Moving away from MFX units...

[MusicChad]

It was about 9 months ago or something like that that I dumped GT-8 setup... I sold my GT-8 along with a pair of guitars, a bass, a FRFR-ish amp, a Mackie mixer, a rack case with a few odds and ends in it, and some other stuff that I forget at the moment... Unfortunately, during a move about 2 years ago, our storage shed was broken into and some HUGE chunks of my recording equipment was stolen... The pieces I had left didn't really make a complete setup anymore and I couldn't afford to replace the items that were taken... At this point, I do all my mixing, effects processing, etc. via plug-ins and stuff... I just use the Mic pres in my MOTU interface, etc. and live with it... (MAN I miss that Universal Audio 2610 mic pre...) As a result of this and some other things in life, I decided that I would rather have "less" gear but "better" of the stuff I did have... Also, I wanted to get rid of what I didn't use all the time and maximize the stuff that I DID use all the time...

Anyway, that has nothing to with my guitar rig, other than it funded this transition: GT-8 and other stuff OUT, Furman pedal board with a number of really good stomps IN.

At this point, I've got the pedal board put together and am only debating about one more pedal... I'm satisfied that I have maximized everything else... For example, there are better pedals that do "this" out there, but I'm completely satisfied for the money spent on using "that" instead as it is a case of diminishing returns...

I'm right at that point where I'm playing the whole setup now and stepping back to see what I have accomplished... I have really mixed feelings about everything at this point. On the one hand, there are certain tones that I absolutely ADORE in my new rig... For example, I have a Fulltone OCD running at 18v and think it is absolutely FABULOUS! On the other hand, it always sounds like an OCD... I have a lower gain option and a higher gain option from the OCD which I also like just fine... But of course, when I start jamming along with a CD, I start to say, Gee I wish I had more of a MESA tone or a VOX tone and I don't because my whole rig is built around one amp...

I also am torn because it is a lot of work to drag a heavy tube amp, attenuator, pedal board, etc. especially compared to when I had the GT-8 and cables in one bag in one hand and a guitar in the other and was done with no sweat... Then I look at the tone I get and know that I NEVER got tone as sweet as what I get right now out of the GT-8... ...not even CLOSE...

Long story short, I'm just now getting to that point of having the new rig essentially "set up" after almost a year of experimenting, swapping, trading, modding, etc. etc. and couldn't be happier in some ways... ...in other ways I'm really starting to realize what all I gave up in terms of convenience and flexibility, etc. Honestly, I'm feeling a lot of anxiety as I obviously am so far down the road I can't just "undo" this all... I know that almost every time I played the GT-8, I wished I had better tone... Now I think I have better tone but sometimes wish I had greater flexibility... Too bad it is always a trade off...

In the end, I'm %99 sure I will be happy with the exchange... I think it is partly that next step of growth of being happy to use "MY" tone rather than trying to sound just like somebody else. I mean ultimately, when I listen to a lot of CDs, I can recognize certain players just based on their tone, style, etc. I mean player X sounds like player X through player X's rig ALL THE TIME and we all want to sound like player X...

Bottom line, I think I will get to a point of contentedness about what I've given up as I further learn to maximize MY new tone. Hopefully, those last doubts of "what if the RP1000 is really that much better than the GT-8 that I would have been happy with that tone and could have had all the flexibility and... ...and...and..." will gradually fade.

I started using a lot of different tones because I "could" before... I just have to spend some time "unlearning" that mindset... I have been spending a LOT of time lately loading up an entire day of songs by one artist and listening to how their guitar tone is typically almost IDENTICAL all the way through each album or what not... They didn't generally use 10 different rigs on 10 different songs...

Anyway - I apologize for babbling... I am just weary from all the "transition" and honestly am probably struggling more with anxiety right now wondering if I did the right thing... ...time will tell!

I'm wondering if anybody else has made the journey away from MFX units and how they feel about it now that some time has passed...

[winny pooh]

Keeping it simple has been very good for my playing and you will agree that your basic tone improves so much that you one need only a little bit here and there of other flavours like delay compressor etc to cover alot of bases and to enjoy oneself.

[callaway]

I went from a full modeling amp (Vetta II for 6 years), to a modeler (X3 Live) + tube amp (Traynor), to homemade compressor, distortion, and Line 6 M13 + tube amp. I've now built my own Blackface Princeton Reverb with 6L6 output tubes and run the same compressor, dist, and M13.

So not totally away from "multi FX" but away from amp modeling. With the different distortion models available on the M13, I can get nearly any type of distortion sound I want through my beautifully clean Princeton Reverb... from Vox-like jingle to Marshall-like crunch.

I think it's more important to be happy with your own unique sound. Even if you have to cover a song, I think it's perfectly okay to have your own sound rather than nailing the recorded tone. In fact, I sometimes think it's pretty lame to nail the sound of some recording just so you can sound exactly the same when you play along or play a cover. Be yourself! Nothing wrong with being as close as you can with what you have, because I think the more important thing is your satisfaction with your tone on your own music.

So, don't worry!

(By the way, the M13 is awesome. It is unbelievably transparent. In fact, my guitar sounds and feels exactly the same whether in true bypass or buffered DSP bypass.)

[tonyv77]

I've always had a small rig due to my small funds and the fact that I play bass and guitar requiring twice the amount of gear. Right now I'm making the switch from a Korg Ax1500g and a Korg PX4D to a Vox Pathfinder, an eq pedal (fish n' chips or something) and a drive pedal (something cheap like a self modded DS-1). I really don't think I'm going to miss my multiFX at all. But then again I stick to pretty consistent tones. My big issue with multiFX is that I find it so hard to create my own individual sound and not just a bunch of sub-par imatations of popular artists sounds.

[dantonel]

Originally Posted by tonyv77

My big issue with multiFX is that I find it so hard to create my own individual sound and not just a bunch of sub-par imatations of popular artists sounds.

+1 Hammer... meet Head of the Nail...

[Will Chen]

I don't think I'll ever move away from a small floor based multi fx unit (such as Digitech RP355, Adrenalinn III, etc) for modulation, delay, and pitch effects in coordination with a couple dirt boxes. Just sound too good and darn convenient...

[scrapyardblue]

Did you really say "long story short" in an eleven paragraph post?

[MusicChad]

Originally Posted by scrapyardblue

Did you really say "long story short" in an eleven paragraph post?

hehe... ...yes...

[telecat33511]

it sucks losing stuff
I got almost wiped out, and learned to do with less
It makes you a better player IMHO
THEY CANT STEAL YOUR SOIL OR TALENT!

[johnnylaw]

Remember, the journey can be more important than the destination.

I learned the slow way that you really need to find the best amp for you and invest there. After that, the whole effects sorting process is streamlined.

I also think (for me) that less is more, and the better I play THE GUITAR, the less the peripherals matter to the song itself.

And I still use pedals!