Zoom B1 FOUR Bass Multi-effects Processor Reviews

I really love this

I purchased the Zoom B1 Four pedal about two years ago. I have a few other pedals in my collection (compression, distortion, wah), and this pedal is one stop shopping for each of those effects and many more. I can usually find the sound I want with the pre-loaded effects, but it allows you to use different tools to modify the sound. I use the tuner, metronome and drum settings during each and every practice session. I would highly recommend this product.

I can't believe that this little pedal can do all it does. I used it at a gig for the first time and it was flawless. Sounded wonderful everybody the man loved it. And all the presets are nice. I haven't programmed it yet so I used the Jacob setting when I play my fretless you guys are going to love this paddle. If you buy it you'll love it!

Well, I've been a long time user of Zoom pedals, including my first one, which was the BFX-708, from 2000. Bought a couple of others before I bought the mighty B3 in 2010, which I still have. I also have a B1XON, which is another one one of my favorites. I have no plans on getting rid of these two pedals, but I was restless to get a newer one. Thought about the BN3, but just a bit too expensive, and the newer B6 looks awesome, but at $, too much, so I looked into this little ditty, and I must say, it's a great pedal, somewhat easier to navigate than the B3 and X1ON, better processor and ability to connect via USB for programming purposes. Are the presets on this any better than the other two I have? - not necessarily, but again, to me, its much easier to navigate. The real key with these pedals, imo, is to take the time to experiment with them, creating your own programs, etc. If you don't, you're missing out on the real power that can be dished up. I love this pedal - portable, fun looper and drum machine, and it can run on batteries. Another job well done, Zoom!

This replaced my two pedals and added so many I wish I could afford, not to mention the patch cables. And a tuner and headphone amp for traveling. (Sold my pedals for almost the cost of this.)

This is the first pedal/box being added to mix here at home and it is well worth the price of admission. The four banks of pre-sets span a wide range of sounds and styles. Favorites are quickly coming to the front, Marcus Miller, Sans Clean, Drivn Clean, FunkySolo among them and the Amp Modeling is really slick. Not sure if all of the tones will be on the short list but that's just me. Have yet to explore customizing or creating tones but the built in looper and tuner are going to come in handy.

DI connection, aux input, headphone output, battery, optional dedicated power supply and the ability to run on USB power all make this a good, cost effective addition. Another Sweetwater winner.

I just received this unit today. It is just as wonderful as I expected. I have had the guitar equivalent (G1 Four) for a couple years and I love it. I started to pick up the bass again but didn't have any good direct options so I came straight for the B1. I knew what I was getting into and it's great. I played a set this same day it arrived. The presets are immediately usable, no worries for a quick start. I can't wait to dig in deeper and setup my own presets. Shout out to Ed Nystrom again. Always great service and follow up.

Great tool for modeling setups, new and old. Easy to use and great practice setup. Works will with PC for configuration and quick setup. Interface is very intuitive. Connection to smartphone to input tracks is solid.

No less than amazing !!
Buy it, worth a lot lot more!
44 years bass player
Studio
Stage
Touring
Sales

This is a great bass pedal, especially for the price. Most of the presets are useful without any adjustments, and all are adjustable.

I'm sure that the individual effects in this box don't compare to expensive single effect pedals. With that being said, I found over 90% of the effects in this box usable, and with 3rd party software you can dial in any sound you need. In addition this is a great way to practice silently with minimal noise interference.

If you're wanting a pedal to create your own sound this is the one. Zoom pedals are great for beginners or pros. One of the best features is the drum machine. If you don't have a drummer you can at least keep the beat.

Has some good preset tones and sounds. Every single aspect is adjustable to your tastes. One pedal rules them all. I don't need five different effects when I can link them all together with this.
The drum machine part isn't great but nice to at least use the metronome and on board tuner.

Can't be beat for the cost.

I'm really amazed how well it works. Perfect for practice or even live. Every bass player must try one.

I am 67 and played bass in venues big and small since 1968 but 99.99 per cent of that time no effects whatsoever. This thing is easy to use and fun with all the presets. I used very briefly live and found the tuner is great and a couple settings good for live. I know its all adjustable in a ton of ways and I have fiddled with that some but not confident enough yet to do on the fly. If it holds up and I can use for just what I know now its well worth the price and if I get to play around and find a lot of usable tones and settings it seems like it would be the only effect I would ever need. Right now its a fun toy to play with at home and that's pretty great too!

What can I write that hasn't already been said about this little guy? The tuner is great, the various modeling modes are great, the various effects are leagues better than other multi-effects units, but still lack the precision of dedicated, single effect pedals. This is the perfect unit if you're still trying to figure out your personal tone. You can find what sound you need here, then if you decide it's necessary, you can move on to dedicated pedals/effects afterwards. At the end of the day though, this can replace any massive pedal board, and easily hold its own during practice or live shows. I wouldn't use it in a recording studio, but that isn't why this unit exists. I would, however, have zero issues using it in any other setting. Quite a steal for $. 4.5 stars for what it is. 5 stars for what you get for the price.

This thing is small, very small.

This thing is feature rich, VERY feature rich.

This thing is EASY to use, flexible, programmable and has three ways to power it.

The Sweetwater overview of this doesn't begin to convey how much you get for so little money. I don't believe I can make it clear here in my review.

Download all the documentation from Zoom ESPECIALLY the Zoom Guitar Lab manual and app.

I read all the documentation twice before this actually arrived. It really helped. Considering the diminutive size and few manipulable controls the unit is very simple to deal with.

I highly recommend you skip the batteries and wall wart and just plug it into your computer with a typical cell phone charging cable (USB). This both powers the unit and gives you direct access to modifying and adjusting it with the Zoom Guitar Lab app. WHILE IN THE ZOOM GUITAR LAB APP BE SURE TO ACTIVATE THE EFFECTS THAT ARE MARKED WITH A BLUE CIRCULAR ARROW, THAT WILL MAKE THEM AVAILABLE IN THE APP AND ON THE DEVICE!!! Just click the arrows.

Even if you just use the unit away from a computer, you can battery or pedal power it and it still is really easy to deal with.

The wide variety of available, easily adjustable effects and the onboard Looper and rhythm systems provide endless experimentation. The unit comes programmed with 40 effect chains that you can keep, delete, edit, alter, add to, remove from and stomp included effects in and out. There also are 10 unprogrammed chains you can turn into whatever you want.

I really like this thing BUT,
It is small (which I like), but only has two foot switches which, in combination have to perform the usual functions. Much easier to operate by hand. And, you are limited to 5 effects in any one chain. Chains cannot be chained, but you can limit chain switching to within a 10 chain group or pre-program switching only from the current chain to one other chain, but not back again.

This is a fantastic pedal with tons of functionality at a great value. If you had $100 to spend on your effects board, this would be the one pedal you need. The tuner is responsive, rhythm and looper work fine, but the star of the show is the variety of tones you can achieve with the effects.
Two things I wish were different but don't affect the end result: for PC use, the pedal requires a USB-mini-B (not included). The manufacturer software Guitar Lab does not work with this; use ToneLib-Zoom instead.
Overall, great pedal, could just use a little better PC support.

I really like the Zoom B1 Four. It comes with a multitude of preprogrammed effects patches to provide sound modulation for nearly every instance imaginable. I did get rid of the "Explosion" patch, since I will never use it, and through several YouTube videos and forum reads, I was able to replace it with a custom patch to sound like an Upright Double Bass that I created myself. There is a bit of a learning curve and I recommend reading and rereading the Operation Manual several times to understand all of the features and how they work.

Custom patches can easily be created using either the ZOOM GuitarLab or ToneLib-Zoom application. After installation on your computer, just plug your B1Four in using a micro-USB and voila.

I definitely recommend this product if you are looking to get different sound modulations and either don't want or can't afford the plethora of stop pedals required to do the same job as the B1Four.

I bought this processor to use for practice. With the small size, headphone out, and aux in, it is perfect to take when on the go. I take it camping so I can play along with various songs on my phone.
With that said, after using it for a few weeks, I would honestly gig with this processor. It really sounds great. I have found several of the amp models that I like: SVT - Bassman - SWR - FlipTop - DB750. I have also found that I use several of the pedals too.
On top of the great amp models and effects, it has a tuner, a rhythm section and a looper. I also discovered that you can configure one of the EQ pedals into a HPF which is a must have in my opinion.
You can download the free app, TonLib Zoom, to configure the processor with a computer. It works great!
It can be powered with the Zoom power adapter, batteries or the USB input and a phone adapter. It has good battery life.
I have never been an effects user with my bass, however this processor has changed my mind. It works great going into several of my bass heads.
The only downside is the fact that it is made of plastic. However, it is constructed well and with a little care, it shouldn't be an issue. A metal housing would have increased the price, which would have been more of a negative. With the current price point, most people can afford this great processor.
For the price, I don't think you can find a better value.

This pedal is a great equipment, I'm very happy with the pedal Zoom thanks!
Merry Christmas!!

I was blown away by the sound and functions of this unit.
I play live using e-drums sequenced by Ableton, this pedal accepts MIDI CC, so it can programed to change parameters.
I can now focus on my playing and no on push the right pedal. Great Great unit. The only downer that can apply is the plastic material housing , but as it can be put it over and amp or a rack and keep it safe during the live shows i don't think will be an issue. You can even bought two more units as spare and keep it below the price range of other units. LOVE IT.

I have been using this for over 1 week for practice and setup. It is a great tool for working and modeling setups and great sounds. Sound is excellent and the output is very clean. SO why not 5 stars. 1. Send with the power unit and don't make me buy it separately. 2. While it takes the place of multiple pedals and allows for nice modeling, the flexibility of individual pedal is better. So it is no substitute if you want the flexibility.

Has some good presets out of the box but you need to take time to play with the unit & do some custom presets (the Zoom PDF manual & Guitar Lab app are really helpful) to take full advantage. When you consider the price it is a steal. Effects, modeling, tuner & rhythm machine for $90! Worth it for the rhythm machine alone. I use it for practice & jams. Don't know if I'd gig with it because of the all plastic construction, but I understand why all plastic due to its price. This cost it 1/2 star.

I bought one of the B1 Four ( not x ) from Sweetwater when they first got them. I much prefer the B1 Four over Boss for preamp/distortion/overdrive tones - other tones are pretty much equal. I will get rotten eggs for this, but I sold my darkglass pedals after getting what I wanted from B1 Four. It's not the same mind you, but by combining different things with the darkglass model they have, you can get close ( or maybe better depending on what you want ). Rhythm section is useful for practice. Best of all for me is that using the latest version of Zoom Guitar Lab software to edit the effects chain, the whole patch edit thing becomes easy and fun. Loop a bass line into it and just sit at your computer with headphones and tweak tones for hours ( if you're into that sort of thing ). For the price, I don't think you can go wrong. The only reason for 4.5 instead of 5 is that I would have bought the X if the pedal was a little more useful ( like being able to assign to a parameter within a specific patch, but maybe that's little too much to ask ).

I play bass in a duo with drums on backing tracks. It allows us to play small outdoor decks for bars and clubs. We usually have very little space, so I needed something that would give me more options as I go direct to the mixer. MY bass and vocals go through a TC Helicon designed for acoustic guitars. I needed something to boost my bass signal, and offer me a variety of tone, and effects controls. The Zoom B1 really fits in to exactly what I need and does it in a compact space. I can set up several tone and effects banks and switch between them. I have mainly set up one bank incorporating 5 various pedals, and turn on and off the effects I don't need. You can switch any one of the five off and on be using the foot pedal. You can also turn them on and off with the smaller red button. It depends on where you choose to set your pedal. At home it's within hands reach. Playing out, it's on the floor. There is so much I haven't even played with yet, as I need to get the basic pedals set up for my next gig. I will be playing with the rhythms, and going through all of the effects, and tone options over the next several weeks.

For like $, this thing is worth it just for the tuner, drum loops, and built-in looper just as a practice tool. I can't really think of any other comparable all-in-one solution at this same price point. It's a pretty sturdy box that you can power off a spare micro USB plugged in next to your amp. I've been using it this way for a couple of years now, and have been very satisfied with it for that purpose.
The built-in effects are fine, but they aren't amazing. As a first multi-fx, it's a good way to get the gist of a bunch of different amps/effects so you can get in the ballpark of some basic bass tones relatively quickly. The interface to modify the patches is functional, if a bit clunky. It's a little difficult to toggle more than one effect while playing unless you're switching between different patches, which is probably fine in a lot of cases.

Unbelievable for the money
I have used many many preamps pedals and multi effects pedals and in my humble opinion for bad this smokes the line6 HX stomp and is one sixth the price
I have two HX and now two of these zoom pedals
Some effects are not so great but I can live with that
For straight up amp modeling this little thing kicks butt
Thank you Zoom
Thank you sweetwater
Thank you Joel

I use this for both studio and practice. Presets are mostly a bit over the top (a problem with almost all lower priced multi-effect units); however, there the unit is very adjustable. Individual effects are very good for the price. There are a couple of presets that are nice right out of the box. I found that combining those with your own custom presets is the best option.

Would be 5 star if it had more truly usable presets right out of the box, but if you're willing to put in a little time, considering the price it's a very good box.

Very surprised let's say that!!
I have owned lots of the available and not so available preamp pedals and preamp pedal with effects modelers and have to say……
I love this pedal so far.
Effects not the greatest but for bass and amp modeling and with over drives this blows the HX stomp out of the water as far as sound and ease of finding good solid bass tones.
Wish it had a DI out!!
Wish tuner was better.
Wish effects were better.
I was thinking about getting an Atomic Bassbox...
Sticking with this for now.
HX stomp for bass frustrated me to death!
I have used Line6 for many many years and have had Bass pod, bass pod pro, X3 live and all were easy to get decent and sometimes mind blowing stuff.
But always lacking some zing but run through a tech 21 and zing.
That's a lot of money and technology!
Hx Stomp huge disappointment for bass.
This Zoom is bringing me great joy!!
Buy it
Even if just a back up
Buy it!
40 plus years playing bass here soooooo…..

Joel Helton my Sweetwater guy has been great to me as well
Thank you Sweetwater
Thank you Joel

I loved everything about this pedal except it was very noisy. After wrestling with it for awhile I returned it for the MS60b which I already own and love. Two of those will make a great mini pedalboard.

I got one of these last March. It worked about a week and then was stuck on one setting and wouldnt change. I even tried to change parameters and it didnt work .
Im really put off on Zoom products due to this. I ended up just tossing it and went back to using just a Sans Amp and a few pedals Ive been using.