timmo3

The test mode (holding tap down) mentioned above is the same thing as plugging the POD output into the effects return jack of a single channel amp. The POD's controls become the amp controls. It's perfectly fine to do this as long as you remember to check your PODs master volume first. I think you'll only forget once though :-) Also, the CD/MP3 input is ok as mentioned in the previous post, although I seem to remember that you can't get any sort of usable volume out of it. It's fine for bedroom practice, but nothing else.

I don't think you will be able to control the Spider, but you can use the Spider in power amp only mode. It's been a while since I had the Spider, but I remember that you can switch the amp into power amp only mode by holding down the Tap button when you switch it on (maybe someone can correct me here if this isn't the right button). In this mode you can get the Pod to power amp directly by plugging into the normal input jack on the Spider, so your pods sound will not be affected by any of the Spiders sounds (the Spiders modelling and effects are all disabled). Be careful though because all of the amps controls will be disabled too, including the master volume. Make sure you set your Pod's master volume to a low level before you switch it on otherwise it will be very loud! The amp will be at 100% volume all the time in this mode. I used this setup for a while and it worked well. Also, because the amp is at full volume it is best to switch the Pod on first, the the amp second and reverse this when switching off. This is the way I would use any power amp with the Pod anyway to avoid any speaker pop when switching the Pod on.

I only access it using the shortboard, and I'm not using USB just the 1/4" outputs. The tuner doesn't "pop" but what happens is that for a split second the pod seems to be on full volume. I've found that it's only really noticeable if you run the pod with the master volume down quite low. The difference is volume is then very noticable. The sort of situation where this is an issue is where you have a single channel amp with an effects loop. If you plug the pod into the effects return (i.e. straight to power amp) you are bypassing the amps volume control so the amp is always full volume. You therefore have to rely on the pod's master volume control for your volume. At gig volume the problem is not too bad as the master volume will be a lot higher, but at home when you don't want to run the master volume above 1 or 2 the volume jump when exiting from the tuner can be very loud.

This is happening to me too. I think Line 6 expects us to run the POD with the master volume at 12 o'clock or higher. At this volume the "spike" isn't too noticable. However, when running the POD at home going through something like Crate Power Block RCA inputs that don't have their own master volume, the POD is usually only on 1. At this volume, exiting from the tuner can be very loud indeed unless you are careful to mute the strings or turn the guitars volume off. For home use now I am running through the AUX input on an Orange Micro Terror. This is better for me as the amp volume affects the AUX input, so I can run the amp on 1 and the POD at 12 o'clock. No more worries about jumping out of my skin!