Yamaha Magic Stomp 2

The UB99 Magicstomp is potentially the best guitar pedal ever made.

The sounds I have been able to program into the unit are now so good that I don't take my amp with me anymore.

It's not suitable as plug and go pedal and hence the low score on ease of use. To get good sounds you must customize them, and some folks can't do this and are left with those dreadful factory presets.

Firmware revision 2.0 and 2.1 tried and successfully upgraded.
Some people have problems with midi software. NO support for latest mac computers.

MkII magicstomp has headphone jack and hence can be used late at night with no problems for neighbors. Also easier to use with a desk for recording.

The manual is not really adequate, it will get you going but programming patches to most people is still a mystery.

Why the product was launched and then with 24 months killed by Yamaha is a mystery.

I do suspect that they know, like I do now, that this single pedal could replace just about everything, and hence killed it off.

Used with every type of guitar they all sound great with it.

I go direct to PA desk, even though I can use it with various amps that I have. Why break my back when a small pedal does it all. Amps stay at home now.

Sounds:
Throw away all those horrible factory presets, they are rubbish well 90 out of 99 anyway.

The sound quality for the price is excellent.

With my own custom made library of patches I am getting every amp and effect I need. I does take a lot of auditioning, and some sound knowledge to get sounds right. But almost any useful guitar sound can be made from this little box.

The effects on their own, are in most cases very weak, delay never has enough gain for example. Could be used just as an effect unit for this application, but this misses the target for me.

I have been able to create all my fav artists signature sound even difficult ones like Eric Johnson and Larry Carlton, Dave Gilmore all possible and very close to recording sounds.

Sound Quality is exceptional only -1 for the factory patches which are rubbish.

The quality of the pedal is good, but I worry about those push buttons, they are fake look rugged outside but inside it's a spring and a rubber touch switch ...shame on you Yamaha for this visual deception.
It's designed to break down by the looks of it.

I do use it regularly without a backup. But now as it is getting old I keep a spare hand as well.

Non existent, there is no support for this product and apart from the web site if you got a problem you are on your own.

Yamaha have not been able, or interested to support this product from day 1 or sales.

I feel very sorry for customers who purchased these at high prices only to see the value of their purchase drop to under 1/3 of it's original price as shops tried to rid themselves of an obsolete product dumped on them by Yamaha.

Now totally abandoned by Yamaha as discontinued product.

Shame on you Yamaha.!!!

There is a Yahoo community for this product very helpful especially regards software problems.

Playing everything from Blues , Pop, Rock Country and some modern post punk stuff, this pedal can do the lot.

By this I mean straight to PA desk, no amps no cabinets.

I've been playing for 40 years, and I have never found a pedal I likes so much as this one.

It's a sleeper on day people will realize just what it can do then the prices will rocket up.

Definitely a pedal to have and to keep.

For home recording it equals the sounds I get from N.I. Guitar Rig 3, sometimes better, and I though that was as good as it could get.

Suggested additions that will never happen.
Needs a midi in and out or a dual purpose USB with capability then to link to Foot Controllers like Roland Fc200.

Also USB stick memory and patch upgrading, the computer is only to operate a simple midi systems exclusive dump for patches etc.
With this you can upgrade patches without having a local computer required, good for touring and stage use.

Tap tempo for echo would be nice addition. Multiple sound combinations also required. Better foot switches, a built in 110-240V AC power supply.

The internal software needs a huge re-write by Yamaha which ain't gonna happen.

Get one while you can, these are no longer available except for second hand marketplace.

Very much a collectible for the future.

Contact me if you want patches upgraded to real amp sounds etc.
Dave. blissmusic<at>hotmail.com

Not really for first timers or people in a hurry.Depending on how patient you are,There are some GREAT rewards especially for those on a strict budget.BUT...dont expect to be on the fly and find"the sound".Ok that being said...The unit has huge potential in the delay/reverb/modulation/pitch area.I dont bother with the rest of it.The musicians friend blowout made me take another look at these.Otherwise FORGETABOUT IT!!!!

I bought 2 of these because of the multi tap delay's with filtering and modulation.I do not ever want to use this as a way of getting a guitar tone.The symphonic'delay is very nice as well as the basic reverb.Compared to some sought after "classics" korg sde-3000's(I have 2)eventide 949,klark dn780,sony r7,TC2290.The pedal to me is a portable spx on steroids and much quieter than any spx90 just harder to program.The lcd display is a joke in a live setting so don't plan on jumping preset to preset.I SET IT AND THEN FORGET IT.I use The 2 units are used in dedicated separate stereo chains so switching sounds or presets is not an issue.The sound is very professional and quiet and surpasses certain rack pieces.

no comment....except...If they get lost or stolen on a flight or they break I would laugh because my shoes cost me more money.These magicstomps are the crack whore of the fx pedals.Put a 2 cent dsp chip in a pedal.Come next year,they make another.Nothing precious about it.Mabie my time wasted putting up with its menu driven programming.I bought these to minimise lugging my older rack delays around.Im Not 100% percent sure if these are are solution for what I want.The price is right for experimentation.SEEMS CHEAP AND NOT POSSIBLE TO SERVICE.CHEAPER TO REPLACE AT THE END OF THE DAY OR MOVE ON TO SOMTHING THATS NOT A TOY!...A 50/50 OPINION.

They make motorcycles too.Probably better support in that area.

I love the portability and the hi-fi sound quality of the delay/reverb/chorus/mod/etc...I hate the wallwarts and the display.The could have added a bright RED NUMERICAL L.E.D. So you could at least see what patch you are on...a shame really.Probably the pedal with the most or widest LOVE/HATE Ratio.So much to love.So much to hate.If they(korg yamaha roland) could focus and make fx units with dedicated knobs that did one effect with a big red l.e.d. to tell you"#3" and did the fx so well we would all be better off than the current ideology of multi fx.

You need to spend a serious amount of time with this unit getting to know the in's and out's but it's very rewarding once you get to grips with it. One thing is that to go into the deep editing via the pedal itself, you'll really need the manual bocause everthing on the dispay is abreviated.
It's a pain that if you have a really good distortion sound going on and wanna add some delay or a little chorus, you have to virtually start from scratch and build your sound up again starting with a different preset with the modulation fx linked in with the main amp/distortion sound.

Most of the presets with any OD/Gain/Distortion are VERY over the top, either sounding very dull and flat or extremely bright and fuzzy. With a little tweaking you can add some warmth and bite to the sounds. There areny that many variations of gain and instead of naming different types with amp names like modeling amps do, there named straight forwardly like OD 1, OD2, Metal 1, Metal 2 and so on. But again with a bit of time you can alter the sounds greatly, the EQ section is brilliant giving you both mid and mid freq control's although even with both of these controls right up, on some of the high gain sound's, the unit does tend to still sound scooped.
The modulation sounds are nothing less than amazing in my opinion, the preset's are great and give a good idea of what the unit can do. There's a massive array of fx and the amount of perameters that can be adjusted is a little daunting when your usually used to just kicking in a pedal with only three buttons to twiddle. You can get some crazy fx by maxing some of the setting, the first day I got the unit I played around with it for six hours straight !
I'll give it a 10 for the fx quality but only a 4 for distortion's/overdrive's so a 7 over all.
It's ideal if your happy with your amp's main sound but want to add a multi fx that you can just set up for fx without altering the inherent tone of your amp.

Not had it long enough to coment but no problem's yet although i'm having trouble getting the deep editing software to work. Not a major problem because the deep editing can be done on the unit.

loads of downloadable tones and fx from the website.

I play mostly metal but use the unit just to add modulation and delay. I play a Custom shop Gibson Les Paul Custom with EMG 81&85's,
Peavey 6505+ head with Marshall 1960AV cab. I use a Dunlop Wylde wah, boss tu-2, boss ge-7 and an ISP decimator

This is the Magic Stomp with ver. 2.10. MS II has the added head phone jack and deep editing without software and added AUTO FEEDBACK REDUCTION for acoustic effects. I personally don't think this unit is that difficult to use. There is an additional manual on the CD, which is better than the hard copy. The editing software is EASY to use, better than it was for the MS I. Once you have the software installed and the Drivers, its just a matter of playing with all the effect controls.

Ok, I need to explain to some about effect units. The overdrives and distorsions don't work well with most amps, unless you have an amp that is very simple, such as the FENDER BASSMAN (this is the case with most effect units). This pedal works well with that amp because there's no added OD channels and extra controls. Like the one guy said, always use a single analog pedal for OD. But, the effects are great. I'd plug the MG II into the effects loop if you have one and just use the time dependent effects. I can understand why YAMAHA wanted to try deep editing without using the software, since I'm sure they got feedback from people who owned the MS I. But, I feel it was still a waist of time. I can't see anyone performing deep editing on this unit without using the MS editing software, its MUCH MUCH EASIER. I can personally get great ODs using my fender bassman. i PAID $80 for this unit, what a DEAL. I like it, and I'm amazed how many options there are in the deep editing software.

I've had many many EFFECT UNITS and I seem to always return them. I have the DIGITECH 3000, I kept it, since I like it quite a bit. I bought the MG II because I owned the MS I, but sold years ago. I like the concept that you have great effects in a small foot pedal. I have concluded that ODs and Distorsions in most effects units just don't cut it, unless they're analog. I can get some good tones from the MS II through a simple bassman amp using slight OD. For the price you can't go wrong. If you buy it, just take some time using the editing software, its purty easy to use, but does have a lot of controls; probably too many.

Takes some time and effort to figure out and program. However, it's a big improvement over the MS1, which I also have, because of deep editing from the unit (without computer) and because it has an anti-feedback feature that is very useful for harp.

I use for playing harp. I have programmed a lot of patches for playing through a tube amp and have also programmed some patches for playing straight into the PA. Through a good amp the reverbs, delays, and choruses sound wonderful. Going into the PA without an amp, distortions are not as good as a tube amp (I cannot compare them to other modelers because I don't have any). However, still pretty good for when I want to travel light. But the thing I LOVE is the anti-feedback feature. Feedback is a big problem for amplified harp. When it starts to feed back, just hit one button and the frequency is notched out. Can be done with up to 5 frequencies. Very useful when you can't get enough volume before feeding back.

MS1 buttons break. MS2 reportedly has improved buttons. No problems yet in a few months of use.

My MSI broke and Yamaha directed me to a local repair center that fixed it (very slowly) under warranty. Yamaha hasn't updated Magicstomp.com since 2004!

For the price I paid--$80--it's incredible. Wonderful sound quality, great anti-feedback feature. Not as versatile as some true multi-effects pedals, but great for what it is.

I don't think it works well as a Pod or total effects box because deep editing of multiple effects with multiple paramters is too complicated with only three knobs. You'll need the manual to do any editing (even if you remember the procedures) because all the parameters have cryptic or nonsensical names (i.e. DvBo, PLK, MNk, DDT, TNT, PTP, or whatever).

Excellent sounds overall, very clean. The distortions all sound like digital Eddie Van Halen crap though-- no warm/natural overdrives here. But the other effects are very transparent.

It's a much bigger pedal than you'd think. It looks smaller in the pictures I've seen, and the casing/knobs feel a little cheaper than I expected. The box is plastic, not steel or even cast zinc. I imagine it will be reliable, but Yamaha is kidding themselves if they say it's a "stomp" box.

I haven't called Yamaha specifically about this pedal. My experience in the past has been mixed with all gear companies.

This is an awesome value if you view it as a effects pedal with many single effects (if that makes sense). For the price, I am very happy that I now have a phaser, flanger, delay, tremolo, reverb pedal all in one. I just use it as a dedicated pedal (one effect at a time) and I love it. I think mixing more than two effects at a time is bad news because you lose the ability to tweak the sound. But to have a phaser with three adjustments, or an analog-type echo with three adjustments is just great. To go buy a dedicated Boss tremolo pedal would cost about as much as this unit did, and the MagicStomp also has several other effects I wanted.

I find it quite cumbersome to get good sounds out of this unit. It's cool that I can access all parameters via the knobs on the unit. However, I can only tweek three parameters at a time & there are lots of parameters for each effect type. Also, the 3-4 letter abreviations of some parameters are obscure. So you pretty much have to use the supplied software & a PC to adjust presets. The software is utilitarian with nothing more than a bunch of virtual knobs to adjust. There is no graphical information to help visualize the effects. Some aspects of the software are not so obvious...

1. Make sure you install the Yamaha USB MIDI driver & reboot your PC before you plug in the Magicstomp USB cable.

2. Be sure to set the software to Monitor Mode if you want to hear your changes through the Magicstomp as you adjust parameters on your PC.

I only found a couple useable default presets. It seems like Yamaha is trying to show off the bizzare sounds that this unit can accomplish. PREPARE TO WASTE SOME TIME TWEEKING THIS THING.

In general, this unit sounds better than the Behringer V-amp2 & Line6 POD 2.0 that I also own. The distortion sounds are closer to real amp & pedal sounds. However, in bypass mode this pedal colors the sound of my amp big time. I purchased this "pedal" to plug into my '68 Fender Princeton Reverb. It just sucks the life right out of my clean amp sound! Therefor I cannot use the Magicstomp2 with my amp. That being said, it makes a pretty decent direct recording/gigging/rehearsal device, but that's not what I was after.

The left output was busted right out of the sealed box. It had signal riding on a -4VDC offset.

Pros:
- it has a nice tuner
- most effects sound decent
- good distortions & amp sounds
- headphone output for private practise
- modern USB control
- software included

Cons:
- difficult to make adjustments without a PC
- bypass mode colors the sound WAY TOO MUCH!
- presets suck

Conclusion:
This would make a decent direct box for someone who has time to sit down & tweek the heck out of the presets.

I've owned the DG Stomp pedal, the orig MagicStomp, and now the MagicStomp II. I sent the MSII back today even though Musicians Friend was running a great special on it for $79.

First, the interface is kludgy.

Yes, you can do deep editing on the MS-II from the pedal itself - YEA! Yes, you can edit patchs on the PC with a pretty decent program - YEA!

But, the parms have meaningless 3 or 4 char names that you need the effects list to determine what you are setting and even then you can't be 100% sure exactly what the parm does.

You can't line up effects like you want... maybe you really want 9 effects on a single patch (doubtful), but you can't do it on this pedal.

Let's say you want a chorus-only patch to use with your amp...

1. Hit a small button
2. Hit the foot pedal patch on/off button; now, you're in edit mode
3. Hit the foot pedal patch on/off button again; now you can choose an amp model that contains chorus
4. Hit the patch up/down buttons as needed to cycle through and find Multi Amp Chorus
5. Hit the on/off button agian to get back to the 13 pages of parms you must now set (3 parms per page)
6. Disable every parms except the ones for chorus; see the effects list to determine which parms are for chorus
7. I don't think you can turn off amp modeling unless you can find an amp model with nothing; you're stuck with one of the 10 or so amp models such thta the chorus-only patch isn't just chorus (there may be a way around this, but I wasn't spending any more time on it)
8. press the little button for a second or more to rewrite the patch.

Oh, so you wanted reverb, chorus, *and* XYZ effect... sorry, but you are limited to the combination of effects preprogrammed into those amp models. If you can find one with everything you want, fine; if not, then you compromise.

Now, don't get me wrong; I think the MSII has great sounds and the potential to be an excellent sounding pedal, but getting there isn't half the fun with this thing.

I own or have owned Digitech RP3/RP7/RP2000/GNX3, Zoom 505/505-II/504-II/GFX707/GFX1/GFX4/GFX5/GFX8, Yamaha DG Stomp/MS/MS-II, and a host of other MFX pedals and the award for worst interface - including PC-based because of the design of how effects are grouped and the way you have to jump through hoops to get a group of effects - goes to - TA-DA - Yamaha MagicStomp series!

It's no wonder Yamaha is giving up on this pedal. The MS-II righted all the wrongs of the orig MagicStomp (you wouldn't believe the interface deficiences that one had!), but they were stuck in a nad design to begin with and honestly, as much as they tried, you can only polish a turd but so much.

Very good! Loved the sounds. Good cleans tones thta other Yamaha MFX untis didn't have. Great OD tones. So-so time-based effects; I just didn't liek the chorus all thta much, preferring the DG Stomp's over the MS-II.

Seems reliable enough - all metal housing.

Sorry, but I just don't have time to spend "crafting" my tone with this tihng; not when Ican get up and running in 1/10th the time with my Zoom GFX-5.

Sorry, but screw the preset review format; I'm pasting from this thread:

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/forums/showthread.php?s=ebfe2d0fd336185c2ad8260e895f7432&postid=17913269#post17913269

Basically, I was looking for something that would act as a multi-effect pedal, rather than an amp-modeler. I also wanted something that would be transparent when turned off, or when using only 1 effect (like reverb, chorus, etc). Bottom line is that the MS2 works very well for this application. Here's a list of pros/cons. I'm playing the MS2 between a strat and a SF Champ.

Pros:
-Transparent when using, say, just reverb. Makes my Champ sound like it has a spring reverb in it (tone snobs might be able to tell its not real, but not me).
-Pretty user friendly considering how incredibly adjustible the effects are.
-Distortion pedal models sound like the real thing. The names can be a bit cryptic, but you can tell what they are from listening. There is one that sounds just like a Big Muff and one that sounds just like a DS-1 - both pedals that I own.
-Overall sound quality is excellent. None of that digitalized sound that I get with my X-Vamp (the only other multi-effects I've owned).

Cons:
-I can't get a really good flanger setting, but this might be just me. I'm comparing to an Electric Mistress.
-You don't have total freedom to combine effects. You have to rely on the preset combinations of effects (which, to be fair, are pretty comprehensive). There are combinations that include compressor->amp or dist->mod->delay->reverb so there is alot to work with. More info on these combos here.

This thing works really well between a guitar and amp, and I haven't tried it for direct recording yet, so I can't comment on that. I also haven't played with the amp sims yet. Overall, I'm very happy, and for $80 I almost feel a little guilty...almost.

Id say its pretty easy to get good sounds out of it,so far editing is not that hard. I haven't had to use the manual yet but it is not complicated to understand it. First of all I went through all patches and set the levels for every one and found some very useful sounds.

I,m using a fender super 210 and an old old silvertone model 1483. both amps are tube powered and are run in stereo from the magic stomp 2. I think some of the distortions are weak, and some a little noisy, but i use a separate stompboxes for my distortion. I think just the reverbs,choruses, delays,tremblos and some others are all worth it. some sound better than boutique pedals. I use a Fender strat, Ibanez artist, Carvin bolt. Over all I think the quality of the usable sounds are awesome.

I havent had it for too long, but it looks pretty reliable, I have a yamaha spx90 from the eighties and is still kicking ass. I would use it without a back up.

I havent had the need for support so i have no opinion.

I play rock latino and a little bit of everything else rock and some blues, been playing since late eighties I own a bunch of other gear but who cares. If it where to be stolen or lost I would replace it. I love the sound especially when hooked up in stereo it just gives me a bigger sound. i hate the plastic knobs they feel a little whimpy to be stomping on them. my favorite feature is sound, kind of inspiring. It helps me sound better, what more could i ask for.

I have owned my Magic Stomp II for about 1 1/2 years now. I have owned a Flextone II amp with pedalboard, various stomp boxes, and even a SPX 90, Yamaha's classic rack effects. I own a Motif ES 8 keyboard workstation, so I am a little bias towards their gear. I bought the Magistomp II on reputation alone, and was not disappointed. Its really easy to use, the manual is ok, editing is very simple, once you understand what's going on. I am a "plug in and go" player, and it takes me time to really be content with what I hear. I read the manuals once, and then put it away, only referring to it if I have a problem. I like to learn my gear on the go. So, I am contantly changing presets, etc. This is a easy unit to understand.
Ignore the original Magicstomp, the upgrades in the II are worth it.

Its not bad for the price that you pay. I love the choruses, phasers, reverbs, and most of the effects. There is a wide variety to choose from. Some are pretty lame, though. I bought a Vox Tonelab SE, and that is my main rig. I play in a church setting, where I am asked to provide a wide variety of sounds. The Magic Stomp II does have a digital sound, so it doesn't really deliver on the distortion patches. I have only found two distortion settings that I can use live. I needed a wah, and volume pedal, plus I like the warmth of a tube, hence my purchase of the Tonelab SE. But, I recently played my Magicstomp II, and rediscovered some very cool sounds. There are a few Boss Gt-8 sounds here. I have no problems with the tuner, and its vey easy to read from a distance. I A/B this out into a Roland KC 350 keyboard amp, which is miked thru our FOH system. The Magic stomp adds a nice contrast, with my Vox Tonelab SE. The Magic stomp will sound good thru any guitar ( I own a Taylor T5, Gibson ES 335, Fender Telecaster and a Tyalor 514 CE acoustic.) I would run it stereo ( left/right output) so you can get the full sound effects. Its is not noisy, no more than any other effect unit.

Very reliable, this is my backup to my Tonelab SE. All Yamaha gear is great.

I've called them in Buena Park, Calif and they return calls for the most part. The website for the Magicstomp is so-so. It's not as good as Vox, Line 6 or Boss, where there are more users.

I play praise & worship. We cover a wide variety of styles, from rock, blues, country, & blues/gospel. This is not a good pedal for metal/grunge. But it is a great tool for creating new sounds/effects. I've been playing for 35 years, and have owned some classic effects ( Boss CE 1, MXR Phase 100, to name a few.) Yamaha has done a good job capturing some of these classic sounds. But this box does sound digital, remember that! I really heard the difference when I played this next to my Tonelab SE. But I am ok with this, I wanted the variety of sounds.This is a good unit for the money. This would be a good entry level stompbox, to learn about guitar modeling. It is not a boutique pedal.I would not buy this for the distortion alone.

First of all, I'm writing this review to contrast the negative that has been posted as I believe that these have been posted by those who are impatient and willing to work for the sound that they want. So, first of all, ease of use. This unit is very easy to use, especially if you look at the owners manual. Don't ever take a piece of equipment out of the box and just tear into it without looking at the manual, it is there for a reason. The CPU editing software doesn't come with a self install, but who cares. Any idiot can figure out how to install the contents of the disk. By the way, if you can't figure out these basic steps, then why are you buying a pedal that utilizes this type of editing interface. The tweaking process is fairly detailed but simple, just point and click and your on your way. Easy to tweak and save. As far as performance use, this unit is very easy. You can simply bank up and down using these two respective stomp functions and the 3rd being the on and off switch for the effects. There are 99 slots for editing in addition to the 99 presets that cannot be saved over, therefore you have plenty of space to save what you wish. Additionally, you can save in threes and access these via performance mode. Explanation; say you have a song that has a clean verse, dirty chorus, and a dirty+delay solo. Just edit your settings for clean to lets say User setting 7. Then save your dirty preferences to 8, then solo settings to 9. Then instead of using the banking mode, switch to performance mode. This will allow you to use the 3 switch buttons like 3 separate effects pedals, that way you can access settings 7, 8, or 9 simply by stepping on a switch to turn it on and off without having to bank up and down. Very user friendly.

I'm using this with a new Peavey Bandit II 1x12 amp simply for bedroom usage. I used to own a 2x12 carvin amp but it was more than I needed and was built like glass. Anyways, out of the box, this is a noisy pedal if hooked straight into the front of the amp. It can be done this way only if you are plugging straight into a PA system or a recording unit, but not an amp, there is simply just too much noise, especially with a dirty channel. However, hook it up into the effects unit. This pedal then will rival any Line 6 or Boss multieffects system out there. In fact, due to its simplicity and price tag, I would prefer the magic stomp. The effects are great. Delay, chorus, phaser, flanger, etc are all good. As far as distortion, I would not recommend it over the amps distortion, but i do use it in conjunction with the amps distortion. The AC30 mimic and other classic distortions are good, but the heavier, more modern sounds will only cut it for recording if not used in addition to the amps distortion. All around though, great sound quality. By the way, I wouldn't recommend using ANY multieffects pedal for distortion, you'll be disappointed no matter which brand you choose. Go with either your amps distortion or a single pedal like the DS-1, tubescreamer, or Zakk Wylde MXR.

Very reliable, built like a rock in it's metal housing

not had to deal with them

I play all kinds of music. This pedal can mesh with any style.
I have been playing for 10 years now and have owned various other effects, amps, Fender U.S.A. strats, Taylor acoustic. If this unit were stolen I'd be seriously agitated. I have grown very fond of it, especially as a boost for soloing. The delay with a punch of volume can really send a good solo over the top. I compared it with Line 6, Korg, Boss, Digitech, etc... and for the money, you can't beat this one. The effects are not digital in sound which is the problem you will face with the other previously mentioned units with maybe an exception to Boss. Problem with Boss is the price. Way to expensive.

You can probably get some very nice sounds from this, some of the presets are nice. However, the CD with drivers has no self install, no big deal for many people. I ran into a corrupted driver, it happens, and whenever I plugged in the pedal to a USB slot it would restart my computer. Due to the lack of a selfinstall/uninstall, it was difficult to remove drivers. The pedal itself could have used a better way of switching between effects instead of cycling through invidually (but thats just nit picking).

Don't even bother with the distortions. They don't sound very nice at all. Everything else sounds great. I didn't run into many noisy effects. Good for digital reverb (thats why I bought this).

I haven't used it long enough to judge this.

Didn't contact them (though I should have)

I bought the pedal mostly for the reverb, but with the driver problems I decided to not bother. Drivers can be corrupted at any time, and to uninstall them is a real hassel. For as good as the reverb sounds, there are better options out there. I wish Yamaha would have taken the time to make the drivers and USB interface work better than it does. I also wish they'd either take out most of the distortions or make them usable. I would be embaressed to play with the distortions on it. I am also aware that not everyone will have corrupted driver problems, but I felt it should be noted incase someone runs into the problem.

* How easy is it to get a good sound out of it?
Not so easy. Device editing features are unusable. Software editing is more user friendly but lack of good description makes this product hard tyo setup.
* How about Editing patches?
After managing first-use problems, it is easy.
* How is the manual for it (if there is one)?
Poor and weak.
* Do you know the firmware revision number? Has your unit been upgraded?
Yes, I know. Device has the newest firmware. YAMAHA nearly don't releases firmware upgrades.

* What setup (i.e. what guitars and amps) are you using this with?
Marshall solid state MG-series amp, Gibson LP Voodoo, 10-years old YAMAHA Pacifica 120 SD.
* Is it noisy? On what settings?
Yes. It has buzz on distortion effects.
* Are the effects weak or do they always sound great?
All effects except amp simulation and distortion are great.
* Can you get the sound of your favorite artists? Who are they?
Very poorly. All distortions are very mud and dry. I cannot achieve warm sound of valve amp overdrive.

* Can you depend on it?
Yes.
* Would you use it on a gig without a backup?
No. Chromatic tuner is not so precise.

* If you've dealt with the company, how helpful/friendly were they?
I have sent some technical e-mails to customer support. Everything I have received was info about contact to local YAMAHA office.
* Ever get an upgrade, or try and get it repaired?
No.

All effects except disrtion and amp modelling are very usefull. Rest - worthless.

It is fairly easy to use the editing effects is quite simple. but it takes a while to grasp everything this pedal can do...which is alot!

i use a gretsch electromatic pro jet->magic stomp->roland cube 30 ..sounds great the reverb, delays, chourus and flanger etc. are very good and extremely clear,the overdrive distotions are very realistic and vintage also very very vesitile, the metal-like distotions are also very good but i rarely use them, the sound i like is fuzz, and i think that the fuzz settings are good but they lack the chrunch and thickness of some other separate fuzz pedals i have used, but it is a very small difference that most people wouldnt notice but it is just enough to bug me(the fuzz is still outstanding compared to other multi effect pedals). apart from that fault overall it sounds awsome, better than any other multi effects stompboxes out there, my friend has a zoom gfx 5 and it sounds sooo muffled compared to this thing. oh this thing does have a small delay between changing patches, you could get away with it live. but is fine turning on and off, no delay.

its been very reliable so far, it seem sturdy enough, i would gig without a back up.

i play alt. rock, i love the smashing pumpkins, sonic youth, pixies. this pedal is great for all styles. if it were stolen i would definatly buy another.

There are no good sounds that I found. It is very easy to play the presets..The computer and usb supposedly gives far deeper editing. That will never fix the "lag" time disaster. Very little editing on the fly. One has to spend a decent amount of time to get the best out of most processing gear and in this case that would be with usb and software that comes with it..I really enjoy sitting and getting the most out of effects processors...waste of time in this case.

First off I own a Yamaha DG-80 modeling amp which to this day is absolutely the very best I have heard. (Check reviews)I use it for small gigs and it is really awesome. The Boogie Rectocerb is my new honey so here we go with needing outboard effects. The first time I plugged in and headphoned the Magic I immediately understood the latency..and it is really bad. There is lag time between pick and sound like I have never heard all these years having used a ton of gear. I have played for 35 years and gig in rb vintage dance band. Its' funny how you can absoletly love a companie's amp and then be really let down by another piece of gear like the Magic. The effects and distortions aren't even close to the Yamaha amp and it is 6 years old! The effects are very weak and thin. The delay's aren't bad but with the latency it is delayed delay...ALLL sounds coming out of this unit are delayed..unbelievable...I have worked with high end gear..lexicon..etc. and I don't expect that kind of quality at this price. I have spent a few hours with it and the lag time between pick and sound is intolerable to me anyway. It's great if you don't need good sound...have no other effetcs?...then go without effects as opposed to this sham... When you strike a chord you can get hungry waiting for the sound to pipe out the other end. It's going back to Guitar Center asap. In fact, "IF" you find a DG 80 on ebay buy that instead of the "TRagic Magic" for a little more money.

It's porbably very tough..I know I have had NO problems with my beloved yamaha DG 80 in 6 years of fairly hard gigging. Magic looks tough enough...nice and heavy as in boat anchor.

I have no clue..

I have a lot of amps and play an '87 PRS I bought new and a PRS Hollowbody 2. If it were stolen I would feel really bad for the poor guy who tries to play it...His having to listen to it would be punishment enought for me. I am not jaded by using gear a long time and I love to teak effects. I just expected more from a great co. like Yamaha...like the ability for it to be musical..which it is NOT!!

I have never trashed anything as most have some redeamable quality or nich use..the Magis 2 really would make a decent boat anchor come to think of it..

I have a Magicstomp 1 with firmware 1.8. Once you have this unit set up there is very little to be done. Seems to be alot of work to program via a computer and then upload the patch and then test the sound and then start all over again because its the wrong sound.

I did own a Boss GT-6 and this little Yamaha is my favorite...hands down.

Never had any issues with a Yamaha product.

Never needed them.

I love this little thing. The downside is live adjustments and stepping through patches. If Yamaha would play tug-a-war and strech this out to be accessable like a Boss ME-50 then it would be perfect.

I agree with mostly all of the comments of the previous review. Several of the basic effects that are preloaded are very useable right out of the box, some need tweaking and others you probably won't use. There are almost 200 additional presets on the CD tat can be combined in any order of sequence within a bank and downloaded to the stompbox. 99 user patches can be stored in memory.
Although you can access the deep editing features right from the pedal, you really need a computer to make it easy and set up your patches in the order you want.

This pedal is very amp friendly and sounds good plugged diredtly in.
The reverbs, delays and mods sound good and are very quiet with hardly any coloration to the amp itself. Adjusting the gain and levels in the distortion presets make a loud tube amp very useable at bedroom levels. I have previously owned the POD 2.0, J-Station, PODxt and GT-6 and all of these have a fairly good sounding direct line output, but don't sound that great when plugged directly into an amp. Currently, I am also using a GT-8 that sounds good for direct recording and when I use it with an amp, I plug it into the FX return. The stompbox isn't so much a modeler as it is a multi-effects box. In that way it is different from the POD and all the others I've tried.

My live rig is mostly boutique with some vintage pedals that I use with a 3-channel loooper for bypass. The Stombox works great in the live rig and I have it on its own loop bypass. I'm giving this pedal a 10 because the patches I use sound great.

Overall I've had good luck with Yamaha gear. No complaints.

I have never needed service for Yamaha products.

This pedal is a tremendous value. The price is amall for so many good sounding effects. I especially like the reverbs and chorus patches for clean sound. Depending on what you are looking for in a pedal, this pedal has many high quality and useable effects.

The pedal itself is very straightforward to use, once you have programmed it using a PC. I wouldn?t like to try deep-editing patches without a PC, as it only has 3 switches and 3 knobs, and the manual makes this process look very tricky. However, I have owned it for about four months now, and have not needed to do this. Making minor adjustments to the parameters you have assigned to the three knobs is very quick and easy ? you can even tweak these on stage, no problem.

Provided you get your patches in order, it is generally OK for stage use. Switching between patches mid-song can be a little cumbersome unless they are stored next to one another. 99 user-programmable patches, and the ability to store even more patches on a PC, gives plenty of scope to get things stored in the right order.

The editing software supplied with the pedal is basic, fairly intuitive and easy to use. You can download and preview it on the MagicStomp website. It could be improved, but it does the job. The manuals are OK, but don?t provide very helpful explanations of the deeper editing parameters, so you just have to dive in and experiment. Not a big problem, provided you have plenty of time to spare.

The overall range of different effects available in this unit is great, but rather limited in terms of using multiple effects simultaneously. The modulation and reverb/delay effects are exceptionally good; distortions and amp simulations are not quite up to the same standard, but are significantly better than other multi-effects I have used (e.g. Pod, Zoom GFX8). The MagicStomp is cheaper, and I much prefer it. I use it in the effects loop of a Fender Hotrod amp. It doesn?t interfere too much with the amp?s tone, which is very important, and it runs very quietly. As well as playing various electrics through it, I have also used the pedal in place of a pre-amp with an acoustic guitar with an L R Baggs pickup with some good results.
I would give it 10 if you could use more effects simultaneously.

The pedal itself is very sturdy, rugged, and fairly heavy. I like its traditional metal footswitches a lot - you can stomp on them hard without the fear of doing damage. Haven?t had any problems with it.
The power supply looks a bit flimsy by comparison, so I carry a spare.
The software has needed re-installing a couple of times, but this maybe more to do with my PC.

I haven't had to use customer support, but I gather than Yamaha has a pretty good reputation in this respect.
There is a dedicated website: www.magicstomp.com

I play a range of styles, and this pedal offers something to augment almost all of them (with the possible exception of acoustic blues). Since I started using it, I have dispensed with a few stomp boxes because I just don't need them any more, and this pedal sounds just as good, if not better. It has made my rig quicker and easier to set up, and it generally doesn't need much tweaking from one gig to the next.

As with many effects modules getting good sounds is subjective. Programming is easy using USB and computer. User friendly icon interface with software supplied makes for fast programming.
Patch Editing can be complicated especially if you go deep into multitapped echo effect etc. The manual is not really a requirement with this unit very simplistic programming. Easy to record with and great as live effects / overdrive unit without any other amps.

I use everything from acoustic's with fishman's through to vintage strats, going straight to desk or PA mixer.
One of best features is definately the echo effects, with some knowledge you can accurately emulate those vintage echo sounds of Hank Marvin and the Shadows from 60's, these are very difficult to obtain normally. If you like saucy rock type overdrive this box has plenty to offer, no (Gary Moore)singing sustain but pretty close, (Boogie V-twin is only model I know that can do this on the floor).

Factory presets are a bit of a joke, many sound weak and artificial, or just to weird for use. Program you own and get some great sounds.

The clean sounds are as usual lacking any sort of amp warmth, needs lots of Eq from desk for this jazz type sound.

Reverbs and Delays are stunning and worth the money just for these effects alone, as good as TC Electronic studio stuff which is a high recommendation. Used with Acoustic guitars a splash of Revb and hint of Chorus it will add a new dimension to your sound.

Overall very versatile.
Beats all the Pods to my ears.

No Problems.

Good site www.magicstomp.com has many user patches and also famous names to download

The versatility of MagicStomp is unmatched by anything else I have used. Previous experience with Roland GP100, POd's,Fender Cybertwin, and many many conventional amps, this Magicstomp product does so much for your money.
Programability, and super effects sounds is the key factor in purchase.

For home recording I would say it is a must have product!

I would like to see an interface for volume or wah wah pedal, this would make it so good for live use. The addition of a midi interface would make it better for live work enabling a foot controller to switch between patches fast.

Live work needs careful arrangement ,close proximity, for the patches you use or you end up tap dancing to get to next sound.

A mod that would allow selection of on/off on any of the three switches would be a good move allowing three effects to be used ie; dist on/off (1), delay on/off (2), chorus or reverb on/off (3). The performance mode of use is not well concieved at this stage.

Overall I must say two thumbs up for Yamaha MagicStomp

This new version has a easier user interface and ofters USB for deep editing functions.

Well as far as latency it is not 0 like my analog stuff but it sounds damn good if amped properly. Use a good solid state amp, or something like tech 21's power engine. If useing a amp or PA system make sure your eqs are flat. It deffenatly has some unique sounds and effects that u cant get anywhere else. It offers alot in a small package. It will be worth the $ when the price drops alittle like the first vertion of Magic stop did. This Version is a huge improvement over the first.

ITs in a metal box. Looks stong.

Never f@#$ed with them. =)

Good little Box with alot of usefull effects in a small package. Distortion tones are worthless, Other effects can be very beutiful!
Will be worth the $ when price drops.