Old-Rocker Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 Hi,i've joined the forum recently to read up on Line 6 after demoing a DT25 & being very impressed,my enthusiasm was damped when i read it was a Valve/Tube power amp stage. Anyway i started reading & watching you tube dems about the Dream Rig(sounds amazing specially with dual DT25's) & i've been asking questions about this in the DR section about set-ups,control etc.. Now I'm old & slow & i'm a novice with MFX,my only experience was with a GT100(which didn't last long),but while reading up on the 500X,it's dawned on me that the control knobs appear to be Pots & not encoders,which on a product like the 500X means that when switching patches the values shown on the knobs in all probability bear no resemblance to the actual values in the Patch,is this correct,if so how on earth do you guys(who use the 500X on gigs)figure it out. Why are encoders not used instead of Pots?,or am i just missing the point & getting it wrong. Oh,i'm not trying to slag off the product,i'm really impressed with the sounds i've heard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexKenivel Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 when you start moving the knobs, you can notice on the screen that the virtual knobs will move as well and there are little tick marks on where they were last set when they were saved, so if you bump one by accident you can find where it was and put it back Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rd2rk Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 Simple answer - price. Encoders are more expensive both for hardware and programming. To make them really useful you'd need a ring of LEDs around each, which would also take up more real estate on the board. It would be nice, though, if you could lock the screen into the "amp panel" mode so that the setup would be visible as soon as the preset changes, instead of having to do a double tap on the joystick button to lock it in after each change. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt_Brown Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 I have about 8 basic patches that I 'know' the sound of so I don't need to see the values from the pots. I can't remember actually changing the pots constantly on any gear I've had during a gig. When I've had to do this is a pain. Now with my Dream Rig if I have a major change in sound coming up I just switch patch rather than need to fiddle with the knobs. It's about playing with the knobs in the bedroom and having a list of patches you will use when you gig. I do find it difficult to remember where all the sounds are so I make a list and keep it handy. Probably why I compromise and use c8 patches when I gig. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DunedinDragon Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 Your reaction is fairly typical to people that get into modeling hardware as the behavior your describing is pretty consistent with the way it's done by everyone. The fact is that once you've set up your patch and saved it there's really no reason to need to know what the individual values are on that patch. The only thing that's important in a gig is the master volume knob which does reflect the real value of the volume you're playing at. The way I work with patches is (and I suspect this is fairly typical of most people), when I'm setting up the patch I pay attention to the volume level of that patch and try to match it up with my other patches using a consistent master volume setting. There's a variety of ways to do this, but once the patch is gain staged consistent with my other patches I save it. Then when I get to the gig I gain stage my rig based on stage volume using only the master volume knob. With that done I never need to touch anything on the POD during the performance other than switching patches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old-Rocker Posted January 3, 2016 Author Share Posted January 3, 2016 Thanks for the replies. Ok,I think i've got the idea about the operation of the knobs,thanks. Is it possible to download the HD Edit software & try some configuring without a 500X attached? I'd also like to make it clear that i'm just on the Forum finding out about different products,as i jump from 1 section to another,so my observations/comments i've made in the 3 threads i've started in 3 different sections,are not based on any knowledge of the products & how they work,they are just based on my reading in the forum & the products section, so i've asked questions based on what i've read & not from hands on with the products or software(except i have demoed a DT25 in a shop). I'm not on here being negative or critical,i'm just asking questions as i go along,i'm trying to get a feel for how i would use the 500X,DT25,D.R.,in a live situation. I've written the above,because i have no idea about the working or visualisation of the HD edit software etc,so i'm hoping when i ask any more ill informed questions about the operating of the 500X you won't mind answering :) I'm fairly old to still be gigging in bands & i'm only looking at new gear,because my last amplification set-up finally died(better the Amps than me :) )so i'm going to be very careful about which gear i buy as replacement & my ability to use it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt_Brown Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 No problem Old-Rocker everyone here tries to help. And its a lot to get your mind round to start with! As I have the whole Dream Rig I am able to assign things to the guitar so on most of my overdriven patches I make the Tone Knob on the guitar the Drive on the amp - this allows me to 'dial in the dirt' from the guitar. Confusing to begin with! It sounds harder than it is but the flexibility is so vast you just end up making the gear do what you want it to. I play a vast array of songs in a covers band so the fact that I can switch sounds from Fender Clean to Mesa Dirty then switch to an acoustic in the same song it has made the learning curve for the POD worth it. One thing I wish I had done is learn how to programme the pod without a computer from day one as I used to find I needed to to tweak something at rehearsal but couldn't do it as I wasn't attached to a computer. I now know how to do stuff from the POD but it would have been easier to have started there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brazzy Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 I think an Old-Rocker is gonna have some fun! We've all been in the line 6 learning mode so your not alone, and guess what??? it doesn't matter how old you are there's always something that's overlooked every now and then. Hope you have fun Old-Rocker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pianoguyy Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 I didn't see it being mentioned, but I am not about to read everything -- Make sure you save all of your work, close EDIT, and then hook up your Pod before opening EDIT again. You definitely do not want to have EDIT open before you connect the Pod. ***Nor do you want to use EDIT in a live situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old-Rocker Posted January 3, 2016 Author Share Posted January 3, 2016 yes, is called "offline mode" Thanks,downloaded it & i've had a play around,with the edit,1 obvious thing i can't locate is the Output setting section for the 500,is this available in Edit or is it only available from the 500 itself? I didn't see it being mentioned, but I am not about to read everything -- Make sure you save all of your work, close EDIT, and then hook up your Pod before opening EDIT again. You definitely do not want to have EDIT open before you connect the Pod. ***Nor do you want to use EDIT in a live situation. Hi,i'm curious about the highlighted comment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pianoguyy Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 I will answer both... Being in offline mode, and then plugging in your pod can result in all of the patches being blanked out. It has to do with the way the two items sync. As to the live/EDIT statement: EDIT slows down the device. Not something you want in a live situation. Also, just because you edit a patch does not automatically save a patch. If you would come back to the patch, it would not be edited and you would have to start all over. But, you can't save the patch while using(live) your pod. And, there are people who have an issue using the exp pedal while EDIT is plugged in. That is definitely something you don't want live. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pianoguyy Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 Yes, I saw that it was more of a pre-purchase experiment, but I also thought I saw a line of him saying about using it live - which is why I added the the line about not wanting to use the program live. As far as blanking out the patches goes... EDIT will open up blank. If you then hook up your pod, it will sync all of the blanks. I mean, I have not had it happen to me because I am either in offline or online, never both. But we have read people saying that it happened. So the actual process of it happening vs not happening is unknown to me. But it is better to throw it out there so that we know the right way to do things, then to not say it and have people coming back complaining that their stuff is gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexKenivel Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 I've never had that happen to me in edit, and sometimes I need to have edit on first and then power on the pod to get them to sync. Edit is pretty buggy with the switching the presets, saving them and recalling them. I wouldn't recommend using it live either Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.