ucnick Posted July 28, 2021 Share Posted July 28, 2021 I am in 2 covers bands and occasionally need to quickly switch from acoustic to electric guitar and back for songs such as Boston's "Peace Of Mind". I am considering purchasing a JTV-69 Variax with HH config to provide that capability. I realize there is no L6 link on PG, that's fine. I can deal with that. Does anyone have any experience with such usage, or any experiences (good or bad) with it that resulted from it? Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverhead Posted July 28, 2021 Share Posted July 28, 2021 I have used both my older Variax 300 model and my JTV-59 with my POD Go, connecting using the 1/4” Variax analog output. I have experienced no problems. Everything works as expected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaceatl Posted July 28, 2021 Share Posted July 28, 2021 it should work decently. The only pain in my mind would be switching the guitar...I think I would go with the acoustic sim on the go, but it's doable with a Vax and a go. To me it's the switching. I am not a daily Vax user but I have used them as you indicated changing the model on the guitar since no midi was available...I think you might need to think about going into the vax workbench to get the models close together. I used the Go for both guitar and bass since before it was released and it does the job adequately for both studio work and live performance. I love the form factor and the tone is good...But it's not HX...However, last week I ended up moving to the Stomp XL with 3 Audio Source pedals...This has been the first time I have had to move from GO to HX. Basically, the number of FX is about the same, but I needed midi control for the Audio Source stuff to integrate properly. It just did not make sense for me to go the USB Host route to enable midi on the Go...I can say the HX Stomp does sound a bit better than the Go after I put together my first few banks duplicating patches. Nothing really changed on the Audio source stuff...routing just about identical. The noise floor difference is the most noticeable for me. I think it's probably the ADC/DAC are a bit better...I think a stomp XL might work a bit better as you might could at least expose the midi at some point on the Vax. Another solution that might not cost you anything would be to move to an HD 500...They sound better than the Go does to my ears, has a vax interface and you can have a spare guitar wired...My HD is over 10 years old, heavily gigged and I have only replaced the power supply once about 2 years ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ucnick Posted August 10, 2021 Author Share Posted August 10, 2021 Thanks for the input. I actually have a Helix floor, which is my fallback, but the PG footprint is great and I have tweaked it enough that I am getting some really good tones, especially using a tube power amp like Demeter Mighty Minnie or power stage of my Origin 50H. I picked up a box from a fellow on TGP so I'll see what I can figure out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotterp Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 I have a Helix floor now and an Pod GO as my backup/rehearsal unit. I have had various Variaxes since the 300 came out. Prior to owning the Helix, I spent several years manually changing the Variax from electric to acoustic and back again. The Helix makes it much easier but it is certainly doable. I put my mostly used guitars in the Custom Bank on the Variax so that changing from electric to acoustic was as easy as flicking the pickup switch, versus moving knobs mid-song. I have very similar patches in the Pod Go as what I have in the Helix, so when using the PG, I just have to remember to manually flick the switch to change guitars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ucnick Posted August 10, 2021 Author Share Posted August 10, 2021 21 minutes ago, scotterp said: I have a Helix floor now and an Pod GO as my backup/rehearsal unit. I have had various Variaxes since the 300 came out. Prior to owning the Helix, I spent several years manually changing the Variax from electric to acoustic and back again. The Helix makes it much easier but it is certainly doable. I put my mostly used guitars in the Custom Bank on the Variax so that changing from electric to acoustic was as easy as flicking the pickup switch, versus moving knobs mid-song. I have very similar patches in the Pod Go as what I have in the Helix, so when using the PG, I just have to remember to manually flick the switch to change guitars. I have obtained the switch box kit from a fellow TGP member, so as is stated I can now do the switching back and forth, it will be a bit cumbersome but I will see how it works out, fortunately I don't need to do so very often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wpostma Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 For me the thing is I would want a VDI cable so I don't have to worry about the variax battery dying during a performance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ucnick Posted August 21, 2021 Author Share Posted August 21, 2021 (edited) On 8/17/2021 at 10:05 AM, wpostma said: For me the thing is I would want a VDI cable so I don't have to worry about the variax battery dying during a performance. Yeah... I picked up a used JTV89 and it looks like it will work for me, but it is beginning to become more of a thing now that my battery is not holding charge very well and I cannot find a L6 replacement. I will use the box as much as I can, but when there is limited space it may be an issue. Edited August 21, 2021 by ucnick Expand upon comment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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