Guitar Multi Effect Pedals: Finding Your Sound With Pedal

Like they always say, you get what you pay for. Except in this case, you get more.

 saying "multi effect pedal" a few years ago would have got you thrown out of most bands, but oh, how times have changed. My first guitar multi effects pedal was the Zoom 505. Honestly, it was a piece of hissing, digital shite, but it made me recognize the potential that lay there within its cheap, semi-transparent blue housing. I actually brought it to of my band practices, & I can tell you, that pedal combined with the roaring power of a cranked, 70's Fender Twin Reverb was painful to say the least, for my band mates. So I returned to my "snake pit", home-made pedal board consiting of the usual guitar pedals (distortion, tuner, delay...).

Then, last year I started researching new guitar pedals on the net, & found a new opinion developing regarding multi effect pedals. Experienced guitarists, with a massive collection of expensive, boutique single effects pedals were beginning to sing the praises of multi pedals by brands like Digitech, Line 6 & Boss. Either these players had reached an advanced stage of hearing loss, or they liked these multi effect pedals!

With this thought in mind, I did some research on single effect pedal prices. I picked 9 of my favourite single effects, that are also produced by most new multi effect pedals, & priced them out. This is what I found:

I was surprised with reviews of the new Digitech RP line of pedals (RP500, RP1000). Guitarists were going off about how great the sound was, the quality of the effects, & the ease of use. None of these qualities had historicallyin the past been associated with a multi effects pedal. These pedals (& others by Line 6 & Boss), have such a wide palette of great sounding effects, that its hard to understand why you would buy single guitar effects any more.

This would give you a impressive pedal board! in size. My elderly pedal board had half this lots of effects, & it was a beast to deal with. You would be taking a look at 11 patch cables, 9 power connections, & the board itself.

Dunlop Crybaby 535Q multi wah: $125.44 Visual Sound Volume Pedal: $139.95 Proco Rat Distortion: $67.49 Boss CH1 Tremendous Chorus: $89.00 Boss FRV-1 '63 Fender Reverb: $129.99 Boss DD7 Digital Delay: $169.00 Boss RC-2 Loop station: $189.00 Boss TU-2 Tuner: $99.00 MXR M-102 Compressor: $69.95 Total cost: $1077.83

I now own the Digitech RP500. It's all of these effects built in, with a total of 125 effects, a looper, all metal construction, & stereo output. But honestly, the best thing of all is its ability to close off all digital modeling, & basically become a pedal board. This feature, through my elderly Fender Twin Reverb tube amp sounds awesome. Better than any single pedal, or combination thereof I have ever owned. The only thing that sounds better than my RP500/Twin Reverb combo, is an RP500 through Twin reverbs in stereo! Immense, lush, shimmering sound. All that, for $300 bucks (the pedal that is).

So if your looking for a single, or multi effect pedal, do your research. Despite their digital sounding names, the latest in multi effect pedals can produce brilliant sounds, at a reasonable cost. They basically let you explore more creative sound ideas.