Effects Pedals some more?? Zoom AC 3 Acoustic Creator??

So I'm falling into the effects pedal rabbit hole!

It's winter time so what else is one to do with their indoor time. I've been spending some time on the Acoustic Guitar Forum and elsewhere to do research.

I'm playing a Godin Mulituke through a Fishman Loudbox mini

I already have a ZoomG1X Four and I followed the thread on the Zoom A1.

I do like the G1X at it's price point and it has a ton of features. I do like some of the modeling features and I have been changing settings to see what I like. I have found the Zoom Guitar Lab interface to be problematic at best. ( I read where it might help if I delete and redownload the software?) I have ToneLib-Zoom as well and have found this interface to be seamless and will continue to use it.

I find the G1X is just a little too much fiddling around at times though--more than I want to.

So I recently picked up an Electro Harmoix Turnip Greens dual pedal. It has a Soul Food distortion and a Holy Grail Max reverb. I like it. Simple and easy to dial in the sound I want. I can dial up some loud rock and roll or dial in just a little distortion as needed. I like the analog sound better over the digital sound of the G1X. I can also add other pedals as wanted or needed. (My son plays electric guitar and has a few pedals so we can mix-match-share.)

So the question of the day:

Does anyone have experience with the ZOOM AC 3 Acoustic Creator?
Experiences?? Good?? Bad?? Insights??

I know there are likely better machines out there-several I've looked at. But price is a consideration. A certain amount of simplicity and dial in capabilities I'm looking for. I'm not really interested in programing in a bunch of patches--modeling--effects. I'm aware that it does not have some features but does have the ability to combine with other pedals.

I want to be able to dial in the acoustic side of life as well as have fun with blues-rock n roll and so forth.

Thanks for the feedback--shared experiences--insights!

Well I didn't get any feedback. I talked with some people that know more than I do. Decided to take the jump and see what happens. The Zoom G1XFour may be on it's way to a friend, that is if they are interested.

This combo of pedals ought to keep me busy for a while. Not digital---no back and forth to the computer fiddling around--- or trying to guess what the fancy/schmancy unintelligible name for the settings they have given really mean. Straight forward, see what your doing, dial in your preference, letter rip........from clean and/or affected acoustic to rock on overdrive with some ability to tune to your desires, built in tuner as well.
Well see how it goes. Plus enough money spent for the time being..........

Sorry you didn't get any feedback, @mjh42...

If I had any knowledge to share, I would have done. However, thanks for starting the thread as it's introduced me to the Electro Harmonix Turnip Greens and, as someone just about to begin his journey on a sold bodied steel stringed, it looks like a really cool, but simple pedal that can give loads of variety from just two effects. If I get on well with the electric uke I may well get one of these!

Ben

Thanks beenhana22

I looked long and hard at the T REX soulmate accoustic.....just could not justify the upgraded price with the budget I had to spend and the things I wanted to be able to do.......I have more than enough to keep me busy learning, playing, having fun.....

My son heard me playing the Trunip Greens.......he said he might want to try it out........I'm gonna have to keep my eye on him....Although I already borrowed a patch cord from him to hook the two that I have together.....

Oooooh - that T-Rex has got delay too...I like delay!!!

Ben

Don't forget the BOSS AD 10 a lot of people like this one as well.

I looked at a lot of comparisons. Went to websites. Looked at my budget. What did I really want to do with the equipment. I know I didn't want to have to connect to a computer for effects modeling, downloading, memory and the like. SO that was a big influence on my choice.

As my first post noted.......the effects pedal rabbit hole........I suppose I could be involved in a lot of other unhealthy practices......

mjh42 said:

Don't forget the BOSS AD 10 a lot of people like this one as well.

I looked at a lot of comparisons. Went to websites. Looked at my budget. What did I really want to do with the equipment. I know I didn't want to have to connect to a computer for effects modeling, downloading, memory and the like. SO that was a big influence on my choice.

As my first post noted.......the effects pedal rabbit hole........I suppose I could be involved in a lot of other unhealthy practices......

Click to expand...

Oh for goodness' sake! You're trying to suck me in, aren't you?!

My problem is that:
1. I'm just to get my first electric solid body, so that's a new dawn
2. I'm now pretty much always playing acoustic amplified

As such, the draw of pedals is obvious. I like the raw simplicity of the Turnip Greens, I have to say. Could I put a separate delay in line with that, using the effects loop?

Ben

Here is a quick look at some pedals from an ukulele perspective.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fv04O69rMbQ

Of course I watched this particular video after I bought my gear. I like that it's ukulele specific.


This second one is a bit longer. I watched it some time ago. All pretty much high end gear, but you can skip to the sections you want.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KpHMzqOENI

I'm sure some searching would yield more resources.

Amazing.

Thanks so much for likely helping me to spend too much money!!



Ben

Help me out again, guys:

Single pedal (delay)...what do I need? My cable goes from uke to pedal and then, presumably, another cable from pedal output to amp, yes?

If so, how long a cable would you use from pedal to amp? Shortest possible? 'Sensible' length?

Would a 1ft D'Addario one be suitable?

And then, to put more pedals in line, should I wish to, do I use the 6" effects cables that you can find alll over the place, between each pedal box?

Thanks!

Ben

Well Ben I see your getting along with the pedal idea.

I run a 10ft cord from uke to pedals and then another 10ft cord to the amp. I like to place the amp a few feet away. My space isn't big but having some space between you and the amp can be a good thing. I'm usually sitting down with pedals at my feet and the amp about 6 or so feet away.

I connect the the two pedals with a short pedal board cables. I think it is 6 inches. You can see how close the pedals are in my photo above. Something like these:

https://www.sweetwater.com/c1221--Pedalboard_Cables


So from the uke------10ft---------ZOOM AC3---6inches-----Turnip Greens-------10ft--------AMP

Sorry you guys are all alone on here...

Usually cable suck happens from the pickup to the pedals so it's a good idea to stay under 10-15' from the uke. After the pedals, you usually end up with a buffered signal so you can go longer, if you need to.

Hard to go wrong with two 10' cables (or a 10' and a 15'/18' for flexibility). If I had to do it again I'd start with Mogami Gold. Expensive, but they'll last forever. I've made up the difference in price with cables that have crapped out over the years.

I went with Mogami Gold cables. I figured buy once and they do their job well and they will last a good long time. The patch cable is whatever my son bought with his meager budget. If and when I'll upgrade. Some kind of preamp will help the signal along as well.

mjh42 said:

Well Ben I see your getting along with the pedal idea.

I run a 10ft cord from uke to pedals and then another 10ft cord to the amp. I like to place the amp a few feet away. My space isn't big but having some space between you and the amp can be a good thing. I'm usually sitting down with pedals at my feet and the amp about 6 or so feet away.

I connect the the two pedals with a short pedal board cables. I think it is 6 inches. You can see how close the pedals are in my photo above. Something like these:

https://www.sweetwater.com/c1221--Pedalboard_Cables


So from the uke------10ft---------ZOOM AC3---6inches-----Turnip Greens-------10ft--------AMP

Click to expand...

That's great - in fact I went for a 2ft cable to run from pedal to amp. It's short, I realise, but will be ok for me in the room I'll play in, I think. And, if it turns out to be annoyingly short then, yeah, I can bite the bullet and go for 10ft or so.

Good to know that there's unlikely any great length-related signal decay if your kit is decent.

I've gone for a D'Addario Planet Waves cable to match my current uke-to-amp one. It's a great cable, really robustly built and the sound through my Fishman is really clean. I saw the Mogami Golds - they look very purdy...if this pedal venture starts to blossom, no doubt I'll be bothering retailers for some of those...!

Looking forward to getting my ukes plugged into a delay. If that sounds good I can see myself looking at something like a Turnip Greens too, as those three effects will likely give me what I can envisage wanting.

What about in line tuners for sold bodied electrics? I mean, can I still use my Peterson Strobe tuner on my incoming electric (arriving in about 20 minutes - seriously!)? I have a feeling that is a dumb question. If not, and i need an inline tuner, any thoughts?

Ben

Brad Bordessa said:

Sorry you guys are all alone on here...

Usually cable suck happens from the pickup to the pedals so it's a good idea to stay under 10-15' from the uke. After the pedals, you usually end up with a buffered signal so you can go longer, if you need to.

Hard to go wrong with two 10' cables (or a 10' and a 15'/18' for flexibility). If I had to do it again I'd start with Mogami Gold. Expensive, but they'll last forever. I've made up the difference in price with cables that have crapped out over the years.

Click to expand...

Thanks for getting involved and offering your advice too, Brad - I have a feeling that, as I enter the world of sold bodied steel-stringed ukes, I may have a lot of questions!

Ben

Right - I'm on a roll, now!

Plugged the new electric in and already it sounds great!

BUT - the A string (tuned GCEA) really rasps. I can't see where that is coming from and know nothing about adjusting/investigating how the steel strings sit. The other strings ring nicely without any buzz. The action is beautifully, but not ridiculously, low.

Any thoughts? AND - if I chose to restring it (I think I'd like to), can you give me advice about 'which strings' to look at - I realise that is a bit of a ridiculous request, but I know nothing about string gauge for steel strings, so any guidance for what I would want to re-string it GCEA would be very welcome!

Ben

Great to hear your uke arrived and you are plugged in and making music!

Don't know much of anything about steel strings and such. Might look at strings used on other electric ukes like the Risa's and the new Flight electrics. Mim's Uke's might be able to help as well.

You should be able to adjust the pick up a bit up and down, that may help with the A string.

I spent an hour on Sunday playing my Godin, adjusting the pedals, playing the same songs with different settings, getting a feel for it all. Some of the guitar modeling effect differences on the Zoom AC 3 are very subtle.....but I'm finding some settings that are sounding good with some of what I am playing. That's part of the adventure of using the pedals.