Rocktron Chameleon

I am using my two best guitars Jackson King V2 and Gibson Gothic Explorer and for amps i use the Crate GFX1200h head and two blue voodoo cabs great combo. Clean sounds good even at higher volumes. The distortion is everything I have needed,

I got my Rocktron Chameleon about 6 months ago and this thing really cranks. I play mostly metal with influences of Iron Maiden, Megaeth, Iced Earth etc... and I can get the perfect sound of it. It has all the features I have ever needed, pitch, delay, reverb, chorus, flanger, phaser etc... I use this rack with my stack and for my band. Has plenty of crunch that I can get out of it.

Never had a problem with it and dont see any coming.

I had questions about the product before I ought it and I got answer right away they really know how to help their customers

I have been playing guitar for about 6/7 years and this is a one of akind rack unit. I would suggest this unit to anyone who doesnt want to spend like thousands of dollars on units, this one for he $ is the best I have personally found, although some may argue. Compared to many other products this is the one for me with my metal music career. The only thing I ever found confusing was setting up the MIDI formats and channels but once you figure it out its easy.

As almost everyone else has mentioned, this things is extremely tweakable and, therefore, can get tedious to a point that you may throw up your hands and just play it clean. However, the effects are amazing if a little digital. Overall, the pre-sets give you a lot but on the original version at least, I have had to add titles for Metalica, Van Halen type distortion as well as clean channels for SRV type boogeying. OVerall, despite the technical nature of things like the speaker sims (varies from full stack to 8", 10", 12" and 15" as well as mike positions...) the Pre-EQ and Post-EQ's, the editing functions are very easy to work with and can be modified quickly. My biggest complaint with the Chameleon is that its difficult if not impossible to get a good clean bluesy tone out of it (ala SRV tube sound) and the unit really requires an additional foot board AND a real-time foot pedal for the Wah-Wah function. These (when I bought this in 1994) cost and additional $300. Otherwise, this thing DEFINITELY improved the quality of sound coming out of my Fender Ultra-Chorus.

I practice with a Korean-Strat and Greco Les Paul Custom (who needs the real thing) with a Fender Ultra-Chorus amp. I made a big break through when I finally utilized the effects loop of my amp...The sound is REALLY nice. NO HISSING, CRACKLING, or POPPING. Very quiet.

OVerall, the Chameleon and Fender amp seemed like they were made for each other. Although the amp doesn't need much help, the Chameleon definitely gives it a smoother tone. However, it does quiet the sound noticeably even to the point that it can be difficult to jam with.

However, I really enjoy playing Clapton, Buddy Guy and SRV and this thing does well with Clapton sounds but does nothing to get me to SRV type tube sounds. Still looking...

Never had a problem. VERY reliable.

Never needed it.

The Chameleon is best utilized by techno-wizards that like the extra clean sound with really sharp effects. I play mostly blues (Buddy Guy, Clapton, SRV, etc.) and really don't need it for that. However, it is fun for my Metallica and Van Halen whims and can be tweaked for some different sounds and definitely delivers a high-qualty tone. Once you customize your own pre-sets (comes with 256? pre-sets, most of which are quirky) you are on your way. I did have problems figuring out the optional foot switch (another $250?) plus the unit needs another real-time foot pedal for the volume control or WAH-WAH options. The sounds that this thing puts out are amazing but are more fun to play in your room by yourself instead of jamming with.

Overall, if you like a clean sound and play Blues, stay away or go for a tube head. If you like to fart around with funky sounds and experiment with digital effects, this is one of the best.

Well... The only thing i don't like is the fact that it doesn't have any tube in it. The distortion is great, but with high gain settings you can't roll down the volume pot to get a clean sound, like in a real tube amp (DG series amp's, from Yamaha really do that, despite being modeling amp's. too).

I have just bought a Rocktron Chameleon On-line. Actually, it was a Chameleon, but its prevoius owner updated it to be a Chameleon On-line. Pre and post parametric EQ; Hush; effects... it's great! It could be easier to deal with... all the menus and stuff... it's a bit complicated...

I had no problems... It seems ok, but it's too soon to tell anything...

The other guitarrist in my band also owns one (for about 5 years). He had a few problems, but he asked Rocktron how to solve it, and they had him connect his pre-amp to the PC (via MIDI) and by ICQ they solved the problem. I think it's that's great! They really care!!!

I used to play through a ZOOM-505... of course the sound changed drasticlally!!! I thing it's much better then some tube pre-amps (such as Marshall JMP-1). The pre and post distortion EQ really pumps all the sound though my Vantage VG-50R.

Editing can be a bit confusing, you can get lost and mess thing sup if you don't pay attention. It sounds really good, about as close to a natural tube sound you can get without have tubes!

I used my Chameleon with a Mesa Boogie 2:90, a Marshall 1960 4x12 and for guitars I usually use Washburn PS500's ESP LTD H-200's, or occassionally, a Parker Deluxe. It is extremely quite. The effects are a little bit too difficult to tweak, I played with the delay for a good couple hours before I got something CLOSE to what I wanted. Reverb and delay is good once you get it set.

I think I could of used the Chameleon without any worry. Seemed like a reliabe unit. The Chameleon was my back up.

I email rocktron frequetly about products. They always reply, and sometimes I get "hurried" answers, but I usually get the idea. Not sure if I'd want to deal with them to get an upgrade or repair. I'd probably just sell it and let someone else deal with it.

I play industrial music, KMFDM, Orgy. I sold my Chameleon because even though the tube replication was convincing, I still knew in my mind that is wasn't a tube amp. I now have a VooDu Valve Online for my back up instead of the Chameleon. There are about the same thing, except the Voodu has a tube, and sounds just a wee bit better. My main preamp is a Triaxis...get one, when you do you won't want to play through anything else! I thought the Chameleon, as alot of Rocktron products, looked a bit like a toy. They could do a better job on the face panel to make them look less cheesy. They look like "budget gear" instead of pro equuipment, which I believe they are. I think this unit would be better with a real tube as well as the tube replication device.

I'll give it a 6 but it's pretty damn hard to get it where you want it. You almost need a computer degree to do it.

This thing sounds fucking awsome!

Always have a back up but i haven't had a problem yet.

haven't had to use them yet.

This thing is killer but i have one problem. I have a ART X-15 multifoot midi pedal and i can't figure out how the hell to program the little buttons to what i want. Each button has it's own number for programming but i don't know what they are. IF YOU KNOW,PLEASE HELP ME OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not easy to navigate without mid

Russian:
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I'm a total tone freak and I love the ability to have a sound in my head and be able to find with one piece of gear. I can only do that with the Chameleon. I have tried heads and racks alike trying to find "MY TONE" and it was only after demo-ing a Chameleon that I found it, all with out tubes! I couldn't believe it. You do have to already know tone and be familiar with EQ's and adjust the parameters of the room your in, otherwise it could get a little scary.
They say there is no difference between the first Chameleon and the On-line model but to me they do sound different.I own "4", 2 originals a 2 online units. I use 2 rack systems and the others are for back up.

It doesn't matter whether its a clean or really high gain sound, the Chameleon is always perfect! I use just the Chameleon into a Mesa Boogie 2:90 and into a Peavey Sheffield 4x12 cabinet (2). With the Chameleon being all digital there is NO noise. Even on the hairy gain settings, with the hush system its dead quiet! I use Ibanez RG550's with high out-put pickups for really aggressive shred type of playing. I have a really fast staccato type of picking attack that before I discovered the Chameleon was hard to follow every note at really high volumes. The unit helps keep everything extremly tight and focused. Plus the effects are very transparent and don't muddy up the source signal.

The Chameleon is the most reliable piece of gear I have ever owned. However I do own 4 of them because they have been long since discontinued.The Chameleon 2000 is a terrible piece of garbage and should not even have the same name- They took out the pre and post EQ's which is what made the Chameleon so
valuable. It was GREAT the way it was.

This is where I'm gonna be frank, I believe that in my 23 years of playing I have never seen worse customer support in ANY other company. This is the reason I own 4 Chameleons.I've had several run-ins with diffrent individuals at Rocktron and felt they simply didn't care. I was always passed of to some one else or made to feel I was wasting their time,or told on one occassion "this plant is too big,that will take to long to find" or "I'm really busy because of the NAMM, call back next month".
Needless to say I love the pre-amp but now I have acquired the schematics for both the Chameleons and Chameleon on-line so I don't need them for anything!

Great unit other than customer service, I will always use this unit!

It got a lot of effects and eq-settings so it may take a while to understand and get comfortable. But give it a couple of hours, then you can start your jurney to some very interesting sounds. This machine has a lot of possibillitys so spend time with it, you won't regret it.

SOUND:
First of all: Do NOT use chameleon with Amps especially not such as Marshalls. The only sound you're gonna get is weird-sounding presence. I've tried it on many amps and I got a Marshall mark II ?1979 which I love, but not together with chameleon.
Chameleon is supposed to be connected to a Power Amp!
I use a Carvin 450 watt Power Amp and a Carvin 4x12 stereo/mono-speaker (which kick the ass out of other speakers. Give you cleaner distortion but not less!) Guitars that I'm using most are, Ibanez 770 and a Les Paul.
Back to Chameleon. It is probebly the closest you can ever get to perfection when playing stuff like Tony MacAlpine, Vinnie Moore, Yngwie Malmsteen etc. I'll give it a 10 for that kind of music, which I most play. If you're in to that kind of music, you got to try this thing out! I've done some recording on my own, and trust me it sounds like the guitar-stars sound in this music category. I'm very pleased.
You can also get some nice clean-tone-accord sounds. I'll give it a 7 for the clean tones.
I've got a lot of nice things to say but that you can read on the other reviews.

EFFECTS: It's a Rocktrone! The effects are VERY good. Not noisy at all, HUSH-system you know. My eqipment is TOTALLY QUIET. 10p!!!

CRITIC: It works very well for high-speed/technical solos and Hard rock. But when it comes to other style of music it's not that impressive. Of course it sounds good, "Hey it's a Rocktron" but far away from your dream sound. It has NOT got any tube sound. If you're looking for a natural-close-sensitive sound, for blues etc. Start looking for something else. For exampel a Marshal top (tube) made before 1980. And if you want to use a Wah-wah, forget it! It maby doesn't sound like crap but trust me it's not what you want plug your cry-baby into. (see Marshall).

I do not need a backup.

Never had a problemo...

When I play neoclassicrock a la Yngwie J. Malmsteen It works more than well. Best thing I've heard/played on so far. If I lost it or if it where stolen I would defently get another one or maby pirayha(?) and a intellifex. As I said best thing I've EVER played on. Chameleon let's me do any guitar trick in the world, exept pulling a rabit out of the guitar (see Paul Gilbert guitar video;-) If your in to this music, CHECK IT OUT.
If you play rock, funk, blues or jazz my advise would be: Get something else, this is NOT the gear for you. When I play that kind of musik I Use a complete different guitar-rig. I've played guitar for 15 years now and I'm very precise with the sound. I like this machine when I'm using it for what it is build for: Ultra-High Gain solos with nice and cool effects. What's missing in the sound picture? Tube of course! And all what that means?

I know others don't think the Chameleon is that user freindly. I can see how it may intimidate some with no editing experience of any processor but the fact is - it couldn't be simpler compared to the competition's offerings. The manual is very concise and well layed out. I agree with most that the initial patches are likable but also overly concocted as well as some being thin.

I have submitted this review primarily to give additional info that will GREATLY enhance the tone of the Chameleon but first, my rig description so that you'll understand my discovery. I have the standard pieces most pro guitarists are going to have - Strat, Tele,
Les Paul, ES-335. My amps are a '69 Hiwatt DR-504 50wt head and a Matchless Chieftain head. I use a Marshall 1936 2x12 cab with 25wt Greenbacks in it. understand this now, I'm running a mono rig and at most of the time using the Hiwatt - I seldom take out the Matchless anymore. i got the Chameleon to give me the variables i needed in replicating other tones. this is my second Chameleon also, i had one when it was first issued and then sold it. it wasn't long before i knew i wanted another one. i think the sound quality of the Chameleon is very good all around including the effects section. true, you need to become familiar with programming it to get the best out of it - especially the pre and post EQ sections and the Speaker Sim as well.
however, even after skillfully editing i still find the Chameleon to possess that "digitized sound". I'm not taking anything away from it because it is a very good piece of gear in it's own right - i just have a very discerning ear when it comes to "digi" sounds. now then, here's the whole point of why i submitted this review - are ya ready for this? i found a remarkable use for my Klon Centaur. i place it right after my two rack pieces (Chameleon , Intellifex). i use the Klon for it's clean boost capabilities and man what a magic it has worked in adding back that analog warmth to my Chameleon & Intellifex.
remember, my rig is mono so i don't know how this could work for you stereo users because the Centaur is a mono output pedal. i also believe that the S.I.B. Fatdrive will provide the same magic in adding back that analog warmth. i prefer the Klon because it fits easier onto my pedalboard and it sounds superb anyhow. for you mono users of the Chameleon, this is a very satisfying way to use it - place a Centaur or a Fatdrive after it and use those clean boost properties to eliminate that inherent "digi" sound. you won't be disappointed. i give the Chameleon on it's own a rating of 8 - couple it to a Klon and it easily comes to a 10.

I trust the quality of the Rocktron name. As I said, this is my second Chameleon and I bought it used. it looks like it's been thru
the "gig mill" but is in absolute perfect working order.

I have to say that I'm very satisfied overall with the Chameleon. it's not the very best box - i'm not really sure which is? I just know it's worth it's value for what it delivers. for my needs it does excatly what i ask of it - it gives me options to create tones i otherwise would not have. i'll reinforce once more that i'm using it in mono operation only and placing a Klon Centaur after in clean boost mode to warm it and get back some analog sound. it's very hip .... the Chameleon and Klon marriage in a mono setup. as i said, this is my second Chameleon. I had a new one when they were first issued. I used that one into a stereo power amp and cab with no Centaur obviously. my first setup then sounded much thinner in stereo than my rig now in mono. but, it's the Klon that's making all the difference too.