Hey Guys, Little Help?

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Al_of_D

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Hey guys,
I'm Al and I'm new to this forum. I have a lot of experience when it comes to basic rigs.
I've done the stomp box into amp combination so many times. However I recently had all my gear stolen.
I managed to claim it all on my insurance and ended up picking up a Line 6 POD HD 500.
It's a great unit but I still strive for real valve tone. I'm torn between several ideas and was wondering if we could discuss the
pros and cons of each.

1- Buy a blackstar series 1 100 6L6 head and cab. Hook the POD up to it via MIDI so I can change channels on the amp and patches on the POD together.

2 - Buy a Different amp that perhaps doesn't have MIDI Switching and a MIDI Relay to allow for the midi changes.

3 - just stick with the Amp I'm using and get a new guitar haha!

I currently run my POD into the return of the effects loop on a Peavey Bandit 112. But I want to change channels from my HD 500.

like I say I have experience with other set ups but I've never used MIDI.
Thanks guys.
 
Sorry to hear about your gear and welcome to the forum. Tell us what you are trying to do with your rig. Live sound, frequent gigging? Bedroom wanking? recording? Need something small and portable or don't mind a big rig? etc.
 
I'd obviously prefer something reasonably small. I was looking at the pobbibility of The Blackstar series 1 100 6L6 or the Egnator Rebel 30.
I'll be using it for gigs and recordings aaaaand bedroom wanking of course.

I really want something MIDI compatible. I want to be able to switch with my POD HD.

I'm also considering getting a TC nova system.
 
Al_of_D":23ri0cly said:
I'd obviously prefer something reasonably small. I was looking at the pobbibility of The Blackstar series 1 100 6L6 or the Egnator Rebel 30.
I'll be using it for gigs and recordings aaaaand bedroom wanking of course.

I really want something MIDI compatible. I want to be able to switch with my POD HD.

I'm also considering getting a TC nova system.
Click to expand...


Hey Al, Welcome aboard!!! I wish that you had come here before you bought the POD. While I dont think that its a bad unit, I truly think that there a better options, namely the Digitech RP1000 or its rack brother, the GSP1101( The GSP is the way to go for you because it has MIDI capabilities where the RP doesnt . The Nova System is a great unit but you are limited in that you cant 4 cable it and that hamstrings you in a number of scenarios..

That said, my approach is alot like yours; having an amp that is MIDI switchable and having an FX unit(s) that allow me to to do multiple tasks with one button stomp and there are severl ways to skin that cat

The GSP is an awesome piece that has world class effects, very simple programming and is VERY easy on the wallet. One cool feature is the the abilty to turn a single channel amp into a channel switcher of sorts. Lets say that you have something like a JCM 800 with an FX loop. You can set the amp to burn, get all of your dirty rhythm and lead tones and when its time for clean stuff, you simply program the unit to bypass the front input and you run the onbaord modeling through the FX return and voila!!! you just turned your single channel amp into a channel switcher....

As far as working with your POD, What do you like most about tone and effectwise? What kind of stuff do you play?

Kage
 
check out the Line 6 DT50 or DT25... Marries perfectly with the HD pods...
 
My main band is a kind of... God I don't know! lol We're just doing what we love. we have metal moments but it's often quite chilled out.
I like my metal style tones but I'm a massive fan of the Mid knob haha!

My current over drive sound is a model of a JCM800 with a tube screamer in front.

My basic requirement is Massive tone and uber clarity.I have a blackstar HT1 and it has the amazing tone and clarity that I tend to favour.

So to answer your question Gainzilla... Mostly metal but with clarity. I play a lot of other stuff like Jazz and pop when I'm required to.

RCM 78... I haven't even considered the DT25 or 50... *facepalm* lol thanks for reminding me of their existence!

Thanks for your help guys. let's keep the options coming. I'm gonna look into both options.
 
Welcome aboard Al! :cheers:

My personal recommendation is to go by what you love and enjoy - which is currently a blackstar series 100 based off of previous experience of the HT1 you are currently using now. Cabinet wise i would look for a V30 and celestion 75 X pattern 4x12 or a 2x12 of all V30's to get closer to what you need.

MIDI mapping can be done with a rocktron midi-mate, rocktron express, or countless other pedals available.

Blackstar amps do not pop up here used as often as other amplifiers but occasionally they do.

Depending on your budget i would recommend VHT or Fryette amplifiers as well for the clarity/high gain attitude. Lots of VHT love around here - many people can point you in the right direction and if you wait to buy used then you could definitely score something to suite your needs as this is a market that caters to buyers.
 
Welcome aboard, and sorry to hear of your gear loss :( I have an HD500 and once you tweak the models a bit, it is a great sounding unit! I use it live quite often (more often than my MarkIV) and I get compliments on my tone regularly. To be fair, I am running it into the fx return of a tube amp, so I am getting some tube tone, but the HD is really a solid unit IMO.

Some good suggestions so far, but I say if you like the pod, then take a good look at the L6 DT amps. They are pretty cool and sound great with or without the pod connected. There are SO many options... Just a few of the first ones that popped in my head:

-Baron Custom amps makes insanely great sounding stuff for a good price, there's the EVH 5150 III (or affordable 50 watt version) Eganater Renegade with a boost sounds like it might get you where you want to be, or just sit and watch the classifieds for a month and you'll for sure see something you like at a fair price! :cheers:
 
I use my POD into the Effects return on my peavey bandit. it's a transtube amp (so solidstate) but sounds amazing!.
I use a model of a JCM800 with a tube screamer to get my chunky leads and rhythms.
My bandit is great and I won't be retiring it for a while but i am looking for something great to use live at everything from small pub gigs to festival dates. will the DT25 cover all that?
 
EVH 5150III 50watt, does a lot of things well and has midi
 
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