Why I Used My POD GO with a Live Band (instead of my EVH amp) 

Yeah, this thing has come in handy and I've been using it for over 2 years now for my live solo gigs

newb here...is it easy to organize/order/change patches (or "snapshots) for different gigs/sets?

@@pb12661 Yes. Very easy once you understand the basics. Watch a few videos on building your own patches and you’ll get it. I put the numbers of my custom patches next to the songs on my set list for quick reference. 💪

@@geraldhartley thanks.

Exactly.. dudes preaching metal plays Bryan Adams

Lol, yeah the crowd will rarely know the difference! As long as it sounds good and fits, that's what counts!

Thank you, I have a couple videos of gigs on my channel. Have to be careful with posting cover songs though

I'm actually now looking into the Blackstar Amped series. Those are 100 watt devices that you could go directly into a cab. But I also hear their IRs are great going direct through the board or interface. If I go with that, there will be a video!

Thank you, yeah, it's good to be honest with ourselves! My sound was extremely thin against everything else (especially my buddy's tube amp!) I recently picked up the Blackstar Amped 3, which is sort of the best of both hardware and software. I'll be testing that in a gig soon but here's the overview of it: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-LQ68ib-rpIs.html

@@jasonstallworth I have a gig at the weekend and the venue have said it’s DI only. I use a line 6 HD500 and although it has the XLR out connections, I’ve never used them in isolation live and I’m feeling anxious 🤦‍♂️

@@BasilBannayi I had the HD500 for years (I have a ton of videos on that got metal on my channel going way back). If you’re just doing a solo or duo gig and don’t need acoustic drums, I think you’ll be fine. If it’s a full band with acoustic drums, that may be a little more challenging. But my philosophy is you’ll always figure it out!

It was so much fun being up there with those guys!

🤘

That's a great way to use the POD Go (with your Randall!) Yeah, your Randall tone will always sound better than any processor, but the POD Go effects are solid. I recently uploaded some IRs into my POD Go...I'll have a video on that soon.

🤘

Lol, I'll definitely bring the EVH next time! That Mesa my friend has is a really nice amp, too. With the EVH, I'd have to use the blue channel for this style of music (of course, the red for leads!) I totally see where you're coming from not being married to tube amps. I'm looking into the Kemper (will be doing a video on that soon with one of the guitarists from Siren...they just released a new album 'A Mercenary's Fate' and they guitarists used the Kemper) I'm also looking into some of those 'amps in a box' for my live solo gigs and just have everything on one pedalboard

That is definitely coming!

Great point...unless you're playing for other musicians, which isn't the majority of the crowd, they really don't care as long as it sounds good.

Lotta truth to that! The audience could probably hear everything just fine and the only person that may notice those little things are other musicians in the audience. The bulk of the crowd doesn't care.

🙏 🤘

Yeah man, it would be hard for me to recommend the POD Go for playing with a live band, especially if others are using real amps. The POD Go will get drowned out, as you heard. BUT, two things here... 1) Brian (the lead singer here) just started using the Line 6 Helix for their shows and he loves it. I guess the tones are a lot better and have more punch than what the POD Go provides, plus I believe the updated Helix impulse responses are a lot better now. 2) The POD Go is great for solo gigs. I play 2-3 live solo shows, mainly acoustic, and use the POD Go exclusively for my solo gigs (I played a little electric, too). Here's a video on that: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-7FIoBfpTS7M.html

Okay - I get it - it sounded great all by itself. and btw excellent playing - I may still give it a try. Thanks for your input..

@@rickyrocket12 If you use the POD Go as just a preamp into a power amp then into a cab, its perfect for live use (I play Classic/Traditional Metal). With a nice small solid state amp and POD Go, you cut down on weight/space and just need a cab. Then, you'll be good to go. You'll also be able to run simultaneously with a cab IR into FOH for flexibility. - With 2 guitars in the band, it needs to be the same speaker setup, or else the sound will be mismatched.

Thank you for the input. This was the first (and last) time I used this with a band. I do use it for my live solo gigs, mainly acoustic and some electric. Going direct through the board works great for that scenario. But my next live gig with a band will be with a real amp. I’m opening for Siren in Tampa at The Brass Mug in February. I’ll be using the Blackstar MK III. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-0makwiJmmGY.htmlsi=yEQv9_ZV4wBX1Dmq

Yeah dude, I'm bringing my EVH next time, for sure!

That’s true only if you don’t know exactly how to use your floor model. If you use studio monitors to originate your presets and use global eq to adjust on the fly per venue you’ll be sitting really comfortable. Another crucial tip I’ve found is to use a powered monitor and a 15” bass amp combo (input through the return to skip the preamp) and you’ll have a right you wouldn’t believe. This allows you to have a little extra thickness without actually coloring or changing the tone. The final secret I’ve been using for sims for the last decade has been this- and this is the most important one for sure- Stick the eq BETWEEN the amp sim and ir. Use a hi/lo shelf. Put he low around 100hz and the hi around 1.3k. And then boost them QUITE a bit. It’s important to do this between the amp and cab because it creates the perfect illusion of air in the cab (around 100hz). The hi frequency (between 1.1 and 1.6k) will match the resonance of your guitar that will give you a super sturdy and smooth texture. This also allows your pickups to have more personality from setting to setting and gives you more control on how much range you have to “drive the amp” with just your hand. I recommend throwing a loop FRONT of chain and loop a riff and just edit the tone while your loop is running into it to figure out which frequencies specifically are good for your guitar. One final trick I use for recording- I record my take using the DI capture on the pod (input 3/4 stereo) and afterwards I run the di signal back live and adjust my tone during the reamp to carve out a more specific hi/lo cuts on my delays or reverbs and change the actual guitar tone to match better while I’m recording it back into the track. This means minimal to 0 post eq/mixing creating a more authentic and clean mix. I love the twin, super sonic, bass man, orange, and handful of misc peavey amps I have downstairs- but with the way I’ve been able to use the rig I’m using now there’s no turning back. Hope this helps inspire some more fun! Seriously though once you’ve begun using floor models with your mixing knowledge it just unfolds. I’m assuming that’s why so many bigger artists can get those to sound so good live and some of our local friends cannot. All about the mixing tricks and relying on physics that real amps don’t typically get used for. I’m telling you that HILO eq trick is the bees knees ❤️

@@MarkJohnsonJams don’t forget, the tube amp isn’t the moving air you feel, that’s the physical cab. Stick a 4x12 physical cab and run the modeler through a power amp and your “feel” will be identical to that tube amp.

That's the biggest difference...the feel you get on stage from a tube amp. But as far as the tone, I don't know that anyone can tell. Unless one has an amp and one has a processor...the amp sort of drowned out my tone.

I primarily use this for my live solo gigs, which is mainly acoustic but I throw in some electric at times. It’s perfect for that and actually had some decent metal tones.

🙏 Glad this helped!

I'll try that next time...it sounded good but didn't cut through like I wanted

Thank you brother

I’ll have to try those out

🙏🤘

🤘

I’ve heard great things about those!

@@jasonstallworth I have the Headrush 112 and 108, I use 12 for bass and 8 for guitar. 2000w each, plenty loud enough 😊

Perhaps the solution if you play with them in the future and don't want to bring your EVH could be to bring a smaller, clean sounding combo amp, such as a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe or whatever you may have, and use the Pod Go's "Amp out" going straight into that to have stage volume for the audience in front, while using the regular out of the Pod Go to the PA's mixer for the rest of the room.

Regardless your playing is excellent and I thoroughly enjoy your videos and content! Maybe we can see you play live someday!

I’ve got a live show coming up (metal songs from my latest album) where I’ll be using a real amp. This one: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-0makwiJmmGY.htmlsi=kpG3byzbypfOvq_q

🤘🙏🏻

It was fun jamming with those guys!

That's a great method. I think my greatest challenge in this case was my buddy's tube amp on stage. It really drowned out the POD Go.

🤘

That's a solid setup! In this performance, I was playing a Fender Tele with singles but those are 'special' pickups, handmade (or at least the coils are hand wound). My other guitars have humbuckers.

Man this thing has been excellent for my live solo acoustic shows! And thank you for the EQ tips

Yeah, I'll be taking my EVH next time for sure! My guitar was really drowned out

Do you think it would have help with a powered cab (like Headrush cab)to create the stage volume instead or the EVH?

Dude, it's definitely not worth risking injury. I'm also looking to some of those 'amps in a box' like the one's by Strymon and Universal Audio, the Blackstar Amped (several others out there). I think those may sound a little better than what you get with the POD Go and other processors. I'm looking into this and hope to do a video on one soon!

@@jasonstallworth great, thx for the respond! I will gladly watch that new video.

Man, I'm with you!! I will soon be putting out a video on using IRs (impulse responses) with the POD Go. I recently downloaded a Marshall IR from York. That video will be coming soon!

@@jasonstallworth Can't wait to see the IR video. I understand the concept; I don't understand how the rubber meets the road.

I have a video on that here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-gInZxhKL4Cg.html

Thanks for the feedback. I believe next time I'll be using my amp. Regardless of the tones (and I had tried some other grittier tones as you suggested before the gig), the POD Go just doesn't cut through with a full band. It was a good test and learning experience though.

🙏🏻🤘

It's great but there is a slight 'stop' when switching patches. Probably unnoticeable with a full band though. The other thing is it does get drowned out a little if someone else is playing through a real amp

I actually have a video on the 4-cable method for the POD. But in a live situation using an amp, I would only use the POD for effects. An amp is always going to sound better than the modeling amps on the POD. Here's that video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-gInZxhKL4Cg.html

I mainly use mine for live solo gigs, which are mostly acoustic. I have a video on how I use it and set it up here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-7FIoBfpTS7M.html

You don’t necessarily need a mixer as you you control the level on the POD Go. It depends on what you’re doing. With a band, you’d want to run it through the mixer where everything else is running through so that everything is heard through the mains. If you’re playing solo gigs, you can get by just fine with any 2-channel system (one for mic, one for guitar). Hopefully that makes sense

I mainly play solo gigs and just use the POD Go. Next time I play with a band I’ll probably just use the EVH. If I use the POD with an amp it would only be through the effects loop for reverb and delay. I wouldn’t bother with the 4 cable method for that

Metallica using Fractal I just ordered a Kemper.

@@steveo4253 Well I might get a Pod Go. Would like the Cortex but it is really expensive and out of my budget.

Yeah, I was really surprised when I saw that video Kiko made (and they were using the Axe Fx before the Quad). It's really got me thinking of going that route. I have missed many recording sessions because I didn't want to crank my amp and go through all of that hassle. I believe if I had something like the Kemper, Quad, etc, I'd be cranking out more music!

Man, I'm on the fence with Kemper. I'll soon be interviewing the guitarists of the metal band Siren. They used the Kemper on their latest album 'A Mercenary's Fate'

The POD Go isn't bad. It's served a great purpose for my live solo gigs, which are mainly acoustic. But the lead patch I had when I pull out the electric is solid. One thing I just did - I downloaded the a Marshall impulse response (IR) from York. I'm going to be making a video on that soon!

That's an Eastman guitar. This particular model is similar to a Les Paul

Man, it does come in handy and I just posted how I use for my live solo gigs here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-nZ6gWd8vWMs.html I'll also take a look at your video.

It's a cool and helpful device that keeps everything simple!

@Jason Stallworth hey thanks for the reply. I was going to tell you on another video that I seen you had a issue with the looper. If you put it into 6 button mode you can get 1 button to stop it as I know that was your only issue was having to double tap it. Hope this helps 🤘🏻

Yeah man, I doubt the audience could tell (or doubt they cared! lol)

lol...it will be on the stage next time!

I am up until a few days ago. Actually I had the York Marshall IR installed for this show. I'll be doing a video on that soon!

York makes great IR’s, own hammer has good IR’s as well. The dude at Specter Digital created an IR with a V-30 and it’s a free download.

good advice

What you're suggesting there is basically the formula Foo Fighters use which gives them such a huge sound

@@TravisHyllMusic becourse if you dont play in the same place, and olso use alternative chords, you add less to the low end, and make it more interesting for the ear, and at Fat sound can easely be done by one guitar, and a dubbler, or stereo delay, panning, eq, ect, well just my opinion. 😉

Never played through the mx5

@@jasonstallworth ended up getting the pod go .. it’s amazing. i don’t really see the use of ever using a real amp again to be honest

@@acbeats3994 it’s a cool device! I’m going to soon put out a video on using the POD Go with IRs

MX5 sounds and feels more like a tube amp. I find the pod go tighter on the lower strings but I play mostly metal

I don't know what that means

Try Frfr speakers... Best for processors like pod,helix fractal etc

Hopefully you're ok when folks criticize your singing. No matter how good you may think you are, there's always an 'expert critic' My advice to you is make a better choice and rise above that mentality. Especially if you're playing live music. We should be supporting one another, not shooting them down because we don't like someone's voice, playing, etc.