nussey
some quick questions (sorry i dunno if they've been raised already but im still on dial up so its taking too long to find out)
anyone know of a local (cape town) shop that sells "make your own" acoustic guitar kits? ive seen some on the net but none in SA, or possible a place that sells good tone woods in very small quantities?
also im looking for a decent multi effects pedal. i've seen a few im magazines that are about $70 - $120, and was wondering about where to get something in that price range and more importantly what model to get?
AlanRatcliffe
No-one does guitar kits locally, you'd have to get from www.stewmac.com, www.lmii.com, www.bluescreekguitars.com, or even www.martinguitar.com . Note that most of these kits aren't cheap, as you're building your own top quality guitar.
For cheaper multieffects pedals, I think Zoom are the commonly found inexpensive ones. I can't say I've spent any time looking or trying them, so I can't comment on how good they are compared with Boss, Digitech or other brands or which models are which.
Riaan-Combrink
Another option to consider:
If you can find a Boss ME-5 multi-efects pedal on Gumtree or classifieds, go for it over Zoom any day. The ME-5 (as opposed to the ME-50) has been superseded by so many models that they have almost no 2nd hand value, and you can pick them up cheaply if youre in the right place at the right time. But its a killer unit for basic applications, and built solid if you intend using it live. The Zooms are very flimsy live, but Ok if youre just gonna use it at home. I have one which must be 8 years old, and still use it for some stuff even though I have a Boss GT-6 as well.
But I've noticed that many guys on the Forum will say this is a pointless discussion. LOL Just get Guitar Rig!!!!! ? ?
Riaan C
Riaan
How useful is Guitar Rig for purely acoustic guitars? I can imagine that the effects could be tweaked to suit an acoustic, but how about the amp modelling? Or do you use the effects only without amp modelling?
AlanRatcliffe
How useful is Guitar Rig for purely acoustic guitars?
It works really well for acoustics. The speaker sim has a DI Box model and as long as you stick to "cleaner" FX like chorus, delay and reverb, you keep the natural feel. The Reverbs aren't quite as nice as I like for acoustics, but they do the job.
Riaan
The more I learn about Guitar Rig, the more I want it! One of these days...
nussey
hey thanks for the quick response guys.... pity about the kits, $500 + shipping would be a bit much at the moment.
bout the effects, how much would guitar rig go for in SA? im guessing over R2000? prob gonna have to settle for searching gumtree for some second hand stuff like riaan said
Renesongs
How useful is Guitar Rig for purely acoustic guitars?
There are some set ups on the Guitar Rig forum designed to get the best out of your Taylor or Martin both
how much would guitar rig go for in SA
I paid 6k for the whole bang shoot, Rig Kontroller and all, through a dealer. Without the pedal you probably looking at about 3k .
JoeyBones
Hey nussey, I've been through 2 multi FX units and have tried a few of the cheapers ones as well. have to say the better Multi FX (Boss GT8/10, Line 6 POD XT/X3) are great for when you need a lot of different sounds, but they can be a bit of a mission to setup correctly and they don't always give you good tone. Some of them can sound down right synth, unless thats what you want.
Personally I've come to the conclusion that if your starting out and you really wanna learn about getting good tone, get a decent drive pedal (Boss or Ibanez are always a good start and good value for money) and maybe a delay pedal (Again the Boss DD 2/3/5/6/7/20 are still practically the industry standard for most gigging and a lot of recording artists). Otherwise, you could always go for a decent guitar and a good amp. I read a post somewhere, possibly here that said "you can play a cheap guitar into a good amp and it'll sound descent, but a good guitar into a bad amp will be just that, bad".
So where a lot of people think they're saving by getting a lot of options with a cheaper FX unit, they could probably get much better tone and long term value by putting that money towards a good foundation (AMP and Guitar).
Well thats my 5c worth ... Just realized, I might know someone who might be selling a zoom 505. Will find out and get back to you if you still wanna go that route.
Satriani
I just bought the Digitech GNX4 brand new for 6 grand (was around 12k when it first came out), so I feel I got a pretty good deal. It's a DAMN complicated pedal, but it has 8 track digital recorder on it, and I have always hated using pc's for anything musical other than listening to music on. The salesman at the shop tried to get me to take Guitar Rig as you are mentioning. I didn't give him the time of day. Should I regret that? I just feel I can pick my pedal up, take it anywhere anytime and plug n play as opposed to pc's that like to crash and give issues?!
AlanRatcliffe
You did the right thing if you're not comfortable with a PC. Having said that, I never have any problems with my GR PC, but it's more what you like using. I still say nothing hardware comes close to the power of Guitar Rig.
The GNXs are very good with their digital effects like delays, reverbs, harmonisers and whammy, etc. They are a bit overpriced though. Also, they're still very 80's in the interface, with buttons instead of dials and layers of nested menus - powerful, but a bit of a bitch to program.
Doesn't the GNX4 have acoustic guitar modelling too? So you can plug in a piezo pickup from an acoustic and it models the piezo to sound like a mic'ed acoustic?
Satriani
I'll tell ya Alan...this thing has so many effects, I can't even answer your question (yet), but I will check it out and let u know a.s.a.p
I don't think they left any cabs/effects out of this unit at the time it was released.
Renesongs
Horses for courses - I prefer the software solution because; a) it is easier to tweak sound and organize your presets on a computer, and b)software is easier to upgrade than hardware. But congrats - having a built in 8 track recorder is a real bonus - I'm slightly jealous ?
