TBone55

Kudos! Thanks for providing this. As a newbie this is extremely helpful. Have a drink on me! :D

A curious mind I guess. I would like to know how the DT works in stand alone mode in case there's ever a need to use it that way. I'm concentrating on using it with my POD however. I've started to get some good tone matches between the full amp models in the HD and the pre-amp versions combined with the DT. So far I've come to realize that you need to use the cab simulation & mic if you want to get close to getting the same tones. I also keep the Master Volume on the POD set to MAX.

Well, I guess I've learnt something new. I thought that using DT Edit meant that the tones you dialed in for each setting would be saved to the amp for both Channel A & B. I haven't really explored using the editor as I've been working on using the L6 link since I have the POD. That's definitely a very limiting factor if you can't save the settings in the DT.

We're really dealing with an unknown here. You're using your own speaker cabinet, not the Line 6 cabinet and the speaker that comes with it. No way to tell what the differences are sonically between the two. Did you disconnect the DT50 from the speaker input and then plug your DT25 head in it's place? That way you don't have to turn the DT50 on and can use it as a cabinet only. If your Traynor is old, the speaker cone may need to be relined. Take a look at it. If you touch the liner and it comes off on your finger, it may your problem.

I'll second that. There have been issues with lesser quality cables being used. I myself use a pre-sonus studio one but this is for recording to PC and you don't have to spend that kind of money. The M-Audio UNO will work just fine.

The DT editor software is certainly going to let you have the chance to 'mix'n'match'. I've just started to get a better grasp on the workings of this set up myself and am starting to get some very good results using the L6 link. I've used the DT editor so that I can see 'inside' and know what the amp & topology settings were after I did the firmware update. Now that you can configure channels A & B for each topology setting you can get 8 different 'voices' if you like. What Line 6 really needs to provide for those that don't have or want to use a POD is a switching pedal that allows you change not just the channel, but the voicing that you want for that channel. I think they could get a lot more interest in the DT if they did this. Just as there are the 'purists' who won't use anything but a real version of the tube amp, some won't use anything except the real pedal for their effects. For those that have accepted the amp modelling but still like their pedals, this might get them into Line 6's camp.

A HAPPY NEW YEAR to All! Had a chance over the holidays to work on my "sound matching" and I think I've started to get some good results. The tone matches up pretty well weather I'm using the POD alone or with the DT through the L6 link. There are some small differences but I believe that if I spend a bit more time with the system I'll be able to get them to match up fairly well. At least, well enough that my ears can't tell the difference. What I found to be of help were the pre-amp settings that are now come loaded with the firmware update V2.0. These are found under one of the set lists titled "DT- L6 Link". Using the POD HD500 Edit software is the easiest way to access it and to make any changes you might feel are necessary. I strongly recommend that you have listen through the ones you're interested in and then set up the same full amp model using the same settings and compare the two sounds, POD vs POD/DT. Don't try to add any effects or coloring at first, just the basic sound. Also, keep the Master Volume on the POD at MAX when you're hooked up to the DT, but, make sure you remember to turn it down when listening through your headphones, otherwise you'll blow your ears off!!! Your Master Volume on the DT shouldn't have to be any higher than the 9 o'clock position as this is plenty loud enough at home. I haven't even tried to raise the master volume past this point and can only imagine how loud this amp will get. WOW!

Hey All, Just wanted to provide an update on the cable situation. The DMX cable I received worked fine and I had no problems when switching pre-sets. No noise and no degradation in sound. The AES/EBU cable from Bestronics also worked fine and I couldn't tell any difference in function compared to the DMX cable. I compared both cables using the same pre-set and then tried to compare them for sound against the DT in stand-alone mode using the same pre-amp setting as my POD. I couldn't them apart, but, I'll use the correct AES/EBU cable and keep the other one as a back-up. This obviously doesn't cover the different playing scenarios that can occur and other external factors affecting the cables ability to function properly since I'm in a controlled environment at home.

Thanks Palico for that explanation. It has cleared up some of the ambiguity I felt was occurring about how the signal is processed. The DT, in stand alone mode then has all the same pre-amp modelling information as the POD, and you manipulate it by using a DT software editor on your PC, with a MIDI hardware interface connected between the PC and the DT. This allows you to set what pre-amp model is in either channel A or B under each of the four topologies. In total, you can therefore have 8 different "Voicings" pre-loaded in the DT. This is how you would use the DT if you don't have a POD. Now I need to work on getting my DT to sound like the full modelling tones I have stored in my POD. It seems this is where everyone is getting hung up. Ciao!

Suddenly $200 for a 5ft cable seems like a real bargain! I guess when you have deep pockets price is no object. As the saying goes, "Nothing exceeds like excess." Have a Great New Years All! :D

You got that right Colonel. I ordered a 20' from Bestronics, cost me a total of $35 (includes shipping). I also just received the DMX cable I ordered on Amazon from Monoprice for $10 total cost. It's AES/EBU, 20AWG. It's made in China (no surprise) but what do you want for that price. I'm going to try it and see if it works better than the XLR cable I have as I can't seem to get a connection with it. Once I get my true AES/EBU XLR cable I'll compare it to the Monoprice cable and see if I can notice any difference. I did find out that the real expensive cables used gold conductors throughout and gold is the best conductor there is and of course, expensive, but I wonder if most of mere mortals could hear the difference. A Very Happy New Year All! :D

Okay egkor. So you're saying that the pre-sets that I have set up in my HD using the pre versions of the amps don't get transferred to the DT. I'm a bit confused about that. I thought the reason that you linked the DT and HD together was so that you could get the other amps that weren't originally available in the DT alone. With the new firmware update, all 30 of the amp models now reside in the DT 50 as well as the HD. I can understand if you're saying that the pre-sets from the HD won't get saved to the DT, but, doesn't the HD send a signal to the DT to tell it what pre-set is required and then the DT configures the pre-amp to match? In other words, if you have the Blackface Lux as your current pre-set in the HD, this information is transmitted to the DT, and, if the DT is in a different setting, say a JCM800, the DT will reconfigure the pre-amp to match the HD, and, the power section of the DT will be configured to match the Blackface Lux. Once you disconnect the HD from the DT, the DT defaults back to its original setting, in this case, the JCM800. The only way to change the topologies in the DT is to use a DT Editor. Is my understanding correct? Thanks for the reply.

Yep! I'm starting to realize that as I use my DT50 and POD together and separately. But, I've got a lot of ground to cover in order to get my knowledge level up there. I know some folks don't like tweaking with these things as they think it detracts from guitar playing but personally, I think it makes you more knowledgeable about how different amps and different effects work (or don't) so that you can get closer to whatever sound you like. So, everybody relax, and keep on rockin'.

Thanks kindly for the info. That's kind of what I thought. So when you're using the L6 Link and click on a preset that's in the HD it should automatically be transferred to the DT50 and all preamp and tone settings get adjusted internally through the software and the power amp section of the DT gets utilized. Once you shut the amp or the POD down the 'voicing' or 'topology goes back to what was. Now, if you want to check that the preset you've selected is actually in the DT (when everything is powered up) you can check by using DT Edit to confirm. If you want to change the topology settings in the DT so that your new 'preset' is saved you need to use DT Edit to do so. Please correct me if this is wrong. Thanks & Cheers!

I would like someone to confirm my understanding of the connection between the PODHD & DT50 using the L6 Link. When you select a preset from the PODHD, is the preset saved under one of the 4 topologies under either Channel A or B, automatically, or do you have to save the preset to the DT50 the same way you save it to your PODHD by clicking on the "Select" button? My PODHD presets don't seem to want to transfer over to my DT50. I've checked the topologies using DT Edit and my PreSonus Studio One midi interface and only the "stock" presets appear to be there. I will add, I can change the amp presets using the DT Editor, but the presets in my HD don't seem to want to transfer over. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to All! Thanks.

Thanks MetalChef. You're absolutely correct. The sounds are not going to be exactly the same POD alone vs POD w/DT50 due to real poweramp section and speakers and I don't expect them to be. I think the problem I'm having is that my POD preset using the pre version of the amp doesn't seem to be linking up to my DT50 through the L6 Link. I used one of the DT Editors available and my PreSonus Studio One box to check what was actually in the different topologies on the amp and my HIWAY 100 preset did not show up as I thought it should. I'm using a regular XLR cable that I had as I'm waiting for an AES/EBU cable that I ordered (recommended by line 6 for digital signals) and wonder if that might be the issue. I'm going to use DT Edit to set up my "HIWAY 100" sound and see if that makes a difference but I'll have to wait until there's no one home and wear ear protection to do so. I'll get back to report the results as soon as I do. A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to All!

Thank you ColonelForbin, much appreciated. I visited a high end audio store in my area to see if they had AES/EBU cables and they did. Their entry level cable, 5ft long was $189.00. I just couldn't believe it! Mind you, this store carries audio products that start in the thousands of dollars for just one piece and speakers that go for over $10k alone. Certainly not in my snack bracket. A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!

Hey Tiago, I think we're on our own here. As far as I know, you can either have the cab simulation on or off. You're obviously going to hear a different sound with the cab sim off depending on what cabinet you have. If you're using the cab sim for a 4x12 cab and feeding the signal into an actual 1x12 cabinet you're not going to get the exact same sound as the real 4x12 cab that's being emulated. I haven't experimented enough with this to make a decision whether to have the cab sim off or on yet. As far as the issue with the tone and loudness is concerned, I'm going to try setting my POD HD master to the max when I use just the pre-amp version of the amp model I'm using and see if that helps. I'll report back the results after I do. It's understandable that the folks on this forum are tired of hearing this issue being brought back up when there are existing threads that seem to have exhaustively covered it already. The folks on the forum are great: I only wish that the folks at Line 6 would be more involved in helping out when they see these posts. It could greatly cut down on the number of calls they get and would reach a lot more of the folks that are supporting their products.

Hi All, I'm a newbie when it comes to using my PODHD500X with the DT50 212 I recently purchased so please excuse my ignorance on this subject. I noticed that there was a notable sound/tone difference between a preset in my POD using the full amp model when not connected to my DT50 and the amp pre-version of the same model when connected to my DT50 through the L6 link. I checked out some of the existing threads regarding this issue as well as checking out the link to MEAMBOBBO, to see if I could find out what I might be doing wrong but still seem to have the same issue. The sound through the DT50 is not nearly as gritty, or as loud, as it is when I'm using just the POD and listening through the headphones. I'm using the HIWAY 100 amp model full preset with the pod alone and the HIWAY 100 pre model when linked to my DT50. I've got all of the pre-amp settings the same for each version so I was expecting to hear the same amount of 'dirt' and then setting the master vol on the DT50 to around 12:00. I've been working on getting this one particular preset to sound as good through the DT50 as it does through just the pod before moving on to my other presets so I can start to get an understanding of how things work together. If it makes it easier, the tone preset I have is for "Won't Get Fooled Again" by the The Who. Thanks.

It's pretty obvious from the picture that a washer was there at one point. Maybe it was returned and they did the power transformer fix but they gave the customer a replacement amp? In any event, the amp shouldn't be missing the washer. Make sure you've got a good guitar cable. I've had some really strange noises come from my amp because of a not so good cable or incorrect type cable. I'm sure you're going to enjoy the amp once you get things sorted out. Cheers Mate!

Hey Guys, those are some interesting bits of information to digest. I just bought some DMX cables on Amazon, $10.00 for a 10 footer. They're AES/EBU and although not perfect they'll hopefully do the job. I am going to buy a good digital XLR cable that's AES/EBU rated however to see if I can notice any difference between the two. The more expensive cables have better shielding and the wires inside are twisted pairs which also helps block interference. As well, the cables ends are of a better quality and they use OFC (Oxygen Free Copper) to eliminate oxidation. Some of the high end cables I've found use Belden Cable Wire and Belden is well known for the quality wire products they produce. :)

I've been doing a bit more research and according to pro audio users there's even a difference between a lot of the digital cables out there for true sound reproduction. They didn't realize the difference until they purchased better cables. I'm sure at some point the law of diminishing returns comes into play so buying the most expensive cables may not make economic or sound sense. I kind of like to think of buying better quality in anything as a form of insurance; the product lasts longer, provides trouble free operation, and gives you the best of whatever it was intended for. There are definitely a lot of choices available in the market, the question is getting the best value for the money you're willing to spend. Keep Calm And Keep On Rocking!

Diagnostics is a process of elimination that requires a step-by-step approach in order to eliminate what isn't causing the problem until you reach the cause. Try plugging your guitar directly into you DT first and see if you get the noise. If you don't, then plug directly into the POD and hook up a set of headphones. In each case you need to disconnect your L6 connection. If all is well, hook up your L6 link to the DT50 and POD to see if you get the same noise. If you don't have the problem present itself under any of the above conditions you can rule out the DT, POD, and L6 cable. The problem is then external and is probably coming from your computer or being picked up from somewhere in your house. Y ou can even try moving your setup to a different part of your house to see if the problem persists. Hope this helps you and let us know what happens.

Was there something you were doing before it started making that noise or did it start up when you first turned on the amp and pod? It's a very distinct and repetitive sound that you're getting, sounds to me like a relay but I'm no expert. Have you tried plugging into the amp or the pod separately without using the L6 link? The problem seems to have moved with the L6 cable when you plugged it into your computer. Just some suggestions. Hope you get it sorted out.

Thank you for the clarification. Too bad they don't update their user manuals to reflect the firmware update.