Anyone abandoned individual pedals and gone back to a multi-FX?

wellsyboy

Gone the other way myself - had pedalboard with G2 switcher - sold it all (stupid prat!) got FX8 - sounded great but couldn't get on with the interface - not especially the FX8 but all things like that wind me up - getting bogged down in menus and changing different settings - too many options and algorithms - now gone back to twiddling knobs using G2 again - great new firmware upgrade allows changing pedal orders without moving pedals! Happy days (expensive lesson though!)

EricTheWeary

professorben said:

johnonguitar said:

Has anyone mentioned the possibility of have a multi-fx and a few choice pedals on board? Don't see why we can't have the best of both worlds!!

ps. Considering Strymon is getting s price hike etc. Then anyone selling a Helix at sub £750 needs to have a word with themselves 

yep I did. 
Used to use my Vox Tonelab Le with a SD-1w in the internal loop. 

I might have done. At Helix money I'd not be all that happy having to have a bunch of pedals alongside. However, the common use for something like the Line 6 M9 is to have a board consisting of it+tuner+drives. There's a couple of the low priced Zoom units people are very happy with the reverb and delay and modulation but they aren't user friendly for gigging, similar with the M5.

I think the perfect pub level multi has yet to hit the market. Something that can do a bunch of reverbs, delays and modulations, simple to use, a bunch of easily accessible patches, no drives/fuzzes/amp models. Helix level technology in one of those, £400 - every dentist in the world would buy one...

andyoz

John_A said:

All this talk of depreciation.  I shelled out full RRP for a Helix knowing full well I could have waited 12 months and saved a good chunk of change.  However, I'm gigging, writing, playing and recording now and getting all the benefit of owning the Helix now.  I'm so glad I bought it, haven't plugged in an amp or a pedal since I did, so I spend much more time playing rather than fiddling with stuff.  You can't buy time, so waiting 12 months to save £600 really is false economy.

Agree 100% on that.

All I was getting at is if I really needed one now I'd have already bought one (I don't).  It's a game changer product (user interface, sound, price) so I imagine even the most die hard pedal fans will be tempted to grab one second hand at some stage for a play once they've depreciated at bit.  Then as the inevitable revisions/competition occurs, the cheap fun really starts.  What a time to be playing electric guitar.

Wazmeister

andyoz said:

John_A said:

All this talk of depreciation.  I shelled out full RRP for a Helix knowing full well I could have waited 12 months and saved a good chunk of change.  However, I'm gigging, writing, playing and recording now and getting all the benefit of owning the Helix now.  I'm so glad I bought it, haven't plugged in an amp or a pedal since I did, so I spend much more time playing rather than fiddling with stuff.  You can't buy time, so waiting 12 months to save £600 really is false economy.

Agree 100% on that.

All I was getting at is if I really needed one now I'd have already bought one (I don't).  It's a game changer product (user interface, sound, price) so I imagine even the most die hard pedal fans will be tempted to grab one second hand at some stage for a play once they've depreciated at bit.  Then as the inevitable revisions/competition occurs, the cheap fun really starts.  What a time to be playing electric guitar.

And THAT's what it's all about !

My FX8 has got me playing, writing and eating more. Now, Im wiring up my small board, and going back to the hassles...

It's like breaking back into Alcatraz.... 

andyoz

I pedict most will end up with a Helix type new generation product with a few of the old favourite analogue pedals in the loop.

Also predict Strymon will have a high end/price MFx at some stage.. not because they want to but because the market pushes them that way.

Sometimes you have to kill the Golden Goose to survive.

Eg. Kodak had digital photography R&D in the palm of its hand n the 70/80's but management couldn't envisage a future without film, Kodaks cash cow. Bankrupt now

EricTheWeary

One of my sociology lecturers left to go work for Kodak ( doing what I don't know). He was called Peter Bear. That's it really, just a great name. 

andyoz said:

I pedict most will end up with a Helix type new generation product with a few of the old favourite analogue pedals in the loop.

Also predict Strymon will have a high end/price MFx at some stage.. not because they want to but because the market pushes them that way.

Sometimes you have to kill the Golden Goose to survive.

Eg. Kodak had digital photography R&D in the palm of its hand n the 70/80's but management couldn't envisage a future without film, Kodaks cash cow. Bankrupt now

BintyTwanger77

andyoz said:

I pedict most will end up with a Helix type new generation product with a few of the old favourite analogue pedals in the loop.

Also predict Strymon will have a high end/price MFx at some stage.. not because they want to but because the market pushes them that way.

Sometimes you have to kill the Golden Goose to survive.

Eg. Kodak had digital photography R&D in the palm of its hand n the 70/80's but management couldn't envisage a future without film, Kodaks cash cow. Bankrupt now

If Strymon do this, I will be first in the queue to sell one of my kidneys for one.

dindude

Wazmeister said:

andyoz said:

John_A said:

All this talk of depreciation.  I shelled out full RRP for a Helix knowing full well I could have waited 12 months and saved a good chunk of change.  However, I'm gigging, writing, playing and recording now and getting all the benefit of owning the Helix now.  I'm so glad I bought it, haven't plugged in an amp or a pedal since I did, so I spend much more time playing rather than fiddling with stuff.  You can't buy time, so waiting 12 months to save £600 really is false economy.

Agree 100% on that.

All I was getting at is if I really needed one now I'd have already bought one (I don't).  It's a game changer product (user interface, sound, price) so I imagine even the most die hard pedal fans will be tempted to grab one second hand at some stage for a play once they've depreciated at bit.  Then as the inevitable revisions/competition occurs, the cheap fun really starts.  What a time to be playing electric guitar.

And THAT's what it's all about !

My FX8 has got me playing, writing and eating more. Now, Im wiring up my small board, and going back to the hassles...

It's like breaking back into Alcatraz.... 

what pedals caused you to eat less? You obviously didn't have a Pork Loin, Fat Sandwich, or Soul Food.

Drew_TNBD

@ICBM - how you getting on guv?

ICBM

Drew_TNBD said:

@ICBM - how you getting on guv?

Well I haven't decided to sell it yet .

Actually been playing bass not guitar this week so I haven't really played with it much .

Voxman

I used to use just a few pedals, then bought Boss BE5 that in its day was a super mfx..efectively four boss pedals plus a noisegate. I then bought a Yamaha GW33 that was the first programmable mfx I'd ever owned.  Pretty decent sounding but wasnt crazy about distortions.

I then went back to pedals inc mxr distortion, boss ce3, compressor cs2 and some others. After that I went back to mfx, this time a Boss GT3. I wanted the GT5 but didn't have the extra cash.  Great effects, built like a tank, but too many menus and didnt like the digital sounding amp models.  I sold it and bought a Boss GT6 for its better knobs control and supposedly better modelling.   But hated it and sold it in a week. 

Went back to pedals again, but was given a Vox TLST when it came out that I liked tonally, but switching was too basic for live use. Tried Line 6 hd500x, hated it.

I then bought a used Vox Tonelab LE and liked it so much that earlier this year I picked up a Tonelab SE which I love and is now my main gigging rig.  Built like a tank, easy to use, real knobs for quick tweaks, plenty of decent fx, vol and exp pedal, insert fx loop, midi, etc. Most importantly for me, amp modelling sounds warm and like a proper amp and switching, tuner access, ease of creating and saving patches are a doddle. 

I bought a Zoom G5 for fun, and it has some great fx. But even though on paper the modern amp modelling was supposed to be way superior, my Tonelabs are way better and more natural/ valve sounding. 

So, I'm selling the Zoom G5 and a half dozen or so pedals.  But I'm keeping my Boss BCB60 and 'core' pedals as it gives me another option should I ever need it.  

So, certainly for now, I'm sorted and a happy bunny. 

BintyTwanger77

I've thought about moving to multi-FX from individual pedals, but right now I'm so far away from needing that, or even loads of individual pedals. Definitely playing a lot more using even less pedals. Tried stacking another delay with my Timeline, which yielded some lovely sounds, but getting way more creative stuff done just digging deep with the TL (especially mucking around with the Dual delay engine). Also barely using my fuzz or chorus. So there will be another £FX thread imminently.

Chuffola

I've just recently gone from multi-fx to a few decent pedals. I don't gig.

However, I think I prefer the simple set up of a good multi-fx for my purposes.

I'd forgotten the spaghetti junction of patch cables, daisy chained power supplies, the need for a pedalboard etc. etc. and, to be honest, even pedals like the Flint, while sounding fantastic isn't *that* much better than the trem / reverbs in the GT100 (for instance) - and in a band mix, I doubt you'd tell. I've a TC Flashback X4 (in the classifieds now) which, again, sounds great but not fantastically better than the delays in the GT100.

In short, I *think* I'm going to sell the pedals and go back to a multi-fx. I might keep a good overdrive but even then, some of the drives in the GT100 were perfectly acceptable and the routing options were excellent.

I don't want to go back to the GT100, though. It's HUGE and I don't really need the footswitches. 

I'm in a bit of a dilemma... 

JDE

@Chuffola - have a nosebag at the new GT-1. Looks right up your street. No doubt there'll be some on eBay come Christmas.

professorben

Chuffola said:

I've just recently gone from multi-fx to a few decent pedals. I don't gig.

However, I think I prefer the simple set up of a good multi-fx for my purposes.

I'd forgotten the spaghetti junction of patch cables, daisy chained power supplies, the need for a pedalboard etc. etc. and, to be honest, even pedals like the Flint, while sounding fantastic isn't *that* much better than the trem / reverbs in the GT100 (for instance) - and in a band mix, I doubt you'd tell. I've a TC Flashback X4 (in the classifieds now) which, again, sounds great but not fantastically better than the delays in the GT100.

In short, I *think* I'm going to sell the pedals and go back to a multi-fx. I might keep a good overdrive but even then, some of the drives in the GT100 were perfectly acceptable and the routing options were excellent.

I don't want to go back to the GT100, though. It's HUGE and I don't really need the footswitches. 

I'm in a bit of a dilemma... 

Before you sell the X4 have you looked at the tone print editor? It's a fantastically powerful delay if you delve a bit 'under the hood'

Chuffola

@professorben ;

I agree, but the X4 is just a big too big. If I stick with pedals, I want a smaller unit that has less choices, not more.

Drew_TNBD

Those TC pedals are the most frustrating delay pedals everrrrrr!

professorben

Drew_TNBD said:

Those TC pedals are the most frustrating delay pedals everrrrrr!

Why?

digitalscream

professorben said:

Drew_TNBD said:

Those TC pedals are the most frustrating delay pedals everrrrrr!

Why?

Lack of spillover between patches
Lack of global tap tempo
A MIDI implementation that's not got enough functionality to even be described as "half-assed"

professorben

digitalscream said:

professorben said:

Drew_TNBD said:

Those TC pedals are the most frustrating delay pedals everrrrrr!

Why?

Lack of spillover between patches
Lack of global tap tempo
A MIDI implementation that's not got enough functionality to even be described as "half-assed"

You and your spillover.........
agreed the midi is annoying but I found I could circumvent that by using the relay switching on my loopswitcher to give me 3 more variations on the presets, and it does have trails, I'm not sure if they spill between patches yet though as I've not had a chance to try it properly ( see other thread)