Zoom MS-50G Guitar Effects Pedal

The beauty of this pedal is the sheer number of effects included in such a small solid unit.I wanted a multi effects unit that wasa) compact andb) easy to useto introduce into my synth set up and for occasional guitar use. I mainly use it for the mod effects - delay, reverb, tremelo, filters etc which I find very useable and tweakable. I particularly like the filter delay and the step filters - for these alone it's worth the price in my view as you'd spend 3 times this to get the same effect in a pedal. Plug a basic drum machine or even a cheap keyboard through this and you suddenly have a lot more sonic potential at your fingertips.I find the operation very intuitive - although I have only used it to access and edit individual effects in a bank - I haven't saved banks etc or tried to use it live - you really need fingers to operate this properly.Basic operation:An effect is displayed on the LCD display and can be switched on or off with the main switch, and edited using the 3 rotary knobs - if the effect has more than three parameters, then simply press the right knob and it will tab you to the next set of parameters.You use the up and down switches to change the effect type and the left and right switches to move to the next effect in the bank.I have used the usb connection to remove the effects I'm not interested in (amp sims, distortions etc) and have added even more mod effects from the Zoom website.Also - although it does work with batteries - it eats them pretty quickly - best used with a power supply, but would be great for a travel set up with headphones as it's so small.Well worth the money, and I'm thinking of buying another.

This is a useful bit of kit because:1). The effects sound pretty much as good as individual pedals (eg Boss) and are fully editable. The tuner is very good.2). Once you know how to use it, it’s very straightforward, flexible and user friendly in real (gig) terms. I confess that as a pre-digital old timer , I took a little while to figure it out and I can say that the best way to do this is to sit with it, stick in a jack to turn it on and then create some effect chains; Learn how to save them, shunt them around and assign them to the pedal etc. Later you can hook it up to a guitar and amp and tweak the parameters to your taste which is very quick and easy to do once you know your way round the device.3). This pedal enables your extended guitar sound to be independent of your amp which is important for several reasons: a) If you are buying an amp you can base your choice on the qualities of the amp rather than the onboard effects which almost certainly won't be as comprehensive or as editable or as easy to use or to modify spontaneously as this pedal. b) if you use different amps or guitars for different situations or if you play in a variety of musical settings, this pedal will accommodate this and store all the sounds you use. c). You can still use your amp to adjust to any acoustic situation or make spontaneous changes to the primary guitar sound because it’s independent of the saved settings on the pedal unlike modelling amps, which tend to save amp parameters and effects as one sound. I like this flexibility.This is a well designed device that is clearly aimed to work live for guitarists who value playing more than faffing about with gadgets. The 6 band EQ is very useful and there's a lot of scope for "special effects" which open up creative possibilities if tastefully deployed. I like the “Monopitch” either singly or in tandem. Set to+ 12, for instance, it sounds like you’re being shadowed by a soprano sax…...Bearing in mind that 40 years ago all that this solitary pedal contains would have filled a large studio and been beyond the reach of amateurs and now it’s all available for under £80! The only thing it doesn’t do is play the instrument but maybe in 40 years time, who knows?

Zoom gIt's always a matter of personal taste and what will be best suited to your needs and set up. I wanted a small pedal to use instead of my boss Sy300. The sy3 wasn't to my tasteFor me this pedal had the following function that benefit my set upCan power with usb to a power pack/batteries good for busking /sailing /remote locationsSmall form factorA lot of and diverse effects 100 Can save 50 more. Can combine 6 effects. Delays, echos and metal type effectsCan plug into a synth or use as an effect for most instrumentsNew patches can be downloaded with available updates potentiallyIt wouldn't update as couldn't install driver on Windows 10. Managed to install driver on an old computer. But still couldn't install the desktop app. So couldn't install all the presets. Maybe it was my fault. I couldn't install and not the pedal . Anyway. I eventually managed to install it.But then I couldn't get it to work with a volume or expression pedal. Even as part of my pedal board. Personally thrashy guitar really needs a volume pedal. So renders the pedal useless for live for me. Really disappointed as I love the pedal. Apparently the multi stomp ms-70 delay works with a volume pedal. Ordered one and will see if I can get it to work.However if you don't need all the presets it is a superb pedal. I don't understand the bad reviews as I found the sound effects superb. Compared to my boss Sy300 the quality sounded as good. Although I'm not a pedal conisseur.