jjvh66 2 Posted March 20, 2014 I am thinking about buying a used Variax 300. Only the guitar, NO cable or power supply. I was wondering if my XT LIVE will power the guitar and do i have to have a Line 6 cable? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheRealZap 7,337 Posted March 20, 2014 XT will power. you dont need a line6 branded cable. but i recommend a VDI cable. because of the protective ends. the cable itself is basically a cat5 network cable and you could use one of those short term. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Charlie_Watt 428 Posted March 20, 2014 Any of the pods with the VDI connection will power your Variax. Do yourself a favor and buy a good VDI cable. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jjvh66 2 Posted March 20, 2014 Thanx for the info guys. I'm looking forward to some acoustic models. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
clay-man 259 Posted March 20, 2014 I got mine used. It's great. The only problem I've had is a piezo going out, but I fixed that easily. If you have a POD with a Variax connection, totally just get a guitar and a VDI cable and you're all set. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ScaleViz 0 Posted March 21, 2014 Be very wary when buying a second hand Variax, I purchased a 300 re-flashed it as I could hear the original strings after sending some alternate tunings to it, which in effect broke all the in built sounds, I paid 179 for the guitar, the repair cost me 143 as the guitar needed a new motherboard, I ordered an original digial Variax cable from GAK which came today and I was so looking forward to playing with it properly and now the D string is distorted and muffled so it looks like the guitar will need to go back again, I am not very happy and could have put the money towards a new JTV so be very careful and make sure you check the guitar thoroughly before you buy. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Charlie_Watt 428 Posted March 21, 2014 I frankly would not pay much for a used Variax - especially a 300. Once off warrantee you are looking at a big repair bill if it craps out on you. I would have recommended that you go for a new JTV rather than a used 300. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
clay-man 259 Posted March 21, 2014 Be very wary when buying a second hand Variax, I purchased a 300 re-flashed it as I could hear the original strings after sending some alternate tunings to it, which in effect broke all the in built sounds, I paid 179 for the guitar, the repair cost me 143 as the guitar needed a new motherboard, I ordered an original digial Variax cable from GAK which came today and I was so looking forward to playing with it properly and now the D string is distorted and muffled so it looks like the guitar will need to go back again, I am not very happy and could have put the money towards a new JTV so be very careful and make sure you check the guitar thoroughly before you buy. If it's crap when he gets it he should be able to return it under false advertising on ebay if he shops carefully. I frankly would not pay much for a used Variax - especially a 300. Once off warrantee you are looking at a big repair bill if it craps out on you. I would have recommended that you go for a new JTV rather than a used 300. JTV costs insanely compared to a Variax. If one craps out on you you could just buy another 300 for less. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ScaleViz 0 Posted March 22, 2014 (edited) Hey don't get me wrong, I don't wanna burst your bubble, when this 300 worked it grew on me straight away, I've had a Spider Jam for a long time & have always wanted a Variax and the opportunity finally arose and I was not dissapointed with the modeling, the 12 string is awesome and to be able to change tunings at the flick of a switch is mind blowing, you can play whole tunes by yourself, as an example I made a patch that dropped the high and low E strings down to D then Virtually capoed the 2nd Fret giving me the tuning for the chain, I had a bass sound on the next switch and a Les Paul on the next, lots of fun, and with the ability to change the guitar setting with a stomp as well as the actual tone using my X3, which the Variax lead me to buy, So yes your Xt will power the 300 and with the digital Cable you will also be able to change the sounds, from having this 300 for such a short time I will definitely be buying a JTV. So go for it and good luck to ya ;) Just to add, my 300 is now fixed yes, thanks to the help and support of the Line 6 techs I recieved and sucessfully installed a new piezo and boom, back in the game. Edited March 29, 2014 by ScaleViz Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jjvh66 2 Posted March 22, 2014 Got the Variax today and it works great. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
clay-man 259 Posted March 23, 2014 Got the Variax today and it works great. Congrats! Welcome to the family. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ScaleViz 0 Posted March 29, 2014 Yep nice one @jjvh66 have fun ;) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
clay-man 259 Posted March 29, 2014 Hey man, if you got a cable, I highly suggest messing with Workbench. Makes the Variax unbelievably even way more amazing than it already is. Alt tunings, custom guitars and patches. Just amazing fun. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jjvh66 2 Posted March 30, 2014 Got the cable today. Get ready for the questions :lol: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
houndorig 1 Posted April 4, 2014 I recently bought a 300 on ebay and love it! I ordered workbench and should see it get here today and I'm wondering.. is it possible to make a patch with the tone of nylon strings on an acoustic with the 300 and workbench? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
clay-man 259 Posted April 4, 2014 I recently bought a 300 on ebay and love it! I ordered workbench and should see it get here today and I'm wondering.. is it possible to make a patch with the tone of nylon strings on an acoustic with the 300 and workbench? Do you mean the workbench interface? Workbench is free. Also, no it's not possible to get a nylon string sound. There is one on the Acoustic 700 but I think people said that it's not very convincing. It's a lot harder to model different string than different guitars, because most of the guitars being modeled uses steel electric strings so it's fine. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
houndorig 1 Posted April 4, 2014 Thanks. It makes sense really you cant make a nylon sound out of steel I suppose. And yes I bought an interface which came with a CD (already had the download) Niether of my pod devices, floorpod plus and pod xt support workbench so I needed the interface to get going with workbench. I see myself spending alot of time this weekend playing with this new toy. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
clay-man 259 Posted April 5, 2014 Yeah, Nylon is way too different than steel strings. All the guitars the Variax models is either steel strings or steel-based strings so it is easy to replicate. Nylon vs Steel has way too many variables to take into account. It's like trying to make a car horn sound like a tornado siren. Either way, have fun with workbench! It really makes the Variax 1000 times better than it already is. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
