All user reviews for the Tech 21 SansAmp GT2

specs:

level, high, low, drive knobs

Mic with: off axis, center, classic positions

mod with: hot wired, high gain, clean settings

amp with: california, tweed, british settings.

This is an analog preamp and/or distortion pedal with quite a few different settings of which any of them can be combined to give you analog guitar tones from clean to death metal high gain!

UTILIZATION

It is a pedal, and is designed like one with a very easy to use configuration. Just set everything one at a time to how you like it. You don't really need the manual for something like this.

Switching the switch in the mic section mimics how the location of a mic on a cabinet. off axis meaning just slightly off center, center being the center of a speaker cone and classic bring distance mic'ed without ambiance.

Mod refers to the type of 'tube amp' setup you can have. Clean being a typical tube amp, high gain being a typical tube amp plus an extra preamp tube adding more gain, and hot wired being a super hot rodded-esque tube amp with a scooped mid-range quality.

Amp of course refers to the mimic'ed type of amp you want. Tweed being a fender-like clean. British being the vintage marshall-like style and california refers to the mesa boogie-like sounds.

One thing I do not like is that there is no mid control knob. Guitar is a mid-range instrument, everything guitar-related should have a mid control.

Remember this is pretty much a preamp. Not really JUST a pedal, it will not really 'add' to your sound, more like it IS your sound. You can't really use it as an overdrive to layer on top of an existing sound as it will most likely just replace the sound you've already got coming out of your amp. I've tried this. I set my amp on clean, and used the pedal to get a completely NEW clean sound, I've done it the other way around. Had the amp on high gain dirt and tried to 'overdrive' the existing distortion and it was a nightmare!

I've also experimented, having the amp set for high gain and setting the pedal to a clean setting, which actually pretty much turned my high gain amp into a clean amp (ALMOST!). Minus some gain hiss and whatnot. I can see this being useful for those who have single channel heads or non master volume amps, you can use this pedal to clean up your signal DRAMATICALLY.

SOUND QUALITY

for the clean settings: They all sound great! Very chimey if needed and very clear. It's a very consistent sound also which I like. Not to mention that way I used it to clean up an amp's distortion also, which I think is unique but very very useful!

as for the distortion: It's generally a bit too gritty for me, I have to set the high knob quite low and boost the low to get it sounding remotely useful. Though the analog distortion is good, it's tight and clear and every note can be heard in a chord and therefore sound amazing for tight rhythm. But the leads is where it begins to fall apart, this is where the weakness is. Chords/rhythms come out strong and tight but leads come out thin, and sterile.

I also found it to be a bit noisy under high gain versus other pedals I've tried, I did use an ISP decimator to reduce any feedback/ground noise but also found I had to turn up the decimator adjustment higher than I would a regular tube amp under high gain.

I think this pedal would sound great for downtuned metal. It's crisp and tight! And cleans are great too! But anything inbetween...it most likely will not satisfy.


OVERALL OPINION

Overall it's a decent pedal for somebody wanting either extreme cleans or extreme dirt. It's good for tight rhythm work but not fluidy enough for leads and a bit sterile.

It does sound quite similar to the trademark amps, I'm beginning to think that they all have a very similar build to them and thus sound similar as well.

I personally would not get another one. I know how it sounds and what it would be used for, and even though it's one of the better analog distortion pedals out there right now it is not versatile enough for me.

simulation box amp, analog, true bypass.
offers various sustain, gain, overdrive effects distos or by choice of amp, cab to ....
A large pedal easy to use, to go into the sound system, or in a console or a guitar amp .....
Not editable.

UTILIZATION

Configuring and using simple and intuitive, with a booklet provided.
the knobs are very sensitive and effective.
Its metal casing is stylish and strong.

SOUND QUALITY

This pedal is an analogue high quality sound.
Simulations of three kinds of amps are very natural!
I plug my amp on all lights (head Peavy Classic or Hot Rod Combo U.S.)
and there, wow! is an analog preamp (very similar to the lamps) which gives the boost, compression, sustain the gain ...
Guitars: Gibson Les Paul Custom, or Jackson, or gives any fender asia ... well (differently)

OVERALL OPINION

But with all the stuff I've had in decades, how I could go without the amp ?????
a friend made me try! boom, two days after I ordered it ...
I love its sound naturally lamps (so without regret that I sold my Boss GT8) and its small size (nomads to buy!) And look!

(Originally written by Froideval/translated from Audiofanzine FR)
Everything has been said! This product is not very practical for live gigs because of its size and controls. I use it with my DAW.

UTILIZATION

Very effective controls. Depending on your setup you'll get a good sound really fast. My setup:

- Guitar -> GT2 -> Behringer DI box -> mic input of my sound card.

- Guitar -> GT2 -> Palmer speaker simulation -> mic input of my sound card.

- Guitar -> GT2 -> VTB1 preamp -> mic input of my sound card.

SOUND QUALITY

Excellent sound (especially the British emulation)! I own several simulation devices (POD XT, V-Amp, guitar plug-ins) and it's clearly the best regarding sound. The sound is dry, raw and effective. I haven't found my ideal clean sound yet but I'm sure I'll find it...

Currently my favorite setting is: Mic = center, Mode = clean and Amp = British.

OVERALL OPINION

I've owned it for two days... The first thing that comes to my mind when I try to describe it is... that it's a pedal for men... it's no toy... Serious business! Effective, responsive, accurate. I bought it secondhand via the Audiofanzine website and I think I will never sell it again (I would certainly regret it). I haven't found any cons. I'm fully satisfied!

This is an analog, single-channel amp simulator in a pedal. Apart from the basic (self-explicit) Level, High, Low and Drive controls, you have three 3-position switches to help you shape your tone:
- Amp: determines which kind of amp will be emulated. Possibilities include Tweed (Fender), British (Marshall-ish sounds) and California (for Mesa-esque tones).
- Mod: choose between Clean, Hi-Gain and Hot Rod.
- Mic: Since this pedal includes a cab simulation, you can choose how your virtual mic would be placed, choose between Classic, Center (close miking at the center of the loudspeaker) or Off-axis (close miking once again but this time with the mic at the edge of the speakercone).

Beware: contrarily to the GT2's celebrated predecessor, the Sansamp Classic (or the original SansAmp for, the lucky -few- ones who have one) the cab sim on this model can NOT de deactivated: the GT2 was NOT designed as a "normal" distortion box, but aimed at being plugged directly in a mixing board/recorder/soundcard (NOT an amp), as a sort of DI box --which by the way makes it all the more a shame that no XLR output is provided in addition to the 1/4 jack, doesn't it?
With the poweramp stage and the cab being emulated, an effect loop (even one with an insert like on Marshall's original Guv'nor) also would have been welcome...

UTILIZATION

The manual is clear, yet it will take you a little while to get through all the possible configurations, but everything is rather simple to understand... And if you just can't, well, consider yourself lucky not to have spent more in a real amp.

SOUND QUALITY

I can hardly compare these simulations with the original amps but they all sound good to me. I use it with a Mexican Fender Fat Strat and occasionally with a cheap mic (but the GT2 can be used with a bass too).

I don't like the British (Marshall) settings too much as it's a bit too much in the high-mids, but the Celifornia (Mesa) mode is perfect in my opinion as far as distortion is concerned. Both provide powerful sounds although none tend to range on the modern side (it's OK to play ACDC, Guns N' Roses, Nirvana or early Metallica, but don't expect modern heavy or nü metal sounds). Oh, and by the way, turn your guitar's volume knob WAY down if you expect any clean sound from either of these two modes -- even with single coils...
The Tweed (Fender) emulation is in my opinion one of the strongest points in this unit. Not only does it give a great clean sound, but it also reacts surprisingly well to virtually any distortion pedal placed ahead of it (I tried with a Big Muff, a Boss DF-2, a cheap Belcat OD, a Metal Muff and a Zoom Tri-Metal), which can make up for the lack of a second channel.
The cab sims sound average to good, sometimes a bit muddy, but at least from one setting to another you definitely can hear a difference.

The GT2 does respect the dynamics in your sound and contrarily to many other amp simulators its organic sound WILL give you the sensations that you'd feel playing on a REAL amp -- even if you play it with headphones!!! In high-gain settings there tends to be a certain hiss but a good noise reducer (ISP's Decimator for instance) will do the trick.

OVERALL OPINION

This stompbox was one of the first things I bought when I decided to switch from a basic guitar gear to a home studio-oriented equipment, almost 4 years ago. I already had a Korg AX1500G but although I loved (and still love) its reverb and cab sims there was NO WAY the Korg's digital amp sims would respect dynamics -- while the GT2 definitely does.

To this day the GT2 is still an important part of my sound, I live in a flat and since my (oh so tasteless) neighbours wouldn't appreciate too much a tube amp being recorded at night I still haven't felt the need to get a "real" amp since then. Yet, I like to switch from clean to distortion within the same song, so actually I use it most of the time in Tweed/Clean mode so that the distortion is provided by another stompbox. With a better budget at the time I think I would have given the SansAmp Classic a try (but hey, it cost 4 to 500€ at the time!), but I'm really satisfied with this one. It won't disappoint you as long as you take it for what it is: a DI-oriented gear aimed at making your recoring life WAY easier.