Korg Ampworks

Great tones right out of the box, easy to edit and save.
Manual is adequate, you really don't need it.

I run Vol-Cool Cat TO-Cool Cat OD-Dano Vib-Dano Trem- Ampworks-PA.

I use the Vox settings and it is sooooooooo close. I actually use it live at gigs, it takes pedals well, and the best part- It reacts like a regular amp, dynamics and touch. PLayers freak when they see that it is all I am using into the PA.

I have a Korg AX10, use it everyday for teaching, which is what made me look for one of these. This little unit is not a stomp box but a modeler, and I have it locked down on my pedal board. Works great

I will buy it again, hell, I am looking for a few more now!
For the 40$ I paid for it new in the box, this is a great deal and a fantasic unit! I play all sorts of stuff and it works well for Country, Blues, Rock....

Given the fact that almost any change can be made with the twist of a knob is definitely a major plus. Preset management is a little different if you are used to working with lcd screens. However since there are only 2 user patches this is not a big issue.

The easy-start manual summarises use of this unit and is avalable from Korg.com

The 1st time I actually took note of the REMS capability was when I heard and tried the Korg/Vox range of amps that are now available.
This basically led me to trying to find Ampworks unit as the quality blew me away.

Trying to compare the quality of the modelling to original units is to me a waste of time, as the only true method would actually require recording (listening0 through the identical setup Korg's researchers used when developing the models! i.e Strat through Plexi in one room close miked does not 'equal' identical hardware in completely different room/stage/hall etc.

My approach was to hook this up to my DAW and check out how the various 'models' respond. For example if using a preset UK Modern, I would set the tone,gain and volume to my liking and then switch to another model e.g. AC30TB.
I would then change tone settings and note the response of the 2 models. Having worked my way through all the models left me with the overall impression that this small device actually contains 11 different models as stated not just a basic model that has been eq'd (in the firmware) differently to produce the different amp decriptions.

Funnily (not at the time)as I was walking out of the store the packet broke, and the unit fell on the tiles steps. Not a scratch!..

Never had the need to use them..

I bought this unit for the amp and cabinet models only, and in that sense, the price to performance ratio is 27:75 - this leetle box rocks!

Personally I would have dispensed with the effects and would rather have used the remaing DSP power for additional mic distance and mic type modelling e.g SM57 and NT1

the sound is ok but theres some problems with effects, its an interesting box of tricks with a few flaws...

its pretty easy to use, has a list of settings for each amp model the knobs are a bit of a fiddle (small), big wheels for amp/speakercabinet/effects are nice and can be changed with your foot if you're careful.

you can get some nice sounds out of it (queen sounds using the ac30 settings if you have the right guitar pickups)

the onboard effects are a bit lame, i do like the rotating speaker and the phaser/flanger effects these are cool.
the tremelo and the delay are also very innovative with the tap button i just wish there was a longer setting than 2 seconds...

i find some of the settings very noisey, its hard to describe the noise but if you mute the strings it sounds like somone with a shaker full of rice or some sortof percussion instrument, very bad sounding and very digital.

seems ok uses AA batterys so its easier on the pocket compared to rechargable 9V batterys, i wouldnt gig with it, the sound is not good enough and its too fiddly to be changing stuff to suit different songs.

haven't dealt with them couldnt be bothered with the hassle.
the korg site is awful to navigate.

i play rock, some of the settings are ok but theres a few flaws with the system, its difficult to connect up to modelling amps (since the modelling amp settings cancel out some of the effect of the korg modelling. i wouldnt buy another if i lost it, id get a line6 or somthing like that if i needed multieffects.

i wish it had an on/off bypass switch.

Ugh. I think this thing sounds awful. I borrowed it from a friend to try out. Ugh. The models are more or less right, but there's this awful hiss on everything-every note comes with this horrible whooshy hiss, and the hiss stops the second you stop the note. It's creepy and artificial sounding. And the decay is really strange--the notes die out before your strings are done. Maybe that's part of the model, but it doens't happen in real life and it was really weird for me. Ugh. The highs are brittle and overbearing, the lows seem flat. I just hated the sounds from this thing. I'm kind of an old school guy though. I'm not against modeling, but I keep keep hearing horrible things in this that make me want to put the instrument down and take up accounting or something.

It's easy to use, except you have to adjust some of the effects parameters with this "tap" thing which I find hard to deal with--but I'm lazy and don't like to read manuals. There are a dial full of amp models, the usual suspects, and a dial full of cab models, same, and a dial of mostly bad effects

yes, I can get the sound of my favorite artists--or I should say I can get a hissy, brittle version of their sounds with a weird decay. I just really do not like the overall sounds this thing puts out. Why--tell me why--is there that hiss in a digital model? I mean, analog amps don't hiss when you play the note and then stop when the note stops. So why do the models? I don't understand why digital modeling should introduce hiss. But I hate it

I use GarageBand a lot, and the models built into GarageBand don't hiss

Maybe if you record something and bury it in the mix, it'll be good, but you have to bring the treble way down to get risd of the hiss and blunt the effect of the weird decay

I would not use it on a gig, period

It's inexpensive and pretty straightforward, but it sounds awful, at least to me. I feel like I live in a world where everyone is insane but me, or maybe I'm the one who's insane. Because I just can't understand how you could sit down with a blackface fender amp and this and think that this sounds like the blackface amp. I mean it sounds like an amp in exactly the same ways a picture of an amp looks like an amp

It gets in the way of making music, because I'll keep tweaking the bastard trying to get rid of the annoying brittle treble, or the hiss, or the flat and characterless bass. But not if I chuck it into the river--then I'll be free.

Very easy to use. Manual is short but good.

This review is made up from a couple emails I sent my buddy when I got this little device.

Got the korg today, here are my first impressions.
I've played it for a couple hours...
Right there is saying more than I ever could for my sansamp.
It's crazy and pretty dizzying how many sounds you can get, and my hopes for the perfect practicing gizmo may be answered.

It ain't pro-perfect though, but is the best amp sim I've heard, and I got my 60 bucks worth for sure.

There's definitely some noise, and on some sounds a weird thing happens I can only assume is anti aliasing or dithering artifacts during note decay (it's in the background like a high end wooshing and I don't know if it'll show up in a recording). I have been listening with my Grado headphones, and they are often more revealing than any speakers, so I don't know if the highend crap will even be audible on speakers, and the fact that it's TINY and runs on 2xAAs for over ten hours is kind of insane.

First, the amps:

The rectifier sucks (but the real one does too) a thin fizz hangs over everything, but if you pick the right cab and really carve with the EQ, it has its moments.
The twin sucks, well it sounds very convincing, but I hate twins (hollow sounding and the breakup is pointy and nasty).
Plexi is a bit too real, really Yngwie! not really JH or Angus (cranky in the mids and weird when driven).
The jcm800 is good sounding, period
The jcm900 sounds like a Metal Zone and I don't love it.
The AC15 is a Tweed Champ and sounds damned good (I had a real AC15) the way the eq changes the gain is tricky and a bit too real) but needed actual thought to get it working.
AC30 is cool but when gained up sounds like a jubilee marshall?... like slash?
The Fuzz setting is too real (germanium style) and sounds like crap if you turn the gain down, it gets muddy really easily, but it's cool to have in there.
The bassman is very gritty but has great strattyness and focus.
I'm not sure about the Bluesbreaker setting, very fat and reactive, but a bit too loose in the ass, very Cream.
I think 'UKModern' is supposed to be a JCM2000?
The best I could get out of it was Vai in Yankee Rose (kinda cool hollow laser gain?)

Here's the crazy part, the effects are pretty freakin good too.
the verb is very VERY cool, the tap tempo button is the decay time and the knob is the level. I swear it goes from small room to hall. Like the reverb patch is being changed. Anyway, I'm impressed with it and I hate most verb. Up about 1/4 it makes any sound almost real.
The delay is fine (when was the last time you heard a bad delay?)
The trem is good and can get crazily extreme.
The leslie sounds good, not great but does ramp down and up when you change the tempo.
The comp is cool but noisy, it's fast as hell though, which I like.
I don't care about the other effects.

The speaker sims are good and very different.

Well a few more hours down the road with the gizmo and things went both uphill and down. I did mess with the models i wasn't feeling before and got something out of the AC30 and the Rectifier and JCM2000 models that I could use. the AC30 does sound very real through the "wrong" cab.

From what I understand, the Vox Tonelab is similar but is 20bit d/a a/d and has more amps, more effects, and less cabs and digital and midi? I/O... oh, and a tube, and I bet does in fact sound really good.

The little guy I have is still going to do what I want, help me write with headphones.

Something else about my little toy, the noise is in the analog pre stage.
I put a clean boost in front of the Ampworks (it gets insanely loud) and this really helped the noise floor and I mean a lot!
The artifacts are also reduced and it doesn't clip the front end!

Eh... it's a tiny piece of plastic. Don't treat it like a Rat.

I'm told they're pretty good in this dept.

This thing is great for recording direct and for practicing and writing. Buries the POD and Sandamp (I've owned both).

I would replace it immediately. Helps me write and practice.

Very easy to operate and program, due in large part to being limited in programability. Manual is good.

I didn't get mine for gigging, but I guess you could? This thing is built for what it's for, sitting on the table or desk for getting sounds into a computer or headphones. All plastic. If you want to play out with one, my advice would be to put some industrial Velcro on the bottom and on top of the amp you're running it into. A guitar cable will pull this thing to the floor and probably its demise.

I hear Korg is shokingly good with cutomer suppport, but none of my Korgs (keyboards) have had any issues.

I play in several bands, trad blues, R&B, Hardcore, indie rock...

I would replace it, no doubt.

This little piece of plastic crap has got me playing and writing more and I will not live without it.

Very easy to operate and program, due in large part to being limited in programability. Manual is good.

I didn't get mine for gigging, but I guess you could? This thing is built for what it's for, sitting on the table or desk for getting sounds into a computer or headphones. All plastic. If you want to play out with one, my advice would be to put some industrial Velcro on the bottom and on top of the amp you're running it into. A guitar cable will pull this thing to the floor and probably its demise.

I hear Korg is shokingly good with cutomer suppport, but none of my Korgs (keyboards) have had any issues.

I play in several bands, trad blues, R&B, Hardcore, indie rock...

I would replace it, no doubt.

This little piece of plastic crap has got me playing and writing more and I will not live without it.

The unit is pretty easy to understand. I was looking for a simple amp sim that had an amp selection/cab selection/gain. The effects are a plus in that I didn't really care much about them. The manual is straightforward and easy to understand.

With this unit, I am trying to get a variety of sounds through my Peavey Envoy amp, which I keep at a neutral setting. I run my guitar into a Digitech Distortion Factory Pedal, and from that into the Ampworks. The Ampworks outputs to a reverb pedal, and from there I can run direct or into the amp. The sound is pretty good whether used direct or into the amp. I've found that keeping the Ampworks on a relatively clean setting works best (depending on the amp model), letting my distortion pedal take care of most of the gain. The Ampworks is pretty quiet. The effects are ok at best(chorus/flange/phaser), but mostly I select the compressor effect and keep it at a low setting.

So far I've been able to depend on it. I don't think this is really made for gigging. I don't gig much at all so I can't say from experience. I wouldn't feel too comfortable depending on it at a gig.

No experience with Korg Support

This has been a pleasant surprise, especially since I payed $39 for it! I get the some good bluesey, overdriven sounds, about as good and as warm a sound as can be expected without actually having tubes. This is a good match for my playing and for what kind of gear I want. I would replace it. The thing I dislike is that the settings are hard to read on the knobs, glare can easily make it impossible to read them. But that's a small complaint.

Didnt come with manual but this is about the weasiest multi effect ever - dials with names though hard to read in certain light - simple knobs no menus what a dream -
Saving the (2) patches is easy and can regularly be changed - one manual patch - though in the store the bypass worked but it does not now - I think that it needs the adapter to have bypass work.

YOu can get a great sound quickly by just trying different combinations - OF COURSE< the one problem is the same for all effects - (digital) - They are not made for strats -
Someday somebody will make amp modeling and effects just for strats and teles -
The Blackface or Blues with the 2X12 cab is the warmest - the 70's amp and rectified have good gain

The effects just turn the dial and the effect tweak and use the tap button - very easy to explore the range

I use a strat, various amps Line 6, Fenders, I use this for recording or when i am lazy and dont want to set up my board at rehearsal
Any noise is due to turning up gain as with anything
the gains are tinny and digital but not bad for the money and size - I wouldnt use them live but for practice or fun they are ok
EFFECTS: MAJOR Design flaw as with all products (Seems a problem with KORG ) REVERB AND DELAY must be separate - you cannot get reverb combined with any effect - great unit works long on batteries but there should be a separate reverb - ARE YOU LISTENING TECHIES - NO EXCEPTIONS (the greatest feature of Line 6)

Otherwise - I hear everyone complain about the effects - MAN o MAn - I have tried all Boss, Ibanez, multieffects and stuff - The effects ARE GREAT - you guys are crazy - The size of your palm, runs long on batteries and the phaser is great, delay is fine,
AUTO WAH - I dont get people - the auto wah is amazing - turn it right and you get a great T-Wah just like Jerry - turn it to the left and you get a decent auto wah (There is no sub for a cry baby) -
Even the compressor is pretty cool - man: small size - no menus and runs on batteries - This was the stuff of science fiction 30 years ago -

Plug this unit into an amp or recorder and have your own reverb set - and you get a great range of effects - they are really good (but I suppose a matter of taste)

If you are storing - as with anything - set the volume accordingly - when you change to a distorted sim - the cvolume will boost
Some of the mods are pretty accurate but digital -
I LOVE THE EFFECTS -

Negatives:
No separate reverb - big drawback on any effect
No bypass w/ batteries
Not made for strat (I am sure a les paul will wail)
Combinations are with chorus (come on, how much chorus do people need!)
hard to see the names on the dials
Adapter not standard
Distortion digital

POSITIVES:
Really does run on batteries and is tiny
easy manipulation of sounds and set 2 patches
Effects are good and have wide range (some other reviewers have ridiculous expectations)

I would not use this for most gigs because I need pedals and because I cant bypass it - but I might use it on a short or travel gig right on top of the amp
Seems fairly well made and its simplicity allows for fewer problems - Have not had a problem yet

NA

been playing 30 years - I am always looking for simple multieffects for rehearsal, recording, travel and fun - this was too interesting to pass up
I wouldnt buy it again - I would probably buy one with an expression pedal so I could have wah - more presets and a bypass -
For the real thing I use real pedals -
For recording, travel etc... it is really great just turn the dial and you got a new effect (though the inability to combine effects can be frustrating) For the price, I think it is very good
Good for a beginner to try out different effects and cabs and choose for the future OR for professionals for travel and fun

My styles include Rock-Funk-Blues -Fusion-mid-Eastern and others - the size and range of effects (a T wah on batteries and a multieffect) was tempting - dissapointed that it has no bypass and lack of separate reverb
Like with many substitute effects or toys - it actually provides some very different effects and sounds to create by alone or with a band
My effects include - Digitech Synth Wah - Vol.- Cry baby- Sansamp - TS-9 - Delay pedal - Line 6 amp and others- this unit contains most of those sounds

If you need a serious multi effect - dont buy digital - if you want a travel one or recording effect its pretty good - I have a pod and sometimes I prefer this - easier to program and I can see what I am choosing

Couldn't be easier, I am used to usiong multi fx units and this is easy in comparison. Very intuitive.

I use a BC rich virgin with dual humbuckers into a Marlin reverb 50c amp or straight into my laptop. I also have a zoom 606 multi fx and this gives a far better modern distortion sound and has made my old amp sound how I always wanted it to.
It's not perfect, some of the effects leave a lot to be desired, especially the auto wah. Don't expect that to turn you into hendrix!
It isn't noisy at all with my setup, something I was worrying about after reading some of the reviews here.
I bought it mainly for headphone practice, but have found myself plugging it into my amp constantly.
I'm awaiting delivery of a few dedicated pedals so they will probably take it's place in front of the amp but I doubt I@ll change it for anything else for headphone practising.

Buy a decent set of headphones though, my cheap ones were fine on the distortion type settings but you couldn't hear anything when switching to some effects. Through pc or amp it was fine so knew it was the (very) cheap headphones.

Haven't had it long enough to tell. As everyone else has said it is very plasticy, but I paid #30 uk new so can't really complain at that price, plus it's not designed to be a stompbox.

Haven't needed them yet

It's an amazing little unit, not just for the price but full stop. I play everything from blues to metal (thrash, black and nu-metal) and can get a decent sound for virtually any sound. OK it may not be a perfect reproduction of what you hear through mega expensive equipment, but for my uses its fine.
I've been playing for 15 years now, and wish I had one of these when I started out, when you get a great sound you just want to carry on playing! It's rejuvenated my intetrest in playing, and that can't be a bad thing!

Ease of Use is one of the main pro's of this unit. Just plug it in, mess with a couple of dials and bingo, tone is ready. Editing patches are easy as drinking water, and saving them too. There's only 2 patches (user) and one (manual) mode, that can be used as a patch if you keep your knobs at the same position.
It comes with a nice, folder-on manual, very complete, althrough a manual isn't the case here. I only referred to mine to double-check the footswitching use of the unit.

Sounds : While i read here through the reviews here, there were a lot of mixed reviews, some described it as noisy and thin, and others as good.
To me, it was a little bit of both. The low-gain amps models are perfect. Not noisy and very believeable. Some of the high gain models (especially the Uk Mdn and Recto) are really noisy on certain situations.

I play a custom made super-strat with Dimarzio Evolution pickups most of the time (althrough i have a Ibanez RG with Seymour Duncan pickups (JB/FullShred set). But i play pretty much every type of music, from blues to heavy.

The clean sounds of the Ampworks are great. I love to use the AC30TB factory preset, with the neck pickup of my main axe splitted into single-coil mode. It has a very unique voicing and it sounds great for jazz and some rythyms work. It does get a little messy with the full humbucker mode.
The bridge pickup sounds great with the AC30Tb in full gain, and with the BLK212 for cleans and satured (Stones-Like) tones. And with the Blues combo and the coils tapped, i can go to a SRV like sounds.

The dist/dirt tones of the Ampworks are middle-to-weak. I haven't used much of the UK Mdn, and especially the Recto. The Recto modelling sounds are very thin, without that low bottom that made the Recto famous, and the Uk Mdn, is very hard to tone. I have been using the Uk80's for heavy sounds (especially rythyms, can get that Wylde pinch harmonic squeak). And the Uk Mdn with lower-gain settings for doubling guitars in recording. For Ac/dc like tones, this box is heaven. Both the Uk80's and the UkMdn can get that fat sound. Using it with the 4x12 VIN speaker sim, is the way to go.

Speaking of speaker sims, they are pretty much all very good. I personally use the VOX 212, 4x12Vin, BLK 2x12 and TWD 4x10 most of them. But pretty much all of them have its qualities and really affects your tone.

On to the effects, this is the major downfall of the Ampworks in my opinion. Most of them, sound weird to me. Ok, i am not a effects kind of guy, but it really seems that most effects just adds weird noises to your tone. I use the reverb (on lower settings) the noise reductor and a little bit of chorus every now and then. But i really disliked the phaser (doesn't sound like a phaser to me), and the "auto-wah" which is really weird. However, the tremolo is really really good. I say that is better than some dedicated tremolos i heard.

This box is for recordings, mostly. I have been using it for 1 year now, and made some very good recordings with it. Doubling tracks and stuff is very easy, because you can change a speaker sim with a single finger. The sounds from it, are good. Not great, and are no substitute for the real amps, if you can afford (which i can't) them, but it have some really nice sounds and some nice flavors too.
Vox, Uk80's and Fender amps are all very usable. I have to rate it high for the clean sounds alone, but the dirt ones are a nice addition to the list.

I used it live a couple of times, but i like the ampworks better when used in line. The amp really colors the tone, even on loop. But this thingy is small, fits right into my guitar case, and i can easily and fast dial tones for about any kind of music, and i don't need to bring an amp, especially if i am just doing a jam with friends or a small recording in a studio (like a demo or something).

I will keep using mine for a long time probably.

Well, it is made of plastic, but so its most no-boutique effects these days. I have used mine a couple of times live. And had no problem. I used a Behringer footswitch, and it worked great. No Major problems at all. But yeah, it is made for desktop recording, not for stages.

Never really dealt with Korg about the Ampworks. But i dealt with them about some keyboards and they were great.

Like i said, this like box has tons of pros and cons :

Pros : Small
Easy to use
Very good clean sounds
Some usable dirty sounds
Footswitch operation without unwanted noises.

Cons : Some really unusable dirty sounds
Background hiss on high-gain options
Plastic.
White-on-Silver writings.
2 presets for user only.

I liked it a lot, and will probably continuing to be using.
If it were stolen i would replace it if short in cash, or try a POD (or a KORG AX3000G) if i had some spare dough. My favorite thing about it is the VOX sounds. (I use it a lot of time, for blues, pop, rock and others songs).
I did compared to the V-Amp by Behringer at time. And this little thingy offered more quality for less money. (I didn't tried the V-Amp rack version however).
I wish it had more user patches.

Buy it for practice, recording and some live playing.
Don't buy it if you only play high-gain sounds (metal) and don't care about clean tones.
Buy it if you need something small, that can fit on a case, and still delivers good tone.
Don't buy it if you are a audiophile that hates any minimal background noise.

But, yeah, i love my little ampworks.

Este es el punto fuerte de esta cosa, todo es facilisicimo, se pude usar en directo sin ninguun problema, no hay complicaciones, excepto que las letras en los controles de amp, cabinet y efect no se ven, yo tuve que ponerles marcas de color para poder verlas mientras toco en directo.

mhhh, no es para profesionales, eso es seguro, ni para heavy metaleros, es muy ruidoso y articial, muchas simulaciones de ampli se oyen mal.Sin embargo, hay 3 que valen mucho la pena: TWD 410, Blues y 70, yo las uso con un Ibanez tube screamer(Ts9) y se oyen muy bien: un sonido fantastico a lo metal 70: Sabatth, Zep, Kiss, Ac/Dc, y pues la reverb, compression y delay son muy buenos;sin embargo, el chorus y tremolo son muy malos, muy artficiales , tambien creo levanta mucho el sonido de las guitarras y amplificadores baratos, les da calidad y potencia, pero creo que este aparato funciona mejor con un overdrive en previo, ya que los simuladores de amp no tienen mucha potencia por si solos, con un tube screamer suena mucho mejor, sobre todo si buscas un sonido blues-rock vintage; ahora quiero probarlo con un eco pedal en previo, y en el efecto solo compresion, creo que sonaron mejor y menos ruidoso en altas distorciones, debo decirte que lo uso con un viejo peavey scorpion de 100 watts y una guitarra ibanez rg270, asi que pruebalo primero, porque no ha todos les va gustar, sobretodo a los metaleros, pero si buscas rock clasico y blues es una buena y barata opcion, siempre y cuando le pongas un overdrive antes.

solo lo uso con pilas, pues no he podido encontrar un elimnador con el voltage exacto, y pues me ha funcionado bien asi, nunca me ha fallado; es muy practico para llevertelo donde quieras.

En Mexico, no lo se...aqui nada tiene garantia de nada

Toco rock n roll, blues y rock clasico, tengo 3 a?os con la guitarra electrica, me he acomodado bien con este aparato, pero realmente no es lo maximo, me gusta mucho su tono de blues, es realmente profundo, muy a lo BB King,Led Zep,Clapton(60) por eso me ha gustado usarlo a lo largo de 1 a?o, tambien su slap echoe a lo Sun Records para el rock n roll, y me ha dado varias posibilidades e ideas para usar con mi equipo, que es muy, muy barato, asi que ha sido bueno para mi, le ha dado variadad y matiz a mi estilo blues

Easy enough to use. It's all pretty self-explanitory. The markings are hard to see in the dark. Getting a GOOD sound is another story altogether, though.

Not so good. Most of the amp models are pretty thin sounding. Tremolo is not smooth at all. The auto wah is a nice idea. It just soesn't work very well.

It's pretty cheesy.

It's a little hard to find anybody at Korg. Not as hard as Roland, but hard.

I got this for home recording into a Roland VS 1680. I have a Pod that I've used a lot and really like. I take the Pod to events where the backline is provided and it can really make a so-so amp sound okay. I don't think this would. This is pretty much a dog purchase. I know it's a lot more cheese up front, but buy the Pod. It sounds like an amped up electric guitar. This doesn't.

The controls are very simple and easy to dial in tones. Manual is clear and easy to understand. Also includes a card that breaksdown all the presets so you can see where every dial was set for the preset.

I am using an Epiphone Joe Perry Les Paul and just running to a Roland Cube 15 practice amp. The models are pretty impressive. Some of the effects arent what I hoped. The auto wah is not very good and im not real impressed with the tremolo. It does produce a little background noise, but it is very little. This thing makes a cheap practice amp sound great.

I havent been using this for very long so i cant really comment on reliability but I would use it for playing live as it doesnt feel like it could take much abuse. I would really just recommend this for playing at home and possibly home recording, although I havent recorded with it yet to see how it comes across.

I have to admit that the are very few companies that I feel have very good online support. Korg is awsome. I emailed them late last night asking for the settings of one of the demo tones they had on the website that was not a preset or in any of the documentation. By the time I got off work today, I not only had a response, but they sent me the complete settings for all of the demo tones on the web site in a very easy to read/print format. I know that doesnt sound like a big deal but most companies you deal with just send out a standard automated response, if they even respond at all. The fact that Korg did, weighted heavily with me.

I have overall been very impressed with this and for the money, I could not have asked for anymore. After using this, I would have gladly paid twice what I did. Small and compact enough to take anywhere and cnn be used with headphones. I have an Arion Hott Watt II that will probably never get used again.

Okay, I just got off the phone with Joe from Korg USA (in the guitar department). I encountered a problem with my Ampworks G (see above review by LARRY for a complete review) this morning. I powered it up (battery power) and the PROG/WRITE/TAP buttons were all flashing simultaneously. The ON button was a solid red. I called Joe, and at first he suggested new batteries (alkaline only). Easy enough, I went to my local drugstore and purchased a 12 pack of the CopperTops. I came home, inserted two new batteries, and the same thing occurred. I called Joe back, and he walked me through this (pay attention if this happens): make sure the Ampworks is plugged into an amp/speaker/PA unit; hold down the WRITE button as you insert the plug into the INPUT jack. If the lights are not flashing anymore, and if your get sound, you are good to go. Joe explained that sometimes with this model (Ampworks G), the unit may go into a "service" mode that is only accessible by a technician (i.e. pressing a sequence of buttons, etc.). To exit this mode, you generally have to perform the above task. It worked. Thank God. I had knee surgery yesterday, and playing my guitar is about all I can comfortably do at this point in time. This is, and I let Joe knwo this, the first time I have had such an enjoyable and positive experience with a manufacturer. Hats off to KORG!

THANK YOU JOE AT KORG!

Not difficult to manage - there are 2 user settings - it's easy to tweak. I use it for home play/recording and informal jams. For live performance, a footswitch would probably help. 2 AA batteries.

I play a strat or hummer equipped. It's noisy on the high-gain settings - the noise gate helps, but does not completely eliminate. I?ve had this for about 6 months - it?s a fun guitar toy, and several of the tones sound good ? a great value for the price. I recently discovered another benefit: plugged into my little cheapo Crate practice amp, it turns the usual boxy tone into some good sounds, especially for the strat. I now have a decent practice amp. May not deliver perfect tube tone, but the Ampworks processor can definitely help in the punky SS tone department.

It's only plastic, so no rough handling. I bought this through MF, and the first one thay sent malfunctioned - switching was all off. So, was that Korg's fault, or did MF send a previously returned/abused item? The exchange was easy, and the second one has had no problems.

Another nice feature is the headphone jack. If lost, I would definately buy another for $50. More user settings would be nice.

It is very easy to use and the manual is very imformative but like a lot of multi effects there is little difference between some of the settings, maybe too many choices. The worst thing about it is it is hard to read the white lettering on the silver knobs.

This thing is great for silent practising as you can play straight into the unit with out an amplifier using head phones. I found when I play through my Fender frontman 15G there is a lot of hiss which can't be cured by the noise reduction . I tried using a Roland 30watt Amp which I use in my Church worship team and found the noise was not a problem due to a couple of reasons. The first is being only a small venue of about 250 people we don't play at a million decibels and the other is with ambient noise it is not a problem.
I tend to use the blues settings on the dials with reverb as you can get a slightly overdriven sound without hardcore distortion and the factory preset channels. One has a bright chorus sound and the other a moderately heavy distortion. I have housed my effects unit in a small box with removable lid, together with my tuner with foam rubber, so they dont move and have drilled the holes so I can plug in all the cables. I run it with a mains voltage adaptor otherwise they tend to get through batteries. It is great as I can store all my guitar cables, spare batteries picks etc. and have them to hand easily.
I have my guitar looped through the tuner with double plug socket and short patch lead so all I have to do is turn down the effects volume turn on the tuner and there is no unplugging cables necessary to tune up.
I am using a home built Les Paul shape guitar with Steward Macdonald "Golden Age" overwound humbuckers and 24 fret neck which sound really nice even without effects. I also have coil taps on them but I prefer the gruntier humbucker sound.

Well I haven't had it that long but I use it every time I play on our Church worship team now without problems. The worst aspect is when changing preset channels the volume is louder on some channels than others so you have to be aware of that.

I think you actually need to own a multi effects unit so you can decide on what type of effects suit your style of music. Many of the effects I would never use. I would probably settle for a Boss distortion/chorus/reverb effect pedal if lost or stolen probably. Value for money the Amp Works is hard to beat though and I bought it from Sweetwater and they shipped it to me in NZ within a week. Great service and it cost including freight about half the price they sell for here.

The Korg ampworks is very easy to use. The only things you'll need to refer to manual for are the mode/preset selection & amp/line switch. It doesn't get much easier than this.

I bought this to use for practise with my nice AKG studio headphones, and for some gigs where I can get by without an amp rig.

Pros:
I love the following amp models: Boutique Clean, Blackface Twin (it gets a great fender sound with the blackface 1x12 cab model), Vox AC-15 & AC-30 top boost. The UK 70's model is also very nice, but not quite as authentic sounding.

Cons
I DON'T like any of the high gain models: Marshall JCM 800, Modern Marshall, or Mesa Rectifier. They all sound very fake & the tone controls just don't work well on them, so it's difficult to dial in anything useful. You just get a lot of mud and/or buzz. That's too bad because I really like to do some shredding every once & a while.

The unit would still be very useful for the great classic sounds, however all of the models suffer from an unusual amount of hiss noise. THIS THING IS JUST WAY TOO NOISY! Sure you could turn up the built-in noise gate threshold. That will make it quiet when your not playing, but as soon as you hit a note all the noise rushes in along with it. I really hope Korg fixes this because other wise they have a really useful modeler.

The chasis is made out of toy quality plastic. It's really flimsy, and the batteries even rattle around when you handle it. Also, the pots are not nutted to the panel, instead they are completely supported by circuit board solder. I would never trust this in a gigging environment.

This unit is on sale for $49.99 at Musiciansfriend.com, or at Guitar Center. It is of toy quality. However it does have some nice classic models if you can deal with all the hiss. Unfortunately I found it too annoying to use, and I returned it within my 30-day period at GC. I sincerely hope Korg takes this unit to the next level. They are on the right track with the classic amp models, and the compact size that can fit in most guitar cases. However they need to clean up the noise, use a more rigid chasis, and improve the high gain amp models. They may also need to work on some of the cabinet models as some of the 4x12 models didn't seem quite right. I cannot comment much on the effects because I don't like to use most of them. I tried the delay & reverb and I found it hard to get a subtle amount. It was like nothing or way too much with no range in between.

I toured with this across Thailand rigourously for 1 month this summer (2005) and it worked fabulously. I bought this over a POD or VAMP because it sounded better with my pedalboard and was much cheaper.
Took no time to be able to get it working. Manual is great and helps with editing patches. I only used 1 setting and worked great.

Setup:
EB Music Man Axis - TU2 - NS2 - MXR Dynacomp - DS1 - GE7 - Korg Toneworks Ampworks - Danelectro Tremolo - PH2 - DOD FX65 - Digitech XDD - RV3 -> Direct Line In
No noise, good tone
I couldn't bring a tube amp, so this was the next best thing for the size and price.

Yes, but power supply should conform to the rest of my pedal board for ease of use.

No dealings

Good stuff. Buy it if you want to have good tone but not pay a fortune and can live without a tube amp

It?s pretty straight forward. However, the markings on the dial are difficult to see under any circumstances. On a dark stage they would be impossible!

I apologize to those of you who have given it high marks, but I must say this: If you think this thing sounds good, you have absolutely no idea what good tone is! This little booger digitizes your signal using a terrible A/d, then processes the crap out of it using awful algorithms, and then turns it back in to analogue using an equally awful D/A. The end result is as to be expected: TERRIBLE TONE. I bought one of these on sale at musicians friend ($40) because of the good reviews. Who are the tone deaf idiots reviewing these things, anyway??? Mine went back. One side note: I found the ?rotary speaker? sound to be quite acceptable. At $40, I would have kept it and added it to my pedal board for that alone ? if it had a bypass switch!

Here is my rig in signal flow order:

?64 R.I. Strat with Seymour Duncan Hot rails with coil tap in bridge position, Texas Special in middle position, Seymour Duncan Hot PAF in between middle and neck, and a Texas Special in neck position. (Yep, my main axe is a 4-pickup ?Frankenstrat?!) Or, a ?92 SRV Strat. Or a Parker Nite Fly. Or a ?60 Les Paul. Or a ?83 Flying V. Or a ?78 Kramer (original one, with the aluminum neck). Or, a couple of funky old semi-hollow bodies (slide tunings in E, A, and G).

Next is a Korg DT-10 tuner.
Then a highly modified Cry-Baby.
Then the Bad Monkey.
Then A modified TS-7 tube screamer. (I use it in ?hot? mode with the drive maxed out for more of a Mesa Boogie hi-gain sound, which the Bad Monkey can?t do)
Then an old DOD analogue delay.
Then an A/B box to either?
A ?67 Super Reverb (w/ Alnico CTS speakers)
Or a ?67 Bassman head with a 4-10 Marshall cab loaded with vintage celestions.

I'me rateing it low HERE because it is a flimsy plastic box after all.

See above...

It can?t be easier to use. Its a simple 3 dial operation. And bam, you got yourself a good tone. Simple and effective.
It only has 2 programs, and writing them is a matter of 2 touch button, didn?t even needed a manual for that.
The manual seemed pretty complete, and the guide with the exact position s of the presets is a nice addition i haven?t seem before.

I play blues, mostly teles (althrough i have a "super-strato" custom with hi-gain pickups and floyd rose), and it was a pleasant surprise to hear this. At first it seemed too noisy with my tele, but setting the NR was simple and fixed any problems i had with it.
The tones in this little box are GREAT! of course they aren?t substitute for a real vintage tube amp, BUT its cheaper smaller, and easier to handle. It fits right into my guitar case, and it has some killer tones. I specially liked the BLK212, the TWD4x10 and the BLUES combo. I don?t know much about hi-gain amps, but the UK?s 80?s seemed pretty close to a lot of albums i heard (And its my favorite for fast leads and some other heavier stuff).
I use it mostly for in-line recording and practing through headphones. But i have needed to put it in front of a Fender Roc Pro-700 and it sounded great, because it saved me time of toning it. I simple left it flat and got my BLK212 tone right off. Simple and effective, like it should be.
I can get some good tones easily, the BLUES preset, when combined with a neck single coil vintage pickup, sounds a lot like Stevie Ray Vaughn, and the TWD4x10 with the delay can do some Floyd sounds easily.
The effects are good. The chorus is smooth, and the reverb is usefull. The delay is full, and the tremolo changed according to the model being emulated, which is a nice addition. While it can be noisy sometimes, the rotary speaker seemed pretty usefull for pop musicians.
Like i said, it is no substitute for a real amp. But its a small box that can hold your tone.

Well, i?ve reading pretty bad things about it. Meanwhile, even if i?m not a pyrotechic player, i feel like i can rely on it. Its meant for recording sessions and not giging. And works great for both. I?ve gig?ed with it using the footswitch, and i was complimented for my good tone. Yes, its plastic, but so is behringer?s v-amp and line 6?s pod. So no complain there. While it looks like it can?t take a beat, i can assure that can take my kind of beating.

Didn?t had to deal with them.

Overall, its a great tool for musicians of almost any style, its easy to use, and it can hold great tones, and sit tight in your guitar case. Its something that i am getting each time more addicted to and if mine gets stolen, broken or lost, i would get another one.

Its a great bang for the buck. Cheap, and great.
The main thing that draw my attention to it, its is small size (i?m a petite man that can?t carry big things to rehearsals while taking the city bus) and the tones. I had considered getting a POD or a V-AMP, but the v-amp sounded weak compared to it. And the POD costed 10x more here. (I don?t live in the US). I?m definately not regret that i got it.

Like i said. Its a great tool. But i won?t be selling my Fender tube amp for it. However, its a great backup amp, and a great tone box. Recommended to everyone that has a home-studio or wants to record at home. And to everyone that likes to have their tone inside a small, carryable, silver box.

Not tough to get started or to get a decent sound but the subtleties of programming this are kinda tricky (figuring out original and default values)

ok, let's be up front. this is a DIGITAL model. The top end of the reverbs and overdrives is a lil pixellated. If you're listening, you can hear the crispiness. And you can only use one effect at a time. This unit is totally worth it, though. The models are much better than some i've heard (the old pods, and original v-amp) and the speaker sims are very flexible. The tap function is nice too. Makes it easy to tweak the reverbs and delays.
None of this stuff is prevertable, and you only get to alter the effects level (not the individual parameters). Still, the effects are very useful in a tasteful way.

uhhh, plastic plus plastic. you do the math.

haven't dealt with them yet.

at the price they go for right now, they're a STEAL. If you need amp sounds with minimal disturbance, this is IT. I use mine to record and travel with. As long as you can handle this like eggshells, you should be golden. Is it perfect? no. Is it excellent? yes!

This is extremely easy to use if you have any experience with pedals or effects units. The manual is well written and informative.

It is important to read the manual. The settings (tone, gain, etc) are set to mimic the original amp it is modeling. This digital unit is the very same brains that are used in the Vox ADVT series amps (Vox/Marshall owns Korg). Look and listen to the amp, they are identical.
This unit is meant to be direct recording unit. It is NOT a stomp box (thus the plastic cover). It sounds simply unbelievable through headphones or recording.
Also there is a switch to change the voicing for direct recording or to an amp. This is no joke. I engage this switch (to let my amp do the cabnet voicing) and use this as a preamp by going into the "power amp in" on my peavey. It sounds even better than the direct record sounds.
The real gem about this item though is that you can really put effects infrom of the amp models and they sound better than ever! I really didn't expect that. I use good effects (tonebone and Keeley modded blues driver). It takes the sound (direct record and amp) to a whole new level.

As I mentioned this unit is meant to be a direct recording unit. If you treat it as such, you will have no problems. This is not to say it cant be used live. I place it right on top of my amp as a preamp, and it works fine. No technical problems to date and I've had it over a year.

I haven't had to use them.

I play and record everything from blues to metal. This is an extremely versatile box especially if you are looking to record. For the money there is absolutely no comparison. I have seen them going fo $50 new on close outs. Its a great deal.

Very Guitar Friendly...

I'm using this as a practice rig... A PORTABLE PRACTICE RIG (10...)

OK... so... it's cheap and it's plastic... BUT It's got some amazing sounding tones (vintage type and growly overdrive tones) in it!

I'VE VELCROED THE LITTLE MONSTER TO MY GUITARS (one piece on the processor and one piece on the guitar)... I use G&L's only... Legacy Strat, ASAT Classic, and Commanche. Small patch cord from guitar to processor, headphone out of processor for stereo processed practice.

I've used it live (velcroed in place) and then into a Peterson strobo stomp (in DI mode). It doesn't sound as smooth live as my Fargen Blackbird Tube amp, but c'mon... it was $50-.

Anyway... TWO REMARKABLE THINGS ABOUT THE EFFECTS
1. the TREMOLO SETTINGS "seem" to FIT the amp settings when you change them... ie. Fender trem sounds round and full (like a Fender trem) and the Vox Trem sound stuttery smooth when used with the Vox amp. I may be hearing things wrongly, but I've double and triple checked it... Is that possible for $50?
2. The ROTARY SPEAKER "sim" actually RAMPS UP AND DOWN in speed when you use the tap tempo feature (velcroed to the guitar).

THIS KIND OF STUFF IS CRAZY FOR A CHEAP PLASTIC PROCESSOR!

I bought 3 of them...

Scares me a bit here....

No idea... hope I don't need it...

Been playing for about 10 years...

Lead worship in a small church...

Still convinced the sweetest tone is found with a single coil guitar into a small watt tube amp with a couple of great pedals for about 4-5 fat tones... BUT...

I can't always practice with a tube amp and pedals (that's my "live rig")...

So... This beats everything else I've tried for this purpose (Line 6, Digitech, Yamaha DG stomp, Marshall Mini-stack, etc.)

I've told every guitarist in my church to grab one before they're gone!

Almost way too easy to use out of the box. This little monster has an ease of use that I was not prepared for at all. The manual is a nifty fold-out job that is easy to read in an unfolded manner. I just received it on my doorstep and played with it for about an hour before writing this review. I am kinda blown away.

I am using a 1992 Mexican Telecaster with Lace Sensors and AMERICAN MADE pots and switch (essentially an Amercican made Tele, no thank you NAFTA!). The noise reduction is great with the single coils. I ran it through my Vox Pathfinder 10 with the all knobs at 12 o'clock (gain, treble, bass, and volume). All the presets are very good, with a noticeable difference as I switched the amp and cabinet models around. I am no amp snob, but I could tell the differences in sound and timbre. The effects are right on, and I had no problems with shaping the effects to my liking. The "tap" function is way cool and easy to use.

I was a little amazed that the housing is made of regular plastic. This box could easily be broken apart and probably would not be receptive to a good beating onstage. Those who paid more than fifty dollars US may feel gypped by the flimsy housing. The list price is around $180.00 US. I would have expected more for the money, but I only paid $50.00, and expectations are satisfactory for the money paid. I feel I can depend on it, but probably not in a live situation, unless it was modified and fitted into a sturdier housing.

I haven't had to deal with KORG, as I just recieved it.

Hands down, a ten indeed.

Ok, where do I start? I was looing for an amp modeller so checked out various models all arounf the #100 price range. BUT, for a cheap price, and if you know what to expect these can work wonders. I chose the KORG cos it was 1. cheap and 2 small enoguh to fit in my guitar case along with the rest of my stuff. Easy enough to use. Had to read the manual just to check how to save my own settings.

Soundwise it's not bad. The POD II and Behringer are up there too, a little different but offer more heads and cabs. NONE are mind blowing. NONE are brilliant, so don't get any misconceptions that you're gonna get a balls out Boogie triple rectified distortion, or a great fender twin blues tone cos you ain't - plain and simple!

Very plastic, so don't drop it. Mine is still intact, but can't see it surviving any serious drops. Same goes for the POD II and Beringer though. All are plastic so really wouldn't recommend drop testing!!!

Dunno - not needed it yet.

I play rap metal kinda thing. Love full on distortion and hi gain amp sounds. My situation is unique, but the KORG works well in my setup. I play live with a hip hop/drum n bass crew, and I have a live setup consisting of a CD DJ deck, scratch mixer, Korg ES1 electribe drum machine, a Korg KAOSS Pad, and now a KORG Ampworks, a H+K Warp Factor distortion pedal and a Westone Thunder 1A (laugh if you like but this cheap Japanese thing has lasted, and still plays better than ANY #350 Epiphone/Ibanez/Squier guitar - been trying to convince myself it needs replacing and have failed every time! Gonna fit an EMG 81 in it instead of replacing it. Just check out the reviews here and see for yourself!) ANyway, with my setup I run the guitar through the H+K, into the Amworks into my ES1 sampler which goes into the DJ mixer into the KAOSS pad and out to the PA system/mixer. I use a clen setting on the Ampworks with the H+K distortion (which is FAT) and I get a sound that is pretty damn good considering I'm not using an amp at all. Our live shows are slamming. I can mix the guitar level with the beats out my sampler so it's balanced and I have complete control. I love this setup and I wouldn't change it. So, bottom line is - if you know what to expect and can work with it, this Ampworks can really work for you. If you want to get the 'guitar tone to die for' from this alone you will be dissappointed whether you but this or a POD. For size and sound quality by comparison, and the fact it's battery powered (one less power supply to find) it wins cos of the price.

limited

Great TONE BUT becare full this IS a toy for practice, NOT for recording and NOT for LIVE work....Why? noise, I love this little box its cheap and really does sound like a AC30 but its got a clicking digital buzz and hiss junky sounds i used the Gate and set it up many ways and anf got a good sound i even posted praise below but have come back now i have sold it on ebay, Its good, but its not pro. I think the tone is better than the POD but its just not clear enough to use in a pro way. Its a cool toy payed #100 sold for #45 not to bad had some fun, but really i would get a pod if its digital u want or Behringer. Infact just save up and get what you really want. I have and im in real valve tone heaven now. its less work than u think. one step at a time. 10 for tone---1 for totaly cheap crappy clicks coming very loud out my speakers. they are all like this too, so dont think i got a bad one

plastic that will brake, i droped it and it dented and still worked so not bad..

DONT Do it Dude. Please for your sake. by the way I love KORG and will buy other gear form them, this is just a toy though

nice with knobs to turn! very very good and ... i dare to say... heaven sent! i use it with headphones ok and as a recording/rehearsing tool. it is much more like teh real thing as the pod of my buddy and the digitech rp 50 ampsimulations that i had before. it has knobs, turn them and make your choice.

i play strats and teles, roots-pop-country-stuff, americana-kraut. the sonds are very useable. for recording, practicing and playing. my favourites are are the clean, tweed and black ampsim. i can copy the sound of my real amps pretty god and get that an my harddisk-recorder in no time. the sounds feel very much like a real amp. the unit is really very good, because i am pretty picky about stuff. the "fenders" in overdrive give a very nice sound for slideguitar and the cleans can get very nice twangy rhythms. the effects are very useable, specially the delay and tremolo. the thing is made to make my recordings sound really earthy and rootsy. this was not possible with anything before, pod or digitech.

i wish it would be made out fo metal!!! this is the only complain i have. it fell down from the table today on a rock.floor. still works, nothing broken. but it would be nice if the ting would be heavier like somebody said before. i would not use it for a gig. but that is not what it is made for.....

no idea.

best piece of equipment i bought for a long time. makes my fenders sound great, did not cost the world and feels like it was dedined by someone who has guitarplayers in mind, not computerpeople. it makes recording very easy and intuitive. i would buy it again if lost or stolen. it makes my guitarlife much richer, because i have the sounds i love in a small package. if they make a real heavy duty version of the thing with fendersims only i will buy it also.

Very easy: chose your faourite amp, cabinet and effects, set the eq, and off you go. I didn't need the manual to understand this device.

Guitar: Jackson DR-3 Japan. Straight into headphones (Sennheiser HiFi). Sound quality is great (considering the price). Prior to using this unit I owned an Engl Savage 120. Of course the Korg doesn't even come close in terms of sound quality, BUT at this price it delivers some seriously brutal and great-sounding distortion. I checked out all the other digital amp modelling effect units out there (line6, digitech, yamaha etc.), but to me the Korg comes closest to sounding tube-like at high gain settings.

It's got an integrated noise gate, so noise normally is no problem. I only play at maximum gain. Rectifier, modern Marshall /JCM800 amps and the corresponding cabinets sound great. Effects are a nice add-on, a little reverb helps to get a roomier sound when playing over headphones.

Reliability? Just one word: AWFUL!!! I dropped the thing on the first day, falling from my desk onto the carpet. The guitar plug was connected. Result: broken guitar jack.
This piece is made of thin plastic and prone to break. After that the guitar plug didn't have contact anymore, but I managed to glue the jack back together. Two days ago the same thing happened again. The unit is very light and since most guitar cables tend to be heavier it's going to be dragged off the table if you're not careful enough. And then most likely the guitar jack will break. VERY BAD RELIABILITY INDEED! I am most disappointed with this quality.

No idea. Since the breakdown mentione dabove was undoubtedly my own fault I didn't bother to contact the dealer or their cusomer support.

I only play death, grind and some black metal. Brutal distortion is essential. I used to own an Engl Savage 120 all-tube amp which I had to sell. People knowning this beast will agree it has some great sound quality, great versatility and extremely brutal distortion sounds as well. I bought the Korg without checking it out, just after reading reviews. I have not been disappointed. Distortion is brutal, versatility is good, noise is no issue, price is relatively low. So considering the value for money it gets a thumbsup from me. Only con is it's non-existent reliability. So if you like good distortion sounds and aer careful about your gear, go and get one.

Very easy to use the way I use it (by simply
plugging in, picking an amp model, and twiddling
knobs -- like a real amp.) Since I don't save any
edits I have no opinion of what's involved in the
unit's limited "higher" functions. I'd rather a
simple unit with knobs than a "kitchen sink" unit
requiring a menu-surf to initiate basic operation.
This one is laid out the way I like.

The one thing that threw me for 15 seconds
was that changing models or cabinets always seems
to reset the effects to chorus. Just remember to
reset the desired effect (and gain/tone controls)
every time you switch models. As I said, 15 seconds
to figure that out, so hardly a big deal.

(** Under "sound quality" I drift off-message into
some practical-applications stuff that probably
belongs under Ease Of Use, so check that out too.)

I have many guitars, with nearly every type and brand
of pickups -- humbuckers, P90's, lipstick tubes, and
Fender-style single coils. I have never used the Ampworks
as a pre-amp. I just plug in the guitar and a set of
good headphones. I use it mostly for practicing. As
such, my demands aren't extreme.

I'm not in love with any of the effects, but I do
find that the tap delay works fine and sounds good.
Mainly, I dial in some reverb, which is about the only
effect I use on a real amp anyway, and it's fine. If
you use some of the older Fender models at the bottom
of the dial, and turn the reverb up a ways, you can
get an uncannily accurate approximation of the
sound of an old blues record, with the mics placed
out in the room, away from the amps.

I find myself gravitating towards Ampworks' cleaner
models -- most frequently to the AC30, Boutique
Clean, or Blk212. (The Blk212, thru the 112Blk speaker
setting, gives the "old blues" sound I mentioned.)

The Vox AC30 with a lot of gain is my favorite "all-
purpose" sound, with a good deal of clarity despite
the distortion. Does it sound like an AC30TB? Who knows?
It sounds good here though, and I usually hate EL84-powered
amps...

Since I like a well-defined attack with a good deal
of treble, a lot of the UK/Modern models are not to
my liking. 4 of the top 5 models (from UK70's on up)
sound either too "veiled" in the treble, or too
buzzy/mushy with distortion. The UK80's through the
412 Modern cab makes me smile, though. It features a
very decent approximation of the low-mid rumble of a
Marshall from the hairspray decade, and is tons of
fun to fool around with. I'm a Fender guy, and hardly
an expert on the Brit tone, but I suspect that even
Marshall fans would be pleasantly surprised.

So: I owned a POD for a time, but never really liked
it. With a simulator, you're always going to miss the
"feel" of the speaker moving the air, and causing
those great sympathetic vibrations as the strings
and wood come to life. That having been said,
I can't plug any of my 4 sweet Fenders into a
pair of AA batteries; the Ampworks goes wherever
I can go, as long as it's dry...

Recently I took a CD of my bud's band up to the
local park to practice along (with the CD on the
car stereo, with it and the Ampworks coming to me
through open-backed 'phones)and learned the last 4
or 5 of his newer songs on the day of the show. The
unit saved my ass that time.

Ampworks (and other sims) make late-night recording
sessions a practical reality. I'm not sure I'd use one
for the main, featured guitar parts (real amps still do
have that organic x-factor) but I wouldn't hesitate to
use Ampworks for scratch tracks, or for "sweetening"
tracks when building an arrangement. Finally, I find
myself practicing more now, which can only be a good
thing.

Anybody who owned one of those Scholz Rockman
units back in the mid '80's will attest that
the amp simulator has improved several thousand
percent in 20 years. Does the Ampworks sound
exactly like a real amp? Perhaps not. Its
practicality and very decent sound have,
however, made it well worth my $99.

Well, it looks flimsy, and I remember picking it
up for the first time and thinking "hmmm... I guess
it's not brushed aluminium after all..." I'm pretty
sure that dropping it upside down (pots-first)
would be at least a minor catastrophe, but I have
dropped mine several times "bottom first" onto a carpeted
floor with no obvious symptoms of decline. Tougher than
it looks, or maybe I've been lucky.

BTW: If you hear it crap out after a while, or if
it won't hold settings for more than a few minutes,
then don't panic -- just change the batteries.

On a related subject: I have bitched in several HC
reviews about poorly-designed battery access hatches
on equipment, so it's only fair for me to mention that
this one is probably the best I've seen -- slide, lift,
old out, new in, slide, click. 15 seconds, tops.
Nice job, Korg.

No experience. I also own a d1600, and it's my feeling
that the best customer support is to build the thing
right in the first place. I don't want a Hyundai with
a 10 year warranty -- I want a Mazda or a Toyota that
doesn't leave me by the side of the road...

I'd say I've covered most points above.

My target sound? I play straightforward rock, in
what I usually refer to as a "pre-Van Halen" style --
no locking whammy or tapping, and few if any pedals.
(Rory Gallagher or John Fogerty might be good points
of reference.)

For my purposes, the Ampworks makes up in practicality
anything it might lose in "feel" (that intangibly
inspiring "speaker on wood and wire" thing I mentioned
above.) Different players hear different
sounds in their heads, so the models I don't care for
may be another player's nirvana (I'll bet someone even
likes the "Fuzz" model.) The Ampworks has been a solid,
frequently-used addition to my pile of gear. If you're
in the market, then it's definitely worthy of a listen.

Very easy to get good sounds. The manual is brief but this modeler is easy to use with no scrolling through banks. Very simple controls: amp model, speaker cab, effects. 3 band eq gain, and volume. Effects are difficult to manipulate, of course this unit is advertised as an amp modeler so I can't complain there, I consider them a bonus just to have any at all.

Ive tried this unit with a strat, tele, les paul. No complaints with guitars, sounded very good especially with my tele. I really have no complaints with the amp models. They sounded great. Obvioulsly some combinations of amps and cabs didn't sound great. there are many factors that go into the tone of this modeler, the same way a real amp would. The guitar, the pickup selection, THE GAIN LEVEL, and eq settings, amp and cabinet. You can't expect every combination to sound excellent, just like the real amps wouldn't sound excellent in every setting. Nevertheless, the modeler is a great recording tool and with experimentation, you will all the sounds you need. I particularly love the UK modern-

Does it sound good through an amp? depends on the amp, and the eq and gain settings on the amp. Chances are your amp is going to color the sound some. Will a marshall model make your fender amp sound like a marshall? Not neccesarilly because your taking your "marshall model" and then sending it through a fender amp! Why should it sound the same. Because of the tredemendous flexibility of this modeler, it is capable of amazing and awful sounds depending on the settings and where its destination is (recording direct, or through an amp"
I'm not too impressed with the effects, but thats not what this unit is intended for. They are nice to have for recording situations if you need a particular effect on a track.
Can it totally replace a real amp for recording? I would say maybe. If you love the sounds then it will. If you need to get feedback while recoring then obviously you will need a real amp. If you have an amp that you love record with that and use this unit to double your guitar parts and give you more variety for layering tracks then your one real amp will.

It seems reliable to me. I always prefer metal controls over plastic, but this unit isn't a pedal so I don't consider it a problem since I wouldn't purposefully step on it. PLus metal construction raise the price tremendously, and this unit is all about bang for the buck.
For concert use you could purchase an inexpensive footswitch to change between sounds. You could mount the modeler on the back of your pedal board or sit it on your amp. Wouldn't break unless you step hard on it-which there is no reason TO step on it. (of course accidents do happen.) Remember it costs 100 bucks, so it wouldn't be a greek tragedy if something broke like some much more expensive modelers.
But this unit really shines on your desktop for recording purposes, nice for practicing too.

Never had to deal with them. But this is a simple product, 99 bucks, don't expect to have any problems, if this thing dies 5 or 6 years down the road i would have gotten my money's worth

This pedal is a tremendous value. at 99 dollars (us) its simple, takes up little space, capable of a wide variety of great sounds. Don't waste your money on a pod. With the way technology goes, after you spend your 300+ dollars there will be something newer and better. This unit is cheap, and sounds great and is all you need for recording purposes. Its wonderful to be able to track even late at night without setting up my amp and a mic and not disturb anyones sleep (except my own) I wouldn't gig with this. I tend to need only a couple good "compromise" sounds for concert and do fine with my amp and a couple pedals. But in the studio my compromise concert tone that works well all around, might not be the ideal sound for a particlar part or song. This is where this unit really shines.
I wish it came with an ac adaptor. But this unit really is about value and not including the adaptor one of the things that helps keep it so affordable. For the price of a decent boss stomp box, you get all kinds of amp, cab sounds, and some decent effects.

I love this preamp! I'm not posting a full review, but am wanting to let others know that I made some jpeg images that you can print out on a label at least 5 inches wide that you can then cut out & stick on your knobs to make them more readable. They are white on black & are taken directly from the pdf files of the manuals for both the guitar & bass modules. Go to Yahoo Groups & find the new group I started called Korg Ampworks. The labels are in the Files section.

Downright simple, all the knobs are clearly labeled and there are only 2 patches to store your settings, so if you still get lost.....

The manual is clear, simple and almost not necesary.

Yamaha RG121D straight into Ampworks and into computer/headphones/peavey audition 110 transtube, ocassionaly adding some other effects processors between ampworks and amp for better flexibility, and of course all I need to do to get a good tone out of it is to set everything else(amp) flat. Like all other modelers they tend to sound best when use with a very neutral sounding amp (mostly solid state amps)and some tube amps, and let me tell you, i never believed I could get a "realistic" amp tone from the peavey amp until i plugged this thing. I couldn`t tell you what a real tube amp feels or sounds since I never actually played one, but this unit comes close to what I hear on records and I realy enjoy it.

Obviously the real strength of the unit is as a headphone amp or recording device and once i recorded some stuff on my computer I was sold. The effects are really just an "extra" since there aren`t many parameters to go trough for each effect but they do sound good and add value to the unit, I usually only use reverb and tremolo and it just works. Though chorus and wha just dont`t do it for me.

One thing I noticed is that once I find 2 or 3 amp tones and cabinet combinations that I like I don`t move to far from them, and my favorites on this unit are UKMDN with 412CLS, BLK212 with 212BLK and UK80`s with 412CLS/412MDN. I especially like how clear the notes come trough even when I use lots of distortion, midd and bass (not to creazy about trebble or scooped mids)

Is plastic and designed for desktop use so it should hold, unless you kick the crap out of your equipment, in that case it won't last a day.

don't know

I tend to play ether blues or metal and its great for both, been playng for about 12 years and never owned "real/proffesional" gear so I tend to look for the best cheap piece of crap that sounds really good and this is it. Was originally looking to get a Vamp2 but the price seem to high for me (always on a tight budget), so yeah, Ill buy it again if I had to.

For basic use it's very easy to use. Just dial in and play! Writing the effects into the two memory functions is incredibly easy (two button presses) and once you read the manual about how to get the added bonus of the footswitch, this thing is great! (Turn on while holding the prog button down and you can use it to bypass whatever setting your on, instead of scanning through the three modes) This footswitch function makes the unit very benifical if using it live.

The only problem with this unit is setting the effects up. The effects that use 'speed' controls on other units are controlled by a 'tap' switch on this one. This makes it a lil harder to dial in your desired effects, but it does work once you get the hang of it!

I played with this thing for a good two hours to get the most out of it when I first brought it home. First I tried just plugging it into the front of my Mesa Dual Rectifier behind a Godin LG P90 and just jammed away with the settings. Then I decided to use it with my PA or AB box, unfortunatly it started distorting, creating lots of noise. When plugged through the effects loop of my mesa (the best way to run this for what I use it for) gives me lots of problems when any settings are changed (loud feedback, popping, or air siren noises) just not very cool at all.

Alas, the unit was designed for recording, not for rocking out! But I did seem to get lots of great tones out of it!

The JCM800 patch (UK '80s) was pretty damn close to right on! My second guitarist uses such Marshal and we were both amazed at how well the thing sounds! It is now one of my most favorite sounds out of this box.

The Vox amps were quite disapointing, sounding more like my Mesa than anything else, just really fat and flubby. But this seemed to work for me on quite a few occasion.

My favorite setting though is the BotiqueCLN mode. This mode dialed in properly adds a beautiful clean layer of boost to my amp. It also accentuates the highs more when dialed in flat. This is what I was looking for in my amp, seeing as how I have constantly complained about how weak the db's are from a Mesa Rectifier in the clean channel. (I find it very hard to get a good clean sound out of one.)


As for the effects, I'm very impressed with the tremelo on this unit. In fact I find myself using the Ampworks trem more than my TR-2 from Boss. It's much louder and dominate, and sounds a bit cleaner too.

The auto-wah feature is cool in its own way. Yes it sucks major goat cheese, but it does have its own soul that actually makes it cool.

My favorite patch though is definatly the Rotary speaker simulator. Some people think it's noisy, I think it faithfuly recreates the sound of plugging into a real Leslie! (hence the 'noisiness') When idle, you can litterly here a 'wir' of the speakers rotating ala leslie style, how cool is that?!?!!?!?!?!!??!?!

Chorus is so weak it destoryed my opinon of the sound quality. and the reverb I find too hard to control.


Finally, the cabinet styles are great for tone buffs, in fact I find that they can really tighten up your sound and give it a lil extra punch (especially if your using an open back cabinet with the ampworks set to a close back cabinet model)

If I dropped it I would fear I would need to get a new one. All my units run off of AC so I do not need to get batteries, but I hear they last a long time.

Overall it does feel very cheap..but for $120...it balances out with how much work they put into the tones.



Also watch for cold solder joints, I have heard of many Korg products suffering from this problem

Korg have never been helpful to me when contacted personally. Even their store customer service seems to blow.

However their AMERICAN website is very informative and gives you everythign you need to get going.

A very impressive little effects unit. For Rock and new age styles it seems to work quite well. While other people say its been good for recording, I just can't get over how noisy it gets when plugged into a mixer. Even a balanced TRS cable dosn't help very much.

Compared to a PODxt or 2.0 the models are a lot better (I find a much broader front end in the ampworks, the line6 models have always been very bland to me) compared to the vox units...well the vox units are kings of the modulation work because of the 12ax7 in the preamp stage that just gives them all that front end you need to get a fat, broad, and massive sound out of the amp models. But for a $120 unit, this thing wins over the other two just for the simple fact that what it does, it does well.

Stolen or lost, or most likley broken, a new one would be coming home very quickly.

Bargin wise....oh yea, it's a bargin!

This unit is very easy to use. Just turn a few knobs and you're on your way to a sound that you like. Editing and saving in the 2 memory slots is real easy too. Just change to your new setting and press the write button twice. and if you don't want to use your own settings, u can always use the presets by pressing the preset button then choosing your amp. It can't get any easier than this.

I'm using a BC Rich neck-thru mockingbird with duncan hotrail and duncan distortions pus. I use this mostly into my computer with headphones or computer speakers and it's not bad. Low E string sometimes seem to have the buzz/fart sound when using high gain settings but for lead... this unit is great. Noise gate works very well.... almost too well if you set it up too high so if you turn down your guitar volume, you are going to have problems. the Wah on this is pretty lame but hey, this thing is call ampworks, not effectworks so you shouldn't expect too much in terms of effects anyway.

This thing is plastic. So i assume you wouldn't want to put it on the floor like your stomp boxes. And becuase it doesn't allow much footswitch functions, it is pretty much designed for desktop recording/practicing purposes i think. In terms of powersupply, this thing takes 4.5V adapters so you wouldn't be able to plug your regular boss adapters. However, 2AA batteries are said to be able to last for over 10 hours.... that's pretty i.pressive.

I've been using this thing for a week so these are just preliminary things that i'm looking at. I used to have a Boss ME-50 but i got tired of carrying that big thing around and also it sounds like crap when i record it with line out. This ampworks fits right into my guitar case and line out sounds good. This unit is perfect for any recreational guitarists that record some songs on the computer. The price is low but you can get tones out of it. If I had more money, i would certainly look into line 6 or VOX too but those cost like double the price and they're bigger too. Once again, i think this unit is amazing for playing metal/rock solos and leads.

Very easy to get this running. You only have 2 editing patch slots, but the presets are excellent. The manual is well written and there is an additional document that has pics of the amp preset configurations.

The only negative thing I can say is that they should have used black knobs with white lettering (what were they thinking?? Was it a marketing weeinie's decision that overrode the musicians?)

Sound quality is excellent, it emulates the amps and cabinets faithfully. The effects are pretty good as well.

I'd depend on this to get the job done. The only backup I'd consider is to have extra batteries around (it uses standard penlight for a change, not expensive 9 volts), but that caveat goes down the tubes if you spring for a plug-in-the-wall 4.5V power pack ($10)

I've never had to deal with Korg, so I can't personally rate this aspect.

I picked up one of these a few weeks ago. A very nifty series of tonal values and effects. This little guy has a somewhat smaller footprint than a generic stomp box and is easily stowable in a gig bag with your cables, etc.

It uses two standard AA batteries and although the factory states they can last 10 hours of constant use, they are actually good for about 15 hours.

One annoying thing about this unit is that the lettering on the three selector knobs are white on silver. In bright light (stage or sunlight), it can be difficult to note the settings.

There are also six cruise control knobs that are kind of small. The indicator line on each knob is a little indentation, silver on silver. If I were you, one of the first things I'd do is to get a marker pen and colour in the little line indentation on each knob - I used red. This way you can tell the levels at a glance. If you do it right, it will look as if had been done by the factory.

Unlike the Boss Amp Factory, Ampworks doesn't come with a footswitch, only a jack, but footswitches are only about 10 or 20 bucks.

Also unlike the nearly indestructable Boss boxes, the Korg is plastic. No big deal, just keep it on your amp or nearby off the floor. There is no integrated pedal so why keep it on the floor anyway?

But that stuff is only cosmetic....this unit is exceptionally good, I have no complaints whatsoever on the amp/cab emulation or effects. Excellent sound and zero background noise or hiss. I've sampled all the effects, but the ones I tend to use are exciter, distortion and filter.

Overall in the areas of performance and sound, it would stand toe to toe with a Line 6 Pod.

Can't get much easier. Tap tempo multi function is a little confusing at times, but otherwise it's plug and play - just like an amp. Editing patches is a breeze. Manual is not bad.

I am using a 99' American Strat with on Seymour Duncan hot rails in the bridge. Single coils sound punchy and full, while the buckers sound thick. Bought it mostly for the Marshall modern setting as a practice tool (need Marshall sound without volume for practice), but it has since proven to be excellent recorded. Fuzz is a waste of an "amp" model, but otherwise, everything is excellent. Fender twin model breaks up too early, but lower the gain, and it sparkles well. Frankly, I'm not a huge Vox fan, so I haven't used the vox models much. Very quiet, and the effects are pretty convincing (with exception of the wah). Basically, it's the same as a pod for sound quality - it doesn't sound identical to what its modelling, but it still sounds good in its own way.

Seems reliable, but this isn't a gigging device - it's a practice sim.

Never dealth with Korg.

This is an excellent product. I initially bought it for practice, then wrote a little lick... I didn't want to forget it, so I hooked it up to my computer (DI) and recorded. My initial worries about the lower bitrate than a line 6 pod were dashed when I played it back. I am very impressed - cheap, small, sounds good, what more can you ask?

This is and addendum to my previous review below. I found after having this awhile that it actually works better with single coils for some reason. I tried running humbuckers on it this last weekend and was very disappointed. I also have come to find the bottom end very lacking and disappointing. So, bummer now, I can't give it as rave reviews as originally. The search for the perfect all in one processor for recording guitar goes on.

Fairly simple to use.

Do not waste your money!!!! I bought this to do some computer recording. I have used POD, PODxt, J-station, pandora, digitech,etc. This was extremely dissapointing. I found 1 clean sound I liked. Distortion sounds are real bad and not warm at all. Overall stereo sound is weak and thin. Effects are not very good. Knobs look like they are nice metal and chrome but are plastic and cheap, scary. I thought the PXR4 from KORG sounded real good and had great stereo sound and effects and this was a huge dissapointment from KORG in my opinion. Buy a POD or something like else.

easy to use, the tap funtion is a little small, but ok.

i use it for the VOX AC30 and for bass, and it really is very very good. i try to use it clean and i put a tube screemer in front of it, and a delay after. Then in to my PC- or Behringer V tone GMX 212.
To me its a very strong likeness to my dream sound, i love it. the other amps sound good, but i dont know enough about them. I think that the cabs on revalver sound more like a fender to me, but its still very good. better than my V tone. Not as fat but more real.
The sound is not brittle, and it it destorts nicly, very nicely indeed. The fx sound good, but the control is crap. The smallest amount is from nothing to somthing it to big a leap, i would want the tremolo to be so quiet u hardy hear it. The sound good.
When i first used it. It sounded very GATED, and noisey. but i had it set up WRONG. i use hardly any gain now, and i get that real, VOXY sound. Im so pleased with it, for 100 its the best modeler i have heard yet.

seem like it would brake if u droped it, britle plasic. be carefull
but its not a stompbox anyhow

over all i will give it 8.5
At last i haev a cool sound. thanks to this little thing. And the for the price....if u are recording, this is what u need.
I would not recomend putting it through a normal guitar amp. A PA System would sound great i bet.

Very easy to get good sounds right away. Unit is very straightforward and intuitive. I couldn't care less about editing patches. I just plug in, dial the model and cabinet and effect and away I go. Manual is okay but could be a little more comprehensive. Other than that, what's not to figure out?

I prefer single coils on this. It especially sounds good with my tele. I hear a little hiss in the background sometimes but it is not intrusive. I use the unit for quiet practice with headphones. My favorite settings are the Vox models--not surprising since it's the same company. I mainly stick to a touch of reverb. Sounds pretty convincing. Haven't tried recording with it but I think it will do just fine.

I wouldn't gig with this but I don't think that's the point. I have had Vox pathfinders in the past and a Korg tuner and have never had a problem with them. This seems tough enough for its intended purpose.

No contact.

I play blues based rock and British invasion style. I like this device. I have owned Pod 2.0, J Station, Genesis I, Zoom GM200 and Yamaha DG Stomp. Except for the Yamaha, I prefer this to all the others. It's basic, straightforward and I can get sounds I like. It is small enough to take anywhere--fits in the guitar case. Only one thing I don't like and thats the white letters on chrome knobs. Hard to read, Korg people! Otherwise I love it. I purchased from Portland Music Company--great store!

Pretty simple.. choose amp, choose cab,choose effect and there ya go. Only a quik view in the manual for edit and save mode.

There are some presets and you can add two of your own favorites, I wouldn't mind some more in that department. I mainly bought this thingy because of the Vox AC30 and AC15 sounds. Very very convincing though they copied the top boost bright channel wich sounds euh.. bright. Also the blackface and bassman are very nice, I think you could fool a lot of people with it on tape. The roaring silky el34's of a plexi (Blues) is a little to complicated for such a small little fella', next time better boys and I dont like blasting recto's and JCM 800's in real world and I simply have no opinion of the Ampworks renderings, it's just not my taste of a good guitar sound. Last, the fuzz is a joke but then again, most fuzzes are (I make an exeption for the sun fuzzface and the Roger Mayer's) The cabs are basicly in two flavours: ceramic and alnico's, the latter sounds warmer and more natural in my ears. The combination of amps and cabinets alone would justify the Ampworks but Korg added some nice effects (all very good, only the delay is very limited of course)
On the back there's a switch for line and amp and this works pretty well so you can use it with your guitar amp, headphones or direct recording. Minus: background hiss can be a problem though you can hear the noisegate working. And please, next time dont use white letterings on grey knobs..
It's just amazing how much quality the Korg people cab stuff in such a small box, if this doesn't put the Pod people out of business...

Same quality as the boss Rockman stuff, that thing fell apart after a couple of years... oh well, thats centuries in digital years...
I would use this as a backup in case the amp blew.. he buddy, just plug this in channel 14...

Instead of doing 11 amps and cabs with half of them exellent and the other half just for fun, I rather would have 3 KILLER tones (what about a AC30, a Plexi and a Dumble!) And make an other with 3 other absolutly KILLER tones (tweed deluxe, Mark IIC, Bogner) and make another with 3 more KILLER tones....
We would buy them all, you hear Korg people... we would buy them all...

Very simple, efficient, to the point. This is the answer for me for simple effective direct recording with GREAT tones. 3 knobs...choose your 1)amp 2)cabinet 3)effect. Also has nice gain, 3 bands of eq, overall volume and effects knob. Effects knob works in similar fashion to Line 6 POD. Tap tempo controls parameter of whatever effect you dial up. It doesn't get much simpler than this. Very intuitive.

Various guitars, single coils, hummers, P-90's, etc. Genuine representation of the guitar tone comes through. One of the coolest deals about this is that you can select mix/match cabinets with whatever amp you choose. This GREATLY affects the tone, and gives you unbelieveable options for tones. The gain works very well on every amp model, and allows clean to overdrive tones for every model. My ONLY beef so far is the combination chorus/delay and chorus/reverb settings. When you turn up the effect parameter knob, you can't isolate more reverb/less chorus, they work together...and if you want more reverb, the chorus becomes more apparent and somewhat "detuning" effect comes into play. And since you can't change the parameters individually, it makes those two effects selections somewhat limiting. BUT...you can dial reverb alone, or chorus alone, or delay alone, and those settings ARE very useful. Really the only problem I have had thus far. Oh, one other thing...it runs on 4.5 volt, would have been nice if they would have used 9 volt instead. Batteries (2 AA included) or power supply (not included).

It's not a heavy duty pedal...actually it's not even a pedal. It's a desktop recording device above all. It does have line/amp switch if you wanted to run it in front of an amp, but it's plastic primarily, so save it for home recording. No problems functionally so far, Korg seems like a solid company in this regard.

No experience here.

Really...tried them ALL (POD 2.0, POD xt, Valvetronix amp, Vox Tonelab, Adrennalinn, ValveFX (ancient, I know), Zoom, Digitech GNX, etc.etc. Even compared it to other Korg products such as the PX4 which supposedly has the same sounds, but it sounded much different to me, and the NEW Korg AX10G. Korg AX10G would have been the ultimate answer to this Ampworks as it allows 80+ presets to be programmed and a expression pedal...only problem, they removed the coolest feature which is cabinet selection and put preset cabinets based on the amp model chosen. Again, this is where the Ampworks really shines and gives the user MANY cool options for tone selection. Soooooo, long story long....the Ampworks is IMHO the best sounding and ironically, LEAST EXPENSIVE direct recording guitar amp modelling preamp available at this time. Check them out and decide for yourself! You will be surprised!

Very easy to use, dial in your tone! Save settings! Don't need a manual!

I use strats.. I use this for direct recording and it's awsome! The amp patches are great, the cab patches are awsome, the fx are good! If you are a player that needs 7 or 9 effects, this isn't for you! If you are a player that likes a little reverb, chorus, or delay, this is awsome! I play blues, rock and jazz.. This little box blows the way more expensive POD away as far as authentic amps and cabs sound!

I will not gig w/ this.. Like all of these boxes, it's kind of "plastic-ee".. Don't drop it, it will break!

NA

Great sonding little box. It blows the POD and the sans amp stuff away as far as amp and cab authenticiy.. Easy to use! I'd buy another one if I lost this! The best recording tool for guitar!!

I like the way you can easily set eq and find it user friendly. Tap temp feature real nice. Hard to read white on chrome small letters.
Definitely need light to see. Programing somewhat limited.

Killer tones, but can hear noise in the mix before gate kickes in on noise reduction feature. Disappointed that the effects had what I call some digital noise in the background while note is sustaining,as most effect processors do. Played thru Fender 2X12 deville with humbuckers and single coils.

Small and plastic, looks built for studio work. I'd assume it would be very reliable

Wish it was a little larger with black on chrome large letters. Wish it did'nt have as much noise on some of the effect settings. I have lots of high quality pedals, guitars and amps. If you have hardly nothing it would give you a lot of features and tones for the bucks, and may possibly pass your satisfaction, has killer VOX tones. I have very rigid specifications as far as quietness. It has rich sounds but I feel I can achieve most with the gear I already have, so it's going back tomorrow.

Very easy to use.

If you can't set this thing up within 10 minutes. Go see a brain doctor.

Excellent sound quality. Very quiet when set up properly. I'm using it with an old Telecaster, an old Strat, and a Les Paul. Either thru a Yamaha mixer for recording, or to either a Roland, Vox amps. All sound very convincing.

The noise reduction works extremely well when set up properly (it's easy too. Takes only a few seconds to set it up correctly. Even with my very noisy old Tele.)

It's pastic. But looks/feels like well made.

Had the Line 6's similar unit at the same time, comparing both side by side for 2 weeks. Returned the Line 6. (The Line 6 was actually falling apart right out of the box. Bought brand new from an authorised dealer!)

Never needed any with all my Korg's gears.

Can be a few dollars cheaper. Or include the AC power supply with its current price.

Killer unit for studio works!

After reading the review in December 2003 issue of Guitarist magazine went into local music shop and had a listen, twenty minutes later and #99.00 lighter headed home with new toy.... After using it for about 10 days, well worth the money. Easy to use, pre set sounds all really useable though Fuzz pre set sounds like a bee in a tin. Considering the size of the thing the sounds it produces are very convincing and with the right connectors into the line in of a pc sound card I get good guitar sound using Cakewalk Studio. The manual is ok but the unit is so easy to set after a couple of reads your up and running. Dials a bit fiddly use.....

I use the unit with a twin humbucker Crafter and Aria pro single coil guitars playing various styles of music rock blues, using headphones for practice, sounds fine but make sure switch on rear set to line, only use amp setting with an amp the unit is fairly quiet thanks to the inbuilt noise reduction. I have tried it through my Marshall TSL 602 combo to see how it sounds but sounded noisey when using higher gain settings. There is an option to use a footswitch to change through the two user pre sets and manual or to switch between by pass and one patch. I bought a cheap NON LATCHING JHS footswitch wich works fine and makes it easier to switch patches when recording. The effects are very good but use care when setting tap time based ones. It is quite easy to set a sound that you want...

Wouldn't gig with it but then thats not it's purpose, seems solid enough, sockets a lot less flimsy than a Behringer V amp.. dials work well and knobs and buttons ok, main gripe is that white letters on chrome dials are very hard to see, Korg take note... Can't see it failing unless I pull it of my desk or my PC falls on it.

No reason to call them so no opinion on this one yet...

Since buying this unit I have packed my Behringer V Amp 2 away in its box, the Korg unit takes up very little space and runs for ever on two batteries I get about 14 hours out of 2 AA NIMH rechargeables. I would deffo buy another if it got lost or stolen. It is very easy to connect to the line input of a PC I bought a couple of adapters from a local Maplin store. Pity there is not aux input for a cd etc etc but the worst thing about it is the white writing on the pre set dials at times it's impossible to read Mr KORG might make some stickers to rectify.... Care has to be taken when editing a storing patches to make sure the relative volumes are close to avoid huge jumps in volume....

Straight out of the box this unit was easy to use. Simply plug in, select your amp type, select your speaker type, add an effect if you want. And away you go. It really is as easy as that. Editing is quite simple but you only have two custom user patches to play with, but to be honest you don't need to worry about it. Since you can mix and match all the amp and speaker types on the defaults anyway.

Overall this is soooo incredibly easy to use, it really is just a case of "plug and play".

I have used both my Ibanez JS100 (with Paf Pro and Fred pickups) and my Burns Brian May, both sound very good through this. I play mostly through the pc or headphones when using this as I don't feel that the colouration that is added by running through an amp does it justice. I own a Marshall JCM 800 which I use for gigs so I immediately went straight for "UK 80's" with a 4x12Vintage with the gain turned right up. And boy was it close. Not 100% but, lets face it you are never going to get a box this big to sound exactly like a full blown 100 watt all valve Marshall. But it sounded very close.

Next I tried the AC30TB with VOX2x12. Now to my ears it sounds pretty damn close as well, but not having an AC30 lying around to play with I can't say for sure. It sounded good with my Burns Brian May. I then thought of experimenting a little so I ran the Treble Booster output from my Brian May Vox into this, and low and behold a VERY passable Queen sound. Again not totally 100% but to the average person they would never tell the difference.

I have played with all the effects and they are really nice and quiet, no excess noise that i have found.

I wouldn't use this at a gig, but I didn't intend to. It is clearly a desktop recording device, which is what I bought it for. I say this because of the difficulty in which you change sounds and that there is only two editable patches. To me the whole design of the thing screams desktop rather than stage. Although I also use it for a bit of silent practising. Other than that it seems fairly dependable, and solid although it is made of plastic. And I suppose the knobs could snap off but only if it was abused terribly.

Not dealt with them, probably won't have to.

I dabble in all types of music but play mainly rock. Having played around with many of the different combinations I feel that this would probably fit most styles. Although I did feel that some of the Fender amps sounded a bit too overdriven, but the vox,marshall and modern sounds were all very good.

What anyone reading this needs to realise is that this is not a multi-fx unit designed for gigging, it is a desktop recording device!!! Plain and simple, maybe use it for practising at home, that works well, but I would never consider gigging with this. Recording straight into the PC it sounds great. But I really think you would be missing the point if you used it live. So far the stuff I have recorded with it sounds great, but I wouldn't use this over my Marshall JCM 800 in a live situation.

Is this better than the POD,Behringer or Genesis3? I don't know to be honest but it was a lot cheaper. I took a leap of faith based on the fact that Korg worked so well to produce the VOX Valvetronix amps, which are very good, and that it sounded great on the Korg website. And having used a Pandora IV, I figured what the hell it won't be awful, and I was right. In fact it is a pretty damn good piece of kit. If it was stolen I would probably just try out some of the others but I suspect I would come back to this. This is my first foray into the world of digital amp modeling, and while, for me, they won't replace a good valve amp, for the average person who wants to do some home recording without having to replace their windows or annoying their neighbours this unit is great.