Digitech RP250

well,
after scaring myself with all of the hum and intermittent switching that my old pedals have been giving me, I decided to pick up a multi effects unit, namely the digitech rp250.
My only review I can give thus far after programming 4 sounds in about an hour is, jeez I didn't know I could spend $150.00 and have literally every vintage pedal that is worth their weight in salt backed up by the amps I salivate over on a daily basis.
I decided to plug it into my champ and play with it. I programmed a mxr distortion + tone no amp no effects, just the box and the eq to sweeten aspects of it.. oh my wow......incredible.....
Then I decided to make a vox, so I select the vox amp preset, no other effects or stomp boxes and I built a cranked vox.....holy moly!! it sounds like a vox, how do I know this? I just used one in the studio about 3 weeks ago.....and this is pretty much the cranked vox tone......then I built up a champ tone.. you know the tone I'm talking about.. turn everthing up to ten and wallah.... its a cranked champ sounds just like mine when I turn it up... awesome....and I'm not even scratching the surface yet.....
go out, buy one, you will not regret it, I consider this one of my top 3 musical purchases ever.......:shock: :razz: :smile:

i was kinda thinking about getting the little $99 unit. do you think the expression pedal is worth the extra $$$ ?

how are the drums? i hope pretty nice, because i just orderd a rp 250 a minute ago.

i was kinda thinking about getting the little $99 unit. do you think the expression pedal is worth the extra $$$ ?
the thomann gusy said, the 250 is the better pedal, better made and sounding better. plus a good pedal.

I tend to dislike digital guitar effects in general, but like you I found the 250 to be a complete knock out. Came real, real close to pulling the trigger and your post reminded me.

I tried the Zoom G2, which is supposed to be the real deal. Sounded exactly like a Zoom 505 to me - cold and harsh. Supposedly tweaking does alot to improve it, but frankly I don' have the patience for goofing with an interface.

The Digitech, to me, sounded very warm and like you said the amp models are pretty darn close. The effects, including the stomp box emulations, were also the best I've seen on a multi FX.

I find this information hard to believe. I was given the old model RP 200A as a gift and it is a joke. It is distorted unusable cold & harsh digtal sounding guitar tone. And I'm trying to be nice. One thing is for certain, I would not buy anything from them.

i tried the zoom too and did not like it at all. i will give the rp 250 a testride. and if that will not work, i try a boss dr. 3 rhythmcomputer and stay away from digital-effects for good. but still it is really tempting....

I find this information hard to believe. I was given the old model RP 200A as a gift and it is a joke. It is distorted unusable cold & harsh digtal sounding guitar tone. And I'm trying to be nice. One thing is for certain, I would not buy anything from them.

Hi louie,
I'd give it a second chance with a tube amp. The presets are merely there as either a starting point or if you dn;t want to build your own sound, they are good enough to use though very generic.
I am not very patient with fiddling with knobs, but I found the building of toone process unbelievable fun. And I must admot I am the most anti digital guy on the planet as far as I am concerned. When I got this home, I read the manual then started monkeying with it the next morning, and all I have to say is..... what have I been thinking.....this is probablly one of the most interesting peices if equipment I've ever plugged into...

i was kinda thinking about getting the little $99 unit. do you think the expression pedal is worth the extra $$$ ?

I probablly won't use the expression pedal, but I went for the 250 based on the other amps, they are worth it......:wink:

Hi louie,
I'd give it a second chance with a tube amp. The presets are merely there as either a starting point or if you dn;t want to build your own sound, they are good enough to use though very generic.
I am not very patient with fiddling with knobs, but I found the building of toone process unbelievable fun. And I must admot I am the most anti digital guy on the planet as far as I am concerned. When I got this home, I read the manual then started monkeying with it the next morning, and all I have to say is..... what have I been thinking.....this is probablly one of the most interesting peices if equipment I've ever plugged into...

Ok Frank. Maybe the redesign is just better than what I have. I'll check it out next time I'm at the shop.

So Far, with what limited time I've dedicated to programming the RP250. My favrite sound is the Champ with some eq. Just turn the gain all the way select the 8" sleaker cabinet and whammo, great tight nasty tone. Just amazing......:shock: :shock: :shock:

Ok Frank. Maybe the redesign is just better than what I have. I'll check it out next time I'm at the shop.



It has the new "AudioDNA Processor" and USB for computer recording.
I plug mine into the effects return of my solid state amp.

It sounds great.

:cool:

still nobody has nothing to say about the drums....

still nobody has nothing to say about the drums....

Hi Eddie,
I haven't gotten to the drums as of yet, primarily because I have to set up the pedal to function for a gigging environment for next week. But I'll post something as soon as I get there.

i demo'd one of the rp250s at GC this week. while i only played it through headphones, i thought that it sounded pretty decent.

1 big plus for going with the 250 over the 150 is the extra large digital display you get with the 250. the 150 only has the 2 digit window, but the 250 has a large display and its alot easier to see what model you are on.

regarding the drums, i didn't figure out how to tweak them but i did mash down on the 'drums' button and played along with the classic rock 4/4 beat that came up by default. it sounded good and it was pretty fun.

not sure if i'll buy one or not, but it seems like it might be a pretty good deal.

that why youre liking
these newer pedals
over the last generation....

Zoom G series and Digi RP series

i demo'd one of the rp250s at GC this week. while i only played it through headphones, i thought that it sounded pretty decent.

1 big plus for going with the 250 over the 150 is the extra large digital display you get with the 250. the 150 only has the 2 digit window, but the 250 has a large display and its alot easier to see what model you are on.

regarding the drums, i didn't figure out how to tweak them but i did mash down on the 'drums' button and played along with the classic rock 4/4 beat that came up by default. it sounded good and it was pretty fun.

not sure if i'll buy one or not, but it seems like it might be a pretty good deal.

Yeah... the drums...they actualy sound like drums, real drums. I was really surprised at how organic they sound. I set up a few beats to work on a song I am writing for a website and tv commercial and was realy happy with the acoustic quality of them, just really easy to listen to.:grin:

we took it to the rehearsal this afternoon and hooked it up to the pa: i did not like it. a very lifeless and sterile sound. i was happy to go back to regullar amp and stompbox. thats too bad, because it sounded really good with earphones. and i had some cool stuff stored. the tuner buttons are dangerous to use. you end up in nirvana if you try and press the two buttons. the drums are nice, but they have no way to start or stop them with a pedal.
i think its a good pedal for home and practice, maybe recording, but not for a live-situation. i did the factory reset and will send it back.
sorry, because its such a cool pedal......

we took it to the rehearsal this afternoon and hooked it up to the pa: i did not like it. a very lifeless and sterile sound. i was happy to go back to regullar amp and stompbox. thats too bad, because it sounded really good with earphones. and i had some cool stuff stored. the tuner buttons are dangerous to use. you end up in nirvana if you try and press the two buttons. the drums are nice, but they have no way to start or stop them with a pedal.
i think its a good pedal for home and practice, maybe recording, but not for a live-situation. i did the factory reset and will send it back.
sorry, because its such a cool pedal......

That's a shame, I like mine. It does sound different through different amps, but nothing alarming, just tweak the sounds you are using a little....

It does sound different through different amps, but nothing alarming, just tweak the sounds you are using a little....
yeah frank, maybe i should give it a try through a clean amp. but with a p.a. i was really disappointed. specially since it sounds so good through headphones. i will try it with the clean channel of my cube 30. when i find time.

i was kinda thinking about getting the little $99 unit. do you think the expression pedal is worth the extra $$$ ?

Yes. I have a older rp200. The pedal is assignable, so mostly I set it for volume. Works great and it's nice to have a volume pedal.
Another big plus is the "Whammy" setting. This of course uses the pedal. It sounds EXACTLY like a red Digitech Whammy pedal. If you are into The White Stripes even a little you will love this. (or if you were considering buying a Digitech Whammy..save a buck and get this).
The Drums are just okay, not as good as just about any drum machine. There is a reason they call it a "rythmn trainer" and not a "drum machine".
Overall the pedal is pretty good as it does a LOT of things well (not great, but good enough).
Biggest complaints...no on and off switch (but most multieffects don't have it).
Also the aux input (for jamming along with cd player etc.) has no volume control. So practicing with headphones along with another sound source sucks on this thing (compared to Tascam, Behringer V-amp, Pod, all of which has a way to balance guitar volume and aux input volume).
Anyway, if you turn of the Cabinet sims, and tweak it alot it's a good pedal. I don't like the overdriven/dist sounds much on it though. The delays and reverbs and obsure effects are pretty good though and worth the price.

yeah frank, maybe i should give it a try through a clean amp. but with a p.a. i was really disappointed. specially since it sounds so good through headphones. i will try it with the clean channel of my cube 30. when i find time.

It could be your PA. I remember dialing in some tones on my Zoom G9 that sounded great through headphones and through an FRFR type of rig (full range, flat response). One time, I hooked it straight into the PA and it was really thin and trebly, but it was due to the voicing of the PA, not the signal being fed into the PA from my modeller.

I find this information hard to believe. I was given the old model RP 200A as a gift and it is a joke. It is distorted unusable cold & harsh digtal sounding guitar tone. And I'm trying to be nice. One thing is for certain, I would not buy anything from them.

The new RP series (150, 250, and 350) has been vastly upgraded over the previous RP series. After Zoom upped the ante with their new G series and had the same chips and technology in their cheap pedals, Digitech responded by putting their good stuff in their cheap pedals. They have the AudioDNA2 chips, which are either the same thing in the GNX3k, or they are one generation beyond it (not sure). They also bumped them up from 20-bit A/D/A conversion to 24-bit.


Popthree, the more expensive RP modelers have more amp/effect models. If you go to their website, they have a nice comparison chart set up.

I tried the Zoom G2, which is supposed to be the real deal. Sounded exactly like a Zoom 505 to me - cold and harsh.

I used a 505 for several years, then a gfx5, then a G9. With the tubes disengaged, the G9 ought to sound pretty close to a G2. I can tell a big difference. The 505 really has a low-fi quality to it, looking back (it does have 16-bit conversion, after all). The G9, and probably the G2 as well, are more hi-fi. As far as it sounding cold and harsh, I did find that my G9 sounded colder/harsher without the tubes on compared to when I had them on.

Actually, with just the tubes on, the G9 also did an amazing job warming up my cheapo Fender SS amp. That says a lot 'cause those Frontman 15G's are pretty harsh and cold, even for SS amps. It literally made it sound like a different, more expensive amp.

OK, here's my big Q - the RP250 has an audio input, how is it as a "jam along" "bedroom rock/country/whadeva-star" toy thru headphones? I want something that will give me a lot of good sounds (sounds like this'll do), toys-n-gizmos (this'll more than do), and that I can play along with songs thru the headphones and not bother the family.

anyone tried this?

gratzi,

-capt pearl

I bought an RP250 a month ago and get pretty aggrivated with all of the adjustments and selections. Maybe my patience isn't what it used to be. The drum selections are alright but could sound cleaner than they do. I'm just not happy with it at all. If multi-effects pedals are your thing it has potential.

:cool: