DunedinDragon

I never have the problem with my sound device being hijacked, but the only reason I assume that's to be the case is I have the default playback device set to my MOTU sound card. Have you checked that your computer sound card is selected as the default playback device?

I think that's a reasonable summary for some of us. For others I think it's merely a factor of wanting to simplify their stage setup. Remember FRFR also refers to those that are simply plugging into the 500X and running direct to the PA.

I can't answer for anyone else but I made the transition to FRFR last year for one specific reason. Because I play a range of styles I've long sought after a setup that would allow me to capture the clarity and articulation I get in a recording studio with studio monitors but in a live environment. You can get reasonably close with guitar amps, but those last few inches are just not there, primarily because of the way guitar cabinets are constructed. Imagine playing a well recorded studio track through a guitar cabinet versus some nice high-fidelity stereo speakers and you get a sense of the difference. Once you experience that kind of clarity and precision in recording it's hard to not crave it in your live performances...at least it was for me. Once you achieve it live it's hard to imagine not having it. As my bandmates keep telling me now, it's an entirely different experience for them as well to hear it, because that level of accuracy and fidelity is not something they've ever heard before on stage. It's probably not as dramatic if most everything you play is overdriven or has a lot of distortion. But even then my bandmates are impressed with how the guitar just "jumps out at you" through the mix (their words, not mine). The clean jazzy sounds are like those you would hear on a high end stereo setup, and even the crunchy, compressed stuff sounds very precise like the original recordings from people like Townsend or early Rolling Stones. Bottom line for me it wasn't about seeking out tones I had in the past, but more about seeking out tones I had achieved in studio recordings.

Just assign both the analog and digital delays to the fs4 and default the digital delay to being on and the analog delay to off. Then when you hit the fs4 it will toggle between the two. It's a bit decieving because the light on the fs4 switch will be unlit when the analog delay is on, and it will be lit when the digital delay is on.

I think silverhead hit the nail on the head. Those headphones are made for home audio systems which is very different from studio headsets. Studio headsets are generally tend to be more flat response than home audio systems and would be more likely to give you a better representation of the patch you're using on the pod as it would be heard in a live environment.

I suspect the problem lies in what you're monitoring when you record. I imagine you have source selected when recording so you avoid any latency and hear what's coming out of the 500x, so you're not hearing what's really going "on tape" when you're recording. You should be able to configure Ableton to playback the signal that's being recorded rather than from the source when you are recording on that track. But that could also produce some latency. In all likelihood you have the input gain on the Ableton channel too high which is causing it to clip. If that's the case you can leave it monitoring the source and just lower the recording input gain so the signal is at the correct level. Try setting your gain on that channel so it peaks at about 6db below 0 or unity (-6db). That should ensure a good signal. You can always adjust it up for playback, but once it's recorded overmodulated you can't fix it.

I have both a HD500X and a HD PRO X, but my PRO X stays in the studio and my 500X is purely for the stage. I would probably use the PRO X in a pinch is something were to happen to my 500X, but with all the additional hassle involved in getting it wired up for gigs, I'd be really anxious to get my 500X fixed. I want my stage setup clean and easy. They don't pay me enough to spend an hour setting it up and tearing it down.

I'm totally obsessed with making sure NOTHING comes close to the front of my pedalboard. This is what velcro was made for. I loop and secure all cables (guitar, power, XLR) around the outside of the board and secure it. I have nightmares that a cord is in the way of me pressing a pedal or causing other various issues.

I'm with pfsmith0 on this. I've come to the conclusion that the design parameters for the HD500X kind of assumed one patch per song, and within that patch you might make changes to the configuration by way of footswitches. Since I only change patches between songs that's never been a problem for me given the variety of ways you can use dual effects on a single button and toggle them back and forth or use different signal chains, but I guess it would depend on your needs in the music.

Hint: The Pilot's Guide is your best friend...

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if you're getting lost in the monitor mix you most likely getting lost in the FOH mix as well. It's nice that you'll be able to hear yourself onstage through the headphones, but it would be pointless since no one else will probably hear you anyway.

It's odd Friedman hasn't gone to the combination Neutrik connectors like most others have these days.

I'm not sure what the advantage would be given how simple it is to solve this with the GEQ. Why add another point of failure along with additional complexity in your setup?

I understand completely what you're going through. I spent quite a long time thinking about making the transition from traditional amp and pedal setup to this new variation with the POD direct in to the mixer and a stage monitor. Taking it live on stage was a HUGE step for me as well. Fortunately there wasn't a huge rush to do it so I was able to get it where I needed to get it to before making the leap. If you do decide to go with the FRFR setup I'd highly recommend the Yamaha DXR12. I've finally gotten everything to the point that I absolutely love playing through it and I'm getting compliments weekly from my bandmates and soundman on my new patches for songs we've played for several years now.

What are you intending on playing it through? I think if we know that we'll be able to give you some up front help on setting it up correctly.

I don't dismiss that I may one day decide to move to the Helix, but I suspect I'm in the same situation as many people. I already have a LOT invested as far as time and effort in my POD HD, and it's currently serving it's role quite well. But I've never been one to jump onto the "just because it's new it must be better" bandwagon. Heck, I'm still running Windows 7 and haven't seen a need to upgrade that either. But, as with all new products, there will be a growing period. It's getting into the hands of more users and L6 is most certainly getting product feedback at this point. I'm sure there will be a number of updates over the next year or two, and eventually it might stabilize into something well worth having. However, if L6 is smart they will provide an upgrade path for those of us that have an investment in creating patches on the POD HD. I can't envision ever investing 3 times the cost of a POD HD and then still have to manually re-create the work I've done on the Helix. I'd much rather spend my valuable time playing then upgrading.

I have the same setup, but I've never had a lot of luck transferring them directly. But the conversion tool is so easy to use, I just use that and I've never had a problem.

I've never been comfortable with the whole "silent stage" approach of going direct in to the board and listening through a monitor or in ear monitors. I'm just too old school when it comes to balancing and mixing with the rest of the instruments and vocals on stage. That's why I opted to have my own FRFR monitor on stage and send my output to the board and to my monitor simultaneously. It allows the sound man to adjust my volume for the audience blend while still giving me and the rest of band the capability to manage our stage blend. I just makes things easier for both the musicians as well as the sound man. In fact we do the same thing with the electronic drums sending a direct signal to the board and simultaneously feeding it to the drummer's dedicated monitor.

+1000 on hardware modeling over software modeling. I don't think people really understand how demanding modeling is on computing resources. For a couple of years I used plug-ins for modeling on my recordings, but it was a constant battle with finding ways to keep latency at bay. And I have a very capable desktop with a fast processor and lots of memory. At the time it seemed worth it since the plug-ins appeared to be more robust than most hardware solutions at the time, but I don't see that as the case at all nowdays. I can't imagine any scenario that would drag me back into the bad ol' days of software modeling now.

Sorry about that...sheesh. I guess the previous post I responded to bled into what I was thinking when I read your response. My most humble apologies Cruisin'....

Apparently you haven't noticed the industry press haunting the halls at NAMM. No manufacturing company wants negative press because that floats out through retailers as well as forums and boards like this and ultimately affects both consumer and retailer buying/inventory decisions not to mention company reputation and credibility. Are you really that naive about the retail business and the marketing environment in the industry? The decision makers at Sam Ash, Guitar Center, Sweetwater, and Musician's Friend could care less what's said on Inside Edition. But I guarantee you they all subscribe to and read one or more of "Music & Sound Retailer", "Music Trades", "Electronics Wholesale", or any number of other music retail magazines. And by the way, we're not really talking about a little company called Line 6...we're talking about a multinational company called Yamaha as far as the business community is concerned, and I can guarantee you Yamaha is quite concerned about their reputation and credibility as a broad based manufacturing firm. Sometimes I can do nothing more than roll my eyes and shake my head when I read some of the responses on here...

You may be experiencing something quite different in your area, although I'm not talking about sales...it's more about delivery. It's entirely possible to book decent pre-sales even when delivery has been delayed. Here in the US the two biggest online music retailers are still waiting for stock. Line 6 slipped the original ship date from what was first announced. Clearly at least over here they're having problems in keeping up and getting stores stocked. They already missed the Christmas rush in both Sam Ash and Guitar Center in most locations and it's still not listed on Amazon. That could be from too much demand, or a problem in their supply/manufacturing chain, or a combination. Until they get this flow of product and availability working correctly, I doubt they want to be too aggressive at new product announcements and invite the questions from the press about their ability to keep up with shipping dates.

As slow as the Helix has been to hit the streets I'm not expecting much at NAMM other than focusing on Helix. Clearly they've got a lot of resources targetted right now on that alone to get it stable and functionally complete and shipping out the door in any great quantities. Not to mention getting the desktop version out and ready. I'll be shocked if we see any maintenance updates this year for the POD HDs. If they show any new products I suspect they'll be add-on packs for the Helix to fill some holes and demands on that product line.

I'm in the same boat as rd3rk. In fact I didn't even realize there was an issue with Sonar in this regard because I only occassionally plug the USB in from my POD when I specifically want to use the edit program, which isn't all that often. The POD is always connected to my MOTU audio interface via line outs. Whatever editing I may need to do while recording I do on the POD's front panel. I find it much faster that way than the edit program which always has to pause with each change to coordinate it with the POD. I agree the edit program interface is nice, but I learned early on to master the POD interface because it's faster and it's just not practical to depend on the edit program to adjust things on the POD when I'm performing live. Now the only thing I depend on with the edit program for is making backup files of my patches.

Why would you let dual-amp phasing be something that puts you off? It's not like dual amp configurations are something you absolutely MUST master in order for the POD to be useful. I guess at this point after two or three months I've built 20 or so presets I use onstage every week and suprisingly none of them have, or need to have, a dual amp configuration. Just because you CAN do it doesn't mean you NEED to do it. That doesn't mean I won't eventually come across something I might want to use one on, but amazingly enough it's not that hard to build very capable sounds with just the basics. Calm down and focus on the fundamentals. An amp, maybe an overdrive, reverb, delay, possibly a compressor, maybe even an EQ all on a single signal chain. I suspect using just those tools you'll probaby find a way to develop some very useable live patches. It really isn't rocket science and it doesn't need to be that hard.