Line 6 Pod XT Dublin, Ireland.

What's Happened Now

News - December 2002.

I sold my Pod. I didn't need it anymore, and saw no reason to keep it around the house. But why would I do this to an instrument I so dearly loved??? The Pod XT is the terrifying answer. Yes, Line 6 released the Pod XT - an upgraded version of the Pod with all the lovely amps and a bunch of stomp boxes thrown in. The stomp boxes include a number of highly effective distortions/overdrives, a bunch of nice modulators (inc auto wah) and some very useful delays (analog and digital with good edit options). All this fun is brilliantly implemented using new front panel soft knobs and handy menu buttons. Full deep editing of all parameters (inc the important reverbs, all stomp box variables, mic type and placement - everything) is avaliable in a quick, easy and fantastically well laid out manner. Now my Pod can be set up and instantly tweaked to my heart's content.

More: somehow they made it sound better too. I think the bit-rate has been increased, but the end result is that my old Pod (when plugged back in for the sale) just didn't sound nearly as good as the new one. Read my original Pod text below to fully understand the implications of this statement.

So yeah. Well done Line 6. And I really look forward to hearing that crazy guitar they're making. They claim it can sound like virtually any other guitar, including lots of electrics, acoustics, twelve stringed guitars, banjos and sitars. Based on past performance I'm inclined to believe them.

(I still don't work for Line 6).

(now I've got all the model packs and stomp boxes - 72 amps or something crazy like that)

How I got a Pod in the First Place

(this text was written before I got the Pod XT - I'm leaving it here for posterity)

This was the only musical thing I bought as soon as it came out, having placed my order with the now closed "Studio Sound Store (CTI)" before it was available. The Line 6 Pod is a curvy red metal box that imitates guitar amplifiers. I never owned a real amp - they were always too expensive. The POD is fantastic. It's probably got some down points, but it does an excellent overall job of sounding just like the amps I hear on my favourite records. It does Fender, Marshall and Vox amps to name a few.

My only criticism is that it could probably have had a better frequency range, but I think this is partly why they later released the more expensive Pod Pro. It's also just a little unsuited for putting keyboards through, something which I did a reasonable bit of when I played in that band.

NEWS - I've now updated to the Pod V2.0 (a very simple chip swap), which allows mixing amp heads with speaker cabinets and includes a bunch of fantastic new amp models. This has essentially made what was a fantastic product even better, and I'm actually even happier now than I was in the first place. Seriously, if you play guitar you need a Pod. And for non-headphone based guitar satisfaction, I put mine through a standard Sansui stereo amp into an old Hiwatt 4 by 12 cab. What a box......

Seriously, I can't stop.......it's so much fun. It does amp/speaker distortion and overdrive that has stopped me from using ALL of my stomp boxes, and the modern high-gain amps all sounds SO sweet when played nice and clean (drive knob turned down). Needless to say they also sound great "fried". This thing really does it all. Go to a shop, please ignore the presets, and try one out by just twiddling the amp model knobs and the drive knob. It's also got reverb and effects, but I think it sounds best when played dry.

So go on......get one.

(ps - I don't work for Pod)

Links

who needs them - it's great!!! (do a google if you're really stuck).

Pod Images

The top seven photos show the new Pod XT, the bottom four show my (s)old regular Pod.
The picture on the bottom left shows the old Pod running a Hiwatt Cab through a second hand $40 Sansui Amp. The Hiwatt Cab was free from a construction site (legit), which was nice....








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