Line 6 HD 147 300-Watt Digital Modeling Amp Head Review

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(More customer reviews)I have been playing hard rock and metal for 29 years (love Dream Theater, OLD Metallica, Vai, Satch, etc.). Wow, has it been that long? I have done more recording and gigging than I can remember. Anyway, I was skeptical when I first heard about this, read the reviews, and listened to some of the digital deniers/naysayers. I, too, have always preferred tube sound to digital. However, I quickly found that, if you understand and know how to properly adjust this amp, the distortion blows the others away... in depth, in styles, in selections, in sheer amount of leeway with which to experiment and create your own, signature sound (instead of being staying in the flock of sheep... you really want to sound like everyone else anyway? You can if you want with this amp... but, this amp allows for SO MUCH MORE. No one ever was cited as being innovative for sounding like others... But, I digress.) And, good GOD, when you click the STEREO switch and hear this thing through true, 2 sided stereo... THE distortion is absolutely beautiful, smooth, creamy, and just MAJESTIC-sounding. Doesn't sound compressed and like you're listening to it through a can... or has been compressed down to a few frequencies. Fills the entire room with a symphony of brutality. THAT, my friends, is where you get HEADROOM... STEREO SOUND. The clean sounds you can produce are without equal. Like playing crystal strings... shimmering, clear, and really brings out the different characteristics of adjustments to your guitar... volume, tone, pickup selections... where you pick on the fretboard, all of it. Amazingly responsive to different styles. It really shows off your instrument and your brand of music.
The ease of use, the bone-crushing distortions that go way beyond what anyone would ever use, the crystal cleans, and the effects are all incredible. Speaking of effects, how many amps have a pre-set noise gate that you don't even have to really adjust for loud volumes? Just hit the button on your amp! Also, built in compression... again, just hit the button on your amp.
You know what, at the end of the day, all of these people who dribble on and on incessantly about that type of tube distortion and this type of tube distortion... Satriani, Vai, and Petrucci all use the Boss DS-1 distortion pedal to get their distortion sound. Yep, lol, that's right. Look at their racks and their rigs... Lynch used ProCo (Rat) stomp box for his distortion. MANY players use Ibanez TS-1, etc, etc. Well, here's an amp that you don't have to go buy a pedal for... Ever.
Get this and enjoy the freedom. Throw your effects away. GET THE FBV SHORTBOARD, however... Have fun and make music, people!!! Enjoy!!

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When we introduced our Insane custom model in 1996, we redefined how much distortion you could squeeze out of a single piece of gear. Now we've got HD147 with 14 custom models like Smash, Big Bottom, Octone, Purge, and Agro that will send you into high-gain overload. But, we didn't stop there. We added models based on boutique heads like the Diezel VH4 and Herbert, Peavey� 5150, Cornford mk50h, Marshall� Silver Jubilee and JCM2000, and Bogner Extacy and Ubershall.

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Rocktron Gainiac 2 Tube Guitar/Bass Preamp Review

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(More customer reviews)For the money, this a very decent preamp. I really have to review it with 4 stars, although I feel for the the average musician it would be a 3. First lets get to the pros:
Its rugged, small, and compact. I bought 2, one was a backup I never used. They stood up to the wear and tear of touring. The Gainiac II has a VERY awesome clean tone, the classic warm tube sound. I actually know a lot of bands that have used this preamp to record clean tones. Its wonderful and really can't be beat IMO. The distortion channel is also very good. A nice clear sound, not the static fuzz that extreme distortion causes. Great for hard rock/80s (I used to cover some Van Halen songs that it was perfect for). I wouldn't say its going to give you a death metal tone without pedal assitance, but if you want a clear responsive distortion, this is it. I saw a lot of complaints on Musician Friend's website that the Gainiac lacks a thickness and tone, but I honestly cannot hear it. I used DiMarzio Evolution pickups and the Apex Aural Exciter in front and powered it with an ART Sla-1 power amp so perhaps that is why I never heard this lack of tone.
Ok the cons:
The tube is very hard to get out. Don't get me wrong, its an awesome tube but there is always room for improvement. The Gainiac II is noisy on the overdrive channel. This can be solved fairly easily with the power amp and a good noise gate. I used the noise gate on my processor and it fixed everything right up, but some may not be as fortunate to have a good gate. There is only one output on this unit, which I got by fine with. There are no effects, just a clean and overdrive channel, which was ok for what I was doing. Also, there is no on/off switch and the AC adapter is fairly large. Recording directly into a computer gave kind of a rough tone but I'm not a recording expert.
My verdict is if you're looking for a preamp/power amp guitar rig, give this little unit a try. Its hard to fine the good Line 6 preamp that used to sell for $500, and the only other preamp I would ever consider is the Prophecy (which will break bank). You will have to do some tweaking, but for the money I think the Gainiac deserves a little attention and some surprising tones can be achieved. Also, for the price, you can afford to decide if the pre/power setup will be right for you. If this isn't something that you want to keep on a live rig, it will always be there for tracking down cleans in studio.

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Line 6 POD X3 Review

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(More customer reviews)Geez, where to start. This thing is unreal. For the gigging musician you only need to plug your Mic into the XLR input and your guitar/bass into the guitar input, dial up your favorite patches (you can create your own "User" patches), and run your output into the house PA. No amp or other gear to lug around!!
This thing has truly great guitar/bass sounds and great vocal sounds both out of this one unit. What I really like about it is that the key parameters (gain, EQ, presence, volume, reverb) ALL have their own dedicated knobs on top of the unit...no fumbling thru a bunch of confusing and dimly lit menus. And when you are at the gig there is a way to get the patch number to take up the whole LED (in BIG letters) so you can actually see what patch you are using. And did I mention the sound....I have Boss 600 digital recorder with amp/bass models which until I got the Pod, I thought were pretty good. Well I no longer use the Boss for guitar sounds. Instead, now I run the Pod into the 600 (which is a great digital multitrack recorder with so/so effects).
And now lets talk about the studio. This IS your computer audio interface. The Pod interfaces with your computer (Logic, Cubase, Gband, etc.) via a USB interface. You get simultaneous wet and dry outputs over the USB so you can get all the inspiration the Pod gives you but if you choose, record dry while your DAW is tracking. You can also use your DAW to cycle the Pod thru patch changes if that is the direction you want to go. The Line 6 website has updates/drivers and you will want to plug your Pod into your computer and follow the update instructions on the LIne 6 download page.
When I got this thing I plugged in my guitar (Takamine acoustic first, then Epiphone Casino elec) and some headphones and read just enough in the manual (5 min) to audition the thing. I ended up playing guitar for 2 hours. I was in heaven. Yea, there are a lot of high gain "thrasher/shredder" sounds but there are also a lot of clean sounds that I prefer. The next day I plugged in my Mic, set the Mic gain pot to max and got a great guitar/vocal thing going. However, the MIc input defaults to "mute" so I had to spend about 10 minutes to figure out that I had to play with both the input and output menus to get the MIc working. I played/sang for 3 hours straight after that. It was very inspiring. The next day I figured out how to get the sound to come out of the two 1/4 outputs into a Fender Princeton amp. It sounded great too.
The only "bad" thing is that for each patch you have to have to setup the inputs, outputs, and vocals. Otherwise, the Mic input will not work nor will the outputs work as they default to "Mute". What you want to do is setup user patches that have all these switches set the way that YOU want them so you don't have to tweak each patch every time you turn the thing on. Also the manual is a bit weak and some of the controls are a bit confusing at first. But it is not as difficult as the 600 as the 600 has about 4 levels of menus while the Pod X3 only has 2 levels of menus.
Oh yea, and if you want you can buy a footswitch controller if you are gigging. My friend has the Pod XT and I was just about ready to buy one when I stumbled across the X3....I am so glad I got the X3 as having the capability to do BOTH guitar and vocals at the same time (with their own controls) is huge for me. As a singer/songwriter I could setup all my user patches, show up at the gig with just my guitar, Mic, and Mic stand, and run my feed directly into the house board.
Best money I ever spent on a piece of gear. If you just want a stomp box for your guitar try the pocket Pod or the Pod 2.0. But if you want vocals, guitar, and a computer audio interface, this is your baby.

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The POD X3 will inspire and amaze you with the most complete collection of POD-quality guitar amp, cab, stompbox and studio effect models ever. This arsenal of rare vintage treasures, modern boutiques, and perennial classics offers nearly unlimited creative possibilities. Create your own tones or instantly play through any of the 250+ professionally dialed-in presets. For those in search of greater tonal possibilities, POD X3 gives you more power than ever before to create entirely new sounds. Split your guitar signal and play it through two guitar amp and effect signal chains at once. Add bass or vocals using the bass amp and high-end mic preamp models now included in POD X3.You can even plug in two instruments at once, each with its own independent tone processing. Whatever your music calls for, POD X3 has the power and flexibility to deliver. Whether you choose to recreate the sounds of the past or turn tradition on its ear, POD X3 comes fully-loaded with most inspiring collection of POD-quality amps and effects to let your sound break free. Most powerful POD EVER!Line 6 POD X3 Features and Benefits Electric Guitar POD X3 offers a whole new level of control over your guitar tone. Plug straight into any one of the 78 ear-shattering guitar amp models for pure, unadulterated guitar tone. Combine amp and cab models with the mouth-watering collection of 98 stompbox and studio effect models to build out your rig. Take your sound to the next level by blasting your guitar through two guitar rigs at once to create a massive wall of sound that even guitar heroes of the past would respect. Or plug POD X3 in front of your favorite stack or combo to pile on up to nine simultaneous effects, including

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