500X

[Steelmaster]

I just want to say how much I love my 500x. It seems the forums are always complaining and bitching about what's not there. I want to say, what a great tool, that makes my life much easier. I've been wanting to switch to the Helix, but I had a long talk with myself yesterday and it was decided the 500X does what I need, and does it well.

[stevevnicks]

hello steelmaster,

 

I only have the HD500 (i bought it secondhand back in april of this year), which is basicly the same as the 500x but a little less powerful and not as nice foot switches, anyway I am with you on that, the POD range are really good for what they can do and i personaly think they do it well.

 

the longer I have owned my HD500 the more I enjoy using it.

 

I would really love to own the Helix but what with being on the verge of christmas and the ever rise in the cost of living these days, i guess i will be sticking with my HD500 for a long time to come.

 

I have finaly got out of the learner stage of messing around with every effect and settings/knob twisting (ohh err) and skipping through them not really fully understanding what i was doing.

 

now i find a sound i like tweek it to what i think is good and stick with it, im still far from a good guitar player although i have improved 10 fold and finaly started to understand my HD500.

 

i guess though the HD500 is only as good as the user who sets it up along with how good they are with the guitar.

 

you can have the best effects in the world and guitar, but if you dont understand how to set it up correctly and have zero guitar skill your still going to make the equipment sound sh!t lol ...

 

Oneday i will get the helix though really nice bit of kit, just out of the poor mans price range atm.

[pianoguyy]

 the forums are always complaining and bitching about what's not there

 

They are angry over their success(or lack thereof) as a musician. Not the unit. I believe they call that 'displaced anger'.   

 

It doesn't make them play any better. It doesn't increase their income. And that is why people are get pissy. 

 

 

Me, an actual money making performer, see the HD500 doing so much... it does things that I have no use for, but things that I want to find a use for.

Of course, what do I know. I used an ART SGE Mach II and Rocktron ProGAP for twenty years, and I have interest in a Helix. No one could possibly perform with that kind of gear ---- or so they think. 

[PeterHamm]

Been rocking an HD 500 since the very first shipment of them. Still really like it. In the house and in the mix, better than any tube amp I ever had so I sold 'em all...

[cruisinon2]

The 500X is great. I'm never going back to "real" amps...at least not live. While I'm not a full-time pro (anymore), I do a fair amount of commercial recording projects, mostly at the same studio, which is well equipped with a variety of tube amps and tons of mics, which I don't have to set up ;). I just show up with a guitar(s) and play...I've used the POD for a couple of those gigs, but it's just easier to use what's there.

 

Anyway, the point is modeling has come a LONG way since the first iterations 20-odd years ago, and it will only improve. It's so close to the real thing, that even golden-eared engineers and producers get fooled...and that will happen more and more going forward...so I'm done with the bulk, the re-tubing, and carrying around 43 9V batteries for the pedal board. I can show up to a gig with the POD, L2T, and 2 guitars (ok, maybe 3 ;))...and it all fits in the back seat.

 

As soon as the Helix stampede is contained, I'll likely order one of those too...I just refuse to sit around and wonder if it's coming tomorrow or on Flag Day 2019.

[DunedinDragon]

There's always going to be a next generation of something, and at some point it becomes useful to upgrade to it if it provides something you can't do with your current equipment.

 

I will say I'm intrigued with the whole dual DSP the Helix has to offer because I can see where it might add a bit more realism to the modeling.  However, I have to ask myself if I'm currently plagued by the need for a more realistic modeling environment, and I can't say that I am at this point.  There may come a time when the state of modeling advances to the point that I need to consider it to keep up, but for right now I don't see the need.  I never run into DSP limitations on my patches and I'm perfectly comfortable with the interface on the 500X, so given those are the key feature improvements I don't see it has anything to offer me right now.

[AlexKenivel]

I'm a late adopter and I'm pretty satisfied. It's a great tool and it has already paid for itself. Sure there are a lot of workarounds that have to be done to get a certain sound or two, and some other bizarre shortcomings but it beats having to lug the entire garage of equipment around!

[PeterHamm]

There may come a time when the state of modeling advances to the point that I need to consider it to keep up, but for right now I don't see the need.  I never run into DSP limitations on my patches and I'm perfectly comfortable with the interface on the 500X, so given those are the key feature improvements I don't see it has anything to offer me right now.

 

You don't buy for "need", though... do you... at least not always...

[pianoguyy]

As a business, yes, you buy when something is needed. Otherwise it is wasteful spending. 

I've already stated that the machine does things that I have no use for, but would like to find a use for them. 

 

I am a long time player. I may change guitars more than I do strippers. But everything else has always been constant. 

 

 

 

Unlike many people... I would not have bought the product if it did not fit my needs. 

And I haven't looked at another product since. Why would I? I have what I need. 

 

 

I often say: 

I bet your wife feels real secure in your relationship knowing that you can be enticed by a newer, shinier, model with bigger play toys. 

 

Unfortunately, the people that statement is meant for, are typically unable to grasp the hidden meaning. 

[DunedinDragon]

Actually you should buy for "need" rather than "want".  Any feature can be made to sound important.  Whether or not it really IS important to you is based on whether it addresses something that's been a limitation specific to you.  That's what differentiates a "need" from a "want".

 

For example I might be want a beautiful 3 bedroom house on a lake.  But since it's just me and my dog and neither of us are interested in fishing, boating, or other water sports I don't "need" it because I likely woundn't take advantage of all it has to offer.

[cruisinon2]

You don't buy for "need", though... do you... at least not always...

The middle class is soon to be a minority in this country, if it's not already. These days, once an item crosses the $1K barrier, I pretty much have to "need" it...

[pianoguyy]

The middle class is soon to be a minority in this country, if it's not already. 

Oddly enough, it was just officially announced this week that, yes, indeed, the middle class is now less than 50% of the population. 

 

 

 

 

Which, I am actually ok with. Because the upper class has grown. The bottom feeders are staying constant, which means the middle are moving up. 

[joel_brown]

Middle class back in my day didn't have to pay for cable T.V., cell phones, internet, and radio, plus health insurance cost a lot less.  Oh and a Marshall amp was under $500.

[FlyingSquirrel]

I'm very content with mine too, having upgraded from the XT Live with Metal Pack after 8+ years.

 

In fact, I'm no longer using POD Farm for recording anymore as the 500X serves me quite well, and I don't have to go through the redundancy of copying my presets into POD Farm.

[cruisinon2]

Which, I am actually ok with. Because the upper class has grown. The bottom feeders are staying constant, which means the middle are moving up.

"I don't have much of a portfolio right now...all my money is tied up in staying alive" - Archie Bunker ;)

[Punkyboy]

yep

great Stuff this Hd500x

[shredjsx]

I started off digital years ago because I wanted a 4 channel amp with different effects per channel and no fade out of effects at higher gain stages....

 

The X3 Live was the first thing that sounded great and met my needs.... Without hauling my amp, pedals and rack system around...

 

I gigged with the X3, a power amp and a Celestion 4x12 cab and blew people away....

 

Still I was unsure of it due to its plastic construction....

 

Bought the hd500x this year and it's just as easy to get a patch as the X3 live.... And It's Made Of Metal!!!!

The sounds are awesome with so much more tweekage

 

 

 

I ain't going to go anywhere anytime soon...

[MaxTravelor]

Gotta Say I'm dig'n and yes, lov'n my 500X... I picked it up this morning for X-Mas, along with a Fender Hot Rod - Major upgrade from a DigiTech RP350 and a 15y/o Crate 65W (non-dsp) and now UP to this behemoth setup (in comparison)..

 

Compared to the RP the 500X is a dream come true.. Yes NEED came into the equation, because I've been doing just fine with the 350 but I NEEDED to be able to remove various pedals out of the signal path a lot more efficiently then having to create a complete tone selection just to remove/add something to the path.  Plus as time goes by and we invest more "real" time in actually playing our guitars, and consequently our skills and talents improve and our ears grow more attuned and we begin to find our own particular "TONE".  It was at this fork that I found myself, being held back by the 350 and honestly I can't see the ground now that I've got the 500X under my wings.. Yes I'm a Line 6 Newb, but now that I got one, I can't wait to pick my guitar up and play..  I know you all know that feeling, and it's nice to feel that again.. 

 

So YES in response to the OP -  -  There's no reason not to LOVE your 500X -  I'm right there with ya, lov'n mine!!!

[Brazzy]

I just want to say how much I love my 500x. It seems the forums are always complaining and bitching about what's not there. I want to say, what a great tool, that makes my life much easier. I've been wanting to switch to the Helix, but I had a long talk with myself yesterday and it was decided the 500X does what I need, and does it well.

 

I still use my HD500 and am not disappointed in it, I have a lot of fun with that thing and will continue to until it gives up the ghost. As for people bitching??, this is not really a bad thing regardless of being a bad musician or a good one. If no one ever bitched about whatever it was that bothered them we would still be driving around in steam cars, lol. Improvements are made and we evolve because of bitching/complaining customers/users etc. etc.

 

Also not everyone learns the same way.

[shredjsx]

It's a matter of taking the time to learn to use the equipment you buy, if you expect something to sound PERFECT when you turn it on, then you are misguided...

 

As far as learning curve, I had a used Vetta Combo first, with my Peavey JSX.... And then a desktop ux1. Began using the Vetta more, then I bought the x3 live...

And years later bought the 500x...

I loved the fact that the operation from the screen on the board was just like the X3....

 

It took about a month before I started using the PC software and I've been loving it!!!!

And now the Variax!!!!

 

And sharing tones on customtone is awesome....

 

So anyone that cannot move forward, expects perfection right away is stuck in the past and lazy....

[DunedinDragon]

I do think a lot of folks figure these units will be something of a "turn it on and it will do the magic" without understanding the learning curve. I've been doing this sort of thing for at least 6 years now and I still come across interesting new ways of creating a variety of tones or adjustments that are extraordinarily useful.  I don't particularly care for downloading custom tones as I have done that in the past and haven't been very satisfied with the results.  For the most part they might sound perfect on the guitar and rig that someone was using when they created it, but to adapt it to my specific guitar and rig takes almost as much time as it would to create one from scratch.

 

What I do find very useful and informative is watching some of the instructional videos of how someone created a given patch.  I'd much rather learn how they achieved it so I can apply some of the same approaches in patches I create for myself.

[shredjsx]

Me to, the line 6 videos are great on YouTube, as well as a few others.... It's made me experiment more with other effects and settings I normally would avoid....

 

I've been going through each amp and have been find some great ones I never would even try. And some of my tried and true amps have already gone by the wayside....

 

What I really don't like is how some of the smaller amps like the champ are so low in volume that you have to boost them with a EQ, that is ridiculous.... Especially for great sounding amps, and so one who plays live and needs most of their patches at the same volume...

 

Any more go to amps for you guys?

 

So far I've found a lot of the older Marshalls and Fenders I like, and both Bogners....

[Dshow]

I just want to say how much I love my 500x. It seems the forums are always complaining and bitching about what's not there. I want to say, what a great tool, that makes my life much easier. I've been wanting to switch to the Helix, but I had a long talk with myself yesterday and it was decided the 500X does what I need, and does it well.

 

Yeah I still have my HD500. Bought it as soon as it came out.

 

As mentioned above the trick is not to always have the newest gear but to learn how to use the gear you have. Only if you feel limited in beeing creative and productive then think about changing the gear.

 

For me it is also about dialing in the tones for myself. I have downloaded many patches from customtone in the past but only a few of them worked for my need. Most of them sound like crap with my gear. That's not always because the tone itself is bad but it was created with other gear and for other use. After all the time using the HD500 I can pretty fast achieve the tone that I want. There are some good amp simulation and some not so good but overall it is a pretty good unit.

 

I'm also keeping an eye on the helix because there are some options that I miss in the HD500 since I have it. That is direct reamping over USB (my old X3 had that) and phantom power for the mics. But the sounds and feel of the helix has to be much better otherwise I stick with the HD500.

I also get an Eleven Rack really soon to test it out. I was always interested in it and now I have the change to test it in person so I'll give it a try - just for fun.