Tech 21 Tri-A.C.

5 knobs. A grown-up overdrive without 50 nested digital menus. Heavenly. Editing, 2 clicks. Manual, a handful of pages. Don't even need it.

I love this pedal. I've had a ton. Boss Heavy Metal, the yellow overdrive, the orange overdrive, ibanez tube screamer, even a pearl pedal back in the day Zoom G2, Zoom 505, MXR Distortion+. I've played a zillion amps from Boogie to Crate. I have a degree in music, played on the road, done quite a bit of recording... Using this direct to the digital recorder. A little compression, a little verb. It sounds AMAZING. You can totally cop a funky rhythm sound.... a nice tubey blues... all the way up to some serious boogie overdrive. People who say it doesn't have enough fuzz.... wow. Not sure what they are looking for. This does it all for me. I give it an 8 because it's not a boogie but it's the closest thing on my budget.

I've had it 1 day. Seems solid. I watched the tour of the factory on Youtube. He talks about all their stuff being made in america and that they are serious about making stuff for serious musicians... like the new switch design that doesn't fail.... ever. Andrew Barta is a genius, hands down.

I had 2 questions. Not sure who answered them. This guy was AWESOME!!! He knew everything about every nuance of these pedals. Asked me all kinds of questions to try to get me to what pedal would suit me the best. Friendly, straight ahead.... as opposed to a few competitors. "uhhhm.... yeah.. hang on.... we'll it looks like it does that...." Thanks. I could get that far with the pdf from your site. Tech 21 should give lessons on how to treat customers. Bulletproof.

Rock, funk, blues.... Playing 25 years. All kinds of other high end gear. It comes and goes. This pedal is staying. I would buy another the same day if it were stolen. I love the simplicity and the sound. So sick of digital menus and scrolling thru stuff and forgetting what the settings are that you can't see in the display. This has none of that. It's perfect.

Seems simple enough to use, but it's a bit of a learning curve to get a decent sound out of it. It's just five knobs: drive, bass, mid, treble, and level, but they are incredibly sensitive and interact with one another in ways they wouldn't on an amp. On top of that, the knobs all act slightly different depending on which voicing you choose (Tweed, British, or California). For example, the drive knob on the British channel adds a bright boost when you turn it below noon. Prepare to be frustrated at first -- you may want to tweak the knobs the same as you'd do on an amp, but you probably won't get a good sound doing it that way. Trust your ears and take a little time to hear how each knob affects the tone on each setting. What you come up with will look odd, but it'll sound right.

The manual is short and sweet but very helpful. Tells about some hidden features of the pedal and offers some sample settings to give you an idea of how to tweak it, though these settings don't really sound at all like what they're labeled as (Metallica, Pantera, Mesa Boogie, etc.), but like all presets they're a good spot to start tweaking. When you find the tone you want, just double tap one of the three channel switches to save it. Be careful to tap quickly enough, though: if you take too long, you'll put the unit in bypass mode and lose the tweaks you just made.

It's not rocket science to use the TRI-A.C., but I can't give it a 10 because it takes so long to get a good tone out of it.

I'm using the TRI-A.C. with an EBMM JP6 and a Line 6 M13 through a Tech 21 Power Engine 60. I put the TRI-A.C. in the M13's loop so I can run distortions before it and delays and reverbs after. This is my grab-and-go rig, and for what it is, it works perfectly well. I find the British channel to be the most convincing, especially when warmed up with a compressor. With the drive nearly maxed I can get a good, thick crunch tone, and the TRI-A.C. takes pedals well, so I can boost it with one of the M13's distortion stomps. On just the British channel, I can get everything from jangly cleans to heavy chunk, but the pedal itself doesn't really have enough gain for, say, modern metal distortion.

The Tweed channel is nice too, and I have it as my clean setting on the first switch. But I don't play clean that often, and I'm not terribly picky about my clean sounds. I tweaked it for a few minutes and was able to get something adequate fairly quickly. A compressor here also helps greatly. The Mesa channel is a big disappointment, though. I haven't been able to find a usable setting on that one. It's all either mud or horrible, grating fizz. I know it's not meant to emulate something like a Dual Recto, but even as a Mark I sim it's pretty bad. Can't even find a decent crunch setting on that one. But that's fine -- the British channel was easy to dial in tones for light crunch, mid- to high-gain rock distortion, and a nice thick lead tone. You'll probably want to throw a pedal or two in front of or behind it, but it'll get the job done in a pinch all on its own. Using it with something like the M13 is just like having a full-on rig, but it all fits on a small pedal board and can go straight to the mixer.

Match this up with something like the Power Engine (highly recommended over a standard guitar amp, but use the amp's effects return if you must) and you've got all the bases covered: three channels for three different tones, whatever other effects or stomps you want to throw in, stage volume, and XLR direct out to the board from the Power Engine. Can't give it a 10 because of the Mesa channel, but it gets a solid 8.5 (rounded up to 9).

It's a metal box, metal switches, satisfying heft to it. It's just sitting on my pedal board now, and I don't plan on moving it. For that kind of use, even stomping on it all night, I can't imagine it's likely to crap out. I haven't had it long, but I trust Tech 21's reputation for making really solid gear.

Have e-mailed Tech 21 on a few different occasions to ask questions, always got a quick response that was more than helpful.

I've been playing guitar for 17 years (more than half my life). I play in a cover band, mostly heavy rock, and this pedal is a pretty good fit for me. I still prefer tube amps, but this thing is convenient as hell, so if it's a small gig or if I just don't feel like lugging a big amp around, I'll grab this instead. It's great for those times when there isn't enough room on stage for your amp. Just go ampless -- straight to the board! I like the straightforward approach Tech 21 took with this pedal. Not only does it sound better -- more natural and dynamic -- than digital modelers, but it's totally no-frills. Just three amp tones, and that's it. Get your effects somewhere else. It's really too bad about the Mesa channel, but the other two are great (the British channel is fantastic), and I like having three presets to choose from.

This can get me through just about any gig. I'd probably buy another one if I lost this one somehow, though I'd want to add one of their California character pedals or a GT-2 for more modern distortion sounds. But nothing else they make (that I'm aware of) has three programmable channels, and I need that, so I might end up waiting for the character series TRI-A.C. if this one got lost.

Bottom line: simple concept, does what it's supposed to do, sounds better than digital stuff and costs less too. You can't buy a cheap combo amp that sounds as good as this pedal, even if the Mesa channel bites.

This is one of the most simple to use units out there. DRIVE, BASS, MID, TREBLE, and LEVEL. The only thing complex (if I can call it that) is a three way switch for CALIF (California amp model, based on a Mesa/Boogie), BRIT (British amp model, based on a Marshall), and TWEED (amp model based on a Fender). There are three footswitches across the bottom, and any model set with any setting can be saved to any of the three switches. To save a setting, tweak your knobs to the sweet spot, and double tap the switch. Saved! The manual gives you some presets to start from and good instructions for how to use. Oh, and a nice LED function guides you back to your settings if you tweak away from your fave tone. It's got too many OPTIONS to be a "10" for ease of use, but I'll be damned if I can think of any better, simpler layout. How about 9.5?

It sounds completely different with different guitars. Fenders sound like Fenders and Gibsons sound like Gibsons. If you wish to use it live with an amp and want the unit to sound like it is supposed to (as well as function optimally) you MUST plug into the power amp/effects return and use the unit as your preamp section. This is how I use the unit primarily, and it sounds great, plugged into a vintage tube power amp or a solid state power section. It has an all analog signal path and the preamp reacts like tubes to when clipping. Also, it can be "pushed" with an overdrive pedal before it just like an amplifier, and each model responds accordingly. The Tweed, used clean, sounds like a pristine, glassy Fender. The Brit, used in any amount of gain, is sonically charismatic. Low gain settings incur a treble boost just like a vintage Marshall, mid gain settings are as clean or raunchy as your pickups and picking so choose, and high gain settings are chunky but articulate, creating a heavy yet beautiful wall-of-sound. I use the Tweed for cleans, the Brit at noon for a crunch overdrive sound, and the Brit maxed for my high gain sound. And I am more than satisfied with my purchase and use. BUT!
I bought this unit for the California model. I wanted a tight bottomed mid-gain Mesa/Boogie tone, and picked this unit up to achieve an analog modeled version. UNUSABLE. It's almost a fuzz. Low gain settings are a muddy joke (yes even with gentler and more articulate pickups), and the higher gain settings are only usable as a gimmicky fuzz tone. The mid EQ range is set way too low to boost for clarity. I sure hope someone can find a use for that awful Calif model, but it is not me. For this I give the sound a 9. More specifically, the Tweed I give a 9, the Brit I give an easy 10, and the Calif I would give a 4.

I bring the thing back and forth all over the area gigging weekly, and have never had a problem. Battery and standard 9V, that's nice. However, I have gotta admit, I am nervous about it getting damaged someday. It seems pretty solid, but it's no ProCo Rat. I bet it will survive the first drop and the first trample... but I wouldn't suggest using it for self-defense like some pedals. It's not a brick, it's a preamp.

I have heard wonderful wonderful tales, but have never had to ask them for help yet.

I want to give it a 10, but the Mesa model is a serious disappointment. I want to give it a 9 but there are more durable boxes out there. I'll give it an 8.5 and sleep tonight knowing I gave an accurate and fair review. This box has a plethora of VERY USABLE very organic sounds in it. All analog signal path. Very subtle, very dynamic tone. Beautiful Fender model. Astonishing Brit model. Three banks to save to, making it the GO-TO live preamp pedal. Jazz? YES. Classic rock? YES. Metal? YES. Maybe not enough gain for Nu-Metallers, but certainly enough for true metalheads. And it retains and enhances the sound of your guitar- your PICKUPS, the WOOD, and your FINGERS!

Doesn't take a scientist to figure this unit out but the controls are extremely fine; a couple of millimetres could make the difference in finding your tone. Very easy to save your settings; just double-tap a footswitch, the light blinks and you???re done. The manual is brief but helpful and clues you in to features you didn't know the Tri-Ac had.

The sound quality of the Tri-Ac is quite impressive, especially when put into the board and out through the PA (although it's not bad going through the effects return of an amp either).

With the range of tones this pedal is capable of it's difficult to give a blanket description, it's fair to say all three channels provide a responsive, organic sound that's easily tweaked to suit your taste or need. Channel switching is largely smooth and 'pop' free unless there's a huge volume disparity between the channels' volume (which there shouldn't be if set up correctly). There can be the usual line noise when using high gain/vol but nothing extreme.

Here???s a breakdown of the channels and my review of how they sound running through the PA.

Tweed (Clean) ??? using the iconic Fender tone as its starting point, this channel provides a lush, shimmery clean that can be tweaked to something dryer or more robust as needed. Very Fendery for sure...

Brit (Overdrive) ??? based on the classic Marshall, but the cut/boost feature of the tone knobs really lets you tcusomise the sound. Plenty of colour and bite, taut response, more roar than you???ll probably need. Perfectly good for leads but even better at getting me the toppy, dry, scrappy rhythm sound I like without the ???plastic??? tone I've experienced from other units. Incorporates a Bright Boost keyed to the Drive dial to emulate the Marshall tone. Any rock player will find his sound here and it'll sound mighty fine???

California (Distortion) ??? a heavier, thicker sound than the Brit, Cali uses the Mega Boogie as its model and retains the near infinite tweakability of the previous channels. I use it both for rhythm work in the heavier tunes and for most leads as it gets me the sweet, hot and fluid tone I like (somewhere around the Fast Eddie/Dave Murray/Leslie West voice). Plenty of distortion, maybe not as super-saturated as some of the people might think they need but more than enough killer gain for us sensible folk??? ;-)

Bought the Tri-Ac in the last days of 08; since then it's been used at home, casual jams and band rehersals. So far so good...it's taken a few bumps when I've forgotten its in the pack I just casually tossed on the floor but it hasn't taken a scratch and still works flawlessly. No hesitation depending on it

Limited one year warranty. Haven't used their CS yet but have read/heard good things. I did expect to get some confirmation after sending my warranty card but didn???t; not a huge deal.

Been playing 15+ years, the last nine seriously,

A few years back I was looking for a pedal I could use when playing an open stage setting that would supply preset clean, overdriven or distorted sounds as required. I ended up using a 2nd generation Jekyll & Hyde but was never satisfied with the results (but that's a different review). I just wish someone had told me about the Sans Amp Tri-Ac back then???

A cool thing about this pedal is that it contains some very useful features that are mentioned in the manual but not on the Tech 21 website. They might sell more Tri-Acs if they did but as it is, it feels good to find out the musical tool you???ve just bought contains even more that you thought it did. The 'secret' features are:

Lazy Pot : Thanks Tech 21 for this little bit of genius: like most multi-channel units, (the Digitech EX-7 being a glaring exception) the Tri-Ac remembers the settings for each channel. This is great for maintaining a consistent sound but if you???re jamming in someone???s apartment after playing a gig or rehearsal the night before, you could be in for an unpleasant surprise when you kick in a channel and get your ???Live??? volume blasting out of the speakers. Not a problem with the Lazy Pot feature which inserts a delay on the Gain and Level settings. This prevents your previously set volume from immediately jumping out and killing everyone in the room; e.g. even if you turn on with your Gain and Level at previously set maximum, there???s no sound for a moment. Then, gradually, it bleeds in and slowly climbs to its previously set level giving you plenty of time to adjust the Gain/Volume to suit your location. Simple but brilliant, nice one guys, that???s thinking like a musician.

Bright Boost ??? the Tri-Ac has a capacitor built in to the Brit setting that enhances the high end frequencies; the booster is engaged when the Drive knob is below 12 o???clock.

Comparison Mode ??? as with most multi-channel units, the Tri-Ac remembers the settings for each channel but obviously with three channels to one set of dials, the settings on the dials may not match the channel you???re currently playing. To find where the your pre-saved settings are you just select a channel and move any other dials : the channel light will blink until the dial matches the preset when it stops blinking and stays on, you???ve reached the preset.

LED auto-shut down ??? to conserve battery power, the Tri-Ac???s LEDs automatically shut themselves off after 10 seconds from the last time a dial was moved or foot switch used.

Universal Z output ??? the unbalanced output is designed to be compatible with full and limited range applications.

Speaker Simulation ??? each channel shapes the sound towards the cabinet normally associated with the amp and provides a smooth even response like that of a multi-miked cabinet

Low Battery Warning ??? when you need a new battery the red LED will become noticeably dimmer
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I don't lug amps around anymore; I get can get the same tones or better from the Tri-Ac.
During my pre-buy research I used YouTube to check out the contenders and caught a fairly long posting of a band???s live show where the guitarist was running a Tri-Ac straight into the PA without effects. The band was covering different flavours of classic rock and I was impressed by the Tri-Ac???s versatility but when the guy went into the EVH solo I was sold. Couldn???t believe what a great sound he was getting???
The second thing that pushed me towards Tech 21 was another YouTube sequence featuring a tour of the company???s factory and in-depth interview with main dude Andrew Barta. I thought any company that lets cameras into its manufacturing area must be pretty confident about their products and procedures and the man himself made a lot of sense; sounded like a musician, not someone trying to get you to buy his gear...Kudos Tech 21!

So easy, a caveman could do it.

Fairly quiet unit.
The distortion is nice, but not quite as good a tube amp.

So far...so good.
Seems sturdy.

I hear the company is quite cool.
But I've never spoken with them.

I play classic rock. This unit covers it all.

Easy to use. Period.

Basically there 3 amp simulator modes. Calif, Brit, Tweed. They are accurate simulations of mesa boogie, marshal, fender.

The control for 3 simulators are Bass, Mid, Tremble, Level and Drive. So there is no confusion on that. I like using this piece to have guitar tones in headphone mixes while not having to have an amp polluting my drum mic's. A record the amp simulator as well as the a dry signal. I've had a few a list guitar players opt for the guitar simulator because once if you record, its all digital in the box anyways. SO this box is good enough to get your tones, and textures correct.

no problems, but i take care of my stuff.

never delt with the company.

I like that it does not have a screen. that way you do NOT focus on letters, just the sound.

Update and a tip.
GET A POWER AMP NOW.

I picked up a used Alesis RA-100 Reference Amplifier for $75.
2 ch. and 2 vols. 100 watts mono into 4ohms.

WOW, so rich, thick and chocolaty. There's a 4x12 cab in my
1x12 combo wif dem heavier sample settings. Not my cup of tea, just saying ka-thunk chunk chunk is there.

The sample settings have relevance now.

I'm running SC and HB pups.

My desire was to have a very good 'bedroom amp'. Got it and no
burning up tubes. I'm looking forward to seeing how the set-up
works at band levels.

Couldn't be simpler - dial up the sound you want, assign it to one of the three channels by hitting the relevant footswitch twice quickly and then its stored. You can then tweak each setting by moving the relevant control - the quicker the LED flashes the nearer you are to the original setting, when it stops flashing you are on the original setting, then tweak... but be warned - the settings on the buttons are not relevant to the sound stored - touch the volume control at the wrong time and its possible to blow your head off - not so great for changing settings on the fly while playing live.

Sounds on the unit are endless, from beautiful and sparkling clean sounds to bee-in-a-bottle horrible fuzz. But I think some people get the wrong idea about this pedal. I originally used it with a Fender twin as a means to get three pre-set sounds (clean, overdrive and lead) but it just didn't work - I have sinced changed to a Crate PowerBlock and a Vox 2x12 cab and its the best tone I have had in over 20 years of playing through all types of lovely old valve amps. The Crate doesn't colour the pedal's settings (and sounds crap on its own, it is just a power-amp) and I just use the tone settings on the amp to adjust to different venues - this means I don't have to change any of the settings within the Tri-AC. The tones I get from this unit are just lovely, really warm and responsive, you can break-up just like a valve amp and the feedback works just like using tubes, I really don't feel like I'm using a transistor amp at all.

I have been using the Tri-AC for over a year now and was very happy until last night when during a rehearsal channel 1 stopped working, I discovered it was the small micro-switch inside that no longer works. Thats the trouble - built like a tank on the outside, big heavy-duty footswitch that presses this diddy little micro-switch inside. Hmmm...

Don't know yet - I have to contact them about this.

This is good for everything, providing you use the right set-up and are not trying to alter an amp that does perfectly well for itself. Funk, blues, jazz, doom metal, its all there - you can get a wonderful clean sound and a completely messed-up Big Muff tone out of it. Best thing about it is I no longer have to carry 3 different distortions about and engage in complicated ballet moves while switching sounds. Worse thing about it is that its just gone wrong.

Extremely easy. Editing is a piece of cake - just be careful with the knobs due to their sensitivity. Manual is pretty useful and offers several basic patches.

My setup is simple - heaviliy modified Tele through SansAmp directly to Yamaha mixing console and then to the soundcard on my PC. This unit makes even less noise than my digital guitar processor. Sure, when you raise Drive knob it may be somewhat noisy, especially on single coils pups, though by bridge Dimarzio Twang King hums moderately even on high Drive settings. Well, and I got Keith Richards sound out of it!

This stomp box looks solid, though I've been using it for onle several days.

Never dealt with them

I am a songwriter making hits for domestic pop stars. This is an absolute match for me, though, even writing pop singles I try to make good bluesy/funky demo versions. I sold my Marshall JCM amp 'cause it was too loud for my stuido apartment. If this was stolen or lost (Lord forbid!) I would definetly buy another one. I think this one is the best decision for direct recording.

Pretty easy to use very straight forward peddle. I have hear some complain that it is to complicated. That's is because they really don't understand it. In terms of controls the peddle has a three band EQ, drive, level, and modeling switch... The settings of which all be saved to three patches. People who say it is to complicated are people who don't want much in the way of options... These are people who are just as happy to simply use the factory presets on their Digitech RP... Which is fine... To each his own. But the reality is this peddle is just not for them. This peddle provides endless tonal possibilities. I have tinkered with this thing for hours and could continue to tinker for the rest of my life to come up with new tones. What frustrates people is the time that it takes to dial in a good sound.

Modeling is a myth! The reality is neither a $100 create or a $20,000 PA system are going to produce the tones that are unique to specific amps. It does not matter who the manufacturer is or what the model is.

That aside the tonal controls on this unit are interesting. A three way switch provides three tonal structures for the controls.

The best part is while the patches can be saved digitally they are a %100 analog. Not really sure how that works but cool nonetheless.

At its heart you can think of the Tri-A.C. as a three channel pre-amp out of a guitar amp. Which is great for use with single channel amps like some of these retro deals on the market because it is essential like adding two channels.

I have noticed a lot of people noting that it is not for use in front of an amp. An opinion I don't share. I think the reason that people say such things is because they use it in conflict with their amp. For example if you have a two channel fender with fairly intuitive pre-amps the reality is this unit will be in conflict with the amp for no other reason then you have three pre-amps with up to three EQs all in one line. Who needs three EQ's? Of course it is going to sound like crap... You have three things all trying to do the same job.
On the other hand if you set all of your amp EQ's to flat it sounds just fine.

This peddle excels at being a pre-amp. So consider your needs. If you have a fender twin or a vox ac 30 both of which have very good pre-amps then you probably would not want to bother. But if you are using something like an Orange Tiny Terror which is a signal channel amp with no EQ then it is great. All depends on what you need. If your primary purpose is to use it as a pre-amp then you have the right peddle.

Now if your primary purpose is to use this as an OD peddle then you might want to find a different peddle. This thing is simply not a distortion peddle... it is an over drive peddle! I know it is marketed as the end all destoraion/OD peddle but not so. If you are looking for that really rich crunchy metallica type distortion this ain't your peddle. I don't care what they say in the manuel. If you are looking for a decent OD then it is good... not the best but good.



7 for OD
10 for pre-amp

It works no problems. Sturdy construction.

No experience but I hear its good.

Good peddle... Nothings perfect this ain't heaven... Shop on ebay... buy it used and save anywhere from 50-100 bucks.

Update with a heads up for how I stumbled upon great clean Marshall tones whilst sampling some tone caps for me axe with SC's. I settled on a 223J 100V. This cap allowed a useful 7/8 range then would kill volume.
Just before drop out is the sweet spot for excellent clean tone out of
fairly high gain British and California settings. If switched to a clean or bypass setting there's no sound.
The tone pot works like a vintage Tweed tube amps single tone pot.
Turn clockwise and the gain just grinds harder.

B4, I could not get a non-shrill clean tone out of the Brit mode, especially with SC's. Prior to this, decent verge of break-up tones, but I'd bypass for un-colored cleans to hear my gits tone. I couldn't get true cleans. That's history now.
This stands true running through my Fender AmpCan! That's just crazy.
I'm talking rich and full jangle, spank, and grind-age.

Maybe I am experiencing what this unit sounds like through a P.A. or
Power Engine. But I'm getting it via git voiced FDR AmpCan w/6" cone!

What may be unique is I use saturated settings to get crystal clear cleans. This thing is acting like a good tube amp! Less the sustain.

Anyway, my approach for settings now is...OK, good balls-to-the-wall setting and save. Roll back the tone knob for jazz, twang, alternative and blues. You get the idea.

Very simple. Took me a few minutes to get used to the flashing leds (they flash at a varying rate when you turn the nobs from the currently stored value).
I am in no way connect with Tech 21, and I think this is an excellent product.

It comes with 3 decent factory presets - the Tweed and California settings were excellent. I'm not such a fan of the British setting - too toppy, but that's just my taste. The sounds are excellent - I pretty much took the 1st and 3rd factory setting (clean and scooped lead), tweeked them slightly and stored them. The other one I set on California, with a slight overdrive, trying to get the 80's Scofield sound.
The sounds are excellent, but as another reviewer rightly pointed out, it's for plugging into a PA or recording console. It will not sound good with an amp. I had the original "Classic" Sansamp, used it with a (cheap) amp and never got a good sound from it. Then I bought a PA system and used it with that and it sounded great. I use the Tri-A.C. with said P.A.
The driven sounds sound like a hard driven amp, not a fuzz box, which is just what I wanted. Clean up well when the guitar volume is lowered. Excellent dynamic response. No extraneous noise.

I haven't had the Tri A.C. long, but I've had the Classic Sansamp since the early 90's and it still works fine, so I'll rate it based on that.
It certainly looks very sturdy.

Not needed them.

I'm a fusion jazz wannabee, and wanted a clean jazz tone, a thicker sustained tone, and a nasty but natural sounding, overdriven Mesa-Boogie amp sound. The Tri-A.C. performed admirably in all these categories.

It's very easy to use it,you turn right or left the knobs, after you have choosen the preamp you like,till you hear your sound and then you double click and it's saved...

it's not for use infront of the amp,one more time it's not for use infront of the amp ,one more time it's not for use infront of the amp... when i first bought i plugged it in the input of my amp(this is the way i use the classic sansamp that i also own)and the sound was awful. Oh my god i said to myself ''what the ...is this... why did they destroy the sansamp's sound...how can the classic pedal be so great and the triac soundw so awful.''then t used it in the return loop of my amp and what a relief...a great sound came out of it....it's a fanatstic pedal which it should be used only in the return of your amp...i feel pitty for those who didn't try it this way...used it as a distortion pedal... and wrote terrible things about triac. They don't have an idea about how wanderful thiw preamp sounds.if only they could here my samples then they would have hit their heads on a wall because they sold it....
and used it as a distortion pedal...

i have the classic for over 7 years and nothing bad or any malfunction ever happened ,i thing it's the same with the triac

excellent...once i ask them for further information the next day they replied to me ...

i give this preamp a 9!!!!!!!!!!!!! keep up the good work tech21

This is a pretty straight-up piece of gear. One "in" jack and one "out" jack. Three big switches. Some knobs.

Mine didn't come with a manual but I figured out the essentials in sort order. I give this a seven because some useful features aren't labeled on the unit itself. Some examples:
1. If you change a setting, the selected LED will flash. The slower it flashes, the farther it is from the "saved" setting. This is really helpful if you want to know how far you've deviated from what you had before.
2. If you hit one of the foot switches twice while changing settings, the settings will be saved under that switch.
3. If you hit a switch twice while *not* changing settings, you will bypass the effect.

I can't get over what this pedal has done for my franken-strat! It makes me want to play more guitar, which is saying something since I'm primarily a bassist and drummer. I mostly use the TriAC for recording at home. Previously I had two usable sounds: one non-descript clean tone (straight) and one barely-tolerable non-clean tone (using a Rat distortion). Nothing warm. Nothing exciting. Just "eh". I put the SansAmp into the signal chain and WOW! All *sorts* of usable sounds. Now even the most bizarre pickup settings are usable (I added phase flip and series/parallel switches to the strat last year). I LOVE what the bridge pickup sounds like.

Most reviews I've read here say nice things about the clean Tweed setting and the overdriven Cali setting and I concur. I haven't found too much use for the Brit setting yet, but I haven't needed to look that far for tones I like. I find that most sounds tend to be louder than the straight sound, even clean. While there is some noise generated from the distortion sounds, it is at a more-than-acceptable level.

FWIW, I've heard this played side-by-side with a Digitech modeling unit and a real Marshal combo and they all sounded equally good in an echo-y basement. A guitarist friend, who plays considerably better than yours truly, plugged in to my Tri AC and was blown away. He *almost* regretted getting the modeler he purchased because he felt mine sounded a little more "real".

This thing has the hallmarks of good quality: Robust jacks, heavey-duty foot switches, and thick metal chassis. I don't worry when tossing this into a gig bag.

No need thus far.

I got this particular model to fill two needs:
1. Recording at home. I am overjoyed. Everything from fat cleans, to overdriven rhythms, to sweet leads. Makes me sound good, even if I'm not especially.
2. As an amp substitute for jamming. The tri ac shines at this because it sounds really good and has three easily-customizable sounds at your disposal. Three tone settings is all you need live. Really.

There are a few features missing on this unit, namely the on/off axis and the "mod" switches. After trying the SansAmp GT2 in the store (which has these features), I decided that they weren't essential and went with the Tri AC. Live you probably wouldn't notice them and for recording you can compensate with EQ.

If you want spaceship sounds, or even chorus and reverbs, you might consider some of the modeling units out there that will run you $30 to $50 more. I wasn't too concerned about that since I typically add effects later in the recording process.

Easy to use but you do have to tailor the sounds to mach your guitar.

Very Very Good!

Tried with Power Engine 60 - Excellent

also

>>> Mackie Onyx Satellite >>> Logic Audio >>>> Yamaha MSP speakers.... fantastic sound.

Been playing 30 years and have owned all the amps that this box emulates. I've also owned POPOD, ZOOM, Roland and got rid of them all.

THIS IS NOT DESIGNED TO BE PLAYED IN THE FRONT END OF A STANDARD GUITAR COMBO. There are people giving this low ratings because they do not understand that this is a pre-amp. Run a good pre-amp through the input of a toppy guitar amp and it will sound s**t.

A BRILLIANT recording tool and all amp sounds sound good with tweaking. Add reverb, delay and FX and you will not turn this baby off!

I'm giving it a full 10 as opposed to 9 because of those who have given it low ratings because they don't understand this unit is a preamp not a distortion pedal.

Had for 4 years... rock solid. Super long battery life.

Very good, I lost manual and got PDF very quick.

Better pre than POD, Zoom, Boss, Roland.

Piece-O-cake to use, but good sound? hmmm Okay sound yes.

I do not have the manual. No response from Tech 21. doh

BTW, I'll abstain from ratings as it's new to me and I only have tried it thru. the front of my current available SS amp..

1st things 1st, I run thru an old SS Peavey Pacer. My tubers('56 Deluxe Tweed Clone, '62 Ampeg Reverberocket) are too loud for Apt., besides repairs are needed. I planned to get a full-range 12" speaker. The axes have P-90's, overwound and underwound, which typically make anything sound its best.

I've flatened the amps EQ and have tweaked away, but all I've gotten are livable clean Tweed, clean Boogie and dist. Boogie. The Marshall is at it's best with EQ maxed, if not maxed, bad shyte pops out in certain frequencies. The Marshall does not find a home on any channel as yet. From what I read, I was certain the Boogie wouldn't.

I got it used and it seems healthy.

2 weeks, no response per my Manual request via email.

I noodle mostly with blues or rock. Goin' on 3 decades of playing. I hate tone loss from effects, so I just use a little. No, I wouldn't buy again. So far, it's toy like. Maybe it would be better if I buy a BBE Sonic pedal or a this and a that?

I am tortured a bit by tone. I tweak and tweak and try to make the best of what I gotts. Previously, J-Station thru. tubes and Zoom thru. RealTube Tube Works pedal into SS amp. seemed to offer more natural dynamics. Going thru. the RealTube using a low-gain tube didn't help this unit.
So, can't find natural tones or dynamics. Wait... nope, just checked again. Actually, I just bypassed and adjusted amp settings to normal and presto, natural, clear dynamics. Just no classic amp tones.

Looks like a sick little micro wattage pure tube circuit is in my future.

This is a follow-up of my previous review. I'm on my second tri-ac and while I've contemplated selling it a couple of times, I always find something useful for it. Here's a few thoughts since my last review...

Try it with a speaker simulation for direct recording or direct-to-PA use. It fizzes like a direct box until you do that. Even the Behringer Ultra-G is an interesting mate, as is a POD with the amp models disabled. I don't care what "they" say- it needs something to tame the fizz. You can pick out the fizz in the demo recordings on their site.

While it seems to have plenty of high end, it doesn't have the same presence or clarity in the high end that a real tube amp has. Heck, some real tube amps don't have it but the good ones do. This may sound like I'm in conflict with myself on the fizz issue, but its not the same thing.

It works great for bass! Great direct bass tracks!

It works great as a backup for your amp at a show.

It works lousy as a distortion pedal in front of an amp. Try it in the effects loop instead.

Built to last. The switch mechanism is very rugged in design. You can't stomp this hard enough to break the switch- it is physically impossible. You'd have to crush the rugged metal box to break the electronic portion of the switch. Brilliant solution and they claim it is properly buffered to prevent loading or other unpleasant tonal issues.

And oh yeah, I'm not selling it. I'm keeping it. Did I mention "Try a speaker sim?"

Very easy to use.

Well, this must be my third review of Tri AC and it's getting better all the time. I have had time to compare this to digital and other analog devices and there's just nothing that comes even close. I've tried Hughes & Kettner Tubeman, Yamaha DG-Stomp etc. but Tri AC is still the winner. And that is mostly because of the super good British channel. Overdrive sound or distortion sound, it's always the British channel. I recently found out that the California channel though not very good for distortion makes an incredibly good clean sound. Far better, in my opinion, than the Tweed channel. During recordings I use all the channels, but live I now only use the British channel (od and dist) and the California channel (clean).

Yes, I would use this without backup. I play this through a tube amp, but the Tri AC is also my backup. If something happens to my amp, I just play throug the PA system.

I think this is as close to perfect as it gets. There is something about the British channel sound that I can't explain. It's so good I could play for hours and it would still sound excellent. I don't know if it's really that much like Marshall sound, but it's an outstanding sound and very much rock'n roll!

I give this an 8 because it's a thinking musicians pedal. "Well I jsut wanna rock!" OK, well the manual is only like 6 pages, read it and you'll know how to twaek this thing till infinity. Still very intuative. Double clicking to save settings is so ingenious.

I may write a proper review later but I just wanted to respond to some comments about the amp modeling:

"You cannot get metal tone out of it simply because none of those amps are meant for metal tones."

Really? Mesas and Marshalls aren't meant for metal?
There were also several reviews suggesting this pedal doesn't have enough gain...?! Well what kind of pickups are you using? I use this pedal mainly *for* it's metal capabilities ( I bypass it for my amp's clean sound, which I could never get sick of.. Sovtek mig 50). I have a Samick PRS rip-off with an EMG 85/81 set and it's got gain to spare. In fact I use it to record direct and have no problem saturating the tape with a high level. Also, a lot of metal players choose something based on a practice volume level... well, fizzy and super saturated isn't going to work well in a big room with a full band(metal zone.. ugh). But for recording this thing can DUMP so much distortion, especially on bass that it sounds terrifying!

Ok, maybe the Tweed amp won't break up as much as you need, but both British and Cali can be pushed way over the top... in fact, sometimes I gotta remember to roll off a tad bit of gain and just tweak the mids to get more 'edge'.

A friend of mine borrowed it for awhile but refused to read the manual. He plays different stuff than me: indie-rock, blues rock, lead stuff like Dinosaur Jr. and he complained it sounded artificial. Well, when it says "set your amp flat and no brite switch" they mean this! Like any tool/pedal/gear it will sound awfull you don't use it as intended! That being said, if you know how to use it, THEN you can abuse it. :) I have used this pedal to get crushing sounds out of keyboards, and on vocal tracks(hint: double track a screamy part and then run one tack thru the Cali channel with lots of gain).

Anyhow I can't say enough about this pedal. I really don't like to endorse stuff because obviouslly everyone has a different sound they are going for, but I was always unhappy with the Boss/Digitech/DOD sounds... this was super affordable for something that sounds boutique but is programable and super flexible. If you own this pedal and are a little unhappy with the sounds just keep toying with it.. it took me about 6 months to find the sweet spots but now I use it on EVERYTHING and for so many things it's not made for.. I've yet to run drums thru it mixing but I bet that would crush too.

Some mp3's featuring it: www.myspace.com/sentinelgrind

Hope this review helps!:)

Built like a tank. Switches are sturdy but I can even switch em easy by hand(for mixing). True bypass or not (I dunno) no unwanted signal gets thru for me.

dead easy to use...3 footswitch, 5 knob, no manual necessary.

it's supposed to simulate fender tweed, marshall and boogie sound. close enough, but a little muddy, and compare to sansamp gt2 it seems lack of gain. maybe an overdrive in front of it help a little to achieve heavier sound.

solidly built

this is a versatile pedal... we can use it as a stompbox distortion or use it as a preamp.

Verry easy to use and get a good sound
Manual is good. Active controls (cut or boost)

Verry real, analog sound! Fender, marshalls are super.
But you have to amplify them the way its ment to be.
Home recording/ hifi speakers= verry good.
But I own a tech 21 power engine 60. And that's the keyword for me.
I'm going to by another one so I have 120 watt. 60 watt (one power engine 60) is okay but the clean headroom is not that much.
With 120 watt is sounds awesome!
Buy them!

I think so.
I have the unit for only 6 weeks

It's the best there is.
Send them an e-mail.
The next day you have all the answers.

Tech 21 rules!

The tri-a.c. is *extremely* easy to use *if* you go along with it's intended purpose. like all sansamps it is designed to recreate the sound of a complete signal path. it is *not* a distortion/overdrive pedal, and that means that it works best when run thru a full range system, not in front of a tube amp. that doesn't mean it's the only way you can use it, but to get the best results the fastest, use a very clean amp (like a roland jc120 for example), one of tech 21's power engines, or a similar power amp/speaker set up. i have also had luck running to the FX loop return on a few tube amps.

editing couldn't be easier, this has already been covered a million times - dial in a sound, double click the switches, done.

i've been using the Tri-ac in a tech21 oriented direct system for a year or so. for the most part my signal goes directly to the house sound system without any amp on stage. i also use their GT2. a boss line selector is utilized to switch between the two pedals. the Tri-ac provides my main clean and lead tones, while the GT2 is my rhythm sound.

there are 3 Amp choices in the Tri-ac, Tweed (fender), British (Marshall) and California (mesa-boogie). i've a point off here for the California setting, which has way too much low end, in my opinion. the gain range is also not what i'd like to see... it's pretty geared towards "classic" tones. not that there's anything wrong with that, i just don't see a point in limiting the sound. this is not my only tech 21 product so i know they are capable of more gain... they just chose not to, in this case.

the Tweed setting is *very* good. i use this for all of my clean tones. it also *kills* for the "edge of breakup" overdrive sound that so many of tech 21's digital counterparts fail at.

i use the British set for my lead tones, with lots of gain, mids, and treble. with a little chorus and delay i'm set and will play until no one else cares to listen to me. it's the kind of sound that *inspires* you to keep going, and at the end of the day, that's what matters.

the tri-ac also takes pedals *very* well, i'll use fuzz pedals before it and also put modulation & delay pedals after, and i've never had a single issue.

i have never had a single problem with this pedal. ever. it's one of the reasons why i continue to use this setup - it consistently provides me with the sound i want to hear at every show, every time.

there is no better customer support than tech 21. they always respond to emails, generally within a few hours. i've even just shot the shit with them a few times. if you have a question about any one of their products, don't hesitate to email them.

the tri-ac is an integral part of my setup. it sounds good on stage and in the studio. if it were stolen or lost i would absolutely buy another.

How easy is it to get a good sound out of it?

Super Easy.
The builting presets give you enough hint about this box's capabilities.
You need to remember few points while dialling in a "good" tone. (Though, that in itself is debatable) ;)

1. The amps have inbuilt voicings that you need to respect.

2. You cannot make a tweed amp sound like a marshall or vice-versa. And neither should you try doing that on Tri-AC

3. The tweed channel is more bass and treble heavy. So be a little frugal with those. Boost mids, cut bass and treble for better tones outta Tweed.

4. British channel is very trebly. Just like the tweed it is modelled after. You need to cut down treble to get a smooth tone. You want jangly-twangy tone? Keep treble higher. Sounds very much like the Marshall Plexi.
Boost the mids and bass and cut treble to get a "nice" tone.

5. California channel is uber-bassy and very low on treble. Try to curtail bass and please boost the treble to get sweet overdriven tone of the Mesa-Boogies.

6. The EQs are active. That means above 12 o clock means boosting a frequency. Usual amps and stomp boxes have passive EQ.
Wanna get the same feel? Donot tweak any EQ knob beyond 12 o clock.

Apparantly, the voicings of these channels match the orginal amps pretty well. Ppl who crib about British being too bright or California being too dull should go and check out the original amps too.



How about Editing patches?

Again very easy.
Just play around with knobs and "double click" on any channel. The setting gets stored there.



How is the manual for it (if there is one)?

Manual is super. Infact it gives you tips to get good tones out of the box. Something that I have NEVER EVER seen in any product manual!



Do you know the firmware revision number? Has your unit been upgraded?

Now what is this thing?

Awesome.

Tweed = Fender "tweed" amps
Brisish = Marshall "Plexi" amps
California = Mesa/Boogie Mark-I amps

Thats the key.
This unit is moderate gain one.
You cannot get metal tone out of it simply because none of those amps are meant for metal tones.

You need to put a boost in front to drive the amps harder. The same you need to do here to get more "metal-friendly" tone.


Tweed sounds perfect for slightly overdriven tones. Slight haze/fuzz and it sounds cool.
British also sounds cool in this regime. Infact, for certain jobs it sounds better, due to the characteristic "ovedriven + clean" tone coming out of it.
California sound better in the moderate gain - high gain regime IMO.
At low gain settings it sounds just too muffled for my liking.


The British channel has a wonderful feature (wich existed on the original Marshall Plexi too): the gain kobs also affects the tone. :)
Higher the gain, more thick the tone; lesser the gain, more trebly/bright/jangly the tone.

That means you set and EQ for low gain (rhythm) patch and be assured that the same EQ with higher gain will sound excellent for leads.

+ The fact that British channel is awesomely responsive to picking dynamics as well as guitar volume pot.


The California channel is not that responsive. :(
However, it makes up by giving a sweet Santana-ish overdrive.


This pedal is great for playing blues and hard-rock.


One of the beast features of this pedals is that it sounds fabulous even at max gain (something that even amps fail to do).

However, what I would've actually liked from this pedal is: more gain range.


And hey, this baby does the direct-in job really pretty well. Dunno what is the problem with ppl who said it sounds like shit when plugged direct. Most probably they dont have any idea about how to tweak and get the desired tone.




I can get Stevie Ray Vaugh and BB king's tone (somewhat similar).
Eddie Van Halen's (almost), AC/DC (spot on!), Lynyrd Skynrd (kinda spot on!), Santana (amlost spot-on!), Jimy Page (almost) .........

You get the picture. These are/were the artists using the same Fender Tweed or Marshall Plexi or Mesa/Boogie Mark-I amps in real.


The reason why am giving it 9 instead of 10 is because if you listen to the samples of Tech21 PSA-1 on their website, you realize that PSA-1 can deliver even more superior tones than TRI-AC
x-(

:((

Solidly Built.

However, I haven't had much issues till now + its been only one/two months.

If you've dealt with the company, how helpful/friendly were they?


Very much. I mailed them and they replied promplty all my queries.
Infact the person told me specifically how GT2, TRI-OD and TRI-AC are different (tonal, voicing, etc wise)

GT2 and TRI-OD are better for more modern tones.
TRI-AC is better for classic rock kind of tones.

I play Blues, Classic Rock, Rock'n'Roll, Hair Metal, Thrash metal.
Except thrash, this pedals covers everythign else pretty well.

I have one KORG AX100G too. Whcih I now use as FX bank :)


I did a comparison with few other products like:
Tech21 TRI-OD
AMT Distortion Machine
Rocktron Silver Dragon
Toadworks Deathrattle
etc

Ultimately it was combination of features + availability that prevailed.


Actually I wished initially that it should have more gain.
But then the purpose is lost!

This pedal is meant for more laid-back classic tones.

You want more hi-gain stuff?
Buy GT2 or TRI-OD or AMT distortion Machine.

Depending on your setup, it can take some moving around in your setup to get something that sounds good. I'm running into a 50 watt EL84 driven amp. i settled on running it direct in line with Compression, EQ, and Wah in front of it and Delays and Modulation after it.

Programming one of the switches couldn't be easier...tweak the pots and double click...done.

be careful how you run power into it...i daisy cahined it and it wasn't getting enough power...so i run a dedicated Power Supply.

i don't use it for nor would recommend using it as a DI.

I like the quality of the 'Tweed' and 'Brit' sounds. the 'cali' sound does not work through my set up...too muddy.

I would say if you are depending on this or any 'distortion'pedal for your main tone, then you will be unhappy. leave that up to the Amp.

'tweed' - i use this setting for a slightly driven sound. almost clean. one of it's better sounds

'brit' - i have the other two buttons on this setting. One is for my open chord/arpeggio sound. this sounds great. The other is a palm muting power chord sound...sounds good, i don't hit that much. i use my lead channel on the amp for that....

add the clean channel and this pedal is a great way to add three sounds to your setup.

be patient and tweak it slowly. i'm very impressed with the quality of the pots and a little goes a long way. I'll admit that i was a bit unhappy when i took it out of the box and plugged it in for the first time....i spent an hour really tweaking it with my amp and found some tones i'm happy with.

Very simple design
it's got a choice spot on the pedal board

I play a wide variety of music on electric guitar. i was looking for a way to add several more lead sounds to my rig with one pedal. this looked like the best bang for the buck and i think it still is. Its three pedals for the price of one.

it does what i wanted - light warm distortion and bright open chord distortion....the metal sounds are not very good with this pedal.

You can't get much easier. Almost any setting can provide a usable tone, and the controls are calibrated nicely, not too sensitive but offering plenty of range. Aside from an occasional difficulty with volume control, I rarely find myself adjusting knobs hair by hair.

Speaking of volume, the one "problem" is that changing any of the controls requires adjusting the level to match volume. It would be nice if the device could autolevel. Yes, I know that's borderline impossible, but I'll knock off a point for it anyway.

The three-patch memory system is bee-yoo-tiful. It's a lot nicer than constantly fiddling with knobs, or sacrificing analog tone to have the memory of a digital modeler. Still, it doesn't have the nigh-unlimited memory of its big brother, the PSA-1, so I'll knock off another point.

The sound is great, all-analog stuff: rich, organic, and responsive. It really does wonders for even clean tones, adding subtle warmth and size without turning the sound muddy. The distortions are rich and full, and are flexible enough to find a home in any genre of music. However, unless they've got super-hot guitars, metalheads will find this to be a poor primary distortion (too weak), but a wonderful preamp/boost/coloring unit. Also, jazz/blues people may find it too harsh to use as a DI (though it may go beautifully with an amp).

That said, it doesn't sound a whole lot like the amps it supposedly models. It's got a very unique flavor to it, so if you're looking to imitate someone else's tone, you're probably out of luck.

A quick note on which speakers/amps to use: the TriAC softens tone and adds color, so those with muddier guitars and amps may find that they need to swap their amp for hi-fi speakers. In my case, I alternate between hi-fi speakers and my amp, depending on what kind of tone I'm aiming for.

Here's my typical signal path (I got tired of complexity): Kramer Focus guitar or Ibanez BTB505 bass -> TriAC -> Sansamp Programmable Bass Driver -> KRK V4 nearfield monitors and Fender Frontman 25B bass amp. I've found that the Bass Driver can add great oomph and bite on occasion, a discovery fomented by the fact that I'm primarily a bass player.

To explain the Focus and the Frontman, I got very lucky with both and got the best of both models. I've yet to find a guitar under $500 that sounds better than my Focus (quieter and easier to play, sure, but not better-sounding) and an amp for guitar or bass under $1000 that sounds better than my Frontman (louder and more fully-featured yes, but not better-sounding). Yes, I've looked. I'm recovering from an absolutely ghastly case of GAS.

It's surprisingly light, but it seems rock solid. I'd definitely gig without backup, but I'm pretty easy on my gear so YMMV.

Never used 'em.

IMO, there are basically only two excuses not to own one of these: the Sansamp PSA-1, or a $1000+ of boutique distortion pedals. I mean, what's not to like? The TriAC is as easy to use as your average Boss stompbox, is flexible and programmable like a digital unit, and yet has pure, analog tone that sounds as good or better than any boutique distortion pedal in the same price range.

It's not perfect, sure, but it's pretty darn close.

The preset sounds are pretty good already. Depending on your guitar the sound can be a bit crisp, but this can be fixed with the equalizer. I got fantastic sound out of this box after 20 Minutes of editing. I have been using a Zoom GFX-5 and i wanted to simplify my sounds (I tend to overdo on the various effect options these multieffects have. This device is doing exactly what i expected.
Editing is straight forward
Manual is also straight forward

Set up: Gibson Nighthawk - Tuner Rocktron - TriAC - Digitech Jamman - Efx Return of a Laney Tube Combo

Low noise

All 3 amp models are great and can be used to produce a variety of really good convincing sounds.

Laney Pro Tube (only the poweramp section)

I play alternative cover rock and i'm using an clean fender sound, a crunch marshall, and a high gain mesa sound, this covers basically all i need.

its new, but it seems stable

didnt try

I'm really happy, i got what i expected and its even better.
Especially when you get lost in multieffect pedals try the TRI

Well it's pretty simple.

Take it out of the box, plug it in and be dissatisfied. Wonder what you're doing wrong and why you're getting such pathetic sound. Read the manual, try again. Re-read the manual. Mutter profanity. Try every possible combination of using with or without a DI Box, before and after an effects board, EQing the living hell out of it, compressing it, recording it and EQing it after along with compressing it, changing patch chords, and finally eliminating all links except tri-ac. Re-read manual and retry settings. Change battery and DC adapter. Realize it's a piece of crap.

Like I said, pretty simple.

This is a horrible muddy piece of poo. DO NOT believe the sound samples they have on their site, this thing sounds nothing like them. If you like cruddy distortion awash with slurred bottom end and indiscernable notes and chords, then this is the pedal for you. If not, don't waste your precious time.

Sure you can depend on it... to hold your loose papers down in a mild breeze, but that's about all this thing's good for. I wish there was a rating as such:

0-Don't think it ever worked.

Frankly a 1 seems too gracious for this abomination.

Jury is out on this one. I'll be emailing them tomorrow and sending them some sound samples of what I'm pulling out of this two hundred dollar turd. If they send me my money back or tell me it is without a doubt malfunctioning then this section might get high marks (although the marks for the reliability section are bound to suffer).

I was looking for a good tube amp simulator that could give me crunchy distortion with some bottom end. Instead I got mud, with a little mud with some more mud on top.

Oh, and a side order of mud with mud to go.

I cannot express my complete and utter disappointment with this product. I really believed it was going to give me some semblance of the tones available on the Tech 21 site. I'll never buy one of their products again. I feel cheated, ripped off and sort of dirty (not in a nice way, more like I've been subjected to a prison gang-rape only without the tender foreplay).

Where the hell did the positive reviews come from? Tech 21 employees in search of job security? Low-paid street people who are tired of selling blood and semen? Scientologists?

I was a little confused in the beginning, but caught up to it soon after. The "lazy" pots (pots react slowly after channels are switched) threw me off, but after reading the manual, I thought the idea and intent were plausible. Not sure they are practical for real life application though. No big deal really. To program channels, you click the swith twice real quick.

One thing I learned over the years by trying out all these modeling amps, processors, such as POD, Valvetronix, Zoom, etc., they are not as good as what the manufacterers want you to believe. None of the pedals quite live up to the marketing hypes that companies put out. If you go out and buy one these modeling processors thinking it will replace your vintage rigs. well.. think again. The truth is you sacrifice your tone for convenience and cost-savings. The fact of the matter is, though, sacrifices are inevitable under extenuating circumstances even if you hate to down grade your tone and musicality. For example, it's just not practical hauling 100+ lbs 100W amp rig for quick 4-5 song hit/run gigs, or for stages that require absolute volume control. ---- As in other modeling processors, Sansamp Tri AC's don't quite have the same dynamics and responsiveness to pick attack as on real tube amps. Also, sound/feel out of this pedal is a bit too compressed and grainy. Having said this, I must say Tech21 did a fair good job at emulating three very classic guitar amp tones, such as pushed tweed, marshall and recto. I actually prefer this pedal to Pod, Valvetronix, etc, for sound, convenience and cost. To me, Pod/Valvetronix/etc are like swiss army knives.. very handy with bunch of gadgets, but they are difficult to use sometimes and none of them can do the real heavy duty job. Tube amp modeling technologies still have a long long way to go, but this pedal should sound as good as other emulators if not better.

N/A

N/A

I'm happy with my purchase. This pedal by no means takes you anywhere close to the real tube amp realm, but I like this pedal for the ease of use, low cost, seemingly durability, sturdy construction and... also for fairly good tones. I do have a real tube amp live setup, which I've nearly perfected over the years, but I needed something simple/durable for quick fill-in & hit-&-run gigs and also as a backup for disastors. You really don't need 10+ amp tones folks for 95% of any gig situations.. You just need 3-4 good usable tones (dirty/solo/clean/et combined).. This pedal does just that.

Let's see... 3-band eq, drive and level control. Double click to save a preset. Couldn't be easier to use. I ordered this via internet, got the wrong manual, but that's no problem. It took some time to adjust it to my likes (in my setup) though.

This was my choice, because I wanted to get more analogish sound and I couldn't afford a real tube amp (like Mesa Rectifier). The major difference between this and MT2 I discovered at band reheasals. With Metal Zone I had to put a lot of middle frequency to the tone so that I could hear the guitar well with the other instruments. It was quite brutal to listen, especially when it was that loud. With Tri-AC my sound has enough presence (with reasonable EQ), and I can listen to it in rehearsals even without any isolation in my ears (can't find the word...). I think it hasn't got enough distortion for heavy sounds, but it's no problem if you have a booster. I use my Metal Zone for that (yeah, it's not an OD, but it works).

I use this only for distorted tones, and I like the Californian model the best. Not only because some of my idols (like John Petrucci, Die) use mainly Mesa/Boogie amps, but I personally like the tone too.

For clean and other tones I have split my signal chain. It could be confusing to explain that, so here's a diagram:
http://files.mikseri.net/pics/78914.jpg

It's metal so you can depend on it. Use it well and it shall serve you for long time. I myself have used it only for couple of weeks now, but haven't found any glitches or whatnot.

I haven't actually dealt with the company, but when I e-mailed the store where I ordered this, I got a reply in a couple of hours.

I play mainly rock and metal and for heavy sounds this matches my likes. I like to combine different elements and sounds in my music, but I use mainly this for hi-gain sounds. As I said, for alternative sounds (like clean) I have other gadgets.

This thing is easy to set up and program.Two clicks on any button and it's saved!

My setup is G&L Classic Asat > TRI-AC >Kustom KBA16 > Boss RRV-10 reverb unit > Weber C10N speaker. Clean sound all the way through.
This thing gives me any amp I want.The Fender sound I use with my bridge pickup.The Mesa sound I use with the neck pickup and man does this thing spank!I'm telling you the harmonics are just unbelievable.
If you set it up right it's gets the all tube sound you want.Then for distortion I use the Marshall and Mesa sound. Some people say that they may hear a pop when channel switching but I did and found out what the situation was. When you use the British channel for clean it is so high gain that going from Fender to British it happens. But if you use the British channel for distortion no problem. But many say they don't have any pops at all.
I guess it all in how you set it up. I called Tech21 and spoke with Lloyd who took the time out to speak with me and helped with all my questions. We even talked guitar shop for awhile.Where can you get that kind of service? Tech21 has it together for products and Excellent Customer Service!I mean yes there are great tube amps but I don't have the money to try them all out but this gives an old guitar player with a bunch of kids a chance to get some of those amps or close to those amps as I can.

Built like a tank. I would like to have another as a back-up.

Thank you Lloyd - great product!

I play mostly blues and rock.Great 60's sounds attainable with this unit.Love the memory leds and how if you move a knob all you do is turn them till they stop blinking-idiot proof!So if you try any amp sound you can always go back to your setting for that particular amp.
Been playing 20 yrs. If I lost or someone stole it I would replace it.This unit is fun to use and great for recording.

Yes, it's easy. Remember the eqs are active.

This is great. Especially the tweed and the british chanel. I dont really use the calif chanel so much, guess I'm not a Mesa man. The british chanel is just great with standard live volumes. Nice feedback and it's very good when you push it a little with od or dist unit. The tweed chanel has a good clean sound, but it sounds very bad if try to push it with an overdrive. I have used this thing a year now, so I know what I'm talking about.

Yep, I depend on it 100%.

Have not needed them.

I play all kinds of rock music and this is a perfect tool for me. The programmability is fantastic. So easy and so versatile. I would not even compare this to PODs or such things, since this is all analog sound. No matter how many features those digital sound modules have, they still sound weak and lifeless and like a piece of shit. Some may like the digital processors, but I hate them, because I have tried them.

It is very easy to get a great sound of this thing. It replicates three legendary amps. Replicates. Not simulates. It sounds great. Ths manual is pretty stinking awesome. it tells you the basics of what happens with the sansamp and presents it vividly. plus, in the back of the manual there are diagrams of settings you can make for the sansamp such as pantera, fender, marshall, EVH, mesa, metallica, bluesy. And it has a few blank diagrams to allow you to pencil in your own custom settings.

I'm running it through the FX loop of a Marshall AVT-150H Halfstack. I use it currently only as a support pre-amp. IT IS GREAT. I play a Gibson Epiphone Les Paul Custom Black Beauty. I'm hoping however to add a Tele to this setup soon. I've used it by itself many times through PA systems and it stills surpasses my expectations. The effects are awesome when run with my half stack. however there is a certain gain/ volume ratio that when breached can produce loads of feedback on overdrive settings. but that's just something that you need to monitor. I play jazz, big band, swing, rock, roll, nu-metal, but mainly christian. This unit allows to me to very closely resemble the effects of artists like Tomlin, Crowder, audioa, thirdday, and many more. Yet at the same time i can put my own twist of flavor on it that makes it my own sound. The three amps, Marshall, Fender, Mesa, are great. the dynamics of those amps are completely captured in this unit. you can adjust the gain level to make them clean or raging with the twist of that knob. The only amp i rarely use is the Mesa due to it's milky/bassy nature. the marshall and fender amps are great and i use those a whole lot because of their flexibility.

Thus far the construction and quality of this unit has been untarnished. The battery conservation of this unit isn't the best in the world, but it doesn't suck the life out of every 9V you put in there. I can live with it. I currently use it every weekend and throughout each week without a backup and i love it. the only backup i bring is a spare 9V.

Haven't had to! that's the way it should be.

I've already listed a few of my influences. I'll list them in their entirity. Dc talk, david crowder, lots of counrty such as Alabama, tim mcgraw, joe nichols, kenny chesney, alan jackson,j. buffet, and others, Chris tomlin, matt redman, hillsong, audio a, third day, ten shekel shirt, anberlin, creed, montgomery gentry, jars of clay, delirious, switchfoot, newsboys, a little bit of Jet, three doors down. Basically Jazz, blues, blues rock, country, christian alt., christian p&w, pop, mod. rock, class. rock, soft rock, big band, swing, christian pop. I've been playing guitar for nearly 4 years. I own a Epi Les Paul Custom Black Beauty, Jackson DX-10D dinky reverse(discon. 2001), a Sigma Acoustic, Marshall AVT-150H 1/2 stack, Zoom II, Behringer V-Amp2, Rogue 30W.
if i this thing were stolen i'd call the police quickly and report an assault w/ waterpistol. I'd totally smack the person who took it. I would certainly buy another one. I love the tone finder setting(as you get closer to your set level , bass for instance, the l.e.d flashes quicker as you get closer to stored level then stays on a constant signal when you've reached your level.) i was looking for a tube overdrive sound pedal to enhance my marshall at the time and this was way better than alternatives. I wish that it had a built-in pizza oven but one can't have everything. it most certainly helps me make the music i am privileged to play for Jesus Christ. excellent investment if you can get it for less than $150. I'm a student and i was willing to save up enough from my 12hr.-week job to pay for this baby.

N?o e t?o facil de usar como um pedalzinho comum, mas tambem e bem mais facil de usar do que aquelas pedaleiras digitais emormes. Fazer a edic?o das programac?es e simples, n?o tem misterio.

A minha experiencia fez aparecer 2 TriAC na minha frente. Ligando a guitarra direto no TriAC eu achei o som um pouco fraco. Dai tive a ideia de ligar a guitarra em meu TubeScreammer TS-5 Mod 808. Percebi que este e um dos sons mais legais de Overdrive que ja ouvi na vida. Guitarra + TS-808 + TriAC + Amplificador. A simulac?o TWEED (Fender) e simplesmente fantastica, tanto limpa quanto combinada com o TS-808. A simulac?o BRIT (Marshall) aditivda pelo TS-808 produz uma distorc?o fantastica !!! A simulac?o CALIF (Mesa-Boogie) achei forte demais, mas e legal tambem.

E pau pra toda obra. Hard Rock.

Nunca tive problemas. Tks.

Ja entrou pra ficar na minha pedaleira.

Okay here is my experience with the Tri-A.C. so far. Is it easy to get a good sound out of this pedal, well yes and no. The controls are familiar, but in my experience these solid-state modeling devices sometimes have to be set in very odd ways to get the tone you are after. The tone you want is probably in there, you just don't get there setting the controls the way you are used to. That is fine. What other device that is capable of so many different sounds could do this with with so few controls? I give it a five to caution new users to dig in and find their tone because it is probably in there.

While the sans-amp stuff is the only thing that I have found to substitute for a real tube amp let me caution potential buyers and new users that the Tri-A.C. is capable of some very non-tube like bad tones. Its not the fault of this product. As I state above, when you get flexability you give up good tone right out of the box. Your good tone is another mans nails on a chalkboard. Don't be lazy and find your sound. Get to know each model, its inherent characteristics etc, understand what the controls do at extreams as I have found many of the best sounds for me by sometimes minimizing as many as two of the five knobs and maxing out others. These are probably not settings you would think to use right away. When I first plugged it in I was dissapointed, now I LOVE this thing! Its worth the work so sit down and spend a few hours really getting to know this device.

I love the sounds I've found but I have to explain my somewhat unique approach. A must for using these devices (for me and IMHO) is using a seperate cabinet modeler when going direct, I used a very cheap one from behringer called the ultra-g. I really don't think this or any other solid-state modeling device I've heard so far sounds convincing without one, it gets a 9 because of this. This is because the speaker model that they put on the output of these devices is designed to work when run though actual guitar speakers, so it is really hi-fi so as to not sound like a speaker run though a speaker. While the idea is a good one, for me it is too ambitious. They should just sell a seperate speaker emulator, or have a switch. Guitar amps don't sound hi-fi to me and by running the Tri-A.C. either though a seperate speaker cab emulator or though an actual guitar cab via a power amp the sound is amazing.

This thing really feels so much like the tube amps I've played over the years, but its so much more flexiable in sound. Even though there are only three models on this thing because the tone controls are so powerful you can get what feels like an infinite number of different tones. Remember, you have to really dig for them. Everyone says the clean tone is just okay, and the the slight breakup is no good. Maybe without a speaker model run after it, but with it I think it sounds great. There is something very Vox AC30 ish to me about it (even though it is modeled on a fender), which is good as I like the AC30 tone. I can't tell you what a difference playing this is versus playing a regular solid-state amp in feel is. It, like the better digital modelers, somehow captures the feel of a tube amp as well as the sound. What I never liked about the digital modelers is when I tried to take them out live there was this high-end digital harshness that I could not get rid of, even when run though the power-amp section of a real tube amp. I have seen other bands playing with digital amps and experienced this same quality in the sound. The Tri-A.C. does not exhibit that same quality. I think analog has just the right roll-off if you will.

Does it sound exactly like tubes? I don't know and don't care, it sounds good. Forget for a moment that tubes exist, and forget about the amps this thing is supposed to ape, and see if you can find your tones in it. That is what I did and I have found so far I can. Besides, the price is no comparison and you can plug this into any cheap tranny power-amp and speaker cab and be ready to go, again if you are going to run direct to a PA use a speaker emulater after it for a more realistic tone. The price/performance ratio is just amazing. You can buy these for the price of re-tubing your tube amp, something you will have the pleasure of doing every 6 to 12 months if you are playing regularly.

Right now my signal chain runs like this: boss TU-2 (Tuner)->Sans-Amp Tri-A.C. (preamp/distortions)->Wasabi Chorus-Trem (modulation FX)->Boss DD-20 (delays)->Boss RV-5 (reverbs)->Power Amp section of B-52 200LGA w/B-52 4x12 cabinet.

Its surprisingly lightweight but seems sturdy enough.

Have not had the pleasure

I have been playing for almost 20 years. If you are like me and started playing in the 80s you are just in amazement at what is available for musicians today. I've had this idea recently of getting a rig together that would combine the power of what was until recently only available in racks or in muti-fx pedalboards - like programability and multiple effects in one unit - with the convinience, modularity, and flexability of stomp-boxes, my own custom multi-fx pedalboard if you will. This pedal is the only one I know of that does what it does. It is an analog preamp (plenty of digital ones around today) but it has multiple memories and it is a pedal. This means that I can run my signal chain the way it is meant to be run right from my guitar into my pedals and into my amp, no effects loops necessary. I can easily run my delays, reverbs and modulation devices after my gain stage because they all sit on the floor. I think this pedal and the sans-amp technology is going to change my whole approach to equipment as now I am looking to buy a power-engine 60 to replace my reverend hellhound. It just makes so much sense, and Tri-A.C. does not try to do everything like the digital pre-amps do. I use the effects that I like but get to use three different gain stages that all sound and feel great. I can also still use any distortion boxes with the Tri A.C. because it sounds good being pushed, just like a valve amp would. I think you get the most out of this technology if you approach it on its own instead of as a model of anything and just see if it is useful for getting the sounds you want.

Very easy to create a good sound. You have basically a hi-gain Marshall, hi-gain Mesa, and a Fender sound stuffed into this box. Very easy to store settings but make sure you memorize where the settings are.

The sound is very good. I suggest running some kind of EQ behind it to have more control over the tone but played through a decent PA, it sounds wonderful! The Fender clean is a little boomy but I like to turn the mids and drive up more anyways to get a good CCR/Fogerty sound. The Marshall settings are convincing with less drive and more volume and the Mesa sounds are great all around.

For the bass players looking into this, I suggest the RBI pedal instead. This will work OK if you're on a tight budget but the Bass pedal works MUCH better for the fat-string players.

Very reliable for the 6 months I've had it. I've never heard of Tech 21 products breaking down unless you're putting too much current through it (aka get a power adapter with the correct mA rating).

Nice website and I've always gotten a quick response for any of my inquiries.

Very good product and well worth the money. A great improvement to the tone of this box would be to add an EQ to the signal but very good on its own. I wish it had the DI output the RBI and direct boxes have but other than that, excellent.

I had to add an addendum to my review which appears below. I was being an idiot when I said I wished this box had an effects loop. The way this works as a stompbox preamp, whatever you put between it and the power amp you're using is essentialling "in the effects loop". An effects loop is post-preamp/pre-power-amp, to the best of my knowledge. So with this box, you put distortion and the like in front (my Russian Big Muff goes first) and modulation f/x after (a Rocktron Short Timer will soon be my delay, coming right after the Tri AC). In my set up, my pedal board has an Ernie Ball volume pedal, a Big Muff, the Tri AC, and as mentioned, soon a delay. This goes to a mixer, into a Hafler P3000 power amp (150w/channel) which feeds a Raezer's Edge bass cab and a GK bass cab. Boiling it down, the Short Timer delay will go between the Tri AC and the power amp. This is like putting it in the effects loop of a combo or head.

I found it in the second hand section of a small guitar shop, and I knew it was cheap for what it was. I already had a GTII and liked the look of three stomp options.
Took me half an hour to figure out whether it worked or not and the guy in the shop was clueless. With no instructions to go by, the wild guess of hitting the button twice to record a tone was just plain lucky.
After that I bought it and have never had any trouble other than flat batteries.
Oh, ease of use? This can sound as good as three amps that would weigh in at 150lbs, yet it's pocketable.

People who put this into a guitar amp just don't understand the concept and haven't learned French.
My slight regret is that I had heard a SansAmp *before* I spent thousands of pounds and some years looking for the perfect amp and didn't buy one *then*. I guess it was a necessary process and I love my amps anyway.
Sometimes, when I want to change my TriAC settings, I sit down with my Univalve and an AB pedal and I tweak the TriAC thru an acoustic amp till it sounds close. So side by side, next to a good valve amp I find it's not quite there, not quite as good, or I haven't found that tone in it. But that's a helluva a valve head I'm using and the pedal gets close enough that another instrument sounding behind it would make the difference academic.

Worked fine when bought second hand, and never a problem so far apart from erratic behaviour on low batteries. Carry spares, or use a PSU, and it's great. It's meant for standing on.

No idea.

I do sort of jazzy bluesy sort of noodling, and build layers on a looper live. I start clean and as the layers build I use more drive until I do my best impression of a meltdown.

I'm quite simple with pedals, and am only just starting to understand modulation. I take a sort of blues approach, guitar, lead, amp, play: the TriAC is fantastic for this. I assume it would be as good with effects too.

I've been playing over a quarter of a century, and I have a 20 watt Boogie Studio Caliber, a THD Univalve, an old Sundown 100W head, a Fender hot rod Deluxe, and a Laney LC15R; With the TriAC I'd use my AER acoustic amp if a PA's not available.
I tend to play with a Spirit Steinberger, though sometimes with my MusicMan Axis Sport or my Variax. I have an 70s Epiphone too... which needs dusting.

I think the pedal's near perfect, is better than a Boogie, really - or least better than the little Boogie I have, since the TriAC's clean sounds are better, but it can still scream. Moreover one can't carry an amp in the gigbag pocket: If there's a PA available this is soooooo handy.

I found it a tad difficult. I suspect that some of the folks who reviewed it badly did not fully understand how to "tweak" it and/or did not have a manual. It is not straitforward at all. The difficulty I think is that the programming is digital but the knobs are analog. So when you switch to a different patch, it might have some gain/volume/EQ settings which are not stored in the knobs--they're stored digitally. Also, the pots are all extremely sensitive--we're talking Boogie sensitive--and behave differently depending on the cabinet simulation. After playing with it for half an hour, I found I could get a HUGE range of sounds, and many excellent clean sounds, which is great for me. Any failure to get a sound you want from this box is a failure in understanding the programming and/or in realizing that it will take some time to get what you're looking for, as there are many variables. I use this into a mixer which feeds a Hafler P300 (150w/channel) which feeds two nice bass cabs. What you feed this into is another of many variables. Not the easiest stompbox to figure out.

See set-up above. Using it with a Squier Tele with Fender noiseless pups. Sounds supremely pristine. Can get fat, bouncy clean tones to tight, crunchy overdrive. I tried numerous preamps before this one, everything from a Rane acoustic preamp to a Carvin Quad X, a Digitech GSP5, a Digitech Twin Tube, a Crate, and several others others. This is far and away, heads above the rest, the nicest one I've tried. Really classy. Sexy you might say. Though it's not the easiest thing to figure out, it's still simple as could be, 3 sturdy buttons to choose from 3 sounds--which can all be completely and totally different from each other. Really pro sound, really hi-fi.

I would imagine no problems with this at all. It's built sturdy enough for accident-prone people like me %-) Solid metal casing, big old-school knobs, heavy-duty stomp buttons. Of course I can't say for sure. Hard to say not knowing.

I contacted Tech 21 once when I bought a MIDI Mouse, on which I broke the battery cover within minutes of opening the box. I called...and got a real person right away, a person who was totally accomodating, and even admitted the design of those particular battery cover was bad, and sent me a knew one the same day. That's a working musician's kind of service.

I play jazz, blues, rock, jazz rock, funk, yada yada. No metal, hardcore, whatever. This thing is too good to be true as far as I'm concerned. Like having 24 amps in your briefcase, and it sounds analog too, nice and warm. Bouncy, with balls. Yes. As noted, this is the nicest guitar pre I've ever tried, and I've owned many. I've been playing for more than 20 years. I mostly play bass, and was looking for a simple box to plug my Squier Affinity-Series Tele (a really nice axe) into. Right on the money. The only thing I wouldn't mind seeing on it is an effects loop. But then, with my set up, I can put effects in the insert of the channel the Tri AC is on, and also it wouldn't be as simple with a loop. Simple is good. Wouldn't want it to be easier to program because then you wouldn't be able to get the HUGE array of tones you can get from it.

This is more easy to use than other Sans Amp pedals I've tried since it's operable from a toe-tap, but it would be easier to use if the knobs would automatically relocate to their proper levels when toe-tapping to different saved configurations.

I love it. Definitely preferable to the GT2 which sounds flat to me. Worlds better than the Pod. And, yes, you can use this thing with headphones.

On the downside, the Marshall setting is a little noisy for certain configurations, while the Fender setting easily overloads in other configurations.

working fine.

Lloyd has always been available to answer questions.

I like it. Great value.

The Tri-A.C is very easy to use. It's as simple as setting the amp type, level, gain and EQ. Moving any setting does result in some major changes in sound. Saving a program couldn?t be easier, just double click the switch and your settings are saved. There are basically three independent channels. Tech 21 also found a clever way to determine the value of any pot. Just turn a pot and an LED indicator lets you know you are getting closer to the original setting by flashing faster. When you hit the exact location the LED becomes solid.

I'm not sure why some many reviewers are saying it takes a considerable amount of time to develop really good sounds. I had this thing producting great sound in a few minutes. My guess is that other people are not using the stomp box as intended. It is not your everyday distortion pedal. Thinking of this stomp box as a distortion pedal will get you nowhere and just slapping this in front of an amp/combo will probably not satisfying. Plug it directly into a recording console, full range PA or a Tech 21 Power Engine (this is what I use) and prepare to be blown away.

I have at least a dozen electric guitar and to my surprise, after find a settings I like for a strat, I went and tried a couple of other guitars and everyone of them sounded great and it did not require much tweaking. It really brought to life some guitars that I had in my ?just okay? collection. I just can?t believe this stomp box has such a usable range. I?ve gone from a ES175, Parker Fly, Joe Pass Epiphone, Strat and a few $300 dollar Korean guitars and this box makes all of them sound good.

I own a number of modelers including the original pod, a few Zoom processors, and a VOX Tone Lab. I also have a number of software modelers including Amplitude and Isotope Trash. For ease of use and sound, the Tri A.C. was either on par or much better then the aforementioned devices.

The Fender sound with clean setting is just beautiful. It is clear, well balanced, punchy and well defined. The Marshall sounds are just plain inspiring and fun. The Mesa is just that, a thick wall of sound with infinite sustain. All three amps have great presence and really cut through a mix when required.

There is minimal noise from the device; my fenders that hum at high gain still hum. I typically utilize a noise gate anyway.

Looks solid. I have a GT2 and have never had a problem.

I've not used them.

I?ve also owned a number of amps in my time, Marshall, Peavy, Polytone, Fenders, Sun and I would have gladly given them up for the configuration I?m running now.

I would like to qualify that I currently running the Tri A.C. with a Power Engine 60. I can?t recommend enough the PE60. Just make sure you understand that it requires that you provide a preamp such as the Tri A.C.


I love this setup, I?ve been playing for over thirty years, it is a good time to be alive, this technology is unbelievable.

Gain, amp type, EQ and Level - easy enough. Editing patches is easy, but I wish I could change the volume level of ALL patches with one knob :)

Well... I use it with G&L ASAT Special Tribute direct into mixer/PA, as Tech21 say. Fender settings are great (just don't set gain past 10:00) . But... Brittish is f***ing CRAP. With gain less than 9:00 and 0 tone and guitar you can get a half-decent half-overdrive (and be VERY careful with strumming and chrods). Anything with more gain, no metter how low you set guitar volume, sounds total crap. Well, maybe some SINGLE notes on the fretboarb, but that's it :) No chords, no stumming available. Just fake plastic junk. Never played Boogie, so can't tell anything about how authentic the sound is, except that it sounds really BAD. 2 of 10 for sweet Tweed.

I would use it on a gig without a backup if I could get any useful sound out of this shit :)

I play blues/rock/pearl jammish grunge. I've been playing for some 5 years. Now with the band... We have some good amps at studio. So I can tell good sound from bad. And this is BAD, really BAD. Save money, buy the real ones...:(

Yes maybe if you can use an amp you can use tri-ac, but it doesn't mean that it's so easy to use because first of all using an amp is not that easy.. Using an amp proffesionally.. When I first get the tri-ac for trying, at the first weak I thought of change the pedal because I couldn't get the sounds I wanted when I spent a month on finding real good tones, I made it!! Now I really love my pedal:)

I use a Fender Telecaster Standart, and Behringer Ultratwin GX-212 as an amp, this is really a powerful amp in which two 60 watt Jensen cabinets used.. I use the tweed channel for a sweet clean tone with the neck pickup and a little bit crunchy tone with the bridge pickup.
I use the british channel for a really crunchy tone It sounds rally good with the two pickups, with the bridge pickup it's only a bit mor treble. And I use the california channel for a full distorted tone, I use it with the bridge pickup for rhytms and with the neck pickup or both for the solo tones.. I use the tri-ac with a DOD Tech-4 that's not a very qualified pedal I only use this for its noise gate and eq, I sometimes use its chorus effect too It sounds great with the tweed channel I also use a Jim Dunlop Mr.CryBaby a volume/wah pedal It does the job with all the channels..

I depend on tri-ac, I use only the tri-ac for drive my sound and it gets the job done well!

I didn't have any problems with the machine yet.. But I heard that when it brokes It's nearly impossible to repair..

I play in a rock/blues band and It's a good match for this style of music. I'e been playing guitar for five years and I own the tri-ac for three months. I also own adod tech4 and a Mr.CryBaby.. If I lost the pedal I surely buy it again! I love its sound so much, it's really close to the Marshall, Fender or Mesa-Boogie sound. My favourite feature about pedal is that I can reach three really qualifed tones easily. I wish it had more channels:) It surely help me make music..

First of all, please the ecuse my english, im from Hungarian.

This amplifier in a box, is very good to do, i say the nice knobs are good. The patches are to wrick the knob and press the other knobs.
The manualy wasent, i buy the box used.

The sound are like good like metallica, slayer and my faveourite, PAT MARTINO! I use jackson copy that name is "schrelat", with emg 81 humbucker and i get jazz and the HEAVY METAL sound! I like tones!

Welle i was playing it the day, and i smelled fun smell, like kokos or, you understand, the smell BURNT!

I open its up and i see CLEAN and METAL sound melted together! I mean, the knob is are burnt togeter! It was like coal in it!

I were wery mad!

if i buy a this again, i don't use it wittout vatching the smell (hahahaha).

I try to get a new, but the store say the my foult, with wrong the adaptor or something like this. Why is my foult? The adaptour fit so nice i think it's rigth.

i think the adaptour was the wrong, when i got from the mann i buy it from.

Name of me is Michai Bonezsco. I am playing 4 years and i love METALLICA, SLAYERA and my favouritte PAT MARTINO! My guitar is jackson kopi "Schrelat", and i use the PEAVY RAGE 128 amplifior and the BOSS METALLICA-ZONE Mt-2.

The box is nice, but it smelled the Kokos when i did playing with it. I am not afford new box.

As someone else told, "if you can use a amp, you can use tri-ac".

The only difference is that the controls (especially mid, treble and bass) are very sensible - for every tiny move you do, the sound changes a lot.

Althought that's a good thing (there are lots of sound variation), you feel a little lost, and have to expend hours (maybe days) trying to configure it in the best way.

REPEATING: that's a good thing, cause hardly you won't get to the sound you intend.

I use my tri-ac with a boss chorus (CE-5) and a boss delay (DD-2), plugged into a Gibson Les Paul Standard.

Come one... Mesa Boogie, Fender and Marshall in one pedal? Oh, thtat's a dream the became true! It's not noisy at all, and as I'm a very lazy guy, i chose to buy this pedal just to don't have to have a amp of my own.

That means that, wherever I go, I just bring my pedal case and my guitar. With tri-ac, I can have my boogie-marshall-fender sound in any kind of amp.

If you're lazy to, BUY IT.

Never broke.

Never needed it

I play in a rock and roll band, but I'm the guy that hates "soft drive" and loves FULL DISTORTION!

As there are three banks, I use:
1) Fender - almost a clean overdrive, very light gain.
2) Marshall - PANTERA STYLE, right? Distortion from hell - almost full bass and 3 o'clock treble. FULL DISTORTION (man, it's so powerful that makes you cry)
3) Mesa Boogie - this bank is for solo. I have to confess: sometimes, when I'm doing a solo, I have an erection because of the sound of it.

Problems: none. I just wish it had a fourth bank. :-)

Details:
1) do not buy it for studio recording. Real amps are still the best choice for it.

2) I have a Strinberg Flying V. Nice guitar, but didn't work with tri-ac until I bought a DiMarzio Fred for it.
YOU'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO DO HARMONICS IN TRI-AC WITH A CHEAP GUITAR (or cheap pick ups).

What is easier than this? If you can use an amp you can use this pedal.

Those of you using this in front of an amp (a really crappy practice amp or a $2000.00 tube amp) and then giving horrible reviews, please consider the actual application this pedal was designed for. This is a direct recording box for guitar and bass (bass might stretch it a bit). It is clearly stated in most descriptions. It generally goes direct into a mixing board to record, which can be rather amazing for what it costs. It was designed to get cool sounds to tape/disc, with minimal hassle/budget/equipment, and save them fast. It does this very well for the scratch. Limited but cool in live applications as some have found. Direct into a PA, ect.

Seems very well built in the stomp box word. No issues after myself and others stepped all over it for months in the studio. Gear like this get's much abuse in my world, I own a small (steadily growing) production studio, so not just me is attempting to break everything in sight.

Never contacted.

I'm using it with studio gear that costs ten times what this unit costs (avalon, joe meek, etc.) and have an array of EQ possibilites availalble. Mostly for fun and to get some cool analog distortion sounds as alternates and fast tracks. I know not everybody has this stuff at thier disposal, but it will sound good into a basic four track too.
When used correctly, this thing along with oher sansamp gear/plug-ins gets some highly sought after tones...A few might be surprised (definately those misinformed enough to post a bad review describing the worst possible misuse of it) how many pro albums were recorded using sansamp technology in the mix. I know my other gear is somewhat gold plating the sound, but that aside. Give this pedal a break. Great for home recording and the like, but nothing sounds like the real thing, which I have a couple of the amos this is emulating.
When I read this stuff, it hurts my ears, like somebody plugging the speaker cab simulator on a marshall amp into the instrument input of a line 6 pod (or something) and being surprise it sounds like unholy crap? Yikes, maybe I should try it, just to be positive...haha. Think about it! It's cheap, easy, and fun. Please give tech 21 a break and try using it correctly. Then bash away if you still feel the same way.

This is in response to the review right below. I appreciate the objectiveness of the reviewer, however there is one significant thing that must be firmly clarified, before any other person reading the said review makes the wrong impression on Sans Amp TRI-A.C:
THIS UNIT IS A DIRECT RECORDING PREAMP FIRST OF ALL, MEANT TO BE USED WITH FULL RANGE SISTEMS (MIXING DESK, STUDIO MONITORS, TAPE, HEADPHONES, STEREO, ETC.) The three preamps (Tweed, British and California) are radically voiced to emulate the tube amp characteristics of Fender, Marshall and, respectively, Mesa Boogie. Therefore, running the TRI-A.C. in front of another heavily voiced preamp (as found in a tube amp head) will be a case of redundancy, compromising the tonal qualities of TRi-A.C. Of course, it can be used other than designed, but any of these cases will be more or less of a compromise.
When I first bought it, I used it in front of a Marshall Valvestate combo amp. This wasn't able to produce a flat response so the TRI-A.C. sounded average, at best. The I ran it through the FX return of a Marshall JCM 600 head with 1960 B cabinet, bypassing the Marshall's preamp. The three amp characteristics of the TRI-A.C. were closer to reality, but that tube power amp, together with those Celestions still added a Marshallesque colour to the tone. Then I went to a professional studio and did all the takes with the TRI-A.C. directly to the mixing console (give or take some OD/boosting unit in front of it) and couldn't believe my ears: very realistic, twangy, glassy yet warm Fender cleans, nice, dinamic, sizzly Marshall crunch and dark, gainy and plenty of harmonics Boogie. Now I decided to buy a Power Engine 60 powered speaker from Tech 21, to take most advantage of the TRI-A.C.
For the undecided potential buyer of this unit, I suggest the following order of priorities in using it live:

1. To one or two Power Engine 60 or any other transparent powered speaker cabinet;
2. Through a solid state clean power amp, driving a cabinet loaded with flat response speakers (not Vintage 30s or G-12T75, or any other guitar oriented speaker);
3. Through the FX return (power amp section) of a solid state head or conbo;
4. Through the FX return of a tube amp head or combo;
5. To the front input of a SS head or combo (preamp EQ set as flat as possible);
6. Finally, to the front input of a tube head or combo (preamp EQ set as flat as possible but that's hardly imaginable).

Hope this helped.

One final note, for those who might think I am suspectly defending this product: I am in no way affiliated with Tech 21 NYC.

This is not an "easy" unit to use. Don't expect to plug it in to your amp and get great sounds right off the bat. The controls are very sensitive, and you have to really use your ear. Here is my opinion if you are running into a combo amplifier or a head/cabinet:

Before messing with the TRI-A.C., get a good sound with your guitar going into the amp (i.e., put the unit on bypass so no lights are on either of the three channels). This is good for a few reasons.
First, if you have a good, clean tube amp, there will be times you will just want a clean tone and will not use the SansAmp at all - in these cases, you will bypass the unit. You want to know that when you bypass the unit and are not using the SansAmp, you will be able to fall back on a good clean tone. Secondly, this will allow you to replicate sounds that you program. What I mean by this is that you will be able to work from the same pallette every time (as I said before, the knobs on the SansAmp are sensitive).

Okay, once you find good settings for your guitar with the unit on bypass (with all pickup positions), jot this number down. Hopefully, the only thing that will change is that in a show, all the settings on your eq, presence, gain, etc., will be the same (but in a show, the master volume on the amp will be higher).

Now, and only now, are you ready to really get into the SansAmp TRI-A.C.. Basically, you can save three sounds, each of which are assigned to one of the three silver footpedal taps. I've found and saved three sounds already - one is great, and two are very good. I bought the unit today @ Sam Ash.

Heed this: Start with all levels on Sans Amp @ Zero and slowly raise them - see what they add or take away to the sound. While you do this, keep flipping the pickup positions in your guitar to see how they react with the knob. Eventually you'll find your sound if you pay attention to the sound that comes out of your amplifier as you fiddle with the knobs. Cut some, raise some - now you're a home run.

Also in the "ease of use" category, I want to point out that the pedal taps are kind of close together. This led to some slight difficulty in being able to tap the button I wanted to as I was swaying to the music. Eventually you'll realize that the only way to use this unit is from directly in front of it, otherwise the angle of your foot will accidentally tap the wrong button -- you'll see. However, relatively easy to get used to.

A promising unit, however, not easy to use. Hence, I award it a 4.

**NOTE: The way in which the lights flash (in such a cool, silent analog way) to aid you in determining what knob settings represent the preset is very intuitive. A perfect system.

Setup:
Fender Stratocaster Jimmie Vaughn - Pearl White --> Monster Cable --> SansAmp TRI-A.C. --> Fender M-80 amplifier (soon to be a vintage 1971 Fender Twin Reverb - maybe two days - Thanks TJ!!)

Pretty noisy with the single coil strat, but that would happen with any distortion/overdrive/gain pedal, so no real surprises there. Wonder what it would sound w/ like a Humbucker??? Noticeably lower, probably.

The California (Mesa Boogie) sounds very good. The Tweed sounds a bit bright, so you have to compensate. The Marshall sounds a bit hot and bright as well, but maybe that was just my ears. All I can say is the Mesa Boogie sound is standout so far. Don't get me wrong, the other amp channels that you can select sound good too (but not on factory settings I thought).

Being that this is an analog unit - it sounds really good. Compared to my POD 2.0, the SansAmp TRI-A.C. has a much, much better sound to it. I've had the POD since 2001 and still haven't found a good setting on it for live applications (recording sound quality is pretty good with the POD though). What I'm saying is that I can certainly here the presence and texture of this thing, whereas the POD always sounded very wet and skinny (even with the effects on bypass), and the heavier amp models never really moved air through my Fender M-80 like the SansAmp TRI-A.C. did today in my living room.

Slightly noticed going from tweed to bypass you get a momentary (say .28 seconds) wah-wah sound. Really no big deal.

So overall, sound is good to very good. I give it a 7 (a very high mark, mind you) simply because the M-80 is not a top rate amplifier and my strat's pickups may need to be changed. Therefore, I feel the actual sound of the SansAmp TRI-A.C. may have been compromised.

I wouldn't say "built like a tank" (that seems to be so common in Harmony Central). It is lighter than it looks, but that is not a bad thing. Zero flaws in workmanship evident on the exterior, labeling, screws or finish - good sign. Sticker says made in USA - another good sign. Knobs are sturdy and really rotate much further to the right and left than is immediately apparent. LED's move a little in their spaces. Inpug and output jacks are shiny and sturdy. Pedal pots (or whatever you would call the silver buttons) are sturdy and have a relatively stout recoil action which is I like. Not hard to push down like a wah-wah pedal.

All that being said, I wouldn't want to drop it, get it crushed between a speaker cabinet and a cymbal stand, or spill whiskey on it. I don't want to find out whether this piece can withstand that type of abuse. It is definitely not flimsy though.

No idea about customer support, but the Tech21nyc.com website is pretty informative. Although I did notice that they had a review of this model posted, but the print was too small to read, so that sucked.

In today's market of boutique pedals that come from somewhere in Europe that nobody has that are always on order and are super-expensive, it was refreshing to just walk into a local music store and pick up a nice piece. The SansAmp TRI-A.C. is a good value: three channels of good analog overdrive/distortion which actually sounds good and is user programmable for $160 brand new. It sounds very good also - I keep thinking about the MesaBoogie (Calif.)

Not only does this thing sound good, it looks good. No, it looks great. The design is elegant, yet rugged. For some reason, it brings this image into my mind as I look at it: A relatively new army recruit in the Vietnam War era with a shaved head who has been assigned to do military and electronics communications arrives to his first day of specialized training, and at his workspace is a type of machine that has the same type of simple elegant functional layout as the SansAmp knobs and labeling. The relatively new recruit thinks to himself that he does not see quality like this in the civilian world. Yeah, so that's the image I get in my head.

there is no Power cord or battery included. I didn't like that


Overall rating: Keeping in mind the price I paid, I'd give it a 8.

The Tech 21 Tri-AC is user friendly to the "nth" degree. Editing patches is a breeze. You do not have to be a "techie". The manuel must have been written in America, as I can actually understand it and everything is where it should be. I bought my unit slightly used off of e-bay, so I do not know if it has been upgraded. With that said, I am very pleased with the sounds that I am getting now.

I plug my Godin LGX into the Tri-AC. From there, it goes into a digital delay unit. From there, it goes into a Bose PAS system. The sound is awesome. I am very pleased.

The unit is not noisy at all.

I am using this unit on gigs, without a backup, now. It works and I am going to stick with it. Of course, I hope that it will be dependable. It looks as sturdy as the Line 6 amp modeling units and far more sturdy than other units on the market.

I have no experience dealing with Tech 21. However, I have seen good reports on this site, and that makes me feel confident that if I have a problem, we'll get it worked out.

I have to check out the upgrade issue.

I play lead guitar in a cover band. Most of our focus is on country and pop from the 30's through the 70's.

I have been a working (part-time) entertainer for over 30 years.

Based on my short-term experience, I would buy another unit, if I lost this one. I wish that it had a master volume on it, but there is nothing that I hate about it. My favorite feature is the ease of use and effectiveness.

As stated earlier, I tried a Line 6 Amp Modeling unit. It had way more bells and whistles than what I needed. The three channels are enough for my musical needs and it works more like a real guitar amp this way.

I think that the retail price makes this unit a true contender in the world of amp modeling units. It's a good quality piece of equipment, it's does what it's supposed to do, and has a cost of ownership advantage over the competition.

As everyone else has read, this is a very easy pedal to use. Editing is simple, wish that you could rearrange settings from one bank to another, but you have to start out on the one that you want and edit that one.

I think that it is easy to accidentally go into bypass mode by hitting the same button twice. You just have to be more deliberate about hitting it solidly once.

I run this unit with a proco rat and modded ts-9 before it, and if I'm using the unit with driven sounds, I'll put the boss me-50 after to get reverbs, chorus, compression. To get a good heavy sound, I'll reverse the me-50 and tri-ac so that I'm not running reverb into a distortion. This then all goes directly into the PA.

The unit is not noisy. Distorted settings are naturally noisy as we are using high gain, but it's not any worse than an amp on overdrive.

I'll tell you what settings I like, rather than berate all the ways you can make something sound bad. For clean, the tweed setting and especially the california sound good. My personal favorite is clean setting using california. Sounds really warm and full of body. I use the tweed channel for overdriven sounds. Honestly, I can't argue that people can get the SRV sound especailly with the ts-9 as a boost! It's got the same bite, same twang. I don't play country, but I'm sure you could use his sound to do that kind of stuff very well. The brit channel is pretty good as a more mellow distortion (less twang and bite than the tweed). If I want some really hardy overdrive, I end up using the proco rat through the california channel set on clean. Sounds EXCELLENT that way.

The absolute best part of the sound is that I can play really good clean blues and jazz through the california setting and hear it through a PA! The me-50 gives me a good stereo reverb and chorus. I really feel that it is a good replacement for lugging an amp around. I usually just use my modded peavey classic 30 for clean, and this is an adequate substitute.

I'm giving this a 10 not because it can do anything, but because it's got settings that are worth having and enough to replace an amp for what I use it for.

I don't beat my gear up or anything. But I wouldn't say by any means that this is a flimsy product.

I like to play jazz, blues, R&B, and some good old classic rock/ hard rock. I mostly play blues and R&B gospel music in a black church, so we like the old fasioned sounds. If you want something that sounds weird and synthed out, just use the me-50. Like I said before, to get really warm overdrive, I use the rat through the california channel, and for a hard sound (like tool or such) I use the distortions off the me-50. I've been playing for 10 years or so. The only other gear I haven't mentioned yet is that I am playing a modded fender strat (rewired and with pearly gates pickups for humbucker perks), a roland micro-cube (fun little thing), and ernie ball volume (redundant from the me-50).

I think this unit is appropriate for people who are looking for good clean sounds, overdriven fender sounds, or are looking for an easy way to go direct. I don't think it really does well making WARM tube distortions, but it makes good versions of distortions. I think it makes more the sound of an amp miked from far away, as amps always sound warmer when you're standing near them. I'm not one to rate products, but there seems to be much argument about this product. I'm giving it a 9 because I wish it could be warmer. It still has somewhat a mid-scooped sound, and I think what I really would need is another tone control between the mid and bass knobs. Maybe the bass is just set at too low a frequency.

Overall, I'm mostly glad that this thing makes it so I only have to carry my guitar and a backpack with the three/ four pedals I use rather than carring an amp as well.

1- Very easy to get a good sound!!!
2 - Editing patches are very easy!!!
3 - The manual is well explainned, and easy to understand

Guitar : Ibanez Rg570 with EMG 81 & EMG 85 pickups
Pedals :
Jim Dunlop's 535q Wah Wah, Digitech Whammy, Boss Compressor, SansAmp TriAC, Boss SuperChorus CH-1, Boss Digital Delay DD-3...
Amp : Warm Music G208 (it makes my setup sounds GREAT!!!)
My favorite artists are : Iron Maiden, Helloween, Van Hallen and I can play like then easy with this set-up!!

1 - SansAmp TriAC gives me everything I want. There's no distortion like this one.
2 - I can use this without a backup and it continues sounding great!

1- No customer support better than this one

1 - HEAVY METAL - Triac is perfect for it!!!
2 - I've been playing for 12 years
3 - I would buy other one if I was stolen!!!
4 - I love all the features on it
5 - Compared to Boss Distortion but this ones is BOOSTED!!!!! I've chosen this one because, it can sound great ALONE, and better with another good pedals...
6 - I wish it had 4 pedals
7 - It helps me composing and recording