jerseyboy

I use Eb tuning quite a bit and for me Variax has always been a champion in that regard going back to the older 1st gen versions. As suggested try some simple direct recordings and see if it really is as bad as it seems during performance? Make sure you’re not picking up ANY string vibration. I’ve had IEM (in ear monitor) cable pull tightly enough to physically conduct some guitar vibration to my ears? Kinda weird sound when that happens. Oh, and watch out for magnetic pickup height? Often strange sounds when they get too close to the strings.

The battery/VDI thing is further complicated because VDI incorporates a connection and can likely influence JTV power supply situation? In perfect situations, I’m sure there’s generally no problems associated with leaving battery in the guitar and running on VDI power. But, my situation is far from perfect and involves 24 or more VDI connections per week. Sooner or later, something funny seems to happen on VDI with or without a battery installed. I mentioned the situation with the green LED and Variax crashed on battery? At that point I was wireless and the crashed system wouldn't revert back to mags without removing the battery. Too weird and too much of a minefield to ‘figure it out†in heat of battle. Without mixing VDI I’m totally fine and happy on primarily battery power. Several packs now too so it’s working out well and enjoying flawless operations. And on battery power we're also free to use JTV with other types amplification. Blasphemy I know, but 'still enjoy my amps. Seems to mellow the modeling in some situations.

I find plenty usefulness with my 500's. One particular thing I often do now is throw a nut riser on and play lap steel or resonator slide stuff. Take it further with old Workbench and it's great to setup all sorts of tunings to better explore that style of guitar playing. I do prefer the JTV for most of my current work but I don't feel like it's a major setback to use a 500 as a spare Variax. I've tweaked bundles to sound pretty close to what I do with JTVs.

Reeled in the much newer 59 and so far it seems great. Maybe a smidgen lighter than the 2013? Don't have a scale to provide real data, sorry... Some of the knobs slightly different and the neck might not be quite as wide across but perhaps slightly thinner front-to-back? So far in studio use but tomorrow plan to throw it into regular gig and compare it more thoroughly sound wise to the older brother. Stay tuned...

I own and regularly use 4qty Variax. 2qty JTV59 and 2qty 500. Never regretted buying them or the “spares†as they’re amazing and bring wonderful value to my work. Also have no interest in updating electronics. I view the package ASIS and best kept that way, IMO. Of course better tuners, good fretwork and great setup are fair game for improvement(s) but the electronics really seem to match the current package and I would fear a loss of product focus and carefully implemented refinement by deviating into other electronic platforms… If/when a “complete†newer version arrives I may adopt it quickly or wait until I see a need? Hard to tell until that time arrives? I understand taking the plunge is fraught with unknowns and Variax simply may not be for everybody. But, what I eventually realized is that even if it's a total bust for me, someone will want it and at most I might lose a few dollars? If nothing else, minimal cost of tuition to explore and learn the vast guitar universe.

I've concluded gentle/light finger picking is usually improvement in JTV59 Dreadnaught acoustic sound/behavior. I like it better than practically any picked attack. Also might've found better picked tone using a thicker pick (coat button thick) struck very lightly? Still comparing and working-out that one...

I try to keep a MS-50G handy at all times. If for no other reason it's a pretty good tuner. The usual weeird ZOOM interface but once you learn it can be configured for many various applications. Sorta Swiss Army knife of pedals/modelers. Very useful with both electric and acoustic guitars. Yep, some of the preamp, compressors, verbs work nicely with acoustic guitar IMO. On a scale of 1-5 it may not reach 5 in any particular area but it's a pretty solid 4 across the spectrum of jobs. Dang good value and a great small simple piece to have as a backup for any rig...

I don't use much OD for majority of my Helix work but when I do Minotaur seems to be the one used the most.

Dunno if you found a solution yet? I have nothing 1st hand to offer regarding Vax bass but the presumably similar older Workbench software (used with the Vax 300, 500, 600, 700 models) has a string balance adjustment found in a menu navigation tab? Might be found under Edit menu dropdown? Sorry, I don’t have a way to navigate to it at this time because I don’t have a Vax handy. But I remember it was kinda hard for me to find the 1st time? Once you find it you might be able to bake new string volume/levels into the bass guitar firmware? This helped me restructure levels on an old Vax 500 high E string which was a little behind/under volume compared to the other strings.

I'm notorious for being "that guy" who leaves truss covers off because of need to keep up with ever changing climate/humidity conditions. I love vintage guitars as much as the next guy but I suspect there's a reason they made neck adjustments kinda hard to get to. Probably not too many people possessed knowledge to use them responsibly. Whenever I setup an old school guitar I figure it's gonna cost a set of strings to get the neck on/off enough times to dial in the truss adjustment. (Capo can be your friend to hold strings in nut while you pop the neck off/on) No need to even back the tuners off. At least until humidity changes again...

Even in a perfect world JTV59 2/4 model switching can be a delicate flower, IMO. Workaround for me is simply program/load models that I know I’ll need in 1/3/5 positions and rarely ever use the tuning knob on/off switch to toggle 2/4. Please note - I dunno anything 1st hand about JTV69 hardware I’m speaking only about JTV59.

I've not experienced this exact issue but I would ask if you're using the VDI cable with a battery pack installed? There seems to be reports and my personal experiences of weirdness about battery pack + VDI. "For magnetics with the volume rolled completely off I still have plenty of volume although the gain does change a little." Don't understand this comment? Volume rolled completely off yet plenty of volume? Personally noticed a small difference in magnetic output gain between 1/4" audio and VDI. Assumed they're sending passive/analog audio down the 25' Ether cable which might explain the drop off? But another user said he thinks it's converted to digital inside the guitar and sent VDI? I dunno what to believe and nobody who really knows is saying. I've moved over to 1/4 audio only output and been much happier with no further glitches other than maintaining battery swap/charging. Later is no big deal for me since well versed in rechargeable battery pack systems. Oh, there's a feature that kinda surprised me even though I probably skim read about it in manual/forums - when volume control is rolled off with a model engaged, the system goes to sleep in about 7-10 seconds. Roll it back up and the model selector LED comes back on. I haven't checked if it does this when connected to VDI because frankly, I haven't used VDI in a long time. But it does this on battery exclusively using 1/4" audio output. And don't use electrical contact cleaner which isn't specified for potentiometers.

At least they browsed/searched the forums instead of authoring a new thread....

You got it as intended. The worldwide company/production I work with/for has heavily embraced Variax across several companies in recent months. Our work covers many tones/textures on limited production budget. Back in the day we had resources for 8 different guitars which required a lot of maintenance, space and the hassle of swapping and/or using Gracie stands, A/B boxes/switches, etc. The Variax has become the one guitar solution while doing a fantastic job. The "product placement" stuff might be nice but we pay our freight because we've spec'd particular products. If LIne6 wishes to offer up stuff that would of course be welcome? But many pro's simply buy what works for them because it's part of their business to use the products they need. This way of doing business also allows the "honesty" to call out "things" without concern if our "deal" will get nixed.

I think my 59 is 2012-13? Over past several months daily service been a workhorse pleasure. Couple little things but nothing I haven't been able to handle. We're supposed to get a much newer model soon so it'll be fun/interesting to compare? Also have 2qty 2004-05 Vax 500's which remain rock steady solid since working for serious productions since 2006-07. Korean, out of the box they needed fretwork, nut, better tuners and setup (I even shaved/sanded the neck on one of 'em down more to my liking) but as long as they're fed fresh Alkaline or XPS/VDI supply, the electronics have never coughed up. Oh btw, speaking of tuners 'recently installed Hipshot locking on the JTV59, big improvement and most any locking tuner makes it much much quicker/easier to change strings on the slotted 59 bridge!

More every day...

Unless I’m going for Coral/Jones “Sitar†effect I work to avoid fret buzz. Good simple tool to keep in ditty bag is a Fret rocker from Stew Mac. Easy check for uneven frets.

Perhaps I'm using terminology incorrectly but when I said "legacy WB" I meant non-HD WB. And I don't need to do anything with my current Yosemite Mac. It's fine asis except non-HD WB must be force quit.

I know what you're saying and we've all surely heard masterful guitar work from old Silvertone masonite guitar with straight non-compensated bridges and technically horrific lipstick pups. But, in the hands of a master it can be music to our ears. Hell, even the history of Fender Amps - highly educated engineers wanted to "improve" those tried and true circuits and Leo resisted until he left the company. Those engineers finally had their way for a brief time but the damage was quickly done and players lamented the new amps as being too clean and sterile. When it comes to music, sometimes we need technical imperfections (and perfections) to find and exploit a creative pocket which helps drive our soul...??? In the case of Variax, sometimes quick/easy "auditioning" different textures and sounds brings with it some useful inspiration. I don't look at it as means to an end but it's certainly a convenient and useful tool which can help lead to more interesting and satisfying guitar music compositions/productions. IME...

And in other important news, I use Mobile 1...

Using the guitar input a neck or neck/bridge pup combo plus rolling tone controls AND volume off a bit helps improve “huntingâ€. I also refrain from tuning while using Variax models - mags only. Harmonics can of course be another “aid†to help reduce hunting. It’s convenient and more than good enough, IMO...

These parameters are so subtle (even in real tube amps) many players might not ever notice any difference. In a real tube amp with failing filter capacitors "ripple" is more noticeable as you play notes up the neck. The notes mix sorta mix with the frequency of the ripple and creates a funny combined sound. I'm not particularly fond of it but for authenticity I suppose it's a component of the soundscape? Bias mostly changes the "feel" of the output amp stage. Cold bias will feel stiff and in extreme settings will become very bright and brittle sounding. Hot bias will soften the feel and warm up the tone at the expense of tube life. The other factor about bias is whether it's class A or class A/B? In real amps the later needs to be adjusted correctly since the pairs of output tubes must equally share the positive/negative portions of the waveform.

I always prefer the look/feel of nearly bare wood. Lotsa work to accomplish what you did so well. Looks great!

ty ty Silverhead for your expertise and always kind help. I've enjoyed MANY of your posts. Very helpful and an asset to this community. Nobody's hair is on fire about any of this. (well, my hair is smoking a little struggling to wrangle crazy Helix volume pedal sweep curve?) This VDI thing may just be a blessing in disguise and ultimately better for our needs/situation to use guitar audio output and stored models...

Appreciate the responses and I’m not really soured on JVT but simply needing a more trouble free experience VDI doesn’t provide for my setup. Note - I’ve compared this with a 2nd Helix and VDI cable. I don't like to play DYKWIA card but since 2004 our company has bought a mind boggling amount of Line6 gear. If someone within Line6 wishes to contact me for further details, that may be better than airing in public forums? As background, I’ve played legacy Variax professionally since 2007 and aside from some one-off concert performances, never in the full show production. But as we re-tooled current version of this show the ball to implement JVT + Helix LT was kicked to my side of the court. At last count company sourced 6 Helix LT’s (at least 2 now with broken volume pedals - told by L6 support and Sweetwater to use external pedals) Why not simply suggest to loosen the friction adjustment before use? Fairly obvious to me but not my young colleague. Ugh… We've purchased at least 4-5 JVT’s recently and I’m using my personal 59 for now. The plan is to buy another JTV59 for my location and then perhaps I can take time to sort through a trouble ticket and jump through whatever hoops that may require? I can't take my guitar out of service at this time... At the end of the show I must go wireless and since I learned you can’t leave a battery in while tethered to Helix/VDI, I go with the mags (sans battery) and ignore modeling for show finale. Much too clunky to mess with putting a battery pack in JVT after unplugging VDI in heat of battle… As far as wrong models/tunings being recalled via VDI, I'm sure it's me, ignorance or the guitar but since the workaround is working nicely (maybe better, see below) I'm not in much hurry to spend more time with it. I mostly bring it up in the event L6 wishes to better understand what's going on? And since I’m really not enjoying the volume sweep curve of Helix LT (or that annoying snapshot menu) staying away from VDI may be a blessing in disguise? The sound/synth shop has a growing pile of Fractals I may just put one of those in and go back to having more fun playing pedal steel emulation and other volume swell parts? TBH, Helix volume sweep curve is probably more of a “problem†than all the above VDI annoyances....