Line 6 FBV Shortboard

Very easy to use. Really gives you tremendous control over a Line 6 amplifier in a stage/gig setting. I didn't get a manual, but it wasn't needed. One great feature is that the shortboard draws its power directly from the amplifier so it doesn't need an AC cord like so many effects pedals. This is an extremely nice touch- no power cords or batteries. The cord from the shortboard to the amp is 25' so you can "spread out" on the stage and still have total, immediate control over your amp(s).

The shortboard itself doesn't make sounds. It is a controller that tells the amplifier what sounds to make. If you are reading this, you know the wide range of sounds that a Line 6 Modeling amplifier is capable of making and the shortboard allows you to call up any of your programmed sounds as needed. The volume pedal is useful on the shortboard although it doesn't provide a wide,calibrated range of volume levels. However, you can lower or increase your volume level totally though the shortboard pedal. As many have stated, the wah pedal is not great and for the most part, I use my Morley Power Wah. However, the Wah pedal on the shortboard produces a slightly different wah sound. I find it works well for funky rhythmic chording. One effect that I love is the delay that can be called up with the shortboard. The tap function on the shortboard also allows you to change speed and length of the echo without going to your amp. When you are finished with the effect, you can simply click it off.

Built like a tank.........would certainly stand up to frequent gigging.

Haven't had to use it..........that's a good thing!

The Line 6 Shortboard is a supreme convenience for any performing or practicing guitarist. You can program 36 different settings into your amp and then call up any of these settings with the the Shortboard without even going near the amp! The shortboard also has a on board tuner so you can electronically tune your guitar without leaving you position on stage. I am often able to make a correction in tuning and no one can tell what I'm doing. In addition to calling up any of your pre-set amp tones, you can go through the entire effects loop only using the shortboard. This provides amazing freedom on stage (or in practice) as you can call up any effect (echo, chorus, etc.) from the shortboard without going to your amplifier. Now that I am used to using a Shortboard, I'm not sure what I would do without one!!!

It is very easy to use, very easy to figure out, but when you press "bank up" or "bank down" you then have to select the channel in that bank otherwise it wont change.

there aren't any sounds built in on here, it's all on the amp

the first year was fine but over the last 6 months i've had 2 problems...
the first was that the tap tempo button stopped working and if you pressed it, it would lock itself in and would then go onto the tuner, but after sending it off to get it fixed it was fine...
but the second problem has only recently developed, the middle row of buttons (and the lights for them) no longer work. Nothing. Bank Down, Stomp, Modulation, Delay and Reverb don't work at all.

When the first problem occured (the tap tempo problem) Line6 support was brilliant, all i had to do was take it to a local shop and it would be picked up from there and delivered back to there... for FREE!

but Line6 still haven't replied to any of the messages i have send to them about the second problem... i still await a reply, and i've had this problem for over a week now, and any replies that they have send have said "we will get back to you within the next 48 hours" but they haven't.

I think Line6 customer support in the UK has lost it's quality, they seem to be saying "screw it, we can't be bothered with the issues with our products"

The product itself is good (shame about the problems though)

I don't think it's professional quality though

It's very easy to use the FBV Shortboard, because basically it only enables the features that are available on the Line 6 amp own by using your feet (like channels, compressor, modulation, delay, reverb, FX loop, ...). I personally use it with the Line 6 HD147. The first thing you should do when you bought it is calibrating it to work properly with the specific amp you are using, wich is explained in the manual. Talking about the manual, there is a small one included. Furthermore there is a built-in tuner, a volume/wah pedal (wich isn't the greatest, but for a built-in it's alright), a tap tempo button and you can name your patches (up to 36) with the LCD-screen. I give it a 9, because I would like to have to more buttons on the Shortboard: one to control the noise gate on the HD147 and a favorite channel button.

Because the Shortboard is just a footcontroller for the amp, it doesn't have any sounds. Although I like the fact that the channel switching on it is very quiet and without delay.

The FBV Shortboard is very well built and it seems very sturdy, because of the metal chassis. The buttons and the pedal are very good too. It looks better built than the average footcontroller. I do bring an extra RJ-45 cabel along on gigs, but for the Shortboard itself, I could easely gig without a backup. One that'll last forever!

Line 6 has very good costumer support, not the best out there, but still very good. Good manuals, website, warranty. They never replied to any of the e-mails I sent them, but on the phone they were very friendly.

I have been playing for 16 years. I own a few other amps, like a Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier Road King II head, a Marshall 1959HW head, a Hughes & Kettner TriAmp MkII head and a few combos. For guitars I mainly use a Gibson Les Paul Junior '57 reissue, a Gibson SG Special Faded and a Fender Classic '50 Stratocaster with a Seymour Duncan Hot Rails in the bridge. I like tubes, but the Line 6 HD147 is just great, especially in combination with the FBV Shortboard. When using that setup, no other effects are needed!

Spot on !. Well made and does what its supposed to do. Wah is very good, as good as my crybaby but much queiter.

No delay when changing patches, no unewanted clicks hums or buzzes.
The tuner is moer accurate than reading it on the amp, even though its the same tuner at work. I like the tap function, never used one before but can see a whole load of benefits.

Dont know ywt.

Dont know

Works great

- this board is VERY EASY to learn and use
- patch editing is basically made via amp controls so you only need to label or write the name in the board?s lcd-display
- there is some kind of manual and better manual is usually shipped with the amp (because this board supports only Line6 products best)
- I don?t think if there is any firmware for the FBV Shortboard itself, maybe the firmware for the amp uses the controls for the board also?!?

- I have Fender Lite Ash Stratocaster and my amp is Line6 Flextone III XL combo. I use the basic 9 channel 4 bank setting and I have kept most of the factory presets and only adjusted the levels matchin each accordingly
- It can be loud if the amp is set so and the effects are mostly very nice
- I don?t want to bee too close to my favourite artists even I maybe would like to, I haven?t tweaked my system that well yet...

- I think there couldn?t be any stronger board than this...
- it is very solid and quite heavy, keeps well in place on stage and the lcd-screen is so small that it breaks only by accident
- the knobs are pure metal and the volume/wah pedal is very stable and confortable
- I could/would use it without backup, because I can adjust some settings through the amp but I would certainly buy a new one

- I tried to call them some time ago, I had problems with the cable because I didn?t know that it had to be "a real PC/8-pin version". It is hard to reach them from Scandinavia and they don?t have any state or country support
- the web pages are very good though

- I play quite many styles of music (dance music, pop, rock, beat, walz...)
- 18 years of guitar playing
- I have also played violin, piano and bass (some drums)
- I would by a new one in case of stealing or losing it
- I love the usability and reliability in it
- I guess the metal knobs could be more silent and lighter
- I wish I could use 2 or 3 mod effects at a time, but I don?t own a Vetta II... Luckily you can get normal pedals for those things!
- sometimes name editing is not so cool... (I think Line6edit software does it to the amp directly, I have to test it some day soon?!?)
- I think this pedal is essential part of any Line6 amp model that is compatible with FBV shortboard
- some people complain about the wah pedal sounds or something but i think it is quite ok if you use wah only rarely. You can adjust the tone so that the wah doesn?t "squeal" so much ;-)

This is the best pedal i've ever used. It's so easy to program this pedal board. It didn't come with a manual though.

I use a Ibanez RG7321BK with a Spider 2 212 combo amp. It's very quiet, the distortion is really good. The effects on it are pretty good but the wah could be better.

This amp is very reliable I've had it for just about a year and I have had no problems with it yet. I use my amp on gig's i don't need any more speakers, it's that loud!

I emailed the company before about basic questions and they replied right away.

I play metal and some alternative. it's a very good match. I've been playing guitar for only about two years. I compared if with a few other amps but this has a lot better sound quality than some of those tube amps. This has been by far the best amp ever!

Man, this thing is great. I use it with my PodXT and my Spider II 210 and it's great. I like the combination wah/volume, especially with the tweak feature the XT received in the last major firmware upgrade. There's not really much to do with it, actually. Just step on the buttons. Editing patch names is pretty easy from the shortboard.

Sound? Click, click, click. That's all it does.

This thing is built like a tank. I could use this thing as a melee weapon to defend my home from bears. With sticks.
It's about 18 months old and the pedal only started squeaking last week. And I was standing on it at the time. A little WD-40 should take care of that.

Haven't needed it.

This thing rules. That's all there is to it. It doesn't really do much, but what it needs to do, it does like a champ. The best part is it connects with regular old cat-5 ethernet cable. What if I need to stand 10 meters away? Steal a 10-meter cable from work!

The FBV Shortboard is amazingly easy to use. It's like basically having a heck of alot of stomboxes. I even tried using it in a room with no light (except the little LED lights coming from my Flextone III and my FBV shortboard) and i could still use it easily. But the volume pedal/wah pedal is pretty wierd because im used to using the Dunlop ones which are a bit higher and have more leverage.

With my FBV im using an Ibanez AX220QM (red quilted) guitar to a Boss DS-1 distortion to a Boss BF-3 Flanger and into my Flextone III. I also have the FBV shortboard connected straight into the Flextone III. Soon enough though my setup would include a Boss Octave pedal, Boss Acoustic Simulator and replace the Ibanez AX220QM with a PRS Custom 24 (Sunburst quilt). Well back to the FBV shortboard, there really is no sound coming from it except the click noises from the actualy buttons. The sound is really good when you I transition from one channel to another. It doesnt delay and goes right to the next sound that I want.

It seems ginormously strong. The body is steel or aluminum and it feels like it has a really thick body. The buttons are pretty strong too. They dont bend off and it looks reliable.

I havent had any problems with this yet but since you can register it online i think thats a great advantage in customer support.

My style of music is more of an Incubus clash Alexisonfire clash Death Cab for Cutie. Its pretty wierd but my setup is pretty much a good match for what i play. Line 6 is great at making amps with multifunctions and it makes my life so much easier not having to buy all them stompboxes. Out of the 6 years that i've been playing, i have to say that i am impressed and happy with what my line 6 products have given to me. IN SUMMARY< The FBV shortboard is a great convience for any guitar player out there. It kind of motivates you to play even better since you have the ability to do your effects and what not. So go out there and buy yourself an FBV shortboard. now

I'm giving it a 9 overall because of the volume pedal. it could be a little more higher so you have more leverage on it.

Plug it into your Line6 product of choice and you are ready to go. It really is an extension of what you already have, instead of a cumbersome add on product that you need to calibrate and program to work.

It has no sound, but it enables stuff you can't do with the PodXT by itself. The volume is very nice, and the wah is surprisingly good too. Also when switching patches, there is no click noise or delay between patches

Seems really rock solid, but I just got it so I don't know yet. So far it seems as good or better than most midi controllers out there

I've heard bass players complain about how they get screwed by Line6, but for guitar players they go all out. When I got my Podxt, they had new usb drivers, firmware upgrade, and the new model packs that sound great. The Line6 edit software and the user community is the best in the industry.

This is a real great addition to my Podxt. I wouldn't be totally lost without it, but its certainly a nice toy to have and adds to my Podxt experience. I highly reccomend it

It is by far the easiest controller to use with any newer Line 6 product. It is an essential part of my Pod Pro XT rig.

not applicable.

Built solid and that's a good thing because foot controllers should not be cheesy!

Never had to use it. I have done firmware updates from the web page and the online support is very good. If I ever do have to call/email and things aren't good, I'll repost a new opinion. But for now, it's good.

I play mostly modern rock, some classic. My rig is a Pod Pro XT into eith a Tech 21 Power Engine, a Rocktron Velocity 300 running two stereo Madison 2X12 cabs, and, hopefully soon, an Atomic Reactor 112.

This is a very well thought out solid pedal. In the past I have had two Rocktron foot controllers, MidiMate and All Access. I like the layout and feel of this unit better.

Good thing I use the Line 6 gear, because the only bad thing about this particular pedal is that it is proprietary and not a general MIDI controller.