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Zoom B1Xon, Alesis SR-16 or ???

Bodhammer

Bodhammer

Feb 26, 2015
260
207
Newport, OR
#1
My little Korg Beat Boy is not loud enough and I would like a drum machine/metronome. I'm a noob and don't need anything for gigging. The B1Xon (new) and SR-16 (used) would be about the same price. I already have a SansAmp Bass Driver DI pedal so the Zoom B3 seems redundant. Any thoughts or additional recommendations?
 
#2
I think these two are not the same. Sr-16 being a dedicated drum machine while B1xOn an effect pedal with drum rhytem as an added feature. I dont know much about Sr-16 (I just google it), but if you want to plug your bass, headphones, music player in one pedal and also play rhytm and loop your playing all at the same time, and be able to use efx to your bass sound... then B1xOn is the way to go.
 
#3
simplebassliner said:
I think these two are not the same. Sr-16 being a dedicated drum machine while B1xOn an effect pedal with drum rhytem as an added feature. I dont know much about Sr-16 (I just google it), but if you want to plug your bass, headphones, music player in one pedal and also play rhytm and loop your playing all at the same time, and be able to use efx to your bass sound... then B1xOn is the way to go.
Click to expand...

Thanks - seems to be a split about if the pedal is worth it. B1On or B1XOn?
 
#4
That depends on what you need. I own B1on, because I rarely need/use expresion pedal. Most of the time at home I would put the B1on at a table in front of me, so I wont be able to stomp at the pedal anyway. And I like the size of b1on compare to b1xon. But that just me...
 
#7
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If it's for home recording and home practice, definitely go with the zoom b1xon.
Click to expand...

For once, no, actually for the first time I think, I'm going to disagree with Crystalman85. (Sorry dude!)

For home practice, if you just want a basic beat to keep you in time, I've got to agree, definitely go with the B1Xon.
But for home recording (if that was what you wanted to do, I know you don't state this) the SR16 is streets ahead of the Zoom multi-effect units ..... any of them!
The SR16's are infinitely more programmable and better all round.
I owned one for 20 odd years until it finally gave out on me and I "upgraded" to the SR18. I should have bought another SR16.
 
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#8
For basic practice I would say get the Zoom and assuming you have a laptop or something similar (even a phone) then look for a beatbox program for any extra beats you need and a 3.5mm to 3.5mm stereo cable for the Zoom's aux in.
 
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#9
OzzyGreg said:
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For once, no, actually for the first time I think, I'm going to disagree with Crystalman85. (Sorry dude!)

For home practice, if you just want a basic beat to keep you in time, I've got to agree, definitely go with the B1Xon.
But for home recording (if that was what you wanted to do, I know you don't state this) the SR16 is streets ahead of the Zoom multi-effect units ..... any of them!
The SR16's are infinitely more programmable and better all round.
I owned one for 20 odd years until it finally gave out on me and I "upgraded" to the SR18. I should have bought another SR16.
Click to expand...

I know people who did (the SR-16 has been around 20+ years) use SR-16s for live work too. In fact I nearly did once except somehow its internal battery went flat right before the gig so we had to recreate everything onto four track tape. (Moral: do this anyway as a backup). The SR-16 has four outs so it's pretty good from a live perspective as you can send different sounds to different outs and then mix as required at the mixing desk.

The SR-16 is still available. I did have one briefly and also could see the advantage of having one again, but I have an Alesis DM5 'brain' instead which I could drive via MIDI to much the same effect, although a laptop on stage is a bit scary, but android is getting decent MIDI support soon, so in a year or so a cheap 7" tablet and a suitable MIDI converter might be a good alternative.
 
#11
OzzyGreg said:
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Yeah, I did it twice, when I was in "temporary" bands that didn't have a drummer.
As you say -Asdfgh- , the four outputs are good for sending four separate signals to the desk.
In didn't like the fact that I had to do all the programming of songs!
Click to expand...

At bedroom levels it is all too easy to overegg the bass drum and reenact that scene in the first Back to the Future movie when you plug it into a PA. Much as I did with some electronic music I wrote and then got a friend to try it through his big club-sized PA...
 
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#12
Thanks all, I got the B1on this week and I just exchanged it for the B1Xon (Thanks Amazon!). Great, solid unit that is just packed with fun and adventure for the price. I esp. like that it can actually drive my Sennheiser 64 ohm 280 Pro headphones as well as my amp. I'm pretty thrilled with the drum effects as well. The plastic does feel pretty sturdy and it has some heft to it. I decided to keep my SansAmp BDDI for the XLR output if I ever need a real DI.
 
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#14
OzzyGreg said:
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For once, no, actually for the first time I think, I'm going to disagree with Crystalman85. (Sorry dude!)

For home practice, if you just want a basic beat to keep you in time, I've got to agree, definitely go with the B1Xon.
But for home recording (if that was what you wanted to do, I know you don't state this) the SR16 is streets ahead of the Zoom multi-effect units ..... any of them!
The SR16's are infinitely more programmable and better all round.
I owned one for 20 odd years until it finally gave out on me and I "upgraded" to the SR18. I should have bought another SR16.
Click to expand...

I misread the thread. I see that this is about getting a drum machine rather than a multi-effects pedal. still the zoom b1on/b1xon is a great choice for recording bass tracks in songs. as for drum beats, I usually program my own drum beats and record the rest of the tracks from there. I'm currently working on some new tunes I came up with for my band and when it comes to bass tracks, I use my zoom b3. after I record the songs I work on, I post them on both soundcloud and soundclick. I'll be posting them on youtube real soon.
 
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#15
Skylar said:
I found a B1X for $20 locally, should I pick it up? And whats the difference between a B1X and B1XON?
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B1X is the previous generation. I think the B1XOn uses the same DSP engine as the B3 but with a different UI and display. The B1XOn has 100 patches, the B1X has 40(46?). Some reviews here: Invalid Link Removed and here: Amazon.com: Customer Reviews: Zoom B1X Bass Multi Effects Pedal with Expression Pedal

For a $20, it is hard to see how you could be disappointed...
 
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