Justin is using a Universal OX system (he points this out at around the 6 minute mark) which converts the speaker output from the amp into a signal that can be fed directly into an audio interface.
After that, there’s a few options for monitoring with headphones: he could plug the headphones into the OX, or into his audio interface and do “direct monitoring” with the audio interface, or use software monitoring in his DAW (I believe he is using logic).
And the audio for the video can then be recorded in the DAW.
Regarding pedals, so far I have largely avoided them because I don’t really know how to use them effectively in a song. I find it^s easy to find out what sort of different sounds you can get out of a given pedal from You Tube videos, but when to apply it correctly and with just the right amount of the effect is something else.
All I use is a bit of reverb (on my amp) and I have one pedal (Boss Blues Driver) that I use a lot - fairly obvious what it does and how to use it. I also have Valeton GP5 which is a tiny multi effects pedal tat can do some amazing things. However, I mostly use it for recording and as a drum machine. I don’t really use the effects at the moment because as I said, I don’t really know how to apply them effectively in songs.
A lesson on the topic of how to effectively apply some of the common effects, and when not to, would be helpful. Those would be compression (I just don’t understand it), delay, chorus, phaser/flanger etc. Justin has good lessons on reverb and distortion.
When to use things is tricky. Unless you are trying to replicate a particular tone/effect on a record, most of the use of effects is entirely artistic and down to artistic choices.
Describing and demonstrating the effects and giving examples of where they are used is, I suspect, all that could be done.
Justin did start a series a while back, and has covered delay quite well. It might be good if that series was expanded with other effects.
But it’s also worth exploring on your own, especially if you have a multifx unit, which are great for exploring different types and models of pedals without spending a fortune on individual pedals, struggling with cabling and power supplies, noise issues, etc.
The approach I suggest is to pick an individual effect type, turn it on and everything else off, and experiment with the controls and how it sounds. If there are multiple versions of that effect, try them out to see if you can distinguish between them. Often the differences are subtle, or some versions may give you more, or different, controls.
Spend about half an hour or so playing so you can understand what it sounds like and then go and do something else. Do this occasionally, visiting all of the main effect types, and you’ll get a good idea what most of them do.
Also, there’s a lot of info available on the Internet giving an overview, and there may also be some useful pointers in the GP5 manual:
Basically I’ve been doing what you suggested with the GP5 - choose 1 effect, turn all others off and then experiment to see what it sounds like. I try not to go too deep though as it’s a potential rabbit hole that eats up valuable practice time.
It’s true that a small cheap multi effects pedal like the GP5 is a good way to experiment without having to buy loads of individual pedals that might ultimately never get used. However, the choice on the GP5 of different effects is a bit overwhelming.
For a lot of the effects the trick seems to get them just subtle enough that they are just there but don’t sound overdone or cheesy. I have been playing around with one of the flangers in the GP5 (actually its the one called “Jet” in the GP5 screenshot you posted), taking some advice from a You Tube channel of a guy called Michael Banfield who has done a some good and sensible videos about the use of different effects, in a no nonsense way, and I came up with some very subtle and good sounds. His videos are not about the GP5 but about effects in general and he is easy to follow.
Actually, you are right that the GP5 has quite useful and nicely summarised information.
p.s. yes I have to look at what you wrote about compressors. I don’t really understand when or how to use them.
Right now I’m kindof in a similar spot. Got an overdrive for my first effects pedal and it’s straightforward enough to understand when to use it.
Only other pedal I have right now is a Boss looper and I haven’t played with it much. I’m going to a guitar show in town tomorrow. Last time I went there were lots of pedals, but I had them so far out of mind that I didn’t bother looking. Well, this time I have a couple in mind so I’m going to look at them more closely to see if I find what I want.
As I slowly wrap my head around what different pedal types do, I’m starting to see uses for some of them. One of those is a POG/Sub-n-Up type simple octave pedal to simulate bass (though polyphonic blending sounds really good on some of the demo vids I’ve watched).
I think I want a pitch shifter less for some of the wild effects they can produce and more for the straightforward capability to essentially function as a capo (but also one that can DROP the key/tuning, which a capo cannot do). One of the things that has given me a little hesitation with playing with my wife at open mic is that she often changes the key of songs she plays to suit her voice. That’s awesome, but it often means that it puts songs into chords I don’t know. So using a capo usually works well enough to accommodate for that. except sometimes using a capo (such as when she wants to drop the key of something and I have to also change chord fingerings to drop the key) screws around with chord fingerings and messes up certain chord embellishments.
Last night watching the various open mic performances, I decided that I definitely want a small modeler for open mic use.
A friend of mine got a small multi-fx pedal off of amazon to use for open mic. He plays one of those Ibanez nylon string acoustic-electrics like Tim Henson plays (though he doesn’t have the “signature” guitar, he uses a less expensive one). It’s noticeable how it gives him better tone through the PA (since that type of guitar is meant to be played amplified in front of audiences and only has a sound sound hole for the player). I probably wouldn’t use it when I play acoustic (though another friend of mine almost always uses some light fx with his regular acoustic), but I definitely would when I want to play electric. I’ve watched other ppl play electric there and the ones that sound best bring their amp and don’t use the house PA. the ones that plug straight into the house PA sound a bit thin.
I’m liking that Valeton GP-5 for that kind of use. Being so small, it’d be super easy to carry along. Better than an amp - also better than carrying a whole pedalboard. Especially with this open mic I attend being downtown and with “variable” parking. Last night we had to walk a bit. If I wanted a bit more control at a performance, I could put it on my pedalboard mostly for amp sim duties and combine it with other pedals. When playing at home, I could use it to experiment with different fx to decide if I want a standalone pedal for them. So I’m seeing a few different ways to use it.
The valeton GP5 is nice, but if I had known it was coming, I would have got the Valeton GP50. It either runs on a rechargeable battery or takes batteries. I think that makes it a bit more portable without carrying to munch stuff (power supplies and cables etc). It basically has the same effects as the GP5. But more importantly for playing in an open mic situation, it has two foot switches to move back and forward between patches. The GP5 has one switch and you can only move forward to different patches.
Good point about the battery. I thought I had seen that the GP-5 could take a 9v battery, but double checking, I see that it does not. I do actually have a little pedal power cable that came with a power supply I bought recently that allows you to connect a 9v battery to any pedal, but self-contained is nice.
As for the other functions (like switching back and forth between patches), I’m not really sure I’d use most of it. At least for now, I see myself just setting it up one way and leaving it there for a whole open mic performance. It’s what my friend is doing with his.
But given that the price difference isn’t huge, it might well be worth getting the GP-50 just to get the battery. Fewer cables to fuss with is always nice. The amazon special multifx pedal my friend got has a battery and getting that set up didn’t really take any extra time than it usually does to plug in his guitar and do a quick sound check.
