ZOOM G11 £699
CONTACT Sound Service GmbH WEB https://zoomcorp.com
Zoom was one of the pioneers of the floorboard multi-effects processor, but it’s been several years since the company released a new one. Now, building on what the previous G5n offered, it’s back with this brand-new G11, which is certainly feature-packed.
It comes equipped with an intuitive touchscreen display, two banks of footswitches and a pedal treadle. It has a stereo or dual mono effects loop for adding external pedals or for four-cable connection, and an input for an expression pedal. A USB connection allows operation as 4-in/4-out 24-bit audio interface as well as providing access to computerbased editing via the free Zoom Guitar Lab software, also accessible with an iOS/ iPadOS device by connecting a Zoom BTA-1 wireless adaptor.
A looper that records up to five minutes in stereo can be synchronised to the 68 onboard rhythm patterns, which are handy for playing along to for a bit of silent practice using the headphone output. There’s also a degree of MIDI capability with Program Changes and Clock synchronisation supported.
As for its sounds, the G11 offers 240 onboard patch memories in 60 banks of four, each preset having a signal chain built from a linear array of 10 blocks (DSP permitting). An amplifier can be assigned to one of the effect blocks as can a cabinet model or IR. There are 24 cabinets matching the 24 modelled amps as well as 70 matching IRs, but there are also 130 memory locations where you can load your own and third parties’ impulse responses using a USB flash drive. The range of effects is pretty comprehensive, with the everyday nestling next to the esoteric.
In Use
The G11 is slim and weighs only 2.8kg (6.2lb), so it’s easy to move around. That light weight is no doubt due to extensive use of plastic, but there’s nothing flimsy about it.
Where some amp and effects modellers these days seem to have a minimal amount of footswitches and mode-switching to use them, this Zoom floorboard offers 11 in an ergonomic layout that’s presented for a very logical way of working, which will make immediate sense to anyone used to an amp and effects setup.
In fact, the unit is laid out in three distinct sections from top to bottom. To the right of the touchscreen you get your amp section with a standard six-knob array: Gain, Bass, Middle, Treble, Presence and Volume. The middle section is set out like a row of five stompboxes, each with a chromed footswitch, a window to show the name of the effect and four parameter knobs for each effect – you just switch effects in and out and tweak them at will. The final section has six red footswitches for more general tasks. There’s an up/down pair for selecting patches, a similar pair for selecting banks, and a pair for horizontal scrolling whose main purpose is to move the colour-coded effects chain left or right so you can access them all. In addition, these footswitches can call up the tuner, operate tap tempo and take care of looper functions.
Sounds
Running through the 100 factory programmed presets, our first impressions weren’t exactly positive. Many of them are not really ready for any practical musical use straight out of the box as they’re laden with exaggerated use of effects, odd EQ, inappropriate ambiences and so on. Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean the component sounds are bad. There’s plenty of good stuff among the individual models; you simply need to get tweaking or create your own from scratch.
Fortunately, touchscreen editing is a breeze. Swiping to change effects order and adding effects to the chain is easy. The amps are a mixture of vintage classics, more contemporary designs and Zoom’s own creations, including some specifically voiced for seven- and eight-string guitars and dropped tunings, which may give a clue to where Zoom’s target audience lies.
A careful choice of the onboard IRs added to the amp can add a useful touch of mic’d amp flavour, although the ability to load third-party IRs means that you can really tailor the degree of realism. A full patch with amp and speaker simulation plus effects will give you a wide range of options for recording or direct into a PA or FRFR
The ability to load third-party IRs to the amp means that you can really tailor the degree of realism
speaker system. Alternatively, you can set up patches that purely contain up to 10 effects, providing a range of fully loaded pedalboards for use with your own amp.
To this end, the range of effects is extensive. There are plenty of different types of dynamic and filter effects, modulations, delays and reverbs. There are also some special effects such as the ‘hot spice’ sitar simulation, and 28 effects in the drive category including models of well-known drive pedals and even a decent-sounding acoustic simulator.
We also get some pedal effects, although assigned to a footswitch like the rest, these can make use of the treadle to adjust one specific fixed parameter. There’s the obvious volume pedal, wah or whammystyle pitch shifters, but you also get options such as drive with pedal-adjustable gain, or a rotary speaker with speed change via the treadle. A second added expression pedal can be assigned to another pedal effect.
All of this works well as a closed effects system, but for increased flexibility you can integrate your own pedals: the two mono or one stereo effects loop can be anywhere in the signal chain, footswitchable from the G11, with positioning saved with the patch.
Verdict
Get beyond the pretty naff presets and the G11 provides a comprehensive set of facilities for home recording, practice and onstage use, where it can supply perhaps all the effects you’d need in a very practical format. When we looked at the G5n back in issue 410, our verdict was that it was a worthy bargain at a street price of £229. However, while the G11 is a definite upgrade on the G5n, it’s three times the price, something that will probably make some potential users think twice about a purchase, not least as an extra £100 could snag them an established performer such as the Line 6 Helix LT.