DigiTech BP-8 Bass Processor

Moving around the pre-sets is as simple as anything. Having been shown how to use other multi-effects pedals by friends and in shops, I found it pretty easy to start messing around with the factory settings, which is something I did pretty soon after getting the pedal as most of them are either poor or over the top (this seems to be a problem with most multi-effects). The manual is easy to understand, but doesn't go into nearly enough detail, and it sometimes takes a bit of experimenting to find out what each setting for each effect actually does.

I use an Ibanez SR885 5-string,usually through a Fender BX300C 300-watt combo, though I often have to use other peoples amps live (it depends which band is supplying them). Before I bought the Digitech, I had a Boss bass overdrive pedal and a DOD stereo flanger. When I first got it,I tried to re-create the sounds I'd been getting from my old pedals, and ran into a couple of problems. Firstly, I wasn't too impressed by the distortion sounds on the Digitech. The 'dark' distortion just wasn't dark and nasty enough for my tastes, and the saturated and overdriven sounds weren't clear or distinct enough. However, after playing around with the EQ and gain levels for ages, I managed to get some satisfying sounds with all 3 distortions, and with my Boss turned on as well things sound better than ever. I also found the flanger sounded quite different from my DOD pedal, a little more electronic, but again with plenty of fiddling I got the sound I wanted. I can also use the other Modulation effects (chorus, phaser, envelope filter etc.,all of which sound good) instead of just flanger all the time, which was getting pretty boring. I was most impressed by the tube amp sounds which make my clean sound a lot fatter and warmer when I want it to be, though the pitchshifter and octabass effects are a little disappointing. Perhaps it's because I'm downtuned a step, but I can hardly here the octabass unless i'm playing above the 12th fret on my top 2 strings. There are a lot of effects available on this pedal, and almost all of them can be made to sound excellent, it just takes a little experimentation to get the best out of them.

The metal casing makes this pedal seem pretty sturdy, although i sometimes worry about dropping it and the vacuum tube breaking. It gets pretty hot when it's turned on, but this doesn't seem to matter. The bank pedals also feel a bit like you could kick them off if you really tried, but I've had no real problems in the couple of months i've had it. The only trouble i've had is accidentaly turning myself off with the expression pedal on volume control, but i've learned my lesson now.

I've never had to deal directly with the company so far. You get a warranty card which you have to send of within 10 days of purchase/receipt, but the card and all of the warranty statements all seem geared towards American customers,so I wasn't sure whether they'd all apply to me (a UK customer). There is a kind of helpdesk on the DigitechUS web-site, but i'm not sure how often it's updated.

I play in a pretty heavy band, but I'm not necessarily going for a classic metal sound. If I was I think I'd be disappointed with the Digitech, considering it's price, because of relatively poor distortion sounds. As it is, I like to experiment and vary my sound for different songs, and this pedal allows me to do that. The Digitech has more effects than the other pedals I have tried (Boss, Korg, Zoom), and on the whole I prefer the sounds it makes. You can make some outlandish noises with it if you really want to, but the individual effects on their own can also be extremely effective. I have used it live, and felt comfortable using it straight away, before the end of the first song. It is more expensive than the competition, but I knew that if I went for one of the cheaper pedals it would be a compromise rather than a decision.

This thing SUX. I highly recommend buying a different unit for this price. The delay and the modulator isn't that good but the reverb and the expression pedal is pretty good. The manual sucks even more than the pedal, because its too hard to understand!

I have an Ibanez EDC 705 Ergodyne Bass (5 strings!) and thie sound quality is very poor. My friend has the ZOOM bass pedal and that thing only costs $100 and that thing sounds better. But the compressor and the reverb are very good.

Well I have had my thing for about 5 weeks, but the only reason I kept it was because I hoped that i'd get used to it and like it. But it hasn't broken yet. Its very solid.

Don't know.

Like I said, this thing has a few good features, but has more bad features than good. This thing is far too overpriced for what it is. I play the heavy rock. From Sound Garden to Primus (the bassist from Primus is awesome!!). This thing isn't very good for the price or for the sound quality.

It's very easy to use, as you'll see in other digitech comments, their matrix is quick to learn and makes it really easy to modify effects. Also, the set-up of the foot pedals makes it quite easy to switch between effects during a song. However, it's not perfectly easy because the manual leaves something to be desired. It tells you the basics, but this thing does a ton of stuff, much of which many people like myself are not familiar with. I think digitech expects that you'll just play around to get the sound you want. Once again playing around is easy, and that's what I've done. There is just so much on this thing though that it took me about three months to get completely comfortable with all the functions and memorize my programs. The best way to organise I've come up with is to put a single effect on each bank (i.e. envelope filters or phasers) and then have standard variations (i.e. number 1 is always the standard, #2 cleaner, #3 trippier, etc.)

Alright, I'm not using the best equipment with this thing. I've got a Peavey split-coil bass (P-style pick up) and a no name Gibson-style single coil bass (J-style pick up) going into a Peavey basic 60 bass amp and a Peavey Rage guitar amp (I only turn the guitar amp on for stereo effects). But, this thing makes my stuff sound great!!! I'm sounding good even on mediocre equipment thanks to the BP-8. Some effects have noise, of course, but it's got a good noise gate (and a notch filter) on it, and even without the noise gate it's quiter than D.O.D. or BOSS pedals , and quiter than all the other multi-effects I've played with. Alot of this is probably because this thing is designed for Bass (and believe me bass players don't mess with anything else-it's amazing the difference when you switch to a processor made for your instrument) Generally the sounds are extremely smooth and nice, also you can layer a lot of 'em on without making it too muddy. Features: This thing has features out the wazoo!! Everything you'll possibly need is here. It's got Bass synthesizers, single and multi-tap delays, tons of reverbs, tube and solid state distortion, noise gate, compression, equilizer, Wah-Wah (these are really good), Phaser (Good, but I still like BOSS superphaser more), Envelope Filters (a ton and all of 'em excellent), Tremolo, Chorus, Flanger (this is also really good), autopanner, pitch shifter, whammy, you name it, this thing can do it. It even has an effect that emulates the sound of bowing on a contrabass (surprising good). And, they all sound really good. I play funk (including slap-bass) and trippy bass and usually take the lead in my band (Guitarists don't always have to be in the spotlight). This is great for soloing out or laying down a groovy rhythm, also the built in expression pedal can be linked to most of the parameters (not just wah-wah) to let you modify your effects on the fly. I have been able to replicate many sounds from Phish, Ekoostik Hookah, Sly & the Family Stone, & P-Funk. The one warning I have to give is that if you don't have the noise gate set just right it can cut off your sound, with experience this problems dissappears. I use the sound modulation stuff heavily, but I don't use the distortion much. I just don't like distorted bass, from what I can tell it's good, and I'm very happy with the tube pre-amp stuff, but I never play metal, so I'm probably not the best person to rate the distortions. In the end, this has been an absolute delight sound-quality wise. It sounds better than any of my pedals and much better than the rack-units I have tried. Hands down the best of the multi-effects I've seen. Bass players should jump at this thing. There are so few good bass effects out there. This one sounds great, does everything you can imagine, and is fairly affordable.

I have no money for a back up, so yes I would use it on a gig without a backup. It's been extremely reliable so far. No ploblems at all. It's made of metal and is much sturdier than almost any other multi-effect I've seen (which are often plastic), including the wah-wah (much more reliable than a cry-baby). Seems tough, but just to be safe I don't pound on it or drop it or anything like that. As I've said I got no money to replace it, so somebody else can perform those tests

Never dealt with them, but watch out, You've got to send in the registration within 10 days of purchase (or receipt if mail order) for your Warranty to take effect. I didn't read this part of the manual until about day 8 and almost lost my warranty. I've heard they're okay to deal with

I compared this to the tec8, the Korg multi-effects, all the Alesis & Lexicon rack-mounts, Zoom crap, DOD Boss & Ibanez pedals, and this was far and away the best I've seen for the price. I researched for about 2 months before buying it, as far as I could tell this is the best value for bass players on the market. Surf the net for the best price - get quotes. I know the place I got mine from still sells them this cheap (List is $550.00, I got mine new for less than 1/2 that). If it was stolen I'd buy it again as soon as I could scrape the money together. I love mine. For better info., download the manual off of www. digitech.com I'd be interested in trading patches for this with people, please don't ask me questions though (only useful e-mail please)