Tech 21 SansAmp GT2

Works for me ... I like what I get and it is really easy. You sacrifice some flexibility vs. the full Sans Amp but it cna get gounds sonds immediately.

Manual? We don't need no steenkin manual! You would have to have significant cognitive challenges to not be able to figure out the basics of operating it. Really getting what you want may require futzing with tone controls, levels, and your amp. I have no idea how it sounds direct because that is against my religion.

I feed Starts/Teles/PRS through it into a Twin and Hot Rod, sometimes with UniVibe Stereo Chorus. It works for me. The GT2 can be a full-on snot-metal crunch monster if that's your bag, or - when you spend some quality time with later in life - you can get very cool dark, dirty swamping inbred bluesy stuff.

The three amp types are realistics enough, but don't expect to fool anyone in a blind taste test. The names are, shall we say, "directionally correct." The "Tweed" (not called Fender, mind you, for obvious reasons) tone has ringing high end but in no way replaces the real thing. "American" gets the basic idea behind a Boogie, and "British" is kind of Brit-ish. If your goal is a live vz. "Memorex" duplication, get the real thing and practice. If ou ant a similar vibe this pedal might actually do it.

The extremes of tone, distortion don't work for me. Generally, though, i get very strong sounds from it. Cabinet / miking simulators could be accurate - I don't know. I use them as tone-ish controls.

Best part, to me, is it carries the guitar tone through very well. Strats sounds like, well, Strats. It also responds very very nicely to pick attack and articulation. Recently I started playing it with less drive, darker tone, and finder style and it works way cool.

Been totally rosk solid. Well built, simple. yadda yadda. Nice work.

No idea. A used pedal. Not really expecting on-site service and 24x7 call center. Plus it never ever acted up.

I've used to thrash away at catharic rock, but I generally play with more restraint. I also look more for amp distortion, but this pedal really adds it's own dimension.

The whole pedal thing is so personal and subjective, it's prett damn silly to rant about it. This device has some real value and sounds great for me.

This little box defies words, it's so good. I popped into the music store last week after work to pick up some picks and other small accessories, and saw they had this advertised on sale (used) an additional 25% off. I thought "what the heck, I'll try it out" so I plugged it in at the store, using a cheap Squire strat and a crappy Roland Cube amp.

Within 30 seconds, I knew I was going to buy it. It's SO EASY to get GREAT tone out of it. 3 switches, 4 knobs...what could be simpler? And so many variations!

So...I get it home...all I can say is "WOW!" - it's inspired me to play a LOT this past week. I use it with 2 guitars - Fender American Deluxe Strat (LSR nut, Fender Floyd, DiMarzio PAF Pro/Virt. Vintage/Dual Sound p/us), and a home-made "George Kirk" signature Strat - scalloped neck, DiMarzio HS3/HS2/HS3 pickups. These go into either a Behringer V-amp2 (for multi-effects, more on that in a moment), a Line6 Spider II, or whichever PA system I happen to be using on a given night.

This unit lets you get as close to AUTHENTIC tones from some of your favorite artists as possible, while allowing you to develop your own signature sound. Want Angus Young? Check! Van Halen? Check! John Petrucci (a la Images and Words...) Check! Iron Maiden? Check. Stevie Ray Vaughan...well let me tell you, the sky IS crying, because this thing does the classic Fender amp blues vibe better than ANYTHING I've ever heard. It's almost IMPOSSIBLE to get a bad sound out of it, although at higher gain settings I recommend backing off a bit on the volume if you are using high-powered pickups.

On another note, all you digital modelling gear-heads (of which I was one, until I bought this unit) - once you hear this, you will NEVER go back to digital amp modelling. This unit offers a much more pleasing sound, in any of it's virtually infinite combinations than ANY modelling amp I have played (and I have played them all). Harmonics are alive, you think you're playing through a REAL tube amp. It's that good!

It's so good, I went back to the store and bought another one...one for my live rig "hot" tones (which by the way clean up nicely in response to your picking and volume settings) and one for cool, clean bluesy tones.

Built like a tank.

N/A

I play everything from blues to jazz to progressive metal. This box literally can do it all, and do it WELL! I've been playing 16 years, have had many different amps, effects units, etc. This is the first time I've ever thought "this is indispensable". Sounds great live, sounds great recorded direct, and in such a small package. If it were stolen or lost, I'd buy another in a second! The tones are so "organic", they inspire you to play, play and play some more.

Bottom line: Stop reading, go find one of these babies and buy it. You will NOT be disappointed!

Just picked it up from my local Guitar Center today...for $39.99...in excellent condition...well cared for w/no scratches, dings, etc. Thank you Guitar Center...used ones are going for $90.00 and up on eBay!

Brought it home and played w/it for an hour or so and was getting some really great sounds out of it. I normally...for the last 6 years...have played a Boss Metal Zone into a 1979 Marshall JMP 50W 2x12 Combo equipped w/6550 tubes and Celestion 25W Greenbacks. My guitars are all Custom Assembled Modified 80's Super Strats...1986 Kramer Stagemaster Custom, 1985 & 1989 Kramer Elliot Easton Pacer Imperial, 1986 Kramer Baretta Kline Space Graphic w/Maple Board, Warmoth Stevie Ray Vaughan Tribute Strat w/Maple Board and Floyd Rose, 1988/91 B.C. Rich Gunslinger Graffiti Graphic w/Maple Board...you get the picture. Anyway...I pulled down about 40 Settings for this thing from a Sansamp GT2 Settings Site where people can add their settings...some sucked but a few were really cool similarities to GnR, EVH, Radiohead, AC/DC, etc. Literally...w/in a few minutes I had some cool tones cranking out of the Marshall!!!

No manual...as it was "used". Really don't need it since I've got the presets printed out as indicated above.

It's got 4 knobs...Level,High,Low,Drive...and a series of 3 Switches that can be set for different variations of "Miking"-Classic,Center,Offset, "Tones"-Clean,High Gain,Hot Wired, and, "Amp Models"-Tweed,British,California...honestly...how hard can it be to use???

I played it w/my B.C. Rich Gunslinger, which has a Dimarzio Tone Zone F-Spaced in the bridge and a Vintage "PAF" Stickered Dimarzio SDS1 in the neck, a Brass Sustain Block on the bridge and a Vol/3 Way P/U Selector/Coil Tap on TZ.

If you crank up all the knobs to max...yeah...it's noisy. The only "learning curve" I experienced was in understanding how the unit interacted w/my Amp, Guitar/Pickups...it was a little heavy on the treble...so once I rolled back the High knob and increased the Low knob a bit to compensate for my equipment variables...I was able to churn out some killer tones on the presets that I tested. Really it's a matter of finding the limits of the pedals knobs in relation to your gear. For me, it was a simple matter of defining the High/Low limits...Low had no limit...I could crank it all the way and the sound/tone never suffered. Highs on the other hand, depended upon the setting.

This unit didn't pack as much power as my Boss Metal Zone, but it gives a really nice range of tones from which to choose based upon the Variable Switches. Is it the only pedal you'll need...the "be all/end all" of pedals...probably not for most people...but it's a fun and useful box o' tones that'll take you in a lot of different directions/styles comfortably. I thought it gave an interesting interpretation of Tube Tones through my Tube Amp. I was impressed by it's flexibility and capabilities...as well as the sounds/tones that I was able to get so easily in such a short period of time with it. o

Seems tough enough to me. It was rattling when I got it, as it had a battery in it...which I quickly removed as I always use an AC Adapter.

Not a clue...hopefully I'll never need them.

This thing was a freakin' bargain! It's very usable for a number of different styles. I've been playing for about 16 years, strictly as a hobbyist, but I'll continue to play until I DIE. I love my guitars and I love playing. I've owned my share of gear over the years and finally settled on my amp about 6 years ago....my Marshall JMP Combo Amp is the HOLY GRAIL of amplifiers as far as I'm concerned.

I'm pretty picky about my tone...I've sold off an Ibanez Tube Screamer Turbo TS-10 recently, as it just didn't do the trick for me "tonewise". I definitely am more impressed w/the GT2 over the TS-10. I chose the GT2 over several other pedals in the same price range...Hughes & Ketner Warp Factor, Boss MT2 Digital Metalizer, etc and am quite happy w/this little mutha!

A amplifier emulation pedal is how I classify this thing. Very unique idea of using a a distortion circuit and some frequency responce curves to simulate miking of a speaker cone. There are others out there (better?), but Tech 21 was the first and on top of that- its ALL ANALOG!!! No digital bits anywhere to be found.

The setup is pretty easy to get you a basic tone- level, low, high, and drive controls. Amp, Mod, and Mike settings, each with a three position switch. You simply dial up the type of amp you want, the type of mod (read overdrive) and the miking of the speaker.

Here's where, like everything else on the planet, everyone has an opinion not only on the sound quality, but on how the things should be used!

Here's my opinion- I found that using the higher gain settings (like britsh or California), made an interesting tone in the lower register. My guitarist called it the "star wars tie fighter sound". its kinda like a growl that has one annoying frequency. I tried zeroing it out with parametric EQ, but my attitude is why bother putting a band-aid on something that should work right the first time?

Weirdly, on lower settings, or on the tweed settings with higher drive, the weird tone isn't there. Thas how I use it now. I find I get more tone out of the instrument and the amp simulation sounds rougher- like a smaller amp being pushed harder- more real!

Like Boss's reputation for buiding tanks disguised as pedals, the GT-2 is the same! I've broken one knob (not the shaft, the actual plastic), but it was my fault and I was able to find a replacement at a local electronic parts store!!! But if I were to base the reliability on sound and function alone, excellent!

I've spoken with a guy names Lloyd at Tech 21 about some other issues with other Sans Amp stuff I own, but I have never had problems and they have never been anything but helpful about it!

This thing is very warm and tubey sounding. Its amp models do not sound exactly like their expensive and heavy counterparts, but they capture alot of the signature characteristics of those amps. I have never actually owned or played a real tube-powered fender, marshall, or mesa; I do own a tube amp however. All models have got the the "tube sound." In my opinion, the closeness of these models rates as follows: fender-90%, mesa-85%, marshall-75%. At first, I was somewhat disappointed w/ this pedal. After a couple of days of owning it, I really like it. To me it seems like the GT2 sounds most tubey when cranked. I am using it for recording direct into my computer, and if it sounded any better, it might replace the amps it mimics. Keep in mind that there are no totally clean sounds in this pedal, just "gain turned down on your dirty channel" type of clean.

Lloyd is prompt, knowledgable, and friendly. Best answers i've gotten through an e-mail.

This pedal is very easy to work with. There is no need to use the manual, even if you aren't a techie geekazoid. Flip a few switches and adjust the knobs to your liking.

This is my current setup. LTD MC-200guitar loaded with an EMG 81 into a Digitech Genesis 3 preamp on rectified setting into the GT2 on the clean tweed selection into a Digidesign Mbox for recording into Pro Tools LE where I untraditionally monitor through PA speakers(sounds like there is a band in the room!). The reason I use the Genesis is because the GT2 doesn't have as much gain as I would like on the heavy settings even with my EMG. The Genesis also offers compression for more gain, and a noise gate which is pretty useful if you are getting radio interference through your guitar from sitting in front of your computer. If you are into heavy guitar styles and you don't have a separate distortion to feed into the tweed sound, I would definitely suggest inserting a compressor before the GT2 to beef up the distortion sounds. Also I don't reccomend using the GT2 in a guitar amp setup. If you take my advice with the properly used compressor this pedal can definitely score a 10.

This pedal is pretty solid. I don't ever step on it so it will definitely will last for a while. If I ever gig with it in the future it still won't get stepped on. However it has sustained a couple drops and the worse that has come of it is chipped paint which gives it a little more character.

I don't ever see needing support with this box

I have been playing various heavy styles for around 9 years. Definitely a good tool for a recording arsenal. Definitely would replace if stolen. Best amp/cab emulator I've ever heard.

Not soo ez but still manageable with some experience.
Please understand this is a preamp, won't give its best in front of an amp but in the return jack.
Or on a pa, recorder, hifi etc.
Knobs very very effective, a small turn is a new world here so be careful.

The best all-in-one you can find: 5ma 9volt battery consumption, buffered output so you can run long cables without treble-loss, guitar-to-pa(or bass amp, anything) interface...
It is a very clever box, maybe the cleverest analog thing available(along with its brother the classic).
I 've used it intensively since 1995, for all applications. As a clean amp with pedals in front, as a crunch amp with a booster in front, as a distortion pedal in front of a jc120 amp(you cannot believe how good it sounds without trying for yourself!), everything.
But it won't work good with bass or vocals, whatever is stated on the manual...
Having also the classic, I can state this: the grain is finest on the classic. If you take sandpaper as an example, the gt-2 is like 240 while the classic is like 600.
Useless to say that in real-life situations, live, nobody cares nor gives a shit, if you play good people know it.

Absolutely, it's the backup. I tore it apart, modified it, reput it to origin, no problems. It's not only bullet-proof, but also idiot-proof(lucky me!).
It is also a real pain in the ass to spray some wd40 in the pots when the unit starts(after 7 years) to makes strange sounds because you have to desolder jacks and so on, very unpleasant to do. See the review on someone unhappy with the tri-ac on this very point, the gt-2 is made alike). 9 for this.

Here in europe you ain't got no support, I don't care since it won't break...

Whatever your style this thing delivers. Crap in equals not-so-crap out but still no magic...
It is absolutely not noisy, the only problem you will have is an upcoming depression when you realize how bad your sound was before having this unit...
Keep in mind that less is more, the tonal variations are amazing here, and I keep discovering interesting settings after 9years of use.
Of course I will buy one again, I'm no fool.

Very easy! Good sound if matched with the right stuff but it can sound nasty with other things to, more on this later.
Manual is great with some great settings included.

OK, I use this for professional direct recording but already knew when I got it that the CAB SIM isn't the best, but I tried it anyway right into my Mackie VLZ mixer into a pair of monitors and as I knew, the tone is there but the Cab Sim sucks, but keep on reading and I'll tell you why this thing is still awesome! I'll get the bad stuff out of the ways first and then tell you why all this stuff isn't bad at all.
Like any amp or modeller, the higher the gain, the higher the noise, it's not too bad but I believe that a Guitar player without a Noise Gate pedal or unit is like Beer with no alcohol!

Now to the good news. I wasn't happy with the Cab Sim so I shopped around for a Cab sim that would work well and sound great. Before I continue, I have been a studio producer for 10 years working for some major TV networks so I have used a TON of gear and know something about sound.
Well, I tried a $30 Behringer ULTRA G Cab Sim DI BOX and HOLY COW!
The best guitar sound I have ever had BAR NONE in 17 years of guitar playing going through the tubes of Marshalls, Soldanos, Mesas and trying all the digital modelling units available. The GT-2 is an awesome pre and sounds great in front of an amp and with an extra $30 you won't even need the amp anymore, in fact, on live gigs I now go direct and always get compliments from other guitarists and audience on how clear, yet warm and aggressive my sound is (While I'm laughing at our other guitar player with back probelms whom's girlfriend always complaints she can't hear him with his 4X12 300 watt Marshall Mode four THAT SUCKS BY THE WAY!....he knows this and just got himself a....err..GT2 wiht Ultra G!).

Anyhow, Thhe GT-2 can sound unbelievable and can sound like a piece of crap. It just depends how you use it and what with like anythign else.
8 because of the Poor cab sim, otherwise AWESOME! Great sounds, Versatile and a guitarists/Producer dream!
I also reviewed the Behringer Ultra G mentioning that I have the best guitar sound I have ever had in 17 years with less than $200.

Its a tank! Period.

I once owend a trademark 120 that would overheat and switch itself off. I contacted TECH 21 and within 48hrs they shipped me a brand new, no qiestions asked. They knew of this problem and fixed it on certain models and fixed it.
Thier website is really cool and they reply to emails really quickly too.

I believe TECH 21 are the best at modelling other amps. You can get the sounds of certaing amps or create ones of your own with no problem. No more digital for me or tubes blowing up pr the need of an Isolated room with Microphones, pre's and tons of noise.
I spent less than $200 ($150 GT-2 + $30 Ultra G) and sound like $3000.
Thanks TECH 21!!!!!
Hear this pedal soon on the upcoming EARTHCUBED album at
http://www.andrewbordoni.com

This little box is super easy to use. Flip a few switches, turn a few knobs, you're set.

I'll give you a little different perspective. I play bass, but I'm mostly a synth/sampler guy. I've used this with my Aria Pro II bass (plugged into my mixer and monitors, I don't have a bass amp these days), Access Virus KB, Novation Bass Station, Waldorf Pulse, and Ensoniq ESQ-1 synths.

The bass sounds awesome through it. There is a huge range of sounds I can coax, all of which react well to playing.

Synths are a little bit of a mixed bad. Resonant sounds that sound (for lack of a better word) synthetic loose a great deal of their character in this box. It isn't like overdriving a mixer channel, it really alters your sound, sometimes in a good way and sometimes in a bad way. I've found that (get ready) it helps me synthesize awesome guitar sounds. Who would have guessed? Anyway, I set up a patch on the Virus with a bandpass filter that tracks the keyboard, and ran it through the Sansamp. It doesn't sound like a synthesized guitar, it just sounds like a guitar. Awesome. It's also great for noisey industrial chaos. Any synth playing octaves --> delay --> GT-2 = instant madness.

in short, I like this thing a lot. I wouldn't want to use it on every synth sound, but I would use it on my bass whenever I wanted to record.

It seems reliable enough. I bought mine used, and the LED that indicates on/off doesn't work. I would gig without a backup, but then it isn't quite indispensable to me, either.

I haven't dealt with them.

I play industrial/ebm/synthpop, and this is great for the more angry side of electronic music. I've been playing bass for 6 years, and keys for 5. I own a cheap bass, as well as a fair amount of synths, effects, and outboard. I like the GT-2 a lot. I was considering learning a little guitar, bt since I can fake it so well with my synths and this pedal, I'll save the hundreds of dollars I would have spent on guitar gear and use it on bass and synth gear instead. :) Ultimately, this pedal opens up a range of sounds that were previously beyond my reach. It was cheap and it sounds great! What more could you want?

Easy as pie...Level knob, high-low knobs, and drive knob. along with switches for the mic placement, and amp types. EXCELLENT foot switch, turns on very easily without delay or hassle.

You can crank out any awsome vintage amp sound. high and low eq's prove usefull, and the drive is kickin'. Can be noisy though.. hopefully if i get an ebtech hum eliminator and a noise gate it shouldnt be too bad. I can get an amazing Hendrix "highway chile'" sound. good sustain. add a little delay and you'll have an awsome solo sound. I put this thing through my crappy eighties crate amp and it really kicks.

Pretty rugged. my dog chews everything and this thing hasnt got a dent! I will definatly gig with it.

Havnt dealt with them , hopefully will not have to. their homepage is pretty good with alot of samples.

I play all the good stuff, hendrix, nirvana, clapton, zep, pink floyd, this thing really delivers. The tone is second to none. I also have a digitech hot rod distortion and it's nothing compared to this. maybe if i use my big muff for a boot it will sound even better. I almost forgot about recording with this thing. I had a school project with some buddy's, and as kind of a joke we recorded "Rockin' in the Free world", but this thing delivered. it cut right through the mix. i just added some reverb and delay and it sounded incredible. Id give it a ten so far in every catagory cause its amazing, but i havnt had it long enough.