How was your experience with a multi effect pedal?

[Wfrance3]

I’m not a big effects player, so my solid performer pedals are all analog and contribute to clean with a little dirt as needed. My requirements for all the other kinds of tone are met just fine with a little zoom pedal I picked up. Probably not the same as a “real” pedal or pedals, but it gets me by just fine.

 

[Andy Marshman]

I used to play lead guitar. Had single pedals then Multi FX, etc so I'm very familiar with them.
I learned a long time ago that (my opinion only) effects with bass are not for me. I had the 3 button Sansamp bass pedal but didn't keep that either.

 

[Johnny StingRay]

Good.

 

[Eli_Kyiv]

Did you regret? No
Which pedals you replaced by the multi effects? All of them
Did you stay only with the multi effects? Yes

 

[Bob_Ross]

I had a Digitech 2120 Artist (big purple rack mount brain with a remote pedalboard controller, same unit John Entwistle had in his rig for the last few years of his life) and while I found the sound quality was excellent and the variety of sounds available were enormous, it ultimately didn't work out for the type of musics I play and the way I like to incorporate effects.

The biggest drawback to it (and, presumably, to most multi-effect all-in-one gizmos) is that you need to pre-program any sounds or effect combinations in advance; there's no way to spontaneously decide "ooh, this part I'm playing right now needs a low-passed overdrive into a phase shifter into an envelope filter set for mild upwards sweep" unless you've already created that signal flow as a preset combination and remember what preset # it's stored at.

Whereas with an a la carte pedalboard of individual stompboxes, I can get that idea and execute it within about four beats of music.

So if you're performing a known set of music that requires repeatable consistent tones every time you play a certain part any given night, a multi-effect unit can be very handy...provided you do your homework to set up all the presets your set will require. But if you're doing any type of spontaneous, improvised/extemporized music, it can be an obstacle to immediacy.

 

[JDLowEnd]

hx stomp replaced most of my pedals (OD's, tuner, modulation, octave) I did keep a tube DI and a broughton studio boost, because well neve stuff..... I am going to purchase an additional two button footswitch to change between presets, and use the original footswitches to toggle effects. If I didn't find an hx stomp locally for a good deal, I would have preferred the hx stomp xl for sure. Having the amp sims, cab sims, and all that is just a bonus. I do wish it had an xlr though

 

[SteveCS]

tl;dr: how was your experience adding a multi effects to your board? Which type/kind of pedal(s) did you "let it go", which you did not?

Hello, folks. I'm thinking about transitioning from pedals to a multi effects (Line 6 HX Stomp). I've seen a lot of videos, read the manual, searched through posts, and I'm pretty confident that I understand how the HX Stomp works, the pros and cons.

What I didn't find enough was the experience of the "players", or feedback, about the transition from pedals to a multi effect. I really want to know from you, that tested / bought the multi effect, how it worked out at your board?
Did you regret? Which pedals you replaced by the multi effects?
Did you stay only with the multi effects or you board has a mix of it (pedals + multi effects)? Which pedals you couldn't "let it go" in your board?

My first MultiFX was a rack-mounted Alesis Quadraverb GT, which I still have. But of the 'modern' batch I settled on the Zoom B3n. For me it has the right balance of sound quality (32-bit processing), footprint (the B6 is as big as my entire board and smaller units can't accomodate my feet!), software/hardware interface (more knobs, less menu-surfing and easy foot control) and processing capacity (up to 7 effects per chain). As far as individual pedals go it is hard to say. Prior to this I really only used a Boss Gold Label CE-2B, OC-2 and T-Wah, all of which I bought in the mid '80s and sold about 10 years ago. I never really used the OC-2 and T-Wah much so really the B3n only replaces/replaced a chorus pedal.

The main reason for the change was live access to patches without having to remember which pedals to turn on or aff and which settings to use every time for every tune. There is nothing worse than hitting a pedal only to discover that the knobs have moved/been knocked or you forgot to make an adjustment. Multis, espcially those with big bright text displays, solve all of these issues. I use two basses live and an ABY on the board. So I have the Zoom programmed with two 'baseline' tones named after the instruments and another 15 or so patches for specific specific songs. For the most part the differences between patches are variations on a theme, although a couple are quite radical departures.

But I haven't completely dispensed with individual pedals, and would never expect to.

• The Zoom has some good envelope filters but I've yet to find any filter model in any M-FX that sounds and plays as well as the Xotic Robotalk, so that remains.
  
• I've also not had good results with the octave/pitch-shift models in the M-FX, especially for octave up, so I have put a TCE* Sub'n'Up mini on there. I considered the EHX Nano-POG but the TCE has additional EQ, input and output filtering, Corona Chorus and Drive/Dirt effects on board, once you open the TonePrint app.
  
• None of the M-FX have an equivalent for the EHX SuperEgo, so that has to stay. The MS-50G is there for post processing to the SuperEgo and octave effects - some of the time-based filtering effects in the MS-50G work really well with the SuperEgo and I use some of the drive and tube amp models with the octave to do 'that' thing and to cover up some of the Sub'n'Up's less pleasant artefacts.

They are all hooked up around an EHX Tri-Parallel Mixer which allows easy layering and separation compared to everything in series. In fact, some things are just about impossible without parallel processing. The TCE SpectracComp has a homegrown TonePrint just to 'master' everything back together at the end - all the 'right' settings are programmed and linked to the fully clockwise position of the knob. It is sublte, and nothing like the SpectraComp default, which sounds terrible, IMHO :

 

[Bluzeman90]

I had some decent luck with the B3. I bought a GT-100 for playing guitar and made a bass setting for it that I just use in stomp mode so I essentially just have 6 stomp boxes and it's ok. I'm really just a bass>cable>amp guy, but I hang onto the B3 just in case we start doing some songs that need some goofy effects

 

[And I]

I used a boss ME-50b for a while and just couldn't get into it... It had a hiss to it that was unpleasant. and while the effects sounded okay, i found that it wasn't really flexible enough to give me all the sounds I'd want without having to tweak knobs anyway. I'm much happier with individual pedals. Better quality effects, no extra hiss, much smaller footprint.

 

[bbeiermann]

I started using the Helix floor model for shows in January. Mainly because most of our shows were support slots opening for larger bands and it allowed me to line check, set up, and teardown super fast. It has been a great setup. Only recently I switched back to a pedalboard with separate pedals. I will be adding the HX stomp for fly dates soon.

 

[G On Bass]

When I was playing a consistent genre/situation live, I knew what tones I would need and built a board accordingly since my amp is pretty much untouched throughout the evening. Now that I am doing more original songs that seem to allow for more tonal experimentation, I have gone from individual pedals to a Zoom B3N. I always like the B3, so I wasn't too concerned. This pedal gives me lots of options to try things, including changing orders of effects. That being said, I have set it up so that when we do start playing out, everything is optimized for quick changeover and flexible effect toggles. To each his/her own.

 

[No Malarky]

I have a couple of Ibanez PUE5B multi pedals which I dig. Yes, they are old, but I find them to be fun and reliable.

I also have a a couple of Carl Martin Quattro multi pedals (made for those 6 string guys) but I use them for bass.

I personally try to keep things at my feet rarther sparse, except for those music fans that are in awe - of course.

 

[Mantis Tobaggan]

I don’t like them. They are complicated and I like individual pedals. I don’t use pedals with my bass, but this is my guitar board.

 

[Cave Puppy]

My experience with bass multi effects? Not good. I had the zoom MS-60b. Any sound I was able to produce was meh. Almost like the real thing. Almost but not quite. And the LCD on it produced some RF noise that I didn’t like. Too much menu diving as well. I now have individual effect pedals.

 

[skidmarkbass]

I'm still using my trusty old BOSS Gt6b. I built a pedal board but really like the multi better. I was thinking of upgrading to a newer system, but, I think it would be wasted on me as I'm not a big effects user. I use a little distortion and some octaver at times.

 

[TerribleTim68]

I feel like this thread wouldn't be complete until Sean (@Combinator ) chimes in. At least he can give you a straight scoop on his experiences with multi-effects, he's doing A LOT with them and has been through a few different ones.

Sean, help this guy out.

 

[Fuzzbass]

tl;dr: how was your experience adding a multi effects to your board? Which type/kind of pedal(s) did you "let it go", which you did not?

Hello, folks. I'm thinking about transitioning from pedals to a multi effects (Line 6 HX Stomp). I've seen a lot of videos, read the manual, searched through posts, and I'm pretty confident that I understand how the HX Stomp works, the pros and cons.

What I didn't find enough was the experience of the "players", or feedback, about the transition from pedals to a multi effect. I really want to know from you, that tested / bought the multi effect, how it worked out at your board?
Did you regret? Which pedals you replaced by the multi effects?
Did you stay only with the multi effects or you board has a mix of it (pedals + multi effects)? Which pedals you couldn't "let it go" in your board?

Got a Zoom B1on a few years ago. Mostly out of curiosity because it was inexpensive, something I could tinker with for fun. Also, my entire pedal collection consisted of compressors and overdrives, so I thought maybe I could gig the B1on if I ever had to deliver an unusually effected bass tone: "Sledgehammer" by Peter Gabriel, sub-octave synth bass for Nine Inch Nails or whatever.

But while the B1on was fun to play with for awhile, I never gigged it because I never needed it. And I haven't touched it much since I got it because I'm not really interested in programmable FX, multi or otherwise. I prefer basic analog FX: all I really want and need is a couple/few dirt pedals and maybe a comp.

If I had a genuine need for numerous FX outside of dirt and comp, then I would go with a multi-effect. One reason would be to keep my board small, another to avoid the headache of researching each effect individually: best* chorus, best octave, etc etc etc etc. I would definitely go with a higher-quality (and higher priced) device than the B1on... but you're already doing that.



*Best for me, of course... there's almost never an overall best

 

[Kevorargh]

I got into multi-effects 25 years ago or so. Started with a Zoom 506 which was crappy and noisy, moved to the Digitech BP-8 which was cool for it's tube pre-amp section, then moved on to the BOSS GT-6B which I used for a few years before finally ending up with the Boss GT-10B, which I still own 10+ years later. I used to use it for live gigs but the reality is the songs I play don't need a lot of effects. When I was doing solo bass guitar, it was integral to the songs and I had that hooked up to a Digitech JamMan so I could do loops with different effects.

Multi-effects are cool because everything is under one hood, but they do not do well with on the fly adjustments given the menus and parameters you have to adjust if things are not going right.

Nowadays, I use a TwoNote LeBass Preamp and that's it.

 

[shirojiro]

I love pedals. I have what I thought was a modest collection, but when I put them all together, it seems that they have multiplied.

I hate setting them up, and I generally only use them for recording or at home. I haven't had a lot of luck setting up a decent pedal board, but admittedly, I didn't try very hard after a bad experience with an SKB board that was far too large.

I ended up using a Zoom B3 for many years, mostly for things like the Bass Driver DI, octave, and some distortion. I recently got a Bass Fly Rig and have been using that for the same effects, but the octave isn't really usable for what I need.

Anyways, it's hard for me to motivate to construct a pedal board when I can get 75-90% of the way there with a multi effect. I also realized that using the B3 plus the BFR is a good combo for me. I can use the B3 for octave and modulation and use the Sansamp, compressor, and boost from the BFR.

Fo me, this stuff turns into P vs J vs Stingray etc and 4x10 vs 2x15 cabs etc.
I think we're the only ones who really care about these details. Certainly the audience doesn't care, and my band mates comment, but I honestly don't think they really care either. What they do care about is groove, time, note choice, dynamics, musicianship, and teamwork.

I love focusing on all of this gear, but part of me feels like I should spend all of this energy, time, and money on woodshedding and lessons, yet here I am, on Talkbass, commenting on another gear thread!

 

[fivestringgecko]

Did you regret? Which pedals you replaced by the multi effects?
Did you stay only with the multi effects or you board has a mix of it (pedals + multi effects)? Which pedals you couldn't "let it go" in your board?

The TL;DR
What it comes down to is A) personal preference and B) what works best for YOU. The best suggestion is to try one out for yourself.

I went full circle: multi-fx > single pedals > explored Multi units again > now my main board is a mix. But I've also been quite happy gigging just the Stomp (when I don't need synth... keep reading below).

The more wordy answer
Like many players just starting out, I started with multi-fx units: a Zoom 506 Bass, Korg AX1B, and a Digitech BP-8 (which I still have) and then switched over to single effects because that was "what I was supposed to be using." I went down the rabbit hole and explored a LOT of pedals for quite a few years, including a lot of boutique stuff. Coming full circle, I picked up a Zoom B3 as an impulse birthday present for a cruise ship travel gig with a gospel band, and that sent me exploring the current state of multi units again. I bit the bullet and tried an HX Effects after much research, and quickly bought a Stomp shortly after.

There's always going to be the idea of "single pedals sound better," and there's nothing wrong with that. In some cases it's true, but I would argue that that's not always necessarily the case. The Line 6 team puts a LOT of effort into their models and it shows. I've seen a few comparison videos on Youtube that are quite favorable to the actual counterparts. Being a previous single pedals guy myself, I know that sometimes that mentality can color one's opinion. (I was a single pedal snob for a good many years. ) In my previously mentioned pedal explorations, I owned or tried 38+ individual envelope filters, and the Auto Filter in the Stomp is among my top 3 favs. (3Leaf Proton V2 and Pigtronix Bass Envelope Phaser are the other two for some context).

Some multis have a pretty complicated menu diving system, but I found the Helixes to be pretty intuitive, with just a little bit of time to get up to speed on how everything operates. It only took a day or two to get used to it, and making adjustments became quite easy... It's not actually that far from adjusting single pedals.

The Helix family (and the PodGo) all share the same effects models, and there are many VERY good sounding models. Several have become my favs, and what you can do with combinations is endless. Switching to a Stomp was a "quality of life" upgrade for me in my current gigs. IMO, the only true weak point of the Helix line is synth, so I've got the C4 and Future Impact on there, along with a couple other pedals for fun/because I have the space. I've gigged just the Stomp itself on many occasions, and if I didn't need the synth for the 80's stuff, my ideal small board would be a Stomp with the MC6 and an expression pedal. You don't even need a DI because you can switch the outs to line level.

My board is set up with MIDI, so it's super easy to completely change my entire board up on the fly. In particular, I sit in with an 80's band that has an entire MIDI setup for everything (even including lights and backing tracks), and I wouldn't be able to switch effects fast enough for how fast they transition to the next song. I get a MIDI send from their system that changes my pedalboard for me including in the middle of songs in a couple cases, and I don't have to touch my pedalboard all night except to tune.

Here's my current board. The Stomp and MC6 combination do a lot of the heavy lifing. Empress is at the beginning of the chain to balance levels between basses, smooth out signal for better synth triggering, and a hint of preamp colour as well. (I also run a compression block at the beginning of the signal chain in the Stomp, which works perfectly when I'm running JUST the Stomp.) Dunlop Mini Vol X is used as an expression pedal, routed through the MC6 so I can use it to control the FI, C4 and HX (or combinations of all three!). JC Wah is just plain badass.

Bass > Empress > FI > C4 > JC Wah > Stomp > out to house.

A lot of people use a Helix of some sort, and for good reason. Even some of my friends who have been die hard single pedal users have changed their minds after seeing what my board can do (and how easily). One even bought my HX Effects from me.

5sg.