Price: RM 595
G2.1u: Taking Multi-Effects to the Next Level
Conventional floor-type multi-effect processors are designed to sound good when they are plugged into a guitar amp. Modeling processors are designed for recording in line. Until now, there was no product that could handle both scenarios with equal finesse.
Introducing The G Series from Zoom. Each G Series Pedal offers two algorithms: One for live and one for recording. The sound you created at practice or in the studio can now be brought straight to the stage. Or take the sounds you worked out during a rehearsal and apply them seamlessly in the recording studio. Your creative scope has suddenly doubled.
Features:
- 16 amp/stomp modeling9 effect modules
- 54 effect types
- 40 user patch + 40 factory patch
- 6 bands EQUSB audio interface
- Built-on Expression Pedal
- Harmonized pitch shifter
- World fastest patch change
- Built-in PCM drum machine
96kHz Sampling Brings Out Authentic Sounding Tube Amp Harmonics
Everyone knows that the sound of tube amplifiers is the ultimate in guitar tone. By employing high-accuracy sampling at 96kHz, G Series pedals faithfully model these sonic properties, right up to the highest harmonic register. Dynamic range is also excellent, thanks to 24-bit A/D/A conversion. These extremely high levels of digital processing also make your playing sound cleaner and clearer thanks to the fast processing speeds.
ZFX-3: A New-Generation DSP from Zoom
The heart of any multi-effect device is its processor and decoder section. Zoom has reached a new level with its newly developed ZFX-3 chip. 32-bit architecture ensures smooth and detailed signal processing. Accuracy and speed bring out the character of your instrument without restrictions.
54 High-Quality Effects Made Possible by 32-Bit Processing
A total of nine effects modules are included, including dynamics, ambience, drive, and modulation. Together they offer 54 types of effects. The Harmonized Pitch Shifter lets you play along in key. Use long delays or multi-tap delay of up to 5000 milliseconds. Select dynamic flanger and have the effect level controlled by picking intensity. Select from 3 types of modulation waveforms for the tremolo. A multitude of high-performance choices opens up totally new territory in this class. Touch up the harmonic register with the 6-band equalizer. The cabinet simulator gives a choice of mic positions. The G Series has in incredible level of flexibility and the ability to create an awesome array of great tones.
Latest Modeling Technology Supports 16 Different Drive Sounds
By digitally simulating the clipping action of analog devices such as tubes and diodes, the G Series faithfully duplicates the distortion of tube amps and vintage effects. This includes not only the superficial sound character but also elements such as depth and dynamics. As you start using the G Series, you will be amazed by the realistic balance between fundamental notes and harmonics that is essential to a great analog tone.
The Right Tools for the Job: Editing Controls with Analog Feel
The 3 rotary knobs let you tailor 3 different parameters at the same time. This could be the equalizer bass/midrange/treble, or the chorus depth/rate/mixing level, or the delay time/feedback/mixing level. It's like having an array of stomp boxes ready for action. In play mode, the 3 knobs are assigned to drive effect gain, tone, and patch level. This lets you quickly match the unit's performance to the guitar or amp type, room acoustics, or other factors. Delay time and modulation rate settings can be made directly via the intuitive TAP key input.
Preset Patches Ready to Use for Recording or Live Performance
The unit comes preprogrammed with a total of 40 preset effects patches. 20 pairs of similar sounding and similarly named effects are optimized respectively for use with a guitar amp on stage or for recording with DAW software or a mixer. There are settings for duplicating well-known amps and stomp boxes, settings that are modeled on the signature sound of famous guitarists, as well as totally original Zoom creations. There is also enough built-in memory to store up to 40 of your own effects patches.
World's Fastest Patch Change Speed: 5ms
Thanks to the speed of Zoom's new processors, that annoying interval when switching patches has been all but eliminated. With its amazing speed of 0.005 seconds, the G Series pedals never miss a beat. When changing from rhythm to lead, you no longer need to press the switch slightly in advance. Simply push the foot switch and start playing the solo phrase. No more fear of losing the rhythm when making patch changes.
Built-In Auto-Chromatic Tuner for Guitar
The guitar tuner can be called up instantly by pushing two foot switches together. High-brightness LED indicators make the note readout easy to see also on a dark stage. The calibration range is 435 to 445Hz, and mute tuning without sound output is also possible.
ZNR Makes Those Playing Pauses Silent
Zoom Noise Reduction (ZNR) was developed specifically for guitar. While keeping any alteration of the original sound to an absolute minimum, ZNR shuts out unwanted noise in the playing pauses. Even the tails of long sustain notes come out beautifully, with natural release. Additional flexibility is provided by two noise gates. The vintage type Dirty Gate is a great match for fuzz sounds, while the high-speed muting of the Gate setting brings heavy riffs into clear focus.
Integrated Drum Machine with PCM Sound Sources
Realistic drum sounds derived from PCM sources are arranged in a variety of rhythm patterns for different musical genres. The 40 rhythm variations include the steady 8-beat of Rock and Pop, funky 16-beat, a "Jazzy" 4-beat, some great shuffle riffs for blues sessions, and many more choices. Rhythm training is a cinch, and the rotary knobs let you quickly make tempo or level adjustments.
Ultra Low Noise Design: 120dB SN Ratio and -100dB Noise Floor
Specifications such as a signal-to-noise ratio of 120dB and noise floor of -100dB demonstrate a level of performance that is unsurpassed in this class. Background noise is a thing of the past, leaving the unit free to produce only its own superbly transparent sound. Especially when using reverb effects such as Hall, Room, or Spring, the low noise floor combined with 96kHz sampling and 32-bit processing results in breathtaking performance.
Sturdy Metal Chassis and Rubber Damping for Superior Toughness and durability
The combination of a solid metal chassis with shock-absorbent rubber damping ensures that the unit can stand up to the rigors of use on stage. Take it on the road or into the studio, the G Series will not let you down.
2-Way Power Allows Use Just About Anywhere
Thanks to its circuit design optimized for low voltage operation, the unit will run for more than 7.5 hours on a set of four IEC R6 (size AA) batteries. The AC adaptor (AC-0006) can be plugged in for extended studio work, whereas on stage you never need to worry about AC power.
Optional Foot Switch Allows Versatile Remote Operation
With an optional foot switch (FS01) you can set tempos for delay time and modulation rate. Other selectable functions include bank switching, drum machine start/stop, and delay hold on/off switching.
Expression Pedal Adds Further Versatility to Your Guitar Play
The built-in expression pedal is a great way to control effect parameters in real time. Control the vintage wah, pitch shift, or adjust the volume dynamics. Go beyond conventional pedal effects by varying drive gain or modulation rate, and adjusting the mixing ratio of delay and reverb. The dedicated Pedal Assign key and status LED indicators make it a cinch to select the effect to control. Effect on/off switching is also possible by pushing the pedal fully down.
USB Port Enables Computer Recording
The USB port allows the unit to function as an audio interface for a computer. Simply connect a USB cable to utilize the high-quality sound of the G2.1u in a computer-based recording system. The high-performance DAW application "Cubase LE" comes bundled with the unit, so you can start creating sophisticated music straight away. Because playback from the DAW application can be monitored at the G2.1u itself, there are no latency problems during recording. Powering the unit from the computer via the USB bus is also supported.
Technical Info
- Effect Types: 54
- Maximum Simultaneous Effects: 9
- Patch Memory: User 40+Preset 40, Total 80
- Sampling Frequency: 96kHz
- A/D Conversion: 24-bit, 64 times over-sampling
- D/A Conversion: 24-bit, 128 times over-sampling
- Input: 1/4 in. phone jack (Rated input level: -20dBm, Input impedance: 1M ohms)
- Output (Line / headphones combined): 1/4 in. stereo phone jack(Maximum output level: +5dBm, Output load impedance: 10k ohms or higher)
- Control Input: Expression pedal, Foot switch
- USB: Type B (Based on USB 1.1)
- Display: 2-digit 7-segment LED display, Parameter LED, Pedal assign LED
- Power Requirements: AA size(LR6)battery x 4(Optional), or AC adaptor DC9V/300mA/ Center minus type (AD-0006 recommended)
- Battery Life: 7.5hours (with alkaline batteries)
- Dimensions: 255(W)x165(D)x79(H)mm
- Weight: 1100g (without batteries)
- Included Accessories: AD-0006(AC adaptor)
- Optional Accessories: FP02(Expression pedal), FS01(Foot switch), AA size batteries , USB cable.
Chamber Music Sdn. Bhd. Contect No: 03-21413794
Product review
"some praise, a gripe, and some advice on how to use it"
Feature:
Came with adaptor. I wish all companies were that sensible. Again, the expression pedal being assignable is a real plus. The drum machine is kind of a joke, but at least its there so I couldn't give it a 10 but it gets a 9. It's good to practice with or lay down a metronome for recording to be recorded over later with real drums or a programmable drum machine (I ordered the Zoom MRT at the same time with this in mind). CuBase is a nice addition too. It is not an easy learning curve, but patience will let you at least use it as a simple multitracker even if you don't want to figure out all the mastering and sound editing stuff. The USB port is handy too because I plug my Mic or bass or drum machine into the pedal, bypass all the effects, and then I can USB my them into CuBase too instead of just the guitar.
Quality:
I haven't had it for long. But it is very SOLID. heavier than I expected. The interface buttons are all recessed so you don't have to worry about stepping on them accidentally, and the 2 main footswitches look pretty indestructable. I have yet to find out if the internal circutry will hold up over time, but my old 9000 from 1993 still works (kind of) if thats any indicator.
Value:
For the price, plus you get CuBase (which is difficult to get the hang of but if you are patient it is nice) it is a great deal. If you are just getting started (or rebuilding a setup from the bottom like me) it can do an awful lot and spare your money to invest in other gear that you will need. No gear can exist in a vacuum, so its nice to have something with this much stuff going on in it for what some single pedals cost.
Desirability:
Zoom has a knack for making cool little compact things with way more stuff than you thought stuffed in there. It's very sleek, very 'efficient' looking. Much sexier than a big tetris-puzzle looking giant pedal board (harder to use, but definitely more stylin). Yeah its pretty sexy.
Sound:
There's a lot of options in the drive module, and being able to assign the expression pedal to anything is really useful. I don't like many of the presets but I usually don't with these kinds of pedals, but it is very clear and a couple of them, especially the MesaBoogie MkIII and the Marshall Guv'nor are very responsive and can be used for very slight crunch to roar just by setting the expresion pedal to 'drive'. I didn't like the wah very much but all the modulation and reverbs etc are nice and clear and have enough parameters that you can saturate or just touch the tone with. It's good, but not as convincing as an amp simulator as I would like. It will do for a good demo plugging direct but there's something kind of brittle or sterile or something I just can't put my finger on makes me want to use it through an amp and mic it instead of plugging direct. But my amp sucks and so does my mic so direct is better than nothing.
Ease of Use:
Here's where I have issues: Its easy enough to program. The big beef I have with it is that you can't cycle through to the patch you want and THEN click to engage it. It's just UP or DOWN... so if you use it live you have to store all the sounds you use in one song in a sequential order... if your song goes from 'clean' to 'dirty' to 'dirty wah' to 'clean' for instance you have to save the 'clean' sound twice so you can jump straight to it from the 'dirty wah' sound without having to back up over the 'dirty' sound first. This isn't a problem if you just go clean to dirty and back in your music but if you like adding more textures it takes a while to store them all in the right order. I was not very happy about this, but it is just a hassle not an insurmountable obstacle.
Support:
I only ever had to contact zoom once, in the days before prolific internet PDF manuals,I called their U.S. distributor because I lost my manual and they sent me a new manual. No charge. No questions asked. Simple.
Overall:
Again the only problem I have is in the UP or DOWN effect switching. It's definitely worth the price. All the stuff you have in there in single pedal form would cost a couple grand, then add in CuBase and it's a pretty nice little package. I recommend. There are a few similar pedals by digitech and behringer and boss and korg but this one definately does a lot more, isn't made of plastic, and comes with CuBase and a USB port, which none of the others I looked at had.
Submitted: 6/06/2008
Style of Music: experimental progressive heavy grungy junk rock?
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