by stephen » 25 Feb 2015, 12:24
There must be quite a few people out there that maybe want to sample Shadows-style music to see if it suits, without initially spending a lot of cash. Likewise, a lot of players already own and use some of the multi-effects units that can be 'programmed' with suitable patches. I've just looked at the Art d'Echo eBay listings now and you can obtain a set of Shadows-style patches for the still popular Zoom G2/G2.1u for just £9.99. Patches for the Magicstomp are similarly priced. The equivalent cost of a couple of sets of cheap strings isn't a lot to risk in trying them out, with or without any notional 'after-sales service' and they've only had one 'neutral' Feedback rating in the last 12 months. Other than that, I know nothing more about them or their business.
If I wanted to audition the sounds of this style of music & already owned one of the units catered for, I think that it would be a no-brainer not to at this price point. If in the future you felt the need (or peer pressure!) to go for something higher up the effects unit/echo patch food-chain, as with the choice of guitars & amps., there are more expensive 'better' options available and that initial £9.99/£19.99 wouldn't have been that serious a 'waste' even for the most parsimonious of us! It's just up to the individual which route he /she takes to achieve the sound that satisfies them. I would emphasise the word 'them' as too many people just slavishly follow what others advocate without checking things out themselves.
Generally speaking, it's easy to overlook the fact that you can put together your own set of patches using your ears as a reference point! It's not like attempting to crack the formula for Coca-Cola or unlocking the secret to alchemy and to the best of my knowledge, Stephen Hawking has yet to feel the need to solve the mystery of authentic Shadows echoes! It's basically balancing the various parameter values of effects blocks until it sounds 'right' to your ears & perceptions of the recorded/live target sound.
Fairly recently, Dave Robinson bemoaned the fact that many players are just too lazy to put the effort into getting a good sound and just expect to buy it in, ready-made. I couldn't agree more. He went on to praise the quality of sounds available from his newly acquired Zoom G3x & how relatively easy it was to obtain some of the best Shadows sounds he'd had in recent years. Generously, he even made his patches free to anyone that was interested. Some lucky G3x-owning Shadows fans must be well-pleased at the money they saved by taking up his offer. Granted, not everyone has Dave's level of experience, but from what he's said & the encouragement given, I'm sure that many G3x user's could programme their own patches and in the process of doing so, enjoy the exercise & learn something of real benefit in the process.
I'm certainly no 'echo guru' and if anything I'm also a bit lazy, not devoting much avoidable effort to what is just a lesser of several retirement hobbies. I've got one of the first series of Vox Valvertronix amps. (AD120VT) and when I initially wanted to approximate a generic Shadows-style sound, I set up one of the patches based on the Vox AC15 model and to be honest, that's still what I use the most nowadays as it's instant and less trouble that hauling out & connecting up my Zoom G71ut.
Stephen.
Last edited by stephen on 26 Feb 2015, 14:51, edited 1 time in total.
i thought i might add a reverb, chorus and tremolo pedal....i do some backing for a female singer and these effects would suit the style. I did think of buying individual pedals but then saw the Zoom MS-70cdr multi effects pedal that has all of these built in....... 
