Zoom G5n Guitar Multi-Effects Processor with Expression Pedal, with 100+ Built in Effects, Amp Modeling, Stereo Effects, Looper, Rhythm Section, Tuner, Audio Interface for Direct Recording to Computer

In the year that I've owned and used the Zoom G5n, I cannot think of a time where I'd made a more cost-effective purchase in the category of "musical instrument accessories". All I can say is kudo's to the team at Zoom who created and continue to support this extremely versatile multi-effects processor. I just recently updated to version 3.0 of the firmware and was additionally pleased to see that Zoom apparently listened to their user base, and corrected or enhanced items that warranted such action. Well done, Zoom (with one caveat, see below)! Although I could write a lengthy tome on this marvelous device, I'll keep it (relatively) short. 1.) I own a few of the "real deal" devices the G5n emulates. I am absolutely stunned at how accurately they are represented. 2.) While not mandatory, The Zoom Guitar Lab software (also updated to 3.1.0.39) is intuitive and, frankly, even fun to play with. Via the USB connection, the software allows real-time creation and tweaking of patches while selecting from a huge effects pool, consisting of Dynamics, Filters, Amps, Drives, Cabinets, Modulations, SFX, Delays, Reverbs and Pedals. You essentially build your very own pedal board/rig. The possible aural combinations are virtually endless! 3.) Your own designed and tailored patch can then be saved to one of 75 available patch slots. Note: The software is NOT required to create, manipulate, adjust and save patches. This can be done directly on the G5n device. I just find that, personnally, I can configure much more quickly using the software. I could go on about the "pros", however I'll add the one real "con" that Zoom should still address: Roll the initial default gain and volume back on some of the pre-installed patches...let the user crank them if they want! I realize those particular patches are intended for in-your-face volume, and I also realize we can lower from within the patch. However, when you're finger picking or strumming on "LushAcoustic", and your toe accidentally taps "scroll" and you're suddenly thrust to a dime'd out "DjentDrive", it's rudely awakening. Picture Marty McFly in Doc Browns house. Yeah. Exactly like that! Anyways. Bottom line: I believe the Zoom G5n is perhaps the best value in the guitar effects arena. If for around 300 clams you want to reasonably emulate (many) thousands of dollars worth of equipment in any configuration you want, then this is your box.

First off, I've been playing guitar for 15 years. I've used many multi-effects pedals over my time. This one has a slightly steep learning curve. First thing I noticed is all the presets are pretty bad. I feel like that would turn first time users off. However, I knew it going into this. The presets are merely just examples. The real fun and ingenuity comes with creating your own tones. There's almost too many options to be honest. It has almost everything you could ever want as far as Amp models, effects, pedals. There's so many neat sounds and modular effects. I found myself smiling after finding some of them. This is a tone-tinkers paradise. I'm also having a blast researching what amps/effects my favorite guitarists use and trying to recreate their tone with this pedal. Overall, I think this is a great multi-effects pedal with all the customization options available. The price was perfect for only $329. I couldn't be happier!

This effects unit has very nice clean sounds. I think the distortion is ok, I have not found the "sweet spot" for my playing so I'll keep tweaking the settings. I have a $129 Fender Squire Tele so I assume distortions won't be great given that the output of my stock pickups is not high. I bought this because it has good reviews and hundreds of videos on youtube from people getting a nice tone out of it. Type this pevwB0ZNGSM on google if you wanna see me playing it, there is no editing other than doubling the audio tracks and panning to right and left (use headphones). The software used for recording is Cubase LE (comes with the Zoom G5n) which is very good if you are into recording and being creative. Bottom line is, this unit is very versatile if you have the right pickups, do a lot of youtube search to make sure you like it. ***Update*** After learning how to get nice tones I definitely recommend this product. I use it at church and get compliments from guys using tubes. I use a Fender Richie Kotzen for everything. The Plexi, Fender and Dizel simulations are great for distortions. I simply roll back the volume to get clean sounds from Plexi simulations. The expression pedal allows you to add lots of characteristics to you sound. This is for people who are ok with navigating lots of settings and tweaking as there are several ways to create tone.

For what it does at this price point the G5n is a phenomenal multi effects pedal. The preset patches absolutely need tweaking, especially things like gain in a lot of patches are way too high, but of course they need tweaking, and that's the fun part, don't you want to find your own specific tones? There are a lot of preset patches, many are either barely different from other similar patches, some are outright horrible effects with useless synths that I personally don't care for, but again, they are just presets which you should tweak to your own liking, even some of the bad ones are good starting points for experimenting outside of your comfort zone. Ultimately, like most people, you're eventually going to settle on maybe a dozen or so at most and probably closer to only half that. It doesn't have an XLR out, so that will be an issue for certain gigging musicians looking to output to the house board/PA in that particular way. Also the loopers it comes with take up a pedal effect spot in the effect chain, meaning they are not independent of whatever particular patch you are in, you can't switch between patches with a loop still running to layer loops with completely different patches. They're also very basic looper to begin with, you can have two tracks at most, no real dynamic layering, splitting, reversing or mixing of tracks within the looper. Also there is a limit on the dsp/processing power, so depending on which types of pedals you choose in any given chain you can hit the limit before the 9 total pedal max because some effects have a higher processor load than others with some, like the two track looper, the Spacehole delay, some amp models and etc, taking up two pedal spots. For me none of those things are a major concern. Most of my signal chains are around 5-6 pedals at any one time. Usually a compressor, an amp model, maybe a chorus, some type of reverb, maybe a second delay, and a wah or volume pedal, you get the point. Some people will find this limiting, I personally prefer to keep any one tone limited, too many pedals in any one chain imo just start to get wonky and are quite often a crutch for poor playing. I have no doubt there are guitarists with more experience who will tell you there are much better multi effects pedals and rack mounts with superior sound and functionality, or that you will get better tone with individual effects pedals, but those boards, like a gt-1000 or a Helix, they're going to cost upwards of three times as much if not more, and it can cost even more to buy the pedals individually only to find you like a different brand of reverb, or a different distortion and etc. I'm a fairly new guitarist, I've been a drummer and keyboard player for quite awhile and I've messed around with guitar before but I've only started taking it more seriously and practicing daily for a few months now. For someone like me, it's a phenomenal multi effects pedal, I'm getting a lot for the price. It has some great amp models, plenty enough of the requisite delay/reverb, chorus, distortion, flange, wah, vibrato, reverse delay etc. For the price, especially for beginners and intermediates, you can't beat the sound and usability you can get out of the Zoom g5n. I didn't give it 5 star since I'm not an expert on effects or guitar playing in general, and also because of certain things like no XLR, looper not separate from individual patches, and I forgot to mention earlier, the guitar lab software for editing and moving patches could have better functionality, and you can't rename patches without the software. Also the power supply adapter could have a longer and beefier cord. I'm sure those with more experience might rate it a bit lower for those and other reasons, but I'm very happy with it. It's a ton of fun, sounds great, it's very easy to edit even without the software, rather study and well built while not weighing two tons. I can't say enough about how happy I am with it, especially at this price point.

This thing has taken quite a rap from what I've seen. People griping about it not being as good as the previous model. I don't know much about the other model, I didn't have one. So, I'm unbiased. I've had tons of peddles, singles and multi fx. I absolutely love this! I've been playing for over 20 years on stage. I'm a worship leader at a big Church. This is great for replacing my single peddles. I thought it was very comparable in sound. I use it through an American Peavey classic 30 with an English Celestian speaker. It rocks, period. I think the sound quality is great. I don't need tons of options. I hate too many. I like have the excellent fewer options. They are great! I love how easy it is, I had it figured out right away. I've used both. On stage and studio. This is by far the best multiple fx peddle I've ever used. It's set up for live. I play on a dark stage, we have crazy lights. Know your gear, and you'll be fine. Genius set up. Love the guys and gals at Zoom who put this together! Great job

FYI I updated the G5n pedal as SOOON as i opened it to the latest version. 3.0 (easy update) I decided the g5n over the g3xn in lue of the added effects USB updates and few other features. So far, im pretty happy with it... So far ive had this unit over a month and made a couple patches i noodle around with. As im primarily therapy play for myself and dont learn other peoples songs ive yet to make a variety of patches yet. . What I like so far? A gooood chunk of solid delays and a dual delay ive missed for many years and couldnt replicate on my old HD500x that i had to reflash 3x before selling it to GC. I love delays . Compared to the HD500x it dont destroy your amp tone and guitar harmonics nearly as bad as the line6 . Mono & stereo looper--- As far as im aware it will only come out on the main amp.. ill have to check stereo loop details again.......... Loopers imo are better in writting then irl Buuut im not good with them anyways. This looper in Clean channel at the end of your chain works great though. . Drum track--- Has a slew of them, i prefer something offbeat.. clicking and clicking i kept thinking id run out of loops but ended up finally finding a good handful of preferred drum tracks not even sure if ive reached the end . Navigation is pretty straight forward same with switching from Stomp to scrolling the banks. Has a independent output boost and tone dial to help replicate my original Blackstar HT MK2 tube tone a lil better . Compared to the Line6 hd500x.. i like the G5n more.. its useability is pretty spot on requiring less to get them sounding how you want. So far ive yet to have a start up issue or glitches while playing like i did with the hd500x . Limitation, based on DSP or amount of processing power available as some effects are more intensive then others but itll give you a 'overload' message which is normal and means youre maxxing it. .. .. Overall, im happy and dont intend to get rid or trade up the pedal which has been all ive been doing sifting through the world of effects. PS. Zoom g5n Noisegates can be good esspecially zoom's own one.. but theyre not a Sentry triple noisegate. This will get rid of any residual effects sounds without using your DSP slots in the pedalboard and do a better job of it. Maybe even a bona-fide buffer to boost signal more naturally... But honestly the Zoom pedal does ALOT better and preserving original amp tone then ANY of the other multieffects ive tried so far, implying youre not using amp/cab simulators like myself. Best wishes and jam on, ZomPaul twitch.tv/zompaul

This thing is so much fun, with a good pair of headphones you can play many different guitar tones including pretty awesome Fender Deluxe reverb and old Marshal/Vox styles. The direct USB output lets you plug straight into your DAW without another interface, this is so awesome because you can play back your tracks from your DAW and hear it in the headphone jack of the g5n and overdub right there. Pedal+Amp+Cab+Reverb+Full blown guitar recording interface. Wish it did higher than 44.1 / 16 bit for recording but still I'm happy as a clam

I picked this up because I was looking at the Zoom G5 and Amazon said this was the "newer" version of that product. It is newer and it seems to be in the same line, but it doesn't do some of the same things that the G5 does. For me, the biggest complaint was that the looper is built into each patch chain. What this means is if you change patches the loop stops. This is also true of the built in rhythms which make it useless for practicing when you want to practice changing patches. I didn't own a G5, but in looking at them online it appears that the looper and rhytmn are outside of the patch chain. With all of that said, I am sending it back because the basic loop function is what I was wanting. But the pedal itself is very nice. I like the screens that tell what the stomp boxes are. It makes it easy to remember which button to turn on and off between songs. It is also easy to program (which is good because the computer software for it is only for backing up your patches and organizing them. You can't edit sounds on the computer). It is tough and doesn't feel like a toy. The bottom switches that look strange are actually really nice. Because they are made to scroll through things they make more sense than heavy metal switches. All in all a good built pedal, with decent sounds, but it just didn't meet my needs.

This processor is suitable for intermediate to advance guitar players. Here are some pros and cons of this processor. PROS:- 1.The patches can easily be edited and the effects can be switched during performance. 2.The amp simulators are really good and a perfect replica of the original amps. 3.The expression pedal is great on response and just with little effort the wah effect or phaser effect gives the best. 4.The patches can easily be edited by connecting the device to a computer and we can also download patches and copy it to the device 5.The pedals and looper are also really good and gives a original taste of the tone. CONS:- 1.This can't be carried for small gigs, as the setup and the portability is little difficult and weighs nearly 3.5 kgs. 2.As the processor does not have any XLR output, it is difficult to connect directly to some mixers. 3.The zoom lab software should improve the recognizing of the device, as it always requires to restart the processor or sometimes even the computer.

Excelente producto, un poco mal empacado dentro de la caja de Amazon, pero igual llego bien, en cuanto al pedal, es mi primer pedal, bastantes efectos, interfaz muy intuitiva y fácil de usar, la uso con una guitarra electroacústica funciona perfecto, no agrega ruido, excelente en todos los sentidos, controles fáciles de usar, materiales de buena calidad

Excelente Pedal, funciona muy bien sin tener que conectar un amplificador de guitarra, se recomienda utilizarlo con una entrada de sonido normal, sin pre amplificadores asi cuentas con mayor margen de efectos para avistoco, overdrive etc. La AppLab finciona perfectamente aunque en Mac de repente se cierra al modificar los amps y filtros.

One helluva effects board from zoom. Pros: •Sturdy exterior. •Clear and nice led monochrome display with adjustable contrast. •Creating and editing patches are like applying butter on toast. •The Amp models are really good on this one. •Can be used as an audio interface directly to record guitars. • Upgradable via internet. More pedals can be downloaded to the processor via the guitar lab app. •High quality tones. Cons: •Deleting a patch is rather cumbersome on this one. • Doesn't have a dedicated noise gate. The ZNR functions about average and you'll have to work extra hard to get a noise free guitar tone. With time it becomes easy though. :) • No XLR I/O ! Why?? Bought this product from Bajaao via Amazon and the delivery was spot on time. The product works well and hasn't caused any problems.

Over all Great,Shipping, and Product Quality is great, take 20 minutes, read the manual, its pretty easy to use, endless possibilities, and combinations, can keep you busy for quite some time to get that right tone. The Guitar lab software is easy to use, click and drag to add or remove patches, change names, re order, remove unwanted patches. Pretty impressive. Only down side is, It doesn't come with the USB A to B mail (printer cable) not sure why, its only 10-15 bucks. Also the Power adapter plug in on the device side seems very weak and finicky, Can see that easily needing a replacement or re soldering in the future after some use and abuse. Over all great product, 2 months going, still haven't touched in to all its abilities, Also another down side, seems a little tricky to find the looper and or the drum beats, seem to have to scroll endlessly for ever just to get too.. but once ya find it, they work great. hours worth of fun.