clay-man

I don't think I ever noticed popping noises too much, but if the ADSR (attack-decay-sustain-release envelope) initiates too slowly then it could be turning the volume back up too late and basically cutting off some of the attack, creating a pop sound. I haven't messed with the banjo long enough when I messed with my 69 to tell right now. Waiting on my replacement.

When I was playing my 69s the neck was definitely a bit smaller, but I wasn't having any problem with chords. There was maybe 1 chord progression that was a bit strange to play, but after practicing it for a minute it was totally fine. The only problem I have is not that the string spacing might be small, but that the edge of the E strings might be too close to the edge design wise. I don't know if I got a guitar with too much sloping going on at the frets, but it might just be a design I'm not used to yet. My 600 and my SG both have pretty good space between the slopes and the E strings and I never had any problems with slippage. I've noticed changing the angles of my fingers coming down on the strings helps to prevent pushing the strings off the fretboard, but it does take a bit more focus. One fingered pull offs on the thin e strings are susceptible to slippage but it's not as audible when it happens.

My old Variax was delivered. Still waiting for the tracking on my replacement. Hopefully it's today. Again, it only took 1 day for a delivery between me and them so hopefully my replacement comes instantly. Hopefully everything is alright on it. Kind of strange how the weight said 1 pound on the tracking info though, they must have not really punched in the weight when Fedex took my guitar. I did have some trouble with them getting the airbill but they got it after 30 minutes. I'm probably just being paranoid.

I'll give this a try when I get my replacement. I don't think the new Strat isn't good, but yes, it's different than the old one for sure. Switching between magnetics and modeled doesn't sound too off on my 69s though. Sounds pretty loyal, though of course, a 69s isn't going to sound the same as a 1960's strat even if it's the same ideal pickups and body shape. I would think that switching between 1.9 modeling and magnetics would sound more awkward though from the decent high end cut that the old modeling has.

Got the Guitar to Fedex. Sweetwater says they'll send my replacement today or tomorrow. Should get it really soon since it's a state away. Here's to getting a better replacement. No e plinking, no electronic malfunctions, no awkward string slips! Like I said, I LOVED everything minus those problems.

The banjo has an ADSR to simulate the low sustain of a banjo. The ADSR has to detect when you play a new string to reset the volume back to being loud again. This could cause popping noise.

On the bright side of things, a lot of custom guitars that I've made before translate pretty much perfectly from old firmware to HD firmware. Bass model sounds spot on and actually better and more clear. Jaguar and Jazzmaster model sound pretty good but I probably need to do more fine tuning. SG model is pretty nice, but also probably need to do more fine tuning. I was afraid I might lose some of these custom tones when upgrading to HD but it looks like I'm in the clear. I don't have to waste any banks at all and assigned all of those to the custom slots, which is great because I always wanted to be able to use stuff like the gretch and resonators, but they were ultimately low priority when actually playing songs so I took them off the roster. It's one of the biggest reasons I wanted the JTV so I didn't have to make so much compromises with the preset spaces for both tunings and models.

I trust them, it's just that I'm getting paranoid since I'm dealing with a 1k guitar. I never spend more than 200 on a guitar until my Variax 600 which was 470 used. I was extremely nervous of running into issues with the guitar. I know Sweetwater is great and you guys said they'll virtually always replace a bad apple, but it's just dealing with these issues at that price range that's nerve racking. Luckily Sweetwater is only 1 state away, (Indiana, Ohio) and it literally was going to be delivered in virtually 1 day but the snow storm made Fedex not deliver on Saturday. Either way, it should be fine. I'm actually leaving on Wednesday (Why do I keep thinking Tuesday) and that should be plenty of time if I get the guitar to Fedex tomorrow or Thursday. They said they're shipping as soon as it's in transit. Thank you all for your help, and I can't wait to get a perfect guitar and join the JTV club. Like I said, I loved it, it was just those issues. 2.10 isn't as bad as people let it out to be. It did feel awkward for the first hour but after that I loved it.

It only happened on that setting and it was hard to replicate. It happened like 3 times in 5 minutes, then I tried to record it and couldn't get it to do it again, but if it did that 3 times, I don't want to risk electronic failure in the future. Thanks Joe. I want to send it back in but I'll be gone next week until the and I'm afraid the guitar will come while I'm away and I don't get back until the 10th. I might have to send it back later unless I can get Sweetwater to hold my guitar for me until I'm back.

Actually you know what, my guitar did have fret buzzing issues in the early frets, so you MAY be right. I know the Variax alternate tuning has this thing where it'll keep making the weird sound until you strike the string right again, but then again, the noise was happening even after striking the string a few times and switching between the tunings. Like I said, it was a crackling noise. The note sounded fine it just had a crackling noise over it, and the crackling happened on like some type of low frequency cycle, not randomly. It was like a crackle pop sound, not warbling. As for the E slippage, it just seems like the slopes might be angled too far into the frets. The distance between the slope and the strings isn't too bad like Steve's post, but it still is there. I don't know if there's been different sloping on different models, but from the topic I linked to (http://line6.com/support/topic/10280-jtv-69s-high-e-string-slip-still-an-issue/) The pictures look like there's virtually almost none. It looks like it was smoothed out but not really any slope. Personally, I think that would be great, but I don't know how I would get a guitar like that. Either way, Sweetwater is taking it back and sending me a replacement as soon as mine is in transit. I just hope I don't run into any common problems like the dreadful E plinkage. The E string tone was PERFECT on the guitar I got. No PLUNK PLUNK PLUNK on a high gain tube screamer setting, I hope the replacement is the same. I love the JTV 69 besides the problems I encountered.

Well. I've ran into problems after a few hours of playing. E string slippage, and late that night, some alarming crackling noise. It would happen on and off randomly. I tried to record it but when I did, it wouldn't happen again. It happened when I had simulated capoing the 7th fret (7 semitones above E standard), and it was on the 12 string dreadnaught setting. I can't tell if it's a firmware issue, but either way, I've contacted Sweetwater to swap the guitar. Here's to hoping I get a better one.

Remember, I just got a new problem. The A string was randomly crackling on the 2nd position acoustic sound (12 string dreadnaught). It was on an alt tuning that simulated a capo on the 7th fret. This would happen randomly, and happened 3 times while I saw playing a song (so like a 5 span minute). The last time it happened it was extremely alerting as when the A string rang, the crackle noise was loud. It would crackle at some sort of frequency, so I doubt it's a grounding problem with the piezo. It also only happened on the 7th fret capo tuning. When I switch out of it, the A string sounded fine. When I switched back, the A string sounded normal. I'd maybe suspect an error in flashing the firmware, but I'd rather not risk it and just swap this guitar.

It's a 69S, but I still feel like the spacing and/or sloping is off even if the 69 is designed to have less edge space than other guitars. Serial is W13110556 I'm sending it back to Sweetwater for a swap, but I think their other black 69s guitars are relatively the same year. The biggest problem is the crackling noise I mentioned, and that's something I just can't deal with. I suspect it's a hardware issue because it happens out of the blue and on a certain setting (7th fret capo with a 12 string dreadnaught aka second position). I can't deal with faulty electronics. I didn't spend 1k to have another less than decent condition Variax on my hand.

Yeah I think I'm sending this guitar back. I had the 12 string dreadnaught in a 7th fret capo alt tuning and the A string was making an alarming crackle noise. It would go away when I switch to a different tuning other than the 7th fret tuning, but when I switched back it came back, then it stopped after like 10 seconds. Happened like 2 or 3 times. I can't tell if it's a glitch or a malfunction, but I think I should send it back.

I probably will talk to Sweetwater first. I really love this guitar, it's just the e slip is going to be a possibility that I don't want to exist. Certain techniques and hand movements will eventually cause me to have slippage. I've gotten a bit better with the guitar over the day but it's still feels like a limitation, and that's not worth it for 1k. I really don't want to get any other model besides a 69 though. I also don't want to risk swapping for a guitar that has the awful E plinking problem. This guitar has 0% of that and it's great. Other than the e slippage, the neck is great and it plays amazingly.

Mine isn't as bad as your original, but the 600 photo has better spacing than mine. Doing a D chord doesn't cause high E slippage. Mostly pulling off with 1 finger causes high e slippage. Fretting the low E at an angle that causes me to push it down a bit can subject it to string slippage. I'm wondering if this is just how the guitar is designed or if the frets have been beveled too much. If it was just a little bit more then it wouldn't concern me at all, but it's there. What can I do? Should I swap it, or send it into a service center? Sweetwater is just a state away, but like I said, all their 69s black maples are 2013, and I also am going on a trip soon so that might have to wait.

I got a JTV 69s today. I love it, but I can't lie, I did get a few E string slippages. Strangly enough, it was the fat E string, not the thin E string. In some cases of fretting the E string, I push down the string a bit and it'll slip off. The space between the strings and the slopes on the frets are small compared to other guitars I have. I've noticed on this topic that this guy has virtually no slopes on his frets. http://line6.com/support/topic/10280-jtv-69s-high-e-string-slip-still-an-issue/ Mine has a decent amount of sloping. I'm not sure if it comes up on the camera very well though. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/21663288/fretboard1.png https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/21663288/fretboard2.png I got my guitar from Sweetwater, so I can return it, but all the other Black 69s are the same year and month (2013, 11) I can't tell if it's my technique or if it's the guitar. Should I swap the guitar? Should I send it into a service center since it's under warranty?

When you guys talk about the string popping off, do you mean the thin E string?

It came in a few hours ago, and I'm kinda in shock that I have this guitar, haha. I'm loving it so far, but I'm still getting use to it. Good low action and no buzzing, and frankly I don't think the neck is too skinny at all. HD modeling does kind of surprise you a bit after playing in the old modeling for so long, but it sounds nice and clear compared to the old modeling. I do think I have to tweak some of my presets on my HD though, as some of the high end is a bit much in presets I dialed in a lot of presence and treble into. I think the 335 actually sounds better. I had some gripe about how I couldn't really get a tone of someone using a 335 because of how muddy it sounded in the old modeling, but this one nails it. As for the Strat sound, I don't think it's bad. It's different, but it's not bad at all, and if I want that additional quack I can always use workbench. The magnetic pickups are nice. I really like having magnetics on a Variax. It's comforting. I actually love the acoustic sounds. It sounds much more realistic. It might be a bit lacking in high end compared to the old models, but you can always dial that in, and if it's muddy, you can EQ it. The only gripe I have with this guitar so far is that the E string broke instantly. Basically what happened is that when I got it, it was tuned way down. I tuned it up, it was ok for a while, then it slid a little flat. I pulled it to see if it needed stretching, and it fell extremely flat a few whole steps, next thing I know, it broke out of the tuning peg. I hope it was just a one time thing, or that tuning peg might be too sharp. The alternate tuning knob is amazing. It's one of the best features on the guitar. No more wasting bank spaces for multiple les pauls and strats. I already filled up the spaces but I noticed that I can actually temporarily change the tuning by going into capo mode, playing in a tuning, and then go into preview mode. Once I'm done using that tuning, I just switch the alt tuning knob back and forth and hit the model knob and it's back to the assigned tuning in the knob. This guitar is genius! Miles ahead of the old Variaxes.

You could solder the ground wires to 1 wire then lead it to the place where the ground is. I agree about using the case again for ground. Bad design which will ultimately cause grime and oil to disconnect the ground when enough gets in there.

Sorry

Yeah, Variax kind of picks up hand squeaks more than a regular guitar.

I think modeling has surpassed most solid state analog amps. My POD HD and amp software sounds miles better than my solid state amp.

I haven't used the Duojet model for a long time since I swapped it out for alt tunings on my 600 (one of the reasons I ordered my JTV) but is that the only one it happens on? How about the Les Paul bridge model? I also kind of hear it on the single coil models but it doesn't sound too bad since single coil models are pretty twangy, but it definitely sounds really bad on the Les Paul model.

I never had a valve amp, so I can't say exactly, but I think decent modern modelers sound great. There might be some nuances missing but it's getting closer and closer every year. I've been using modeling for a long time, mostly software modelers, but I've been using my HD a lot now.