cruisinon2

Nah...they're too busy reminding everyone within earshot that they can sight read through Rachmaninov`s 3rd Piano Concerto, while secretly wishing that they had 20 fingers. :P

Well...there are those who would describe all metal tones as "noisy and unclear"... ;) (just kidding...I grew up on it myself). Seriously though, it would be easier to diagnose the problem if you record a clip and post it. Then perhaps someone will chime in with a fix. Also, you mentioned that this is your first electric guitar, so I'm assuming that you are a beginner player (apologies if this is not the case). In which case, it may be an issue of learning proper technique. I've been teaching guitar for many years, and learning to control the sound of the really high gain amp settings typically used in hard rock/metal can be challenging while you are also trying to learn the basic mechanics of the instrument. Thick distortion settings will produce all sorts of unpleasant sounding "accidental" string noises if you don't play cleanly. In other words, while playing any given string(s), you must learn to mute the remaining ones that you do not want ringing out at that time.

Wow...blast from the past! I forgot about that thing and it's hideous pink/purple faceplate, lol. I guess it's official...I'm now old enough to have forgotten entirely pieces of gear that I lugged around for months/years... :huh:

Generally speaking, if ya want more volume, you need more watts. Even if your amp had speaker outs, connecting it to a bigger cabinet isn't gonna make you any louder, because you're still using the same power amp section that drives your combo. 75 watts is 75 watts. In fact, if you don't match the impedance rating of the cab to the output of the amp, you can actually end up losing power.

If the tuner isn't registering, the unit may not be receiving any signal at all. Could be either dead cable or dead 1/4" jack on the guitar (usually just a loose solder connection). Try another cable first, if it still doesn't work, then try another guitar. Sometimes it's the simple things...

I've often wondered that myself...heave anything across the room like an enraged baboon, and you'll destroy it.

Which 9V is gonna die today, lol? No thanks...I'm not going back either.

This may be your problem...don't get stuck on the "correct" output setting based on your set-up. Might not work for you, certainly didn't for me. I've been running everything the "wrong" way from day one, with "studio/direct" selected (cab sims and all), no matter how I'm listening...through an amp, headphones, direct into mixer, whatever...cause that's what sounds good to me. Done that with other modelers I've had too. It's about what sounds good to you, not what it says in the manual. Worth a try before you ditch it and shell out more $$$...no right and wrong way to do it.

Yeah, I agree. We've all been bitten by the instant gratification bug. "Better" is subjective anyway. Better than what? Practice makes you better. I think some players expect these amps to turn them into something they're not. In 25 years, I've never been able to get a really convincing EVH tone...you know why? 'Cause I'm not Eddie and I'm not playing a Frankenstein strat with pickups wired out of phase, and wired to a dimmer switch that he stole from a ceiling fan (not sure what he was trying to accomplish, but he swore he did it...laughed hard when I read that in some guitar rag years ago). I suspect that for most players (myself included), unless you happen to be a REALLY well rounded session player, covering a multitude of styles, most guys are gonna gravitate towards only a handful of tones anyway. I love the 500X for the sounds I can get, and for the convenience factor, but honestly it's overkill. Many of the amps, I'm never gonna use. I have 4 or 5 that I really like, and that works for me. But I'm never gonna sound like Wes Montgomery no matter what amp I've got...I'm not a jazz guy.

Yeah...I don't expect gear from 10 years ago to mate flawlessly with the stuff that's current, there's got to be at least one generation of backwards compatibility. Big fail.

Fulltone Clyde Deluxe...best wah in the universe.

Nice...glad it worked. Had to do the same for some of my models. Gets even stranger if I'm using alt tunings for some reason, especially with the acoustics down 1/2 step...open G string was SCREAMING loud compared to others. Had to knock that string down a lot to even things out. Yet, same model, same 500X patch in std tuning, no boomy G string. Who knows...these guitars get funky the more DSP you're using, but so far I've found a fix for the issues I've encountered...thumbs up for Workbench!

There's a reason for that...the average listener also thinks that Britney Spears is actually singing whilst engaged in a choreographed gymnastics routine. I've met people who couldn't distinguish between steel string acoustic, nylon string, or clean electric. Some probably can't tell guitar from bass.

lowering the global string volume in workbench is also worth a try. piezo outputs can vary, and some guitars seem to be hotter than others.

Well, you can get around on a vespa...but I dunno about 'fun'. I'd be hiding my face, lol.

The 500X is a pedalboard...if you're looking for a rack mount unit you'll want to look at the HD Pro series. But, the 500X will be able to give you just about any tone you want as long as you spend enough time with it to explore everything its got...and theres a lot.

And on the days when you just don't have "it" (whatever it is), is it the gear, your fingers, your ears, phase of the moon? Almost everything discussed on this forum is entirely subjective...pretty much anything that happens with your rig, unless something just flat out won't turn on, is open to debate/interpretation. Why did everything sound fine yesterday, and now its like nails on a chalkboard? 25 years of playing and I've yet to figure that out.

Yep...so where's the "sweet spot"? What's the formula? Depends on the circumstances, and who you are, and whether or not you cleaned your ears that day. And as someone else pointed out in another thread, no two strats, LPs, or plexi heads are gonna sound exactly the same. It also doesn't help that guitarists are overly picky, crazy, or some combo of the two.

LMAO...good stuff. Needed a laugh today...

I've got a mole on the inside. Wait till you see the HD600...one word: wormholes...

I understand that this project has been halted, as the R&D guys kept arguing over where to put the beer cozy... :D

Here's one with the cables on eBay for $65 US... http://www.ebay.com/itm/LINE-6-VARIAX-WORKBENCH-HARDWARE-INTERFACE-/331123303776?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item4d187ca560

I would try reflashing the firmware at least once or twice...some have seen other issues resolved by doing this. Don't know why it works for some things and not others, but it's worth a try before you send it to Line6 for repair.

Thanks...tried it, works much better than what I'd been using even though I'm not running a DT series amp (HD>>Carvin TS100 power amp>>Marshall Silver Anniv. 4x12), and listening straight out of the HD, it's like night and day compared to what I had going...anyone having issues with the acoustics should give it a try. Might have to tweek EQ a bit, and add some reverb, but that's it. Great idea...

You're right. This is the ugly truth that most won't say out loud...technology is only a benefit for those smart enough to realize it for what it is, a tool to enhance inherent or acquired skills, not as a substitute for them. I think a lot of this stuff is gonna create a widening IQ divide, if you will, given a long enough timeline. Much like we will soon have only the uber rich and the dirt poor, something tells me there will eventually be a small handful of folks with an IQ above room temperature, and over-abundance of mouth breathers with the iThingy 9s surgically implanted in their forearm, blissing themselves out 24/7.