I just wanted to post a quick review on a Line 6  FBV MK II Express I picked up to use as a back up for a gig.

This unit is about 1/2 the size of the FBV mkII shortboard.    It comes with 4 midi assignable (either through USB or Cat 5 connection cable) switches, a tuner display (if used with a Line 6 amp) and a dedicated volume/wah pedal.  It was small enough that if I positioned it carefully – I would probably be able to fit it in the front flap of my gig bag – which is a big plus.

The layout is smart.  Everything is easily accessed and if you don’t need to tweak a lot of parameters – this may be a great choice of controller for you.  Another possible use in Pod Farm would be to set up the assignable switches as on/offs for various pedals – then you could turn 4 pedals on or off (plus the volume and wah) – with the unit.  I like switching through banks – so this isn’t a great option for me – but it’s very flexible for what it is.

This is a budget pedal – it has a plastic back as opposed to the metal back of the MK II shortboard – but having said that  – it seemed to hold up fine under normal use.  The USB powered out option is a really smart one – as you could use it to control parameters in a variety of plug ins or DAWs.

As a pedal, it’s a good budget investment.  If nothing else you could control wah and volume remotely though Pod Farm and that alone could be helpful.   If you like to tweak sounds – I would recommend just spending the extra $100 bucks and getting the mk II shortboard and get full functionality – otherwise – if you just have a few parameters to control – this pedal may be a good option for you.

Thanks for reading!