Product: Korg AX3A
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted
01/01/2009
at
11:53am
by
rockofaged
Email: coachm<at>cstone dot net
Ease of Use
:
8
I'm not an electronics geek, but with some study and practice you can create some good setups. The 40 presets are easy to get to.
Sound Quality
:
8
I do amplified acoustic gigs with and assortment of guitars. It really works well with my Martin HD-28 and JC16. It's at it's best with undersaddle pickups. It doesn't do a lot for my Epiphone Texan with an in hole pickup.
Reliability
:
9
I played without effects for a lot of years, so if it fails, it's me, the guitar and the amp. I'll bet on German engineering anyday.
Customer Support
:
8
I've asked Korg a few things in the past and had good response.
Overall Rating
:
9
I started with a garage band in the '60's and did the rock scene for a lot of years. Since a solo act doesn't have to keep a lot of other guys sober, I did as many as I could with a mixture of folk, country and rock. I had a day job, since the music business retirement program isn't so great. I've used some other effects in the past but they were a lot to carry around. I wanted a small box with a built in muted tuner. I looked for a while but couldn't find what I wanted. Everything was too expensive, too complicated, only part of what I wanted. etc... I wandered into a music store one day and they had a few out and I tried the ax4a. It did what I wanted, was the foot switches were good and when I asked the price they said $63 and it was a done deal. I may move up to something else but for now I was shocked to find this system for that kind of price.
Product: Korg AX3A
Price Paid: USD 59.95
Submitted
10/03/2007
at
02:00pm
by
troubadour x
Email: lapis at comporium<dot>net
Ease of Use
:
8
getting a good sound is as simple as plugging your guitar in but, this may be based on the sound of your individual guitar. i plugged in my seagull S6+ and got a good sound right away. having said that , however,PLEASE READ the INSTRUCTIONS. the manual is a little short on info but, as far as getting a good sound, it's easy to understand.
Sound Quality
:
9
the options here are all up to the user. if you just need a good, natural sound, there are a couple to choose from. the unit is designed to simulate large bodied jumbos as well as small ones. it even has a setting for a "resonator" type sound that sort of mimics a metal bodied guitar. it's got a four band e.q. plus other effects that should allow you to dial in almost any
tone you want. the effects i was most looking for were chorus, delay and reverb. they are here and for the price paid, they do a great job.one effect that i did not expect was a touch sensitive wah effect. it produces something very close to the old mutron effect. there's also an octave and for some reason, a ring mod. once again, read the instructions. some of the effects have more control over certain parameters that others. i have not detected any
noise so far. i bought this unit to use at acoustic gigs. i've got lots of gear for my electric guitars but, they don't work so well with piezo pickups. my seagull has an l.r. baggs system allows me to plug right into a mixing board. i've got to say that , for what i paid for a tuner(which it also has) i wound up with one of the best choices i've ever made
Reliability
:
10
going by korg's reputation, i would expect this to be a reliable product.
Customer Support
:
10
i emailed korg as to where i could find one (more on this later) and got a prompt reply.
i hope they're as helpful if something goes wrong.
Overall Rating
:
10
i started doing acoustic gigs in the early seventies. yep. i'm an old hand at this. i do a mix of cover of songs i like as well as my own tunes. the styles range from rootsy country blues to funky/jazzy freakouts. tone is very important to me. this little pedal is , for the money, one of the coolest things i've seen. do i wish it had a little more control over certain things? yes, but
for the price i paid, it ain't gonna happen. this thing draws the line between an expensive digital processor and a cheap noise maker, which leads me to the weirdest thing of all, it's been discontinued. for some unknown reason that korg does not want to shed light on, this unit is no longer being shipped. i searched the internet a little and found one at a shop in philly. i urge you to do the same. get on ebay,get on google and FIND ONE. i think that maybe the AX3A is a little too good and might have hurt the sales of their more expensive units but, that's just a guess.
