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Part of the cost one pays when they buy the AxeFx is the cost of continuing targeted support. Fractal has a very small product line, so they can focus on updates. It's also expected to be more frequent for an item in that price range. A $500 piece of kit from a company with a large and varied product line won't get the same level of attention. Yeah, I'd like more attention paid to my HD500, but I'm not upset that incremental updates are few and far between or that they don't address every individual desire.

Theoretically, this method should also work to model mandolins and ukuleles.

I was able to download your wav file from Soundcloud and run it through Logic. To me it sounds like pick attack. I threw a parametric eq on it and I think I was able to isolate and trim out the popping. It seems to be occurring around 5300 hZ. If you can turn down 5300 hZ in your EQ (either parametric or graphic) then you can probably get rid of the majority of the sound you're hearing. Use the Q value below as a guideline - it'll be different for anything that's not Logic. I'd love to hear if this worked for you. I'm definitely going to do the same for my HD500's parametric.

Remember the purpose of an EQ - to equalize the volume of reproduced frequencies across the spectrum. If you want a signal chain that's the most like the real thing, then you'll be just fine not using an EQ. Also, if you're running into a PA you'll have a sound engineer that's also running an EQ on you. What Radatats says is entirely correct - the amp, cab, and mic settings will work for the vast majority of shaping your sound. That said, your guitar has a level of EQ control - the Tone knob. The amp has a level of EQ control - the high, mid, low, presence/tone knobs If you're running effects, many of those also have tone knobs. Many distortion effects have high/low/tone knobs. Same with delays and modulation effects. There's a lot of minor EQing going on when shaping your tone, whether you're using a dedicated EQ module or not. Using an EQ module may seem unnecessary, but it can make the difference between hiding in the mix or being properly slotted into the mix.

I don't see how the HD500 could have damaged the amp. It's sending a tiny signal to your head. Volume drop sounds like a dead tube or two...burning smell though isnt good. http://www.geofex.com/ampdbug/smoke.htm

I have not recalibrated, but I use the expression pedal pretty often for volume and have never noticed any trouble. A recal couldn't hurt.

Basically the same as what's been said, but it might work. I'm just not hearing anything similar to what anyone else is playing. Perhaps something is wrong with my firmware

I can use any wah model with any amp model and it sounds very brittle, regardless of what else is in the chain. Even if I use just the wah and the amp.

No matter where I set it, it's too harsh. A wah works by sweeping the frequency range like a parametric EQ. It's like the sweep on all the models has the Q too narrow, and the gain too high.

Unfortunately, no matter what position I set the wah to, it is far too harsh and lacks any gradual change, regardless of model. The change is not linear using the expression pedal - it's mud or it's piercing. Not sure if the linearity is part of the model or the pedal. I'm assuming it's in the model since the volume control is more or less linear. I've tried pulling the mix down but still can't find a sweet spot where it sounds natural. It seems like the mix is also very sensitive for the wah models; it's either very full in the mix or transparent in the mix with very little room for fine tuning. I'll need to play with these settings to try and dial it in

I don't use the wah all that often for anything, but there have been times that I've wanted the effect. So far, I can't seem to find any of the HD500 wah's to be anything other than shrill or muddy with nothing in between. Does anyone have any tips on setting up any particular wah model so it's...'milder' is the only term that comes to mind?

EQ is one of the most powerful, and underappreciated, tools in the musical toolbox. This page at Presonus is very simplified, but provides a good starting point in making your sound really shine well. https://www.presonus.com/community/Learn/Equalizer-Terms-and-Tips

Does the 500 have sufficient processing power to do that without noticeable latency, along with the other processing it's doing? Probably. It would be nice if, after x number of years of the product being released, L6 would release a dev kit for people to create new functions like this for their equipment...on to Ideascale I go...

I'll buy it off you for $50 if you hate it that much

Not sure how the hd500 would know that, since it's not getting string data from the guitar (even a Variax). The effect would need to receive a discrete signal from each string, compare notes and decide which is the lowest frequency, discard the rest of the data, process the lowest note to the octave, then render it out. That doesn't take into account anything to ignore muted strings. The variax only does discrete processing per string signal. I guess it could be possible to use a variax with both the piezo and magnetic pickups, and process the variax signal an octave lower for certain strings

Edit: any chance of a recording? I would suspect a cable connection, or something smacking the bridge in that case. The piezo pickups in the bridge will take any vibrations they encounter and convert them to signal. That happens with my JTV69 whammy bar, squeaking when it swings. I can hear clipping when I pick too hard on the banjo or acoustic models. If you're not hearing clipping, but static-like popping then its likely something entirely different. It's probably happening all the time, but the banjo model is so sensitive that it shows up more often. I get static pops in my headphones when I move around in my chairs possibly there's a grounding problem somewhere in your chain? That's always been something I've found odd about the HD500 is that it's not a grounded device...but I digress. If that's what it is, then it's got to be happening prior to the piezo pickups. Possibly static grounding on the strings/bridge, or something smacking the bridge. As an experiment, see if you can add reverb to the pop. If the pop reverberates then it's occurring in the guitar-effects chain. If it doesn't reverberate, then it's after the guitar-effects chain

Are you fingerpicking or using picks? The banjo model has an extremely high attack that does not respond well to picking. As with the acoustic models, the banjo is best used with an extremely light technique. It can't be treated like a traditional banjo. I'll spend some more time in HD Edit tonight and see if I can make it sound better, but technique plays the largest part when using the banjo model.

If you're willing to sell it for $2, I'll buy it off you. I'll even cover shipping.

My foot switches have been non-responsive in the past. It's possible that the Stop didnt trigger

Seems possible, but an obnoxious function

I was playing through practice and my loop started playback. I wasn't in the loop interface at all, but I had been using the loop earlier in the song. I had exited the loop and was back in the ABCD interface, didn't touch the pedal. About 30 seconds later the loop started playing. Later, after practice and during the set, the same thing happened. It was weird. Ever happen to anyone else?

Bluetooth compatibility would be great for this, if not a wired connection like line6 has on some keyboards (though that's only for midi processing). The pod is not a host device, which is what the ipad needs for a wired connection. Maybe in the HD600X.......... The windows 8 pro tablet runs a full version of win 8.1 and has a USB connection. Might fit the bill, though it's 800 bucks

If you're this frustrated by technology then sell it and get an amp. You'll be stuck with a single tone, but it sounds like that's all you're capable of anyway. The HD500 is not a POS because you can't figure it out. Thousands of others have no problem understanding it.

Is there something plugged I to your physical effects loop on the pod? With nothing physically plugged in, the chain is broken. Nothing will get to the output, because there's nothing in the loop.

do you have an FX loop module in the chain?