pod xt live?

The Freeman

...so it started off having a look on the u-box:D

i was having a look at the effects and almost decided that i was going to pick up a ibaneztube screamer, boss tuner, vox wah, big muff, i couldn't believe how cheap they were!..so then i got thinking bout the POD XT LIVE, the more i thought about picking one up the more sense it made(after reading overviews and reviews which WERE impeccible)to me.


so i can get one for just under 300 including tax(need to check how much they charge to deliver it)...........so i know a couple of ye lads have it on here so i was hoping ye might be able to give me some of yer views on it if ya don't mind



i'm just getting in to home recording also, so i presume that you can record your own backing tracks then run them through your amp(via the pod)and
play a lead or whatever......


i'm also slightly scepticle about the amp sounds on it,are THEY that accurate? and would i have to upgrade my current amp to emulate the necessary amp models accuretly(currently residing with a 100 watt marshall mg series)


i've also curious about the artists models that ya can download also, anyone done so? and how accurate are they?.........could save myself 80 grand sounding like carlos santana:D http://www.santana.com/musicianscorner/layout/index.html??

Karl Hungus

The Freeman wrote:

i'm also slightly scepticle about the amp sounds on it,are THEY that accurate? and would i have to upgrade my current amp to emulate the necessary amp models accuretly(currently residing with a 100 watt marshall mg series)

The ENGL model that comes with the Metal Shop upgrade (You'd have to buy that additionally.) sounds very good, and does a damn good job of sounding like the real thing. I don't have any other amps, so I can't compare, but if that one particular model is anything to go on, then I'd say they're damn accurate.

It might be worth upgrading from the MG, but I'm sure if you set it as neutral sounding as possible, and let the Pod do all the work, things would be fine.

The Freeman wrote:

i've also curious about the artists models that ya can download also, anyone done so? and how accurate are they?.........could save myself 80 grand sounding like carlos santana:D

Yeah, downloaded loads of user-made patches. I nabbed a few John Petrucci style patches, for example, the rythm sound of Train of Thought, and it sounds as near to the real thing as I can make out.

The thing is, you can download patches from certain artists (Those who use the Pod), but everything else is a regular user's interpretation of an artist's tone.

There's a wealth of sounds in the Pod, so you'll definetly get very close to a favoured guitarist's tone, if not hit is dead on. I got a very good Nevermore rythm tone patch.

Any other questions?

Asiaprod

Karl Hungus wrote:

Any other questions?

I too am thinking of getting one for Xmas. Are they really as good as people say? I used Guitar Rig for a while, but just couldn't be bothered lugging a computer around to play.

Karl Hungus

Asiaprod wrote:

I too am thinking of getting one for Xmas. Are they really as good as people say? I used Guitar Rig for a while, but just couldn't be bothered lugging a computer around to play.

Well, I think it's definetly a great piece of kit. I'm mainly using it for recording, and I think it's invaluable.

Infact, go here: http://www.myspace.com/enrapturedeire

Just uploaded a new riff there, the first one. Ibanez K-7 into the Pod XT Live, recorded straight onto the PC.

The Freeman

Karl Hungus wrote:

The ENGL model that comes with the Metal Shop upgrade (You'd have to buy that additionally)

cheers for the info, yep just on on this statement ya made there karl,are you saying that i would have to pay extra for additional amp emulated model off the line 6 site if i wanted to get more options regarding amp emulated models?....and if so how much?

The Freeman

Asiaprod wrote:

I too am thinking of getting one for Xmas. Are they really as good as people say? I used Guitar Rig for a while, but just couldn't be bothered lugging a computer around to play.

hey don't you have some pictures to take for us?:D

Karl Hungus

The Freeman wrote:

cheers for the info, yep just on on this statement ya made there karl,are you saying that i would have to pay extra for additional amp emulated model off the line 6 site if i wanted to get more options regarding amp emulated models?....and if so how much?

Yeah, take a look here, that'll give you all the details.

The PodXT Live comes with 42 Amp models, I got the Metal Shop pack, which gives me another 18 high gain amp models, so now I've a total of 60. You can get nearly twice that amount, but I'm not really interested in a lot of the classic amps.

The Freeman

Karl Hungus wrote:

Yeah, take a look here, that'll give you all the details.

The PodXT Live comes with 42 Amp models, I got the Metal Shop pack, which gives me another 18 high gain amp models, so now I've a total of 60. You can get nearly twice that amount, but I'm not really interested in a lot of the classic amps.

cool coo!l........... in work at the moment and they got that site restricted aswell:mad: :mad: so i'll have a look when i get home...............cheers for that.......


......actualy if ya don't mind me asking how much did you pay for yours.......i'm thinking that the quote i got off ishibashi is my best bet.....

Asiaprod

The Freeman wrote:

hey don't you have some pictures to take for us?:D

Yes:(, damn you. I am going to have a busy xmas putting the pickups back in all these to photo them. I am an eternal fiddler, never more happy than when I have a soldering iron glowing. When I went to look at all the damage.....I found another guitar I had forgotten about, a graphite Ibanez that was made by one on the apprentice makers. Tokyo is a guitar buyers dream.


Smugly looking at the collection.
Asiaprod

feylya

Lads, can we get the gas raid van to Japan?

Karl Hungus

The Freeman wrote:

......actualy if ya don't mind me asking how much did you pay for yours.......i'm thinking that the quote i got off ishibashi is my best bet.....

I got it here, they've got the best prices on Line6 gear I think.

Pyr0

Changed my mind from an Me-50 to Pod xt live. Sat down with it im music maker for about an hour, hard to get my head around it without the manual.....there is a manual right ? :P

Karl Hungus

Pyr0 wrote:

there is a manual right ? :P

Yep, and it's very indepth.

Pyr0

Grand stuff, will be getting it during the week ! So I can't actually touch it until christmas :mad:

With all these amp models built into it, do I just "plug" it into my computer and play through it's speakers or do I still need an amp ??

-=al=-

pods are great for recording, i never use mine live, but for recordings its a great lil invention, xtl's even handier

as for patches, u can dl some, i always end up tweaking them anyways, once u get to grips with it


when im recording i use the line in on the comp, sound comes out of the comps speakers/monites and it also records it at the same time,

Pyr0

So you wouldn't actually need the amp ? unless playing live or in someones garage lets say ?

-=al=-

yup

Pyr0

That is sweet, i've a rubish amp anyway so it be handy to use the pod that way until a better one comes along.

Cheers.

Asiaprod

On a side note, has anyone here got any experience with Variax Guitars? The pod XT Live and Variax are on sale as a pair in Tokyo.
How do they play and sound? Already have experience with the Casio 3000 and was so unimpressed that I have not used the thing in 3+ years
Thanks

Beecher

Asiaprod wrote:

On a side note, has anyone here got any experience with Variax Guitars? The pod XT Live and Variax are on sale as a pair in Tokyo.
How do they play and sound? Already have experience with the Casio 3000 and was so unimpressed that I have not used the thing in 3+ years
Thanks

The Variax sounds great through the right setup. However the neck feels like plastic and is a chore to play on. A lot of people are now taking the electronics from the Variax's and placing them in custom bodies and necks like these...

Asiaprod

Beecher wrote:

However the neck feels like plastic and is a chore to play on. A lot of people are now taking the electronics from the Variax's and placing them in custom bodies and necks like these...

Thanks Beecher, that was just what my fears were. Like that neck with the blue LEDS. I wonder can the Variax electronics be bought on there own?

Beecher

Asiaprod wrote:

Thanks Beecher, that was just what my fears were. Like that neck with the blue LEDS. I wonder can the Variax electronics be bought on there own?

Unfortunatly they cannot

Asiaprod

Beecher wrote:

Unfortunatly they cannot

Well this is Japan;) I will keep an eye out for these kits....it's just a matter of time. Thanks for your input.

Beecher

Asiaprod wrote:

Well this is Japan;) I will keep an eye out for these kits....it's just a matter of time. Thanks for your input.

Haha true. The resale value of them doesnt see to be too good ( Ive seen a few on Ebay for around 200 euro, prob less in Japan ) so you might wanna consider picking up a second hand one just to scavange the electronics.

Asiaprod

Beecher wrote:

Haha true. The resale value of them doesnt see to be too good ( Ive seen a few on Ebay for around 200 euro, prob less in Japan ) so you might wanna consider picking up a second hand one just to scavange the electronics.

You can mind read too (ESP):D Any urls that give the inside scoop on the Variax circuit?

NeMiSiS

Have tried the rackmount version, but not the live version. You can really get some lovely tone from it, specially for solos. well I found. It is a lot more straight forward than it seems and they don't take a dramatic amount of time to figure out. The best fun I had was with the normal Pod though.. through a HI-FI and then through a set of Bose Acoustimas speakers.. it sounded amazing.. specially with the stereo effects etc.
TK

Beecher

Asiaprod wrote:

You can mind read too (ESP):D Any urls that give the inside scoop on the Variax circuit?

None that really come to mind. Heres the page detailing the construction of the PRS variax guitar, it shows the majority of the components involved with the variax electronics but not to any great details.

Heres another but once again its just pictures only, no information is given about the technology.

-=al=-

got ym podxt back from repair today after a month and a half holdup... Yay!

:D:D:D:D

all i need now is my order from thomann before next week and ill be a super happy bunny

then i get paid on the 3rd of jan o i can get me some more pedals...

Paligulus

Dont want to start a new thread but i just have two questions about the Pod XT live

1) Can you plug it straight into a PA and will it still sound good?

2) Is it robust ,as say the zoom or boss multi fx pedals? It kind of looks a bit flimsy...

Cheers

Judge2112

Paligulus wrote:

Dont want to start a new thread but i just have two questions about the Pod XT live

1) Can you plug it straight into a PA and will it still sound good?

2) Is it robust ,as say the zoom or boss multi fx pedals? It kind of looks a bit flimsy...

Cheers

1. Yes, and Yes(but you would need to dial in the right tone for each PA setup).

2. Fairly robust. The pedal in mine started to squeak after a few hours with it - but easily solved with a tiny bit of WD-40.

Overall a great piece of kit: Great amp models/effects and recording is a breeze.

Paligulus

Cheers Judge2112,
That's sold it for me!!!! Although, that isn't saying much as I'm not really a gear purist by any stretch of the imagination!!!! I like what Line 6 are trying to do with their products. I think the Toneport is a great piece of kit. My only gripe is that it is very flimsy. Pod Xt looks a lot better though in that respect....