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Post by Deleted on Jun 1, 2020 6:16:31 GMT -7
Anybody tried it yet? It looks really interesting--kind of like a Mobius, a Timeline and a Big Sky all jammed together, or an HX Effects without the dirt pedals. The demos I've heard sound great so far, and I like the very streamlined, minimalist look.
Downsides: It's a bit of a current hog--it wants 600mA--but nothing like the HX Effects, and doable with a current doubler and a high-current power supply. Also, hard to tweak things like delay mix, etc., on the fly, though it can easily be set up to run two delays, so you could have one long and one short, etc., and it does have tap tempo, though no global tap tempo at the moment. Also, no drives as yet--with drives it could be a very handy all-in-one unit--it even has a built-in tuner--although the designers are considering adding drives via future updates. Also, no phaser (?!?!) or vibe yet--but those are definitely promised in pending updates.
I'm a sucker for multi-effects pedals, although I've so far found them tricky to integrate into a gigging board and have tended to revert to individual effects pedals for playing out--so I'm on the fence wit the X5, for the moment. I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts, as always.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 1, 2020 8:24:49 GMT -7
I had some points on Amazon so I went ahead and ordered one. Will report once I've had a chance to mess with it a bit.
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Post by scottc on Jun 1, 2020 8:53:09 GMT -7
I've had the same thoughts, pro and con about this one.
I'll be looking forward to hearing your thoughts on it after you've given it a go.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 2, 2020 15:01:24 GMT -7
I should have some time to mess with it on Friday. Fun!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 6, 2020 8:10:21 GMT -7
so, I did have a chance to play around with it yesterday for a bit, and was able to update the firmware and set up a couple of boards very quickly. It's velcroed up and stuck to my "big" board at the moment, and takes the place of my el Capistan, Wampler Terraform, and Diamond tremolo. I like the look, and how compact and self-contained it is. Setting up boards is simple and easy, as I say--the interface is very user friendly. Saving edits is super easy--you just flip the switch to "board" mode and you're good to go. Also, it sounds great--the basic effects I'm most interested in are reverb, delay, trem, flanger (and phaser, once that's introduced in the next update), and they're all tried and true TC effects that do exactly what the excellent TC line of digital pedals do. Also, it runs perfectly on a 500mA tap, if you've got one. I even connected it to a 100mA tap on my Truetone CS12 by accident and it powered up just fine.
The downside: Not much at the moment, except the obvious issue of on-the-fly tweaking. If you're like me you do a fair amount of level/mix tweaking to fit the space at a gig, and at the moment that's not something you can do with your toe on the Plethora (that said, it's just a matter of flipping a switch and tweaking a couple of knobs, so still easier than a Mobius, say). But--in upcoming updates, that's supposedly going to be addressed, so that each effect will have one assignable parameter that can be adjusted using the selection knobs. Also, as I say, it will be nice when the vibe and phaser effects are added in--and at some point I'd like to see a couple of good digital dirt pedals, too--a nice OD and a boost would make the Plethora a great all-in-one board at a really reasonable price. And would a rotary effect be too much to wish for? Who knows--the sky is theoretically the limit, I suppose. I think I'd like a few more adjustable parameters for some effects, ideally--though that can be done in the Toneprint app, I guess, and I also have no idea how to re-name the boards I've put together, but apparently it can be done.
In all, great pedal value--lots of bang for the buck, especially once we get another update or two down the road. Sound quality better than the Mobius/Timeline/Big Sky, and about equal to the HX Effects, but much smaller and less power-hungry. Interface more intuitive and user friendly than either if you're just putting together basic boards, though there's limitless tweakification possible if that's your thing.
In all, two thumbs up. Bring on the updates, TC!
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bigez
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Post by bigez on Jun 6, 2020 8:38:20 GMT -7
Thanks for the review. How is the noise floor? I love analog flanger but it can get really noisy...
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Post by Deleted on Jun 6, 2020 8:44:06 GMT -7
Thanks for the review. How is the noise floor? I love analog flanger but it can get really noisy... There's no analog anything in the Plethora, and if my brief experience with it yesterday is any indication, it seems very quiet. It's also got plenty of headroom, so you can run your dirt pedals into the front end or use the effects loop. Another update some folks might be looking forward to is the promised looper. I've never made a useable loop with a looper myself, so I doubt I'll bother with it, but I know lots of folks love them, so...
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Post by Deleted on Jun 6, 2020 11:26:28 GMT -7
Looks like there's a Leslie toneprint available for the Shaker vibrato--heard a brief clip of it just now and it sounds pretty good.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 7, 2020 2:09:17 GMT -7
Thanks for sharing.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 7, 2020 7:15:32 GMT -7
It's maybe worth pointing out the obvious advantage the Plethora has over the Strymon multis like the Mobius, Timeline, etc.--which is that the Plethora can run up to five effects at once. So, to get and run all the effects you can get in the Plethora for $500, you'd have to spend almost $1400 on Strymon gear. It's similar to the HX Effects and other Line 6 gizmos in that way. I also never loved the sound quality of the bigger Strymon units--they alwasy seemed a bit harsh or metallic to me, but I might be alone in that (I do love the el Capistan, though, and it's been my go-to delay for several years now). Unlike the Plethora, the HX Effects has a couple of decent drives and is maybe more tweakable within the device itself, but confirmed tweakers might ultimately prefer the creative opportunities TC offers in the toneprint editing app. That's not a feature I'm likely to use much--I'm more of a find a useable sound and go kind of guy, but still, it might be fun to explore at some point and see what weirdness results. Also vs the HX Effects, the Plethora has a simpler (and maybe less flexible) i/o setup, but can still be run using the 4CM, and it's my understanding that the effects are assignable to either your amp's loop or to its "front" input.
That said, I'm guessing a plethora of Plethoras will be showing up used on Reverb before long, as tone-hunters and price snobs ditch them for fancier brand gear. If that turns out to be the case, I may end up buying a second one--especially if TC comes up with a decent digital drive or two.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 9, 2020 11:25:27 GMT -7
Been playing around with the Plethora in stereo. Sounds super big--lots of fun! Also, fiddling with editing stuff on the iPad. Takes a bit of exploring, but useful--lots of "hidden" tweakable functions.
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Post by scottc on Jun 10, 2020 6:34:32 GMT -7
I also never loved the sound quality of the bigger Strymon units--they alwasy seemed a bit harsh or metallic to me, but I might be alone in that (I do love the el Capistan, though, and it's been my go-to delay for several years now). You are definitely not alone in that. I love the ElCap, Flint, Lex and other "smaller Strymon's" but never got on with the big ones... The ElCap has been on my board for years as well.
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Post by detuned on Jun 10, 2020 7:22:36 GMT -7
Thanks for the updates - very useful! I've been looking for a general use delay to supplement my OG Flashback, which is my "stunt" delay. I've tried a bunch, and considered getting a Flashback2. I've been toying with the idea of the Plethora, since you can run like 4 delays/reverbs at a time (if needed) before it runs out of processing power (according to the TC YouTube channel). Might even keep the Mobius, since it has the Rotary sound I love, along with a great harmonic trem.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2020 10:23:39 GMT -7
You know, it's funny--I've owned a bunch of rotary/Leslie sims, and have yet to find one that makes me happy at gigging levels. There are a few Shaker vibrato toneprints that do a Leslie-esque thing, though, and maybe I can tweak one of them the way I want it. We'll see.
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