Roland VG-88 and Line 6 POD Pro

[Armindo Dias]

Does anyone have the Roland VG-88 and/or the Line 6 POD Pro? I am seriously considering buying one of these but i would like to hear your opinion in terms of sound and authenticity of the amp models. Since i cannot record and i cannot afford a large variety of amps, i am considering one of these units to "substitute" the real thing.

I know that the VG-88 has a lot more features that the POD Pro, but i am mainly interested in the amp models of the units. I am looking for a great replica of a high gain amp (like the Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier). Wich one, for your hears, replicates best a modern high gain sound? And in overall, wich one has the best amps models?

Any comments?

Thanks,
Armindo Dias

[darren wilson]

The VG-88 is really an entirely different beast to the POD.

The POD is more of a straight effects box that primarily does amp modeling and some basic effects. It's a really great piece of equipment, and a lot of people really love theirs.

The VG-88 can model EVERYTHING from what kind of guitar body you want to use (solid, hollow, semi-hollow) to the number of strings it has, how they're tuned, what kinds of pickups are on the guitar, where they are positioned, what kind of amp, speaker cabinet and microphone you want in the chain and how the mic is positioned in relation to the speaker cone. That's why the VG-88 costs at least 5x what the POD does. And you have to mount a Roland GK-2 hex pickup on your guitar to make the VG-88 work. It's a really heavy-duty piece of equipment. I've seen some mind-blowing demos of the VG-88 system and it's truly amazing what you can do with it. But it's definitely not a "plug-in and play" piece of equipment.

If you're considering the POD, take a look at the Johnson J-Station and the BOSS VF-1. I've got a VF-1 and it's really versatile. I don't know if it'll get that "Dual-Rectifier" sound you're looking for, but it can be used for a multitude of studio effects for guitar, bass, vocals, etc., which is why i bought it instead of a POD.

But if you only want guitar sounds, check out the POD and J-Station. I think the VG-88 might be way more technology than you want or need.

[Armindo Dias]

Thanks Darren.

Yes, the VG-88 has a lot more features. And i really apreciate hi-tech stuff, tweeking parameteres, etc. But my main concern between the POD and the VG is the comparision between the sound of the amp models, wich one sounds more natural and authentic. Of course all the effects and the synth capabilityes of the VG-88 are extremely cool. But i would rather buy the POD (if it sounds way better than the VG-8 and then buy an effects processor or the GR-33 for the synth stuff.

I know that a lot of people love the POD and i know that the amp models in the previous VG-8 left something to be desired (i've never heard it in person, but i've read that they sound processed...). I was wondering if these amp models are improved in the new version and if they are of the same caliber as in the POD.

I know that my ears are the best judges, but i don't have the opportunity to hear them in person in the couple of months, so i'm gathering some opinions from you guys that heard/own these processors....

Thanks,
Armindo Dias

[bduersch]

Armindo--

I've never played a VG-88 before, but I did own a VG-8 for several years. I know the models are relatively similar, so some of my statements would probably be valid for the VG-88.

I originally bought the VG-8 because I thought it would be cool to have a lot of parameters to control when creating presets (I'm somewhat of a techie gear person myself). It ended up being complete overkill. While it's cool (in theory) to be able to model a guitar with a pickup positioned in the middle of the neck, it's not particularly practical. It does give you a great deal of control over lots of parameters, but some of the parameters are kinda useless.

The other annoying thing about the VG-8 was that it required the Roland hex pickup (GK-2a). I only had one hex pickup, but I had 4 guitars. I didn't want to buy additional pickups at $150, and I certainly didn't want to mount the pickups to any of the guitars (there will be no, I repeat NO drilling of holes in the JPM :angry: ). Then, as icing on the cake, I started playing seven strings a lot, and the GK-2 pickups can only track 6 strings. Since you have virtual volume and virtual pickup switching on the GK-2 box on your guitar, all of your guitar's actuall volume/tone/pickup controls become useless (unless you run the VG-88 and your regular amp in parallel, but then you need to switch both your regular amp & the VG-88 at the same time). And when you rely upon the VG-88 for processing, it doesn't matter whether you're playing a $15000 PRS Dragon or a $100 Squier Strat--they basically come out sounding the same. Type of wood, pickups, etc. instantly becomes a moot point. Ugh!

Personally, I was never really impressed with the amp modelling in the VG-8. It took a lot of tweaking to get right, and never sounded that convincing to me. I bought a Johnson Millennium amp, and the next day the VG-8 was up on e-Bay. The rest is history.

If I were you, I'd try out more of the alternatives from Johnson & Line 6 (and probably a few other companies, too) before going with the VG-88. You can probably come up with something much cheaper, simpler, and better sounding.

Hope my rampage helps!
--Brent "Not much love for the VG-8" Duersch

[Jimi D]

I don't own a VG-88, but I do have a Roland GP-100 which uses COSM modelling for it's amp models the same as the VG... I used to own a POD, but after comparing the POD's models to my GP models, I sold the POD. Granted, I've been living with the GP for a couple years, so I've tweaked it into the "sweet spot" for my ears on a number of patches, but although the POD has heavier, more "attention grabbing" high gain presets, it can't compete in the clean tones, isn't nearly as "tweakable", and hasn't anywhere near the versatility of the GP, afaic. Also, the GP-100 has a battery of EXCELLENT effects on board, including an intelligent harmonizer that will blow your mind! Personally, I think a lot of the POD's popularity is the result of it's price point - if GP-100s or Voodoo Valves had originally sold for $300 instead of $1000, then they would have been the box everyone raves about * My $.02

[bduersch]

For the record, I also owned a GR-09 (forerunner to the GR-33). I was pretty impressed with the GR-09, and I've heard that the GR-33 is leaps and bounds better than it.

Of course, it still has all the hex-pickup issues of the VG-8's. The GR-09 was around my place much longer than the VG-8, but I couldn't bring myself to buy more pickups/alter more guitars. I also improved my keyboard playing ability enough to the point where I could say "If this song really needs a synth part, I'll just play it on the synth".

As far as creating cool new (& useful) sounds, this was an excellent box. There's nothing like running it in parallel--mix your clean guitar tone with cathedral bells, mix your solo lead tone with a square synth, etc. (You can play those great Dream Theater unison keyboard/guitar solos without having to invite Kevin Moore over for the afternoon.) Way cool!

If I had to choose between a VG-88 and a GR-33 + modeling amp box, I'd pick the latter combination hands down.

--Brent "Always more than my $0.02" Duersch

PS--Of course, if you can get Kevin Moore to come over for the afternoon to jam with you, I probably wouldn't spend any money on guitar synth gear...


(Edited by bduersch at 10:39 am on Dec. 28, 2000)

[wyldbill]

Actually, I'm a bit of a VG-8 fan. While I agree with what Brent says about his and the cons are very true, I like it for different reasons. As Darren mentioned, you can model lots of different stuff. This means guitars, amps and cabs primarily. The amp simulators can't model guitars. It's pretty cool to pick up you electric, strum it and have a Taylor (OK, emulated Taylor) come out of the amp. It can do banjos, resonator guitars, etc. as well. While these aren't the best, they're pretty good and a lot of fun. Another big advantage is tuning. You can set a pitch change by string. What drop D w/o changing guitars? hit a patch. Want to tune down a whole step for a certain song? hit another patch. handy.

I keep meaning to have a custom built w/ an internal hex pup....

It's ice cream. Do you use lots of guitars? Want certain exact sounds as opposed to a wide palette? Have *7 String? Not for you.
Want flexibility and versatility? Want LOTS of weird sounds from your guitar? Want instant tuning changes? Give it a shot.

On the synth front, I agree w/ Brent. I've got a Roland GI-10 MIDI converter and run into an XP-30. (I am a Roland junkie). Cool

FWIW,
-bill

[ripl3y]

If it's just the straight boogie tone you want without the other options then take a look at the Mesa V1 Bottle Rocket pedal.

Then again, it is limiting in the fact that you only get boogie tones from it.

(personally I'm after the Soldano Supercharger GTO)

gl

Steve