Digitech Drop or FAS Virtual Capo

[Stone]

Howdy all,IF i want to use a 440 Std and drop it down to drop C is the Fractal VC any good or is it best to go with the Digitech Drop ?
or is it best to get an Axe and tune it to Drop C

Thanks all

 

[James Freeman]

Drop C is one step down from Drop D, as far as I know you can't go directly from E Standard to Drop C even with digital tools.

In my opinion it is always best to get a separate guitar for other tunings. I never liked what I hear from digital solutions, whether it is artifacts or the unavoidable latency.

BUT if it gets you through one song in your live set (definitely not studio recording) then a digital polyphonic pitch capo pedal is much lighter and smaller than a separate guitar, especially if it's already in your modeler of choice.

 

[Stone]

Drop C is one step down from Drop D, as far as I know you can't go directly from E Standard to Drop C even with digital tools.

In my opinion it is always best to get a separate guitar for other tunings. I never liked what I hear from digital solutions, whether it is artifacts or the unavoidable latency.

BUT if it gets you through one song in your live set (definitely not studio recording) then a digital polyphonic pitch capo pedal is much lighter and smaller than a separate guitar, especially if it's already in your modeler of choice.

It's always Just recording I dont gig unfortunately, So why isn't it good or recording ?

 

[JCW308]

If it's a recording situation, I wouldn't use any digital drop. Just keep it old-school. It's not going to sound as perfect as the real thing.

 

[Iron1]

Digitech Drop sounds fine as long as you don’t drop more than a few semitones. Stone is correct about not having the ability to go from E std to Drop C though.

I use mine in rehearsals and live to go from C# to B and have never had an issue. Was hesitant til I saw the bassist from Cavalera Conspiracy using one for several tours in a row across multiple tunings with zero problems.

Also used it on both of my band’s studio recordings and have no complaints. Just makes it easier than lugging two guitars/basses, swapping em between songs, etc.

 

[Stone]

Digitech Drop sounds fine as long as you don’t drop more than a few semitones. Stone is correct about not having the ability to go from E std to Drop C though.

I use mine in rehearsals and live to go from C# to B and have never had an issue. Was hesitant til I saw the bassist from Cavalera Conspiracy using one for several tours in a row across multiple tunings with zero problems.

Also used it on both of my band’s studio recordings and have no complaints. Just makes it easier than lugging two guitars/basses, swapping em between songs, etc.

Stone is correct about not having the ability to go from E std to Drop C

That was James who pointed it out :)

 

[Stone]

What about a half step down can that work with the Virtual Capo for recordings ?
My Ibanez is tuned a 1/2 step down for some early VH but id also like to use the Ibanez for STD 440 tuning and dont feel like re doing a set up everytime so was wondering if this would work ?

Thanks

 

[sleewell]

2 guitars

 

[Jazz Padd]

I’ve used the Drop in live situations. It’s fine down to C# but lower than that it gets a bit wonky, with artifacts and metallic sounding.

 

[DrewJD82]

Note- the Pitch Block/VC is going to be a little different from unit to unit with the AxeFX having the highest quality. When I was in that cover band last year for those whole 2 weeks I was using the VC in my FM9 nonstop, but wasn’t really going further than a whole step and in most cases was only going up or down a half-step. I haven’t used the VC since that time/since the FM9 has been updated to know how it’s changed.

That said, on a recording nothing is going to beat a guitar tuned to the pitch you need. I’ve done a bunch of bass tracks using the AxeFX’s VC and it does well enough in a mix, but I wouldn’t bother with guitars. This is a big reason I started ordering strings by the 3-pack; I’m regularly tuning my Strats and LP’s up and down depending on what I’m recording, it’s worth using a fresh pack of properly gauged strings for a recording, IMO.

 

[dk_ace]

I’ve used the helix equivalent live a few times going up/down within a half or whole step. It gets the job done. On close listening, is it exactly the same? Definitely not. Close enough for rock and roll in limited cases though.

I have had less success with the FM9, not confident enough in it for live use yet. I did find some settings last week that worked better for me, it might make the cut now although certain intervals still seemed to give it a hard time. Could just avoid those if I needed it live. More testing needed. The rack unit just got an update to virtual capo that may or may not make it to the floor units in a future release. Maybe that gets it the rest of the way there?

D

 

[Chocol8]

2 guitars

4, you need a primary and backup for each!

 

[Iron1]

That was James who pointed it out :)

!

 

[[Nathan]]

It’s never going to be as good as a guitar in that tuning for a recording. So if you’re shooting for the stars with quality then no question get a guitar in that setup. But if it’s just a demo, low quality EP or home recording then taking a Drop D guitar down the Drop C should be passable. Both of those solutions are high quality just comes down to budget and how often you’ll use either.

For live use it’s a lot more passable, would be fine using pitch shifting instead of bringing multiple multiple guitars.

 

[Iron1]

Just fyi, the Drop pedal isn’t your standard pitch shifter. There’s nothing else on the market that works as well as it does. Digitech might strike out a lot, but they hit a home run with the Drop.

 

[TSJMajesty]

You have an FM9; Try it for yourself and see how it sounds. Before I got my 7 string, I used it all the time for dropping 5 semitones, and in headphones, and just home practice, it sounded fine, with 1 exception- clean, arpeggiated passages. But even those, if the song was in D std (only dropping 1 full step), it was certainly good enough to not warrant buying a $250 pedal.

 

[Jarick]

I've found with gainy tones the virtual capo can work well, but with clean there's a warble. I haven't found a pitch changer yet that works well on clean chords although I haven't used the Drop.

I tested out the latest and greatest Axe FX 3 firmware today against the NDSP Plini plugin and honestly NDSP was better. Fractal is better than the Kemper transpose but I wouldn't use any of them for recording.

 

[LP59]

Just fyi, the Drop pedal isn’t your standard pitch shifter. There’s nothing else on the market that works as well as it does. Digitech might strike out a lot, but they hit a home run with the Drop.

The AxeFX and Helix and QC pitch shifters are IME all about the same as the Drop. They all have little artifacts with a clean tone if you shift the pitch down enough, and they all have some latency, but they all sound good enough that it might get you through a song without changing guitars.

 

[deathbyguitar]

Has anyone compared the Drop to FW 29.01 Beta 4? The VC is reportedly much improved since even the last beta.

 

[Sleezy E]

You could buy a variax