Variax sound sample vs. actual guitars

[amsdenj]

I just got an email from Line6 with a link to some Variax sound samples, maybe you got them to. I have worked very hard to get my new Variax Standard to sound good, especially on the Strat, Tele, Les Paul and Martin D28 models. I must say the sound samples from Line6 are very good. But I'm not achieving that with my Variax Standard, really not even close. I wonder what your experiences are any why there appears to be such a difference between my particular model and the samples from Line6. I'm wondering if its because the Variax Standard doesn't use the same piezo pickups as the JVT models.

[cruisinon2]

I just got an email from Line6 with a link to some Variax sound samples, maybe you got them to. I have worked very hard to get my new Variax Standard to sound good, especially on the Strat, Tele, Les Paul and Martin D28 models. I must say the sound samples from Line6 are very good. But I'm not achieving that with my Variax Standard, really not even close. I wonder what your experiences are any why there appears to be such a difference between my particular model and the samples from Line6. I'm wondering if its because the Variax Standard doesn't use the same piezo pickups as the JVT models.

Well, not to put too fine a point on it, but it's advertising. Lord only knows how much "secret sauce" was dumped on those tracks to get them to sound the way they do...how were they recorded, how much post-EQ, fx, etc. They wanna sell guitars. Lackluster sound clips wouldn't help much.

[psarkissian]

Variax Standard and JTV use the same piezos, just mounted in different saddles.

[amsdenj]

Given the differences in level on different strings on my Variax Standard (using Workbench HD), I'm wondering if there's a lot of variability in the piezos, or impact on how they are mounted that could account for the tone differences I heard.

 

On my guitar, I find that I like the sound of the wound strings pretty well. However, the plain strings have much lower output, and have a banjo/resonance kind of tone and odd attack, like the string is being pinched, that I don't hear in the Line6 samples. I wonder if those piezo should be replaced.

 

I would love to find a way to reproduce those tones. Otherwise I'm not that thrilled with the Variax Standard model tones.

[psarkissian]

Not that I've found. Some normalization was done to recent firmware updates,

but you can only normalize so much before it has a bad effect on the model patch.

[Smashcraaft]

I have worked very hard to get my new Variax Standard to sound good, especially on the Strat, Tele, Les Paul and Martin D28 models. I wonder what your experiences are any why there appears to be such a difference between my particular model and the samples from Line6.

I archive very characteristic sounds using amps of the vintage pack like the Pete Anderson or even the Acoustic with my Variax 600.

 

I never tried to get in competition with the L6 demos but maybe they are all recorded in a special and fitting amp/cab/mic environment and not using one single setting for all. However... Variax and Vintage Pack works great together.

[amsdenj]

Ok, I'm willing to admit pilot error and learn. I have figured out what my problem was with my Variax Standard tones. Mind you, the improvements I got balancing the strings, and changing the guitar bodies for the Tele, Strat and Les Paul models to the Masonite Plank were good and worth while. But I was still getting that odd banjo-like resonance tone on the three plain strings when using the models.

 

Here's the lesson learned: I've been using V-Pick Tradition picks for the last couple of years. I love how they feel and sound, and have been using them exclusively. They sound fantastic on my real Strat and Les Paul, and they sound pretty much the same on the Variax Standard magnetic pickups. No problem at all. But those were the picks I was using that were creating the banjo resonance tone that wasn't pleasing.

 

On our last gig, I decided to try using a very different pick to see how it impacted my playing and tone. I had a selection of V-Picks and grabbed a Euro. Its small, light, very stiff, but not nearly as thick as the Tradition, has holes in it, and is shaped and sized like the small Dunlop Jazz III picks I use to use years ago. The Euro still sounded very good, and played different then the bigger, thicker Tradition, but didn't have any negative impact on my playing so I used it the whole gig.

 

The wonders!! The banjo resonance on the Variax Standard models was gone! I was getting a great tone from the Variax, and tended to prefer the somewhat thicker Strat model over the magnetic picks for the first time. It was the pick! For some reason, those Piezo pickups don't like that V-Pick Tradition on plain strings while the Euro was just fine. Its likely due to the thickness and shape of the pick end bevel. But whatever, my Variax Standard tone issues are gone.

 

I said something the other day regarding HTTP and IoT - "Never underestimate the power of simplicity". It appears that applies to picks too.