subtly overwhelmed: How do you use the possibilities of the PBC?

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Hello everybody

I am a new user of the PBC/6x and I'am a little overwhelmed with the almost inexhaustible possibilities of the device.
I have the impression that the usual approach (presets in a bank/song) to a looper/midi switcher is not even the best here. Actually, you could also use one preset per song due to the local page function, right?

I would be extremely interested in how you use the PBC?
How do you exploit the possibilities without getting confused live?

I look forward to your contributions.
or is there already a thread where creative uses are listed? Then I ask for a link...

Thanks a lot!
 
I come at it by asking myself these questions:
1) What will make my life easiest in live situations?
2) If I need to change a preset on the fly, what will make that easiest?

In my current situation with a PBC 6/X (and a Morningstar MC6 that I use to switch between pages on the PBC), that means I mostly follow the default preset/song/setlist system that RJM has set up. My main page is almost entirely presets, with one set aside for tap tempo/tuner duties. Since I know my set lists ahead of time, I program that in the week leading up to the gig, and I can generally just run through the set list as programmed, and I only ever have to hit one switch to change sounds.

I haven't had to use it yet, but I also have a page set up specifically for more improvisational playing that replaces presets with IA access to all my most used effects. It also switches my Morningstar controller to a new page that gives me instant access to a bunch of standard delay/reverb presets.

If I need to change something on the fly, I have pages set up to control the following:
- Drive/Pitch (effect bypass)
- HX Stomp (buttons for effect bypass and snapshots - preset is selected on the PBC preset level)
- Delay/Reverb presets (Bypass and preset up/down for each effect)
- Compressor (Jackson Audio Bloom V2 - controls for boost bypass/level, and compressor mode)
- Tempo (buttons to increase/decrease BPM by 1)

Those pages are all laid out by name on the Morningstar, so it's easy to find what I need in the moment. It's pretty easy to keep things straight on the fly too, as I use everything enough that I don't really ever get mixed up.

Ultimately, the PBC is really limited primarily by your own imagination, but hopefully that sparks some ideas! It's a pretty amazing piece of gear!
 
I’m a new user myself, and the best advice I had so far is: don’t overthink it. So I’ve set it up to get started, with the plan to modify the set up after using it in a live setting. It would be good to get an overview of how more experienced users have the PBC setup.

I’ve started with a single button page that allows me to make changes on the fly, rather than using per song presets. I plan to add song presets later and use the set list feature, but I wanted a simple setup to get started with. Also, others in my band tend to use my board, so I want to ensure that they can do that seamlessly.

I have a “Live” button page on the 6X that uses buttons 1-3 to give me 3 stages of drives. These are presets that just turn the relevant loops on and off. Button 4 is tap tempo. Button 5 is an IA Cycle for my delay, and Button 6 is an IA Cycle for the reverb.

This allows me to switch quickly between my drives, and relatively quickly I can change the delay/reverb.

I’m considering having a separate page for specific delay/reverb presets, which would help unlock some of the possibilities that are locked in the Strymon pedals.
 
I would consider approaching the intricacy of the controller in another way. Instead of thinking how many different combinations and options you have which is making thoughts overwhelming, consider how you would like your setup to be controlled. Break things down to smaller bits. You're turning on/off a loop (effect) and or controlling a midi function.

Imagine how you want your rig to run. Think of it in basic terms as if you didn't have a controller but wished you could make your setup do X or Y. Create a goal. You may find your goal changes over time. Here's the nice part, with the controller, more then likely you could do what you imagined. Good luck!
 
boudoudou8 said:
I'm interested in thoses answers, how do people use setlist mode on the pbc6x? The way I configure the mastermind gave me 4 buttons preset for each songs. That's not a lot, as I wanted to work with one preset for each part of a song. I'll have to find another way to work with seltlist mode!
Click to expand...

You can program any button to do anything, but honestly, don't overthink it too much or make it too complicated.

Figure most songs have a verse, chorus and solo...or some may have intro. Make the other buttons IA buttons so that you can turn on/off anything you use commonly.

So for me, most songs are just verse and solo...but they are setup independent for each song (setlist). I'll have for simplicity, my main tone...so it's easy to refer to it during programming. ...but on complicated stuff where I have a particular midi trigger or configuration I want..then those are setup for that particular song and called the song for programming purposes.

I use other buttons as IA as sometimes I want to turn an effect on...or do something different....those buttons allow me to access them easily. Locking them all up with presets to me isn't a good thing. Especially in your case since you have less buttons then mine.

I actually use my board for two configured setups one my axe FX3...(which hopefully run updates the PBC firmware soon since it's needs updated)...the other is for my Diezel/Friedman live amp setup.
 
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