DigiTech 2101

this amp will take some time, but will be worth it. the gain structure on this amp is extremely strong , so a little pinch goes a long way. if you want to plug into a one trick pony with some foor pedals ths amp is not for you.

this pre amp is not for kids, its not a plug in and play, this is one of the best sounding amps ever created . with a little sound skill and patience and paired with a quality tube power amp this amp can yeild incredible transparent gain, rich and full of even order harmonics with touch sensitivity rivaling any high end amp made.i am pairing the pre with el 34 50/50 marshall's ,custom shop strat's. some of the effects may not be as good as others on the market but the versatility can not be matched.

we have 2 on stand by , but never needed to use them . these units have been from stage to stage for over 10 years, they recieve regular maintainance as do the power amps.

n/a

we play funk , funk rock. i play thru all kinds of amps but for sound versatility and ease of use on stage the rack set up will allways rule.

It came with a manual so thick that I expected it to take more time to read than the complete works of Dickens. So I simply handed everything over to my trusty guitar tech so he could program it for me. I simply did not want to be bothered ;-)

You have to fiddle around for a day or so to figure out how to program this thing. I guess...

When I bought it, I first used it as a preamp as well as fx processor.

But although it uses tubes, the preamp lacks definition, clarity, tone and dynamics, so at some point I bought a Mesa Boogie Triaxis and just used the fx.

Then I bought a Rocktron Intellifex, since I only use chorus and delay, and this unit just sounds sooooo much better. It is also much easier to operate. So then I only used the Digitech for EQ and to use it as a midi switcher.

Some time ago my tech made me buy a HOTPLATE, so I could use my Mesa 20/20 poweramp as tone generator. Now I am able to use the tubes to the max, the tube distortion gives the sound the punch, bite and attack it lacked before. So exit the EQ!

So, dear reader, in the end the Digitech was reduced to a very expensive midi controller. But wait! There's more. See the "Reliability" section to read the tragic ending.

Last Saturday I played this huge festival, and then it happened: For some reason every time the lights on stage changed, so did my patches!

So at one point I was playing this really sensitive CLEAN intro, then suddenly it changed spontaneously to DISTORTION! An back and forth it went. Halfway through the show I turned the unit off, which meant I had to switch manually. Rather inconvenient!

When I got home I unscrewed the Digitech from my rack, threw it from the second floor, smashed it to pieces and set fire to the remains.

I would never ever use it again. Well... I can't really!

did not try. It's far beyond repair now anyway. ha ha!

See the rest of the review.

It is really TERRIBLE, but excellent for anger management!

The same qualities that make it so flexible also make it difficult to program. Some programs have probably 100 parameters. The analog section is pretty straightforward, reverb, modulation effects and mixers are pretty difficult. It is best to find the closest thing to the sound you want and modify it from there. I like the compare feature where you can compare the edited sound to the previous sound. If you like the new sound select "store" if you don't like it, you can exit without saving and start over.

Overall I like the sound a lot. The distortion sounds are great, and I love the reverbs and delays. Many of the distortion settings have 2 gain controls which you can cascade. Varying the 2 levels gives you different sounds. I have a hard time getting the sounds I want with the phasers chorus and flangers (so many parameters!), but I don't use those much anyway.

The unit responds different with different guitars, I have a Strat and a Les Paul studio. I ended up having to program different channels for each. However, I like the fact that it doesn't cover up the character of the instruments. The foot controller has up to 10 banks of 10 settings each. I use bank 1 for the strat and bank 2 for the LP.

My only complaint is I have to use a lot of noise gate to control unwanted noise, which causes me to lose sustain. I am running through a 79 Marshall, which may be part of the noise, (although I run the amp clean with preamp volume at 4 or 5). I give it an 8.5 for sound, it would be 9.5 if not for the noise.

I have a loose connection on the input midi jack of the foot controller, which I need to get fixed. However, I used it on regular live gigs for 7 years, and have had several drunk fans step on the cable over the years.

No experience with support, I haven't really had any need to call for support.

Overall very satisfied. You could probably get a better sound with top quality individual effects, but this unit is hard to beat for the price. I got mine in a pawnshop for $250. They sell for about $300-$350 on ebay. For live gigs, I also love the convenience of being able to control multiple effects with the press of a single footswitch button.

Fairly up front and easy to use especially after programming my quadreverb.I dont like the fact that you can't stack effect after effect in the order and how many times you want to like you can in the 2112 but this was basically the first of its kind so I can't really complain.

The only distortion tone that I feel is useable is the GRUNGE tone and I really only use it for practicing because the overall distortion has a brittle sound like most DIGITAL distortion.I feel that the noise gate is excellent and the EQ and CHORUS are very good.The reverb and delay are a bit TRASHY sounding but useable for alot of guitar sounds but I recommend running your signal through another unit after the 2101 to smooth out your sound.I do also like the digitech WHAMMY and HARMONIZER sounds they aint no EVENTIDE but who the hell wants to pay for one of those things?I would say that overall this is a very usable unit with a UNIQUE sound.Jennifer Batten used Digitech alot in the past so if you like her sound you might like this.

VERY good!!!!

VERY good!

A good unit with a variety of unique sound!

No es facil. Ahora que llevo con el mas de 10 a?os puedo decir que se manejarlo. Tiene cosas que en la practica no vas a usar.
No tiene control de entrada y eso si seria practico. Respecto a sus evoluciones, 2112, 2120 es mas comodo de usar. Tiene separada la seccion de previo de la de efectos. puedes saltarte el previo o no segun quieras. La Control One es precisa, con phanton pero demasiado grande. El Whamy es un juguete, para divertirse.
Mi unidad tiene el viejo chip, con la mitad de capacidad que las nuevas y aun asi nunca he agotado la memoria en ningun algoritmo.

Suelo tener esta configuracion: PRS custom 22, Boss CS-3, TS 9, Clyde Deluxe Wah, Tech 21 GT-2, GT Trio Preamp, 2101 (solo efectos digitales), Mesa Boogie 2:95 Power amp y Cabinas Mesa 2x12". En esta cadena la 2101 solo aporta chorus, revers y delays. Mucha gente dice que estas unidades de efectos colorean el sonido. CHORRADAS !!! CLARO QUE LO HACEN !! De eso se trata, si no te gusta TOCA A PELO !!. Los efectos Lexicon no colorean pero porque suenan en paralelo al timbre original. Si te curras el sonido con efecto y te gusta el resultado eso es un TIMBRE !! que mas da quien aporte que !! Yo lo que hago es baja el nivel de efecto, muchos efectos pero sin destacar. Para este trabajo la 2101 es perfecta.
Para tocatas ligeras, la 2101 es perfecta, usando su previo, efectos, salidas con simulador y a mesa. No suena que te mueres pero escapas.
La calidad es notable, seguro que no son los mejores efectos (Lexicon, Tc Electronic, Electro Harmonix) pero los hay peores.

Solo unas valvulas gastadas. Pille nuevas y listo.

Articulo descatalogado. No existe ampliacion para mi unidad porque es muy vieja.

Fue la pionera de una saga. Ha sido superada en muchos aspectos individuales pero en su conjunto los de Digitech se metieron un golazo historico con la 2101. Durante un tiempo pense venderla por vieja pero, visto lo visto, me la quedo por "clasica"

I've owned 2 digitech 2101's throughout the years, i first bought one new back in 1995, version 2.01 with the control one for $1,000!. the second one i bought was $300. Although some people say it's a little hard getting around the patches, but I found it very easy to use, and to edit patches. I think mostly because I don't go into great detail with all the endless amounts of decays and freuencies you can adjust. I think that is only critical when you are recording with it, not with live situations, which i mostly use the 2101 for.

There's a list of buttons for each patch you want to edit (distortion/delay/eq, etc...) when i bought a second 2101 and upgraded it to version 3.0, by buying the 2 chips from ebay. Digitech charges $100 for these two chips, but you can find them on ebay for around $20. I never really used the manual.

I'm currently playing through a Roland JC-120, as well as a Roland Cube 30, and a Fender Pro 85 amp. These are all solid state amps. I'm sure the 2101 would sound much better through an all tube amp but i've been playing through a jc-120 for years and love the clean sound it produces. My guitars - 1986 Paul Reed Smith custom, a 2001 Gibson Les Paul standard, and a 72' fender strat, (USA made). the 2101 is not noisy, as long as you use the noise gate, set it at around -67 to -70 db. the only bad thing about this is your sound will shut off if you lower your volume on your guitar. so, use a patch that has a volume control for the wah pedal to lower and raise your volume while playing. It takes some trial and error to get each patch at the correct volume, the way i've conquered this is just by literally changes the volume controls for each patch while i'm rehearsing with my band. it can get a little annoying but once it's set i rarely change the settings. all i change are the main volume and the EQ's that are on my amp itself.
The main effects i'm using are; warm sweet solo (grunge setting with delay), ted nugent's patch, phaser in space, mandolin echo for delays, look wah no feet, (not a very full sounding patch but it'll have to do) and bright room for a clean sound with a little reverb. i use a few more as well.

I've used a 2101 since 95', and i've bought a second 2101 in 2004 just to have a second one. i've had no problems at a gig with it (knock on wood!) and i've relied on it for every single sound i've used, it's almost become my signature sound. People always say I have such a warm and full sound, they're surprised I don't have a tube amp, other than the 2 12AX7 mini tubes. I recommend maintaing it by replacing the 2 12AX7 tubes every year or so, depending on how often you play through it, as well as replacing the battery every year or two. you can buy the replacement battery at any radio shack for around $4. just keep in mind to back up all your sounds before you replace the battery otherwise you'll lose all your sounds and have to start from scratch. i think there's a program you can find online where you can store your patches and save them on your computer, or do it the old fashioned way and write them down on paper.

I've called them twice for some parts and got through to the parts department easily. they mailed me a free set of side panels for the control one foot controller. for some reason they don't stay on there, so i've lost a couple through the years. now i just use some black electrical tape to keep the side panels intact. the electrical tape doesn't leave a sticky residue like other tapes. they've also sent me a free set of hex screws and phillips screws, which i've had to replace from lugging my rack from gig to gig for many years.

I play a lot of rock, reggae, and dancehall type music. it's been great for clean sounds, chorus effects, and especially delay effects. i have 4 or 5 different delay settings, depending on the tempos for each song. i don't have to kneel down and mess with my one delay pedal to change the settings, it's already a patch and i just hit a button on my control one. i hate having a chain of effects for stomp boxes because if one little 1/4 inch patch isn't working it's hard to find the source of your problem. the 2101 allows only one cable straight to your guitar. I do however use a crybaby wah pedal, so actually it's two cables, and one midi cable for the foot controller. no extra power outlets to use, etc... ok, so i also use a furman 6 pack outlet, and a sabine tuner, but those are rackmounted in my 4 space rack, so it's all ready to go. i tend to stay away from the 2101's tuner, it's not as easy to use as my sabine, but i like to switch it to the tuner mode when i want to mute my guitar on breaks, or to tune during a song, then use my sabine. there's nothing worse than hearing a guitarist tune live in between songs or during a song!

any trainned monkey, do everething that rack does

Amazing...
congratulations to Whammy and for analogic Distortions (not tube).
Reverbs - totally profissional
Choruses, flanger and detuners - incredible
Wah - not so good, but usable
equalizers - very, very, very good
Tha most powerfull feature is the algorithim ... you can do everything with this

totally depend...
I would like more tubes !

any jackass with a screw driver and a Internet repair this rack... not need support from digitech

i play rock gospel music
from 15 years.
if lost or stolen i kill mylself.. ( lol :-) )
I love so much my rack
nothing compare with GSP-2101
if you see one ... buy... buy fast and don't think ...

extremely easy. get use to hitting the wrong button several times and losing all your work. read the maunual..... keep the foot controler away from your feet that loses all your work too if you change the channel.

sounds very nice initially. lots of guys complain about some of the sound they get with it. just keep in mind all that upper frequency stuff gets knocked out when using it live. bodies absorb lots of it. i say initially but the same complaint as all the rest, the noise gate forces you into correction right out of the box. i had to take it out of everything to actually give it a fair run. i am still learning how to operate this thing to its limit but i do have a complaint, the levels of volume change substatially between patches. the other thing, i don't think the reverbs are very warm, like say a reverb in a 65 super. it isn't a part of your tone. very crucial for a blues guitarist. when you monkey with the different spring reverbs you can hear that fake ass slap simulating the springs being driven too hard. completely ruins it. i have never in my entire life owned a fender amp that ever did that unless i dropped it. nice try.
i do rate the other sounds this thing makes very high but watch all the eq's cause they do affect how bubble gum overprocessed this thing can sound.

no problems, yet.....

i bought mine after they stopped producing them. trying to find downloads for programming it or software specific to the unit, good luck my friend. lots of hodge podge bs. no centralized local for anything and sound bites? sets me a mind to do it myself.

overall, i will have to say it scores a bell shaped 7. i have other processors that are solid state that do a much better job. it was a nice try for a dead horse. proly why they unloaded it and went to the GNX. i currently use it as a flavor but i don't rely in it. i keep another processor at side. and split them into a marshall 9200 so i got one in the left and the other in the right. the other thing is i like to use a stomp box to drive the front end tubes with, you can't do it with this. i use the marshall jmp 1 in the effects loop of the 2120 and bypass the preamp of it all together. i can midi switch the hell out of the whole thing at once and use an ab box to change inputs to and away from the 2120.

my honest opinion and not sucking anyones crank? buy a tcelectronics major, jmp1, 9200, 2 4x12 cabs. you got a hell of a lot better rig than this will create.

takes some reading. go download the manual from digitechs site if you already dont have it. Takes about a solid hour or two to get your way around this thing easily. once you take the time, programming becomes alot easier...

I run thru a Sovtek Mig-100, marshall 4x12, thru my rack using a gibson SG or LP...sounds great to me! Compared to many other multi-effects processors, this thing sounds great! the effects are very real and sound just as good if not better then many boss/digitech stomp boxes. the Distortions are very nice as well. The saturated tube distortions are better then i could have asked for. over all, this guy gets some very satisfying sounds

Very solid...dont see it really falling apart.....

This thing is great...unfortuantly i had to return it becasue of its one major flaw....single S-disk usage!!! ahhhh! i couldnt stand switching patches and cutting out for .5 second. sounded too choppy! i returned it and got a Digitech 2120 instead...Thats got everything i neeed!!!!

I think is works very easy. Just press a few buttons and it does the work.

I am using is with mesa 50/50 and that sounds great, I get a very punchy and heavy sound (I use it to make deathmetal grindcore blackmetal). I use bc rich mockingbird (rico rules). It is noiseless when you use the noisegate (which is great, it is absolutely quiet when in between riffs).
The effect are ok, I do not use them a lot, but when using them, they work great.
Especially the distortions I like a lot and the phaser.

I also use the amp simulator and that also sounds great. I am using it to record a promo cd at this moment.

I have brought my first one back to the shop. The letters on the display distorted and that was very irritating. I had to do this a couple of times and in the end, I got a new one (thanks to bass connection, the shop where I bought it). But the new one still has some little bugs in de display.

see former selection

I play deathmetal grindcore.
I have been playing for 15 years now. I also use a pod pro (not good for metal I think, good for rock). I also use boss pedals, but I keep them more for nostalgic reasons than anything else.
I am thinking of buying the 2120, but I dont know if that is wise, is is much better or similar? Does it have much more options and better sound?
I have made about 9 cd's with the gsp 2101 so it helped me a lot during all the mayhem.

Use the manual! I know so many of you hate manuals. Don't expect to get anywhere with out the manual in this case.

Hear it now! www.gsp2101.noisytoyz.com
You be the judge. The sound samples here are strait out of the XLR to a sound card (Aardvark Q10)with no modifications, EQ or added effects what so ever. This is what the headphones out sounds like as well. I give it a 9 because I just don't have every amp in the world to make the best judgement. I am very happy with this unit and you would have to pry it from my cold dead fingers to get it.

Never a problem in studio or gigs. Sometime I have to power on and off when I make too many paramiter changes. Other than that its fine.
Reboot like windows. :-)

no need.

I have not found anything I would replace it with!
www.gsp2101.noisytoyz.com

for me, the presets weren't usable as is but made for a pretty good starting point-editing takes a little time,but it's not really very hard...i did not need to look at the manual,but i've had a few other of their preamp/processers and this wasn't much different.the routing/mix/foot controller settings(there are many)don't make as much sense to me and can be time consuming-that's the only real PITA about this box...

i got this to replace a stolen RP-10 that i mostly used DI for gigs and some recording-this is used the same way and sounds overall fatter than the RP(i mostly use the tube path when going DI)...the wah is no good,but i never use those anyway. thru an actual guitar amp i don't think it's at it's best(i use regular stomp pedals for that),but it would be good with a power amp/speaker cab setup,i think...

for gigs/recording,mine's been good for about 4 years-i don't always use it,but there hasn't been a problem(i'm pretty careful)...the foot controller is a different story,though-where the cable plugs in is especially flimsy and parts have broken off inside...it still works,but if this is what i always used i'd at least get another controller as a spare.

don't know...

the sounds in this will cover just about anything-it can also be used for other things than guitar,so anyone who can deal with programming/editing patches will be able to get something out of this.if you aren't into tweaking things and/or throw around your gear a bit,get something else...

Programmers heaven. Knob turners nightmare. I prefer programming and I'm still learning new tricks on this thing.

Clean 10
Crunch 8 1/2
Effects 10
In a nut shell its like Van Halen in a box.
Tested on a Dual Mono block rack mount Marshall 9100 Tube amp and 1960A cabs. I can get any sound I want out of this thing, except rectifier. Great EVH Eruption tone.(Major tweeking). The tube distortion is good up to a point, but I would like more crunch and less harshness like Koch Amps. The Solid State Dist is great and I fine my self using it more than tube. Direct outs are cool but no J-Station. The ability to have all my 100 tones/effects in one box and at a touch of a button is indespensible for covering 50 different bands live. Thats where this unit kicks butt.

I use it on gigs without a backup. The only thing I have had wrong is after changing alot of perameters it will lockup and need a power off and on.

Immediate response.

Love it. You can pick up one of these cheap off of Ebay. It also makes a great effects processor for recording vocals etc with Midi switching.

THere is a learning curve to this product. Once you get the jist of it it is pretty simple to use. It is not the most intuitive devise around.

This thing offers a huge variety of sounds! First I should state that i am a bass player. I am using a modulus Quantum 6 and a soundgear 6 fretless bass. I go from either bass into a boss syb-3 synth petal, then into the 2101, to a bbe 482 sonic maximizer, to a carver pm700 poer amp, into a Hartke 4.5 cabinet. I have the version 3.0 upgrade with 2 s-discs. This thing is designed for guitar, but I have been able to get some very cool bass tones out of it. MOst of the time just using a factory patch and killing the distortion yeilds a very usable bass sound. A little tweaking and some really good results can be found. The effects are not to shabby when tweaked. The pre-amp sucks though it is usable. It is a bit noisy even on relatively clean settings. The wah is horrible, but running two wah modules simultaneously with different settings has given me descent results. I do not really use reverb or delay so i will o t comment there. Some really cool distortion can be had although it is a bit noisy. The noise gate will quiete this thing to a dead silence when you are not playing, but I find that while a note is sounding there is a good amount of background crap. The ability to build my own sounds is pretty cool though. The choruses, flangers, and phasers are awesome. THe compressor sucks, but I do not think that it was designed for bass though. I have gotten sounds that sound like a guitar with this thing. People in the next room have been fooled into thinking I was a playing a guitar only to be shocked to find out it was a bass. The bass "sounding" presets that I have made are pretty good, but they took a lot of tweaking. Notice I said good not great. I am going to get a new preamp. I was going to hold on to the 2101 for the effects but now i do not think i will because of reliability issues.

This thing is a huge piece of crap! I am licky if i can go a hole month without having to do a factory reset and lose all of my sounds. When it works like it is supposed to it has some awesome sounds. Unfortunately for me it never does work like it is supposed to work. It has volume shanges for no reason. It crackles and clicks on every setting. This thind is very dependable about breaking down. I gave it a good score on sound based on the sound when it works, which hardley ever. I would never use this for a gig. This thing has been stuck in a rack in a home studio. It does not get jarred or dropped or smacked around in any way. It is protected from all kinds of electrical problems and still it craps out. If I could go back in time I would have just gone with a good preamp and a few pedals and been way happier.

I really have no idea at all how in the hell digitech is still in business. I have sent them my amp twice for service in two and a half years. That is very crappy. tHey kept my amp for a long time and the whole reason that it went in twice is that they sent it back unfixed the first time. I got stuck with the shipping charges. They tecnician with whom I spoke had a very limited grasp of the english language. THey have the worst customer support of anybody I have ever dealt with. I have to say that when i bought the artist upgrade that they sent me an s-disc 2 instead of an s-disc 1, so they sent me another s-disc 2 at no additional charge. That is the only thing that they have done that was nice. They keep telling me to send the unit in for repairs. At the price they charge and the work they do I feel that I am better off doing it myself. They will not milk me for any more cash. Digitech is a joke.

I play every style that I have been exposed to. I have been playing for nine years. I do a lot of original music and ussually in a two-three peice setting so I have to take up a lot of sonic space. That is why I bought it in the first place. I this unit were stolen I feel sorry for the bastard that took it. I have no love at all for this machine or digitech. I would not recomend a digitech product to anyone. A friend of mine warned me agianst getting it but i didn't listen. He has has similar problems with a digitech product, i thought that his was a fluke. NOw I see that this is just digitech in general. THey are a crappy business.

I found the Digitech 2101 somewhat easy to use only because I do have a degree in computer science and am use to writing and compiling computer programs. I understand that as far as a interface the designers did a very good job. However, for my musician friends who are not computer literate, they never get past the canned settings. This is a shame because the 2120 has so much to offer. The GUI is far to difficult for someone who is not use to working with computers.

The Digitech 2102 is the best. The sounds are unbeatable.

So far I've had mine since 1996 and have not experienced any problems.

So far I've not had to deal with the company. I hope they provide good support because musically I use the 2101 for just about everything. If it goes, I'll be dead in the water

I play rock and blues. The Digitech 2101 is a perfect match. In my 30 years of playing, I've owned numerous stomp boxes but none have provided the versatility the 2101 does. If it were stolen I would defiantly buy another. In fact I'm planning on buying a second just as a spare. The only thing I feel is a hindrance is the interface. If there were a way to have pots to hear the change in the sound as they were being turned, instead of programming the changes in, this would be a great improvement. However I understand the technology and realize the difficulty in the request.

I feel like i need a degree to program the thing

For the most part it is a pretty versitile unit if you have the patience to program it. Most of the factory settings are lame, and the few programs that are worth modifying always seem to be missing something. The few programs that i myself have created are not bad, but jusst like any fx unit the distortion is horrible. If you do happen to own, or are thinking about purchasing the unit, I suggest to invest in a quality amp (this means a Marshall, or Boggie half stack). It will save you from countless hours of adjusting levels to find that perfect sound. I use to run this unit through a Marshall JCM 900 head and a Boggie 4x12 cabinet, with either an Ibanez RG 470 with schaller golden 50's, or a PRS custom 24, until i got a lexicon G2,( which i think everyone should do). Now the unit is used by the other guitar player in my band, and he runs it through Fender 2x12, and it sounds o.k, but it really takes a full tube sound to cover up the digital fx.

it is deffinatly reliable. I've had it about four years, and never had a problem with it.

I'll put it to you staight. If my studio was on fire, there would be alot of other things i would grab first.

Stick to the presets or tweak them slightly and it's simple. To program it from scratch is a pain. If I didn't understand signal routing and have 20+ years of computer experience I'm not sure I'd bother. The manual is OK to good.

If you're not comfortable with programming then avoid this unit and consider a 2120 instead. If you're comfortable with programming and want to try lots of crazy combinations of FX and routing then this unit is for you.

I've never seen a better example of the trade-off between power/configurability and ease of use.

I have two 2101s - both upgraded with a second processor and memory board (PPC-210) and version 3.0 software. One unit handles my guitar and bass and the other handles vocal effects for my band.

The 2101 fills both roles very well. The digital effects unit is the same as used in the TSR24 - which was a good mid-range multi-FX box. I feed vocal signals to the 2101 from my mixer mic preamps and compressor. My patches are combinations of reverb, delay, and EQ. The sound is clean, clear, and crisp.

The digital FX unit is definitely the 2101s strong point. There are plenty of good to great effects and a zillion parameters for each. The effects can be chained in any order (even duplicated) and with the second processor you can build some very complex routing configurations. The wah and pitch shifting effects are the only weak spots.

For guitar and bass, there's an analog preamp section with compression, analog EQ, and tube or solid state distortion. The solid state distortions are top notch. The tube distortions are fair to good for guitar, depending on how much time you want to play with the gain and EQ settings.

When the tubes are heavily overdriven there's a tendency for the tone to get harsh and brittle. Careful attention to EQ and exact gain settings can improve things quite a bit but it takes some patience and exact settings vary widely from guitar to guitar. I've tried a couple of different tube combinations but I've never achieved a truly great tube distortion sound. My guess is that weakness lies in the conversion from analog to digital or in the speaker emulation.

For bass, I use single tube distortion with a high gain. Since there's little high end signal being fed to the unit there's no brittle or harsh edge to the tone. The 2101 is a great bass preamp.

For bass and guitar I run the 2101 XLR outputs straight to the mixer with the speaker emulator engaged. I play an old Guild jazz bass and an Alvarez rock 'n roll bass, both with passive pickups. For guitars, I play a Peavey Falcon Custom (strat clone) with Fender Texas Special pickups and a Gibson Les Paul Standard. I've programmed many good sounds for both guitars. I have a few of my patches duplicated for both guitars, with different EQ and tube gain settings. I play mostly 60-80s rock 'n roll.

I bought one unit new in 1989 and the other used in 1996. By '96 I decided that I liked the 2101 enough to play it forever so I bought the second one as a backup. But after several years with no problems I decided I didn't really need a backup and that's when I started using the second unit for vocal FX.

I've had the covers off both units to install the second processor board. I know computer and electronic hardware, and there's nothing inside the case that makes me doubt long term reliability.

There's a web site but it has relatively little to offer for the 2101. The web site does host an email-based user group that's active and has many knowledgeable users. I give Digitech a few points for hosting the user group but no points for the rest of it's on-line support.

From the user group, I've heard many excellent reports on the Digitech service department for 2101 repairs and upgrades.

If my rig was lost or stolen I'd definitely be looking for a used 2101 for guitar/bass

If you're a guitar player considering a unit like this, you must first decide if you're a guitar player that cares about amplifiers and "ultimate" tone. Gearheads who crave ultimate vintage tube sounds will not be happy with this or any other rack mount unit. In the end, they'll always wind up with what they consider to be the "best ever" classic guitar amp miked to the mixer. That's fine as long as you don't mind being stuck with one or two groups of tonal possibilities and lugging heavy gear from gig to gig.

I much prefer getting all of my tone from a portable box that I can plug into anything with minimal tone variation. The 2101 fills that role better than any other box I've tried. With at most a minor tweak to the 2101's global EQ or the EQ on the mixer channel, the tone is the same through a live P.A. as through a studio mixer.

In addition, the 2101 gives you lots of tools and tonal possibilities. What it may lack in achieving some particular utlimate tone it makes up for by being good to great with many different tones and playing styles. That, combined with two rack space portability and solid reliability, has made me a very satisfied customer.

This is not the easiest effects device/preamp to use. A fair number of the presets are great sounding right out of the box, and doing minor tweaks is not that difficult. For me, the problem comes when you want to switch effects within a given patch. The problem is: you can't. You have to select an entirely different algorithm or create one just to change one of the of the digital effects in the chain. Further, there are a lot of menus to scroll through in order to modify stuff. As I work solely in a home studio, the time is not a factor, but the complexity of this unit does make it quite a task to create new sounds, which can be a drag if the muse is hitting you right at that moment. I suppose in a unit with this much flexibility and variety that complexity is unavoidable. As far as the manual goes, it's not that bad, although there are some confusing issues, such as how to set up the Control One pedal board to work with the 2101, that are not well addressed by the manual. I have seen much worse in the way of manuals, however.

I've never heard a better guitar preamp/effects unit. I record direct from the 2101 into the board and I think the sound is quite good that way. Obviously, it doesn't sound exactly like a miked cabinet would, but it makes my life much easier not to have to deal with mics and room acoustics. My recorder is an Akai DPS-12 that does not have XLR inputs (unfortunately), so I record using the headphone output on the 2101, which is hi-fi enough for my purposes--the 1/4" outputs on the 2101 do not include the cabinet emulator, as they are meant to feed a power amp and real cabinets. My sonic ideal is a combination of the guitar sounds of John Petrucci and Frank Zappa--and I can get a pretty decent approximation even direct into the board. I purchased this unit about 7-8 years ago and tried a number of options before that. The 2101 is the first one I ever used that didn't sound sterile and cheezoid going into the board. I will say that the tube sounds don't work as well into the board on high-gain settings as the solid-state distortion section does. But the tube-gain works very well on minimal gain to provide some body and warmth for clean sounds, which tend to be very thin and clinical going direct into the board no matter what sort of preamp is used. The only effect I find weak on the unit is the wah effect. Every other effect is absolutely top-notch. The reverbs and choruses are so good that you could use them as general studio effects for other instruments or entire mixes. Further, the signal path is 100% modifiable--you can program the chain in any order you want, even to inserting multiple versions of the same effect (two choruses, phasers, etc), up to the limits of the 2101's memory capacity. The combinations are mind-boggling and overwhelming, to tell the truth, but any potential Robert Fripps out there would be well advised to seek out one of these units. The variety of sounds this box can create are limited only by the imagination of the user.

I have found the 2101 to be quite reliable over the years. I don't gig, but I have moved several times, and the unit has never let me down. I do wonder if the tubes need replacing after this amount of time (8 years), because I have begun to notice a bit more noise and feedback emanating from the sounds that use the tubes. Obviously, all tubes eventually wear out. As far as gigging without a backup, I suppose an overly careful musician would lug around a backup amp to gigs, but a rack setup would make that difficult, since I doubt the 2101 is any more likely to fail than any other part of the rack setup

Never dealt with the company regarding the 2101. However, their web site doesn't contain any of the software upgrades that I believe were released for the unit over the years. I did contact them once regarding the GSP-5 that I owned before the 2101, and they were helpful regarding that box. Obviously the 2101 is out of production now, so Digitech doesn't have the same incentive to work as hard to satisfy 2101 users in this way than with current or more recent products, but this is expensive, professional quality gear, and I would like to think that Digitech would support its customers with downloads and such more readily. They do have a 2101 user group e-mail list, however, so that helps a bit. Good after-purchase service creates repeat customers, no matter what the product.

I play instrumental jazz/metal fusion. I've been playing for 20 years and currently use Carvin DC127 and Charvel Model 5 guitars, along with an old Fender Squier Stratocaster. In my style of music, I prefer a heavily saturated, but very crisp distorted sound, along with a wide variety of clean sounds. The 2101 is absolutely the perfect box for what I do. There is simply nothing else like it, maybe apart from the successor products that Digitech has made--the 2112 and 2120. I have played a 2101 through a power amp/stereo cabinet setup, and was awed by the sound. I am considering going that route to record better sounding guitar, but I would never willingly part with my 2101--it's the heart of my studio. If it were stolen or broken, I would probably save my $$ to upgrade to the 2120, since that is the current version of the product, although some reviews here indicate that these later incarnations are not as good as the 2101. I can't personally attest to that, though. One thing I really do like about the design of the 2112 and 2120 is the use of multiple knobs to provide quick modification of certain parameters--something the 2101 doesn't have. It's a fiddly thing, for sure.

Ugh... Stick with the presets...your better off, unless you are feeling brave. really, once you get the ball rolling, It's not that difficult, the only thing that I found challenging was the settings for the mixing and delay. I recommend using the manual.

I love this box! I play it through a Fender Roc-Pro 1000 stack and that pile of shit that I call an amp has never sound better! It has an arsenal of effects as well as solid state/Tube distortions. It is highly recommended to pick up the foot controller with it. Great sound, very crunchy distortions, excellent modulation and pitch shifting.

Lets just say it was built in 94' and I bought it used. It still works!

They want 5 freakin' bucks for a manual. For a processor that was around $700 new, they better cough one up.

I play a wide variety of music. I totally dig this box. The only thing that was missing is a tuner, however, Digitech corrected this with the 2120 version. I would definately recommend this product to anyone who wants diversity in their sound! ( IF ANYONE HAS A MANUAL FOR THIS THING, CAN I GET A COPY? Thanks!)

It's not very hard to use. Editing a preset is relatively easy and chances are, if you just want a basic rhythm/lead tone, there is probably a close match already in there. As for creating a patch from scratch ( aka Building Algorithms ) You need the manual and a real good understanding of signal path routing and the effect it has on the sound. You can do literally anything with this thing if you have the imagination and the comprehension. It's not a great unit for beginners to program, but once you figure t out, it's nothing less than amazing...

I use a Music Man Silhouette with EMG pickups, the 2101 ( duh ), a Mesa/Boogie SimulClass 2:Ninety and a Mesa 1x12" cab with a 90 Watt Celestion. First off, I replaced the stock tubes ( Penta ) with Mesa/Boogie 12AX7A's. This made a remarkable difference! Instantly I had double the gain... If you ever heard the 'Death Metal Grind' preset and thought.. "I wish I could get that sound with a nice dynamic tube preamp"...I did! The sounds I get out of this are absolutely great. I have no desire to replace the 2101 and I have had it for nearly 10 years! My rig is absolutely silent. Once you have the Noise Gate settings tweaked, which isn't hard, it's a done deal. The effects are really good. The Choruses and Reverbs are 100% studio quality. The rest of the effects, with the exception of the Pitch Shifter, are very good too, but I rarely use them. The Pitch Shifter sounds like any other... bad. One of the things I like the most is that even the Noise Gate has several parameters to tweak. You can tweak all day if you want. As for diversity, this unit IS a one-size-fits-all. I can get anything from the most brutal Death Metal distortions to the most ambient David Gilmour Clean sounds... even if that means using 2 EQ's, 2 Reverbs, 4 Tap Delays, 4 voice Chorus, Dual Flangers, Phasing, Stereo Auto-panning, Duckers and more all at once!! If you can think to try it, this unit will do any combination of any effects. Overall, the 2101 is a Tone Machine. I get regular comments on my sound...

I have used my 2101 live for a few years and had no problems at all. Used with the Control One, it's as reliable and convenient as anything could get! Occasionally during long periods of experimenting with writting whacky algorithms it has locked up on me, but all I had to do was turn it off and back on. It's probably for the better, since I may have never left the room....

I never had to use thier service dept, but of all the other 2101 owners I know, they have all had good experiences. Apparently the techs at Digitech love these things as much as any 2101 owner loves his 2101. From what I hear they love the chance to work on them.

This thing is great for any kind/style of music. I play mainly Thrash/Death Metal, but I know an accomplished Jazz who loves his too. Just check out the names of the presets and you'll see that it has one for virtually ever conceiveable kind of music. I have been playing for 12 years or more now and i have only heard one preamp that sounded better than the 2101...The Mesa/Boogie Triaxis of course. Of all the other 'All-in-one' boxes from ART, Roland, Boss, Rocktron, Yamaha, etc... none match the 2101 in capability or tone. If it were stolen or destroyed, I would definitely replace it with another. The only thing I would want different would be maybe to get the Chrome faceplate version with the Artist upgrade. The only thing I don't like about it is that in a live situation, it's kind of hard to make quick adjustments. There are no knobs for EQ or anything. It has 3 Quick Keys, which are just shortcuts to any parameter you want, but knobs would be nice for Lows/Mids/Treble/Presence. Oh well it had to have one flaw, right? I checked out litereally everything I could find from $3000 to $30 and nothing really compares. The ART SGX 2000 is close, but it's noisier and has real shitty distortions IMHO. Playing with parameters can be rather addictive, but the inspiration it incites to play usually overpowers this...

it is like programing a f*cken rocket

i play black metal and death metal it sounds good you have to tweak for a long time tho i am useing a crown 2000 watt power amp and jbl dual 15 in moniters i use two of those. this sounds good enough to play any thing you want i have played for only 3 years and have gone farther than most will ever go in guitar playing i have taken this to metal fest and i got signed with century media wile i was their and i used the gsp 2101 .

works fine i have used it with out a back up

have not have to use any support yet.

i play in a black metal band called moonspell i have used $8000 esp effects processers this unit i recommend for any one that likes to play metal. the effects are good enough its the use of good talent and a good setup that will make it sound good

Stick to the presets and it's a 10. Tweak the presets, and it's a 9. Try to create a new effects chain from scratch, and it's a 3. I can get usually get what I need by tweaking the presets, so I have no complaints.

Well....you could spend about a zillion bucks on each of the individual effects, and everything would sound better....but the 2101's effects are way more than adequate for a mult-FX box. I'd give the sound quality an 8, but coupled with the fact that you change EVERYTHING with the tap of a toe, I'd give it a 10+.

For the guitar, I have a BBE 461 in the effects loop, and usually output in mono, plugging the left/mono out straight into the power amp in jack (bypassing the preamp) of a Fender Super 60, and then put a Marshall Power Brake between the power amp and the speaker. I ALWAYS use the 2101's tubes, and NEVER use the "distortion" effects. What can be accomplished with those two 12AX7s is truly amazing. This is a full-tube setup, and sounds better than any tube amp I've ever used. In the studio or for bigger gigs, I'll hook up a second tube amp (usually another Fender), the same way, and it sounds incredible.

I do a lot of Cubase recording, and the 2101 sounds weak when plugged direct into the board, so I got a Line 6 Pod, for that, and am using the 2101 as a vocal processor....which it does EXTREMELY well. You'd have to look far and wide to find a box which can be a tube preamp, a compressor, and a quality reverb unit...especially for the price that these things can be gotten for on Ebay.

I've had mine since the summer of 1994, and have rehearsed, gigged, and recorded with it without a SINGLE problem. The original tubes are still in there. The continuous controller on the pedalboard died, but that was a simple matter of replacing a diode.....so no complaints here.

N/A....no problems means no support issues.

When I bought this thing, it was advertised as the state-of-the-art, do-it-all preamp, multi-effects unit....and that's EXACTLY what it turned out to be. 5.5 years later, I'm thinking of buying a 2120, and keeping the 2101 as a full-time vocal processor.

You could spend thousands and thousands putting together a better sounding rig, but it would be a bitch to cart around and and you wouldn't stand a prayer of a chance of swithing all those devices in the half-second between the verse and chorus. This thing does it all.