Multi FX (yes or no)

dezb1 · Post by **dezb1** » Fri Mar 13, 2009 9:50 pm

After buying a tremolo in a Johnny Marr inspired spending spree, I thought Iâ€™d see what else he has on his pedal board only to discover that he has been using a boss gt-5 multi effects processor for years. Now- Iâ€™ve been avoiding such things for years, in the supposed knowledge that they arenâ€™t as good as separate pedals. But surely this canâ€™t be right if one of the greatest players this country has produced uses them. Itâ€™s been some years since I last considered a multi FX (zoom 1010 anyone) so are they now worth consideration?

Mr Marr@s board

drew · Post by **drew** » Fri Mar 13, 2009 9:55 pm

as much as i love johnny marrs sound and his music, i would never use multi effects

stewart · Post by **stewart** » Fri Mar 13, 2009 9:59 pm

he's been shit for years too so i wouldn't set much store by his current board.

Post by **Mike** » Fri Mar 13, 2009 10:35 pm

Everyone is different, but they don't do it for me personally. I've never liked anything with digitised preset settings.

william · Post by **william** » Fri Mar 13, 2009 11:08 pm

Mike wrote:Everyone is different, but they don't do it for me personally. I've never liked anything with digitised preset settings.

thats maybe the fairest most plainly stated comment ive ever seen mike post. are you feeling okay mike?

i agree with mike, although i did flirt with the idea of getting one of those blue ones with knobs for the parameters and less screen/buttons.

i wanna see a late 80s johnny marr board. fuck modest mouse. is this from modest mouse?

Post by **Mike** » Fri Mar 13, 2009 11:19 pm

Don't presume to know me, because you don't.

Reece · Post by **Reece** » Fri Mar 13, 2009 11:28 pm

i can't do digital presets.

i had a g-dec once, i wish that had a "turn all the fucking dsp shite off and give me a clean tone yeh bastard" setting.

didn't though, i never got a proper clean out of it.

william · Post by **william** » Fri Mar 13, 2009 11:36 pm

Reece wrote:i can't do digital presets.

i had a g-dec once, i wish that had a "turn all the fucking dsp shite off and give me a clean tone yeh bastard" setting.

didn't though, i never got a proper clean out of it.

dsp multi fx with true bypass.. surely this exists.

william · Post by **william** » Fri Mar 13, 2009 11:37 pm

Mike wrote:Don't presume to know me, because you don't.

never have.

laterallateral · Post by **laterallateral** » Fri Mar 13, 2009 11:38 pm

I've tried one of those vox tonelabs and altough I did like some of the amp models, the actual effects were shit. Completely lifeless sounding and the parameters were very limiting. Another one I tried was some kind of entry level zoom which was very disapointing EXCEPT for the slap echo setting which sounded great on drums. All and all, (and I've said this on here, before) I think they're a great, potentially cheap introcuction to guitar signal processing but generally useless for anybody that has any idea what kind of sound they're after and how to achieve it.

william · Post by **william** » Fri Mar 13, 2009 11:46 pm

laterallateral wrote:I've tried one of those vox tonelabs and altough I did like some of the amp models, the actual effects were shit. Completely lifeless sounding and the parameters were very limiting. Another one I tried was some kind of entry level zoom which was very disapointing EXCEPT for the slap echo setting which sounded great on drums. All and all, (and I've said this on here, before) I think they're a great, potentially cheap introcuction to guitar signal processing but generally useless for anybody that has any idea what kinds of sounds they're after and how to achieve it.

that last part is what makes the expensive ones seem... unnecessary. i had a digitech RPsomething that was like 60 bucks, and that was great for like, "do i like delay? yes. do i like flanger? ehhh..." type learning in my early guitar playing days.

but i cant imagine wanting to drop hundreds on a do it all box rather than buy 5 or 6 pedals that together make all the sounds i actually use, and better than the multifx versions.

Progrockabuse · Post by **Progrockabuse** » Sat Mar 14, 2009 12:31 am

i had a korg AX1000g for the first couple of years of playing. mainly out of my parents getting it as a gift and not understanding about stomp boxes and tone buffers and band names like rectal chain-clamp.
The unit itself was okay for what it was. the drive effects were a little overcooked on the presets, you really have to start from scratch yourself. i was more into the modulation side of the pedal. i was able to create some pretty nice sounding swells and that sound mike enzinger uses a lot on the incubus stuff (are you in? for example). something, that at the moment, i've never been able to get to sound as right as i did with that.
eventually, i started getting into stomp boxes. after i got my basic drive/volume/delay setup, i got rid and only really regret it for that one sound.

Will · Post by **Will** » Sat Mar 14, 2009 1:38 am

I tend to not like multi-effects because you spend more time playing yr effects then music. I like limitations.

Of course, the biggest board I ever had was 5 pedals.

Reece · Post by **Reece** » Sat Mar 14, 2009 1:41 am

DuoSonicBoy wrote:I tend to not like multi-effects because you spend more time playing yr effects then music. I like limitations.

Of course, the biggest board I ever had was 5 pedals.

this is bang on what i had with the g-dec.

it's also my problem with recording software, all them plugins. i used to go crazy with vst effects.

i've learned to leave stuff dry now save for some EQing.

Haze · Post by **Haze** » Sat Mar 14, 2009 4:36 am

about as close as i'll go to a multi effects unit
the dirt on them sucks, but i do like the idea of having a verbzilla, and the big L6 modeling continents in it

dezb1 · Post by **dezb1** » Sat Mar 14, 2009 3:33 pm

william wrote:
Mike wrote:Everyone is different, but they don't do it for me personally. I've never liked anything with digitised preset settings.
thats maybe the fairest most plainly stated comment ive ever seen mike post. are you feeling okay mike?

i agree with mike, although i did flirt with the idea of getting one of those blue ones with knobs for the parameters and less screen/buttons.

i wanna see a late 80s johnny marr board. fuck modest mouse. is this from modest mouse?

Afraid so, but apparently he started using the GT-5 when he was in electronic. A late 80â€™s board would be good. Iâ€™ll have to try and find one.

paul_ · Post by **paul_** » Sat Mar 14, 2009 5:24 pm

The only multiFX unit I've ever gotten on with is the Digitech XP100 Whammy Wah, all the other ones seem to remind me what they are too often (both visually and aurally). My brother had an old-style Korg Pandora (the little silver one) and that was KINDA cool though couldn't be operated with the foot and had all these cheese-wonk 80s sounds to wade through (like dripping water choruses where simulated splish-splash is actually audible in the decay, weird as hell).

The things I end up liking best about most multiFX is using them as floor tuners, which probably sums it all up. My Whammy/Wah was designated volume pedal only at one point.

nsv · Post by **nsv** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 8:14 am

A no vote for multi-fxs.

luke · Post by **luke** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 8:42 am

nsv wrote:A no vote for multi-fxs.

Very enlightening.

Josh · Post by **Josh** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 11:25 pm

This thread might be fairly outdated but:

What about those vox multi-effects, I think there called tonelabs, aren't they kind of logical?
Better than the boss. Just Wonder'n.