It's too much fun, I like to do some weird things with it, inlcuding the looper and some deIays from the Zomm, I got rid of the Boss DD500 (a great pedal) just for the ego.
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Zoom MS-60B+ (a compact B2-Four?)
- Thread starter Al Krow
- Start date
Quick couple of questions on this one. I may be ready to give this one another try. Don't know that I gave it enough of a chance last time and it would work really well on my board.
Has anyone found a good downturn option on the MS-60B+? Just going down a 1/2 step to Eb or whole step to D? I think maybe I was trying the wrong pitch effect when I had it. It is not a breaker as I could use my Mooer Pitchbox if needed, but would like to free that space up.
On the amps in MS-60B+, I know they have the cabs associated with them in the sim and I see there is a cab blend. Can you blend the cab all the way out if you just want the amp? My sound guy does a decent job with filters and I don't know that a cab sim would be needed but would like the amp sims.
TIA
Has anyone found a good downturn option on the MS-60B+? Just going down a 1/2 step to Eb or whole step to D? I think maybe I was trying the wrong pitch effect when I had it. It is not a breaker as I could use my Mooer Pitchbox if needed, but would like to free that space up.
On the amps in MS-60B+, I know they have the cabs associated with them in the sim and I see there is a cab blend. Can you blend the cab all the way out if you just want the amp? My sound guy does a decent job with filters and I don't know that a cab sim would be needed but would like the amp sims.
TIA
I use the Bass mono pitch shifter with a HPF and/or a compressor in front of it for the 2 songs I need to drop 1/2 step. I use an amp to restore any tonesuck that may occur. In my case the fliptop, but you can use any amp/eq you want if you need to.
I'm still not willing to go any lower than 1/2 step on any pitch shifter because of the latency, but you can try. Should I need to drop that low I'll bring my 5 string. but YMMV.
Thanks. Good stuff. I only have one song whole step down. Might give it another try.
I've been curious about the MS-60B+ for a multi effects unit, but it looks like the larger form factor and extra foot switches of the B2 Four make it a better stomp box on the floor for calling up and selecting different patches.
I've got a B2-Four and would agree with that. With the B2-Four, you can use the 3 buttons to enable disable 3 virtual pedals within one preset, or choose between 3 presets. We've gone on and on about how their poor decision to waste a button to allow you to switch DI types in realtime. I think they could have made it so the bypass & DI button could be configured to act like buttons #4 and #5 to work along with the first 3. Alas. Will they add that function in a firmware update? No. Prove me wrong, Zoom.
I have no problem with a hard bypass button but agree it would be nice to be able to reassign the DI button to act like button #4. Perhaps in a future firmware update if users ask for it? I have good amps and cabs for gigging and would primarily use this just for effects so 3 enable/disable buttons seem usable. Some players are pretty sophisticated in their use of effects but for simpler needs, I think 3 or 4 good presets to engage when needed to support a song would be useful and adequate. It's important to be able to quickly identify and select what you need during a performance. Any interface which can't provide that is a fail.
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I second that, about the B2 Four: the arrow buttons are probably also more practical by virtue of B2 Four’s larger size meaning that it’s probably easier to manipulate them with your foot without hitting something else.
FWIW, I haven’t really found much of a need for more than 3 foot switches: all of my patches either have “always on” slots (HPF, M80 pre, etc.) or I have 3 or less effects. You can also move the “window” of what the foot switches control with the arrow buttons, which - as previously mentioned - are pretty accessible by foot.
Like @stubbsonic, I don’t really see the point of a footswitchable DI, but I would rather there not be a switch there at all and the unit’s footprint be more like the G2 Four’s.
FWIW, I haven’t really found much of a need for more than 3 foot switches: all of my patches either have “always on” slots (HPF, M80 pre, etc.) or I have 3 or less effects. You can also move the “window” of what the foot switches control with the arrow buttons, which - as previously mentioned - are pretty accessible by foot.
Like @stubbsonic, I don’t really see the point of a footswitchable DI, but I would rather there not be a switch there at all and the unit’s footprint be more like the G2 Four’s.
Imagine a setting:
DI Button Function (options):
DI select
Button 4
Button 4 + Long-Press DI select
Button 4 + Long-Press FX bypass
Button 4 + Long-Press ALL bypass
Bypass Button Function (options):
Default= ALL Bypass + Long-press FX bypass
Button 5 (no bypass)
Button 5 + Long-press All bypass
Button 5 + Long-press FX bypass
Preset Batching:
Sets of 3
Sets of 4
Sets of 5
I'm kind of in the camp that 3 presets and a bypass is sufficient for me, at the moment. However fast access to 5 presets would be better:
E.g., : Clean, slight-grit, octave+filter, chorus, squashed-for-slap; for examples.
Looking at the above suggestion, it's easy to see why Zoom avoided that. Very confusing. However, if they had made it 4 buttons, and combined the bypass & DI functions into one button, that would have made more sense to me, for what that's worth.
DI Button Function (options):
DI select
Button 4
Button 4 + Long-Press DI select
Button 4 + Long-Press FX bypass
Button 4 + Long-Press ALL bypass
Bypass Button Function (options):
Default= ALL Bypass + Long-press FX bypass
Button 5 (no bypass)
Button 5 + Long-press All bypass
Button 5 + Long-press FX bypass
Preset Batching:
Sets of 3
Sets of 4
Sets of 5
I'm kind of in the camp that 3 presets and a bypass is sufficient for me, at the moment. However fast access to 5 presets would be better:
E.g., : Clean, slight-grit, octave+filter, chorus, squashed-for-slap; for examples.
Looking at the above suggestion, it's easy to see why Zoom avoided that. Very confusing. However, if they had made it 4 buttons, and combined the bypass & DI functions into one button, that would have made more sense to me, for what that's worth.
Yeah, I think that’s reasonable, although I would wager it’s also probably not physically/technically possible as currently constructed.
But still not as physically impossible as my wish that it was the size of a G2 Four
Is there a way to change the behaviour of the 4 buttons? Right now 2 in the upper row change between the presets and the bottom 2 select effects in a chosen preset.
I'd like to invert that since I can't hit the upper ones with my foot and those are the ones that I actually need during performance.
Any other performance tips maybe?
I'd like to invert that since I can't hit the upper ones with my foot and those are the ones that I actually need during performance.
Any other performance tips maybe?
Sadly, no. I'd like that option too, as I'm more of a preset guy. Until there's a new firmware or crack coming, there's no way to do it.
I haven't had much experience with Zoom. Do they listen to the feedback of their customers and build in the features that people request?
I sent them an email anyway, not expecting anything but hopefully this can changed in a future update.
I sent them an email anyway, not expecting anything but hopefully this can changed in a future update.
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They'll fix any leftover bugs if users find them, so in that way they do listen. We've had 1 firmware update so far fixing a few (minor) things. But Zoom's not like Line6. They don't usually adds new features to their devices but prefer to sell them as-is. Apart from any bug fixes of course. But it never hurts to try and ask. If enough people ask, who knows?
@doran.dragic I would be pleasantly surprised if Zoom were to respond to the request, lots of users have the same wish. Don't hold your breath on an update to the firmware, those seemingly easy changes can cause havoc in the source code. For an example look at the issues Source Audio has had with updating their Neuro program, SA is much more connected to their users and devoted huge effort and cost that a larger corp like Zoom would likely never justify for such an affordably priced and already feature rich device.
Yeah, this is what I thought.
What was the reason to place these buttons the way they did though? It makes absolutely no sense to me. For sure they tested the device and I can't imagine nobody noticing something like this.
What was the reason to place these buttons the way they did though? It makes absolutely no sense to me. For sure they tested the device and I can't imagine nobody noticing something like this.
It's a choice. With the patch buttons on top and the effects switches below it's a 'multiple pedalboard setup'. with the the patch buttons below it's a 'preset setup'. Zoom chose to make it a multiple pedalboard for some reason. Why they made that choice and didn't let us make the decision based on how we want to use it is anyone's guess.
It's a typical Zoom thing in my experience. They make great stuff at an affordable price, but they make some weird design/UI/software choices sometimes. My B6 has similar weird choices in the UI and button layout. Not terribly intrusive or unplayable, but you have to keep them in mind when you get one. I don't know if it's a cultural thing or maybe they just want to try and be different from anyone else.
