Korg G1 Guitar Distortion Processor

It's literally idiot proof! was able to get the sounds that I want within a couple of minutes, the only thing that I need to know is how to set this baby on bypass mode. Anyone who has any idea how to use bypass on this baby or have a free manual that I can download just for reference please put some info here. Thanks!

Wicked distortions and overdrive! I've got a Korg Ax3000G which is sweet but the G1 has a more analogue sound. We must bare in mind that this is a OD/Dist processor, so for those people who are not quite satisfied with other fx on this unit you have to understand that those fx are just bonuses. What you guys need to focus on is the sound of the distortions and OD in this baby. I play progressive metal and power metal and this baby does it all. don't need anything else, I'm actually planning on selling my Korg Ax3000G and buy a guitar synth since I dont really need it anymore as long as I have my Korg G1.

Can't complain, drop it a couple of times and still works perfectly!

didn't need to contact them , and thid baby is so old that I know they don't support it anymore

If this thing got stolen or broken I would definitely look for another one. So far the best sounding dist/od I've ever heard on a unit!

now this must be the most flexible and easiest distortion pedal in the world to get a good distortion of..its a distortion processor with three
channel switches,one bank switch and about 7 pots and two buttons,this unit is in a red rugged plastic casing.it also has delay/reverb built in witch is sweeeeet for solos as a mo******cker.it got wah waw in,headphones,amp out and line out.when a sound is to be stored just hold edit button for 2 sec.and then push once more.i remembered a add with Dimebag in the early 90`s with this unit,and someone did also mention white zombie..this unit can and will provide you with any distortion/fuzz ore overdrive you can imagine..including the o so mighty shred distortion..now this is the rawest head ripping,tightest,punchiest distortion ever..i promise.and be shore to take it from me.i have tried and owned about any pre amp,floorboard,pedal,top and combo there is to find this for over 20 years.and just not to hurt this baby too much cos of age,i use a line 6 pod xt live with metal pack installed,but its no way near..

i have tried this unit on everything for almost two decades now,it ain`t
noisy,it never fails.and the sound is absolutely pure metal times two.i can even plug it right into pa without any noise reduction ore D.I ore eq ore anything.any amp,any mixer,pc ore hi fi.blends nicely with other units as well.be shore to give a **** in the line out and see to use amp out,for stereo use use a y splitter.

now this is the only thing i used for maaaany years,while more expensive and fancier units just collected dust and sounded crappy.and for over 10 years,i never even thought about backup,and i did not need it.now i have been stompin this box for so long,that i have it in a glass mounter and bring it to the studio whenever i shall record the tightest most distinct and punchiest metal,with crystal clear solos thats just beyond inspiring.

never needed to contact them,and i bought the one i use now in the early 90`s used..he he.

for any metal and beyond,technical metal,tight and punchy and fast metal,any metal,any rock,as its got a sweet crunch and tube gain,a good fuzz distortion for that grunge ore just plain O.D.but most of all and finally one with so big balls that it sounds like a sledgehammer crushing concrete,and the solo sounds because of the amazing built in delay..if i can find ten more i would buy them all.you cant help falling in love with this,and if anyone says anything else..poooor pooor guys..
it has been compared with anything on the marked for all years..for what its supposed to do..it just does a hell of a lot more..this unit will always help you make good technical metal with crystal clear sound.this one is my everything,and it has made me cry several times,cos i can hear clearly now..

I bought this pedal used, without a manual. After a few minutes of trial and error, I think I figured out the basics. But after a couple of months, I'm still not sure I understand everything.

The knobs are laid out in a logigal way, and everything seems clearly labeled. But some things are still a mystery. For example - I've heard that these pedals have built-in noise reduction. Where is it? And how does the wah work?

The tone and contour knobs are a little hard to get used to. Is "contour" a mid boost/cut? That's what it sounds like to me.

MOST of the distortion types sound good. A few sound great ("Tube OD", "High Gain" and "Octafuzz"). One ("Fuzz") sounds absolutely awful. But 90% of guitarists could probably find a useful sound in here. It covers everything from a slight bluesy breakup to full-scale death metal.

My favorite setting is the Octafuzz, with the gain set fairly high and the tone and contour around 12:00. It's a heavy, grungy sound, but has a certain depth and sweetness to it. Power chords have just a hint of the upper octave floating above them. Single note leads just sing.

It also has a built-in delay. It's digital, but not overly cold or harsh. The way it works with only one knob is pretty clever. The first quarter of the rotation gives you doubling (from subtle to full). The next 25% gives you slapback. Then a medium delay time. Then a long echo. Despite only having 4 preset delay times, it covers all of my delay needs nicely. Since you can't bypass the distortion to get a clean echo, I've created a patch with the tube OD turned all the way down. It's mostly clean unless I really slam the strings. Nice.

I've tried it with a variety of guitars (Tele, SG, Strat and BC Rich) and amps (Fender Champ, Lab Series L5, a Pignose and a Peavey Classic 60). It sounded best in front of the Peavey, but great with all of them.

I should mention that it has 3 banks that hold 3 patches each. So you can program and choose between 9 sounds. However, mine has one broken footswitch. So I can only use 6 patches. Still, that is enough.

Not sure. It's survived for about 20 years and still works. But as I said above, one of the switches has already failed.

I bought this thing as a backup for my POD XT Live, but I doubt I'll ever need it. The XTL is bomb-proof. But *IF* it ever dies, I can get through a gig with just distortion and delay.

But the G1 sounds so good that I'd like to use it more often. So I'm conflicted.

I searched Korg's site, and found nothing. They don't list an email adress to contact, so I tried a few guesses. No luck.

There is a third party on the web that sells manuals, but they want almost as much as I paid for the pedal.

At home, I play everything from Blues to Surf to Metal to Western Swing. My band is basically hard rock. This pedal is a good match for my style.

I should mention that the red plastic case and black plastic knobs make it look like a toy. But I don't care. It has a number of great sounds.

If it were lost or stolen, I'd move on. But as long as it's around and working, I plan to enjoy it.

Easy to operate and easy to get great tones from this thing. Will drive an amp into insane levels of gain or just a little depending on the distortion you choose. This is still the best stand alone overdrive-distortion box out there in my opinion. It has everything you'd ever need from crystal clean bypass to o-my-god-we're-all-gonna-die death metal. I can't get a poor sound from it. This is the TS 9/OD1/TS808 of digital distortion boxes. Decent delays, too.

You can get anything from it. For oldies to classic rock, blues, heavy and hard rock, shred, metal, nu-metal and everything else, it just kills and keeps on killing. This is still the best stand alone overdrive-distortion box out there in my opinion. It has everything you'd ever need from crystal clean bypass to o-my-god-we're-all-gonna-die death metal. I can't get a poor sound from it. This is the TS 9/OD1/TS808 of digital distortion boxes. Decent delays, too.
There are some slight digital artifacts in the patches but not enough to be problematic. The dynamics are lacking but not entirely missing, either. What do you want from a box that came from the early days of digital? even with these shortcomings, tonewise there is nothing on the market that could replace this, even in 2006. For whatever reason, Korg did everything perfectly when they dedicated their processor to making distortion in the G1. It's all I ever use for gigging.
I'm using it with Les Pauls and Ibanez shred guitars. Fender Princeton, 90 watt SS amp and that's all I need. Guitar, G1 and amp. I use a JimiHendrix wah sometimes...that's it.

Tough as nails. Light as a feather. Simple 9 volt PS.

I've been playing a long time, almost 40 years as a guitar player. Over the decades I've kept my eye out for good gear. THIS is one such item. Doesn't matter what style of rock n roll you play, this will serve your needs.
I compared this with ZOOM, Digitech and BOSS products of the era. Hands down, the Korg blew the competition away. I also have a new ZOOM G2 for headphone practice (nice unit) but the KORG G1 is my live rig. I have owned BOSS ME series pedals, Digitech pedals, Rack mount stuff and an assortment of different amps over the decades. Now I use the KORG G1 with solid state amps for gigs. This combo gives me the most bang for buck and it's lightweight, which is important when you get up to my age.

This product contains more knobs than a conventional pedal and has 3 different pedal banks that your settings can be stored on. Because of these extra awesome features it does take away some from the ease of use catagory. Manuals can still be found online across the web for free. It really is not needed if you are already familiar with a pedal system. Most players with previous pedal experience should be able to jump right in with this and start shredding!

There is nothing I have found yet that is comparable to the sound of this distortion system. It can easily be used to dial directly in on numerous tones from Pantera, White Zombie, and other 90's metal bands. There are 8 different distortion types to choose from and lots of knobs and whistles to allow you to control the tone and feel. I have used this pedal now for over 10 years and currently use with it with a Marshall Mini Stack along with a Toneworks G3! The sound is phenominal.

I have used this pedal nearly daily for years off and on and every function on it still works. In the time I have had it, it has had the chance to take a good beating and it just keeps on trucking. You can definatly depend on the original Tone Works Pedal Series by Korg. It's a wonder that they don't still make them. Their new pedals just suck.

I have never had to use support for this product.

If you like to play any type of 90's style medal this pedal is for you. This pedal can also be combined with a few other effects devices to create some interesting sounds. I use mine in conjuction with a Korg Tone Works G3 Guitar Processing System and I wouldn't give either of them up for the world. If they were stolen or damaged in some way you bet I'd be on EBay buying replacements! New style Korg effects systems just suck and are horrible to learn how to use. If anything, I wish this also had the effects of the Korg G3 system so I could have everything I love in one pedal.

Very easy to get a good sound from this little red box. Editing is easy enough that any idiot can be creating and storing patches in just minutes. (I should know, I'm an idiot.)
As for the Korg G1 manual: " Yo...I don't need no stinkin' manual, meng!" Seriously easy to use...great sounds.

I've used a Roland/BOSS ME 5 for years for my overdrives and distortions. Hey, it's a classic, excellent box that does multi-effects and distortions, plus compression and it has a cool noise gate. When I read the review by Kayd Mon (see below) I just had to try one of these so off to E-Bay I went. Wow. This little red box has a whole lot of potential and it really does sound perfect for slightly gritty blues to screaming, "KILL EM AAALLLL..." metal. Like the Kayd Mon, I use the overdrive and the Tube overdrive settings mostly. Taking Kayd Mon's sage advice, I also created a nice crunchy rhythm patch using the High Gain setting. Muchos Zesty, mengses! Very tasty tones, indeed.
So..take it from me and Kayd Mon...this thing will do you proud, every time. Ridiculously easy to use and portable, too. Awwww...it's so cuuuute! :D

Just for fun I ran my 18 wheeler back and forth over it 100 times. Takes a lickin and keeps on tickin! Okay...it's ABS plastic, just like most car interiors these days. My car doors have never failed me so I expect the G1 to follow suit. Seems sturdy enough.
What's a backup? Oh, my ME 5 is a backup, now. I wouldn't use the G1 as jackstand for changing my brakes but it seems to be of average-to-slightly-above-average quality for a product produced at the end of the 20th century.

"I don't need no stinkin customer support, meng!"

I'm heavy into 17th century Hungarian folk music these days. Just kidding. I'm a rhythm / occasional solo player in a 4 piece band. I've been playing old school for a long time. Yes, I AM a 54 year old geezer.
We do old school stuff, a little jazz and some covers of Zep, Boston, Cream...the usual suspects. We also do a respectable British Invasion thing with Beatles and Who tunes. (WHO?...yeah)
Surf tunes round out the repertoire-crowd pleasers for geezers (takes one to know one!) This box covers it all and has a bypass for just doing it clean. By the way...we have a killer solo guitarist who happens to have the handle "Kayd Mon." True story...he's in the band.
He has excellent taste in equipment, I'll have to admit. Probably buys his amps and guitars from a cool older guy who gives him tasty deals on zesty equipment. :D
This is a great box. Glad I bought it. Thanks for the steer to this thing, Kayd Mon...see you next Tuesday at rehearsal...

very good pedal...i love it!!!

love it so much...the sound kick ass, with the right combination guitar pick up such as seymour duncan 'invader' or dimarzio 'dropsonic'

once it got rain on it, let it dry for two days or you can use hair dry-er it's done :)

perfect!!! since i have so many tube amps such as mesa, orange, marshall, HK, Krank...this stuff gives me what i need... :)
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The controls are self-explanitory and easy to figure out without using a manual (I don't know if I still have mine). It takes a few minutes to figure out the tone controls if you're used to the standard bass/treble or bass/mid/treble. It is quite easy to get a good sound out of this thing, and editing patches is just a matter of some simple knob-twisting.

For guitars, I use a Gibson Les Paul Studio, a maple-neck Fender Strat with Texas Specials, and sometimes an Epiphone Dot. For amps I use either a Fender Blues Jr. (all stock) or a Peavy Ranger 212 (speakers and tubes non-stock). In the past, I have used this with a 50-watt HiWatt half stack and a reissue Fender Twin Reverb.

As you can see, I have used this pedal mostly in front of tube amps. This pedal has a really great sound on top of an expressive clean channel on a tube amp. I'm no shredder - I mainly use the Classic OD and Tube OD modes on this pedal. I will sometimes use the High Gain Dist for a very cutting, sustaining solo sound. The Classic OD has a great crunch that is not too harsh and does not cover up any of the notes you are playing. The Tube OD is a little dirtier, but still retains a wonderful sound true to your playing style. The High Gain Dist has great sustain and cut (as mentioned before), and it works well for a hard rock rhythm sound (especially power chords). I never use the Shred Dist because it really shreds. Total metal sound - great if that's what you play, but not for me. The Fuzz and Octafuzz are interesting, but for me, they are only useful for playing around. I never use the wah settings, as I like my Crybaby 535, but they can give a cool filter effect (I have used it before, but not for a while). The delay is minimal (hey - this is a distortion pedal), but it is perfectly usable for adding some beef to some solos, and the doubling delay sounds pretty cool.

I usually set the gain channel for my amp with low pre gain and boosted post gain to combine for more solo power. Combining the amp's gain channel with this thing on gives you a sweet solo boost.

This was my first stompbox of any kind 10 years ago - it has been through a lot, and I'm still playing it. The only problem I've ever had was a few sticky pedals - they would still work, but they were stubborn. This was only due to the fact that we practiced in a garage where some kitty litter would sometimes get on the floor and eventually into my pedal. After blowing that dust out, I have had no problems whatsoever. No backup for a gig? One can never tell the future, but I would be pretty confident with this pedal.

Never dealt with them, never had to.

I've been playing for 10 years. This pedal was my bread and butter when I used to play grunge, and it's still with me as I play alternative, prog, classic rock covers (including blues rock), and sometimes even pop rock. For distortion-only pedals, I have a Boss DS-2, and a Boss HM-2. For multi effects with distortion, I have a Digitech RP-7 Valve, and a Line 6 POD 2.0. I prefer this pedal over all of those. I even prefer this over a lot of amp distortion. I like to use a stompbox for distortion so that I can click to the amp's clean channel. If I lost this, I would cry and then buy a new one. This pedal has the sounds that I want, and it perfectly matches my playing style. Stamp of approval.

I just love simple and effective things and this unit is just as simple as a wooden pick. I don't think I can add something new for the other reviews: imagine a simple programmable stompbox with 4 pedals that you can learn to operate in 30 seconds. The only trick is activating the noise filter (press & hold 'bank") but that's the only hidden trick. It cannot be much easier. Now'days BOSS produces a dual OD/DIST simulator pedal called OC20 Drive Zone with the same clear-minded, well designed simplicity.

The 6 different distortion modes offer you great versatility and some extraordinary, cool individual tones if you know what you want to hear. Overdrive and fuzz modes I could not use for anything besides some fun. Phew, I play metal so 6 of the 9 presets are set to kill using shred mode#4. I love hi-gain mode#3 and the delay. Of course it cannot beat expensive rack delays but hey it's pretty practical for live use. I have a JH1S Cry Baby so I never used the wah mods. The noise reduction is quite effective, even with nutshaking volumes I can hear my amp operating buzz only. It also helps you control unwanted feedback that is pretty useful for loud club venues.
The only negative thing is some almost not noticable but omnipresent digital sizzle you can't kill without external EQ (I use a BOSS GE7 for that purpose) - but hey it still can beat any digital thingies I tested. With the GE7 linked, I would send it to duel with any distortion unit around.
I like it very much but I like better the tone of cranked tube heads. Tubes are tubes. That's why it's but 9. The next usable digital distortion thing comes to my mind continues the line with 6. :)= You can see, good little unit is that G1, alright.

It's ultra reliable. In the last uhh let's say 8 years I was on the road. Despite it's funny red coat (less smarts mind sometimes declare it a toy until it begins to scream) The G1 survived hundreds of gigs and 3 bands. Only the adapter wire worn out but it's normal after high abuse I guess (vomiting people, drunk stompers, different killer liquids, metal gears rollin' through, plugs torn off etc).

I still have my superb old BOSS DS1 for backup but after a year of no sign of problems I rather A/B switched it for instant mild analogue distortion. It was, let's see, 7 years ago. Hm.

It was durable as human race stupidity. I never had to deal with KORG co. Anyway, some keyboardist fellows told they have an excellent support here.

It was a 3rd prize (with some cash, a Yamaha 1500BB bass, some cymbals I don't know and some other useful gadgets) in a band competition and I put my hands on the G1. It was the best 'gift' I was given ever because it brought such heaviness in my tone that I always wanted before. I needed mere minutes to find the exact setting I'm using right now - and years to forge it into the exact tone that I had in my head but it's done. I just had to add some gadgets and change some others. There are some exact types of expensive tube heads that do the thing better - I did not use it when we recorded our album since it could not compete the good old tube distortion and I had the opportunity to use great - but until the time I can afford them, for venues this little distortion unit will be a good companion for making them pre-historic battered tube heads o' mine sounding 95% like a $2000+++ modern rig.

I had the manual and I had the thing mastered in a couple of hours.

I use the shred distortion most, and it's a killer distortion. I have to admit it's not as good as my Marshall half-stack ^_^ but it sounds good enough that I've used my Marshall as just a power amp when I needed to switch between a nice chunky distortion and a good clean sound.

I bought the G1 and the accompanying volume/wah pedal in 1996 and I've never had a problem with either one of them.

Never had to.

I play speed metal, rock, jazz, and anything else that catches my ear. I have a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies (welcome to the ranks of the under-employed:)
If my G1 was stolen or lost I would buy a new piece of gear.
The price above was for the G1 and the volume/wah pedal. I have a crybaby wah which sounds great, so I don't use the wah function. The volume pedal however is very high quality, with a bottem volume fully adjustable from zero to 100 percent. Very versatile tool. I use it for practice, recording, and gigs when I need a variety of sounds.