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Amplifi From Line 6


gunpointmetal
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 then this is effectively a VETTA II (yes a friggin vetta TWO!!?!) with a couple of tweeters and iphone app. What a @#$%ing joke!

 

Oh, it's fine cos they got some kid with long hair to pose for the photo, with a longboard in the background. So that makes it ok. Kids will dig that hip stuff. It's got a groovy name too, and some stuff with clouds and bluetooth. A winner for sure.

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I actually agree.  I think it's very cool at that price point.  As I said in the DT forum, if the sound quality is as good as I suspect it is, at that price, it should blow away the competition as a bluetooth speaker system even before factoring the guitar amp features.    The disappointment lies in the fact that it doesn't have much relevance to those of us in any of the dream rig forums.

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Why Line 6, why?  WTF are you smoking over there?  Why if this is such a leap forward in amp/cab architecture would you not at least add inputs for our POD HD's either XLR or 1/4?  Are you afraid we wouldn't want to lay out $850 for an L2 if we could get one of these for $500? 

 

I am just trying to figure it all out.  A 150 watt stereo Soundsource cab with a 12" driver, 2 mids and 2 highs for $500 versus an 800 watt mono cab with a 10" driver and 1 high for $800...  I would have liked to be able to compare them and then decide but you didn't give me that option...

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Just be happy that they did not replace the HD line of products (yet) and there is hope for a few more updates or the AMPLIFi HD with a Variax input, 1 or 2 effects loops, and a PA/Line 6 Link out ... ;-)

 

Well, by looking in their new website in their Multi FX Section there seems to be only the Pod Hd500X & Hd Pro X only as the previous non-X models are discontinued….so…i guess even if they come up with a new firmware (Bugs, New amps, e.t.c) the non-X Models will not be supported……

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the hd500, and regular pro.... and desktop model will still get the same updates as the hd-x models.

 

 

 

Well, by looking in their new website in their Multi FX Section there seems to be only the Pod Hd500X & Hd Pro X only as the previous non-X models are discontinued….so…i guess even if they come up with a new firmware (Bugs, New amps, e.t.c) the non-X Models will not be supported……

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Well, by looking in their new website in their Multi FX Section there seems to be only the Pod Hd500X & Hd Pro X only as the previous non-X models are discontinued….so…i guess even if they come up with a new firmware (Bugs, New amps, e.t.c) the non-X Models will not be supported……

Right, but I think it is reasonable to assume that HD X FW updates for pre-AMPLIFi products will also be available for the non-X models because the non-X and X HW is so similar and it would 'cheap' for Line 6 to keep many users happy and motivated to buy a much better product later. On the other hand if they would ever do an AMPLIFi HD (X) with additional HD amps or similar improvements, I doubt those new features would necessarily also become available on existing HD / HD X products. But that's all just speculation. It's pretty clear from the feature set and marketing material that the current AMPLIFi products do not even attempt to cater to the needs of existing HD product users. And they may never ...

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Honestly?

I think that while technology, and Line6 in particular has afforded us guitar players many cool toys to play with, I am really glad I was born in the 1950s.  I say that with the utmost respect for all players of all gear and all stylers mind you.  I LIKE Line6 gear and the company "spirit" of innovation.

But here's the thing for me and it's why I have a love hate relationship with my HD500 and JTV59 Variax as well; One of the beauties of playing a guitar is the simple act of plugging it into my favorite amp, or maybe through a pedal or 3 and just playing it.  No digital menus. No fiddling with knobs and dials and stuff -- just playing my guitar and hearing the pure majesty of the sound as it blooms from my amp.

I value this experience because I program and otherwise do battle with computers for a living, and I loved doing it before that all the way back to my Atari 800XL bought in 1983.  I got into computers because it was a Black Art and I was one of a very few people who could do it at the time.  In other words, it was COOL.  Like playing my guitar was COOL.  So as technology continues to try and separate me from that purity by introducing (and damn near requiring!) computers, and now smartphones and tablets just to get to the "patch editor" and twiddle knobs, dials and manipulate digital menuing just to get where I used to get by the simple of plugging in and rocking out -- it makes me a bit mellancholy.

I have this digital gear for those times when I want to experiment with alternate tunings, alien amplifiers I don't own and never had access too and to see exactly why someone would want a ring modulator or whatever.  I DO have fun doing that too mind you, but it is definitely NOT the same experience as guitar->amp->rock either.  Flexibility such as comes with my Line6 gear has it's own pricetag, after all.

So let me shed a manly tear for bygone days, and lament that I now can get an amp that runs on an i-anything.

*SNIFF* :(

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very strange that the POD HD and POD 2.0 are the only effects platforms still active but they seem to have incorporated the Vetta models into the iOS platform...  Actually still not clear if the sims and effects are loaded on the Amplifi and controlled from the iGear or if the Amplifi is just a power amp/cab and the iOS app has the sims/effects and just streams audio via Bluetooth...

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Actually still not clear if the sims and effects are loaded on the Amplifi and controlled from the iGear or if the Amplifi is just a power amp/cab and the iOS app has the sims/effects and just streams audio via Bluetooth...

Good question. It seems that there are 4 presets on board and if you need more they may need to be loaded by the iOS app.

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Actually still not clear if the sims and effects are loaded on the Amplifi and controlled from the iGear or if the Amplifi is just a power amp/cab and the iOS app has the sims/effects and just streams audio via Bluetooth...

 

The app play audio from your phone's library, and it's also an editor. All the amp modeling and effects are coming from the amp. You don't need to have an iPhone to use it as a guitar amp. You can still use it without having it connected to a phone. You can hook up a floorboard to it as well. The one thing I'm not clear on is how many presets are available via the floorboard.

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At 75 and 150 watts, will it get the great overdriven sounds at low volume? I know its not valve (my 5 watts Blackstar HT5 is too loud for bedroom use to be really extended) so being Solid State and using imported tones, is the wattage irrelevant?

 

It's a FRFR solution, which is typically best best for modeled amps.

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Not so much this non-valve amp 'not getting better with volume', but  'does it shine with less?'  

The DT25 has a low wattage mode, some Marshall practice amps have 1 or even 0.1 watt modes to ensure they are driven well.

 

Also, would the 150 and 75 watt models be equal to each other at a certain low lounge/bedroom volume playing high gain tones?

 

I take it the four pre-sets can be modified with your stored i/cloud tones?

 

Despite being marketed as lounge/live use I really think this is predominantly aimed for home practice and such seems an interesting product. If it had a Variax connection, I would definitely get it to avoid buying another JTV battery!! Be my excuse anyway :)

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I use my Pod with a laptop and a pair of active monitors. That allows me to play music from my laptop (with FRFR, obviously, cos it would sound lollipop through an amp) and play along with it when I want to.

 

That setup has probably cost me about £1200 + guitars.

 

If I bought an Amplifi 75, I could play my music through it (with FRFR) and play along with it when I want to.

 

That setup would currently cost me £315 + guitars.

 

To be fair, I also use my setup for recording (not just guitars) and such, so it's no use to me, but it's an interesting blue ocean strategy, specifically targeting play-along bedroom noodlers. Might be very popular as a decent starter setup for kids. Might be a total disaster.

 

For the record, I think not supporting Android at launch is a big mistake.

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I think it is great and my 8yo daughter would kill for it - she is learning guitar and is at the point where the lessons are going electric. She can have my first electric to use into it (it has pickups from the original PRS Custom in it), and I will give her a guitar cable and strap as well (generous aren't I?)

 

But there is a big problem.... iOS Noooooo... what is the lollipop obsession with Apple?  

 

She has a tablet, but rather than spending £400+ on an iPad that will only get dropped onto a tile floor when she is fighting with her sister she has rather more sensibly a HUDL which with the vouchers only cost £60 from Tesco but is as fully capable for watching video, playing games, internet browsing and in this context basic remote control stuff and for streaming music over Bluetooth as anything that ridiculously overpriced Apple have ever produced.

 

It is very simple Line-6: Android App or the Amplifi collects dust in the Music Store

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I wish this editor was available for the HD. I wonder if you could get a Bluetooth dongle thingy to plug into the USB of the HD if you could get the app to work? It would be nice to not have to be tethered to a computer to do editing.

 

I also wonder why they used the X3 as the basis of this, after convincing us all that the HD tech was so much better. Probably they didn't want to have an LCD panel on the amp to display "out of DSP". :/

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Are you sure Coleco, not Yamaha bought out Line 6?..This should make the Sears catalogue Wish list Christmas toy edition sandwiched between the Mattel line and Barbie dolls.

On behalf of serious musicians everywhere, a big thumbs down.

As a serious musician, I am disappointed there wasn't anything for me announced, but understanding this product is not intended to be gear for me to gig with I actually think it is a very cool product at that price point. 

 

I think the problem is announcing it here and leading up to with tag lines that make it look like they are coming out with a revolutionary new product.  If it had a VDI cable and L6L it would be exactly what I had hoped they would make before I got my DT.  Lose the modeling and add tubes and you have the one amp option that isn't available yet for the dream rig...a FRFR tube amp.  Then I wouldn't have to run my JTV acoustic models out of the effects loop into the PA.  That is something I might actually replace my DT25 with. 

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While I really think this is a let down for most of us it probably is a big move up for a lot of beginning musicians and hobbyists. The price point is kept low by pushing a lot of the interface and system management off board to the user's own iGear. They also kept DSP needs low by using older modeling and saved more by not integrating a host of in/out options, no D/A or A/D conversions, etc. Trouble is that while this incarnation is disappointing, the concept has a lot of potential and I would not be surprised to see a professional version in the future.

 

Same power section and speaker/cab options but with HD modeling as per the DT, the acoustic resonance DSP from the L2/3 series, M Series effects, professional in/out (XLR, 1/4, L6 link, VDI) and FX Loop. Manage all your patches and set lists from your iGear or Droid and everything cloud sourced. So where the DT was the perfect tube match for the POD HD, AMPLIFI HD would be the perfect stereo FR/FR match in a portable combo size package. If you need your pedals, bring your POD or floorboard with you too. L6 link could still allow you to expand by adding an L2/3 or sending a perfect feed to the Dream Stage.

 

No reason the same cloud sourcing couldn't tone match for HD models too (but they absolutely HAVE to add Android capability or this thing will die a slow death!). Then you seriously could just grab your JTV and this one box, plug right in and be good to go. Great solution for solo gigs with backing tracks.

 

Of course everything comes at a price. My guess is AMPLIFI HD150 comes in around $1200 and a $100 less for the AMPLIFI HD75.

 

Anyone interested? :)

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I use my Pod with a laptop and a pair of active monitors. That allows me to play music from my laptop (with FRFR, obviously, cos it would sound lollipop through an amp) and play along with it when I want to.

 

That setup has probably cost me about £1200 + guitars.

 

If I bought an Amplifi 75, I could play my music through it (with FRFR) and play along with it when I want to.

 

That setup would currently cost me £315 + guitars.

 

To be fair, I also use my setup for recording (not just guitars) and such, so it's no use to me, but it's an interesting blue ocean strategy, specifically targeting play-along bedroom noodlers. Might be very popular as a decent starter setup for kids. Might be a total disaster.

 

For the record, I think not supporting Android at launch is a big mistake.

 

User support for Android is monstrous compared to iOS.  That is money and headache that I am sure they don't want at launch.  Apple gets criticized for being a closed system and having strict rules for accepting an app, but the end result is exactly this.  Don't want to start a huge conversation about it, but quite simply this is the reason. The alternative is that you think they aren't providing an Android app because they don't care about selling to the tens of millions of people using Android devices.   Obviously that makes no sense.  No company loves Apple that much that they turn away potential customers for that. Anyway, if you ever want to know why many companies have iOS apps and no Android app, there you go.  I would bet if the product takes off, when they get the initial bugs out, they will add an Android app.

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Here's another thought...  Line 6 might just have created the perfect amp/cab for their competitors.  There are plenty of good amp sims for iOS out there from Amplitube to the new Bias app.  I see no reason why these can't just stream their output to AMPLIFI completely bypassing Line 6 software...  That would give you a BT wireless solution.   Still, the deal breaker is you have to have an Apple product to use it...

 

http://www.positivegrid.com/bias/

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User support for Android is monstrous compared to iOS.  That is money and headache that I am sure they don't want at launch.  Apple gets criticized for being a closed system and having strict rules for accepting an app, but the end result is exactly this.  Don't want to start a huge conversation about it, but quite simply this is the reason. The alternative is that you think they aren't providing an Android app because they don't care about selling to the tens of millions of people using Android devices.   Obviously that makes no sense.  No company loves Apple that much that they turn away potential customers for that. Anyway, if you ever want to know why many companies have iOS apps and no Android app, there you go.  I would bet if the product takes off, when they get the initial bugs out, they will add an Android app.

Uhm, monstrous based on what?  Apple's claims?

 

I'd be curious as to where you arrived at that conclusion myself.

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