In case you've ever wondered what that Guitar Port thing actually is, and what it does, now you'll know. Admit it, product reviews are fun and you like to read them.

Recently I spent 97$ on a Line 6 Guitar Port. I have to say it was the best 97$ on guitar equipment I have spent, ever. What I wanted was simply a practice amplifier I could run through my computer, and practice with one set of headphones ( we've all tried the ear buds into the large digital headphones setup, and we hated it ) into the wee hours of the morning. Bottom line : if you're looking to spend 100$ on a practice amplifier, and you have a computer, then forget the 15 watt and get this.

Installation was very easy. Absolutely fool-proof. Let the cd install itself, plug in the Guitar Port ( a small red module with a black chicken head knob as a master volume ) through the USB port, and it does the rest by itself.


As heavy metal guitarists, the first amplifier models we are going to peruse are certainly the high-gain models upon opening the program. Of the 16 models, I'll review just a few. So first, the said models :

Line 6 Insane - It was very hard to get a good sound out of this. It should be titled, "Slightly Annoyed", or "Mildly Aggravated", as opposed to "Insane". The epitome of scooped out fuzzy bad solid-state.

1993 SLO Head - The Mesa model. This is my favorite amplifier on the program, by far, and obviously the most meticulously engineered of the four "metal" amps. Of course, the gain is full throttle, and perfectly replicates the grind of thrash and death metal. Naturally mid-heavy, you can dial in more bass via the digital EQ in the effects section. Has the most "character" of the four high gain amps.

Line 6 Treadplate - I love how three of the four "metal" amps are Line 6's. This model came in as a close second behind the SLO Head, albeit more bassy and less middy.

Spinal Puppet - An ok-sounding model, somewhere in between the Line 6 Treadplate and the Line 6 Insane. Easy to coax a mid-heavy Slayer-esque sound out of. But the knobs are skulls and they light up the higher you turn them, which is "BR0-0ootALL" I suppose.

Jazz Clean - I'm not sure what this is based off of exactly, but I do know that selecting this model means instant Howard Roberts. Sounds great.

Line 6 Piezocoustic 2 - The acoustic model. I showed this to my dad, a bass player of 35+ years, and his response was "no way". It does'nt sound totally acoustic, but its what your electric guitar would sound like were it an acoustic, i.e. the piezocoustic hybrid. My favorite clean setting. By varying the EQ you can basically project the sound of a smaller bodied acoustic or a dreadnought.


This is Line6 technology at its most practical, and obviously what it was meant for. Through two Altec Lansing speakers and a sub woofer, the GuitarPort articulates itself much better than a POD run through a set of guitar speakers ( in my opinion ). And through a set of Sony digital headphones, the GuitarPort sounds the way we wished our combos would sound through the headphone input : exactly the way it sounds amplified. Playing along with cds and mp3's, your guitar cuts through very well, and you can run external media players of any sort while having the Line 6 on.


Effects : Beneath your selectable amplifier head you have Cabinets, Volume pedal, Wah pedal, Mods ( chorus, planger, phaser, etc. ), Reverbs ( four different kinds, a convincable spring reverb ), Delays, Distortion pedals ( And there is absolutely no point in having these, my only criticism of this product ), and of course everything you could think of cramming into this product. Tuner, Metronome/drum machine, compressor, noise gate, hum reducer ( being plugged into a computer, at first you have terrible hiss from your pickups --- it records the hiss, and then cuts it out. With the noise gate its a fucking miracle --- no hiss at all. ).

With the cabinets, you have 24 different cabs, everything from a 1x6 to 2x12 to 4x12 to 1x15. They all sound great. You also have one of four microphones to choose from, from a Shure 57 to a condensor, and you can choose where in the room this microphone would be next to the "cabinet" ( you use your mouse to position it within a 3d "room" ).

The RiffTracker software is simple but nothing to sneer at. Very functional : a drum machine is on tap with endlessly variable tempos and signatures, and recording is painfully easy : punch record, punch stop, save. Its not Pro-Tools, but what its best for is simply saving riffs or ideas you've written, instead of having to go through the tedious process of tabbing them out.

For 8 dollars a month you can subscribe to an online GuitarPort community, which is basically all the monthly lessons you'd see in the back of a GuitarOne or GuitarWorld magazine, except in a "Power Tab" sort of format. A feature I have yet to use, as I don't really care to learn "As The Wind Cries Mary".

All in all, what I wanted was simply something that would sound ok through computer speakers and headphones. Given Line 6's horrible reputation for making otherwise "cheesy" sounding modeling amplifiers, this exceeded my expectations in every way possible. And now I sound like a sales representative for Line 6, unfortunately

I think you got these backwards:


1993 SLO Head - The Mesa model. This is my favorite amplifier on the program, by far, and obviously the most meticulously engineered of the four "metal" amps. Of course, the gain is full throttle, and perfectly replicates the grind of thrash and death metal. Naturally mid-heavy, you can dial in more bass via the digital EQ in the effects section. Has the most "character" of the four high gain amps.

Line 6 Treadplate - I love how three of the four "metal" amps are Line 6's. This model came in as a close second behind the SLO Head, albeit more bassy and less middy.


The 1993 SLO is suppost to be a Soldano.

The Line 6 Treadplate is supposed to be a Mesa Dual or Triple Rec.

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I knew I made a mistake somewhere. Thanks for the correction.

no problemo, think you could check out my post on EMG's?? I need some help!!

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Certainly. I'll be there in a moment.

nice review...

i've heard they can be very neat and handy little units.

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Thanks. I could write a few more pages of review, but I wrote what I felt summed up the unit in as few words as possible. Given how much I did write, speaks volumes of the product.




"Neat and handy" would be an understatement ... I'm never going to buy another practice amplifier ever, ever again. I feel like I should have paid more, much more for it.

Great review. Much more informative than the video on the line 6 website. I have been contemplating getting one of these for some time now but you just sealed the deal for me.

I purchased mine from E-bay. Apparently there's some person who keeps abour four or so GuitarPorts on E-bay at any given time, and its 97.00 total, shipping included.

hey john
could you post some samples of the distortion on that thing?
i may actually buy one, they sound perfect for what i need.

if you can do samples, do it with the emg guitar, coz i have em aswell

hope you can do it

cheers
user01

EDIT:
do you get riff tracker? and if so, do you have to subscribe or pay for it seperately?

You have to pay for it seperately. I used the demo, but you can't save files with the demo.

the distortion : It sounds better than anything from the Spider series, I can tell you that right now. Better than anything from the AVT series too. Its what good solid-state is supposed to be. But if you already own an ENGL or a 5150 don't expect the GuitarPort to replace it.

Today I plugged it into my dad's Avatar 4x10 bass cabinet and it sounded very good. The leads are really thick.


Does anyone know of another program I could get ( i.e. obtain from Soulseek ) that I could use to record the GuitarPort with? I've read that you don't need Line6's Rifftracker to do it. I have Cubase and Emagic and still have'nt figured out how to record with it.

if i buy it i can copy it for you

Remember : I'm one of the few members who has been nice to you and has'nt chastised you for liking Slipknot .

It costs one hundred dollars extra, so two hundred total for the GuitarPort plus the rifftracker. If you were to burn rifftracker to a cd I'd definitely pay shipping for it, and then from now on when CC gets on to you I'll have your back

yea, you've always been one of the cool guys

but IF i do get it, it wont be for at least a month (when i get paid)
but when i get it, i will try and get the download version (i think there is one), so if i get it i can just email it to a gmail account or sumthin

bottom line:
if i get it, i will def get you a copy

If its a month, then I might get it before you do. If so, then I guess I'll mail you a copy then. I've already searched SoulSeek high and low and I have'nt been able to find anything.

Im sure their's a torrent of that craptackular program.

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I really know little about filesharing. Could you enlighten me as to what exactly what program I should download to obtain this craptacular program?

http://www.bittorrent.com/

read up, then find a torrent site.. I usually just type in google " rifftracker torrent" or "torrent site" ect..

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Thanks, I'll see what I can do.

Damn, I can't find anything.

im thinking about getting the line 6 pod xt with the metal shop add on now

check out the addons:

Peavey 5150II
Bogner '02 Uberschall
Diezel '03 VH4 Lead
ENGL '02 Powerball
JCM-900
JCM-2000
Triple Rectifier
Cornford MK50

thats pretty fucking amazing, and probably the best im gonna get without investing in a good tube amp. i cant spend too much money on guitar shit.

this will have to do for now

the good thing is i can take it anywhere with ease and not compromise quality
sweet, i think im def gonna get that

what dya guys think? better than the roland cube 30 for practice use?

i think i know the answer

If you own a computer you have unlimited access to, then there is no contest.

I can guarentee none of those samples will sound anything like the real thing.

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I guess it depends how much time you want to be at your computer. Because unless you've got a laptop you're pretty much confined to one space to play guitar...with an amp.

it works for me because:

1. its sooo portable, i could sit on my sofa with my headphones on and play, i could even walk out of the house with the pod in my bad and play. it has a direct headphone out socket. and with the screen you can chose everything you want directly from it.

2. its also alright for me because i can also connect it to hifi's aswell

3. i keep my guitar next to my pc and i always near or at my pc, so its cool

im sold

im gonna try and get a new one from ebay usa. the fucking brits are charging £224, i found it for £145 on ebay usa.

Anyone who actually expects this 100$ piece of equipment ( with a 50$ add on ) to sound as good as an Uberschall, 5150II or an Engl is a very, very silly person. This product was'nt even meant to be used directly in place of said boutique amplifiers. It was meant to turn your personal PC or laptop into a guitar practice and recording workstation for a very small sum of money. If you want great tone and feel for live performance, I think anyone with common sense ( and reasonably good taste ) will be able to discriminate between the GuitarPort and an actual amplifier.

What it does, for the money you're paying, is quite a great deal, but to think that it will perfectly replicate those amplifiers is beyond ludicrous, and the GuitarPort is no replacement for a great amplifier head/cabinet.

You'll only be able to venture outside your home with the unit if you have a laptop.

And the GuitarPort sounds great through hi-fi computer speakers. You'll enjoy it.

yea, your rite. who ever does expect it to be a direct replacement of amazing heads and cabs is a retard.

but im in need of a practice amp and instead of getting a cube or spider, i might aswell get this.

btw, can u use a pod xt without a pc? like do you need a pc with it to make it work?

agreed,
but it's $50 for a ton of added flexibility. i mean, for good high gain tones, the stock presets and voicings are mostly crap. this might give him some better sounds to work with.

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can u use a pod xt without a pc? like do you need a pc with it to make it work?

yes, the pod xt is a completly different modual than the Guitar Port.

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so you want use it at all without a pc?

huh?

The guitar port NEEDS a pc..

the POD has NOTHING to do with a pc

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haha, wtf!

I tried the guitar port too, it was decent. I have no real use for something like it I guess but it seems like a nice gimmick.

the usual pod and pod xt just sucked plastic ass if you ask me...

Do you think that the add-on would really have better sounds, or would it be just more of the same?

I haven't realy looked into this, but how would you do that add-on? Is it software you install? Firm-ware you upload onto the guitar-port? Is the guitar-port (the hardware) only the input, or does it do fx and amplification itself too?

I'm not looking to buy one, but I'm quite curious.

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Basically it would be a patch. The red guitarport itself functions as a hardware bypass between your guitar and the computer, and you're paying most of your money for the GuitarPort cd, which contains the actual information ( amps, effects whatnot ).

If I wanted something like that, I would just download IK's Multimedia AmpliTube or Native Instruments Guitar Rig.

*searching soulseek now*

But if I do install the program, how do I plug my guitar into the computer, is there a seperate unit I buy for that, or can I just use my guitarport?

Your GuitarPort should work, failing that, an adapter into your PC's soundcard.

Damn, check out the prices:

AmpliTube: £205

Guitar Rig: £275

I'll search for some torrents.

Edit: Amplitube is actually a plug-in for shit like Cubase, Pro Tools, CoolEdit,etc.

I've looked at some of the user reviews for Guitar Rig, and as it happens, many users hated it.

amplitube is amazingly shit

i have it on my pc, sooooo shitty

everything sounds the same and all you get is fuzz, i dont know about the others, but DO NOT get amplitube. worst way to waste internet download bandwidth

Have you ordered your GuitarPort yet, User 01? When you get it, should you have any questions about it PM me.

nope not yet, waiting for my pay check...my work place is soooo unreliable

o yea, btw, i've decided to get a pod xt.

i've always had my eyes on it, i hope its as good as everyone says
if not...ebay

im still geting riff tracker, so if i get it i can email a copy to you or send you a copy

Then I will say that it's not as good as everyone says

My guitar teacher has a Pod Xt set-up, but it goes through shitloads of other stuff before the speakers to make it sound good.

Job? I thought you were 13 or something?

Anyway, I just downloaded AmpliTube, and is really guite shit, worst thing is, the delay between your actual playing and the sound is horrible, you need something in between (like the GuitarPort) to make it OK I think.

Oh well, it was free anyway.

Last night my dad decided to be friendly, and he ordered the rifftracker activation number for me ( he played his bass through my GuitarPort, and decided that he just had to have one too ). I went ahead and ordered the Metal Shop add on myself. The predicament is, however, that I think they have a registry database on their internet server, that is, I'm not sure if I could send you the serial and it even work on your guitarport. I'm going to install the serial today and let you know how it turns out, and if I can, I'll record a couple of tracks and try to host them.

Does anyone know how I could host .wav files?

I don't think you can easily find a host for .WAV's, just convert them if you have a sound editing program or whatever.

lol, na, im nearly 17

and yea, amplitube is soooo shite
you need a really fast computer to get rid of the delay, our computers are too slow...i think
whats your spec?
mine is a 1.8ghz amd duron with 256mb ram

i dont think i have enough ram



thats cool of your dad to get you that

its cool about serial, its unlikely to work on another guitar port if theres server's, copy protection is pretty strong nowerdays, so not to worry, i will just order riff tracker with my pod. tell me how it goes anyways dude.

about wavs, wavs are amazingly big files when saved at high quality. its like 60mb for a song if i remember right. like blizzard sed, just convert your wav files to mp3s. when you convert it, just host it on yoursendit.com

btw, isnt the metal shop add on only for the pod xt? i may be wrong

yea, neways, bring on the samples

I've got a 1.8Ghz AMD Athlon with 512mb ram. I'm sure that's enough, but I remember reading something about normal soundcards being unable to handle guitar frequencies, thus causing delay, and you need something in between (like a high quality mixer type thing, like your Guitarport) to process the signal faster.

Yea, its to do with the protocol used... the PCI slots are simply not fast enough to be able to transfer that amount of data, due to all the harmonics etc. of guitars... However... you don't/can't hear a lot of them, so the guitar port will cut the crap So to sum this post up.... blizzard_beast, you are correct :P

I don't think he understands what a POD xt actually is...

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Obviously..

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Another metaltabs member is going to host the file for me after I e-mail it for him. I'll entitle it "The Official MetalTabs GuitarPort Sample". Because all the samples the company writes for their own products are sub-par, especially Line 6's.

The Official MetalTabs GuitarPort Samples:

Track1(1:41)
Track2(1:41)

You must Right-click, and then select "Save Target As" for these files to work.


I had just returned home from work, because of an intestinal virus that caused me to throw up quite a few times. I decided to cut some tracks anyway. Because I'm sick and because I did'nt warm up my hands, you can hear quite a few mistakes, and the virtuosos on this forum may have a good laugh, but mind you, I'm getting better. At least you know what this sounds like.

The first one, I used my Schecter C-1 Classic with EMG 81/85 set for all guitar that you hear, and my dad's Peavey Cirrus 6 six string for all the bass that you hear. I can't remember exactly what I used for the rythm guitar ( only three tracks total ), I think it was the Rectifier model that I recieved in the add-on pack. For the lead I used the 1993 Soldano Solo model, with a touch of ( faux ) spring reverb. There are plenty of mistakes in this song, but there are also a few nice licks here and there.

The second one is both great, and terrible, in the fact that I only got so far before I had to lay down. About one 35 seconds into the second recording you should stop listening because then all you hear is drum machine and perhaps awful mistakes. I was'nt proficient enough with the program to edit out the last 45 or so seconds, or at the very least fade it out, this is the first time I've ever worked with recording software. It was something I wrote on the spot, and a total of nine tracks were used. Same leads, same rythm, but I used the Engl model for the quadruple guitar "build up" that you hear after the melody. Again, there are lots of mistakes I did'nt bother to fix, at this point I had to go lay down and eat saltine crackers and drink 7-Up.

There was no post-tweaking, on the sounds, I just turned the knobs on the amplifiers until I heard what I wanted, then pressed record. It seems you can record an unlimited number of layers, as I have yet to reach a limit. And thanks to Sqol for making the hosting possible.

wicked

i love the first clip, sooo kuewl

cant wait to get my pod xt
the lil screen looks cool

Thanks. I know the second clip is power metal bastardization that needed a thorough re-tracking of several parts ... and a minute of drum machine removed. But that's what the GuitarPort can do. I have'nt yet learned to utilize the post-editing sequences you can use on the layers of tracks, so everything was recorded and mixed totally raw.

You do know you can get a Line 6 guitar port, and for one hundred dollars upgrade it to everything that a POD XT has, correct? Your guitarport would be an XT, it would just look different. That would cost you a hundred dollars less overall.

i have to admit, i didnt know that the addons were available for the guitar port, thats an awesome thing for something so cheap.
but yea, im getting the pod because i can connect it to other stuff and i wouldnt HAVE to stay at my pc.

man those clips are keuwl, your fucking amazing on guitar and you were ill! i wonder how good you are when your well. well im a beginer (6 months) so i cant play anything like that.

Thanks man, I really appreciate the compliments. You've got quite the role models in Mick and Kerry, do what they did and practice as much as you possibly can, and play from the heart.

By the way, I created a master version of track 2, no messups ( there was one accidental open note that I just could'nt find among the 24 track pileup, see if you can spot it. ), and its a full song. I'm going to see if Sqol can host it.

http://blueprint.dijit.net/mt-jh/SONG.mp3

sweet, can wait to hear it
if you want a place to host stuff, check out www.yousendit.com you may have come across it before
btw did you make it on riff tracker?

o yea, and how long have you been playing for? i cant be bothered to switch to that other thread (how long you been playing for) at the moment, my internet is going really really slow

I've been playing since December. But I've been practicing 8-10 hours daily, sometimes 14.

you have PM

You have a lot of good questions. Anyhow :

http://blueprint.dijit.net/mt-jh/song1.mp3

Or just click on the file link. If that does'nt work, then Right Click, and then select "Save As" from the menu.

Tremelo picking madness at 250 bpm. Something like Pig Destroyer raping Amon Amarth and whomever produced Cannibal Corpse's first few albums doing the sequencing of segued riffs ( My second attempt at digital recording ).

thats fucking fast man, what string you playing that on?

The majority of riffing was committed on the lowest E-string, those very low pitched chords you hear are a result of fretting my low A and E string together. I tune low to high : A E A E A E. Almost everything you hear is double-tracked. So if it sounds like one guitar through any of it, then its a fucking miracle, seeing as how I've just learned the "count off" metronome option.

so uh.. you play drop-everything on your strings?

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When I first started playing ( Around December ) I was trying to devise a way to tune the guitar to encompass the span in pitch that a seven string possesses, so that I would'nt have to change constantly my tuning for different songs. I use Zakk Wylde 10-60 gauge strings, the tension feels perfect. The only downside is I have to play by ear, exclusively. Which in all regards will actually accelerate my learning.

Line 6 has opening for guitar/effects repair technician. Pay is only $12-14, but the job kicks much ass...

http://jobsearch.monster.com/getjob....mc_n=MKT000125

They need to fix my god damn pod!!!!

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nice, if only i were qualified.

and i don't live in cali....

$12-$14 aint bad. better than my current unemployment.

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I rather work for Warmoth.. they are always hiring.. and they make good shit, stuff I can be proud of.

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umm.. ok... that'd be nice too.

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I earn about 12 euro's an hour, that's allmost 16 dollars an hour!


I don't know how the wages are in comparisson though and how old you guys are, I've been working for the same company for 6 years now, it's a shitty job but it pays well. (expedition work, making cargo bills, loading trucks, logistics) I only do it on saturdays and in the holidays, it earns a shitload in the holidays!!

luck bastard, i earn roughly $8 and hour
but its only part time so im not tooo worried about it

you're probably a lot younger then me mate!

im 16, going on 17

Its good that you're getting started at guitar at such a young age. If only I could have started then!

Fuck man, but you're pretty good considering you've only been playing seriously since December. Fucking hell, if only I had the motivation to practice 8-10 hours a day.

Yeah, but if I could have started practicing 8-10 hours a day two years ago I'd be better than just "pretty good"

( going on 6 hours as of today )

ha, i've been playing since i was 12... and i still suck

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Surely you must be better than I

Especially given that you have really great equipment. What I would'nt give for a Triamp.

We can always count on XDX to have the best

i wish i had the time to practive 8 -10 hours a day!
i guess your not in school.

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I have a full time job. I just do not sleep.

so you dont sleep at all?

so how long have you gone on with out sleep?

He gets very little sleep..

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o rite
lol
soz, i can be a lil slow sumtimes...

well i guess i don't suck to much... but i'm not "GODLY" or anything... i jam several times a week, periods of time ranging from 5 minutes to several hours. sometimes by myself, sometimes with other dudes.

i'm not exactly a shredder either... more of a mathy/core/ambient/shoegaze/blah blah guy... see hifi massacre below..

so basically to the average long haired, ripped t-shirt and army boot sporting metal dude... i suck because i can't sweep a phrygian mode at a 500 bpm.

and equipment doesn't really have to do with how good you are... maybe just how good you sound.

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ok, check these two tones out
both were recorded on a line 6 pod xt
and both are soooo fucking amazing
one is slipknot (fuck you, i like em), and the other is lamb of god

log
http://s15.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=...TM0NT4D7OXM08G0

slipknot
http://s15.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=...RQ3D678B4F8YMWZ

now, you have to admit, the pod catches their tone pretty accurately
this has definately sold the item to me, i cant wait, thats exctly what i wanted from it

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/8/bulbmusic.htm

check the song called "the walk"
and check out the bad ass tone on that bitch

that was done entirely on a fucking line 6 pod xt!!!

jesus fucking christ, im definately going to buy it, the range of tones available is mind blowing.

now i just have to wait for my pay check

well if thats the tone you're looking for, that last sample did everything but impress me to be honest.

ok
what about the first 2

checking them out now.

the slipknot one is horrible but so is slipknot, so no suprise there. I just can't stand their tone.

the LOG one is allright, I think the overall guitar tone is pretty 'thin' like the pinch harmonics and at the riffage, but at least it sounds brutal. If you want that exact tone, buy it.

the pod has a crazy amount of bass, the other guitarist in me band uses one. he has the bass on his amp on 0 and its still uber bassy

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yea, i think those tones are perfect for me, and i certainly wont be able to get them out of a cube 30 or spider II.



that might be because hes on the rectifier model. the pod tries to model the amps as realisitically as possible. and apparently the rectifier has a lot of bass on it, some say too much. so the high bass levels may be due to that particular amp model your friend uses.

ahh i see, sounds good anyway.

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man im really getting impatient with work
still no paycheck
they sed i will be getting it in 3 weeks!!!


fucking bitches

Hi!

I'm new here And I hope that I will get some help.

First of all, can someone say me how to record with my Line 6 Guitar Port? How to record in Cubase or?

Second, if someone of you have Guitar Port send me some nice tones to mail ( morikvend@yahoo.com ) and I will send him some too.

Thanks!