It is not very often that we see an electric guitar being played just by plugging into an amp.Well, they may start out that way but after a while you can easily notice a lot more going on than just a straight guitar sound. At the very least you may hear an echo or reverb. So, what’s going on here?? Welcome to the electronically manipulated world of effects.
Effects are those devices plugged in between your amp and guitar that enables you to alter your clean guitar sound signal in many creative and fascinating ways. Effects come as separate individual units or as a all in one box called as multi effect processor or simply a processor. There are more than a dozens of effects available. Here are some popular guitar effects:
1. Distortion/Overdrive:
This device overdrives the sound to breakup point for the amp but in a musically pleasing way. You are very familiar with this sound if you are a rock and blues lover. The intro guitar works in Nepali Ho song by 1974 AD exemplifies the distortion sound.
2. Chorus:
This device alters the guitar sound in way that sounds like multiple guitars being played at once and making the overall sound flatter.
3.Flanger/Phase shifter:
Creates a whooshy, swirly, underwater like sound.
4. Pitch shifter:
This device (also known as a harmonizer) enables you to play in harmony with yourself by splitting your signal into two paths,the original and a user-defined musical interval. It also provides chorus-like effects.
5.Digital Delay:
This effect enables you to produce a discrete repitition of the sound. It first records the input sound and then plays it in fixed time interval.
6.Wah-Wah effect:
It is a frequency filter that creates expressive voice-like characteristics.This effect causes the guitar to sound like “waah waah”.
7. Reverb:
This effect causes a natural echoing sound (like that in a large empty hall, in front of a hill).
8. Tremolo:
This effect causes your guitar sound like if you were playing through a rotating fan. It rapidly wavers the guitar sound.
