Al Krow

I agree. Filter and synth are very much the Achilles heel of budget and mid-range multi fx - they really can't compete with the likes of Panda FI, Source Audio C4 and Boss SY-200 / SY/1 on the synth front - particularly as the FI and C4 have proper synth wave generators on board. Or something like the Proton Mk4 / [filter of your choice] on the filter side. But, hey, any one of those pedals costs a multiple of my humble Zoom B1-4, so the fact that the Z synth on the B1-4 is actually borderline usable in a band mix is flippin' brilliant! 🙂 Good luck with the new band! Covers?

Yes - the Z synth on the B1-4 is surprisingly usable and, weirdly, better than anything I managed to get on Helix! I'm guessing the B6 patch may be similar / identical. I dropped the Z synth into parts of the bass line for Daft Punk's "Get Lucky" at band rehearsal this week and I seemed to get lucky with not being shouted off the pitch...🙂

True, but what if you're "just" a bass player and literally 90% of the fx on the unit is aimed at guitars? Personally I find it a chore to have to wade through stuff and audition it on the off chance it might also work well on bass. I love the fact that Zoom are prepared to make some of their pedals tailored to bass with ALL the fx being potentially suitable. Horses for courses, I guess? Both Helix and Zoom sell well, so there's clearly a market for both approaches as we seem to be demonstrating!

Definitely!

I also very much need to shed some weight! 😁

@MichaelDean - you make a fair point! However, for me it's really nice to know that all the fx available on the Zoom bass multis have been tweaked with the bass player, and the our lower note ranges, in mind. I no longer need to start by working out what's good for bass and deleting 90% of the stuff that really is better just on guitar. Sometimes too much choice can be daunting!

A few BC'ers who we know to be successful, very capable, regularly gigging and having a lot of fun, with decades of experience under their belt, have already 'fessed on this thread to not using any pedals (yup not a.... anywhere in sight! 😁). So when you say: ...that for me neatly sums up 90% of what we angst about on BC on so many gear related matters!! Once we have a "good enough" rig & bass, being a better bass player and a better sounding bass player to our audiences is then no longer about the gear but how well we play it i.e. it really is then "all in the fingers". But having said that, if it just gives you, the bass player, and no one else pleasure in hearing that difference, then why not?

Dare we ask what the itch is? I mean, what is out there that is drawing your eye away from these two lovely basses?!

I like that it has a smaller footprint than the G6 with no wah pedal attached. Shame that they didn't include parallel routing for fx: that would have been a welcome addition and something that Helix has been offering for 5+ years now - and @eude's point on pricing on. The other competition we've not mentioned so far would be something like the Boss GT 1000 Core.

I've come across far worse reasons for wanting a piece of kit than it's something that is associated with one of your heroes! No ridicule from me, mate.

The Zoom B1-4 actually has a really good tuner and drum machine for practice & doubles up as a decent headphone amp for when the family is tucked in - that more than pays the entry ticket. I find myself using several of the B1-4 fx in our covers sets e.g. - analogue chorus - B7k drive - Z synth - slap back delay Maybe only for a handful of songs, but it's a nice to have and fx definitely gets heard in the mix - most amusingly when I've accidentally trod on my B1-4 and triggered an fx that neither me or the band were expecting. Lol! If you're a fan you can also stick a compressor and Zoom's noise reduction sim on each patch. It slips very comfortably into a gig bag pouch. For around £50 used it's amazing value.

Hi John - my guess is that B6 will mirror the capabilities of the G6 which "has six different amp models to choose from, with each amp being custom designed and tweaked for inclusion. There’s also an impressive 22 cabinet emulations, with 70 pre-loaded full impulse responses providing various options for microphone positions and rooms. If this wasn’t enough, you can also upload your own favourite impulse responses (IRs) via the SD Card slot." That's taken from this review

Personally I'd get one of these over a PH... Just lovely! And that reverse P pup is likely to be awesome - would love to hear one being played live.

First reaction. Ouch!!! Delayed reaction...ok that new processor seems to be quite a step up from the B3N and B1-4 and Zoom are clearly intent on going toe to toe with Helix and Headrush. Good for them - the more choice the merrier!

Congrats and my bad - I thought you had got the 4 string version of the Marquess, but I can see now you've got the MM.

The B1-4 screen should power up with just an external power supply (i.e. computer usb or 9v adapter) connected. With internal batteries, the screen only powers up with an the input jack from a guitar lead, to save on battery life. But that lead doesn't actually need to be connected to anything.

Was interesting - thanks for sharing. A very big Zoom fan here, but I'm not feeling any particular GAS to rush out and get the B6 - I'll happily stick with my B1-4 for now, based on the B6 blurb. If they get around to upgrading the B1-4 or B3N with the new chip in a more pedalboard friendly format, that would definitely be another matter! Definitely coming around to the idea of this pedal a lot - having now heard some more clips of what it's capable of!

"B1/4" = Zoom B1-4 multifx. The cheap-as-chips alternative to a HX Stomp.

Apologies for hijack, but I'm about to upgrade my Carvin with a 3 band Glockenklang (the current preamp was long past its sell-by when I got the bass). What was the issue with your 2 band Luke?

We always had to pay VAT on purchases of new goods UK <-->EU, it’s just that it's been extended to used goods too, now, which is a shame, but puts us in a similar position as VAT on imports of used goods from the US or Japan etc. There is an additional point to do with import duties which is usually a much smaller number than the VAT. No import duties on new goods that have a UK or EU source of origin, but if it is considered eg Chinese source of origin then import duties can apply. What the amount of actual local content to make something "locally UK or EU" varies, depending on the product, and is certainly beyond my expertise though!

My takeaway from some really excellent posts on this thread is that: - the woods used in a bass can certainly impact the tone and feel of a bass; - perhaps the most important aspect for tone is the woods used for the neck and fretboard but also whether it is a neck-through (for greater sustain) or bolt-on and also if it's laminated/single piece. That completely makes sense as the neck and fretboard have the most intimate connection to the strings; - the overall impact is, however, going to be relatively small and will be easily swamped by other features, namely: pups (make, P, J, MM etc), choice and age of strings (rounds vs flats etc.), whether it's active or passive and choice of preamp - and that's before you get to the rest of your signal chain (pedals, amp and cab) which can substantially change things up again. So I'm inclined to agree with those who have concluded that we shouldn't get too hung up on the woods in the bass in terms of tonal impact, but instead go for something that looks and feels great.

Great write up! Totally sympathise about the mute button - I've gotta five(!) similar push switches on my DG amp, one which is hidden from view by the bass lead (usually the one I forget about) and an ohm switch on the back, so it can feel a bit like a pre-flight check list sometimes making sure they're all in the right setting, lol! On your fBook page it says you're a one gig a month band. Is that something you strictly keep to?

That bit is definitely correct! 👍

Ah fair enough - totally agree that if you're primarily playing 4s, then there's no particularly point getting a premium 5er. Btw - do you agree with my dating of the eBay TRB 5Pii? Be good to get a second opinion!