Line 6 Pocket POD

Onboard editing is very easy (basic editing is here and there are ALT features for the 4-way button to the left of the display which change the amp and effects!), the software editing is even better with more control and both distortion and drive switches. Haven't found a manual yet.

For its size, the onboard editing and software deep editing exceeded my expectations.

As usual the presets are hit and miss, mostly miss. I didn't care for the artist presets.

Outstanding iconic sounds in a battery operated portable unit! Much better than expected.

This unit really excells at pushed clean/light drive sounds (better than anything else and most amps) if you like Jimi on 'Wind Cries Mary' or SRV on 'Little Wing' or anything by Angus Young - you'll love the Pocket POD, not fizzy - very crisp. The cleans are good and usable, the high gain sounds are great.

The amp sims are clean, clear, crisp, dynamic. The selection covers all the bases (except German high gain - the Diezel or Engl from the XT would be nice). Good effects, very usable.

While the POD XT has an incredible assortment of over 70+ models, the models in the Pocket POD are the cream of the crop - not as versitile as the XT, but up there with the best of the XT's amps (some are better).

I almost returned the Pocket POD after trying out the artist sounds. I gave it a second chance by turning down/off the effects and just switched though the amps and was blown away. The default settings for the amps were great and with a little tweaking - even better. Add effects to taste and you've got a great unit.

Didn't buy for gigs, headphone jack feels a little flimsy. This unit is for hanging out in front of the TV or in the yard and having fun.

great website, quick email response.

I don't use amp simulators for my main rig - I have a Diezel VH4S, Boogie MKIV, Engl Savage, THD Univalve, Fender '65 Deluxe. I've been looking for a portable amp simulator for using around the house (and not in the music room) and when traveling for practice - but with good tone. I've tried everything (Guitar Rig (a close second), Pandora's Box, Amplitube, Pod XT, etc) and either the sound was weak or I was plugged into the wall. The Pocket POD has great tone and freedom from a wall wart.

Highly recomended!

fairly simple to program. it programs deeper with the software editor, and there are more options. i have been playing for 43 years, since i was 5 years old. i've been professional for 30 years. marshall jmp is my amp of choice. after programming my own sounds, i use this pod for practice and jamming. it should record well with a countryman direct box. it does hard rock and metal really well. scooped metal is my favorite distorted sound. this does not scoop quite enough midrange out for me, but it is still a joy to play.

sounds like a 2.0 pod with the cleans slightly improved. the cleans still have that digital sound to them, so a tube pedal in front should cure that. it does have the typical great distortions.

after 4 uses of about an hour each, it is still running strong. probably would not take much abuse. remember the jacks are mounted on a board, so be gentle or it will be over soon.

never needed it but checked online and it seems sufficient.

it's a blast for the bucks!

This is version 1.0. This little device is VERY small and light. It is easy to change the basic parameters, but you need to use button combinations and this complicates things. The software editor is a must to tweak everything to your taste, and to see the global picture of each preset. A natural compromise given the size of the unit. Fortunately, the editor was a breeze to install and you only have to plug in the unit in any usb port (no drivers). The unit does some stupid things, like changing all effect parameters to some default settings each time your change the effect type (same thing happens with amps). The editor needs refinement, but overall this is a lot of fun. The manual that comes with the unit is very short and only explains the basics, you have to download three additional documents (one for the device, two for the editor, the latter only found through the forum) to better grasp how things are done. Updates are expected.

I had never used any POD, and thought this would be my introduction to its sounds. I cannot compare with other POD units, but I have used Korg and Behringer amp simulations, and an M-Audio Black Box reloaded. My general impression is that the unit is seriously capable of producing good tones (which amazes me, considering its a bit smaller than a stompbox), but you need to be prepared to spend time tweaking. You cannot do any serious editing with the onboard controls. Having said that, I think many of the sounds are very similar, so you probably will end up with 4-5 good sounds and depend on external stompboxes to change sounds dynamically. Seems to do best either clean-ish sounds or hi gain, not so well crunch or slight overdrive, so some good overdrive pedal in front of it will probably be needed. Presets are more oriented to hi gain sounds than anything else. There's not so much variety in the effects, you get 2 of chorus and flanger and one tremolo, and a compressor, and you can only choose one at a time, plus delay (combined or not with the others), and reverb (hall, spring). And a noise gate that works pretty well, making the unit very quiet. Delay goes up to more than 3 seconds. Parameters are OK, normally four for each effect, only ratio in the case of the compressor. Overall, effects seem to be there to polish your sound more than anything else. Tremolo is pretty good, compressor is good at low ratios, flanger and chorus are OK, delay is good and allows you to set delay level higher than the dry signal. There is also a delay swell option which is actually a plain swell effect that works nicely.

The software editor seems to add some possibilities not described in the manual (like EQ, drive and distortion switches, presence control, air, a bright switch on some amps and a wah parameter that seems to act like a parked wah, and seems to be set globally - lost when you turn off the unit). Then you have lots of amps (many are similar) and cabinets to choose from and keep you entertained for hours. Controls are in most cases interactive so you have to touch here and there until you get what you want. Just discard the presets (the two read-only preset banks are a waste of space - the presets in the user bank are generally better) and start from scratch.

Using certain studio headphones, the unit shows a very low volume overall, which makes the presets sound like crap (they are mostly crap anyways: cleans are thin and distorted sounds are mushy). Be sure to get proper volume levels, seems to help the sound (I max the channel volumes in most cases).

Seems to react better to humbuckers than single coils. Using it only through headphones so far.

It's all plastic and seems fragile. However, I attempted to use the belt clip and attached it to my guitar strap, after some time it fell on the floor and nothing happened to it. So i cannot complain. This device is very lightweight, even with the 4 batteries, so when you plug in the guitar jack, the AC adaptor and usb, it becomes unstable and tends to move easily as you play, even if you have it on a table. The belt clip is a bit of a joke, as I cannot imagine a good way to see the screen and manipulate knobs (with two button combinations, etc.) having it attached somewhere. Maybe only if you have it set to one sound and don't want to touch anything, it would be of use.
I think that it anyway is thought of for use with an AC adaptor (the one for line 6 tonecore pedals), the batteries only last for 5 hours or so, guess this possibility is intended for emergency situations or to occasionally practice away from a power outlet.

All in all , I cannot complain so far as regards reliability.

Never contacted them. The forums are informative.

In summary, and expecting that there will be software updates to make it all consistent and solve minor problems, I think this unit is a great introduction to the pod sounds, and essentially a lot of fun. It is not a straight forward practice device, as you have to delve into the editor (very user-friendly, however) to get the best sounds. As always, there'll be some for which it is a toy (everything under 1000 US$ is, for some of them), others will find it interesting and a way to explore sounds, especially if you have no other Pods and like to tweak patches. Is it targeted to teenagers (with all these "band" and "song" presets)? Maybe, I don't care. It is well laid out, sounds pretty good, has potential, it's small and extremely portable. If software updates are intelligent, this will be a killer device. I dare to propose some foot controller via usb, and a way to attach it securely to a tabletop. As regards software, they need consistency between device and editor, an option to unlink parameters with effects and amps (so that you can keep your mids high while changing amps, for example), a way to access a secondary parameter of effects from the device itself, an auto wah... And a comprehensive manual. At this price point, which is that of the average boss stompbox, I have to give it high marks anyway. It's simply too much fun.