How are the compressor options on the MS-70 or MS-70+? I’m wondering if this can be a cheaper alternative to some of the more expensive end-of-chain effects which focus on compression. I’m well aware it may not be as nice as some of those pedals like Golden Master or Boum, and can’t do dedicated side chaining, but is there a true stereo bus compression option that can sound good? I see 7 different named compressor effects and two limiters, so I’m hoping the pedal is usable this way with some effect or combination of effects
Looked through this thread and elsewhere and couldn’t find anyone mentioning it, so I thought I’d ask.
EDIT: very close to purchasing one of these but still trying to find any examples of using this as a bus compressor for the output of a drum machine. Every example I found on YouTube is someone using it as a guitar pedal, which is entirely fair but hard for me to judge based on that. Anyone with firsthand experience would be highly appreciated. Audio examples would be amazing but I don’t mean to ask too much The pedal is cheap and useful enough that I may just have to purchase and find out myself, but I’d love a second opinion first. I hate buying things blind
I would go with something like a EHX Platform stereo compressor($155 new) over the MS70CDR. The compressor is the effect I use the least on the Zoom. Its okay but doesn’t compare to most compressors in that price range. It could very well suit your needs though. I use the MS70CDR often, it’s a great multi effect to have around for experimenting with different effect combinations. I find the reverbs and delays are good,. This is the original version I am using not the new ‘plus’ version. I wish I could do some sound examples for you but I’m at a summer job away from my main setup.
Thanks for the feedback! I actually just narrowly missed getting a deal on a new EHX Platform this week (being sold for less than $100) - it was out of stock by the time I got to it - but it’s been on my radar as well. I appreciate the info about the compressor effects in the Zoom pedal.
They are ridiculously small, too close together, sunk into the faceplate and harder to turn than the OG (the perfect resistance for me would be mid-way between new and old)
I was hoping all the improvements would lead to a better workflow, but boy, those knobs can’t be good enough even for petite Japanese girls.
At least the distance between jack slots was increased.
In case the thought didn’t occur to you yet - the labeling of the knobs is easy to fix with a bit of masking tape and a marker pen. It will fit nicely in the empty space below the display.
DT plays all the percussion, bass and pads, then goes into the ms-70, gets processed with various effects for transitions, as well as an exciter, then goes into the DN, which plays kick, fm hats and synth-stabs. Why I didn’t like it? Most of the effects are low quality, and the pedal itself is noisy, although the reverbs and delays are good. Most compressors only work in mono. And in general, a lot of soapy effects. And when you run one instrument in an ensemble through it, it can sound good and authentic, but when the entire ensemble is played through this pedal, it introduces dirt and blurriness.
I just got a CDR70+. I was/am in the market for a high-end pedal but I still don’t have enough cash around for it…and i need a quick solution. My chain of FX plugins are good and all but i want something to put my hands on…
I don’t like the color blue as my setup is supposed to be black only. But it is what it is.
Just sharing my modified MS70 CDR pedal. I use it with a smaller portable setup where I mostly use 3.5mm stereo cables, so I opened it up and added two 3.5mm stereo jacks for in/out.
I was also annoyed the way it always just turned on when the batteries were inserted (due to the way it detects the new stereo input), so I also added a power switch too. It’s crude and sticks out, but there’s not a lot of room in there to be adding components and it’s the only place I could fit it really.
I’ve also used the Zoom Effect Manager to customise the effects too. For the money I paid for this used, it’s an amazing, super versatile bit of kit.
Does anyone know a good way of narrowing the width on stereo delays? I tried chaining autopan after the delay, which has a pan/width setting, but the delay either gets too “swirly” or clipped.
Currently, I have the ms-70cdr plugged into two mono inputs of my mixer and narrow the pan on each input, rather than hard pan left and right. It’s an okay solution, probably some phasing from the overlap, but phasing can be cool. Just curious if there are any other ways of narrowing.
I’ve added the new MS-70CDR+ to my portable setup. As an earlier poster states, the knobs are awkwardly-placed if you want to use it as a desktop pedal and dial in your effects parameters, even if you are in the small-medium glove size category of person. They just don’t stick out far enough from the little valley they are in. So that’s annoying.
However, I still found a lot to like. You have a lot of different ways to power the pedal, including the usual power supply (not included), USB, and good old AA batteries, so it’s handy for portable setups. There’s also heaps of effects to choose from. One great addition to the lineup on the plus version of the pedal is a basic looper (no overdubs, saving, etc etc) which is pretty fun. The effects sound OK but maybe a bit ‘dry’ somehow compared to some fancier multieffects - I think the magic probably lies in combining them and EQing your output. It’s a good value at $110 if you need a jack-of-all-trades external effect.
There’s a new dedicated looper pedal coming to the range in February, which I think I will check out. That has overdubs, saving, and other features but doesn’t include other effects like chorus, reverb, etc.
Are there any utility modules? Probably not…
In general, this pedal emulates different other models and delay width is rarely controllable, I don’t recall any such pedal. Maybe only on advanced machines like Boss DD-200
The pedal is cheap and useful enough that I may just have to purchase and find out myself, but I’d love a second opinion first. I hate buying things blind
