Why should I think about a GT-10?

I'm at the point once again where I am selling all of my pedals and buying something that will change my amp's channels as well as do multi-effects very well.

I'm looking for:
Seamless patch changes
Relay switching
Stellar chorus
Deep delays with tap tempo
Easy to program and use
Great transparent sound
Easy to bypass the preamp (if it has a preamp)

Many years ago, I had a Roland GP-100. By far, the best processor I've ever owned! But...it was a mother to turn all of the preamps off and use an ADA or JMP-1.

Help me out guys!
I need something that sounds stellar but doesn't cost as much as a G-System.
I was thinking about an older G-Major (until I can afford a G-Major 2) and a GCP, but the cost is pretty high!
Ifailedshapes reminded me of the Nova System, which sounds great, but doesn't do channel switching.
I play in a heavy 3 piece band and need to cover a lot of territory. We are sort of a combination of Rush, Incubus, Santana and Frank Zappa.
Doesn't help that I live on an island and don't have the luxury of going to the local store to try everything under the sun out!

I found the gt-10 to be excellent when using as an effects unit and it has a looper which is very handy with 2 modes performance and patch testing
In performance mode it looped what every went into it in patch mode it just loops the signal so you can play a piece loop it and then adjust settings I found this great because it was hard to fine tune my sound and play at the same time.
the only thing that let it down was the amp sim terrible but if you are using it with an amp as just an effects/channel switching unit this is perfect.

I don't have a GT-10, but I have the GT-6 and I must say that the preamps are crud but it's easy to turn them off (literally a push of a button), and the FX are great. Some could use a little improvement but if you want everything in one box I think the GTs are good enough.

The only thing I found hard to get is a transparent sound, but the bypass in mine is probably pretty inferior to the GT-10's (the GT-6 is, after all, 10 years old) and there is a Global EQ that you can use to twiddle out any tone loss you might be hearing.

MIDI is there so changing channels isn't a prob. Programming it is very easy too. Like I said, it's not perfect, but if you want an "everything in one box" solution the GTs are great stuff.
I bought my GT-6 for 200€ and I've been using it since my SS/modelling days - then as the main source of my tone, now I use it for FX and MIDI switching of my rig. Best 200€ ever spent! :mrgreen:

I love my GT-10. In fact I love it so much I traded away one of my guitars to get a second one. One is always hooked to my amps and one that's at my computer desk for recording. I very rarely use the loop station because I can play over loops through Cubase or Pro Tools. But it is nice to have if you're just playing through an amp, by yourself.

If you go the gmajor route you could always get the tech 21 midi moose dirt cheap.

Right on guys, thanks!
I ended up going with a G-Major 2 and a GCP.
I almost pulled the trigger on the GT, but the only thing that really stopped me was the physical size. I wanted to keep the floorspace as small as possible, and the GCP fit on my pedalboard with enough room left over for my wah and an overdrive pedal.

Monsta-Tone said:

Right on guys, thanks!
I ended up going with a G-Major 2 and a GCP.
I almost pulled the trigger on the GT, but the only thing that really stopped me was the physical size. I wanted to keep the floorspace as small as possible, and the GCP fit on my pedalboard with enough room left over for my wah and an overdrive pedal.

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+1. They are kinda big. It's kept me from getting one too, Andy.

In all honesty, for the criteria you posted- channel switcher, all-in-one effect generator, the GT10 is the best floor based period. i hate the gain amp models and OD/DIS in the beast, but as a effect generator, it is a great value. I have kept a GT on the roster as a back-up to the Axe....

Laskyman said:

In all honesty, for the criteria you posted- channel switcher, all-in-one effect generator, the GT10 is the best floor based period. i hate the gain amp models and OD/DIS in the beast, but as a effect generator, it is a great value.

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+1.
I use mine for FX/tuner/muting/MIDI switching only too.

The Preamps and Distortions on the GTs sound good when run through a PA system or through headphones - I set up some patches for late night jamming and they sound pretty good.

Every time I play with a guitarist who is using a GT, their tone is pretty dead, and they complain about it. I don't know if they are using the preamp, or what their settings are. The choice always seems to be ease-of-use vs. tone.

Just my experience, and to be candid, these guys are not tweekers, so they might be able to get much better tone if they would spend a weekend working on it.

I have a G System setup (with Triaxis/2:90) and a massive pedal setup (with Electradyne), and both are very good for tone. I would recommend the G system for a simple, clean setup that has a lot of flexibility. And it sounds great. It's a pain to set up correctly (3-4 weekends for me), but I never tweek it now. It just works and sounds great. It does have its limits. The G System forum is an absolute necessity when you are setting it up. I got mine used on eBay for under $1000. A lot of people don't figure them out and wind up selling them.

elvis said:

Just my experience, and to be candid, these guys are not tweekers, so they might be able to get much better tone if they would spend a weekend working on it.

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Well I am a GT-6 user myself and I must agree... most folks just see BOSS written on it and think it sounds good.
I took the time and tweaked it and I think it sounds pretty good.
The GT sounds pretty good through a PA too.

I haven't heard the GT-10's preamps yet but the GT-6's and GT-8's preamps and pedal sims aren't really that great, but to me the FX sound pretty good.

The G-System is an awesome piece of gear but it is 3 times the price too.

elvis said:

Every time I play with a guitarist who is using a GT, their tone is pretty dead, and they complain about it. I don't know if they are using the preamp, or what their settings are. The choice always seems to be ease-of-use vs. tone.

Just my experience, and to be candid, these guys are not tweekers, so they might be able to get much better tone if they would spend a weekend working on it.

I have a G System setup (with Triaxis/2:90) and a massive pedal setup (with Electradyne), and both are very good for tone. I would recommend the G system for a simple, clean setup that has a lot of flexibility. And it sounds great. It's a pain to set up correctly (3-4 weekends for me), but I never tweek it now. It just works and sounds great. It does have its limits. The G System forum is an absolute necessity when you are setting it up. I got mine used on eBay for under $1000. A lot of people don't figure them out and wind up selling them.

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I actually prefer the gt10 over the g system. I like what is available in the effects section of the gt10. And IMHO I don't find the G sys sounding better at all let alone to justify the price difference.
Both units have their strong and weak points but as a straight up effects machine/ controller I like the boss better in my current situation. I'm currently using a two channel amp so the boss is enough. If on the other hand I was using a three or four channel amps the G sys would be a better choice since it has four relays and can therefore switch between four channels and it has if I remember correctly four external loops if one desires to throw some pedals into the mix.

But those are not my need nor wants, I buy amps for their drive and then just use a little clean boost to push them over the edge. Boss gt 10 is perfect for that.

Just my 2 cents

Can the GT-10's and now 100's switch the channels on the Mesa head?

Example - I am playing a lead on channel 3 with delay added and I want to click out into clean channel one with chorus. Can the Boss Gt's pull that off?

I have always loved Boss effects, but I dont want to buy 6 pedal and tap dance. The G System sounds great but complicated too.

Stoneyman said:

Can the GT-10's and now 100's switch the channels on the Mesa head?

Example - I am playing a lead on channel 3 with delay added and I want to click out into clean channel one with chorus. Can the Boss Gt's pull that off?

I have always loved Boss effects, but I dont want to buy 6 pedal and tap dance. The G System sounds great but complicated too.

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Yes it can do that for you but I'm not sure how your amp is setup. If it's something like a Mark V you will probably have to decide what channel you want to switch since there is only one relay on the GT. I've been doing that for a few years now with my 2 channel DC amps.

I have a Mark V Head and I want to use the Gt-10 in the 4CM to use the effects. I dont really need the distortion and reverb since the Mark V has those.

Would it make sense to use the Gt-10 and an RJM Amp Gizmo to do the switching?

Im gonna test a GT-10 out this weekend with my head.

Sounds like a good setup to me. It looks like the Gizmo should be able to change all channels, engage solo boost and EQ. The GT is fairly limited on midi messages it sends in that they can't be mapped if need be. Patch 1 sends pgm change 1, patch 2 sends pgm change 2 etc. When I used the GT-10 I had a Nova Drive that's midi controllable with 18 presets. I had to setup the ND around the GT's pgm sends so if on patch 2 I wanted a slight breakup I programed the ND's patch 2 for that. I think the Gizmo has many more presets/patches that can be saved so that shouldn't be a problem if planed out. Especially if the Gizmo can map incoming midi.

If all you want are the effects, no drives or modeling, then the GT-10 to save money over the GT-100 would be the way to go. I just sold one in great condition for $300 after buying the GT-100. You would still have the GT's amp control available too for something else. The reverbs are pretty good IMO so you may find a use for those but the drives are not my favorite. Thats why I had the Nova Drive.

@mjslaughter-

How are the drives in the 100 vs the 10? Personally, I didnt feel the drives were even usable (for me), in the 10....are you incorporating the 100 drives with your DC? I use a few axe drives, but I love the floor based solution....

Laskyman said:

@mjslaughter-

How are the drives in the 100 vs the 10? Personally, I didn't feel the drives were even usable (for me), in the 10....are you incorporating the 100 drives with your DC? I use a few axe drives, but I love the floor based solution....

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For me the drives have improved to the point that I am happy using them at a gig. I found the GT-10 drives harsh and not as musical. This is all in the context of using them with my tube amp though. I haven't experimented with going direct live and probably won't with this setup. When using my GSP1101 I do go direct with speaker IR and to a SS amp and EVM cab on stage with no speaker IR and it works great for me.

The improved drives, interface, manual mode and ease of making changes on the fly are what pushed me over the edge in upgrading to the GT-100.

IF you are going to go that route, perhaps you might take a look at the Boss GT100, and see if that floats your boat.