phase 90: Have A Cigar, Sheep)

[@Farewelltokingz]

Cliff burton was tube screamer and Morley power wah boost. Although I’m sure that combo sounds pretty good too.

[@andrewpappas9311]

@@Farewelltokingz Yeah, but if you listen to Anesthesia that’s definitely a Big Muff Pi

[@Farewelltokingz]

@@andrewpappas9311 Yeah, definitely, I just corrected it because way too many people still think he used the big muff on bells

[@andrewpappas9311]

@@Farewelltokingz I will admit that I thought that as well but it was his Morley

[@jr76480]

Key pedal in Cliff’s arsenal.., Morley whah… just whah-ing

[@ericalba5756]

My fave in this demo is the Tumnus

[@gnippuz]

Hi, thanks for this great pedal list ! Is there any way to know which pedal is used in "Suffocate" by The Honest Heart Collective ? Is it the pro co rat or TS9 ? or... what else ? Thanks in advance.

[@pclindholm]

I think the tube screamer sounds just fantastic on bass, probably better than ODs developed specifically for bass.

[@kalidesu]

It makes sence , the Billy Sheehan pedals are a tube screamers are tuned for bass with dual in/out and mix blending.

[@domboy666]

Great video, do you have any videos on how to set up a rig with a dry/effect blend feature?

[@johnmacneil99]

Check out the Damnation Audio True Bypass Loop Blender! Amazing box. If it’s too pricey, Saturnworks makes a loop blender that’s easier on the wallet.

[@design1of470]

I have the RAT pedal and it's fantastic. I have the DS-1 also b/c it's so cheap, why not

[@catmalogen23]

If you’re a few years back into bass (after a 30 year lay off = life happens), could anyone recommend 3 pedals from the cohort listed you consider the more intriguing and possibly indispensable?

[@thewetterbass]

Nice that you added the Tummus! Still, though Klones are a joy to play with, don’t you wish there were more lows at highest gain setting? Also, after hearing it in your video, I gotta give the DS-1 another chance… nasty!

[@kalidesu]

Yeah they need a Klon tuned for bass., I'm sure someone makes one or has modded one.

[@thewetterbass]

@@kalidesu even modded the nature of a klon at high gain is to react like a boosted mid forward distorting guitar amp… two ways, for example, to solve this is by adding some parallel dry low end or adding eq lows post klon.

[@jshaft37]

​@@kalidesubass soul food

[@lylaznboi01]

I'm surprised how well the overdrive and distortion pedals work with just a plain bass DI. That's something I gotta test out in a mix.

[@kameronwraithd.k.5363]

But for bass wouldn´t it be better to get a Boss CEB 3? I´m kinda new to pedals so I´d like to know please.

[@nunoharris]

Hi do you like more the TS 808 or the TS 9 ? Thanks

[@nunoharris]

Hi did Cliff Burton used only the TS 9 or also the TS 808 ? Thanks

[@MaggieKeizai]

Wow, didn't expect to hear "Sure know something" right out the gate.

[@mark6302]

god damn I had so much crap when I was a kid I forgot about a lot of it I had a handful of those Ibanez soundtanks they were decent for the price. Still got my boss ds1 that thing has to be over 25 now

[@astrokratov_official]

Another tip for the next video: The Boss OC-2 octaver. Especially Japan made one, that spelled "octavER" instead of 'Octave' on it's front. The pedal is said to be THE ONE AND ONLY TRUE OCTAVE SOUND, thanks to "THE CHIP" and "right" analog circuit. Legend says the right pedal blessed by Japanese factory gods can outplay even Quad Cortex. And drives the audiophiles in awe.

[@TheBassChannel]

The OC-2 was definitely a heavy consideration. Looks like a Part 2 is imminent.

[@astrokratov_official]

@@TheBassChannel call me for a collab on OC-2))))))

[@SthoomUnoffical-vn4hd]

I am using a tube screamer clone for slapp bass parts 🤓 works the way we want

[@corontsurara3862]

How about some kind of Talk Box with a bass? How would that sound?

[@sazalamel4749]

In the case of the Big Muff it would specifically be the russian green Big Muff for bass.

[@floetch9278]

Just try this : MXR custom badass modified OD, that's crazy !!

[@MB57]

Boring I know, but Sansamp GT2 sounds great on bass in the Tweed section.

[@seandalejackson2525]

Hey Brotha, can I get all this out of the ZOOM B6 processor for the same effect and save trips to the store and space on the floor?! Thanks, HUUUUGE FAN GUYS!!

[@innercityuprising8353]

I’ve used DS-1 on my bass for the last 10 years. Still to this day I have other bass players come up to me after gigs telling me how good I sounded and ask what I’m using. You’d be surprised how many turn their noses up at me once they find out.

[@markbass354]

VERY NICE

[@oinkooink]

On my last world tour I used the Sansamp.

[@Serg_dabass]

I noticed y’all used a Jackson series X bass can you tell me what he has the eq on the bass on 4:34

[@TheBassChannel]

I don’t remember but my rule of thumb with onboard EQ is to generally leave it flat. In the Jackson’s case, it sounds good with a ~50% boost in the bass, ~50% cut in the mid, and ~60% boost in the treble so there’s a chance it was dialed like that but I’m not entirely sure since this was shot last year.

[@TheFruitMugger]

That Johnny DeMarco clip threw me WAY back

[@marijanbarac1216]

Tube screamer was cliff burtons overdrive of choice

[@marciosouza8656]

SansAmp, always SansAmp !!

[@EversonBernardes]

Tom Misch, nice.

[@Kraz3e987]

What bass is that at 14:19? Looks rad!

[@davedixon2167]

Hey man! that is my custom Steampunk shortscale that I built during the big pandemic lockdown. We made a video about it - kzbin.info/www/bejne/o5vPdnVopJqUd5o

[@Soonerbldr]

Holy cow I went down a rabbit hole looking for that Kiss song. I knew it, I had heard it a million times but my old man brain wouldn't click - Sure Know Something. Killer Video BTW. I have a Malekko B:ASSMASTER that is pretty groovy. You should check that out if you haven't.

[@TheBassChannel]

Dave's a big fan of the B:Assmaster and has had 2 or 3 of them over the years. We'll try to get one to demo!

[@mr.president1874]

What is the name of the song he’s playing? 15:25

[@babyyoda1758]

I'm new to the bass does it matter if the pedals are made for bass or are these pedals for both bass and guitar?

[@elpeluca7780]

In distortion/overdrive/fuzz non-bass specific pedals you might lose low end. Don't know about the others

[@jefgirdler7232]

+1 for Sober @2:45

[@kalidesu]

The Klon clone Tumnus sounds great for Bass.

[@leotmbg.]

muff is my favorite

[@TheCrusader1099]

idk...those are all guitar pedals instead of the Sansamp...personally i prefer pure bass pedals on my board for more low end...

[@TheEmanuele353]

The U2 pun 🤣🤣

[@danfro]

Great bass line by Gene Simmons on Sure Know Something.

[@Motorhead1977]

No Morley Power Fuzz Wah?

[@JohnLockeNesss]

Dude, was that -human on the big muff?!

[@nachobassman]

Wait, did you missed playing Thin Lizzy's "Dancing In The Moonlight" bass line with the Phase 90?? C'mon! :) Nice video anyway, I'm a SansAmp BDDI abuser since 2001. Cheers!

[@joedent3323]

you made my dim inkling concrete: I thought I knew the sound - and you knew the exact riff :) Cheers "LiL'JpD."

[@MrAlecksTv]

I feel like too many people make a big deal out of the low end being sucked out when adding distortion... add a EQ pedal to boost it up and youre good.

[@elpeluca7780]

Could boosting the bass on the amp make it work?

[@MrAlecksTv]

@@elpeluca7780 depends on the amp but I use a cheap Boss Bass EQ pedal that you could prob get for $40 on Ebay. after the overdrive I use it to cut/boost some eq and problem solved

[@bassedtaz]

Josh is a monster

[@shanebroekman9399]

I love the undetaker 😂 Just straight out no nonsense id oida killledl him 😂

[@utac]

WAMPLER POG

[@chuckiemiguelbacolod8558]

the bad monkey actually sounds great on bass. but of course, we don't want it to inflate again in the 2nd hand market

[@vivalachewy]

Fultone OCD is one of my favorites on bass

[@Oscaraha]

What about the MXR M82 envelope? Or the Moog Ring modulator? Feel this channel is a bit too specialized towards hard rock/metal.

[@stoatystoat174]

Have a brown lump Boss CE-2B made for bass and cheaper than CE-2waza and mich cheaper than CE-2

[@TheBassChannel]

That brown CE-2B (or CEB-2?) is awesome!

[@somegingerdude8110]

Are you going into an amp or is it just the di?

[@COU51N.Kyle.]

I like that shirt

[@bell110]

Mid Knob? That was my nickname in prison!

[@beaumontlivingston5430]

I don't play bass without my RAT. Ever.

[@joelspaulding5964]

That opening Rat tone...day-ummm. My $400 Darkglass is worried. Very.