Not too long ago I wrote a post about the EHX Turnip Greens pedal that combines the Holy Grail Max reverb and the Soul Food overdrive. Technically this is a multi-effect pedal because it contains more than one effect. There are advantages and disadvantages to this pedal and you can read about them here. When I mention multi-effect pedals, I'd assume that most of us think about the large "processor" type pedals. I started getting into effects when I bought the Digitech RP100 multi-effect processor. It was impressive, but I started outgrowing it rather quickly. Of course playing with all the different sounds it could make was a lot of fun, but when it came to playing something on stage (which at this point was seldom but it happened) the sounds were as good as they were useful, that is to say: not very. Everything sounded fake, compressed, and cold. Those aren't kind words to describe your sound. There was also a pause when switching channels which meant you were stuck with one sound. Multi-effect have come a long way in the following years, but that doesn't mean that everything is so pretty...
When you hear "multi-effect" you probably think about Boss' processors, Digitech's RP series, and pretty much everything put out by Zoom and Line6. These guy's have been putting out units for decades. Digital effects are powerful tools. Nearly all studios use some sort of digital processing. Music and digital have almost become synonymous thanks to the vast digital music stores that make buying and selling music so easy. So why is it that digital effect like multi-effects processor have such a disdain among guitarist? It might be because
They have a sketchy history
Like I stated before, I owned a Digitech RP100. While that unit wasn't horrible, it did have some down sides: I couldn't use it for the most part (sound quality/pausing between channels), Most of the effects I didn't want or know how to use, complicated effect editing menus, hardware issues. I'm not saying that all multi-effect has these problems, but the ones I came across did. If they didn't have their issues, then they would have taken over by now. I paid less than I would for a Tube Screamer on a processor with at least a dozen effects. The bang for your buck it there, but it's less of a bang and more like a plop. Digital effects in the consumer market have a reputation for disappointing.
They aren't getting much better
Over the years, many of the familiar multi-effect have gotten a face lift. Everything looks a little more modern and flashy. The soft switches are replaced by buttons that resemble the big metal ones on boutique pedals and now have added features like tap-temp, but the guts seem to be about the same. They still try to make digital sound like analog sound that we know and love. There have been some improvements thanks to new comers. TC Electronics Nova system was a breakthrough when it came out. It still had a clunky interface, but the sounds more closely resembled those it was modulating. Line6 also came out with their massive M13 processor with basically all the effect that Line6 could make fit into one box. While these were giant leaps forward from the state of multi-effect had been, they would not be seen as the end-all-be-all. They took existing ideas and made them stage ready. The digital processor may be on its way out.
The Term Multi-Effect Is Completely Changing
A while back before I wrote about the Turnip Greens pedal, I was somewhat confused by what I saw in the multi-effects category. Regular stomp boxes seem to have found their way over to, what some may call, the dark side. To be fair, the Turnip Greens is just two pedals smashed into one. Their is no big mystery there. But EHX has put forth some interesting pedals that might blur the line between what we think of as an effects pedal and multi-effects pedals. EHX has shoved the Holy Grail Max, Electric Mistress, and the Micro Pog together to form the Epitome. They have done this again with the Tone Tattoo, combining the Memory Toy, Neo Clone, and Metal Muff. This isn't limited to Electro Harmonics though, Tech 21 has the Fly Rig that puts together their delay, amp mod and distortion. Zvex has put forth a big box of nasty with their Bomb Pop that combines their Super Hard On Boost, Double Rock Distortion, Instant Lo-Fi Junky, and Wah Probe. More and more we are seeing pedal pushers releasing big boxes with a bunch of their signature effect in one spot. It seems to be a middle ground between the old digital processors and individual effects boxes. Many effects already include more than one effect. Fuzz pedals with octave, OD with boosts, Delays with filters. Many of us already use "multi-effects" of some sort.
Are these big box mash-ups the way of the future? I don't know. I think if there is a big enough difference in price between one box or several, then you'll see more of these combination. As for me, I'll be just fine collecting all the little boxes and fiddling with them until I can fiddle no more.
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