I bought this stunning pedal three and a half years ago with no clear understanding of what the pedal could really do. At the time, I bought it because I wanted something that could generate a lot of effects and sounds without me having to spend a lot of money. I figured that if I found an amp model or effect I really liked, I could buy the physical amp or effect pedal later on in life when had the necessary finances. I used it for making covers at home as well as a few original pieces here and there, but I was completely oblivious to the USB out embedded within the pedal. Little did I know that this pedal with two switches and a foot pedal would blow me away and become an invaluable tool in me recording music.
This pedal contains 94 various stomp boxes and amplifier tones. The amplifiers are based off of famous models such as the Fender Twin Reverb and the immortal Marshall JCM 800/900, Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier and the Vox AC30, tones that are so well known in rock and metal, as well as blues, that they can be identified by musicians within as seconds. The stomp boxes, also referred to as effects pedals, range from the most basic distortion pedals and delay, to a wah wah pedal and DigiTech's signature Whammy pedal. I'm inclined to say I bought this pedal for that effect alone. The whammy pedal that made the same wacky and crazy sounds that my favorite guitarist Tom Morello, from Rage Against The Machine, made on songs like Killing in the Name of and Clear the Lane simply inspired me.
With that being said, the pedal has a lot to offer. The physical build of the pedal itself is fantastic for the price. When you press down on the pedal, you can activate the wah pedal at any time. There is no physical button or switch for you to hit, it is all based on pressure. After using my Dunlop Crybaby wah pedal for a year, I sorely miss the physical button, but as time went on, I started to appreciate the "virtual button". You can reset the pedal's calibration so that you can recalibrate the amount of pressure you need to press down for the wah pedal. This kind of made up for the missing switch and I was able to successfully calibrate the pedal to the same pressure I would place on a real pedal. The two foot switches are strong and their main purpose is to switch between each preset. The preset themselves can be modified and completely altered so that you can have your own unique tone, within the pedal's parameters. I find myself always amazed at the sheer amount of options this pedal presents you with. I am able to switch between a crystal clean channel and a rough and dirty channel within seconds with only a slightly minuscule delay. The pedal comes with 60 drum presets and an onboard metronome that can go as high as 240 BPM. The drum presets are great to jam over and are good to play along with since you can adjust the BPM of the loop.
The pedal comes with X-Edit, a piece of software that I find pretty intuitive. Via a USB cable that is not provided, but is commonly used for connecting a printer to a PC, you can edit the settings of each preset via your laptop. I find this more useful then turning the dials for each effect and for each preset. It is really easy to navigate and it is simple enough to backup presets and save them for later. You are also able to download custom made tones that are made by people online that are compatible with this pedal. That in itself opens up a whole new door of possibilities and options for the guitar player. People online are still making presets and creating insanely interesting tones. The pedal has an aux and headphone out port so you can connect your iPod or laptop via 3.5mm cable in order to play along to tracks or lessons. The headphone out allows me to play in silence so that I don't bother my family with my music. As stated before, you can plug the pedal directly into your laptop via USB. This is simply invaluable when it comes to recording since you can just record without the use of microphones and amplifiers. The pedal even comes with Cubase LE 4, which is a recording software. It is great for beginners and the full version is used by professionals and amateurs alike. DigiTech spared no expense with the software and the production of this pedal.
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| This is essentially how I record. (From top the bottom)(Black) Power cable. (Cream/beige) USB adapter that goes into laptop. I found printers use the same cable. (Green) 2 way 3.5 m.m. cable that goes into the laptop's headphone port so I can play to tracks. (Silver) Headphones that plug right in. (Golden) 1/4 inch Instrument Cable that goes right into my guitar. |
This pedal is quite possibly one of my greatest musical purchases so far. I thoroughly enjoy everything this pedal has to offer. A week or so ago, I emailed DigiTech with a question concerning my pedal and they were able to get back to me in a timely fashion with various responses, one of which solved my issue. The pedal is made out die cast and I trust that it is built to last. I hope in the future I am able to buy the RP 500 or the RP 355 because they can only get better from here. This pedal is also great for the college student on the go who cannot bring their Marshall JCM 900 with their 4x12 cabinet with them to college. With a power adapter, instrument cable and a set of headphones, you can jam away at your heart's content. Overall a stellar product.
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