Recommendations on an Expression Pedal?

[CallMeZoot]

Right now I do all my CC11 work with a slider, but I fgure I may as well get a pedal. Anyrecommendations on one with a good response?

I'd like to keep it in the $30ish-or-below range if possible.

Thanks,
chris.

[Fred Story]

I use the Yamaha FC7. You can find them for around $40.00 US. Built like a tank and nice, smooth action.

[Eric Matlock]

I second the vote for the FC7. Much better than the boss expression pedals in terms of smoothness and construction, and a little cheaper. What is your keyboard? Different brands use different polarities. If you have a Kurzweil, for instance, you will need to either do some soldering or buy an adaptor like this: http://music.ashbysolutions.com/misc.html

[Steve_Karl]

I bought the FC7 when I got my S90 but have since assigned CC:11 to a slider. It's easier 'for me' to do it with my fingers than my foot.

[Tomdini]

Just picked up an FC7 for 30 bucks at my local Guitar Center.

The pedal's smooth, control is easy and feels very responsive.

-Tom

[JonFairhurst]

Chris, er, Zoot,

Make sure that your keyboard is compatible with whatever pedal you choose. My Kurzweil doesn't work with the FC-7. It expects a different resistance and curve - and a Kurzweil pedal.

[ZareOne]

I use an Alesis F2 Volume/Expression Pedal with my CME UF8 Keyboard. It's the first one I own, so I can't compare it with others, but in my opinion it's a durable design (aluminium) and it has a polarity switch so it's compatible with almost any keyboard (at least that's what they say) I don't know how much would it cost in dollars, but I don't think it's expensive.

Hope it helps. :)

[Tomke]

Expression with one's feet. Kind of a contradiction in term - always thought :p

[Fred Story]

I should have mentioned...there's a simple solder job to be done on the FC7's plug for use with some keyboards. You'll need to reverse the polarity. I had to have this done for it to work with my M-Audio controllers. Only takes a few minutes, though.

[Eric Matlock]

Make sure that your keyboard is compatible with whatever pedal you choose. My Kurzweil doesn't work with the FC-7. It expects a different resistance and curve - and a Kurzweil pedal.

Jon, if you still have that pedal, you can still use it. All you have to do is reverse the polarity. I have two of them and they work perfectly now. The ashby solutions adaptor is the easiest way to do it, but I actually opened up my pedals to rewire mine.

[bg]

Jon, if you still have that pedal, you can still use it. All you have to do is reverse the polarity. I have two of them and they work perfectly now. The ashby solutions adaptor is the easiest way to do it, but I actually opened up my pedals to rewire mine.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe Jon is correct about Kurzweil expecting a different curve. My understanding is Yamaha uses audio taper and Kurzweil uses linear taper. I don't understand how reversing polarity would address this difference.

[Eric Matlock]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe Jon is correct about Kurzweil expecting a different curve. My understanding is Yamaha uses audio taper and Kurzweil uses linear taper. I don't understand how reversing polarity would address this difference.

I haven't heard of this but it's possible. I haven't done a detailed MIDI analysis on the pedal's behavior, but as far as I can tell the response is pretty smooth on VSL crossfade patches or B4 expression, and certainly smoother than my Roland EV5, which costs nearly $20 more. The PC2/x is currently in the car for my next gig, but next chance I get I'll take a look at the MIDI values.

The best part of these pedals is really the feel-they have a long throw and they stay at the position you leave them in.

[JonFairhurst]

Regarding the polarity switch, that's only for a momentary (e.g. sustain) pedal. And the solution is simple. Plug in the sustain pedal, turn off the controller, then turn it on with the pedal in the default position. The controller will automatically switch the polarity.

Continuous pedals are a different story. They include a potentiometer that has a specific resistance and curve.

I bought an FC-7, but it doesn't match the Kurzweil requirements. I tried calculating an adjustment so I could fix it by soldering on some resistors, but as an EE, I can safely state that it's impossible to match the curve with this technique.

I had looked for a replacement potentiometer with the right value and curve, but it's a smaller than standard mechanical size with a specific shaft length. So far I haven't found the right part...

[Eric Matlock]

I bought an FC-7, but it doesn't match the Kurzweil requirements. I tried calculating an adjustment so I could fix it by soldering on some resistors, but as an EE, I can safely state that it's impossible to match the curve with this technique.

I had looked for a replacement potentiometer with the right value and curve, but it's a smaller than standard mechanical size with a specific shaft length. So far I haven't found the right part...

Interesting. I'm sure you are right about the pot, but the real-world application does work. It's not actually reversing the polarity (sorry about the misnomer), it's flipping the tip and ring leads. It's all over the forums, which is how I learned of this modification in the first place. A stock FC-7 goes from zero to 127 in a very small amount of travel, and acts erratically. After the adjustment, I get a smooth response throughout the entire travel. That's why ashby solutions made this adapter, and it definitely works. They even call it the FC-7 pedal adapter.
http://music.ashbysolutions.com/misc.html#FC7

Anyway, Kurzweil's pedal is only $10 more, so if that one feels good, that would probably be the best no-hassle choice for Kurz owners.

[CBK780]

I purchased an expression pedal and sent it back. I found that I could not control the sound smoothly with my foot so went back to a slider.

Charlie