Best and worst gear purchases of 2016

[01010111]

Pittsburgh Lifeforms Black Box - just wasn't for me.

What did you not like about it ? I'm thinking about getting either the blackbox or a Mother32 as a first synth, so I'm intrigued

Wasn't crazy about the sound or the interface--overall it didn't seem that awesome for a $700 piece of gear. I think if I ever do venture back into Euro stuff and wanna start with an all in one, I'd probably pick the Mother.

Overall though, I should add that I don't think Euro is the best fit for me in general.

That's fair. I love the interface and the sound, so, it's quickly become an essential piece of gear for me.

[peaches]

Worst purchase was the Tonal Recall. I'm still sad that one didn't work for what I do...

Ditto limbo crushes it.

[waltdogg]

anything i bought in 2016 but don't have anymore. which is probably too much to list off coz i don't remember where to even start. i think it started with a few les pauls and then some plexi clones, ugh, yeah. don't waste your money on lesser versions of shit you've already got as "backups." it just sits there never getting used because it trash compared to your main rig. and anyone that has identical backups is insane and must do some high level touring.

and as for the good, looking around and being so far into 2017 already i couldn't even tell you. i'm 99% sure i got my ampeg g-18 last year, that was a solid buy.

[Wittgenstein]

Not best-Sorry but the Pretty Years. It's fun, but not very usable for me and way too compressed on most settings. There's more, but that was the biggest one for me.

I haven't been able to get much use of it on bass (perhaps due to lack of imagination on my part), but it's been awesome on guitar for me.

[01010111]

Worst purchase was the Tonal Recall. I'm still sad that one didn't work for what I do...

Ditto limbo crushes it.

I went back to the DMMTT550 and have been pretty happy with it. I might try the Limbo in the future, or I might see if I can live with how weird the the mix knob on the Tonal Recall is. The 50/50 delay/dry balance at 75% of the mix knob is so weird, and then t cuts the volume. The trimmers alleviated that a little, but nowhere near enough. It's really weird that Joel made the mix knob so quirky, if it wasn't for that it'd still be on my board.

[waltdogg]

oh yeah i just remembered. that stupid fucking 40 watt blackstar id:core amp that i bought from work, then returned the next day to buy the ampeg g-18 and a set of hi hat cymbals lol.

[echorec]

Empress verb - sounded awesome but had flimsy knobs. Worse, the model I got was a dud and the presets didn't work. Customer service wasn't very helpful. Bummed me out.

Where did you buy yours? I could see this happening with an open box model that was accidentally sold as new. As for myself, I've had nothing but positive experiences with Empress. Their verb was my 5th pedal from them, and the pots always felt solid---also love the metal knob coverings as opposed to the shitty plastic the industry won't move on from. I hate plastic knobs. Metal should be the industry standard.

[mamsk]

best - dream sequence, tonal recall, blue knob spectre, empress reverb, ayahuasca, re-buying a randy's revenge, rm-1n
worst - not many things i didn't enjoy last year...tried the limbo ii, didn't like it nearly as much as the TR (it's just so pretty) so i sold it. also bought a great divide and didn't love it. that may be it. volca keys sucked too, i dig my beats a lot more.

[maggot]

Best:

Byooler Weedeater. It's a one-off Meathead Deluxe clone, apparently made by a high school kid who can neither draw a picture of a marijuana leaf nor play guitar competently. But there's something intoxicating about it's sound, and it picks up less radio than many of my "pro" pedals. It has an impact on the low notes & chords that my other pedals can't touch, and it cuts through like a distortion but sounds like a fuzz.

Yamaha AES 820 Drop 6. $200 for an absolutely kickass baritone guitar with DiMarzio pickups and radical locking tuners.

Honorable Mention: BAT Quantum Mystic; Turnip Farm Meathead clone with footswitchable "gain" knob that's nothing but a pre-effect volume pot; Quilter Tone Block.

Worst:

All the Muffs (and there were many).

Biyang Time Machine

[karmablock]

Best:
Boomerang III, Peavey 2x15, Dwarfcraft Ruiner

Worst:
EHX 720, Ditto X4

[popvulture]

Empress verb - sounded awesome but had flimsy knobs. Worse, the model I got was a dud and the presets didn't work. Customer service wasn't very helpful. Bummed me out.

Where did you buy yours? I could see this happening with an open box model that was accidentally sold as new. As for myself, I've had nothing but positive experiences with Empress. Their verb was my 5th pedal from them, and the pots always felt solid---also love the metal knob coverings as opposed to the shitty plastic the industry won't move on from. I hate plastic knobs. Metal should be the industry standard.

FWIW deleted my last response to this because it felt passive aggressive, and I feel like Empress has a pretty great rep—my weird experience seems isolated. I ended up happier with the Space in the long run, so no need to speak negatively about them.

[Seance]

Best:
Boomerang III, Peavey 2x15, Dwarfcraft Ruiner

Worst:
EHX 720, Ditto X4

I've heard some people talk about issues with TC Electronics switches, and that some had defective
X4 boards. But... what specifically didn't work out for you with the X4?

On paper there seems to be some good functionality on offer. Unfortunate that stop/start and effects
can't be applied to each of two loops independently of the other. Or am I misunderstanding X4 functions?

[Jwar]

Not best-Sorry but the Pretty Years. It's fun, but not very usable for me and way too compressed on most settings. There's more, but that was the biggest one for me.

It is quite compressed on a lot of settings I'll give you that.

I shouldn't have named it as worst. It wasn't bad at all. Just not that usable for me. I could see it being great with other applications though. For me, it'd almost need to be a couple of different pedals. Like it did too much and I was overwhelmed if that makes sense. Plus it was overly compressed on bass and that's my jam, soooooooooo...I can't change that. I mean I can, but you know.

[karmablock]

I've heard some people talk about issues with TC Electronics switches, and that some had defective
X4 boards. But... what specifically didn't work out for you with the X4?

On paper there seems to be some good functionality on offer. Unfortunate that stop/start and effects
can't be applied to each of two loops independently of the other. Or am I misunderstanding X4 functions?

On paper they are great. Very close to the Rang III but it piss poor on the execution. My X2 lasted forever despite them going the Line 6 route with the with switches. Mine bricked up and you had to a factory reset every time you wanted to use it. And TC was no help they just kept saying a firmware update would fix issues people were experiencing but also no date on when the firmware would be released. I don't think it has been released 6+ months later. I don't do midi but others were saying it was a pain in the ass to get to work and even then it would drift. I returned mine bought a 720 sold it when I found a deal on a Rang III and never looked back.

[Seance]

I've heard some people talk about issues with TC Electronics switches, and that some had defective
X4 boards. But... what specifically didn't work out for you with the X4?

On paper there seems to be some good functionality on offer. Unfortunate that stop/start and effects
can't be applied to each of two loops independently of the other. Or am I misunderstanding X4 functions?

On paper they are great. Very close to the Rang III but it piss poor on the execution. My X2 lasted forever despite them going the Line 6 route with the with switches. Mine bricked up and you had to a factory reset every time you wanted to use it. And TC was no help they just kept saying a firmware update would fix issues people were experiencing but also no date on when the firmware would be released. I don't think it has been released 6+ months later. I don't do midi but others were saying it was a pain in the ass to get to work and even then it would drift. I returned mine bought a 720 sold it when I found a deal on a Rang III and never looked back.

Thanks for the info/experience. These X4s aren't exactly cheap. So it's super lame to have experienced
that kind of trouble.