by geoff1711 » Fri Mar 18, 2011 10:12 am
HI
I have the G-DEC 15 as I only use it at home, I think the country version is probably the same as the country download which you can add to either the 15 or 30 to overwrite the original broad spectrum of styles.
I've done this on mine and I think there are some better cleanish sounds.
Does it produce Hank playing a 58 Strat with 13's and a wound 3rd into a VOX AC15? or a Burns into an AC30 Top Boost? well maybe not.
But what it does do is produce some really good sounds which when played against a preloaded backing track certainly brings a smile to my face.
You can do a lot of tweaking via your computer, amp types, tones effects etc and load 100 patches with your own tones and backing tracks via the SD card, you can also swap SD card files with friends either directly or electronically via internet or whatever.
Inputs on the back for another guitar and a line in, on the 30 line out which can be all, just the backing track or ( I think) just the guitar.
On the 15 line out is just the mix via the headphone socket.
The 30 has a beafier speaker and a tweeter, the 15 a full range speaker.
Having said that if you want it to use on your own either at home or as a solo performer it's great, as a duo against backing tracks OK but in a band situation I think you'd want something else because I'm not sure it would stand up against a manic drummer.
And of course on it's own it certainly doesn't have the same response as standing in front of a roaring valve amp, but then a roaring valve amp really only comes into it's own when you're playing live or you've got no neighbours!
Where it really scores is the convenience of just switching it on choosing a patch hitting the start button and there you have it, backing track with what you consider to be the right tone and effects straight away so you can play as many tunes as you have stored on the trot.
I would think that it would also be ideal for a solo performer, again because your tracks are there stored against tone and effects and you can start at will - no bringing the wife along to start your backing tracks after you've chatted to the audience.
It's worth shelling out for the footswitch makes things even easier.
Before I bought mine I was realy only twelve bar bluesing and the odd strum at home because playing against backing tracks was just so long winded, yes in theory you can play your backing tracks on the home stereo and have an amp in the same room, or plug a modelling floorbox into a mixer with backing tracks on CD or MP3 but it's just so long winded.
One word of caution though, make sure you buy the G-DEC3 version because the original G-DEC was only MIDI files and 70 patches, the G-DEC3 either 15 or 30 is 100 patches with an SD card slot so you can load your UB Hank (or whatever) backing tracks.
It's this later improvement which makes it so ideal for us home guitar heroes.
Geoff M
