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Hi. I switched from Variax 600 to JTV-59 TSB and find some problems for which I hope somebody can enlighten me. Using input 1 "Variax Mags" and input 2 "Variax" seems to lift the signal, so I have chosen "Aux" on second input path. Same on all patches which are using the modeling exclusively (bank 2). I use just one centered path, so path B is muted at all. But there are questions appearing... is "Aux" the best choise for a deaktivated signal-path? what happens in case 2 when I play 1/4 and batteries are weak? Is there still a mags-fallback, even if the second input is deactivated? My first bank is optimized for the mags. My 2nd bank is optimized for modeling. Both banks are configurated path-wise as described above... ...but why is the modeling-knob on the JTV enlighted, when I chosse patch C and D in my 1st bank? They seem to be configurated the same way as A and B :wacko: In my 2nd bank it is patch B where the light is off :unsure: :wacko: :blink: I am really confused at the moment :mellow: This behavior can be reproduced with or without USB/HD Edit connection.

I know - there were some threads dealing with that. But I would like to talk this up again in a more moderate way :P I am still owner of the 'old' dreamrig: JTV (Variax) --> POD HD (500) --> DT amp. POD HD is connected to computer via USB. This signal chain and workflow is really amazing! I can edit edit every part of the chain via PC and hear the 'final result' at once without regulary interrupting (annoying plugging / unplugging) the signal flow (no USB interface needed for editing Variax models). So, please :wub: (guess what...) :rolleyes: I know, it's on the Helix checking off list (as DI called it). To me, it'll be a wonderful christmas present - so this is on my 'Helix wish list' this year!

So today I discovered that the "Dry-Out" output on my POD HD PRO X doesn't work when I'm connected through Variax input. If I plug-in through the front "Guitar" input it'll work just fine. Am I missing something here? perhaps some configuration in the menus that will allow me to mirror Variax dry input straight to the "dry-out" output on the back of my POD HD PRO X? I'm hoping to use this output aside from both the L-R outputs for a live setting. Thanks in advance for any replies.

Clean piezo signal from JTV Idea Actions JTV guitars have a great option - to play with modelled sound or to use real pickups ("mags"). It would be useful to have the same opportunity for piezo pickups - to play with clean piezo sound without modelling You can vote here: http://line6.ideascale.com/a/dtd/Clean-piezo-signal-from-JTV/515946-23508

I just got a JTV69 and probably for the same reasons as man others - so I can go to a gig with only 1 guitar. No more capo, no more 2nd guitar, no more separate rig for acoustic guitar... sounds like Nirvana (not the band :-)). Anyway I was checking out the acoustic sounds today and I was not really impressed. I was playing through a pretty high quality "Tech21 Paradriver DI" preamp into my powermixer (as I would with a real acoustic) but the sounds were not realistic. Sometimes sounded more like listening to a synthesizer than a guitar. Any advice? Please don't say I need to get a Pod HD and DT25 just for good acoustic sounds, I have a wonderful tube amp that I love already for my electric sounds. I have been compromising on the songs where I wanted to play acoustic, by playing very clean electric with some chorus etc. but I was hoping to get a realistic acoustic sound out of the JTV... one big reason for buying it. Next gig in 11 days! Thanks Pat

So I finally got sick of my battery always being dead on my JTV59 and purchased the Variax Power Cable Kit, which is AWESOME!...with one semi-major flaw for me...I can't seem to find a good long-length TRS cable to use with it! I didn't realize initially that it needed a TRS until I received the included 15' cable. I have become a HUGE fan of braided cables and can't seem to find a good braided cable to use with the power kit. Anyone else have this problem and have you found a great braided cable to use? I'll post if I track something down for future forum members. -sd

Hello, I just bought a JTV Variax online from GC. I had not read anything about them other than Youtube demos, the only thing I knew was the models 69,89,59, I also knew there was a Korean and US model of the 59 and the US was expensive. so when I got online and perused the used section of guitars I came across a JTV -69s with updated pups for a little over $600, I jumped on it thinking it was a great price for the Korean made guitar. When I received the guitar it was in excellent condition (listed as good) not a scratch or worn fret, upon further look, I noticed it said USA on the front next to the Variax. On the back it says handcrafted in USA. Did I just get a deal? I can't find a price for these anywhere. is GC that Guitarded? or am I? So far I am enjoying the sounds and feel of a good guitar. ONE PROBLEM I have not found an answer to is how to intonate, is it a set neck? no truss rod? what tool is used for the saddles? any help is greatly appreciated, I would rather be playing than writing and researching.

I'm considering assembling a DT25 dream rig. In a nutshell, what are the advantages/disadvantages/differences between using an HD500 and HD500X. I know the "X" comes with more bells and whistles, but are those extras worth it from a dream rig perspective? I completely understand a lot depends on how much flexibility/how many features I may personally want. But like buying a cell phone, I don't want to pay for stuff that sounds impressive that in real world applications, I'll never use. As a point of reference, I primarily work in a touring act that does a tribute to the 60s Brit Invasion and American Classic Rock/Pop. However, I also work with an 80s tribute and sit in on shows that run the gamut from Standards to Metal. I currently have a Flextone III rig with JTVs. At present, I essentially use 6 basic user presets with different effect combinations. Working "globally" like this allows a generalize preset to work across most musical styles. Kind of a one size fits all strategy. Ultimately, I would like to be able to program custom presets for specific songs, and perhaps free up my hands from manual JTV switching between songs. Hoping to get some feedback from others who pondered the choice of HD Pod to get. Thanks!

Ok, I'm here just to share my experience with my jtv 59, I thought it could help the community as it adresses common problems (ping, volume drops in certain strings etc.) I'm not a native speaker, I hope this is understandable to all ;) First of all, by doing this I voided my warranty, think about it before doing anything. I read about this mods on this forum, so the credit isn't mine. I hope this post does not break any forum's rule, in that case let me know and I'll erase/modify it. Volume inconsistency between strings: Probably you already know the cause for this, the negative connection from the piezo is provided by contact on the bridge, but sweat from the hands will form oxide that raise resistance to ground, lowering that saddle volume. The lower E string is more prone to this. Two solutions for this: a. going for a graphtech ghost bridge, but it's not cheap at all, and the variax it's not designed for it, so i went for option b.: give the saddles a proper grounding. I'll explain step by step what I did: 1. disconnected bridge connector https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=BBA44F05F3B256B0!390&authkey=!APLs3dI-ytbcNAU&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpg 2. raised the bridge by using an hex key. As you can see from this pic: https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=BBA44F05F3B256B0!391&authkey=!AGV4Ggk2-NnMGhE&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpg the pcb under the bridge already has soldering pads for each saddle ground, the lr baggs saddle does not provide a second wire for ground, we'll get there. I removed the hot glue globs with an exacto knife, they come off pretty easely, and I desoldered the + wires from their pads. Now the saddles are free, just remove the screws and the pcb will be gone. 3. At this point you'll have something like this: https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=BBA44F05F3B256B0!382&authkey=!AMlTDXNemHaZ2-A&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpg notice the holes for the wires in the bridge, I had to use tiny ones I salvaged from an usb cable. I put some masking tape on the guitar to avoid scratches. 4. https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=BBA44F05F3B256B0!384&authkey=!AGviVZ1R68CkB1s&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpg this is the saddle kept by a needle nose plier, with a rubber band to keep it close, I didn't have a vise at hand :D This provides heat sink, piezos don't like high temperatures, so be quick while soldering. https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=BBA44F05F3B256B0!381&authkey=!ANLdF7VbuPA6yQI&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpg see that pad? the wire goes there. remove enough epoxy to have a clean solder, i used an exacto knife. 5. pre-tin the pad and the wire: https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=BBA44F05F3B256B0!392&authkey=!AEP5OkV6mnkZybc&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpg and solder quick and fearless with a small soldering iron: https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=BBA44F05F3B256B0!383&authkey=!AGvyap6hMU05XCk&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpg 6. After repeating point 5. for six times put the saddle back in place, and solder every wire to each pad on the pcb: https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=BBA44F05F3B256B0!389&authkey=!ADJExiPhxu9o7rg&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpg focus on avoiding solder bridges (as you can see on the D string, I cut that after shooting the photo) and on having shiny solder. Apply some hot glue back to keep the wires in place. 7. remove masking tape, put the bridge in its place and reconnect the wires to the big pcb on the rear. Pinging noise: I found that this noise is in reality the pick scraping on the string, witch is common with piezo bridges, when you palm mute, you're dampening the fundamental, and the noise seems louder. line 6 did a great job in removing this noise in the overall signal, but for unknow reasons sometimes on certain guitars the magic stop working. unfortunately there's nothing you can do about it, so i went to the root of the problem: strings windings I restrung my guitar with D'addario Half Rounds 10-52 that are between full rounds and flatwounds, and reduced pinging noise to a point that i don't care anymore. If you find this too dull sounding for you, mess with volume pot values on workbench to dial back in the lost brightness, I didn't find this necessary anyway. Crosstalk / warbling sound I dampen the strings after the nut and after the saddles on every guitar I own, I hate the ringing sound when playing in staccato. On the jtv this can also improve stability on alternative tunings. pretty easy to do, a piece of heatshrink tubing on the bridge to avoid rattling noise: https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=BBA44F05F3B256B0!388&authkey=!AAZJdOig1VBLWj0&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpg and a piece of foam between the strings and the headstock: https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=BBA44F05F3B256B0!387&authkey=!ADWIOE4g37H-xtM&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpg Peace!

Dear all, I've a few quick practical questions. 1- I see that Amplifi can successfully separate core guitar tone and effects, so as far as I understand, if I don't use any stereo effects or reverb etc. it only uses celestion speaker right? Or it also uses other 4 speakers even you have no effects and amp modeling (like bypassing modeling section)? 2- If I connect a multi-effects processor/amp modeler (pod hd500 for example) in "guitar-in" and use Amplifi as a speaker (again by-passing it's modeler section), does it use all five speakers or only celestion? 3- Is there any difference between connecting an amp modeler through guitar in vs. aux in regarding the speaker utilization, frequency range/distribution etc? 4- Elaborating question 3, if I connect variax through guitar in and use one of acoustic models, which speakers does Amplifi use, all speakers or only celestion?

I know the question of which FRFR speaker comes up a lot. I did a gig Friday with my own equipment and used my Alto TS110A as the main. It was a small outdoor event and it had plenty of output. The other videos I've shared have always been using the house PA at other places, so I wanted to post to give an idea of what the Alto sounds like. To me it's a great bang for the buck. This was recorded from a camera mic, but a decent one, so it gives a good feel for how the speaker comes across to the audience or in the room. https://youtu.be/XYnnVSr5xmQ

I was going over some of the ideas on ideascale and came across a request for Variax wireless solution. I think that is an awesome idea and definitely needed for JTV's to be fully embraced by the professional performers, especially on the bigger stages. Interestingly, I also saw this link discussing an actual Line 6 unpublished feature built in to the Vetta II. Apparently they enabled a wireless variax feature during one of the firmware upgrades that enabled the Vetta to make Variax changes over wireless. It wasn't a complete 2 way communication solution but it certainly opened the door and showed that Line 6 themselves were at one point working it. Why on earth they haven't exploited that ability with the POD HD series is just beyond me. Anyway, here is the link to the Vetta info. If you think its a good idea go over to ideascale and vote it up... http://vettaville.nl/pagmore.php?id=166 http://line6.ideascale.com/a/dtd/Wireless-VDI/490019-23508#comments

Did another open mic night with Helix and Variax and it was a lot of fun. I'm soooo in love with this setup :) Keep in mind that this is the camera mic that's picking up the audio, the guy filming was sitting where he was getting some monitor bleed (which was overly bright), and it was the house PA with no time to adjust for EQ. I say all that because sometimes I've had folks (on other forums of course :D) pick apart the tone on some of these videos. Hope you enjoy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Fd0qeMpSPo

Did an open mic night and used JTV Variax>Helix>FOH, except for a Digitech Jamman Stereo for playing backing tracks. It went great and was totally happy with my tone!! Totally hassle free :) https://youtu.be/tpUnn8Xckf0

I love my JTV-89F. It's one of the best guitars I ever had. But, IMO, EMG active pickups are the best. I use EMG 81 and 85 and they sound great. So I decided to install those in my Variax JTV-89F. After searching the Internet I could not find any source of reliable information regarding this topic. So I decided to share my experience. I made a video documenting the process. You can find it on Youtube. !!! WARNING !!! If you do this, you'll void your guitar warranty. After installation all the Variax models are working perfectly. Also tuning and custom tuning. Issue #1: The EMG pickups do not allow to split coils and the Variax uses a 5 way switch. While in magnetic pickups mode, position 2 produces the same sound as position 1. And position 4 the same sound as position 5. 1 = Bridge 2 = Bridge 3 = Bridge + Neck 4 = Neck 5 = Neck When you activate the modeling mode, all the positions continue to be independent, as in stock mag pickups. Issue #2: When the active pickups are powered, the volume control acts almost as an on-off switch. At 1/5 of a knob turn you start to hear sound already at almost 80% gain. Bellow 1/5 of a turn, no sound at all. Issue #3: Tone knob seems to produce no noticeable effect. That's it. To me, now I have a perfect guitar. I don't use much the tone knob, and I can control volume with my volume pedal.

This is more or less a feature request, but if you folks ever decide to update the JTV models again, it would be wonderful to have a Nylon string acoustic in there. (e.g. Spanish guitar or Django Rheinhardt). I myself would gladly give up the acoustic-3 "Parlor guitar" for something with a little more flavor. I'm sure others would disagree, so I'm not sure about replacing existing models, but it seems like a nylon string model could be done, and it would open a huge creative world. There's nothing but steel string models now. Let me know if that's possible. Thank you.

Working up an instrumental version of Little Wing to perform for an upcoming open mic night. Thought I'd lay down a version for practice and see how it's coming along. First few sections I play like the SRV version and then deviate. A lot of improv so I never play a "perfect" version, but it is what it is :) Signal chain was JTV Variax Strat neck position pickup into Line 6 Helix recorded directly over USB into Ableton Live. No processing done in Ableton whatsoever. I'd love to hear any feedback. https://soundcloud.com/chuskey/little-wing-with-line-6-helix

I connected my JTV 69S using the Line 6 digital cable and a 1/4" guitar cord to my Pod HD ProX. The Pod is connected to my Win 8.1 Pro computer. Monkey software found the JTV and said there was a firmware update. I followed the Monkey instructions and the JTV firmware update started. The blue progress bar was showing progress and everything thing looked fine. Then Monkey said it couldn't finish. After this I cannot use the guitar models on the JTV. It won't even light up when you hold the "models" knob down. Any help to reset this would be appreciated. Thanks Kevin

I have an "open box" JTV-69 on the way, but it doesn't include the USB interface. Does anyone know if this version work with it? http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Workbench

For those who, like me, want to memorized all the possible Variax HD models/presets available. Enjoy! http://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=16495.0

Hi all, as the title says, dumb question. I'm running a JTV-69 into a HD500x into an Alesis Alpha 112 powered speaker ("500w continuous, 1000w peak"). After a while I wondered how much clean headroom I really had and ran the right 1/4" out from the HD500 into my old Drive G120 (120 watt) combo amp. So at that point, HD500 left 1/4" out into passive DOD A/B box, into Alesis, and HD500 right 1/4" into A/B box, into Drive combo amp. A/B'ing the Alesis vs. the Drive combo, it seems like the combo amp has a ton more headroom than the Alesis. Obviously I'm not much of a gearhead. Any opinions? Notes: -I don't have any complaints about the HD500x into the Alesis, other than that the Alesis is hissy and I'm going to return it and get an Alto or JBL etc instead. Normally I run the HD500x XLR out into the Alesis XLR in. -I had the Alesis a few days before I saw on the interwebs that the Alesis XLR/line input volume knob is misleading in that it's intended to only go up to "5" for line input before risk of blown speaker, but the XLR volume can go up to 10 theoretically. In my trials with the HD500x into the Alesis I am watching the clip light and clipping is not a factor for either the Alesis or the Drive.

My JTV-69 has developed a serious noise issue when playing with mags. I was getting a lot of noise with mags and it seemed to vary depending on where my hands were, where I had the guitar positioned, like it was totally intermittent. Last night I finally isolated the problem. It only happens if any part of my picking hand touches the humbucker pickup trim ring. No issues touching anything else, bridge, knobs, trem, all good. But while I am playing, if my pinkie resting on the pickguard touches the trim ring or my palm on the other side of the strings, I get a loud hum with static. This only happens when I turn off the modeling. Modeling on, no noise ever. Modeling off, it happens every time I touch the trim ring. I am connected by VDI to my HD500, with a fully charged battery. Any suggestions on where to begin with this?

Hey guys, New member here from Canada. Not sure if this is the right place to post this but a few days ago I bought a used Variax JTV-69 but the guitar did not come with the USB workbench interface. No big deal I thought to myself as I assumed the interface would be around the 20$ mark. Called today a Canadian Line6 dealer and the Workbench interface is a lot more :( This is to much money for me as funds are currently a bit tight and I want to edit the parameters on my Variax JTV but I can't :/ I don't have any POD either... I was wondering if there is a forum member who already uses his Variax through his POD willing to donate or sell his (now unused) Workbench interface on a fair price. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

I love being able to control HD500 parameters with my Variax tone and volume knob and look forward to doing it with Helix too. What I really want is to be able to control the Variax tone, volume and even tunings, models and pickups with the POD or Helix either with the expression pedal or with a foot switch. Using the exp pedal to control guitar volume has a totally different effect than changing amp volume or drive but for me its a PITA to get it consistently right. And being able to hit a FS to change tuning and guitar model or pickup would be amazing! http://line6.ideasca...508?submitted=1 Vote it up!

I tried to set up my JTV TMOD-5 (neck pickup) model to be similar to my Fender 60's Player Tele neck pickup. I had my JTV connected to my HD500 with VDI and my Tele connected via 1/4" Guitar In. The HD500 connected to my PC via USB and Windows HD running. I had L mono out going to a mixing desk connected to a reference amp connected to Tannoy Reveal monitors. I just wanted to get the model strings balanced and sounding similar to the real thing - I didn't think I could get them to sound identical, just similar. So I was just using the same CLEAN sounding amp model patch in the HD500 for the comparison. Both guitars had Volume and Tone controls on Max. First off, I was surprised by how different they both sounded - the Fender Tele with rich warm notes on the 3 low strings and treble attack on the high strings but the JTV model just had high treble attack across all strings. So I looked at the GUITAR-IN-Z setting and it was set to AUTO. So I tried removing the fx blocks before the amp in the patch and when I was left just with the amp, I was getting a brighter sound but still nowhere near as bright as the JTV model. So I tried manually setting the GUITAR-IN-Z value and even with it on the highest level of 3.5M the Fender Tele did not sound quite as bright as the JTV model. It was getting closer but still far enough apart to easily be able to tell the difference. Nothing more I could do to adjust the Fender Tele tone, so I looked at options for the JTV model, and the only things available in Workbench HD are the Volume pot resistance value and the Tone pot resistance and knob position. As I always have my Tone on max, the Tone pot value was not going to be of any use, unless I decided to save a lower Tone knob position with the model. This prompted me to ask "why can't I set the input impedance for the Variax VDI just like I can with the Guitar In?". Surely that would be the best option? But it's not available. So the next question "why is it not available?". My testing with the GUITAR-IN-Z showed that those changes made a big difference to the tonal input of the guitar. Surely we should be able to do the same with the JTV? Or if not, then surely the JTV models should be very similar to the equivalent standard guitar models without any need to tweak - but they are not - they are much brighter and full of high end - well the Tele Neck pickup model certainly is. So - I could go into Workbench and spend some time experimenting with the different volume pot values to see if I could match the tonal qualities of the model with the real thing, or I could experiment with the tone pot values and setting of the knob position to achieve a similar tonal quality. But these options seem way over the top and time consuming and unnecessary when the Variax models should have the input impedance modelled in some way already or at the very lest they should respond like the AUTO setting does for Guitar In and match chosen fx or amp, but they don't. They don't appear to have any modelled tonal attenuation due to "lead length" or "Input impedance" - they seem to be constant with no high end attenuation occurring as with a real guitar/pickup/lead combination. Does anyone know why the VDI implementation does not allow for any impedance matching like Guitar-In-z ? Does anyone have any suggested values for volume and/or tone pots that I could try in Workbench HD to make the JTV Tmod-5 model behave tonally like a real Fender Tele neck pick up in terms of attenuated high end? Thanks in advance.