Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility Jump to content

Is it possible to switch tuning (drop D to standard E) with a foot switch without a VARIAX?


rafaelmesquita
 Share

Recommended Posts

Hello fellas...

 

I'm wondering if it is possible to switch back and forth between different tuning options without having to actually re-tune your guitar in a different setup. This would be incredibly helpful for Floyd Rose bridge users like myself. When you have to work on a song that has a E_flat (like Jimi Hendrix...) you have to change the whole guitar setup to make it work and adjust the bridge tension, which makes it quite time consuming. Also hard once you start gigging with it (and as you won't change tuning options on the fly) you must pack a second guitar which makes it incredibly hard.

 

For me it is specially important that it's possible to get it done without having the Variax.

 

I have a POD HD 500X and a Jackson Soloist 6.

 

Thank you all...

Rafael

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This needs said:

Tuning on stage is like amateur hour. It is a real buzz kill, time consuming, and quite frankly is not needed because the average consumer isn't going to know the difference between you playing a C chord tuned to E or tuned to D. And it especially won't know those songs, like early Van Halen stuff where the guitar is tuned 1/4 step down. 

And those are standard tunings. Do you think that the someone cares that you used a different fingering because you didn't detune one string!

Hell, a GOOD band is going to play songs in a key that the singer can handle, which means your Hendrix song originally played in E tuned down half a step is going to be played in C anyhow. And the crowd won't know. 

 

 

 

BUT, to answer the question --- 

The HD500X has a pitch shift. Program it into your patches and use it as needed. 

It will tune you down equally, but it will not do drop tunings. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If you play in a band or not, I understand wanting to be able to do what you are asking about. The pitch shift in the POD is not polyphonic. You will be disappointed trying to use it to take your guitar a half step down, etc. You can not do drop D, open G, DADGAD, etc. with the pitch shift either. 

 

Why is it so "important that it's possible to get it done without having the Variax."? It is either that or a Fishman Triple Play or a Roland GR-55, etc.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've used the pitch shift in the PODHD for changing standard E tuning to D# without any problems, although some people have reported it didn't work well for them.  It worked great for me.

 

It won't do drop tunings though.  I bring a second guitar with me for drop tunings.  I have the same problem as I also have a Floyd Rose bridge.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The pitch shift in the POD is not polyphonic.[/font][/color]

Actually it is. I gave it a whirl after reading a previous debate on the subject on a here a while back. I felt that it didn't track quite as well as the Variax, but in a pinch, it does work.

 

But drop tunings are a no-go, as you said. It's gonna de-tune every note it "hears" by the same interval, so there's no way to alter one string and not others.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Actually it is. I gave it a whirl after reading a previous debate on the subject on a here a while back. I felt that it didn't track quite as well as the Variax, but in a pinch, it does work.

 

But drop tunings are a no-go, as you said. It's gonna de-tune every note it "hears" by the same interval, so there's no way to alter one string and not others.

 

I wish I knew how to get it to work for me too.  :( I get a gnarly pulsation.

 

I think I will devise an experiment that eliminates the guitar from the equation to test my POD's pitchglide. Results to follow.

 

Sorry to the OP for hijacking your thread. Started a new thread: Pulse with multiple notes using my 500X pitchglide

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It worked for me if I used it for a half step down (E -> Eb)...any more than that and it started sounding a bit artificial...as mentioned, this does all the strings...not any single one.

 

We were playing a Bon Jovi tune which used open E in the main riff and the singer couldn't handle the original key so we dropped it a half step ( I used the pitch shift originally)...in the end I just used standard tuning and played it in Eb not worrying too much about the "correct way" to play it. As pianoguyy mentions...nobody cared...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It worked for me if I used it for a half step down (E -> Eb)...any more than that and it started sounding a bit artificial...as mentioned, this does all the strings...not any single one.

 

We were playing a Bon Jovi tune which used open E in the main riff and the singer couldn't handle the original key so we dropped it a half step ( I used the pitch shift originally)...in the end I just used standard tuning and played it in Eb not worrying too much about the "correct way" to play it. As pianoguyy mentions...nobody cared...

 

Same for me, set the pitch to -1.0 you will get an Eb (half step down) It works, but you will notice some weirdness when playing chords.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is definitely not what you mean, but it can technically be done with two footswitch presses. Program an effect block with a volume pedal fixed at 0% output, so that it is effectively a mute button. Hit the footswitch to kill the sound, unplug the normally tuned guitar, plug in a second guitar you have pre-tuned to an alternate tuning, then hit the footswitch again to unmute. This might also work with a stereo pan with the left and right coming from the guitar and auxiliary inputs, respectively, but I can't think of any real answer for you.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...