It sounds as good as the Axe FX II...to those who can't afford one. Much like how some years ago the Chinese tubes were ass and the NOS Russian tubes were the shit, then as the Russian supply dwindled and prices rose, Chinese tubes suddenly sounded just as good.

But I haven't used either, so as far as I know, it may sound as good as anything anyone says.


I've used Amplitube 1 and 2, as well as tons of rack gear (GSP21 Pro and Legend, 1101, 2101, MP-1), and for the life of me cannot get my rack gear to sound "digital" or "fake" or "like a synth", unless I tweak a pitch shifter to get a synth sound on purpose. Maybe I'm doing something right?

What I have found with Amplitube is that I don't like the "hiss". Yeah, it's supposed to sound like a real amp and real amps hiss, but the benefit of software modeling is that you keep all the good stuff and lose all the bad stuff. White noise is not "part of the tone", it's noise. That's why noise gates exist. But apparently they put the noise model in so the tone snobs can say "hear that hiss? that's a real amp!" like any of that shit matters.

In January 2014, I bought a Line 6 Pod HD500.
It was bought to replace everything that goes between my guitar and the pa.

It replaced a rig that I had for 20+ years, who's main units were
ART SGE MachII (I ran two of them)
and a Rocktron Pro GAP

Does this that count as digital?

I know a couple guys like that... annoying bastards!

I know a paid endorser is going to glorify any product that's paying the bills or they're getting for free while we all run out and buy, that's why I came to the forum hoping someone had checked it out and had an honest experience with the product and could elaborate. I hear ya on the tubes analogy.

I recon it is, how do you like it? Looks cool! last time I owned a board like that was a Digitech RP10 , minus the HD and software.

I was actually asking if my ART stuff from the 80's was considered digital, lol.
It is a far cry from the stuff out today, but it was all microchips.


As far as my L6 goes:
First, they do make a rack version (with optional foot controller) if that's what you need. I wanted the floor version.

As to its performance, I think the fact that I use it says enough. I would have sold it and tried something else before I had quit using the old stuff.

It is tough to learn, others have said it too. But for me, I've used the last stuff for 20-30 years, and they were separate pieces. I got to know it fairly well. I don't remember what it was like to learn, and I learned them one at a time. Plus, some of the changes to technology that I missed during those decades could have made it tougher to learn. Like going from DOS to a voice activated touch screen smart phone - that's a tough transition, but not so difficult if you learned the tech inbetween.


But, now that I know how to use it, I don't know what it is lacking that I would need to upgrade to an AXE. Certainly for 8x the cost, it better be something serious.

I will say this, though...
The HD500 is 5 years old. The HD500x is not a new unit, it is a 500 with a part change due to manufacturer discontinuation.
So, if you aren't in a rush to buy something, I would wait to see what the next thing is. I already have mine, and won't be buying another --- hopefully ever.
But I probably wouldn't suggest buying something that is about to be replaced.


I carry a couple guitars. My Pod. And an accessory bag.
No amps. No other gear. Setup, soundcheck, and teardown is a snap.

Nothing sounds as good as an Axe FX. I use Bias because it portable and powerful for what it is but it could never replace the Axe FX. The latter is more than just software - the hardware matters too and no one else but Axe FX combines the two.

I use GR5 (love a tweeked "dombag delight" lol) and lepou sometimes if I want to jam with headphones or put down some ideas. They sound good imo but they don't sound real. They sound fine, but the little things like feedback, pick harmonics, ect sound off or don't even register. I can get a super clean (noiseless not cleans) sound, but it just doesn't seem right. Def no synth sound.

Coincidentally, Line 6 just announced a new high tech gadget coming at the end of summer. HELIX
http://line6.com/helix/

Which is a departure from their 'entry level' stuff that they typically make.
While I have not used an AXE, the little I do know about it, the Helix is definitely much more similar than my Pod is.


*those fuckers should pay me for advertising for them.

I'm using Pro Tools 12 with a Digi003r. Then I have the EZDrummer 2 plugin with the Nashville, Metal Machine and Rock Solid addons. For guitars I'm using the full Amplitube 3 All-In bundle. So far I'm pretty happy, but IKM is not adding amp sims that fast, so I'm starting to look toward the Kemper. I'd like to get some Diezel and Bogner sims. Some of the new Randall's would be nice too.

Hmm ezdrummer gonna have to check that out. How intuitive is it? Idr which drum program I have but I can't figure it out for the life of me. I also apparently forgot to register my Cubase le so I'm in the market for a daw now as well =/

EZDrummer lives up to its name. You can make it as easy as dragging and dropping the predefined loops in and leave it at that. Or you can get really fancy and get in and customize each loop. If you want simple drag and drop, it has you covered. You just go into the intro/verse/chorus/pre chorus/bridge section of your choice and find a loop that fits what you're looking for and then drag it onto the EZDrummer timeline. Do that for the length of your recording and you're done. Most of the loops are 1, 2, 3 or 4 bars long but you can shorten them if you need to. It really is simple.