Multi fx units vs stompboxes...FIGHT

d8m

Going through one of my 'god I have to many pedal moments' 

 I seem to be incapable of just having a pedal that's not in use. 

If it's not in my chain Then its gotta be sold.(the only exception being home built and modded units)

 I also restrict myself to 6 in a chain through use of a diago micropower as I am a bit of a minimalist freak.

 Back in the day I used a Yamaha magic stomp:

and run it alongside a Boss DS1.

At the moment I'm seriously considering picking up these 2:

and just  running by DS2 alongside it.

Travisthedog

I wrestle with this conundrum on a dailit basis - drive boost and delay are all sorted but it's modulation where I prefer a multi - at present I'm using a line6 MM4 which is a bit shakey quality wise and I think it's not working properly as I can't get a decent chorus out of it.

An chorus is what I use the most!!!

I could get a rake of Mooers?!!

Short of a möbius or modfactor I've tried all the others

monquixote

I'm pretty much with Travis. 

Theoretically the TC Nova I had could do everything (even the analogue drive sounded good), but it was just too fiddly for me to feel comfortable with live so it had to go. 

Even using a G3 for mods and delays was close but no banana. 

I don't need a huge number of sounds so currently CAE Wah -> SP Comp -> Liquid Sunshine -> Bogner Red -> Flint is doing the job.

Travisthedog

Flint eh?

...........goes off to YouTube

G3 got closest for me too - I keep looking the single pedals they do

handsomerik

I have 2 G3s and one is for sale. For me they are an excellent addition to add mods verb and delay to a couple of favoured drive pedals. I'm also selling both the multistomp pedals you pictured. Let me know I you decide to go for any and I'll hook you up with a good deal.

The multistomp in particular are amazing value for what you get and way more versatile than a line 6 m5 which is the main contender

monquixote

The flint is cool because it does verb, trem and harmonic trem which can be used as a vibe/phase type thing. 

I don't use a lot else.

ICBM

I'm going through this a bit as well. I recently went from pedals to a Zoom B3 for bass, and that's been a great success - it sounds as good, and is far more flexible, less noisy and less hassle. So I got a G3 as well - but I haven't quite bonded with it as much. It doesn't sound as good, to me - it may be because I'm just more tuned in to the micro-detail of tone with guitar than I am with bass, although I'm not sure - and it seems less intuitive to use - not really sure why either! It's not bad, and it will be useful for minimum-gear gigs, but I don't think it will replace my full pedalboard like my B3 did for bass.

I do really dislike the hassle of building pedalboards - partly because I'm my own worst enemy and I hate what I think of as "weedy" methods like velcro (I was proved right on this when someone once tried to nick my Fuzz Factory at a gig… he got quite a surprise when he discovered it was bolted down!) and loose cabling, so everything has to be fully secured, at great effort. I also have to say I dislike true bypass or other mechanically-switched pedals - I know this is not fashionable, but to me 'soft' buffered switching is completely superior, and it frustrates me that many of the pedals I like the sound of use mechanical footswitches. Doing everything in the digital domain is even better, really.

But then there's the all-eggs-in-one-basket problem… if your multi-FX goes down, you're really screwed. With separate pedals you can just turn off the affected one or patch stuff together differently if you have to. A combination of the two sounds like it should be the best of both worlds, possibly… but that's even *more* hassle to build a board around.

Kebabkid

I've had most rack units, Boss floor units, Korgs, the Zoom MS, Line6 & 9 (really disliked those) but for me, pedals sound best. It can be a bit of task stepping on and off 2-3 pedals to get a particular sound, and I don't use a switcher or line selector, but they sound good. If you don't like a pedal, replace it, and a lot of my stomp boxes have been on my board for 5 years. I can't remember lasting that long with a multi-fx. I can't be doing with the programmability hassles with multi-fx and getting the volume ratios right on presets. Plus, some multi-fx overdrives don't clean up from the guitar volume.

I think a combination of both might be the best way and I've just started doing some bass gigs and didn't want to spend the earth on a rig, as at the end of the day, I'm a guitarist. Recently, I bought the Zoom B3 and it's great. However, I knocked out the amps and tried the fx with my "guitar rig" and board, and it works! The autowahs, octavers and modulations are fine to use and if anything, because they're tuned to bass, they're not as trebley on the high end. The filter effects and octavers in particular and some of the compressors make for some superb very funky sounds. So, favour pedals on most days, but today, a combination of both!
Edit:@ICBM - try using the Zoom B3 fx with your guitar rig and see if you prefer it to the G3 (tip:the overdrives don't sound great), so purely for use on delays, reverbs, mods etc.

viz

That's why the G system is so good. You have your own wah and dirt pedals, and g takes care of all the modulation, delay etc, with warm lush effect. Plus a multi pedal for patch selection. But it's expensive.

ThePrettyDamned

Had a jam the other day, and got by with:

Guitar -> Tuner -> Qtron -> Route 66 -> Bandit with a delay in the loop.  

I want a wah and I want modulation effects, and realistically I won't be gigging a Qtron in a metal band (I love it for jamming out some funk, though, so it'll stay I think).  

For mod, I'll go for a Visual Sound Liquid Chorus in the loop.  These pedals won't ever be pressed because I'll just switch the loop in and out.

If I got seriously into gigging, I'd replace my drive with a Boss pedal of some sort, or better yet, a Visual Sound V2 route 66.  I just don't trust mechanical switches, they break, soft switches seem to last forever.  

A noise gate would probably be needed, I'd see if I can get away with putting it in the line loop so I can just leave it on, but I don't know if that's the case.  

Now I think about it, I've broken quite a lot of switches just through home use...

ICBM

Kebabkid said:@ICBM - try using the Zoom B3 fx with your guitar rig and see if you prefer it to the G3 (tip:the overdrives don't sound great), so purely for use on delays, reverbs, mods etc.

I've already tried it, and not only don't the overdrives sound great, the amp simulators don't either - even the ones which are often used as guitar amps, like the Bassman and Super Bass. I want those sounds as well for guitar, which is why I bought the G3 - it may be that I just need to spend more tweaking time with it, although the B3 was so good straight out of the box for bass that I think it gave me a false sense of confidence…

I think some of the funkier effects do sound better though.

Kebabkid

Yes, I agree ICBM about the amp sims on guitars too.
I must say the G System has caught my eye, but I can't justify the price for what I do. The cheaper GigRig Quartermaster switchers and the similar new Mooer and Joyo units or Carl Martin Octaswitch look interesting for getting multi-fx functionality from stomp boxes. Anyone using them? I suppose the purchase of all those mini leads has to be factored in, especially if you want decent cables, and is it a bit of faff?

Travisthedog

I really though the nova modulator would do the trick but it was a complete ball ache to use live. Although the effects were ace

Kebabkid

Travisthedog said:

I really though the nova modulator would do the trick but it was a complete ball ache to use live. Although the effects were ace

Agree. I had one and returned it within a couple of hours. I replaced it with the Line6 m5 when they were going cheap, but my rig didn't like it (sounded odd with my pedals). The Mobius and Eventide H9 look good.

Travisthedog

So what is the currently accepted line up of giggable multi modulation effects?

G3, M5 then whAt?

handsomerik

Mobius.

Travisthedog

Remortgage

Adolfhipster

Love the nova system.

ROOG

I bought a G5 so that I could try lots of different effects, but just like if I buy lots of CDs in one go I didn't really listen properly or master any of the effects. I find it easier to bond with FXs as individual units adding them to my 'system' one at a time. I seem to have settled on line 6 compressor, joyo American sound, El Capistan and Flint

Kebabkid

Adolfhipster said:

Love the nova system.

How have you got over the slowness of the buttons on preset changes, or doesn't it bother you? Also, are you using it purely on its own, or with pedals, as aren't you stuffed with pedal placement on the latter? FX loop or front end of amp? Sorry, I wanted this unit to work for me, but there seemed to be a few things in the way, so I'd be interested to hear what others thought of it.

57Deluxe

Rory Gallagher using the BOSS ME-5 Live... nuff said!

http://boss-pedals.jimdo.com/famous-users/