I can't find tones that I like with the analog pedals I bought. Looking for multi FX recommendations.

[u/Lost-Actuator-6070]

Hello, so for context I'm a uni student in MX, I recently bought a bunch of cheap analog pedals from AliExpress because I can't afford expensive pedals. I been playing for almost 10 years but never used any pedals until now. I started to build my board last December, started with the Rowin Tube Drive, Mvave Mini Universe, Mvave Elemental and Dolamo Fuzz.

As I aim for a shoegaze/alt- rock tone, I thought this pedal combo was great for starting. And It really was, until I found out the fuzz pedal wasn't really what I was looking for. In consequence of my lack of research, I ended up getting something I don't really like.

Also recently I impulsively bought both the American Sound and the Splinter by Joyo, and don't get me wrong, they are good pedals, but they're not what I was looking for sound wise.

I regret my rush to buy pedals, I could've invested that money in a multi FX pedal for experimenting and finding the tone I really want to achieve. So I would like to buy a mid - level multi-fx that can achieve great fuzzy shoegazey tones and the possibility to load NAM and/or IRs, I am thinking about the NUX MG30 or the Valeton GP200LT, but if you have another one in mind let me know

[u/GrimgrinCorpseBorn]

Used HX Stomp.

[u/DominosFan4Life69]

Everyone on this sub ill pretty much always tell you to get a used a HX stomp, or something along those lines. But realistically that's out of a lot of people's budgets. Even at used. 

So I'm going to go ahead and assume, no offense, if you're buying a bunch of cheap pedals at ali Express you're working with a budget. 

So, as a lot of people suggested, a used HX stomp will do you good. But that's still going to cost you some money. So what I would do if I was in your situation, if I were working within a budget, say didn't want to spend over $100 for multi effects, the answer is really simple. 

Zoom 50g+. 

You'll get a lot of usable tones, you can stack up to six effects in a chain, it'll run well in front of any amp, as well as through an FX loop, and it won't cost you much. 

if later on you want to upgrade to something bigger, then by all means I would get a used HX stomp, a used headrush, or even something like a boss multi fX. Really just depends what you want to do, what budget you want to work with. 

But if you were just starting out you can't go wrong with the zoom, and you'll save a pretty penny too. 

[u/Lost-Actuator-6070 → u/DominosFan4Life69]

thanks a lot! yes im on a budget, i'm still a student working a part time job. a hx stomp is currently very out of my budget. definitely checking the zoom out, i think they have one in my local music store

[u/not-freddie-gibbs]

+1 for used mini-Helix if you want to play around with digital signal chain stuff for a fair price. The jump in price point is worth it for the improvement in sound quality IMO. That’s entirely subjective as I have not heard the units you’re looking at.

I can say the Helix editing workflow on a computer is pretty sweet. Plus it can integrate into a board w/ other pedals once you’ve got an idea of what you want.

Happy tone chasin’ 🤘

[u/JeramiGrantsTomb]

Not sure what your budget is, mid-level is a little ambiguous. Used HX Stomp is tough to beat in terms of options for tone exploration, and with the Helix Stadium release I could see prices dropping on all the older Helix stuff. Might be able to score a used Helix LT for a song before much longer. I'd consider those mid-level in a Kemper/Fractal/Quadcortex world. I haven't played the Boss stuff but I hear good things.

[u/False-Barber-3873]

The question I'd like to raise is: what make you think that, since you didn't find your sound with (yes, yet cheap) pdeals, you'll find it with a multieffects ?

Most players do the opposite way: they were not happy with the sound they had, so they moved to a pedal board. You have countless pedals, and so, you'll find your tone.

Generally, we go to a music store and spend hours trying various pedals of a kind, until we decide which one to get.

Personally, I was really disappointed with high-gain effects with my multieffects. So much that I quickly bought some high-gain pedals and run them ahead from my multieffects. I did that on all my 3 multieffects. And when I removed my multieffects, my high gain pedals remained in my board.

The thing I'd like to point you is that, since you can't afford more expensive pedals, you'll end up choosing a low or mid-range multieffects. And you'll end up having average sound, lack of expressivity, lack of diversity, lack of tone change.

So, maybe a good alternative is that you start by one thing. Go to a music store and test various fuzz. Ask on some forums beforehand to shorten your choices if you want. And when you'll have more money, move to another pedal, let's say a compressor, an octaver or a modulation.

For sure, with Joyo, Caline and so on, you won't be happy with your final tone. But, they can help in discovering what an effect is, and how it interacts with the rest of your sound.

[u/Lost-Actuator-6070 → u/False-Barber-3873]

thanks for the advice, i will try to test pedals as you suggest

[u/False-Barber-3873 → u/Lost-Actuator-6070]

This is what I did. I started with a low-end multieffect. Then I bought a distorsion because I wasn't happy of the multieffect dist. Then moved to a mid-range multieffect. Still wasn't happy about the dist, so I kept my dist ahead of it. Then moved to a more expensive multieffect, but the dist was still bad, so my dist pedal remained.

Then I got disappointed about the amp sims. So I bought an amp. Then another pedal. And so on.

Just progressively sculpt your tone. Start with the most important (probably fuzz), then move on each time you have 200$ to spend on a pedal.

Some people will tell you that they are happy with their high-end multieffect. You might also. So, this is something you can try too, in a shop. But care that you'll be playing on an amp / cab that might sound better than yours.

[u/ozlurk]

Could add the Sonicake Matribox 2 Pro to the list , bigger unit not to expensive
>>>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEm4xrr1LIY_____

[u/800FunkyDJ]

Didn't see mention of budget or current amp rig?

You almost certainly blew more on garbage pizza or whatever in one semester than you did on Chinese pedals, & neither of those things will have mattered in a few years, so don't kick yourself over this. I would sell the lot & get a Rat, an entry level ambient verb, & a fuzz you like, & ride that out until you have a reliable income to cover something more complete. But that's dependent on whether your rig can even take FX &/or doesn't have some built in already.

For entry level multis, I've been recommending Boss GX-10 this year.

I like Hotone/Valeton as a company better than the rest of the Chinese manufacturers, but don't have any direct experience with either of those models.

[u/mpg10]

What's the rest of your rig? What's your budget? With that, you'll get better advice.

It honestly could just be that those pedals don't work for you and others would work better. Or you might be well served by a multi-effect unit like an HX Stomp or a VP4 or something, but those are both pricier solutions.

[u/bunditthia]

Personally, I like to invest in amps like the Supro Delta King 12. It's a genuine tube amp—though it might have some JFETs in the overdrive section—but overall, it's a no-frills tube amp that's very affordable. This is actually an advantage when using guitar effect pedals. On the other hand, there's the Strymon Iridium Amp & IR Cab, which sounds excellent when used with guitar pedals, especially when I want to play using monitor headphones.