Best Guitar Multi Effects Rack Unit (2024 Update)

Helix is fantastic for all studio musicians. You can construct so many different sounds with it. Since 3.0, the Helix is a complete package as far as guitar processors go: you have all different amps, cabs, effects, acoustic sim, synths, polyphonic transposition, harmonization, oversampling. Lots of in/outs, lots of ways to route it. The workflow is great: you have the computer editor. You can back up/restore your Helix, email the backup to yourself, etc. The Helix can absolutely replace your entire signal chain and be used as the only piece of gear to process your guitar sounds. The same could not be said about the Helix when it was on earlier firmware versions. Now, the Helix itself is very cheaply made. I thought I'd purchase one and never need to use anything ever again– wrong! After about a year of light use, the buttons stopped working reliably, then an LED stopped working. Helix is assembled using cheap Chinese parts that are tiny! For example, the footswitches are not what they appear to be–there are tiny tactile microswitches underneath. The Helix will not withstand nonstop gigging for more than a year, unless it's regularly serviced/cleaned, etc. It's a real shame because it can sound great, but something is always failing, or about to fail.Dimitri

Overall: I just received the Helix Rack yesterday so I only have a few hours in the drivers seat but that's enough to learn how truly awesome this thing is. I've owned a lot of Line 6 products over the last 20 years, in fact I still have a spider V240 and a POD HD Pro X but the Helix is so far out of their league they will probably never get used again in my studio. The design is sleek, easy to navigate, user friendly and just all around beautifully designed. The large full color screen is not only eye catching but makes navigating the menus effortless. Even though I'm modeler savvy, I've had no previous experience with Impulse Responses, in fact, I hadn't even heard of them until I started researching the Helix Rack and quite honestly I didn't think that I would care to use them… Well… I was wrong. It's amazing what these things do for the quality and authenticity of my tones when recording. As I mentioned earlier I only have 2 days under my belt at this point but most of that has been recording scratch tracks just to hear the result of these I.R's. I also love the fact that Line 6 still adds all of the necessary physical knobs and controls to their equipment in the days of everything being digital. The idea that I can play almost uninterrupted while tweaking many different parameters on the unit itself without a pedal is always a selling point for me. Not taking anything away from the foot controller but when I'm seated in front of my rack, using my hands to adjust the unit itself is just somewhat more convenient at times. Next, the user space… I thought that my POD HD Pro X had a lot of space for user presets but It has nothing on the Helix. I will probably never fill all of the user List's or even come close to it but It's always better to have something and not need it than to need something and not have it. Also, let me jump back to the large screen again, I have a laptop on which I keep all of my editing software for my studio equipment. I always plug in my Spider V240 and POD and use the Spider V Remote and POD HD Pro X edit software respectfully because in most cases sitting behind my recording console and tweaking my sound is just much easier to do with the computer apps than the equipment. The Helix is the first and only piece of equipment I've owned where the display is laid out and organized in a way that is very similar to a computer or tablet app and so even though I have the Helix Edit app running on my computer right next to me, making adjustments on the front of the Helix Rack in many cases is actually easier and faster than grabbing a mouse and using the comp app. I could write much more describing my total satisfaction thus far but I will wait 'till I have used it for another month or so and update my review at that time. I will leave you with this thought. While conveying my total happiness to my brother last night regarding the Helix Rack, I went so far as to say that I feel that this could be the last guitar processer I ever buy and if not it's pretty close.Fred

Overall: Looking at the G5n as ONLY a guitar multi-effects pedal still makes it well worth the price, but that would be selling it WAY short in terms of what this self-contained digital beast can do. For those of us who also play keyboards, synths, drum machines, and bass, think of this as an entire rack of beautiful effects processing options that open up a whole world of pro tone sculpting possibility. Yes, these effects by themselves do sound digital (because they ARE), but if you start with a good analog sound source and finish with a mic’d up tube amp or quality tube DI, you can capture some serious pro quality sounds with beautifully complex depth and texture. Line6 and Boss both charge significantly more for products that do absolutely NOTHING better than the G5n. So why dump any more money than absolutely necessary into a digital effects unit that you know will become a doorstop eventually anyway? The Zoom G5n delivers every last nuance of the best effects units available on the market today, and it does it all at a price you can afford to replace in a few years. PROS * Equal or better sound quality than competing products from Line6 and Boss, all at a much lower price. * Better and more intuitive user interface than Line6 and Boss competition. * The “ZNR” noise reduction effect performs amazingly well, and can be tweaked perfectly for any application. Especially for those of us who hate unnecessary pickup and amp noise in our recordings, this is worth the price of the entire unit alone. I’ve actually paid the same price as this unit for a Waves noise reduction plugin that I don’t like as much as the one inside the G5n. * No wimpy 12AX7 tube output that everybody knows won't make much difference, and which just becomes a maintenance liability over time. The old G5 had one of these, and Zoom should be applauded for ditching the gimmick. * Takes a huge load off of your DAW in terms of effects plugins. Also, unlike your DAW, you can monitor any instrument through the G5n without any noticeable latency. * The two tone booster dials are great for when you’ve been crafting new patches through headphones, but then you want to plug the G5n into your amp and you’re frustrated because you don’t hear the same frequency balance out of your amp that you did in your headphones (coming directly out of the G5n headphone jack). The two tone booster dials let you tweak the EQ of your frequency response (in a pleasant and natural/analog sounding way) so that your amp sounds accurate tonally to what you were hearing in the headphones. This keeps you from having to save two differently tweaked patches of the same effects chain just so you can hear the correct frequency balance through either your headphones or your amp. CONS * USB recording interface is convenient for recording rough ideas, but not realistic as a pro DI/converter. Luckily the stereo ¼” analog out jacks do a good job of letting you use your tube preamps for DI recording anyway, but it would be nice not to have to pass through an extra layer of D/A conversion if not absolutely necessary. * Amp & cabinet models are excellent tools for tone shaping, but no they don’t sound like the real deal (and no digital emulation ever will if you're listening back through quality DAC). Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean running reasonable gain settings on these amps and cabs into the clean channel of your tube amp can’t still create very impressively detailed recording tones. * Some people have reported that too many effects in a chain causes the DSP chip in the G5n to overload, but I’ve found the only time that happens is when you’re trying to chain multiple amps and cabinet models altogether, and it’s not something you (sonically) should want to attempt anyway. With one amp and one cabinet selected, you can still add a compressor, delay, reverb, and chorus, etc. There's plenty of DSP here to get you into trouble (in a good way). TIP: The modeled amp "heads" ften don’t sound as good as simply running one of the distortion pedals directly into a modeled cabinet. Requires less DSP too.Christopher

When i started looking for a replacement to many analogue fx processors I didn't expect to find anything asa a combo that had good clean output. I tested the GT100,GS80, Line-6 and a few lower level competitors to calibrate usefulness and reliability versus audio clarity using a set of AE-1 Studio Monitors routed through a Fender 100 Series Tube Amp. The results came down to either the Gt100 (which I found a little shallow) versus this Zoom G5n (btw -the G3xn is identical but doesnt have capacity). The thing that sold me on the G5n is its user interface. Simply the best and easiest to program on the fly. It is a lot of fun but you have to discipline what you want to achieve. It comes with a stack of patches but I suggest buyers to check and do the firmware update and get the latest patches (released monthly plus there is an Artist list of User Patches) = 1000's but you'll make your own. It isn't hard. The audio output on this G5n is a lot deeper and if you run the Boost you can get rich warm tone from a digital amp like the Vox 30 I tested. When using a digital combo amp you need turn off all the FX and use the default Amp or find an amp that doesn't distort the clarity from G5n. The Amp FX on the G5n are better through a clean digital setup. Analogues need to make sure head is also clean setup except where you just use G5n for FX and remove Amps from bank. Either way the device is very user friendly for harmony with getting the job done quickly and move on to playing guitar as this is a tool not an instrument.3times3times

The Zoom G5n is an excellent choice for those seeking a multi effect platform or even those wishing to add pedal effects to their guitar tone and who are on a tight budget. Your pedal chain is easily customisable with all parameters visible and tweekable at the turn of a knob. With 5 descent amp Sims which already sound fairly authentic, when edited you can get pretty close to the amps which they are emulating. Purists, or gear snobs will always argue that "you can't beat a real tube amp" or " Kemper, Helix, Axe fx are better" they may offer more but I doubt if they sound 5, 10 or even 20 times better in line with there cost!! For the price of a "boutique" pedal you can have nearly every pedal your ever likely to need, without the need for a bucket load of patch cables!! Several talented guitarists have posted customised patches on YouTube, covering every genre and the most popular/sought after artists tones. Sure I fancied some of its more expensive competitors but I really don't need the ability, nor do I have the time to deep edit such things as individual components within a particular amp or pedal. I simply wanted something which offered the range of tones and could replicate the sounds of my favourite guitarists, then just plug in and play and the G5n does thatand does it very well!! Great value, great layout, sturdy construction!! Highly recommended!!mgl080659

I've owned several other pedals in the past and some were better than others. This one is my latest addition. The manual is vague not enough detail, it took some guessing and experimenting to learn how this thing operates. Got past most of that. Individual FX are good but most are way over the top and need editing to be useful. I don't understand why they over do the FX, no need to get extreme with the factory sets. The Looper is nice but haven't figured out how I would use it yet (my first Multi-FX pedal with a built in Looper). No power adapter noise is nice a plus. No Bypass switch is a bummer if used in a pedal board with other FX, could make bypass patches but that kind of fails the idea of easy switching between other pedals. It needs a better clean sound with the Fender Twin Reverb model, Twins are known for their clean and this doesn't sound like a Twin at all. Need to fix that. Go listen to a Twin, I owned one for 30 years I know what they sound like. At this point I'm a little disappointed at Zoom, I don't think they thought this pedal through very well. It may be great for some people but it's kind of eh, for me. I may send it back.John

I bought this to use as a headphone amp. For practice, the drums section and looper included are useful. Was not so interested in the effects part, however the range of options for drive and reverb are well beyond what is available on any one amp. Am now thinking I could use this as a preamp for any powered speaker, and adjust to suit. Signal to noise ratio is excellent to my ear. Overall sound quality is excellent.Ts

Get this on sale, and there's nothing that can touch it. Even at full price, heck, you would pay that for one regular pedal alone. Brilliant sound quality, quiet as a mouse, 32 bit processing, 2 bit sampling, a gazillion great effects. Editing and using is pretty easy, you'll have it all down in 5 to 10 minutes if you simply read the instructions- and I barely had to, and still got it figured out. Built like a tank, up-gradable and expandable memory, patches, and effects. (Use the downloadable Guitar Lab software). 3 effects on/off switches at once, but easy enough to scroll and turn on/off any effect in a patch. I run mine off of batteries, a home made battery pack using either 9 volt or AA batteries- either works. A definite improvement over the G3. The only thing better would be a pedal with more physical switches- but then you're paying a lot more money, and bigger pedal, so I opted for less cash outlay, more compact pedal. Truly wonderful and 21st century on it's own, yet small enough to put on a pedal board. Do I sound like a commercial?? 🙂 I'm not, just a user. Best pedal bargain on the planet right now. Better than Boss or anything else I'm aware of. 10 stars.neilslade

Overall: Looking at the G5n as ONLY a guitar multi-effects pedal still makes it well worth the price, but that would be selling it WAY short in terms of what this self-contained digital beast can do. For those of us who also play keyboards, synths, drum machines, and bass, think of this as an entire rack of beautiful effects processing options that open up a whole world of pro tone sculpting possibility. Yes, these effects by themselves do sound digital (because they ARE), but if you start with a good analog sound source and finish with a mic’d up tube amp or quality tube DI, you can capture some serious pro quality sounds with beautifully complex depth and texture. Line6 and Boss both charge significantly more for products that do absolutely NOTHING better than the G5n. So why dump any more money than absolutely necessary into a digital effects unit that you know will become a doorstop eventually anyway? The Zoom G5n delivers every last nuance of the best effects units available on the market today, and it does it all at a price you can afford to replace in a few years. PROS * Equal or better sound quality than competing products from Line6 and Boss, all at a much lower price. * Better and more intuitive user interface than Line6 and Boss competition. * The “ZNR” noise reduction effect performs amazingly well, and can be tweaked perfectly for any application. Especially for those of us who hate unnecessary pickup and amp noise in our recordings, this is worth the price of the entire unit alone. I’ve actually paid the same price as this unit for a Waves noise reduction plugin that I don’t like as much as the one inside the G5n. * No wimpy 12AX7 tube output that everybody knows won't make much difference, and which just becomes a maintenance liability over time. The old G5 had one of these, and Zoom should be applauded for ditching the gimmick. * Takes a huge load off of your DAW in terms of effects plugins. Also, unlike your DAW, you can monitor any instrument through the G5n without any noticeable latency. * The two tone booster dials are great for when you’ve been crafting new patches through headphones, but then you want to plug the G5n into your amp and you’re frustrated because you don’t hear the same frequency balance out of your amp that you did in your headphones (coming directly out of the G5n headphone jack). The two tone booster dials let you tweak the EQ of your frequency response (in a pleasant and natural/analog sounding way) so that your amp sounds accurate tonally to what you were hearing in the headphones. This keeps you from having to save two differently tweaked patches of the same effects chain just so you can hear the correct frequency balance through either your headphones or your amp. CONS * USB recording interface is convenient for recording rough ideas, but not realistic as a pro DI/converter. Luckily the stereo ¼” analog out jacks do a good job of letting you use your tube preamps for DI recording anyway, but it would be nice not to have to pass through an extra layer of D/A conversion if not absolutely necessary. * Amp & cabinet models are excellent tools for tone shaping, but no they don’t sound like the real deal (and no digital emulation ever will if you're listening back through quality DAC). Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean running reasonable gain settings on these amps and cabs into the clean channel of your tube amp can’t still create very impressively detailed recording tones. * Some people have reported that too many effects in a chain causes the DSP chip in the G5n to overload, but I’ve found the only time that happens is when you’re trying to chain multiple amps and cabinet models altogether, and it’s not something you (sonically) should want to attempt anyway. With one amp and one cabinet selected, you can still add a compressor, delay, reverb, and chorus, etc. There's plenty of DSP here to get you into trouble (in a good way). TIP: The modeled amp "heads" ften don’t sound as good as simply running one of the distortion pedals directly into a modeled cabinet. Requires less DSP too.Christopher

When i started looking for a replacement to many analogue fx processors I didn't expect to find anything asa a combo that had good clean output. I tested the GT100,GS80, Line-6 and a few lower level competitors to calibrate usefulness and reliability versus audio clarity using a set of AE-1 Studio Monitors routed through a Fender 100 Series Tube Amp. The results came down to either the Gt100 (which I found a little shallow) versus this Zoom G5n (btw -the G3xn is identical but doesnt have capacity). The thing that sold me on the G5n is its user interface. Simply the best and easiest to program on the fly. It is a lot of fun but you have to discipline what you want to achieve. It comes with a stack of patches but I suggest buyers to check and do the firmware update and get the latest patches (released monthly plus there is an Artist list of User Patches) = 1000's but you'll make your own. It isn't hard. The audio output on this G5n is a lot deeper and if you run the Boost you can get rich warm tone from a digital amp like the Vox 30 I tested. When using a digital combo amp you need turn off all the FX and use the default Amp or find an amp that doesn't distort the clarity from G5n. The Amp FX on the G5n are better through a clean digital setup. Analogues need to make sure head is also clean setup except where you just use G5n for FX and remove Amps from bank. Either way the device is very user friendly for harmony with getting the job done quickly and move on to playing guitar as this is a tool not an instrument.3times3times

The Zoom G5n is an excellent choice for those seeking a multi effect platform or even those wishing to add pedal effects to their guitar tone and who are on a tight budget. Your pedal chain is easily customisable with all parameters visible and tweekable at the turn of a knob. With 5 descent amp Sims which already sound fairly authentic, when edited you can get pretty close to the amps which they are emulating. Purists, or gear snobs will always argue that "you can't beat a real tube amp" or " Kemper, Helix, Axe fx are better" they may offer more but I doubt if they sound 5, 10 or even 20 times better in line with there cost!! For the price of a "boutique" pedal you can have nearly every pedal your ever likely to need, without the need for a bucket load of patch cables!! Several talented guitarists have posted customised patches on YouTube, covering every genre and the most popular/sought after artists tones. Sure I fancied some of its more expensive competitors but I really don't need the ability, nor do I have the time to deep edit such things as individual components within a particular amp or pedal. I simply wanted something which offered the range of tones and could replicate the sounds of my favourite guitarists, then just plug in and play and the G5n does thatand does it very well!! Great value, great layout, sturdy construction!! Highly recommended!!mgl080659

Sturdy unit full of good quality effects. This is the first "cheap" unit that has impressed me with its pre amps. It even manages a passable vox sound that others at this price point fail to achieve. My favourite things about this unit are as follows : 1. The amount of usable presets out the box. Even the more whacky ones can generally be quickly tweaked into something usable. Other brands tend to fill their presets with ridiculous over the top high gain, and what I would call low budget sci-fi sound effects. Boss have done a good job with the GT1. 2. Ease of editing. While you can access the effects chain easily through the menu system, the buttons along the top physically represent a typical effects chain. Press and hold for a second on any one and you are straight into the effect behind it for easy editing or changing to a different effect. Negatives: lack of an on/off switch. It switches on by plugging in an instrument cable – minor annoyance but that's just me. Only other thing is no battery indicator, and I seriously doubt the 7hr battery life claim. The supplied ones died after about 2-3 hrs and the duracells I replaced them with haven't fared much better. I do have a power supply but wanted to see how the battery's would hold up if I had to do a gig on them. Probably wouldn't trust them and would carry two sets as backup rather than one.David B.

This is overall a great pedal. This will give you a wide variety of tones and effects that you can personalize for whatever music you play. Other pedals will offer maybe one tone and you may have to try different ones and might not be happy with them or have to buy multiple ones and spend lots of money to have a well set up pedal board. You can literally spend all day picking out distortion pedals and feel lost on where to go. With this you can go through a wide variety and set it up however you want and save the settings. This isn't some plug and play kinda pedal. You will need to spend time with it and get to know it. It is kinda confusing and there are YouTube videos that help as well. I got more e set up with a clean tone and then a click over to distortion and and anther click on and of for a wha effectErik

The sounds are decent for the price. I downloaded all three pdfs are they are basically useless when it comes to setting up patches, adding an external pedal and the overall operation. I gave up on trying to assign functions to the FS-6 I bought with it. There are no real explications how to use the 6 assignment functions. I think the headphone output is mono as I can only hear in one ear. You can get some decent patches off of tone exchange I'll probably sell it .Kenneth

I bought this for studio use. It gives me USB multi-track audio for those of my synths that only have analog outs. Putting it into a Core Audio (Mac) aggregate device with the synths that do have USB audio means I can multi-track my whole setup in one pass and use my DAW for everything that my desk used to do, and therefore save all my levels, EQ, compression etc as part of the project.Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

I like this unit and am keeping it but wish the touch screen and menu system was better. Its very fiddly and when you get used to iphone touch screens this one feels slow and clunky. The presets sound pretty bad but you can dial in very good tones and save them. The looper when used with the SD card is very good and can record a whole song if you wantReviewed by Andertons Music Co.

The g system sounds better than any multi effects unit that I've ever used. The notes just seem to ring with more clarity than I can remember hearing in other units and the tone is great. Practically zero noise when used with good cables. The build is incredible ; it's heavy and feels solid. i have it plugged into a Marshall dlc40 and it sounds incredible. Thank you TC Electronics and Sam Ash!Vf5fan

This is an awesome multi-effects & rig management Tool. Top TC effects, complete integration and optimization of your gear and total control over your effects and sound. Built like a tank out of steel and aluminum and used by professional musicians all over the world. It is perfectly suited for both live and studio work and it is inspiring to use. The G-System integrates perfectly with an existing setup and provides the perfect backbone to a guitar rig. All of the features are accessed via the floor boards 18 illuminated footswitches, six with built-in rotary encoders to make adjusting parameters on the fly incredibly easy and intuitive.Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Helix is fantastic for all studio musicians. You can construct so many different sounds with it. Since 3.0, the Helix is a complete package as far as guitar processors go: you have all different amps, cabs, effects, acoustic sim, synths, polyphonic transposition, harmonization, oversampling. Lots of in/outs, lots of ways to route it. The workflow is great: you have the computer editor. You can back up/restore your Helix, email the backup to yourself, etc. The Helix can absolutely replace your entire signal chain and be used as the only piece of gear to process your guitar sounds. The same could not be said about the Helix when it was on earlier firmware versions. Now, the Helix itself is very cheaply made. I thought I'd purchase one and never need to use anything ever again– wrong! After about a year of light use, the buttons stopped working reliably, then an LED stopped working. Helix is assembled using cheap Chinese parts that are tiny! For example, the footswitches are not what they appear to be–there are tiny tactile microswitches underneath. The Helix will not withstand nonstop gigging for more than a year, unless it's regularly serviced/cleaned, etc. It's a real shame because it can sound great, but something is always failing, or about to fail.Dimitri

Overall: I just received the Helix Rack yesterday so I only have a few hours in the drivers seat but that's enough to learn how truly awesome this thing is. I've owned a lot of Line 6 products over the last 20 years, in fact I still have a spider V240 and a POD HD Pro X but the Helix is so far out of their league they will probably never get used again in my studio. The design is sleek, easy to navigate, user friendly and just all around beautifully designed. The large full color screen is not only eye catching but makes navigating the menus effortless. Even though I'm modeler savvy, I've had no previous experience with Impulse Responses, in fact, I hadn't even heard of them until I started researching the Helix Rack and quite honestly I didn't think that I would care to use them… Well… I was wrong. It's amazing what these things do for the quality and authenticity of my tones when recording. As I mentioned earlier I only have 2 days under my belt at this point but most of that has been recording scratch tracks just to hear the result of these I.R's. I also love the fact that Line 6 still adds all of the necessary physical knobs and controls to their equipment in the days of everything being digital. The idea that I can play almost uninterrupted while tweaking many different parameters on the unit itself without a pedal is always a selling point for me. Not taking anything away from the foot controller but when I'm seated in front of my rack, using my hands to adjust the unit itself is just somewhat more convenient at times. Next, the user space… I thought that my POD HD Pro X had a lot of space for user presets but It has nothing on the Helix. I will probably never fill all of the user List's or even come close to it but It's always better to have something and not need it than to need something and not have it. Also, let me jump back to the large screen again, I have a laptop on which I keep all of my editing software for my studio equipment. I always plug in my Spider V240 and POD and use the Spider V Remote and POD HD Pro X edit software respectfully because in most cases sitting behind my recording console and tweaking my sound is just much easier to do with the computer apps than the equipment. The Helix is the first and only piece of equipment I've owned where the display is laid out and organized in a way that is very similar to a computer or tablet app and so even though I have the Helix Edit app running on my computer right next to me, making adjustments on the front of the Helix Rack in many cases is actually easier and faster than grabbing a mouse and using the comp app. I could write much more describing my total satisfaction thus far but I will wait 'till I have used it for another month or so and update my review at that time. I will leave you with this thought. While conveying my total happiness to my brother last night regarding the Helix Rack, I went so far as to say that I feel that this could be the last guitar processer I ever buy and if not it's pretty close.Fred

I've owned several other pedals in the past and some were better than others. This one is my latest addition. The manual is vague not enough detail, it took some guessing and experimenting to learn how this thing operates. Got past most of that. Individual FX are good but most are way over the top and need editing to be useful. I don't understand why they over do the FX, no need to get extreme with the factory sets. The Looper is nice but haven't figured out how I would use it yet (my first Multi-FX pedal with a built in Looper). No power adapter noise is nice a plus. No Bypass switch is a bummer if used in a pedal board with other FX, could make bypass patches but that kind of fails the idea of easy switching between other pedals. It needs a better clean sound with the Fender Twin Reverb model, Twins are known for their clean and this doesn't sound like a Twin at all. Need to fix that. Go listen to a Twin, I owned one for 30 years I know what they sound like. At this point I'm a little disappointed at Zoom, I don't think they thought this pedal through very well. It may be great for some people but it's kind of eh, for me. I may send it back.John

I bought this to use as a headphone amp. For practice, the drums section and looper included are useful. Was not so interested in the effects part, however the range of options for drive and reverb are well beyond what is available on any one amp. Am now thinking I could use this as a preamp for any powered speaker, and adjust to suit. Signal to noise ratio is excellent to my ear. Overall sound quality is excellent.Ts

Get this on sale, and there's nothing that can touch it. Even at full price, heck, you would pay that for one regular pedal alone. Brilliant sound quality, quiet as a mouse, 32 bit processing, 2 bit sampling, a gazillion great effects. Editing and using is pretty easy, you'll have it all down in 5 to 10 minutes if you simply read the instructions- and I barely had to, and still got it figured out. Built like a tank, up-gradable and expandable memory, patches, and effects. (Use the downloadable Guitar Lab software). 3 effects on/off switches at once, but easy enough to scroll and turn on/off any effect in a patch. I run mine off of batteries, a home made battery pack using either 9 volt or AA batteries- either works. A definite improvement over the G3. The only thing better would be a pedal with more physical switches- but then you're paying a lot more money, and bigger pedal, so I opted for less cash outlay, more compact pedal. Truly wonderful and 21st century on it's own, yet small enough to put on a pedal board. Do I sound like a commercial?? 🙂 I'm not, just a user. Best pedal bargain on the planet right now. Better than Boss or anything else I'm aware of. 10 stars.neilslade

This comes with a bunch of pre-installed tunes that are great, and it has a ton of extra blank spots to make your own sound as well. I also love that it also comes with the computer program for making your own music. The extendable storage also adds to the abilities to do more with a SD card. My only complaint is with a Bluetooth accessory you can purchase separately that allows you to connect to the app. It only works with iOS. Hopefully Zoom will add support to android, but seeing that the Bluetooth device has been out for some time, I doubt it. Overall I am already having a great time playing with the G6!Kevin

This os outstanding for the price. A ton of amps, cabs, IRs and effects plus looper and drum tracks. The zom amp and cab models are outstanding. There is even a model optimized for 7 string guitars. You are limited to 9 total effect slots, which is more than enough for me. This unit also functions as a recording interface. The presets are average at best but programming could not be more simple. I have deveoped great patches with minimal effort. You cannot beat the G6 witout spending 700+ in my opinion. Get it!K Johnston

The first thing that I look for in a multi effects pedal is does it have a nice warm clean sound and this pedal has it. The second thing that I look for is does this pedal have a nice sounding wah, this pedal has it. The third thing that I look for, does this pedal have nice overdrives and distortions this pedal has them.. In the final thing that I look for is how does this pedal sound with my Princeton reverb….. Gorgeous!!!! Running this through my Princeton reverb or straight to the board, I don't need anything else.. I am about to sell all of my analog pedals.. I don't ever see me pulling them out again.. The setup and navigation is easy to make adjustments on the fly.. This unit does have some shortcomings: 1. The looper is in the wrong position in the signal path.. they put it right before the drum machine, aux in nor the USB inputs, so you cannot loop the drum machine, aux in nor the USB inputs… Furunately, The looper and drum machine plays good togather. Put you can only save the guitar when storing your loops… Zoom, could you please move the looper to the end of the signal chain to remedy this.. 2. The drum machine has no foot switch to start or stop it you have to bend over and press buttons not a biggie but an inconvenience.. Other than those two cons, for me this pedal plays good and sounds good. I see myself using this as my main source of effects, try it out I think you'll like it for the pricePFunk777

I was looking for a good multi-effects pedal option and found this Flamma FM10. It's loaded with a bunch of different amp models and effects. I was able to dial and EQ everything. The expression pedal can also be put to use as a volume pedal, wah, gain control, and several other things. I was able to create several personal patches and have used them all in live settings. They sounded great. Which means a lot coming from me because I am EXTREMELY picky about gear and tone. Other benefits are that it functions as an audio interface, it has stereo outs, a headphone out, and aux in. It fits in a backpack and a gig bag. Depending on where the show is and how a musician needs to get there, this effects unit is going to travel well in all circumstances. Seems like a really great option for any musician (especially traveling musicians) who need a small multi-effects unit. I like it and I'm going to be using this quite often moving forward.Paul

Powerful, flexible, great great UI, superb i/o options. Doesn't include the granular level of hardware editing that Axe FX allows but I definitely don't want those options, I'm not a hardware tinkerer anymore!Matt O.

I wanted to finish my rack project, so I purchased this Helix Rack and after a weeks I am more pleased I purchased this. Many thanks for the service agents for the helped nail down my choice! You rock guys! \m/ \m/Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

This is my favorite piece of equipment in the studio and Live. It is the greatest for mastering recordings to CD. When finalizing a mix you need to hear the mix at loud volumes on loud hi fidelity speakers to see if the hi end is not too harsh and the lows are not to muddy. The included Ultramizer Fx is a sonicmaximizer 2 band compressor that keeps the mix contained and averaged. Best I ever used and I've used a lot. You can set an average RMS signal which keeps peaks from jumping into red DB range and distorting. This thing really polishes the mix. A one time setting tuned to your speakers is all you will need. I use it live and it doubles the volume of the pa by keeping the average RMS signal intelligently and transparently containing a full sound. Our ears hate harsh hi end at loud volumes and the Ultramizer contains them while pumping up bass which our ears love as per the Munson Fletcher Loudness Contour Curve effect. It also protects speakers by stopping abrupt dynamic bursts that can blow up your speakers. After setting up your speakers with the virtualizer just pushing the in out button will blow you away at the thickness and polish of the mix. Set the crossover freq at 2.5 k. Djs use sonic maximizers to get that pumped up sound. This is 10 times more effective. Also the Delay Reverb multi is smooth and articulate. I have 3 in my home studio. I can say you have to hear it to appreciate what it does. Best mastering tool ever. Best PA tune up sound maximizer. You can shove the master Faders into the red and even at maxed levels in the red it stays Crystal clean. So many nice stereo fx you will be using it all the time. Even as a delay reverb it is perfect for a fine tuned live mixer and you will love it. It is a pitch transposed and can really beef up the love end if the bass. If you are interested in fat polished mixing you will love it. A tweaker dream.Mark Mark

I might be a bit late in writing this review, I've had this thing for 20 yrs. now and it hasn't changed much in design much at all. After 20 yrs. I'm still finding new combinations of effects I hadn't used before. One of my favorite effects is vinyl which makes a scratchy vinyl record sound, it's a nice recording effect to start or end (or both) a recording with. I also like running a drum machine (when i use one) through the enhanced effect give a nice, clear, sharp sound. I'll say it again, I've had it 20yrs, it's been dropped on numerous occasions and as the saying goes "takes a licking, keeps on ticking"!Smitty & Steve, Guitars & Goodti

Although this would be my first effects processor ive bought and dont have anything to compare to it, Im really happy with the purchase. After opening the package I noticed its very light weighted, and easy to carry around. I plugged it into my Behringer mixer and it worked great. The interface is designed nicely, and the knobs turn smooth. I mostly just bought it for the reverb effects and they have some pretty nice reverb presets that ive been using, but it only comes with about 12 or so. I will say there is a ton of effects ill never use on this device. If you are looking for a cheaper way to get live effects, I dont think youll be disappointed with this unit.jaki-6278

I love the Zoom G11 it is a worthy addition to my fleet of Flagship guitar processors. Helix, Headrush, Boss Gt-1000, Mooer Ge300, Digitech Rp-1000. The reason I got more than one processor is because once you spend the time to get to know them they all have there unique sound and functionality. I believe flagship multi effects pedals are the best way to get the most guitar effects for your money. I still got to get the Quad cortex, Kemper, but they don't even come with pedals, and of course the Fractal audio axe effects 3, but it doesn't even come with foot switches. lol. so i'll get them last. Anyway the Zoom G11 is great. It of course has less processing power than other more expensive pedals but the sound quality is just as good as the human ear has its limitations. The Mooer Ge 300 has more complicated cab mic controls allowing you to adjust the kind of mic and the distance, but you can only get one reverb block out of it while the Zoom G11 gives you one amp slot and 10 other slots that can be anything as long as you don't run out of DSP. The AMB PAD factory preset has 3 reverb blocks stacked at the end. It sounds amazing. So its ezer to get ridiculously wet ambient sounds out of the Zoom G11 than the Mooer. If you abhor Menue diving this pedal has more knobs than any other, the controls to the amp and every pedal in your line are right on the surface of the pedal ,Of course this causes your eyes to have to move more so its a trade off. Hear is a tip to help you learn this pedal quick. The touch screen starts out with 4 pages of specific functionalities. USE THE EDIT ALL functionality icon to build your patches and name them. It can do it all and its ez er that way. The (EDIT ALL), (Play by Bank), and (Save) icons are the EZ est way to get it all done. But if you just want to quickly figure out how to do one thing I am sure they got a Icon for it on the home screen. Swipe the arrow at the top to return to Home Screen. Its EZ to figure out.ldvnvieng

I’ve been wanting a multi effects processor for 20+ years, I picked this up when it had a 200$ discount.. So far is been amazing, the touch screen makes it easy to find what you’re looking for, it feels well built and the carbon fiber pure case really pleases the eyes.Jeffrey H.

Great sounding unit BUT : 1) if you try changing patches using midi THERE ARE HUGE GAPS between changes – like 1-2 seconds – made the unit unuseable (live) 2) TC also no longer support this product SO YOU CANT UPDATE THE SOFTWARE, there is NO WEB EDITOR and THERE ARE NO WINDOWS 10 DRIVERS available for it – shoddy shoddy shoddy! There is also no analogue dry through signal meaning you will always have gaps, in switching , with midi and your tone is sacrificed. This seems to be a common problem with TC rack based and digital problems. Look around the internet and you'll see loads of forums with guys complaining about the gap when switching (G Major, G Minor, M350 etc etc ) I opted for a 10 year old Rocktron Xpresison as it has an analogue dry through and has zero gaps! Crazy that rack based effects equipment these days (under £1000) , does not offer an analogue "dry through" signal and seamless switch with midi!!Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Helix is fantastic for all studio musicians. You can construct so many different sounds with it. Since 3.0, the Helix is a complete package as far as guitar processors go: you have all different amps, cabs, effects, acoustic sim, synths, polyphonic transposition, harmonization, oversampling. Lots of in/outs, lots of ways to route it. The workflow is great: you have the computer editor. You can back up/restore your Helix, email the backup to yourself, etc. The Helix can absolutely replace your entire signal chain and be used as the only piece of gear to process your guitar sounds. The same could not be said about the Helix when it was on earlier firmware versions. Now, the Helix itself is very cheaply made. I thought I'd purchase one and never need to use anything ever again– wrong! After about a year of light use, the buttons stopped working reliably, then an LED stopped working. Helix is assembled using cheap Chinese parts that are tiny! For example, the footswitches are not what they appear to be–there are tiny tactile microswitches underneath. The Helix will not withstand nonstop gigging for more than a year, unless it's regularly serviced/cleaned, etc. It's a real shame because it can sound great, but something is always failing, or about to fail.Dimitri

Overall: I just received the Helix Rack yesterday so I only have a few hours in the drivers seat but that's enough to learn how truly awesome this thing is. I've owned a lot of Line 6 products over the last 20 years, in fact I still have a spider V240 and a POD HD Pro X but the Helix is so far out of their league they will probably never get used again in my studio. The design is sleek, easy to navigate, user friendly and just all around beautifully designed. The large full color screen is not only eye catching but makes navigating the menus effortless. Even though I'm modeler savvy, I've had no previous experience with Impulse Responses, in fact, I hadn't even heard of them until I started researching the Helix Rack and quite honestly I didn't think that I would care to use them… Well… I was wrong. It's amazing what these things do for the quality and authenticity of my tones when recording. As I mentioned earlier I only have 2 days under my belt at this point but most of that has been recording scratch tracks just to hear the result of these I.R's. I also love the fact that Line 6 still adds all of the necessary physical knobs and controls to their equipment in the days of everything being digital. The idea that I can play almost uninterrupted while tweaking many different parameters on the unit itself without a pedal is always a selling point for me. Not taking anything away from the foot controller but when I'm seated in front of my rack, using my hands to adjust the unit itself is just somewhat more convenient at times. Next, the user space… I thought that my POD HD Pro X had a lot of space for user presets but It has nothing on the Helix. I will probably never fill all of the user List's or even come close to it but It's always better to have something and not need it than to need something and not have it. Also, let me jump back to the large screen again, I have a laptop on which I keep all of my editing software for my studio equipment. I always plug in my Spider V240 and POD and use the Spider V Remote and POD HD Pro X edit software respectfully because in most cases sitting behind my recording console and tweaking my sound is just much easier to do with the computer apps than the equipment. The Helix is the first and only piece of equipment I've owned where the display is laid out and organized in a way that is very similar to a computer or tablet app and so even though I have the Helix Edit app running on my computer right next to me, making adjustments on the front of the Helix Rack in many cases is actually easier and faster than grabbing a mouse and using the comp app. I could write much more describing my total satisfaction thus far but I will wait 'till I have used it for another month or so and update my review at that time. I will leave you with this thought. While conveying my total happiness to my brother last night regarding the Helix Rack, I went so far as to say that I feel that this could be the last guitar processer I ever buy and if not it's pretty close.Fred

Helix is fantastic for all studio musicians. You can construct so many different sounds with it. Since 3.0, the Helix is a complete package as far as guitar processors go: you have all different amps, cabs, effects, acoustic sim, synths, polyphonic transposition, harmonization, oversampling. Lots of in/outs, lots of ways to route it. The workflow is great: you have the computer editor. You can back up/restore your Helix, email the backup to yourself, etc. The Helix can absolutely replace your entire signal chain and be used as the only piece of gear to process your guitar sounds. The same could not be said about the Helix when it was on earlier firmware versions. Now, the Helix itself is very cheaply made. I thought I'd purchase one and never need to use anything ever again– wrong! After about a year of light use, the buttons stopped working reliably, then an LED stopped working. Helix is assembled using cheap Chinese parts that are tiny! For example, the footswitches are not what they appear to be–there are tiny tactile microswitches underneath. The Helix will not withstand nonstop gigging for more than a year, unless it's regularly serviced/cleaned, etc. It's a real shame because it can sound great, but something is always failing, or about to fail.Dimitri

Overall: I just received the Helix Rack yesterday so I only have a few hours in the drivers seat but that's enough to learn how truly awesome this thing is. I've owned a lot of Line 6 products over the last 20 years, in fact I still have a spider V240 and a POD HD Pro X but the Helix is so far out of their league they will probably never get used again in my studio. The design is sleek, easy to navigate, user friendly and just all around beautifully designed. The large full color screen is not only eye catching but makes navigating the menus effortless. Even though I'm modeler savvy, I've had no previous experience with Impulse Responses, in fact, I hadn't even heard of them until I started researching the Helix Rack and quite honestly I didn't think that I would care to use them… Well… I was wrong. It's amazing what these things do for the quality and authenticity of my tones when recording. As I mentioned earlier I only have 2 days under my belt at this point but most of that has been recording scratch tracks just to hear the result of these I.R's. I also love the fact that Line 6 still adds all of the necessary physical knobs and controls to their equipment in the days of everything being digital. The idea that I can play almost uninterrupted while tweaking many different parameters on the unit itself without a pedal is always a selling point for me. Not taking anything away from the foot controller but when I'm seated in front of my rack, using my hands to adjust the unit itself is just somewhat more convenient at times. Next, the user space… I thought that my POD HD Pro X had a lot of space for user presets but It has nothing on the Helix. I will probably never fill all of the user List's or even come close to it but It's always better to have something and not need it than to need something and not have it. Also, let me jump back to the large screen again, I have a laptop on which I keep all of my editing software for my studio equipment. I always plug in my Spider V240 and POD and use the Spider V Remote and POD HD Pro X edit software respectfully because in most cases sitting behind my recording console and tweaking my sound is just much easier to do with the computer apps than the equipment. The Helix is the first and only piece of equipment I've owned where the display is laid out and organized in a way that is very similar to a computer or tablet app and so even though I have the Helix Edit app running on my computer right next to me, making adjustments on the front of the Helix Rack in many cases is actually easier and faster than grabbing a mouse and using the comp app. I could write much more describing my total satisfaction thus far but I will wait 'till I have used it for another month or so and update my review at that time. I will leave you with this thought. While conveying my total happiness to my brother last night regarding the Helix Rack, I went so far as to say that I feel that this could be the last guitar processer I ever buy and if not it's pretty close.Fred

This is a fine unit that has tremendous functionality and given some time and effort there is almost no tone that cannot be extracted from this unit. Unfortunately Line 6 goes out of their way to make it an unpleasant experience. Unless of course your willing to fork over more money for software that other companies would give you for free, or at least substantially less than Line 6 charges. You shouldn't have to shell out hundreds of dollars for a unit followed by hundreds more for some software to get the most out of it. Line 6 is the worst, but the POD Pro XT is a good unit.recnepsterb

For a nine year old effects floorboard, this is a great value for someone (like me) who wants several effects without spending $100-200 per pedal. Line 6 is generous with this one, Ive only had it two weeks and theres still plenty of sonic discoveries to be had. Cant compare it to Line 6s new units, but this one looks cool, sounds even better. Couldnt care less that it happens to be all modeling, I can plug a bass in, then in the blink of an eye pick up the guitar without unplugging from the bass amp and still get a huge stellar amp tone for ultimate chunder. Get it, for $200-ish its a steal!aig-man

This is a pretty good bag. The quality is excellent and it looks/feels like it will last quite a while. I bought this for my Line 6 Pod hd500x and it works "ok" for it. The bag could be a bit more snug so the Pod does not flop back and forth when you carry it. Length wise there is extra room and a spacer which allows you to carry some extra cables or a power strip, but I am talking about the snugness on the top and bottom. I may try adding an extra foam pad to see if this helps. I know this bag was not specifically made for the Pod so I can't fault it too much for not fitting 100%. It is a great deal for the money!jkelly517

Best price in town on a great little piece of equipment. Honestly, it's amazing what tech is doing these days. This unit is fully staged worthy and has nearly everything anyone could want. There is a learning curve to the unit but it isn't too bad. It isn't perfect out of the box but can be tweaked to preference. Many of the presets are great and as good launch point for sounds you are looking for. As for delivery, my unit came very fast. I think i waited 4 days for my order (which was 5 days earlier than initially estimated).Jeffrey

The GP-200 is a very flexible multi-effects/modeler whose price may suggest something of lower quality, but it's actually a great-sounding and fun unit. I play acoustic and electric guitar with an Acoustasonic Telecaster, and the GP-200 works great for both sounds. You get what's probably hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of amps, effects, and cabinets for a fraction of the cost. The factory presets probably aren't for most people, but the fun is in creating your own anyway. I definitely recommend using the PC/Mac software for this, as it's a little easier on the eyes and a bit more intuitive as far as the interface goes, but working with the unit itself just takes a little time and experimenting to get used to as the documentation isn't as detailed as it could be for the depth of options available. The acoustic guitar IRs are helpful for buffing up a standard piezo pickup; they won't fill anyone into thinking that your $200 guitar is a vintage Martin or whatnot, but they do bring a bit more depth to the sound. I find them a bit brittle-sounding, but perhaps with more EQ tweaking I could minimize that. I highly recommend this unit for people who want a good, flexible modeling solution without paying thousands. I haven't had the opportunity to play with big-name modelers, but this will definitely do the trick for most.Josh