Hey yall,
anyone out there use Foogers on their Rhodes piano??
I already use the RingMod and Phaser, the Ringmod more so, though…
I’m lookin for a new MF to implement. Was thinkin of the LowPass Filter, but now I’m considering a Murf instead.
In a full on loud-ass jam session, the Murf on the Rhodes didn’t really impress me. But most of the time I play alone in my studio. So, I guess I’m trying to determine whether either the regular Murf or the Bass Murf would do better on a Rhodes piano.
Anyone try both out?? How well do the Murfs compliment the Voyager too?? Overall I like a ‘beefier’ filter sound, but I do like the idea of it being able to cascade into marvellous & dazzling heights of “WTF!!!”
Thanks!
I use MFs on my Rhodes. I have the 101, 102 and 103 but not the Murf. I have found that LPFs tend to be my least favorite effect on the Rhodes. Due to it lack of harmonic content (compared to a guitar) the effect of a LPF just isn’t very drastic. I would say get the regular Murf. The rhodes doesn’t need the added darkness of the bass Murf sound.
The great thing about the Murf is that you can use it as a EQ also, an effect all Rhodes’ DESPERATELY need. Cut the lows and highs and boost the mids. A graphic EQ is really the key to making the rhodes sparkle.
There was a Rhodes modification at one time that involved - if I can remember correctly - multiple pickups inside the instrument that were separately EQd.
It was known as a Dyno-my-piano, and found its way onto a lot of soul records. I think the glassy sound you hear on seventies and eighties soul stuff is that.
Maybe someone knows more about this? I’ve mentioned it to a few people but no-one ever seems to have heard of it. Maybe it’s known in certain circles but not in others?
Actually, having written the above, I did the proper thing and Googled it. See this:
Yeah, I never really liked the Dyno sound. A bit too 80’s cheese for my tastes.
My favorite Rhodes setup is to use a graphic EQ into a high quality DI, right off the harp bypassing the volume and tone controls. I used a Twin Reverb and a simple gain preamp (500% gain increase) for years, but was never really happy with the sound. I find that a tube amp only muddies up the sound.
Using a Roland JC-55 right now, & its pretty awesome…just got a Leslie recently, but its missing the cable adapters for the motors to spin & its extremely hard to find that part, bummer like a mutha. Are the regular Murf filters resonant? I’m using a Clyde Vox Wah right now, but its scratchy & the mids jump out WAAAYY too much…so that’s why I was considering the MF101…
Maybe I should ask the folks @Moogmusic, they might have experimented a bit.
I have to disagree with you on this just slightly. BECAUSE, i tend to think that the Rhodes sparkles anyway.
It doesn’t have a whole lot for EQ, and i guess i have to take the purist stance that what came with the rhodes I do’nt want to augment. (As far as the eq goes. I generally use 1 setting all the time or i cut the bass all the way down and emphisize the lows)
However i use my Ring Mod because my tremelo pot is no longer functional.
However, while i woudl change nothing about the Rhodes except to make it brand new, theres nothing wrong with having more of an eq sound.
I am somewhat of a purist when it comes to certian things lolol.
While I don’t have a Rhodes I’ve used the 101, 102, 103 and 105 separately and in different combination with Rhodes patches on the Motif. The 103 run with both outputs along with some additional Chorus works great .
Try a pedal plugged into the cutoff on the 101,l makes a great wha-wha pedal. You can also obtain nice results if you adjust the env. follower.
If you really want to have fun hook any one of them up to the loop insert n the 104, then use the CP251 to control the rates on each with a different setting.
fwiw, i also have used the ring mod on my rhodes (it’s a mark I stage 73, circa early-mid '70’s, though i’d be curious if anyone on the list knows how to accurately date a fender rhodes). also tend to like delay, although i’m using a modded DD5 (analog man does a great reverse-kill and high cut mod for these which imo makes them much more useful-check http://www.analogman.com/dd5.htm) rather than the moog delay (haven’t the scratch for one of those yet), and the high cut setting works quite well with the rhodes. i don’t use the ring mod for trem, as i have other options (twin reverb’s got its own trem, which is a sound i like a lot) but i do use a little harmonic distortion; previous to owning the ring mod, i would run it through a rat pedal, but the ring mod can just get so much farther out there…
To find out when your Rhodes was built, open the top cover, and on the lower right side, if I recall, there should be 2 pairs of numbers. The first pair is the week number ie, 35 = week 35, the second pair is the year…mine is from October '75…Stage Mk1 baby…favorite instrument in my rig… anyway..
The Ring Mod is dope as hell on the Rhodes, the Trem being so lush & warm…also, I get these funny buzzing over/under-tones or something while the tone of the piano is thinned out, its so gorgeous with its sweeping buzz & trem mix… For delay, the Echoplex is a sureshot, dirtys up anything you put through it, but still retains the harmonics and growl I love about the Rhodes…of course the sweet glimmer is retained & emphasized equally, imho…
[quote=“Musashidan”]To find out when your Rhodes was built, open the top cover, and on the lower right side, if I recall, there should be 2 pairs of numbers. The first pair is the week number ie, 35 = week 35, the second pair is the year…mine is from October '75…Stage Mk1 baby…favorite instrument in my rig… anyway..
i heard that in the factory fender used to try out the rhodes on a twin reverb to see how it sounded, back when they were designing the thing. this unintensionally made the twin reverb the ideal amp for the rhodes as it was constructed to sound good on one of these
I have always heard that you never run anything but a guitar through a guitar amp. Surely you can use any other instrument within the guitars register, but to the best of my knowlege if you try to run a bass through there even at low volumes you can ruin the speaker.
THe rhodes most definately puts out alot of bass!
I could be totally wrong about the speakers, but ill bet i never run my basses through anyones guitar amps anytime soon.
i haven’t found this to be the case with my (de-BS’d, i.e. converted to blackface spec) super twin reverb. it seems in addition to using the twin reverb to test the stage models in the factory, it was the preferred amp for most folks. having said that, i have read that the stock jensen speakers did not handle bass as well as the JBL speakers that were often substituted. with JBL’s, the twin reverb is as close to a perfect amp for the rhodes as i think you’ll find, and with reverb & tremelo, a more complete package than the 4x12 suitcase version (although a suitcase model has other attributes that make it desirable).
sorry, sounds like i’m a fender salesman! actually, at a certain point it’s all a matter of taste- what some may find trebly and brittle others will think is clean and glassy, and by the same token one person’s warm tube sound is another’s muddy goo…btw, has anyone here run their rhodes thru a JC120? if so, how did you perceive the results? i did a while back happen to hear a jazz combo using that exact setup, and, maybe due to the acoustics of the room, or settings on the amp, or my proximity to the sound source, found it to approximate a very cold ice-pick. i wonder if anyone here has found usable settings on that amp for the rhodes…
I use a JC55, which is essentially the same but with 2 8" speakers, still gets way too f*ckin loud for me… anyways, been using it for 3years, and I do like it, I think the reverb is pretty good, but overall the sound is a bit brittle and cold. I’ve been debating a Twin-Rvb for the last year or so. A good friend uses a vintage '68(?) Twin and the thing is just ridiculous, at least with guitars… I think that amp would do fine with a Rhodes…
Anyways, I think the Roland JC line is good for the Rhodes maybe if you’re new to the instrument, but I can’t see using this amp another 3 years… Actually I just bought a used Leslie and a pre-amp box to be used with the Rhodes… Its missing the connector cables to run the motors, but MAN!!! The sh*t is SOOO warm its utterly undeniable… so, I’m workin hard on finding those adapters, needless to say…but anyway…
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