SumOne

Another seamless transaction with Chris, thanks!

I've just got a Boss GX 100 and am impressed. It is comparable to the Stomp XL for sounds and features, seems a bit like Apple vs Microsoft in that the Line 6 things are a bit more 'Apple' and immediately intuitive with slicker software interface while the GX seems to allow deeper editing but isn't always as intuitive so can't wing it quite as much - so tips from other users would be helpful. The first tips I have are: - When first plugging in, don't be disheartened if the tuner doesn't recognise your B string: Go to 'in/out settings' and select Bass (guitar is default) and adjust to the correct input sensitivity. Then, when using the tuner, turn the 'select' dial to chose your preferred view and then set for tuning type (e.g. 5 string B regular). The tuner then works very well. - There are no blank presets. Create a template on the 'user' presets by deleting effects and saving (write), that can then be used to overwrite other presets (write/insert). 'Initialize' will delete your preset and revert to original. My questions (so far!) - Line 6 footswitch lights can be lit up dull when switched off to help indicate what it'll be when switched on (e.g. Blue for chorus). Is there a way of doing similar with the Boss footswitch lights? I expect not, there is 'control view' where the screen shows what the footswitches will activate but those thin coloured outlines of small text boxes when 6 foot away aren't obvious to my poor eyesight so any way of making it more obvious would be good.

A Paul Simon quote: “Simply wanting to make the best music can make you competitive,” he said. “You have no idea how competitive John Lennon was around Paul McCartney. When I first met them, I felt like someone had taken all the oxygen out of the room. I almost couldn’t breathe, they were so competitive, and that’s what made them so great. They wouldn’t settle for just good. That was me, too.”

I reckon the GT 100 was a good call. Probably about once a year I decide to sell my individual pedals and get a multi-fx, which I'll then usually sell within 6 months to get individual pedals then the cycle continues! This year is no different, I've just bought a GT 100. For me, it seems to be the right amount of footswitches and onboard controls and easy editing access along with a decent amount of processing power and quality effects. £488 isn't exactly cheap but it isn't overly expensive compared to some multi-fx or the cost of a pedalboard full of individual pedals. I'm expecting a couple of downsides, but it seems they can be overcome easily enough: No synths, but I expect that using 15x effect blocks including Octaver, Fuzz, Modulation & delays it'll be able to produce some good synthy sounds. And there is an FX loop if needed. More outputs including XLR would be good but not essential, my amp has an XLR out (and after all, the cables from Bass to pedals, through a load of pedals and patch cables and then to Amps aren't balanced and it doesn't seem an issue). If I'm lucky enough to play big venues with long cable runs to mixing desks and I'm not using the amp XLR for some reason then small DI boxes are cheap. Drum loops/metronome and an aux in would be nice but streaming can be done with a Bluetooth connector as an optional extra. Or I guess the fx loop return can possibly be used. Edit: I got a good deal on a GX 1000 Core so returned the GT 100 to fund it (thanks to GAK with a quick and easy returns policy with no fuss). The Core is more powerful (more effect blocks, more parallel paths, an extra fx loop, higher sample rate) and smaller and has a couple of extra effects, the GT has a better user interface on the screen and more footswitches + expression pedal. I've added an expression pedal to the Core (but it misses the GT expression 'hard toe press' button which is useful to do things like change it from a volume control to wah while in the same preset) and I'll get a dual footswitch, it still won't have as much footswitch control as the GX though. The Core is better if you want it as part of a pedalboard, the GT as stand-alone.

Can the expression pedal can be mapped to alter 2x different effects and parameters at the same time? What I'm after is the expression pedal to simultaneously increase reverb while cutting bass/increasing high mids and then to switch to be able to use the expression pedal to simultaneously adjust delay feedback and time. That is quite complicated and expensive with individual pedals so multi fx seems best. The nearest priced multi fx I've had that can do it is the Pod Go by using different presets but I found its effect block quite limiting and I didn't love the sound of some effects so am keen to give Boss a go.

Liberation Group, Namibia:

That is cheeky of them if that's actually their policy, especially because if you give your bass for them to sell on commission they wait for 2 weeks after the sale to pay you, apparently this was incase it got returned for a refund.

That's a great review, thanks.

Yes, hopefully it wouldn't matter. I had the Q-strip pedal which had a 45Hz HPF and it was usually difficult to hear if it was on or not unless doing very low sub/synth type stuff and listening on headphones or studio monitors.

The 9 series 15" woofer range has big price difference: 945 (650Hz crossover) 135dB £1,229 935 (800Hz crossover) 133dB £930 915 (1800Hz crossover) 131dB £655 As far as I understand, they basically have the same housing, same amp, same 15" woofers, the same frequency response. So the almost £600 extra between the 915 and the 945 is down to the 1.75" horn vs the 4" horn, and that is important for higher range stuff like vocals and as it also affects the bass output because it means the crossover is a higher frequency so the woofer can concentrate more on the bass. So I'll rule out the 915 with that quite high crossover point, and I'll need to rule out the 945 on cost, which leaves the 935. ......But considering that the 932 with 12" Woofer & 3" horn is cheaper, has a lower crossover frequency, is smaller, 5.4kg lighter (18.8kg vs 24.2kg for the 935), the same 133dB, I'm thinking that's probably the one for me*. 932 (700Hz crossover) 133dB, £825 My question is: Is the 15" woofer significantly better for use as a bass cab than the 12"? It goes down to 45Hz vs 50Hz, that is the only advantage I can see on paper (and I do play dub/reggae on a 5 string so perhaps those low Hz are important), other than that is it going to be worth the extra size, weight, and cost? *(not that I'm in the market to buy right now, I'm actually trying to sell bulky bass gear ahead of a house move...doesn't stop me internet window shopping to plan for the day I can buy stuff back again though!)

Nice. It looks good. My most recent Multi-FX was a Stomp XL (having also had the Stomp, Effects, and Pod Go.....they always seem like a good idea and then I go off them!) but the GX-100 seems to be superior in a lot of ways so might tempt me back to the cycle of selling pedals to get a multi-fx: It is cheaper than the Stomp XL (£488 vs £529), bigger screen which is touchscreen, 15 effect blocks (vs 8), more bass specific effects, expression pedal, the same amount of footswitches but a few more knobs and buttons. Build quality and effects and things like parallel processing and outputs seem similar to the Stomp. Negatives I spot: Bluetooth is a nice optional extra but the connector is £40 and there is no other way of plugging in aux to stream music and no drum loops or metronome (the cheap Zoom B1-Four & NUX MG300 each have aux inputs and drum loops). No synth effect (but can probably combine effects to make some quite decent synth sounds). No XLR out with ground lift, I suppose (or hope) the L&R & headphone outputs can be set to send different signals (e.g. one output with cab sim to mixing desk, one without cab sim to an amp/cab) and are balanced but I can't see that in the manual. I'm keen though, the negatives don't seem a deal breaker. Perhaps I'll have a few individual pedals for sale soon!

It is designed to sample the bass (or whatever else) but inputs can be live monitored while 'armed' to record without actually recording and have effects applied while monitoring - so it can be used as a multi fx. Latency is low enough that it isn't a problem. I guess Akai considered this use in hindsight as a recent update included tuner and amp/cab sims. ....and while playing bass through it you can still have drum loops playing and trigger samples or synths. I'm tempted to get rid of other pedals but 4x effects at once for live bass is a bit limiting, and having to use the touchscreen instead of stomp switches wouldn't be ideal mid song.

The MPC One is excellent and includes tuner, amp/cab sims, and very editable effects like modulation, delay, filters, drive, compressors, EQ etc. It could be used on its own but the problems for live stuff are it only handles upto four effects for the Bass input at one time and isn't stompable - which is the main reason I have the other pedals (and admittedly, those individual pedals do sound slightly better).

Squier Fender (x3) Ibanez (x2) Dingwall Sandberg Lakland Hohner Yamaha And a home build - neck and body from northwest guitars. Each good in their own ways.....pizza might be my favourite food, I'd get sick of it if it was all I ever eat though!

I think his Bass is comically big, and Thundercat must be fairly large this guy who is 5'10 pretty much can't play it:

I just got an Atlas and it seems great if you want to nerd out with compression. Good stuff: It sounds good. I've owned quite a few compressors (FEA Opti-Fet, Empress, Markbass, Cali 76 compact, The Warden, MXR, Pigtronix) it is unfortunate I don't still have any to directly compare but it seems in the same league as the best of them, and better than the Helix and Zoom digital compressors. Hook it up to phone/laptop and you can control just about every compression parameter you'll ever want to. It can do things that most compressors can't: It can be pushed to distortion all the way up to sounding like a fuzz pedal, slow swelling noises, fast pumping sort of effects, noise gate, it has look ahead compression, dual compressors that can be parallel or series (with 2x inputs and 2x outputs potentially meaning using it as 2x compressors at different parts of signal chain - I haven't done that yet though), side chain compression.......basically, you name it and it probably can do it. 6x presets and the dials can be assigned and ranges customised per preset. (128 presets accessible via Laptop/phone or if linked via midi) An expression pedal can be added and mapped. Can be used as a parametric and graphic EQ. I've made a preset that uses one of the dials as a mid volume and the 'alt' version of it as the mid frequency point - so it is like adding an EWS BMC pedal. Downsides are mostly hardware: There is no inherent tone or feel to it (perhaps a good thing?). The visual metering isn't as good as the MXR or Empress (but the light changes colour, which is plenty for me). Connected to the Laptop the metering is very good though - live graphs to show input signal and where compression is being applied. It would be great if it had a couple more dials (like the Empress with 6 dials and two switches), 4 isn't quite enough for hands-on control of a full-featured compressor where lots of things can be edited (there are the additional 'alt controls' but using that isn't ideal).....but then again, if it had hands-on control for all of the things available it would be massive and really expensive. The 'alt' controls are fiddly, a small hidden button activates them for a short amount of time while the dials are turned. The problem is, try turning the 'release' alt dial and listening to the change made but turn the dial slightly after timed out and it reverts to 'output' potentially giving a massive volume increase/decrease because of the dials new position. Not good if trying to make 'release' adjustments while listening to how your compression sounds through a cab already at high volume. It's probably best not to think of it like I was as 'how good is it at emulating other compressors'. If you only want a compressor to sound like a Diamond or a Cali 76 etc. then it is probably better to get one and keep things simple, you can emulate them with the Atlas but its real strength is that you can then flick a switch for 5x other presets that could suit other instruments (for me, my 5 string active needs different compression settings to my 4 string passive), or suit slap, or reggae, or pick, or do over the top compression effects, or EQ changes, or sidechain compression etc. If you like gettting into all the details of editing compression and you want 6x different presets of potentially completely different compression then the Atlas is great.