Though its bottom plate is sturdy metal, I found that the Bass Floor POD’s plastic casing was susceptible to nicks and dings. I wasn’t that impressed with the plastic rocker pedal or wiggly knobs, either. Fortunately, a sturdy metal handle clearly divides the violent foot zone from the delicate tweak zone, and the footswitches themselves feel springy and resilient. The unit has two operating modes: one for paging through patches, and the other a stompbox-style fx mode, where the three pedals respectively engage the bottom-boosting deep circuit, the optical compressor model, and the dialed-up effect—filter, octave, or chorus. Holding down the third pedal toggles between the two modes, but to mute your sound or engage the tuner, you need to bend down, press the deep switch, and hold it for almost two seconds. Yikes.
While the sonic options are limited—you won’t find reverb, delay, pitch shifters, phasers and flangers, or stereo anything—a browse through the Floor POD’s presets shows just how much you can do with it. The Ampeg models are particularly impressive (r&b is a B-15, and rock is an SVT), especially with a touch of overdrive, and if distortion is your thing, there are plenty of sounds to choose from. The compressor is very musical, and it’s nice to have metering lights for the threshold. The three effect models sound very natural and almost analog, but the topper is the full-function synth, which tracks unbelievably well and sounds amazing. Really. If you’re a big synth user, the Bass Floor POD is worth checking out for this alone. Chances are you’ll find it’s good for other things, too.
PROS
Superb sounds; one of the best bass synths ever
CONS
Construction feels chintzy; no foot-wise mute or tuning
BOTTOM LINE
Stellar sounds, but keep it in its own bag or case.
SPECS
List: $279
Street: $200
Power: AC adapter (9-volt “line lump” style, included)
Inputs: 1/4" input, 1/8" cd/mp3 input
Outputs: 1/4" amp output, 1/4" record/direct output, 1/8" phones
Controls: Three footswitches, amp model knob, three amp knobs, opto comp knob, effects knob, chan vol
External footswitch: none
Display: Two-digit red LED display
Dimensions: 13" x 1 13/16" x 9"
Weight: 3 lbs, 8 oz
Number of patches: 80 (40 user and 40 identical, read-only factory presets)
Warranty: One year limited
Made in: China
SECOND OPINIONS
Jonathan Herrera
“The synths sound organic, like they are connected to the bass. The EQ is fancy. Despite its apparent simplicity, you can figure out its deeper aspects.”
Brian Fox
“I find the interface intimidating, but its sounds are really compelling.”