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Single Pedals or Multi?

AElfes

AElfes

Jun 21, 2007
195
320
ACT, Australia
#1
Hi all, long time lurker, first time poster :bassist:

My question for you today is this: currently, all I have going is a boss rc-2 looper (perfect for my needs at home and gigging) and a v-wah pw-10 (once again, perfect for my needs). I'm currently thinking about adding a compressor (specifically a cs-3 [with an opto mod]) and a synth pedal (still undecided).

While doing my bit of research, I saw that the me-50b has these needs covered, along with other effects i might become GAS-y for in the future (Chorus, Proper dist. etc)

Would the single pedals be a worthwhile venture or should I give the me-50b a serious consideration?

Any input is welcome. :help:
 
#2
If you've lurked here much or if you search you'll probably find the majority in favor of single pedals. But the only real way to tell what's best for you is to try it. Try out the ME-50b and compare it to a single comp or synth or whatever. I don't think I'd be happy with any Boss overdrive but I lucked into a Blueberry for less than an arm and a leg. It seems like the smaller companies get more love here and there are quite a few of us who have been converted from multi's to singles. Some have gone the other way.
 
#6
I have a multi (bass pod pro), and have been a bit overwhelmed by it. It did give me a good range of toys to play with, but now I'm moving to single pedals. I'm looking for a better, more......personal :ninja: pedal experience. It took me a while to figure out what I wanted, but now I'm fixated on trying out some singles. First stop : Analog man mini-chorus.
 
#8
GingerConor said:
get single pedals!! their usually better, i mean, have u ever seen a pro use a multi-effects pedal before, no!
Click to expand...

*sigh*

That's untrue unless you've never seen Victor Wooten (Boss GT-6B), Les Claypool (he uses a Korg multi, mainly for the envelope filter) or Trey Gunn (at least two PODs, plus some midi units) just to name some off the top of my head. I'm not a fan of multi-fx personally, but that's because I don't like the idea of just sticking to one company's sounds; I feel lazy. Plus I like experimenting with different effect orders, huge numbers of effects and actually opening them up and tinkering.

If you like the sounds, go for it, but make sure you really know what you're buying.

EDIT: i2k beat me to the punch
 
#9
yeh, I was listening to some RATM and realized how cool bi-amping sounds, say a clean track of bass, and the other track fuzz-wah-ed or whammied~

Oh by the way, the new line 6 Pod X3 can do bi-amping. Did I mention that?

I say, strike a balance between a Pod unit, and some individual pedals that you may want more tweakablilty over such as a delay or whammy.
:bassist:
 
#12
I prefer singles for my needs.

a) I'm picky about tone & it's unlikely that a multi-fx will satisfy all of my tonal preferences for each effect.

b) My preferences sometimes change, so it's a lot easier to change out a single pedal than try to hunt down a multi-fx that will accomplish what I want.

c) For studio use, I like the flexibility of individual pedals for different signal paths. Also changing settings is a lot quicker w/ singles.

d) It's arguable that singles have higher quality audio paths. Sure, it's a generalization, but in my 15 years of experience - singles just sound better. (*see point b below*)

e) True bypass capability (especially in studio environments) can be rather important. I have yet to see a multi-fx that passes a pure, unbuffered signal.

On the other hand, multi-fx do have their place as well:

a) For someone new to effects, a multi is a great (and significantly less expensive) way to experiment with how effects sound. You can also easily find what types of effects work well with what you play, and which don't.

b) Occasionally a multi-fx has one or two amazing sounds. I think that's why you see them pop up on a Les Claypool or Vic Wooten stage. It's not because the multi is taking care of all their pedal chores, but there is a couple of sounds that they cannot find in a single format.

c) Ease of setup. Of course, as you can readily see in the "Show Your Pedalboard" threads, a singles setup can be made to be streamlined. The multi-fx, however, is already packaged & ready to gig with a minimum of fuss.

d) No batteries needed for a multi-fx. (Again, there are a million battery-free solutions for singles.) The self-contained multi-fx isn't going to die in the middle of a song for lack of a fresh battery! (note: I haven't used batteries for my single pedals for a decade...)

e) This is this biggest factor, I think. There will always be a younger player who wants to buy your multi-fx when you inevitably make the switch to singles!!! ;)
 
#13
The biggest benefit of multieffects is the ability to save and store patches. You can preset over a hundred different tones without having to do any knob twiddling. I actually really love multieffects- the problem is finding ones that don't have big faults tone-wise to overcome, as most do. I currently have a board with all single pedals, but I'm hoping to switch back to multieffects sometime if I can find a great one and just keep a couple of my singles.
 
#14
Individual is my style simply because you have the option with each one and most of them are plug-n-play... with a few minor adjustments.

The multi-pedals; you're stuck with the efffects the put in there. Most guys I know that had the multi racks with award winning lights have gone back to the single pedals for ease of operation, maintenance and choice... Plus, a pedal board is easier ot move around than a rack mount set up. Yeah, I know the multi-pedals today are smaller, but you're still stuck with what they come with pre-installed.

IMHO that is.....
 
#15
As posted in the other current thread of EXACTLY THE SAME TOPIC :scowl:....

Me said:
For me it's no contest. Individual effects give me total flexibility and control over exactly what the sound is from each box. Additionally, I don't have extra features or effects that I'll never use.

If you can find me a multi that has the same circuits as a Demeter Compulator, EHX Micro POG, Tonefactor Cream Pie, Fulltone OCD, PE Depth Charge (w/ clean blend, of course), Analogman Chorus (w/ deep mod), Boss BF-2, and Guyatone MD3, I might take a look.
Click to expand...
 
#16
Once again, you don't have to choose. You can use both. One of the best things about multis is the ability to switch multiple effects with one switch. For instance, limiter, filter, fuzz (w/blend), 6 band eq, pitch shift, and delay switch to compressor, octave, overdrive (blended), two bands of parametric eq, chorus, and reverb if you want. They can be very powerful tools but like everything they have limitations.
 
#17
Swift713 said:
One of the best things about multis is the ability to switch multiple effects with one switch.
Click to expand...

Actually, I can do this with my single pedals as well. I use a multiple-loop switcher with a master switch so I can change any combination of pedals on or off at the stomp of 1 switch! It also eliminates unused (off) pedals from my signal chain for the best fidelity straight to an amp or DI, etc...
 
#18
scotch said:
Actually, I can do this with my single pedals as well. I use a multiple-loop switcher with a master switch so I can change any combination of pedals on or off at the stomp of 1 switch! It also eliminates unused (off) pedals from my signal chain for the best fidelity straight to an amp or DI, etc...
Click to expand...

That's not the same thing. Using a bypass looper will allow you turn off whatever effects are in that loop with one switch, but it won't let you use the effects in one loop with effects that are in another loop with one button switch. A multi will let you combine any effect combo with one switch. Using a bypass looper (which I use myself) limits you to whatever's in a single loop if you want to keep your button presses to one.
 
#20
I use boths,

for studio work and some nice gigs I prefer to use my beloved single pedals and DIs.
For "not so nice" gigs and other situations I like to use the Boss GT-6B or Bass Pod XT live which are really good too.

[[]]
 

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