Variax - any opinions

Chuffola

I'm considering getting a 600 or 700 Variax and would welcome any opinions from those who have played one.

Appreciate they aren't gonna be the same as having 25 separate classic guitars, but I play at home, for fun, and I'd LOVE to have access to all of the modelled guitars and could never justify the cost of even a handful of £1k guitars!

No snobbery please! Just - have you played one and was it any good.

Thanks guys

slavedave

I bought a 600 for people to use when they came to my home studio primarily because of the flexibility it offered. I cannot comment too much on the authenticity of the models because I have never played Gibby 335's, Martin 12 strings, banjos etc etc, but I can say that it is very flexible and gives great tone. Really love the fact that you can record without any of the annoying associated hum/interference that flourescent lights/ crt screens/ dimmer swithes etc cause on normally equipped pickup guitars like my old Strat. makes things a lot more simple to record with.
However, it was only ever used by one guy I recorded (he used the telecaster settings which he said sounded a lot like his own). I have tried out most of the settings myself when I was mucking around using Guitar Rig 2 on a couple of occasions but I haven't had enough people playing on it to offer a more in-depth review.
The acoustic tones are ok but seem a little bass heavy compared to my Martin (for example). A bit of eq fixes this in a jiffy though.
If you were ever around the D15 area you would be welcome to give it a lash if it helped you decide (though the original strings are still on it:eek:).

Chuffola

You're a gent for the offer of a try out - unfortunately I'm up North, but appreciate it anyway!

That's a lot of help - I'm not expecting exact replicas of sound, but I'll never be able to justify buying a Les Paul, a Tele, a Gretsch and a 335 to go with my Strat. Sounds like you think it does a decent job and I'm only playing for fun.

Thanks for the reply!

Eoin Madsen

I have yet to hear one, though I've always been quite interested to try one.

I'm skeptical of the Variax if only because the various guitars, Strats, Teles, Les Pauls, 335s etc. all feel completely different to play. The feel of a Les Paul changes how you play it, and that's part of its sound. If the Variax manages to sound like any kind of 1k guitar at all and the feel of it is nice in its own right, then go for it (and tell us how you get on!). Just don't count on anything amazing from the modelling. Modelling instruments have been around several years now, and they haven't even caught on as far as modelling amps have, so it's not unreasonable to assume that there's a pretty evident reason for this failure. Despite the impression one sometimes gets, cheap fixes win out over snobbery more often than not in this business. I'm guessing the Variax idea either wasn't cheap enough, or it didn't produce a fix. :pac:

Chuffola

Hmm, I hear what you're saying but as far as I can tell from reviews/ videos etc. the modelling is actually the good part about the Variax. It's more the feel I'm concerned about - don't expect it to feel like a Gretsch but more... is the neck nice and playable, is it build to, say, the same standard as a MIM Strat.

I'd be going for the 600 or 700 which, from what I read, are decent guitars (with the 700 built in Japan and apparently very nice).

Still, any more opinions would be welcomed

Quattroste

I briefly played a Variax 600 (or less) and although the feel of the guitar was pretty mid priced it wasn't a bad instrument. You need a POD as well to get the real benifit from it. The owner, who is a good guitarist, loves it.

I'd imagine the 700 to be pretty decent being Japanese made and all

slavedave

I would agree. On it's own- you can recognise the type of guitar it is trying to emulate (definitely on the tele, strat, LP and Rickenbacker for example).
However, put them through a modelling plugin or hardware module and they come to life. It really does provide a palate of sounds to work with.
I preferred the neck on my old aria proII superstrat but hat was what I was familiar with. I am sure if I bothered to get the variax out to play at all I would get used to the profile too.
What it does do is give you options. if you know you only want a Strat then buy a Strat etc. etc. My tuppence worth.

Chuffola

Well I bought one. A 600 second hand - just yesterday. I've got to say I'm impressed with the sounds - most are useable, some are just fantastic and a couple are just odd.

Clearly if I A/B'd it with a Gibson 335 or a Rick 12 string you'd be able to tell which was which, but for home use it is just superb.

Build quality of the guitar is fine - seen better, seen worse - neck is quite U shaped - bit like a Epi Dot. I usually prefer thinner necks but this is fine to play and I don't (can't!) shred anyway.

Overall, I think I'm going to enjoy it!