lets talk multieffects

[DHW]

About a year ago I had a mustang3 and was told to drop that and get myself a real tube amp. I did, I got a Marshall dsl40c and tossed a good speaker in it. Nice sounding amp but then needed pedals. I have a very modest collection right now. Boss tuner,sd-1, big muff, and a boss tremelo. They all sound really good with this amp. That said, I am needing a wah, phaser, and reverb(dsl40 reverb is awful) at the very least. I also lost the line in and headphone capability.

So I'm thinking multieffects now but don't want to take 3 steps back and go back to the robot solid state sound. I've seen several of you talking about them so wanted to get the scoop. I'm playing blues/rock, punk, grunge, and heavy rock/metal(seether, zombie, metalica, ext). What do you use and what do you not use in your multieffects? I was looking at the new line6 Sweetwater exclusive because it actually can be controlled by android instead of just ios on one's with mobile capabilities. That said, I'd give that up for a more organic sound. Guide me!

 

[Bill SAS 513]

If you're gigging, a Multi might be the way to go, for ease of one button switching between tunes...but I prefer individual ( or sometimes dual) effects where I can mix and match...that's half the fun, I think. But either way, don't rush it...save the money and buy decent stuff, don't settle for just anything. Cheap pedals add noise in chains, among other things. Bosses are made like tanks...or at least used to be, but there are a lot of Semi - "boutique" makers out there almost in the same price range.

 

[vchizzle]

Buy a real wah, I've never heard anyone make a multi that sounds real. I'm not big on multi's so I can't offer much help there. I don't mind the line 6 M series. That more like having a pedal board set up in one pedal though. If you just need those 3, I'd grab a TC HOF mini, phase 90 and whatever wah suits your fancy.

 

[DHW]

Forgot the compressor lol... One more for the list.

 

[Orange Tiger]

I've been in your position before and have found myself going from experimenting with multi fx units to single stomp-boxes time and again. I've got a Boss ME-80 at the moment which really is very good. Good sounds and not too processed. It's great to have one unit with everything included needing only one plug, rather than having dozens of foot pedals and all the associated wires trailing around.

 

[László]

Some effects seem to sound better analog, and with others, digital effects work fine. The best digital multi effects currently for guitar pedalboards are The Eventide H9 (superb emulations, not noisy), the TC systems (the Nova is a steal), and the Line6 M series. Having worked with all 3 I like the Eventide best but the drawback is one effect at a time. The TC and Line 6 multi effects are very good if you need more than one.

Distortion sounds best analog. Even TC uses an analog distortion circuit on their digital multis. Most modulation effects sound pretty good digital, as does time-based stuff. EQ is very good digital, and compression is good though analog has an edge.

The problem I have with most digital effects is hiss; this is made worse as the amp's gain increases.

Strymon sounds great but they are more specialized, not multi effects boxes in the sense that you can get say, delays, modulation and EQ in the same box.

 

[Agent707]

About a year ago I had a mustang3 and was told to drop that and get myself a real tube amp. I did......

Hi there DHW. I’m new to these forums (just registered a few minutes ago!!!), but not to the music buis….
If I can “tell you” but only one thing, that would be – don’t let ANYONE “tell you” what you need to get. Period.
Decide for yourself whether you like your sound/setup and just go with it. It doesn’t matter how much effort you put into a setup, there is ALWAYS someone who is going to say, “you need this instead of…”

If I were still a gigging man (and I haven’t been in 20+ years), I’d most likely have an Axe FX 2 xl stuffed in a rack and be done.
After years of back breaking carrying around 4x12 cabs and heads and crates of stomp boxes and mic’ing adjusting… No thanks.

See, if I did that… there would be the guys that would come and say, “dude, you need real gear!”
And if I had all the baggage gear, there would be the crowd that said, “dude, you need amp sims!”


So, at the end of the day, just get what YOU like. Take advice, but don’t let anyone tell you.

 

[DHW]

Some effects seem to sound better analog, and with others, digital effects work fine. The best digital multi effects currently for guitar pedalboards are The Eventide H9 (superb emulations, not noisy), the TC systems (the Nova is a steal), and the Line6 M series. Having worked with all 3 I like the Eventide best but the drawback is one effect at a time. The TC and Line 6 multi effects are very good if you need more than one.

Distortion sounds best analog. Even TC uses an analog distortion circuit on their digital multis. Most modulation effects sound pretty good digital, as does time-based stuff. EQ is very good digital, and compression is good though analog has an edge.

The problem I have with most digital effects is hiss; this is made worse as the amp's gain increases.

Strymon sounds great but they are more specialized, not multi effects boxes in the sense that you can get say, delays, modulation and EQ in the same box.

Very good to know. My main effects pedals will like be stuff like overdrives, fuzz, phaser, ect so those being better analog anyway won't gain me all that much. That said, if/when gigging happens I may pick one up just for the ease of feeding it directly into a PA, though that would be an excuse to get the amp head I have been drooling over...

 

[DHW]

Hi there DHW.I’m new to these forums (just registered a few minutes ago!!!), but not to the music buis….
If I can “tell you” but only one thing, that would be – don’t let ANYONE “tell you” what you need to get.Period.
Decide for yourself whether you like your sound/setup and just go with it.It doesn’t matter how much effort you put into a setup, there is ALWAYS someone who is going to say, “you need this instead of…”

If I were still a gigging man (and I haven’t been in 20+ years), I’d most likely have an Axe FX 2 xl stuffed in a rack and be done.
After years of back breaking carrying around 4x12 cabs and heads and crates of stomp boxes and mic’ing adjusting…No thanks.

See, if I did that… there would be the guys that would come and say, “dude, you need real gear!”
And if I had all the baggage gear, there would be the crowd that said, “dude, you need amp sims!”


So, at the end of the day, just get what YOU like.Take advice, but don’t let anyone tell you.

Well, in this exact situation I am glad I listened. I was in the "a tube amp is EXPENSIVE" mindset and the mustang offered a ton for the price. I got the marshall for a song and a dance and I definitely like the sounds that come out of it. Just kinda hit me weird that everyone is talking about multieffects all the sudden when the general consensus is that solid state amps suck. Seems to be trading 6 of one for a half dozen of another.

 

[Agent707]

I totally understand where you're coming from about the amps. Yea, solid state guitar amps blow chunks. Worst invention ever!
You're going to get a lot of differentiating opinions regarding affects though. So fair warning.

Multi-effects have come a LONG way in the 20 years it has been since I was out gigging.

No matter what you decide on, as long as you like what you hear..

 

[DHW]

I totally understand where you're coming from about the amps. Yea, solid state guitar amps blow chunks. Worst invention ever!
You're going to get a lot of differentiating opinions regarding affects though. So fair warning.

Multi-effects have come a LONG way in the 20 years it has been since I was out gigging.

No matter what you decide on, as long as you like what you hear..

A lot of these guys are using multieffects directly into a PA though. How is that different than one of the higher quality solid state modeling amps?

 

[Agent707]

Big difference between a solid state amp, and an amp sim (e.g. Axe FX). But we're talking about multi-affects, not amps, right?

Sorry, didn't mean to turn the discussion into Amps. Seems you have that covered well now. I was only trying to make a point.

 

[DHW]

Big difference between a solid state amp, and an amp sim (e.g. Axe FX). But we're talking about multi-affects, not amps, right?

Sorry, didn't mean to turn the discussion into Amps. Seems you have that covered well now. I was only trying to make a point.

So would you only use the amp models when going into a PA and not when going through a good tube amp?

 

[Agent707]

So would you only use the amp models when going into a PA and not when going through a good tube amp?

Me? If I were to start gigging again (which I'm not. ), I would trade in my eleven rack (which I just bought) for an axe fx 2 xl... plug it into the mains... and run a direct out into a small stage amp for a monitor.

But that's just me. Not everyone would.

Why? I've stood in front of 2 - 4x12 JCM800's for years and know that what I hear standing in front of that beast is NOT what you hear in a recording, or coming out the mains.

What you hear coming out the mains/recording is all that matters at the end of the day. With todays amp sim's you get that sound with zero setup.

I said that to say this. A "good tube amp" has little significance on what you hear out the mains, or a recording. It's only a starting point.

If you can get passed listening to this " &#^@% wind bag", this will give you an ideal of what I'm talking about. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EtxHlJ2FPo

So WHY did I buy an eleven rack? Because as I said, all I needed was something for my den. I don't see dropping 4 grand on a setup, just so "I" can go WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!

Would I gig with an eleven rack all the same? If I were on a budget, sure would.

There, I just told you what I would do. If I were "you", what I'd do is troll youtube... just search for "multi-effects for guitar" or something. You'll be surprised at how many user reviews over gobs of product you'll find. (and get to LISTEN TO!)

Good luck!!!!

 

[sergiodeblanc]

Buy a real wah, I've never heard anyone make a multi that sounds real.

This!

I like the new Zoom stuff, it's inexpensive and does everything but pitch-based effects really well.

 

[Gman77]

I'm pretty big on multi-effects. Went through the single pedal phase off and on several times but have now settled on all in one units.

I spent the last 4 years gigging a Line6 Pod HD500 (effects only mode into loop of a Mark V) until the thing literally fell apart about a month ago. It sounded great when it worked.

TC Electronic makes fantastic sounding units. The Nova System in particular is nice. However, I gigged a G-system for 6 months...but, it was a serious tone sucker and prone to hum/noise issues.

Right now, I have my sights set on the Fractal Audio FX8, which I think will be the ultimate efx unit.

 

[Jazzedout]

+1 for the TC Electronic Nova System. It sells really cheap now and has great sounding effects. This and a wah and you're good to go.

 

[vchizzle]

Right now, I have my sights set on the Fractal Audio FX8, which I think will be the ultimate efx unit.

That might be the ultimate game changer if it works well.

 

[DHW]

That might be the ultimate game changer if it works well.

at $1350 it better work well!

 

[Agent707]

My Guess, it is the Axe FX minus the Axe...