Should I Go With The GT-10 or GT-8???

[resonator]

My first post here. I was all set to buy the GT-8 after running it through the front of my Victoria Victorilux 115. It was fantastic. It's my guitar instructor's GT-8. Ron has a lot of great settings stored and knows the GT-8 inside and out. He said he would help me set up mine and set up the same user presets he has.

So I go on line to buy one and I find the Boss GT-10. It has a Phrase Looper which I was going to buy. I read that it's easier to set up user presets and use than the GT-8.

If you were me and this is your first shot at a floor effects processor, and knowing if you buy the GT-8 you will have Ron's help, which one would you buy?

I've gone back and forth in my mind over the decision for the last two days. I really don't know which way to go.:confused:

Thanks, Res

[Kassanova]

Welcome to the board. First things first - what style of music are you playing?
Are you a gigging musician or a bedroom player?
What amp are you going to be playing it through?
What are your basic effects needs?

[Randall_d]

Buy the 10, then take it in for Ron to hear. When he hears it, he will upgrade to the 10, and then he can help you with your patches. ;o)

[amenity421]

Hey Res,

You know, Its all about you and your ear. The question your asking is really only one you yourself can truly answer. Tone is all about what you want. On the one hand, you have a friend who is willing to show you the ropes with the GT8 and on the other hand, You have the ability to start a tone journey of your own and learn something new without the help of someone experienced.

I just upgraded from a gt8 to a gt10 and i can only offer my insight.
The gt8 served me well for 2 years. I loved that pedal. I got a Damage control Demonizer to use for a distortion because i don't like the GT8 pre-amps.
So, Enter the Gt10. All i had seen were pictures and that crappy Boss Demo video and heard maybe 3-4 clips posted by other users of this site (Thanks guys!) And i just decided to bite the bullet and get one. Then again, i look for particular things in my sound. I need tight fat crunchy distortion and a crisp buttery clean tone. I still want to use the Demonizer for my drive tone but want the option of other drive tones if need be. Anyway, I love the GT10. To me the preamps sound great, the effects are killer. and all around it has the functionality i need.

With a looper i think certain things should be considered such as: Are you going to use it live? if so, would Pre recorded loops be a good idea? considering unless you play with a drum machine they wont work because humans (drummers especially:)) have a hard time keeping perfectly in tempo. If you wont use it live pre recorded loops can be great. Live, on the Fly recording of loops is probably best.

Anyway, What works best for you? You have heard the GT8 in action and know how it sounds and can get help from a great resource.
You have not played/demoed the GT10 (i presume?) and have little to no idea how it works.


T

[gibson57guy]

Hey Res,

You know, Its all about you and your ear. The question your asking is really only one you yourself can truly answer. Tone is all about what you want. On the one hand, you have a friend who is willing to show you the ropes with the GT8 and on the other hand, You have the ability to start a tone journey of your own and learn something new without the help of someone experienced.

I just upgraded from a gt8 to a gt10 and i can only offer my insight.
The gt8 served me well for 2 years. I loved that pedal. I got a Damage control Demonizer to use for a distortion because i don't like the GT8 pre-amps.
So, Enter the Gt10. All i had seen were pictures and that crappy Boss Demo video and heard maybe 3-4 clips posted by other users of this site (Thanks guys!) And i just decided to bite the bullet and get one. Then again, i look for particular things in my sound. I need tight fat crunchy distortion and a crisp buttery clean tone. I still want to use the Demonizer for my drive tone but want the option of other drive tones if need be. Anyway, I love the GT10. To me the preamps sound great, the effects are killer. and all around it has the functionality i need.

With a looper i think certain things should be considered such as: Are you going to use it live? if so, would Pre recorded loops be a good idea? considering unless you play with a drum machine they wont work because humans (drummers especially:)) have a hard time keeping perfectly in tempo. If you wont use it live pre recorded loops can be great. Live, on the Fly recording of loops is probably best.

Anyway, What works best for you? You have heard the GT8 in action and know how it sounds and can get help from a great resource.
You have not played/demoed the GT10 (i presume?) and have little to no idea how it works.


T


Yes drummers are supposed to keep time but very few do.... A lot follow "your" rhythm. Others get excited and speed up slow down or whatever...and the rest of the band just adjusts to their mistakes...bad timing whatever.. Just know that you need a very precise drummer if you plan on using the looper live with a band... FWIW... I liked the looper on the rc20 better than the gt10 looper...

[resonator]

Thanks for the response. I play at home mostly and a few jams once in a while. I play blues, old rock n' roll, country (older) and old standards with a jazz edge. I'm more into clean tone and don't care for high gain stuff. A little drive and crunch is about it. To give you an example, my only two pedals are a Barber Tone Press and Barber LTD Silver. Guitars are PRS McCarty BLE, PRS Hiland, Tele, Strat, ES-339 and Brian Moore C90P. The amp I would use is a Victoria, Victorilux 115. It's a super clean amp that's a little on the darker side. It doesn't have an effects loop. We ran the GT-8 through the front and set the Mid on full and the Treble and Bass all the way off. It was great. I think that's how you set this amp to flat.

I talked to Ron today about the GT-10. He doesn't seem to be interested in upgrading from the GT-8. He said: " if you buy the GT-8, I can help you. I don't know anything about the GT-10. So, it sounds like he's not going to be much help with the GT-10. On the other hand, I don't know anything about the either one. Maybe it would be better to go with the GT-10 from scratch.

Is the GT-10 "REALLY" easier to learn and use than the GT-8? Does it really have better tone than the GT-8? How good is the Phrase looper compared to stand alone looper pedals?

Thanks, Res

[gibson57guy]

Hey...

If you have someone who knows the gt8 and is willing to help you get the best tones out of it? I personally would run with it !!... You just can't buy that knowledge anywhere !!.. Point blank.. If you own the gt8 with a lot of knowledge or someone to help you get there then that far outweighs no knowledge with the gt10 no matter how much it has to offer...

Again fwiw.. and Kewlpack I'm sure will vouch for the same... it's a real paradigm shift from the gt8 to the gt10... Your instructor seems pretty cool.. :icon_razz:

[Sprint]

Buy the 10, then take it in for Ron to hear. When he hears it, he will upgrade to the 10, and then you can help him with his patches. ;o)

[Randall_d]

Buy the 10, then take it in for Ron to hear. When he hears it, he will upgrade to the 10, and then you can help him with his patches. ;o)

Sprint, I stand corrected. :o)

Seriously though, I agree with Amenity. You need to decide if you want to ride on your teacher's coat tails (nothing wrong with that) or start on your own journey of learning how to get great tones. You have some great gear (I've got a Tone Press myself), so you know what good tone sounds like. Why not trust yourself and buy the superior (IMHO) pallette to begin with? If you go with the 8, you are starting one step behind with an (IMHO) inferior foundation, but then you have a hand-up with your teacher. But then when you want a different tone than something he programmed, you are back to square one. I have both, and I say; trust your ears and yourself, buy the 10 and determine in your mind to blow your teacher's 8 away. You can do it!!!

[gibson57guy]

Sprint, I stand corrected. :o)

Seriously though, I agree with Amenity. You need to decide if you want to ride on your teacher's coat tails (nothing wrong with that) or start on your own journey of learning how to get great tones. You have some great gear (I've got a Tone Press myself), so you know what good tone sounds like. Why not trust yourself and buy the superior (IMHO) pallette to begin with? If you go with the 8, you are starting one step behind with an (IMHO) inferior foundation, but then you have a hand-up with your teacher. But then when you want a different tone than something he programmed, you are back to square one. I have both, and I say; trust your ears and yourself, buy the 10 and determine in your mind to blow your teacher's 8 away. You can do it!!!

On the other hand... if you don't know what your doing... then ride away, but learn as much as possible on your ride... we are all at different levels so by all means... give up some pride.. but only if it will make you better..

[resonator]

I forgot to mention that Ron also uses a BBE 482I with the GT-8. It's subtle, but does make a difference. It makes the sound more room filling.

I'm still wanting to know if the GT-10 is Easier to work with than the GT-8. That's the claim anyway. But I'd like to here from those who have had both GT-8 and GT-10.

[resonator]

I'm more interested in playing guitar than anything. I don't enjoy tinkering for hours with electronics, but I do enjoy the final results like I heard with the GT-8. That's a plus for going with the GT-8. But, I'd sure like to have the built in looper.

[gibson57guy]

I forgot to mention that Ron also uses a BBE 482I with the GT-8. It's subtle, but does make a difference. It makes the sound more room filling.

I'm still wanting to know if the GT-10 is Easier to work with than the GT-8. That's the claim anyway. But I'd like to here from those who have had both GT-8 and GT-10.

That's a loaded question !!..... it's a paradigm shift... from the gt8 to gt10 but I do guarantee that anything in the gt8 you liked could be done in the gt10 !!

Just depends on the method of getting to where ya wanna go appeals to you most...

[resonator]

I've been meaning to ask, can you copy the user presets from the GT-8 to the GT-10? Are there down laodable tones from a website for either unit?

[lp_bruce]

As others have said, it's really up to you. If you look around here, you'll find plenty of tips and there is ongoing support. If I were starting from scratch, I'd go with the GT-10.

But that's me.

Peace,

[SRVISGOD]

I forgot to mention that Ron also uses a BBE 482I with the GT-8. It's subtle, but does make a difference. It makes the sound more room filling.

I'm still wanting to know if the GT-10 is Easier to work with than the GT-8. That's the claim anyway. But I'd like to here from those who have had both GT-8 and GT-10.

Okay.... I personally bought a GT-8 in January and spent a couple of frustrating months tinkering and tweaking to get a barely reasonable tone.
I upgraded to a 10 a couple of weeks ago and couldn't be happier - IMO the 10 is eons ahead of the 8 in terms of usability and tone, so I'd go with the 10.

I spent so many hours wrestling with the 8 and searhing this forum for solutions that I almost forgot how to play.....

[ZaKoR]

Okay.... I personally bought a GT-8 in January and spent a couple of frustrating months tinkering and tweaking to get a barely reasonable tone.
I upgraded to a 10 a couple of weeks ago and couldn't be happier - IMO the 10 is eons ahead of the 8 in terms of usability and tone, so I'd go with the 10.

I spent so many hours wrestling with the 8 and searhing this forum for solutions that I almost forgot how to play.....

One of the reasons I sold my GT-8 was because I was spending too much time tweaking and it was taking away form my limited playing time.

I recently bought the GT-10 and even though I've had VERY LITTLE time to tweak or play in the past month I've been VERY happy with minor tweaks to the stock patches. The GT-10 IMHO sounds much better, is easier to adjust, AND has a better playing feel.

I think with the GT-8 you'll need more of your instructors help to get good sounds. With the GT-10 you'll need less help and probably end up with a better playing experience.

Plus the looper is great for jamming along with AND for tweaking sounds.

I would go for the GT-10. This forum & your instructor could help you if you get stuck anywhere as the 10 is similar to the 8 in some respects. And the 10 is a BETTER device on most if not all fronts. The 8 was great when I had it and sounds very good BUT the 10 is MUCH better... my 2 cents...

[DeRigueur]

I had the gt8 and sold it, but I haven't bought a gt10 yet.

I would get the gt10 because it's newer tech and most of those who bought it are happy with it. For me, it wasn't easy to get sounds I liked on the gt8. ymmv.

[gone]

If I were faced again between the options of 2 units (in my case was the GT-6 or the 8) I'd do the same , that is I'd go with the newer one (the GT-10). I don't plan on it myself because I'm satisfied with the 8 and I know more about it now than anything I've ever had as far as floor processors. (and yes..I did briefly try out the 10..)

As far as I can remember the bit rate on both of these (the 8 & 10) is the same so a great sound from the 10 should be achievable from the 8, but my understanding is that the EZ tones and presets in the 10 have a better dialed in starting point than the 8 and previous units had (they're still learning too, remember) and basically (to me ) boils down to the fact that they've made a lot of good patches for you right off the bat..something that not everyone was able to do with the 8.

Plus you'll have more options with the latest unit and I doubt you'll need as much assistance from an instructor, giving you time to work on music instead. I kinda like tweaking myself, but lol..I'm old ..and this stuff wasn't around when I was a kid so I really had to concentrate more on music than I did equipment, I'm not sorry for that in the least tho.

In a nutshell get the easiest to operate (which should be the 10) and if you should turn into a tweaker I'm sure that everything is under the hood to work with in the newer one. And there's a lot of help available here on the forum growing for it.


I've been meaning to ask, can you copy the user presets from the GT-8 to the GT-10? Not that I'm aware of, same problem with previous units. You can copy presets and user patches from units that are the same. I don't believe a GT-8 patch will translate everything correctly to the GT-10.


Are there down laodable tones from a website for either unit?

There have been for the GT-8 and patches for both the 8 and 10 (and other GT's) will eventually be housed here if I understand Admin correctly. At the moment it's on the Welcome page under content/downloads.

[Newysurfer]

Thanks for the response. I play at home mostly and a few jams once in a while. I play blues, old rock n' roll, country (older) and old standards with a jazz edge. I'm more into clean tone and don't care for high gain stuff. A little drive and crunch is about it. To give you an example, my only two pedals are a Barber Tone Press and Barber LTD Silver. Guitars are PRS McCarty BLE, PRS Hiland, Tele, Strat, ES-339 and Brian Moore C90P. The amp I would use is a Victoria, Victorilux 115. It's a super clean amp that's a little on the darker side. It doesn't have an effects loop. We ran the GT-8 through the front and set the Mid on full and the Treble and Bass all the way off. It was great. I think that's how you set this amp to flat.

I talked to Ron today about the GT-10. He doesn't seem to be interested in upgrading from the GT-8. He said: " if you buy the GT-8, I can help you. I don't know anything about the GT-10. So, it sounds like he's not going to be much help with the GT-10. On the other hand, I don't know anything about the either one. Maybe it would be better to go with the GT-10 from scratch.

Is the GT-10 "REALLY" easier to learn and use than the GT-8? Does it really have better tone than the GT-8? How good is the Phrase looper compared to stand alone looper pedals?

Thanks, Res

Hey Resonator -
Is this the amp you have ?
http://www.victoriaamp.com/visitor/show_model/12 retailing at $US2800.
I've never heard one but it looks like a seriously fantastic tube amp to me. You've got some great pedals and nice guitars too. And you only play clean with a little bit of OD ocasionally for blues, jazz, old time RnR & country ? Have I got this right ??

My advice is - don't buy ANY digital modeller at all.
Don't waste your money. You've got a $2800 tube amp and some good pedals that already give you all the tones you need just great. Do you really think a cheap digital modeller worth less than $500 is gonna have a better preamp than your top of the line tube amp. Familiarity breeds contempt & maybe you've got complacent, or too used to, the tone of your Victorilux. Maybe you need a change to freshen things up but I think you'll get over the novelty of a digital modeller very quick and realise that your tube amp is far superior to anything Boss can produce.

These MFX's are very complicated beasts with a very long learning curve and are only great tools for people who use a big variety of tones & effects. Have you got any use for flangers, phasers, pitch shifters, tremolos, tone modifiers, defretters, delays & 57 varieties of distortion etc etc etc. If you don't I wouldn't go anywhere near a digital modeller. If you get one it'll give you a ton of headaches, you'll only use a few clean tones and some reverb and within a few weeks I think you'll find it sounds like crap compared to your Victorilux. Even with Ron's help. He might be seriously talented at tweaking but he's not a miracle worker :icon16:

[gone]

These MFX's are very complicated beasts with a very long learning curve and are only great tools for people who use a big variety of tones & effects.

I agree with your conclusions of tone ..equipment wise..but (IMO) MFX units are for anybody that either has the best gear in the world (didn't stop Neal Schon) or the cheapest if your only looking for an alternative convenience..not everyone wants to set up and haul all that stuff around if you're only doing an impromptu jam with some freinds, or a recording situation that needs to be simple and uncluttered.

I play mostly the type of music that resonator does but I experiment with others when I can and it's nice to know some of the things are there in the MFX whether I need it most of the time or not. They're tools..yes..not necessities. But don't underestimate the variety of tones needed for Country and Jazz...especially these days...and I love old Country music (prefer it actually to anything new) and the MFX can easily emulate quite a lot of those sounds without half the gear that it use to take to achieve them.

i.e. Brad Paisley's sound is completely differrent from say..Chet Atkins or Roy Nichols.

[Newysurfer]

I agree with your conclusions of tone ..equipment wise..but (IMO) MFX units are for anybody that either has the best gear in the world (didn't stop Neal Shcon) or the cheapest if your only looking for an alternative convenience..not everyone wants to set up and haul all that stuff around if you're only doing an impromptu jam with some freinds.

I play mostly the type of music that resonator does but I experiment with others when I can and it's nice to know some of the things are there in the MFX whether I need it most of the time or not. They're tools..not necessities.

Fair enough Gone - I hear ya and the bottom line there is you like to have the range of tools that an MFX can provide - and you do use em occasionally. But will Resonator ?

All I'm saying is that if he won't ever use most of the tools then what use is an MFX to him (other than just knowing that the tools are there should he ever decide to use em). Plus his amp has no FX Loop.

[gone]

But will Resonator ?

If he weren't seriously considering it why would he ask?



(sorry res...don't mean it to look like we're talking about you lol)

But he'll either continue to add to his arsenal with the ability to pick and choose, or possibly boil it down to his favorite equipment one day..we don't know. All I know is that he's asking about the difference between 2 processors, and our opinion of them..as far as choice.

[resonator]

If he weren't seriously considering it why would he ask?



(sorry res...don't mean it to look like we're talking about you lol)

But he'll either continue to add to his arsenal with the ability to pick and choose, or possibly boil it down to his favorite equipment one day..we don't know. All I know is that he's asking about the difference between 2 processors, and our opinion of them..as far as choice.

Hey, go ahead and talk about me, it won't be the first time:). I don't intend to use the GT-10 (I ordered it this morning) all the time. My Vlux and guitars sound awesome on their own. But, I had a ball with Ron's GT-8. So many possibilities to go to. It's not going to be used for anything serious. But when you think about what you can spend on individual pedals and what you get with the GT-10, it's a no brainer. Even the cheapest Phase Looper is around $200 by itself.

By the way, I'm 60 years old. FWIW.:horns:

Thanks for all the great response. You guys gave me a lot to think about. I'm not sure how much help I'm going to get from Ron with the GT-10, but I'm sure I can get answers here also.

Thanks, Res

[Agent420]

Even the cheapest Phase Looper is around $200 by itself.
Not to knock the GT10, but I think a $200 phrase looper is going to provide a lot more 'live-use' versatility than what is included in the GT10. I'm not sure I would even directly compare them beyond the fact they both loop a sound over & over.

[gone]

By the way, I'm 60 years old. FWIW. You're choice of music (esp "old" Country) gave you away lol...I shoulda figured it was too much to hope for the younger generation to get that.

[Kassanova]

I don't play country but I think the GT-10 has some great country presets in it. I was pretty impressed when I played through the country presets. If you play clean, country, 90s grunge or 80s rock, the GT-10 is ideal. Everything else, you'll have to make on your own but it can be done. It had some decent punk patches as well. With the EZ tone function, its much easier to program than the GT-8, too.

[Shiny_Surface]

Thanks for the response. I play at home mostly and a few jams once in a while. I play blues, old rock n' roll, country (older) and old standards with a jazz edge. I'm more into clean tone and don't care for high gain stuff. A little drive and crunch is about it. To give you an example, my only two pedals are a Barber Tone Press and Barber LTD Silver. Guitars are PRS McCarty BLE, PRS Hiland, Tele, Strat, ES-339 and Brian Moore C90P. The amp I would use is a Victoria, Victorilux 115. It's a super clean amp that's a little on the darker side. It doesn't have an effects loop. We ran the GT-8 through the front and set the Mid on full and the Treble and Bass all the way off. It was great. I think that's how you set this amp to flat.


Most of the criticism aimed at the GT-8 seems to come from the distortion side of things, if you play primarily clean I'm sure you could make the 8 work for you. Being the 10 just came out though, that's what everyone is going to tell you to get. Given the gear you've listed, I'm sure you have the light crunch stuff already covered quite well :).

[resonator]

Most of the criticism aimed at the GT-8 seems to come from the distortion side of things, if you play primarily clean I'm sure you could make the 8 work for you. Being the 10 just came out though, that's what everyone is going to tell you to get. Given the gear you've listed, I'm sure you have the light crunch stuff already covered quite well :).

Ron's GT-8 tones are mostly on the clean side. I know it works very well. I ordered the GT-10 from Musicians Friend. I'll have 45 days to see if I like it. If I'm having trouble with it, I'll return it and buy a used GT-8. At least that's the plan.

I expect to be posting questions about the GT-10 here after I get it. Hope I don't turn into a pain in the ass.

Thanks, Res

[SLICK]

Sounds like a good plan mate.
You will find people round here pretty tolerant and almost always helpful.

[gone]

I expect to be posting questions about the GT-10 here after I get it. Hope I don't turn into a pain in the ass.

it never stopped me from posting..!?! :oops:




well..couple times..but who's counting :smile:

[Newysurfer]

Welcome to the BossGTcentral community Resonator.
Hope you enjoy your new toy :smile:

[SRVISGOD]

Ron's GT-8 tones are mostly on the clean side. I know it works very well. I ordered the GT-10 from Musicians Friend. I'll have 45 days to see if I like it. If I'm having trouble with it, I'll return it and buy a used GT-8. At least that's the plan.

I expect to be posting questions about the GT-10 here after I get it. Hope I don't turn into a pain in the ass.

Thanks, Res

Hey Res

Be sure to keep us all abreast of how you get along with the 10, and don't worry about being a pain in the ass - in the short time I've been on this forum I myself have surely caused some ass-painage, but have found this community to be nothing short of helpful & supportive (with the odd healthy "debate" and a bit of good humor thrown in to boot)!
:cheers:

[resonator]

Hey Res

Be sure to keep us all abreast of how you get along with the 10, and don't worry about being a pain in the ass - in the short time I've been on this forum I myself have surely caused some ass-painage, but have found this community to be nothing short of helpful & supportive (with the odd healthy "debate" and a bit of good humor thrown in to boot)!
:cheers:

Thanks again to everyone. You'll definitely hear from on my progress (or lack of):icon_sad::). The GT-10 should be here Monday or Tuesday of next week. Thanks to 37 years of training from my wife, I'll read the manual before I do anything. Then I'll ask for directions.:smile:

Thanks, Res

[amenity421]

Hey Res,


Im selling my 8 for 300 bucks plus shipping. (packaging is on me :)) LOL.


But seriously, I am selling it. Anyone want it? anyone? anyone? anyone? (delay...Pan, 540Ms on the left channel 720Ms on the right....)

Good job making a decision. I hope you enjoy the GT10 as much as i have. The country presets are pretty great. I play in a hard rock band and i am a closet blues lover so i couldnt resist jamming some licks on them.. T-Bone Walker is my fave...



Ted