EASY-TO-USE Multi Effects Unit for Bass?

[Nuage420]

So this thread has caused me to hook the GT1B up to the computer... holy crap you can really do a ton! And I replaced a bunch of the patches that I don't like or use and it was super easy.

 

[Bassmike62]

Someone's easy is someone else's complicated, so it' a relative thing.

I tried the Boss GT-1B... honestly, that thing did not sound well at all with my gear. After 2 weeks I gave up and went for a Zoom B3n. Still is a processed sound of course, but most effects sound good (dirt not so much, IMO) and it's a rather intuitive gadget, at least it is to me.

 

[primussucks9126]

If you have a particular drive sound in your head or a favorite drive pedal (I do), you'll most likely have to compromise on the B3n. That being said, I've found the SVT model, the squeak model, ts + boost, blueberry, muff, and a few others are super usable for low and high gain drives and they compare well to analog pedals. I even thought the Darkglass model was pretty accurate when I a/bed it with a real B7k (I'm not really into the Darkglass sound, though).

If you're playing through an amp I recommend skipping the cab sims. I think they color the sound too much, and you're going into an amp/cab anyway.

Skip the presets and go right into a blank patch and go from there. The biggest mistake people make with multi-effects units is relying on the factory presets.

 

[Nuage420]

Someone's easy is someone else's complicated, so it' a relative thing.

I tried the Boss GT-1B... honestly, that thing did not sound well at all with my gear. After 2 weeks I gave up and went for a Zoom B3n. Still is a processed sound of course, but most effects sound good (dirt not so much, IMO) and it's a rather intuitive gadget, at least it is to me.

I'm not savvy with this stuff, so I would put myself at the low end of the spectrum.

If you have a particular drive sound in your head or a favorite drive pedal (I do), you'll most likely have to compromise on the B3n. That being said, I've found the SVT model, the squeak model, ts + boost, blueberry, muff, and a few others are super usable for low and high gain drives and they compare well to analog pedals. I even thought the Darkglass model was pretty accurate when I a/bed it with a real B7k (I'm not really into the Darkglass sound, though).

If you're playing through an amp I recommend skipping the cab sims. I think they color the sound too much, and you're going into an amp/cab anyway.

Skip the presets and go right into a blank patch and go from there. The biggest mistake people make with multi-effects units is relying on the factory presets.

See that's what i like about a multi, i need those presets. I've tried fiddling with them and 90% of the time I reset back to factory, again I'm a novice. I did notice the amp cab modeler being an issue when I pulled up the program and eliminated that from the effects that I use the most so I could fine tune directly on my amp.

 

[primussucks9126]

I'm not savvy with this stuff, so I would put myself at the low end of the spectrum.



See that's what i like about a multi, i need those presets. I've tried fiddling with them and 90% of the time I reset back to factory, again I'm a novice. I did notice the amp cab modeler being an issue when I pulled up the program and eliminated that from the effects that I use the most so I could fine tune directly on my amp.

Presets definitely have their use, and if you can find some you like, that's awesome. But obviously the factory can't account for the kinds of gear people will use it with or everyone's individual taste. There are some I like on the B3n.

I cant speak for the GT-1B, but the real beauty of the B3n for me is that it mimics the function of a pedalboard. I've been a pedal tweaker pretty much since I started playing, so I'm very familiar with the process.

I start blank, I know I want a compressor, so I go to the dynamics section and choose my favorite. Same with everything else. I also like that I can use multiple instances of the same effect if I want/need to. Some multis limit you to 1 effect of each type, but I can make a patch with 7 different drives if I wanted to.

 

[Gibson Victory]

I have the Boss ME -50B as well . Even though my gig rig has a pedal board , I still use this for open mic and jams. It has always served me well. It was my entry into effects and will always have its place in my gear inventory.

Amen X 2!

 

[Hevy T]

What's a 'z' bassist?

should have read, "a bassist". Sorry that one slipped by quality control lol

 

[fleizenkruz]

Depends on your notion of "programming and tinkering", I have used these multis during the past 10 years and found them all to be easy to use and sounds great for what I need:

Korg Ampworks Bass
Korg AX-3B
Zoom B2i.u
Boss ME-50B
Vox Stomplab IIB
Zoom B3
Zoom MS-60B
Zoom B1on
Line6 HX Effects
Line6 HX Stomp (currently using this)

 

[brianrost]

What's a 'z' bassist?

 

[cheapbasslovin]

Another B3n user. I had a Boss GT-10B for years - also a good unit but very large and heavy.

The effects quality on the B3n is very good, and the unit is tiny and light. Here's mine in my gig case, sitting atop my also tiny and light GK amp head and together with literally everything else I need for a gig except a bass.

View attachment 3867851

Here's the thing about multi-FX units though:

1. Ignore the preset patches. Most of them are way over the top, have too much going on, and are made to showcase the unit's capability rather than to be useful sound patches on your gig. Spend some time programming your own simpler patches - I have a universal "clean" patch, a "dirty" one, an auto-wah one, and a few synth ones. Whatever you need, but I recommend keeping it simple.
   
2. I've never run across any that did not have a glaring effects weakness. My old Boss GT-10B, for example, had rotten synth capabilities. Who knows why, Boss actually has decent digital stand-alone synth pedals. The B3n's weakness is in the octaver effect. I just can't seem to dial in an organic sounding octave tone at all. And the pitch shifter sounds just the slightest bit out of tune when you use it for octave up. Might be a symptom of the same issue.

That said, the drive effects are great on the B3n - it has a really good SVT emulator - and its synth voices are very good. I'm not looking to make any changes.

Thanks for the review. I'm starting to lean toward the B3N. It sounds like it's what I need. I do use an octave effect for one of my band's songs, so hopefully I can make the octaver work, but I'd rather have a multi-effects unit with a decent drive on it than the octave. Again, thanks for taking the time to review this for me.

FWIW, I like the octave down on my B3, but like altitude said the octave up and harmonizers do not pitch shift well at all.

 

[portpc]

I like my Fender Downtown Express. It doesn’t offer a huge number of effects, just EQ, compression, and distortion—but it does those three things so well that I find myself using it quite a lot. The only other pedal I have other than this is an MXR Bass Octave Deluxe M288 (I don’t count a tuner pedal as an effect).

View attachment 3867449

Not for nuthin’, but effects that just add cheese to your sound don’t do it for me at all. By contrast, this pedal produces very organic tones that don’t prompt the listen to think “Oh, the bass player is using a pedal again now.”

No surprise that it's a great pedal, Anything designed by Alex Aguilar usually is!

 

[selowitch]

No surprise that it's a great pedal, Anything designed by Alex Aguilar usually is!

I didn’t know that. Did he subcontract for Fender on that or something?

 

[Gibson Victory]

And as far as Boss stuff is concerned, you can do this. Is it Boss approved, No, does it work, yes. Class dismissed !!!!!!