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multi effects pedal?

B

big papa mowgli

May 28, 2007
4
0
35
nottingham
#1
hey, i've bin trawlin t'internet for 3 days and i can't find any good advice on which multi effects pedal to get the portability and affordability of multi fx pedals is perfect for me (£200ish budget give or take) but the only review i can find just state how great one pedal is with no implication of how it compares to others.

from what i have found out it looks as though line6 floor pod, korg axb3000 or boss me-20b are the best the bunch but i don't know for sure.

i play funk and blues but have recently started playing metal ideally i want a pedal with a consistant range of sounds so i can experiment and hopefully play better for it.

can anyone a bit more in the know gimmie some advice on what to get as i don't wanna waste money. (200 quid don't come that easy for me)

thanks for any responses and have a good one.
 
#2
I have a DigiTech BP 80. It works for messing around and getting a very vague idea of what certain amps/effects would sound like but I wouldn't recommend buying one of these. The Wah options are crap and the distortion sounds horrible. The 3 that you mentioned getting are very good from what I've heard/read. The bassist in my old roomate's band had an older Boss multi-effects pedal (not sure on the model) and it worked very well. He ended up getting a lot of good tones from it.
 
#3
I use a pedal board with several discrete effects, but I've had a Boss GT-6B for some time now. I'm not sure about price, but I really like it for at least one of the projects I work on. The nice thing about it is that you can string together a whole line of effects and save it to a one stomp pedal. The effects quality is quite decent. I don't use any of the amp modeling, myself, though.

A while ago I played a theatre show, Jesus Christ Superstar. The musical director wanted several effects, sometimes pretty extreme. I had to imitate a tuba, use a farout ring modulation and pitch sweep, etc. The GT-6B did a great job! I was able to string all of the patches in a row, and just toe through them for the show.

I know this model has been superceded, but I imagine the newer ones are similar, or you might find a used one. I hope this is of some help...
 
#4
Bassplayer & Bassplayertv has reviewed several units at that price and there are several to choose. Personally I use a Zoom B2.1u as it comes closest to giving me the sounds and options I want. There is no such thing as a perfect end all be all multi effects, it just does not exist you just have to find the one that best suits your needs and then add other things to suit you.
 
#5
Rumor has it that Line 6 is stronger in the modeling department while Boss is stronger in the effects department. The Zoom B2 and B2.1 are pretty good with both and pretty affordable. I hear good things about Korg as well. You'll want to decide how sophisticated an interface you need, the more foot switches the more expensive, while some of the desk top units are pretty impressive they are harder to adjust on the fly. For studio type applications a computer interface might be the most flexible/upgradable.
 
#7
Monotremata said:
Arent the effects in Boss's newer multi pedals just models of their stomp boxes now?
Click to expand...

Partially. BUT, the ME-20B is amazingly comprehensive. The preamp section is fantastic, for one. The effects aren't just sims of Boss classics, but of other classics as well. For example the compressor section has a dbx160, a DynaComp, the Boss compressor, etc.

It's operates quietly, sounds great, is easy to work with and can be an amazing creative tool. Midi I/O, USB connection for storing your library as well as interfacing with recording software, full stereo capability, optical out as well, and an effects loop. Also can be set up to use one of the on-board footswitches to control your amp's channel selecting if your amp is so designed.

The only problem with it is that it can do so much, that you may become lazy as a player and just focus on using the tools at your feet to make music.
 
#8
i just bought (though havnt actually recieved) a zoom B1X and as far as i know (and i hope) there really good quality, though the one you would probably be more interested in is the B2.1u ill show you the link to all its features and what not, the B1X cost me $200 dollars australian as all the prices for intruments just went up, but the B2.1u is more expensive you would probably have to consult somone for the price
 
#10
The Universe said:
Partially. BUT, the ME-20B is amazingly comprehensive. The preamp section is fantastic, for one. The effects aren't just sims of Boss classics, but of other classics as well. For example the compressor section has a dbx160, a DynaComp, the Boss compressor, etc.

It's operates quietly, sounds great, is easy to work with and can be an amazing creative tool. Midi I/O, USB connection for storing your library as well as interfacing with recording software, full stereo capability, optical out as well, and an effects loop. Also can be set up to use one of the on-board footswitches to control your amp's channel selecting if your amp is so designed.

The only problem with it is that it can do so much, that you may become lazy as a player and just focus on using the tools at your feet to make music.
Click to expand...

SPEC' ERROR HERE
Hi, I'm pretty sure your talking about the GT10-B here as the ME20-B does not have the specs you describe. Check for yourself. Here's the link to the Roland UK Site. Invalid Link Removed
 
#11
AX3000B samples on Korg site are played by Bootsy = WIN :D

No, seriously the Boss is also a good one. Line6 has better amp modeling tech but the effects aren't really that awesome. I suggest trying out the Boss and the Korg and see what you like the best.
 
#12
I'd suggest the Yamaha Magicstomp as well.
The distortions aren't that great (although I must say I like the fuzz a lot, if properly EQed), but the modulations, delays and reverb are great. No wah, though, and compared to other multieffects pedals it may seem somewhat limited, since you can generally use only one effect at a time (only distortion, only modulation, only reverbs-delays, etc.), although there are "combined" settings. I think, though, that they did a great job of doing only one thing at a time, but do it well. Reverbs and delays are great, modulations likewise, plus the amount of settings per effect is HUGE, you can easily tailor the effects to your own taste (to a certain extent, obviously), something I don't like of the ZOOM approach, for example, is that the various effects are actually "presets" (ie. you have 9 settings for chorus depth, and one separate setting for rate, likewise for delays, which I find unusable on the ZOOM pedals). It also has some amp simulators. It is probably one of the best choices (on a budget), if you play guitar as well as bass, since the bass, guitar and acoustic versions are basically the same thing with different presets (and you can easily exchange presets between them).
 
#14
Boneless said:
something I don't like of the ZOOM approach, for example, is that the various effects are actually "presets" (ie. you have 9 settings for chorus depth, and one separate setting for rate, likewise for delays, which I find unusable on the ZOOM pedals).
Click to expand...

I don't know which Zoom pedals you've tried but both the vintage and stereo chorus on the B2 have depth 0-100(increments of 2), rate 1-50, and mix 0-100(increments of 2). The various delay's times are adjusted in increments of 10 milliseconds until you get to 1 sec then in increments of 100 ms. Feedback and mix are 0-100 in increments of 2. I'm not sure if the tap tempo is restricted to those time increments. I don't recall ever not being able to dial in the right delay time for a given tune but it could certainly happen if you were trying to record a delay part over something with a tempo in between those increments, you might have to tweak the tempo or just have a funky delay.
 
#15
I haven't tried the Yamaha or Zoom, but as I said above I own a GT-6B, and like it a lot. I've tried out the Line 6 POD and rack model as well. I think the Boss effects are a bit stronger, and the Line 6 modeling is a bit stronger. I was more interested in the effects, myself. It was also a bit of a struggle to turn off the modeling in the Line 6 gear.

It's really a matter of what you want your pedal board to do for you. I have an amp I really like, so I'm more interested in the effects combinations. YMMV.
 
#17
As I have mentioned before, my Zoom B2 has a broken footswitch for the second time. I've been using my Boss Micro BR in a bypass loop for delay and phase and after A/B'ing them today I have to say the BR wins for clear tone and blendable phase. It's a goofy arrangement but the B2, even in bypass, effects my tone where the BR is quite transparent.
 

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