ColonelForbin

@charlyg - any opinions you have about the Eleven Rack? I am looking to get myself a copy of Pro Tools 11, and Sweetwater has a sale going on the Eleven Rack + ProTools11 bundle, for basically same price as Pro Tools, or at most maybe $100 more than what I am seeing ProTools going for standalone. I would be interested in how well it works as a soundcard interface with ProTools, and also I would be into running the XLR out from my JTV59>HD500>DT25 rig into the Eleven Rack, and running some basic 'mastering' type FX on it, and maybe even run that out into a pair of FRFR speakers; something like the L2T series.

Look, not trying to be negative - like I was saying, what this concept has going for it is mojo.. It's spirit, if you will, is a return to the fun of musical discovery. I'm definitely putting my money elsewhere, but I don't mean to disparage. Compared to what I learned to play guitar with?! This is WAYYYY better! I mean, I had one of those horrible 2x12 'red knob' Fenders, solid state, a Power-Chorus or something like that. By comparison, this gear is a world better. I look forward to what this morphs into, down the road. Don't get me wrong - I friggin' LOVE the sound of my JTV59+HD500+DT25. Line6 Fan Boy here, and proud of it~ :) Their gear makes me want to play music, and have fun doing it.

I just had this signal chain go through my head (Guitar Center says they would match the Sweetwater sale on the Eleven Rack + ProTools 11), of going something like this: JTV59 > POD HD500 > DT25 > XLR out > Eleven Rack > Stereo Out to a pair of L2T's

Yeah, I can see that.. I mean, Sweetwater has the Eleven Rack + ProTools for the same price as just ProTools. Guitar Center has the just ProTools for about $25 less. Makes one question the pricing across the board.. Something isn't worth what it says it is! A FREE Eleven Rack??? Weird.. But, I need ProTools, so I won't turn down a free gadget to go with it! Looks like the $699 sale is limited to just Sweetwater. Everywhere else I see it, is closer to $900 for the bundle.. They are also offering some kind of "interest free" credit card option on the $699 bundle Eleven Rack + ProTools The bundle that includes the Voodoo Labs Ground Control is currently $999: (Ground Control by itself is $399) Eleven Rack + ProTools + GroundControl

Yeah, this comment is 100% spot on. It's called "passing the Google Test". It's what any band attempting to name their song, band, or album needs to look into. In the world we live in today, ideas no longer exist in a bubble. And it's clear from this name, that they couldn't come up with anything better than "amplifier" minus the R. Sort of a good analogy for what this toy gadget boombox bluetooth speaker really is : short one letter. Just shy of the target. That being said, when you type "amplifi" into Google, the first search result is not Line6....: The funny thing, if you scroll to the bottom (of the "Amplifi Commerce" web page) they have a little graphic of a moving speaker! too funny... OOPS!! There really is no excuse. A simple web search would have turned up that Amplifi Commerce was founded in 2008. Amplifi

Anyone have any experience with the Eleven Rack? I am looking at getting myself a copy of ProTools 11; which is around $600. But, I am seeing "scratch and dent" deals on the Eleven Rack - which does go new for $900, but is being marked down a bunch, which includes a copy of ProTools, as I understand it... Just in terms of, does it hold up against the HD500, AxeFX, Kemper, etc? Currently, Sweetwater has the Eleven Rack + ProTools bundle on sale for $699.. I guess the box itself should be worth at least $99, if I was already going to plunk down $599 for ProTools 11 anyway..

Ask the Guitar Center where you took the gear, if they have an onsite third party repair company. That may be the case, and that company may be an "authorized L6" repair facility. For example, the Guitar Center near me (on Halsted near Wrightwood, in Chicago) has an in-store repair facility - but it's not staffed by Guitar Center, it's actually a 'satellite' branch of Third Coast Guitar Repair.

Of course they are just one man's opinions! My view of it is totally inconsequential, if I didn't make that clear, let me say it out right: my opinions are of NO CONSEQUENCE. No one in L6 Marketing is losing any sleep about what I say! I wouldn't want them to. Personally, I think their visual campaign was well done, given the circumstances. And of course, they are selling like hot cakes! It's a great idea, at a doable price point. That's the sort of point of my long, rambling post - the idea is great, and I applaud them for it. If it was truly "the guitar amp reinvented" it would have the laundry list of things that people are complaining about it not having. L6Link. Variax input. HD amp models. XLR input. XLR output. WiFi. Also, USB connection? I see there is a port for a USB interface, I would imagine to update the firmware with Monkey down the line. And, for me this isn't a big deal, but - maybe a manual? They did release it with the 'Pilots Handbook', but that document is woefully lacking in detail and specific info. Did I miss anything? Is there a version that you can pay more $$ for which has those features? I'd love to see the wireless technology they have support L6Link and Variax input. Build that + this Bluetooth stuff into the DT series, and then you'd have a $2,000+ piece of professional, crazy cool gear. This isn't that though. Next to a 25watt DT, this thing can't hold up. But it's not intended to. Not at least, judging it on the merits of what it actually does, vs. the overblown claims of the extremely clever marketing campaign. That soft focus photo of the knob was the primary selling point for three weeks... Again, not bashing, attacking or supporting either side of this conversation. In summary: - it's not a pro piece of gear, so enjoy it for what it is. - but that's no reason to hate it. They have a hard act to follow, with those Bogner DT amps!

While it's a clever idea, basically, anyone who buys into this first take on the idea is covering the cost of research and development. It's been that way with every single product L6 has made, from the beginning of their time making gear. Look, just don't be haters. So what if this L6 BoomBox isn't what the overzealous marketing team lead people to believe it was! In the grand scheme of things, will I be purchasing one? No. I would rather spend $600 on a copy of Pro Tools 11. That being said, I like the *idea*. Should they have done it differently for the same end cost? Yes. Yes, they totally blew it. But, that's the nature of taking chances. Who cares! Don't buy it if you don't like it. I mean, I have bought some serious turds in the world of music gear in my days. I am not ashamed. I like the gear I have NOW, and I look forward to being inspired one day in the future to pick up some new piece of gear. In all honesty, of all the gear I have ever sold or gotten rid of, only ONE item ever made me feel regret, and I just recently replaced it. Couple years ago I was dead broke, and sold my Keeley 4-knob Compressor to Guitar Center. In a weird moment of full circle, I recently bought a used Keeley 4-knob compressor from, yep, you guessed it: Guitar Center. The rest of the stuff I let go? Rarely ever think about it. Korean "Nuno Bettencourt" mahogany electric guitar with locking tuners - gone, to buy a Korean Fender Jazz bass - gave that to my friend when I bought a Korean Ibanez SR 5 string bass. Somewhere in my pile of gear, I have an old Roland drum machine, which hasn't been used in years. A crappy Behringer mixer or two, some Behringer condensor mics. An M-Audio Delta 1010 that my old cat destroyed by peeing on it... While most of that stuff is relatively speaking garbage, once upon a time, I "had to have it". The Behringer performed well for years, as the bands primary live mix console, until it was upgraded to a proper Mackie. The Fender bass is gone, replaced with a proper USA Strat. The collection of solid state amps still lurk in my collection - a Marshall valvestate for instance, and have not been used in some time - not since the DT25 came around. Before the X3L, which I loved, there was the god-awful-horrible Boss ME50B. What a total piece of, well - junk. The X3L I sold via Craigslist, same for the SWR bass amp and 4x10 cab. Somwhere around in my mess, I still have a very, very used up Ampeg B100R, which still cranks like a tank, but now just collects dust. That's the nature of wanting 'new' things, rather than 'good' things. One day, those shiny Amplifi's will be collecting dust, when the 'new' version of that gear comes out. All in all, it's literally just a toy in it's present form. A fun toy! But a toy, none the less. I am not attacking it, just properly identifying it. It's a piece of gear you will use to have fun with. And when they have sold enough to recoop expenses, they will release the Amplifi Mark II, or the Ampli-Pro. It will have things like: -HD amp models -L6 Link -XLR in and XLR out, with a ground lift. -WiFi -And other stuff that was intentionally held back from being included in this release, so they still have something new to bank on in 6 months, or a year, or whenever. It does NOT make this version a failure in anyway - it just is what it is. A Fun, Cute, Little Toy. What a lovely Boom Box it is! Marketing failure? Yes. At an Epic level. The people who sunk their jobs into calling this thing a "reinvented (again) amplifier" most definitely do not have a clue what a real amplifier is. But, that's not the whole story. Here is why you are mad: You wanted a reason to justify spending your money on a new, cool gadget - you wanted justification for wanting it, and when the actual product left you feeling so cold, and lackluster, you like a junkie would, blamed everyone but yourself. I get it, I did the same thing. For me, I was lucky - I went crazy and bought a DT25 and a JTV59 about two weeks before the Amplifi came out. I literally had just ordered the DT25 when I noticed the teasers for the January 23rd release date. I was actually 100% totally relieved that this new Amplifi isn't something I am interested in, and so I don't feel any negative energy for it. Bottom line is, music should be FUN. It should make you feel young again, and feel like you are alive. Getting so angry about a company trying to facillitate enjoyment of music is just a waste of your time. And I am just as guilty as anyone else, for Ampli-bashing. Once I stopped thinking of it as a serious piece of gear, and instead thought about when I was 15 years old, trying to play along with my favorite albums, to learn songs, I thought it was a much cooler idea. We all gotta start somewhere. The marketing team was just selling the idea to a new generation of people, both young and old, who want a good, fun gadget to learn music with. And it happens to be loud enough, to make some proper noise. The POD led to the POD Pro to the XT to the XT Pro to the X3 to the X3 Pro, the HD500 to the HD-Pro, and so on and so on. The Ampli-Pro, will most likely come along some day, and maybe it will be cooler than this thing is. Until then, if you like it and want one, buy one. If you want a serious amp, buy something else. There is no reason for people to defend this as being serious gear, because it's not! There is also really no reason to bash the heck out of it, once you realize, it's a little kids toy - whether you are 40 year old kid, an 80 year old kid, or an 8 or 15 year old kid - it's meant to help making music exciting and fun. And that alone, is worth congratulating. I spend alot of time tweaking my HD500, and love the way the DT25 makes me tweak less and play more. I also really enjoy my JTV59 into the gear, and despite still being freaked out by plugging an ethernet cable into my guitar instead of a 1/4", I end up playing more and tweaking less. In the end, yes, marketing soiled the bed. Badly. No, this is not the "guitar amp reinvented" they claimed, and yes, they have many, many, many other technical issues with existing products that should have been addressed. But, this is the nature of the beast.

I copied this somewhere else in yonder forum, but I can't find it, so will re-paste here. I emailed Graphtech about the replacement options on a JTV59; and this was their response: ------------------------------------------------------------ Gray Bramwell : gray@graphtech.comCustomer & Product Support t: 1.800.388.7011 ext. 123 t: 604.940.5353 ext. 123 f: 604.940.4961 Thank you for the email and interest in Graph Tech. I would be happy to help with your inquiry. We have had many customers replace their stock Variax saddles with the our piezo elements, here is some great info from the “support†section of our web-site..... Can I replace the saddles on my Line6 Variax with ghost saddles? You can replace the LR Baggs saddles on your Strat-style Variax bridge with Graph Tech ghost saddles (PN-8000-00). These are made of String Saver composite material, and house pickups similar to the ones that came with your Variax. Unfortunately, at the present time we do not offer saddles that are compatible with the wraparound design. Can I plug the pickup saddles from my Variax Line 6 into the ghost preamp? The Variax saddles are electrically compatible with the ghost preamp and MIDI interface but Variax saddles lack the plug-in style connectors on our modular system. To overcome this, order the BE-0511-00 extension wiring harness, and solder wires from your Variax saddles to the pins on the harness. You will then have Variax saddles that plug into the ghost system. Can I run both the Variax and the Hexpander off the same set of saddles? Some Graph Tech customers have tried this with a simple Y-connection and found that the two electronic circuits interfere with each other if they're both powered on. If either is shut off, the other one works fine, so yes, you can run one or the other, but not both at the same time. The difficulty with running two systems from two manufacturers off the same set of pickup saddles is that there may be loading, impedance mismatch, or other unpredictable interactions between the two electronic systems, when they share a common node at the connection to the pickup. There may be another way to do this, perhaps with some kind of buffer between the pickups and the circuits, but the solution remains undiscovered at this time. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Question I am interested in researching possible compatibility of your piezo bridges as a replacement for a Line6 'James Tyler Variax', in particular, the JTV59,which is the version that most closely resembles a Les Paul style guitar. People on the Line6 discussion forum about the series of guitar have mentioned your bridge product as an upgrade option, and no one really knows for sure if it would be even remotely feasible. I realize this question's answer in all likelyhood lies somewhere between the two companies, but, I figured can't hurt to ask! For what it's worth, here is the link to the guitar I am referring to: http://line6.com/jtv-59/

I once had an X3L, replaced it with the HD500. I have had the HD500 since 2010, just got the DT25 month or so ago. I can think of a couple ways you can make this work: OPTION#1: 1.) get the MIDI interface needed to update your DT to the latest firmware. This will give you all 30 HD amps currently available on the HD500 POD series, as options on your DT. It would appear, this will give you 8 options- according to the firmware notes: "With four voicings per channel, you have eight unique options at your fingertips" DT Firmware Update 2.0 The specifics of their notes also states: "Once you’ve updated your amp, you have a few options for customizing the voicings. If you own an iPhone® or iPad®, adding a Line 6 MIDI Mobilizer™ II (and TouchOSC or any other compatible MIDI app) allows you to control all of the enhanced MIDI functionality right from your iOS device. Line 6 has created presets for the TouchOSC app, which you can download below. You can also control your amp’s enhanced MIDI functionality via a Mac® or PC computer with a USB-to-MIDI interface and compatible software capable of sending MIDI CC information." 2.) use your X3L for FX only, and/or use the "four cable" method. This will allow you to use the X3L as the FX processor, while still using the new/HD amps on the DT. I suppose that will also let you "audition" all of the HD amp models, and decide if you need them accessible with a floorboard. I don't know the specifics on how the DT loads the additional amp options, or what you would do to program it; but I would imagine you just pick the amps you want, and assign them to the channels available on the DT Something worth noting - when you connect the HD to the DT using the L6Link, you are only using the "PRE" amp models, and allowing the Bogner portion of the DT to do it's thing in the analog / tube realm. While the HD amp models and corresponding cabinet / mic modelling do sound fantastic, the DT-Bogner side of the equations sounds even better. Which is most likely what you are hearing and liking with your DT. The equivalent comparison of the FX quality, would be the M series FX units; for example, the M13. This is the FX stuff that is loaded into the HD500, along with the HD amp models. I guess it would be accurate to say these FX are "HD", though I am not certain that is 100% accurate. They are meant to be higher bit and sample rate than the predecessor, iE, the XT/X3 FX. OPTION#2: 1.) Plug the 1/4" out from the X3L into the FX return of the DT25. Regarding option#2; this is how I used my X3L and my HD500 for years! I typically wanted to also be able to run XLR to the recording or mixer, main, PA, monitors, etc. - so therefore I almost always chose "Studio/Direct". By plugging the 1/4" to the FX return of any amp, you bypass the preamp, and inject the POD's signal direct to the power amp. This allowed me to send the cab+mic modelled signal to my amp as a monitor, and the same signal would go to the main mix, stage mix, recording mix, etc. I did have some luck sending the signal to the FX return of the amp, and setting the POD model to "Combo/Poweramp". This is the mode which the HD500 defaults to when using the L6Link to connect to the DT. Basically, this mode is not suitable to sending a direct signal to recording, or the main mix - but it will sound pretty good coming out of your amp. In essence, this option removes the mic modelling, and to some extent, modifies the cab modelling. It basically makes your amp sound more like the amp being modelled; whereas the studio/direct mode will emulate the sound of that amp model, in a room, with a mic on it. Definitely give the fx return concept a try, and switch between the studio/direct mode, to the combo poweramp mode. I think the settings are comparable on the X3L as to the HD500. OPTION#3: 1.) Bite the Bullet!! Four payments of $125/month from someplace like Zzounds.. HD500X A caveat to the "option #3"... You will most likely immediately want to get a JTV upon owning two of the three parts of what for me, is the best rig I have *ever* owned... I literally got the DT25, and a week later ordered a JTV59. :)

Have you attempted to make a patch using the A30TB "pre" as the amp selection, and then specifying typology III in the patch editor / HD500edit?

I like my DT25 1x12 combo a *whole lot*. I have had the HD500 since 2010, and it finally sounds really - really good. I liked it so much, two weeks after I got the DT25, I signed myself up for a JTV59 via the Zzounds 8 payment plan. LOVING the trio of these together. In terms of what people are saying about the XLR out, it is a distinction, that the XLR out is MIC level not LINE level. Meaning, it's designed to impersonate the signal level and gain requirement you would have running a regular mic into a mic preamp channel. When I record off the DT direct, it's a low signal level, but it's very, very clean. While I enjoyed using the HD500 in "studio/direct" mode going into the FX returns of various amps and/or PA's/mixers, I can honestly say, that the L6Link to the DT gives you something that you will never have with ANY other amp rig. For me, it's all about the BOGNER portion of this gear. While the HD500 does an amazing job of amp modelling ,and in full 'studio / direct' mode as well as 'combo/poweramp' when attached as I mentioned -1/4" cable to the FX return of my Marshall or Fender combo amps, it takes it to a whole other level with the L6Link / Bogner DT interaction. Basically, think of it like this: The POD can model the power amp characteristics, and even the mic + cab simulations, and quite well. But with the DT, the amp itself creates those power amp tones with actual tubes, and actual analog switches and relays. The POD tells the DT25, to become like a Fender Blackface, and it does; the POD tells the amp to then become a Marshall Plexi, and it does. It's not modelling the portions of that sound anymore - it just models the PREAMP components, and lets the Bogner side of the DT "become" those amps. Very Groovy Stuff. And yeah, it's not a light amp but, it's a lot lighter than the DT50. I can't comment as much on the "low power / low volume" mode - as I understand, this actually kicks in more of the modeled power amp tones rather than letting the amp do those; how it merges them, I don't yet have a full grasp on, if it's on/off, or a sliding scale. I had read, and have not tested, that the low power mode also allows the XLR out to still feed the FOH while the amp is in 'standby' mode. Which would be useful for certain applications - though I've not figured out exactly how that works. As for the L3 / L2 gear, it looks amazing, and I want four of each of them!! ;)

Yeah, that totally messed me up too, and I asked literally the identical question! What the heck are these "F" versions? Oops, then someone pointed out to me that the JTV was not the default in HD edit or something, basically it was showing me/you the Variax 700/etc versions. Voila! Change it to JTV> Everything else everyone else said is also true, just use the HD edit software, then be sure to 'send' the selected patches to the HD500.

For what it's worth, here was GraphTech's response to my inquiry about using their gear on a JTV59 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for the email and interest in Graph Tech. I would be happy to help with your inquiry. We have had many customers replace their stock Variax saddles with the our piezo elements, here is some great info from the “support†section of our web-site..... Can I replace the saddles on my Line6 Variax with ghost saddles? You can replace the LR Baggs saddles on your Strat-style Variax bridge with Graph Tech ghost saddles (PN-8000-00). These are made of String Saver composite material, and house pickups similar to the ones that came with your Variax. Unfortunately, at the present time we do not offer saddles that are compatible with the wraparound design. Can I plug the pickup saddles from my Variax Line 6 into the ghost preamp? The Variax saddles are electrically compatible with the ghost preamp and MIDI interface but Variax saddles lack the plug-in style connectors on our modular system. To overcome this, order the BE-0511-00 extension wiring harness, and solder wires from your Variax saddles to the pins on the harness. You will then have Variax saddles that plug into the ghost system. Can I run both the Variax and the Hexpander off the same set of saddles? Some Graph Tech customers have tried this with a simple Y-connection and found that the two electronic circuits interfere with each other if they're both powered on. If either is shut off, the other one works fine, so yes, you can run one or the other, but not both at the same time. The difficulty with running two systems from two manufacturers off the same set of pickup saddles is that there may be loading, impedance mismatch, or other unpredictable interactions between the two electronic systems, when they share a common node at the connection to the pickup. There may be another way to do this, perhaps with some kind of buffer between the pickups and the circuits, but the solution remains undiscovered at this time. For the wrapround bridges, i would simply suggest one of our pre-loaded replacement bridges, http://graphtech.com/products/brands/ghost/ghost-tune-o-matic-bridges I hope that helps Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns Best regards Gray Bramwell Customer & Product Support gray@graphtech.comt: 1.800.388.7011 ext. 123 t: 604.940.5353 ext. 123 f: 604.940.4961

Anyone have any opinions on the difference between the L2T and the L2M? Down the road, I would really like to invest in something like the StageScape mixer, and a few of these L2 speakers for mains / monitors. It's also cool that you can also use it as a guitar amp / stage rig, for going full-on 'Studio/Direct' out of the HD500. It's tricky for me- as much as I like the HD modelling, (and having upgraded to the HD500 from an X3L back in 2010, it definitely holds up in terms of tone); I really do like the way the HD500 interacts with the Bogner DT25. I'd call it an L6 DT25, but the bits I like the best about the HD+DT interaction, has to do with the Bogner portion of the gear. I would really like to hear the DT direct out into an L2 speaker enclosure. In terms of using the L6Link from a DT to an L2, are there any issues with the tone? Not sure how it handles that, since the DT is L6Linked to the HD500, it sets itself to 'combo/poweramp', which is not a pleasant sound direct. In terms of simplicity, I can definitely appreciate the HD500 + L2, as far as, being able to use the acoustic models on the Variax, and having the versatility of the full range / flat response sound system to amp the HD500. First, I have to pay off the JTV59, the hard case, and the DT25. Then, I will definitely be taking a closer look at the L2's!

Yeah, and as ideas go - that's not a bad one! I think my initial negative reaction came from the poor marketing angle. I definitely want to check one out, though as a non IOS user, it's a steep investment beyond just the cost of the amp itself. Again - marketing fail, this is what they describe the tone match as: "And revolutionary tone matching technology automatically serves up tones that match tracks in your music library." It's this idea that it must be "revolutionary" and "reinvented" that make me go, ummm no... But it's still cool, regardless of the overzealous marketing team! It's like, a stealth amp that you can sneak into the living room, and wifey won't really notice it, and/or won't immediately identify it as an expensive piece of music equipment, and ask how much it cost! "That? Honey, no, that's nothing, it's just the speaker thingy I got at Best Buy when it was on sale, it only cost '....mumble mumble, mumble', hey look what the cats are doing! isn't that cute?" :)

Here is an interesting take on this. And up front I will say I have no way to verify - pure speculation. So, this tone matching - how does that work? Here is a test for you: rip a CD to iTunes, and make sure the titles are something generic, like 'track 1'. Then make sure no metadata is included, meaning - no song title, no album info, no artist name. Then put that file on your device, and try to get the Amplifi to tone match. Here is my take on what will happen: nothing. I think Amplifi uses iTunes metadata to match tones to song names and artists. More to the point - I think Amplifi uses that data to match to CUSTOMTONE patches which may have been created by users, others by L6 - but basically, tones created for the XT and the X3 series, maybe PodFarm, I dunno. The fine print at the bottom of the CustomTone page actually gives ownership to the patch/tone author: "Tones contributed by users to the Public Tone Exchange are made by individual users, who are in no way affiliated with Line 6. Any product name or trademarks used by the users to describe their Tones are the sole property of their respective owners. Any use of these product names or trademarks of other manufacturers should not be construed as an endorsement, association or affiliation with Line 6." Correct me if I am way off base, anyone who actually knows the answer. Just a hunch, but it makes sense. There is a huge archive of user and L6 created tones from the XT and X3 era, and lots and lots of them are song and artist specific. So, iTunes tells the Amplifi app that you want to tone match to a "Guns 'n Roses" song, and it's from "Welcome to the Jungle". This thing isn't doing anything magic - it's not listening to your song choice, and deciding you need a Plexi amp with a tube screamer and delay - it's looking at metadata that says "Artist: Guns n Roses", "Song: Paradise City". Then it goes and finds patches, either user created or other - and probably looks at the user ranking, and the # of times downloaded over the tone's history, and does a simple sort function. Again, just guesswork here. And I am not critizing!! it's actually - if this concept is at all accurate - a pretty good idea. They own a lot of patches they have created, and they have access to the patches users have created. It's a really cool way to take a piece of gear, and give you a new way to access this huge -FREE- rather cool database of tone. SO for that, kudos Line6. You have my attention! Now, let's see this thing Amplifi tech come out in a "Pro" version, more like the StageScape mixer series, and the DT amp series.

Well; radatats came up with a patch idea that uses two amp model slots - but leaves one empty, and turns down the volume all the way on the second amp model. As near as I can tell, it does somehow bypass all the preamp routing - the empty amp model level is controlled via the HD mixer. Here is the concept in more detail: Acoustic Solution For Jtv With Dt Amps

Personally, I'd be lying if I said that isn't what happens to me as well! If I had a better ability to schedule my time and stick to it, I'd probably get more actual music done, and less tone patch tweaking and building - not to mention the JTV editing which I haven't even touched yet. For me, when I want to actually play something, and get lost in the tone exploration that comes from actually playing, I use the looper. I get a patch that I want to experiment with, set up some tonal options, and choose a guitar model or style. Then I make a loop, and hit record, and noodle away. As far as learning new songs, I use my $20 late 70's Japanese made Fender acoustic. No plug, just play. I am guilty, even at rehearsal, of delving too deeply into tweaking and fiddling, and literally have to make myself back away slowly, and just play. So in that sense, I think the Pandora's Box has been opened, at least for me, when I added a JTV59 and DT25 to my HD500. With all the options under the sun, I end up gravitating toward just a few basic choices, when it's actually time to play. I love the Plexi amp model. And I REALLY like the JTV acoustic tones using radatats idea for bypassing the preamp modelling (GENIUS!) Now, as far as your problems with Line6, and customer service, and feeling let down - my best guess is that if you ask the right people in the right way, you will get the solutions you want. Maybe not, I don't know. What I do know, is it won't come from this forum. Venting here is all well and good, but you need to get your issues presented to Line6 in the correct way. GOOD LUCK! p.s. Check out the new USA made Supro amps!! They look really sweet, and are as far from digital as you can get!! Supro USA

How does the new DT firmware update impact this? DT Firmware 2.0 "Available as a free download, v2.0 firmware takes your DT amp from four voicings to total flexibility. Create never-before-heard amp tones by pairing any of 30 HD preamps with any combination of dynamic topologies within Reinhold Bogner’s reconfigurable tube power amp."

We should probably open a formal support ticket, I don't think that L6 gives these forums much attention... It's been dead broken since the date you mention, and it's still all messed up. Not only does it not sort, the web page is not built properly, so I have to zoom out to 75% or the right side of the page is off the margin and cannot be scrolled over to. When you click a tone name, iIt does the same behavior whether you click it regular, and if you right click and choose 'open window in new tab', each time instead of going to the tone, taking you to "http://line6.com/". I think they should reprogram it so every time you click a CustomTone link, it takes you to this incredible exhibit of tone: Line6 Custom Tone

If you want it to sound good, and record properly, you need to be in Studio/Direct mode on the HD500x, -AND-, you will want to run the output from the HD500x to the FX RETURN on the amplifier. This will bypass all the tone stacks on the amp. This allows you to cleanly amplify the tones you are creating with your POD, including the CAB modelling and the MIC modelling. In essence, you are using the power amp ONLY on your amplifier, and controlling the tones with the POD. If you are less concerned with also getting a good recording, when connected in this manner to the FX RETURN of your amp, try changing the HD500x setting to COMBO/POWERAMP. This will remove the mic modelling,which means the recording will not sound right, however your amp will now take on the tone and characteristics of the amp model being created by the HD500x.

I think the L series is a sweet idea, and that StageScape mixer is wild. For me, I like what the DT offers in terms of the Bogner component. The L-Series look great, and I'd love to use a few of those to rig a main / monitor stage set. I can imagine that the DT going to the XLR out into the StageScape mixer into a few of the L series speakers would be stellar indeed.. The mixer also does some kind of multi-track recording to an SD card, which is uber-sweet.

Overall, I found that rolling back the volume on the JTV helped to some extent when I was using a more vigorous approach to the playing style. I think there are a combination of strange artifacts in these recordings, probably a combo of noise from the piezo's and some issues in the recording gear and/or computer. I had forgotten these two, also pretty shaky overall, in terms of playing (I took several years off, then decided to get back into playing, and bought a JTV59 and a DT25 a few weeks ago!..) Noodled around on the chords to Wagon Wheel: https://www.dropbox.com/s/gg9e4uqh2osenry/JTV-Acoustic_wagonwheel-loop.mp3 Blues-esque noodling, though this does achieve a decent overall acoustic impression: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ievsfn030h1e2rv/JTV-Acoustic-blues-noodle.mp3 These are definitely using your FlipTop patch concept, which I am guessing will also work quite well for the reso models as well