Zoom 3030

At firts I couldn't understand how to manage well the effects, but after playing with this unit for some time I was able to dominate the effect editting and get the sounds I wanted.

I've been using a Crate GX-80 and a Peavey 150 Watt bass amplifier, I use it with a Les Paul Standard, a Jakson Superstrat, and a Squier Strat with a SD SH-4JB pickup on the bridge. Using difirent guitars changes a lot the sound as well as the diferent amplifiers, in general the effects have quality and my band love it but in my personal opinion the processor gives a bit of "digital" sound, after trying some of Equalizations I was able the sound that I wanted. The distortion is able to get a really amp sound whit a good equalization, especificaly the lead distortion, also the compressor is good but it gives a "duck" tone whit solos, and the delay abd reverb are a little bit noisy at high volumes and metal distortiona is a little bit noisy but its good at high volume. I play death metal music, Hard Core, Hard Rock, Blues, New Age (yeah it's strange). Is good if you know how to use it.
Bout I love a good amp Sound.

The people that hear me tells that it sounds good, and it a really help on live gigs.

I didn't need it.

I like to play a lot of thinks but sometimes I can't the sound I want at all but it helps me a lot (especially the Pitch Shift), I don't recomend the wha and the compressor is not good a high levels, especilly for solos where a excelent texture is recommended. But it akes you aout of the problem when you need it. I've been playing it for a year and a half and I use a CryBaby too. For beginners is good, but I would buy a unit with more professional sound. I love the Pitch Shift, delays, some tone effects an lead distortion. One of the best things of this pedal is that you have "harmonizer" and Pitch Shit i the same pedal but you can't use it at the same time. I would be perfect with more real distortions and mos calid effects. It reallye helps me out to make music

This thing is so easy to use, it has a very informative sticker that tells you all you need to know. I bought mine second hand and there was no manual that came with it, but it took me to hours to get the hang on every effect tweeking function. This thing is so easy to program it is scary.
The manual can be downloaded from the company website and is in PDF format and is easy to understand. I didn't need it, but I wanted to read it to se if I missed something.

I use Epiphone Les Paul Gold Top 59' reissue. This is a great gitar btw. I use a Fender Precission Bass, Fender Mexican Fat Strat. Both guitars use stock pickups. I use a Marshall EL34 50/50 Rack mount dual mono tube amp, a Marshall Valvestate AVT275 and a Marshall VBA 400 with a VBC412 speaker cab. Ok I dig marshall amps ok? :)
And I use this unit in my homestudio with a Fostex R8 (why you ask? why not a hd recorder, because I got this a flee market for 10$ and I love the sound I get from it I'm kind of an oldie)
Ok back to bizniz. I am able to use this effect box on all my guiiars, it works great for both the bass and the other guitars. I love the way you can tweak this thing to any sound you want. You can get Eric Clapton, Pink Floyd, Van Halen, Metallica, Mayhem, I have even been able to reproduce Brian May's unique sound through this thing (If you've heard Brighton Rock from Live Killers album you'll know what I mean). This box does a great job of imitation, but also for creating your own unique sounds. I love the wah and the chorus. The wha can be so screaming it almost hurts my ears, or thick as fog, you just need to tweak, use the EQ it is great. The Chorus can get so thick, creamy and fluffy as good milkshake! It's great! The distortions are also good, not great, but they can be good. There are some tricks to get theese to really tear you appart. The Noise reduction is awsome!!! It really hushed up the effects good, almost too good sometimes. All in all you can get some real cool effects out of this thing. I use it both for recording and live stuff. someone here asked for advice on how to record off it. I have found two good ways, one is to use the phones jack and record that way. It is good, but it may be a little "flat" I also used the Line Out on the amp and put it into my mixer, I have a Mackie VLZ 16 Pro. Which does a good job, it also has gain and eq controls. Another advice if you are going live through the amp turn off your AMP sims, or else you will be in trouble, this is because the eq on your AMP will kill the effect, and it would take a lot of tweaking to get it right. If you have a LINE in on your AMP use this to bypass the AMP's eq that is also a good tips.
All in all this box is great! If you are not pleased with it, mail me and I'll send you some patches that proves this box. Just mess with it for a while and you'll love it to.

Well this is where it comes in short. It is made of plastic, sometimes I'm afraid to step on it. But it does withstand a lot, and the expression pedal works good and smooth. However the jack sockets can get a little flaky, but this is easy to fix

Never dealt with support. I have just repaired it myself.

I play anything from jazz to death metall. I've been playing guitars for 10 years and I've tried a variety of guitars, amps and effects. This setup is definately my sound, Epi Goldtop, Marshall AVT 275 and this 3030. I started out on a Fame Hondo Strat Copy and even this guitar sound pretty good through this box. If this thing was stolen or lost I would get another one definately. I love this thing because it has such a variety of effects, all the stuff you need, no mumbojumbo, I hate that it is made of plastic and that it can't operate on batteries. I also own a GFX707, a lot of BOSS and DOD Stompboxes, a crybaby wah and an Alesis QuadraVerb. This thing is great beacause you can get close to the sound of all of those put together. I wish it had battery operation. It helps me create music and play cover songs and it has never gotten in my way. For the money I paid for it I am more then satisfied, I would expect much less for a box at this price.

This is cool, if your ten years old. easy to edit patches.

I use a Gibson Les Paul Studio, and at the time I owned this I had a Marshall 4x12 1960a Cabinet with a Tube Works head. Overall this unit is only cool if you play it through headphones. anything through an amp sucks. Nothing is seamless, hard to match levels between patches.
SUCKS. Playing live everything gets drowned out. Once again. It sucks.

I wouldn't. A week after I had it with normal wear and tear the a/c jack broke.
I wouldn't use it at a gig period.

Never looked at the company again after buying this piece of junk. They should start selling them at Wal-Mart because that's the business there looking for with this crap.

Everything from heavy shit to jazz. Been playing about 13 years, bought this about 6 years ago. I still use the Les Paul but I just bought a Fender DeVille 4x10 and I'm rebuilding my whole rig. Stolen???? I can't even give this thing away. Anyone willing to pay the shipping and give me 10$ for my time can have it. Now I'm buying mostly vintage pedals, building it one step at a time.

VERY EASY.
GOOOD.
VERY GOOD.
NO.

STRAT,MARSHAL 8240.
A LITLE.
GREAT.
MARSHAL.
NO.
SO,SO

YES.
YES.

OKAY.
NO.

ROCK,FUNK,METAL
8 YEARS
NO
MANY EFFECTS
NO
BETTER QUALITY ,MORE USER PATCHES,MORE PENTALS,BUILT WITH METAL NOT PLASTICK
YES
NO

I own the thing for 2 years now and by now I think I've explored all the functions so it's easy to get the sound I want to have. The process of editing a patch is easy because it is logical! I didn't really need the manual - it was just nice to look up specific things.

I have a yamaha strat copy and an old marshall valvestate 8240. It adds some variety to the sound of the amp but usually I don't use the ZOOM with the amp but with headphones or to record stuff in the computer. The presets are all crap - there isn't one single patch that sounds cool. You got quite a few options to specify a patch that you're editing but there are some good and some bad features. I like most of the standard effects (comp, dist, reverb, eq, wah) but the special effects like pitch shift, for example, are not working well. One thing I noticed about the dist. module is the fact that I always end up with "lead guitar" for the parameter "type" because it sounds much better than all the other distortions in my opinion.

A few months ago both the input and the l/mono output jacks broke...but it was really easy to repair it...other that that everthing is fine

i really like it because it sounds really good on headphones and the sound is also allright through the valvestate.....if it were stolen or lost I would probably not get another one but try a digitech.....sometimes it annoys me that it doesn't offer the possibilty to get powered by a battery....

I wouldn't say it's easy to set up the custom patches. It requires time especially at first to learn how to do it. But once you spend the time playing with it and setting up new sounds, the easier it becomes. The editing patches are workable. I was surprised at all of the variables there are to them. It's not easy to make minor adjustments if you are at a gig so you'll want to make sure you have everything set up correctly before you play. I downloaded the manual from the web and it is an excellent step by step guide. Mine has not been upgraded.

I have a Yamaha Pacifica, which is a cheap but very nice guitar and a Peavey Backstage Chorus amp. That's half my problem right there. But there is a stereo headphone jack in the back which I can plug into and crank up without bothering anyone. In my opinion the sound quality through my phones are excellent. It sounds professional. I've found that some patches crackle if the master volume and the patch volume are both set up between 45 and 50. In my opinion the Phaser effect doesn't sound like a phaser effect. No matter the depth or degree it's set to, the only thing to me it shifts is the high pitched hiss. I'm sorry I got rid of my DOD phaser for this. The distortions mixed with delay sound good to me though. The Wah-wah isn't bad considering there isn't a whole lot you can do with it. Although in my opinion the wah sounds more real without any distortion. Add the distortion and it's only so-so. My favorite artist is Ed Van Halen. Overall, you can't sound like him with this pedal. I had better luck with my Phaser and BOSS distortion pedal. It does a pretty good Alex Lifeson, and Boston. Andy any player can match David Gilmour exactly with this pedal. I would say the other effects are pretty good. The pitch shifter is pretty neat but doesn't sound excellent. I play a certain song with everything shifted a whole step higher because of chord fingering. I play it in G and it comes out in A. It shifts everything up, but in turn it also adds a weird undesired chorus effect.

I can depend on it. It is plastic, and it's been dropped several times, stepped on and it seems unjarred. Seems to be pretty solid considering. I would use it on a gig without a backup. I forgot my power cord once though, and remember unlike other effects pedals, this does not run on batteries.

I never dealt with the company, as I purchased it on a Yahoo auction.

I'ts a fine match for hard rock and metal. I wish it had acoustic guitar patches similar to the Zoom 504 pedal. I have a need to play acoustic through my system but I can't through this pedal. I bought it on a Yahoo auction and I didn't know beforehand if it did or didn't have that, so I took a chance. I've been playing guitar for 20 years. I like the variety overall, and for the price, you can't beat what you get. If it were stolen or lost, I don't think I'd get another one. I think I'd go back to stomp boxes. I love the distortion and delay mix. I hate the phaser effect. I did not compare this to similar products. I chose this one for the price, as it was cheap on an on-line auction. This is a great unit for someone who doesn't have a lot of spending cash for effects. You can get by, and mostly do what you want to do with this unit.

its need a little time to learn this shit but after a while you will understand all of the options .editing paches is taking a while too.
the menual is not so understandble but to figure out the best you will need to pay attention and read it cuple of times!

I have like some stinky samick amp ,the zoom and straight to the guitar - witscowsky custom (i didnt order the parts so i dont have alot information on it) this shitty distortion are pretty crappy because you only have 2-3 good distortions ,the other are all the same crap!!!
the wahwah is nice but only nice! I like the marty friedman/megadeth sound , for soloing there is some sonic dist' that sound good on hi gains but the best of the 3030 -"metal knight" distortion is not megadeth/mettalica kind of dis its more like deth kind and its took me alot to get a little closer to my kind of sound
the hrmonizer is very very awful - you need to push the string so the shit will stay at the right key! if you go in tempo 120 on 16 its sound like the shitest thing you have ever heared!!!!!
the clean sound is ok but they could put there acustic too and they not!

this thing i got second hand and after a week the pedal got of the multy! im lucky becaus i know to fix this shit but someone else would
stuck without a pedal . anyway the input is starting to make noyzes and this is the shitiest thing i ever bought!!!

n\a

the one and only thing i love in this thing is distortion 5-sonic that sound good and you can get a tiny tiny little taste of marty friedman sound .
in short DONT BUY THIS !!!! get korg multy or a better sugest is to by a metal zone or ibanez-box .anyway zoom products are worthless!!

Not very easy to use, takes a while to figure out how to get the thing to make the sounds you are looking for

The delays, reverbs and chorus are ak on the 3030 but the distortions sound like crap. The wah is even worse i wasn't able to get it to make any sound my favorite artists (stones, clapton, hendrix etc) use.

I wouldn't use it on a gig as the expression pedal is already broke and so is the imput, you can not depend on this Zoom player

Am trying to contact Zoom

This effects processor is almost worthless I wouldn't even recommend it to my worst enemies.DON'T BUY IT!!!!!

Fairly easy to use. The "grid" pattern editing interface is a bit inconvienient, but not too bad.

Not too great. The distortions are really poor. And the bypass... about as transparent as mud. I've noticed that sound can vary alot depending on the type of gear you are using. I used it through an old vintage 60's Fender tube amp and it sounded pretty good. But when I tried it through my new Fender Hotrod it proved to be unusable.

Very poor. I actually tried using this thing on some professional gig's for a while and it held up poorly. The worst problem with this unit is the frigin moronic soldering job they did on the connections. I swear a the guy who designed the internal rear connections was mentally absent at the time. I've had the power supply connection on the back of the unit conk out on me many, many times. I can't count the times I've had to solder the connections myself. Add to this the cheap plastic "Toys R Us" housing and you get an idea of how this thing is constructed.

Have not contacted them.

The Zoom 3030 is good for home use only - truly not a roadworthy piece of gear. It would be best used as an effects/preamp unit for a home studio or practice. If used within those boundries the 3030 is a great starter pedal for those who want to get many effects and functions for little cash.

the manual basically tells you how to do what... but dont expect to get any good suggestions from it. its kinda boring too. editing patches is not too difficult but for you to get a good sound you do have to get used to it and experiment with different effect settings and combinations. learn how to use it then play with it and tweak it for a couple of hours. i'm sure you'll come across a sound you like.

i have basically tried every kind of guitar with every type of pickup configuration and every kind of amp with it and in my opinion it sounds pretty good and consistent. most especially the clean sounds. i can truly say i have found my sound. i basically just use one bank for general purposes which includes my basic clean and distorted sounds and the same clean and distorted patches with wah added. nice, clear clean sounds and a nice distortion setting which really cuts through the mix. i love it. as for the wah, i think its pretty good. i think dunlop wahs are too midrangey and when played without distortion just plain hurts my ears coz it cuts through too much and i find that it also boosts the signal slightly. not good. if i can find an analogue wah pedal similar to the one in the 3030, i'd buy it in an instant.
the other effects are ample. i use mostly the choruses, phasers, wah, the 2 eq's and the compressor for clean tones and the compressor, eq's and distortion for the dirty stuff. i use the delays for slight reverb. the series and parallel effect connections is handy too.

some of the effects are pretty useless but the useable ones are pretty nice. some of the distortions are crap too but most of them are useable. i just add in some eq to change the tonal characteristics of each distortion type. the delays are ok too. the flanger isnt too nice coz its not very adjustable. its just too loud a flange for me. i was looking for something more subtle.
the tuner is ok too. no problem there iether. people just need to learn to use it.

very dependable/reliable. ive been gigging without a backup with mine since 96-97 and i still use it today. it did konk out once after a gig coz someone stepped on the cables attached to it but i got it fixed ok. no major damage there. i think the cable jacks are its major weakness. be careful with that part!

never dealt with zoom directly. i sent mine to the shop where i bought it and they got it fixed. i'm not too happy about that tho coz it took them a reaaallly long time to fix it despite the fact that it wasn't damaged that badly.

i play everything from rock to funk to r&b and it adapts to my style really well. i love the clean sound and the wah!
ive been gigging and touring on and off in small and some large venues since 97 and i never needed any other effects. if it were stolen or lost i probably wouldnt buy it again, not because it doesnt sound good or anything but coz i find the wall wart such an inconvenience. i had more than three adapters break down on me. luckyly all broke down during rehersals. there were also several gigs where the power outlet was too far away from my position on stage so i had to move closer to the AC plug (i hate it when that happens). so now i decided to just get individual battery operated effect boxes for the convenience. but since i still have it. id always bring it around with me as a backup.
at the time i bought it i compared it to the other zoom products and i got it coz it was the most versatile in terms of function. i really didnt need two expression pedals but i did need at leas one for volume or wah. so there you go. what i dont like about it is that every time you change patches the sound cuts off for a split second and any delay you had in the previous patch instantly disappears unlike other multieffects pedals which decays the delay smoothly after changing patches.

The other people who think that this pedal is sh*t, i just think they didnt experiment enough. this is a good sounding pedal and it has all the basic effects a guitarist may need plus a few (sometimes useless) extras.
learn how to tweak it before you throw it out the window and brand it as crap. after all, you bought the damn thing. i dont think anyone would shell out $200 for something they thought was crap.
i admit that some of the extra effects are useless and most of the presets are crap but you didnt buy this for the presets and extras did you? i bought it for the essentials.

overall, i love this pedal. i just think wall warts are too much of an inconvenience. i'm switchin to individual effects but by no means am i gonna sell this thing. after all, it is my sound. if ever i'm gonna buy another multi effects pedal (not likely), i would probably try the RP-2000 or the new zoom amp modeling pedal. But the 3030 is a keeper.