yea i agree the sound is great just as it is. but if you are forced to be playing some covers i dont think any good hand technique is gonna emulate the phase in "stranglehold" or the slap back in "rock on" or even the Bootsy sound in "groove is in the heart" i mean i get a real sweet "muted accoustic" sound by first hitting the string with my right hand ring finger then almost instantly with the middle digit to accentuate (depending where on the neck i play), but mute it ala. "come to my window" so while i feel they have their time and place in music, i see the devices almost becoming a playing form in and of themselves. setting up some 8 second repeat pattern (sometimes using 2 machines, one having vocals yelled over it for use durring my solos) and then playing over it, ive been doing that for 15 years before i heard others doing it.
playing well and using no effects can be great! playing well and using some sparsley but well placed effects can make that same passage stunning!
