TC Electronic G-Force

The TC Electronic GForce unit is a multi effects rack for guitar. It can't be edited through a computer. This effects unit is a combination of reverb, delay, harmonizer/octavizer, vibrato, chorus, phaser, flanger, and almost any other effect except for distortion. There is no MIDI connection.


UTILIZATION

Getting through these sounds can be a huge pain sometimes, simply because there are about a thousand presets to choose from. Each preset ranges from a basic effect (reverb, phaser, vibrato) to a complex combination of effects and algorithms. The manual does a decent job of explaining how to program and shift through all of these various effects. However, it is a chore for anyone who isn't dedicated to finding buried treasures.


SOUND QUALITY

I have only used this with guitar. Using it with a bass or keyboard would produce some truly freaky sounds, as running the guitar through this thing is enough to bewilder just about anyone. Some of the effects that this thing produces are jaw-dropping. Some settings produce wild harmonization’s and polyphonies that repeat in an ambient fashion from just a few randomly plucked notes. Some settings will harmonize, even pitch correct, every note that you play and continually loop sounds and replace them in a manner similar to a Steve Reich piece. Some sounds produce gorgeous, orchestral multi octave washes of sound that are very soothing. Playing two notes on some of these settings will produce an ominous drone that sits in the bottom of your stomach. For all of these wildly innovative effects, there are a ton that are wild and foreign but have no real practical application, which makes it frustrating to find the good ones.


OVERALL OPINION

I love the wide variety of textures that can be easily created using this machine. I hate having to sift through a million lackluster or annoying settings to find the good ones. I think that this is a ridiculously expensive piece of gear, and that anyone willing to shell out the money for it had better realize how frustrating and time-consuming it may be. However, some of these sounds are very difficult to recreate elsewhere, and some of the ambient textures would be very useful for someone who makes ambient or very spacey music. I'm sure there's a niche of customers who would adore this product, I'm just not sure I'm one of them.

This is a stereo preamp (with adjustable input gain on the front) with all the main guitar effects except a proper distortion. The flangers & phasers are lovely and the delays & reverbs are wonderful.

It's digital, of course, with 8 processors, 1 per effects module. So, unlike with other gear, you don't have quality loss when piling up effects, the quality remains optimal throughout.

2 high impedance asymmetric 6.35mm jacks, 2 line level TRS outs on similar jacks.
SPDIF in & out on coax.

24 bit 44.1 khz conversion, but not sure the digital I/O's can convey 24 bit signals...someone told be that they were 20 bit...(check that, i'm not sure).

There's MIDI in & out i believe, and you can easily set up a MIDI pedal board such as the Roland FC-200...the G-Force has a ready made template for it all set up.

For the price, i think they could have made this a 96 khz machine and/or have AES/EBU I/O's in addition to the SPDIF coax...it's just not a pro machine without AES/EBU!

UTILIZATION

Extremely easy to use, all is very very intuitive. You can see it wasn't designed like a TR-505 or an MC-303!

Editing & saving presets is real easy.

Great manual, that is even nicely made...not just some cheap photocopy look-alike, this is nicely bound & all...a high-class manual for a high-class piece of gear.

SOUND QUALITY

The effects are nice but you can be tempted to overdo it...because they are so nice!
Then again, you'll have that problem with any effects processor...it's just that the others don't sound so good! ;p

The reverbs are amazing, of course, and you can use this for vocals or anything you like if you come in digital.
This is a very good effects processor.

The dynamics are good but not perfect: i still prefer going direct into a good amp, but if you accept that the sound is just different then you can enjoy it for what it is. It's still good, it's just not 100% the same...maybe only 95%? Anyway, incomparable with any Boss or Roland or Digitech effects i've tried...and i have tried a lot of those. True, the price isn't comaparable either! ;-p

OVERALL OPINION

I've had it about 7 years.

Best thing? Everything!
Worst? No real distortion. You can add crunch, or boost existing distortion, but this is not a SansAmp or a POD...no cabinet simulation here worth mentioning, that just wasn't the aim of the machine...but you want those luch choruses or reverbs then this is the way to go.

Was 11400 Francs when i got it, that was the best price in France at the time...say £1140 or 1700 €. Now it's below 1000 €. Still expensive, but possibly the best for the money. The price actually remained stable on this for 6 or 7 years i believe! The only other piece of gear i know of to do that is the Roland VS-2480 multitrack recorder...which stayed at 4500 € in France...

It is a plant as many processors, a destination rack

UTILIZATION

The configuration is 2.95 g force + mesa I have an old 12 years he has seen but still works mesa + 2 speakers of the same age has come a TriAxis

SOUND QUALITY

This is a good start because I just use it so no comment

OVERALL OPINION

I just bought this machine (infernal?) The future will tell me, for now I leave roland boss last for quite some years and I come to the south we will see? I am pleasantly surprised by the quality it's not pretend it is the on the amp as pedals, live table or rack its final destination with a good ending for the upcoming buddy TriAxis . I think back about the evolution of the thing in home studio and especially in concert. spectators will be the best judges.

Well, I will not list the available effects, that are going on their site to know and listen to some sounds. This multi-effects are all there from classic, with analog input / output jack (6.35) or digital (SPDIF), and the whole shebang midi in / out / thru, and a pedal input of expression. 202 factory programs and 128 users I believe in (I only have 40 so far). I really liked a publisher of PC-based presets, but I have not found.

UTILIZATION

The problem often chosen when using the G-Force is the editing of presets. But the manual is very well done, and the handling is still fairly intuitive, although it is less easy to adjust a Boss. Though! For each effect, there are several types of settings, with a few basic parameters, and another much more complete set with finesse. Also note that each setting of each effect can be assigned to a midi controller and adjustable so as real, with extent of the adjustment range, and to route the effects in either direction, in parallel or in series. To send a fun time in a flanger to tremolo and left to right, then saturate the whole ... really ultra-complete. In addition, the G-Force pedals will automatically recognize some MIDI, such as ART or the Roland FC200. The display is large, clearly visible from a distance or in the dark as in full light on stage. A PCMCIA card slot allows you to save the sounds or to add and update the firmware.

SOUND QUALITY

My use stops on guitar, and I am delighted with the effects ... all are used, the chorus and delay are very good, the reverb a little more difficult to resolve, there is even a drive that can be used to change the overall sound of the saturation of your amp. In no event to use as preamp (except very special sound). Modulations style vibrato and phaser, and even forming filter are excellent and very handy, from the vintage to the most bizarre. A black mark against the harmonizer for: it is said intelligent, but not that much actually. You enter a range, and he shows for each note played the note once harmonized. But this program is not saved with the preset, it is general, so if you want another alignment has to be programmed. Note that you can route the effects in the sense that we want, and there is a simulator HP configurable depth. The noisegate and compressor, I do not know too much because I do not like it at all, so I talk about it.

OVERALL OPINION

I use the G-Force for 5 years now, and I am delighted. My sound stage are rather basic, but I like to be able to have on hand some very special sound. The calibration is childish expression pedals, great practice, the tap-tempo is a definite plus to wedge the time or the rate of vibrato or chorus, in short, is the top. In addition to a tuner handy for those who do not. The only downside is that when we move from one sound to another, there is almost 1 second before the new sound is really starts on the road (depending on firmware version apparently). One trick is to leave all the effect modules switched on all the presets, then mix the unnecessary effects to zero. Otherwise, it is sufficient to anticipate a little, and got used to it quickly. I had many multi-effects before this one, but it's really the only one so transparent, crystalline sounds too. I do not part with it for anything else because I'm really very pleased.