Boss ME-50

feylya

Is it just me or are there loads of "issues", for want of a better word, with the ME-50? The half second gap when changing between two patches on the same bank makes it pretty much useless for live applications. Even my old Zoom 505-2 could change without a gap. Using it in manual mode in ok for some things but if you want to change from a nice clean with some chorus and reverb to a distortion with compressors and tone shaping, you can forget it.

I'm really not loving it tbh. The sounds are great and all but still, the gap makes it pretty much useless live.

Opinions?

david

I had that problem with my zoom 505. I'd say flog it and get a POD XT live or a gt8

feylya

TBH, that problem in in the GT-8 too.

G-Major maybe... And a nice midi controller.

david

Sweet, how about a POD 2 and floorboard?

feylya

Too expensive. Plus I'm not a fan of Line 6's stuff really.

david

Not really, a guy on gigsmart was selling a flextone 2 and the FB which is the FB as the POD 2. Then the POD is only like 200 online

Dave

Yeah the half second gap is ridiculous. The only solution is to bend down in between songs and set it to what you want. So find your effects and get a paper and pen

Karl Hungus

It's times like this that remind me why I'm not a fan of multieffects pedals, and the like. Nothing beats a 3 or 4 channel amp, with a footswitch and effects loop if need be, nothing else can even dream of coming close.

feylya

Chorus = nicest clean ever!

Even changing the settings during songs won't help ya if you want to have chorusy clean one second and filthy distortion the next.

Karl Hungus

Well then obviously put a chorus pedal in your effects loop. Sorted!

feylya

Pah. What about delay, flanger, those other effects that I use....

david

I love my pedalboard!

feylya

Rackmounted seems the way to go. Midi controlled effects and amps. Oh yeah *trusts*

Karl Hungus

All those things can go into the loop, and are perfectly accessible right there on your pedal rack.

feylya

This + this + this + this + this = happy feylya

david

sweet

feylya

Modest. No big **** off speakers

david

I wouldnt get the behringer though. I'd get a rocktron rackmounted midi switcher and the floorboard. Add a korg rack tuner, a shure wireless, and a power conditioner to that rack. Then you'd have a good rig

feylya

TBH, I've heard great things about that midi board... Dunno if I could be bothered with a rack mounted tuner. I'd have a monkey to tune my guitars for me. Wireless, bleh. Power conditioner definately.

david

mmmm.... conditioned power. Like some kind of xtreme version of L'oreal

feylya

"Shampoo your Power!"

I will now go and make a tshirt with that logo.

Karl Hungus

feylya wrote:

This + this + this + this + this = happy feylya

Whoah, now that's just liquid insanity!

I honestly can't say I'd ever feel the need to put together a rig like that. Just this baby would have me sorted for life. Maybe I prefer to keep things fairly simple, but what does everything there do? I've not much understanding of racks really, so pardon the rather goober-esque question.

feylya

http://www.netzmarkt.de/thomann/thoiw6_artikel-165005.html

Yes.

Multi fx - pre amp - power amp - speaker cabinet - midi controller

Karl Hungus

To be honest, I wouldn't be gone on the Road King, as it's actually a rectifier series amp, and the Mark series are far more versatile amps. I think the only reason John Petrucci gets a decent clean out of them is because he uses two seperate Road King heads, one for Distortions and one for Cleans. I'd take the Mark IV over the RK any day.

Doctor J

feylya wrote:

Chorus = nicest clean ever!

...ahem... if it's got an effect on it, then it's not clean

Ancient1

feylya wrote:

Is it just me or are there loads of "issues", for want of a better word, with the ME-50?

Is that the one you got only recently?

Tbh, in the five years that i've owned that idiotic zoom 505 pedal, i havent managed to "program" a single patch/bank. I dont know why i got it in the first place (second hand/without manual) - so far it has only managed to drive me insane! I dont know how i would cope with an ME-50, i am really not made for multi-fx, and they are not made for me.

Would you not consider getting rid of it and investing that money towards that nice Mesa?

Oeneus

Ah yes! Midi contolled systems. The only way forward. But you need money.

It works in the way that all you're effects and amp are all racked up and are all controlled together by own foot controller.

You will get 99 seperate banks to program the switches in which, for example say bank 1 is "song whatever", You'd program the first switch to have a clean sound, then the second with a clean sound and delay, then 3 with distortion and a phaser and a pitch shift, etc, etc. So you prgram 1 bank of effects for each song! Genius!

You have the advantage of changing hundreds of effects and amp channels, with just one switch! It's great!

Ancient1

In that case i'm a loooooong way from anything Midi-related...and by the time i "catch-up" who knows what new gadgets will be out there!

Doctor J

Clean tone + Overdrive/Distorted tone

What else does one need?

Ancient1

That's about it. And perhaps just a DD-2 for flavour.

Dont get me wrong, i would love to mess around with these multi-yokes but a) no money, and b) no time and c) no patience. And in the end i would always end up right back at the start - geetar====>amp.

Blame SRV

feylya

Clean.
Clean with chorus.
Clean with Delay
Clean with chorus and delay.
Clean with flanger.
Clean with flanger and delay.
Light Distortion with all those effects.
Heavy Distortion with all those effects.
Wah.

That's what I use constantly.

Ancient1

Feylya, what has you up at this ungodly hour?

feylya

I have no idea. It's been happening recently. I actually get into college these days :eek:

Ancient1

I think it's the ME-50.

New gear tends to induce insomnia

feylya

Actually, it's the other way round. I've been sleeping since I got it...

Ancient1

LOL, maybe i should get one too.

So has anyone used the ME-50 in a live situation then?

feylya

Was at a gig on Saturday where they were using one in manual mode so it works like a stomp box. No delay in changing the sound but it's not as versitile.

Ancient1

Manual mode meaning no pre-programmed patches or what?

feylya

Yes. You have three buttons - OD/Distortion, Mod (chorus, flanger) and Delay. You can turn them on and off.

david

This might be what youre looking for.

feylya

Still has the same gap problem. The GT-8 has as well but they've put in some sort of fade thing that fades between patches so there isn't a gap but it's still not instant.

Nidge

i really would have thought that'd be a simple problem to fix, it's insane, and they are so expensive as well. I presume they don't claim to be giggable on the box, otherwise that is grossly misleading advertising.

feylya

Of course they don't. It's really annoying me. Maybe I'll run two of them in parellel or something...

Karl Hungus

Doctor J wrote:

Clean tone + Overdrive/Distorted tone

What else does one need?

Well, I'd say Clean, Overdrive/Distorted and Solo, that's what 3 channels are usually for, you usually do need a bit of a boost for the solos. But yes, I'm leaning more towards your point of view on the subject, less is more in my eyes. Although, I won't begrudge anyone who does like to use effects, I just know why I don't.

feylya

Another thing I've realised about the ME-50. It does not respond to your volume control on the guitar. It's either full distortion or nothing. Unless I'm doing something incredibly wrong...

Ancient1

Nidge wrote:

I presume they don't claim to be giggable on the box, otherwise that is grossly misleading advertising.

Imagine that...if they weren't giggable what would be the point?

On second thought i dont think i even know of a pro who uses these things on stage....

feylya

Pro's can afford better gear though.

Nidge

You've got it spot on there NO pro uses these things or anything like near this range. They are either single pedals or Pods and crap. Hilariously enough i saw this band in Tower Records launching some album i think, they were playing as well and the guitarist was using an ME-50. I felt so sorry for him but i'm sure he thinks it's grand. But i mean if he is in a band that are launching an album i would have thought on a whole they'd have better equipment, i think their name was Lucera.

feylya

Meh, loads of people release albums and have dodgy equipment. I know one band up here, released an EP. The lead guitarist didn't even have his own amp.

Doctor J

feylya wrote:

The lead guitarist didn't even have his own amp.

LOL, that's my kind of lead guitarist

D!ve^Bomb!

generally somethin like the mutli fxs described in this thread are good for recording and that is what they're used for