guitar rig part I: lexicon mpx1,mpx550,mx200 ,tc m-onexl,podhd500x

guitar rig part I: lexicon mpx1,mpx550,mx200 ,tc m-onexl,podhd500x

I took the unusual step of overhauling my guitar rig.This was a frightening and expensive experience.I was prety happy with my guitar setup. I liked the sounds I got so why change? Well, I was searching for even better sound of course,but more than that, I had not achieved what was my original intention: to have my guitar rig replace an entire band via looping  .

For this to work, I needed to keep things in sync. perfect, I would use midi clock generated by my drum machines to keep all my loopers and delays in sync. Well, to my dismay, the three digitech s200 multifx processors I had didn't sync to midi clock??!?! wtf?!?!?!? So, determined, I sold all three!!! this gave me some money to buy new gear!!

next , was to find a replacement multi fx that would sync to midi clock. I first tried a tc electronics m-one xl fx processor

It was under $200 range as were my s200's. to my shock ,the damn thing only had xlr outputs?! WTF again?!! so I had to get these 1/4" to xlr adapters what a pain as I was already using 1/4" splitters to route audio around my other gear. it sounded really good ,very clear, but for me was a bit too clean, Eric Johnson type sounds came to mind. now, the data knob broke in my hand, what crap, I cant rely on a flimsy unit if I plan to play gigs. so I sent it back.

lexicon mpx1
What I really wanted was the lexicon sound. much more lush than tc electronic sounds. But which unit?!? The lexicon mpx1 was their early model and was great as it had 2 chips : one to handle reverb and the other for everything else, but to edit the model was difficult.I got one and the damn battery in it was dead and it had to be put on the board on so it would not save any user settings.  I sent it back and got another one. I have to say the sound was so very clear and pro sounding, wow!!!! and it syncs to midi.

lexicon mpx550
I had heard, however, that the next model lexicon mpx550 sounded as good as the mpx1 and they redesigned the editing to make it much easier. so I got one to try it.ok, first thing, it doesn't sound like an mpx1 at all, maybe 1/2 of one. however, it had some great sounds for guitar!!! easier to program but not by much, syncs to midi ,it only has one chip to handle everything.

now interestingly, the lexicon mx200 was their latest and cheapest processor, I got one used for under 1/2 of its new price of $199.I think it was $86. the mx200 is a strange beast as it syncs to midi and has some great sounds as well, not sounding like any lexicon before it.

heck, the built in compressor was worth the price alone.still working on this one to see if t works for me.

line 6 pod xt live/pod hd500x
now, as a side note, I discovered that my line 6 pod xt live did not sync to midi and had long been replaced by the line 6 pod hd500x at $500new and a just released model called the helix at $1500??!?I thought ok, $500 is already a ton of money,but $1500 hell no!!! So, I got a used pod hd500x which syncs to midi of course my existing pod xt live did not sync to midi. not a big deal as I get delays from the multifx units,but it was an added bonus to buy the hd500x:.

ok, this was a disaster for me. The hd500x presets totally stink and even the ones you can download stink.on top of that, it sounded dull compared to the pod xt live I was using. trying to get a good sound was like pulling teeth.even though everyone online raved of how much better it was. what bunk!!! I promptly sold it thank goodness.honestly, it took the fun out of playing guitar. the xtlive is a blast to play.fun!!!!

maybe I will play again with the pod hd500x when its $50 used . but seriously I already had great sounds out of my pod xt live and I got little sounds I can describe as usable out of the pod hd500x,I am glad I am sticking to my trusty pod  xt live.

Lastly, I made another mistake.I tried the pod distortion sound with the lexicons and got this noise with it and it sounded completely different, not in a good way.what I mean is, that without the s200 which gave the pod a bit or reverb and delay and had a built in noise gate, it kind was perfect to leave on for all the sounds. you cant do that with the lexicons.the lexicons blow away the s200 in reverb and quality but alter the sound of the pod in unpleasing ways if used to just add a bit of "air" ambience" via a tiny bit of delay and reverb. so, of course, i regret selling mine and am in process of getting another s200 for this purpose. instead of swappng out the lexicons I should of added them with the s200.Yes I know it doesnt sync to midi but doesnt need to for this ambience purpose.

Now, syncing my drum machine to my loopers via midi clock made all the difference. I use one for bass emulation on guitar and its syncs perfectly every time.then I use one for guitar loops done on the fly and man, its just heavenly. my dream of doing gilmorish tangerine dream stuff on guitar was becoming a reality.I also discovered that i had to rewire all my rack gear and discovered a bad midi cable, no wonder one of the loopers didn't seem to sync properly.

oh yeah, to control all this stuff you need some midi controller pedalboards. so I tried 2:

behringer fc1010
this was a cheap $120 midi controller to midi control everything .seems pretty nie with 2 continuous controller pedals.

lexicon mpx r1
I also got lexicon's version which is older. still a nice unit and I got it for less than$100.I figured I can sell it for more than I bought it if i don't use it.

 I like the buttons on the behringer better.

Conclusion
I guess the moral to the story is to try try try all kinds of gear and combinations and don't believe hype from other people. case in point the pod hd500x and lexicon mpx550 for example. neither turned out to be what I had read online about them .Also, just because its an older unit doesn't make it not as a good. don't spend $1500 on a unit just because its the latest greatest as in the pod helix. I would be embarrassed to have a $1500 pedalboard lol. I much prefer finding cheap gear and making it sound like super expensive gear I guess.Also, when trying this gear, make sure you have an avenue to sell the stuff you don't like or be able to return it.Overall, I spent as much as I got for my 3 processors so no harm done and now I know what works for me and what doesn't.


Anyway, regardless, find the right combination of gear that sounds good and works for you.