Demonstration Of The NUX MG-400
“Since releasing the MG-300, people have been blown away by the sound and playability, not to mention the ease-of-use tone tweaking and intuitive interface,” says Guitar World Tech Editor Paul Riario. “And now, the MG-400 builds upon the MG-300 features, becoming arguably the best value modeler for your money.”
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MusicTranscript
00:00What's up?
00:18Paul here from Guitar World and today we're going to be checking out a powerhouse modeling
00:23guitar and bass processor that will knock your socks off, not just for its sound, but
00:28how incredibly affordable it is.
00:31The Nu-X MG400.
00:33Let's check it out.
00:36The Nu-X MG400 is the next step up from the popular MG300, or as Nu-X puts it, the MG300
00:48little brother, MG400 big brother, with their flagship modeler still being the MG30.
00:55The MG400's sonic engine houses two powerful DSP chips for Nu-X's high definition white
01:06box amp modeling algorithm, or TSACHD, which stands for True Simulation of an Analog Circuit,
01:15and quad core image post effects, which basically translates to you're going to feel the difference
01:21in playability and experience realistic amp and cab sounds from the MG400.
01:33Since releasing the MG300, and if you've ever played it and own it, like me, I was
01:38completely floored by the sound and playability, let alone how easy it is to tweak its tone.
01:45The MG400 builds upon the MG300's intuitive interface and features, and is poised to become
01:51one of the best modelers for its price.
01:58The MG400 comes loaded with 25 amps, one bass amp and one acoustic amp, and of course a
02:04multitude of effects.
02:06What's great is Nu-X's proprietary white box amp modeling algorithm replicates the
02:10sound, feel and playability of these amps, and Nu-X is consistent in firmware updates
02:16so you can pretty much bank on Nu-amp and cab sims at some point.
02:20Just keep an eye on Nu-X's online page and Facebook page and groups.
02:25The MG400 includes an impulse response library of 512 samples each, and you can also load
02:31third party IR files using Nu-X's Quick Tone edit software.
02:35What's included is 25 guitar cabinet IRs that combine 4 different classic microphones
02:41with 3 positions of mic placement.
02:43Also included are 8 bass cabinet IRs and 3 acoustic guitar IRs.
02:48Looking at the eye-catching 2.8-inch color LCD screen, you can see you have 10 independent
02:53and flexible effects and signal blocks that you can move freely on the MG400 and or on
03:00the Quick Tone editing software if you use your computer.
03:04Over to the left is the color LCD screen where you see your patch, and you can begin
03:08to edit from there.
03:10On top, of course, is the location of your patch.
03:12You can see up on top here where your expression pedal is set at.
03:16If I hit the pedal button, you'll notice I can assign the expression pedal for different
03:21functions.
03:22Right now, it's a wah, but watch, I can use it for effects, amp, mod, delay, reverb.
03:35Next to it, you'll see how the control 1 and control foot switches are set up.
03:40One is tap, and the other allows you to scroll sequentially through the preset scenes.
03:45To the right, you'll see which scene you're on, and you'll see hitting the control 1,
03:51which is the tap button, changes the BPM reflected by the icon there.
04:01On the bottom are the 10 signal blocks that comprise of amp, effects, and EQ, and you'll
04:07see your signal chain flows from left to right.
04:12To edit, simply hit the edit exit button, brings up another screen, and wherever the
04:17arrow cursor is, is what you're editing, and in this case, it's the amp.
04:22Use the control button to edit pages of that parameter.
04:27You'll see on this one, it has two from the underscore lines.
04:32Now, use the 1, 2, and 3 knobs to change settings, and or use the rotary select knob to scroll
04:41through the amp models.
04:43Be careful when you're editing, just say on the amp, when you're using just these controls,
04:48you're tempted to go to the left and right arrow buttons, and if you do that, it'll just
04:52move the cursor to the next signal block, and then you're onto a different editing screen.
04:58What's cool is if you wish to add a block that's not in the patch, simply move the arrow,
05:03then hit select control to turn it on and make it active.
05:07So in this case, I've activated a CE1 chorus, but if I don't want that, and say I want a
05:13phaser, I can simply just turn the rotary knob until I get a phaser.
05:20In this case, I have the phase 90 over here.
05:24Now if I wish to move it in my signal block, all I gotta do is long press the select knob
05:28till it turns red, then use the left and right arrows to move it where I want it in the chain,
05:35and hit select again till it turns green.
05:37And then of course, if I long press it, and move it back to where it was, behind the amp,
06:07it sounds so much different.
06:08But, I like the way it sounds when I move it over there.
06:22Right there.
06:29Over here is the mode button that sets up how you wish to configure the MG400 output.
06:34Also, pressing the edit exit and save simultaneously will bring up the system menu.
06:41There's also a built-in tuner on the MG400, but you'll see I'm also using the Cherub FlowTune clip tuner
06:47that features a compensated tuning mode.
06:49But let's get on with the MG400.
06:52You'll notice the presets were made by well-known influencers and musicians from around the world.
06:58What's so great is just how nuanced all the sounds are.
07:01So, even when you fire this up and you have this preset here, this is sort of like that Wagner high gain sound.
07:08It's so different when I go to the next preset, which is more of a British sound.
07:13Take a quick listen.
07:32Even some of the cleans are really nice.
07:47In this case, this is a very affected sound.
08:02Here's a great heavier sounding preset, and of course, the Nu-X noise gate block is just incredible.
08:27Take a listen.
08:31Less buttons, controls, and switches means you'll need to know how they are assigned to edit your settings.
08:58But don't worry, it's super easy.
09:00First up, you'll see the up and down foot switches that take you through the presets.
09:04I love the bigger covered orange knob that Nu-X included so your foot doesn't hit knobs as you're reaching over with your foot to bank up.
09:13You'll see the overall master volume knob, which you'll want to set up for a comfortable volume.
09:18Keep in mind, a lot of the presets vary in volume as you scroll through.
09:24One of the features I love is its scene functionality, where you can use scenes to engage and disengage blocks with either control foot switch.
09:32Here, you can assign control 1 or control 2 to activate the scene functionality, or use one control to engage each scene sequentially and use the other control as a tap switch.
09:44There are many versatile possibilities.
09:46Here's a great example of how to use the scenes.
09:48This one is set up to turn the delay signal block on and off.
09:56Right now, it's just with a heavy reverb.
09:58And then if I go to the second scene, indicated by the color, this is more of a modulated, but this one also has a delay on the control one that you can turn on and off.
10:08Take a listen.
10:18Take a listen.
10:48Take a listen.
11:00Each preset has three scenes, which are snapshots within a preset, and it's an important function for live gigs where you can tap into a rhythm or lead tones or effected tones.
11:11You'll notice each scene can engage, disengage signal blocks freely, and it retains the delay reverb trails when you disengage them.
11:18If that's not enough, the MG400 includes a jam button for drum accompaniment and a looper.
11:33The MG400 has Nu-X phrase loop synchronization with rhythm, so you can play a rhythm, record your phrase loop, and the MG400 will beat match the phrase to fit the current rhythm BPM.
11:56You can choose either stereo or mono looping. Stereo is 30 seconds, mono is 60 seconds, and there are two recording modes.
12:03Normal recording works as a typical looper, and then there's auto recording, which will stand by until you press the control loop switch, and once you hit the strings, it will start to record your phrase loop.
12:18Once you download the Quick Tone Editor from the MG400 product page, you'll find it to be a helpful and easy-to-use interface for tweaking parameters, dragging block order, set up scenes, saving patches, loading patches, exporting patches, load IR, setting up USB routing, and control settings.
12:35And I can't forget that its USB audio capabilities allow you to record tracks, re-amp, and even do live streaming.
12:43The Nu-X MG400 is a powerful guitar and bass modeler that offers so much functionality and stellar tones at a price that fits working musicians' and casual players' budgets.
12:54Plus, its compact design allows you to take it anywhere from the studio to the stage.
12:59You'll find, like me, its modeled sounds are seriously on par with many renowned modeling processors.
13:06I totally dig this. Definitely check it out.