Re: Effects drop out (was RE: Digitech GNX4)

["Jim Palmer" <jimp@pobox.com>]

>...still an issue with the GNX4?

sadly the gnx-4 also does this.

there are two distinctly different artifacts, which people often seem to 
confuse,
that result from patch switching in guitar processors.  brians question, 
which started this thread, has to do with modeling processors, which use 
microprossers to model amplifiers,preamps,etc.  on all the modeling 
processors i've used (pod, gnx-3, gnx-4) there is a gap during patch 
changes 
while the amp model is reconfigured.  no sound is output during this gap, 
and the sound is gated hard on both ends, which is quite disconcerting.  
the gnx-3 has a gap of ~100ms.  a dual processor approach could fix this, 
but i don't know of any devices that do.  

stompbox mode in the gnx series allows you to turn single effects on and 
off.  
this works quite well, but obviously you can't switch amp models with it.  
you can switch amp models by morphing, but it's not as simple or 
convenient 
as changing patches.

the sansamp units switch instantly, but i think they belong to a different 
category.  
most programmable tube preamps without built-in effects switch seamlessly.

the other artifact is the stopping of time-based effects (reverb, delay, 
resonant 
filters, etc) while switching effects algorithms.  there is no gap, just 
an audible 
stopping of the natural decay of the previous effects.  this can be fixed 
by clever 
programming or dual processors.  the digitech 2101se does this quite well. 
 
note that the preamp path of this unit is analog, so there is no gap 
between patches, 
even when using more than one processor per patch for effects.