What I've found with the 500X

[SteveEds]

I bought it new around 3 months ago I looked online for the Pink Floyd patches and ended up d/loading 100's of patches, I sat there and tried them all.

 

The perfect PF patch (from a youtube vid) was indeed perfect running through headphones so away I went to band practice, it was terrible and I was just cut.

 

The drummer Steve Bartlet (BAJA) who builds effect pedals gave me his Line 6 500 best 4 patches and well , just outstanding. He's an old bugger like me and has the early live sounds in his head that he works with, I have the Boss GT-8 conditioned sounds in mine.

 

The thing is it works and is just brilliant, when you do it right it covers many sounds, the PF sound is part of the one coverall patch I now use. It does SCM, PF, Santana spot on, take off the overdriven valve sounds and you get that 60-70"s sweet home Alabama sounds, move the volume pedal down and it brings on a deeper delay and Chorus for a full sweet sound.

 

The point is when you actually know sound you can get it, it's taken him 4 years of working with his 500 to do it though.

I thought nothing could replace the 10 years of building sounds on the GT-8 but this 500X has proved to be simply outstanding.

 

I run the 500X into a pair of 600 watt powered Wharfdale speakers

 

I have four what I call "coverall" patches if anyone wants them. They are in stomp mode and will take a while to learn but they are all mostly the same with subtle differences, the y are built to go into a PA or a EQ flat amp.

 

I see I can attach a file, This is the one I mostly use, it's a 500 patch, select "all files" to load it to the 500X, I'd be interested to hear others takes on it good or bad, I won't take offence at all. 

 

I see I can't attach the patch

[CipherHost]

I see I can't attach the patch

 

I think you might have to change the file extension to upload it here. You could also upload it into Customtone. You can find it at the very top of the page or here: http://line6.com/customtone/

[SteveEds]

Thanks, I wasn't confident enough to upload to the dedicated place, we know that we all think our patches are perfect :), a noob (like me) will always make this mistake but gladly getting older has some benefits.

 

I can email it ..

 

 

 

[DarrellM5]

Thanks, I wasn't confident enough to upload to the dedicated place, we know that we all think our patches are perfect :), a noob (like me) will always make this mistake but gladly getting older has some benefits.

 

I can email it ..

 

I wouldn't worry about posting to CustomTone  The worse that could happen is you get some great constructive criticism which, in the end, will help you to perfect your patch.

[Ed_Saxman]

The drummer Steve Bartlet (BAJA) who builds effect pedals gave me his Line 6 500 best 4 patches and well , just outstanding. He's an old bugger like me and has the early live sounds in his head that he works with, I have the Boss GT-8 conditioned sounds in mine.

 

The thing is it works and is just brilliant, when you do it right it covers many sounds, the PF sound is part of the one coverall patch I now use. It does SCM, PF, Santana spot on, take off the overdriven valve sounds and you get that 60-70"s sweet home Alabama sounds, move the volume pedal down and it brings on a deeper delay and Chorus for a full sweet sound.

 

The point is when you actually know sound you can get it, it's taken him 4 years of working with his 500 to do it though.

I thought nothing could replace the 10 years of building sounds on the GT-8 but this 500X has proved to be simply outstanding.

 

I have four what I call "coverall" patches if anyone wants them. They are in stomp mode and will take a while to learn but they are all mostly the same with subtle differences, the y are built to go into a PA or a EQ flat amp.

My curiosity was piqued by your subtle innuendo.

Please upload those patches.

[radatats]

or you can zip all four patches and attach the zip file here.  Also interested.  Don't worry, nobody is going to bash your work.

[SteveEds]

"My curiosity was piqued by your subtle innuendo"

 

I think I had two running there (smile)

 

I have mailed to three people so far who mailed me, if there is any feedback (would have to be outstanding) I will post them or they probably will. I did trust my original post and for me there is not really a disclaimer.

 

I'm not trying to be mysterious just protecting the new member, me 

 

Power user I did try a few things to upload but I'm keen to see if Steve is onto something or it's just another let down (they have not been for me but I'm no power user of anything)

[BillBee]

We (da band) are messing around with a few Floyd tunes and I used this guy's page as a guide.

 

http://www.dueymoore.com/david_gilmour_tone_guide_pod_h.html

 

-B

[jandrio]

ok steve,

download the attached  zip file containing one random patch, add ur patches 'n attach them as per radatats's suggestion :)

StevePatches.zip

[Ed_Saxman]

#9 jandrio Excuse me sir, but that is an horrid preset. Tube comp with threshold at 0%? +10dB gain using the EQs? +4dB in the mixer? The amp, a dirt stomp and two delays... with the treble all cranked up?

You have been about to blow my speakers and my ears. This has not been a funny joke at all.

[cruisinon2]

#9 jandrio Excuse me sir, but that is an horrid preset. Tube comp with threshold at 0%? +10dB gain using the EQs? +4dB in the mixer? The amp, a dirt stomp and two delays... with the treble all cranked up?

You have been about to blow my speakers and my ears. This has not been a funny joke at all.

LMAO...let the games begin!!!

[SteveEds]

I think I did it.

 

I do know most will hate them, it's ok I'm on the road to enlightenment so can't take offence, I am just starting though so may have to just maim those with to much negativity. 

:)

 

Oh bother it says "Error You aren't permitted to upload this kind of file"

 

it's was a 7 zip

 

Time to move on one would think., I'm keen to try your money patch, thanking you

[SteveEds]

Jandiro I did a side by side of your money patch and my hiwatt patch, in the room yours was indeed noisy and a bit much fuzz while mine was smoother, yet in the recording your's sounds more alive.

 

Yours is the second solo

No disclaimers on the playing, it's to late for me to start again (oh dear that was a disclaimer)

 

My patch wasn't designed be Steve B to work through a computer (I has the GT-8 for that) but it'll pass

 

A Strat

MONEY.mp3

[Ed_Saxman]

I do not mean to be negative or disrespectful to anyone, but often there are things in the patches of some users who are at least strange, if not downright bizarre.

Some criticism should not hurt. For example, in the screenshot at the dueymoore site we can see presets with a Tube comp: 51% of makeup gain and 40% Threshold.
LOL! That's a beast. And he is using another compressor before a distortion pedal with tons of gain and volume! Please kill me ASAP.

Of course everyone should do whatever he wants, but would have to understand that sometimes 50% is not an average, but an excess. The makeup gain (level) and Threshold of the Tube Comp is a good example, but it also applies to things like reverb or delay, where often 10-15% are the values ​​that we should use, and often not only as a starting point, but as general rule for some effects.

Most POD HD presets often have too much of everything. That's what makes the presets sound all the same, with a superprocessed, overcompressed and synthetic sound. That´s not how a POD sounds, its just how the average user often make it sound.

But these are things that everyone some people learns over time.

Currently I have come to the conclusion that less is more. The POD HD sounds far better and more realistic when you use less effects or even the same but in a subtle fashion (not cranked, and not even 50% dry/wet). Also it sounds better if you do not use the power amp simulation (using only the pre versions. ideally with a stereo powered cab), or the microphone simulations (using the direct mode power amp). The sound also improves a lot when you cut the annoying cab resonance to 0%, or when you remove the boomyness with the low cut parameter. It´s pretty easy to get lost in the mix by using a wet reverb (or something else) that sends the guitar to the background, making the POD sound dull and lifeless.

Actually my best sounding presets are including just a preamp (not removing cab sims) and 3 effects. No noise gates, dirt stomps, EQs, or even compressors (unless absolutely necessary, but it´s clear to me that every effect you add up a certain point makes your sound less natural. Even a "Hard Gate" modifies your tone in some way. Every filter does.)

I go straight to the line-ins of a stereo powered cab. No more power amp crossover distortion, resonance filters, mic emulations, or cheesy effects burying the sound of the guitar.
This way, my POD HD500 never sounded better before. A great piece of gear, relatively easy to use but really hard to master.

[eenymason]

I do not mean to be negative or disrespectful to anyone, but often there are things in the patches of some users who are at least strange, if not downright bizarre.

 

Some criticism should not hurt. For example, in the screenshot at the dueymoore site we can see presets with a Tube comp: 51% of makeup gain and 40% Threshold.

LOL! That's a beast. And he is using another compressor before a distortion pedal with tons of gain and volume! Please kill me ASAP.

 

Of course everyone should do whatever he wants, but would have to understand that sometimes 50% is not an average, but an excess. The makeup gain (level) and Threshold of the Tube Comp is a good example, but it also applies to things like reverb or delay, where often 10-15% are the values ​​that we should use, and often not only as a starting point, but as general rule for some effects.

 

Most POD HD presets often have too much of everything. That's what makes the presets sound all the same, with a superprocessed, overcompressed and synthetic sound. That´s not how a POD sounds, its just how the average user often make it sound.

 

But these are things that everyone some people learns over time.

 

Currently I have come to the conclusion that less is more. The POD HD sounds far better and more realistic when you use less effects or even the same but in a subtle fashion (not cranked, and not even 50% dry/wet). Also it sounds better if you do not use the power amp simulation (using only the pre versions. ideally with a stereo powered cab), or the microphone simulations (using the direct mode power amp). The sound also improves a lot when you cut the annoying cab resonance to 0%, or when you remove the boomyness with the low cut parameter. It´s pretty easy to get lost in the mix by using a wet reverb (or something else) that sends the guitar to the background, making the POD sound dull and lifeless.

 

Actually my best sounding presets are including just a preamp and 3 effects. No noise gates, dirt stomps, EQs, or even compressors (unless absolutely necessary, but it´s clear to me that every effect you add up a certain point makes your sound less natural. Even a "Hard Gate" modifies your tone in some way. Every filter does.)

 

I go straight to the line-ins of a stereo powered cab. No more power amp crossover distortion, resonance filters, mic emulations, or cheesy effects burying the sound of the guitar.

This way, my POD HD500 never sounded better before. A great piece of gear, relatively easy to use but really hard to master.

Hats off to Mr Saxman - someone's gotta stick their head outta the bunker sometimes and tell it how it is.

 

There are a lot of people around forums such as these that take information/opinions proffered by other forum users, (regardless of whether it's good or not), and don't offer anything in return - ie thanks for good advice, or even criticism (good, or bad), when they learned something (good, or bad).

 

Nice tips above Ed - I am in the midst of setting up patches to try out with a new band which is evidently a lot louder, and heavier than I've played with before, and I think the patches I have setup at low/moderate volume on my stereo speakers at home (and earphones), are going to sound off when I pump them through my stereo valve power amp and two speaker cabs at higher than usual volume. My usual modus operandi is to use full amp modelling, and also leave cab/mic simulation on even though I'm going through guitar speakers. Reason being, I don't usually go very loud (50 watts per channel amp set around 3-4, Pod HD500 output volume set around 1-2 o'clock), and one speaker cab I use is the open back cab (minus amp section) of a Spider IV 120 watt stereo with 2x10" Celestion G10P-80 speakers, which I figure must be pretty flat response as far as guitar speakers go. The other one is a Marshall JCM800 2x12 extension cab with G12-65's, which can sound a little dark on their own, but together with the other cab it's a good combo. I guess I could experiment with dual amp more, and run pre only on the Marshall cab side.

I also agree less is better in the effects area, but I have some songs which have a fair bit going on, and as the sole guitarist, I find sometimes I have to layer stuff to fill the sound.

I'm going to set up duplicates of these patches I'm creating, and maybe with pres only, and the power amp channels up around 7-8, and and the Pod output around 3-4 o'clock, it'll sing like never before. I'm pumped!!

[cruisinon2]

My usual modus operandi is to use full amp modelling, and also leave cab/mic simulation on even though I'm going through guitar speakers.

You're not alone. I've found using just to pre's to have all the appeal of a rusty chainsaw rattling around inside an empty oil drum. I'm now running FRFR, but for the first year and a half or so with the POD, I was going into a tube power amp and a 4x12. Couldn't make the pre-amp only models usable no matter what I tried...but the full models with the right mic choice sounded great. Switching to FRFR required quite a bit of re-working the patches, but I'm very happy with the results.

[Ed_Saxman]

Hats off to Mr Saxman - Nice tips above Ed

My usual modus operandi is to use full amp modelling, and also leave cab/mic simulation on even though I'm going through guitar speakers. Reason being, I don't usually go very loud (50 watts per channel amp set around 3-4, Pod HD500 output volume set around 1-2 o'clock), and one speaker cab I use is the open back cab (minus amp section) of a Spider IV 120 watt stereo with 2x10" Celestion G10P-80 speakers, which I figure must be pretty flat response as far as guitar speakers go. The other one is a Marshall JCM800 2x12 extension cab with G12-65's, which can sound a little dark on their own, but together with the other cab it's a good combo. I guess I could experiment with dual amp more, and run pre only on the Marshall cab side.

I also agree less is better in the effects area, but I have some songs which have a fair bit going on, and as the sole guitarist, I find sometimes I have to layer stuff to fill the sound.

I'm going to set up duplicates of these patches I'm creating, and maybe with pres only, and the power amp channels up around 7-8, and and the Pod output around 3-4 o'clock, it'll sing like never before. I'm pumped!!

thank you eenymason

 

Just to clarify:

I´m using Pres+Cab sims but no Mic emulation, and using the Combo Power Amp output mode, going in a 2x12 stereo power amp (formerly a Roland GA-212 200W guitar amp with stereo line-in connectors, so its preamp is completely bypassed)

 

http://foobazaar.com/podhd/toneGuide/setup#outputChart

http://foobazaar.com/podhd/toneGuide/quickGuide#outputModes

 

 

On the other hand, my POD is also connected to a Roland Octa-Capture going in a pair or Event Studio Precision 200W active monitors, where I obviously have to use the full amp models, the Studio/Direct output mode and the mic sims.

This is OK to record, but this is no where or how I prefer to hear the guitar.

 

These are two disparate concepts: Here is the FRFR sound you expect to hear on a recording, and the other is the dry direct sound you expect to hear from an amp.

 

So I have made different setlist for each setup, and this requires quite a bit of re-working the patches, as crusinon2 says. Although sometimes I run both the monitors and the 2X12 together just for fun.

 

IMO, the poweramp simulation (modeled in the full amps) is easily the worst part of the HD modeling (due to the nasty crossover distortion that comes from there), along with the cab resonators. But some Pres are simply outstanding in the right setup. I´m not sure why we have to use the cabs sims when you´re using a real cab but once you eliminate the poweramp simulations out of the equation (plus the mics) by selecting the right output mode, and set the resonance to 0%, it´s safe to think in the cabs sims as plain IR´s.

 

So I´m not trying to use my powered cab as a FRFR in any way, I already have my studio monitors for that purpose. I want it to sound like a guitar 2X12 combo amp does. In this scenario, the POD HD makes a great work as a Preamp+MFX unit+Cab "IR´s"

 

Once you get it, of course. I've been doing it wrong for a looong while. :lol:

[SteveEds]

Using amps you get a free volume pedal.

 

The important thing is global EQ, it sets the overall color of the sound and can be matched to the gear at/in the moment especially for the darker music where overtones shatter the output EQ's. (those out of harmony collective sounds)

[davidb7170]

The thing to remember is there is no wrong, just what's wrong for you. I've found many "wrong ways" to do it....until I found the right way for me (at least so far).... My luck with patches from Custom Tone here has been less than satisfactory, because everybody has different equipment, and different tastes, and different ears. What's right for others ain't always my cup of meat...

 

"There is no spoon..."

 

Dave

[cruisinon2]

The thing to remember is there is no wrong, just what's wrong for you. I've found many "wrong ways" to do it....until I found the right way for me (at least so far).... My luck with patches from Custom Tone here has been less than satisfactory, because everybody has different equipment, and different tastes, and different ears. What's right for others ain't always my cup of meat...

 

"There is no spoon..."

 

Dave

Amen. Customtone is a great idea, but the reality is less than inspiring. I've tried probably 150 patches, maybe more...exactly one made it into regular use. Not a good enough ratio to bother with...just takes too long to audition them all. Plus, you'll never really learn anything about the device that way.

[pianoguyy]

While there is no right and no wrong --- 

there are certainly things that have been tried that can be a good place to start or good thing to avoid. 

Otherwise, why bother asking questions. 

 

 

And there is also the old adage -- 

you have to learn to walk before you can run a 100m in under 10s.

Which means, learn the basics before you try doing advanced stuff. And people answering questions should also try to remember that too, answer beginner questions with beginner answers.