N(U)AD-GSP11010101010101001010101001

[Steinmetzify]

image by Steinmetzify, on Flickr
, on Flickr

Grabbed this thing this morning from a Digitech employee that's moving and has a literal TON of gear he's trying to get rid of. GSP1101 + Ground Control 2 = $100. Yup, that's what I said.

Went out and snagged it and came back home and went to work on it. Patches were ok, not great...so went from firmware 2.0 (REALLY, dude?) to c63 quick....better. I dig the clean stuff, especially with some chorus and delays. The high gain stuff wasn't as good, really. BUT, with some extensive reading on here (50 pg GSP1101 thread) I found some great settings and advice. I went and grabbed ONE IR cab, the Redwirez free Msarshall 4x12 with the 75s, and this thing took off. MUCH better tones...still not there yet; some of the Crowbar stuff and Mesa and 5150 stuff is a little fizzy on the top end, but I'm not done experimenting yet and I think I can get it there. If not, I'm out a hundred bucks or less as I think I could sell the GC2 for something.

I sold a pedal I wasn't using yesterday for more than twice what I paid for it, and that bankrolled this, so if it ends up sitting in a closet then it's cool.

I've been using an iPad and apps for over a year.....JamUp, BIAS, Amplitube Orange, Stompbox etc...and this sounds better. Not by much, but the DEPTH of it is huge compared to the apps...they sound good and are easy to dial in but there's no depth to the delays/echoes, and this stuff goes on forever and sounds deep as hell. So far I'm digging it; it's not as convenient as the iPad setup as there are wires everywhere now but I could see using this for a while.

Clips in the future will probably be made on this into Reaper, if I can get past the fact that it REALLY doesn't like my M80M.

tl;dr Got a GSP1101 and floor controller for cheap. Nice usable tones, pretty happy with it.

 

[JPhoenix19]

I like the name of your patch

 

[Steinmetzify]

Spelled it wrong three times cause I'm left handed and I was typing righty while holding onto a guitar....pissed me off.

 

[Leuchty]

That's a great score mate! Congrats!

 

[Spinedriver]

I can't recommend enough the GuitarHacks IR pack.

GuitarAmpModeling.com • View topic - Guitar Hack's Impulses - full pack

The JJ Power Tubes folder is especially good. Add that with the SD-1 pedal from the DS section to boost and you'll be flying in no time. I found that with the GH pack, you won't need to use any eq other that what's on the amp.

Happy Tweaking !!

Also, it what sense doesn't it "like" your M80M ? Are the low strings bottoming out ?

 

[Steinmetzify]

Yeah, pretty much. I'll try those cabs and see what's up; I just threw that Redwirez cab on and got busy. I'll see what's up with those and report back.

 

[Steinmetzify]

So those GuitarHacks IRs are ....ing great...thanks for the help man, loaded em up and they rule.

 

[Spinedriver]

There used to be another free pack from LePou called the "Canadian Metal" pack but it doesn't seem like it's available anymore. I don't know what it is about the GH pack but for some reason they sound 'clearer' and less fizzy than a lot of the others. I tried some of the RedWirez but there were just too many to try and filter through (ie: all of the different mics and then the dozen or 2 different placements). Whereas with the GH, the "sweet spots" are already picked for you.

 

[haffner1]

If that guy has any more of those laying around for $100, I'll take one! Happy new gear day!

 

[Shask]

It looks like the display is working


I have always been curious about these. Even though I have an Axe-FX II, I still think about picking one of these up sometimes because they seem like a cool piece of gear. I think I would like it better than the POD HD I had......

 

[Steinmetzify]

It looks like the display is working


I have always been curious about these. Even though I have an Axe-FX II, I still think about picking one of these up sometimes because they seem like a cool piece of gear. I think I would like it better than the POD HD I had......

It's not; it's lit but it's either blank or scrambled so bad you can't read it. It's all good though; I actually like the UI in the editing program. Easy to dial in and bright and clear.

As far as the POD goes, I had the HD500 for a few months and grew to hate it. It sounded very digital to me and was hard for me to dial in as I'm not really a tweaker. I sold it on and moved to the iPad stuff. I like this a LOT better than the POD so far...much easier/more intuitive.

I think it's interesting that you have an AxeII and still want to try this; this made me GAS even harder to try the AxeII lol.

It is a cool piece of gear, and I feel fortunate that I came in on the back end of the development cycle...like I said in the OP, it was loaded with 2.0 and while that was ok, it was nothing special compared to JamUp or the other apps I've been running. After updating the firmware and loading up some IRs, this thing is SICK...really neat features especially for the price point. I feel like I stole it from the guy for what I paid. Never having used the Axe I couldn't compare directly for you, but I'm satisfied with the UI and the cab loader.

The transitions between patches are seamless, the tones are good and even recording direct with the USB doesn't bother me. Pretty cool unit. If you find a deal, snag one. Totally worth what they go for used now. I'm sure yours sounds better, but this is a cool low cost alternative. I read thru the 50 page thread on these last night so I knew what to expect and what I'd have to do once I got it here. Inside of two hours I had good tones and above average recordings for me.

 

[Shask]

I think it is because of the transition I went through. 3-4 years ago I wanted a unit to run in 4CM with my tube amps and spent a lot of time deciding between the HD500 and GSP1101. I went HD since I really couldn't try out the GSP, even though I did like the RP1000 in the store.

I was so impressed with the modeling of the HD that I started re-thinking the modeling use. I eventually sold a few tube amps and bought an Axe-FX Standard used. I was so impressed with this setup that I eventually sold both, and more tube amps and went Axe-FX II. That slow transition to modeling, lol. There is still a part of me that wonders what would have happened if I chose the GSP1101 over the HD500.....

I still prefer these units into power amps into guitar cabs though, and I think the Digitech would work well for this.

I dont use computer sim software much. I own Guitar Rig 5, but I never use it.

 

[Steinmetzify]

I hear you. There are a bunch of guys that do that exact thing; if you wanted to do some reading there's a giant thread for this...you could probably skip the first 40 pages though. Last 10 pages are chock full of info about the IRs and guys running direct and going into poweramps and cabs. I think I'll end up going that route if I stick with it. I think this thing would sound great into a tube poweramp and an Orange 2x12.

 

[Shask]

Yeah, my Axe-FX II is set up with one set of outputs to my interface/monitors, and the other set of outputs are set to go through my power amp and cabs. I switch back and forth. I either use an ART SLA-2 I have, or the power amp section of my Triple Rectifier. The only tube amp I have left

It is a huge mess of wires, but it is convenient to set up these units this way.

I just prefer the tone of the "amp in the room". I played too long before computers came along, lol. I like the volume of playing through the monitors better though. I think the Digitech would sound good through a tube poweramp as well.

 

[Steinmetzify]

[SC]https://soundcloud.com/steinmetzify/gsp1101[/SC]



Figured I'd try to record something simple. 85 BPM, clean patch with some chorus, then some Recto tones. First time in Reaper in a LONGASS time, so excuse the clams please and thank you.

 

[Spinedriver]

I used to have a Pod XTL and I sold it to fund buying a GSP because the main flaw of the Pod was always having trouble trying to dial out the "fizz" of it. However, after a year or so of dialing in the GSP and getting the right IRs for it, I got a good deal on an old Pod X3 and so now I run the X3 into the loop and use the amps from the Pod & the cabs from the GSP.

The ENGL model never sounded better than when running through a GuitarHacks cab.

 

[xxx128]

from firmware 2.0 (REALLY, dude?) to c63 quick

i lol'd

 

[Shask]

[SC]https://soundcloud.com/steinmetzify/gsp1101[/SC]



Figured I'd try to record something simple. 85 BPM, clean patch with some chorus, then some Recto tones. First time in Reaper in a LONGASS time, so excuse the clams please and thank you.

Sounds pretty good for the first recording!

Much different than what I go for, and much slower. I usually go for something like Fear Factory or similar. The upper mids/treble is a little fuzzier than I like. I would probably try an EQ before the amp and boost around 700hz, and then cut from about 1500hz upwards. That might help the fuzzies. You could also cut from 200hz and down also to clear up the mud. (Sort of what a tubesceamer does, but not as compressed). You can also cut around 2000 to 3500 hz after the amp. You should be able to do all that within the GSP.

Ahhh Reaper. I use that also. I wish I didnt have to work and had more time! Haha! I love Industrial music (NIN, Ministry, etc...) so, I can sit for hours and play with samplers, weird noises, synths, etc.... and never record a damn thing, lol.

 

[op1e]

If you're basing anything on the Mesa patches then don't judge it on that. Never did get what I wanted outta those. But I gigged for a while with the OR120 patch boosted with an 808 into my Marshall power amp. Then added a Rockmaster and HT Dual in the loop. Now its 4 cabled with my EVH mini. Been using it since 09 and its always been rock solid. The wealth of overdrives to boost a real amp and the post eq are worth it alone.

 

[Noxon]

HN(U)AD, dude. For $100 you can't go wrong.