My 2024 board // A quick rundown

The board, clockwise top left to bottom left.

Rupert Neve Designs (RNDI)

I always have my cab miked and never use a DI as my primary tone comes from the amp and cabinet combined, not the pedals. My Fylde King John Acoustic bass doesn't work well with my amps and hence need a DI to send out to the FOH / monitor engineer. This is probably the best you can get: transformer-isolated and phantom-powered - great for the studio as well.

Electro-Harmonix (EHX) POG 2

The superb Pog 2 polyphonic octave generator is a recent addition to my board. Multiple octaves up and down, detune, attack and filters. I love it because it tracks bass very well!

Source Audio EQ2

A kingpin on my board as this MIDI device is used - when required - to reroute the signal to the DI and allows me to seamlessly change tones and volumes for different basses using the GigRig G3 Atom. In a live situation changing settings on the fly is fiddly, but there is an app for iPad and iPhone which makes it much easier. My advice is to set it in the studio and use your amp EQ to make master changes as you move around venues.

Origin Effects Cali76 Compact Bass

Amongst others, we use URIE 1176 compressors in the studio on my bass. Nothing comes close to the real thing, but this is a good pedal equivalent. Providing you have all the levels set for the different basses in the EQ2 and GigRig, it’s a breeze. I use it lightly to even out some of the dynamics, especially when using a pick!

Supertone Bass Fuzz

My first FX pedal! I have used Simon's amps wound up to 11 to create overdrive, but this is quite different from the attack you achieve with a great fuzz pedal. We designed this alongside Dan Whitelock-Jones of DWJ amps and pedals. It's optimised for bass and designed around the early Fuzz's and an EHX Big Muff. 

Hudson BroAdcast

The Broadcast is a transformer-coupled, discrete Class-A germanium pre-amplifier based on the classic broadcast consoles of the 1960s. I use it when that little bit of drive is required and sounds delicious on bass.

Lehle P-Split

I use this primarily as an isolator to prevent earth (ground) loops when my rig is used to re-amp some of the bass backing tracks needed to perform a couple of the songs from STARLITE.ONE when I am playing keyboards. I am not Geddy Lee and can’t do everything!

Ernie Ball VP Junior (25K)

This is the second pedal I owned and whose name sounds like the son of a comedian. It’s a sturdy piece of gear made from aircraft-grade aluminium housing which is virtually indestructible.

It gives you a smooth foot sweep that does the job and doesn’t break the bank. I use it to swell in the sound smoothly, which along with a delay device (echo unit), is especially effective in creating atmospheric soundscapes.

My tuner is plugged into this so for silent tuning I just turn the down volume and tune away.

Electro-Harmonix Q-Tron Plus

Funky auto-wha sounds anyone? This is a fun pedal for sure and based on the original Mu-Tron III. My first live concert was Stevie Wonder and always loved the sound of his Clavinet on Higher Ground which was sculpted using the original MIke Beigel designed Mu-Tron III. Bootsy Collins himself is alleged to have said that "without that Mu-Tron, there ain’t no Bootsy." Well, I am no Bootsy, but it is a great sound which I have yet to incorporate in a track. Watch this space.

Harley Benton Tap Switch

Simple momentary footswitch used for changing banks on the GigRig G3 Atom.

GigRig G3 Atom

f the EQ2 is the kingpin on my board, this is the ringleader. It is a transparent, programmable FX switcher, MIDI controller and router with selectable input/output buffers if you need them. It also has two amp outputs - one direct to the amp and one transformer isolated (to prevent earth/ground loops) for use with multiple amp setups. It’s perfect for use with a lot of FX and I am still getting my head around it.

Sonic Research TurboTuner ST200

This is my first pedal, which my husband Simon bought as a Christmas present for me before I started playing bass. Then, I used it on my acoustic guitar and my only pedal when I played my first tour as a bass player. IMHO the Holy Grail of tuners and a must for any pedalboard large or small: they also do a mini-version. It is fabulously accurate and once you get used to it, very easy to use. I have it on all the time so I can check on the fly.

Line6 DL4 MkII

Looper, multiple delay models and reverbs. This thing does everything and is built upon the original DL4 much loved by everyone. Echo on bass is new to me and getting into it. I used the looper for the first time on a livestream and by fluke got it right! Fortunately, it’s MIDI so I can use the G3 Atom to recall the presets and will certainly be incorporating the looping function into our live sets and new material. It’s my latest pedal and I love it. 

Under the bonnet

• VoodooLabs Pedal Power 3
• GigRig Electroman 9-24V adaptor
• GigRig Generator PSU

Walking the bass line

Over my relatively short years of playing bass, necessity has forced my hand into using more FX pedals and switching jiggery-pokery. This link will take you to “What’s all the fuss about pedals?”.

I have written a series of articles on bass generally, showing the evolution of my playing and gear, to share my experiences with new bass players which is published as a monthly column in Bass Musician Magazine. The extended versions of these plus all of my bass related stuff  can be found by clicking the button below.