Al Krow

Well the Zoom B1-4 is just £65 and will do everything you want it to. It's also aimed at bass rather than guitar. @JohnRwhy wrong thread, buddy?

Zoom B1-4 multi-fx is a fantastic little "micro-board". I liked mine so much, I've bought two and it's all I'm currently taking with me for live performances - I personally use it to provide me with tuner, B7k dirt, chorus, tape echo and Z-synth. You can include a compressor in every patch if you want to. Includes very good headphone amp capability with aux in and has both a (basic) looper and a decent drum machine which can be useful for home practice. But you'll have so much spare cash left over if you go for that option...😁

It's audible, but actually not an issue for me at all even when playing at home and it's entirely lost the moment you start playing. My DG M900 AO is quieter, for sure, but costs a LOT more. My favourite amp is actually my Mesa M6 which is home use only for me given its weight, but has an awesome tone! The M6 fan is actually nosier than the the BV, which was a pleasant surprise for me given the fact this had been raised as an issue by others with the amp. We all have different fan-noise tolerance levels - mine is certainly above what the BV is producing. And at £200 you're not going to find a better featured amp (e.g. 3 band EQ with semi-para mids, built in comp, 750W+ at 4ohms).

Hiya mate - still on the lookout. It seems that Covid has (understandably) laid waste to a fair number of gigging bands which has resulted in supply being sparser than it used to be. I've managed to persuade the pub manager to up his rates and I've just updated my OP to reflect this. Having said that, he does have decent expectations in terms of quality of the bands he's willing to take on.

If you don't mind have additional power on tap (circa 750W to 800W), then worth also checking out the Bugera Veyron BV1001M or T. I've got the M as a back-up amp and several of us are happily using one of the two models as our main gigging amp. DV 247 currently have them on sale new for sub £200: Bugera BV1001M Veyron Mosfet Head | DV247 | en-GB

My two compact PBs, main board and 'psycho synth' smaller board. Both powered by HB IsoPro PSUs (a 5 and a 12) with a Thumpinator hpf also sitting under the larger board. Currently just using one of the Zoom B1-4s for gigging, which provides me with tuner, BK7 dirt, chorus, tape echo and Z-Synth in one very handy 'micro board' which can easily slip into my gig bag.

That's a great weight. I'm currently lacking an MM 5'er in my herd... How close does it get to the classic MM tone? I'm kinda expecting the pup and preamp at the HB price point to be pretty meh - are they better than that?

I've previously led John astray with Zoom B1-4 multi fxs. His wife is already not on talking terms with me. I don't want to be responsible for any more of John's gear nirvana moments.

Black cherry looks great John! I sense a slippery slope appearing before you ...how long before you fall prey to a Euro LX I wonder? Now that is something that Eldon could lend you to avoid you needing to lie to your wife... 😂

Or as, my daughter said, terrible for the environment 😁

Yeah, absolutely not! 😎

We're playing our second wedding gig, since restrictions lifted, tomorrow in Windsor. One of the singers is currently on holiday in Donegal so he's taking two flights back to get to the gig and will then fly back on Sunday. He's just arrived at Dublin airport and next flight is at 4 30pm this afternoon. Talk about commitment!!!

@mcnach - some of the HB models have a rep for being quite heavy which has been a bit of a deal breaker for me in the past. What's the weight on this one?

That's cool - who hasn't ever got confused about all the BB variations that we've had in the range over the past 40 years, and where they all fit into the pantheon! I mean, why was one of the earliest BBs an 800? Did they really never bother with a 100? Etc. etc! Either way, we still need a pic 😁

Interesting that you're up for curtailing freedoms when it suits - the N-word is a good example of something that can seriously hurt feelings. Just as any racist abuse can. We both know that. But with due respect, "hurt feelings" are NOT in the same league as being willing to put others' lives at risk by pedalling a dangerous anti-vax message. Vaccines save lives and are our way out of this mess; unless you prefer permanent lockdown, destroyed jobs, mental health issues for our children and millions more dead? I can't really believe any medic would be willing to condone such behaviour in the interests of avoiding "the thin of the wedge".

Ok - that's a very different kettle of fish! Thanks for clarifying.

There are lots of things we are banned from doing that infringe on personal liberties - like not wearing a seatbelt or smoking indoors in public or using the N-word (ok that last one's not strictly "banned"). Do you object to those also? Anti-vaxxers putting out dangerous propaganda are putting not just their own but others' lives at risk. If you disagree with that then, given your profession, shame on you. That's my beef. If you are not in any way supporting anti-vaxxers, then fair enough.

This makes for worrying reading...Music’s great vaccine divide: the rockers who refuse to get the jab (telegraph.co.uk) Particularly when reading about too many anti-vaxxers who are very sadly paying the ultimate price for their misplaced beliefs.

Thought you were getting a 424 (which was partly why I thought you'd got a really good price!) - did you end up getting a 414 instead?

Can't give you a comparison of the CN to the other model Berg cabs, Pete. What I can confirm is that the CN212 is IMO an outstanding cab. I've had the privilege of trying several high-end cabs over recent years notably Vanderkley, Barefaced, Mesa, GR and Fearless (and various mid / lower range brands too) and I would put the CN212 right at the very top of that list, jointly with my Mesa PH212, for sound quality. I spent an hour A/Bing it with my VK210 before deciding on buying the CN212. Both excellent cabs, but I couldn't deny my ears that the Berg edged it!

Congrats - that's a good price! I mean an excellent work horse bass that you can happily gig that will stand its ground with basses costing several times as much with a PJ format and some kick-as* pups! What's not to like?! PS welcome back to the Yammy club

Excellent thank you! Sounds just great "plain" and IMO possibly even a little better with the YYZ!

My second smaller "Psycho Synth" board, which I'm looking forward to messing around with:

Ah ok. But a Zoom B1-4 plus those small creatives (T20s) comes to around £125 new. So you pays your money... Having said that I wouldn't want to be gigging a PJB nano combo with 4" speakers, so we are talking purely about home use here.

A couple of us seem to have succumbed to the charms of the Red Panda BitMap2 over the past month. Agree that it doesn't fit into the "not crushing your wallet category" for sure - but mentioning here, as this seems to be the most comprehensive BC thread on bitcrushers and sample rate reduction ('SRR'). I got ribbed by a mate recently that a bitcrusher / SRR would never get used live...however Billie Eilesh, in the title track from her new album, makes very clear use of bitcrush / SRR, particularly prominently for the last 25 seconds from 4.30 to 4.55 although it's evident elsewhere in the rest of the track.