No Preset List?!?!? Come On Line 6!

[museeip]

I may be missing something here but after several attempts to find a preset list on the internet for my POD HD500 has come up empty. It seems that Line6 does not have one. Come on Line6 that is PATHETIC!!!

You guys created the presets, would it have been that hard to write them down!!! I love Line6 products and own a ton but this kind of lack of support is incredibly frustrating. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE write down a list of your presets that mention the amp, cab, and effects. PLEASE!!! It takes forever to go through all the presets and move the little cursor over to find out what effects are in it, having to mess with your volume for every patch. It's a nightmare!

[TheRealZap]

The presets are just to show off some of the capabilities... noone really uses them.. nor should you... the name of the preset gives you an idea and that's about it.

 

to my knowledge the list you seek simply does not exist. the presets were not put together as some sort of ultimate formula... they were just created on the fly so that the unit didn't ship empty... in my opinion.

 

why not try to enjoy the device more and worry less...

load it up with tones that you might enjoy from http://customtone.com and dive in.

[Rewolf48]

To see what is in the presets it is much easier to use HD Edit than the screen on the POD...

 

The presets list has also changed with firmware versions - for example when the Flip Top Amp was added some bass presets appeared replacing some earlier ones and they all moved around.

 

Assuming that you chose to overwrite the presets when you upgraded otherwise you still have the earlier presets, so you might have the presets from a much older firmware version: there is no definitive list

[silverhead]

....

You guys created the presets, would it have been that hard to write them down!!!...

You're right - it's probably not that hard. And using HD Edit makes it rather simple as Rewolf48 points out. So it sounds simple - why not create your preset list yourself? And if you're feeling generous you could post it here for the benefit of others who, like yourself, may feel that it's important. And don't forget to maintain separate versions of it for each firmware release.

 

That would be great - and shouldn't take you long at all by your own estimation.

[Mr_Arkadin]

I love First World problems. Yeah, it's a real nightmare, I actually didn't get any sleep thinking about this huge issue.

[toneman2121]

we must resolve this outrageous oversight with the utmost urgency. i'll have my people contact your people and together we will triumph over line6's atrocity. :angry:  

[TheRealZap]

I get that his approach was a little bit over the top....

but he had a legitimate question... everyone be nice :)

[guitarno]

    Well, the responses may have been a little rude, but OMG, I was LMAO to put it in internet jargon! You guys made my day! Hilarious! The OP had a point though, it would be handy as a reference to have a layout or roadmap of how the factory patches were built, just for educational purposes. I really think that most "Factory" patches in almost all effects devices are pure junk, and mostly unusable (the HD500X is no exception), but they are mostly created to show capabilities of what you can do, not practical patches for you to plug into your setlist unaltered.

 

   It sounds like he's using the interface on the hardware unit. Using HD Edit is much easier to understand what is going on, at least for me. I have to learn the hardware interface too, so I can change things on the fly, but I don't see making patches from scratch on the unit itself as being very practical. I would probably only make small adjustments on the hardware as needed, but you do have to know how to get to what you need to change to do that.

 

   Has anyone ever put together an excel spreadsheet with all the settings (amp & stompbox choices, parameter values, ...) for the HD500? I'm afraid I don't have the excel skills or time to do this, but I have seen it done for other units. It would be a lot of work to put one together. I don't know that you really need one, if you're using HD Edit, but I was curious if there was one already out there somewhere. They can be a good visual learning tool.

[TheRealZap]

uh huh
 

 

 

    Well, the responses may have been a little rude, but OMG, I was LMAO to put it in internet jargon! You guys made my day! Hilarious! The OP had a point though, it would be handy as a reference to have a layout or roadmap of how the factory patches were built, just for educational purposes. I really think that most "Factory" patches in almost all effects devices are pure junk, and mostly unusable (the HD500X is no exception), but they are mostly created to show capabilities of what you can do, not practical patches for you to plug into your setlist unaltered.

 

   It sounds like he's using the interface on the hardware unit. Using HD Edit is much easier to understand what is going on, at least for me. I have to learn the hardware interface too, so I can change things on the fly, but I don't see making patches from scratch on the unit itself as being very practical. I would probably only make small adjustments on the hardware as needed, but you do have to know how to get to what you need to change to do that.

 

   Has anyone ever put together an excel spreadsheet with all the settings (amp & stompbox choices, parameter valuse, ...) for the HD500? I'm afraid I don't have the excel skills or time to do this, but I have seen it done for other units. It would be a lot of work to put one together. I don't know that you really need one, if you're using HD Edit, but I was curious if there was one already out there somewhere. They can be a good visual learning tool.

[arislaf]

      Has anyone ever put together an excel spreadsheet with all the settings (amp & stompbox choices, parameter values, ...) for the HD500? I'm afraid I don't have the excel skills or time to do this, but I have seen it done for other units. It would be a lot of work to put one together. I don't know that you really need one, if you're using HD Edit, but I was curious if there was one already out there somewhere. They can be a good visual learning tool.

Indeed, somebody has.I will upload it today or tomorrow.

[guitarno]

Excellent!  :D    B) You Rock! B)    That would be a huge help in trying to learn the HD500's layout, signal chain & components.

[arislaf]

Excellent!  :D    B) You Rock! B)    That would be a huge help in trying to learn the HD500's layout, signal chain & components.

Sorry mate, my mistake.It is adobe not excel...

HD Model Sheets Firmware v2.pdf

[guitarno]

That's OK. This is very helpful! Anything that helps show the different choices available in the modules helps me to begin to wrap my mind around it. Thanks for posting this! :D

[arislaf]

Welcome! Now for that one , I am not sure if it gonna help you, but it's worth to check it out. http://line6.com/data/6/0a060b316ac34f0593fabe278/application/pdf/M13/M9/M5%20FX%20Parameters%20-%20English%20(%20Rev%20B%20).pdf

 

I know that pod has also a similar manual, but this is more organized, and since it is the same effects, I prefer this.

[silverhead]

There's also the Pod HD Model Gallery PDF in the Product Manuals section.

[museeip]

Ok, everybody had their fun??? Clearly most of you have more time to spend navigating your POD HD's than I do. When I am recording and I "need" a certain tone I wish I could just look at a sheet..."oh, Fender Twin with delay...go to patch 13D...etc." I agree that Edit would speed things up but when I'm running Calkwalk I don't connect the USB to the POD because then Calkwalk defaults to the POD as the sound card, and this still requires me to load every preset to see what amps/effects are in it. 

 

That would be great - and shouldn't take you long at all by your own estimation.

Not sure I estimated how long it would take, but ok...

 

The presets are just to show off some of the capabilities... noone really uses them.. nor should you... the name of the preset gives you an idea and that's about it.

I am aware and I'm not intending to use any presets but they would be a good place to start. I'm sorry but the names do not give a description of what amps and effects are in each preset...they are useless. When I am inspired musically I don't want to stop that creative process to play with my POD for 30 minutes, I just want to find a patch, tweak it a little and record. 

 

My point is this, someone at Line 6 took an enormous amount of time to create all those presets. The fact they did not write that down to include in the manual or on the website is, as I said pathetic.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge Line 6 fan and I've owned many devices since their inception. You would be hard pressed to find a bigger advocate for Line 6 than me, but little things like this are upsetting. I've had so many guitarist tell me that Line 6 sucks and that is because if you are not familiar with Line 6 it's hard to try something at a music store and get a feel for it. As the Real Zap stated, most of the presets are junk so just flipping through them would leave a bad taste with most guitarists. Imagine how many more devices they could sell if they just had a list of what amps are on what presets. Seems simple, but based on the comments I guess I'm asking for too much.

[museeip]

I love First World problems. Yeah, it's a real nightmare, I actually didn't get any sleep thinking about this huge issue.

 

 

we must resolve this outrageous oversight with the utmost urgency. i'll have my people contact your people and together we will triumph over line6's atrocity. :angry:  

 

I see you guys are satisfied with getting 90% there on the products you purchase. I expect more from a company like Line 6.

[Mr_Arkadin]

Wow, you're really upset by this. I don't think most people care because they don't use the presets. Rename them to something you find useful and print out the list, really not that difficult.

 

I doubt Line 6 are losing sales as you suggest because there isn't a list of preset names.

[museeip]

Wow, you're really upset by this. I don't think most people care because they don't use the presets. Rename them to something you find useful and print out the list, really not that difficult.

 

I doubt Line 6 are losing sales as you suggest because there isn't a list of preset names.

I wouldn't say I'm upset, I made the post almost a month ago and just checked today to see responses. Frustrated?.Yes. Again, maybe I'm out of line with expecting a list of presets but I know a lot of guys who would love one. You can even search through the Line 6 forum and see I'm not the first person looking for this.

Feel free to disagree about potential sales. I worked at Guitar Center long enough and have been in the community to know that many guitarists think Line 6 is junk because their only experience has been playing through a setup and a store and thumbing through the presets blind. If you don't know Line 6 stuff and you want to hear what a JCM-800 model sounds like or a Hi-Watt it can be hard to find. You might not agree that a list would be beneficial but I disagree.

[Mr_Arkadin]

I don't disagree that a list might be useful for those that never change the presets, I just find the language used like "upsetting", "pathetic", "nightmare" etc. somewhat over-the-top for a very tiny first world issue.

 

I'm not too sure how a list with names like "Jimi Got Gyped" would really help anyone though. A better approach might be to create new basic patches with names like "JCM-800" or whatever to reflect the amp in the patch. And then write it down ;)

[museeip]

First of all, you keep bringing up 'first world issues" as if this is a major issue in my life. I'll remind you this is the Line 6 POD HD forum, not a political "world problems" website.

I'm sorry you find my choice of words over-the-top but I feel they are appropriate. OK. maybe "pathetic" is strong but yeah, having to surf through 256 patches, broken up into 4 set lists where you can only see four at a time on a 2" x 3" screen is a nightmare in my humble opinion. And, yes it is upsetting that for Line 6 to include this information in their manual would have been minimal work compared to what they (and some on this post) are asking me to do to get that same information. The ironic thing is that I bet someone at Line 6 has this info, most likely in an Excel doc just sitting on their PC. I apologize if you think my points are too much but you need to understand my hope was for a Line 6 employee to see my post and just be one more squeaky wheel on this topic I have seen before but no resolved. You can make fun of me and I can take all these negative votes but I'd like to think part of this forum is for feedback to Line 6 to improve their products. POD HD comes out without a power switch, everyone bitches, Line 6 listens...the new model has a power switch!

Again, I do this out of love  :wub:  for Line 6. I've used them for over 15 years and they are all I use from my Variax to my amp...I just know they can do better.

[museeip]

I don't disagree that a list might be useful for those that never change the presets

A Preset is just a starting point that quickly lines up several things like pedals, amps, cabs, and guitars with a Variax. When you're writing and have a tone in your head presets are often the quickest way to get close to that tone. Then it's just a matter of tweaking the preset to taste. 

[Mr_Arkadin]

I apologize if you think my points are too much but you need to understand my hope was for a Line 6 employee to see my post and just be one more squeaky wheel on this topic I have seen before but no resolved.

 

 

Well a Line 6 employee is not likely to swing by - and out of all the issues with the Pod this would probably be quite low priority (I think making EQ display in dB would be top).

 

If you actually want Line 6 to take note then shoot them your suggestion on IdeaScale:

 

http://line6.ideascale.com/

[Akeron]

I've never used presets of anything I've owned, well maybe I do a short test but then I always start from scratch changing everything and never look back at the presets anymore. When I was playing with real amps I changed settings of every effects and amp knobs all the time, because most of the time the presets are unrealistic and\or boring. If having good presets was the rule for selling more products, I guess every company would have some...

[arislaf]

 

Again, I do this out of love  :wub:  for Line 6. I've used them for over 15 years and they are all I use from my Variax to my amp...I just know they can do better.

 

Therefore, if you use the line 6 15 years, you already know they NEVER do any preset list as you request...

A Preset is just a starting point that quickly lines up several things like pedals, amps, cabs, and guitars with a Variax. When you're writing and have a tone in your head presets are often the quickest way to get close to that tone. Then it's just a matter of tweaking the preset to taste. 

 

Yes, this is what a preset is, but this is out of topic.

Ok, everybody had their fun??? Clearly most of you have more time to spend navigating your POD HD's than I do. When I am recording and I "need" a certain tone I wish I could just look at a sheet..."oh, Fender Twin with delay...go to patch 13D...etc." I agree that Edit would speed things up but when I'm running Calkwalk I don't connect the USB to the POD because then Calkwalk defaults to the POD as the sound card, and this still requires me to load every preset to see what amps/effects are in it. 

 

Not sure I estimated how long it would take, but ok...

 

I am aware and I'm not intending to use any presets but they would be a good place to start. I'm sorry but the names do not give a description of what amps and effects are in each preset...they are useless. When I am inspired musically I don't want to stop that creative process to play with my POD for 30 minutes, I just want to find a patch, tweak it a little and record. 

 

My point is this, someone at Line 6 took an enormous amount of time to create all those presets. The fact they did not write that down to include in the manual or on the website is, as I said pathetic.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge Line 6 fan and I've owned many devices since their inception. You would be hard pressed to find a bigger advocate for Line 6 than me, but little things like this are upsetting. I've had so many guitarist tell me that Line 6 sucks and that is because if you are not familiar with Line 6 it's hard to try something at a music store and get a feel for it. As the Real Zap stated, most of the presets are junk so just flipping through them would leave a bad taste with most guitarists. Imagine how many more devices they could sell if they just had a list of what amps are on what presets. Seems simple, but based on the comments I guess I'm asking for too much.

Run the Edit without cakewalk, see what you need, write it down, and open the Cakewalk after to record.Or simply try to create your own preset from scratch.Or get another device...Basically, I don't get it why while there is no problem, you are having one...

 

I see you guys are satisfied with getting 90% there on the products you purchase. I expect more from a company like Line 6.

As i said above, if you are 15 years here, you know what to expect...

[museeip]

Therefore, if you use the line 6 15 years, you already know they NEVER do any preset list as you request...

I'd like to think things can change for the better.

 

 

Yes, this is what a preset is, but this is out of topic.

Actually this post is specifically about presets.

 

 

Run the Edit without cakewalk, see what you need, write it down, and open the Cakewalk after to record.Or simply try to create your own preset from scratch.Or get another device...Basically, I don't get it why while there is no problem, you are having one...

So, I'm recording and have an idea for a part and I know I want a certain tone. I should...Shut down Cakewalk, shut off the POD, connect the USB, start the POD, start Edit, look for the tone I want to start with, write that down, unplug the USB, start Cakewalk again, load the project, load the preset, tweak it and then record? Sounds much more time consuming than looking at a sheet, turning to that channel, tweaking the sound and recording. 

Basically, what I don't get is why you have a problem with me requesting such a document. We've already established some people would want one.

 

 

Well a Line 6 employee is not likely to swing by - and out of all the issues with the Pod this would probably be quite low priority (I think making EQ display in dB would be top).

 

If you actually want Line 6 to take note then shoot them your suggestion on IdeaScale:

 

http://line6.ideascale.com/

Thanks for the link. I did not know about this. I will add that the complexity of developing the eq to show db is MUCH greater than printing a piece of paper. I don't feel like I'm really asking that much compared to requests like that, but I guess I am.

 

Trust me, I know the presets are horrible sounding and I would never use one without adjusting it. I talk with my friend in Taiwan every week and half the time we talk about Line 6. Most of that time is spent talking about how awesome they are but many times we talk about how poor the presets are, who creates them and why they still have a job. Again though, I use presets as a quick starting point like a template that I tweak to taste. I don't care if you build your tone one piece at a time you still need to tweak that tone. I get if you only play in one style of music that creating a couple of tones would be easy, but if you write in a large variety of styles and want to take full advantage of what the POD can do it's a much larger task. When I'm sketching out a song I want to do things FAST and keep the inspiration going. I will always go back and re-record everything and make sure to spend time getting the tone I want but in the initial phase of creation speed is more important than the ultimate tone. That is easily changed down the road. It's fine if you all do it differently but this is how I like to work.

 

I'll leave it at that. It appears no one on this post agrees a document like this would be useful and some appear to be posting just to make fun of someone they perceive a new Line 6 user. 

Thanks for all the ..uh....help....and encouraging words :huh:  

[BigChas52]

There are 256 factory presets on the POD HD, although Bank 1 is the "best" of banks 2 through 4.  How would you suggest they be organized?  By preset name?  By amp used?  By dominant FX used?  What if there are 2 amp chains?  Would you list all of the FX for each preset (up to 8)?  What format; Excel, PDF?

 

By the time Line 6 was done, this wouldn't just be a quick reference chart; it would be a full-on reference manual.  And for what, crappy presets that no one seriously uses?  Oh, and by the way, Line 6 usually changes the presets with each major FW change to show off the new features, so a new tome would be required.

 

Might I suggest that you spend an hour or two, go into HD Edit, find a half dozen or so that you like and make note of them.  While you're in there, you might also tweak those half dozen to your liking so that they are immediately useable, rather than having to tweak them every time.

 

Good luck in your pursuit.

[arislaf]

Why don't you write one by yourself? To post so much big posts, you have time...Trust me, your request will not be fulfilled on this one...

[gunpointmetal]

Not sure why you can't run your POD via USB even if you're using a different interface to record with....also not sure why anyone would by ANY REASONABLY-PRICED MODELER based on the presets that are already in there...especially line 6 stuff...And as mentioned, just knowing the name of the patch isn't gonna tell you whats in it....

[museeip]

Not sure why you can't run your POD via USB even if you're using a different interface to record with....

I use an Edirol IO that acts as the soundcard, but if I start Calkwalk with the POD's USB plugged in it defaults to using the POD as the soundcard. There may be a way to do it but I'm not technical enough to know how...just a simple guitarist.

 

also not sure why anyone would by ANY REASONABLY-PRICED MODELER based on the presets that are already in there...especially line 6 stuff...And as mentioned, just knowing the name of the patch isn't gonna tell you whats in it....

I did not buy the POD for the presets. I'm not sure why "starting" with a preset to save time is such a hard concept to grasp. As an example, if you wanted a VH tone you know you need a Marshall, a phaser and a delay. If you add those one at a time you still need to tweak them to sound right, so you've saved no time on tweaking the sound by building your tone piece by piece. Why not go to a preset with the Marshall, phaser and delay already lined up for you, then tweak to get them to sound right?

[museeip]

There are 256 factory presets on the POD HD, although Bank 1 is the "best" of banks 2 through 4.  How would you suggest they be organized?  By preset name?  By amp used?  By dominant FX used?  What if there are 2 amp chains?  Would you list all of the FX for each preset (up to 8)?  What format; Excel, PDF?

I would love an Excel form with an amp column (if there are two, just list two), and 8 effects columns organized by order of how they are stored in the POD (although it was an Excel doc you could sort it however you wanted). 

 

 

By the time Line 6 was done, this wouldn't just be a quick reference chart; it would be a full-on reference manual.  And for what, crappy presets that no one seriously uses?  Oh, and by the way, Line 6 usually changes the presets with each major FW change to show off the new features, so a new tome would be required.

Not sure I agree. As you pointed out it would be a list 256 lines long. Again, someone at Line6 created all these. They've already done the work to choose the amp/amps, effects, where to store it and even what to call it and I would find it hard to believe they did not write this down. They just chose not to share it with their customers (that is what is frustrating). When they add something in an update, they add to the document or just have a new one with only the new additions.

 

 

Might I suggest that you spend an hour or two, go into HD Edit, find a half dozen or so that you like and make note of them.  While you're in there, you might also tweak those half dozen to your liking so that they are immediately useable, rather than having to tweak them every time.

It seems this is what I will need to do, but the whole point of having so many amps, cabs, and effects is so I don't have to settle for a half dozen tones. The point is that before I start writing or working on a song I can't know what tone I want to use. When I'm in the middle of it and have a tone in my head it would be nice to get that tone or at least close to it quickly. 

[gunpointmetal]

should be able to select which soundcard Cakewalk sees even with both connected....I guess that might be easier, but you're still gonna be tweaking them to sound good, and if you already know what you need it takes all of 20 seconds to get the effects in place, then you're tweaking like you would anyways.

[museeip]

Why don't you write one by yourself? To post so much big posts, you have time...Trust me, your request will not be fulfilled on this one...

I will eventually do that. I have some freedom at work where I can spend some time on the internet. When I'm at home and have time to work on music I prefer to spend it on writing and playing, not building presets but thanks for your critique on my time management.

[BigChas52]

I would love an Excel form with an amp column (if there are two, just list two), and 8 effects columns organized by order of how they are stored in the POD (although it was an Excel doc you could sort it however you wanted). 

 

Not sure I agree. As you pointed out it would be a list 256 lines long. Again, someone at Line6 created all these. They've already done the work to choose the amp/amps, effects, where to store it and even what to call it and I would find it hard to believe they did not write this down. They just chose not to share it with their customers (that is what is frustrating). When they add something in an update, they add to the document or just have a new one with only the new additions.

 

It seems this is what I will need to do, but the whole point of having so many amps, cabs, and effects is so I don't have to settle for a half dozen tones. The point is that before I start writing or working on a song I can't know what tone I want to use. When I'm in the middle of it and have a tone in my head it would be nice to get that tone or at least close to it quickly. 

 

The line 6 folks are notoriously bad at recording settings.  For example, we've often asked for the settings used for their demo recordings, only to find out that no one bothered to capture them.  lol

 

What you say about limited tones has some merit on the surface, but in actual practice, most guitarists end up limiting their amp and effects selection to a favored few that match their taste and style.

 

Good luck with that spreadsheet, but I think you'll find that 95% of your work is a waste of effort.  As much as you complain, you won't get it from Line 6.  With the amount of time you've spent complaining and responding to suggestions, you could have been half done.  Find the few that you'll actually use and tailor them to your tastes.

[silverhead]

...  With the amount of time you've spent complaining and responding to suggestions, you could have been half done.  ......

BINGO!

[toneman2121]

i'm lost. would you mind repeating that...from the beginning :)

[stumblinman]

i'm lost. would you mind repeating that...from the beginning :)

OMG +rep. Made my morning!

[stumblinman]

I will eventually do that. I have some freedom at work where I can spend some time on the internet. When I'm at home and have time to work on music I prefer to spend it on writing and playing, not building presets but thanks for your critique on my time management.

So what you are saying is "My time is far too valuable to spend doing this menial task. Someone else do it for me"?

 

Yep, I'll jump right on that.

 

Hey Line 6, can you guys stop working on your new products to be my secretary please?

 

Hey forum guys, can you stop writing songs and playing guitar to make a big-lollipop spreadsheet for me so I can concentrate on my music? That'd be super.

 

You got it, buddy!

[museeip]

It's official! This forum is FULL of "experts" filled with helpful input. 

 

So what you are saying is "My time is far too valuable to spend doing this menial task. Someone else do it for me"? Nope, never said that. I'm saying if you make a product with "presets" you should say what they are. Kind of a simple concept. Most technical companies that produce a product or software with presets do this.

Yep, I'll jump right on that. Thanks.

Hey Line 6, can you guys stop working on your new products to be my secretary please? You think this work has not been done already? Do you honestly believe the guys writing the presets are the same as the engineers working on new products?

Hey forum guys, can you stop writing songs and playing guitar to make a big-lollipop spreadsheet for me so I can concentrate on my music? That'd be super. Never asked for that either but boy are you funny!

You got it, buddy! Thanks. You've been a big help!

[stumblinman]

You want helpful input? GTFO the forum, make a preset with a wah, chorus, flanger, dirt box and maybe another modulation effect or compressor, not necessarily in that order, then leave amp block empty, then EQ, delay, and reverb after.

 

Save file, there's your preset. Use the effects you want, add and remove amps as you want and quit whining. I'm no "Expert" but I'm betting this would take you less time than it took to quote my post and change your text color to red.