Zoom 504 Acoustic

If you're familiar with the 500 series Zoom pedals, this one is as easy to program as the others. Takes some getting used to, of course. The owner's manual, a big yellow sheet of paper, is adequate. To my knowledge, no firmware upgrades have ever been offered.

Sound quality?: Other reviewers have complained, but I approve. One complaint was that it "colors the tone of the guitar". Of course it does, dummy! That's what it's designed to do! This was not intended to be a "transparent" studio unit for use with a solid body stage rig. We need to remember what these sold for originally. Does it make my LP Deluxe sound exactly like an acoustic? No, but close enough for stage work.
There is one patch that just sucks like a black hole, and that is the 12-string simulation. Avoid it. Other series 500 pedals offer it as well, and they are all exactly as bad as this one. Get a Variax....it'll flat do the 12 string sim' baby!

Noisy?: I'm getting distortion when strumming hard on my LP Deluxe through the clean channel of my Mesa, but I suspect this is a matter of pilot error, not the pedal. Still working on that. "De-amp" may be the solution.

Effects weak?: Some are subtle, some have more effect. Depends on need and settings. Choruses and reverbs are very nice.

My amp?: Two; a Mesa Nomad and a 1978 Randall orange face RG 60.

Can I get the sound...?: Sure. Close enough for stage work. Favorite artist? Too many to list.

Are certain effects very good or bad?: They all seem to do their intended jobs just fine. Again, remember price.

Reliability: This is my soapbox issue. If you stomp on a Zoom 500 series pedal hard enough to break it, you need meds. Grow up. You are not Pete Townsend. What is this fixation with plastic pedals being fragile? I don't get it. In 44 years of pretty much constant stage performing and (honestly) dozens of different pedals over the years I have NEVER stepped on a pedal hard enough to break it, other than the switches crapping out on several Digitech RP series units, and their chassis are made of metal. This is my fourth old 500 series pedal and they all worked flawlessly.

No idea.

What do we play?: Nostalgia rock. Every now and then I need and acoustic sim'.
How long playing?: 44 years this year.
If it were stolen..?: Sure, I'd look for another one, UNLESS someone gives me a Variax.
What do I love/hate?: Read above for love. What I hate is the fact that I can't read the LED's in sunlight. That can be, and has been a problem.
Did I compare it to other products?: No. Nothing to compare it to. I chose it because I am comfy operating Zoom 500 boxes and the price was right.
Anything I wish it had?: Yes. LCD Display.
Does it help make music?: Yes. That was the point of getting it.
Anything I'd like to share: Yes, unrelated to this review. For all you born again Christian product reviews that use Harmony Central as your pulpit, I have a question. If you're so proud of you witness to Christ, why to sign your review "anonymous", just like the reviewers that are so profane?

I own a few other ZOOM pedals from this series, including the Amp Simulator (much cheaper than the POD), 506 bass pedal, the great Delay pedal and used a 504 on our worship leader's guitar...an Alvarez with a Fishman Natural pickup/preamp. Also I added piezo saddles to his Gibson 335 and this pedal helped get a better acoustic tone.

I'm used to editing these pedals, but a good read of the manual is a good idea. Manuals can be downloaded from ZOOM's site.

Set up properly it isn't noisy at all. I have piezo pickups on all my guitars, including a Les Paul, Telecaster, Westone (with Fishman/Wilkinson piezo tremelo bridge, and some acoustics. This pedal allows me to preset patches for each guitar. For acoustic amps, I mod small Peavey bass amps adding tweeters and mid slope controls to make them more "acoustic friendly." Who cares if it sounds like anyone else. I know what a good acoustic tone is, and this pedal is helpful in getting there.

I've had no problems with any of the Zoom pedals. I bought this thing off e-bay and have the ART Personal Acoustic processor coming. One will end up used with my guitars and one with my fretless bass...anywho, I'll have a backup.

I tried to get a schematic for the delay pedal, long discontinued. I need to perform a mod on it that I need the schematic for. Zoom kept giving me the runaround so after two months of trying, I gave up. As far as repair, I'm a repair tech and do my own repairs.

I like to run an electric rig and an acoustic rig simultaneously, so I've put piezo pickups in all my electric guitars. The sound of chiming acoustic tone coming out one amp and heavy distortion coming out of another amp at the same time is awesome. I'm hooked on that combination of tones. I'd probably buy the newer model or try maybe the Alesis if I lost this one.

I have a strict policy dealing with scumbags that steal my equipment. I've been an electronics tech for 30+ years and worked with RF identification in my job of 26 years in manufacturing. All my equipment is easily located with GPS equipment I own. I am into target shooting, both home protection/concealed carry type guns, and cowboy action shooting pistols and rifles. Should anything I own be stolen (which has happened in the past, especially at church) I'll hunt the slug down in short order and give him/her the choice of which palm they want a round through. They can choose either hand and can choose a 9mm hollowpoint or a .45 cowboy round. Trust me, lessons learned through gun "accidents" are horrifying and stick with the thief for the rest of their lives. (I know how to do this and NOT get into legal trouble.)

Musical instruments become very personal and when they are stolen it feels like a great violation...almost like a sexual asault. I've yet to have to go to these extremes, but let me tell you...a few run-ins with our neighborhood teenage mouthbreathers over their harrassment of my girlfriend and me and vandalism of our home for no reason other than they thought it was fun to hassle my mentally ill, disabled, bedridden girlfriend. Once they came face to face with a 9mm (actually, it was the little perp's drunk father) they leave us alone.

I won't put up with having equipment I worked hard to buy getting stolen. Also, Wisconsin has great restitution laws. If you get caught, you will pay back straight new retail price to the person you stole from. Nice wake up call.

I chose this pedal because I had experience with it, and own some other pedals in this line and love them.

very, very easy. loo at other reviews please.

here is the big thing: this little jewel actually helped me create a decent resonator sound with my f 60 dobro for the very first time. the dobro has an old piezo installed in the bridge. nobody does it like tis anymore. but even with this suboptimal piezo the 504 makes a good sound through my marshall asr 50 acoustic-amp.

looks sturdy to me.... would gi no question

no idea

very very good little thing and cheap! if you play acoustic, just make up two or three patches. one for regular guitar, something else more special, like dobro or mandolin or a more spacy sound and there you go. the preset-equing is good enough for me, plus yoiu can do someting with the amps eq as well. the "electric into acoustic guitar" mode is crappy....
overall very very good and it can save you hundreds of dollars, because it makes old piezos sound good. i can tell because my dobro sounded really awful.
now all is good, cheap zoom and cheap marshall: rich sound!

If you own any of the older ZOOM 50* series pedals, then this unit is just as easy to program. The instruction manual is a big help until you get used to it. I only give it a 9 because I do like the knob on the 504II.

I use this with a Fender DG-10CE and if you own one, you know that the pickup it comes with sounds like creamed crap. This pedal makes it sound great. This version of this pedal is still floating around on Ebay, so I'm writing this review to let people know that for less than the newer 504II and much less than the LR Baggs or Fishman preamps, they can beef up their acoustic sound for somewhere in the $30 range. I actually had a 504II but my other pedals were the older 503, 505 and 506 so I had to get rid of the 504II and get a 504 so they all matched. That's my weird problem, not yours, but the 504 is an awesome pedal for the price. If you see one on Ebay, bid on it. But don't pay more than $50 for it or you might as well just get the 504II.

Very dependable and I would use it without a backup. If you're playing acoustic guitar, you're probably not jumping around. And if you are, what kind of acoustic music are you playing anyway?

Don't know, never used it. If it broke, I'd just hunt down another one.

Don't buy the 504II just because it's new. The older series of these pedals take a little getting used to in the programming department, but once you get the hang of it, it's well worth it. If you're reading this because you saw one on Ebay and can't decide if you should bid on it, I'm telling you BID ON IT. You'll save money and your acoustic and your audience will thank you.

This is my second Zoom multi-effect unit. Several years ago, I owned the bass version, 506. Both units have left a favorable impression. As with the 506, I've found enough usable patches in the factory presets to have little need for programming. I am actually using the 504 (Acoustic) as an effect processor for my acoustic bass, electric bass, and vocals in my small PA rig. The unit works surprising well in all three applications (I'm especially pleased as this was not necessarily designed for the bass or PA!). Editing is pretty darned simple, and the manual is easily downloadable if it doesn't come with the unit (as was the case for my used 504 and 506).

I purchased this pedal to be an all-around effects unit (PA vocals, guitar and bass) as I have downsized from a home studio and full PA rig to compact bass and PA rigs only. The PA rig is a homemade combo roughly equivalent to the Rogue Roller Combo PA or a keyboard combo amp (using a small, 200w amp, 15" speaker and a small Behringer mixer). My bass rig consists of a Rogue acoustic and a Rogue electic bass (both 5-strings) and an Ampeg BA-112. After reading other reviews here on HC, I thought I'd give this one a try in that capacity. As most of the presets focus mainly on reverb, chorus and delay, the 504 was almost perfect for vocals. I very quickly found two patches-- one with heavier delay and reverb for vocals, and one with lighter reverb and delay for announcing. I was able to find several good patches for my electric and acoustic basses as well. The factory patches run the gambut from deep heavy bass tones (good for dub and reggae) to super-bright (not much use for bass or PA) with various effects levels. The delays, choruses and reverbs are all good quality for the price of the unit. Some patches gave the electric and acoustic basses an "active" sound (better EQing). I was VERY impressed with the improvement of the Rogue electric bass tones when using the 504 as a pre-amp. A couple of the patches even gave my lowly Rogue a great P-Bass sound! Other patches utilized effects mixes that really brought out the musical quality and depth of the basses' upper registers (similar to the effects Metallica uses during many of their intros- think airy and classical/goth, like the guitar intro to "Nothing Else Matters" or Randy Rhodes' intro to "Diary of a Madman"). As with my Zoom 506, the 504 is pretty noisy. Luckily the white noise is fairly consistent throughtout the presets. As I recall, the noise fluctuated greatly with the 506, so this is a definite improvement.

Although I've only had this one a short time, the overall quality appears to be the same as my old 506. That unit took plenty of abuse without any issues. I purchased this one used, and it functions beautifully.

I've never dealt with the folks at Zoom. However, I've always been able to find info and downloadable manuals at will.

At $30 used this multi-effects pedal was a steal!! No question that I'd purchase a 504 to replace this one if lost, broken or stolen. Yeah, the Zoom's are noisy and eat batteries like there's no tomorrow, but dollar for dollar, I like them as well as the low-end Korg and Digitec multis (although you have to hand it to Digitec for the enormous number of presets and programmable patches that they allow). I just can't speak highly enough of a budget multi-effect unit that can handle vocals and a huge variety of instruments as well as this one does!!

No midi brainiacs here. Tweak it until you get a good sound. What could be easier?

For the money you can't beat it with a stick all day long. I play my Takamine 2000LTD- to Zoom 504 - to my fender Acoustasonic amp for a crisper sound and for a pretty good 12-string effect. Also can tweak a pretty good classical guitar sound. I recommend it for acoustics more so than electrics. Zoom says it's for both, but unless you have a Fishman pickup on your electric, you're NOT going to get a good acoustic sound from an electric guitar.

Had mine for over 6 years now and hasn't failed me yet. Sure it's cheap plastic, but, hey, I paid a low price for this cheap plastic.

No problems to report

For the price, it can't be beat. As I mentioned, I wouldn't suggest it for making an electric sound like an acoustic. The only way to do that is with a good acoustic pick-up, and even then, it's still not the same. This pedal helps accentaute the sound of your guitar and give you a few perks such as differnt reverbs and delays. I'd replace mine with another one if it went missing.

Extremely easy to use!

I play a $1500.00 Tacoma handmade w/flamed maple back & sides, all solid wood. I have a M3 pickup system with two mics and a transducer mounted inside the guitar. This is run into a Trace Elliot acoustic amplifier. This setup is totally top shelf. I originally bought the Zoom 504 to just fool around with, as it is not in the same league as my other equipment. I was totally surprised that when tweaked properly, it actually makes my Tacoma sound better than direct to amp. I was amazed! This is a great unit, quiet, and fantastic-sounding, who would have guessed??!!

Take care of it, and it will never die.

No need.

This unit was the surprise of the year, it is an incredible-sounding unit for the $$$.

I bought mine second hand, so I don't know the default settings. I have used a 505/508/507 before, so editing was easy. I gave this to a student of mine who is totally unfamiliair with effects units, and he edited some nice sounds, while not knowing what he was doing (no manual - just pushing buttons until it was OK).

I play a Stick; and though I use a lot of equipment (some are very "high-brow") this cheapo unit delivers me with some sounds TC Electronic could be proud of (but if I had to make a choice, TC delivers a lot more). Little noise. Some things are fairly useless - there's a sort of pitch-shifting in this box which makes your instrument sound horrible, but perhaps someone likes it....

My other Zooms are very reliable. I mostly use them for "guerilla-gigs" at which activities can get very wild, but they never give up. I must add that a friend of mine (125 kilos!) simply crushed a Zoom when changing programs with his left foot.
I should add: I have bought a second one, just because you never know.....

Have been in contact about other Zoom stuff, very nice replies, very good advice.

I am a Stick player, so there are 2 signals coming out of my instrument that I have to deal with. The 504 has 2 "IN's", and the output can be used for headphones. The follow up (504II) has only one input, so it's of no use to me. This is the perfect practice amp for Stick players (if you do not need distortion).
I use this as a practice amp on holidays, a great unit for small gigs and a little "special device"in my recording set-up for those moments when something has to sound "acoustic" - and it does all these jobs in a great way.

I liked the sound it gave right out of the box. I did find that the volume varies from patch to patch, but that can be fixed easily. Editing patches is not too hard after reading the manual. I think a book would have been nicer than the single page layout used. I really like that you change patches with the pedals. Especially nice is the option to hold the patch you're on while you get set to go to a new one.

I am using the 504 between my Dean Exotica and the PA system at our church. (I got this to use until I get an acoustic amp.) I haven't found it to be noisy, but I do wish the volume would be constant. The main reason I like this box is that it gave me a warm sound that I couldn't get plugged into an old electric guitar amp. Overall, the sound is very solid. I really like the A1 and especially the C4 settings.

Even though the case is plastic, I think the box is very robust. I wouldn't jump around near this thing, but I feel very confident using it in our church setting. I don't think I'd want a backup. This is a battery monster, however, so get an AC adapter.

N/A

I play Christian (DC Talk, Jars of Clay, various worship), blues (Eric Clapton, BB King, etc.), Country, and rock. I bought an acoustic/electric to have a good acoustic sound with the ability to amplify it. This box allows me to enhance that sound when amplifying it.

I've been playing for a year and own this box along with my Dean Exotica. I plan on buying an acoustic amp soon, and look forward to hearing this through a dedicated amp.

If this was stolen or lost I'd either get another, or get the new model (504 II). I really love the variety of options that I can now get out of my guitar. I think the onboard tuner is a good idea, but I still use my Korg tuner. I think it does a better job. My favorite feature is the C4 "resonator" setting. That sound effect catches attention, and really stands out.

I compared this to several other pedals (boss, others) but this one was such a good deal that I couldn't pass it up. I only wish that you could control the volume externally. If anyone has used the external foot control for this, please let me know how you did it, or with what equipment.

I enjoy using this pedal tremendously. I know it gives my sound more clarity, warmth, and variety than I got directly plugged into an electric guitar amp. This box allows me to get my guitar to sound like I want it to, which lets me concentrate on making music. In the church setting, this is of the utmost importance, as my music is meant to be an offering to our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. I enjoy playing with friends for fun, but playing worship to our heavenly Father refreshes my soul like nothing else. This pedal helps me to do that.

For what I paid for this pedal, I could ask nothing more of it.

IT is pretty simple to use right out of the box, if you don't want to edit patches. If you do edit patches, keep the owners manual close by, and keep a lot of notes.

I originally bought this for live gigs with my Ovation Elite to reduce the resonant feedback, it didn't work! I tried using this in a studio set-up, and got a lot of "white noise" when the levels were turned up. There is a definate digital quality to the sound. All said and done, it can be tweeked for live applications where there is other noises competing with it, but not in a studio set-up.

Works like a horse, never had any trouble with it.

N/A

I bought it fot the feedback reducer, and it doesn't work very good. It only eliminates 1 band of feedback. I play an Ovation Elite, and a Yamaha APX 9-12 12 string, and I get multiple bands of resonant feedback from my guitars during live applications. If you are looking for a feedback eliminator, get a newer Sabine, they work excellent.

The unit is very easy to use. I am using this for an elec. guitar. Have been playing for years now but I never used any efx except for a fuzz box. So for me to say this is easy to use it must be.

The manual has extensive and easy directions on units use.
patch editing is simple.
saving patches are even simpler(one button touch).
two foot switches let you switch patches quickly.

The sound quality is very good. I use my fat strat w/ this. however the acoustic simulators are fair if that.
I have heard better simmulators than this but than again those boxes were alot more expensive than this one.

I set up six patches in a row to play "ten years gone" and I have to say it sounded almost exactly like the CD when I played the song.

DONT KNOW YET I JUST BOUGHT THE UNIT TWO DAYS AGO.

For the money I dont think your going to find anything better. Zoom did a good job with this one.

Had to work at getting the appropriate sound as the factory presets were not very warm, most patches produced tinny sounds. Read the instructions many times but once well understood, would know it for life, like riding a bike. Editing the patches were relatively easy with just four buttons. The manual was translated from Japanese, therefore, the English was difficult to understand. But at lease it was an improvement from the 9002Pro manual.

I am using a Korean made Ovation copy which, on its own produces horribly high responses, which contributed to the tinny reproduction on my Marshall 100W combo (which was actually made for electric guitars). Because of space inhibition I am not able to have another amp for my Ovation copy, so I used the other available channel on the Marshall. With the EQ on the 504, I was able to trim the highs and boost the lows to create a more rounded balance so that it sounds more like an original Ovation would on an electric guitar amp. It worked well to create the warm sounds that I craved for so long.
However the settings that was so right had a noisy hiss from the amp's speakers. (Anyone to help me out here?)

All I know is that Zoom produces small and cheap wonders, I also own a 9002Pro and a 505. No problem with it as it is quite sturdy for a gadget made of reinforced plastic. No need for any backup except for batteries as it drains them real fast. Had to use AC adapter.

Never needed them.

I play mostly in church environment where we always push decency to its limits. Mostly contemporary rock styles but rhythmically very heavily dependant on guitars. The 504 suits me fine, delivering what's in my head to reality.
Been playing for 20 years now and it took me some time to find out that Zoom Corp came out with a small wonder as excellent as this. I honestly feel that there can be no replacement for a 504 other than another 504.
My favorite feature has to be the mute mode where you can tune your guitar without ever to cut the master on the amp. Another favorite feature has to be the fact that it is built a stomp box where you can switch patches during a gig without ever to miss a beat. Used a PX3 once, but sold it off because it's a tweek box.

This is the best "little" box i have heard.
The effects it has are clean and very subtle.
Great for a beginer as well it has that professional sound
<PRAISE GOD>

I'm using a DEAN exotica acousticdirect into a pa.
I'm a worship leader for a small new non-denominational
church, and the delay and reverb are a perfect mix
and the air and other special features give the most natural
sound i have been yet to obtain this is a god send.

Never had any problums with it.
Would never use a backup.
NO NEED to stomp on it. I've killed many effects by over rambunctous
immature playing , before JESUS CHRIST saved me

The LORD has blessed me with never needing to contact the company.

I play for the LORD JESUS CHRIST (the only way to heaven)
and this "little" box gives me just that extra bit of feeling to make that guitar sing.
To obtain his presense and glorify him forever.
Just remember that JESUS loves and died for you so that you could have eternal life - read john 3:16 it is true

This pedal is really easy to use and has a very clear manual.

My Band BLUSH uses the pedal for vocals. We have an excellent female vocalist who has the most beautifull voice but every voice effects pedal we have used either gives and bad his or makes her voice sound muddy. After trying 5 different voice effect pedals we decided to use our guitarist pedal (504 Zoom). We love it, it has a clean natural sound. We have the patches programed for almost every song and she can even switch patches during the song. For vocals all the effects sound good but you have to use them selectively and try not to get to crazy with it otherwise you will run into some pretty funky sounds.

BLUSH has rehursal for three hours twice a week and plays gigs almost every weekend. We have used the pedal for over a year now and after all this use the pedal has held up just fine (take into consideration that our singer is not jumping up and down on it). One thing I deffinately recomend is that you familarize yourself and understand everything the pedal does because if you are on stage and you do somthing to mess it up and don't know what you did it can be very times taking and frustrating getting it back the way it was.

We have not dealt with the company. However, I did loose the manual and easily downloaded another off there website.

BLUSH plays origional music that ranges from a Dave Mathews sound all the way to Garbage. The great thing about the 504 Zoom is that it can occomodate the band with any sound we want and can be plugged right into any P.A. It lacks in delay capablitiies but the 505 electric guitar Zoom does a great job with that. BLUSH has even used it in the recording studio. Our sound engineer thought we were crazy wanting to use it but after he heard what a great sound it had he was very impressed. If anyone wants to know more about using the Zoom as a vocal effects pedal let me know I'd be happy to talk.

Very Easy to use. Doesn't take much to learn how to create your own effects. The manual was more than enough to learn how to use this pedal. its not too involved.

i am playing an epiphone chet atkins sst through the zoom acoustic then into my fender acoustisonic sfx acoustic amp. Its not noisy at all. most of the effects are a little fake sounding but after editing the patches (which is very easy) i have come up with a great acoustic patch. i play mostly dave matthews covers and it works perfectly for that sound.

i don't think this pedal is flimsy at all. yeah its plastic but its not the type of pedal you would use if you are jumping around on stage stomping on the thing. i think its very reliable and i have no fear of it breaking from stepping on it too hard.

i play with a lot of muting and basically rhythm guitar. if i had it stolen or lost it i wouldn't hesitate to buy another one. when i plug straight into my amp i don't get that great a sound its very thin and there its hard to get a clean acoustic sound. the zoom effects pedal cleans everything up and gives me a great pure acoustic sound. for the price you can't expect much better than this pedal. i tried the boss acoustic pedal and it doesn't even come close to comparing. great pedal

This little pedal has a great sound coming out of it immediately. I remember my excitement when i first bought it, and it's still there today. I don't use it as much, because it does take away some of the natural acoustic sounds, but when i get bored of the same sound, this this is a welcome change of pace. The manual is horrible. It would be a little better in book form, but it is just much too technical for someone who just wants a good sound. Changing the presets has also been of mild difficulty for me

I use a Charvel A/E guitar and an A.R. Acoustic Amp 65 when i use this acoustically. It is one of the most wonderful sound combinations I've ever heard. The effects are always clean, and there is a wonderful selection of them. No real need to change them. I like playing a few Dave Matthews songs through this, sounds very similar.

I would be very careful if i took this to a gig. The plastic shell makes me a bit nervous, esp. with how much these cost, and I definitely wouldn't want to lose it. I've had it for about half a year now, and no problems so far.

Before i bought it, I borrowed a friend of a friends pedal. I feel in love with it immediately. I could have gotten it for almost half the price, but I wanted it now. It fits almost any acoustic sound wonderful. I esp. like the A3 gut setting. It's terrific for the low end soloing. The few things i don't like about this: When I first bought it, I used headphones with it. An absolute beautiful sound I don't think can be recreated, but it took me no less than a half an hour to go through a batter. It would be better if it appeared more dependable. (i.e. metal instead of plastic case) If it was broken, I wouldn't hesitate to buy a new one.

Quite easy to use right out of the box. I havn't tried to edit any of the patches yet because I like all the acoustic presets. But it seems from reading the manual that editing isn't too difficult. The manual is a little thin.

I run an Ovation Elite Standard A/E throught the 504 into a P.A. system, and get a GREAT sound. I don't experience too much noise, certainly less than if I ran the guitar straight into the mixer. Love the "A2" setting -- a great sound. I haven't used the presets that model acoustic from an electric because I don't need to.

So far no problems. I do use it without a backup. It's a simple "pedal" so not much can go wrong with it.

No dealings with the company.

I play rock, mostly '70's and '80's. The 504 works great for my acoustical work, both strumming and fingerpicking. Stairway sounds great on "A2". Been playing for 30 years. Would probably buy another one. By far, the ease of use and preset "A2" are my favorite features. I chose this unit after comparing it to other "pedals" designed for acoustic instruments -- it seemed to offer what I needed at a good price.

Yes, the "manual" should be re-done by a musician, not a technician, and yes, it eats batteries for breakfast. Radio Shack sells a 9 volt/ 300ma power supply that works quite well. I do recommend reading the "manual", as jumbled as it is, there are actually some good tips which you will stumble across. You may never actually need to change the presets. There are 24 very diverse settings.

I play a Superior Hawaiian Lap Steel thru my 504. I found most of the preset patches to be very well done, although the sound level coming out of the unit varies from patch to patch for some reason. Has anyone else run into trouble not having enough output level to drive a mixing board? My band says I should get an external preamp to go with this box. Would appreciate any feedback on this point. Sound is clean. Would have loved to have a vintage tremelo effect built into this box - would have rounded it out nicely. The output volume can be adjusted in a weird sort of way.

Haven't had it long enough to say. A metal case would have been better than plastic, but it seems sturdy enough.

Can't find Zoom on the web. (Zoom, if you read this, write me please!)

I play Hawaiian, bluegrass, and some country. It works well for me. I have been playing a couple years with the Voggy Mountain Ramblers in Kailua-Kona.

need help

superb

good

havent ask for any

would like to know more about the setting ,since i only hang out in A1, AND A2, if any one has some tips on a jumbo jazz.alvarez with an EQ 500

OK! It's a little strange at the beginning but you will find natural to work with.

Some effects sound rather digital, and it DOES COULOUR de original sound!

Sometimes i use it more as a volume pedal, others when i don't wanna use my all set of effects.

Very good. They answered all my mails.

I play acoustic celtic music and used it in all my instruments (braguesa, mandolin, guitar, ukulele and even accordion but if it was stolen, i would not by this one again

very easy to get started, and play with.

good sounds but alot of the sounds are the same

its reliable, but just like anything, abuse will damage it.

not worth it.. for the same price get the 505. will make the acoustic p sound nice

Not that difficult to get a good sound out of it considering about half of the presets sound good already. Patch editing is really easy but you will need the manual to decode the cryptic effect names given on the 2 character LED display. The manual sucks. My unit and I think all of them was built with the ZFX-2 processor, this one improves on the noisy first generation found in the ZOOM 505.

I use the 504 with my seagull S6+ with L.R Baggs RT system and the sound is beautifull, crisp and natural soundind - no noise at all. The effects aren't bad , the compressor, e.q, and reverb are all decent sounding, but the chorus could use a little boost. I use an old 35 watt Realistic P.A. system and whatever else I plug into at open mikes and the sound is consistent (very little tweaking).

ZOOM put the circuitry in a sheilded metal box already. I have taken it out with me but I am VERY carefull with it.

For the person wanting to liven up their acoustic sound this is the choice. It offers alot for such an inexpensive pedal.

Easy & dificult are abstract concepts - for those guys who are living since childhood among guitars & acessories, it's a very, very easy unit (almost no manual looking...). But for those who are just begining, oh, my... The manual looks like a treasure map - it couldn't be more confusing! The concepts are too abstract (what's a Green Tone for someone who's starting today?). The method of overpassing patches is another problem - the solution is setting your tones in groups, so you can lock the banks and go scroling just whit 4 of them. But there's not about it in manual, too. As I've said, easy only if it's your beach.

I use it with an Applause Summit Series 96, and with a Vantage VIE-218
(2nd line by Samick). First thing to do is FORGET all the presets - try turning the patch to ZERO and feel each effect alone. Then, find your tones and have great fun. As someone said before, the presets are too artificial. By isolating the effects, you can achieve more natural tones. At the other hand, doing things this way let you use it with an electric guitar (as I do): you can have Chorus (a weak one), LOTS of Compression, a good Reverb, a kind of Delay (a short one, useful for leads, maybe) and some tones you can make to break the monotony (everybody loves the strange "pitchy" tones by Brian May...). Plugging an acoustic, you get a pre-amplified sound, with bright, attack, warmth, presence and - this is great - NO FEEDBACK! Talking about power, FORGET the batteries...here in Brazil, it's sold within the original Zoom battery eliminator. If yours don't have one, BUY IT!
At the end, the unit is great for acoustic players, but only use it for your electric if there's no option.

All the Zoom units that came in this shape (504,505,506...) have a delicate look - it seems that everything can happens to it. The scrolling pedals are very weak, and I think it was designed for use at home or studio - ONLY. In a gig is better have 2 more of it in your bag - just in case... There's no way to compare it with Boss or Marshall effects - why don't these guys built it in a metal case?

I use mine at home or little gigs - take care of it like a baby. Never deal with Zoom.

I play acoustic version of Rock'n'roll, pop, Brazilian Pop & MPB. Using my electric, I play Classic Rock, Funk ang a little Grunge music. For the 2 proposites, Zoom 504 do it well (better for the acoustic). Playing for 10 years (today I'm not in a band), I've never had the money to buy what I really want. These Zoom units are not cheap, but for the price, they give you a bunch of tones that you couldn't reach with 2 or 3 pedals - for the same price. If you have one, try using a Wah, some Dirty Box (Overdrive, Dist. or Fuzz) and a Volume control pedal before it - in plugging an electric guitar. Isolating the effects in different patches (1 for Chorus, 1 for reverb, 1 for delay, etc...) it can be very useful for the electric, too. If someone stole it, I would try something a little bit expensive (like newest Boss units) - for the best level control of the effects and better construction. The built-in tuner is another quality of the Zoom (but I don't think mine tunes well...). All the way, it's worth for it's price - and for the variety of tones you can reach, it's good enough for lots of fun!

From the first minute I plugged a guitar into the 504 I loved it! The first patch alone was enough to hook me into buying it. Editing patches was fairly easy once you took a look at the instructions and still fairly intuitive now that I've lost the instructions. I used batteries for awhile until I realized how much money I would be spending and then I bought the Zoom power supply from MusiciansFriend.com.

I play a Takamine N-20 jumbo body with an L.R. Baggs saddle pickup plugged directly into the PA. My favorite effect and the one I use 99% of the time is the D2 effect, and sometimes I use the A1 and A2 effects (to which I have made some minor adjustments). At home I play through a Peavey KB100 Keyboard amp.

My 504 has been very reliable, but I take good care of it. I would have no problem using it on a gig without a backup.

I play in an acoustic driven worship band in my church and the 504 is a great match for that setting. I have been playing acoustic guitar for about 27 years. I also own a Jasmine (low-end Takamine) classical with pickup, an Alesis NanoVerb efx unit (which got replaced by the 504), a Boss DR-5 drum machine (love it) and a Peavey KB100 amp. If my 504 were stolen I'd replace it in a heartbeat. I love the sound(s) I can get from it, the ease of use, the size, the built-in tuner and the fact that I can edit any of the effects to suit my taste or style of music. I never could quite get the sound I wanted from my acoustic until I bought the 504. It gave me not only the desired effects, but also the deep, rich tone that I was lacking.

See other comments about manual. However, once you figure it out you shouldn't have to open the manual ever again. Easy to navigate the controls. Easy to edit and save.

I play in a contemporary church band. We perform many different styles of music, from country to alternative-type stuff to ballads. Acoustic is a huge part of our sound. I have always plugged straight into a direct box with my Fender acoustic (sorry, don't know which model, but it's a higher-end guitar with ebony fingerboard, hole inlays, onboard e.q., etc.). I had tried numerous things to try to give the guitar a little more "life" and presence in the mix, like graphic e.q., Digitech RP-1, compressors, etc. I wasn't happy with anything. A fellow guitarist (uses Takamine) runs his through an RP-10 and gets a pretty good sound, although the compression seems to take some attack out of things.
So I decided to give this thing a shot since it was cheap. I know Boss makes some more expensive acoustic effects boxes, but this is the first one I tried. It ended up doing exactly what I wanted it to do. It really brightens up and gives presence to my acoustic. It uses a "limiter" instead of compression. I don't know exactly what that is, but I know it definitely doesn't deaden the attack like a compressor seems to. I have a little bit of chorus, a little bit of reverb, and there is no other word for the tone except "sweet". I love it.
I will say that I'm not looking for this thing to do much more than this. I'm not really interested in running my acoustic through an amplifier, or making an electric guitar "sound like" an acoustic guitar. I tried both these things however, and was pretty disappointed. Also, the 12-string effect totally blows. Not sure what they were thinking there.
The module I use is the first one in line, and I never change it. It gives me exactly the tone I was looking for. So that's what I'm rating it on.

These are pretty cheap-feeling units, not very hefty. The clicking mechanism seems like if you constantly stepped on it, it would go out. I have no experience with this however. I'm not planning on changing the settings much, so I'm not concerned. Also the atmosphere I use it in is fairly calm, no stomping. I probably wouldn't buy this pedal for gigging or constant stage use if I planned on changing the modes a lot.

Also, buy an adapter from Radio Shack or something, don't try batteries.
To recap: I think $100 was a fair price for the one thing I wanted this thing to do. It totally improved my acoustic sound. For some of the other things it claims to do, I'd look elsewhere. Of course, the Boss pedals don't claim to do 12-string simulations, so I don't know where you'd find that feature elsewhere!

8 I'm not a gearhead, but I didn't have too bad a time getting it up and running. I second every comment made about the manual, every time I use it(not often), I'm tempted to ball it up.

I use an Epiphone Sorrento w/ P-90's(any comments on these guitars, I couldn't find any), a cheap Regal Acoustic, and my father's old Dreadghnout(set-up for slide). The acoustic simulator is what I use it for most and it sounds ok to my hunble ears, perhaps a little too trebly though. I thouroughly disagree with the last assessment of the 12-string simulator. I think it sounds good, especially direct to tape, which is what I use it for mostly. Also, I've found you can get a decent Byrds-type sound if you turn off everything but the 12-string simulator. The chorus is a bit cheesy, but the delay sounds excellent, especially for this price range.

It seems a bit lightweight. I just bought it and I'm in between bands, I don't know if I'd use it onstage. Maybe if I were playing solo, but probably not in a band.

I've never dealt with them

I play Rockabilly, surf, acoustic, you name it. It works out pretty well, especially the delay. The delay is comporable to any dd I've used, and it's as cheap as most delay units themselves

This unit is very easy to use and program. The manual should be a booklet and not one large confusing piece of paper

I use my two guitars on it: An Ibanez EX series (electric) and a Performance 10 (acoustic-also from Ibanez). The EX has a hum-single-single config and I use a Don Lace Acoustic pickup for the PF-10. I pipe both into a Peavey Audition 30. Thanks to the feedback supressor, unwanted noise isn't a problem. The only gripes I have about it are its unnatural and inferior sounding 12-string effect. The octaver takes it up either two or three octaves and not one like a real 12-string. Also, the regular chorus is extremely weak and the light chorus is almost non-existant! I have my own sound and I get what I want out of it.

I'm not really in a band (just a couple guys I play with) so I don't take it to gigs and stuff but it's pretty good for home and studio use. If I DID have a band then I'd use it at a gig, I'd just be really careful.

Never dealt with the company

I play pretty much everything from Classical to Heavy Metal so the pedal is good for my purposes. I've been playing for 3 years and own the two Ibanez guitars mentioned above. It helps me compose music. I view it as a really good paintbrush that helps me use my imagination with more material to work with. I wish the 12-string effect was more believable, it's a lot of the reason I bought it. I also suggest to Zoom bringing the price up a few bucks and including booklet-style instructions and an AC adapter.

Hate the manual. It's a lesson in map-folding every time you pull it out. Editing is really pretty easy once you get the hang of it, but it isn't exactly intuative at first. Pre-programmed patches sound pretty good, though.

I use my 504 with an Ovation Elite and (usually) with a Peavey KB60 amp (yes, a keyboard amp, but really does the job well).
I like the chorus and reverb, and I can get a very nice sound out of it. My favorite effect is in fingerpicking -- the 504 can give an "attack" as if you're using a pick. Very useful.
I don't use the acoustic simulator patches.

The plastic casing does not inspire confidence. Also doesn't come with an AC adapter, but you can buy one at Radio Shack for a few bucks.

Never dealt with Zoom.

Good value for the relatively cheap price. I play in a large church setting and usually go through direct box straight into the PA mix. I use it all the time to get the sound I want before it goes into the system. I'd buy another in a heartbeat.

The unit has 5 banks of 4 patches, each pre-set at the factory, but they can all be completely re-programmed as needed. There are 4 "acoustic" and 4 "electric" pre-amp models - the electric ones are supposed to make an electric sound like an acoustic - they do if your idea of an acoustic sound is a bad under-saddle transducer...
You change patches by using 2 pedals to scroll up or down. A useful function is you can lock the unit to only use one bank, then scroll through the four patches in it withiut accidentally overshooting into the next bank.
Hit both pedals and you switch off the effects. Keppe both pedals down for a few seconds and the unit mutes it's output and you can silently tune.
There is also an anti-feedback feature which automatically cuts the frequency that's howling - you do need an add-on footswitch to do this. This feature actually works quite well, though it won;t completely kill really manic feedback.
the patches as supplied are all over the top - huge amounts of reverb and modulation effects and a lot of compression. Altering setings is easy, though like any multi-fx unit it takes a while to set up.
If you buy one in the UK you should get a power supply included - don;t be tempted to use batteries, it eats them.

I'm using it with a Simon and Patrick electo and a fiddle. Either into a solid state guitar amp, or more usually into a PA. It sounds better into the PA, (although the "de-amp" control - essentially a presence adjuster - does a reasonable job of compensating for the kinds of tones amps intended for electrics produce when you feed a piezo pickup into them).
The chorus/modulation produces some hiss, especially at the more extreme settings (i.e. the default ones). the reverb isn't entirely convincing, but again the factory settings don't do it justice. the modulation also sounds a bit synthesised if you overdo it.
I suppose the best thing I can say is that simply by changing patch I can completely alter the tone of my guitar - e.g. bright rythmn sound to a warmer, fatter jazz tone. It isn't as good at producing the natural tone of the guitar as a decent condensor mic, but I've yet to hear any piezo system that is no matter how it's amplified.

It seems reliable. These little Zoom units seem stronger than they look. time will tell i suppose

It does what I exoected - it adds buffering and more tone shaping than the 3 way EQ on the guitar can give. That plus the tuner and the feedback suppressor make it a useful little gadget. On the other hand if you spend lots more money you will get better (e.g. dedicated acoustic amp and a rack fx unit).

This processor is fairly easy to use. The preset effects are simple enough, one pedal scrolls up, the other scrolls down. Changing the effects to fit your own style is a bit of a hassle. You have to read an owners manual that looks like the instructions to a box of hair color. I don't get the poster-like instruction book. If you can't figure this effects unit out on your own, then forget it because the instructions are of little help. But, everything is well-labeled on the unit itself.

My setup consists of a Washburn D-17CE, an old Fender Electric Lead I, and a vintage Peavey Decade amp.
The effects with the acoustic guitar sound very true, giving the tone brightness and a rich flavor. It's amazing how great my acoustic sounds through the Zoom and the little 10 watt Peavey amp.
The settings for the electric are a little disappointing though. The simulated acoustic tone of the electric guitar is really thin... almost like playing through a tin can. It sounds slightly better when I play through a PA system, but not much. If you are buying this pedal to make your electric sound like an acoustic, I'd recommend saving your money and buy a Parker Fly.

This box is very reliable, as long as you have a power adapter for it. The battery only lasts about 2-3 hours on a good day, so it would be wise to invest in the optional power supply. The pedal doesn't look very sturdy (the casing is all plastic) but I have dropped it a few times and it keeps a licking and I still keep finger-picking. The electronics inside must be pretty well put together in order to take that kind of abuse.

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My style is alternative rock Christian. This pedal is awesome for this style, because it helps the acoustic cut through two electric guitars with distortion, a bass and drums. The acoustic really stood out when I used the Zoom pedal, where before the piezo pickup alone was letting my acoustic get lost in the mix.
I have been playing acoustic for about 3 years now, 2 seriously. I've had my Fender electric for 6 months.
If the Zoom pedal were stolen, I'd promptly replace it.
I love the Zoom 504 because it has a great acoustic tone, and gives me the "Goo Goo Dolls" sound that I was looking for. It really helps my acoustic stand out in a crowd of distortion and bottom end. I also love the fact that all of the Zoom pedals have a built in auto-chromatic tuner built in, and when you step on both the up side and down side at the same time, the tuner is activated. It is simple and easy to use.
There was only one other pedal in this price range that I considered, a Boss Acoustic pedal. The downside of that pedal is that there were tone knobs instead of preset pedals, and you can't change your tone or sound quality in between songs without bending down and turning three or four knobs. The Zoom is faster and easier (for lazy players like me).
The only feature the Zoom is really missing is a bypass for the tuner. When you activate the tuner, it would be nice if it would cut off the sound to the amp or PA so you could tune in silence without 250 people hearing you tune.
The Zoom has helped my creativity, because I can now change my acoustic "sound" to emulate great alternative sounding bands like Jars of Clay, Smalltown Poets, DC Talk, etc.
I'd recommend this pedal to anyone who has a on-board pickup in their acoustic and can't afford to buy a Fishman Pro Gold to replace the old one with. This pedal will enhance your tone just as much without costing you a fortune, plus the Zoom pedal is fun to play with. With 24 settings, you can play until the cows come home (or your wife, whichever comes first). The 504 is perfect for someone who wants a better tone from their acoustic guitar. Hmmm, I actually sound like a good guitarist now...go figure.

Very easy to use because of the limited amount of features (which isn't bad by itself), but it's just too low on configurability, e.g. I still use almost all the standard-patches, because you can't really make any wild alterations to make them sound better. The manual is a bit messy, too. (One big fold-out piece of paper)

My setup: Samick electro/acoustic(nylon-string), Torque bass-amp, Epiphone Special II, AriaProII 20W. I really bought it for the pre-amp, so my Samick would sound good with the Torque(didn't have any other amp at the time) and for that, it works well enough, i.e. it really does make it sound more acoustic. The pre-amp has four 'acoustic' and four 'electric' settings. The 'acoustics' are good and can really improve the sound. The 'electrics' however, are TOTAL CRAP. 3 out of 4 settings just turn the bass WAY down, and the fourth (to emulate a gut-sound) just turns down the mid-range. The equalizer isn't bad, but it can only adjust treble, bass, or both at the same level. The air-feature isn't bad, it simulates the distance between the guitar and the mike. Erm... Chorus then... There are four types of it, weak, strong, twelve-string, and delay, which can be set between 0-9, and they're not bad, except for the twelve-string, which is just bad octaver. And the reverb is good enough. Nowadays I only use it as a reverb for my Epi-AriaPro-setup.

I think it's dependable enough, I wouldn't take a backup on a gig.

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I used to play acoustic-only, and it isn't bad. I wouldn't buy it again, though, 'cause I don't really use it anymore. I think I'll just buy a reverb-unit next time. I love the 'acoustic' pre-amps (work good for electrics too) and the reverb, I hate the 'electric' pre-amps and the overall configurability. So overall it's not too bad, just don't expect too much of it.

Overall it's very easy to use. It takes some reading to learn how to program it, but once you've got it down it's very easy. It's not much different from any other ZOOM multi-effect pedal. If you use a 501 you'll be right at home.
The manual is okay. I would have prefered a booklet or pamphlet to the poster thing they give you (lots of info crammed in a small space). I'm not certain, but I don't think it would have killed them to add a couple of buttons to the box and a few pages to the manual.

It's the only effect I use with my rig (Ovation Celebrity Deluxe and Trace Elliot) at present. It's a little noisy all around, but can be made tolerable with a little tweaking. The default patches aren't that great, but programming ones that fit your taste is easy.
Adding this sort of effect box to an acoustic rig will almost always give it an "electronic" or "synthesized" flavor, but the ZOOM may be a bit more guilty of it than most. The key is to use it with moderation or else suffer an artificial sound.

Why in the HELL won't these guys take a hint?!?! Put the guts in an aluminum chassis and mark it up $20. More people would buy it!
The box itself has a rather cheap feel. No real substance. I'd use it onstage if it were only me and it was a nice, quite set where I didn't have to worry about the bass player crushing it or beer getting spilled on it or whatever.
The only other complaint (which, again, is VERY common to all ZOOM owners) I have is that a battery shouldn't even be an option. Mine will chew a 9-volt in a matter of minutes (not hours). ZOOM should package the AC adapter with it and mark the price up $5.

I've never used their customer support.

If you're strictly a traditional acoustic player who swears by their trusty Martin and shudders at the thought of plugging in a toaster (let alone a guitar) then this unit probably isn't for you. If, on the other hand, you're an acoustic/electric player who's tired of watching Strat-slinging guitar heroes get to play with all the neat toys then you might consider picking one up.
If mine were stolen I *might* replace it. Then again, I might look at similar products first. Who knows? Why? Do you know something I don't?
Seriously - if you've got roughly $100 US hanging around and you're just DYING to spend it on a neat toy that will texture your sound a bit and, at the very least, be a blast to screw around with when your band is rehearsing then grab one. It's packs a huge bang for the buck.