Matt Novak

I don't think this plug-in will necessarily blow you away, but it doesn't hurt to have. Some of the more subtle effects have come in handy.

Anyone who wants to talk shit about plug-ins not sounding like the real thing needs to use this plug-in.

I've had this plug-in for years and I haven't even come close to fully utilizing it. The most important feature to milk from this product is the multi-band distortion capability. If done correctly, this means distorting instruments or tracks not just so it sounds like you ran it through a distortion pedal, but to hone in on certain frequencies you want to pull. I've gotten a lot of really unique, warm EQ from tweaking that feature. The presets which are usually "out of the box" sounding are anything but typical even before you customize them. Just when you thought you've tweaked everything enough to find your favorite tone, one knob creates an entirely unique sound and favorite setting. Then, you can double up your preset with more than one filter bank. You can make tones that sound like the auditory equivalent of a savage ass beating, or simply shape an already existing tone. I can't stress enough how important this plug-in is for anyone making any type of music.

This was the first bass amp I ever owned. I bought it from my professor in recording college. It was supposed to just hold me over until I bought a fancier setup, but I never found a reason to replace it. It was loud, deep, and clean. This thing has been through hundreds of shows and recording situations and has never let me down. I run about a dozen pedals through this and it still sounds crisp.

I can't say enough about the 5,000 series kick pedals. They're super smooth, with just the right amount of versatility in tension. I will forever prefer this series over the more expensive, "higher regarded" 9,000 series! The only reason that this pedal doesn't get a 5 star rating from me is because I've had the heel piece break on me several times. An easy and cheap replacement, but still extremely frustrating.

I can't stress how important this pedal is to my work flow. I work a lot with loops, drones, and layers so this pedal is an absolute must for the writing process. I found the RC-20 to get a little muddy when adding more than a few tracks, so the option of having two separate tracks was the idea of someone I'd like to buy tacos for.