Vintage Line 6 Spider

ICBM

Well sort of...

I just thought this was interesting. There's an old maroon-panel MkI Spider 2x10" in the shop at the moment. I played through it a few weeks ago when it came in and thought it sounded remarkably good for a Spider, but didn't really pay any more attention.

This morning, a Spider IV 75 came in. I played through it and thought it sounded dreadful - couldn't get a decent tone out of it at all. Surely it must be my imagination that the old one had sounded better? Doesn't technology like this always improve over time?

So I got the two of them side by side, set them to the same model and control settings, and A/B'd them.

Totally conclusive - the old one sounds *miles* better. Not just a little bit - the proverbial 'night and day'. Even trying to dial in the MkIV differently to sound better and closer to the MkI, I couldn't get them to sound anything like the same - the old one just pisses on the new one from a great height... it sounds really good, quite valve-like, whereas the new one has that odd grainy "digital" artificiality about it as well as far less depth and bottom end, despite having a 12" speaker.

The new one does have a lot more sounds and features, and surely much more processing power and better models, but it just isn't in the same league for sound quality. Why?!!

@impmann?

rossyamaha

I upset someone quite high up once saying the Spider 4 was quite simply awful. That said the first version wasn't amazing. Ahead of it's time for sure but far from a valve amp. What always confused me is what happened between 3 and 4. 3 was OK. Actually did a few gigs with a 3 and it sounded good but I had a hard time getting what I considered a good sound out of the 4. The newer 5 is a different animal completely but you're right, Spider 4 is, well, a bit shit. It did however still outsell every other amp in it's class so what do I know. 

impmann

It doesn’t surprise me. But it’s so long since I played through an early Spider I really can’t remember what they are like!!

Telejester

ICBM said:

Well sort of...

I just thought this was interesting. There's an old maroon-panel MkI Spider 2x10" in the shop at the moment. I played through it a few weeks ago when it came in and thought it sounded remarkably good for a Spider, but didn't really pay any more attention.

This morning, a Spider IV 75 came in. I played through it and thought it sounded dreadful - couldn't get a decent tone out of it at all. Surely it must be my imagination that the old one had sounded better? Doesn't technology like this always improve over time?

So I got the two of them side by side, set them to the same model and control settings, and A/B'd them.

Totally conclusive - the old one sounds *miles* better. Not just a little bit - the proverbial 'night and day'. Even trying to dial in the MkIV differently to sound better and closer to the MkI, I couldn't get them to sound anything like the same - the old one just pisses on the new one from a great height... it sounds really good, quite valve-like, whereas the new one has that odd grainy "digital" artificiality about it as well as far less depth and bottom end, despite having a 12" speaker.

The new one does have a lot more sounds and features, and surely much more processing power and better models, but it just isn't in the same league for sound quality. Why?!!

@impmann?

https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3818/13610418115_4492d7f638_m.jpg

ICBM  ive sent you a container for the line 6 amps

ICBM

rossyamaha said:

That said the first version wasn't amazing. Ahead of it's time for sure but far from a valve amp.

I actually wondered if it was because this is the 2x10" and is (presumably) stereo - I've never played this model before as far as I remember. If so and it does the reverb, cab modelling etc in stereo, that might help explain the much more natural, 'three-dimensional' sound it seemed to have. I was really surprised how much I liked it, which I don't think I've ever said about a Spider (or any Line 6 amp actually) before!

Telejester

http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lzoeg2nECx1r7i7r7.gif

Playing your new Line 6 amp for the first time facial expression