ART SGX Nitro

This was my first rackmount effects processor, way back.Had to respond to the bad reviews.Considering all the possibilities, it's pretty easy to use.

This is what pissed me off.Blake(?) is 100% percent correct:Go to utility and set the input correctly.It will take some volume away,but your power amp has volume controls, right? The only weak point are the distortions, IMO.They were a bit thin for me.However, everything else compares very closely to my Voodu Valve.And the Voodu Valve doesn't have a tuner or adjustable viewing angle!It's possible to degrade the sound by adding the max amount of effects, but it will sound like shit anyway because of all the effects are 'fighting' each other.

Very dependable. Let the heatsink breathe, and you'll be fine.

Much experience with their customer service.Always helpful, and I know I've tested their patience before.

I use Charvel and Gibson Flying V's. I'm sick of assholes who think inexpensive always means poor quality.Been playing for 20 years.This unit has a lot of possibilities, if you take time to set it up properly.If you don't, ANY processor will sound bad .That's why we have stompboxes.Don't blame your lack of passion and patience on your equipment.

It isn't very hard to use, one hour with that thing and you'll really master it. Don't be afraid! The first patch I created was awfull, but it got better after a while...

My setup is a Samick Korean guitar (very similar to the Ibanez JS) with a seymour duncan JB sh-4 bridge pick-up, a ds-1, the Art unit and a peavey Bandit II. I put the ds-1 before the Art, because of the noise-gate, which is very usefull. The effects are good quality, except for the distortion, that's why I got the DS-1.

It works very well since 1993 and the only problem I had was a burned fuse... in 12 years!!!!! I carry it on every gig of mine and it never fails!

Never needed anything from them, and the manual can be downloaded from their website.

I play everything from progressive to thrash, blues to virtuose music. And it is always good, it always has something you didn't imagine it'd have. Great, just buy it!

WARNING!My English is bad...Well,some sounds are very hard to obtain....I think that this unit is not as complicated as it seems at the first sight...but maybe it can be confuse for some people!The manual is good!I didn't bought this unit but I know that it wasn't upgraded...firmware revision number?!I don't have an idea..sorry!
Editing patches is NOT complicated....put them working well is difficult..very difficult!!

My setup: Yamaha Pacifica 102(telecaster style) with a Seymour Duncan Hot Rails pickup> Input of a Marshall 9004 Pre > ART SGX NITRO in the effects loop of the Marshall 9004 with his switch in -20dB position > stereo out of the pre plugged in the chanells 1 and 2 of a Rocktron Velocity 120 > Hugues&Kettner ATTAX cabinet (4x12) 400w.
I used a Zoom 4040 as foot midi controller...
The SGX Nitro has a good noise gate but at high levels of volume it sounds to agressive and the feedbacks appear!
Clean effects are good!Distortion sounds are the worst I have ever seen for rhythim!!A complete nightmare!I tried and tried and I didn't get a decent distortion!The distortions are only good for solos because the sound remains defined but they have no power at all!!That the reason why I didn't bought it!!Chorus and reverbs are high quality effects but as I said the distortions sound terrible!!

Good quality!!I think that this unit is reliable...Should have an on/off switch!!!I only had it for a week!

As I said I didn't bought this unit because it no good for me!!I play covers and I need good distortions, good clean sounds.....
I need something complete!!I've bought recently a Boss GT-6 and I'm very happy with it!!!It's super-complete and I need no Midi Controller crap!The ART SGX Nitro has some very professional kind of sounds and may be a good working tool in studios!It has to much sounds that I don't need and I didn't find in it the sounds that I really need so I don't need this unit!!It's the most incomplete unit I have ever tried but may be a good choice for someone who needs some different sounds! If you need something really complete try the Boss GT-6, the Line 6 POD , some Digitech products or others...
I give a 5 to the ART because of the poor distortions, if they were good I would give it an 8.
Sorry about my horrible English!!

I spent 3 days tweeking this unit and learning all the interactions with the bigfoot midi pedal board

its a good thing im a computer tech and midi head
this unit is not for the stomp box hero (you know who you are)

after some serious thought as how to set this unit up for stage preformance

i came to the conclusion you have to coralate the midi controler foot pedal buttons and patch #'s to each set of led digits starting at patch 111 so you dont overright the factory presets...

heres how its done if you have the bigfoot x-15 midi controler
keep in mind this set up will be a gig set up live stage + you can add a computer to set up each song with a sequencer

first set pedal board to midi channel 16 (very few mid files use this channel

next get a spread sheet up like MS Excel

make a list to each red led starting from 111-120
make colums with
preset# Name master lvl mix (dry dgfx anfx) effect pedal
--------------------------------------------------------------------
111 U CLEAN DRY AES SET PEDAL 2 TO ACOUSTIC ENVIR SIMULATOR
112 U " " " COMPRESS PEDAL 1 =COMP 2=AES
113 U " " " DISTORTION 1 =DIST 2=AES
114 U EQ 1 =* HZ 2=* HZ
115 U EQ + DIST 1 =EQ 2=DIST OUTPUT
116 U REVERB + AES 1 =REV 2=AES
117 U DELAY + AES 1 =DTIME 2=AES
118 U PITCH TRANS 1 =PTRLVL 2=AES
119 U CHORUS + AES 1 =CHRTIME2=AES
120 U NITRO WHA WHA WHA+ EQ 1 = EQ 2=ENV WHA

AS YOU CAN SEE THIS Is NOW CONSIDERED YOUR CLEAN DRY BANK
NEXT COPY EACH PATCH TO 121-130

121 U CLEAN REVERB + AES SET PEDALS ACCORDINLY
122 U " " REV + COMP +AES
123 U REV + DIST
124 U REV + EQ +AES
125 REV + EQ +DIST + NG

REPEAT THIS FOR DELAYS DRY ONLY
131-140 DELAYS
141-150 ROCK DRY
151-160 ROCK REVERB
161-170 ROCK DELAYS
171-180 BLUZ DRY
181-190 BLUZ REVERB
191-200 METAL REVERB

AS YOU CAN SEE IM CREATING BANKS OF TEN EFFECTS THAT MATCH THE PEDAL BOARD AND GIVE CONTROL OF EACH NAMED EFFECT ON BOARD
AFTER A WHILE IT STARTS MAKING SENSE YOU HAVE CONTROL OVER
CLEAN DRY
CLEAN VERB
CLEAN DELAY
PLUS BY ACTUALY STEPING ON THE DISTORTION BUTTON YOU GET DISTORION OR THE EFFECT NAMED ON THE PEDAL BOARD

ALL NOS 11(3)WITH WILL ALWAYS BE DIST (4)EQ ECT

NOW MAKE A BIG PRINT LIST OF BANKS
111=CLEAN DRY
121=CLEAN REVERB
132=CLEAN DELAY
141=ROCK DRY
151=ROCK REVERB
161=ROCK DELAY
171=BLUZ DRY
181=BLUZ REVERB
191=METAL
AND USE IT ON THE GIG TO NAVIGATE THE BOARD

IT TAKES ABOUT THREE DAYS TO TWEEK ALL THE SOUNDS TO YOUR SETUP AND GUITARS

THE FACTORY PATCHS ARE A NIGHTMARE AND IN SUCH DISAREY I WAS AFRAID TO USE THIS UNIT ON STAGE
NOW IM GETTIN PEACHY WITH THIS RIG
THIS SET UP DOES NOT EFFECT(EXCEPT THE LAST 4 PRESETS) ANY OF THE FACTORY PRESETS PLUS GIVES YOU A GOOD RANGE OF EFFECTS FOR STAGE

AND IN THE FUTURE YOU CAN START MAKING NEW BANKS DELETEING FUNKY FACTORY PRESETS OR BOUNCING THEM AROUND

AFTER ALL THIS !!! THEN YOU DO A MIDI SYSTEM DUMP TO THE COMPUTER
AND FOR GOD SAKES SAVE ALL THIS WORK

IF ANY BODY WOULD LIKE TO HAVE A COPY OF THIS SYSTEM DUMP FILE
AND SPREAD SHEET FILE

I CAN EMAIL IT TO YOU
FOR 29.95 SORRY BUT I HAVE TO GET ALITTLE SOMETHING FOR ALL THIS ..
I TAKE PAY PAL OR CHECK /M.O.

I HAVE FRIENDS THAT HAVE OTHER DIGITAL EFFECTS UNITS WITH THE SAME PROBLEM EITHER THEY ONLY USE 4-5 PATCHES ON STAGE OR FACTORY PRESETS
DIGITECH ECT...

AS WITH ANY OF THESE NEW EFFECTS UNITS THEY ARE A BITCH TO SETUP

HOPEFULLY SOME BODY WILL TURN ME ON TO A PATCH EDITOR THAT FUNCTIONS WITH THE SGX NITRO

IT WOULD BE NICE TO EDIT PARAMETERS AND NAMES ON THE COMPUTER
IF ANYBODYS HAD ANY LUCK WITH A GENERIC PATCH EDITOR LET ME KNOW

AW HELL ILL TAHE $

I use a 1971 strat and a 1954 les paul and a fender twin and a
fender vibra lux and a GK ML 250

it sounded like funky untill i did all the tweeking
radical volumes and distortions

but now i think its kickin butt

could stand more wha wha and delay functions

but over all its got everthing you could want in a woman
hot sweet and fully stacked
but ya still cant bet the sound of a tube amp cranked up
thats why i designed the presets with clean dry patches
on my live stage setup

ill let you know after it gets the ..tbarr roadhouse bluz beer spillin drunk roadie abuse syndrome test in a month or 2

anyways the rack unit seems to be real strait and reliable
the foot pedal board will it seems to be a bit tricky with all the modes with and stuff but it has a built in tester

one thing i was cleaning the pedalboard and wiped dust off the underside of the pedal and later noticed the pedal wasnt working got all freaked out
after close inpection and reading manual on troubleshooting i found out to press buttons to test it showed no controller data being sent for pedal #1

so it turns out that there are little strips of plastic that block the light sensor that sends the midi code to main unit when you move pedal
and it had disloged out of its retaining groove from my cleaning actions so watch out for that...

otherwise it seems pretty durable

look if your the kinda person who has to call customer support for
support get a day job

i called ART just to see if they had a editor program and well lets say it was the usual joke of a cust support deal

if it aint broke get a manual
if its broke call me..

I play bluz rock an twang since they let me in the bars
bout 23 yrs ago

my gear is all vintage with a new age computer touch
i bought this unit for the midi controls and access

im a keyboard player also and have a Hamond M-100
a yamaha baby grand 7 or 8 synths drum pads P.a. ect
weighs in at just under 2 tons

if it were stolen id pop a cap in the dude who gets his hands on it
and id probaly replace with danoelctro vintage pedals

as for the giging usefulness and durability
ill let you know once my tequila jammin fingers make this thing a raging screamin moma and it finds a home on the stage with me

keep on rockin.........tbarr@kc.rr.com

I have been using the SGX Nitro for the past 7 years and I dig it. I have had no problem getting a good sound out of it. Editing is easy, I never opened the manual until about a year ago to answer a dumb question iI had regarding MIDI #'s to try to use a different controller than the X-15. I like the X-15 better so I went back to using it. My unit has not been upgraded yet, but, I am interested in information on new chips I can get for it. Right now the version is March of 1993. Couls you send me info?

I am using the unit on my guitar rig. (3-Jackson Dk-2, 1-Jackson Dk-1 custom shop, 2-Charvel model 88 ltd.,Peavey 5150 1/2 stack,(new)Peavey 5150 II 1/2 stack (in Stereo!....Wahhhh Hooooo!!!!) I dont seem to get alot of noise through the effects loop. I have been able to get rid of about 90% of the noise with the mix.I have not tried to get anyone elses sounds out of it, but, I have come accross some sounds that are similar...(Nuno Betencourt, Steve Vai, Eddie Van halen, Joe Satriani...etc..)I think that the Ptr and 2Ptr is the best as well as the delays.

I can always depend on my SGX Nitro. I have never gig'd with anything else and never had any problem what so ever. You guys did something right. ( I also used to use a Multiverb III for about 4 years before I got the nitro)

Never needed it!!!!!!!!!

I play/write all kinds of music and never had any doubts about the nitro. I have been playing for about 17 years now. I own various USA Jackson gtrs as well as charvel limmitted editions. I play on Peavey amps (as a matter of fact<I can send a picture> my 5150 amp head has my art sticker over the "515" so it reads "ART0", which has become her nickname. If it got stolen....I would deffinitely buy another on (probably a newer model). The only other unit that I would buy would be a Eventide H7000, but, dont worry I dont have that much money. I love it all!!! and Hate nothing about it or your products. I also love the X-15. I did try others, but, your products took the prize in versatility, programability, dependability, sound, and looks(not that it matters but it did) I do wish that it had a power switch though.This unit has helped me create some of my best works. The only thing I wish to share is.....Please can I get a shirt or jacket or somethin'...or maybe a catalog of wearable merchandise??

Turn it on and you get sound...it may not be the sound or effect you are looking for, but it does have useable patches. Editing was a nightmare! This was designed by techies, not musicians......I needed to get a degree in computer science to operate and edit this machine. The manual.....hmmmmm....little or no value......makes to many assumptions about the knowledge of the user. Guidance in the manual was non-existent.

Start Deluxe Plus & PR Smith Custom 22 are my primary axes...into Crybaby Wha.....into BBE Sonic Maximizer....into a Fender Dual Professional ( Custom Shop) amp. Distortiions were ok...sustain, forget it...because the unit was so difficult to figure out the attempts at editing and tweaking other paramaters was worthless.

Unit was well made and appeared solid....particularly the footswith/pedal board that came with it...don't feel you would need a backup.....

The worst...avoided phone calls....would not respond to faxes and emails...had to call the president of the company to get a service tech to give me some guidance.......techs promised to send faxes to explain in detail how to use the machine...sent two and never heard from them again...I had to be a pest to get a response. Attitude of staff was...why are you bothering us with such stupid questions?

Classic rock/ blues is where I make my $...I've been playing since 12 and I'm now 45....If it were stolen, I fear that the thief would try to return it and sue me. This is without a doubt the most difficult piece of equipment I have owned.....service and support...a laugher...forget it. I kept this unit for 7 months working with it and got rid of it. Returned it to manufacturer and they sent it back not wanting it. It sits collecting dust in a recording studio in Sausalito,California....I wouldn't even sell this used to anyone..it would be bad karma....bought it from Manny's in New York ( a package deal that included footswitch/double pedal board)... Manny's was of little or no help. As a matter of fact, they will not even sell to me now I raised such hell with their salesmen. I would avoid ART at all costs and stick with DIGITECH GSP series or G-FORCE.

The SGX Nitro operates in a manner similar to other ART rack units-- expect a lot of button pushing. Once you get used to the menu system, you can maneuver pretty quickly. However, if you're not comfortable pressing buttons look elsewhere. The manual isn't bad, although its form factor (copied and stapled) leaves something to be desired.

Delivers a variety of processed rock sounds right out of the box. The various amp simulation patches won't blow you away, but they're decent. There are a handful of useful presets (for me anyway); after that you're on your own. But once you start programming (and level out the volumes on the factory patches that you keep) you can get some great tones. I almost always use the distortion--even in my clean patches. You can use this trick (with a very small amount of drive) to warm up your clean tones and give them an 'amp' personality. This is important for me, as I go direct into the PA/recording mixer. (Unless you have a great setup, I think you get a much better sound onstage WITHOUT an amp. With an amp, many factors are required to get a good sound--the amp itself, the mike going to the PA, and the sound guy's mix vs. the acoustic output of the amp itself. With a preamp, you have total control of your sound, and the sound person has any easier time get the sound balance correct. With the SGX, all I've ever heard anyone say is 'how do you get that cool guitar sound' or 'where's your amp?')
With a good guitar, you can get a nice mix of distortions out of the SGX. The only area where it falls short is in the warm, jazzy tonal ranges. It's good for both clean and crunchy sounds, even some fluid 'Holdsworthy' tones if you work at it. But not for Larry Carlton, Lee Ritenour, or George Benson tones...
The delays are good (it's cool to use an expression pedal to control the delay volume and/or number of repeats for swell effects), the flange, chorus, and reverb are average, as is the wah. The pitch transposing effects are good (a slight detune gives you a better chorus than the chorus effect), and the environment simulator is handy for setting up miked amp simulations. The graphic EQ is the best place for tuning up your patches; you can get a wider range of overdrive sounds by using it in conjunction with the distortions.
Basically, I'd say you can get a good range of Marshall and Fender tones with the SGX Nitro--plus full effects.

I've used mine for about 3 years now. The only problems have been with my X-15 Ultrafoot. The AC adapter went out on that, and the band of 'film' that controls the two expression pedals sometimes comes out and has to be carefully put back in. Since the SGX Nitro isn't much good with the Ultrafoot (why use a rack device if you can't freely change sounds and settings), I'm including the Ultrafoot's shortcomings in the reliability rating.

I think my Ultrafoot came without an AC adapter and they shipped me one promptly.

I've used it for 3 years with pretty good results. It sounds good direct into the PA, and it's a lot easier to get good sounds on tape going direct with it rather than miking up an amp. Before this, I used an SGE, and the SGX has much better guitar tones. I have some very unique SGX sounds that I'd want to use even if I get another preamp/ effects unit in the near future. I recently played a Johnson Millenium, and my SGX patches compared favorably to it. Of course, that was just the presets, so it's not really a fair comparison.
The only reason I'm looking for a new effects unit is that I want a greater range of amp/speaker combinations and a truer tube amp sound to get the warm 'in-between' mildly distorted sounds. If you can find a used SGX Nitro and have the patience for programming your own sounds, I highly recommend this unit. If you put the time into learning how to sculpt its sounds, you'll be well rewarded. When it was new, I'd have given it a '10', it's just that technology keeps moving forward.

The Nitro is easy to get a GREAT sound using the patches already provided, fairly easy to "tweak" these, but a little more difficult to setup patches from scratch. Editing patches is as easy as any other processor that i've used and the manual is excellent.

The sound quality is why I bought it. It's INCREDIBLE... but you have to know how to set it up. There are some settings under the "utility" parameter that adjust the unit's input sensitivity. You can select guitar or line, and then, high or low sensitivities for each. THIS IS THE KEY. Even when you're using your guitar, set the unit on "LINE" AND USE LINE LEVEL "LOW". THEN THIS UNIT IS EXTREMELY QUIET and still has enough input level. And I mean EXTREMELY QUIET. With this setup EVERYTHING, all the effects, are very good. I use my preamp distortion, and take it's effects send into the unit, and take stereo returns to my two amp's effects returns, and the sounds are unbelievable. I can't say enough, but as I wrote before, you have to set up the unit with line low input. The best thing about the unit is some of the patches with "plexi" setups... It really sounds like an old plexi head. All digital effects are 24-bit super high quality sampling. Many of the other effects are actuall analog, with one big difference between other analog effects... they sound great. Nothing sounds harsh... I can't recommend this unit more, But the SGX2000 DOES NOT sound anywhere near as good.

HAVE ONLY HAD IT 2 MONTHS

Bought it used and contacted the company to buy a manual, and they send me one free!

Buy it again? you bet! I'm looking for another one in fact. The only limitation the unit has, is that it (like most other processors) can only process so much at one time. Some things you just can't set up with one unit, like delay on one side and delayed reverb on the other... so I'm gonna get another one. There's nothing I hate about the unit, but I must again emphasize, if you don't set it up on line low, it doesn't sound nearly as good...run of the mill, in fact. AS FAR AS COMPARING IT TO OTHER UNITS, i'VE LOOKED AT SO MANY UNITS OVER THE YEARS THAT JUST DIDN'T SOUND GOOD, i'D PRETTY MUCH GIVEN UP ON LOOKING AT EFFECTS UNITS (EXCEPT FOR THE EVENTIDE, BUT i DON'T HAVE THAT KIND OF MONEY).