DigiTech GSP-21 Legend

I have owned my Legend since it was first released way back when and just bought another one on eBay as a backup. This review is for those die-hard Legend users that wanna know how to move patches from one unit to the other and how to back up their patch libraries... read on.

Although there are software packages for editing and backup, the easiest backup for a Legend is another one of the same version; the cost is easily equal to or even less than any software, and you have a whole 'nother unit to plug and play if things go wrong on the day of that important gig!

In the following instructions, the unit that sends midi data is the "source" and the unit that recieves midi data is the "destination."

To move patches from the source Legend to another destination Legend:
1) Before connecting midi cables, use the utility>midi setup>midi channel menu to set both legends to the same channel for midi xmit/receive. I used channel 1.

2) turn both units off.

3) use a midi cable to connect "midi out" of the source legend to "midi in" of the destination legend.

4) turn both units on

5) change patches on the source legend; the destination legend should change to whatever patch number you call up on the source legend. It doesn't matter whether you use the foot controller or the front panel controls to do this.

6) test your setup by moving a single patch from the source legend to the destination legend. To do so, use the utility>midi setup>"send patch x as x" menu item. Try this a few times using different patches. After I did it three times, i was convinced that things were working correctly.

7) to send everything (all your patches and foot controller mappings) from the source legend to the destination legend, use the utility>midisetup>"dump all data" menu item.

This worked like a charm. It took only a few seconds to back up all the patches I spent so many years tweaking...

At the time I bought the Legend, it was the first multi-efx unit that had a good-sounding distortion. All the predecessors sounded awful. I stopped shopping after I bought the legend, so can't really comment on successors, but I will say that when I've heard other players use the 2101 I thought that sounded good too.

Now... the Legend sounds great but its only about 90 percent of what I want on its own. When you combine it with a good tube amp, the sound is better than either on their own. I have used it with four different amps: 30W tweed Fender Blues Deluxe reissue, 60W tweed Fender Blues DeVille reissue, 60W simul Boogie MKIIC+, and a 90W Velocity. As other posters have noted, the Legend enhances the sound of the amp rather than removing it. I love the sound of this box through all of the tube amps mentioned, and when i don't want to lug an extra 60 or 80 lbs around, I use the Velocity, which packs a nice output into a single rack space. One nice feature of the Velocity is that it can be bridged to 400WRMS mono... which is good, because the 90WRMS rating is probably not for real: my 60W boogie kicks *** on most "100W" amps.

So... without a tube preamp/power amp, I'll still give the Legend a solid 8 or maybe even a 9... when used with a good tube amp, a solid 9 or even a 10.

In something like twenty years of use, my Legend has NEVER broken down!!! Nor have i ever changed the battery! I have always kept it racked and treated it carefully, but I've gigged on it a LOT and practiced daily for most of that time. This box has literally got thousands of hours of trouble-free operation under its belt. Way to go, Digitech! (Sure wish you had not used those cheezy plastic jacks tho. I think that's why I'm having problems now...)

But... recently I've noticed some fade in the signal path... probably my own fault for using too short of a cord and accidentally stressing the input jack on the back panel as a result when I would reach the end of my 'tether'

There's a German guy who sells those plastic jacks tho... he's at

http://www.tube-tester.com/sites/gsp21/GSP21-main.htm

I haven't bought anything from him yet. I'm going to try reheating the solder joints on the input jacks before actually replacing them.

As for the question "would you use it on a gig without a backup?" well, I have, a LOT, but that's not smart!

Oh, one night my guitar strap broke just as I was sipping from a beer between backup vocals... I caught the guitar just before it hit the floor, and my beer went all over the foot controller. I switched everything off immediately, unplugged the foot controller, and turned the Legend back on. Finished the gig and then washed out the foot controller with freon (thems was the days!!!) and let it dry out under a fan for a few days... when I plugged it back in, it powered right up!!!

never contacted support.

I play everything from jazz to hard rock. Over 40 years. I like the Legend enough to have bought a second one used when my original one began to fail, but I wouldn't say that I'd never buy a different efx unit. I would say that the Legend competes with other multi-fx units effectively even now, some 15 or 20 years since its original release. Now a very elaborate rack of lots of high-end gear will sound better, but it will also cost waaay more and be more of a nightmare to get even simple sounds from.

I love the overall sound and bang for the buck that the Legend provides, and the built-in patches do a really nice job of showing off its capabilities. Of course all of them are over-effected for live playing... I really spent a LOT of time tweaking to make them useful for live gigs.

What I hate about the Legend -- and I do mean HATE --- is the sometimes wildly-differing volume levels that different patches provide. One dB increments on each patch's master volume are not sufficiently fine-grained enough to make all the volume levels even. The problem is exaggerated most when playing at low volume levels. I had all my patches tweaked for pretty loud stage volumes and then when I would have to do a quiet gig, my distortion patches would be insanely louder than my clean patches. Really annoying!!! I think I've just recently stumbled on the answer to this: set the master vol levels on each patch to be the same at stage volume, and run your amp at the same level for a quiet gig as for a loud one, but use a volume pedal between the output of the Legend and the input to the power amp as a "master volume" control. The short explanation is that when you play loud, the beefy input signal gets compressed somewhat by every patch and your overall volume stays relatively the same and can be controlled. When you use the same patches with a weaker input signal, now the clean patches are just quieter than the distorted one... those input signals get compressed little if at all. So, if you can keep all the levels the same in the preamp section of the signal chain and control your output at the power amp, you'll eliminate the differences in volume. Hope that isn't too confusing...

I have found it difficult to get a good doubling effect out of the Legend, because the delay amounts again don't seem to be adjustable to a fine enough degree. Today when i was programming my backup legend I discovered that the 4TapDelay allows for adjustments down to the millisecond... so I think i may be able to get a nice doubling effect that way.

I've also discovered upon my re-read of the Legend manual that you can use MIDI continuous controllers to vary things like distortion, etc. It never dawned on me as to how useful that could be in a live situation. I'm going to try getting an outboard MIDI CC pedal to see how well that works in a live situation...

Overall, I've really gotten a lot out of the Legend and still love it.

After you get through the learning curve (you have to work on the manual and tweaking to understand the unit's logic) it is pretty easy actually. Nonetheless, you have to bear in mind the tonal characteristics and dynamic ranges of your guitar(s) and amp(s). This unit's performance is very dependant on those. Editing patches is based upon on the different effects configuration chains and the manual provides a very good explanation to understand how they interact. I used to play with a GSP 21 a while ago, then I got an RP-14d, then a GNX2, went through a Vox AD60VT and a GNX3K (both I still own). Although they have gone through very interesting improvements and a plethora of effects, none could replace the formidable sound of the GSP 21 (maybe I am stuck in the 80's and early 90's). I just received my new (used) GSP-21 Legent this weekend, came with 2.0 firmware and immediately I felt back home.

I am plugging the GSP-21 to the effects return on the amp. However I am planning to use the Vox amp, gnx3k and the gsp-21 on a loop setup to take advantage of the plethora of the effects that the GNX3K offers(I will post an update as soon as I get it running or if it runs ok) it is cheaper and easier than to get many stompboxes. I play with an Ibanez S470 with Dimarzio Fred and Paff Pro pickups, an Burns Brian May and a Les Paul Classic depending on the song. It can be noisy if the gate is not properly set or if you do not adjust the input level to compensate for different guitar outputs or if you monkey around with the effects parameters. I read a lot of complaints about the distorsions...I just believe that if you understand how the parameters work and how they affect the distorsions in the Legend and how they interact with the guitar and amp dynamics and tonal color you can get really good distorsions. One important feature to keep in mind is the speaker cabinet emulator, if you do not set it up accordingly to your amps characteristics, then yes I agree, the distorsions sound like crap. You can get close to the sounds required in the songs you play and the artists patches are good starting points. The compressor is very good IMHO as the pitch shifting (chorus and flanger), delays and reverbs. They have a tonal depth and a degree of control that is amazing for a 15+ year old processor. I love the reverse reverb.

I can talk about the old GSP-21 I used to have, and it was extremely reliable. Of course, as with any electronic device you have to be careful, but if you are cautious it will last. Since my plan is to use it in conjunction with the GNX3K, if for some reason it dies I can always just use the GNX3K.

Nothing to report yet.

I play 70's, 80's and early 90's rock mainly with some variations depending on the gig. I believe this unit is a perfect match for my playing style and musical likings. It is a survivor of the times when Digitech made no appologies on their products. They just offered the best without compromising in order to catch a bigger consumer base. I have been playing over 20 years now, in the best of cases as a semi-pro guitar player. Most of the times for fun. I have already bought another one, my mind kept on searching for the GSP-21 on any other gear I've owned.

Its easy to navigate and edit parameters, however there can be ALOT of parameters to scroll through and it can get confusing. You use 2 buttons to scroll through parameters and 2 more buttons to edit them. Its not hard to use, but it can get a little bit annoying. On top of that, you need some additional equipment, mainly an equalizer and a BBE sonic maximizer. Without those 2 this rack wont be up to its full potential, and may sound very muddy.

stand alone, the quality is decent. Its probobally on par with a current year behringer unit. However, slap an EQ after this, CUT the higher frequencies to kill the hiss, and out the BBE sonic maximizer after the EQ. Use a dedicated Pre amp for your distortions. If you use it this way, this unit is GODLY. It has an analog tone that really surprises me, a tone that you wont find easily.

the breakdown

distortions suck, period
delays, reverb, chorus, flanger and other modulations are wonderful, transparent, top of the line.

Compression is lame, and only has two parameters - adds shimmering

The EQ is decent, the speaker simulation is decent

The noise gate works well if you keep your input signal low

Keep in mind, this unit is not very good with out the EQ and BBE. I will rate it with these extra items.

Havent had any problems, and its close to 20 years old

havent used them

I play metalcore type music. as well as some gloom type stuff
I have been playing for about 13 years
I own a few ibanez's with emg's, old ones - wizards. and a 7 string wizard with dimarzio X2n 7

I would definately get another one of these if i lost it

I wish it had better compression, but i am not complaining

I have found a bug in my GSP21 Legend and I wondering if you can confirm if your has this same bug.

I have the Legend MIDI out connected to another MIDI device's MIDI in.
I have all the all the MIDI send devices set to disable so that none of the patches are transmitting any MIDI data. So what the Legend does should not effect any MIDI devices connected its MIDI out.

Say I have the MIDI device set to channel 4, and the Legend on patch 4. If I then select from the pedal board patch 30 (or any number), the device on channel 4 will go to patch 30 (or what ever number was selected using the footpedal)! If I have the MIDI device set to 5 and the Legend on patch 5 it does the same, etc.

Could you check to see if your unit responds in the same way.

You can email your results to jkole AT juno DOT com

Thanks!

I have had no prolbem getting a good sound out it. As a matter of fact I am still trying to replacte a sound that tweaked 12 years ago.
Fortunatley, I hav eit recorded and am working on the process.

I am using a Fender American Standard Srtatocaster, (bought new in 1991.)

It makes some noise but nothing that I can not live with.

The effects are weak in my opinion.

A Roland JC 120

Yes, I bought mine new 14 years ago.
No, I would have another GSP 21 Legend to back that on up. As a matter of fact I am in the process on buying a used back up.

The company has been very helpful. A couple of years ago I bought some replacement din cables they wer very helpful.

I play funk, old school R&B, Soul, Gospel, Blues, Jazz and have done some work on Hip Hop and Rap.

I have been playing for 21 years.
Own a TC Electronic G Major but am Selling it
Own a Line 6 Filter Pro, selling it
Own Aphex Aural Exciter 204, selling it.
Korg Pedal Selling it.
Roland JC 120 keeping it.

Bought this in 1994 (had the Legend chip uprade installed immediately) and it has been in permanent use ever since.
As with many digitally based multi effects units, a grand ability to edit "on the fly", while not impossible, is not one of this unit's strong points. That having been said, that(in a round about way)is the very reason I purchased the GSP. I didn't want to have to "tweak" knobs every night, but instead, wanted something that I could set and be confident that the effects parameters would remain the same from gig to gig.
As previously stated, the digital distortion is a weak point. But, the GSP has a feature (effects loop) that makes it easy to place an analog distortion device (or any other effect for that matter)in the signal path. I've been replacing the GSP's distortion in this very manner TS-9 (Keeley modded) and a RAT for years.
The manual is helpful in understanding the signal path architecture of the pre-programmed patches, and gives you a starting point for "custom" building patches.

I play a custom built telecaster style guitar with a third pickup installed in the middle position and with a bridge pickup that can be switched either into single coil or humbucking mode.
The patches I've written are not noisy. But, different pre-written patches vary in volume quite abit, so I've made a conscious effort to adjust the those that I use, so there's no noticeable difference when switching from patch to patch.
I can't speak to all of the effects that the GSP offers, but I can comment on those I use at one time or another during the course of a show.
1) Compression....actually pretty good. I don't know that I'd use it to replace my Keeley, if it was the only effect I was using, but it complements the other GSP effects very well.
2) Chorus...alot better than in my previous processor. Lots of parameters from which to choose in order to build a good sounding one.
3)Distortion...This effect does what it says...distorts...but supplies no real character IMHO.
4)Delay is good. There isn't a parameter for emulating the high frequency roll-off you experience with an analog unit, but still very serviceable.
5) Reverb...many types (Room, Hall, Plate etc.) It's not going to "snap" like spring reverb, but it does add texture to the overall sound.
I play through a Matchless DC-30 combo which has no onboard effects of its own.
As for "copping" sounds, I don't think there's any one effect or effects unit that will magically turn "your" sound into that of your favorite artist.

Been gigging 250 nights a year with it for the past 11 years and the only "breakdown" I ever experienced was not the unit's fault. I was plugging the foot controller in (more about that later) and I carelessly attempted to plug it in wrong. There was a stratic electricity surge that didn't "fry" the unit, but locked it up so it was unusable for the night.
I always take backups (usually just a compressor, although I fdo own a Digitech RP-1 which is the GSP's non rack mounted "brother". Same effects choices and the parameters are almost the same in both units), but not because I'm afraid the unit will go down.

I've sent the unit in three times. Once because of that mistake I made that locked it up, once to have a new battery installed and once to have some pedals replaced on the foot controller. The folks there always got the unit back to me in very short order and were helpful.
If I ever had to replace it, I would. As someone else said, you can find these on eBay for around $100, which is a deal considering
Repairing it is becoming somewhat more difficult, as even Digitech doesn't have certain parts for it anymore (after all, it is 15 years old and in computer years that's an eternity!).

I play a variety. All the way from "Standards" to 50's/60's to Motown/Stax/Atlantic, to Classic Rock to Country. I can't say the GSP is the "best" for any one style, but it has enough adjustments that I'd rate it OVERALL to be very good.
I've been playing professionally since I was 16...I guess that means over 25 years. I do own a "raft" of effects pedals I've used at one time or another over the years. I have a couple of vintage Fender BF amps (Bassman and Bandmaster), a Les Paul Standard etc. etc.
If it were stolen, I'd get another one in a heartbeat.
I like the fact that the GSP is capable of being versatile and I particularly like the effect loop feature that allows me to "break out of the box" and use other effects in conjunction with the GSP 21.
The weakest two things about the unit are the aforementioned digital distortion and the fact that the cable connecting the unit to the floor controller is not a standard cable you can readily replace if broken. I *think* it's pretty much like a computer cable except that instead of the usual 8 pin configuration it only has seven.
I'm not an "effects junkie" but instead use effects in a textural way. This unit, while probably capable of many things I never need, has served me well over the years.

I had been using the same pedal board for 13 years now. Easy as can be. The distortion sound i am not really happy with it,But it doesn't matter to me i don't use it all. i will explain in a minute.oh yeah editing is a breeze.

Okay My set up,I have 6 guitar 2 Mexican Fender, 1 American Fender,
1 stratacoustic fender, 1 Ibanez, 1 Flying v Jackson. Amps Just one 220 watts Excalibur solid state head with a 200 watts celetion crate cab and a wah. Now READ very carefully..The distortion is not all that really so don't bother. If you have a head that accept effect loop in and out ,plug it in and kills the distortion of you sound proccessor and your compression and all the effect.Make sure that you plug your guitar straigh to the head then let the loop out to in on your proccessor and the out of your proccessor to in loop of your head , Then set your front of your head mix the way you want i got mine on treble 7, mid 3.5 and low 4, so do you mix the way you want. once you get your then go to the proccessor and play with your internal mixing and set the master volume all the way up and your head volume all the way up too. now watch your proccessor output and input volume knob on the fronts,Carefully set your input @ 1 or 2 just don't let the red light show alot, then use your output and rise it up slowly till your hear your guitar. Once you do then add a bit of reverb or delay or whatever, if you used compression you guitar may sound a bit louder so play with it but always keep volume down until youre sure that the sound you want and then crank it , oh yeah you can used your head distortion and clean this way.Also if your are familiar with the cab modeling in your proccessor set it on direct.

13 years and counting

Few times for battaries changes.

I play anything From Yngwie to death metal to rock to blues and classical, Flamenco, latin in other word i just play the guitar.I had been playing for around 15 years now, My favorite guitar player is of course Yngwie Malmsteen so I m a shered too, i don't exactly play and make music as the maestro himself but i have the capability to do so. My main type of music is rock the kind that make people dance or slam dance or shake the head just plain rock. If tisthing were stolen or broken i probably just buy another one like the rp 10 or rp 12 reason?? They are just one pieces the one that i have now is 2 pieces and is alot to carry around when you have 6 guitar the rest of the equipmenet.this does help in my style of music i think is because the way i set it up . i could used fews effect at the time giving me studio sounds.

Easy to use. Manual makes it moreso. I got the GSP 21 "Pro" and then the internal battery died. When Digitech replaced it under warranty, they also uprgraded it to the "Legend."

Sound quality is okay. Distortions are not the best. Chorus, flange, etc. are average. The only reason that I still have this is because of the Ultraverb. Sometimes when doing a weird mix you want to add a gigantic reverb to something. This thing has the biggest reverb ever made (99 seconds). It's worth keeping just for that.

Like I mentioned, this thing konked out on me right after I bought it new. I realize that duds are out there (why me?) but after Digitech replaced the internal battery I have never had another problem - and that was over 12 years ago! Also, some dude accidentally kicked the Anvil case that held this unit off of a stage, then he himself fell off the stage on to the Anvil. The Anvil and the GSP 21 were both perfectly fine, even though he probably weighed 350 lbs.

They're fine.

Of course this unit does not provide the best sounding effects. But, it was THE unit to get in 1991. If you want to add a flippin' huge reverb to your rack then pick one up on Ebay for $50. Otherwise, the effects aren't spectacular. Not bad, though.

as far as a good sound goes its easy for me to get a good sound but i wouldn't recomend it for a beginner. ooh editing patches thats a no brainer. although the manual for the legend is good i still dont recomend this product for a beginner. my unit is actually a gsp 21 pro that has been upgraded to legend specs.

i have a modified ibanez and i play through a dual sub peavey combo amp which has some cool sounds of its own yes you can get sounds of different artist i have joe walsh stevie ray and B.B. king and some others. well sure like any guitar signal processor there are some bad effects, but most of them are good

yes and yes i have never had any trouble with mine and my dad has had his since they came out and he has never had any trouble with his

no i have never dealt with the company but i must say they are foolish for discontinuing the digitech dhp 55 harmonizer. by the way if you can get your hands on a dhp 55 harmonizer the work killer in conjunction with any of the gsp 21 models.

i play anything thats got a groove. yes i would buy another one if mine were stolen or lost i dont hate anything about it. yes id like to say if anyone out there has a digitech dhp 55 harmonizer that they would like to get rid of please e mail me id like to have another one digitech is foolish for discontinuing the dhp 55 harmonizer my email is mvp8839@yahoo.com

it has really cool sounds, but its kind of hard doing a good one

i love the sound it h?is perfect i use it with a phil pro amp(the worst amp ever...) and any way it sounds great, thedimarzo pick ups help a lot

i use itin every "concert" my band performs, as a lead guitarrist i depend o it

never used it

metal/punk/blues/any
i own an ibanez sa160 with a dimarzio tone zone pickup and a seagull acustic, playing for a year, i hate digitech discontinued it... i?ll love to have a randy roads jackson, zakk wylde les paul, and ibanez jem, and a marchall amp, at least i use one in my live performances

As with all MIDI devices, especially without prior experience with MIDI, it does take some time to learn how to get this unit to do what you want it to do. Here's where the manual is absolutely invaluable. To write your own patches, the unit requires the user to start with a preset configuration pre-located in the "user-definable" section. You can turn off any effect you don't want in the new configuration, and then go into each remaining effect and edit them to sound the way you want them to. When you're done, you can give the new patch a name. I find that many of the factory presets are okay "as is". But I do often go into distortion programs and pull the mids out of them for a more "up-to-date" sound. The laminated "quick-reference" card that came with the unit is all a user needs to do this, because it tells you how to navigate to the parameter you want to change. Never go on a job without that card! On stage, the 21 Legend is a terrific tool. You can program the foot controller to function either as an on/off for five of your favorite patches, or as an on/off for ten patches with the sacrifice of being able to turn their effects on and off. I always go with the five patches with effects control capability. I can always change this "set" to another set of five patches during the band's first break, giving me the specific sounds I may need for the next set of songs. The front panel lets me adjust my volume globally. But if there's a significant volume difference between programs I may be using during a particular set, I must go into the actual programs and adjust their volumes within the volume parameter located just after each programs 7 band graphic EQ section. Sounds involved, but it's not that bad - once you're familiar with the units "flow chart", for lack of better words.

I have to rate the 21 Legends sound very high. I use it as my only preamp, running its left and right outputs directly into a stereo power amp. In this stereo mode, its choruses, flangers, and delays are outstanding... really spatial, and really "watery" in some of its programs like "Canyon Chorus". Its modulation effects were designed with input from Steve Morse, I believe, and has a sort of random sweep rate, which gives them a more "organic" quality. They really shimmer. Some users have complained about its distortions but, like I said before, you can always go into the EQ sections and adjust the mids to get close to what you're after. In addition, the unit gives the user four different "types" of distortions to choose from: Overdrive, Tube, Heavy Sustain, and Metal Tube, if I remember correctly. Therefore, a user should try all of these in every distortion-based configuration before giving up. I like hi-gain sounds so that I can get lots of pinched harmonics. This unit accomodates this technique nicely.

It's never let me down in over ten years. I always use it without a backup - maybe that's a bad idea, but I really take care of the unit and it stays mounted in my rack. I did replace the battery in it about two years ago - not because it died, but because I'm just sort of anal with things like that. The battery is difficult to find, but a user can special order one from a battery store like "Batteries Plus". That's what I had to do. It was about $15.00, but is worth it when you consider you'll get at least 6 or 7 years from it.

I should mention that I would not hesitate to use this unit in a studio situation. It's effects are high quality, and everything you may need is in there, with the exception of a wah wah. But the unit does have an effects loop that you can run a wah pedal through. I do this sometimes and it works well. But I have noticed, when I engage the wah, the tone gets a little thinner.

I have never needed customer support with my 21 Legend (bought new in '92), but I want to mention that, at the time I purchased the unit, I also bought a Digitech made-by-Hafler stereo power amp to power it with. Somewhere during the first month, I overheated it, which caused it to shut down. I let it cool for a while and started it up again, but it shut down after only a minute or two. This is the way it was everytime thereafter. So I sent it back to Digitech in Utah, and they sent me a new one with no questions asked. The new power amp has never shut off on me. So with this kind of service I receieved on my power amp, I have no reason to believe there would be any kind of problem in getting good customer service for my 21 Legend if I should ever need it.

I play all styles of guitar and this is where the unit really shines, because I can find 5 patches for whatever band I am in at that time and assign them to a set, and it will be there the next time I'm with that band no matter how many other bands I've been with since. I've played guitar over 25 years. I use Marshall 4 x 10 cabinets (because they're easier to transport than the 4 x 12s) and basically just the Digitech 21 Legend and stereo power amp. I look for another Legend if this one "disappeared" because it's grown with me, and has been so adaptable with every style of band I been in, which include eighties and nineties metal bands, alternative rock and country bands, who knows what may be next?
I bought the unit because it was the best deal of the day, due to the foot controller being included with the price. But I did check out other similar units and found this one to be the best (in my opinion, of course!) Overall, it's the perfect tool for me to create new music and to cover other artists' music and sounds.

Well being the fact that the manual and the original box came with the unit everything was all good and inronically this was a birthday gift and it was manufactured the same month as my birthday aug 91 was the manufactured date, anyway the manual was pretty easy to comprehend espically if you have been playing for 12 years plus and i have the upgraded version of the model. Editing patches for me was very wierd at first but within the first 20 minutes it was all good. The all of the effects were kick ass and i have been reading that a lot of people have issues with the distortion, not me these kind of units takes time to every sound in your head into the Gsp 21 pro so if you dont have the time to shape and mold the distortion with maybe some chorus, compression, and modulation then you just might get something but to each his/her own as far as sound goes but overall all of the effects are great.

Im a very vintage type of guy and i like to play out of old pieces of used shit and make them sound good but i also like to play out of new as well but i am using a fender m-80 half stack 4x12 with a gibson les paul studio and i play modern metal with melodic vocals. Well there is one thing i noticed when i go clean and that is the a tint of gain under the clean even when i bypass but that is only when i am through headphones with just my head and the unit not through the speakers. Every effect sounds great in my opinion but like i said you have to know exactly what you want sound wise and you gotta know how to contour the eq mixed in with distortion, compresson, modulation, and the enhancer to get everything right with the right amount of unit volume. Right now i have achieved the sound of bands like Chevelle, Snot, Deftones, Metallica, Black Sabbath. The only thing i dont like about it are the presets there all krapp but if you punch one in and fuck with it yourself then it can get a bit good except for the B.B.clean tone much respect to B.B. thats the best clean tone on there in my opinion and i dont even use it.

So far it has been very reliable, i got it off of ebay and the unit is 12 almost 13 years old and it still looks great and i would always use a backup no matter what you never know man.

Well i was told by many that since this unit is discontinued throught Digitech you can get a free manual and if the battery for memory goes out they will give you a free one since their so hard to find i have a lot of respect for Digitech.

My overall rating is a 9.5, it would be a solid 10 but because some of the shitty presets it does not get that but its all good its still a kick ass unit and great for someont who is stepping into the world of signal processors.

Traded my GSP 5 in for the GSP 21 Legend back 1994. Stupid me, the GSP 2101 came out a month later. it took me a while to learn how to program it. It was easier to edit that the GSP 5, but with more detail. The manual is a must have. I would like to know more about the upgrades for this unit if they are still available today.

Setup (Guitar with Active EMG's) to (GSP 21) to (Alesis 230EQ) To (QSC dual channel 150watt per side power amp) to (2 ADA 2x12 stereo cabs) I know the distortion patch could be better, but I use Active EMG's that make up for the distortion short comings. The Chorus, delays and reverbs can't be beat. endless options. The first unit I recieved had a strange hist as the sustain subsided in all effects with or without distortion. although it couldn't be heard if playing volume up a little. I sent it back to Digtech and they sent me back a brand new unit. However it did the same thing, I guess it was a design problem. I would recommend using your tube amps distortion along with the other effect the legend. The one thing I hate about the Legend is the nano second of signal delay when changing patches!!! If play live, you have to be very creative to hide this flaw....

I was once playing a outdoor festival in August the temp was about 100. The unit shut down completely, I think from over heating. After the gig I got it home and plugged it in and it has worked fine ever since. This is every lead guitar player nightmare, I recommend having a stomp box back up if you are gigging with mulit-effect processors. I've actually seen GSP 21's on EBAY for less than a 100 bucks. You could affordably have two of these units, one as back up.

Hey, they gave me a new unit no questions asked when I had a problem. Took about 2 weeks to get the new one back.

When I first purchased the Lengend I played in cover bands. I am now myself a recording artist and still using the Legend. If it was stolen, I would purchase a GSP 2101,2112 or 2120, I'm considering buying one of those units now. After reading some it looks like the old GSP 2101 is the best sounding unit Digtech has ever made. If any of you could comment on the 2101 verses the 2112 or 2120 please email me with your comments. I want seamless patch changes!!!!!!!!

It would be better if it had a rotating knob.

I don't like the sound of the distortion. I prefer to use the distortion from my amp. The chorus and the reverb sounds good. The delay is great to get a wide variety of sounds.

I use this processor to get guitar sounds from my favourite bands: Pink Floyd, Genesis, etc. when I play with my band. It takes time to get these sounds but I'm really satisfied when I achieve them.

The ease of use has to be about an 8. To actually select sounds I will give it a ten. The footboard allows users to easily select a sound or program a slot. On the other hand, this unit requires a lot of getting use too. You have to program save and the parameters are real touchy.

The sound on this unit is outstanding. If you want to get a kickass blues or grunge sound, this unit is just for you. The distortion could use a lot of work. Nno matter how many times I adjusted, I can never get the distortion sound that I wanted.

The Legend is very dependable. It hasen't let me down yet. I do wish that the foot control port was a little deeper.

They service from Digitech is outstanding. If I can't find it on their web-site, I can call am they will hook me up. Also, if you lose or damage a foot controller, you can still buy them from Digitech.

Overall I give this thing a ten. It rocks. the sound for clean and delay can't be beat be anything made today. It would be nice if it had an expression pedal, but I can live without it. Crystal ehoes has fgot to be one of the warmest Free-Bird style effects I have ever heard. Of course not everyone has a 78' Les Paul to play through like me. I also use a Fender Hot Rod Deville. This combination can't be beat. For clean and rythm that is.

It takes a bit of fooling with to get the sound you want because there are so many buttons to push to do the programing. Mine was originaly aPro but I installed the upgrade myself. Sometimes I think the Pro chip is better. Two problems I have with it: 1)it seems to take forever from the time the pedal is selected til the time the machine actualy changes patches. Not fun for the gig, 2)the processor has so many volume tweaks that it is very hard to get the patches balanced out evenly. I wrote one patch where the volume was set all the way down all through the effects chain and it was still so loud that I eventualy deleted it ! Also, the manual shows a "studio controller" that I found out from Digitech that was never made for production. It would have been great because I only use it in the studio.

I was using a Fender Strat (one of those goofy pointy-head Floyd Rose S-S-H things)when I first got it, and I didn't have an amp at the time...just used headphones. I never had any trouble with the sound of it, although it could be a little noisy at times with the distortions. Modulation, EQ, and 'verbs were fine for studio use, but I always use the amps 'verb instead of the processors when possible.

I once had a problem with the pedal cord or the jack on the pedal. Digitech fixed it in a jiffy and I have never had any other problem with it. I wouldn't use it on stage because of the pedal-patch delay thing. I use it strickly in the studio.

Good company to deal with and repairs seem to be done quickly.

This processor does a pretty good job for me as I don't have much need for the big heavy distortions. I have been playing for over 30 years and this was my very first multi-effects processor. I also have a pedal board with a couple of stompers in it, and I just got a Zoom 505II. The Zoom is much better suited for gigs, the stompers are even faster. If my Legend were stolen I wouldn't try and find another one. But I really wish Digitech had made that "studio controller". Bummer !!

Very easy - But hard to get to sound "just right"

Good for 80's rock, with complex guitar sounds, and large room effects. Very shallow distortion, but great for coloring a tube-preamp

Never had any problems

Mailed the company, and recieved a manual 8 days later - free of course.

As said before - A quite shallow machine. It can do everything, but has its best features in its reverbs and delays - The Flanger is terrible, but the chorus is very warm and muddy - Great for 80's and 60's Rock. For new-age music, a TubePreamp and GSP-21 is the perfect match.

It`s kinda hard to use at first, but when you first get the hang of it its great.

I`m using this with an old Peavy Renown with just a Boss Metal-Zone as distortion. (The distortion on this thing sucks). But with an other effectbox or something similar its great. The delay is GREAT, so for all the other effects, actually. I give it a nine because of it`s crappy distortion.

I`ve never had a problem with it. Its been great.

Its a great gadget to use as an effectprocessor but the distortion is so bad that you can`t use only this if you want good distortion sounds...

Had it since the week it came out no problems

To begin with, I use a strat with emg pickups and am currently running the preamp through through my Marshall VS100R.I am planning to get a power amp soon. At first I loved the clean sounds and tweed sounds but was really disapointed in the distortions. Though there was some good blues sounds, I couldn't find a good metal sound(Slipknot, slayer ect.)there just wasn't enough gain. But after some tweaking I have a awsome thrash/metal sound. I just needed to set the compression, eq, and enhancement right. Other guitarists ask me how I get my sound. I probably give it a 10 when I get my power amp.

It requires a bit of fiddling before you understand what sounds good and what sounds like crap. (The factory presets are mostly crap but are good starting points). Once you learn how to balance the compression, distortion and EQ then setting up a wide variety of patches is fairly easy. It's unfortunate that when you select a new effects chain you need to start programming each effect in the chain from scratch. For instance, if you change a change from an effects chain that has UltraRev to the one with MultiTap Delay, the settings from all the other effects (COMP, DIST, EQ, CHORUS, etc) are garbage and need to be set. So you need to remember what you had.

I am using the GSP-21 with a vintage Strat and Super Reverb. It is quiet.

The sound quality is A+. Without distortion, the sound is huge. The distortions don't have much bottom though and if you add lows with the EQ they sound funny. The good news is that in a band context, the sound is perfect. I find the lower distortion settings are very usable to get a smooth tweed-like overdrive.

Chorus/Flange, Reverb and Delays effects are fine.

I haven't had any problems but I'm only using it in the studio.

Now that I have a library of good sounding, useful patches I give this unit a B+ rating.

Really easy to use. Good menu driven events. Gotta have great eyesight though....the screen on the unit is a little small.

Everything sound wise is great except compression and distortion.

Bang on - never failed me yet (touch wood).

Gotta give these guys a Class A rating. My cable from the unit to the foot controller went dead on me.....the folks at digitech had one on the bus for me in days.

I'm a heavy metal musician and have been playing for 23 years. Would I buy it again - as a studio piece sure but not as part of my stage gear. Nothing beats the sound of Peavey distortion. My overall favourite feature of the Legend is that Digitech has not made a comparable product since then. It's really a nice all emcompassing unit...able to provide reverbs & delays to drums, voice & instruments in a studio arrangement. It really only lacks the harmonizer ability.

The Legend is easy for a quick start. You can easily scroll through all of the programs to get a good idea of the effects offered. Editing can be quite tricky, however, the manual helps alot. It does take some time to create your own sounds, and after working with it several minutes to tweak your sound, you will become tone deaf.

I've owned this unit for 8 years and played it through a Charvel, Fender Strat, and home-made Les Paul styled guitar. The Les Pual actually sounded the best. For amps, I played through a Peavey mini-stack with average results, and a Hughes & Kettner power amp with great results. The Hughes & Kettner offered such clean power which did not interfere with the jambalaya of effects put out by the Legend.
Distortion just sucks. For all of the Metal artists featured in the adds, I was not impressed by the distortion at all. I used a Dean Markley tube overdrive for distortion but this usually created problems when I used programs with lots of delay. I never could get the perfect distortion out of this unit and had to experiment with many different amps, distortion pedals, and tweaked the hell out of the speaker emulator and distortion parameters. The EQ is great, but like I mentioned earlier, after messing with the parameters for so long you will get tone deaf and end up with a worse sound than before. Very frustrating. I did enjoy the Delay, and flanges, and this unit did help me to achieve a unique sound ranging from The Edge, The Cure, to No Doubt.

My biggest reliability complaint is the cord connecting to the foot pedals. The plug is a bit shallow, and always comes out. After years of plug in and plug out, the socket has become worn and the foot board frequently shorts out on me, causing me to check the cords, connections, and finally turning on/off the units power to reset.

N/A

I've been playing for 14 yrs. I play everything from Metal to Progressive rock. I bought this unit after hearing my guitar teacher play through his. He has a mini studio and top notch equipment, and this unit seems to perform well in the studio setting, whereas it did not perform so well with my mediocre equipment. The other guitarist in my band played through an ART system and was able to recreate other artists sounds much more accurately than me. I wish it had better distortion, a dial knob, an expression pedal with wah effects and a tuner. My friends ART had all of these and he paid less for his system than me. I love the LCD display on both the footboard and rack unit, however if it were stolen, I would do much more research and probably by something cheaper and better. For the price at the time, you could have done much better, such as the ART.

EASY TO USE AND BEATS NEW MODELS ALL TO PIECES.

YOU MUST WRITE YOUR OWN PROGRAM FOR GREAT SOUND.DELAY-EXCELLENT,CHORUS-EXCELLENT,REVERB-GOOD AND DISTORTION-AVERAGE.

EXCELLENT HAS LASTED SEVEN YEARS WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS.

EASY TO GET A HOLD OF.

I LOVE THIS PROCESSOR.IT BEATS ANYTHING DIGITECH HAS OUT NOW.BETTER THAN ALESSIS,BOSS,PEAVEY,ART,KORG OR ZOOM PROCESSORS.

The easy part of this multi-effects unit is that you can just plug in, turn it on and you are ready to rock'n roll (if you are using the factory presets). If you are familiar with other multi-effects units of the time - then programming is fairly straightforward - just scroll through a bunch of menus and adjust parameters up and down. The manual doesn't help much - you just have to fidgit with the settings to figure out what changes affect what sound.

The presets suck to high heaven and you have to do some serious tweaking to get any usuable sounds out of it. The distortions are weak, but for what little gain there is, there is a tremendous amount of noise in the background. There is also this funky digital "pinging" sound that you can hear when you switch between effects and when the noise gate cuts off the fading notes. The effects all have a heavily colored sound to them. I found that when you listen through headphones, the unit doesn't sound to bad - but played through an amplifier or P.A. system - it is very weak sounding. I put a BOSS MT-2 Metal Zone pedal in front of the unit and turned off the distortions in the processor - and it sounds OK, not good, but passable. The delays and reverbs are nice, and I've used it as an outboard effects processor with a tube amp and it sounds pretty good. You pretty much HAVE to run it in stereo to really get a usable sound out of the effects and it does sound OK running it direct to a mixing console.

It is a sturdy metal rack unit - and the knobs are fairly well recessed in the panel - so it should take a fair amount of abuse without being damaged. If I were desperate enough to use it on a gig - It would probably survive.

I e-mailed the company about an upgrade for the unit and they responded the next day (albeit with bad news). They told me that there was no upgrade for my particular unit (I wanted to upgrade it to the Legend II specs).

I've been playing for almost 20 years now and I've played just about everything under the sun. I originally bought this unit because I needed an all-in-one unit to lug to practice and noodle around at home with the headphones on. I was very young and impressionable back then and when I saw all the artists whose names were linked to the processor "George Lynch, Ted Nugent, Bruce Kulick, etc." I thought "wow, I can have presets that sound just like the pros!" Man, do I feel ripped off!

I did not have a manual for this product but after fooling around with it I got the hang of it. It's fairly easy to use. I just wish there was a data wheel.

I have a Fender Strat with new pickups in it and a Fender amp and this unit has always sounded great. I really love the Flangers.

I've been using it for 3 years and nothing has ever gone wrong with it.

I would definately buy this unit again I play in a classic rock band around my town and it always sounds great.

I have found it to be pretty easy to use, but it would be nice if I could have access to all the available effects and create my own preset(s) The manual is ok.

When I'm playing at home by myself, the distortion is great! But when I'm with a group, it tends to be muddy and get lost in the mix The chorus in pretty nice but seems to be a bit complicated to adust. I must say that on some settings this unit make my guitar (Valley Arts Custom Pro) sound like a wonderful acoustic guitar!!!

Very reliable

Overall I think I would buy it again. It was just a standard GSP-21, but I bought the "Legend" upgrade chip from MUSICIAN'S FRIEND for $40.00 (about half of what a local store was gonna charge me btw) I wish it had a Harmonizer, Octaver (I.E. Yes's "Owner of a Lonely Heart" type of tone) I would really appreciated it if someone could e-mail me and discuss this unit....I NEED HELP!!! :) tw@oz.sunflower.org

This particular unit is easy to use in my opinion. If you are just interested in plug n play this will pretty much do it. However, if you want to truly tailor your sounds I would recommend reading the manual on how to edit the programs. One read will be sufficient. Its pretty easy after that. Be sure to keep the manual if you plan to expand or use midi equipment. It has some good hints on getting better sound. The speaker simulator section of the manual is very helpful and can make a dramatic difference in the sound depending on your amp/recording set-up.

Overall, the effects are good for a multi-effect device. The distortion is kind of weak without cranking up the compresion, which of course results in more noise, which causes the noise gate to open and close loudly! In terms of the sound that is the only thing that bothers me. On high gain patches you get this clang or ping noise (its hard to describe) when you cut a note off suddenly or when not playing and you touch the strings it "jumps" at you. Other than that I like this unit for its sound (read: it does what I need it to do, which is provide the common effects and sounds in one unit). One observation: It seems that on some patches when the chorus is on the sound gets grainy and crackly (not up front but you can hear the difference when you switch off the chorus). In terms of the programs that are available, they are mostly useful. A few dumb ones, but overall, pretty good. I like the celebrity programs (do you think they really wrote them or not?) for an approximation of their sound. It is also easy to take a basic sound and tailor it to your needs. Being able to change the actual program convigurations is helpful because if you like a bsic distortion sound on one program but don't need the digital effects you can change the configuration so that only the distortion is in the signal chain.

When I first got it I experienced a complete reset of the programs twice. All programs and settings reverted back to factory defalts. On the second time it blew a fuse that was sligtly difficult to replace. I do not know if the glitches were in the GSP or if a power surge caused the problem (I now have it plugged into a protected power source). Since then I have had no problems at all. I would gig without a backup.

I have called them once to find out the upgrade potential for this unit. The people I talked to were very helpful and informative.

I would probably buy it again. At the time, it was the best thing I had experienced and did all I need (still does, really). If I were in the market today, I might try to get a unit that allowed me to create my own configurations from the list of effects, instead of depending on the fixed ones on this unit. This unit definately helps me make music. I play mostly blues-rock and boogie-rock stuff, and the sounds I use on the GSP help out tremendously. I am at the point where I will be gigging soon and the ease of asigning programs to particular patches on the foot-controller (not to mention being able to rename them whatever you like) will be a big plus in a live situation. The ability to kick on/off each effect is also a big help, especially when adding chorus or flange for a solo! I do have one more request from everyone out there. IF YOU HAVE ANY COOL PROGRAMS ON THIS UNIT THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE, I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU. I WILL BE GLAD TO SHARE THE ONES I HAVE COME UP WITH! THANKS!

This unit is very easy to get good sounds from out of the box. Many of the presets are pretty much useless although there are a few that make for good starting points. Compared to the competition at the time that I bought this unit, it was the easiest to get around on. If you're not well versed in programing midi foot controllers then this is a pretty good unit as the foot controller that's provided is a no brainer. I like the fact that the foot controller has only one cord from the rack unit which also supplies the power for the foot controller. The LED display on the foot controller is the best I've seen and makes it easy to keep track of your patches. The manual was helpful to a degree but lacked in certain areas e.g. the digital effects algorithms are set up in the digital mixer in series parellel (I thinks) and it took awhile to figure out how the effects interact depending on signal feeds from one effect to the other. The algorithms provided are practical and cover everything I would ever need. The reason for the mediocre rating is for the manual and that programming can be a bit tedious but once you get your basic sounds dialed in then it gets easier.

On high gain settings this unit can be noisy if you don't have the noise gate adjusted properly but I don't think this can be avoided with any high gain amp situation. I wish the noise gate had an adjustable release as it can shut off abruptly on trailing notes. I think the effects are better than average. Chorus, flanger, delays, and reverb do an adequate job especially for guitar. There are enough adjustable parameters to tailor the effects to suite my needs. I received a lot of complements on my sound after getting this unit. Of course you really have to work with it to get something you can call your own. The real test was in the studio. I did an entire album with this unit and used it on everything except the accoustic tracks. Covered all styles from heavily distorted guitars ala Brian May type harmonies to jazz, 50's rock, and country styles. Our producer/engineer is a tube purest and didn't want me to use it at first but was impressed with the sound and even barrowed it for some other projects. The key to getting good sounds with this unit is not just the distortion, but the interaction between the compressor, distortion, eq, and enhancer (exciter). I've ended up with about ten sounds that I use consistently which cover most styles. One thing I did do later was to add a tube preamp (Hafler Triple Giant) in the effects loop which is real nice but even after adding the Hafler I still used a lot of patches using only the GSP effects. Not too crazy about the slight dropout when switching patches but this usually isn't a problem. Switching individual effects in and out is transparent though. I use this with a Marshall stereo power amp and a pair of 2x12 cabs loaded with Celestions. Sounds great. Have had good results going direct.

I've owned this unit for about 3 years and have never had a problem. Gigged without a backup. I seems to be pretty sturdy and has held up well.

Ended up calling the customer support line a few times when I was trying to figure digital mixer thing out. Spoke with a guy named Bruce quite a bit. He was very helpful and returned my calls when he wasn't available. Never had to have it worked on but my experience with customer support indicates that they are responsive.

Would I buy it again? Given the same circumstances as when I bought it, yes. When I bought this unit the main competition was ADA MP1 which required an additional effects unit and controller, and the Alesis Quadraverb GT. The other units were good and maybe better at certain things. The ADA in my opinion really wasn't that good of value after you buy the extra gear and I don't think it had any advantage tone wise. The Alesis had a very good digital section but was real week in the analog preamp department. Even with the new gadgets that are available now I still think the GSP rocks pretty good. I had a situation where a former band flew me half way across the country to do a benefit concert. Only thing I could take with me was my main electric axe. They arranged for me to borrow another guy's GSP2101 for the gig. I though no sweat, I everything my Legend is and more. Wrong. I had about a day and a half to work with the 2101 and got some usable sounds but not as good as my Legend patches. What ever your use to I guess. Bottom line, I still think it's a good sounding processor and still a good value. I think you can probably pick one of these up for a pretty reasonable price these days. I know that Digitech sold truck loads of these things.

Compared to just plain pedals, the control buttons should have been infinite rotating knobs. This would have been much easier. It's curious as to why I can't edit all of the presets without moving a high preset to a lower numbered one. The manual is good, although a better picture of the patch layout would help. A background of the effect presets (i.e. author, music style, etc.) would be interesting.

The unit's digital effects are not too noisy themselves, especially compared to old analog pedals. Something is missing in the flanger. Could be feedback. Again, infinite rotating knobs would have been better to adjust settings. Distortion is very weak, especially when playing a diverse set which requires one to switch from clean to dirty-dirty. The multiple echo, is very good but requires lots of time to set, especially since one has to move back and forth between parameters using buttons. All, in all, the unit has a decent range of effects for probably most players. The update chip I use V3.0 really didn't benefit me from the original V1.0. The pedal arrangement has been rearranged by the newer chip, which didn't help ease of playing.

The unit box is very rugged, although the pedals are weak. The hex screws often loosen up. The weakest part, however is the pedal box falling apart on the sides. I've had to screw them in with tapping screws. The unit losts its memory once for an unknown reason. In short, the box itself is rugged, but the pedal box weak.

I called the company for a new updated chip. They were very responsive and helpful. The service department performed super.

I'm not sure if I would buy it again. The button controls are really anoying when programing. Infinite rotating knobs would have been faster and easier. Old analog pedals seem much quicker to program. The unit would have been better with a fuller distortion, and a flange with more breadth. The multi-tap delay is excellent but takes lots of time to program. The pedal box kept falling apart until I used tapping screws to holds the sides.
I've used the unit for 5 years. It still works well for the wide range of music I play. Personally, I should have chosen the single unit over the rack unit which isn't as transportable for quick-n-play gigs. The update chip is really unhelpful since the original pedal outlay is different. This is minor, but the new sounds aren't that impressive to me. In short, I like the unit but wish it had infinite rotating knobs to quickly set the effects.

I feel I'm naturally mechanically inclined, so I have no problem with the whole user interface deal. I felt it was fairly easy for a beginner to get a hang of shaping his/her own sounds after messing around with the presets.

The chorus, reverbs, and delays, where pretty decent but the distortion has a sound of its own. I mean that in a bad way. Even played through an amp it took on a direct in type of tone. I like heavy distortion that has good thump and crunch. I literally had to push the 21 to its max limits to get a decent distortion. Without the compressor added, the distortion is weak, and lacks real balls. As far as the foot pedal, this was my biggest gripe! Whats the use of a fancy foot pedal if every time you change channels, you get a 1-2 millisecond delay of silence! Doesn't sound like much, but it can really screw up a performance

It seems pretty rugged, then again, I had to really start babying it after I kept blowing fuses to get the distortion where it sounded decent. After that, every time I saw the overflow LED on, I would wince. I don't have time for that stuff during a performance.

I complained after the second time my fuse blew and something else went wrong, they sent me a new one overnight. That was pretty impressive.

Wouldn't buy it ever again. Definitely a beginners type processor It seems all of Digitechs processors have the MIDI program change glitch.

It is somewhat cumbersome to dial in "your" sound. You basically have to start with something close to what you're looking for, and tweak it accordingly. Editting patches isn't especially difficult, once you are familiar with the controls. Admittedly, I didn't even read the manual for several months. :)

When I first purchased the GSP-21 Legend, I really didn't know to listen carefully for noise. The default noisegate settings cover up the noise very well if you're not listening carefully. Turning off the noise gate revealed to me that this beast makes a lot of noise in higher gain patches. I mean a lot. :) People have mentioned to me that if you crank a good head up, it makes noise too, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. The built in distortion, save being rather noisy when combined with compression, is tolerable, I suppose. I have been spoiled as of late because I have been playing straight into my tube head rather than going to the bother of hooking the GSP up. I can't get the same harmonics and musical-feedback from the GSP that I get from my head.
You really have to crank the compressor up as well to get a good high-gain lead tone. I'm not super-demanding on most of the effects, and have been fairly satisfied with the delay, and chorus.

I have had no realiability problems. After 3 years, I've had to replace the footpdal cable. Recently it seems that my left channel is crackling. It may have been that way all along, since I never run it in stereo. This behavior doesn't happen through the headphone jack.
I don't know if I'd want to rely on any single piece of gear at a gig. I use two guitars. If I could help/afford it, I'd probably duplicate everything. I don't feel any more or less afraid of this units reliability in comparison to my other gear (guitar, head, cabinet, etc...)

No experience with customer support.

I find myself struggling to find a use for this unit these days. The delay when changing patches is somewhat irritating, but I have managed to deal with it. I compared this to the RP-1 at the time of purchase, picking it over the relatively flakey rp-1. I originally chose it because I didn't know what I was doing. :)
I would not buy this unit again, simply because I feel like I have grown out of it. I wish stuff like this was available when I started playing, for around $200.00. Would be really great for guitarists starting out who can't blast a full amp setup, but have a decent set of headphones.

It is easy to program and very self-explanatory. It is not easy to get a good sound out of it, but that is a function of the sounds and not the ease of use.

Distortion - sucks. Reverb - sucks. Chorus - good. Delay - good.

I bought this a long time ago, so things have changed now. But the overall sound is unsatisfactory and I think you can do a lot better for the money.

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