Zoom G2

Easy enough to use. Came with many manuals in different languages. Only annoying feature is multiple process assigned to the same controls. So one knob might influence mic placement on the acoustic sims, or alter the tones of the Marshall Guvnor clone or whatever.

It is difficult to bypass the pedal because the switches are too far apart to be hit with a toe-tap. You need to step on it sideways.

I use this thing as a recording interface with my laptop and predomenantly use it to record dark ambient music, for which the reverb models are useful.

However as a guitar pedal it is not so good. Firstly it is clearly voiced to make a small practice amp with a small speaker sound good, so a lot of the patches are completely mushy with no distinction. Secondly the tracking on the harmonizer functions is completely rubbish, and typically one note out of three will be harmonized with some disgusting ringmod type overtone as the processor struggles to harmonize the notes.

Another gripe is the guitar interaction. This thing is a sound modifier, so the amp models are not as versatile as their real counterparts, and one feels that the nuances of your playing style are lost, especially in distortion voices.

The Zoom noise reduction is also pretty aggressive, and on any high setting will rapidly remove the attack on guitar notes. The 'damaged gate' noise reduction setting is second only to the 'digital fuzz' setting is sheer uselessness as it seems more to ape the sounds of a broken speaker.

Oh and if you split your guitar signal before the pedal and run the pedal and the dry signal into two amps there is a slight phase issue as the pedal has a tiny delay in processing your playing.

The drum machine is ok as a glorified metronome, but you cannot put any effects on the drums and getting the drum to guitar mix nice is impossible.

Not sure. One of the microswitches is allready a bit faulty, but then Zoom pedals are always a bad mix of stuff you stomp with your put and little switches you click with a single finger. The knobs are also prone to turning one way but jumping the results the other. So if I quickly try and reduce the delay time with the first knob I find that the first turn will reduce the time, then the second turn of the knob will actually bump the delay time back up and start decreasing the time again.

Other than that no hassles.

Not had to deal with them. If it goes badly wrong I will probably sell it or keep it at the back of a cupboard or drawer.

Meh really. It would be good for a beginner guitarist who wants to hide their technical inadequacies behind digitized versions of Van Halen's Brown Sound or some obtrusive step filter, but once you hear the effects once you quickly decide which are good (delays and reverbs) and which are useless (damaged gate, digital fuzz, sample-and-hold step filter and badly tracking harmonizer).

A multi effects pedal, inexpensive and reliable. Many, many effects and distortions, amp models, basic drum machine, etc. All of these features can be tweaked niceley using 3 knobs. I have been using zoom multi effects pedals for 10 years now and this one is the easiest to use and the most useful. I wish it was easier to bypass, but since I use mine in a footswitchable effects loop, this deosn't effect me much. All other features can be seen on their website or other reviews, but I'm happy with it.

I;m not a vintage guy. I never was. I started playing guitar in the late 90's and have been very into a modern sound. That being said, I find all if these effects to be of great quality for me. My personal favorite is the Harmonized Pitch Shifter, which works and sounds great. There are more effects on here than I'll probably ever use but this pedal makes experimenting fun.

Have had it for over a year and a half and have never had a problem.

This is cheaper that buying multiple effects pedals. While not good for people who like to use multiple effects in a song, it does give you great effects if you try to keep things simple. I love this unit and would definatly get it again if lost or stolen.

The Zoom G2 is not easy to set up for first time users, however once they 'get a feel' for it, then switching between settings is a lot easier. I would have to say that the unit is 'spoiled' by too many 'useless presets' (patches). It would be good if those could be wiped, however storing favourites seems to help you steer clear of the rubbish.

I bought the Zoom G2 to to get that Fender 65 Deluxe Reverb tone and the G2 does that nicely.

I find that the guitar tone quality is spoiled when the drum machine is running, so that seems rather disappointing.

The G2 is housed in a die-cast casing, so that inspires confidence. If it broke outside of warranty it would be a pity, but at the price they are, then a new replacement is relatively affordable.

I've never needed to call them, and don't intend to. I was able to download the PDF owner's manual from the internet, so that's good enough for me.

The G2 was something I actually stumbled across. Initially, I wanted to get that classic 65 Fender Deluxe Reverb sound, so I went to a music store and saw a Boss FDR-1 on sale. I decided to read up on it on Harmony Central and many users were disappointed with the Boss, however one guy mentioned he found the Zoom G2 to be a much better unit at doing what the Boss FDR-1 did at less than half the price of the Boss! Then I read the reviews here and bought a G2. For the price, the G2 has got some great sounds and enough of the essential effects that I'd never worry about ever buying another pedal again (famous last words maybe?).

I was running the G2 into a Fender Champion 600 Re-issue, however I recently bought a brand new Princeton Reverb Re-issue for $667US, so the Champion is just a spare amp now. Although the Princeton Reverb is a great amp, the G2's sound is still very impressive on the 'Fender Clean' setting through the Princeton. I've also got a pair of Sennheiser CX300 earphones (iPod style) and combined with the G2, you get a great sound for minimum expense.

In hindsight, I probably would have been better just buying a Roland Cube 30 and not worry about the Fender Champion & Zoom. I bought the Champion for harmonica use assuming it would be OK for guitar, but unfortunately it's not a good guitar amp. Luckily the G2 was an affordable way to get the tones & effects it has.

For those who are looking to make their own sound patches, then this website might come in handy:
http://www.haax.se/manualsite/index.php?unit=G2

Bottom line: A much cheaper alternative to the Boss FDR-1.

Very easy to use right out of the box-presets are very cool. Takes some patience to edit the right sound you want, combined with whatever amp you're working with.

I only use Gibson Les Paul's and LP types, along with Crate, Roland, and Line 6 amps. My favorite amp models on the G2 are the Marshall stacks and Mesa Boogie. With the right editing you can get killer tone from Dicky Betts to Slash.

It's a great pedal for gigging/practice and recording. I used it on a cruise ship gig out in Hawaii everyday for the summer last year, for recording and practice-you can't kill it.

Piano is my main instrument and livelihood- guitar as a second instrument for 19 years and play hard rock/metal. The G2 even sounds awesome when hooked up to a keyboard using some delay/pitch shift, etc.
I really like the built in drum machine, comes in handy for teaching and writing. Picked up the Twin Tube Mayhem awhile ago, and have been using the Zoom way more. If stolen/lost I would definitely replace it again-it rocks!

Ease of use:
When you know the pedal and have read through the instructions properly it is easy to use. It features a small amount of buttons and knobs which can do a lot of different things.

The manual:
It has it all in there and it explains stuff quite easily, it has a combination of explainations and tables which are very useful.

The problem with the buttons (discussed in the reliability), if this occurs it can make it hard to use.

Rating:
It gets a 7 as it can be easy to use and is well laid out.

There are a lot of different sounds and many combinations that a user can make using all the effects. When setup properly you can make some decent sounds (which you can save as presets) which can comparable with expensive equipment (when used with a decent amp and an EQ).

Distortion:
There is a range of different distortions to choose from, some of them are pretty good but the majority of them sound to digital and 'fuzzy'. Which isn't sound many people are looking for.

Clean:
Again with a decent setup you can have some nice clean tones which sound equally good with reverb or mild chorus. Some of the clean tones are borderline disortion and dont sound brilliant.

Effects:
There are a large number of different effects to choose from and some of them are quite fun. In reality you are only likely to use few of them but you can vary each the characteristics of effect considerably which is useful.

Drum Machine:
The pedal incorparates a simple drum machine, with 30 different beats to choose from and variable timing it can be useful for keeping in time and practising.

Why an 8 rating then?
A rating of 8 high but it gets this it is able to produce decent sounds but only when setup and you siff through most of the effects and distortions.

As seen with many other zoom products of this nature, build quality can lack in important areas. With the G2 it is the 2 main buttons, the change up and down buttons which are required for changing through distortions/effects stored on the pedal.

The two buttons can stick, as in they they only change when they want to which can be very annoying and embarrasing when performing. This tends to happen after prolonged use, not neccesarily abuse to the pedal but through every day use. This deosn't go for all G2 pedals.

However the casing quite ruggid, its solid and has rubber pads to improve its ruggidness and has metal control knobs. Some plastic parts make up the pedal but its still quite strong.

Why a rating of 6?
Overall package is ruggid but the button problem unfortunately lets it down as it could be a serious problem when gigging.

I have had no experience with zoom about this product.

Who would I recomend this pedal to?

Beginners to advanced players who require a number of different effects and sound chanels who does the occasional gig. If you are gigging a lot or have more money to spend I recomend using a boss product.

Features I would improve:
I would improve some of the distortion sounds to make them sound less digital and more analogue. Replace the buttons with better designed switches.

Overall:
The zoom G2 effects/sounds need to be setup properly and you need to learn how to use all of its fucntions. Once you have come to terms with it is a good product and very good value for money when you compare it with other pedals for the price. The down fall is the button problem, however this wont happen to all G2s. You just might be unlucky.

I tend to play speed metal and classical style music on clean sounds. Although I play speed metal I tend to use a mild distortion with a small amount of hall delay which gives a nice clear and precise tone. I run the guitar into the pedal then into a seperate 8 chanel EQ which really helps bring out the sound I want and then run it into a crystal clear 70 watt speaker system or a 500 watt system.

Despite some of the flaws, when you have learned the pedal and produced your own sounds it is a good pedal. I would Recomend taking a look at the Zoom G2.1 which features a dynamic pedal as well as the two main buttons you get. The G2.1 is about 40 pounds more though and for that price you can buy a lot of other pedals. I would certainly recomend the G2 though for the money!

Any questions, please email me: oliverjenner@gmail.com

This unit is about the easiest you'll find to operate in regards to the number of effects and amount of parameter controls. A novice/beginner would surely need a couple months to become competent so I'd say it's more of an intermediate level.

I've owned a dozen processors, some of which are very complex. While this unit was incredibly easy for me to use, mastering it sadly took a few years for the simple fact that, getting usable tones from EVERY am/distortion model requires some odd EQ parameters.

I found I could get any tone style I wanted from all distortions, it just sometimes required using a lot of negative values in both EQ modules.

Modulation and time based effects are of course a no brainer. Over time you'll certainly refine patches but it's pretty easy to get a good sound from them on your initial programming.

It's a more basic unit but still doesn't qualify as a beginner's. The G1 is a very basic and fairly limited beginners unit.

The sound quality is outstanding.
It takes quite a while to really master getting the distortions smooth and refined as opposed to sharp and grainy. I appreciate both distortion tones and fortunately the unit does an excellent job of both.

The dual EQ modules are crucial for nailing sought after tones. It's also incredibly important to use the compression and bS(boost) modules to overdrive the distortion module. With these maxed, you can set your distortion at 30 while having a very clean, noiseless distortion thus eliminating the need for the noise gate.

The boost module has a tone effect ranging from 1-5. 1 gives you a thick, rounded tone, 5 gives you a slightly thin, midzy tone and an intermodulation effect desired by most players. It functions much like a tube screamer overdriving an amp.

The modulation effects are extremely close to analog. When you get the mix ratio and feedback balanced out, they give a very analog feel but of course it's not QUITE the same. That being said, it still manages to perform without the effects mutilating your notes in swirling digital goop.

The reverb and delays are great but definitely don't pass for analog. They sound great, you can get a really good blend and balance but one major issue is when you use the drum machine module, the reverb turns off. This means relying on the delay module for adding time depth.

You'll find that ultimately the way to get a smooth, fuzz like distortion that can still give metal shred is using the distortion tone control, the boost tone control and both EQ modules treble settings all in conjunction. Generally dropping the main EQ's treble to negative settings then balancing out the other 4 in relation to one another does the trick.
Some distortion modules require all the treble settings to drop into the negative values to sound good but, it enables every distortion to deliver a scooped tone, a midrange driven tone, a flat tone etc.

I beat the **** out of my first G2, it still works.
To my dismay however, it can't be powered off batteries which I've never been able to make sense of.

For that reason alone, it's of course not earning a 10.

I'd like to get the battery issue resolved but, I'm sure the cost would make it rather pointless.
Maybe they'll help me trouble shoot since I'm a competent hobbiest tech and could identify and replace the dead components but it's rare a company will do this when a repair would put money in their pocket

I've posted a couple other reviews but thought maybe this one would help users understand the versatility of the unit when the EQ's are manipulated properly and the compression and boost modules are used to overdrive the distortion module.
Some of my patches have been fundamentally the same but tweaked periodically over the last 2-3 years until reaching ultimate perfection as well as a better understanding of the unit and just how deep it's abilities actually run.

I've used the more extensive Zoom G tube models but found they were extreme overkill. Far too many modules and far too many parameter options. You will literally spend a decade perfecting patches on them thus making the units useless in many respects. My advice is stick to the G2, even if you have all the money in the world to spend.

In comparison to the competition, the only brand that can compare and compete is Line6. My Pocket POD gives some very round and smooth distortions with a richness associated with tubes but the G2 still exceeds it in countless ways. The POD also isn't as easy to use due to the interface having a limited amount of buttons.

Ultimately this is probably the best unit on the market even with the competition cranking out new designs a few times a year.

I prefer to run the unit on the clean channel of an amp with the eq of the amp set for slightly above flat frequency response. It can be used to overdrive an amps distortion but you'll find it introduces some white noise which is typical of all digital distortions when used this way. Currently it runs through my Ashdown Mini Stack and my Crate V33H all tube head. Oh and when I feel the need, I have the beat up G2 that lives in my car which I jack into the axillary input of my stereo so I'm never without when out on the road.

I own two G2's and will probably snag a third when I find one on Ebay for a bargain price. Stolen, destroyed or whatever, I'd replace it within a few days. The G2.1 is great with it's USB, expression pedal and Cubase software HOWEVER, an external, analog expression pedal plugged into the G2 allows for more range of movement. The foot pedal on the 2.1 doesn't have much range which is consistent with most units equipped with a built in expression pedal.

I'm not a salesman and typically oppose brand loyalty.
The bottom line is that this model performs extremely well and is as close to the real thing as you can get from units of this type.

The unit is really easy to use and modify/create presets. Most of the pre-programmed patches are not useful at all, but the manual is clear and easy to follow, even for newbies.

I am using it with a 2007 Ibanez GRG270 with a DiMarzio DP200 bridge pickup, modified for series/parallel and a 1979 Giannini Supersonic with individual phase switches for the pickups (a copy of the Fender Jazzmaster with 3 strat-like pickups). The G2 is really quiet, and its noise gate works like a dream, as well as the effects. The 5-second delay is really good. The chorus has a stereo option, and the other effects, like the flanger, phaser, wah and the equalizer work really well, and accept complex configurations. The pitch shifter could be better sounding, for the pedal pitch (altering the fundamental) makes the original sound of the guitar quite strange (badly distorted), unlike a Digitech Whammy (which costs lots more...). The distortions are accurate and some are very intense. The emulations, such as the OD-1 and the Fuzz Face are just like the original ones, only a bit better because we can enhance them...

I play Rush, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, Scorpions, Deep Purple and David Gilmour songs, and it is easy to reach the sounds I want, even using a transistor amp (125W RMS).

The unit looks very sturdy, and seems to endure a lot of hard work. I would use it to play live, but I would carry a lesser distortion pedal, just in case (I am a careful person), or another older Zoom 505II I have.

Once I had to repair my 505, and the folks at Zoom Japan were very helpful and friendly. For the G2, they even gave hints on how to build an expression pedal, something I had never seen before.

I am a vintage guitar player, over 34 years on the road, and I like to play hard rock, progressive, heavy metal and ballads. I also have some other old pedals, like the Ibanez Standard Fuzz, Sound ES2 Wah, Boss Turbo Overdrive, Giannini Super Fuzz, a Tube Screamer clone and some other distortion and compression pedals I built myself.

I liked the unit very much, but Zoom could work a little more on the pedal pitch. Were it lost or stolen, I would definitely buy another, maybe with a built-in expression pedal.

I have been using Zoom pedals for about 10 years now and this is by far the easiest I have ever had. I consider myself a musician of simpke tastes and this pedal is more than enough to keep me satisfied. I really don't use the amp modeling except when maybe recording some riffs to a recorder, and the drum samples and metronome are an awsome tool to have, really everything I need, but if you don't have an FX loop, I can't see you using this live.

I find the FX very easy to use and plentiful in range and diversity. I have been almost always been able to dial in the sound I want and they always sound great. I usually set a specific patch for a song and just hit the FX loop on my head when i need the effect. I used to use it with a Marshall TSL 100 but I have since upgraded to a MESA Trip Recto....the interfacing with the marshall was much easier but the result nwas ultimatley the same, awsome effects sounding great, I really have no complaints here.

This is the most well built of all the Zoom's I've played. Hasn't given me any problems and I don't see it doing so.

Haven't need them.

It really is great for what I do, and for the price i paid and how I use it...it is pricless and resourcful. I would get another one immediatly if it were lost or stolen. This little wonder probaly exposed me to so many effects at a fraction of the cost...thank you zoom.

the operation manual is there for a reason. if you dont read through it then your stupid. the knobs are very intuitive and editing patches are as easy as a flick of a switch.

i plug this pedal through a dean P series VX into a roland cube 15X. there is a decent amount of amp models and effect models for gigging, recording and practice. i can get all the metal tone i want out of this thing ( Megadeth, Testament and such). afew notable amp models in this unit that i like is the Zoom extreme distortion pedal. it has really good gain. the only downside to it is that it sounds WAY to digital and fake. the feature i hate is the gate.it takes ALOT of gain out of the sound. so that definately sucks.

decent unit. i dont think i need a backup for this. its really safe.

never dealt with them yet

basically i play lots and lots of high gain metal so this unit(especially the amp and pedal models such as peavey 5150 and Extreme distortion) is very useful. if it were stolen or lost i would get the zoom g2.1 with cubase instead.

First of all lets remember this is a $99 pedal and it has limits. I think that however it is a good pedal. It's so simple to use once you look over the manual. Editing patches involves turning the correct one of three knobs and then storing. How much easier can it get. Then you can make adjustments on the fly as easy as bending over and tweaking a knob. The manual is pretty easy and resonably clear to understand. Even if you just buy this pedal for the tuner its pretty cool. It's also great for a practice amp that's battery powered with earphones so you won't disturb anyone. It has a quick and easy drum machine where you can find a beat to jam to or try out new licks or chord patterns. Not great in variety but nice sounding and easy to adjust on the fly. After you set your guitar volume you can still adjust the drums up or down without effecting your guitar volume. Slick! Weather the effects sound good or not depends on your setup and weather or not you use amp modeling and the EQ's correctly.

Distortion is always a subjective subject. I'd say you can go all the way from way too much to way to little but in the end it's always not quite right. I think this is because it isn't very touch sensitive and therefore will always sound phony and digital. If you're playing balls to the wall it can sound fine, but if you want to use a light touch it still has the same general sound.
The delays can be made to do most things most delays do especially long delays. Many of the effects are pretty interesting.

No problem yet

Never delt with zoom but generally find there products to last resonably well if care is used.

I do a lot of studio work and I use this pedal mainly to add interesting colors. Trems, delays, echo and other time based effects mainly. Also I use it a lot to practice quietly.
There are many better pedals out there but if I only had around a hundred bucks I'd buy one again. You get a lot for the money and most of it is good.

its easy... very easy.
But, if you are a TARD... then you might not be avle to use it.
It is very simple and a steal for $100. The other guitarist in my band has THOUSANDS invested in his rig. I take great pride in making him sound like dog %$@# with my $100 pedal and a $300 crate half stack.

If you can't get an amazing tone out of this pedal then you are a idiot. Most of the negative comments on here about this product are made by stpudid kids who wouldnt have a clue how to use or adjust eq or use a real effect. The bottom line is this unit is the MOST AMAZING INVENTION EVER MADE FOR THE ELECTRIC GUITAR. The new distortions and overdrives on this pedal really steps it up to the next level. You can buy one of these pedals for $100 and have every tone imaginable. This pedal makes me feel raped for buying so many effect pedal and line 6 products.
The new extreme distortion setting is exactly like a line 6 insane setting but more raw and real

My old plastic zoom 505 is over 10 years old. I cant imagine how long this one will last considering it metal contruction.

never had to use them.

As long as you have a clear load clean channel, this pedal can create every tone on the plant flawlessly. There is a reason why many music stores do not carry zoom pedal. Because if you buy this pedal, they will not see you for a long time. Because you will not have to buy anything else. IT'S 2008...TIMES HAVE CHANGED, TECHNOLOGY IS HERE, YOU DONT HAVE TO SPEND THOUSANDS FOR TONE.

It's easy to use.

A reading of the manual is advised if you have never used a multieffect before. You can download it from the support section of the Zoom website.

It has deep enough editing to provide a good amount of adjustments, ie most actual effect pedals have 3 (or 1,2,4) knobs on them. The three parameter knobs make editing quick and simple by working just like pedals would.

The display is VERY cryptic with it's two digits. A massive improvement would be to have a display which is alphanumeric and of at least 6-8 digits. I think there should also be indicator led's showing which modules are active within a patch also. Anyway, it is what it is.

Hmmmm, without sounding overly negative I really don't like the sound quality or quality of the effects. IF you had nothing else to use then this would be fine. BUT... if you own other pedals then using the G2 equivalent of that effect is a big let down. SInce I own other individual effects and have some awareness of sounds I don't like the Zoom at all for anything.

The delay's even the EC which is supposed to be warm sound bad compared to my Belcat DLY-303 Delay. The flanger is just terrible compared to my Nady FL-10 Flanger. The wah sound when using a Roland EV-5 expression pedal is just terrible compared to my Cry Baby type wah pedal with reissue fasal inductor. So you can see where I've gone with this, I can't stand the poor quality effects this has.

I can only rate it as 1 - It sounds terrible.

Web site is great, support section is great. I have emailed them about the bypass and got a pefectly helpful and informative reply. I think they have good customer support.

Ultimately this one had to go onto eBay as I just didn't like anything it did. I had owned a Zoom G2.1u a while back just after they came out. I didn't like it much but thought maybe I would try one out again. Yeah, they suck pretty badly.

Overall Rating, to me they sound like what they cost.

They look lovely and are nicely laid out and straight forward to use. Personally I was not happy with the sound quality when bypassed, so I used a true bypass box. Then the problem was I didn't like the quality of the effects themselves. There was nowhere to go from that point except back onto eBay.

Otherwise a good product, lots of things to play with for very little money. Built in a strong metal enclosure with stylish looks.

I've been playing with multi FX processors for years, this box was easy for me to set up. I did have to refer to the manual for which amp sim was which. But i punched in some basic sounds in a few hours, and tweaked them to perfection within 2 days. you can exect a big display on a cheap unit i guess. The manual was easy to read, but after 2 days playing around i didnt need to look at it.

This box ROCKS!!! its warm and sooo clean even when extremely distored. It dosent sound digital like some other gear.

I've run it though 3 setups all sound extreamly good... a Peavey bandit 80 watt combo amp. In to my mixer with the cabinet simulator turned on, and out though monitor spekers and a sub... and my fav rig.. into a Peavey 50/50 Classic stereo tube power amp and out to stereo quad boxes, this rig screams.

The amp sims and cabinet emulators sound very good, but im not an amp conisurer so i can t tell you how realistic they sound... they sound good to my ears.

The zoom extreme distorsion screams for leads and metal, one of the best distorsions I've herd. I have it set to 30% distortion for most of my stuff.. its to driven at higher levels.. maybe some slayer at 70% drive.

It has all you basic FX's + some nice stuff like zoom noise reduction, pre amp frequeny boost ( nice for extra gain on leads ect ), harmonised pitch shifter. It also has stuff i dont use like complex delays, and reverbs for a slighty different effect.

looks like a solid box.

no idea.

I paid AU$150 for this unit, rrp is about AU$250. It sounds awesome for the money...better than my 10 year old rack mount digitech gear that cost me $2500.. I got good sound punched in in an hour and tweeked within 2 days. I'm so impressed i think ill repace my rack with a G7.

If your thinking about buying one, just get it, you wont regret it. I coulnt find anything that came close for the money.

The G1 seemed to have limmited delay settings, and the extra knobs on the G2 make it dead easy to dial in sounds. Spend the extra few bucks and get the G2.

It is easy, you just have to tweak the three knobs an listen. But don't expect too much from factory presets: overprocessed, and digital. A chimp could use this unit (after reading the manual :P)

Distorsions are crap, amp and cabinet models are crap :P Pretty much the same with all multieffects for me... I only use this for modulation and delay, and sometimes some extra reverb.
I want to tell you about the way i use it, hope it helps. I am mainly a jazz guitarist, but i like to play with effects. My pedalboard looks like this: Digitech EX-7 > Line6 FM-4 > G2. The dist (which i don't use much), whammy, leslie, etc comes from the EX-7, the filter stuff for funk comes from the FM-4 and the mod (mainly chorus) and delay comes from the G2. I wish it had a separate bypass switch (like the yamaha magicstomp), to make it more like a stompbox. But it doesn't, so I've set up the programs, so i can always reach a bypass mode (everything turned off in the program) with one kick. I keep my programs on minimal, no amp, no eq (messes up with the amp eq), just one single effect usually. So my programs go like this: A0-clean(i use a bit of stereo chorus for this too), A1-effect, A2-effect, A3-clean, and so on...
So what i have is some separate stompboxes, but programably. I can use 5 different types of delays on a concert without tweaking between songs.
10 for mod, delay and reverb and 2 for distorsions = 7 altogether.

Heard some bad things... we'll see with time.

Dunno.

You shouldn't forget, that playing with effect have nothing to do with music. It's like a programer who plays on the computer occasionally.
But this is definately a killer one! The best in its category, a must have for begginers (if they need games appart from playing the guitar). More advanced guitarist should probably have a look at the magicstomp (which i'm going to buy too, if i'll have the money), same thing but a bit more complicated and avanced.

I think that the zoom g2 is very easy to use, than other multiefects. I compare the zoom g2 with the digitech rp70, and I couldn't understand how to use de digitech.
like all the multiefects units, you have to read some pages of the manual, but just doing that you can understan how to use it.

I like the zoom g2 because it has 13 distortions, and they are very good. If you are just strating on playing guitar it has a very very good souns, but if you have some years playing the guitar, you'll notice that it's not the best sound.
This multiefect is weak on the modulations and in the auto-wah, in my opi??on. But I strongly think that the zoom g2.1u is not better because of the expresion pedal, it is very expensive!!!

I think tha my zoom g2 fell over a million times, and it is still working, like the first day.
I think that the zoom g2 is better than the zoom g1, because of that. The zoom g2 has steel switchs, and they make them using steel, and the zoom g1 is made of plastic.

I did'n have any problem with it, so I don't know

I think that you can play any style of music with it, I play blues, clasical, rock, metal and jazz, and I use my zoom g2 for all of that.

I think that you can get multiefect of the same quality, but for less price, that is the only desadvantage.

Ease of use is not le gran force of any multi effect procecessors. A couple of knobst to do all the job, it is very hard to visually get a hint of the settings. Anyway, I praise zoom for their unquestionable commitment to usability, which might be a hard job in case of this product type - I've been a zoom 505, 505/II and now G2 user, and I can see that almost all my wishes have been developed, without ever contatcing them. Ok, now you can switch it off. Battery life is ******* great! This thing can be operated by four AAs for ages. I'm greatful for its massive design, in contrary to its predecessors, as well as the four analog-like knobs, instead of the plastic moskery.
I absolutelly prefer the new grouping and sequence of effects, its far more logical and usable. The fact that i have direct access to some parameters without havingt to go to editing mode. Please note these, when you buy a product, I am a product designer myself, and i know that usability features never make it to the brochuires. Anyway, there is still place for development, luckily. For G3 I need:
-absolutelly NO harcoded factory effects (they sound terrible, but thats the lesser proble, you cannot delete or edit them at all, unlike the 505)
-one more digit for the display, please, it does not require that much space. the trouible with parameter values over 100 just makes me crazy.
-the too stomp buttons are way too far - Its a drag pressing them together for mute or tune. and add that I have big foot.
-the default volume of the drum machine is way too much. in standard settings it just ruins your amp. note that it is unable to store your last setting after restart, drum volume always starts at 100%
-what else...I'd like to handle boost separatelly, maybe group with the compressors, instead of frequency manuipulators like phase/tremolo/wah
-I absolutelly HATE knobs that turn around endlessly, without the feel of maximum and minimum values.
-it wopuld be good to have a main switch for amp/phones, they require a number of patches duplicated for different settings
-please add at least an ending command for the drum machine
I could go on, but I leave some work to the, too. Its aalready great product,absolutelly 10 for usability, which is often under estimated at this category.

>setup: fenders american standard telecaster > stomp pedal board > fender performer combo for gigging OR
more teles, squiers too > G2 > earphones/mac/soundboard/combo for practice, quick rehearsing and short gigging
>NO noise as compared to stompboxes. might use its noisegate at some extreme settings, but I try to avoid it.
>some effects sound great, and some dont. greats are:
wah, phase (somehow I preferred the previous phaser controls, tough. It sounds more of a Smallstone model.) tremolo (great) delays (absolutelly great and most versatile on the market for digital. you can run 3 delays together!) equalizer (very good feature)
overdrive (yes! I DO use its round, warm overdrive at fine settings, even with amps (only with amps, in headphones they actually sound terrible, which I cannot understand. if an overdriven guitar can sound good in a walkman, why pedals never produce good OD sounds in the ear) Cabinet modeling is very useful if you play through the line.
>crap effects: all factory patches, compressor, which is a fake, any overdrive more extreme than the OD, acoustic simalator, all the amp modeling **** that I never use, funny sounding **** like ring modulators, steps, pitch shifters etc, and I never use chorus or flanger. If I play throu amp, I always use its own spring reverb.
>I cannot really produce sounds like my favourite artists (like neil young, keith richards, lou reed) who are mostly gain wizards, rather than modulators, however, it is goood to develop my own sound.

seems quite relyable, altough i already had some problems with the stomp buttons not working in one direction. they left me in trouble at a gig, but they could be fixed with some contact sray. Now the module srcoll buttons start the same. I might as well get down to fix it again, but I would not rely on it at a gig, cause anything can happen. Two early after owning it for a year or so.

never needed. I guess they have. It would be nice if the company would publish some kind of content, patch lists and tips, like one guy did for 505. these are not usable for the G2 already. it helps learning the game.

I think this is such a great product, it definitelly reaches its target., thats why I decided to write a review on it.
I'd still not use it in the studio, it is still a practice or go and gig thing, but a very handy one. a 9, which is far above the avarage

Took a little time to learn how to change settings. But worth it.

Almost all effects are cool! With an exception of acoustic simulator. But that's still okay.

No problem!

For almost any kind of music style.

considering the number of knobs you have here (not many), it's oparation is very good. it's very vestile, and as soon as you learn how to operate it all becomes pretty intuative, but again, since you have 3 knobs operate all the effects it's a steep learning curve.

i used an american delux strat and a fm65r amp.
i only got the g2 for mods delays and reverbs, and for the most they sound surprisingly good (i didn't like the way the chorus sounds for example, not very clear). nothing amazing, but it does the job very well.
i wouldn't use the amp and distortion models for gigs, but they are very nice for practice, which for the price is actually great. the same with the wha.

the thing is this unit is very verstyle once you get to know it, if you only want some good delay reverb section, i dont think you can beat it at this price range. but if you expect the amp section to do magic you might be desapointed.

well..
mine just stoped working after about a year and a half, and i don't intend to fix it. other then that it had some minor problems before.

on the bright side it's very very raggedly built.

never used it.

it's awsome for thre price. i think that besides some tech problems it's an amazing unit for the begining guitarist, and very good for practice. for gigs it's limited- it's a verstyle and a not bad at all sounding unit if you use it for the things it does good.

Read the Manual. There are so many permutations of possibilities with the different settings available, it pays to know what it is that you're modifying when you start twirling knobs and changing settings.
Takes effort to learn how to create a patch and save it, but once you get up to speed you'll be navigating around easily. Manual is reasonably helpful.

Keeping in mind that I'm running this into a solid-state amp, my experience with it says,"The more distortion you dial in, the crappier it sounds coming out of the amp". I.e. solid state sounds like solid state when it comes to distortion. The Boost setting helps. At cranked amp volumes, I found that I really had to back off on the amp modelling gain settings.
Effects are a mixed bag. I mainly use Chorus, delay, reverb, and the above mentioned Boost. Noise Reduction helpful. Flanger effect sounds processed - I avoid it. I use maybe half of the effects available and avoid the rest, but that still gives me a good palette of things to choose from.
Favourite amp model with this is the Roland JC with some extra chorus, and delay/reverb thrown in. Was disappointed with the Vox and Marshall amp models - perhaps had unrealistic expectations about getting that Marshall sound (with an Epi Les Paul).

I've had it for just under two years. Worked great for the first year. Then, as with so many other G2 users, the foot switches started to fail intermittently. I use it to play on the church music team. Now I'm looking for a replacement.

Well, it failed after the warranty expired. I may contact Zoom - the switch problems are common and I've heard that they may do warranty support even after the product is out of warranty. If I have any work done on it, I'll do it myself or enlist the help of a tech.

I play on the church music team. Musical style varies from slow to uptempo incl rock. I use a Hagstrom Viking through the G2 into a 30W solid state amp. We mic our amps and run the sound through the PA system. Whenever I get comments about my playing, I listen for comments about my tone, as hearing yourself through a stage monitor only tells you so much. Last time out I was encouraged by how warm my tone sounded, the person commenting attributed it to the fact that I was playing a semi-hollowbody. For the price, this was a great buy at the time, it has enough functionality to keep you tweaking for ages. I wish it had the ability to select the order in which effects are applied to the signal (manual describes the order in which effects are applied). Best feature about it is that I get great clean sounds from it.
Based on it's reliability, I won't be buying another G2. But I like the functionality of this thing so much, I'm pulled to getting it's cheaper sibling, the G1, hoping that Zoom hasn't engineered the same defects into it as with the G2. Even with the amp models and effects that you won't use (too processed sounding), there are still lots of features available at this price. It's a roll of the dice on reliability.

Once you program a few patches using the manual, it becomes easy to navigate on your own. I'll still pull out the manual occasionally to remind me of a few things, but for the most part, it's pretty intuitive. It's easy to get a good sound out of it, but there are plenty of ways to get a terrible sound out of it.

You can get these for under $100 brand new, and you can usually pick them up used for around $50-$70. For that price, these can't be beat. The models are very good. Do they sound like what they're emulating? Not usually, but they'll remind you of the amp they're imitating, and they sound good doing it. For example, I have a Vox AC15. The AC30 model on this thing is pretty close to the Vox vibe, though it's definitely different. The same goes for most of the models. Good sounds, although not perfect imitations. The cleans have some character, and the distortions sound nice. Some are a little iffy, but if you can't find an overdrive/distortion sound in here that you don't like, you're obnoxiously picky, and you probably won't even look at pedals that aren't overpriced boutique boxes.

I don't really like many effects, but most of the ones included are usable. Of course they aren't as good as a dedicated stomp box, but look at it this way - a Boss CH-1 costs $90... this unit cost about the same... and the chorus in here sounds just fine. I'm sure others have pointed that out, but I suppose it can't be said enough. The chorus, tremolo, and phaser are just fine. The auto wah is okay, and the flange is passable. Other effects are really just fun to mess with, but you probably won't ever use them.

It sounds great plugged into the front of an amp. I use this at home with a Fender Blues Jr. I haven't used this for gigs, as I have a different setup that I really love, but it could be used in that way as long as you don't need to switch patches too much (there are only two footswitches to cycle through patches). You can run this thing direct into a recorder and get some pretty good tones for demos. You could even use it as your guitar sound for a real recording if you want. It's no slouch. The cab simulator isn't very tweakable - there are two mic models and mic positions, but they seem to just shift the EQ center rather than change anything. Tweakable or not, the cab simulator sounds pretty good. I haven't really tried it direct to PA, but I'm sure it would work. I have the Zoom G7.ut (which I have used direct to PA), and the G2's cab simulator is identical to the one in the G7. For a headphone practice amp, this thing is great.

No problems, but this unit stays at home.

They answer their emails fairly quickly.

I've been playing all kinds of guitar music for twelve years. If you want a fun box for practice or whatever, this is it. For gigs, you may want something a little different, but this unit has the sound quality to hold up to most gigs. As I mentioned before, I've got the G7.ut, and I'm honestly more impressed with the little G2. Give it a try - you'll like it.

OK

Guitars - Jackson, Charvel, Mighty Mite project guitars
Pick up - Ibanez's INF 4 Humbucker and based on Alnico magnet
COMBO - I don't use COMBO ! Combo = Vomit, Combo is not actual for me ! You can play "IN LINE" with ZOOM's G2 "CABI & MIC" Very nice Combo's Simulator !And I even don't want to hear from old rock losers about 'combo is wauh' I'm Modern Boy and I know better ;)
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OK, NEXT, Lets talk about FX
"CABI & MIC" is fantasic as I told You !
"Noise reduction" is wauh, very satisfied
Distortion - I like "Extreme Distortion FX" and "BG Drive"
"Auto wauh" - OK ' plus - minus' I heard much better, BUT Cabinet emulation plus distortion = OK, I can make a really 'vintage hard ' and modern sound !

Reliability = OK ! processor's quality is OK !
No one bug or problem with this ZOOM, even at the dust room

I don't know, because I don't need it

I'm Electro-Rocker 'DJ&El guitar' But I Love 'Hard Rock' And 'Hard Core' too. So this very flexible processor ! just turn handles EQ and distortion level !
Price and sounds = OK !But presets = crap !!! Hey Zoom You must invite James Hatfield or Eddie Van Halen for making new normal presets ;) If they are too busy, so no problem, I can do it ;)Think about it!And Last and I.M.P.O.R.T.A.N.T. ! "CABI & MIC" ! Very nice Combo's Simulator ! Wauh ! I don't need Combo ! Combo Good Bye ! I can play "IN LINE" and it's Amazing !!!
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I love this Guitar Processor and I don't want to lose it ;)

IT'S EASY TO USE BUT BELIEVE ME!CHANGE THE EQ AND EXTRA EQ SETTINGS IT MAKES A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE

EVEN IF I PAID $300 FOR THIS IT WOULD HAVE BEEN WORTH IT.I CANNOT STRESS ENOUGH ABOUT THE EQ.

VERY STURDY

YOU MUST CHANGE THE EQ AND EXTRA EQ SETTINGS TO GET GREAT SOUND AND YOU WILL IF YOU DO.

My first digital piece of equipment, I expected some hard times, but it's quite easy, though you may get a little confused when editing certain effects parameters.

I have a shitty samick guitar fitted with dimarzios, running through a lame brazilian made small cube (warm music, stay the fuck away from it). I'm not really a fx guy, so I can't say much about delays and reverbs, they just seemed OK to me. There are lots of useless stuff, pitch shifters and the like. You may have fun with it for a while, but, really, it's just crap.
The amp simulations, the actual reason for which I bought this unit, are quite cool, especially the MARK and JCM800.The 6 way EQ (bass, mid, treble, bass-mid, presence, harmonics) is very responsive. I avoid those ultra-gain rectifier sounds, but I've heard some interesting dream theater sounds from it in some youtube videos. Noise is tolerable, and features a noise gate as well, but, as you know, at the cost of some sustain. The tuner should be your last resource, it's quite innacurate. The drum machine is a nice feature.

Now that's the problem with this dog turd. As soon as my warranty expired, this shit went all schizophrenic. Sometimes it gets irresponsive and I can't choose any path nor edit anything. Nothing works and I only get the sound of the patch the unit was left on last time I used it. Then, a few hours later, I switch it on again and everything is perfect. There's no way on earth I would gig with it. As a matter of fact, my buddha-like level of patience and love is the only thing that stands between the g2 and a sledgehammer.

I didn't get in touch with zoom, but I may, eventually. At least to tell them to fuck themselves all the way back to japan.

That would be a very nice unit for the sound and features, but, despite it's steel case, it's nothing but a lame, fragile chinese-made crappy toy. It has a line-out recording feature, but I neve even tried it. My tip for a not so lame yet cheap guitar tone is a solid state laney, crate, peavey or whatever combo with an EQ pedal. Stay away from digital gizmos (ok, maybe a POD) and you're safe.

Pretty easy to use, other than the limitation of a 2-digit LED display. I wish that the bank switches were larger for stage use; jumping from A2 to D9 is a bit of a pain. I wish it had a dedicated bypass switch: pressing both of the Up/Dpwm buttons accomplishes the same thing, but it's hard to do with one foot when standing up. I almost bought the A2.1u for that feature (plus the expression pedal), but I like the size of the A2, and DISLIKE to puny little expression pedal that the form factor allows. An extra switch for bypass is mandatory if this is your main/only effects box, in my opinion. The display is nice and bright, and easy to read.

The manual makes it easy to get at functions, but doesn't always display the nuances of some of the settings. The built-in tuner is a nice touch. I haven't found a use for the rhythm box yet.

One of the things that I really like is how fast the unit switches from patch to patch. On many multi-EFX boxes, there is a noticeable glitch when making changes. Not so on the G2: I can change patches during a ringing chord, and it sounds like I'm using an A/B box to go between amps.

I'm using this with an Fender Tele with Rio Grande pups, an electric 12-string, and occasionally, a Danelectro '59. All of these go directly to a Traynor YCS50 upgraded with a Celestion Gold. Thus, I'm not as concerened with the "tube tone" of the Zoom box as some players might be. I like the sound of the YCS50's clean channel way better than the drive channel, and the G2 allows me to get a good crunch without losing the great bottom end.

There are a pretty wide variety of Drive models, so clean or dirty, there's probably a sound that can start you off. I rarely record direct-to-board, so I have not played much with the cabinet simulations. The effects aren't especially imaginitive, but I would expect that most players buy this box to cover the standard bases, and this box does the trick. The Vox AC30 model turns my YCS30's clean channel (with 5881's) into a very passible copy of George Harrison circa 1965, and the JCM 800 model provides either a third alternative clean sound, or a nice rhythm crunch. The Peavey 5150 has good lead-tone roots, and the "Fender Twin" model can morph into a '59 Bassman with the drive on 100 and a little EQ. The Fuzz Face makes a pretty good approximation of Satisfaction, and the OD-1 is close enough for my needs.

The overall sound is very quiet, and I don't hear any noticeable tone drain compared to a direct-to-amp connection. The delay is good, the reverb a little less so.

What don't I like? Both the Marshall Plexi and Fender Tweed Deluxe models only seem to run from pretty-overdriven to very-overdriven; there is no way to get a clean tone, other then to turn my guitar WAY down. (I mean, even the 5150 cleans up better!) The Fender Twin, on the other hand, can't get very dirty at all. The adjustment of the Flanger and Chorus are pretty limited. The Wah tone will never replace my Clyde-modded Cry Baby.

It's got a metal case that looks pretty rugged. It feels "substantial." If an '80s MXR stomp box is a 10, this is probably about an 8.5 or so. I'm not sure about the footswitches: they LOOK like old-school on/off types, but they appear to be more like a ruggedized momentary switch. I would gig with it without a backup, but I'm something of a risk-taker by nature.

I haven't had to deal with Zoom (or Samson) Support yet.

The G2 gives me access to 95% of the sounds that I need for rock gigs. (My wah and the built-in spring reverb in the amp take care of the rest.) The sound is clean and natural, and the response to patch changes is phenomenal.

Much of my critique takes the cost into consideration: This is not a top-end multi-EFX box, and obviously some compromises have been made, but generally, $100 gets you ONE effects box these days, and the G2 covers the ground of 3-8 of them. Looking at it that way, it can't be beat. If it were lost or stolen, I would gladly pony up another $90 for a new one. I also have an A2 (acoustic guitar model), so the learning curve was shared.

I considered simlar boxes from Digitech, Korg, and Boss, but I liked the Zoom's size and metal body, which is hard to find in this price range.

Not the easiest multi-effector to use, but to make it any easier, it would have to be bigger..and I don't want that.

For $100, I'm very pleased. I use this unit for chorus, vibrato, tremelo, octave divider, and a tuner..basically to replace 5 separate pedals which would make my board unweildy..that I would only use on one tune each, respectively. It's inconspicuous on my board and covers almost every base that my Boss gt6 used to. I love it.

The stomp switches are starting to fail...they had to cut corners somewhere, and it's probably in this area. The exterior are nice looking metal switches, but I'm sure what's going on inside is corner cutting.

Overall satisfied with this product. Even if the switches fail, I'll fix them or buy another one for $100. I'd pay that much for each individual pedal.