Multi Effect Pedals

I am considering buying a multi effects pedal (like the POD xt Live) and am wondering if they are really as good as they sound (sound quality, easiness of use etc.), or if should I just spend the money for separate pedals?
# 1
I own a Digitech GNX4 and it's pretty cool. I like it better than having a bunch of pedals. Most of the presets need to be tweaked but you can download tons of tones from the Digitech sound forum. It has an eight track recorder and a drum machine. Plays MP3 files and you can create your own drum patterns and upload them to it. If it were stolen I would buy another.
I am a constant evolving music machine. Oh Man, I just forgot what I was playing. Oh well, on to the next song. :rolleyes:
# 2

my vamp2 works just as good as line 6 but its not metal so dont bang it up but it 100.00 compared to 300.00
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# 3

I guess it depends on what you want to use it for.
The PODxt is great, very versatile and best suited for recording and is very easy to use for dialing in 'your tone'.
The Boss GT-8 is great, very versatile and best suited for live gigging, but has a little higher learning curve for dialing in 'your tone'.
They're the 2 'Cadillacs' of the processors to choose from.
There are a few with less versatility but with great tones for smaller amounts of greenbacks. The V-Amp2 is really excellent. I think Korg makes something called a PX4? And the Digitech RP series are very useful as well.
Hope this helps, and good luck!!!
:)
The PODxt is great, very versatile and best suited for recording and is very easy to use for dialing in 'your tone'.
The Boss GT-8 is great, very versatile and best suited for live gigging, but has a little higher learning curve for dialing in 'your tone'.
They're the 2 'Cadillacs' of the processors to choose from.
There are a few with less versatility but with great tones for smaller amounts of greenbacks. The V-Amp2 is really excellent. I think Korg makes something called a PX4? And the Digitech RP series are very useful as well.
Hope this helps, and good luck!!!
:)
:cool:
Everything is OK in the end.
If it's not OK, then it's not the end.
Everything is OK in the end.
If it's not OK, then it's not the end.
# 4

Multieffects will never be better then buying the effects you want....for instance a lot of them will clone Tubescreamers, some can come close but when u A/B it will be noticable. With that said...there strong point is versitility...instead of having 1 killer tone you can have several good tones. I myself sold my gt 6.
WWSD? What would stevie do?
# 5
I went the multi-effects route there for a while, but ended up comming back to real pedals. I played the Digitech, Boss, and Line6 stuff, and while they are all more convenient and more versatile, I still prefer the actual pedals. It's all in what sounds good to you, and that's all that matters. If a Zoom POS, I mean 505 or whatever, is what get's you your dream tone, then by all means use it. If you need a full rack system with midi controller's and all to get the tone you crave, then by all means use it. Tone is a very personal thing, and only you can decide what's right for you.
That being said, I do miss some of those crazy cool effects you get with the multi's, but I try to keep it simple these days with a wah, chorus, delay, reverb, and overdrive.
That being said, I do miss some of those crazy cool effects you get with the multi's, but I try to keep it simple these days with a wah, chorus, delay, reverb, and overdrive.
# 6

I have been playing semi professionally for about forty years. My first gig I was at 12 and so I figure I have seen a lot of hardware pass my eyes and have played many of them. I use music shops to test, use recording studios to prove and use by brains on how much you spend relative to what you earn as a musician or for the love of it. The one thing I learnt was to always make a decision based on your needs. If you are in a covers band and need to simulate lots of sounds i.e Cars to Elton to Beachboys to Greenday then probably a convenient Line 6 XT Pod is good for you if you can affort it and make use of it. Realize 7 out of 10 players on stage cannot hear the real difference between a few good pedals and a multi-effects even by classification of analogue versus digital. Now here is the trick question? How many sounds do you really want to develop as yours. Usually great players have between four to eight sounds. In that case about four or five great analogue pedals ie. wah, compressor/expander, OD or distortion to delay, chorus, phaser/flanger maybe to volume pedal end of line may be your option. Either way get all of them second hand out of E Bay so it doesn't hurt so much if you picked the wrong pedal
[FONT=Century Gothic]DrBob737[/FONT]
# 7

hi!!!!
i have a line 6 uber metal, a line 6 space chorus, a line 6 constrictor, a digitech hot rod, and a digitech whammy.
My question is, in what order do i connect them??? what first, the compressor or the whammy???
thanks!!!!!!!!!!! :D
i have a line 6 uber metal, a line 6 space chorus, a line 6 constrictor, a digitech hot rod, and a digitech whammy.
My question is, in what order do i connect them??? what first, the compressor or the whammy???
thanks!!!!!!!!!!! :D
# 8

I have a Digitech GNX1 and Pod Xt. In my opinion the Digitech pedal offers far superior sound quality. The Pod xt is very versatile but the quality is a bit tinny and lacks punch. For example, there is nothing in the Pod that can match the Rectifier on the Digitech for power. Also, the lead sounds are not that great either. The best thing about the Pod is the accoustic sounds. I use all of my crunchy stuff through the Digitech pedal, leads through a separate Line 6 DM4 (in my opinion the best buy if you are playing metal). The reality is that you will rarely use all of the crazy effects on most pedals the distortion/overdrive sounds are most important in the decision making process, unless you play accoustic.
# 9
Acoustic sounds on a POD? Are you talking about running an acoustic through the POD, because the POD has no acoustic simulator. And, I'm going to have to dissagree with you 1000 times over about the tones from the POD. I can get any tone I want from my PODxt. I think you must not understand how to tweak the POD if you can't get great tones out of it.
I'm not trying to start a fight, just stating my opinion (and fact about the acoustic thing).
I'm not trying to start a fight, just stating my opinion (and fact about the acoustic thing).
# 10

I suppose tone is a personal thing. Re the accoustic sounds, I meant for playing clean sounds, in my opinion they sound best through the POD. I used to the think the POD was the best for distortion untill I played Digitech. Give one a go and see what you think. I still stand over the Rectifier on the Digitech GNX series, the sound just seems "fuller". My favourite lead sound still comes from a stand alone stomp box using the Ibanez Screamer setting on the DM4 (it's still a Line 6 product but again, the sound has a fuller quality to it). Anyway, there are plenty of albums oiut there created using POD harware, the sound can probably be tweaked just right but I havent been able to nail the sound I want yet with that hardware. The sound I use now for heavy partds is the Rectifier with some EQ fed through a Martial MG100DFX then straight out into the mixer. The sound is fuller again after running through the amp rather than straight to pc... probably just suits me because I am a true technophobe!
# 11

Right now I'm in a state of flux over this issue. I jammed last night with a guy for the first time, and he made the comment to me that while the some of the stuff on my Digitech GNX3 sounded pretty decent, overall the whole thing was flat. I was pissed...this dude was damn near slagging my best piece of equipment. I use a Marshall Valvestate amp with a tube pre-amp, and he told me to unplug the processor and hit the overdrive channel on my amp with the volume around 8. When I did, I was blown away. That thing had one of the most awesome distortion sounds I've heard, and the pinch harmonics just squealed like you wouldn't believe. So now I'm thinking of going tube and just getting a few analog pedals. The digital stuff is great, I won't deny that, but in reality all those amp models are someone else's interpretation of another amp and will never truly sound like the real deal.
For a quick snack, picks is good eatin'
# 12
Yeah, I've never heard a Digitech multi that sounded good live/through an amp.
# 13
Yep, I gotta Digitech RP-100. It is great for the money and pretty versatile, but gotta agree with some others that it does lose some tone somehow through an amp, or at least compared to how it sounds direct out with headphones. Previously I've always bought dedicated pedals such as Boss tube screamer and such, but just from my perspective it's alotta of hassle going that way. 9 volt batteries are expensive (multiple wall worts are a mess too), lots of patch cords, and god forbid you need to turn off/on more than one pedal at a time, on time. Concluding, these multi-effects are not a solve-all solution. But they do a lot of things well, conviently.
[FONT=Palatino Linotype]"Bust a nut!" - Dimebag
"Imagination is more important than knowledge." - Einstein[/FONT]
"Imagination is more important than knowledge." - Einstein[/FONT]
# 14

I agree, I have a Marshall DFX100. I'm starting to think that the sound out of that is better than my Pod or Digitech hardware. It is definitely fatter and the distortion sounds a lot more real.
Also, I remember reading that Metallica used their amps for distortion on "...Justice For All" (their heaviest sound of all) and the late great Chuck Schuldiner from Death saying that he only ever used a Marshall cab for all heavy guitar tracks on albums and live.
Anyone have an opinion or advice on using the effects on the PODxt for example for noise gate, compression etc on a clean setting along with the distortion channel of a good amp? How would you do it best?
guitar to POD to amp to pc
or
guitar to amp to POD to pc
????
Also, I remember reading that Metallica used their amps for distortion on "...Justice For All" (their heaviest sound of all) and the late great Chuck Schuldiner from Death saying that he only ever used a Marshall cab for all heavy guitar tracks on albums and live.
Anyone have an opinion or advice on using the effects on the PODxt for example for noise gate, compression etc on a clean setting along with the distortion channel of a good amp? How would you do it best?
guitar to POD to amp to pc
or
guitar to amp to POD to pc
????
# 15
guitar to POD to pc
# 16

Buy a GNX4 ! Then buy the Ultimate Disc by Guitar3564. The GNX4 alone is cool but this disc of presets and modeling samples is GREAT! Guess this guy is a Guru at Digietch Sound Community and made these. You want the best sound? Amazingly done!! I have only tapped into this library! I mean library..amps from A to Z, Artists patches, the works!!! One of the guys at wholenote told me about it. This is unreal!! over 1000 somthing files of patches, amp modles, 162 Artist patches. Too Cool!! My friend at whole note heard this from a guy at the Germany Digtech community. It's been ongoing for months while it was being worked on. Now it's the big talk at Sound Comminty! now I know why! If you have a GNX you have to see for your self!
# 17

I have a XV-amp, which is a v-amp that includes a pedal controller. It cost me $80 with shipping and I got it for the multi effects. In my opinion, it can't hold a candle to a POD for amp modeling. Effects sound very close, but all the 99 presets were aimed at the hard rock or heavy metal crowd (think stadium rock sounds with lots of reverb/delay and an amp model called Savage Beast). Why? Possibly because it can give you tones of overdrive with lows and highs but generally the pod can sound warmer and more realistic to what it is trying to sound like. Just A B what each calls a Black Twin like i did with my guitar teachers POD, you'll see what i mean. I am happy to get the effects though I would rather just have pedals, I cant afford them. So this is a economical way to get delay, tremolo,ect..
And with that I am pleased,
And with that I am pleased,
# 18

I've played the new Boss GT-8 and it is really nice, it has a ton of cool new features.
http://www.bossus.com/index.asp?pg=1&tmp=147
Click on interactive and go to video demos a guy runs over the whole thing with you, but it's expensive that's the only downside.
http://www.bossus.com/index.asp?pg=1&tmp=147
Click on interactive and go to video demos a guy runs over the whole thing with you, but it's expensive that's the only downside.
Pleasure.
# 19