Rocktron Banshee

This unit is very easy to get the sound you want. There isn't much of a manual but isn't needed.

The sound quality is very good. Although I had some noise when using a custom shop tele. Once I used a PRS the problem was solved. I purchased this after an unfortunate decision to go cheap and buy the danalectro. No comparison. They unit is powerful enough to practice with out using a mike.

Built like a tank

Well here's where I goofed up. I plugged in the banshee using my tele. Having never used one I called Rocktron and they sent out another. Feel a little guilty but once it goes in your mouth its yours. There service was excellent

It is a really fun and different effect. Using it on a few songs is about right for an evening gig. It is really like a wah on steroids with more interesting sounds. Very easy to use and get the hang of.

Very easy to use. Plug in and play. Just a simple stompbox.

This thing sounds AWESOME. I've never used another talkbox before, but I had my eye on this one before I bought it because of the ease of use. I'm a big Alice in Chains fan, and use the talkbox for "texturing" Not used a whole lot, but it's perfect for what it does. Other reviewers have already said it, but if you crank the gain on the Banshee, it WILL rattle the hell outta your teeth. Experimenting with settings will help. I've found some really good sounds out of this unit, but they're all very relevant.

It hasnt let me down, but I do question the construction. The enclosure seems a little weak, but it could just be my view on it. For all I know these things could get run over my a tractor, but I dont think I'd risk it.

Never dealt with them.

I love this thing. I'm eager to try the new Banshee 2, but for now I'm really loving this unit. They are fairly cheap used now as well which is how I got mine. Just replace the mouth tube so you dont get someone elses germs, or herpes.

Highly recommended.

I have had my talkbox for about 7 months. I'm a blues player and it creates quiet a stir when people hear it doing my solos. The switch malfunctioned this week and I called their customer service department. Their response was excellent; they are sending me a new one. All I had to do was give them my serial number. Great customer support service and hope that the equipment holds up this time.

Bobby - Florida

Using it with my Strat and Fender Hot Rod Deluxe

Probably would.

Excellent

Blues player; works well.

Turn it on, pop the tube in your mouth, run it up to your mic, and whammo, you're talkboxing. Great for beginners (like me), I just needed a talk box for my cover band for some songs that use it (Kickstart, The Zoo, Living on a Prayer, etc.). Works great!

I'm not giving this a rating, because this is the only talk box I've ever used, but people still go apes**t over it at shows, so it must be doing something right!

No rating here, as I've only had mine for a week and a half. Here's the story: my first one fried out on me within a couple of days, just started buzzing. See "Customer Support" for more of this . . .

. . . Like I said, my brand new product s**t the bed on me within 3 days of having it, but, the good news is that I called Rocktron, and after taking my info, the guy just sent me a new one, it was maybe a 2 minute phone call. And it only took three days to get here!

Great for what I use it for: a fun toy/gimmick, and it easily impresses people. Also, I wouldn't be discouraged by the fact that my first one crapped out right away, I think it was a sporadic defect, and Rocktron had me set back up in a matter of days. So, in conclusion, if you want a talkbox, but don't want to mess around with the setup of a Heil or like product, get it! It's a blast.

Yes, its very easy to use...plug and play. No, it doesnt require a second amp, and yes, you still have to mike it out the PA to be heard by the crowd. Can be placed anywhere in the pedal chain.
Has separate controls for distortion level, tone, and output level. Powered by a wall-wart.

My first talk Box was a Dean Markley (back in the 70's), and it was great! It worked the same as a Heil. To be perfectly honest, the Banshee doesnt even come close! Weak sound, the controls add HISS (even at lower levels), and it just doesnt have the original sounds of the Artists you're trying to ape....
Ive tried this thing in a few different quality amps, and the result is the same, too weak. (Marshall, Fender, Boogie, and Mesa).

As someone said earlier, most music stores wont carry these due to Rocktrons un-reliability in the past, but to be fair, this unit looks to be solid. Time will tell.

Never contacted them as yet.

Ive been using these since they first appeared. EVERY SINGLE ARTIST, (Rufus, Walsh, Frampton, Aerosmith, Bon Jovi), ect. have used the HEIL! What does that say? Youre trying to get their sound right?
All the bullshit about blowing up amps and frying talk boxes are all common sense issues! When the box-maker says "DONT EXCEED 100 Watts", what does that mean to you????? Second, if the box requires an 8-OLHM load ONLY, DO NOT use 4 or 16 OLHM settings! Thats just STUPID SIMPLE! As long as your OLHM setting is on 8, even if the switch goes, youre NOT going to damage your amp or the box! Nuff Said.
I much prefer to use a small second amp, (ideally 18-50 watt with an 8 OLHM output), which are plentyful and in-expensive, so that I can run the Heil and my main amp at the same time if needed, and absolutely NO HISS. Try playing the Banshee clean.......
I gave each box a fair trial all around, and it was a no-brainer....the Banshee doesnt cut it. Sorry, just an honest opinion.

Plug in, put the tube in yer mouth, push the button - tada! you have talkbox. Ease of use is the key feature. It could be even easier to use, if it had in-use indicator light, better mic-stand straps... maybe a better wall wart. But plug-n-play is certainly a selling point.

The limitations of the Rocktron's amplification chain is its major drawback.

The Banshee expects input at guitar level; after moderate pre-amplification, it distorts. Furthermore, although the Banshee can be plenty loud in the distorted mode, it cannot put out a clean signal at normal (pro) singing volumes.

There is little tonal flexibility - you're stuck with this for your full amp.

There is some noise, particularly when cranked. The power source won't massage the current, so whatever noise you've got in your system will be amplified.

It's simple, so there's not so much to go wrong... except that shoddy wall wart doesn't seem very sturdy. No battery back-up, either.

Never used.

Finding a retailer who'd touch Rocktron was quite an ordeal, tho.

The Banshee is great for a purpose - simplicity. Although heavy for a stompbox, it's hardly a burden given that it a complete amp & speaker combo.

However, if you might want anything other than the driven sound, the Banshee is not for you.

For years I have been using a homemade talk box ala Joe Walsh, about 7 years ago I switched to a Heil Talk Box. Since regular talk boxes can destroy a tube amp if the switch fails, I have always used a seperate amp and an ABY switch. Finally got tired of dragging the extra gear and I needed mre room to stand at some of the small gigs. It's super easy to use and I do not miss my old talkbox setups.

I can get the sound I need for Frampton, Jovi, Walsh, Alice n Chains without any problem.
I use it with my Gretsch G6120SSU and my Strats, Parker Classic.
Not really noisy. Serves the purpose it is intended for and he internal amplifier is strong!

I hope I can depend on it. I don't know. I don't have any experience with the banshee until now. I won't bring a backup for the talkbox. If it craps out at a gig, I will not play those tunes or I will half *ss it and just use my wah pedal if I have to play the tunes using the talkbox.

No experience with them

I play many styles of music. Now I am playing classic rock and female pop music since we have a female lead singer. Been playing for 40 years. I own lots of old fender gear and other brands.

There isn't much to compare it to except Heil and home made talk boxes. It works flawlessly for me so far.

Very happy with it. I would recommend it to anyone who needs to use a talkbox.

Very easy to use. Any one can do it. Here is the kicker. It has a built in amp so you dont need another amp bla bla... But you do need a mic and a pa to use it correctly. If your just practicing in your room it will work to. Unlike the Danelectro free speech that uses a mic input on the pedal and it combines the sound out to your amp. Back to the Rocktron. IT's really a great pedal. I love it.

It's amazing. The sound clips on there web site do not do it justice, it sounds way better in person. You wont be disapointed.

Seems good..

Dont know..

If you dont have a pa get the Danelectro. If you do have a pa get the Rocktron. They both are cool.

It couldn't be easier to use. Hook up a guitar, put the tube in your mouth, and let fly in the general direction of a microphone. Couldn't be easier. Since it's an amplified talkbox, no amplifier is required. All you need is this unit and a microphone to pick up the sound coming out of your mouth.

As far as using it effectively, it's just a matter of practice. I gave this pedal a 10 because of its brain-dead easy setup, but it does take practice to make words instead of sounds.

Sounds great to me. The pedal's drive tone is beefy and powerful, which makes for some good old teeth-rattling fun. If you're looking for the classic Frampton talkbox sounds, this thing is the pedal for you.

The cool thing about talkboxes in general is that you have the ultimate power to shape tone. It's been said that the human vocal system is the ultimate sound synthesizer, and with a talkbox you can harness the infinite sound palette of your mouth and put it to use with your guitar.

I've also used this particular unit with my Roland Juno 60 analog synth. It doesn't get much cooler than that.

The chassis is cast, but the sides are plastic. If I were a gigging musician, I would be slightly concerned about the build quality of the sides, but this unit will never leave my home studio. Gigging musicians, consider that your warning, because it looks like you could crack the side plates with a good, solid kick.

None of my Rocktron units have failed me, so I can't speak on their support. I guess that's worth something...

This box will give you what you want to hear if you're looking for the classic Frampton sound. However, many people underestimate the talkbox effect for psychedelic purposes. I bought this unit for use on a concept album, on which it is featured as the voice of a messiah figure. In the right context, it can really blow your mind.

Overall, I'm very satisfied with the Banshee. Once again, Rocktron has delivered a good, quality, and affordable effect that is versatile enough to handle conventional and experimental applications.

I'm just glad they came up with a talkbox system that 1.) doesn't feed back like a squawking siren, and 2.) doesn't have a penchant for blowing amp heads, like those of antiquity. Thank you Rocktron for developing the next evoloutionary step in the talkbox.

Outta the box, plug in the guitar and power it up ! That's all folks. Man, you don't even need a speaker or anything.

So, far I'm pleased. I haven't done much with it, regarding combining effects and so.

This piece looks like it can survive a nuclear holocaust. Built like a tan. Only downpart, it is a bit heavier(around 4 lbs).

Haven't had to deal with that yet !

I'm an aspiring musician(guitarists) and have been playing for more than 10 years now. I'm into Classic Rock and some Metal with lots of Riffs and Solos. All I can say to all the people who haven't tried this product yet, guys you are missing out big time. It is worth every penny if not more.

Pretty easy to get a good sound. It takes some practice to actually make it "talk", but I think that is just the same with all talk boxes. The manual is pretty simple and connection is a breeze.

I am using a custom Togaman GuitarViol (www.bowedguitar.com) through Banshee>>Boss Tuner>> Digitech Expression Pedal>>Digitech Bad Monkey>>Boss DD-3 Delay>>Boss Super Chorus>>Boss Pitch Shifter all to a Yamaha T-50 amp with 2-12 cabinet. The sound I get is very classic. I love that Frampton sound. It is easy to manipulate the sound with the tone and gain knobs. I am starting to try it with the bow and it is something else. This is a great effect and attention getter.

Looks pretty reliable. It's pretty heavy and look to be built to be gigged with. I wouldn't bring a back up unless I was using this effect as a main part of my sound.

Have never dealt with them.

I play anything from rock, blues, jazz, latin, new age, classical etc.. (www.deuxguitarviols.com) This is a great effect and I hope to shine some new light on with our music. I will be using this mostly as a gimmick. I own a lot of gear and I know what work and what doesn't. This is a great piece of gear because it doesn't damage your equipment like all other talk boxes out there. I recomend anyone who is interested in a talk box to check out the banshee. I also advise anyone who does buy it to make sure you clean out the tube every time you use it. You wouldn't want anything to crawl up that tube into your mouth!!

So simple. I took it out of the box, stuck the tube in it, and hooked my guitar up. Didn't even need mic, just used the tube as my amplifier. Plenty loud!

The sound is perfect to my ears. Exactly like Walsh, which is what I was going for. I've heard it can rattle your teeth, but I don't seem to have that problem, and I've had it up pretty loud. It is a strange feeling though, having all that sound in your mouth! I use it with my SM58 and it sounds great. I have two problems with it though. One is the size of the tube. It's like sticking a garden hose in your mouth! I wish they sent an optional thinner tube! Also, getting it velcroed at just the right position on your mic stand is tricky. You don't want to tape it to the mic unless you want it there the entire gig - poking you in the face as you try to sing!!

It's heavy duty. And just plain heavy! It feels like it's built for heavy use and will last a long time. I've only had it for a couple of months, so time will tell.

I have to use it without a backup, because I don't want to buy two of them!

Never tried them yet.

I play Classic Rock, using a Fender American Deluxe Strat and Nashville Tele, among other things from time to time. We actually dumped our amps and go directly into the mixer board now. Small sacrifice to my sound, but major advantage in that I don't have to haul a heavy amp anymore! Anyway, this works perfectly for Walsh's Rocky Mt Way and his Eagle stuff as well.

If it were stolen, then I hope the SOB gets sick from whatever germs are crawling around inside the tube!! Yes, I'd buy another one.

Again, I wish Rocktron gave you a choice of a thinner tube.

Basically a plug and play unit & fairly simple to use .manual is ok,not much to it .Just make sure you do your research before buying and it's what your looking for.You can't return it once you use it for health reasons ,nobody wants it back after you slobbered on the tube .break the factory seal it's yours .

I bought this as an alternative to my Heil talk box .The selling point for me was that it has an internal amp and doesn't need to be hooked up to your speaker outputs like a heil box.It hooks up to the front of your amp just like a stomp box would .I use it with a line 6 AX2 .It sounds pretty good .It's loud and powerful ,it can really rattle your head if you set the output too high .It would be nice if it had a clean setting .Distortion is the only sound it does ,which is fine as most popular talk box tunes used dirty sounds .

only had it a few months so I don't know of it's reliability .it seems pretty solid .rocktron has a good reputation for quality products .Time will tell .

I emailed them with questions before I purchased one .They were quick to reply and very helpful .

Been playing for 30yrs .I play classic rock and country and only use it on a few tunes .it suits my needs fine .you'll have no problem pulling off all the popular classic talk box tunes with this .again more 'tweakability'(is that a word?)would have been nice, but it's a decent piece and has a quality sound for the money .The plug and play aspect was the selling point for me .

Super easy to set up. Don't try to run through your amp though or have your amp running at the same time because it defeats the purpose of this effect.

I took a chance based on reviews (which I am a sucker for and have regretted more than once) but this is the balls. I seldom use it but it is a great attention getter and it truely nails Walsh Frampton, whoever. I use a SM-57 with a littel verb. Getting used to the amp shutting off is a little strange but as long as the monitors are up and the soundman doesn't over do it and get feedback (you know who you are!)it's fine.

No problems

This is a very good deal at a fair price and if you want to spend more to achive what may be better go for it, but I can't see the need to waste money. This unit will not fry your amp and sounds fantastic. Great job Rocktron!

luckily, it's plug and play, but the manual is as anorexic, as it gets. why don't manufacture's write and include proper manuals, shame on them all.

i'm using a 1995 usa strat, plugged straight into the rocktron's guitar imput, (no other effects needed) and i've got a marshall stack, from the rocktron's amp output. the rocktron has it's own built-in amp, and on it's own, is loud enough to deafen a person with extended exsposure, given the closeness of a human's ears to his mouth. it's easy to tweak-it, so that you can get the same sound levels between the talk-box and your guitar amp. (although you don't need to have an amp to play it) but if you want to switch from talk box mode to normal guitar mode, you'll need an amp) but initally to get great sounds, all you need is, the rocktron, a guitar, a guitar lead, and a power point, and your sounding like richie, himself. i got the richie thing happening straight away, and those famous fantastic lead/lick/riff sections from the queen songs sound magical, when played through the talk box, although brian didn't use a talk box, i breathed some new life into those old queen songs. the main thing to do is, is to experiement, not everything will sound good, but you'll discover what does and what doesn't, and you'll get the hang of it quickly. i hope this information helps, i would encourage anyone that were considering buying the roctron, to buy it, you wont be disappointed, it requires no skill, if you can breath, you can work this thing out.

it's real heavy, and larger than i thought, (i bought it of the web, without first seeing it, because of all the good reviews i'd read here) i'd use it without a back-up, but things do break.

i play clasical nylon string alot, but when i rock out "these days" (speak of the devil) i do bonjovi, queen, ac/dc, etc, and lots of punk rock, funk rock, glam rock, & power pop. i've been playing for 24 years, and have heaps of everything, (greedy-me). if the rocktron was stolen, i'd hunt the thief down, but his siliva would be all over it, so i wouldn't want it back. i'd proably try feeding my harmnica some steroids, and if that did work, i'd buy another one.
i compared the roctron to all the other ones, and choose it because of the reviews i read here, and else where. i wish the rocktron didn't have the power input, on the side, wish it were on the front, also, i hate they fact that it's a 9 volt 2 amp power unit.

- A box and a tube
- Guitar in
- Amp out (connects the bypassed signal to your guitar amp)
- Speaker out (for using the Banshee like an amp head)
- Adaptor in
- Gain, Tone, Volume knobs

Plug and play !

The tube is the weakest link in this unit :
It really should come from the factory with a piece that would fit on the upper end and make the connexion between the tube and a regular mic instead of that useless velcro strip
it comes shipped with.
Also the lower end should be able to lock into the chassis instead of just being pushed in a socket.
A threaded tube end and socket would have been welcome. Points off !

Guitar signal chain : Guitar -> Boss GT5 -> PA
Talkbox signal chain : Boss GT5 FX send -> Banshee -> Behringer mic -> Vocal300 processor -> PA

I bought it online without trying first and frankly at that price, I was expecting something mediocre.
To my surprise the effect is strong and not toy-like at all.
It certainly gives the real talkbox sound, not a pale cheap imitation.
Running it through a processor for adding some reverb makes a big difference.
Even through my cheapo Behringer XM2000 mic (not that bad a vocal mic actually) it sounds good. I plan on buying a SM57 or similar straight mic as it is hard to keep the tube attached parallel to the mic because of the bulb all the other microphones sport.

Actually it's impossible to decide whether or not you like the Banshee unless you record yourself,
just like your voice sounds different on recordings from what you hear in your head while singing.

The tone control is kinda tricky. If you play on the lower frets, it sounds best with the tone rolled off but high up on the neck it sounds better with the tone set high.
Compromises ... I leave mine at 12:00 since I run up and down the neck ...

Some audible hiss appears all of a sudden when the gain knob passes the 12:00 mark.
No biggie, I just set the gain at 11:59 :)) and the output fairly high (anywhere from 02:00 to 05:00)
I can definitely "feel" the sound on my palate.

I never use the amp and speaker outs.

I have many thoughts about reliability as I take it out to every single gig.
I have to tape the lower tube end to the socket : it doesn't stay in place otherwise.

While the unit looks sturdy I'm very afraid of saliva, beer and dust falling through the aperture. The internal speaker area is impossible to clean.

N/A

I'm 40 playing for 20 years.
I use the Banshee for a couple original songs.
I for one strive to get some Gilmour pig-like tones out of it as opposed to Frampton style vowels or Sambora "owah owah owah" sounds.
All these sounds are feasible though ...

One of my better purchases over the last 5 years.
Certainly worth the price and definitely a keeper !

This is very easy to use. Set up is clear, no issues as all. Getting the tube to stay in place can be tricky. Manual is OK, it is a manual.

I mainly use an Epiphone Zakk Wylde Guitar, into a Boss tuner (not sure of the model number), a Dunlop Cry Baby, the MXR ZW-44 Zakk Wylde Overdrive, Boss CH-1 Super Chorus, Rocktron Banshee Talkbox, into a Marshall JCM2000 Head and a Marshall 412. I use all Monster cables to connect everything. The sound is monsterous! I got the Rocktron Banshee to get the talkbox sound Zakk used on the BLS Mafia album. It seems to work well with my setup. It is hard to use when you are just practicing and don't have a PA setup as it turns off the output to your amp to make it work. But, you can still hear it.

So far so good. Only had it for a week now so I can't give it a 10

Nothing to report

So far I can't complain. It is pretty easy to use, but I will have to work with it to get the technique down.

Pretty easy to use. Just plug it in and go. Very easy to get that laid back 70's tone and to also get a huge screaming blast sound as well. What was hard to do was get the tube positioned on the mic right. I found some black duct tape and it works fine.

I'm most impressed with the way you can use the gain control to get the different tones to replicate the past talk box sounds. But the cool thing is that this pedal can belt it out and scream unlike other talkboxes I have heard. It took some getting use to the not hearing the sound come out of my amp. I just have my sound guy turn up my monitor when I'm using it. The manual says for optimal results to use an SM57 (I have seen Ritchie Sambora do that), but I just use my normal 58 and it sounds awesome. A friend told me that I could put another distortion pedal in front of the Banshee and use that to drive it to get a different sound but I have not tried that yet.

No issues to report. Seems extremely rugged.

No issues to report

I really like this thing. I have to use it some more to get the style down, but it is very cool. I bought the Banshee after hearing that Zakk Wylde used one on the new record. But I saw this guy in a bar use it once and he did some really cool stuff with it, no one was paying any attention to the band until he used it. The thing I really like about it is that you don't need another amp. I heard a lot of things about talkboxes, mostly that you could damage your equipment, but the Banshee is like just like a pedal so you don't need another amp.

It's as simple as can be. Connect it and start rocking !!!
Don't need a manual. Simple settings, adjust and go !

I run this the first in my pedal chain into a Marshall DSL head. Use fender strat plus guitars. I did alot of research and made a decision on the banshee. I was worried it wouldn't put out enough power.
Rest assured this thing will rattle your brain. It does the job very well. My Band members thought is was very cool. If your shopping for a talk box, buy this one. It is the safest way to add this effect and not damage your equipment.

Appears to be built very well ?

Dont know, never dealt with them.

I play classic rock and have been playing for over 20 years. I have had talk box's in the past but got discouraged because of having to have another amp to drive it. The Banshee is a safe, well made unit that works great. It's a keeper !

If it was stolen or lost I would buy another !

How easy is it? Give me a break! Plug it in and go. Nuff said.

I run an AB box so I can bypass my amp modeling effects. I have 3 guitars, a Musicman Sillouhette and 2 Ibanez jazz boxes. I use only the MM with the talkbox. It can be noisy particularlly with hissing so I make sure when I switch the AB box back to my amp I shut off the talkbox switch too. Compared to the Heil which this took the place of, it's much more meaty with a lot more sustain. It's safer too. I blew either the driver or the resistor fuse on the heil. Too much guts from my Carvin X100. Now I don't have to worry so I guess I'll have to use the extra head with another 4x12 cab to run two halfstacks.

I've had no problems with it however the dealer I bought it from said they no longer are carrying it due to reliability problems. We'll see. Don't need a backup. If it breaks I just don't play a few songs. I'll live.

Never dealt with them.

It's a good attention getter. It's one of those effects that you aren't going to use a lot but when you do it won't sound like anything else. I've been playing since the mid 60's and this thing has caused more looks from the audience than any other effect I've had. As far as volume goes I noticed it wasn't as loud as I could get my Heil but that comes from having one in the first place. Having a hundred watt head with the sound running into your mouth with enough volume to rattle your fillings can create the feeling of a lack of volume. But it's a different sound coming from the Banshee. It's more controlled and processed with a less squawky sound, more like an amplifier with a tube on it. If something happened to it I could either fix my Heil or get another Banshee. Considering the weight of my X100, I'll get another.

This thing is an absolute breeze to use. I mean My God!! How hard can it be to plug in & play?. Any one who cant use this thing must be just slightly dim. Use it like a pedal simply plug in-line & play. The only thing is just making sure the tube is placed well, in relation to the mike (notice I said mike, not MIKES!.......read on). No extra Mike, no extra amp, NO bi-amping, No A/B switches....basically, No extra fucking about or arguing with sound men as to where to put ur second amp. This where the Heil lets you down & also in the price range .... Make sure u clean the tube every time & NEVER .....NEVER......let any one else use it ......yeeeeeeuuuuck. (My bass player almost got a kick in the bollox and a screwdriver thru his speaker for playin with mine during the break in rehersals!!!) but then thats bass players 4 U!!!

The 1st time I plugged this baby in, I was amazed, if not a little bemused by the concept if sicking a tube in my gob while playing. But the sound I got was excellent. When I heard it goin thru the P.A, I thought I was Mr Sambora Himself.....and more importantly, so did the crowd, even the sceptic muso freaks!! (ooooo aaaaa oooo aaaaaa ooooo aaaaa oooo aaaaaa .....Tommy used 2 work docks...etc etc ) I particularly liked the extra option of using it as a powered stomp box pre-amp with excellent gain, able to power an 8 ohm Cab..........sweet. You can also practice at home without an amp as the sound comes out of you mouth.

Ive gigged it with no problems, it's built like a tank....no worries.

N/A

B4 I bought this, I checked out other models such as the digitech talker (5/10), The Heil Dunlop(6/10 because of all the extra bullshit u have 2 do with it), And the ....HA HA HA....Danelectro...HA HA HA....free speech (sorry, fell off my chair laughing there). I play mainly rock & tribute type stuff now & have been playing for over 15 yrs & have truck loads of gear, so im not some kid who hasn't a clue here. But lets face it, you can't do Bon Jovi or Peter Frampton etc without a Talk Box!!!!It is a tiny a pain in the arse to set up & the tube does get in the way of the mike when ur not actually using it. But that is a minor & I mean minor quip. I really cant says enuff about this we box. The Fact That its active makes all the difference here in my opinion & makes it sound nicer & fuller than the Heil model, which is it's only main rival. However, its an indulgence and not a necessity. But the main thing here is that IT DOES EXACTLY WOT IT SAYS ON THE TIN!!!...... Well Done Rocktron!!

Rocktron's manual explains everything, but it really is quite easy to set up. Guitar goes in one side, amp in the other, tube in the top. It takes some getting used to when you stomp the switch and the sound comes up the tube instead of to your amp. But it's a lot easier, and safer, to use than a Heil or Framptone. I set mine up as a permanent fixture in my pedalboard and it never moves.

Tube maintenance is a big issue. Keep it clean or you'll get some nasty oral infections. I swap the tube before and after use with alcohol pads, available at any pharmacy. I also recommend a clear replacement tube, available in the plumbing section of any hardware store. With the stock Rocktron black tube, you can't see the excess moisture that builds up inside the tube, not to mention any fungus that might be growing. I use an aerosol duster to dry up the inside of the tube after use too.

I've been playing this for a couple of years now. Despite having Gain and Tone controls, there really is only one sound that comes out of the Banshee. I like it, but it is pretty heavily distorted, even at low gain settings, so others may want something cleaner. I use a Shure SM57 microphone with a wind guard, and I can assure you that a good mic makes a world of difference. I tried cheaper mics, and the Shure is best for this purpose.

You need a good loud, clean PA amp, and outboard EQ if you want to affect the tone. I use one side of a dbx 215 EQ and bump the upper midrange. This really gives the Banshee a more authoritative tone, as well as extra volume when necessary.

I don't use it on all songs, naturally. I use it to play Aerosmith's "Sweet Emotion," Nazareth's "Hair of the Dog," the Eagles "Those Shoes" and Joe Walsh' "Rocky Mountain Way." I haven't used it for any originals yet.

So far, so good. I wouldn't use a backup. If the Banshee broke down I would live without it until I could fix or replace it. Before the Banshee, I used a wah pedal to play these songs, and it wasn't too far off.

Never dealt with Rocktron. I bought this one used off Ebay. Their web site seems pretty informative, and you can buy replacement tubes and power supplies directly from Rocktron.

I play hard rock. Has anyone ever used a talk box for anything else?

It's got one good sound, but it's a specialty effect, some would say a gimmick. For the songs I mentioned above, it gives me what I need.

Extremely easy to use. Just hook it up like any foot pedal and your up and running

I got this to replace my Heil. I was tired of carting around an extra amp and amp switcher just so I could us a talk box for two songs. I would say the Heil is a little bit throatier but for the set-up convienence it sounds great. I read some other post where they did not think it was load enough. This is plenty loud. Either they are not positioning themselves in front of the mic correctly or their PA is not the powerful. Also if you do not put this into the stage monitors you will have trouble hearing yourself. I know my stuff and this product sounds very good for the price and conveinence factor

So far no problems but I've only done three shows with it. Time will tell.

I got my through Rocktron as an artist. The artist relations guy was very cool. We'll see what happens if I ever blow it up which I don't think I will...

My style is pretty heavy and the band has a very loud stage volume. If you have a decent PA and you have the technique down you should have no problems with this unit. I highly recomend it!!!

Ridiculous! 3 knobs and ready to go!

Very, very close to the Bon Jovi's sound. If you pass this thru a EQ or other similar effect you match the EXACT sound of Ritchie.
IMPORTANT!
When you turn the Banshee effect on, the signal for the amp is cutted off , so the "normal" sound of guitar DON'T comes out in the amp. You can't mix the original signal of your guitar (from amp) and talk box effect (from mic) without a splitter for this function. The whole sound of the guitar comes to your mouth, only! It's amazing what you can do with this baby. Make a "whoahhhw" and look at peoples face! FORGET ABOUT THE REVIEWS WHO SAYS THIS PEDAL NOT HAVE A GREAT SOUND QUALITY! My setup: Fender YJM - Banshee (first, yes. I don't want interference from other pedals, only the banshee) - Dunlop wah 95Q - Boss Cs3 - AMP Marshall VS-100 (I use his ODs). You don't need a Od or distortion before this pedal to get distorted sound like Sambora, it have your own.

I bought this pedal one week ago, so I'm not finish the stage map/ P.A connections yet. I dunno if I really need use a small amp only for talk box. I guess not, because the opperator of the P.A can put the talk box mic in same level of the mic of my amp. I play some Bon Jovi songs with talk box, but the most part of the set list is composed by Yngwie songs, so I use in a couple of songs, witch depends of the banshee. Ah, it's very robust too.

Before I get Banshee, I sent a email to Rocktron to resolve some technical doubts....... 3 months passed and nothing. I found the answers for my questions by other ways and bought it. Not too much respect for the future consumer...

Perfect for what I play. Certainly I will buy another one if it were stolen / lost. If Heil sounds better, honestly I dunno. If Banshee sounds like Sambora talk box, certainly do. Banshee have much more cost/bennefits and sounds great, without blow your amp. I wish the product had a switch who made the sound from guitar come straight to amp MEANWHILE the talk box was turned on. But it's ok, you can made it with a splitter.

It really is very very easy to get a good sound out of this one!

If you're looking for the real Frampton/Bon Jovi/Steely Dan-talkbox sound, don't look any further! In combination with the ease of use this is THE perfect talkbox.
You can also practice at home with this one because the amp is in the box.
There is enough power in the box to create that typical talkbox-sound.

Just bought it so I cannot tell you yet but the fact that the box is made of metal I'm sure it will last a long time!

Never dealt with....yet.....

I've had the Heil Talkbox (Dunlop), also a good one but since I use a stereo amp I had to use a seperate amp to drive the talkbox wich is not very handy.
The Banshee certainly deliver the same characteristic talkbox-tone with less effort!