DigiTech GSP-2101 Artist

i have a couple of upgraded 2101 to artist series and i swear by these babys. i so love the sound quality on these units. i've also got a vgs 2120 that can't touch the sound of my 2101's. editing patches are a pleasure for me ( could it be that i've had 2101's for as many years as i can remember? ) the manual is decent but could be a little bit more in depth.

i use all jackson and ibanez guitars with a mesa ( love it! ) simul-class 290 bbe 482i sonic maximizer into 2 ampeg 4x12 cabs loaded with celestions v30's. all full stereo and this rig sounds awsome to me! i really dont have a bad thing to say about any of the effects in the 2101 at all. i think the distortions ( tube and solid state ) are great sounding also if tweaked right. the sound guy has never had an issue at all about my sound.

to all the guitarists out there that have been playing for as long as i have, who wouldn't have a back up! even tho problems are at a minimum for these units get another just to have it!

never dealt with support as long as i've had my 2101's.

i play a lot of 80's metal and i'm around the globe constantly and these boxes are the best overall preamp/processors i've used to date. throw away the new 2120 and go back to the 2101! the 2120 sits in my studio strickly for recording purposes. nothing beats the 2101 artist live.

For the most part this is a common sense piece.And the manual can make it alot easier for the patches.I have the original with the 3.0 firmware.When I first got this,I just plugged in and started playing and was amazed!

I play a schecter XXX with dimarzio breed and dsonic pups,I'm running this through the loop on my Mesa F-100 212 combo and I can honestly say that I've never heard more brutal gain.The artist patches are sweet,when I'm in a Lynch mood,blam there it is!This head has no weakness,it will show yours though.Anything is possible with this bad boy,I have found heaven.

Never had a problem.

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I play 80's hair,metal and classic rock,I also dabble in ambient backgrounds and delay soloing,this baby delivers exactly what I want to hear.In the 5 years I've been playing I've yet to find it's equal.and if it were lost or stolen it would be replaced very quickly.This is a keeper,I will only replace amps and this stays!

If you follow the manual, it's pretty easy to set up excellent tones. Some of the more exotic effects and routing schemes can take a while to plan out, but it's not tough. Any unit that allows you to configure any effect anywhere in the signal chain is going to be a little more difficult to use then a stompbox, but man, is it worth it! The manual is comprehensive and easy to understand. My unit has the v.3.00.00 software which contains a number of artist's patches like Malmsteen, Reeves Gabrels, and Frank Gambale. Fantastic sounds. Almost every parameter imaginable is tweakable, so you have complete control over your sounds. I don't know why Digitech stopped making this, as it blows away just about every other multi-effects/preamp I've ever seen. The effects alone are better than most companies solo effects units, and the preamps are flexible and sound great.

I use this with a Fender Stratocaster (stock pickups), an Ibanez RG-570 with EMG 81s, a Fender Stratocaster with DiMarzio Humbuckers, and a Paul Reed Smith Custom 22 w/ Dragon pickups.

The unit is super quiet, aided by it's excellent noise gates which are fully programmable.

Overall the effects are excellent - the delays and reverbs are crystal clear, the flangers (there are so many of them!) sound great - easy to get the '78 Van Halen brown sound, choruses are great, pitch shifting works like a charm, the whammy effect is really cool. I could write an entire book about the included effects, but instead I will say this...with the exception of the built-in wah (which is quite lame), every other effect here is totally professional and will blow away any stompbox, period.

I should also note that the unit has a number of different analog EQ sections - both parametric and graphic, which allow one to shape their tone to a degree that just isn't possible with any other setup, unless you have both PRE- and POST- pro-level EQs. This is really powerful, as it lets you create complete duplicates of well-known tones, or tweak to get 'your own sound'.

I have used this direct through a PA system (with the included speaker emulator outs), as well as through dual Fender solid-state combos and my usual rig which is a Marshall Valvestate 8080 SS power amp through a 2x12 cabinet. I always get compliments on my tone. You can go from Fender clean to Mesa mean with the touch of a button, and the hot-rodded Marshall tones really shine.

Looking for sounds from your favorite artists? The included presets are pretty good, but with a little tweaking you can cop any tone from anyone...I've successfully copied Eric Johnson's Cliffs of Dover tone, EVH's "Eruption", Steve Vai's "Passion and Warfare" sound (not to mention the "La Ballerina" patch which harmonizes...really cool!!), Iron Maiden, the Scorpions, Queensryche, Al DiMeola and The Rolling Stones. The clean voicings are excellent, if you play jazz it's really easy to get a great jazz tone and warm it up/brighten it to your liking. The onboard compressor is excellent. The digital effects section can be used alone in your home studio as professional outboard effects. I love the harmonizer - it's an intelligent pitch shifter that lets you play dual leads without a problem.

I don't know why Digitech stopped making this unit...I've played Boss GT-6s, Line6 POD XT lives, ART units, newer Digitech, J-stations, and all kinds of analog pedal gear, and nothing is as flexible or sounds as good as this preamp/effects unit. The fact it uses 2 real 12AX7 tubes at high voltage probably contributes to the great tone it creates, unlike the digital boxes that sound artificial (to my ears, at least).

I've been using this unit since 1997 at least one night a week at local jams. I've never had a backup, and I've never had a problem. I plug it into a surge protector (duh!!! all your stuff should be protected). I've changed the tubes three times in the last eight years, and not because they crapped out - only because I wanted to make sure they didn't when I played live.

Never had a problem with it.

I play Top 40, rock, jazz, metal and classical. This unit can do it all. It sounds great with my acoustic guitar with piezos as well as my nylon string. I've been playing semi-pro 20 years. I own 2 of these as they aren't made anymore...if 1 was stolen I'd be on E-bay in a second to get another.

Very simple to use. I opened the manual on day 2 after purchasing it. Day 1 was spent drooling over my awesome new sounds. Basically it is simple to understand. Editing patches are easy from buttons on the front. U upgraded to the 2nd s disk and firmware version 3.0.

1982 Gibson Les Paul, 1984 Gibson custom (rare breed custom made) and an Ibanez s270 with my two Marshall Stacks 1- 1974 Marshall super lead 100w head and 1 100w Marshall Mosfet with 2- Marshall 1960a and 2- 1960b cabinets. The 300 watters. Noise gate handles the noise ok, i do get an occasional cherp at the end of a piece. The effect quality is superior to most. I have emulated Tony Iomi and Bruce Franklin of TROUBLE. Little known band but the most awesome guitar sound EVER. Get Psalm 9 by TROUBLE and notice the harmonies and pitch shifting. You will sit back in awe.

Gigs, yeah I toured with it for 2 1/2 years never having a back up. I was more concerned with Marshall's tubes. It never let me down.

I bought it in 1996 NEW* with a Control One and Upgrades I spent $1500. In 2003 It glitched and was virtually dead. Harmon Music Group did an outstanding job for like $75 they replaced a processor and fixed all kinds of little things and replaced all the switches in my control One. Now it's like new again. Outstanding support.

I play metal and my Artist is the shnit. I have played for over 20 years. I own a recording studio, therefore lots and lots of gear. I hold my Artist atop my main rack next to the Neve, I could not go without my Artist, I also use it on vocals and bass and keys. It has an extremely high quality sound that works in many applications.

Easy to play, but very difficult to master. Would like some knobs. C'mon Digitech, you're selling this thing to GUITAR PLAYERS!! Knobs are everything.

I can't tell you how many times I go to Guitar Center play their Marshall heads, Mesa Heads, Fender Combos and always come home loving my GSP 2101. It has every sound you can imagine and it sounds live, articulate and awesome. You can get classic vintage sounds, modern rock/thrash easily, and "fender" cleans.

Please note, I think Fenders are the biggest waste of money there are. For the money youcan pick one of these up and have identical sound.

DO NOT BELIEVE THE POSTINGS BELOW.

YOU MUST BUY A TUBE POWER AMP FOR THIS. If you don't DO NOT complain.

Absolutely. 9 years in, had some white noise problems, had it fixed for 75 bucks at digitech.

Sent my unit to digitech where they damaged it. they refused to pay until I sent them a letter with my letterhead. Oh yeah, I'm a lawyer and I don't take shit from people like that.

If I weren't I'd be SOL. But finally they agreed to fix it. Grudgingly. Which is still WRONG.

I play heavy metal, hard rock, and am starting to write mainstream music. I've played for over 15 years. I play a Washburn EC 29 [rare rare bird] with EMG SA and 81s, a Ibanez loaded with Seymour Duncan, SH-2, Lil 59, and a DDistortion, and a Aria Pro II as a spare. Owned a crate GX 130c, a Marshall VS 265R, a Marshall MF 350, and I'm one of those guys that sits in Guitar center for hours testing equipment.

I play this thing through a Marshall 9100 all tube 50/50 dual monobloc amp. It rocks.

I paid 1000 bucks for it from Musicians Friend long ago. I think it was worth it. But you can get these for 400 bucks now with 2 s discs. Unbelievable value.

My next purchase is a Marshall JMP-1 and the Digitech keeps me from doing it. It's just not worth the extra money, sincce my 2101 can really do everything.

From just a "user" standpoint, it's pretty straight forward midi stuff. Starting out creating my own algorithms was an adventure but only because of how vastly configurable this unit is. Like anything else, once you've done it a few times it's easy to understand.

Kramer Stagemaster, (Old) Carvin V220, Samson wireless, Boogie 2:90 power and EV G-12 speakers. One of the lowest noise units I've experienced when it comes to high gain. I hate using noise gates and found as long as your cables and connections are good you don't need one. I've got the dual S-DISCS and PPC-210 card installed with v3.00 chips (the Artist version without the fancy faceplate). Sound quality? Let me put it this way, I recently started upgrading my rig with a TriAxis and checked out a couple "new technology" processors. Nothing comes close to the 2101 when you factor in configurability. So I'm using just digital section in the f/x loop of the TriAxis. KILLER TONE.

I gigged with this unit heavily for about 10 years and it never let me down once. The only thing I ever had to replace was the data wheel pot (from my days of finding "my sound" making algorithms I wore it out). Digitech sent me one free.

I've always gotten a prompt precise answer to any question I've asked.

I'm not sure about the price I paid for it but I bought it new a long time ago. I only wish Digitech would continue with upgrades to this unit. I tried the "offspring" versions (2110, 2112) and didn't care for them. A midi upgrade would be great. There is a little latency changing programs that I think could be solved.

My unit is an original 2101 with the Artist 3.00.00 chip and a type "a" 20 mhz processing speed and ppc 210 dual S-disc (im also going to switch out the faceplate for a chrome blank one to rival the damn 'limited edition' one because they are no dfferent!). Dont get me wrong, the 2101 is one of the Great preamp/processors, but it took some figuring out how to use (changing presets) and even longer how to make my own algorithms and effect chains. Once you get it down, the effect editing is amazing and close to an Eventide.

I have a Jackson DX model heavily upgraded (EMGs, Original Floyd Rose, etc.) and an Ibanez Pro Line 2660 RR V. I run it with a Crate Excalibur solidstate head (more tone control) and soon a peavey tube power amp, with Crate cabs with V30 and century celestions. Since everyone else is talking about the effects ill keep that part short - the noisgate is awesome, i NEVER have noise i dont want, the effects are good and well ranged. the combo effects are noteable in particular for making out of this world synth like sounds, awesome acoustic simulations and church organ ambient tones. the tube sounds can go from smooth Stevie Ray Vaughn/Jimi Hendrix gain to BLUDGENING Extol/Cannibal Corpse tube compression. heres how the tones go with my fav. artists (maybe this will make you buy one) since no one else commented on its Metal tones:

Tube Gains
-Clean tube: Stevie Ray, Chuck Billy, The Strokes, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, U2
-Distorted tube: Joe Satriani, Cream, Black Sabbath, Jimi Hendrix, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Soilwork, Buckethead
-Saturated tube: Extol, Megadeth, Emperor, Opeth, Arch Enemy, Dark Tranquillity

Solidstate Gains
-Overdrive: Eric Clapton, BB King, Kenny Wayne Shepard
-Heavy Sustain: Interpole, Chevelle, Dredg
-Grunge/DeathMetal: Meshuggah, Cannibal Corpse, At The Gates, In Flames, Carcass, Iced Earth

Great preamp/processor like i said, never had it break down (tubes) and there is almost no fear of blowing tubes/fuses. I just havent giged with it enough to give it a perfect 10.

never dealt with, never had to.

AMAZING preamp, im never going to get rid of it. . . and for $280, its the best deal ive ever got. when they came out they were around $1000, but it doesnt matter because its priceless. ive been playing 6 years now and ive gotten so into gear, so i know this is a good peice of equiptment. Boogies, Engls, Peaveys and VHTs are all great but for the 2101's versatlity and price it pretty much blows shit out of the water. the only reason ide give it 9 is becuase ive hear better tube gain, but with layering this tube tone can be great ( the compressor is what makes a good heavy crunch though). i have over $3000 in gear and this is just about my most prized item (except for my main guitar). if it was stolen t wou really suck becasuse i have some awesome tone setups programed. ide probably kill the guy horribly and try to buy a new one and try to get it like mine now. And last, (since i never saw anyone mention) if youre into Metal, this is a good tool for that genre (my idols are Jack Owen and Pat Obrein/Cannibal Corpse, Fredrik Thordendal/Meshuggah, Christer Espovell and Ole Borud/Extol, Dave Mustaine/Megadeth, Jesper Stromblad/In Flames, and James Hetfield/do i need to say more?)

I bought this unit used, without the manual. The manual I was able to download from the digitech website, but even still I only had to look up a few things twice before I figured out how to work everything. All I had to look up was how to get to the algorithm edit menu, and some other various tidbits, like setting up the MIDI control or something.

There is some noise, mostly on higher-gain settings. I also find that something other noise is caused by the noise gate and compressor, but not always. Most of the time I'm only able to hear it through headphones, so it's not that bad. I just bypass the analog section anyways, and use this unit for effects (mostly just chorus, delay, pitchshifting, detuning, tremolo, stereo panning, and Whammy functions) The flange and phaser are a little weak, in my opinion, but I use other units to cover those areas for me. Don't get me wrong, I still use those functions, but mostly for soft, background-type phase and flange. Definitely the biggest benefit of this unit is it's ability to control the order of the effects, allowing me to create any chain of effects I want. I've spent a fair amount of time at home on weekends trying out different ways to link the effects in my favorite algorithms.

I've had it for almost year now, and it's never failed on me once. Still have yet to gig with it, but I would gladly use it without hesitation. I give it an 9 just because the data wheel seems a little flismy at times, but if it ever does go out on me there are other ways to change presets.

Never had to deal with them.

I play mostly rock. I do use this unit a lot for the effects I've specified already, and it gets done what I need it to. I'm the kind of guy who likes to have a few multi-effects units handle everything for me, instead of lots of other single effects units, so this unit works great for me. If it were lost or stolen... yeah I'd probably buy another one, just becuase $240 is worth it for me seeing as how much I use this unit.

This Unit is Great. But dont judge it by the presets. You need to make your own sounds, and customize the unit, after that it will blow you away. Editing patches are easy, and it has a nice interface.

The noise gate on the unit is great, i have absolutly no noise, even when im using heavy distortion. I can get the sound of practically anyone i want, From Tool, A Perfect Circle, to Pink Floyd. All the distortions i need are in it.

My setup:
Digitech GSP-2101 Artist
TC Electronics G-Major
Lexicon MPX-G2
Korg DTR-1 Tuner
Marshall JMP-1 Preamp
Rack Interface
DMC Ground Control Midi Controller

Never gave me a problem yet. Dont need a backup for gigs.

Digitech has great support and a 1-800 support number.

i Play Tool/A Perfect Circle/Bush type music, this unit gives me all the distortion i need. If it were lost or stolen, i would cry, i cant live without this module.

I Bought this from my best friend who bought it brand new at guitar center. Fortunately for me, he knew almost every aspect of this wonderful processor from getting very cool tones to cross-linked algorithms that sounded like a cascade of overtones flowing around you. Holy BeeJeebers! This thing ROCKS! Once he showed me how to create my own algorithms and links, I am able to get ANY sound I've ever wanted. From Blistering Solo Distortions to cascading chorus+pitchshift+gigaverb+chorus= Grand Canyon Sound. I can't believe the ease of use in making my own creations! I have noticed that the Dual S-Disc feature really helps in BIG algorithms. The extra ram blocks are invaluable! The old beat-up manual is sorta helpful in reference, but My best friends knowledge of the programming is priceless. The firmware is the 3.01a (dual eproms)with the tubes upgraded to 74' NOS Russian 12AX7's from my local TV repair shop. (I bought 12 of these for $95) a couple are actually EEC83's havent tried them yet. These tubes really truely add the Balls to the Distortion section! It was loaded with some Groove Tubes before. I just Love the sound! I give it an 8 because if you don't know Calculus or Can figure out the Inverse Matrix of 200 by using the Gaussian Algorithm or know Vector Field Calculus,Calculate n-space derivatives, you just might have a problem Absorbing ALL THE FEATURES OF THIS UNIT> (you will probably fry your brain anyways)

I am using a 84' Jackson soloist and a Gibson ES-335 thru a Peavey UltraPlus Triple Channel Tube Head into dual Ampeg stereo 4x12 cabs. I have found that you definitely get a noiseless signal thru the balanced outputs into my mixer, so it is fantastic during studio burns. I set this up in a stereo setting with an Dual Rectifier Mesa Head with outstanding results! Damn near took off everybody's head! I really have not been impressed with the so called "Artist" settings, they are too bloody mushy and squishy with unexpected results during over dubbs.( You must absolutely know that the recording will bring out several overtones not detected during live burns, and over dubbs can be quite surprising! What sounded like a perfect take live can sound over-processed and muddy in the first overdubb.)I play a lot of Rush and Metallica so i really only use 10 or so patches for each. Best to start with a preset and tweak from there if you are just starting. I have a RP-400 that sounds awesome too, only there is just something about the "tube" settings that I prefer over the RP400. I already have algorithms that sound way better than the RP400's, but Alas,the usb connect plus the RP400's included software shine, and is overall a better bargain.(nothing like having your P4 laptop and the RP400 with your favorite guitar showing off at parties Wailing Away without having to lug around a big rigg)

Well this is my only vice, once playing at a party last week during a really heavy jam, it started making this AWFUL screeching howling noise that damn near gave the whole band a heart attack! We all stopped for a second, then started howling like wolves! My buddie quickly turned the unit off then back on,I started playing a blistering lead, everybody howled and laughed and thought it was part of the act. I tell you I will never play in public with this unit. I was totally shocked(so was my best friend who was playing too)that this could wack out like that. We've cranked it up at practice, tried everything to get it to happen again with no success(guess thats good) but will stick to live performances with the RP400. I can only give this a 5 because on live play it is no good play(miss the sounds)

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For a $340 dollar processor (I got the control one midi controller too)you can't lose. Even after all these years, you can still get the most awesome sounds you ever wanted. It takes a bit of learning, but the work is worth it! I just LOve this thing!

Very logical and straight foward for programming. Just read the manual and you should have no problems. Getting into the unit and tweaking it is as easy a 1, 2, 3. Just like the buttons on the front. Some sounds are a bit harsh but can be tailored to ones individual taste with a little time. Many patches are great right out of the box. For all my research nobody should be without a Dual S-Disc processor based unit running Firmware 3.00.a (which I have). In 15 minutes I had it plugged in and running with all kinds of cool effects.

MIDI setup was a snap, just read the manual. It worked great with both the DMC Ground Control and Rocktron All Access.
A laptop sequencer/storage program is a must to be added as essential gear. Being able to backup my customizations with a sysex or individual program dump to computer is just wonderful. I have had some difficulty with transferring/uploading programs I have downloaded from the internet, but that may be due to the 2nd S-Disc processor and no real factory made application for this function. This is where the real shame is and where Digitech just ignored it's customers. Digitech should follow Eventides patch editor program for examples if it ever chooses to do something like this again.

I currently have the unit setup with a switcher that allows me to switch between my old Randall RG100HT and the 2101LE for inputs. From there I am running all effects parrallel, including an old DSP256xl, Eventide GTR4K, and Alesis Quadaverb. From there it goes to a DBX166xl noise reduction unit and then to a pair of trusty Yamaha P2250's then to 4 4x12 custom cabs. My guitars range from various old Les Pauls to Peavey Vandenberg, Ibanez GEM TOL, G&L F100 series2e custom, and some old Dean Elites & Z's. To many pickup combinations to even get into.
I have found the unit to be quieter than the it's newer bretheren, ie: 2112, 2120, when using the balanced outputs which the newer models do not have. Although the quality of the effects are no where near the Eventides, (especially in the reverb & delay department) I still found my self drawn to some of the pitch shifting effects along with the Wah/Chorus/Flange stuff. Good enough quality for some of the studio sessions I do. Some of the delay effects are not bad either.
One thing I was impressed with was the analog and digital distortions. The Analog (tube) distortions are quite flexiable, and depending on how you tune them, I found them as good as anything I could get with MB Triaxis. I am eager to try a different set of tube other than the Delta Labs 12at7's that the unit came with. As of this writing I am awaiting my GT12ax7R's and hear the difference. I will post an update if this forum allows me to.

This is an area I am still learing about with it. As for date it has held up well in my rack, no gliches yet. I have about 50 hours on it already. About a 1/3 of it live. So far I rate it high.

Cant say enough good things about the people over at Digitech, especially when I have used the email support from being in the studio and from on the road. Thanks guys for the help so far and I will be contacting you in the future too.

I use it for mostly Rock, Progressive and some Jazz and it seems to fill those nees pretty well and is different enough sounding from my Randall that I dont see really any crossover between the 2.
Since this unit, from what I was told, was made personally by one of the engineers inside Digitech, special care was made in the assembly. It does look good on the inside and is easy to find things, especially replacing the tubes. Some mine would qualify as a GSP2101LE, with exception of the GT's, and came with the extra cool chrome faceplate. I can say the more I play with it the more fun it becomes.

Compared to the stop boxes that Digitech is putting out these days, this is a great bang for the buck.

With versatility comes other complications... This thing has quite a steep learning curve... But i gave an 6 because the method of progamming is very logical and straight forward for me... then again programming is something that is not foreign to me... So guys that want quick fixes should steer away.... this thing is no stompbox...

I'm using this with a Crate GX-60 (which just died on me) and an Ibanez Iceman (i play metal)... i totally depend on the GSP's preamp for my tone...so all i need now is just pure "amplification"....the noise gate pretty much handles all the noise here so no issue... the factory setting needs tweaking for personal use... I don't really emulate artists...but the artist patches in this thing is pretty recognisable e.g steve vai's "Wetness" patch was used in The Attitude Song...

Almost everything rocks on this unit but i'm alittle disappointed in their tube distortions (churned out by the 2 12ax7s inside) although they sound great for thick rythymns, they just do not have enough gain to pull off metal solo tones... on the "grunge" distortion is remotely usable... also, without the PPC-210 Card, this unit can't execute seamless changes.... for that it bloody deserves a crappy 7...otherwise it deserves a 10....

note: if you're fussy over high gain distortions, then an additional high gain distortion unit will be need to be purchased....there is NO WAY this thing will be able to churn out a triple rectifier...

It out-lived my 60 watt Crate amp, what do you think?

I would go without a back-up..don't need one.... and if you stopped throwing your stuff all over the place like a freakin' beachball, you would'nt need a backup either..

Nope never dealt with them... but they did'nt manufacture enough PPC-210 cards... so now i'm stuck looking for out of production stuffs...

AND it had to take some other guy out there to compile a patch librarian and patch editor/dumper....

And jeez... i spent a significant amount on the Control One pedalboard too... could'nt the DIGITECH guys have given me an LCD panel rather than some gunky 9 segment led?

WHAT ARE YOU DOING DIGITECH??

I play metal and have been playing for 5 years (not a long time i suppose) and this Unit has given me the confidence to explore more sonic landscapes... i mean, hell, Moonspell and Therion uses it and that says ALOT..... i own a whole set of boss stomp boxes... which i'm considering selling...thanks to the GSP 2102, my tone has been more consistent.... if it were stolen, i'd definately get it replaced...real value for money.... If i can't get this unit, then the next best would probably be the Boss gT-5... then again, i think both units are equally fine..

I'm actually using a GSP-2101 Studio Tube with the Artist 3.0 upgrade. The GSP-2101 Artist, like all of the units in the DigiTech 2101 family, is a very technical piece of gear. I found I could get virtually any sound I like if I was patient in learning and programming parameters. I find the unit is amazingly flexible. With flexibility, though, comes complexity. They are hand-in-hand. The manual is weak, as are most technical manuals. It gives you basic "hows", but not too many "whys" or "whats". Once you have the patches set up you want, it is quite easy to select what you want using the optional foot controller and programmed quick selects on the front panel.

I have two electric guitars I use with this unit: Fender '92 Deluxe Plus, and '82 Gibson ES-347 with 490T/R pickups. For practice I plug this into the Power-Amp input of a Fender Deluxe 85 amp w/12" speaker (bypassing its pre-amp). This sounds great. In a gig, I sometimes use this setup, mic'ed, or I go direct out the XLRs to a sound board, which sounds different but is also excellent sound.

I noticed some users complained of noisy effects. I found that adjusting the Noise Gate threshold fixed this problem quite well.

My experience with the effects, after making my own patches, is that they are very strong if I do the analog EQ and other effect parameters the way I want it to sound. If you are just trying to use the presets, you'll likely think the unit is not very good. But it is truly designed to be customized, and that's where it really shines. If a patch sounds like what you want, but it's lame, you can usually come up with some combination of parameter or effect adjustments to make it what you want.

Another area I read complaints about is the wah. Certainly it does not have the tone of a real analog wah. However, by adjusting some settings and using the "Smooth Wah" effect (SWah) I was able to get a very usable and enjoyable wah effect for mixing.

I don't try to get sounds of favorite artists normally. I just try to get sounds I like for various styles of music, whether I've heard them before or not. The unit has met the challenge so far. :-)

One area that I found unexpected was the compression behavior. There are different ways that compression can be implemented. Strictly speaking, compression does not provide sustain (signal boost with low-end cut-off), but I'm used to units that do that. My 2101 apparently does not (or if it's supposed to, then my used unit has a defect). However, this has not affected my opinion of its sound quality very negatively since I get adequate tone and effect from it regardless.

I bought this unit used not very long ago. It hasn't failed thus far. I still have an old RP-1 and my amp with some stomp boxes as backup if needed.

I did send DigiTech support an email through their web site to discuss how the compression behaves. I got a reply from an experienced technical person, with some engineering knowledge of the unit, within a couple of days, which I found to be very good. Most companies connect you with someone who knows how to plug the unit in and press the buttons, that's it. This guy really knew what parts of the circuit, down to the chip level, affected what sounds. I was very impressed.

I was disappointed that DigiTech still does not sell S-DISC upgrades for this unit. For that reason it gets a 9 rather than a 10.

I play a wide variety of music including folk, classical, modern country, hip-pop, hard or soft rock, etc. I've been playing about 25 years on and off. My other guitars include a Taylor 810 and an Alvarez Yairo signature classical.

I tried a Korg AX1000G and didn't like it. I sent it back. It had some cool sounds, but it was not very beefy and it totally masked the characteristic tone of my instruments. The 2101 does not have that problem. Even on a heavy overdrive I can still hear, if I want, whether I'm using a humbucker or a Lace Sensor pickup, and whether it's the neck or the bridge or both.

What I like most about this unit is its programmability. I wish, though, I could reprogram at what point the external effects loop occurs in an algorithm.

Overall, this unit inspires me to play music that I enjoy. I would buy another if this died or got stolen.

The first time I plug my guitar in the GSP 2101 I thought... What a waste of money. No usable preset, and everything sounded overprocessed and a weak sound, even with no digital effect on.I tried to use a Sansamp in the loop, but no good tones. I had a RP-1, and all the other digitech pedalboards I ever tested, sounded the same: overprocessed and weak sound. I thought that the valves would push it to a warmer sound but....
Well.. them I started to mess around with the device... and.. if the digital effects kill the original sound... and if I ignore them ?
So I tried to plug it from the effect loop send to my amp...
So... this is the key... Wooww... Now Everything sounds great. crunch, lead and clean sounds very tubey... Warm sounds and strong.
I RECOMMEND TO ALL GSP 2101 OWNERS TO TRY THIS...
Surely all will be surprised with the power of this device.
I bought it used and now I have a great tube pre amp, with a great pedalboard with all the midi I need for a real budget price.
Now I looking for a Yamaha SPX to try it with the digital effects I need.

Good sounds, not great ones, abound. Presets are mediocre at best. All must be tweaked to get something acceptable, tweaking is tedious and frustrating. Theoretically possible, constructing new algorithms is near impossible due to the complexity of interconnects and virtual wiring needs.

My setup is custom shop Strat>Snarling Dogs Whine-O-Wah>2101>silver face Fender Twin. It is noisy with lots o' digital background snot that requires use of the internal noise gate. Distortions are generally good as are delays and LFO-based effects. Choruses are good. Expression pedal of foot controller is useless. Get a real wah. Digital snot brings my overall sound rating down.

During countless gigs, sudden bursts of screaming gain boost and static with uncontrollable clipping have made me relegate this thing to studio where we can always retrack. Two trips back to factory, countless emails and phone calls to support has not resolved the issue. Support techs were friendly, interested and supportive BUT, still a problem.

No problems with support, except they still haven't fixed the problem.

My musical styles vary from jazz to classic rock, disco and funk. Theoretically, the 2101 should replace $1000 worth of analog pedals. But it's unpredictability makes me leave it home. It's for sale. You want it? I don't.

If you use the factory presets It could'nt be any easyer but the sad fact it mast of the presets are over kill and just flat out suck. If you want to make your own presets all I can say is good luck and I hope you figure it out before you take a sledge hammer to it. I was really starting to wonder if it would float in the Mississippi river today. Then I was thinking...Well maybe its just me so I called Tech support and was told "Its been a long time since I programed one and I don't really remember how" and then told me where to look it up myself in the manual as though I had'nt tried that! Thanks guys.

I have the GSP2101 artist and I can honestly say most of them are useless The sounds seem to be of good quality just way over processed and the one that you could use could be had with a decent tube amp and a few effect boxes.

Who cares if it works or not if the sounds stink... maybe if you were making a star wars movie the would be some usefull sounds there.

All i want is a simple noise gate, flange and a little delay but the bad boys from Utah could not help me?

I have always thought that this thing would be great and maybe the other models are good but stay away from the Artist model!!!! It seems to me that the actual "artist" who contributed there personal sounds wanted to make sure they gave you something that they did"nt want. I would sell the thing but could not sleep at night knowing how much a useless piece of crap this thing is.

I've had this thing for a few years now and still haven't figured it out!!! You have effects with several inputs and outputs, mixers such as 4x3 5x2 4x2, and a whole bunch more. You can put effects in any order you like and spend days trying to figure out what mixers you need to add in the algorithms to even get a sound out of the damn thing. I've used many effects units from digitech, ART, and a bunch of others. This one is definitely not user friendly. To be fair, if I would put a bit more effort into learning how to use it, I'm sure I would be more comfortable with it, but I just don't think I should have to. This is not what guitar playing is about. To play my guitar and get a sound out of it I like, I don't think I should have to spend an entire week 24/7 with my nose buried in a technical manual. Granted, I have no problems spending years looking for "THE TONE" (I'm still looking) but not years just learning how to get a reverb to go into a delay after a chorus without using 15 different types of mixers in the patch and then trying to figure out why I'm getting reverb out of one channel and delay followed by reverb on the other and no chorus. Hmmmmmmmmmm...Must be something in one of the 50 mixers I had to add to the damn patch............ Nothing wrong with learning how to use a product, but it shouldnt require you to practically become a @#$%$!# engineer!!! If you want this as a studion unit I guess it's pretty good. It certainly does a lot and does it pretty well. I can understand taking time to learn to use a piece of studio gear. For the average guitar player and stage performances however, it blows.

Sound quality is fine. I'm using a Les Paul with Duncan Lynch screaming demon bridge pickup and stock neck pickup. Mosvalve amp and ADA MP-1 and Sansamp PSA-1 preamps. The effects are really nice and it has just about ANY and I mean ANY effect you can possibly want. several multi-tap delays, a million different reverbs and choruses..flanges, arpeggiators, pitch transposers, detuners...you name it... As I mentioned above, it takes some effort to figure out how to get them to sound the way you want, but once you do they sound great. The wah effect is a joke though. Waste of processing power. The distortions are ok if you've never played through a serious amp or preamp. They can't compare to a real preamp or full blown tube amp. I'm using a sansamp psa-1 and it just blows the 2101's distortions out of the water. I use the 2101 strictly for effects. I also found the clean sounds to be a bit flat unless you eq the hell out of it. One thing I don't understand are some of the presets. They are so over effected that I can picture myself in a mushroom induced daze just tripping out going through them listening to never ending echoes and pitch shifts and arpeggios and volume swells. Not very usable unless you need some experimental type sounds. On the other hand, some are pretty damn cool. Overall good job on the sound quality.

Well, at one point one of the patches just died. Every time I would select patch 2, I would get a bunch of static and crackling noises. I tried changing everything on it. I changed the algorithm on this patch to a bunch of the factory presets to make sure I hadn't done something wrong. I even reset it to factory defaults. Still same thing. One day out of the blue it started working again. Not sure what happened but it did scare me a bit.

Never had to deal with them

I have played everything in the 12 years I've been playing. I've played through Marshalls, Crates, Fenders, Peaveys, Tube works preamps, ADA MP-1, Digitech Gsp-21 (unusable distortions), ART SG something or another (real crappy distortions from that one too), Sansamp PSA-1 (best of the bunch), Mosvalve amps, numerous studio effect units, lexicon, alesis, etc... Been in metal bands, rock bands, blues, but primarily original rock in the styles of queensryche to pat benatar to modern english to alice in chains. I've also played covers ranging from ozzy to garth brooks to rockabilly stuff to peter paul and mary. As a studio unit the 2101 is a great match for them all as an effects unit. You could probably even tweak a decent distortion sound out of it if you really tried. For stage and plug in and play kind of stuff where you may need to edit and even create sounds on the fly, it's not the right unit. If stolen I would replace it with something else unless I had to do a lot of studio work, then I'd replace it with one of the newer digitech units. I've seen them and they are a little more user friendly. It does a good job for studio purposes. unless of course you're in a studio with full lexicon effects...in that case just leave it at home and show up with your psa-1 or triaxis. To be fair, I think this unit just didn't meet my needs. For people who need all the features and can take the time to REALLY learn how to use it, not just using the presets, then this is probably a good choice.

The unit is not easy to use if you don't have any experience with multi-fx devices. It is a kind of quantum leap for the stomp-box fans out there. The manual is ok, but you will need lots of hands-on time to get what you want out of it. I have the firmware version 3.01a (after several upgrades). Patch editing is relatively straightforward, but the multitude of parameters (reverb!) can be confusing as the effect on the sound can be subtle.

I use a Mesa 2/90 poweramp which feeds 2 Marshall 1960 4x12s, PRS custum 24 and Ernie Ball Luke guitars. Mic-ing is not necessary, as the ballanced outs can be routed to the mixer (I do go through a stereo tube preamp before going to the mixer). The unit is not very noisy, and a noise gate can be activated for each preset to suit your needs. The distortion section is weak. The only tube distortion that works for me is the clean distortion setting, which adds a lot of nice overtones. Otherwise, I tend to stick with the solid state overdrive setting, which is relatively flexible. Forget the Wah. Pitch shifting only works well with relatively clean sounds. I don't try to get to close to other peoples' sounds, so I don't know how easy it is to do that. I stick with sounds that are right for what I am trying to do musically. The digital section offers a wide variety of possibilities, which I have only begun to explore. Simultaneous, continuous control of several perameters at once gives you huge flexability. This has limits, though, delay time, for example can't be done this way, it glitches while adjusting.

I have had the unit for 5 years. It has been down once. I do some live gigs, and have used it quite a bit. The foot controler has also been down once. A backup is always a good idea, but who can afford it?

I asked a question via email regarding patch librarian specs and updating and got a prompt answer (which didn't please me as it didn't solve the problem). All in all I think the Digitech people quickly dumped must of their support of the 2101 when later models came out. This is a mistake in my opinion.

I play rock and pop from the late 70's to the early 90's, which is a lot of ground to cover. The unit gives me what I need to do this. I have been a player for 28 years. If the unit were stolen or lost, I would probably try to find another one, as my patches are archived. I would hate to have to start over on some very complicated programing. Digital out would be one feature I could use. The cab simulator does not appear to be of much use. I think units of this type should come with PC-supported programing modules, which make programing algorhythms a snap. After a long search, I was able to find one on the net, freeware from a fellow user. Why not from the factory? All in all, though, a great unit.

The GSP-2101 artist is not easy to use. But then ease of use is a trade off for the immense programming power it offers. The manual is lacking in the most crucial section - creating and linking algorithms.

Sound quality is fairly good. The well appointed noise gate takes care of any residual noise anyway. The wah effects are terrible. Certain effects could use some more parameters. On the whole however the variety of effects is great.

Hasn't let me down in public yet. I've had it 2 years. Having said that it totally died 4 months after I bought it. It has crashed a couple of times in practices.

On-line support is good. Took them ages to fix it (about 4 months). They initially sent it back unfixed. I installed the artist upgrade and dual S-DISC myself. Neither installation was near as straightforward as described in the documentation.

The GSP-2101 Artist has an identity complex! Its not a rock guitarist's rack module. It's for avant garde sound experimentalists! i.e. Why would rock guitarists require 10 independent continuous controller linkages. For those who want more power, the 2101 is superior to the 2120. Email me for wacky patches.

The unit is easy to get a good sound from - if you are willing to tweak and tweak until you find what you want. The sounds are in there. After I had the unit for some time, and got used to how things were done, getting a good sound became quite easy.
The preset patches are somewhat useful, especially the Artist patches. However, running through them can be an experience as the volume levels are all over the map.
Editing patches, again once you get the hang of it, is easy enough, despite the archaic interface. And there are enough buttons on the front panel to make it pretty quick to get around. But - it took me nearly a year to get comfortable with the unit and begin taking it to gigs. Once I did take it out, I regretted not doing so sooner, because it sounded to good.
The manual is typical DigiTech, unfortunately.
My unit has been upgraded to Artist level, version 3.00a I believe. Mine has a single S-DISC.

Guitars used are a Carvin Bolt (with Seymour Duncan humbuckers) and Fender American Std. Strat (with SD stacked humbuckers). Past amps include Peavey Bandit Transtube 112 and Peavey Ultra 112. Current amp is a Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC Plus. Also in the rack is a power supply, BBE 462, Korg tuner, and ADA MicroCAB. Primary processor now is the Roland VG-8, which has largely replaced everything else, including the 2101, though the 2101 sounds great with the VG-8 - it's just too much equipment to deal with at times.
The 2101 can be noisy at times, which is to be expected with this much processing power. I don't find the noise to be objectionable for live use.
All effects can be modified to incredible degrees, so they can be made to sound bad. However, I feel most of the effects are very musical sounding, and easy to make sound good.
I don't make much effort to emulate the sounds of my "favorite" artists. However, I have downloaded patches from time to time that came very close to certain "signature" tones, and have found them to be adequate at least in terms of feel, etc. Copying such tones can be an act of futility, IMO, since the player's touch and heart are bigger factors than what he/she is plugged into.
The delays, reverbs, harmonizer, and choruses sound excellent in my opinion. In fact, the harmonizer is so much more musical sounding than what Roland offers in the GP-100/VG-8 (and more flexible in its offered parameters), that it convinced me to compare these other effects - the DigiTech sounded better, though I'm not sure the guy in the third row will ever notice.
I'm not crazy about the tube distortions, and use my amp's distortion voices instead. I've not tried the solid state distortions.

Mine has been very dependable. But - mine leads a sheltered life compared to most other players. Mine stays in one place most of the time, and is not subjected to temperature or handling extremes.
Many horror stories are in circulation about this and other high end DigiTech products to the point where I don't think I'd buy another of their products. It's too bad, since I think they are ahead of most others in packaging, value to the dollar, etc.
I don't play with a backup, per se, but have enough equipment that if it were to go down, the "show" would go on.

DigiTech has always dealt with me in an expedient fashion, and I've found the tech support people knowledgeable. Again, my experience varies from that of others. They've answered my emails within a day or so, mailed manuals free of charge on two occasions (I also have an RP-1, and used to have a GSP-21 Legend), and sent me requested literature within a week or so.
Mine was returned to their factory to repair the headphone jack. The upgrade was done at a local dealer. Both were done in a reasonable time frame and without incident.

I play contemporary praise & worship and Christian country. The 2101 is a very good match for most any style.
I've been playing for 31 years, and own too much gear to name here. The key pieces are named in this review. However, my primary processor now is the Roland VG-8, which has essentially replaced everything in the rack, but I do use everything together from time to time.
I would probably buy something else if this piece came up missing. This is mainly because I think I got a little lucky with this one, and so many other users are having major reliability problems with their DigiTech gear. Interestingly, new 2101s are still available - there are two on display in stores in my area that have never been able to sell the last of their inventory.
I love the sound quality, except the aforementioned distortions. The distortions aren't bad - but it's very hard to find better distortions voices than what a Mesa/Boogie Mark series amp offers. I don't hate anything (though the interface is a pain, and the use of mixers in algorithms is still confusing at times...). Favorite feature would be the ability to control the unit with the Control One, and it's rapid and silent patch changes. It works well live, which is where it's at.
Sound-wise, I think it fares well when compared to units in its price class, and is probably better than most. And it is so feature-laden, that it would be nearly impossible in terms of rack space and money to assemble all the individual gear needed to do so many things, and then I'm not convinced that the sound quality would be noticeably better. A friend with a large rack system has to work much harder to get a good sound going, patch it into his foot controller, and so on - just to get tones that are no better than what the 2101 offers, by his own admission. I'm sure that the $3600 Eventide multi unit is probably better sounding - but will anybody else ever notice the difference when you're playing live?
I wish it had a better interface, but they fixed that on later products, only to take away the XLR outs and headphone jack - not smart. Also, I wish it had real EQ knobs, which again, they added to later units. And the cabinet emulator isn't anything spectacular, but since I bought the MicroCAB, I don't care.
Until I got my VG-8 recently, I believed the 2101 gave me the greatest tones I've ever had, and made playing an even greater joy. It can get in the way of making music because of all the tweaking possible (and needed), but I feel a player can make music very quickly if they want to with this unit.
I feel the 2101 is a classic tube preamp/FX unit, and as such, it is worth keeping around for many years. Many players who have directly compared it to the later DigiTech units prefer the older 2101. That may be the usual guitar player's disease, but it has convinced me that it's not worth "upgrading" to a 2112/2120. For its current market value, I won't sell this one in the forseeable future.

You need quite a bit of technical understanding to know what you'r doing when programming this unit. The manual isn't too bad but it doesn't cover all aspects of the box, so sometimes you're on your own. Luckily there is a VERY usefull mailing list (visit www.bstage.com/gsp_html/). There are some very usefull features (like user-defineable function keys on the front panel), so after getting used to it the editing and tweaking pactches isn't too difficult. But you got to have the effect routing for your path in your head (or on a piece of paper).

I am using the box with an Ibanez Radstar II and a small Carlsbro Combo amp or (sometimes) directly into a mixing board. Both setups deliver excellent sound quality (the first one in mono with a little more bottom end, the second one in stereoo). Overall I would say that all of the effects sound good to excellent. It's a great feature to be able to set up your own effect routings in user algorithms (with mixers, equalizers, effect-modules whereveryou want them). What really amazed me was the preamp section which produces all kinds of clean and distorted sound (3 Tube and 3 Solid state distortions). this unit can do nearly everything I want do do with my guitar sound. I don't know if the new SG-2112's or SG2120's are even better, but who cares! This box is alle I need.

I heared a lot of people complainig about the reliability of the box, and the demo box in the store crashed twice when I tested it (which was last summer, by now don't get new ones any more), but mine works fine by now.

Never needed them, but their web pages are not very well equiped with GSP-stuff (no patches, no tips, just an online-manual which is exactly like the paper one). There is - as mentioned above - an excellent mailing list which is not sponsored or supported by DigiTech, just by GSP-users. It's very likely to get a good an quick answer when sending your questions to this list.

This is a good choice for nearly all kinds of music (from metal to jazz). Especially after upgrading with the second S-DISC-Chip the possibilities are nearly limitless. The only thing it makes me wish is that I had a good stereo power amp to run it through.

i have the 3.0 artist upgrade..it's fairly easy to use. i moved up from a rp-10, so the learning curve wasn't so bad.. the manual is sometimes cryptic..and so is editing the patches,but for the sounds that are there, it's a small price to pay...i love this thing...

it is true the wah is somewhat weak, but it is not too bad..this unit can crush your spine with the distortions it produces. the solid state distortions are so tight it almost hurts..the tube distortions are pretty fat sounding.. the overall sound quality...outstanding..the cleans are crystal..no b.s. i also use a bbe 402 in the fx loop and that just makes this unit come alive...you really can't find sound quality like this in other units for this price bracket.

i've had it for 3 months and no problems..and the guy i bought it from had it for 2 years.

i called for a artist manual, and was transferred twice..and no one picked up the phone.. so i had to call back, and the person that answered the phone had to ask someone in the room for the price.. this stinks, because i was paying for the call..they need a 1-800 number..the manual is $5.00us send the money, they send you a manual..with this little insight, i really hope i don't have to send it back..

i love this box..i would buy it again.

Editing sound is much easier than I thought. Getting good distortion sound is fairly easy. Reverbs are quite complicated, there're tons of parameters in them. Manual is quite weak, but fortunately unit is simple enough to be understood with it.

Distortions are very good, especially tube sounds. Digital distortions are little too thrashy for me, but if you like Pantera-like sounds I think it will do good job. Effects are great, especially chorus and reverbs are very nice. I don't like noise gate very much, Rocktron's HUSH system is much better. Anyway, the overall sound quality is very good.

Well, I got my unit half a year ago, and it blew up after too months of use. I send it to dealer, they "fixed" it, got it back, but it still ain't working properly. There are some little problems, that don't do very much harm but are still quite nasty.

Haven't dealt with company

I think I won't buy it again, because there's is new model (2112) which should be a way better. Still, I'm quite happy with the unit. It sounds great, and despite the little problems it's working ok. I tries BOSS GX700 (did I remembered it correctly) and didn't like it half as much. I've also owned Rocktron Chameleon, which has much worse distortions.

I purchased the upgrade Firmware Version 3.0 from the stock 2101. It's a bit complicated to program, but the versatility makes up for the effort spent.

Distortions are pretty good, notably the 3 tube settings. Some of the effects are quite noisy, and the noise gate is not particularly to my liking. It's variable, but tends to cut off sustaining notes. The wah wah is undoubtedly the worst part of this unit. Hang onto your Cry Baby. Chorus, delay, flanger and compressor effects are all great. The Artist Upgrade includes a GREATLY ENHANCED TUNER! I've actually stopped using my Boss tuner! Upgrade also includes Intelligent Pitch Shifter (Harmonizer) which is very good. Some of the new artist patches are great.

I use it without a backup. Haven't had a problem with the unit in 3 years. I've been giging about 6 times a month for the past year.

I'd but it again. I love most everything except the wah and noise gate. Wish it had something like an ADA Ampulator in it to simulate power amp distortion prior to the digital effects. FOr the most part, it helps the creative process, though, creating new programs can be time consuming.
I've tried various tubes (12AX7's) in it, stock Tesla's, Groove Tubes, and Sovteks. I prefer the Sovteks to the others.

First of all, I just got my GSP-2101 ARTIST, and so far...IT'S GREAT!!! I didn't think that it would be so easy to understand! compared to the RPs, it's more complicated, but...the flexibility is endless!!!

I've never tried any other preamp/effect module that sounds so good! for someone like me...who takes lessons once aweek, plays for a hobby does a little concert here & there...it's the most awsome part of my equipment!!! all the effects are TOO KEWL!!!!!!

for any rackmounted stuff..if it's in a rack, you cant damage it!!! if your careful, it's built to last a lifetime!!! no problem there!!!

I've never had to return or ask questions!!! it's that reliable!!!

it's the first effects processor I have ever bought, and I'm glad!!! I have a - Fender Telecaster AM.STD. - Marshall Valvestate 8240 - and now...a Digitech GSP-2101 ARTIST You can't get anymore especially since I'm 15...I'm very well equiped!! Everything I ever bought was EXTREMELY good quality...it's a good thing too! I'd never trade it for anything!!! the only thing that bothers me about it...it's the price, but you get what you paid for!!!...right??? I LOVE IT ! ! !