Tried this digital lark…..

grungebob · March 22

…:but I don’t think it’s for me.

My normal setup is a Kustom coupe 6L6 amp on the clean channel with limited pedal usage( a drive a fuzz and a digital delay).
Never gave digital /modeling a thougyy he until I tried a guitar out at my local shop and the guy let me use his floor modeller through an FRFR monitor. I was impressed at the fullness of the sounds plus the ability to add fx, in fact I didn’t even focus on the guitar I was demoing.

To dip my toes in I picked up a used Headrush MX5, it’s a bit meh.

Through headphones it’s very lacklustre and the drives sound fizzy.

Through the power amp of my coupe it doesn’t sound as good as my amp. The effects are good but not enough to make me want to keep it.

Would a pair of quality headphones or a FRFR speaker improve things or is the MX5 just not that great?

Roland · March 22

grungebob said:

… Would a pair of quality headphones or a FRFR speaker improve things or is the MX5 just not that great?

Yes and yes. The modeller is simulating pre-amp, power amp, and speakers. Putting it through your combo is doubling the effect of power amp and speakers, unless you can turn off power amp and speaker simulation. There are better modellers than the Headrush, but first off I’d worry about your monitoring.

grungebob · March 22

Thanks Roland. Yes I should have added I have bypassed my amps pre amp and I’ve turned off the IR/cab sim but it’s still a bit meh.

Through headphones it’s worse.

I’ve made sure too under global settings to switch between line level and amp when do either.

I guess I’d don’t feel like chucking any more money at it.

Fiftyshadesofjay · March 23

Depends what you’re trying to achieve really. It won’t sound as good as an amp through a speaker but it will sound as good as a mic’d up amp through an FRFR solution.

Headphones are a tricky one and again it’s probably not the modellers fault. A mic’d up amp isolated, then sent through a mixing desk, headphone amp and headphones will also sound fizzy.

Modellers are best if you’re trying to achieve mic’d guitar tones for recording or sending straight to FOH, otherwise it’s a compromise.

chrisj1602 · March 23

I think the speaker sim is a big part. I’ve not tried an FRFR myself, I’d like to.

Sporky · March 23

I might be misremembering, but I think at least one modeller was fussy about headphone impedance.

What modeller did the bod in the shop have?

TTBZ · March 23

What you're listening to it through makes a big difference. What headphones are they? I use DT770s for everything as I know how they sound, usually if I get it sounding good to me in them it seems to translate pretty well onto other speakers as well.

fretmeister · March 23

Writing off a technology based on a low priced option is like deciding you won’t like Ferrari after driving a Trabant.

melod · March 23

This discussion actually reminds me why I think Kemper provides with the better ecosystem. It includes option for amplification/speaker/powered speakers.

It’s enough to to go through all the modellers reviews and then realise you have all these other parameters to factor in as well.

pt22 · March 23

I wanted to love my MX5. On paper it was great, and some of the effects and amps were more than suitable for home use. Unfortunately not enough. I found myself endlessly tweaking to get the sound I wanted, and then I dove into the world of IRs which was option paralysis on steroids

It just wasn’t “wow” enough to overcome the issues, and so I find I’m much happier with a combo amp and a Boss IR-2 for headphone use.

chrisj1602 · March 23

I’ve fallen into the option paralysis thing before, feeling the need to run parallel paths, dual amps etc, but in reality there’s nothing wrong with getting a Helix or similar and using one amp model you like and a few effects, just as you would with an amp and pedal board.

Roland · March 23

chrisj1602 said:

… there’s nothing wrong with getting a Helix or similar and using one amp model you like and a few effects, just as you would with an amp and pedal board.

In the AxeFX I use only one amp type and one speaker type for everything. It took me a year to settle on which types, which is quicker and cheaper than if I had bought and sold a series of amps.

normula1 · March 23

The headphones can make a massive difference. My fav for listening to music RHA T20s are way too transparent in the high end for modeller use, my Sennheiser Momentum (I think) over ears have way too much bottom end really but are quite flattering, and my Shure 315 IEMs sound wonderful as they're quite flat in the low end but have a lovely roll off in the high treble that really suit.
I end up creating a set of patches for the Shures, monitors, and my 2x12 with Celestion f12 x200s as they all have different EQ curves.
Out of the cab, monitors / phones, the Shures are my favourite to be honest as they're totally consistent whereas sound from either of the cabs or monitors depends where my ears are in relation to them.

grungebob · March 23

Yes to be fair my headphones are probably junk by today’s standards. I’ve had them 20+ years.

I’ve tried it again today through the power amp section and I think it may have promise.

I can’t afford to go helix hence why I chose the MX5 , even if I get an FRFR it’s still less than buying the HX stomp xl on its own.

grungebob · March 31

So an update

got the POD go, night and day difference.

The headrush was good at slight break up but everything else was a bit meh.

The pod go is excellent, really responsive and sounds good through the power amp of my combo. Its looper function is shit compared to the headrush , that was a really good feature and the MX5 could have more complex rigs and multiple effects at once. The Pod Go limits what other effects you can use if you’re using a block that takes a lot of cpu power so that’s a negative for it. It does sound good though.

At first I wondered why you’d go higher up the line 6 tier but now I’ve found the limitations I may need to upgrade in the future.

ICBM · March 31

If you haven't tried it so far, also try running the modeller into the front of the amp, obviously on a clean sound - although received wisdom is that a modeller should go into a power amp, you may find it just sounds better via the preamp and the amp's EQ (not necessarily set as you would with a guitar straight in). Or it may not - but try it.

strtdv · March 31

grungebob said:

So an update

got the POD go, night and day difference.
The headrush was good at slight break up but everything else was a bit meh.
The pod go is excellent, really responsive and sounds good through the power amp of my combo. Its looper function is shit compared to the headrush , that was a really good feature and the MX5 could have more complex rigs and multiple effects at once. The Pod Go limits what other effects you can use if you’re using a block that takes a lot of cpu power so that’s a negative for it. It does sound good though.
At first I wondered why you’d go higher up the line 6 tier but now I’ve found the limitations I may need to upgrade in the future.

The Helix line is more powerful and has better modeling basically (though if you're running it into a power amp and cabinet the benefits are smaller), and the helix LT and above have 2 DSP processors rather than 1.

The Pod Go looks really good though.

Danny1969 · March 31

ICBM said:

If you haven't tried it so far, also try running the modeller into the front of the amp, obviously on a clean sound - although received wisdom is that a modeller should go into a power amp, you may find it just sounds better via the preamp and the amp's EQ (not necessarily set as you would with a guitar straight in). Or it may not - but try it.

I actually found this worked the best for me. I've mothballed it now but having used it in all kinds of configurations from straight to PA, to effects loop return to direct to PA speaker, the final gig I did with it was into the input of my Fender Hot Rod and that's the best it ever sounded.

Grumpyrocker · March 31

Roland said:

chrisj1602 said:

… there’s nothing wrong with getting a Helix or similar and using one amp model you like and a few effects, just as you would with an amp and pedal board.

In the AxeFX I use only one amp type and one speaker type for everything. It took me a year to settle on which types, which is quicker and cheaper than if I had bought and sold a series of amps.

I use the same Helix cab for everything on my HX Stomp.

Slartibartfarst42 · April 1

I found that with an amp, I could just plug in, make simple adjustments, and I'd be good to go. Switching to modeling involved a very steep learning curve, especially with EQ, which is absolutely essential in getting a good tone. Once done, my modelled amp tones are as good as anything I've had from a valve amp.

Lewy · April 1

Slartibartfarst42 said:

I found that with an amp, I could just plug in, make simple adjustments, and I'd be good to go. Switching to modeling involved a very steep learning curve, especially with EQ, which is absolutely essential in getting a good tone. Once done, my modelled amp tones are as good as anything I've had from a valve amp.

What are your top modelling EQ tips?

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