Line6 PodHD Tone Guide
by MeAmBobbo

Last Updated 4/26/2012

Printable .pdf and .doc versions

Welcome

This guide is not designed to be read front to back, and it is not a light read. If you are new to this guide, I suggest looking at the introduction section before proceeding. If you are looking for quick tips or troubleshooting advice, I recommend you go to the cheat sheet or troubleshooting pages. Each section is relatively-independent of the others and are linked when there are cross-references. It is best used as an on-hand reference for any given task you are attempting to accomplish with the Pod.

Brief Contents

• I. Introduction
• II. Guitar Setup
• III. Hooking it up
• IV. Setting it up
• V. Dialing in a Patch
• VI. Amps
• VII. EQ
• VIII. Odds and Ends
• IX. Troubleshooting Guide
• X. Cheat Sheet
• XI. Wishlist
• XII. Change Log
• Tone Demo

Less Brief Contents

• I. Introduction

• II. Guitar Setup

  • A. New Strings
  • B. String Gauge
  • C. Action
  • D. Fret Buzz
  • E. Intonation
  • F. Pickups
  • G. Bridge
  • H. Body, Fretboard, Tuners, Neck-through, etc.

• III. Hooking it up

  • A. Running "direct" (PA/board/computer or DAW/monitors/headphones)
  • B. Running to an amp ("live")
  • C. Dual Outputs
  • D. Understanding Output Modes
  • E. I Tried This and It Doesn't Sound Good

• IV. Setting it up

  • A. Clarifying Confusing Volume Controls
  • B. The Effects (FX) Loop
  • C. Input Settings
  • D. Clipping
  • E. Mixer
  • F. Setting up a Patch without Effect Clipping
  • G. Input/Output Routing
  • H. Myths Regarding Input/Output Settings
  • I. Gain Staging

• V. Dialing in a Patch

  • A. Getting the Right Distortion Tone
  • B. Cab and Mic Selection for Direct Tones
  • C. Cab Selection for Live Tones
  • D. Dual Cabs
  • E. Power Amp DEP's
  • F. Cab DEP's
  • G. E.R.
  • H. Fizzy Spots
  • I. Effects Ordering
  • J. Guitar in vs. outside a mix
  • K. Dual Amps
  • L. "Full" vs. "Pre"
  • M. The Elusive Pure Clean Tone
  • N. Clean Boost
  • O. Noise Gates

• VI. Amps

  • A. Park 75
  • B. Plexi Bright
  • C. JCM-800
  • D. Uberschall
  • E. Dual Rectifier
  • F. Fireball
  • G. Elektrik
  • H. Dual Rectifier "Pre"

• VII. EQ

  • A. Classifying the Frequency Spectrum
  • B. How to EQ a Hard Rock Tone
  • C. The Pod HD's EQ Effects
  • D. EQ'ing your Patch

• VIII. Odds and Ends

  • A. Setlist Tips
  • B. Effect Switching/Tips
  • C. Recording Tips
  • D. Monitoring
  • E. DSP Allocation/Advice
  • F. Dual Output/Path Tricks
  • G. Multiple Instruments/Independent Paths
  • H. Wet/Dry Output

• IX. Troubleshooting Guide

  • A. Too much noise
  • B. Tone is fizzy
  • C. Tone is harsh
  • D. Tone has digital clipping
  • E. Tone is muffled
  • F. Distortion is muddy/fuzzy/farty
  • G. Distortion is dirty/gritty
  • H. Tone is thin
  • I. Software Knobs move on their own

• X. Cheat Sheet

  • A. Dialing in a good Distortion tone
  • B. Killing Fizz
  • C. Mids for Metal
  • D. Dual Cabs (not Amps) for Highest Quality Tone
  • E. Fake Mesa/Boogie Mark Tones
  • F. Classic Distortion is Cleaner than Tube Screamer
  • G. Noise Gate Usage
  • H. EQ isn't Magic
  • I. Match to an Arist
  • J. Beware the Guitar's Acoustic Tone
  • K. Beware Garbage Monitors
  • L. Beware Room Madness
  • M. Using Edit for Evolutionary Tone
  • N. Power Amp Params
  • O. Output Modes

• XI. Wishlist

  • A. Output Modes, Cabs, and IR's
  • B. Amps
  • C. Utilities
  • D. Routing
  • E. EQ's
  • F. Footswitches/Controls
  • G. Miscellaneous

• XII. Change Log

• Tone Demo

Full Contents

• I. Introduction

• II. Guitar Setup

  • A. New Strings
  • B. String Gauge
  • C. Action
  • D. Fret Buzz
  • E. Intonation
  • F. Pickups
    • i. Single-Coil vs. Humbuckers
    • ii. Pickup Position
    • iii. Signal-to-Noise Ratio
    • iv. Frequency Response
    • v. Actives vs. Passives
    • vi. All about Blackouts
    • vii. Pickup height on passives
    • viii. Pickup height on actives
    • ix. Pickup Suggestions
  • G. Bridge
  • H. Body, Fretboard, Tuners, Neck-through, etc.

• III. Hooking it up

  • A. Running "direct" (PA/board/computer or DAW/monitors/headphones)
    • i. Simple method (no real amp)
    • ii. Using a real amp as a pre-amp
  • B. Running to an amp ("live")
    • i. Amp without effects loop
    • ii. Pod as Effects Only after pre-amp
    • iii. Simple setup for amp with effects loop
    • iv. 4 Cable Method
  • C. Dual Outputs
  • D. Understanding Output Modes
    • i. Simple Guide for Settings
    • ii. Where Confusion Sets In
    • iii. Global EQ
    • iv. Live-Voiced Cabs
    • v. Cab/Mic Simulation
    • vi. Bass-Boost
    • vi. Output Mode Feature Chart
  • E. I Tried This and It Doesn't Sound Good

• IV. Setting it up

  • A. Clarifying Confusing Volume Controls
    • i. The Pad Switch
    • ii. The MASTER Knob
    • iii. Amp/Channel Volume aka VOLUME Knob
    • iv. Mixer Levels
    • v. Master D.E.P.
  • B. The Effects (FX) Loop
  • C. Input Settings
  • D. Clipping
    • i. Input Clipping
    • ii. Signal Clipping
    • iii. Effects Clipping
    • iv. Clipping External Devices
    • v. "Digital" Clipping (Crossover Distortion) on "Full" Amp Models
  • E. Mixer
  • F. Setting up a Patch without Effect Clipping
  • G. Input/Output Routing
  • H. Myths Regarding Input/Output Settings
  • I. Gain Staging
    • i. Gain Staging on Analog Amplifiers
    • ii. Gain Staging in Digital Devices

• V. Dialing in a Patch

  • A. Getting the Right Distortion Tone
    • i. Frequency Chart
    • ii. Using Pre-Gain EQ
    • iii. Overdrive Pedals
    • iv. Power Amp Distortion
    • v. Cab/Speaker Distortion
    • vi. Putting it all Together
  • B. Cab and Mic Selection for Direct Tones
    • i. My Favorites
    • ii. General Tips
    • iii. Hiway 4x12
    • iv. Tread V-30 4x12
    • v. XXL V-30 4x12
    • vi. Uber 4x12
    • vii. Greenbacks 4x12
    • viii. Other 4x12's
    • ix. SM57 On/Off Axis
    • x. Dynamic Mics
    • xi. Condenser Mics
    • xii. Ribbon Mics
    • xiii. Using Cab/Mic Choices for EQ Purposes
  • C. Cab Selection for Live Tones
  • D. Dual Cabs
    • i. Introduction
    • ii. Getting the Patch Ready
    • iii. Phase Correction
    • iv. EQ'ing the Tone
    • v. Other Amp Settings
    • vi. DSP Management
    • vii. My Favorites
    • viii. Theories About IR Quality
  • E. Power Amp DEP's
  • F. Cab DEP's
  • G. E.R.
  • H. Fizzy Spots
  • I. Effects Ordering
  • J. Guitar in vs. outside a mix
  • K. Dual Amps
  • L. "Full" vs. "Pre"
  • M. The Elusive Pure Clean Tone
  • N. Clean Boost
  • O. Noise Gates

• VI. Amps

  • A. Park 75
  • B. Plexi Bright
  • C. JCM-800
  • D. Uberschall
  • E. Dual Rectifier
  • F. Fireball
  • G. Elektrik
  • H. Dual Rectifier "Pre"

• VII. EQ

  • A. Classifying the Frequency Spectrum
  • B. How to EQ a Hard Rock Tone
  • C. The Pod HD's EQ Effects
  • i. Graphic EQ
  • ii. Parametric EQ
  • iii. Studio EQ
  • iv. 4 Band Shift EQ
  • v. Mid-Focus EQ
  • D. EQ'ing your Patch

• VIII. Odds and Ends

  • A. Setlist Tips
  • B. Effect Switching/Tips
  • C. Recording Tips
  • D. Monitoring
  • E. DSP Allocation/Advice
  • F. Dual Output/Path Tricks
  • G. Multiple Instruments/Independent Paths
  • H. Wet/Dry Output

• IX. Troubleshooting Guide

  • A. Too much noise
  • B. Tone is fizzy
  • C. Tone is harsh
  • D. Tone has digital clipping
  • E. Tone is muffled
  • F. Distortion is muddy/fuzzy/farty
  • G. Distortion is dirty/gritty
  • H. Tone is thin
  • I. Software Knobs move on their own

• X. Cheat Sheet

  • A. Dialing in a good Distortion tone
  • B. Killing Fizz
  • C. Mids for Metal
  • D. Dual Cabs (not Amps) for Highest Quality Tone
  • E. Fake Mesa/Boogie Mark Tones
  • F. Classic Distortion is Cleaner than Tube Screamer
  • G. Noise Gate Usage
  • H. EQ isn't Magic
  • I. Match to an Arist
  • J. Beware the Guitar's Acoustic Tone
  • K. Beware Garbage Monitors
  • L. Beware Room Madness
  • M. Using Edit for Evolutionary Tone
  • N. Power Amp Params
  • O. Output Modes

• XI. Wishlist

  • A. Output Modes, Cabs, and IR's
  • B. Amps
  • C. Utilities
  • D. Routing
  • E. EQ's
  • F. Footswitches/Controls
  • G. Miscellaneous

• XII. Change Log

• Tone Demo