Ibanez VA3 Virtual Amp

I do have the owner's manual, but it was not necessary to figure out, how this pedal works. I had some Zoom pedals before, and logically it's the same when we talk about programming, storing or tuning etc. The manual otherwise very good, explaines all the settings, etc, clear, with some pictures also. I think it's a very easy to use equipment in a rig.

I am not after a sound of those big names, like Vai, or Hendrix etc. But I am pleased if I find the clean sound of a hungarian blues guitarist's (T??trai Tibor) Casio MG510 guitar, wich is a nice, fat, bell-like strat sound - lot better to me than the sound of those very expensive genuin stratocasters. BUT: I still haven't found what I am looking for! (To find that sound, perhaps I must be him - hehe)
I like the effects in this unit. There are some good things here: delay+reverb is a nice thing; all the reverbs are very usefull. I prefer "studio booth" - I thing it's the best for my taste: you don't hear a big room around the tone, just feel, that the sound is coming from somewhere behind the speaker.
Distorsions! I love them! I am not for those very greasy, unbelievable deep metal sounds, like Metallica, or so. I like the guitar shine on the higher frets, and I like the fat bottom on the lower frets, but I like to hear clear what i play. This pedal's distorsions are great for that! And one thing to this: This is an analog virtual amp, that models great famous amps. I don't know how similar the sound is to those modelled amps, but the tone is quite decent! I had a digital pedal that were doing something like this, but the tone was just boxy, and all of the different models were somehow the same - in the basics. But this is not the case here with this Ibanez! I like it! I payed 40 EUR for this used - and I think this was a steal!
I use this pedal now alone running into the effect return jack of a Behringer GM110 (wich is an unbelievable good modelling amp! I say again: unbelievable!!!!! I played once on a 2000 bux' HIWATT full tube amp, but that was not even close to this litle Behringer!!! OK it's my taste, but for me this is what counts!)
Some people say this VA3 is noisey - I do not think so. OK it's analog, so if you use it without the built in noise gate - don't wonder it can be noisey on high gain settings. But that gate works fine!I like it!
I miss the pitch shifter and a wah effect though, that can be driwen by a pedal. These would be nice to have too. But for 40 Euro?! C'mon! I give a 9 for those missing effects.

It was made in the last century, somewhere in the 90's, and is still working fine. Why should be afraid to depend on it?

dunno, but nothing about this pedal on the Ibanez web site! Actually I do not know how many people have even heard about this little pedal ....

I play christian rock and blues, and this pedal suits my style well. I have been playing for over 15 years. I have an old Squier (under reconstruction by me) and that Behringer GM 110 (read the reviews here on HC!!! You will be amaized! Listen to one sometimes, and you will be amaized again!), and I have an Ibanez electroacoustic western guitar, wich I love!
I played several times on a Digitech RP200, and I think those digital tones were almost usefull - except for some nice clean/chorus tones! This oldie is much better, even if this is missing a lot of feature that Digitech had.
I've read about this Ibanez VA3 some 13 years ago - and now I found one on e-bay. I wanted a good dist amp/effect with built in FX - this is very good for the price I payed for! Inspiring while I pay! I am not a worlds greatest guitarist, but I sound good - and it's a good feeling.
I am in the beginnig of being familiar with this unit, but after a few hours I think we'll be good friends!
And this is an Ibanez - my favorite brand. And there's a reason why!

I bought this off Ebay and did not get a manual. But it's easy to figure out. I have several amp simulators, such as Zoom, Alesis, Line 6, and this one is the easiest to set. Editing is easy. I own two other multi effects pedals from this same era/series. I use this mostly for practicing with headphones. All possible sounds are easy to access.

The sounds are EXCELLENT. I don't know what the complaints about the noise level are about as the noise reduction works so well. I'll assume some of the complaints are when using single coil pickup guitars, which are noisy period.

I find the sounds useful and even inspiring. The guitar FEELS good while playing through this thing. Given the age of this pedal, Ibanez did a great job. Some of the editing features are limited, such as the EQ, which isn't real wide ranging but is more or less there for mild tweaking. I really like the sounds in this pedal.

I've had problems with other pedals from this series, but with reasonable care, I don't see that this pedal can't hold up to gigging stresses. Forget about finding a backup. I never even heard of this pedal until I saw it on Ebay.

Ibanez is usually great to deal with. I'm surprised the manual isn't available off their website. I had a problem with another multi-effects pedal from this series and Ibanez e-mailed me the schematic, so I figure they'd do the same for this one.

I play a range of music...hard rock, metal, blues etc. I have too many pedals, amps, guitars and basses to mention, plus I build amps, effects, guitars and basses.

I would look for another one of these if stolen. I'm sure the incredible price I got this for is simply because people didn't know what this pedal was or what it does.

This pedal is a quick way to get excellent guitar tones onto a recording or into a PA quickly. As a practice device it's tones are actually inspiring. I'm so glad I stumbled across this gem.

You get used to it very fast. Works like amp with effects in the loop.
The preselected settings of ibanez are easy to understand. Tooks a little time to understand to change they.
Manual could be a bit more extensiv. VEry short explanations.

Bought it in 1995 and messes around with it some years without satisfaction. Forgot about it then, and reactivated it one year ago, with some better understanding how it works and could sound. Now I can say that the man in the shop who recommended VA3 has been right. I wanted to buy something from Tech 21, but the man convinced me.

At all I think now that (some amp styles) sounds better than Tech 21 Trademark 10 (see there).

Has really good amp simulations. Fender Twin reverb, Marshall Bluesbreaker and Marshall vintage stack. Has really awfull sounds too: Vox AC 30, or some of the modern stacks. The overall sound depend to the "poweramp". There is a great difference between cheap and good hifi-stereo-amps (the recommended poweramp). Do not work very well between guitar and amp.

At higher settings of poweramp its very noisy. Best is moderate level for living-room. I bought it once for this purpose.

Because of the input-clipping it equalizes guitarsounds (Les Paul and telecaster could sound nearly the same).

Has a lot of effects wich I never used.But there are missing some of the effects wich are in the modern amp-simulator, like wah-wah, ore tape-echo. Except of the different reverbs VA3 becomes much more noisy with the effects (flanger or chorus). I turned of the noise-gate because, guitars have no sustain, no attack, and do not deliever low level tones.

IF the rating 10 ist perfect or excellent, I giv a 7, because in absolut terms there are better devices. In relation to the price I paid once its maybe a 8.

It works well, but I am not sure whether this thing works in prfessional situations. Never done it.

Never dealt with IBANEZ. But i am a littel disapointed because Ibanez never constructed a upgrade of this Amp simulator.

If it would be lost, cannot buy the same. No more available. I use a TEch 21 Trademark 10 for the same purpose. Playing at home at low levels, and play with a FEnder Blues Junior. Better sound than VA3 and Trademark 10. particualray for my favorite music-style, blus, blus-rock, vintage-rock.
I dont need the effects, only a amp (siulator) that sounds really good at home. Once it helped me to understand how different amps should sound.

this is a no-brainer to figure out. it helps that you can play through it when editing effects...just strum, adjust things, repeat that a few times, and you've got quite an array of sounds available.

I've got an old Fender M-80 right now (poor beggers definitely aren't choosers) and therefore the hiss is the least of my concerns. For bar gigs its excellent...loud, crunchy, weird, and most of the time the hiss is covered by the din of drunken conversation. The rule still applies, for the real sound, buy the real thing, but as far as copies go, this sounds great and at 1/100 of the price

I haven't played with it very long...but since it still works well, and I bought it used, I'd say its ok.

no idea...the ibanez tube screamer is the only other thing I own from them. decent guitars, but unless you pay top dollar, not good enough

no complaints...the sounds come from you and what you want to hear...this gives you plenty to play with. for recording it does wonderfully, live, pretty good. I think it produces tones comparable to any other effects board I've used (lots) and it didn't cost me 500+ dollars

It's easy to make it sound good, easy to program/edit, and easy to carry around or put on the desk, but I've never seen the manual.

I've used my VA-3 for recording and live playing since 97, and it still works, even though the power supply died. It is noisy through an amp, but can still sound good enough for live gig recording. The effects are nice and smooth, and it cuts through the mix well. I've used it straight into a PA system, into various tube amps, into analog 4 track home demos, and digital 8 and 16 track paid recording sessions. Works well with vintage Fender tube amps, if you don't mind a bit of hissss. It can do the classic rock thing really well, and Van Halen tones, and I haven't had any problems getting heavy sounds out of it. The only drawbacks to the sound quality are :
1. the noisy hissss at medium to high gain settings into a tube amp, (that's probably because it's analog, which is why it sounds so good and warm), and it drops out for a second when you change programs. Other than that, it's a tone monster.

Going on 8 years of steady use, and I only had to resolder the input jack back to the main board once, after I let a dumb kid borrow it. (who's the dummy?) I've gigged in nasty dives and outdoor festivals a few hundred times in that time period without a backup! It's a part of the family. It's almost vintage...maybe the value will escalate!

No dealings with Ibanez since I sold their stuff in the 90's. And they were hell to deal with from a sales standpoint. Hoshino handles Ibanez, Tama, maybe Laney, and some others, but No experience on a consumer level.

I've used it for jazz, blues, rock, new age, grunge, punk, ska, gospel, Americana, you name it, and it's worked every time. I've been playin since I was born (in '68), and used all kinds of stuff from el cheapo Arbors to custom built Kalils, handmade pieces, and it's not in the gear, people. It's in the soul. I actually got rid of this VA-3 for about a week, and I had to go back and get it. Love:It's just so easy to set up and sound good with it, with the exception of the crappy little wall-wart, and the input jack is on the wrong end for most right handed players. It's worked well with all kinds of guitars and amps, in all sorts of musical situations. Got a Digishittech RP-7 (tube),and I shoulda known better...all RP's blow ASS! I didn't even keep it for a month. Pod? Get real. They just came out with one to gig with. J-station? too flimsy. Boss ME stuff? Maybe. But they're 300 bux. This thing just had the right amount of features (most importantly sound), without being too big, although it's a little too lightweight....or is it? I've never put it in a board or case, and it's still goin' strong. If it weren't for the hiss, and the dropout, it might be perfect. Take in mind, it was one of the first of its kind when it came out, and only until very recently did I even consider replacing it. And that's where the Behringer V-AMP 2 comes in...notice they took the same name, VIRTUAL AMP. Now, the VA-3's are ridiculous cheap on peebay, which makes them the next big thing to pick up! They're cheaper than most single unit pedals!

I bought this off ebay for #30 (the previous owner had listed it in the wrong category so no-one else bidded but me...muhahahaha), but this meant that it came with no manual. I had never even seen an effects board or preamp before so understandably I was stuck..but I had the thing working perfectly within the hour so It cant be too hard to use. One problem with the VA3 however is that you can't access the (very handy) tuner though the menus - you hold down the bypass button. Also, you can only bank up and not down, and there are nine banks so this could be a problem if you tread on it by accident. However I cant really complain about anything for the price so rock on..

The amount of sounds you can squeese out of this thing are amazin, especially for saying it was made over a decade ago. There are 12 amp models such as blues amps, driven combo, vintage stack, la stack, grunge and thrash (plus a few more), 8 stereo images...flangers, tremlo (could be better), choruses, thick doubling and twin guitar settings, 13 ambiences such as studio booth, room , hall, garage, spring, plus versatile delays reverbs, and even pan delays that come into their own when you link the VA3 sterio though two amps at opposite ends of the room. Most settings can be tweaked (drive, time, level ect) and it comes complete with a noise gate and equalizer..although this is a bit weak and only ranges -7 to 7.

However, for all of these amazing effects, the thing is just too damn noisy. It sounds a bit better when used for recording which, to be fair, it was designed for, but if you hook this up to an amp (which in equal fairness it does have connection settings for), it sounds terrible with loads of noise, even with the noise gate all the way up and the VA3 set to accoustic mode. Unfortunatly this means I can only give it a 7 for sound quality.

I could gig with this without a backup because it is fairly foolproof. It can only be powered by a DC lead, meaning theres no temptation to put batteries in and hope they last. It is made out of durable plastic that can take plenty of battering and the pedals are ample size, meaning you shouldnt stomp on more than one if you're accurate.

As much as I love ibanez, it does seem that they generally make a great product and then forget about it, as another reviewer has said below elsewhere on this page. They dont supply manuals for old products and the American site seems to have much better guitars on it than the English site for some bizzare reason.

Basically, for the price I paid for this, it is a top piece of gear. It suits me fine for any basic recording I need to do from time to time due to its stereo outputs and headphones. It also has an aux in should you want to jam along to a CD or something. It has an amazing amount of effects and Ibanez have made a very good job on making the presets lifelike..however you can create unique-ish sounds by combining elements and storing them in one of its 27 patches (9 sets of 3).

However this is not made for amps and if you do plug it in and try to use it as a preamp you may be disapointed. It makes soo much noise.

This Vamp is realy very well designed and very easy to operate. Although this virtual amp was already developed some ten years ago,in 1993, it has a lot of high quality features. Minus one point because the tuner cannot be selected by using the footswitches.

The VA3 has 24 presets, some are very very good, some are good, some are bad but you can edit all of them and create your own sound to meet all your ears needs. My fender strat sounds the way I like it. Even when I use my classical guitar with an El Cheapo pickup (about 20 Euro) it produce a decent sound without noise. Thats why I give it a ten!
Also a good friend borrowed it for a short time and was amazed...

As mentioned, the VA3 is very well designed and therefore very reliable.

Never dealt with them.

I play all kind of styles and thats why the VA-3 is the right part of equipment. I grouped all presets in a smart order and archived all settings (because a memory lost can occur) and I got any sound I want. If it were stolen or lost I definitely would buy it again!

I bought it thru an auction, so there was no manual. I was able to get the basics down after screwing around with it 4 an hour or 2.

Great mix of effects -- it's got it all.

Only had it for a week, but it's used and still functioning perfectly, so there's obviously some good reliability

n/a

I don't know how I played without it. For $40, it's given me a huge range of sounds that I can crank out at the touch of a pedal. There may be newer, fancier models around, but if you can get a deal, gofer it!

It took 5 minutes to figure it out. I didnt have a manual,either.

See coments below...

Its tough enough for the simple gigs in suburbia. I wouldnt tour with out a backup,though.

Ibanez makes a good product and then basically forgets about it, from what Ive seen. You get more support from users groups and 3rd parties, sad to say.

Here's the deal. I saw this thing and plugged in. Im a tone fanatic and have owned just about everything...an hour later I had to face the cruel facts. Namely, It sounded great..but it was just to noisy for me to use. UGH!!!!!
The amount of hiss coming out of this unit would be fine for most guys but, c'mon guys its 2001 and recording are very clean these days. I can't get away with a hiss trail at the end of every note.
Its really sad because the tones in this box kill. I have always wanted to have a quick way to get some really usable classic tones..and the VA3 does that..but I cant rack with it because of the hiss. Even with a gate on it, its always a part of the sound.
If Ibanez makes a new one with out the hiss...I'll buy 5! But as it stands I had to let it go.
Besides, it cant do really extreme tones (death metal) anyway.
oh and PS: Its not to good into an amp, as mentioned by others. But if what you're looking to do is quick demos and you dont intend to relaese them, by all means check it out.
I have alot of other gear..and usually use a GX-700 to cover what the VA3 does. Granted I have to spend ALOT of time tweaking..but at least at the end of the day I can use the sound. Feel free to email me about it. Especially you folks at Ibanez..c'mon guys I really want to buy 5 of these once they are perfected!
-GtrGeorge

Ease of use is not bad, once one becomes acquainted with the manual. Editing patches is easy.

I am using this with an EVH Peavey Wolfgang Special, an older Peavey amp, and an Ibanez Thrash Metal Sound Tank pedal. The reason for the pedal is that the VA3's distortion does not have the gain that I need. However once a preset is created with light distortion, noise gate all the way up, and used in conjunction with the Thrash Metal Sound Tank (or maybe another distortion pedal,) it seems to sound better than anything I've used so far.
For sounds not over-the-top with distortion it works great as well. There are Marshall, VOX AC-30, Twin Reverb, JCM900, Laney Metal and other amps packed into this box that allow a wide array of sounds, and especially when used with chorus, flanging, delay, pan and other effects that work great.
This box works best for recording. Some have had bad experiences with running distortion directly into a four track. Not with this. While the settings that I run through the four track are not the same as the settings that I use through the amp, I have managed to get a faultless, completely distorted sound in true stereo that no one would complain about (when used in conjunction with distortion pedal.)
Directly into the amp can sound great as well if one simply takes the time to shape the tone.
Rating is a 6 because not enough gain!

No problems yet. Haven't used it to gig, but would use one without a backup hoping that noone spilled a coke on it.

Not dealt with company. Haven't needed to!

If this were stolen or lost, I would have to buy it again, because nothing in the same price range seems to come close. My favorite feature it it's true stereo. I hate the fact that it's gain doesn't reach the levels I like, it'd be my all-in-one box if it did!