fechart

Hi, I wonder if I can use a balanced Line Out from a DI box into an HX Return... Thanks!

Oops! I just saw your previous post. JCM 900. Do you dig these amps dirt? Personally I prefer the 800s or even the 2000s... But perhaps you're using them as a clean platform... Cheers

Which JCMs? And why don't you use your amps dirt?

I don´t think so... Unlike in the 70´s, most modern amps sound good at bedroom levels. I mean, you don´t have to crank them to get the best of them. Most all-valve amps nowadays, get their gain from the PREAMP stage, not from the POWER AMP stage. I also play mostly at bedroom levels nowadays, so I know what you´re talking about. After years of tone-search, I can tell you that you can´t have 10-20 amps in one. Modellers like the POD try to emulate the character of famous amps, and sincerelly, that´s quite not a laudable objective... at least to me. I think you have to find your personal sound. Maybe a couple or 3 or 4 different kinds of sounds, but I don´t see the point of having emulated several amps, and many stomboxes, just to have an infinite variation of tones. Perhaps I´m old-school, but I think it this way. It´s not for nothing that most professional musicians use some stompoxes, maybe a couple of effects racks, and the amps of their choice. They don´t use PODs. Most of them. I think you can get some good tones with the POD, but at the end of the day, they sound artificial. Perhaps if you never owned analog stompboxes and all-valve amps you aren´t able to compare, so you keep what you have and you are happy with it. What I observed, in my experience with digital modellers, POD HD 500 included, is that you can dial good finished tones, specially if you don´t use an amp and have FRFRs, for example. With finished tones I mean tones that sound as a finished track. But if you´re talking about wooly-raw-coming from a guitar amplifier-tones, that´s where modellers fail. Anyway, that´s just my 2 cents.

No. Not happy. Tweaked it to the death for a year and a half. Some good tones, but man, the thing is digital. You can never get close to a real tube amp sound, or even analog pedals. Sold it. Now I have a few good stompboxes and an EVH 5150 III 50 watts with two 2x12 cabs. And man, THAT'S tone.

I have the Bogner Red pedal too, I run it through the clean channel (I use the 4CM) of my amp, and boost it with a Parametric EQ, with standard settings and Gain at max, on the HD 500. It will be very difficult for Line 6 to catch the feel of this pedal. I´ts the most incredible amp-like pedal I´ve heard. Excellent response to dynamics and guitar volume. I have my POD HD 500 for sell right now, going full analog...

Hi there, You should use the 4 cables method (4CM) for what you´re trying to achieve. I don´t know if you are familiar to this method, but you can find some great info here: http://line6.com/support/docs/DOC-2522 With the 4CM you connect your POD straight to the Power amp Section of the Blackstar, and the Blackstar´s Pre Amp Section in the LOOP of the POD. If you get lost or need some info, please comment here. Cheers!

The POD adds compression to the tone, and I agree with you that with bedroom levels that´s OK-ish, but live... it´s another story. The tone yeah, depends a lot on the amp, your ears, your guitars, and lots of factors... With the full models/pre models issue, as well as with the cab sims thing, you have to try. There depends a LOT on your "real" amp and speakers (I guess with a full or half stack you don´t need cab sims!) And finally yes, with the 4CM you have the 2 options, going with the POD straight to the Power Amp stage using the models provided by the POD, or adding the FX LOOP and using your "real" amp´s preamp. The concept of the 4CM is that you have your "real" amp´s preamp in the loop of the POD, and the POD straight to the Power Amp stage... that´s why you should use the COMBO OR STACK POWER AMP Output Mode on the POD, despite many people here prefer using STUDIO/DIRECT... Good luck bro, I´m glad that I could help. Cheers!

Hi Windhover! I´m glad that you got rid of the Studio EQ with good results :) I don´t use the POD´s preamp models, I use the full models + cab sims. Just works better for me... That´s when I bypass my "real" amp´s preamp (that´s to say, not inserting the FX LOOP Block in the chain). Most of the time I just insert the FX LOOP in the chain and use my "real" amp´s preamp and enjoy my Laney TT50C dirt, adding effects and EQ from the POD. I have several stompboxes too, so I take my dirt from them or from the amp´s channels 2 & 3. Practically never use the POD models. My ears are used to valves and analog pedals! Here I paste a block diagram showing you how I connect all. If you would like to share info about the 4CM, please contact me here or at fechart@yahoo.es Cheers!

Hello there, I´m glad you are happy with your new setup... The only thing that catches my attention is that you aren´t needing the Studio EQ to boost your signal... the POD´s FX Loop is really a tone and signal level sucker. Did you take a good listen to your amp´s "natural" sound compared with the sound when connecting the POD? There must be a difference. Personally I use a DI Box between the amp´s FX Send and the POD FX Return to achieve two things: 1. Avoid tone and signal level sucking 2. Level the volumes of my amp´s preamp and the models in the POD (amp´s preamp MUCH higher than POD´s models) It works well for me, my amp´s FX Loop is serial and I have a FX Mix knob (from wet to dry). With this setup I don´t need the Studio EQ to boost the signal, despite I sometimes use it just to give more gain to my amp´s preamp or some stompboxes I have. So... welcome to the 4CM world! Cheers!

Hi Stumblinman, I don´t gig... this setup is not practical for gigging!!! Also the board is waaaaayyy too heavy. Cheers!

This is an upgrade of the block diagram with my new stomboxes. It is also better detailed. Cheers!

Hi Buckethead It´s OK to use the full amp modelling instead op PRE, the CAB sims too. I also do that, although with some models and sometimes I use PREs. Trust your ears... To many people here the PREs sound thin, as for myself. 1st Question: I don´t agree with your settings, but again, trust your ears, you´re not going to fry your POD. I use the COMBO POWER AMP mode just because it sounds better to me, and that mode is intended to be used when you connect your POD straight to the Power Amp Section of your amp. Many people here like the STUDIO/DIRECT Mode in this situation... Try an amp model that you like, raw, with no added EQ or effects and take a good listen to the different Output Modes. 1/4 OUTPUT: I set it to AMP... LINE increases the overall volume a lot, including your amp preamp´s volume. Do you have a big volume jump between your amp´s preamp and the models on the POD? That would be normal, it depends on several factors. In my case I have it, but the DI BOX fixes that. I recommend you to read carefully JIMSREYNOLDS 4CM Manual. SWITCH ON THE BACK: I use STOMP. Try both 2nd Question: You´re right. You have to first understand the concept of the 4CM. With this method your amp´s PREAMP is in the LOOP of the POD. And the POD goes stright to the POWER AMP Section of your amp. So when you insert the FX LOOP block in the chain, what you are doing is to enable your amp´s preamp, which otherwise would be muted. Then you can insert other effects blocks before or after the LOOP. For example: compressors, wah, noise gates, boosters, etc. in front of the LOOP, and modulation, reverbs and delays after (this is not a rule, but it´s the most common way of doing things) For any further info please contact me or write here. Hope this helps. Here I paste the diagram of how I connect my POD and several stompboxes using the 4CM. Cheers!

Hi there, The diagram shows the Pre Amp and Power Amp SECTIONS of any amp with FX Loop, it doesn´t mean that they are separated "gear". In the Pre Amp Section you have the Input of the amp and the FX Send to the Power Amp Section. In the Power Amp Section you have the FX Return from the Pre Amp Section. The concept is that you connect the POD FX Loop to the Pre Amp Section of the amp. Then the POD output straight to the Power Amp Section, so in the POD you have to choose the COMBO OR STACK POWER AMP OUTPUT MODE, depending if you are connected to a head or a combo. This way, you can insert the FX LOOP Block in the signal chain (managed by the POD), and what you are inserting is the PRE AMP Section of the amp, that´s to say, your amp clean and dirt channels. Then you can add effects in the POD before or after the loop. If you are just using the models on the POD, you don´t insert the FX LOOP Block in the signal chain, and you have the POD working directly to the Power Amp Section of the amp. The DI BOX converts an unbalanced signal to a balanced one. I insert it in the signal chain to avoid tone suck produced by the POD´s FX Loop. That is a slippery topic, well discussed in this Forum. You can read JIMSREYNOLDS 4CM Manual, it´s a very good and instructive document. All this is quite complex, I´m trying to resume here my experience of a year with this method! I don´t know if this method is right for you, but you have to try it yourself and decide... It depends on if you gig or not, if you don´t mind spending time connecting all, etc. But one thing is for sure... with this method you have the best of both worlds: your POD modelling, and your stomboxes / amp's channels. Hope this helps, if you need more info don´t doubt to contact me. Cheers!

Hi, I have the POD HD 500 and some stomboxes too. I use the 4CM and the connections are shown in this thread: http://line6.com/support/topic/1455-my-pedalboard-including-pod-hd-500/ This gives you the best of both worlds. I EQ my amp´s dirt (which I use A LOT) with the POD. The Di Box is inserted to avoid tone sucking from the POD. Hope it helps. For further info contact me here: fechart@yahoo.es Cheers!

One thing I have to mention is that when I say I feel the POD tone digital, I'm talking about a subtle difference, I don´t mean that the POD is a crap in any way... Where I feel it weak is in the higher notes, there is where I find the tone more digital. Cheers!

Hi guys! Look for fechart in the Customtone. Inside the description you can see the output modes of each ones. Meambobbo´s patches are great too! Cheers!

Hi Netfly, How is your setup? I mean, how do you connect your POD to your amp? (that´s in case you use an amp!) What Output mode do you use? I ask you because I have some nice EVH tones in the Customtone. I have one for Studio Direct Output Mode and the others are made to use with Combo Power Amp Output Mode. I´m a great EVH fan!!!! Keep rockin´!!!!!!

Thanks Netfly!!!!

Thanks mate!!!!

Hi Phil, it´s a custom board... I made it in a metalworking workshop. Cheers!

I just wanted to share with you my hybrid pedalboard :) I use the POD for EQing, modulation and wah. The pedals shown in the picture will vary drastically in the next days... The Boss EH-2 will be off the board, and I´m waiting for a Bogner Ecstasy Red, a Wampler Triple Wreck and a TC Electronic Hall of Fame reverb. I connect all this using the 4CM, as shown in the picture:

Hi there, I would like to share my experience about this topic, I´m a POD HD 500 owner and also own several stompoxes. I play through a Laney TT50C all-valve 3 channels amp + a 2x12 Laney Ironheart cabinet. This is a really slippery topic; too many words said on it... and there are a lot of different opinions... I´ve always been a mfx guy, and by the time i bought my HD 500 I also bought my Laney amp. I started to realize how good was the clean sound of my amp, I discovered sounds I never heard before, plenty of harmonics, nice compression at high volumes, and that unique tube sound. However, the HD 500 always felt amazing to me, I invested hours, days and months tweaking it. The thing is that I didn´t like my amp´s channels 2 and 3 (crunch and lead), because I felt them too loose and hairy. And with the HD 500 I could achieve those fantastic "finished" tones, those ones that when you play over a finished track sound amazing. But I had the feeling that I was doing something wrong... It was very strange that I didn´t like my amp´s dirt, after all it´s an 8 valves made in UK high qualitty amp! So my search started... The first thing I did was EQing the amp´s channels 2 and 3 with the POD (by that time I was already connecting the POD by the 4CM). This is also a slippery topic (EQs on the POD), but in my opinion EQ is an excellent instrument to fine tune your sound; and the POD has excellent EQs, in my opinion. I started then getting better tones from my amp, working on specific frequencies, getting rid of boominess, making low ends tighter, and so on... But the tone kept being raw and "unfinished". So serching on forums, talking with some people, and talking a good listen to my sounds, I discovered that it´s just the nature of the beast. I started dialing more raw tones on my HD 500, with less effects and EQ, and I discovered that the HD500 can also do it somehow... Being a huge EVH fan, I could dial an EVH tone with my amp´s crunch channel, that sounds and feel amazing. But when I compared it with my excellent EVH tones on the HD 500, I started to find the difference... the POD sounded more digital I realized that I had swallowed the red pill... By that time I had already bought some stompboxes, mainly ODs and Distortions, all boutique or high quality gear, a Wampler Pinnacle Deluxe (which sounds very similar to my amp´s channel 2, EQed with the POD), a Bogner Ecstasy Red, a Tubescreamer, a Mooer Hustle Drive (which is an excellent copy of the Fulltone OCD)... So now I have my HD500 mainly for EQing and some modulation and wah, from time to time I take a listen to the modelled amps and my best presets, and they really sound great, but sincerelly I prefer my analog tones. Here´s a diagram showing how I connect all: Anyway, that´s just my 2 cents... Cheers tone seekers!!!!!