Great video, thanks. Line 6 definitely have their place in the market. Their stomp box modellers give people like me the chance to sample a collection of pedals they could never afford to own.
Wow, I've owned this pedal for years now and have never been able to compare it to the originals. I always assumed it couldn't come close to the originals. It was very nice to see how close it actually gets! Of course my opinion is that the originals stand alone the DM4 gets close enough for anyone out there! Thanks for taking the time to compare these!
These are the type of videos that make choosing your sound and your gear a lot easier. I use the Line 6 Delay Modeler and it came with that manual that included their entire modeler line. Following along as I watched this video I thought that mimicking all those classic pedals would be a bold claim. I am impressed with Line 6's accuracy but it still lacks a bit of analog warmth. I'd hold out for the classics. Please do more product comparison videos like this!
First I want to thank for this vid and the rest of the "VS" vids you've done, they really are great. Most the time when people make digi modelers they actually sound very close if not exactly the same, it isn't rocket science. I think when people are turned off by these digi pedals it's only because they're holding on too tight to the classics. These are great for those that can't afford to go out and buy the a handful of vintage pedals.
Great video, thanks for sharing. Some tips to make it easier to spot the differences/similarities. 1. Record the guitar clean into a digital recorder of some sort then play that back through each of the pedals so the performance is identical. 2. Since our (detailed) memory for sound is about 7 seconds it is a good idea to splice back-to-back the same 2-3 second segments of audio from each device processing the same audio. Just keep swapping back and forth.
Thanks, I've been wondering whether to re-buy up a few pedals I used to use, but this DM4 should do the trick, and without having to try a dozen Big Muffs again to find one that sounds 'right'. Great video and sound too!
Hi, the Tubescreamer is a first issue TS-808 dated by the op-amp chip and graphics. The Fuzz Face is a 1970 model, 1st of the silicon FF's with carbon comp resistors, tropical fish caps, round switch and metal can transistors. The only pedal that is a re-issue is the Rat, it's a newish Vintage Rat. It actually sounds very good when you hear it for real! G
This is a great vid, no matter how you slice it, cheers!! Yeaahh this pedal is great, the delay version of this is a must for a board...just me, rock on!!
I've done a similar thing with Guitar Rig 3 ( at the time 3 was new), and well comparing Big Muff, Metal Zone, Tube Screamer to their virtual counterparts, I was AMAZED how spot on they were.
i love the pedal i use it everyday , the noise gate is a great feature , i would recomend it to anyone , even if you dont get all the sounds of the pedals it still pretty good on its own .
Great video man! This is exactly what i wanted to know, after using the Line6 for about 2 years now. I think the fuzz could be improved and i also wonder about the Microamp booster. I'm fairly happy with the result! Thnx!!
As usual, the Line 6 stuff is great. I am a fan of their stuff, but if I were to invest in just a distortion/ overdrive pedal I would put the money into a Wampler as it is the best sounding one I have heard to date. This Modeler by Line 6 though certainly does the job of emulating these old style pedals. Thanks for the demo!
Now THAT'S THE WAY to demo/compare the distortion modeler! Nothing beats the real thing sometimes...but the line 6 does a pretty good job, and it's versatile. Carrying 1 pedal vs several to a gig is helpful.
Only seems to cut the treble on some but overall I think it sounds pretty close and the treble can be adjusted anyway form the amp. so it seems to be a good choice...thanks for the video
Great work with the A/B comparison. I am a diehard tube/analog guy when it comes to amps if I can help it, but with pedals, I like the Line 6 if you're into it for budgetary/convenience reasons, etc. The thing is, even though the tone is getting processed through a digital emulator, if the signal still gets run into a tube amp (especially a classic, straightforward hot piece of ass like a Fender Twin), one can get great tube tone.
For many of the pedals, the Line 6 does lack a little "oomph" right after you switch. But within a few seconds of playing, I've forgotten about the lost "oomph" and the pedal sounds great. I have to agree with others: in a live setting, no one would notice and you can save yourself some cash.
Thanks for this video. Line6 is pretty good, the audience sure will never know you are not using the originals unless they see it. Just the Big Muff and Fuzz Face, Line6 did not sound too close.
Nice one, thanks! My opinion of the Line 6 is that it is bloody close to a lot of the classics. So for that reason, and because of simplicity and price, it is worth considering. However, if a real Fuzz Face or Tubescreamer is your desire, then hunt one down. The oldies have ALL the mojo!!
Great video man, I use the Line 6 pedal myself and I'd have to say those things come in pretty close on most of the examples. For the price of the single unit, I don't think you can beat it. If you want to try to buy all those pedals now....good luck! Hope your pockets' are deep...
Man, I fucking love these stompbox modeling pedals. I just got the M13 about a month ago, which has all Line 6's stompboxes in it. I honestly don't hear a difference at all most of the time, and when I do, I bet some light tweaking could take care of it. In a blind test, I'm convinced no one would be able to tell. Certainly not a big enough difference to make it anything less than a no-brainer. The M13 is a phenomenal value, as are any of the M4 series.
Hi, The Rat has not been modified in any way other that the LED status indicator which I fitted myself. The circuit is stock. Glad you like the video! G
this is exactly the kind of comparison i was looking for. seems like the DM4 is quieter (duh) and is lacking a little of the high sparkle/crispiness of some of the originals. but really really close on most of them. FuzzFace wasn't close, IMO, compared to the rest. for what it does and what I need (own a few classic pedals, but not enough budget for the rest for my studio, and to save space) I'd say this is a winner.
Not too bad, it struggled the most when trying to emulate the Fuzz Face but still, a pretty impressivebox worth consideration. Thank you for your time.
That awesome tube warmth comes through when you're in the room with the speaker or on a recording made by an engineer who knows what the hell he's doing (it definitely does not come through on a youtube video listened to through laptop speakers.) I was really impressed with the Tube Screamer especially, as a Fender Guitar through a tube screamer into a Fender tube amp (e.g., Twin, Twin Reverb, Reverb Deluxe***) is just about my favorite guitar tone, and very simple to boot.
For most I reckon the Line 6 is close enough - think about it - you could probably by the Line 6 for the cost of 1 or 2 of the individual pedals. I think the real fuzz face sounded better than the line 6 version. Thanks for the vid - as well as being good to see the comparison, it was also nice to hear the different pedals as well.
Thanks, its a really good vid. As we can see, Line 6 is on the top - and almost have no difference between the vintage and the modelersr distortion. If tou can, you can complete it with the chandler tube driver vs line 6 tube driver, thats great too. Tnaks a lot.
I think superficially the line 6 resembles them all but you can tell it's a digital emulator and sounds to my ears cold and clinical, the tube screamer is a beautiful pedal not heard one before.
Great demo, was awesome to see you go to all the effort to do a decent comparision...some were closer than others but they still lacked that real feel.....i guess some effects are better anolog and others are better digital
would you recommend this for metal tones?i sometimes think some boss products sound pretty 'computerised' like the me 70,if you get my drift,this sounds a lot more mature and warmer!
Hey man, thanks for these great videos, they really help. I have a couple questions, are you able to save some presets in the DM4 and how do you think the DM4 distortions compare to the line 6 POD X3? Thanks!
Not so sure myself, it was close enough. Its worth remembering that the Fender Twin is such a responsive amp, a small tweak of the treble control on the Twin could change all that. Besides, I'm sure not all Fuzz Face units sounded exactly the same. As for the Muff, my rig when I started as a sprogg guitarist in the 70s was Fender Twin, 77 Strat and the Muff - and the DM4 sounded bang on, though without all the hiss, which us novel. But as you rightly say, its all down to what you hear.
the tube screamers sounded completely identical to me. With the others, there seemed to be a kind of 'curtain' in front of the sound of the line six if that makes sense lol. It sounded good enough to me, but you could tell the difference.
I love Stompboxes but as far as gigging and rehearsing is concerned, this thing could be extremely handy.. i dont use dirt often and hate having constantly adjust volume levels
I mostly agree with you Lefty, but as I said, I think it was spot-on for particular pedals in the mix. I think its comparison to the Tube Screamer and the Fuzz Face were particularly lacking.
I've got several analog pedals that sound so great but I think I'm gonna seriously look after buying line 6 DM4, DL4, and MM4 cause it seems to be very very close to the originals and so easier to carry and use in live conditions!
Thought they sounds close but the originals are thicker and lack that digital ghost buzz. The original Muff is noisey though. Great video thanks for posting!
Hi, blondegraemey! Very useful your video. I was about to buy the DM4 when I decided to make a little research before and u already helped me a lot. Anyway, what I really wanna know is if its possible to create good dists, not only coping anlog stuff. I had a v-twin mesa boogie and I sold it because after 3 years I grew over it and was looking for something different. Well, thanks a lot.
One reason the Line 6 pedal might not sound quite like the Fuzz Face or Big Muff because of the differences between individual pedals. Fuzz Faces are famous for different pedals sound very different. And the Big Muff, there's actually something like five different versions that were over the years, each with a slightly different transistor configuration, and thusly, a slightly different sound.
I just got one from Ebay for a great price. I only started fooling with it last night, but I like it so far. Some cool/useful sounds in this box. Line6 did a good job of recreating the classics, right down to the hum! Downside: Which gadget did I program for switch 2? Was it the Tube Screamer..or Jumbo fuzz? Also, Jet Fuzz sound occured when I chose the Octave Fuzz setting. It finally righted itself, but I'm worried same will happen at a gig.
most of them sound to me a little thinner and duller... but it's a very subtle difference. the thing is, the sound we get is the microphone image: even with the most accurate mic you lose a little bit of the differences. and what's worse we get it trough youtube compression. you probably couldn't tell the difference between a cat's meow and a dog's bark here.
I was actually pretty stunned by this vid (thx for uploading) this could change the way I look at analog gear. I wont pooh-pooh anymore on everything that's digital. One question though: The sound is pretty close, but how's the "feel" of the pedal, how does it respond compared to the original? Is it as sensitive to pick-technique? THX
Awesome review!!! Line 6 actually sounds not bad, but from what I hear it's digital overdrive's are more smooth meaning that with "real" pedals articulation is much better.
What i'm not shure of is...does the Line 6 just give you the sound, or does it interact with the guitar volume and hit the front of the amp in the same way the originals do?
