This actually looks like a very cool effect. Anyone try this yet? http://www.digitech.com/products/weapon.htm So many diff things in one little box that looks like Digitech is trying to cash in on the DIY look. Any one try this?
I tried it out in the store, I thought it was just OK. I hardly think it's the DIY look they're after, it's more along the lines of their weaker subsidiary, DOD (DOD has done that kind of crap for years.)
I liked the perceived value of the pedal (7 different sounds) but IMHO only 2 (maybe 3) are really usable, the rest are one-off trick tones. It's a pure digital pedal so the power adapter (which is included) is an absolute MUST. Limited tweakability of the different patches (two per patch) but the biggest strike against it - you have to use the knob to change patches! So to go from the Stupify distortion to the Stupify sitar you have to turn the knob all the way around. What's missing is an accessory footswitch jack (like on the Boss Dual Overdrive) or a 2 space wide pedal. In that sense it's overpriced, and a one trick pony - but really, it's targeted to beginners/novices playing through solid state practice amps, so it's not that bad. If it were around $100 new/$70 used I'd snap one up.
The weapon is all digital. It is using effect modeling and dsp to achieve its sounds. I haven't managed to open one up yet, but the first chance I get at work, the bottom is coming off. I don't think its so much going for the DIY community as much as the POD/Disturbed community. If your a fan of that band, and want to cover the songs, this pedal works very well. If not then only a few of the tones are usefull. Its a good idea pigion holed by marketing. If they had tried to make a pedal with usable patches, such as an auto wah->amp sim with the knob tweaking sensitivity or compressor->amp sim with the knob affecting the threshold then you'd have a usable affect.
The "Weapon" pedal is the harbinger of an interesting possible trend - that of highly targetted digital pedals that reduce control complexity in pursuit of a less all-encompassing tonal palette. Although many of the sounds *could* likely be achieved with either one much more sophisticated unit, or several less complex ones, here all the user has to do is flick a switch and tweak a few pots to achieve a desired sound.
In some respects, the synth market has been doing this for years now. Ever since the first DX7's, you could buy cartridges that served up identifiable sounds from known songs, instead of having to get in there and program a DX7 yourself (which is time consuming and requires more knowhow than many possess).
This may, in fact, end up being good news for the rest of us. If future pedals are "personality based" like "The Weapon" (i.e., based on the sounds achieved by a single artist at a single phase of their career), then it stands to reason that such pedals would start showing up in the 2nd hand market as individual careers wax and wane. As a seller, the up-side is that if future pedals look like this one, you could likely fetch a decent price for it even after your broither in law accidentally runs over it with his snowmobile (could YOU tell the difference between a well-used one and a new one?) From a buyer's perspective, if it packs a small repertoire of gimmick sounds, it would provide more value for the money than a strictly one-trick item, and if it doesn't cover s many bases as a new product would, there is more reason to sell it off at a reasonable price.
I guess the question is: How many players are out there that could be the base of such a type of pedal, once you factor out all the tones they produce that are simply PRS+Boogie.
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RDV