I’ve been steadily working towards the release of my patch set for the Digitech RP360/RP360XP, and we’re pretty close to go. There will be a few changes in this set versus previous sets:

  • I’m thinking that I won’t be delivering this set with all the single patches broken out into folders by category. I mean, why? All the patches are in the bulk load set; if you want a single, just save it out of the bulk load set. In the meantime, saving and labeling all those singles takes a LOTTA lotta time that doesn’t seem to deliver more value to the buyer.

  • I’ve developed more than 50 patches, which was my target, and I like the extras. So the buyer will get more than one patch per dollar. (You’re welcome.)

  • I’ve taken pains with this set to balance the volume level of patches across the board. That essentially means turning the clean patches up and the distorted patches down. The implication for the user is that you need to turn your amp up higher, and/or run the master volume level on the RP360 at a higher level. Neither of those is any kind of problem. The RP360’s signal to noise ratio is very good, and you’re not going to run out of headroom on your amp until you’re way past the point where feedback is louder than a jet engine at takeoff.


    • The RP360XP: give us a few weeks, and it'll have our patches in it
    The RP360XP: give us a few weeks, and it’ll have our patches in it

  • I’ve taken pains to maximize the utility of the few footswitches available on the 360. Every patch has its footswitches configured for “Stomp” mode (where a single footswitch press can turn an effect on or off), with a standardized order from left to right: modulation or distortion, delay, reverb. So whenever you’re in Stomp mode and you hit the middle footswitch, delay will go on or off; hit the right switch, and it’s reverb; hit the left switch, and it’s either modulation or distortion. This order is implemented in every patch; when the patch doesn’t use modulation, distortion, delay, or reverb, the corresponding footswitch is inactive. This should make it very easy for anyone using my patches to learn their way around these important controllers, and maximize the device’s power in performance.


    • I’ve bitched a lot about the uselessness of Digitech’s Nexus application for editing the RP, and I still have my problems with it. However, it’s actually pretty useful if you do initial patch editing from the RP360’s front panel, and use Nexus for the finishing touches, like balancing the relative levels of patches and assigning the footswitches to particular patch parameters for Stomp mode. The former is accomplished with a slider in the software, and the latter by dragging and dropping the effect you want to control into a slot representing the footswitch. Fast and tidy. For people who don’t change patches frequently in the middle of a song, Stomp mode looks like the way to go. If you do like to change patches in the middle of a song, Stomp mode isn’t ideal, because the footswitches in Stomp mode turn FX on or off, and you can’t use them to change patches in that case. (You can still change patches by rotating the large dial on the front panel, but that’s not ideal when you’re in the middle of a performance.)


    My RP360/360XP patch set will retail for $50, and it’s my best work to date. I’ll be updating my RP500 and RP1000 patch sets, in that order, with the refinements I’ve made for the 360, so if you’re using one of those devices, stay tuned–that’ll be a free upgrade for current RP500 and RP1000 patch set licensees. In the meantime, give me a few weeks–to mid-May 2014–and the 360 patch set will be lighting up your RP.