Line 6 announcement on January 23rd. New amp?

[Insinfier]

Another picture, iPhone interaction with amp?

Can't say I'm surprised.

But I can say all of my interest has been lost. Kinda sick of these phone/tablet-based products.

The iPod/iPad/iPhone is just as a much a toy as any Android device, so why not do both. Android uses USB in some form or another with inexpensive adapters available for digital audio and there are just as many, if not more Android devices...

So many Android phones and tablets are in existence, and that is its fatal flaw. There are simply too many software and hardware configurations for devices. Latency is a big issue in any application that has to work in realtime and it is near-impossible to build such an app that would work as intended on every Android device. There is a blog stating that an Angry Birds update requires over 70 different versions of the app to be compiled because of the sheer amount of hardware configurations in the market. And this is just a tiny game where latency isn't even a factor.

 

[celticelk]

^^^ I'd also add:

-Available USB options are moot if the connection is wireless, and I'd lay odds that if this is an amp that talks to a mobile device, the method is Bluetooth.

-You support iOS instead of Android, if all other things are equal, because iOS users have more disposable income. That's a simple fact of the market.

 

[GunpointMetal]

To me it seems like a good way to add another possible fvck up to your rig, that's why I consider all of that stuff simply "toys". You can think you get the best tones imaginable out of Jamup or whatever, but it would seem to me that unless you spend the money on a TOL iPad and ONLY use it for music, its a crapshoot as to whether or not its gonna hold a charge, power on, stay connected, etc when for less then what you would pay the iPad/interface, you could have a POD HD and a floorboard or an HD500, or two Zoom G5s.......any of which IMO has better guitar tones and is more reliable as it is a dedicated device.

 

[celticelk]

To me it seems like a good way to add another possible fvck up to your rig, that's why I consider all of that stuff simply "toys". You can think you get the best tones imaginable out of Jamup or whatever, but it would seem to me that unless you spend the money on a TOL iPad and ONLY use it for music, its a crapshoot as to whether or not its gonna hold a charge, power on, stay connected, etc when for less then what you would pay the iPad/interface, you could have a POD HD and a floorboard or an HD500, or two Zoom G5s.......any of which IMO has better guitar tones and is more reliable as it is a dedicated device.

All of your comments here assume that the new product is software only. If it turns out to be a physical amp that can be *optionally* configured via Bluetooth using an iOS device, none of these criticisms apply.

 

[Wings of Obsidian]

It's probably some kind of amp that you can control from your tablet or iOS device with an app/software.

I have a new Pioneer DJ controller that utilizes that concept where I can walk away and have my iPhone or iPad used as an external remote to continue the music live. Pretty cool.

 

[Insinfier]

That's what I am hoping for. The picture of a phone is a teaser and with 10+ days away from the unveiling, expect more teasers. No way would they blow it this soon, the phone is clearly a small piece of it. Really hoping the phone is optional. I'm fine with being able to configure it with my iPad, but I would prefer it to not require it.

 

[mnemonic]

I don't think its going to be an iOS modeler, as they already have that; the mobilePOD (which sucks).

They claim to have reinvented the guitar amp, I wonder if its something legitimately new, or just something new to Line 6.

 

[Spinedriver]

It would be pretty sad if they copied Digitech's iPB-10 and are making something to interface the Pod HD and whatever Apple device.

I can't think of anyone who would want to use a phone as a basis for jamming/gigging. Home practice or recording I can see but not really much beyond that.

 

[HeHasTheJazzHands]

I'm going to be it's just an outside app that lets you choose presets on the fly.

I can't think of anyone who would want to use a phone as a basis for jamming/gigging

The IOS Modeling thread would like to have a word with you.

 

[mnemonic]

I see where people are coming from, re; not wanting to use a phone or ipad for guitar. I wouldn't want to gig with an iOS amp if I could help it, since its just more stuff to go wrong. Same reason I wouldn't want to rely on a laptop for part of a live song or something.

Also I'm not a huge fan of all this integration. I don't want to watch TV through my xbox goddammit, I just want it for playing games.

 

[Mordacain]

I see where people are coming from, re; not wanting to use a phone or ipad for guitar. I wouldn't want to gig with an iOS amp if I could help it, since its just more stuff to go wrong. Same reason I wouldn't want to rely on a laptop for part of a live song or something.

Also I'm not a huge fan of all this integration. I don't want to watch TV through my xbox goddammit, I just want it for playing games.

The integration is all optional though. It's just an added feature, not a requirement; it's there for people who find it useful and it doesn't interfere with those who won't use it.

I could see having some remote functionality if they are making a new Vetta / Flextone. Honestly, having had a DT25 and a Flextone III I think I'd prefer having a new high-end solid state design. The Flextone still sounds awesome for the most part, despite using ancient models; I can imagine tweaked HD models being a pretty killer basis for an update.

 

[Spinedriver]

I'm going to be it's just an outside app that lets you choose presets on the fly.



The IOS Modeling thread would like to have a word with you.

I guess it's just that I'm used to using having programs lock up and/or crash seemingly at random and playing live is NOT a situation where I would want that to happen. If someone is playing at home or recording and it crashes, it's no big whoop. On stage, if your "iRig" decides to call it a day, it can totally ruin a performance. That's not to say that a modeler or amp can't break down but the likelihood of something going wrong is MUCH higher with a laptop or tablet that is not only running your modeling software but many other programs at the same time. If your anti-virus decides to run a scan when you aren't expecting it to, the load on the ram and/or cpu could cause a lockup.

 

[Fretless]

I guess it's just that I'm used to using having programs lock up and/or crash seemingly at random and playing live is NOT a situation where I would want that to happen. If someone is playing at home or recording and it crashes, it's no big whoop. On stage, if your "iRig" decides to call it a day, it can totally ruin a performance. That's not to say that a modeler or amp can't break down but the likelihood of something going wrong is MUCH higher with a laptop or tablet that is not only running your modeling software but many other programs at the same time. If your anti-virus decides to run a scan when you aren't expecting it to, the load on the ram and/or cpu could cause a lockup.

There are ways around problems like that. However, there are many aspects that could ruin all sorts of devices. I have had my battery box on my bass decide to crack on me at a show once. I don't even know how, but the battery just dropped out. I didn't hit the bass on anything, and I am usually really gentle with my gear.

That said, phones and laptops can be very stable. I mean how often do the computers in your car die? No more often than a tube amp decides it's needing to having it's tubes replaced, right? It all comes down to how things are setup in preparation for activity. I made a secondary profile on my laptop for use at practices, and not once in the last year and six months that I've owned it has it ever even so much as had a hick up on me.

 

[CrossingTheRubiconAlex]

I wish it were the Flextone 4, I've had every single Flextone and those were an amazing series.

 

[Lain]

If some form of Android or iPhone is necessary, they just lost all my interest.

However, if it's just an optional feature and you can use USB or whatever instead, i don't mind.

 

[Albionic]

I wish it were the Flextone 4, I've had every single Flextone and those were an amazing series.

I'm quite keen to pick up an old flextone amp to use as backup for my vetta 2

 

[Wookieslayer]

T
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[HeHasTheJazzHands]

 

[TeeWX]

...and now I just don't even care anymore. I barely trust phones to do what they're suppose to do let alone rely on them for a gig. They release them so fast that there are inevitable problems.

Also, I really wish people could stop calling servers "The Cloud". I work with a girl who gives me blank stares when I use the actual terms for anything at all.

 

[PF Chang]

A wifi/bluetooth amp? No need for usb for settings and patches?