Zoom 9002

has everything but here's what everyone wants.. i couldn't find the manual online at the zoom site (like it's so old they archived it ;p but diggin' around i found the 9002 pro manual, then altered the link until i found the 9002 manual...

The Zoom 9002 manual can be downloaded at:

http://www.zoom.co.jp/archive/Previous_Model/E_9002.pdf

the 9002 Pro is at:

http://www.zoom.co.jp/archive/Previous_Model/E_9002Pro.pdf

Yeah, I know, I rock... lol!

Great for some sounds. Great for practice, okay for recording.

yes, battery is good for about 1-1/2 to 2 sets. lots of people claim to have made a (4) AA battery pack that works. I'm going to try it sometime.

They directed me to someone to get a battery once.

it's good for most general rock

**Disclaimer... I am both a 9002 fan/user of the 9002 and a vendor of free 9002 repair information, repair parts/ services, complete refurbished 9002's and accessories including new rechargeable batteries at www.e-lectronics.net*** Because of my great personally interest in the 9002, I have obtained a lot of 9002 information and would like to share it. I am not affiliated with ZOOM or Samson, just a fan. The following review is to the best of my knowledge based on my experiences with the product and may have some slight discrepancies.

It doesn't get much more simple than the ZOOM 9002. All feature are accessed directly with a very simple menu and the 3 band EQ bars are dynamic with in each effect for adjusting rates and gains.

If you want to record with it, just plug a stereo 1/8 inch to RCA into one of the two provided headphone jacks.

With or without the manual, anyone can be fully proficient at using the 9002 very quickly. If you don't have the manual, you can download it from ZOOM in several different languages here:
http://www.zoom.co.jp/archive/Previous_Model/

All releases of the 9002 use the same 7.5vdc 200mA power supply (AD-0001D) and 6v BT-0001 battery and 9002R or 9002F remote control, with the exception of the PRO model which will use the PRO which is the only release that works with the FC02 foot controller with bank switching. Be careful with aftermarket power supplies, the 9002 (atleast the early ones) do not have reverse input protection and will fry if you swith the + and -.

Very unique,

I admit that I do like the newer PS-02 for it's compact size, AAA batteries, bass and drum backing, and recording features.....it even has an emulated 9002 effect BUT... truth be told none of these sound like the 9002. I don't personally rate the 9002 as the very best all around sounding processor ever, but the sounds it has are good and very unique.

If you're wondering what the difference of the 9002 releases are, here it is:

All models use the same ZFX-1 16 bit processor.

There was an early release called the "Special Edition" with an Orange ring around the display. I believe this was a promotional model, maybe offered through GC or something. The key here is that it was and early release and really doesn't have any advantage over the other releases.

The 9002 in its standard form with the blue trim has some internal changes, mostly component enhancements and some minor circuitry changes. I don't know exactly when the changes took place but you can guess by your serial number....1000 and lower are pretty early 5000 and up have had some changes made to improve noise reduction and electronic efficiencies. You likely won't notice much difference between any of these assuming the ones you compare have fresh capacitors in them.

The 9002 PRO was the last release of the PRO with the latest circuitry improvements for sound quality, noise reduction and efficiency. The PRO also works with the FC02 foot controller which has bank switching capability and is increased to 40 user defined and 40 preset patches. In my opinion, the PRO has more presence that the standard 9002.

The PRO Artists Edition is the same as the PRO with pre programmed patches by famous artist.

Many 9002's are now suffering from the electrolytic capacitors drying out which also sometimes causes the charge pump circuit IC7660 DC to DC converter to fail as well. Before completely drying out, the unit will usually whine while "warming up", the distortion will get weak, the headphone outputs may give out as well. Finally when the capacitors dry out all the way, the unit will no longer pass the guitar signal but you will still hear the AUX input, metronome and tuner. This problem is primarily showing up in the standard units but this is most likely because they were release before the PRO, I have serviced a ton of dead standards and only 1 PRO as of winter 2006. My guess is the PRO's capacitors time is coming.

If your ZOOM 9002 looses it's sound output, don't throw it out, just replace the capacitors (or have them replaced for you if your not electronically inclined.)

Remember,

These were released in the early 90's. All and all the 9002 was designed very well.

Issues are:

-Capacitors drying out causing loss of guitar signal (this can be repaired by replacing caps and sometimes also the IC7660)

-Power supply failing (these are great power supplies, it's usually just the tip that fails, a replacement tip can be bought at Radio Shack for about $2 and soldered on)

-Power failure...there is one section on the circuit board that not too often but does sometimes crack a solder joint causing a total power loss, this too can be fixed with a quick touch of the solder iron. Some times the DC input jack and headphone jacks will break a solder joint at the board as well, most are repairable with a touch of the iron, some are actually broken jacks and I have not found a replacement other that spare parts units.

-Battery covers break or get lost (www.e-lectronics.net has new compatible non-OEM replacements)

-Batteries were discontinued and have all died (www.e-lectronics.net has new compatible non-OEM replacements)

ZOOM and Samson have both been extremely good customer support for me. I have bought various parts directly from Samson and received great information from ZOOM Japan. They also offer an extensive manual library which I find a great resource.

http://www.zoom.co.jp/archive/Previous_Model/

All good, no complaints here!

A very low cost yet versatile processor that I wouldn't want to go with out. Many people use these for guitar as well as bass or vocals. With the headphones and a new battery I can rock in privacy for about 4-5 hours.

I like the unique sound, simplicity, and size. I also like the fact that ZOOM blew the competition away with this unit, it was light years ahead of the others and it still rocks.

It's hard to compare to others because it's so unique. I haven't used the other small units like Korg Pandora. The sound of the 9002 is much different than what you will find in the newer line of ZOOM.

I like to keep the toolbox loaded and the 9002 is a keeper in my opinion.

I am doing my best to keep the 9002 alive; for more infomation feel free to email me and I'll do my best to help out. Hope you've enjoyed this bit of info! -Markcm

Sliders are not too accurate, but generally it is very easy to use even without a manual. Surfing trough banks and presets is ok. There is a little gap when changing between presets, but it is manageable. I use to play it for couple of hours every night and it was hard to change any parameters because there isn?t any light on a display (of course that I played in dark, it?s a great feeling), but later I learned where the keys are by heart.

It really sounds terrible when played through an amp, noisy when compressor used, and it has a week distortion. Can produce some very good cleans. Sound quality improves greatly when it is used trough headphones.

It bounced a hundred of times and it still worked ok. It is very old now, and sometimes when tuned on it won?t give any sound for some 15min. and after that it works normally. Probably it caps need a replace.

Although I love this little thing (it?s my first ever effect), I must be objective. It's a good effect for practice and excellent for beginners, some pretty good cleans could be produced, but that?s about it. Anything with distortion and amps is simply something that Zoom 9002 isn?t built for.

It's a very easy unit. No much parameters for edit.

Well, I'm in love with the ZOOM 9002. I owned also a ZOOM 505 and a ZOOM 2020, but nothing like the 9002. Very 80's sounds, but with too much quality for the price and the unit.

I recorded my first CD with this unit, and it was fantastic... My first unit was stolen, but I get a very new one from www.e-lectronics.com, wit a complete overhaul and a NEW BATTERY !!!!

Well, I play 80's rock and this unit is good for that. Bon Jovi Songs, clean guitars with flanger or chorus. NOT FOR NU METAL !!! My first unit costs US$ 480 in 1992!!! Now, in EBAY you could find it for 80 bucks. Mine costs 110 bucks because the man in e-lectronics made a complete ovehaul to the unit (change of capacitors) and send me a new battery (6 hours for the unit !!!) and the reomtecontrol unit, with all the manuals !!!

Well there are so many seetings posible that it isn't really hard to get agood sound out of it.
The distortion lacks a bit of sensitivity, such that if you're looking for a particular sounds, that's the one it just won'r readily give. It takes a bit if fiddling with the compression to antain what you're looking for.
A child could edit patches on the Zoom, however you may also need a childs small fingers to edit adequately.
I'm lucky to have received my Zoom as new with all the manuals,which are also dead easy to use and in 3 languages, so if anyone has a question regarding "How to...." feel free to mail me.
If the Firmware number is the one printed on the back of the unit, then mine says 004209.
Mine hasn't been upgraded, any way how could you upgrade the little critter, it's already jam packed with chips!!! lol

Guitar-Transfer, USA performer series (Fender wannabe)(It's definately not made in the US),in a Fender Bullet reverb amp.
Never found it to be too noisy
Everything is fine except the little distortion hik and those bizarre special FX, Hmm, more precisely the third one, Metallic... Strange

Not tried to hard to reproduce other peoples sounds, mine were always good enough!

Distortion a bit iffy, pitch shifter creates a dalay effect... not good. and the last FX sucks + the majority of the artists patches also suck, that could have been extra space for my patches.
Other than that they are all seamless.

100% reliable on power, provided the wire is good

Wouldn't be reliable if i stepped on it!

The batery was dead on arrival, never bought a new one, never even thought about it.

The foot controller is a bit too flimsy, the wire that hooks it up to the main unit looks like it was made for Barbie. I'm still waiting for someone to walk on, and obliterate it!! lol

Had some issues with the microswitches in the controller too. Sometimes I'd press 2 and patch 4 would come on. For that reason alone I'd never use it out.

N/A

I'll give anything a go, It's fine for that.
8 years on and off, AS said Copy fender, fender mp and a crybaby. I rely on the amp distortion, it has more grunt.
Hmm, tough question, It's so cheap now I'd probably get one for the fun of it, but other than that, not really.
I love that it's so unusual and compact, most of the sounds are good. It's fine foe a home setup and headphone fun.
Haven't really compared it. Chose it coz it was going cheap. My neighbour couldn't deal with editing the patches.
Wish it had a Wah attached to the foot controller + a sturdy connecting wire, Backlighting would be handy too on the display.
Put into a reinforced floor unit instead would probably be safer.
I've had it for 7-8 years, loads of fun and lots of noise, good noise though.
If you have cash going spare, buy one.
If you're anovice, buy one, explore the effects, then you can spank out on dearer and more specialised analogue gear.
Long live music

Doesn't get any more simple than the Zoom 9002

Sounds are good but dated 80's.

Two big issues- the capacitors tend to fail- see a write up on fixing this here: http://www.guitarsite.com/database/Guitars/rec/732/wwwboard/messages/349.shtml

The dead battery thing was a pain in the butt, until I made a new battery pack, it works awsome! check ebay, I usually have one forsale there

Zoom sent me a new manual for my 9002 free of charge in 2004, I like that!

Mostly use the distortion, I've played for several years but I'm not a real sound quality critic, extra volume usually solves my issues.

I really like that you can get one of these for less than $50 on ebay and rockout with your headphones, the small size is a real plus if you have a battery for it.

If you want to get your zoom going again, check ebay as I usually have a NEW BATTERY PACK listed forsale there. or you can contact me by email too at: mmph@comcast.net

Wow! I thought I was the only one still using one! Extremely Easy to use, bought mine new in April 1993, after recommendation by a top local guitarist.
Never liked the shape, used it on my guitar strap once, but it got in the way, kept pulling it off the amp until I worked out how to lash it to the carring handle with some cable, or gaffa-taped it through the rails.

Using Strat through Peavey practiceamp/Fender Princeton Chorus/ DI.
The presets always sounded a bit too "American Metal" to me. I Play mostly Blues, Classic Rock, etc. but easy to set up some decent sounds on it.
These days mostly use for EQ, compression, delay, etc into a line 6 Pod.

Battery went years ago so now using power supply only. input, output jacks starting to show wear and tear but after 11 years, what do you expect?

never needed them.

took ages to decide to buy it, but when I did, I never looked back until now, when its beginning to show its age.

Very easy to use with clear definable value adjustments. Comes with 4 channels of 4 banks each pre-programmed to get 16 different quality sounds right off the bat. Plus you get 16 more (4x4) that are user banks you can customize and save for future use. So you get 32 different storage banks overall. Only thing bad I can think of are the small buttons, but I'm not complaining.

Great sound for a Zoom and the 9002 itself isn't much bigger than a standard guitar Distortion prossecor/switch.

It is somewhat fragile. I've had mine over 10 yrs, and after about a dozen drops or so, I've notice some of the LCD bars come and go, and a little piece of plastic seems to have become loose inside, but the output sound is unaffected and still sounds great.

Sweet product for the low end price I paid. Sure there are better, but not in this price range.

I only use a few of the effects on this unit. The footswitch is a must and provided you concentrate it is quite easy to use.

I used a marshall combo, HH combo, and Torque combo. A stereo output was taken from the output and the left channel taken to the Marshall.
The right channel was taken to a stereo chorus with 1 channel to the HH and one to the Torque. The mix of the 3 amps gave a powerful Upfront sound which made my Guild and Burns Brian May guitars sing.
My favourite artist is of course Brian May and preset 4/4 gives me the Hammer to fall effect. A few of the harmony effects are quite good and the single delay is good for Brighton Rock type work however some of the harmony channels are useless. I have since removed this pedal from my live set up and only use it as an amp simulator for recording work. a built in tuner would have been useful rather than just the tuning fork.

The footswitch let me down once and was repaired under warranty.
I have since replaced my set up and now use a vox valvetronix and vox brian may. I still bring it along but its use thru the pa is not recommended as it sounds a bit passive, however its better than nothing at all.

I tried to get a new battery and found them unable to assist as the sony battery had been discontinued and no other battery was available. Had I known this prior to buying it I would have steered well clear. The repair was straight forward and fast enough and it has remained robust during constant daily use.

I play a mixture of music and use it to create backing tracks.
Have played for almost 30 years and use the guild and burns brian mays with brian may vox thru vox valvetronix. The zoom is used with cubasis to create backing tracks. I have some old analogue effects which do not work effectively with the newer amps.
Just wish it had a tuner and a port for a pp3 battery instead of the obsolete thing it has.
To get the best out of this unit it must be used in stereo as the mono sound is too busy for one channel and makes a confused noise.

Bought it around Xmas 1991. It's very easy to set up good sounds, to learn to use patches. The manual was clear and easy to understand. It was in english language and not italian, but it was understandable. On the manual there are all the original settings, in case you want to re.set up then.

I've been using 2 guitars: maison with 2 HB, and a Guild B.May model.
Different amps. With the Hughes & Kettner Attax 100W the zoom doesn't work good on the "effect input". It's better on the normal/brilliant input. It's a bit noisy connected ti the amp, but just a little. Nothing if compared to other effects in 1991. With the zoom I can reproduce similar effects/sound as Brian May. The distortion isn't very good. I use the ampli. gain. The "Cry" is an "automatic wah wah". I use the CryBaby pedal. The compressor and all the other effects are good. There are 2 delay effects that give a "Stereo Sound" on 2 channels if connected to a stereo recorder, or a stereo amplifier. The "metal" sound, if set up, is very similar to the Queen song "Headlong" guitar sound. Rating:10 in 1991 if you consider the cost/quality relation. in 2004 the rating could be a 8. Today it's a good effect box (7), and still is a good pre-amp for house recording (9). ( I used the zoom to record traks directly into the PC). Clearly it's not an multi-amplifier emulator.

the battery gives troubles, so I use the power supply connected.

Never had a reason to contact them

I play rock '70's/80's
I don't know if I would re.buy it. Maybe today there are boxes with similar effects + other things in the same box (pod).
I love him 'cause it's easy and fast to set up. You can use it in different way: to play for fun, to exercise, to record, on stage. On Stage it miss a footswitch (it was an optional). It has a "handswitch". You can put it on the guitar body, it has 4 buttons.

Years ago I could sell it, but I took it with me. It don't need a Rack unit to be taken around and you use 2 seconds to plug in.

Dead easy. You can flick through the presets or make your own. It's just like a line of stomp boxes.

This is a difficult question. For direct injection into a recording equipment it sounds SO SO good. If you put it into an amp then it sounds like crap.

It is a bit noisy and doesn't include a noise gate / suppressor.

I really like the sounds, because I am an 80s metal guy. I have bought MANY effects units since this and still pick this up for many uses - eg putting something down quick when recording or best of all listening with headphones. For that it ROCKS.

Never had a problem.

N/A

I would NEVER sell this. There is NOTHING like this for jamming through headphones.

Typically of the era, the user interface is cumbersome and obscure. However, it doesn't take a genius to be able to get to grips with it within a few minutes and start making music! Get a manual if you can although I can't find one anywhere!

The usual tone comments apply - it's fizzy and sounds quite dated - but then again it's perfect for practising or warming up before a gig! At the end of the day, it's a little black box o' tricks and it sounds like one. I'm sure it'll be good enough for most people for practising, but I'd personally never gig with it or record with it cos there's simply better stuff around these days.

There seems to be an inherent problem with the design of these things in that they always seem to fail after a few years with the same fault - no ouput apart from metronome. The solution for this fault is to replace the ICL7660 (Surface mount) negative voltage generator that supplies the preamp, along with it's surrounding caps. In total this repair costs around #2-3 in parts and takes about 10minutes to complete with the right tools! Also, the battery packs are useless. Replace this with 4 AA rechargable cells connected + - + - etc, and hold them together with gaffer tape. Job done.

Seemingly non-existent these days, but then it is an old unit!

It may have once been an expensive bit of kit, but these days it's not a patch on whats available. However, if you can get one cheap then it's a great thing to have in your gig-bag as a useful tool - even if you only ever use it as a tuner or metronome!

Takes a long time to really fine tune this thing. I must of spent 100 hours dialing it in perfectly. The presets are AWFUL. i can't imagine people ever really wore this thing while jammimg. It's really just a great silent practice amp for yuppies. Overkill rockman. With lawsuit avoiding volume. Great for recording and for plugging into a stereo. Never good find a way to actually play with it in a live situation. Plugging it into a tube amp has always resulted in a horrible tone.

The distortion and compression adjustments have only 10 levels and that's a pity because I liked the distortion at 3 and the compression at around 7 but could not really fine tune it. Distortion at 3 being too much and 2 too little. I wanted a 2.5 or a 2.75. I'm annoying by the limited adjustments.

I used it mostly for writing and recording tunes. The preset overdriven tones are horrible but I was able to find my own settings that I think are just superb. Zoom overdriven tones are usually with the distortion at 7 or 8 and the compression almost off. This, to me, is just backwards. I found a "Plexi" like tone bringing the distortion to 3 and cranking the compression up to 5 to 7. I also added a super short reverb (50 ms) to fatten the tone and give it a real tube amp sound. Very cool.

With the short reverb (50ms), compression on about 6 and the distortion on 3, my Les Pauls laid amazing tracks down on my home studio. I liked some delay too.

Really a great sounding processor. Clean or dirty the tones possible are top notch. From jazz to screaming 80s metal the ZOOM was in the top of the field and a writing-recording dream. No mics to fiddle with. No noise. Consistant sounds. No outside noises. Small space. Quick adjustments. No bothering the girlfriend with endless takes. Just a bunch of advantages in the recording studio over an amp and pedals! With an amp, if you bump a mic you gotta lay all new tracks again! With the Zoom you can come back years later and if you know what setting you used your saved from endless hours of trying to recapture the original tracks.

I bought this new in the early 90s and must have put 1000 hours on it before it stopped working. (no output). I dropped it a few times from 3 feet onto carpet and maybe the input jack is broken. Shoot, this is what sucks about expensive toys. When it's broke....IT'S BROKE! Nearly $400 of fun now worthless in a drawer, too broken to use and too expensive to toss. All I have left is memories and the hopes that someday a miracle happens.
There is a lot that can go wrong with these things and they are very fragile. I broke mine using it only in a recording studio. Imagine using one on the road! It wouldn't last a month.

No one can fix these things. If anyone could he would be busier than a one legged man in an ass kicking contest.

I've been playing hard rock and metal guitar for 35 years.

The Zoom was great for writing and recording.

Now I use a small Fender Champ and pedals for my recording.

I loved all the features it had and the great tone. it really is a wonderful thing to have in the recording studio.

I wish it was more popular like a Marshall amp so people would know how to fix them. I suppose I could try to get the factory to fix it but it would probably be cheaper in the long run to just buy a new Zoom.

Can you believe Zoom actually built this fragile little $400 toy to be worn on your belt or strap????? I guess if you are rich, you might be able to afford doing that. For myself, $400 is a lot of money.

A really fun, usable, effective, innovative, practical, great sounding product.

But I feel it was a little too expensive, small, fragile, and the compression and distortion adjustments too limited. The overdriven presets were bad and what the hell good was that kooky effect all about? Was anyone ever able to make use of that effect? Sounded like a random synthetic harmonic doubler or something. I heard it for less than a minute and never used it again. Wierd, really wierd!

In my eyes the Zoom 9002 would have been better value had it been built as a larger and sturdier floor pedal or rack mount.

I get the feeling the Zoom company thought guitarists where going to use the Zoom at the beach while skating on roller skates and playing guitar at the same time.

Even on stage, a wearable effects processor is not needed. Are you gonna change the settings on your presets in the middle of a song?

Well, it's been broken for 6 years or more and I haven't fixed it or bought another one yet.

A great travel companion for yuppie rockers. That's it niche. Otherwise, get a rackmount or floor unit for recording or playing out.

I just received a Zoom 9002 from a friend who was going to throw it out. The power jack loses connection intermittantly when moved around(probably due to cracked soldering. Haven't taken it apart yet). It still sounds good, but the paint for the button labels is almost completely worn off. Through trial and error, I've figured out what most of the buttons are. Unfortunately, there was no manual, so any word on locating manual would be greatly appreciated.

Right now I play my Ibanez 'S' Series 7 String through the 9002 going into a Pignose amp. This makes a fun little rig I can take anywhere. I haven't tried the 9002 through my larger amps yet. So far, everything seems cool with it(A nice little addition to my tools).

In it's current state, I wouldn't rely on it for any major situation. However, for just hanging around and makin' a little noise, it works like a charm.

Haven't communicated with them.

I've been playing for approximately 17 years. Various styles of music interest me(I try to stay opened-minded). I enjoy playing through a Marshall JCM800. I have an Alesis Quadraverb Gt and a few BOSS pedals that I also enjoy. Well, I guess that about wraps it up. Have fun kids.

I bought my first Zoom 9002 used in 1992. I have been playing through it ever since. I do not have a manual for it but if anyone knows where to download one, feel free to contact me and let me know where. Even without the manual I have had no trouble setting up and changing patches.

For guitar, of course, it sounds great. I also plug my Hofner Beatle bass into it and the sound is surpisingly good. The lows are a little muddy since it was designed for guitar instead of bass but it works for the sound I want, which is mainly an indie-rock psychedelic type of thing.
I use the pitch shifter and some delay ans reverb while playing with a bow and it sounds like an entire orchestra backing us up.
I have also tried it with my theremin and it sounds great there, too.
In fact, I just purchased a second one on Ebay specifcally for use with the theremin.
I would like it to have a bypass feature for a nice clean sound but I got around that by programming a blank patch at the beginning of each bank.
There is a little bit of bakground noise but it is not too bad. especially for live playing.

I have used it without backup for over ten years at hundreds of gigs and recording sessions. It has only failed me twice. Once was when the battery finally gave out completely and, for some reason, I did not have the a/c adapter with me. The other time it was stepped on by a fellow band member 2 minutes before we went on. The remote was history and the a/c adapter input was shot.
I had to replace the input and output jacks once but it has worked great ever since.

I never had to deal with customer support.

I would definately replace it if it turned up missing.
I currently use the Zoom 9002, an antiquie Morley wah,and then a Zoom 508 Delay pedal for a little post-wah delay looping. The sound is mind-blowing.

I started with the Zoom 9002 in it's earliest version; 1990. It's a phenomenal piece of equipment...set a whole new standard for portable
Digital/Analog effects processors. VERY easy to use for those with even mild experience with parameter/setting type devices. I want to make note that while people are certainly entitles to their opinion; it is my opinion that anyone who claims these aren't suitable for Studio or Live work.....are of the "everything sucks but Ford's" ilk.
That is to say..NOTHING will convince such lamebrains!

Sound Quality= FABULOUS! I am a recently retired Music Producer who was listed in the Major Recording/Music Industry throughout the 90's with a Retirement listing in 00'. I have been listed in the following:
MIX-(Studio Directory), RECORDING INDUSTRY SOURCEBOOK-(Studio's East,
Producers/Engineers, Artist Management, Mastering Facilities, Sound for Film etc. Invitee: Who's Who in Pop Music 96' etc, etc. In short,
I have a thoroughly qualified opinion and it's thus. I have personally
wowed various Artists/groups, musicians with what the Zoom 9002 can do
especially when some of their "effects units/stacks" costs many thousands of dollars and the 9002 new was $450.00. I have used it on many recordings and live.....NEVER a complaint.

I HAVE used the 9002 without backup, can thoroughly depend on it and have continued to list it among my all-time favorite and dependable
units.

In the early days.....there was virtually no support (young Company-Japan based) but things have come a LONG way since 13 years ago!

My overall rating for the 9002 is a 10++. I play ALL styles, am a multi-instrumentalist (11 instruments), have been playing (guitar) for
41 years and have bought, borrowed, leased or used most everything out there at one time or another.....& the 9002 NEVER let me down. Don't believe the old addage: "You get what you pay for" as it's Companies like ZOOM, FOSTEX, ALESIS and a host of others breaking new ground with new technologies at AFFORDABLE prices. To be rather blunt:
ANY guitarist who honestly believes that all the guitar Companies making "lightweight" guitars (so you won't hurt your itsy-bitsy poor little shoulder-HELL a good strap is all you need!) made out of SMART woods etc-are in the league of the REAL thing, but allow yourselves to be BRAIN-WASHED due to budget constraints...are still only fooling yourself. Save up for the REAL thing and get a GOOD/padded guitar strap!!

It's very user-friendly...

Great especially when you don't have expensive guitar....

except the battery, the whole unite functionally properly all the time.

??? how can they help you???

Just would like to share the expensive of how to made a battery replacement yourself.

1. use four standard AA rechargable battery 1.25V/1250mA.
2. bond them together by wire the + - + - + -.
3. use the plastic tape to tight them up firmly.

It just cost you US$6.00 to get it done. Hopefully, it helps.

It's not difficult to understand the manual while the LCD display also enables you to make the configuration change easily.

I've no comments on this part cause the sound quality is not bad expect the distortion not powerful enough, but it's not likely someone will use it on the stage as the control/handling is difficult when you're preforming on the stage but it's excellent for home practice.

it's reliable except the battery.... but I've found a way to make an replacement for it... simply just tight 4 x AAA rechargable battery together, bonding with copper board to chain the + & - together. IT works....and 4 x AAA just fit the origin battery place and you don't need to make any alternation.

NIL, cause the product was discontinoued.

As all have described, the unit has great sounds and is light years ahead of the Rockman from which it probably took it's lead. But I will agree on the battery situation. Thankfully I only paid $130 after trading in some junk I didn't need. My unit was listed as a Special Edition on the Red border around the LCD and didn't come with the Guitar Remote Controller R0002 but I did get the Foot Controller at the time. I know that a new model was produced later than mine called the Pro with updated patches and also additional user patch slots. I believe it was a 40/40 on the Pro and a 20/20 on my edition or the first edition. I wouldn't mind getting that updated firmware for it but I don't think the unit is supported in any fashion in Japan or here in the US. After this experience, I would be very hesitant in buying anything from Zoom again. Many are interested in a manual, As far as a manual goes, one can be downloaded from the Japan website if you have Acrobat Reader installed on your PC. Go to Zoom.co.jp and click on manuals on the Home page.

As listed the sound quality is good and reminiscent of the sounds of the late 80's, early 90's sounds.

The battery is the reliability issue I think with most users and I had to replace mine once when it was available. It didn't last all that long and was around $25-$30 to replace. I was hesitant when buying my 9002 new because the battery was propritary in design and we all know the way that works.

Help from Zoom Japan is not available only from the distributer in your country. In this case Sampson Technologies or Sampsontech.com. The Zoom logo of "catch us if you can" really holds true when trying to contact a real voice at Sampson Technologies for assistance. I called for 30 minutes straight using the re-dial functon (as the line disconects when no one answers the line)until I finally got a real person on the other side and was told the battery is no longer made. I logged onto the Zoom website in Japan(Zoom.co.jp) and they state with appologies that the battery manufacturer has indeed discontinued the battery. So where does that leave us ?? Like all who own one, I'm looking for a replacement if possible.

It was great for what it was designed for "a silent practice device". I would love any information on obtaining a replacement battery for it. See my Internet address - Thanks

Small strap mountable. Pretty ease of use, No manual - purchased used.

Sounds are ok.

Unit over all is reliable but like everyone else has said the battery is junk. And nobody can seem to find a replacemnet.
I think i may have found a few places for battery BT-0001.

http://www.mouser.com
part # 547-PS-605
amount $ 13.00 each
With the same size, type, and power.
I do not know if it will work i have not recieved it yet. The reason i say that is because i'm not sure if the connectors will line up correctly.
or
http://www.ibt-power.com/Btseries.html
I couldn't find a direct comparision but it's worth a try.

Out dated.

If anyone has a manual or even better an electronic copy of the manual please contact me. If you are interested in the battery i recommended please email me and i'll let you know how it worked for me. Well that is after i receive it.

Bought my unit new in '90, don't know firmware, has not been upgraded, modified, or otherwise altered.

The interface easy to figure out, with or without the manual. Patches are easy to select and customize patches with cursor navigation buttons and sliding parameter bars. No unneeded buttons, basically select, mod, save, cancel. No confusing deep navigation menues or screen selections, a very straight forward design.

One set of preset patches five major banks (0-4) selectable only on main unit w/ four patches(1-4) each selected either with remote or unit, make for 20 preset patches. Plus and additional 20 patches that are user definable (easy to return to factory defaults). Makes for a total of 40 patches, not bad.

Display uses the early LCD screen technology from the late '80s. No backlighting and no brightness switch, but surprizingly it is not hard to read. Make sure you have a pen light handy if you use it in a dark setting. Patch selections have red LED indicators so it is easy to see which patch is selected from the current bank.

Remote control is a nice touch. Only four buttons to choose one of four patches from whatever bank is selected on the unit, each button has an associated red RED. Depending on the instrument I use I would either have the remote velcroed to my breast, or instrument. This way I don't have to stop and muck with the unit to change patch selections.

Little more about the effects. Hope this helps for those who don't have a manual. Up to six effects effects can be mixed together and stored in any of the 20 patches. Effects are displayed on the screen. It really is pretty easy to select and mix effects.

Guitar Effects -
(COMP) Compression,
(DIST) Distortion,
(EQ) Equalization
Modulation Effects -
(PITC) Pitch shift,
(PHA) Phaser,
(FLA) Flanger,
(CHO) Chorus
(DEL1) Delay 1 -
# of echos
Reverb Group - (only one of the following can be selected
(DEL2) Delay 2 (# of repeats)
(REV1) Reverb 1 (large hall, longest reverb 4000ms)
(REV2) Reverb 2 (small room, longest reverb 160ms)
Special Effects - (select only one pattern at a time)
(1) Step
(2) Cry
(3) Metallic

The 22 page manual is layed out very nicely and easy to follow. A quick read with everything you need to know on how to care, feed and operate the unit.

A 12 page patch paramter chart is provided with all the preset bank, and default user bank. Good for the geeks who want to know the parameter settings. It'd be easy to duplicate the format to use for customized patch settings.

I have used this with differnet styles of instruments with totaly different sounds. In all cases the sounds have been good.

Etherwave Theremin - gives a richer almost haunting sound. Since this is a touchless instrument the effects can be very subtle but helps to make the theremin forgiving and more rewarding. The special effects, which sound silly with guitars become quite effective here.

Chapman Stick - Sound is good with any settings. As a hammer instrument effects are not as pronounced unless I notch up the sensitivity.

Steinberger Guitar - This is where the 9002 struts its stuff. It was designed for an instrument that is going to have a sharp attack, be it pick or pluck. Special effects are rather silly sounding here and vendor could have done better.

Sound has always been excellent for me no matter what I've played it through. Very clean with no added noise. Played it through Crate amps of one type or another.

I have the same complaint as everyone else. Battery burn is a bitch. Bought it new and dealer mentioned unit doesn't charge batteries very well, even had someone who could fix the unit for me if I wished. Didn't take him up on it. Stupid me.

Unit itself has been very reliable. Only functional issue is a brief pause (less than half a heartbeat) when selecting between patches.

Has a very nice feel to it. Even though it is plastic it doesn't feel cheaply made, very durrable. Dropped it once on a hard floor, didn't seem to bother it at all.

Other than the battery issue I've had no problems.

Never had to deal with the company.

Bought the 9002 almost on a whim. Didn't know much about it at the time. Store owner recommended it to me. Hooked it up and I was sold. Never regretted buying it.

Taste in music: rock, alternative, progressive rock, fusion, jazz.

Haven't really played much in about a year and was going to sell the 9002. Checked it to make sure it still works. Couldn't stop playing with it then and realized I'm not going to part with it, even if I'm not gigging or recording. Too nice of a tool.

The display and button layout makes a lot of sense. Everything is right where you need it.

I like its compact PDA size.

Battery death is the biggest annoyance. Since they don't seem to work anyway and it takes up over a 1/3 of the unit they could have dropped it from the design and made it even smaller.

The on/off button is tiny. Would rather have a rocker switch or push button something you can easily see and feel.

Don't like the slight delay when selecting between patches.

Volume switching between patches can be annoying. Most of the pre-set patch firmware volumes are different so when you switch patches the volume will jump up or down IF you touch the volume slider (so don't touch the slider). Really don't know how they could have designed around this since the slider is a physical switch and the firmware isn't. Alternatives would be to have the volume jump as soon as you switch patches, which would be more annoying, or to not have pre-set volumes, which would be worse.

Yes, I would replace it if stolen or lost.

really easy to use!
the manual is ok

The clean sound is good.
chorus, flanger , delay are ok.
distortion is crap.
special effects (sfx) are funny.
NOT FOR CRUNCH.
All you SRV/Keith Richards/vintage tone fans look for anything else

Never use it for a gig.
It's more like a practice/home recording unit
The battery deads very fast!
There is a second of delay between patch change

If it were stolen or lost, would you buy it again or get something else? NO.
Pro musician playing for 17 years.
I use Fenders (teles and strats),Marshall and Fender amps and a lot of Boss pedals.
I don't need (nobody needs) a ZOOM 9002 on stage or studio.
It's a practice and home (no professional) recording tool.

It works very well. This unit is a replacement for one that I sold years ago. I don't have the manual however, I remembered how to use it.

When I bought the first one I had a difficult time trying to use it at the first live gig that I took it to. I gotta tell you...using it through my roommates high quality stereo was the best thing that I ever did. I used some RCA adapters and the sound in the house was like heaven. I was playing in an acoustic band at the time...just the singer and I. The sound improved our sound tremendously. So many options. We never needed anything else...just the two of us, a guitar...and a ZOOM 9002. I had the foot pedal and that was pretty cool. Remember...my outstanding rating was through a stereo! Not live shows...just practice...and recording.

I never had a problem out of the original or the replacement. I gave up on it for live performances...you can't have everything...

N/A

I'm a rocker. Works great for practice...I used to take it everywhere.
My replacement one has all the problems mentioned by others...no battery charging...yadda yadda yadda. I have and would replace it again...in a heartbeat!
You can't beat it for sitting around writing music...I use it through the guitar in on the "DR-5 Rhythm Section". The best home recordings that I've made were with this set up. I'm a professional musician and I have all the cool guitars (Les Pauls, Strat, etc etc.) rack mounted effects and Marshal Amplification. When I'm sitting around jamming it's much easier to just flip the switch on and jam through headphones.

I've used other 'stomp' boxes in the past and this one didn't take long to figure out. Don't have a manual, but would love to get my hands on one just to learn what the manufacturer intended.

Having good quality, low noise cables really makes all the difference in sound. Some of the pre-defined patches seem a bit week and a couple of the sliders seem a bit dirty. Adjusting them slightly helps. I'm using a LP studio with DiMarzio Humbuckers running into a Fender Deluxe amp. It's noisy on the clean side, but when I switch to the gain channel and turn the amps gain down, it works great!

Haven't had it long enough to take it to a gig, but I did resolve the battery issue so it's not going to be an issue now. Write to me and I'll tell you what I did to resolve the problem.

Wrote to Zoom.jp and got a response fairly quickly. They made the suggestion about the battery alternative.

I play 70's, 80's rock, some jazz fusion and some heavy metal tunes. I've been playing for over 10 years now and yeah, i'd replace it if I lost it. I like having something light and easy to take along. Plus it works great for running into my Tascam 4 track.

Fortunately I bought one when they first came out so I have the manual (two of them with the cards that show preset #'s and descriptions of sounds for each) even though it's so easy to figure out anyway. I bought another complete unit ( from Ebay auction) just to make sure I'll always have one.

Straight to my sound card or through my Fender Blues Deville. The sound is great through the soundcard with the built in amp simulator. Here it here:
http://www.mp3.com/thebluesking

I dropped it once and it became intermittent. In general, a prety tough unit for a plastic housed item.

Once I found out who serviced them, I got it taken care of in a reasonable amount of time by Samson. A bit expensive though.

Various styles from blues to heavy metal. Been playing for over 30 years. I already bought an extra so yeah I'd replace it if lost or stolen. Easy to use, great presets / sound quality/ options ( headphone use / output options / i.e. stereo / mono. All in all a fine unit for the money!

Simple to create various effects

I use a Gibson The Paul and zoom through a Mackie PA system. It sound excellent, not very noisy, had it 12 years and only problem apart from the battery is it noe takes about 1 hour to 'warm up'

I have always depended on it without backup, but am now getting worried as it does seem to be near expiring

Never used customer support but have emailed with the problem

I have tried other FX pedals recently to try and find a replacement but can't find anything reasonably priced with as good a sound. Has anybody else had the same problem? I use it three times a week, gigging, and when I plug it in there is no sound, ten minutes or so later it makes a sound like a jet plane overhead which gradually rises in pitch for about an hour until it goes out of range and then becomes useable !!

it is perfect

not bad

i had to modify it a little

?

i really solved the battery problem
i had to cut the internal (L) board to provide additional space to a 5th battery (rechargable ) 1.2*5=6 volts
and i added an fm mic to it and i think it's a peace of work now

Very easy to set up and get very USEABLE sounds.

I use a Kramer and a Strat through a fender twin and a fender hotrod deluxe. This unit is just amazing, I have been using it live and in the studio for as long as they have been around ( ten years? ). I have tried many other effects devices and never found one that has the sound that the 9002 has, even at 5 times the price.

Once while on tour, my twin died so I went direct with the 9002 and liked it so much that I used it that way for two years! I would constantly get other guitar players coming up to me asking what I was using and they would stare disbelieving at this little thing. One of these guys was the sound guy touring with ELP, who just loved my guitar sound. In my opinion there is nothing that can compare to the distortion of the 9002.

I had my first one when they were new and had it on the road ever since. It looked like hell but always worked. It was stolen about a month ago, so I bought a new (used) one on the internet. I always depended on it and never had a backup.

Never had to deal with them.

I play everything depending upon who I'm playing with, so Vince Gill to Metallica. I've been playing for 26 years, 20 of those professionally on the road and in the studio. It WAS stolen and I DID replace it.

Absolutely the best effects unit I have ever found. I will stockpile these things now so I always have one.

I just wanted to share my opinion after reading some of the other reviews here, where some people didn't care for it and said it sounds like crap. I understand that everyone will have their own opinion of what sounds good, but start out with a good sounding guitar/amp combination and develop your own sound creations with thing and it will pay off.

Very easy to use. Easy to edit patches due to lack of unessesaary parameters.

As said by so many others - useless through an amp, great through headphones. More than this though, indispensible in the home studio - you can get a great sound quickly. Sits in the mix well, you can spend hours miking up your amp, but the Zoom often sounds better. Distortion sounds ARE samey - but good for a general 'rock' sound.

These are the most droppable items ever made - because the lead weighs more than the unit. Mine has crashed to the floor dozens of times and had a hole burnt in it with a soldering iron - but it still works. Had to change the power socket though. A friend has one that died.

My friend with the dead 9002 said they quoted him a really stupidly high price to fix it.

Wouldn't be without it for recording. Don't buy one for gigging unless you play through a PA. Wonderful piece of kit.

I'M WORKING ON THE ELECTRONIC VERSION OF THE MANUAL (ZOOM DOESN'T HAVE THE MANUAL IN PDF FORMAT, AT LEAST I DONT KNOW WHERE OR WHO,
I WOULD TANK TO EVERYBODY WHO ARE INTERESTED TO SEND ME ANY INFORMATION CAN BE CONISDERED VITAL OR INTERESTING TO INCLUDE IT AND MAKE IT PUBLIC FOR EVERYBODY

also if you know some valuable preset setting or trick why not!

the biiiiigggggeesstttt problem of the unit is the battery all we know
im working on an adaptation from a cellular telephone and other things in between, i will publicate all the info when i finished but if somebody else is working around let us know.

i just said i don't pretend substitute ZOOM or stole credit only i would like we to share our acknoledge and experience concern to 9002 from and to its own users, i will make myself main responsable for the information requested.

easy enough to get a multitude of different sounds. I spent many hours coming up with all kinds of overdriven tones.

Sounds killer in headphones, direct to a recording console or to a stereo. I couldn't get a good sound with an amp either. Maybe a solid state amp might work well, I dont know. The clean presets are nice but the overdriven ones blow. I got fantastic overdriven sounds by making my own settings. I like a short delay to fatten the tone. The chorus, delays and reverb are top notch. The compressor is good only for clean settings. The pitch transposer is great for laying down bass tracks with a regular guitar. The EQ is very usable. Just takes a lot of fiddling but a great tones are findable in this unit. The headphones sure could be louder. I plugged into a stereo so I could get louder headphones. The EFX feature sounds cool but is rather useless. I think Zoom could have done something better there for sure. Again, I really liked this thing for recording. Great sounds for guitar, bass and vocals and the unit is very quiet if you use the compressor properly.

The recharable battery is an issue and now the unit does not work at all. I think there is something wrong with the input jack or the input circuitry. Haven't played the thing in 5 years because of it. bummer...

Never tried to deal with these people.

When you consider all the different effects this unit offers and all the features such as the remote controller, recharger, battery, headphones and various output jacks oh, and the great sounds it offers I would say the unit is rather inexpensive.
A little about me is that I have been playing lead guitar for about 25 years. I have a 76 Les Paul, 1964 Stratocaster, 84 Custom Shop Jackson, 4 early 70s Marshall half stacks, a few vintage Fender and Gibson amps and a zillion old pedal. I also have had a home recording studio for 15 years. So I know tone.

If you want to control more than one bank at a time you must have the Zoom on the front of your strap just above the neck, playing with two cables running around your shoulders. Well, it's not really comfortable.
Different you set max 4 patches.

Great if used with headphones .....playing all night

Bought it more than 10 years ago, still works. Batteries are not reliable.

10 years ago a revolution

Very easy to use and gets a great sound. I like the patches I made much better than the presets. Wish I could actually delete many of the presets for more of my own stuff.

Fender Strat and Fender Deluxe Reverb Amp.

Battery died long ago. I stepped on it and a few other things, still works.

Bought it brand new for 600.00 about 10 years ago??? Got it the first week it was out I was so impressed. Sorry to say, I am in the process of getting something new now (not ZOOM either). But I may keep the ZOOM for dinking around at home.

Very easy to use.
Very reliable.

Profesionnal. Can be used as send effect for other instruments. The reverb is very good for voice recording.

The only problem is the battery.
This box cannot be used anymore as when it was new.

I ve tried to buy a new battery from a shop in Switzerland (HappySound - Lausanne). They sold me an old one for the price of a new one!

9

this is not a pedal . it's more like a headphone amp w/h effects , tuner & a metronome .

it's very easy to use . just press your bank and then the no's 1 or 2 or 3 or 4 . when you want to tweak or create something for yourself , then the manual comes into play and even then it's still easy .

i don't know if the 9002 sounds artificial or digital but it sounds good enough for me when i didn't have the funds to get an amp and effects .

i have played it through amps ( fender , peavey , etc ) and they sound good enough but maybe not for the " purists " who prefer tubes over anything .

there is that pause when switching between pedals .

like the other reviewers - the battery issue is really an issue . it dies really fast and then you gotta to use the wall wart and after a while you just use the wall wart .

besides you cannot stomp on it like a pedal - so if you're a soloist , this is not it .

dropped it before and it still works . i think zoom is good at making plastics last as long as metals .

this is what happened . bought 1 or 2 years before 1994 . it worked fine . 1998 - didn't touched the guitar and so i didn't touch 9002 .

a year or so later - picked up the guitar and tried the 9002 . couldn't see the LED's and no sound . put it back under the bed . this year , took it out and the LED's came out and everthing came out fine except for the volume knob . when you turn it to maximum you don't actually get the max but when you decrease it a bit then you get the max output .

just sent it in for repairs .

if your'e a soloist or the lead player , maybe this is not your option .

this is a good starting point for multieffects or no amp or portability or a practice tool .

for the price when it first came out - it's unbelieveable . i just couldn't believe the price when i first tried it out .

very easy to use, light and compact, no problems with drops, hits even rainy days onstage outside wanderfull!, very intuitive interface and programing steps, the patches are so sensitive i had few details with but no matter, containts metronome and tunner, very handly, better if they would added an indigo display and night location buttons, if you are figer faster you can change effect parameters in real time! ( thats not a joke)

interesting sound arsennal, you can go from simple folk or jazz to heavy metal and grunch, i like progresive and found my own sound on it, the distortion color is good, but the EQ is less than i hope, you better use your amp onboard, i taste it with two jcm900 rack version preamps and a peavey CS800 as power monster, supports a wide variety of guitars and bass, yamaha, jackson, hammer, gibson, fender, and fernandez, my favorites are a standard gilmour strat, an a kirk hammet jackson, for bass i like metalic bright sound cord, so i taste troug a steinberger spirit and even a yamaha rbx260 and really works but also you can run it trouhg a cris squier rick's edition and hope that works without change the sound identity.
i drove them trough a wide variety of enclosures and no problem to change the sounds color, headphones are very good, but normal out sucks, too noisy and lacks of power sound, thats why i use it trought headphones to drive in the marshalls, the sfx secction is pretty! to create new sounds, however yo have tow delays or two rebervs or a combination but no 4 effects at once, too bad boys, you should have finished what you started.
in general good effects, pitch kill, no much control over compresion,but ok, too much factory presets

few delay with patch selection, i bougth it with the batery dead so i use the AC adapter no problems, but the cord is too short to use with AC and put into the strap, the turn on/off switch is too small and fragile so you should avoid run over stage like van halen with this poopy into the strap

never used

it meet my spectatives about a multiefect, i had been playing guitar and bass for 20 years from pop, rock, jazz, acid, punk, new age and progressive, is less noisy than my boss units, have also a GSP7, and a FX500 and an ART ECC, i wouldnt change it, is confortable, and pretty sound, but never use it trough the normal output use headphone out

I got it used for christmas in 2000. had figured the whole thing out in 20 minutes. Really straight forward, even with no manual. Enjoy the remote thing, usually have it taped to my guitar or wrapped around my strap.

Running it through a beginners set-up. Lotus strat mock up kustom KLA-10 practice amp. Adds a whole new sound to that amp. Even better with the ear phones. now a days, I'm pluggin my CD system into it, which has helped my playing by leaps and bounds. The distortion sucks, I still use a DOD grunge pedal. Have to switch all the effects off to make my 535 crybaby wah sound half descent, or run the wah after it in my effects chain. when tweaked corectly, you can get some kilelr stuff out of it. I also like the pitch shifter, can give you a half step down tuning, or even a bass synth. still trying to tweek out a 12 string sound though.

Don't like the fact that the battery sucks. I always have to use the adpater. I would gig with it, but ONLY if theres more than one guitar. The delay on the patch jumps would create too much of an holed sound. Planning on taking her for a spin when I go performing wiht my band next time. Would still bring my other pedals though, jsut for good measures. (If anyone wants to help me on a battery search, PLEASE e-mail me: minusleafclover@hotmail.com)

Kinda p.o.ed at the company. I wrote them a few times about the battery and it's inability to charge. They gave me some run-around about having someone contact me and other stuff. Not much happeneing. They've moved on to bigger and better things, so oh well.

I really do like this. If your a beginning guitar player,a dn you can find one of these, purchase it immediately. They're real inexpensive since they're so old, and they can make your tone soudn a little better. If your someone whos been playing for 10 years, and has a huge set-up, consider one of the newer products. They've evolved from what I've heard. I'm into all kinds of stuff, from acoustic picking around a campfire, to praise songs at my church, to headbanging ear-blasting metal thrash parties at my house. I paly anything from Creed, metallica, linkin park, nirvana, jimmy buffet, hendrix, satriani, maybe throw in a dash of country. it's mostly metal though, and hard rock. This is a prety versatile little device, and I take it all these places now. i'm really looking forward to borrowing my friends pig-nose, and seeing what I can do totally portable. I'm also going to give it a test play and an old '63 vibrolux tube amp and see what it can do there.

You need the manual & some practice with it, but it does a lot for a small, inexpensive device...the unit has built-in distortion, delay, flange, chorus, octave, & some wacky stuff! Also metronome & pitch for tuning by ear. Effects can be added (double delay etc.) which is nice.

I have used with headphones (uncomfortable but beats the old Rockman!)and Peavey amps (works OK). Now I use with small powered computer speakers, very nice low-volume practice setup! I play UFO, Cheap Trick, Metallica...no problems with distortion etc.

The battery fried out soon after I bought it, so I run it only on AC adapter. No other problems at all.

No need to contact them for any reason.

I think this is a most impressive device, perfect for travel. Don't know if I would use it live, it does not lend itself to quick patch-changes...later Zoom devices with floor pedals would be better. For dinking around, it is pretty darn good!

The unit itself is fairly easy to use. Editing patches is fairly easy but its importing a preset patch to a user pathc that's a bit more challenging if you didn't go through the manual first.
Manual is okay, although it lacks the professional touch from, say, a Boss/Roland product.

Sound is somewhat too digitized. Presets are mainly distortion-oriented. I am using it on a Peavey Bandit 112 amp and it sound good, thanks to the built-in preamp that the 9002 has. Once you tweak the user patches you can have killer sound from it. the SFX option is totally useless unless you like goofing off with sounds.
Practicing with headphones cannot be beat with this little marvel.

This is the second Zoom 9002 I've owned so far. The first on I had fell so many times, it isn't even funny. Still works A-1. I sold it to a fried of mine that still has it. I kinda regreted selling it so I got another one.
Although its not made of metal like Boss products, its extremely durable and will last for years on end...

So far, I checked on their site for a PDF owner's manual and it wasn't listed. I e-mailed them today. We'll see if they give promt replies.

I play mostly heavy metal and alternative for 10 years or so. The Zoom's presets are okay but with serious tweaking, you can emulate almost any guitar sound in the likes of Metallica to Korn. The fact that it is walkman-sized is great when you travel alot with your stuff. For practicing with headphones, this baby is great.
Playing onstage, I'd suggest the Boss GT-3. Its the same price the Zoom 9002 sold for when it was still available. What I dislike about the 9002 is the small delay when swithching patches. Luckily when playing with the whole band, its not as noticeable as when you practise alone. If you find one used, I recommend it, but keep in mind this is a 10 year old product and there are better units available out there now.

Very difficult if you don't have the manual

Sound quality for me was from best to worst, 8 for practice through headphones, it's not a bluesman's thing but, it has some cool variations. 6 for recording. I'd hoped for better. 3 for playing into an amp, bogus!!! changes the entire character of a tube amp, and not for the better.

I don't know anyone whos killed one yet would be a ten if not for the battery expect 5 years out of it but possibly less if you let it sit without using it

never tried

Soft acoustic, thrashing rock, blues, blues fusion, sometimes electronic music. don't pay to much the prices have come way down

Very easy to figure out as everyone has already said. I like the different things you can do.

Thru an amp it proobably takes a certain kind of gate add on with the 1/" jack, but if you use both the headphne PU's in a y config like the guy above said, it's un-beatabe. I like to think of a guitar cord as a big antenna and boy does this guy give a big antenna but with the little cords it's positively tits.

Iv'e miswired the cables, dropped it you name it and it still works.

n/A never even called them

For an all in one processor it's a great value!!

dead easy to use. takes only minutes to figure it out.

pretty awful if used through an amp - the distortion and compression are particularly horrible. however, through headphones sitting on the couch it sounds great.

the battery failed after about 3 months. now the whole thing has croaked - i think due to problems with the ac adaptor. about to have it fixed though, as it's been knocking around with my guitars for about 8 years.

havent dealt with them yet - hope they can get me a battery.

fun little unit. though it must be very out of date now.

This is a fun little unit. When it came out, one reviewer referred to it as "Darth Vader's Codpiece." My friends call it "Satan's Walkman." I have lots of fun with it. Once I organized the user patches into useable banks, so I can just progress back and forth without much trouble. The presets are OK, but too many distortions. Easy to use, I figured it out in a day, but it's like golf...you can pick it up fast but it takes a while to master. I strap it onto the handle of my amp with a velcro watchband.

It's noisy for amps. However, it's been great with my four-track, especially with the stereo outputs. The presets are OK, but it's pretty easy to set up custom ones for recording.

It's reliable, except the battery is really a chunk of aluminum or something. It doesn't hold a charge. I bought new ones (about $25 at GC in 1997) and they lasted for a while. Now I just plug it in. I'd use it on a gig.

Never had to contact Zoom about this guy, but it is old and discontinued.

I found out that when I first plugged it in, it was relatively simple to operate. The manual is ok, but the factory presets are not the greatest. Also editing is not a long process either.
I also made a foot switch controller out of the remote control with is really cool. I got tired of trying to fumble around with the correct band or setting I was on,,,but with the footswitch, it makes the difference.

I am running a Peavey Supreme through a marshall 800 4x12, along with a Fender strat and it sounds pretty good. I have found that the more distortion and compression I tend to get a lot of feedback. Also the low end lacks some drive. But I can reproduce many different sounds from it.

The only trouble I had with it was the power inout plug from the adapter. I had to wire a new one. Other than that no problem in the 2 years I have owned it.

I never had to deal with customer support yet?
Knock on wood.

Over all I like the product. But like I stated earlier, the foot controller is the key.
If anyone had the need for a foot controller, feel free to give me shout and I could assist in building one, or I could build you one for around 65.00 plus shipping.

Very intuitive. It took me less than a day to get the hang of it. Really, there aren't that many buttons to mess with. However, after 6 years of use, I'm still coaxing new sounds out of it. Most of the presets are silly, but give a good idea of how you go about combining effects to create your own patches. The manual is clear and straightforward and has a nice blank graph to write down cool settings you stumble upon for later use.

I run both a standard Strat and a Chapman Stick through this unit, and got good results with both after some tweaking, and especially after I put a wah pedal into the mix. This has actually been my main processing tool for the past 6 years, and I still think it's an amazing little doodad once you get past its obvious limitations. It can actually give you some truly nasty distortion and tons of sustain if you caress it right. The chorus, flange, and phaser are a joke on their own but can add nice color to an existing patch. I love the delays, especially the fact that you can have two delays happening at once at different speeds(even if it does max out at 1 second). Cool. The pitch-shift is surprisingly good, and serves as a base for some of the wildest sounds I've produced. On the downside, heavily-distorted patches tend to make a lot of noise, and there's a brief-but-irritating delay when you change patches. As for the reverb, stick with the one on your amp. And I never found a use for the ring-modulator, wah-simulator or synth effects.

The unit itself is quite rugged; 6 years and it's never failed me once. All the buttons, lights, and sliders still work fine. However, the rechargable battery system is very poor; the battery stopped working after about 6 months, but I usually just let the device sit on top of my amp anyway, so there was no real need for it. The little remote was pretty crummy and didn't last long either.

I would certainly use it at a gig without a backup. In fact, the thought that something would go wrong with it never entered my mind!

Can't say, I never had to deal with the company.

My current forte is experimental Stick-based stuff; think Fripp, Belew, David Torn, etc. I do lots of real-time looping, and rely heavily on the ability to access lots of different timbres. I suppose the Zoom 9002 isn't really ideally suited to this style but, like I said before, over 6 years I've created some surprisingly bizarre sounds with this little thing, and a lot of guys I've played with told me they didn't expect to hear such wild sounds from it. Plus, it's cool that I can fit the 9002, a wah/volume pedal, 2 sampling pedals, and all the wall-warts and cables I need, into a standard briefcase. That's really nice.

If it were stolen or lost at this point I'd use it as an excuse to move up to a Boss GT3 or some Digitech or ART floor unit. But it did take 6 years for me to really feel that I'd outgrown the Zoom. Considering its size and its relative cheapness back in 1994 it's amazing that it does everything that it does, and I can easily forgive the limitations.

It takes a lot of fiddling but it gets there.

i am using a 40watt pro amp(cheap amp but for the price it is exellent) on a cheap odessa strat. the compression is very noisy. it takes a lot of the meat out of the clean sound and it sound awful when using a pedal the distortion is very weak for what i want but good for a beginer.

no pobs yet

haven't needed it

i play grunge punk metal(black sabbeth ect) & blues
i'v been playing 4 years.
i love the delay the destortion could be a bit basser
if it were stolen or lost i'd buy a marshall jackhammer

Too small display. But anyway, quite intuitive.

Used it for 6 years with a EMG modified strat. I think the thing works the best if you have silent pickups (humbuckers) on guitar from the start. Sounds terrible through an amp. Pretty noisy on extreme settings on the compressor and dist. Dist can be annoying sometimes, due to lack of character. This is my main box to produce BAGPIPE sounds on guitar. Compressor, Full tilt distortion, and EQ set at enhancer, plus a strong detuning in the pitch effect..it buzzes like a bee! Very weak output, and the time slack it takes to swap patches is annoying. The metronome had stronger output on the earlier models, and was weakened down to unusability on later models. Definetly a practice headphone thing. Lacks pick attack, and transients on all sounds, even if bypassed. The Scholz Rockman X100 had better pick projection. Max 3-4 effects should be used at a time, else it starts to muddying the sound too much. However, acceptable for the time being. Sounds decent through a midrange home hi-fi, but playing together with other music it tends to not cut through regardless of effects configuration. Use lower end walkman phones, those expensive ones tends to enhance that bee-buzz sounds.

Have used it on gigs. Those sliders can get gritty from time to time, so slide them up and down for a while, gets them back in right positition so one can fine tune dealy settings etc. The battery lid's poor. Have lost it so it's left open. Dropped it a few times. The jacks are prone to internal cracks since all of them are solded onto circuit board. I used it without a backup. But after 3 gigs I thought it couldn't make a decent sound that was usable, so i kept it at home for practicing purposes only.

Not ever needed. Did that soldering bit myself.

I play contemporary rock/ambient dance music. Good for Metal riffs. Has a tendency to sound the "same" no matter what. If played/recorded in studio, it sounds like "theres the other instruments" and "theres someone who laid a guitar on top of these things". It's very hard to make it BLEND. Either it's too loud, or too low in the mix. Today I would check out the alternatives (Korg Pandora etc) isntead. Favorite feature: REV2 lowest setting (close mike) full effect.

right from the start, very easy to program and copy from preset patches.

noisey, especially with compression, but workable if you take the time to play with your settings.

I've been using this thing as my ONLY effects, practice and live, and it only caused me a problem once and that was when the cord of the AC power supply had a break in it. Nothing new to those of us who chose AC over DC.

Pretty good. I just recently called them for replacement of both the input and output 1/4" jacks cause after 9 years of continous use they finally started to wear out on the inside connections. And they're sending them for free. Even shipping.

I LOVE this thing. Even though others dont seem to like it through an amp I personally have no problem with it. I'm currently using a Peavey Bandit 112 and not suffering any sound change from my other amps I've used in the past. The time delay between channel switching is the only thing that sucks but it is workable. I also own the footswitch for this paticular unit and Ive been able to time channel switching when I need it and its not noticable as long as your channel volumes are level. Even in recording. Looking to buy another one just in case for backup.

This sweet small unit is just wat i was looking for.It is very easy to get the sound that you like to. &I didn't nedd any manual to use it.the unit come with an A/C adaptor,rechargeable NiCad battery and a cable remote control.

I have an Epiphon (s-310)... but.. it is no longer an epi. I'v change the pickups to a Fender Lace sensor set and i'ts now sound better then any new strat or alike. I use a Marshall-5120 combo (70w) and the sound is very sweet and clear, just as I like it to. (and belive me I'm a SoundMan and I know a thing or two....)

The reliability of it is very good, and I'm using it on a gig (without a backup)

i'v got this unit with a small problem... it's didn't ouput... and I'v send it to the lab of the music store that represents Zoom in my country and after one week exactly it was back.

For overall, it is a great unit and it's realy match me. I love the SFX - there are few funny things there.. specialy with a delay... only the distortion is pretty weak.. I think that it will be better whith a wha-wha. I play mainly rook and blues (like Queen and Gary moor). for the bottom line.. It Is Great!