DigiTech GNX3

It was relatively easy to get the sound that I was looking for. The presets are ok, but I would never use them. They worked good as a starting point to get what I wanted. The manual wasn't bad, it helped in the recording aspect.

The sound quality is actually pretty good. I used this unit with a Gibson SG and a Marshall AVT150. It actually got rid of some of the noise between the guitar and amp.

For gigging this unit is UNACCEPTABLE! There is a lag time between effect switches which, for me, poses a huge problem. Even going from clean to distortion skips a beat unless I use the bypass to get my clean.

Overall Rating: Unacceptable

ebay purchase it is not easy to use at all it is complicated touchy feed back clipping steady i didnt even get into editing patches because i quickly realized that this thing is not for me the manual is a manual the guys that write it are probabbly office clerks or something so its not their fault

i don't think digitech thought about sound quality when they designed this piece of *** it seems to me the goal was to put as many bells and whistles as possible in it and it does have plenty of those too bad the one whistle needed most was overlooked....that being tone. and what is the big deal with this amp modelling crap i dont get it if you dont like the sound of your amp god damnit buy a new one why would i want a peddle to destroy the tone of my hughes and kettner tube50 seems kinda stupid to me amp modelling who needs it

seems pretty sturdy dont spill beer on it and it would last forever i bet but it is still scrap

what's that

over all it is scrap the effects are good if you have 6 years to edit them to where they sound good the digital recorder is marginal the drum beats are a joke i play anything from abba to zz top and this unit does not do a thing for me the tone is extremely terrible it destroys your tone completely i highly recommend staying away from this pile of digital crap buy yourself a good amp and a couple of good stomp boxes or better yet plug straight in and play from the heart!!!!

It is not very easy to use the buttons are complikated and they feel a little out of place and not very ergonomic. The editing patches aren't very good for what I expected its perforamance. The manual has tons of speeling errros and doesn't help me with my problems.

I am using a '57 Gibson Les Paul (replica), I used a Cube 50 with it. I think it is a little noisy and not very helpfull. I think on all settings it is a little noisay and archaeic. The effects aren't as good as I thought they would be but are ok for beginners in my opinion. I get the sounds of artists like Pete Townshed, and Jimi Hendrix, along with a little Jimmy Page. I think both distortion and Chorus are very bad.

I have gone through a few and I don't really trust it as much as I would like to. I would never use it on a gig without backup, thats not very reliabul.

I called once and got a person who you could tell was obviously not very good at english but friendly, but also didn't really help me with the problem because of his spotty english.

I think for the price it should bw better. I think it would be okay if someone never heard a guitar before, it would amaze them but it stands far away from amaxing me. I personally think it was a waste of money but they tried and failed in building it. I think it can be fun sometimes.

I bought my GNX3 new in January 2006, with firmware version 1.5

After hearing so many horror stories about difficulty editing the GNX3 I was concerned. But it was actually quite intuitive and easy to edit. I found the Korg AX3000G to be much more difficult to edit. But everything on the GNX3 is laid out clearly and logically. Just use the arrow buttons to choose your amp/cabinet/effect, then use the knobs to adjust parameters according to the chart beneath them. Of course there's a learning curve--what's wrong with learning? That's the price you pay for having so many features in one device! The manual seems pretty comprehensive, and I've found it helpful.

I highly recommend using the included GenEdit software to adjust all parameters and hear the results in real-time. The recording/looping/drum machine functions might require the manual to figure out, but they're still not difficult to learn. The only real difficulties I had without the manual was figuring out how to switch among presets again after you're in editing mode, and how to store modified presets. But once you figure it out, you know it forever.

I haven't delved into recording, looping or the drum machine too much yet. But my computer immediately recognized the GNX3 via MIDI, so I could use the GenEdit software easily. It was easy to figure out how to turn on the drum machine and switch styles, and this certainly helps the creative process. However, I don't think you can upload your own MIDI drum files to play along with your own grooves (I may be wrong). I would like to have this feature, but the JamAlong input (1/8") allows you to add external music to play along with.

The recorder looks fairly simple to use, except that there is only 16MB of onboard memory (3 track minutes of recording time). The GNX3's worst flaw is that it uses SmartMedia, which is the digital equivalent of 8-track tape. What was Digitech thinking? The SmartCard must be removed and used with a card reader to access contents on your computer. The other major flaws are no USB, and no mic preamp phantom power. The GNX4 corrects these flaws, but I don't see how that comes close to justifying the $200 price difference, since they ultimately sound the same. As a portable multiFX unit and "scratch pad" recorder that can be output (analog or S/PDIF digital) to a computer interface, the GNX3 serves me just fine.

I haven't used the JamMan feature yet, but I do plan to get a lot of use out of it if it works well. JamMan is one reason I chose this pedal over the GNX3000.

Other nice features are an On/Off power switch (the Korg AX3000G didn't have one), an XLR ejection button, large level knobs on the back panel, and a very rugged medal case. I did like the expression pedal action on the Korg AX3000G better, but there is nothing wrong with the GNX3's expression pedal. The power supply is an extremely large and heavy affair, but it's rugged enough to travel with the pedal. Replacement power supplies currently retail for around $40, which is about twice the price they should cost. Shame on Digitech for nickle & diming their own customers.

One thing I wish it came with is a gig bag, or even a metal snap-on cover. Without an optional case ($25 and up), this is an awkward device to store and transport.

I'm using an Ibanez guitar/Yamaha Bass >> GNX3 >> headphones/Roland Microcube amp/Presonus Firebox computer interface.

"Great tone" is highly subjective, but I'm very impressed with the range and versatility of tones available here. I especially love the Big Muff Pi fuzzbox model, which is good enough to save me $80 on a Big Muff pedal. The Arbiter Fuzz model ain't bad either. The Wah may not be as good as a separate pedal, but it's good enough considering its integration along with so many other effects in one box. Clean tones with subtle modulation (e.g., Pink Floyd) sound *fantastic*!

I dialed in some Led Zeppelin and Rush tones fairly easily, and grabbed several awesome Pink Floyd tones from the Digitech website community. The website also provided me with acceptable tones for Badfinger, the Beatles, Boston, Cake, Deep Purple and more artists. This pedal is truly versatile, and great-sounding to me. I've never seen so much tone-shaping capability in one box. People who complain about the GNX3's tone probably think they could rewrite Shakespeare better also. There's always room for improvement in anything, but for the price I can't imagine doing better than the sound you get from the GNX3. I say this noting that my traditional opinion of Digitech is that their products sound "way too digital" for my tastes. That's not the case with the GNX3.

The ability to warp amp/cabinet models into hypermodels (and to warp the hypermodels as well), opens to the door to limitless possibilities. The warp feature alone should impress anyone.

Also, the GNX3 is very quiet. No perceptible hum or noise at the settings I've been using. I'm impressed by that as well.

I bought the GNX3 along with a Korg AX3000G to test them head-to-head. The Korg model was plagued with quality problems from the instant I turned it on. The Digitech has worked smoothly for me since I bought it two days ago. No glitches at all, except for the usual switching sounds when changing presets. The case is built like a tank. I'm concerned about how long the stomp buttons and expression pedal will last, but that's psychological. They've worked just fine so far.

At this point, I will use it without backup for gigging until it gives me a reason to bring a backup. But then again, I'm a drummer, so my guitar gigging is limited to open-mic nights!

Haven't had a need to contact them yet, but the customer service "vibe" I get from Digitech is not very positive.

Among other things, you must register the product within 10 days of purchase to validate the warranty, and that's an abominable practice in my opinion. Any company should fix a defective product when the defect is shipped with the unit, even if the defect doesn't reveal itself for years. Registering with companies only gives them the ability to sell your personal information at a profit (or to have it stolen from their databases), "privacy" policies notwithstanding. The "warranty registration card" requests such irrelevant information as your employer, job title, email address and fax number. What on earth does that have to do with them replacing a chip that they installed incorrectly? It's shameful.

The Digitech website is both good and bad. It's confusing, inconsistent, difficult to navigate, and there is vastly more information about some products than others. But once you finally locate the GNX3 community, you'll find hundreds of presets and other good stuff to make the GNX3 even more fun and useful for you. The good news is that you don't have to register to download the user presets.

Finally, I think Digitech's pricing should fall under "customer service", and it's inexcusable that they charge $200 more for the GNX4, considering the modest improvements it contains over the GNX3.

I play classic Rock & Roll (from the Yardbirds to full-on distortion and fuzz), progressive rock, some heavy metal, and some acoustic music. I'm also working on an independent film soundtrack. I'm using the GNX3 mainly for recording on the computer, but also for playing live at open-mic nights. I'm a drummer mainly, but have also played guitar for 20 years. I also own a Line 6 Guitar Port, which is comparable to the GNX3 in terms of tone-shaping capability. But the Guitar Port is not portable, and I don't like Line 6's corporate attitude, so I didn't even consider the POD XT Live.

Neither of the two Korg AX3000G's I tested worked properly, so Korg has some quality issues to work out. But from what I could tell the AX3000G would complement, rather than replace the GNX3, because the Korg unit is more geared toward special effects/guitar synth sounds, and it has absolutely no onboard recording/drum machine functions.

The GNX3's 65 factory presets are basically a showcase for the amps, cabinets, and effects. They are not usable in the real world. That's why some reviewers say the presets are great, and others say they suck--they sound good enough, but they're unusable in practice. And you can't overwrite them.... The unit comes with the factory presets duplicated in 65 user presets, which you can modify and store.

I'm not at all satisfied with only 65 user presets, and the inability to overwrite factory presets. The presets are only 2.5KB in size, after all (smaller than the file size of this review text!). So that means only 162KB is devoted to presets (Yes, you read that right--roughly the size of a Commodore 64's memory back in 1981). Unfortunately, all the multiFX boards I researched have only a limited number of user presets. The engineers who design these things must still wear digital watches and listen to Frankie Goes To Hollywood on their car cassette players. GET WITH THE 21st CENTURY, DIGITECH!!! There is no good reason we should have to upload and download presets to a computer just because you limited us to a measely 65 user presets.

What I love about the GNX3 is that it's just so easy to plug in and get a great variety of nice-sounding tones, and to get creative by playing along with the drum machine. I also love the PC editing capability. The only thing I truly *hate* about it is that it uses SmartMedia rather than Compact Flash (I already own several GB's worth of Compact Flash, but what kind of dinosaur owns high-capacity SmartMedia?).

Otherwise, it's one of those rare occasions where I'm genuinely happy with a product, at the price I paid for it ($235).

If it were lost, I'd cry. If it were stolen, I'd get mean mad. If I had the cash available, I'd definitely replace it--unless digitech lowers the price of the GNX4. But I'd never pay $200 extra for the GNX4.

Finally, here's an interesting revelation: If Digitech had included the ability to load and unload presets from a computer, I might very well have gone with something from the RP series instead. I really didn't need such a huge and heavy pedal, but I did need the ability to backup and retrieve presets. Many of you are gigging guitarists, however, so the GNX3 is probably the better choice for you.

I spent a *LOT* of time researching and testing guitar multiFX boards, so I hope this review makes it easier for you to decide!

This processor has a lot of sounds, but require A LOT of tweaking to get just the right one. Editing the patches is so hard to do and requires so much expensive software, the I try to avoid it. The mannual for this product has no index, is not catigorized, and has some gross spelling and grammer errors. Basicly, therer is no mannual.

I use a washburn X-50 and a fender '72 thinline through a roland cube 60(most of the time). The distortion sounds are a little fuzzy, but overall pretty good. The other effects are GREAT! Absolutley. I actually got my guiars to talk! It takes some time, but I can get the identical sounds of Alvin Lee, David Gilmore, Jerry Garcia, Pete Townshed, and Robbie Robertson. All effects - very good.

I got it used over a year ago and it hasn't failed me yet.

Have not dealt with

Only bad thing - WHY IS THERE ONLY 24 MINUTES FOR RECORDING? IF I AM WRITING, I CAN GO FOR ANHOUR! PLEASE MAKE BIGGER MEGABITE SMART CARDS!

It really depends on how good "good" sound is to you. If you are a "purist", you will probably hate this pedal. Go drop $4000 on a Marshall or Mesa Boogie, plug in and go. I have had mine for over a year now and I absolutely love it. Every soundman my band plays for ALWAYS comments on how great my sound is. I must add that I have spent a great deal of time tweaking EVERY possible parameter of EVERY sound. I enjoy that processors offer great amounts of creativity and flexibility over just a standard amp. Sound is 10 for those willing to dig in, 6 for the lazies. Editing patches can be overwhelming, I like to set up two or three identical patches and try different things with each. Editing is 8, I still have trouble remembering how to get through the amp settings. Lazies will be buried by the depth and give this a 5. The manual has answered every question I have sought. The firmware version is 1.5.

Sound is 10. I give it that rating because I have put in the time to get a great sound out of it. The editing seems endless and I can't believe there is NO way to eventually satisfy your ears with this thing. I run it straight through a direct box to the mixer!!!!!! ALWAYS! No feedback issues for this guitarist! I love going to a gig with just my gnx3 and my guitar case, and blowing the freakin' doors off the place. Maybe Digitech would like to sponsor us? Hint, hint. Stop laughing. No noise issues on HEAVY distortion or acoustic settings (put in the time people!) I don't worry about sounding like anyone else, do you really think there is any true original sound anymore? No, you will always sound "like" someone, the best thing to do is find the sound that makes you want to keep playing.

I have depended on it for a year and a half now. Gigs, practices, jams, and I got it used so who knows what the hell? I will never use anything but Digitech processing as long as I am playing.

Have not dealt with Digitech in any way, shape, or form. They have a great sound community on their website and I am always surprised at how often the Digi"techs" reply in the threads. I'll give it a "no opinion" only based on the fact that I have not contacted anyone directly.

I am the founder of "honeybunches Of DEATH", we are a HEAVY/Rockin'/Comedy/Metal band in Colorado. Our website is www.honeybunchesofdeath.com. We have only been together for one year and only practice on Fridays for 2-3 hours. This unit is a PERFECT match for my music because I refuse to set creative limits (other than my own lack of technique/knowledge/talent!). When inspiration strikes, all bets are off! If it was stolen, I would find the person responsible and feed him/her/it feet-first into a wood chipper in front of their family on Christmas Day! Then write a song about it, a tell-all book, movie of the week, which would all include 80% hysterical laughter. I own a faded brown Gibson SG and a Takamine Explorer GX100B. I wish I had a GNX4 because...

MY ONLY BEEF WITH DIGITECH IS...

HOW THE HELL CAN I GET RID OF THIS F%$#^#$ SMART MEDIA? 24 MINUTES? THAT'S IT! WHEN I'M WRITING, I CAN GO FOR AT LEAST AN HOUR! PLEASE, OH PRETTY F&*%*&^ PLEASE DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS LIMITATION! I WOULD GLADLY PAY 50-75 BUCKS TO UPGRADE THIS THING TO COMPACT FLASH OR WHATEVER. ANYTHING BUT 128 STINKING MEGAF$#%#$ BYTES! I LOVE TO TAKE THE SOUND OFF OF OUR BOARD AT PRACTICE AND PUT IT IN THE "JAM ALONG" CONNECTION! ANY GUESS AS TO WHETHER OR NOT OUR SET IS LONGER THAN 24 MINUTES? ANY GUESS AT ALL? COME ON, I'LL BE NICE? GUESS RIGHT NOW BEFORE SOMEONE DIES????

yes, it is.

Please send help!

First off, I'm not a professional musician, and have basically no experience with the various amps and effects the GNX3 emulates, so my opinion may be worth what you paid for it.

My GNX3 is running firmware 1.5.

It's pretty simple to get good sounds from this unit. Editing patches is pretty straightforward, but I do have one issue: The parameter knobs used to change the effects settings can be a pain to use when selecting among 100 different options (such as "mod level" 0-99), because they are just pots and have no "jog" or "go to the next value and stop" option. That problem is mitigated by the fact that in most cases, as soon as you touch a parameter knob, the "Data Wheel" becomes active and lets you edit the same parameter, and the Data Wheel DOES permit jog editing. However, for some bizarre reason there are a number of parameters that CAN'T be edited with the Data Wheel.

The digital 8-track is extremely easy to use, both for loops and songs. However, it is not possible to bounce loops (combine multiple loop tracks onto a single empty track), which is kind of annoying. Also, the looper can only be used on the "CD quality" sample setting, which means you have a pretty limited amount of loop space available unless you invest in a SmartMedia card.

The manual is pretty good, not great. I'd definitely recommend reading it, but once you've done that, exploring the machine is the best way to get comfortable with it.

My setup is: Schecter C1-E/A->GNX3->pair of Marshall MG10 amps. I also have a Strat clone (Aria Diamond) that I play through the same chain.

In general, the GNX3 sounds really good. Since I'm a home musician, I don't get much chance to crank everything all the way up and blow the windows out, but at the timid volumes I usually play at, most of the effects and amp models sound great.

I do have one serious problem with the GNX3: the Pitch Shift functions are junk. It actually has two pitch shifters, one in the "Chorus/Mod" module and one in the "Whammy" module. The two shifters have different problems:

* The Whammy shifter sounds horrible when chords are played though it. I find that strange, since I also have an RP-80 that allegedly uses the same DSP hardware, and the RP-80's whammy/pitch shifter sounds fantastic with chords.

* The chorus/mod shifter sounds great with chords -- in fact it sounds just like the RP-80's. However, the problem here is that if you assign the pitch value to the expression pedal, the unit produces noticable noise (pops) when shifting the pitch using the expression pedal. (You can also here the same pops when adjusting the pitch via the parameter knobs.) The result is that when you hit the pedal during a performance, you get a huge ugly CRACKLE in the middle of your song.

I actually sent my GNX3 back to Digitech a week after I got it, and explained these problems. The official response: "The unit is working as designed." I think this really sucks, since I REALLY like using the pitch shift on the RP-80, but the rest of the GNX3's sounds are good enough that I'm going to keep it.

It looks like I could run over it with my truck and not hurt it, but I'm not going to try it.

They were responsive and easy to talk to, but didn't address my problem, so I'll damn them with faint praise.

I've been playing on and off for 15 years, but only recently began to really take it seriously. I play pop, rock and blues mostly. If it were stolen I'd be pretty angry, and would probably check out a GNX4 to see if that more-expensive unit has the same whammy issues the GNX3 does.

I was looking at the Boss LoopStation XL, since mainly what I wanted was a looper/digital recorder. For approximately the same price, I got most of the LoopStation's features, as well as amp modelling and a comprehensive set of effects.

I wish I could run multiple chorus/mod effects at the same time.

The factory preset efect are very good. If your like me you like to edit your own effect and I found that it is very easy to get the sound you want by creating you own effects (up to 65 effect and i think 9 custom amp settings). The manual is very helpful especially when your figuring out the recording part.

I've used several different guitars with this board and the all sound good. However my acoustic guitar does not work very good with the GN3. I've used this with my Fender acoustasonic 30 amp and my Fender 15watt practice amp it sound great on my 15watter. It sound great on my acoustic amp but only at lower volume, but thats due to the amp. All of the effects sound good. Some of the effects do cut out here and there but I think that do to the noise gate option on the effect. You can get some great distortion for any style of music. Its got some great metal and hard rock distortions.

I bought this used so i dont know how old it is and i have never had any problem except for adaptor keeps shorting. Other than that it has been perfect. Would think about using a backup it would just be a waste of money.

Never dealt with.

I play just about every style ranging from folk to hard rock. I have been playing for 4 years. I also own a Boss flanger pedal and a Boss distortion pedal. I get much better distortion from the GNX3 than i could ever get from the Boss distortion. If it were stolen I probably could not afford a new one but I definently would want to buy one. I defenintly help me play an hard rock. And its got some unique effect that help with new age music.

Definately needed to scan the user's manual but once you figure out a few of the basics, it's easy enough to use. I haven't figured out the 8 track recorder yet though and I do consider myself as smart as the next guy. I've used computed based recording software, ADAT, etc. I think it is better layed out for deep level editing than my VAMP or J-Station, but still better done from the PC than from the unit itself.

I've also got a Johnson J-Station & Berhinger VAMP-2. It sounds better than both, particulary when played direct. The Berhinger is a distant 3rd. Nice pedal selection, including the Voodoo Labs Sparkle drive, Big Muff Pi, & Ibenez TS-7, among others.

haven't had it long enough to have much of an opinion yet. But looks rugged enough, steel construction, definately more solid than my VAMP which is 99% plastic (of course, it was only $100 too!)

Really good web page, haven't gotten with folks on the phone or anything.

I play mostly rock & blues, guitar, drums, & blues harp. Both my olders sons & I play an assortment of fender & gibson guitars through mostly fender tube amps. I like it better than my J-Station or VAMP although in all fairness, it did cost almost 3 times as much. It is very flexible & much more "tweekable" than either of my other units.

This is a complex unit but Digitech did a good job as far as ease of programming. If you're used to stompboxes, it might seem complex but if you've programmed processors, it will be no problem.

I'm not usually a big fan of digital processors, but this is the best I have tried. It sounds more realistic than any of the Boss processors. I recently tried a Boss GS-10 and thought it sounded terrible, nearly impossible to get a good sound out of. The GNX3 has much better, more usable sounds. The Boss is lifeless compared to this unit. It also works great for direct recording. I sold my Pod 2.0 when I purchased this. It works great in the studio and live.

My power supply died after about 14 months. I figured no big deal, I'll just order another from Digitech. They wanted $50.00 for a replacement power supply!!! It sounds like planned obsolecence to me. I'm so pissed off, I'll probably sell this on Ebay and try the Vox Valvetronix. I've had great luck with Vox/Korg in the past, and their Valvestate stuff sounds great.

I have to dock Digitech major points here because $50.00 is just a rip-off for a power supply. A while back, my Godlyke Power-All started getting noisy. I called Godlyke, and they sent me a replacement; no questions asked!! I will always buy Godlyke stuff in the future, but I'm done with Digitech. I paid $350 for my GNX3 at Guitar Center, I can't imagine why the power supply should be $50.00!! Total hose-job!!!

This is a good-sounding unit. I see that they've dropped to $300 at Zzounds, which is a good deal. Just be ready to drop another $50.00 on a power supply as soon as the warranty runs out. Luckily mine died at rehearsal, not a gig. Do not gig with this unless you have a backup power supply!!!!

I was thinking about picking up a GNX4, but Digitech has lost me as a customer for life!