I tried out three models before I parted with my hard earned cash, so I’ll give you my opinion of all three.

The first is the cheapest of the bunch, the MXR Bass DI+ (£150). Before I even plugged this in, I could see that it was well built; it had a good, reassuring weight to it, and the knobs had a quality feel. However, the phantom power / ground lift switch on the model I tested was faulty, and didn’t latch down. This was a bit of a worry, but obviously just a small fault that had been missed. Anyway, regardless of this problem, the pedal was very impressive; both the sound through the amp and the direct out were very pure – it really doesn’t colour your tone too much, and just lets the sound of your bass come through. The EQ can add chunky lows and sizzling highs, although the midrange control wasn’t voiced correctly for my own personal taste; it was focused more on low mid thump, rather than high mid growl.

I also found the drive channel to be lacking some what; it was very much an all or nothing affair. It can do subtle drive tones as well as buzzsaw distortion, but it was quite unresponsive – everything was distorted and compressed at the same level, regardless of playing style. However the addition of a noise gate in the drive section was a welcome sight, and worked very well, especially when the gain was right up.

In conclusion, the MXR has a great direct tone, as well as the added benefits of a distortion pedal thrown in. While it does have some ingenious little features, (such as the aforementioned noise gate), I can’t help but think that this is a fuzzbox with a DI thrown in for good measure. Still, if you predominantly play rock or metal, this would be ideal, and there’s nothing in this price range that matches it for features. Its closest relative would be the Tech 21 Sansamp Bass Driver, which is slightly cheaper, but doesn’t have a foot switchable drive section.

With the passing of this summer’s NAMM show, we’ve seen many manufacturers bring out new sound sculpting toys in the form of effect pedals. However, due to my adoration for their simple wackiness, I find Electro-Harmonix’s announcements of new gear the most exciting.

In the past few years, the parents of the luscious Small Stone phaser, iconic Big Muff Pi fuzz and the quite sublime / ridiculous / completely debauched Micro Synthesizer have really stepped up their game. It was only about 10 years ago that they had a small handful of different effects, and these all dated back to their original incarnations from the late 60s and 70s (excluding a time during the 1980s when they only made valves… what a horrible decade). Now they are producing an absolute plethora of different pedals, some new, some reissues, but new designs are being realised all the time.

In the past couple of years, we’ve seen smaller, more compact and crowded-pedalboard-friendly versions of existing, iconic stompboxes in their Nano line, and also new versions of classics that, let’s face it, should have always existed; the Big Muff Pi was always a favourite among bass players, but it’s guitar voicing meant that it could only be used with the tone knob right down. So, EHX brought out a bass version! Finally! However, the real exciting boxes to come out of New York City were the brand new ideas, and didn’t they have plenty of thoughts?…

So what new pedals have we seen this year? The three that I’m most excited about are the Riddle, Enigma and the POG2. The Riddle and Enigma are envelope filters for guitar and bass respectively and, along with unrivalled tweak-ability, they also feature a built-in distortion circuit. This really helps bring out those sweet, squelchy frequencies emphasised by the filter, and as it’s controllable on a separate switch, these pedals really are like two effects in one. Bargain! The 2nd incarnation of the POG (Polyphonic Octave Generator) also provides a great deal of sonic fun; I was absolutely astounded by the sound of the original POG, and with extra functionality (like an insanely useful method of storing presets), there really isn’t another octaver effect that can touch the POG2. Come on, what other pedal can make your guitar into an organ?!

One more pedal that looks interesting is the 22 Caliber. Although it’s not actually an effect, what guitarist could turn their nose up at the convenience of an amplifier that’s the size of a stompbox?

For more info, visit www.EHX.com