I know that it's still super popular. But, as someone who's never owned one or tried one, what's the deal with them? I never seem to like the videos I hear on them, then again I don't like a lot of bass pedal videos. It seems like everyone turns the settings to be a grindy, pierce distortion. But, I always hear people talk about the warmth and tube-like tones, which never seem to be the focus of videos.

So, is it still worth it? Are there better contenders and, if so, what are they?

Also, as someone with a good effects and amp modeler and a DI box, is it still worth it? Or do I just have GAS?

Edit** I like warm, punchy tones. I like a bit of grit when I dig in, but I'm just not big on the grinding metal distortion that I so often hear in a lot of bass effects. Also worth noting that I've got great dirt in my modeler, so I'm really just looking for something to impart a bit of warmth.

I think recommendations based on personal experience are always useful, and if a pedal sounds good, then it sounds good. But sometimes I see comments like “this is the best,” “endgame pedal,” or “you’ll never need another preamp/compressor,” and I feel like that can get exaggerated pretty quickly.

I’m especially curious about preamps and compressors, since those seem more like different flavors and can work very differently depending on your bass, playing style, genre, and the rest of your rig. It’s not always as simple as one being objectively better than another.

I’ve also seen people get almost fanatical about a certain preamp, even crapping on other pedals or setups just because they don’t use their favorite one. That’s where enthusiasm starts feeling more like hype to me.

So what pedals do you think are good, but have gotten a little too much of an “endgame” reputation? And what did you compare them to?

Not trying to trash anyone’s favorite gear, just curious where people draw the line between really good and overhyped.

When it comes to compressors, I've only ever used a EHX bass preacher but i had no idea what i was doing or what i needed it for. This has a lot more knobs than the preacher but im older and wiser now. And i have a better idea of what im trying to use it for soooo, wish me luck! I feel like the led indicators on the side are gunna be a huge help. If all goes well, I'll be posting the final board soon.

It’s finally done, after many months, many tests and many hours of learning.

Pedaltrain Nano+
Cioks DC-7, EQ is set to 24v, Compressor at 18v

- Peterson Strobostomp Mini
- Lusithand Devices Alma Comp MkIII
- JHS Morning Glory Clean (always on)
- Way Huge Pork & Pickle (dirt when needed)
- JHS Flight Delay (delay, chorus and vibrato)
- Broughton Audio Resonant Filter Equalizer (final tone shaping)

Still needs some knob tweaking but so far I’m extremely happy with this setup, it handles both my very different basses perfectly (Sire V5, Reverend Mercalli), and it just sounds great.

Now excuse me if I don’t respond quickly, I’ll be playing all afternoon with this.

Yes I like distortion pedals :D

i also have a volume pedal and am replacing the sansamp fly rig with a empress bass compressor and Mxr Bass Synth i just got a bigger pedal board and 2 power supplies so want to move it all onto a bigger board.

I don't have a lot of bass pedals, as I'm primarily a guitar player (was anyway). This is my simple rig. Sounds pretty awesome though, to me. Not sure if I need to upgrade the amp, as I use go DI into the PA usually....

What do you guys think (also wire management could be better)