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Bass POD Pro LIVE XT...Real World Review

#181
ped said:
Hi mate,

I really don't put much stock in the digital/solid state/valve arguments because I think it is better to judge any piece of gear by its own merits -
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Thats great attitude.

I cant wait for mine :D you makes me really POD-hungry :D My XT PRO should arrive at monday....i really look forward for tweaking it :hyper:

I have had few multi-effects but never had chance play it through good amp(behringer, marshall....and other crap), now i have power amp (which is for me best way to use this monster) and great cab so POD will have nice "sound mates", and also think that i presently know litlle more about sound

I hope that Line 6 replace succesfully my SWR Grand Prix...because i plan to sell it.(i think pod has too much preamps :D to keep another one :D ) and also its useless to have two preamps and use only one.....
 
#182
hi, bod has arrived today, i am absolutely blown away, i already tried it at band practice and plays and feels great.
I tweak simply setup-SWR simulation no effect no comp no cab, only slight eq, and yes i can say its comparable to my real SWR preamp, tried sansamp simul. and when i close my eyes i feel real stomp under my feets!!!!

So definitely yes LINE 6 made great job and who says "no" its
a)rich enough to have all real amps and has TIR to take it on live concert
b)sits on its own ears :)
c)are absolutely technicaly dissabled (and i can be calm to insult them because they definitely cant switch on PC when they cant use BOD)
d)or simply are pre-decided to judge digital as something less usable....
 
#183
Johnny Crab said:
+1 zillion to all of the above.

... USERS are basically BETA testing an unfinished product(IMO).

Paradise NOT(there are PAGES of threads with issues/problems showing up): [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
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I skimmed through some of those "problems" at random and the problems look to be more the typical new user not knowing the product than bugs in the product (including some stuff that's common knowledge on the XT's).

I checked cause it didn't fly right that L6 would shuttle launch something prematurely. If it were December, I could see it.

At any rate, you've got 30 days through MF/GC to determine if it doesn't measure up.
 
#184
pod XT review

So well said. Thanks for the great review.

I got the Pod XT after a loud recording session that did not at all produce the tone I was after. Needing to buy a tuner and another pedal at the time, I saw the pod XT was only a bit more than what I planned on buying. It is an absolute bargain considering the amount of virtual gear in there!

It allows you to really explore, experiment and enjoy your instrument. It is an ongoing process of subtle improvement.

Worth noting is the Software interface and the ability to back-up and save files. You can share and upload sounds as well. Much cooler to tweak sounds on a computer screen than bending over a LED fiddlin' away on knobs.

Think about your patch layouts.
I have 1A to 1D for the Jazz 5 string
2A to 2D for the Warwick
3A to 3D for the fretless

As are always my "working" sounds
Bs are my dirtier sounds
Cs are my Slap sounds
Ds are my "out there" sounds

In the heat of battle just landing on the right letter will usually suffice till you can tap dance. There may be a better way, but think about it and use the software to organize and name them. Oh I have to play barefoot to not hit two patches at once. But hey I live in Pacific beach and now I have a strangely identifiable thing going.

Test the output levels in a live practice situation, or you will look regret it.

Write down some key facts and locations of the patches if you have changed them. The pod can be a layer of confusion when you are preforming if you don't.

Why you might as well get one, if only for these features:
- A built in tuner.
- compression
- Volume pedal for quick quiet bass changes

It Allows you to "equalize" the volume and different EQ settings for having many basses on the stage. Active Warwicks, passive fretless, 5 strings etc all had me readjusting the amp or running a compromise setting.

What would be a nice touch if they had it:
- An output level or a peak indicator.
- Undos for the software.

You really will need to spend time. Lots of time. But it made me a much more knowledgeable and curious bassist in the process. The difference in going straight into my amp and using the pod is tremendous. I only know cause I forgot my power supply once. It really made me realize how much I dig this Pod. Musicians take notice of it as well. I throw this in a backpack with a bass on my back and ride a beach cruiser to shows sometimes. That sure beats a head and cabinet for a practice or a small non-paying gig.

Amp modeling is an progression of recoding and performance. I imagine that the first amplified instruments were scoffed by some like modeling is today. I can easily see how someone could not want to bother if they are happy with their rig and sound. Or if they only had 1 bass, 1 sound and 1 project this Pod might be a sinister distraction. However if you consider yourself a musician in this day and age, you might find yourself in a situation where you are backed into a modeling situation. Rather than scoffing, you could pull out some sweet patches you've been perfecting and save the engineer some trouble.

Hope this helps!
 
#185
Johnny Crab said:
+1 zillion to all of the above.

FOR FOLKS LOOKING AT THE X3(including me), there is trouble in paradise. It really looks like Line 6 management over-ruled engineering in both cost cutting and product launch time and USERS are basically BETA testing an unfinished product(IMO). IF, and that's a BIG if, I get an X3 WHEN/if Line 6 "fixes it" and provides working software interfaces....I'll KEEP THE XTL as a backup WITH ME.

Paradise NOT(there are PAGES of threads with issues/problems showing up): [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Click to expand...

Sorry I missed this....I got an X3 (actually 2 of them, I got one for my guitarist as well as an Atomic 112-50 to use with it :D) a month or so ago and I have had no problems at all with either of them. I have been using them almost daily and so far so good!

Peace,

T
 
#186
tommixx said:
Sorry I missed this....I got an X3 (actually 2 of them, I got one for my guitarist as well as an Atomic 112-50 to use with it :D) a month or so ago and I have had no problems at all with either of them. I have been using them almost daily and so far so good!

Peace,

T
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Hey T, in your opinion, does the X3 sound markedly better than the XT???

Thanks...Chris
 
#188
Hi Ryan,

I do the same with mine. It is important to note that it is best to have a few settings for each bass - one for IEMs, one for the studio and one for through an amplifier (if you ever do this). I have three for each of my three basses which have been subject to constant evolution over the last half a year or so to the point where I have never sounded better.

Good luck with it - if you want to share some tones let me know. Once you are used to the interface it is a breeze. It might be worth your while doing the tweaking using Line6 Edit to save you from having to hunch over the unit all day long.

Good luck
ped

P.s what IEMs are you using?
 
#189
Ryan L. said:
I just got a new Bass Pod XT Live today. I haven't had much of a chance to mess with it, other than to realize that, like everyone else has said, the factory presets suck.

The band I'm playing with now uses IEM's on stage, with no amps on stage at all, so this is going to be used directly into the board, basically as my amp.

I guess tomorrow I need to start figuring out a few amp/cab combos that work for me, and saving them into the memory to replace some of the factory stuff.

Is it best to do that with headphones, considering I won't be using it through an amp at all, just directly to the PA??
Click to expand...

You can get them close with headphones, but it won't sound quite the same once it goes through your board and back to your IEM's. I use some mods with cabinets and some without.

Good luck...
 
#190
Ryan L. said:
Thanks.

It should work out OK doing it this way---if I can at least come *close* to what I'm looking for with headphones, I'll be able to tweak it with the PA in the next couple weeks. We are doing a few rehearsals with the full PA setup (they've added a few new components such as a Driverack, etc., that they want to fine tune), so that'll be a perfect opportunity for me to get things dialed in.

I messed around with the editing on it a little bit last night, at least they make it somewhat easy to navigate around on.
Click to expand...

Ryan, I'm not saying you won't get a good sound out of it once you go through the PA, I'm just saying you will need to tweak the EQ a bit and maybe some volume settings. I love mine for IEM gigs! The Eden setting w/410 Tweed is my go to setting. Remeber, the Low Mid knob is the Enhance knob on the Eden so a little goes a long way.
 
#191
I use V-Bass, not Pod, but I think the same strategies would apply... I use cabs and amplification that are much like good PA in response, so that when I'm designing presets what comes out of my rig is much like would come out of FOH, and good headphones are not that much different either - though I've picked headphones for V-Bass work that give a slight bump to the lower bass to compensate for the ear's lower sensitivity to low frequencies at lower volumes, and also because it tends to resemble what happens when cabs couple with floor or wall.

So, all three are roughly the same for me. I seldom am surprised by how my presets translate from one medium to another.

Another aspect is that as you put in time and listen with concentration you begin to understand how variouys types of tone and effects mixing fits into a band mix, what would be swallowed by masking, what would be too wet or dry, what would stick out like a sore thumb in a real mix.

Tricky stuff, and a hellalot fun!
 
#192
greenboy said:
I use V-Bass, not Pod, but I think the same strategies would apply... I use cabs and amplification that are much like good PA in response, so that when I'm designing presets what comes out of my rig is much like would come out of FOH, and good headphones are not that much different either - though I've picked headphones for V-Bass work that give a slight bump to the lower bass to compensate for the ear's lower sensitivity to low frequencies at lower volumes, and also because it tends to resemble what happens when cabs couple with floor or wall.

So, all three are roughly the same for me. I seldom am surprised by how my presets translate from one medium to another.

Another aspect is that as you put in time and listen with concentration you begin to understand how variouys types of tone and effects mixing fits into a band mix, what would be swallowed by masking, what would be too wet or dry, what would stick out like a sore thumb in a real mix.

Tricky stuff, and a hellalot fun!
Click to expand...

Well said. I use Sure E2cs and find my in ear sound is exactly what I hear when the bass is recorded to desk and my FOH sound is extremely similar. It is really nice having every situation nailed down in one 2u rack.

I have to tweak each preset for its individual job (IEM, desk, amp, pa) just to compensate for little things, such as my in ear has a little lass bass because it gives me a bit of a headache, the recorded sound has a touch less compression and the through amp (a Trace Elliot V4 combo) patch is basically neutral.

Superb fun twiddling and tweaking with the unit. Some people love that fact, others hate it - an issue proven by some of the comments on this excellent thread.

ped
 
#193
Ryan L. said:
So ANY and all advice you guys can throw my way will definitely be much appreciated.:)
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My general advice is that if you are doing this for fun the challenge of mocking up a rig you can actually access and compare with will teach you a lot. But generally you will not have the modeled amps at hand, and you will be working at emulating sounds you've heard on recordings - which may not even be using the favored live rig that player used live at that time - has been run through a DI and PA if its a live recording, or has been run through a studio signal chain and goosed every which way if its a studio recording.

After a lot of "nailing sounds", I had a good idea what all the models could sound like and how they reacted to different settings and combinations, and began to think in terms of "I want a sound kinda like blurpazaaama - now what model would be a good starting point for those tendencies?" I no longer had a very active interest in sounding exactly like someone's particular overdriven SVT or Acoustic or Fender Bassman, I just wanted to make sounds I thought were cool and functioned well in the contexts I was using them.

What's all this mean? I guess it's like bass playing. You may need to emulate heros in phrasing, technique, thinking patterns etc to grow for awhile, then you can just PLAY to sound the way that is YOU : }
 
#194
What's really funny is that you might come up with sounds that really nail a specific example and you'll have maybe 50% of the people you run it by think it's something else, or that it's not even close, and the other % might think you are onto something, and it even feels "right" when they are doing the playing.

OR you can do a patch that's just entirely your own thing with no real reference to any song, player or rig and someone'll say Oh that's Mudvayne, in't it?

Seems to be largely in the ear of the behearer ; } - and HOW you play still is the biggest thing that sells the sound.
 
#197
Definitely - to be honest I have never used mine to 'model' anyone or anything - I used it to 'model' my own bass sound. After all, I got my XT pro as part of a trade for a full mesa 400+/1516BE rig and expected to dislike it. Once I had used it a bit I realised if I could use it to nail my sound it would be really handy to have all the functions such as a tuner, effects, DI, headphone out, Line in, FX loop and everything in one box.

My 'own sound' comprises of a pretty much clean GK 800rb with no cabinet and a touch of reverb. It sounds exactly like my bass does to desk but with the advantages of toe shaping if I need it and of course a superb compressor and so on.

One cool tip - if you set up a good bass sound with no effects saved (so the stomp, mod and reverb buttons are not lit) you can then for example turn on the stomp button, set up a sweet envelope filter, turn it off and save the patch - then next time you use that patch, the envelope filter will be ready when you press the stomp button (either on the face of the unit or via a pedal). The same goes for any effect you can think of via those three buttons. Of course if you need more than that you can store the same clean patch on the next memory bank and save different effects to kick in. Because I only have about 10 settings on mine I use all the time there are hundreds of empty patches to muck about with!

I find that really useful...

Cheers and keep us up to date!
ped
 

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