Electric Violin Effects for People Who Don't Want Effects

We often ask customers what effects they might want on their amplified or electric violin. Many will respond by saying they don't want any effects - they just want to sound like a violin.
Here are a number of effects that may help you do exactly that. (EQ, reverb, delay, IRs, and - believe it or not - Overdrive)

[@nickelder]

Extremely helpful. Thank you for this.

[@markparker5585]

I prefer using a short delay, rather than reverb, especially within a band.

[@billyhwang4124]

Good episode! Thx! Start building my pedalboard now!

[@robertclift1729]

Thanks for the good information, always good stuff, Matt. Go Sparty!

[@WEdHarris]

Great stuff! Very informative!! Thanks so much!!

[@eko9775]

Try the fiddle using the autotune/pitch correction effect. For example the effect of tc helicon c1

[@dcarlisle123]

Great video

[@theviolingeek]

Wow! Good information Matt!

[@JustFiddler]

indeed

[@TNungesser]

Appreciate your videos

[@enriquemontero3750]

Thx!!

[@danielabisenius9858]

Matt, which one do you recommend to buy? I use acoustic violin.

[@mikeledwith4543]

Thanks for the video. May I ask; what is the IR you are using for the violin body, and how are you loading it? Is it 100%?

[@ElectricViolinShop]

I don't remember which one I used in the video. Maybe one from 3sigma? I never use them at 100% unless I'm trying to demonstrate something. It's usually about 40-50%

[@mikeledwith4543]

@@ElectricViolinShop Thank you. What do you use to load it and get the 40-50% blend? I've been using an HD500 but I'd like something smaller.

[@BluegrassFiddler812]

Are there some effects that work better with an electric violin versus an acoustic violin with an LR Baggs pickup? For example, I would like to play with some overdrive and flanger effects but I don’t know how well they will work with an acoustic and pickup.

[@ElectricViolinShop]

Yes. Very much. I classify effects into two camps: additive and transformative. Additive effects are those that sound good when ADDED to your sound. So if you're playing in a relatively quiet environment and people can hear your instrument acoustically as well as your amplifier, it still works. Reverb and delay are two examples.
Transformative effects change the sound of your instrument so much that it's really better if the listener can only hear the processed sound, not the processed sound blended with the acoustic sound. Pitch shifting is an example (especially if you're shifting some interval other than an octave - like a half step).
Distortion is one of those we could argue about. For me, ideally, it's considered transformative. I don't want to hear the clean acoustic sound with it. But in some situations, I don't mind.
The problem with distortion and acoustic violins is that it makes them feed back really bad.

[@edstud1]

You didn't explain eq so I know how to use it! Please give me some advice!

[@MattBellViolinist]

Check out our videos on EQ. You can search our channel. We’ve got several.

[@esparka]

One effect makes you Larger, and one effect makes you small, and, the ones that mother gives you won't do anything at all..... Go Ask Matthew!

[@ElectricViolinShop]

Haha!

[@Pedalheadshow]

What violin ir did you demo?

[@ElectricViolinShop]

I have no recollection.

[@OlgaM-ka]

Здравствуйте! Случайно попалось мне ваше видео. Скрипка очень красиво звучит...
Я и моя семья живём в Украине. У нас в семье 10 детей и трое старших девочек учаться в музыкальной школе на скрипке и есть нужда в хороших скрипках, они у нас стоят оооочень дорого, а электро то вообще не реально купить, слишком дорого... Может вы знаете человека, который смог бы для нас пожертвовать три хорошие скрипки? Вы в этой сфере работаете. Будем вам очень благодарны за беспокойство. Мы христиане, ходим на богослужения и служим Богу и хотелось бы играть на богослужении на хороших инструментах.🙏