Line 6 forums expert user and GW Blogger Rowbi reports from MusikMesse 2011.

Stomp box or multi-effect?

It’s a debate that will rage on for years to come, with the purists on one side using their vintage analog stomps and on the other side the multi-effects and digital modeler users. I’m somewhere in the middle, as there’s merits to both analog and digital gear. But what if you could have the best of both worlds, with a variety of modeled sought after FX you only find in a quality multi-FX box, but in a stomp box sized package?

There’s lots of reasons to love the Line 6 Stompbox Modeler series of pedals, with the flagship M13 giving you up to four effects at once, full stereo in/out and stereo loop send and return, lots of footswitches to save scenes (presets) and also to use it more like a semi-fixed pedalboard. Then there’s the now middle-of-the-range M9 which can run three effects at once and still packs in most of the features of the M13, but in a smaller form.

Enter the Line 6 M5 Stompbox Modeler.

The M5 is the latest in the M-series Stompbox Modeler line of products, containing all the effects from the M9/M13 products with one effect available at a time. There are also twenty-four preset locations available which can either be queued up or loaded instantly.

For you Strat or high-gain players there’s a noise gate you can also enable and adjust without using your one effect slot. For the budding Hendrix or Kirk Hammett wannabe, there’s an expression pedal jack so you can use it as a wah pedal (with an EX-1 or Mission pedal), using one of the several wah-wah models on offer.

So with that in mind Line 6 have really thought through what users want and put a product out there that will give those who only want simple rigs or only one effect some real functionality and flexibility. This is great, as other offerings from Line 6 and other manufacturers already cater to users wanting larger pedals, or stomps that can do one or several similar effects (like multiple different delays from a delay stomp box), but this is the first stompbox-sized pedal that offers so many diverse effects.

Quick Specs:

• Over 100 stereo FX (the same selection you find in Line 6's other Stompbox Modelers, the M9 and flagship M13).
• Stereo input and output.
• MIDI In/OUT (on the side of the unit).
• Built in tuner and noise gate.
• 24 fully customisable preset locations.
• Expression pedal input for the Line 6 EX1, or Mission.
• Simple control layout with clear labeling on the unit.

Rowbi is a hobby guitarist based in Cambridgeshire UK, and is also a Line 6 Community 'Line 6 User Expert'.
Rowbi's Blog: www.rowbinet.co.uk
More info on Line 6 User Experts: http://line6.com/community/docs/DOC-2120