It seems like Line6 kinda screwed people over

[Aural Chaos]

I just wish I had a floorboard controller for it though...

You do know about the Behringer FCB1010 right?

[AndrewSimon]

Just a thought here about tube amps, I am hooked on Line 6 modeling for ease of use however there is no way ever a modeling amp or DI box will ever acheive the true sound of a real tube amp. One of the most underlooked aspects of a tube amp is the output transformer that is used.

What makes you think that that aspect of the amp circuit is not included in the modelling? You can think of a Tube amp/cab/mic system as a transfer function. You look at the input signal and the output signal (what comes from the mic). An amp modeller attempts to model this transfer function in its entirety. The current state of the art is obviously less than perfect but who would not expect it to continue to improve with more development and more processing power?

Agree
The day will come when you won't be able to tell the difference but we don't want to hear this.
We like nostalgia and we love our tubes.
Besides I like toasting bread on top of the amp
Try that with modeling

[KarmicApexIntellect]

The reason you can't update isn't a software limitation, it's a hardware limitation. To put it simply, the guts of your old Pod Pro aren't at all the same as what's in a newer Pod Pro XT.

And for the record, Line 6 has been great about updates. I own a Vetta II myself, so I know what I'm talking about.

For those not in the know, the original Vetta was a $1,700 modeling amp with 40 some odd amp models with a couple cool features like the ability to run 2 amp models at once. Line 6 then decided it was time to make a new Vetta with 72 amps and dozens of new effects and features. Not to mention a total revoicing of the entire amp which made it closer in sound to their new (At the time) HD147. Since no actual hardware had changed the upgrade was completely free to all Vetta I owners.

Not to mention the model packs. You realize that for $400 you can get a Pod XT loaded with all 72 amp models I've got in my $1,700 Vetta II? That's a sweet deal any way you slice it.

Your particular product was different. As I said, the hardware had to be changed in order to make the modeling engine more powerful. It's unfortunate, but it happens. Some day there will be a new Line 6 amp that makes my Vetta II obsolete. It'll hurt a little, but I'll get over it (The new amp sitting in my studio will help ease my pain ).

Dude, I could not agree more with you! I bought my Vetta I HD halfstack not very long after they first came out; while I wasn't all that impressed with the Line 6 factory-created amp presets, you could still mix and match SO many different amp models to cab models to effects banks, that it wasn't all that hard to get a good custom-made tone created. I had owned the amp for well over a year by the time that the new Vetta II was released and the company opted to let all of us Vetta I owners to upgrade our firmware so that we basically now owned a Vetta II inside a Vetta I's skin, and when I first fired up my amp after the upgrade, HOLY CRAP ! Not only did I have a bunch of new amp, cabinet, and effects models, but they had VASTLY improved the oevrall tones of ALL the models they had imported over to the Vetta II, along with the new additions. It was almost like a had a brand-new amp again, only a way better one! I think they did that because of this:

Vetta I HD price(3 years ago)=$1,699.00
Line 6-4 x 12 top cabinet price (" ")=$599.00
Line 6 FBV Vetta LongBoard foot controller price(" ")=$400.00
In short, the Vetta was (and I think still is) Line 6's flagship amplifier, and that's a helluva lot of cash to shell out for the company's top-of-the-line model, only to find it's already outdated a year or so after you purchased it! So I believe it was a real good move on their part, to give us that firmware upgrade. Three years on now, and I love that amp; I need NO outside effects of any kind, it's got more balls than any of the other amp heads I've owned and gigged with in the 28 years I've been playing guitar. (The Vetta HD being a 300W head probably having much to do with that fact, lol; the combo Vetta's half that.) I hear that if and when they DO decide to upgrade the Vetta line again to a Vetta III, the company hasn't guaranteed this time that owners of the previous versions of Vetta will automatically get another free firmware upgrade like before. As long as the upgrade's price is a reasonable one, I'll shell out the cash, simply because of how much better the last firmware upgrade made my amp sound along with the improved functionality.

[GrantsV]

I dont have a problem with the texture of distortion etc. on the modelling boxes, its the frequency content that isnt right. It always sounds so dull and lifeless compared to any VSTi or softsynth, like the sound is coming from behind a wall or something.
No matter what I cant eq it back 'in your face'.

Popping a real mic up against a real cab as a totally different 'presence' and slots in the mix so much more realistically.

[Lunch Money]

I have to disagree again. Cabs, like tubes, are also not magical. The frequency response of some cabs is ugly sounding to begin with, and then micing it will sometimes get you a whole lot of ick. Even worse, you might have a mediocre cab and a horrible mic. The worst of all would be a bad cab, bad mic, and bad placement of the mic.

A real cab is no guarantee of a good sound, that's for sure.

To be fair, with good mics, the right room, the right cabs, and the right engineer, a real amp WILL sound better. My only point (which seems to have been missed again) is that there's a lot more of an equation to go through to get the 'real' thing to sound good. The mere fact that it's 'real' is never enough.

Greg