<You may have come to this post via my Electric Violin Primer?  Welcome!>

Here’s some examples of electric violin played through various electronic effects.  Most are readily available from any music store.  A few are from lesser known “boutique” manufacturers, but nothing so exotic that you can’t get similar sounds from other available units on the market.  Some are floor “stomp boxes” and others are of the “rack mounted” variety.

For these examples I used:

Digitech 33B super harmony machine (from the 1990’s), an Alesis Quadraverb (from 1980’s), Source Audio Wha, Fishman Aura pedal, and some Boss (Roland) stomp boxes (compressor and Octaver synth).  There are literally THOUSANDS of effects modules on the market from HUNDREDs of makers.  The Boutique Effects market alone has bloomed in more recent years, so you should find no shortage of options in this department!  Almost all effect boxes are designed with the ubiquitous GUITARIST in mind, but we can easily hi-jack them for our violin-centric uses, as they can work on ANY signal you put through them.

 Volume oriented effects:
Volume: a volume pedal is pretty much self explanatory.  Operated with your foot, it simply turns your sound up or down (or right off if needed).

Compressor: squashes the loudest and boosts the quieter parts.

Spacial Effects:
Large Room Reverb:

Extreme reverb:

Ambient echos: similar to reverb but with a bit more bounciness.

Echo/Delay as a special effect:
“Slap back” (short) delay:

Echo Duet (400ms delay):

String Pad modulating stereo echos: two echos, one slow, the other quick and jumping up one octave on each repeat.

Modulating echos (up a fifth at each consecutive echo repeat): reverb-like in the right musical passage.

Weird use of multiple modulating stereo echos: Thanks to my late sister Kathleen.

Swooshing/sweeping effects:
Phaser: tonal swooshing.

Phaser plus echo:

Chorus: mild liquid-y swooshing.

Flanger: heavier swooshing.

Tone Sweeping effects:

Wha Wha:

And here is a boutique wha effect (the one I actually used for the audio example) by Source Audio. Notice the part protruding up from the back of it?… that’s actually an antenna that senses the motion of a special ring that the player wears that influences the wha-ing. Pretty cool (secret: I “wear” it on my bow).

Distortion:
Distortion/Overdrive from an Egnator Tweaker tube amp (distortion pedals shown): notice how this adds a bit of grit, but then distorts more on double notes?  This extra effect can be very expressive when used properly. Shown are the popular OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Distortion)… honestly, a bit too heavy for violin (great on guitar though), and a boutique overdrive, the “Gizmo.”

Special Effects:
Pitch correction at 50% mix: sounds like two violins with one vibrato-ing and the other not.

Harmonizer:  Your original sound added down one octave.

Synthesized Octave pedal:

Harmonizer Trio (one is my original sound with two others transposed as needed for the pre-programmed key):

Arpeggiator: transposing in a sequenced pattern that also adjusts the intervals to a predetermined scale/key.

Synthesizers: in a Peavey Vypyr Amp.

Imaging tech: super computerized tonal modeling of an actual instrument overlay-ed on your source sound.

Other electronic helpers:
Preamps: help shape and color your tone before amplifying.

Mixers: combine multiple sources and sum them for sending to PA.

Electronic Tuners:
Clip-on tuners: sense what note you are playing and whether it is in tune or out of tune.

In-line tuner:

Rack mounted tuner:

There are more for sure but this list covers the basics, and a bit more.

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