Rackable Effect Unit

[webrthomson]

I'm looking to shrink my rack setup - and currently in the firing line are my pedals (mounted in a rack drawer) and my voodoo labs GCX.

So my current thinking is that I can add a 1U rack processor to cover the effect requirements ? I use (at the moment) a Boss DD6, MXR Phase 90, Digitech Whammy, Morley Bad Horsie, Keeley modd?e Boss TR-2.

I?m looking at a number of things (Lexicon MX200/300, Alesis MidiVerb 4, Digitech GSP1101) but finding it hard to find units that have wah in them (???) and I?m thinking that it looks like the GSP is the one ? does anyone have any guidance on this?

Other items in my rack that look like surviving are:

Randall RM4
Furman PQ4
Rocktron Super C
Marshall 8008

Thoughts, guidance, advice all gladly accepted ;-)

 

[GtrGeorge!]

I went down the same road...I havent found the exact solution for me.....the Tc Gmaj2 is very good, but the build quality lacks,imho...for 500 I expect more. But it does sound good....the auto wah is uasable but wah nuts probably wont like it.

The Rocktron stuff is very good as well.

GtrGeorge

 

[webrthomson]

I went down the same road...I havent found the exact solution for me.....the Tc Gmaj2 is very good, but the build quality lacks,imho...for 500 I expect more. But it does sound good....the auto wah is uasable but wah nuts probably wont like it.

The Rocktron stuff is very good as well.

GtrGeorge

Thanks I'd not considered the TC stuff - I know what you mean about the build quality, I had a mark one version of the G Major and the knobs were always falling off!!!

I?ll have a look at the version two and see if it?s in the running

 

[nikki-k]

IMO..
Digital rack units cannot replace pedals in front of an amp. They provide a (very) different experience. This is fine/good/great for some, while others (such as myself) find them to be... not good.

Since you already have a rack going, why not go for an "audio switcher" solution like a GCX + MIDI board, and rack the pedals? Add a single unit for additional effects later when you have the cash. There are lots of cool 1U rack effects boxes that are old and can be had for $100 or less. It also depends on what types of effects and use you have in mind.

 

[Nightdare]

Nikki

... you probably missed the part where Webr already stated he has a drawer with pedals and a GCX


Personally I'd say "If it works, keep it"
If you really want to shed a few pounds off your rack but no versatility
I'd go with any fx-unit that can handle 4CM (four-cable-method)
where you can arrange FX-blocks before the preamp and/or in the FX-loop

Basicly any unit with it's own 'fx-loop' is usually capable of this
The GSP1101 is one of them

 

[nikki-k]

lol!! I are i-dot. Sorry.. lol...

Ignore all but the "Digital effects front end.." part. I would HIGHLY suggest giving a digital rack unit a good try before selling off your pedals.

 

[webrthomson]

Thanks for the feedback - I kinda agree with nikki-k - I have a horrible feeling I'll remove the pedals and then regret it ? I?m going to try the GSP1101 and see how I get on. Thanks again

 

[gag halfrunt]

I was on the same journey about 8 months ago.

I get all my dirt from my amp, so I was willing to try out some digital units for wah, delay, reverb, echo, chorus, and phaser. At first, I was only looking at rack-based stuff, but since I need a wah pedal out front anyway, I looked at multifx floor units. Based on tone and ease of editing it on the fly, I went with the iPB-10. I absolutely love it. You can create tons of different pedalboards and store them in different banks. I use different boards with different bands.

Very easy to learn, and it's a breeze to change at a gig. For live work, it sounds as good as any high end pedals.