New Zoom Multi FX: Zoom B6

[Harlequin74]

7 hours ago, stewblack said:

Gigged with it in memory mode on Saturday.

I was bedeviled by the same problem I have whenever I use preprogrammed effects patches.

No matter how assiduously I set them up at home, get on stage and there are glaring differences in volume between the patches, and what sounds amazing at home seldom sounds great live.

Nothing wrong with the unit just my cack handed inability to program stuff properly.

So Stu, does this mean you will finally flog your Plethora to me? 🤣

[stewblack]

11 minutes ago, Harlequin74 said:

So Stu, does this mean you will finally flog your Plethora to me? 🤣

Well, I do have too many effects and not enough gigs, so really I ought to sell some.

But no! Hands off! I still love my Plethora.

[MoJoKe]

15 hours ago, stewblack said:

Gigged with it in memory mode on Saturday.

I was bedeviled by the same problem I have whenever I use preprogrammed effects patches.

No matter how assiduously I set them up at home, get on stage and there are glaring differences in volume between the patches, and what sounds amazing at home seldom sounds great live.

Nothing wrong with the unit just my cack handed inability to program stuff properly.

As Jimfist says, it'll never sound the same at home or through headphones than it does live at gig volume!  That applies to all/any effects I have ever used...

 

By the way, you may all be interested to know Zoom have just released a new IR pack from Jensen!

 

Available free of charge for all B6, G6 and G11 owners!

 

https://zoomcorp.com/en/gb/news/jensen-ir-collection/

 

Theres a download link about 2/3 of the way down the page....

Edited May 5, 2022 by MoJoKe

[MoJoKe]

More info here: Zoom UK Facebook

 

 

 

 

Edited May 5, 2022 by MoJoKe

[BassAdder60]

I think this is why I avoid multi fx due to time spent getting the patches to sound right live with a band 

 

Had this hassle as a guitarist using Helix, in the end went back to analogue pedals 

 

Still on the fence if I even need effects !

[jimfist]

1 hour ago, MoJoKe said:

As Jimfist says, it'll never sound the same at home or through headphones than it does live at gig volume!  That applies to all/any effects I have ever used...

 

By the way, you may all be interested to know Zoom have just released a new IR pack from Jensen!

 

Available free of charge for all B6, G6 and G11 owners!

 

https://zoomcorp.com/en/gb/news/jensen-ir-collection/

 

Theres a download link about 2/3 of the way down the page....

 

Looks like this IR pack has two bass cabinet IRs:

29 JsC15N_1 Jensen C15N - Vintage Series, 50W, Ceramic Magnet. Vintage-style 1x15 Bass Reflex Ported Enclosure, Birch Plywood cabinet and baffle. Dynamic: Cap Edge
30 JsC15N_2 Jensen C15N - Vintage Series, 50W, Ceramic Magnet. Vintage-style 1x15 Bass Reflex Ported Enclosure, with 1" Compression Driver. Birch Plywood cabinet and baffle.

Dynamic: Cap Edge 
Condenser: Tweeter

 

It's nice to have options, and sometimes the guitar speaker IRs can sound good for bass, too.

Hopefully this is a sign that someday we'll see a firmware update with some new stuff for the B6, and maybe some operational tweaks.

I'm not holding my breath, though, and pretty happy as-is right now.

[jimfist]

1 hour ago, BassAdder27 said:

I think this is why I avoid multi fx due to time spent getting the patches to sound right live with a band 

 

Had this hassle as a guitarist using Helix, in the end went back to analogue pedals 

 

Still on the fence if I even need effects !

 

For me, general rule of when creating sounds at lower volume: avoid the Fletcher-Munson pitfalls - reduce low end and top end. Midrange is where it's at.

I've been at this for over a decade, tweaking modelers in full-range speaker systems so that they sound good on stage and in the main PA.

With enough gigs and rehearsals under your belt, you eventually get a feel for the tonal ranges that work for your application and style of music.

No doubt, there's a significant learning curve that I'm happy not to have to re-live. 

[Harlequin74]

15 hours ago, stewblack said:

Well, I do have too many effects and not enough gigs, so really I ought to sell some.

But no! Hands off! I still love my Plethora.

Tell you what…. Iwill just ‘borrow’ it for a few gigs - 

[stewblack]

9 hours ago, Harlequin74 said:

Tell you what…. Iwill just ‘borrow’ it for a few gigs - 

That seems very fair. Considerate even.

[jimfist]

Some post-gig thoughts...

The gig was a restaurant/bar full of people which meant we couldn't do any semblance of a full sound-check, unfortunately.

Quick line check, levels and off to the races. It was a mess for a few songs, but eventually things settled in.

I found that making on-the-fly changes on the B6 was pretty easy when time allowed.

The B6 was great in terms of sound, and the high visibility of the touch screen is really a substantial upgrade that I only really appreciate now that I've gigged the unit.

Huge HUGE gripe is the switching of banks while in MEMORY mode. Far too much tap dancing needed to simply go up/down one bank (and I only really need 3 banks for all my sounds).

Instead, I opted for the bank up/down arrows on the touch screen in MEMORY mode. Would rather not have to reach down to the pedal to do this, but better than doing the riverdance.

 

All-in-all, though, a very positive experience, even under difficult circumstances and in a venue with not-so-good acoustics.

Edited May 9, 2022 by jimfist

[tauzero]

There's probably a way of controlling it via the USB port to enable bank up/down. I've done something similar with an MS-60B and a B3, and I'm sure there's a topic on it somewhere.

 

Found it: http://basschat.co.uk/topic/275453-zoom-b3-ms-60b-b1on-usb-control

Edited May 14, 2022 by tauzero
Adding link

[jimfist]

29 minutes ago, tauzero said:

There's probably a way of controlling it via the USB port to enable bank up/down. I've done something similar with an MS-60B and a B3, and I'm sure there's a topic on it somewhere.

 

Found it: http://basschat.co.uk/topic/275453-zoom-b3-ms-60b-b1on-usb-control

 

Yes, I remember when this was going on, and the thread died quite a few years ago. Perhaps I'll reach out.

Although it would eat up the control input, I'd be satisfied if Zoom just had a global setting allowing a pair of momentary switches on a TRS cable to control Bank up/down function in lieu of an exp pedal.

Not ideal as a solution but a reasonable one, and it would generally work for me. 

[Tripehound]

I've lurked long enough - just ordered a B6 and it should arrive tomorrow.

 

I know this may sound a bit sublime to the ridiculous but I've been pondering whether to go for a Quad Cortex or whether one of these might actually do the job for me (at a considerably reduced cost of course). I had a Helix LT (I mess with guitar at home) but got fed up of lugging it around in its flight case - we all play DI - and I have been using an Atomic Bassbox which is competent but not quite exciting enough for me.

 

There is no destination - it's all journey.

[jimfist]

22 hours ago, Tripehound said:

I've lurked long enough - just ordered a B6 and it should arrive tomorrow.

 

I know this may sound a bit sublime to the ridiculous but I've been pondering whether to go for a Quad Cortex or whether one of these might actually do the job for me (at a considerably reduced cost of course). I had a Helix LT (I mess with guitar at home) but got fed up of lugging it around in its flight case - we all play DI - and I have been using an Atomic Bassbox which is competent but not quite exciting enough for me.

 

There is no destination - it's all journey.

 

Well, certainly the BassBox is for the nuts-and-bolts of the bass tone, with compression & OD boost thrown in for good measure.

What is it that you're looking for in a different pedal?  The B6 has its strengths and weaknesses, as does the Quad Cortex.

I've been gigging with the B6, so it definitely works for me...but....I'm not you.

I also find that the BassBox in conjunction with the B6 (as a last-in-chain amp/cab sim) is a powerful combination that won't break the bank.

[Nicholox]

Wow what an awesome thread, I've just read through the whole thing!  

 

I've had my B6 for about a month, I upgraded from a Boss ME6B (circa 1993) so I'm enjoying the sounds I'm getting with it. 

 

I have a question about the FX loop.

 

Sometimes I'd like to use the FX send as a send, but not necessarily a return.  My problem is that if I add the send the B6 goes mute.  I've listened to the send, there is audio there, it works, but why is it muting the main output?

 

Any thoughts about that?

 

[MichaelDean]

1 hour ago, Nicholox said:

Wow what an awesome thread, I've just read through the whole thing!  

 

I've had my B6 for about a month, I upgraded from a Boss ME6B (circa 1993) so I'm enjoying the sounds I'm getting with it. 

 

I have a question about the FX loop.

 

Sometimes I'd like to use the FX send as a send, but not necessarily a return.  My problem is that if I add the send the B6 goes mute.  I've listened to the send, there is audio there, it works, but why is it muting the main output?

 

Any thoughts about that?

 

Looking at the manual, if you just want to use it as a send, you need to put it in as a send/return block and then choose the "Send" option. I guess by default, it wants to work as a loop and by not connecting to the return, the signal chain isn't complete for it to go back to the main outputs.

[jimfist]

2 hours ago, MichaelDean said:

Looking at the manual, if you just want to use it as a send, you need to put it in as a send/return block and then choose the "Send" option. I guess by default, it wants to work as a loop and by not connecting to the return, the signal chain isn't complete for it to go back to the main outputs.

 

Have you tried messing with the DRY parameter of the FX Loop (or FX Send)? As I understand it, the DRY parameter addresses the volume that passes through to its output (from 0-100).

[MichaelDean]

2 hours ago, jimfist said:

 

Have you tried messing with the DRY parameter of the FX Loop (or FX Send)? As I understand it, the DRY parameter addresses the volume that passes through to its output (from 0-100).

No, I don't even have one. It was a slow afternoon at work so thought I'd look at the manual to try and be helpful!

[jimfist]

Apologies. My reply was for @Nicholox.

[Nicholox]

Thank you @jimfist and @MichaelDean!!

 

Using the "SEND" effect, there is also SEND MODE parameter which can be set to either SEND or SUBOUT.  I can't hear any difference between the two or see how they are different in any way.

 

Yes I can confirm that both the FX Loop and the Send need the DRY parameter to be wound up to still hear audio on the OUT/Headphone jack. 

I couldn't find that little gem in the manual though. 

 

However, after adding the "SEND" effect if you link a foot switch button to the "SEND" effect, the button will toggle the audio path between the OUT/phones and the SEND jack, with the DRY parameter set to 0.  The switch can also be set to latching or momentary.  I don't have any use for that, but perhaps someone might. 

 

It was definitely worth having a play around with it, I found that with the SEND level set to 80, setting DRY to 80 gives me no level change when listening on the OUT/phones.

 

Thanks again guys!

[Tripehound]

Gigged with the B6 and it acquitted itself with honours!

 

It's a keeper which leads on to a question...

 

Has anyone got some suggestions for a bag/case that would suit it?

[jimfist]

9 hours ago, Tripehound said:

Gigged with the B6 and it acquitted itself with honours!

 

It's a keeper which leads on to a question...

 

Has anyone got some suggestions for a bag/case that would suit it?

 

Glad you're also liking the the B6. I'm using an old laptop bag for my B6. Fits like a glove.

[Oldman]

I have read this thread and find it very informative having just acquired petexas’s B6. I was playing with it tonight and I am intoxicated with its flexibility and, on the face of it, ease of use. What a tone machine this is, I’m not sure my competence will allow me to utilise it’s full potential without a night school crash course. I’ve just touched the surface of a very deep pool and I’m looking at Oxygen purchase. I’ve gleaned more from this thread than the online information available. I just need to put the sounds in order of a ‘set list’. Phew, I’m excited🤭
 

Stop Press. I was faffing with this little gem earlier today and found some excellent patches they sound immense. It struck me, it’s a tone machine, all I need to do is adjust the volume on patches and put them in an order I can use live (whenever that may be). 

Edited August 26, 2022 by Oldman

[basskit_case]

On 18/02/2022 at 14:57, stewblack said:

Having done my research I'm going to wait for the NUX MG30 to be back in stock. Looks like the best value, best set up of all these.

Did you ever try the MG30?  I notice it’s £203 on Amazon at the moment, tempted.

[stewblack]

17 minutes ago, basskit_case said:

Did you ever try the MG30?  I notice it’s £203 on Amazon at the moment, tempted.

No I haven't tried that one...yet.

Impatient as ever I went for what was available. 

I have since bought the Valeton GP100 which at about 100 quid is astonishing value. Solid, child's play to program and sounds great.

Also the Mooer Prime P1 which is just brilliant. Tiny, simple to tweak via a phone, it takes multi effects to another level.

Let me know if you try the MG30.