DigiTech RP500

Very easy to use! Editing is a snap, and the manual is easy to follow. What is very cool is that the RP500 comes with the very latest version of the X-Edit software for computer control of the RP500. For editing patches, creating, or uploading its really been improved quite a bit from earlier versions.

I use a Greg Bennett AV6 LTD with Seymour Duncan pickups. The patches that came with the unit are all usable, and I did not find any worthless crap. Really impressed me on its latest sound and patches. Dialing your sound is no biggie and alot easier than Boss or Line 6.

Its built tough, and you can gig without a backup. One thing though, all process need uninterruptable and conditioned power. Meaning that any processor you use needs to have its power smooth and not dipping below its required rating.

Called them a few times with questions and they responded quick. Customer support is top notch!~

I play rock, pop rock, and have been playing 29 years. If this unit were ripped, I would replace it. Digitech has hit a world series homerun here, and it shows! Finally, a music company has made what we guitarists have been *****in about for years, and made it incredibly affordable. Its sounds great, easy to use, and is versatile for anything you throw at it. I call it my Boss/Line 6 killer. No doubt, other companies are going back to their drawing boards to compete with this bad boy. But, Digitech listened and gave their customers what they wanted - way to go Digitech!

2 issues - programing and PLAYING

Easy enough to progam once you get used to it. Its pretty simple, but the book helps you get started - I needed the book and the book was well written.

as far as PLAYING - it is PERFECTLY easy to use. It does exactly what its supposed to do.

I pretty much use it only in pedalboard mode, have never even played with the patches. I created my own pedalboard "scenes" and I'm good to go.

The only "knock" is that you only get one modulation effect - and that's my biggest need for flexibilty. I ended up making several scenes that are identical except for the modulaiton setting. so to swtich from chorus to trem to auto wah for instance, I just switch scenes. Duplicating a scene for this purpose is a piece of cake.

I use this for a solo acoustic act and ina 3 piece roots/blues/light rock band. Various guitars. current #1 is a Gibson LP with P90's. ALso use a Chet Atkins acoustic.

I sometimes use a Fender Tube amp (Vibroverb or Blues Jr) with the RP500 in amp bypass - just use it as a pedal board. Other times I use the modeler into the amp.

Sometimes I skip the amp and use the modeler right into a BOSE L-1 (I do all the solo work this way).

Anyway I slice it, it sounds great. I don't really give a crap if it "sounds like" any particular amp or artist. As long as I can express myself and get the tones I want, I'm happy.

And with this pedal - I am very very happy.

Not only can I get great tones - i can get them easily, on demand in LIVE setting. I rarely plug in except for at gigs and this thing is as reliable and predictable as a series of pedals - but without all the hassles and cost.

I use 3 amps models: fender deluxe, Marshal stack and JC-120 - that should give you some sense that I'm not a metal head! (not that there's anything wrong with that). There are a bunch of HEAVY distortion models to choose from - not my bag.

seems very very rugged - sooner of later everything Digital has the chance to fart out on you - in that case you just do without. No backup here.

no idea - no need. the manual is good.

I play rock, blues, root - acoustic and electric. Band and solo.

I front a band and perform solo so there's little time to tweak stuff on the fly. I plug and play.

Had tried different pedals and all-in ones boxes for several years NEVER could get used t the "patch" operation on a POD. good tone but a pain in the butt to use.

I saw the RP-500 ad and immediatley knew they had the right idea for me. I didn;t believe that it would actually work, but MF has 45 day free trial, so I ordered it. No looking back now.

Very convenient, sounds great, looks great, and I can name my scenes whatever I want,

Best $300 investment I have ever made in music gear. hands down.

very easy to use but could be a bit tricky at first if your not use to multi effects .but i have many so was easy to use for me.there is a manual but i did'nt need it.

i have 4 amps but i run this through my studio amp .its a drive cd200r sounds very blussy.the effects are strong .you can get many artists sounds from this rp500 .the dirty channels and cabs and amps sounds are outstanding

yes would be great to gig with but i'm only into studio work.

never needed them

i play mainly blues and jazz rock its my own style .and my own sound ..ive been playing overv 30 years .ive to much gear to list on here .but ive 49 guitars mainly 60's ones and 4 amps and many different multi effect units ,line 6 pod/ boss gt6 /yamaha fx550./boss se70 /.zoom g9.2tt/boss me50/roland gr33/korg ax300g/korg ax10a/zoom 8080/yamaha mt8x 8 track recorder/mtx 4 track recorder/hog electro harmonix/korg x911 vintage guitar synth/watkins copycat/digitech rp100/and of course the newist member to the family the digitech rp500..and this is one of the best out of all my multi effects.if it was stolen i would buy it again for sure.go on treat your self and go buy one. lifes to short not to...

Having previously owned a Digitech Genesis 3, I can safely say that this unit is both less complicated to use and less complicate to edit. Editing on any multieffects unit is harder then a stompbox but hooking it up to a computer and using the X-edit 2 software makes it very easy. The manual included is quick and to the point but covers all the essentials.

I currently use an LTD Kirk Hammett and a Dean Vendetta. I have a Crate vintage club 50 watt tube amp and a 120 watt crate at my bands practice space. The two amps sound very different but both sound very good with this unit. I always end up liking about 1/4 of the preset patches on these types of units and pretty much only end up using two or three that i edit myself. This is no different, its not a knock on the unit itself, just a knock on the guys who make the patches. Everything sounds good though. The Lamb of god patch is my favorite of all the preset patches, and a patch I made with a 5150II amp is amazing sounding.

This thing has alot of weight and is all metal construction. The buttons are amazing, so much better than those square plastic buttons on the other digitech units. The expression pedal seems smooth enough and is a brushed steel finish with anti skid tred which is awesome for people who wear shoes with little tred. I always go to the amps clean and dirty sound if a unit like this fails. But Im not worried about it at all.

Never dealt with them

I play mostly hard rock, classic rock, and metal, and this unit does it all just fine. Ive been playing for about 12 years and needed something that sounds good and that is flexible. I love the sound quality, the ease of use, and the great recording abilities that it gives me, I dont like the placement of some of the buttons. Overall, its great.

Just plug your guitar into it, connect it to your amp, and find a preset that you like. Editing patches from the unit itself reqires some getting used to, which is why I gave it an 8. However, using the included X-Edit 2 software makes editing and saving patches via your computer a snap. The manual is easy to understand and better than most. I purchased this unit about a month ago, so it is the latest version of this product. I have not used the included Cubase software as of yet.

I am using this with my custom Michael Tuttle assembled HH Fender Strat with Bare Knuckle Pick ups. I currenty am using a hand made Frenzel FM-5E3 tube head into a Lopo Line 1x12 speaker cabinet with an Eminence Texas Heat speaker. I run my guitar into the RP-500, then straight to a reissue 63 Fender tube reverb unit, then into the amp.
All of the RP-500 effects are very usable, quiet and sound top notch.
With a little tweaking I was able to get a convincing Billy Gibbons ZZ Top sound or a spacey Eric Johnson type chordal sound. The guys in my band love this pedal (especially the other guitarist) and between us, we probably have over $4,000 dollars invested in our pedalboards. Not bad for a unit that sells for $299.00! I am seriously thinking of of selling my old pedalboard! (I used to be a pedalboard snob, but the RP-500 has cured me of that.)

This unit is really small, appears to be well built, and makes set- up a snap. It's a lot easier to carry around than my other pedalboard. I have never used any Digitech pedals before, but I would gig this without a backup, no problem. Like I mentioned earlier, I've only had this unit about a month, but it's performing like a champ.

Have had no need to contact Digitech.

I currently play in a classic rock / blues band and find the RP-500 to be an ideal match. It also has some Metal presets, if that is your thing, but I believe you can get just about anything you want out of it. If you can find a preset that is in your ballpark, then use the X-Edit 2 software to go into the preset, tweak it to your liking, and save it. In preset mode you can step from clean sounds to dirty utilizing the switching system, or use it like a pedalboard, turning effects on and off. I have also utilized it in my home studio direct to the board, and with the amp simulator engaged, it sounds excellent. I have been playing guitar for 40 years (ouch!) and a lot of equipment has passed through my hands. I have never written a equipment review previously, but I was sufficiently motivated by the RP-500 to do so. When you consider cost vs tone (and even if you don't consider cost)the RP-500 is a keeper.

It's really not that difficult to use. I don't even need a manual to use it first time.

I used a Stratocaster connected to a marshall 50 watt amp. Sometimes, i just use the amp simulator in this RP500 and plug it straight to the return rather than input in my amp.

Yes, I would really depend on this. It's very reliable.

Never need to contact them.

I'm very happy with it!

This pedal will be easy to use if you have used any other modeler/Multi-FX units. I actually didn't look at the manual for the first day. The second day, I just looked at the charts so I knew where to scroll to for the sounds I wanted. A rudimentary familiarity with the equipment being emulated will be extremely helpful. But if you can adjust your amp, distortion pedal and chorus pedal, you'll get by.
If you are new to multi-fx, any unit will have a bit of a learning curve, and this is no exception.

I use a selection of Fender Strats and a Danelectro Baritone with this into a Peavey Valveking 112 and a Roland JC-55. The unit is very quiet and the effects are pretty decent emulations of the gear they claim to be, although I've heard better attempts at the RAT and Big Muff. Having owned a TS-9, it seems to sound like what I remember.

I'm particularly fond of the Fender Twin emulation. No one who actually owns a Twin is going to close their eyes and think I bought a Twin, but it captures the Twin vibe very well. (and it's a lot lighter than a twin) It's very "surfy" with actual spring reverb "kicks" when you hit it hard.

Best of all if you happen to like your amp (as I do), a single button defeats all of the amp and cabinet emulation globally, effectively giving you a row of stomp boxes for live playing. In fact, I wrote a couple of patches that are my "vintage" and "modern" pedal boards.
You have to be careful going into a really bright amp (like my JC-55)
Any kind of modeling of a bright amp (like a twin) or any treble boost can become quite shrill very quickly.

Obviously, nobody makes a unit like my old Tychobrahe Systems Parapedal (which survived being run over by a Volkswagen Beetle), but I do, in fact, use the rp500 live w/o a back up. It's a very solid, metal construction with high quality "vacuum cleaner" style switches. Obviously this unit is new, but it's my 8th DOD/Digitech pedal and 4th modeler, and I've never had one fail.

Unknown

I play in cover bands, and I like having so many useable sounds in such a convienient package. And it sounds decent enough that I would use it straight into the PA if I had, say, a one off gig out of state. Not as good as my real amp, but this will fit in my carry on. As airlines increase luggage fees, that becomes a real selling point for me.

First and most important, LOVE the dedicated bypass switch. No freaking "hit 2 pedals at once and hope it bypasses instead of switching patches to 'Deth Metal' in the middle of your finger picked passage" set up. I actually hate that about everybody's pedals, Digitech, Zoom, etc..

I personally don't need all the distortions this thing has, and I think including models of the Grunge and Death Metal pedals was a waste of space. I like that it can emulate a few of my favorite amps if I record at home, or have to go direct, but can defeat all of that and become a row of pedals to go into my amp.

I do wish I could reassign switches. I'd like to have the option of an amp model with say, a chorus, tremolo, phaser, pitch shifter and reverb, but alas, you only get 1 modulation effect at a time. I could run the thing in patch mode to get that, but then it's not like having a row of stomp boxes.

There a a toe down pressure switch that switches the Wah that I wish was a little less sensitive. I have big feet and I have to be careful not to switch it on.

One thing that is pretty disapointing is the tuner. It tracks poorly and sometimes I question it's accuracy. It's a shame, because I don't want to carry an extra Boss TU-2 when this tuner should be great.

I've wanted this "row of stompboxes" thing for a long time, and Digitech just about got it right. I wish the Tap tempo switch was farther away from other controls. I wish the expression pedal was a little bigger. I wish the tuner was better, and the display was easier to read outdoors. I wish I could replace some of the bazillion distortions with other more interesting things. But until Digitech agrees to make my RP500 signature model, this is the best MFX pedal I've found for playing live. I really do like it a lot.

It will take an average musician with basic knowledge of effects and EQ settings a couple of days to get your core tones out of it. That is, if you spend 2 to 4 hours a day with it. Once you commit all the parameters to memory editing is much faster on the board itself, but with the included X-edit software it is MUCH faster. The manual is ok if like stated above you have a good basic knowledge of the various hardware it emulates, but doesn't go into enough detail for a novice. Being as new as it is there are no firmware updates available, yet.

I am running a Dean ML with Zebra pickups into the RP500 into the front of a B-52 AT-100 and out of a peavy cab. there is only excess noise on the mega gain channel, but it is easily kept under control with a noise gate in the loop. Obviously and ISP, Hush, or Boss NS-2 will work best respectively. I use a lot of the various effects depending on the style i am playing. The wahs are good but you have to dial them in just right. I have heard people say that the Whammy is not as good as the stand alone pedal, but I have compared them side by side and the difference is so minute only the D-baggiest of us will care or notice when put in the mix. I can achieve some great SRV, Clapton, ZZ Top, and Jimmy tones between the amp and the pedal without amp and cab sims. It is also able to produce the relatively same tones with the amp/cab sims through my small Crate 15w albeit with less balls. When going for the balls out high-gain sound i use my amp distortion and effects only on the RP. all the different effects have one or two options that work great, and the est are good enough not to get sad about them. The pedal will affect you core tone very, very little if you set it up right.

Don't know much about reliability as I have not had it long enough to tell. That being said, I do use it to gig out and have had no problems with it.

No idea, never had to deal with them.

Weather for Metal, Blues, Classic Rock, Modern Rock, or Jazz you can get any sound you want out of this thing as long as your willing to put the time into dialing it in to a tee. This is not hard with X-Edit. I have been playing for 15 years and giging for 8, I have played Mesas, Marshals, Fenders, Kranks, Engls, and a few others. I have toyed with many stomp boxes, paired with a good amp the RP500 replaces them all. If it were lost i would most deffinately buy it again. My favorite feature is the ability to switch between pedalboards, this means you can have a plethora of effects at the push of a button. The ONE thing that i don't like is the hiss this pedal will add to your sound, but it is easily managed with a noise suppressor. This is the best MFX you can get for under $700, period.

Easy to adjust Easy to get the sound that you like.

The sound is very good for every Amp and Effect Model. Best for live and Best for Record. Best Clean, Overdrive, Hi-Gain, Modulation and Reverb from lexicon.

I had looked for multi effect to play live and record for 10 years, this is the one.

no comment

The "Music concept" is the very best music shop in Thailand.

I love it.

The Factory patches are pretty good strait out of the box, and tweaking the sound is simple (especially if you know what you're looking for and use the X-Edit software). The manual isn't very detailed, but really, this is about as simplistic as a multi-effects unit gets and if you can't figure it out you probably shouldn't buy anything that is more involved than a single effect stompbox.

I run my Parker Fly (loaded with three LACE sensor pickups: red, sliver, blue and a five way switch) through the RP500 straight into our mixer. I'd say it sounds great, especially with all the options for output gain (be careful switching from a clean to dirty patch: gain levels are VERY different meaning you can go from overdriven to amp clipping with the touch of a button).

As to whether I can coax the sounds out of it I want, definitely! I can dial in the Edge, Clapton, and any other I'm looking for with a bit of trial and error (the Hendrix patch is pretty good and there's an awesome reverb/delay patch for U2 out there that nails it).

So far, all effects sound pretty good with some being a bit less than perfect (the Wah fx are pretty weak, I keep my Clyde in the loop when I want Wah)...

It's built like a tank and hasn't shown any signs of weakness. I would imagine it can stand up to some serious abuse and keep kicking. If it can't, I'll be rather thoroughly irritated and rant, scream, and generally make someone at Digitech's life messy. I bought the 500 because of it's all metal chassis and vacuum switches because of bad experiences with plastic versions...

Haven't had the need to contact. Web seems a bit cheesy though...

Overall it is a great pedal. I really like the options it brings to the table and the way it contributes to my sound. If it were lost or stolen I wouldn't hesitate to buy another.
I did my comparison shopping and the ability to switch from pedalboard mode to full patch mode sold me. Being able to setup everything in a chain to mimic a setup exactly including the amp/cab is awesome, especially being able to switch off and on individual effects making it seem like I own tons of great gear and giving me tons of sonic options.

I think it's a great match for what I needed (versatility and direct system insert) to fit my needs as a worship leader...