Rocktron VooDu Valve

First things first: this is the most recent version, the one with the glowing blue tube, Not the witch doctor or "Online" one. Haven't tried the other ones but I was told the cleans in this one are better. Most recent firmware and everything.

Tweaking the Voodu Valve isn't super easy but its not that difficult either. You do all editing through 3 main knobs (function select, parameter select, parameter adjust). It's not as easy as the Rocktron Prophecy to configure but adjusting most basic things like bass, trebble, mids, presence, gain and tweaking effects only takes a couple of seconds.

The manual is over 100 pages long and will tell you anything you want to know about it. It's all there. A lot of it goes over my head but I'm learning...

I've had this thing almost a year and I haven't had to change the tube, but I dread the day I have to because it has half a trillion screws I'd have to remove to get to it...and styrofoam for some reason.

I control it with a Rocktron Midi Mate and Hex expression pedal and it interfaces with them very easily. Very rugged stuff...for the money anyway.

I'm using a Schecter C-1 Elite with Duncan Designed HB-102's right now, so my tone can only be as good as the crappy DD's will allow. I will do a follow up review later once I upgrade to JB and Jazz later this year...

I play the thing direct into my studio monitors 95 percent of the time, occasionally I'll play the thing live with my TubeWorks MosValve MV-962 poweramp and a Sonic 4x12 which makes for quite a good combination for my cheap ass.

Like everyone else says, the stock presets are crap but with some tweaking you can make some great sounds. Most the presets I've made are based off of stock presets, just a few modifications here and there and I found the sounds I wanted. It just takes some time. The Rocktron Patchbay has a few good user-submitted tones, though. Some of those people really know what they're doing.

The HUSH is a really great feature and it doesn't alter your tone much if you keep it on a low setting. Keeps the buzz and hum out your tone.

The effects are pretty good, especially considering how much you're able to edit them. Not perfect but more than adequate. I'm not too crazy about the quality of the pitch shifter, though. Maybe I just haven't spent enough time tweaking it...

I'm still searching for my perfect distorted tone. I'm going for a Mesa Rectifier sound (like everyone else in creation) similar to Chevelle's Wonder What's Next album and I think I'm getting close-ish. I've nailed the Recto cleans though (well probably not but close enough for me to be satisfied).

The pre and post EQ's are an absolute godsend. If you're willing to learn some things about equalization, frequencies and stuff like that you really can get any sort of sound you want to, direct to board.

The speaker simulator is damn good like everyone says. While there's no presets for 4x12, 2x12, ect. sounds it's very convincing and I've played a few gigs just going direct into the mixer via the XLR out.

The last thing I'll say is that you NEED a power amp with presence control for this thing. Your presets will sound one way in your bedroom but may sound way brighter on a stage when cranked up. Having a presence knob on your power amp takes care of that so you don't have to go tweaking patches for live playing.

I haven't used the thing live very many times but so far it's held up well. It's the only amp I have right now so gigging without a backup is the only option. The only thing that concerns me is what would happen if the tube dies or breaks. Would the thing fail to start up? Would the preamp work as usual but without the extra tube harmonics? I have no idea. Frankly, I dont ever wanna find out.

I can't say enough about Rocktron's support. Jim Chowning at Rocktron is probably the greatest person that ever lived. Every time I've had a question he's answered it promptly. The man even sent me a free f'ing t-shirt when I asked if they were selling T-shirts in the first place. With that kind of attitude I'll be glad to whore their brand for them. And I gotta say...it's a badass looking T-shirt...

My overall experience with the VV is a work in progress, but I have plenty of faith that in time I'll be able to get my perfect distorted tone out of it after I upgrade my pickups. I have yet to try it with a tube power amp but I've heard that it really shines in front of one.

I think at $779 it's a bit overpriced right now. It used to be sold $100 or so less until recently. I dont know what they were thinking raising the price with the economy being like it is. You can find these things between $400 and $500 on eBay usually, or on the Harmony Central forums every now and then. Hell, someone's probably selling one right now.

Like me, you may not find perfection right away but stick with it and you'll most likely find tones you'll be quite happy with.

By the way if you have any questions about the thing or wanna bum some patches off of me feel free to send me an email or if you wanna send me some patches and see what I think I'd love to hear from you.

Took me some time to get used to, but once youre into it the interface is simple to use. Allows quick program changes through a midi floor board. Rocktron also offer a simple but convenient enough editor program.

Changing tubes is a major pain. You have to loosen about all the screws and jacks to do it. Who designed that?

The is an external power supply to it, when put into a rack you will need some extra space and fixation.

Update:An addition to my review. I was able to get some more technical information on the voodu valve.

The 12AX7 tube is placed behind the compressor and before the dsp. It is not THE over-driven element, nor is it used for compression. All of this is being done elsewhere. (So modding the tube is really not the way to go.)

Having learned this, it doesnt change my opinion on the unit itself, it is a good sounding, versatile and affordable preamp. Just keep in mind it is NOT REALLY a tube preamp.upda

My guitars are Ibanez SZ 520, Schecter Hellraiser, Ibanez RG 560 and Peavey Raptor, all with humbuckers and more or less modded, with a mesa 2/90 power amp hooked to marshall 1960 and engl 112 cabs.

Do not use the factory patches when trying out this unit. Most of them are effect-ridden and do not show the voodu's true qualities.

There is virtually no noise, the hush unit works very smooth. There is noticeable noise in the high gain settings, but I still would call the unit very quiet.

Effects are ok overall. Delay is good, but does not allow for ping-pong. Reverb is okay but slightly artifical sounding, especially with an over-driven power amp. Time-delay effects are outstanding, except pitch shift, which is below average. It offers great effect routing possibilities.

To me, the unit shines at crunchy, marshall-like tones. High-gain tones sound smooth, singing and pleasant, but on the other hand they seem to lack that modern "grit", although I must say I'm still experimenting. Although the unit offers "low gain" and "high gain" settings, the "high gain" sounds pretty much like a hot "low gain", it does not really add any new characteristics, besides gain. I believe there is room for modding here...

The unit offers parametric equalizers pre (2-band) and post (3-band) distortion, which is the key to tone. Sometimes I wish it had 3 and 4 band eqs. But you can get really great sounds from it. You have a host of parameters to play with and to go wrong with. You really need to know what you are dealing with. I found duncanamp's tone stack calc to be helpful to find the right frequencies.

The volume knob on the back broke once. It kinda sticks out unprotected and is easy to break, when outside a rack. I had to call rocktron support germany, they sent a replacement WITHIN ONE DAY WITHOUT CHARGE.

Amazing, see above.

I have been playing for over 20 years. My styles are mainstream and hard rock. I definetely recommend this unit.

Rocktron interfaces aren't known for being the most user friendly. But once you learn one you pretty much can navigate any of them. The Chameleon,Voodu Valve,ProphesyI & II along with the Utopia are very similar.. Now opposed to say a Digitech GSP2101 it would rate a 10 in ease of use but overall there much easier units to program out there..

Excellent sounding unit.. The Cab sims could be better for DI recording but of all the units I own (V Amp Pro,PODxt Pro,Johnson J Station, Peavey Rockmaster,Digitech GSP2120 Artist, Guitar Rig2 w/Rig Kontrol and Amplitube2) I would rate the Voodu Valve as one of the best sounding if not THE best..

Bought mine used. No issues...

Sent an email once... Got a very quick, concise reply.

Very little if anything rates a 10

I play mostly Heavy Metal & Metal.. GREAT unit for those applications.
If stolen I'd immediately begin the search for a replacement..It's only one of two preamps I own I can say that about.. I owned a Prophesy II but sold it in lieu of the Voodu Valve.. This unit has been around a while now but is STILL an excellent choice..

Not to complicated, although the pre and post EQ is frustrating at times.

Editing patches is simple, an indicator light tells you if an effect has been modified. For example if you are using a preset that has high gain, delay, and reverb and you adjust the delay a light will come on. Before saving the settings you play for awhile and decide you don't like it - all you do is bring up the delay parameter again and adjust it back to the previously saved setting (at which point the indicator light will go off).

The manual is helpful and will save you some time.

I use an american strat with a duncan hot rails in the bridge. I use this processor for practice in my living room by running it into the main-amp input of an old fender sidekick 35 amp.

The voodu valve is pretty quiet and almost silent with the hush turned on. I think all the effects sound great but really I mostly only have a touch of reverb on or just bypass the effects all together.

The only sound I ever tried to reproduce is George Lynch's tone on Tooth & Nail, and it turned out almost exact. I think you could nail almost any 80's metal tone with it.

I bought it used about 5 years ago and it looks like hell. Some of the buttons stick a little but the unit still sounds fine.

I don't gig so reliability isn't as important to me as it may be to some.

Never tried to contact them for any reason.

I play acoustic and electric guitar rock and have been playing for over 20 years.

My main amp is a Carvin Legacy, and I also have a Boogie DC-3. I have some of the older boss effects but I rarely use them.

If the voodu valve was stolen I'd be disappointed but probably wouldn't replace it.

Before the voodu valve I had the rocktron chameleon and both units were pretty decent. The voodu valve gain is a bit less flubby and more articulate.

I wish you could bypass the preamp and only use the effects if you wanted. I think the Prophesy can do that.

The settings of the Rocktron are easy to understand: reverb, length of the delay, and so on... BUT the Rocktron Voodu Valve is not so easy to use: you have to turn 3 buttons to set a parameter (reverb for instance), and if you want to select a patch number you always have to confirm your choice by pushing the selecting button... Not so easy therefore, but you can upgrade this by downloading the chameditor software on rocktron website: you can change all the parameters of your patches on your computer and send the modifications by MIDI cables to your rocktron (the transfer is very very fast, do not worry!!!).

The manual is OK... Well translated (for me, I am French!!!!).

Please... PLEASE be aware that factory settings of the Voodu Valve are only sh**t!!!!! Too many effects, too much reverb, strange sounds... But wait, wait: the aim of these sounds is just to show the capabilities of the machine!!! This is a kind of exhibition of all the effects of the Voodu. So you cannot use these patches without changing parameters, working on equalisation, and so on!!! When I read some negative review with guys saying: "Oh, I plug my guitar, I play and I find the sound is sh**t"... Ok, man, please work on the settings, please try to set the three equalization sections!!!! (normal one / pre / post equalizations). But of course, this takes time to try different settings... I would say if you want some "plug and play" staff, do not buy this machine!! This requires time!

So I have been working during several hours on my settings to obtain 3/4 patches: clean / overdrive rythm / disto rythm / big lead sound with a lot of sustain. And I must say you can obtain VERY VERY good sounds with a very long sustain, nice harmonics and a lot of musicality even with a lot of gain!!! I am especially satisfied with my lead sound: the gain is not that high (between 45/50), but the disto is powerful (you have a nervous sound like "roooooaaaaar"), close to the sound of a tube amp or close to the famous Tube Screamer sound.

A few remarks more:
- The delay section is very good, always a lot of musicality.
- The speaker simulation is EXCELLENT and gives to your sound more realism (for my part I always put on the simu)
- The Rocktron Voodu sounds much better with a power amp (not on a combo); I cannot explain why... But on mid-quality combos, the Voodu does not sound that good, there is a lack of bass & mids... Try to play with a power amp, or even on a hi-fi system! This will be better.

I would conclude by saying that the Rocktron Voodu is a very good product with enormous possibilities of settings (too many sometimes??); this takes time, but once you find YOUR settings in accordance with your guitar & your pick-ups, you will LOVE IT!!! Harmonics, musicality, professional sounds... Enjoy man!!! But do not think you just have to plug and play!!

And this machine was not created to be used with a combo or a classical amp... You need a POWER AMP!!!

Good. This works well, I haven't got any problem.

no use of the moment

Excellent machine, quite old (created in the 90s) but still up-to-date with the MIDI possibilities (you can download patches on the official website of Rocktron), the speaker simulation (you can select your speaker: 8', 10', 12'!!! and the position of the microphone!!). The sound is great, professional, you have beautiful harmonics, but you have to take into account the following restrictions:

1. the factory settings of the machine are only sh**t
2. you have to spend a lot of time on the settings to find your own sounds (ok this is long, but you will love the result!!)
3. the voodu has to be used with a power amp (not a combo)

Excellent gear.

Bought my unit second hand but recieved it in a factory restored condition so all the preset patches were there. The variety of tones included is wide and generally of a high standard however to get this unit to shine you will have to tweak it to suit your guitars and style of playing.
The user interface is very simple to use and alows you great and in depth control of your sound. Once you know where a paramter or variable is in the menu you can access, modify and store changes in seconds and a useful "compare" button comparison of the original and modified sounds comes into its own when adjusting sounds.
The manual supplied (and available for download in PDF from roctron's website) is extremely comprehensive and well written. With a copy of it you will have no problem understanding and using all of the features of this preamp. Everything is explainded in good detail and flow diagrams are also supplied to aid in understanding how each configuration will process your sound. It also explains very well how to configure the unit for use with a midi controller which is essential if inteded for stage use.
My unit came with firmware version 1.03 and to my knowledge this was the factory supplied version.
Radiotron NOS 12axl7/ecc83 currently being used.

9 - Cuz its easy to use.

OK, tones.
I currently use an Epiphone Les Paul Studio and a Jackson RR3, all sound analysis here is made using the RR3.
I also use a Behringer FCB1010 midi footcontroller for parameter and program changes with this unit to great effect.
The tonal options available are very wide. Can very easily sound like Marshalls but is very good at higher gain sounds more along the lines of Peavey 5150, Mesa Rectifier, ENGL 530. My current favourite tone i've been able to replicate is from the Evergrey album The Inner Circle, achieved a near exact replica of the rythm tone from the song Ambassador with no extra help from other processing, however an external graphic EQ would make it possible to replicate near any tone i imagine. Clean sounds are that of a marshall, not particularly astounding, could again be tweaked to be suitable for most purposes, can be very birght when needed. Very easy to simulate an acoustic guitar.
All the effects are very good, versatile and extremely customisable. The two that let the unit down in terms of effects however are the pitch shifter and the noise gate.
The pitch shifter is not of a great quality, can be used well to create harmonies of small intervals and very well with an expression pedal as a "whammy" type effect but does not fare well for use with lower octave sounds, the lower you pitch down the more the sound quality degrades. The noise gate while a useful feature is actually bollocks at high volumes due to the high gain nature of the overdrive sounds of this preamp and i fuly recommend the use of an external noise gate unit. Currently i use a Boss ns-2 to solve this problem but i am investigating a midi controllable gate with which to create presets for live use.
Chorus, flange and delays on this unit are great very customisable. Delay can make use of tap tempo.
Unit also supplies tremolo, wah, phase, reverb and compression effects to very high standards.
Full control is given over effect levels and mix as well as stereo panning and signal level given to reverb and delay effects.
In my opinion the higlight of the effects supplied in this unit however is the speaker simulation. It is OUTSTANDING. Simply the best speaker simulation i have ever heard. I would be happy to record guitar tracks direct to the desk or play direct into a PA system using this unit because of it, no digital modelling unit can stand up this preamp in this respect.
Currently i use a Studiomaster mosfet 1000 rackmount poweramplifier with this unit live and a marshall AVT150 combo (via effects return) for practice, the preamp sounds great through both but really sines with the higher power Studiomaster. The best place to hear this preamp however is infront of a valve poweramplifier with 6l6s in. Powerful sound indeed.

8 - Cuz it sounds great, but but the pitch shifter 'aint perfect and it needs and external noise gate unit.

It has never broken down of me yet, only had it a few months though but the unit is about ten years old so i presume it will keep going ad infinitum.
If it did die i would certaily be buying a replacement.
I currently gig it without a backup.

10 - I have no reason to doubt it's reliability

never had to deal with rocktron yet.

I'm a metal/prog guitarist primarily and this preamp is great for my style of playing and overall sound, could be used for many other styles too.
I've played for nearly 13 years but never owned much equipment beyond a guitar combo. However in that time ive played in numerous bands, recorded several times, produced a few albums, worked in many live music venues and currently work for a sound, lighting and electrical engineering company as an audio technician so i would say i have a good grasp and experience of high end audio equipment. Although my current band recorded it's current album before i bought this unit (oh how i wish id had it before) i have programmed the exact same tone of the peavey ultra we used to record it (hear it here: http://www.myspace.com/massacreonthefjords , the rythm guitars only, lead was recorded with line six) and i am very happy with the versatility and sound quality supplied by this compact unit both for live and studio use. It will live in my rack for all time and no doubt get used when im working as well as playing.
As i said previously if it were lost, stolen or borken it would be replaced.
The only real beef i have with the unit overall is the external powersupply, takes up space in the back of the rack, but this isn't much of an issue.

Overall 8 - Sounds great, very customisable, easy to use, 1 rack space, relaiable, needs external noise gate, not the best pitch shifter.

Is very nice, but is dificult take the control of the sound in the beginnig

I use Peavys Tracers guitars whit Dimarzio Tone Zone in the bridge and the Fast Track in the neck. My amp is an ADA 135 watts by side and 4x12 Marshall to Big gigs and 1x12 100 watts to small venues.

Excelent...

Never...but I ear great opinions

Rock...rock..rock and more rock..I have 20 years old play hard My other Rig is a Marshall JMP-1 and other Rocktron,...Pirhana Preamp. The Voodo is the best...it has everything that I need...I spent many hours to discovery the dreamed sound, and I got it. I learned to play listening Eddie Van Halen, Zakk Wilde, Paul Gilbert, Dime Darrell, Brian May, Frank Marino, George Lynch...today I aply this to play Nu Metal..I like this sound...Disturbed, Papa Roach and Sevendust...

Getting a good sound out of it? Well, I imagine that's a subjective word..."what's good for one person ain't necessarily gonna be good for another", etc. etc. But for me, it's bloody easy!!! I luv most of the presets in the unit, some I just wouldn't use and am looking forward to creating some of my own. Downloaded the on-line manual. Very easy to use so far...editing patches?...now that's another story!

My unit is quiet...real quiet. Hell, the pa amp I'm running it thru (Peavey 8400)makes more noise. My main guitar is a Jackson Performer which sound real sweet thru the unit. My back-up is an Ibanez RG450 with a Mimarzio PAF Pro at the neck and the hottest Seymour Duncan available at the bridge - man, can it sing!!! I especially love the variation of Van Halen sounds available. The Sholtz setting...well, lets just say I've just sold ALL of my Rockman gear after getting the Voodu valve. Loads of artists sounds, even the "plus third" thingy, (sounds like your playing in harmony...amazing!!!!) Currently running it thru a Peavey pa amp but will be purchasing either a Mesa 20/20 or a Marshall EL34 and thru a split Marshall 1960 cab, then miked.

So far It's been very dependable. I do plan to gig with it without a back up...i trust this unit.

Never had the need to contact the company yet, but they seem pretty accessible from their website.

I play in a 70's/80's rock covers band. Been playing guitar 2 years, but played pro & semi pro bass for the previous 35, the transition was easy. When I need glam, it's there. Need some classic Bad Company or Doobie Bros, it's there too. Need some metal sounds...got it also. I love doing Bryan Adams on the Voodu setting 160....awesome! Gives the old Canadian rockers tunes a breath of life! Up to this point I don't feel the need to tweak my own, but ultimately will. Hummed and hawed a lot over whether to buy the Ada-MP1 or the Voodu Valve. The Voodu won in the end...just seemed to make more sense, esp. as the company is still around. If I lost (as if I'm gonna do that), broke it or had it stolen, i'd get another in a heartbeat...no, scratch that...i'd probably get 2. These units are dynamite. I plan to patch an TC G Major unit thru it, but probably don't really need to. (Just wanna fill up my rack case space...yes, call me Mr Vanity)!

The Voodu Valve takes some time to figure out, since the presets do not fill the bill, especially if you're looking for a lot of clean and slightly overdriven tones. The manual is very helpful and is a must to read if you're not a total processor geek. For you rare soloists who,like me, perform with midi accompaniment from your own midi files, the Voodu Valve is ideal because it provides eight midi controllers which can be assigned to parameters such as volume, gain, various effects, and EQ; your choice with each preset or user preset. So I put midi control messages in my midi files which automatically call up whatever dynamics I need in the song during the performance, e. g. increasing gain or delay for the guitar solo. No footswitches, controllers, etc., needed. Once you become familiar with all the capabilities of the processor, the biggest problem will be finding the time to exploit them.

The Voodu Valve has all kinds of sounds, most of excellent quality. I'm in full agreement with other reviewers on the sound quality of this unit. I plug my Jazzmaster into the Voodu Valve and go right into the mixer, using monitors and stage speakers. I don't like carrying big cabinets around any more. But here's some info you can really use if you've got a Voodu Valve. You may have wondered if the tube inside it is really doing anything, or is it just a gimmick. Well, here's the scoop. My Voodu Valve seemed to loose some gain and output recently, especially during the first half hour of so of playing. I decided to check out the tube, as anyone who has used tube amps knows that's where you go first when a problem arises. But how to get at it? This processor must have been designed by General Motors! You have to take out twenty-seven (that's right,27!!!) screws, some ferrel nuts and a knob to remove the jacket from the chassis of the Voodu Valve just to access the tube. Once inside there I found a Sovtek 7025/12AX7 wrapped in styrofoam. I carefully removed it(rock the tube back and forth then pry it out with a small screw driver...there's no room for big fingers in there) and replaced it with a NOS GE 12AX7 I had laying around. Result? Surprisingly less gain and output than the Sovtek. Next I tried a Yugoslavian RCA 7025 thinking this tube must really suck. Wrong again! My Voodu valve sounded better than ever. I then tried a few more 12AX7's in my collection (I work on tube amps from time to time) and discovered that this Voodu Valve is remarkably discriminating as to the tube you run in it. So much for the tube as a gimmick idea; it's definitely in the circuit. Don't be afraid to try some different 7025/12AX7's in your unit if you think it's running out of gas. And believe me, the Voodu Valve does not like just any old 12AX7. Experimentation is the key, but don't put all 27 screws back in between tube changes! Be careful in there. I don't know much about the voltages in this unit as compared to tube amps, but you'll have to be very dainty in the way you handle things when the electronics are exposed lest you turn your Voodu Valve into a useless tin can. When you've got the right tube in this unit, it will do whatever you have the time to make it do.

I use the Voodu Valve at gigs without a backup, and my sequencer is constantly switching the VV's programs and parameters throughout the performance. So far so good after 2 years. However, any piece of gear with one of more tubes is only as strong as its weakest link, i. e. the tube. It will fail sooner or later. It's too bad the Rocktron engineers didn't take that into consideration when they designed this piece of gear. Making the tube more accessible for replacement would have been nice.

Emailed them once about erratic output. Got zip for a reply.

Tired of fooling around with tube amps? Had enough? Finally figured it out that tube amps give you a great sound, but just ONE sound. Then get yourself a Voodu Valve and spend some time tweeking all its parameters. Sound for sound, tone for tone, you'll save lots of money and time. I've gone the tube amp route, even built my own. To get all the sounds from tube amps that you can get from the Voodu Valve you'd have to have 50 or more of 'em.

I want to update my review on 02/27/2006.
If you use negative values for post EQ (like i did in my settings)
you get those digital noises and switching pops.
If you use positive post EQ settings those problems are gone.
Use post EQ settings like bass freq 0 125hz bandwith 0.5/ mid freq
-10 1000hz bandwith 0.7 /treble +1 3500hz bandwith 0.6 /presence +1
5000hz bandwith 0.5 and use speakersim mic setting -10 speaker 12
reactance +8.
Another plus of these settings is you get more output.
Use almost the same settings for clean sounds(low gain) only use in pre EQ in mid frq negative values(-10 or less)and post eq mid freq about 1400hz and presence about 7000hz.

Switching pops and digital bleepeteepleep are gone(or at least not noticeble to me)
And this my Voodu loving friends makes this preamp/fx a fine peace of equipment.
And the 6 I gave in my first review is now a 10.

It's maybe not the easiest, maybe due to the big number of parameters. But once you get used to it you realize the hugeness of intervention possible on sound.

I had/have several kinds of preamps and virtual preamps; but whenever i come back to voodu i can notice how different it deals with your playing touch, responsive and with that little tube warmness. The effects are good, not the best maybe, but good. The ability to control up to 8 midi controllers together makes it unbeatable in versatility for a pedalboard (i use it with a FCB1010). One of my best buys, without a doubt.

I depend on it, at last

Never dealed with

I play mainly rock, and love Vai and friends. I've been able to achieve very good and similar sounds.

I`ve got this unit for about 2 years... For the first time there were a little problems to get the desired sound. Now I can do anything with this... Editing function is very wide, you can tune your sound like you want, including all details (thanx to the great eq section)... Manual for this unit is really good. It includes all useful information...
I`ve "upgraded" my VooDu... No, that`s not upgrade... it`s just like "tuning"... I have bought it with an Audio Classic 12AX7 and have chenged it on the Engl tube...

My set is:
Jackson Kelly Custom Shop (DiMarzio Evolution in bridge & DiMarzio FRED in neck position) -> Jim Dunlop Cry Baby 535Q -> Rocktron VooDu Valve -> Marshall JCM 2000 DSL 100 (into "return") -> Marshall 1960 ASL (4x12" Cabinet, Slash Signature) + sometimes I use the t.c.electronic G-Major after VooDu...
OK, about noise... you are kidding? With the HUSH you will never hear it... It seems to be an ideal in the noice reducing...
Some words about effects... Preamp section is great... I like this character of distortion... Much more than other... But there are some problems (IMHO) in the speaker simulation... It is not so good for me - the sound becames... eeeh... such as it`s dead:) when you turn it off and plug the unit into combo (or stack) - you have no problems. The modulation effects seems to be good. But I prefer to use the t.c.electronic...

You can go to the war with it... And it will work... Nothing to say - very good...

On the rocktron.com you can download some presets... Some of them are very useful and very close to the famous guitarist`s sounds (such as Yngwie, Dime, Hendrix, Satch etc.)... I think, that it`s a good idea.
One thing... I live in Russia... Here is the ~220V, and I`ve purchased the VooDu from USA, where is ~127V... I`ve tryed to order the europeian adapter, and it is very long story... That`s the minus...

I play a lot of styles... From blues to the brutal metal styles... This unit works great for all of the music styles... No problems...
Sometimes I think about Triaxis&t.c.electronic G-Force, but it`s more expencive than the VooDu... May be... sometimes... but now I`m pleasured with the Rocktron unit...
Good quality/sound... In this price range, I think it`s the best...

This is the best processor still available on the market.
They are still being manufactured in Korea and include original presets with better dynamic range chips. Lowered the digital aliasing as well by adding an optical noise reducer to the hush circuitry.
The manual is pretty much straight ahead.
Mine is this years model but not sure how to access the firmware #.

Using a music man Luke with a 4x12 marshall cab. I bought two velocity 100's and parallel them. This absolutely rocks!
I dig the Luke sounds and the VH sounds.
The ditortions are pristeen and over the top edge.

This is a sturdy unit! I dropped mine a half a dozen times (it is enclosed in a 4 space roto rack). It never flinched. Took a lickin' and keeps on tickin'.
Don't need a backup. This thing is solid.

Since GHS took over they are not as apt to be more Rocktron as before. They make so many other products that it's become a bit of a corporate maze and the people you talk to are nothing more than customer service minimum wage folks.

Matches all styles except the dreaded country.
Played all my life. Owned a bunch a gear til I got the VDVALVE
Would buy it twice over
This is the tone shaper I searched for the last 25 years. Easy to get there and like a rocket when it takes off. People in the audience are just blown away from the sound I get from it.
Play a lot of Steve Lukather style and when I rip out the solos on Farenheit, I'll be over you etc. you would swear that SL was in da house.

My stage guitars are of several variaties and pickup combinations, with my main ax being a '91 Steinberger GM4TA with EMG 81 & SA's.
I'm running the VooDu into a Marshall EL84 20/20 into Marshall 1960 cabs.
The VooDu will cover any style of music, only limited by the user's ability to program the unit to taste. On high gain settings, there's more crunch than you can probably use, and with the Hush built in it's got the quietest high-gain sounds that I've ever heard.

Mine is the VooDu Man model that I bought as a factory demo in 1997.
After having used a variety of amps and effects over the years, the VooDu remais unmatched for features in a one-space unit.
1. 254 channels with zero-dropout switching via non-proprietary midi controller.
2.Unmatched preamp and tone versatility.
3. DSP effects including Phaser, Wah, Hush, Flange, Pitch shift, Delay, Reverb, tremolo, and chorus.
4. Line outs for poweramp, balanced outs for going direct, using a completely adjustable speaker sim.
5. Built like a tank.

I've had it since '97, and other than changing the tube occasionally, the unit is almost bulletproof. Once, the rack it was in fell out of the back of a moving truck at 35mph. The rack's lid popped off, and the rack went rolling down the road, bounsing on the face occasionally. When I opened up the unit, there was no damage to the VooDu (which is built like a brick) other than scratched knobs and one iffy pot. When I called Rocktron to order a few parts, I told them the story about my out-of-warranty VooDu, and they sent me the parts for free.

Customer support, for all Rocktron gear that I've owned, is always better than I expect form a corporation.

Playing professionaly for 20+ years, I have really tried to check out other gear, like the Line 6, Boogie, Marshall, Digitech, and on and on. While I like the tone of the Marshall JMP1, the VooDu preamp and effects package combined with 8-parameater real-time control can not be matched in one rack-space. If mine were lost I would not hesitate in getting another. I'm looking for another one for my studio.
There are s few things I wish it had, but they are minor and not worth mentionaing.
For more info, check out the VooDu Valve discussion board:
http://p097.ezboard.com/bvooduvalve

I love the interface. It does exactly what it's supposed to; it let's you tweak every parameter; and every adjustment is similar.
Once you get the hang of it, it's a breeze ( says the doctoral student in computer engineering! )

The best I've tried. This is the only product that could come close to my all tube class A amp. I believe I have finally found the "holy grail" solution. ( With one minor exception, which is the very slight digital buzzing or zippering noise as a strum fades into the noise floor. This is not going to be a problem for me live, because it won't be heard. And I don't think it will prevent me from using it in my studio, because my digital mixer has the same problem!)

don't know - just got it.

don't know - just got it.

I wish I had known about this box a long time ago. The only real design issue I have is that the speaker simulator can be enabled/disabled for right/left or both. My guess here is that they figured you'd record on one channel, and use the other for live. They should have made the enable/disable based on the output, since they provide unbalanced outs for live play, and balanced outs for recording. I would like to have spk sim disabled on the unbal'd and enabled on the XLRs.

The bashing of Rocktron must stop! The Voodoo Valve is probably in fact the most quality, preamp/processor available for the price. Bar none!
The unit just out of the box is great in and by itself! Add a little tweak here and there and you probably can't beat it any where!
Why the one guys bitch about "the unit turns itself on and off" should have had it fixed instead of being the leader of the processor bash.Buy one of these babes today and you'll be rockin in paradise!

Stellar quality! Motorola has been the innovator for world class DSP(Eventide, G-force etc.).

Dependable and audience captivating! Would not use a backup with this unit. Covers all genres!

Rocktron is very customer oriented despite it's growth. You just have to talk to the right people to get all your questions resolved!

I play a John Petrucci style. The Voodoo is the perfect match. I have been playing for 30 years (20 of which have been professional).
I would buy this unit as many times as it needed replacing.
I love the presets, and the ability to go on line and download more.
There is a slight learning curve, but once you get it dowm at home, and gig with it, you are in tone heaven(the crowd too will love you).
I have had virtually every processor available, and the Rocktron stuff beats all hands down!

This preamp/effects processor is not the easiest to use. It takes some time getting used to. But, once you spend time reading through the very comprehensive manual you can become a pro. Take your time. Get to know it, and then it becomes second nature. I have one of the first versions made in the USA. Bought about ten years ago. Works like a charm. This is the same unit as the online version without the online software. You can go to Rocktron.com patch bay and download the editor (free) and then buy an inexpensive midi port and do the same downloading and uploading of patches.

I use a Gibson Les Paul Custom, Gibson CS 356, Ibanez RG 440 Roadstar, and a Taylor 614CE. I run the Voodu Valve through a Mesa Boogie 50/50 into a Marshall JCM Lead 1960 4x12 with stock 75's split in stereo. All this is run through a Furrman Power Conditioner. Switching is done with a Rocktron MIDI Mate. This unit is very quiet due to the HUSH system. The effects are very plush. The wah however, is not as nice as the real deal but if you tweak the EQ settings on the wah, you can get some nice sounds. I play mainly Progressive Rock. Rush, Yes, Genesis. I am in an original band that plays progressive rock and this unit handles it nicely. If you play progressive rock, you need a unit that can bring up different overdrive and effects settings within one song. So, being able to program this thing and then call up multiple effects, EQ, and preamp settings is a must. If you are interested in some Rush presets. I can send them to you if you email me. They are pretty close. I used to be in a Rush cover band. I am writing this review now because I was recently in search of the Holy Grail of preamps so that I could get that perfect sound. I had noticed that the Voodu had very nice overdrive and distortion, but that the clean sounds were just too clean and thin. I wanted a beefier clean. I tried Marshall JCMs, Fender Deluxe, Mesa Boogie Triaxis, Tripple Rect, Budda Twin, Line 6 Flextone III, Line 6 Vetta and I could not seem to find the perfect amp. The Mesa Boogie Triaxis was the closest thing and I almost bought it, but while in Guitar Center I had my rack unit with me and plugged the Triaxis into the Mesa 50/50. I then decided since I had the Voodu Valve in the rack that I would compare it. I was able to get pretty much every sound that the Triaxis made except for the fatter clean sounds. The Guitar Center tech came over and said, "Wow, that Triaxis sounds really nice." I told him it was the Voodu and he said, "So, why do you want to get rid of it?" So, I decided to keep the Voodu. I have since changed the tube to a Solvtek primarily because the original was ten years old and to warm it up a bit from the stock Chinese tube. I also had a very minor change done by adding a resistor at the input stage to fatten up the signal. It now sounds amazing. I even tried the Rocktron Prophesy which is a very excellent unit, but considering that I would have to pay about $1,000.00 for it, it certainly is not several hundred dollars better than the Voodu. I also like how versitle the Voodu is in designing your own sound from the ground up. The Prophesy has four different amp configuartions to choose from all of which the Voodu can capture quite nicely.

I have owned this unit for ten years and have never had one problem with it. It is built very well and has always worked fine. I have gigged many a time with no back up and would probably still do the same.

I have dealt with Rocktron many times to get answers about programming and product info. I have never had a bad experience with them. I had trouble with removing the chasis to replace the tube and they had me send it to them to fix for very cheap. They sent it back within a week perfectly done. Very helpful and very concerned to make me happy. Remember, this is a unit that is ten years old.

WIth playing progressive rock, you can't find a better match. I must have a preamp and effects processor that can change sounds quickly and seemlessly and this unit delivers. It would be nice for this thing to get the sounds of all my favorite amps, but that is just not possible unless you own them all and can lift several hundred pounds every gig with no problems. The modeling stuff is nice, but can never fully capture true tube warmth and does not have the versitility of custom designing your sound as the Voodu does. I have been playing for 25 years and ten of those years have been with the Voodu. It has been a great companion. I took this long to write, because I didn't feel it was necessary until I was out looking to replace it with something that could get a beefier clean, but with the new tube and a small modification with the addition of a resister at the input stage, I got what I was looking for. I give a 8 here because of the modifications I had to do in order to get it exact and the recording capabilities are not as nice as my LIne 6 POD XT Live. The Line 6 guys have nailed some of the amp and cab simulators that make this much easier with the POD than the Voodu. The Voodu does have cab simulators and XLR outs for recording which is nice, but then you have to tweak the patches to dial up just the right sound fro direct recording, with the Line 6 stuff, doing that kind of stuff is much easier. But, I never intended the Voodu to be used with recording. It is my live rig and it works great. Once you get used to using this unit, it really does become very easy and is very inspiring to writing music. If it were lost or stolen, I would have to buy a new one and do the same mods and then upload all of my saved patches from my computer. I would hunt down the culprit and in addition to a life sentence in jail listening to Linda Rondstat records, I would have the judge sentence him to re-program all of the sounds exactly as I had them from the ground up. A very tedious process for those that are familiar with writing patches.

Still reading and experiencing sounds and endless limits to tonal shapes and colors..its EASY as the gentleman below stated plug it in and start playing don't bash this unit...

HotDammmn!!!!!.....the gentleman below is absof***inglutely correctomundo..just need to read more to dial in the sounds of Lynch, Becker, Dr. E.V. Halen....I am going to challenge you though the Peavey TUBEFEX is its rival in sound quality I dialed in all Halen Sounds....and got some crazy Lynch..and Becker.tunes..it got stolen

RELIABLE.....its my Partner in Crime Friends and neighbors think I have a bunch of amps..I can only give this Biatch a "10"

can't but I am going to soon I am missing buttons due to my pesky nephew named "Monster"

I'd like to know where I can talk to guys/gals that have setting or tips on how to dial in sounds if you have the old voodu valve that does not offer the on-line version

very complex : the beginner should stay away or contact a friend that SHOULD own one (every one should)this is the best preamp I've ever known but it is very sophisticated---

I use this with an Ibanez guitar with a seymour duncan jb in the bridge, and run direct into the mixer.the speaker simulator is so close to micing the cabinet it is unreal!!!! it cracks me up how some people bash this unit and beleive me I think it is funny...not that they are bashing but how stupid and lazy some people are.--hey idiot! - you must plug the guitar in to get a good sound...do you need me to show you? I mean read some of these reveiws that give them a 1 on sound quality !!??ANYONE who has played a properly set up voodu valve knows that there is NOTHING better...I challenge anyone to come up with a better sound in ANY preamp than a properly set up voodu valve. if you need a reveiw listen...buy one and there are alot of cool people on the web that use one and would love to help you set it up.go to the midi preset page..you wont find a better tube /glassy thick sound that this...the whole key is in the incredible equilizer!!you need to boost your volume , then sweep until you find the good frequency, back it down flat--every time. low, mid,highs and the presence. once you find the frequency dial the "Q" until you hear it clean up ...loads of gain,great effects...really super preamp..its a shame I can only give mine a "10"

built like a safe!!! steel chassis,thick front glass LED. very impressive

I deal with them to figure out the chain of effects and using it and I bug a certain gentleman alot and he doesnt mind. very professional, and another 10!

10 ---play metal (king diamond, children of bodom,megadeth,etc)great match for clean or dirty...I even plugged my little cousins crap 25 dollar garage sale guitar into mine and it sounded good...like an old friend--its always there for me

There is a learning curve to this thing. It takes a little while to get used to the 3-knob setup. But once you get used to it, you'll be twisting knobs like a pro! There are TONS of parameters that can be adjusted for each effect. It's easy to get good sounds, as it doesn't really do anything poorly. The manual is detailed with some good illustrations.

Awesome sound! Most of the presets are for rock and metal. But with a name like ROCKTRON, what did you expect?! And it does high gain sounds VERY well. However, this is not the only good setting. It sounds FABULOUS clean. I love to set it clean, but crank the output to slam the front end of a tube amp. In this way, it can work like a "clean boost." The output of this thing can get LOUD, even at the lowest clean settings, so you can really make your tubes dance.

I use a G&L ASAT or S-500 into the VooDu Valve and then into a Fender Hot Rod DeVille (60w 4x10) or a Peavey Delta Blues (30w 1x15). Or, with stereo output, I can run into both at the same time!

It's not noisy at all, and the Hush noise gate keeps it under control even in high gain settings. The delay sounds excellent. I really love using short delay times for a slapback echo sound. SURF and ROCKABILLY are no problem here! The chorus is good too, and can go from a quick warbly sound to a long dreamy sound. I also used the wah function with a MIDI foot controller and expression pedal. It's pretty good... certainly better than your usual Dunlop or other inexpensive wah pedal. It probably can't compete with high end wahs, but it's not bad overall. I honestly didn't use many of the other DSP effects, so I can't comment much about them. My band and music didn't call for many effects. I like a good straightforward tone.

This is a DSP/Tube Preamp. As I said the DSP effects are good, but the preamp is really where the great tone comes from. Set clean, it's like playing the biggest guitar in the world. It lets the sound of your guitar come through without coloring it up, but with such richness and BALLS, that you'll think your guitar must be 50 feet high! Set it to high gain sounds, and you can have any tone you want. From scooped-mid metal rythym to thick, creamy Santana leads, it's all here.

I kept it in a 3-rack-space padded bag. It has been tossed into dozens of cars and trucks and has seen many miles. It has never broken down in several years of practice and gigs, and I always played w/o a backup. I trust it without question.

N/A

I played in a two bands and played a wide variety of music. From Jimmy Buffet to Sid Vicious and everything in-between. Classic rock, folk, punk, country, you-name-it we-played-it.

I had a few tones which were vital. First, a clean tone w/ delay for most clean parts. Great twang with my Tele. Lots of quack with my Strat. Second, a similar sound, but with some dirt on it. Great for blues and rockabilly. Great crunch! Third, a high gain sound for the hard stuff. Third, a high gain sound for the heavy stuff. Basically, it could do anything.

But now I have moved and gone back to school, so I have downsized my rig. I play guitar by myself in my office now, so I just don't need a big setup anymore. I sold it a few months ago, but I would not hesitate to get another one.

The VooDu Valve really helped me to make music. The preamp adds a fullness and richness that I have not heard from any other preamp pedal or DSP. The effects are great too. Get one!

I have had my Voodoo Value for about five months and find it very easy to use. If you are use to other Rocktron products, you will find this very easy to use. To edit patches just pull up the effect yo want to change and find the sound to fit your need.

I have used in the past many differt amps and effects, from Marshall, Fender, Peavey and so on. I became a Rocktron fan seven years ago when I purchased a differnt Rocktron Preamp. It became my number amp to use, till now and the Voodoo value blows that one away. I use it with a Rocktron 300 Watt Velocity power amp. I have several Hamer guitars, a Gibson, ESp, and Schecter, and all of them through my configuration are clear, and articulate the note being played. from the Distortion tones to clean this system has it all. If your a cover artist this amp system will fit your every need. I use a Rocktron midi mate as my foot controller, and just one push of a button I am Van Halen, another click Jake E Lee, George Lynch, and click again Steve Vai. It is the versitile.

I only had it five months with no problems at all, if it is like my other Rocktron product I don't expect any issues in the future.

In the past with Rocktron I dealt with comapny concerning my power amp. They were professional, helpful, and resolved my issue quickly.

I play all stlyes of music, but my favorite style of mucis is hard rock. The Voodoo Value matches all my needs and has even pushed my playing even further. I have been playing guitar for 20 years, and I have had many amps and effects, but now just use my rack unit. If my unit was stolen I would def buy a new on. I love the tone, flexabilty, and just having something I can count on to give the same consitant sounds all the time. I would tell anyone to buy a Voodoo Value

If you plan to buy Voodu, read this!
For all those who bashed this unit, I have only one message: sell your processor and buy couple of stompboxes. And buy ones that have the least buttons to tweak! I mean, come on people............processor is made to be tweaked and if you find your perfect sound in the factory presets, let me know, I haven't seen a unit yet that has good ones. It's not a nuclear physics to edit and create your own paches. There's infinite possibilities with this unit, it's up to you to find your own sound.

Sound quality on this unit is superb! I use this unit with Mesa Strategy poweramp and I can get any, I mean ANY sound out of it. From brain crushing Death Meatal to crystal clear Jazz sounds. Do yourself a favour and get midi controller, it's a must for gigs.

I owned it for four years now and never had a problem!

Never had a reason to deal with them.

I've been playing for about 15 years now, and I went thorugh shitload of equipment, but this setup is by far the best one I ever owned. This unit has two thing that I love..built in HUSH and pre-equalizing. What more you can ask for!

This unit is not hard to use but to get the full potential you really have to dig in and study.

I owned one one of these units for about 3 years, sold it trying to find holy grail in a number of top of the line Fender, Mesa boogie, Marshall and Crate amplifiers. Now that I have come full circle I am back to this unit. (Bought another recently.) I use this unit in conjuction with a Mesa Boogie 20/20 power amp and 2 seperate 1X12 celestion loaded speaker cabinets. (I like to spread the sound out!) Previously I used it with Boogie's 50/50. No matter, either amp produces wonderful tone! As with all preset based preamps, the original presets are good starting points, but they will need to be tweaked to your tastes and that takes time! Do not buy this unit if you are impatient! I have spent a fair amount of time just tweaking and experimenting with my tone, I still work on it to this day and probably always will!
I received the most compliments about my tone from both listeners and musicians alike while using this unit. The voodu valve is a clean sounding unit, the effects are phenominal and the distortion sounds are excellent! I have not been able to derive the mesa dual rectifier sound out of it as yet but this unit seems to cover just about everything else. I plan to buy another as a back up. (One of you bad reviewers want to sell one inexpensively!!)

Never had a problem, seemless preset changes, great unit.

N/A Cannot rate this because I have not had to deal with it. Hope they do well!!!!!!

I play a mixture of blues to heavy rock and roll as well as my best attempts at some chicken pick'in. I have been playing guitar for about 11-12 years now and have made every attempt to find holy grail in guitar sound as most of my fellow guitarists have and still are. I really include myself in the searchers for the "ultimate tone" even still because I have never heard anything that gets every sound that I have heard and like. Whether that be Metallica, Creed, Stevie Ray Vaughn or one of my favorites, Brent Mason.
The Voodu valve works extremely well for me because it is so versitile! I cannot afford all the gear that my favorite guitarists play so I have found something that is easily tansportable and sounds excellent to fit the bill. I would definately replace it if it were stolen!

Not very tricky but can go in depth.

I found it easier to get a decent sound out of a mute than this piece of crap 'Chris Truthteller' is bang on with his/her review of this box.

Occasionally it would flick itself on or off, i'm not sure if this is a problem with all of them, a friend had this same problem too.

Incredibly rude when asked about the above on/off problem, still isn't fixed.

The Voodu Valve has become the bain of my life, I tried to gig it a few times, just to justify the money I spent on it. The gigs ended up an embarrasment of poor sound and often no sound at all. I strongly recommend not purchasing this equipment, avoid the embarrasment this rubbish kit has caused me!

not to bad, some freq. are tricky for ME.

useing a jackson rr1 with emg pickups,marshall 100wt jcm 800 2203 and a jcm 900 1960A 4x12 cab. SCARRY! he,he. my sound is close to slAyer but still have some tweaking to do! i can only do so much before i go tone deaf!! anyone that has the slayer sound dialed, please post it! thanks. the v.vaulve ROCKS! nuff said.

outstanding rack! will never part with it! anyone out there with slayer sound dialed in, please contact me! thank you!

Pretty easy to use. Very flexible, which means many parameters. Which means that many guitar players can't handle it. You have to know a bit about sound and elctronics. Which frequency to get Marshall tones? OR Fender or Vox. All amps have their own frequencies, and that is key to "modelling". Distortion circuit is another, and once again, you have some choices. Also...do you want dual voice chorus? I often shut one off. I'm the kind that would rather have choices, so after just a bit of experiemnting, the VV is easy to use. Beginners can check the Digitech stuff.

As usual with most FX, the factory presets need adjusted. Either too much fx, or volume leveling between patches. I've had several other FX units, this is normal. Sounds are studio quality. Very rich and lsucious. Distortions can graze the overdrive, or go full-on shred. All realistic. USe other parameters to fatten or lighten (EQ's, cab sims). I suse Marshall and Fender amps. As well as going straight in. Recording straight in to a Korg D1200 with a mic sim yielded a very nice sound (one reviewer said Satch-like, another said melodic, tight Metallica). Guitar type doesn't matter.

Dependable. Anything can break anytime.

Emailed them about using an off-brand footswitch. Couple days later, they just mentioned the Rocktron stuff. Didn't eactly answer my question, but what were they to do, reccommend someone ELSE'S stuff? They responded so I have to give them a good grade

Been playing for almost 20 years. Polka, top40, 80's MTV, film score (not commercial)...all kinds of stuff. Have always used FX/preamp for my sounds, for flexibility. I also run live sound and home studio. If I were a professional studio, I would have one of these. It's VERY flexible. Sure, there's a few things in doesn't do as well, but that is not the point. If you want a one trick pony (an amp), get one of those instead. If you care to invest the time, you will get what you hear in your head. Random tweaking will get you so far, but education will take you all the way. Find out what feq's amps use, and how they cut/boost. A myriad of professional sounds and colors lurk in there.
I think it was a STEAL for $200. At Sam Ash even.

There IS one thing I am having troble with. I am using a Digitech Control 8 for switching. It is not transferring the CC info from patch to patch. For instance, When I have the expression pedal set as volume control, and it is depressed when I switch patches, the volume goes back to full on, until I re-engage the volume pedal. I am sure it can be fixed, Will contact Rocktron. If you know, let me know.

IT could be problem if you don't have a midi controller. Manual switching between presets and editing may be a bit difficult.
It's not a typical preamp where you adjust bas , treble gain etc. by turning the knobs. you must enter the menu - find appropreiate stuff and adjust it (everything is displayed on the screen)

I use Squier guitar. Voodu is completely noiseless thanks to HUSH noise suppressor.
It's fully proffesionall device. You can change anything you want. The equalizer operates on values in Hz so you must know what is the bandwith, frequency etc.. Its not simple but you can achieve any sound you want to !
great effects except pitch shifting - it's not 'intelligent'
Very good clean and overdrived sounds. but i dont like the factory presets - the equalization has to much trebles in almost every preset - but no prpblem you can change it any time as you want.

Spoil ? No way. It is immortal stuff. you can depend on it !

3 mails posted, 2 given responds from rocktron support

I recommend it to pepolple who know what they want. this preamp can help reaching your sound but you must spend some time with it.
it's not for amateurs.

That's exactly it. I've been using this thing for about 7 years now and I've tried as many pickups as guitars as different settings. I do like the overall quality. But I can't get nice distorted sounds out of it ( e.g.Nuno, Petrucci, Satch.) I get sloppy basses, nervewrecking highs out of it. As everybody seems so enthusiastic about it, maybe someone has a few Pre/Posteq/Gain-settings for me? I' would highly appreciate it. I really don't know what else to do, except buying another preamp.
Mail to HFC@Swiss.com

I use it alone with the Velocity 300 amp and a 2x 12 Cabinet. Fenders, les pauls, Pacificas, a N2, ESP's among others.
The musical quality is good, exept for distorded sounds. Sloppy basses, having a hard time to get good lead sounds. I like quality of the effects, quick chanel change, no noise, the hush,

Good. Had it for 7 years. Never broke down, never had to change the tube, I tried a new one, but it did't make any difference, so I switched back to the old tube

Never called them.

I'm playing since 12 years all kinds of styles. Mostly live, less studio.

It is easy to get a good sound out of it. Basically, the more time you invest playing with the eq's and settings, the better your sound will be. Editing patches is very simple, the chorus and flanger settings take a little too much time due to the complexity of the patch parameters though. Never looked in the manual.

I primarily use a Carvin Bolt and a USA Fender Strat for home recording. The Carvin has a duncan full shredd in the bridge and the fender has a duncan hotrails in the bridge. The unit is quiet as a mouse with the Hush turned on. The pre-amp is great. You can get any type of gain tone you want. The effects are unreal. The chorus, reverb, and flange effects are really warm and rich sounding. The only effect that is sub-par is the pitch shifting. It isn't the intelligent type which means you cant just select a key to play in and go. The cab simulator is awesome and really helps capture the mic'd amp sound, although nothing is as good as the real thing in that regard.

I play hard rock and metal and this unit is a great tool to have. I've been playing for 16 years. I've yet to find another processor that does as good a job at all types of sounds as this unit does. The people who gave this unit bad scores for sound quality simply didn't spend enough time with it. The nature of these processors is to give an extreme amount of flexibility over your sound, which means having many parameters to tweak. Don't fault the unit because you're not willing to spend the time to set it up. I was shocked to read the review where the guy couldn't get a Sabbath tone. Believe me, you certainly can get a Sabbath tone from this unit.

If you have used other preamps/effects this unit will not give you any sleepless nights, follow the manual if you are unsure. BUT how many of us READ the manual until we get frustrated/confused?.
It took about 1 hour to get fantastic sounds (I get loads of complements on my sounds) but again its up to you, put the effort in, its well worth it.

I use Carvin and Ibanez guiatrs, a Marshall 9100 power amp, Morley bad horsie wah wah and Rocktron 1x12" speakers, all fantastic stuff.
Noisy? no way this has the HUSH noise suppressor built in, nuff said.
As a stand alone preamp this is great, add in the sparkling effects and its amazing.
You can get a wide range of realistic sounds, I also own a Soldano Decatone and matching cab and guess what, I'm selling the Soldano, dont get me wrong the Soldanos' sound's are superb/unique, but for my needs the Rocktron/Marshall setup is better.
I'm no Petrucci/Lynch/Vai/Satch/Yngwie/Peter Green/Gilmour/Clapton/Hendrix/Lukather etc etc BUT I can copy their guitar sound (sorry guys but I've got to make a living and you can copy my solo's anytime!!) quite easily.

I do rely on it and gig without a backup, take a few valves and fuses etc.

I play everything from funk and disco to heavy metal and it easily covers all these styles.
I've heard/played a heap of gear and this is the best so far, except for the Mesa Tri-axis (but its 3 times the price, with no effects).
I would advise anyone to try as much stuff as you can, if possible in your own time with your setup (guitars, speakers etc), its not easy in a shop with sales assistants hovering and Joe public listening and offering wry smiles..talking of which heres Steve Lukathers joke..
" How many guitarists does it take to change a light-bulb?"
"six, one to do it and five to say they could've done it better".
cheers Luke you're a star.

Besides you have to tweak the select knob a lot, it's easy to see what you're doing on the display. Rocktron made a good decision not putting to much knobs on the frontpanel. I think it's very easy to use!

I like the sounds a lot!! I use this thing as pre-amp with a Marshall JCM 900 50 watt amplifier, with the pre-amp stage disconnected. The sounds you can make are warm, rich and powerfull. I'm playing in a coverband and have to make a lot of sounds with this thing (shadows, bon jovi, chic, bryan adams, tom jones, eagles, blues brothers etc.) and I always come very close, like the original! There's one thing I don't like: the clean sounds (low gain settings) aren't as loud as the crunch and distortion sounds. On my marshallhead there are two mastervolumes, one for clean (higher settings) and one for the overdriven sounds. But if you use a poweramp with only one mastervolume it can be a problem. I have to say that the clean sounds are pretty good by the way! I think this thing sounds better than the POD. There both 24-bit, but the Rocktron has a pre-amp tube (12AX7) And I love the sound of tubes. I think that the tube makes the sounds bigger and more 'classic' than the POD does. But if you aren't in the whole transistor versus tube question you probably like the POD more...(I don't think so...) I use a Vigier (french-handmade: www.vigierguitars.com) and a fender stratocaster guitar. I use a midi controller and a boss SD-1 (Maby I'm gonna use my od-1 or ds-1 instead)for boosting. the wah in the rocktron sounds pretty good, but I like to wah whenever I want so I have the new PW-10 (also a Boss) virtual WAH (and sold my Jim Dunlop JH-1, nice but the boss is nicer!) I also have a Korg DTR-1 tuner (a must!) I'm looking for a good effect unit (I think a buy the g-major, or a Lexicon MPX-2G) and I hope to find a rocktron Patchmate, so i can use some of my pedals to (like the boss od-1, cs-1 and ce-2...YES Vintage stuff!)

never had a problem so far!

?

look good, sounds good!

manual is basic,editng patches is not too simple

I use ibanez JEM and js100,marshall jcm900 100w combo+1922 cabinet with vintage 30 speakers.Rocktron has a preamp wich is good for pop rock, but doesnt have any balls.The distortion is weak and is muddy on very high gain setinngs.You cant get it to sound like rectifier or jcm or fender. Effects are good I like the reverb.

yes

I play modern rock, i had pod,tubetech preamp,line6 amp but i was most satisfied with digitech rp20.Im selling it and i will buy a digitech 2120 artist.

This pre-amp is a bit of a turd when it comes to plugging in and just dialing in. There are about 5 cool presets that you could use out of the box on stage, but I guess that's better than none with just an amp. Read the manual and then it starts to get fun. You can download patches, but you need the right equipment.
Overall the setup wasn't like pulling teeth, but was definitely not plug'n' play.

The sound here is really good. I've read everyone's reviews, but have to say myself that this unit will take on most amp modeling units out there today. This one gives real tube sound, and in comparison, I'd take this over most. I replaced the tube with one that clips at a lower volume for more intense distortion. The stock tube wasn't really giving me good metal tones. The effects are all very pretty, I just wish I understood their application better. After 13 years, I still do best with a coupla stomp boxes and a tube amp. If you want to sound like David Gilmour at any point in his career though, the sounds are in here.

My VV has taken tons of abuse, and the most I ever have to do is change a fuse now and again. I'd trust it.

N/A

I play lots of classic rock and some metal. With a little tweaking, this PA has some great tones. It's just a little confusing until you get the hang of it. Byt the second day I was getting anything from Grateful Dead to Guns 'n' Roses tones.
If it got ripped off, I'd shed a tear, but wouldn't pay money for another. It's been a good unit though, and it's great to make you friends go "Ooooo." When you use that Eruption setting to play the star-spangled banner... Oooooo.
It's got true "Valve" tone.

The Voodu Valve is an amazing unit, basically capable of getting any guitarist any tone they want. It's learning curve is a bit daunting though; it'll take a little while of sitting with the manual and tweaking things to understand it. But, fortunately, the manual isn't reminiscent in any way of say, a Behringer manual, and is easy to understand. Once you've got it figured out though, changing a million-and-one things on 10 settings at once is a breeze.

Choose any one word:
Amazing
Superb
Flawless
Perfect
There is NO sound you can't get out of this thing, except, a pristine, glassy JC-120 clean. But if you wanted that, why not go get one?
I've never heard such lush, warm tones out of anything before. I've tested it against Mesa dual- and triple-rectos, TriAxis, V-Twin, and Mark IV's, Marshal JCM's and the JMP-1, Bogner Triple-Giants, Ada Mp-1, and it blows them all away. Sure, any one of these things can come up with their respective tone as well as the Rocktron, but none of them does all these and more. And none of them can get the bone-crushing crunch this thing has... I've never heard anything so beautiful. I play 2 Ibanez Custom 7's, one AX and one RG, and it was really hard for me to find something that could faithfully reproduce the power and warmth needed to support a 7.
Flange, Chorus, Phaser, Pitch-shift, Tap-Tempo Delay, Reverb, WAH, anything you could imagine... all effects are dual voice (basically, for any effect you put on this, you can do it twice; like two seperate flanges, delays, etc). And they're all so WARM and lush sounding. I just can't get over it.
I love it!

So far, unfortunately, I've dropped it on the floor 2 or 3 times (in transport), and actually kicked it on accident, and it's still pristine... no rattling, everything perfect. Nothing even left a dent, let alone damaging the VV.
... not that I recommend trying to break it though.

I haven't had to deal with them yet... had this thing for a while, and it's still A-okay

I'm in a heavy alt-rock band, we play sort of a Staind/Incubus/MudVayne style, but it's all our own still. Low end is definetly one of our things, and the crunch I get out of this thing is amazing. All the sounds are perfect. Whatever you're looking to use this for, it won't let you down.
If this was stolen or broken (that would take a concentrated effort to do), I would go and buy another immediately.
This isn't even a, "good for the money" sort of deal; it literally crushes it's competition (ie. Mesa, Bogner, Marshall, etc), no matter the price.
Buy one today!

Easy to use if you read the manual.

The voodoovalve sounds like my first 80's Akai stereo rack, thin and noisy...
I use a Peavey Wolfgang EVH, Peavey Rockmaster Pre.amp., Mesa/Boogie 20/20 amplifier and a Mesa/Boogie 4x12" Rectifier Cabinet.
I have used sevral hours to configure this unit for the best sound, and when i plug in my all tube Rockmaster to compare the sound I'll hold on to my old Peavey Rockmaster pure fat tube sound. The Voodoo valve does to much with the sound of my gitar in addition to the effects.

I think it would pruduce stable and shitty sound for a long time :)

Sent a mail to Roctron once and they answered it right avway.

I play mostly Black Sabbath style music and for that kind of music the Voodoo Valve is in my opinion usless. If you play Queen style of music is it possible that this is the box you were looking for, i know that they used a intelliflex wich is basicly the same shit without the preamp part. If it was stolen....hmmm i would claim the innsurance and by some other box :)
Try this for great sound:
Mesa/Boogie 4x12" Rectifier Cabinet
Mesa/Boogie 20/20 All tube amplifier
Peavey Rockmaster All tube Pre-amp.
ElectroHarmonix Holy Grail Reverb

Unless you have an IQ of 2, no processor is "Hard" to use! Give me a break with this "intuitive" bullshit! Turn the freakin know...listen to how it sounds...push store! Then go take your nap GRAMPA!

"Well, I own 516 different preamps"...WHAT EVER! We are all so impressed with such knowledge. I am all too sick of the tube verses digital crap! If you like tube...fine. If you don't...fine. Don't judge this stuff on that. The VooDu Valve is a fantasic preamp. Only a moron or a lazy bufoon couldn't find the perfect tone in this little box. I dinked with it for about an hour, and had everything from the grindiest new chunky metal sounds, to Jimmy Hendrix, (if you actually want to sound like you're playing through an amp someone just put their foot through!) The notes in the chords where extremely clear and concise...you could hear every note. Warm, thick,...palm mutes are killer on just the right gain setting. If you want a warm buzzy tube sound, it is EASILY achieved! I play through an Ibanez S-520, an RG570FM, and a Schecter 006 with an Invader at the bridge, into the VooDu Valve, into a Rocktron Velocity 150, and out to 2 custom made 1X12 cabs with Vintage 30's. I am into hard rock and metal, but I have played in bands and clubs doing crap like Brittny Spears believe it or not, so I do have a good perspective of tone. I don't judge something on whether or not it is suited for JUST my tastes or style of music. I've been a professional, (touring) musician for 15 years, and I've played with a lot of gear, and people who have owned even more...this unit rules. Of course for $899.00 retail, it damn well better.

Wouldn't hesitate to take it everywhere without a backup. Rocktron is a very dependable company that has been putting out killer gear for many years...they don't sell junk!

I have delt with Rocktron in the past with both tech questions, and new parts, etc...they were very quick to reply, and had the answers that did the trick...what more can you ask for?

My current band plays everything from funk, to disco, to classic rock, to top-40, to hard rock/new metal, to originals (http://get.to/11thhourmusic) and this is an excellent tool for the job. I also own an ADA MP-1 "Classic" preamp, which is also an excellent piece of gear. I like the VooDu Valve better, because it has great FX built right in. Stolen, I would definately get another. Look at it this way,...these things hold their value for a reason. If you buy it and hate it,...which you won't...you came most likely sell it and get every penny you paid back from it.

The knobs are arranged counter-intuitively. The Digitech Valve FX has a more coherent layout - you can punch up effects for easy recall. Also, I would say the Boss GX-700 or Roland similar are the best layout of any effect processor - save the Oberheim GM-1000, which is absurdly easy and fun to use :)

I have about 17 preamps. I have everything from Lexicon to digitech, tc, etc etc. My favorites are the Peavey Rockmaster and Sony reverbs - use them together and it will blow your friggin' mind - best tone that currently exists :)

The sound of the Rocktron is merely another color on my pallate. I do not judge things saying it sounds 'dated' or this or that - if you want transparency, get sony. For warmth, lexicon, for bounce, yamaha is good - roland is smooth, colored - peavey is amazing (valve FX) for springy emulation - so Goth! :))

Anyway, the distortions of the VooDu Valve all suck. They are not bad - better than many stomp boxes - very '80's metal as they say here. But it does NOT sound as good as a tube preamp. The chunk is sloppy no matter how you set it, and the notes run together when playing high chrods and things - overly harsh and disjointed - the distortion is most certainly NOT comming from the tube!!! This is a digitial (harsh and grainy) distortion that is run through a LOW VOLTAGE tube to slop things up for warmth. The end result is fun, but plug in the rockmaster and sony combination and it utterly wipes the floor with the voodu doo doo LOL

There are basically 4 good sounds in this unit - the godzilla delay thing, the straight ahead distortions, the light reverbs (very natural and open sounding), and the pitch shift accompanyment :o) The pitch shift is equivalent to a digitech - almost identical. It tracks pretty well.

Regardless of what people say, the pre and post eq options on this unit don't really change the fundamental tone whatsoever. I get, for instance, much more variety from a rockmaster simply by changing the gain and eq!. Becasue the digital distortion is all it has and is so colored, every distortion kinda sounds like the next - even when you use their pre-post stuff.

This is not a bad preamp. It's worth the price. However, you can get better performance all around with other setups, and more flexible. Really it is a matter of taste. I would say, for straight ahead 80's style rock, this is the best single all-in-one multi-effect box you can get :) For branching beyond that, you may need something else, but it will be lacking in various areas - everything is a trade off :)

Good unit - not my favorite, but can get some tones the others cant. It is not as good in distortion as a rockmaster or Engl or triaxis, ignater, etc. It's got nice, clear sounding effects on it (unlike most)

Not to hard but takes alot of tweekin` to get a good tone.

Running into a peavey 50/50.Many guitars.4x12 celestion cab.
Very easy to get great lead tones out of & 80`s metal.Not thrash!!!It doesn`t do a good heavy,chunky rhythm very well.Too muddy & if you back down the gain its to weak.
It is kinda thin sounding to me.Good cleans,nice effects.
You will have to master the eq`s to get the goods from this.

It falls short on the high gain rhythms,but is killer on leads.Good cleans too.If you can pick one up for under 300.00 go for it.

pure parametric programming is a pain, but it's either that or get stuck in a rutt of factory presets that are never that good anyway. you must have a sharp ear and you have to get intimate with it to get the most out of this unit. clearly a trade off of versatility for convenience.

some grinding tones i have called up are absolutely astonishing. i don't see how you can get any heavier unless you double track. i play a satrianni style guitar with dimarzzio's, also a tele, all through an old music man 1/12 RD tube amp through the clean channel and a 12"EV. this rig really kicks ass. it's obvious that crunchy tones are this unit's forte. but that's what i live and die for. the reverb on this unit is a joke. although it sounds fine going direct, there is no sonic substitute for pushing air.

i have had to replace the power supply after about 4 yrs of moderate use and travel. the unit itself has yet to fail. keep a spare power supply.

This thing sounds like a 150 pound bag of manure. It is completely USELESS for a guitar preamp. The feel and tone are both terrible for guitar. The advertisements LIE when it come to this. It might sound cool for recording in a line level application for raunching various audio tracks, but it is NOT a guitar preamp. I HATE IT!

Swiss Army unit. Tons of features including built in effects. It has an AX7 tube in it also.

It has produced a steady and uninterrupted flow of reliably useless guitar tones.

haven;t needed it.

TRASH! I might pay $100 for it to use as a novelty in the studio for distorting a drum loop or something, but it REALLY SUCKS ASS as a guitar preamp.

This preamp works well with any guitar. Just be careful not to set the gain too high or you'll compress the shit out of your sound - this beast has more gain on tap than any other amp or preamp out there. If you choose to use a lot of gain the built in digital hush will keep the preamp dead quiet. Just make sure you don't set the hush threshold too high, or it will cut off the tail end of your note decay. The distortion sounds are amazingly brutal with tube gain set to high and digital gain set between 30 & 40. You get an awsome crunch sound by backing the digital gain down between 20 & 30. Back the digital gain down between 12 & 20 and you get a nice vintage overdrive. For pristine cleans set the tube gain to low and the digital gain between 1 & 12. In addition, there are active pre & post distortion EQs too, so you can nail any sound imagineable. I'd also like to add that this preamp responds very well to the guitar's volume control.

This is a late '90s Voodu Valve On-line. It is probably the most versatile preamp you'll ever find. It has 254 fully adjustable presets. There's seemless switching between them, so you essentially get 254 useable channels. You can use any standard Midi foot controller to access the first 128 presets. Or use a Rocktron controller to access all of them. There are two sets of stereo outputs: a balanced XLR set with its own level control, and 1/4 inch outs which will also drive headphones. The preamp uses a 12AX7 tube for authentic tube warmth and distortion. In addition it has an extremely high quality DSP section for awsome built in effects. It even has tube power amp simulation, and guitar speaker cabinet simulation, both of which sound very much like the real thing. The user interface is relatively easy to use, with just the right amount of knobs.

It's at least 4 years old and working perfectly. Rocktron has been around a long time. They build quality gear, that's made to last.

Visit www.rocktron.com and you'll find spec sheets, manuals, and links to tech support. You can email them & they get back to you promptly.

This is the best all in one preamp around period! I highly recommend it. It is far superior to any modeling amp, and has the sound quality of high end "boutique" preamps & effects.

I have version 1.03 so it is the same as the online-version, but with different presets. If you want the presets from the online-version you can easily download them from the Rocktron homepage and update you VooDu Valve.
Well, this unit has just the right amount of knobs. Once, you get familiar with the menu, you can start editing your patches. Of course you have to know what you are doing as this unit provides much more possibilities and options than other (midi-)preamps. If you have problems with getting started just read the manual which is very helpful. It explains every function of the VooDu Valve. Personally, I didn't really need the manual and I don't even believe that someone would need one. When I bought this unit I first tried the presets and the ones I liked I optimized for my personal taste and after a short time I made my own presets.

My setup is: Yamaha RGX 420S -> Rocktron VooDu Valve -> Poweramp of my Peavey Bandit. The Bandit as a whole thing sucks, but the poweramp is decent enough to get fantastic tones with my guitar and the VooDu Valve.
The first thing I have to say: Where is the noise? The hush neutralizes any unwanted noise, hehe! It is not as good as the original one, but still great. This is way cool.
Unlike many other preamps this unit can give you many (!) different tones with superb quality. Especially the high-gain tones are very cool and versatile. Although you obviously cannot dial in every possible tone, but the one you can are very very high quality. I mainly play (hard- and punk-)rock, metal and that is why I like this unit. I play Metallica, Guns n' Roses, Offspring, and other stuff.
The Rocktron VooDu Valve also has effects: Chorus, Delay, Reverb, Compressor (only for low-gain), Flanger, Phaser, Pitch-Shifter, Wah and Tremolo. The Chorus, Delay and Reverb are great IMO. The Flanger, Phaser are also good. I can't say anything about the wah, tremolo and the pitch-shifter since I don't use them.

This unit is now more than 4 years old and it has never let me down. It also seems that the tube will never blow. I didn't have any problem. Gig without a backup? - What is a backup? ;-)

Never had to deal with them.

This is my only gear and I don't need more than that. Perhaps a new guitar or so. If it were stolen I would definetely buy a new (used) one. I love everything about this unit, it has everything I need. I played many different amps/preamps, but this one is the best. It's most versatile, has effects, is only 1 rack space small and totally midi controllable. Guys, if you want real versatility forget the POD or any other POD-like thing. Go to the store and play this one you will be impressed.

Mi equipo esta compuesto por guitarras Peavey Tracer con Dimarzios Fast Track y Tone Zone en el puente, el VooDu Valve esta conectado a un power ADA de 135 Watts por canal y dependiendo la ocacion lo utilizo mono con un gabinete 1x12 que contiene una JBL de 100 Watts para presentaciones peque?as, cuando necesito potencia tengo un gabinete 4x12 cargado on celestions de 80 Watts para un maximo sonido en stereo.
El controlador midi es un ART X-12 el cual mepermite agrupar cinco patches por banco, entre los cuales se encuentran un patches con fectos con Pitch, crunch, heavy, lead y clean.Lo que hago es programarlos por segun la necesidades de cada cancion.Tanto los pitchs como los leads tienen Delays y mas volumen de salida.
Con relacion al manual es bien completo pero creo que le falta una seccion de trucos y sugerencias.Ej:Como se usan los speakers simulators en presentaciones en vivo sin que el gabinete deje de sonar?

Gracias al tama?o en profundidad del power ADA y al del VooDu tengo un soft case de 4 espacios y de tan solo 12" de profundidad, excelente poder y poco peso.
En lineas generales no me preocupo por noisy debido a que el Hush se encarga de el, cuando necesito mas sustein lo coloco en 65/70db y listo.
con relacion a ls sonidos hace poco descubri como hacer chorus realmente efectivos con el pich el estereo se escucha muy bien y mantiene el tono mucho mas compacto que los chorus.
Entre los sonidos que he logrado obtener se encuentran Edie Van Halen, Paul Gilbert, Vito Bratta, Jason Beker, Dime Darrel entre los mas heavys, entre los sonidos que emulan grupos Nu metal Korn, Papa Roach y otros sonidos emulados contry, blues y jazz al estilo Joe Pass.
Los sonidos de distorsion son muy buenos pero siempre hay que recordar que imitan a los sonidos reales producidos por los amplificadores de tubo, pero por su gran calidad, capacidad de uso, posibilidades infinitas de sonido y peso a la hora de transportarlo, el VooDu es un auntentico ganador.
Tanto las distorsiones Low y High tienen una altisima calidad en altos db.
Si el VooDu tuviera un par de 12Ax7 como el JMP-1, ADA MP y el Piranha seria el rey.

Nunca he tenido problemas,en una ocacion me comunique con la gente de Rocktron y me trataron excelentemente, tal vez fue un dia de suerte.

Tengo 20 a?os tocando Hard rock y Heavy metal mi equipo favorito es el VooDu, pero tambien tengo un JMP-1 Marshall y un Piranha Rocktron.
Creo que lo que mas odio del VooDu es que le falta un poco de claridad a los sonido distorsionados y el sonido se ve afectado al golpear las cuerdas con menos intensidad.
Me gustaria mucho poder compartir mis programas con otros usuarios de VooDu por lo que pongo a disposicion mi e-mail para el contacto.

this is an update on my last review of a few months ago

O.K. here is the story. I could get a lot of 80's sounds but, was having difficulty getting grunge sounds, etc. I recently bought a ts7 tubescreamer and a vintage rat pedal. I run my set up from my guitar to my ts7 to my rat then to my dod milk box....yes, dod milk box.... now I have the tone to die for. I take back everything I said before. this puppy does everything now!!( except 7 string heavy metal..I still use rp2000 for that) now my other 17 or so pedals sit unused.

I also have to take back my statement on the rocktron purple haze. when using the octave effect it sucks bad, but, turn the shitty octave effect off and it leaves one smoking distortion....perfect for 7 string chops! but, only on my rp2000 for some reason. I will bw working on that.

rocktron voodu valve smokes. I love it!I will score a 10 on sound but, not on value because it costs way to much!!

This is one of those units that you should be prepared for some major knob twiddlin. One major consideration when planning to use this with a live rig is to have patience when proggraming your sounds. I've owend quite a few preamps/effects units (Triaxis/JMP/Pod Pro/2112 Digitech/Vg-8 and Vg88/Gt5/VF-1/Zooom) First consider that this unit Will sound different with different Poweramps and of course guitars.But your speaker config is something to consider especially if you are using a 4x12 setup. First off I noticed the presets had way to much high end (with spkr sim off) when playing thru a cab. In the studio with Genlec near field monitors,they aren't too bad. But I'm gonna focus on the live setup. I found it best to tweak your sound in your natural band practice enviorment at practice volume ie: loud as hell .First I went thru the preset confis and turned off all the effects so I could concentrate on just the preamp. Starting with some some mid-crunch power chord sounds with out the speaker sim and every config I tried It seemed I kept rolling off the upper high end (11k) Every gain config sounded "fizzy" "Buzzy" I'm not talking about the distortion but rather the presence. I tried different power amp configs but the same results. I did some A/B comparison with other units to get a reference level and tone. Once you tweak this thing you will definetly realize how the post eq is very important but still I could'nt stand the over abundance of high end (even turning post eq treble and pres to -5 or more) so I tried used the
speaker sims and viola!!This got much better. High leads on single notes have sustain and girth like the triaxis and the JMP. Even with treble around the -1 to +5 level.You can use the "reactance" parameter to get some seroius low end botty stuff. I suggest experimenting this unit with a good "Flat" power amp config. I found
the Voodo Valve sounded good with a velocity 120/Marshall 1060A cab.
AS far as ease of use? I'ts rather simple. Their choice of prederminded configs has set Rocktrons limitations for this unit for the real "tweakers" out there.

Once I optimized the unit for my live rig I was impressed with the distortions. Even as a "Low" wattage tube pre-amp it still has a good dynamic feel. This is where different guitars and pickups can really judge how the Voodo Valve responds. I believe that if you start with a good guitar sound and a ggod front end preamp tone you should't have to eq anything but in this case it seems you REALLY need to exploit the post e.q. to pull some modern high gain sounds(Vai,Godsmack etc..) and mid-level classic sounds ala Page,Frehley etc...Some effects range from "Good" to just plain shitty. The pitch shift is an obvious weak link. If you go above or below 500 cents the processor shows it's weakness. The phaser is really good. I have a phase 90 and did a test and I have to say Rocktron did a dam good job. This really helps for that Van Halen first album sound. The chorus and flange are very good. The delay sounds ok but not long enough. The reverb sounds fair. If you own a lexicon or T.C. you will know the difference. The wah is ok. What I really like is the CC midi control!!! If you use a "Ground Control" or similar device you will
reap the rewards of power user type control. Example with just one patch you can use an expression pedal to start with a semi clean tone with moderate chourus then fade the pedal to increase the gain/change from class A to hard clipp/reduce the chorus amount/fade in delay level/roll off the high end. 8 parameters can all be changed with just one Midi CC command. Try that with a POD Pro.

This unit seems to not have enough ventalation.
I've owned 2 of these with no problems

I wonder if anybody has replaced the tube with another brand? Did it make a difference?
I'm more like the "Baskin Robbins" of guitar playing (many flavors/many styles). I still belive in rackmounting everything and using Ground Control and switching for everything. I'm not a good tap dancer and I am tired of lugging multiple amps around trying to desperatly in vain in achieving that "Eric Johnson" live sound. I'ved playing in cover bands and "hired-gun" situations for Original bands that record so many overdubs but still want it to "sound like the CD" in a live gig. So units like these do appeal to me. Unfortunatly I have a permantly curved spine and bad eyes from bending over tewaking these damm things.(maybe Judge Judy can help recoup some of my expenses?)
If you play in a cover band and feel compelled to re-create many sounds especially withing just one song,this unit probaly won't cover all your bases. I doubt if anyone unit could sastify the real "tweakers" out there. If you are content with 5-6 tones all night long this is a good unit, especially if you favor high gain/low end/low-tuned guitar sounds. I can't really compare this to the triaxis because it is really a true tube preamp and it really shows. The JMP-1 is simmilar in design and sound.
The Voodu valve has way more options in the E.Q. department not to mention the midi control.The Digitech"Artist" preamp is a serious contender to the Voodu valve. The Pod Pro...well...the jury is still on that one because I still have a love/hate relationship going on with it.The Roland Vg88 is totally different animal altogether so I can only comment on the Amp models/effects compared to the Voodu Valve. Put it this way... If the whole audience (in a bar/club) were wearing headphones I would say the VG is better than the Voodu Valve. But in the real world I must say I stil am trying to get that damm Roland stuff to sound good thru a live rig (yes, I did try going thru the board)

So,If you are hopelessly stuck in the 80's and still have some hair left AND still believe Van Halen sounded better with David Lee Roth, the Voodu Valve will be your friend.

The Vooduvalve is to put it in one word DEEP. So it's not "simple". BUT the user interface is laid out EXTREMELY well and the manual is very good. So with a little knob twiddling practice ,before too long, you will have it down. And you can have "your own tone" NOT some generic buzz. Keep in mind this is not your cheap ZOOM box unit. This is a professional sounding unit and a very flexible tone shaping tool at that. So it will take a little time to get your "signature" sound down but it is worth the effort. Some of the presets in this unit are actually decent so without too much fuss you should have a good tone and a good starting point for your persuit of perfection. And you have alot to work with: A tube (12AX7) preamp, a fully parametric pre and post distortion EQ, compressor, low and high gain preamp modules. The low gain module has(hard clip, soft clip, class A, and class B, models. And the high Gain module has a VARIAC simulator. (The Variac simulator is way cool) it adjusts the threshold at which the preamp begins to distort and it works just like the real thing. So you can "BROWN OUT" your sound to whatever degree you desire. You also have HUSH noise reduction so the unit is very quiet. You also have Wah, tremolo, flanger, chorus, Stereo Delay, pitch shifter, Reverb, and an esy to use mixer section. There are alot of parameters between all these effects. But all of the parameters adjustments seem to work in a "predictable" fashion (they seem to function the way that they "should"). And the the user interface is fairly logical. It is easier to navigate than most Digitech or Lexicon units that I have used but harder than many other units that are also not as good by the way.

I have had this unit four four years now so I have had alot of time to experiment with it and I am extremely comfortable with it now. The Voodu Valve does not do everything but what it does do it does EXTREMELY well. Let me elaborate: (the pluses first)

First of all I have been playing guitar for over twenty years now and have had experince with many many Amps, guitars, and FX processors. I play in a Jazz combo now but have played in metal and pop bands in the not too distant past. All of the effects are PROFESSIONAL QUALITY with the exception of the WAH (but I have never heard a digital wah that I liked). It is usable and some may like it but I dont, I just pull out my trusty cry baby. THE MODULATION: effects are excellent and you can really adjust them to suit different situations and they still sound good. The stereo chorus is lush and the flanges are hands down best digital flangers I have heard (my analog flanger stays in storage).

All of the perameter control is there and key is the abaility to be able to adjust each stereo signal completely independently and also pan the signals to your hearts content. I beleive that all FX processors need the ability to pan your direct and FX signals. Some very cool sounds can be attained by say panning all the effects to the left and have only the unaffected signal on the right. And the Voodu valve does it. THE DELAYS: are excellent and again totally adjustable in stereo. way cool is the built in tape delay simulator (by adjusting the HF damp parameter each successive repeat is not only softer but has less HF information in it (just like the old echoplexes). Or you can set it at zero for a totally digital delay sound. The only weakness here is that you have a maximum of 1 second of delay on each side. it would be nice to have more to create loops and special FX but for most normal playing situations it is more than enough. The TREMOLO: actually sounds like a real tremolo. I dont use it much but its nice to know that if I need it it is there. THE REVERB: well I have heard people complain that the reverb is rather simple (only perameters for wet/dry mix, level, decay and HF damp). BUT the sound quality of the reverb is very very good. It is transparent and smooth and professional sounding. Its not a PCM 90, but you can get good long or short reverbs out of it that are better than most of the competition in this price range. Keep in mind that this unit was designed specifically for guitar so you dont necessarily need a bunch of different reverb types for processing vocals, drums, mixdowns and the like. It seems to work well for all of my guitars even my acoustic. The PHASER: works well especially for comping claean funk or atmospheric things. I still plug in my old phase 90 to handle phased high gain patches. To my ears the phaser sounds a little thin on the high gain stuff. THE PITCH SHIFTER: actually works! Its not intelligent though. Its no Eventide Harmonizer but here again its better than most all-in-one units out there and it works great for doubling parts without glitches. I would be nice if it had a regeneration perameter on the pitch shifter though. BUT you can plug in an expression pedal into this baby and get killer whammy effects.

THE PREAMP: you can get creamy classic rock crunch, If you like to shred like Van Halen, Vai or Satriani you can NAIL those tones with this puppy. If you like alternative or Metallica like sounds they are in there. The high gain module in this puppy is where it really shines the most. It is deadly! with pre and post distortion EQ you can actually change the character of the distortion so that its NOT just more or less of the same distortion sound. A good pre distortion EQ is the only way to really change the character of a distortion sound. The low to mid gain distortions take more time to get out of this box and they are not quite as stellar as the high gain sounds but I have managed to get some decent mid gain tones. ALSO I think that ma

I have had it for four years with no problems.

I have not had to use them so I cannot say.

As I mentioned earlier I am a working musician who needs a versatile rig for sessions, and the Voodu has suited me fine. I play several guitars: an Ibanez AF-120 Artstar Jazz box, 2 strats (one wtih floyd rose and a humbucker), One Ibanez solidbody with PAF's, and a nylon string acoustic electric. The Vooduvalve works very well with different guitars because of the EQ. I play Jazz as well as rock and blues gigs so the clean sounds of a rig are equally as important to me as the "gainy" ones. THE JAZZ RIG: My Jazz rig is a little different but trust me it sounds awesome. for my jazz gigs I go from my jazz box, or solidbody, or acoustic Gtr. into the CLEAN CHANNEL of a Saldono rack preamp. From therethe signal goes into an Alesis Quadraverb Plus for delay only(100% wet) (I use the old Pat Metheny trick of slightly delaying the entire signal) From there I go into the Voodu Valve and then into the power amp input of one of my Fender tube combo amps, I have several. (For practice sessions I sometimes even go from the above mentioned setup into the input of my little Fender Blues Jr 15 watt tube amp (EL 84). And it works just fine for practice. THE ROCK RIG: For rock gigs I run in stereo. From guitar I go straight into the Voodu (I have lately been even using my saldano rack into the Voodu but that is optional for me). From the Voodu the signal goes to a Marshall 50x50 stereo tube power amp into two custom made 1x12 speaker cabinets that I can run either closed back or open back. The cabs have speakers in them from a Peavey 5150 that I got a great deal on from the good fellas at my local music store. Oh by the way I have a few different fuzzboxes that I run in front of this rig (for rock or blues gigs) to get some different sounds as mentioned earlier. It may sound like alot, but the racks are pretty lightwieght (I keep the poweramp in a rack all by itself) so it really works out nicely and I DON'T HAVE TO BREAK MY BACK. Bottom line is I have tried many fx/preamp units in my 20 years of playing from Digitech, Lexicon, Line 6, ADA, Boss, etc. Some of which I considered buying. But my current rig is flexible, lightweight, and better than the others. So I see no need to change (the Digitech 2120 had better mid gain sounds right out of the box but to my ears the chorus and flanger in the Voodu are much better and I have solved the mid gain problem to my satisfaction with my trusty stomp boxes. So I returned the 2120). I may add a Lexicon PCM 91 at some point for those unmatchable reverbs. But that is not a necessity just icing on the cake.

The Vooduvalve's system structure is quite straight and simple.
You have a preamp stage with a tube for warmth and a distortion section, then there's the hush, eq, compressor, mod fx (trem,chorus,phaser,flanger,pitch and wah) , delay and reverb.
FX - chains cannot be designed freely. This sounds simple (and I think it also is) BUT : especially the preamp section with two parametric EQs before the distortion stage and four parametric EQs after are really flexible and you have to have an idea of what you want, because otherwise you may not get satisfied. This is not a plug&play thing, you have to take some time and design your personal sounds, but in comparision to the preamp section's flexibility this is not too bad in general, and for me as a friend of abilities and flexibility this is perfect. The other FX are kept quite straight but still complete in the rocktronstyle way of perfection.

I am using this machine with a mesa 20/20, hughes/kettner AC412 Cab and mainly an Ibanez JS100. Thanks to the hush this unit is absolutely quite, and also with the hush off the preamp is a silent one. The FX are absolutely high quality. Chorus, Flanger and Phaser sound really phat. The delay provides two seperated channels with maximum 1 sec delay, which isn't very much. But it has the nice feature of being able to decide whether the Delay is muted before the Delay input or after the output, what means that you can have a delay running on without putting new signal to it. With the regenration an max you get some loopstyle FX, which is a great feature to me, but yet, one second is weak....
Some people complain about the reverb being only adjustable in decay, high frq damping and level. You have to give attention to the fact that mostly this is used through a guitar cab, which definitely isn't the right place for crying for HiFi-trueness and subtle nuances. Well the reverb is nothing special, it's warm, dense, and clear and that's it. I haven't mentioned the cab simulation so far. A choice of 8, 10, 12 and 15 inch speakers is given, also mic position (boosting/lowering very high frqs) and a resonance parameter for simulating ,guess what, a cab's resonance. The speaker sim works real good on DI recording, but the coolest trick is to keep it on with the speaker selection dialed to full (no sim at all), run the unit through the normal guitar setup and use the resonance parameter for extra BOOM! This is massive!! And now to the most important thing, the preamp section. As I mentioned above, this is real flexible. As long as you have an idea which way you want to sound you have a massive tool to design your sound. The clean abilities are cool, very clear and again flexible. Crunch lacks a bit of bite and straightness, but that's a main problem with almost every programmable rack preamp, especially the all-in-one-boxes.
What I love are the high gain sounds! You can get some way phat sounds
wherever you want it between grinding and singing. I don't want to talk to much about my sounds, because (as mentioned often enough), this is a flexible unit. I just tell you that I got some tones from it I love, and other people probably will also. so here it goes with a good

The unit fell down several times, and due to it's massive metal chassis nothing got hurt. As in combination with the 20/20 it's my only amp, I actually have to depend on it, but I have no doubt it won't let me down for it's solid construction.

I'm in a jazz trio, a metal trio, a phunk combo ,a HC-bunch and also produce some stuff with sampling and weirdo scapes at home, and therefor I'm in the need for versatility, which is satisfied by this unit quite complete. I'm playing electric for ten years now and guitar in general for sixteen. At the moment I don't feel the need to get another setup. I tried to get some more spacy FX from the two
Behringer FX-processors, but found myself only using them from time to time and most of the time I am comfortable with the basic but complete FX of the Vooduvalve, as they really provide very high quality. It's midi implementation is totally complete and provides a good opportunity to get some creative sounds via realtime controlling.
It is easy to use for a programmable all-in-one-processor and especially the preamp capacities are enormous. Only the delay time is a little weak and also some LFO and amplitude controlled parameter modulation would be fine, but for most of the situations I have to work with it the machine works just fine and reliable. So again,I give it a good nine.

this box is actually the same as the on-line version with the 1.03 software upgrade. if you can't get around on this thing you better stick with an amp and pedals! navagation thru this fx preamp are the best i've ever used! simple!!! just one thing...it can get deep. if you don't understand peremetric eq's you might have a tough time getting the sound you want. there are so many choices for altering the tone of the preamp...but using the eq sparingly you can really shape the sound a little at a time.

my setup- schecter a-7 + voodu valve + ADA microtube 200 power amp. it can be a little noisy on the high gain settings if you don't use the built in hush. but that's what it's there for...use it. i've found that the hush has very little effect on your tone and it doesn't chop off sustained notes like a gate does. nice! the two-tap delay is top of the line. the reverb is very usable but has only one type (no choices for room, hall, plate...etc). chorus, flanger, and vibrato are all good. the pitch shifter is nice for 5ths and octaves but its no intelligent harmonizer. i haven't used the wah with a controller pedal yet but you can get a great filter effect with it by using the fixed frequency setting. now here is where it shines...the high gain settings. i got a real sick feeling after i nailed my mesa-boogie dual rectifier tone which i had paid 1200 bucks for. bye, bye boogie!!! don't get me wrong , the rectifier is awsome...it just isn't as versitile as the voodu is...and trying to remember which pedal(s) for which song for which part...blah! the clean sounds are very sweet as well. not as nice as the all digital chameleon and much better than the rectifier. this is definitly the most organic sounding hybrid (tube pre and digital effects) i've heard yet. i gave it a 9 because you can't bypass the tube which would allow you to get that super transparent clean sound. i almost forgot...the speaker sim. is superb. this sounds amazing direct and the stereo imaging is wide!

well, we'll see!

i hope i don't have to find out!

i play in a genre-bending rap-core band that requires alot of different types of sounds and fx from the guitar. i need versitility. heavy one minute, etheral the next. from clean funk to special fx this little box produces. another must have is the ability to change fx instantanously without dropouts or gliches in-between patches. no problem! and without a great tone all of these other goodies would be useless. i'm a happy camper! i've compared the voodu valve to the chameleon which i also think is a great fx box...just different. the voodu is organic and warm where the chameleon is transparent and punchy. you can get a crunch sound so percusive from the chameleon you might put dime-bag darrel to shame. but this isn't the sound that i wanted. the voodu has that big fat pig sound that i like. bring me the bacon!!! (i won't give anything a 10 until it pays my bills!)

The unit is great. It's really easy to program, it takes only takes a few hours to comfortably edit parameters. I like to play blues, and metal, and ska ... and it's great for metal, okay for ska, but I find it quite weak in the clean ... it really sounds weak when you use a very clean sound. When I record though, it's fine.

I use mostly a Fender Strat with single lace sensor pickups, and an Ibanez Rg-7xx with Dimarzio Evolution pickups. When I really wanna get chunky, I use a '78 Les Paul Pro, with Dimarzios as well, tuned 1 step down. I can get a decent SRV sound with the Fender, and pretty much ANY metal sounds I can imagine with the Rg ... The Gibson just RIPS, I can get a VERY good Fear Factory sound out of it, REALLY good. Reverbs are even greater. You can get reverbs that sound like you're in a long tunnel, and the sound is so submersive, it's GREAT.

This is one of the most dependable units I have ever used. Nothing EVER seems to go wrong with it!

I once dealt with the company, though Email, and it was a question about midi operations, and the reply was a little late, but was accurate, and polite.

I love the machine. It suits me very well, only I wish it had good cleans. The only thing I can really think of that I hate about this thing is, when you turn it off, like many other machines, it lets out a loud thump sound. Can sometimes be a little to loud for the speakers ... not really worth mentionning.

You can get any kind of distortion you want out of this machine. I play harcore, and I can get some earth rumbling tones out of this, some even celestians can't handle, I have to use eminence speakers in some chances.

This processor is the best, ever damn sound you want and more. Its tube driven so its got warmth, but you can dial up the coldest machine sounding sterile distortion you can imagine. Its easy to use and able to get on online to download other noise.

Very reliable, but the company is a bitch to deal with. I've had a midi mate midi controller on order now for about three months and have yet to recieve it, so if you have to ordr this piece don't, if you can't buy it off ths floor at a store be prepared for a long wait, rocktron doesn't know what customer sevice is.

Again, rocktron is a bitch to deal with, Like I said from above, don't order shit from them.

Great for everything, wouldn't give it for the world, but rocktron sucks at customer service.

Like all CPU assisted units, there is a learning curve. This is a professional unit. Not your old MXR Distortion Plus. Parameters are straight forward and make sense. Just take the time to scroll the menus and don't be afraid to twist the data entry pots. You'll be rewarded with some of the most killer tones you have ever heard. You

need not be a MIT graduate to improve your sound.

My main guitars are Charvel Model 6 (loaded with EMG 81 and 2 EMG single coils. All circuit board options installed), and Ibanez Prestige (loaded with Dimarzio Evolution, HS-3 and PAF Pro). Guitars run straight into VooDu Valve into Carver power amp.

Bullett proof!! My unit was bought brand new in the box, at Guitar center in Boston in 1996 and still has the same Audio Glass 12AX7 even though I push the gain settings really hard. As for backup, it is just practical sense to cover your butt. Not because of the Rocktron, just because you never know. I always have a couple floor pedals in my bag just in case. But that's because I own them and why not have them there as insurance to prevent catastrophe. You never know. If I did not have extra pedals, then I would gig without a back up. Just have a spare 12AX7. Not because of the VooDu, it is bullett proof. But because tubes are unreliable. They can become microphonic or just breakdown.

I had one dealing with Rocktron. I bought some shirts and a 7 Pin MIDI cable for my ADA MIDI foot controller. My only question during that phone call dealt with Phantom Power. I needed to know which of the 7 Pins was hot so I could power my ADA. By the way, the hot pins are 6 and 7.

For the overall rating, I give it a 10. But that is considering the price/performance ratio. Let's face it, an Eventide GTR is the S Class Mercedes of Guitar processing. But how many of us own a Mercedes. As for music styles, I play in a blues/hardrock cover band (SRV, Aerosmith, Boston, AC/DC, KISS,etc.). It covers all the tones. I have been playing piano for 22 years. Guitar for 14 years. In regards to a replacement, of course I would get a VooDu Valve. What is my alternative, an unreliable, cold sounding (by todays standards), ART SGX 2000. I already owned an SGX 2000. The SGX 2000 was mailed back to ART in Rochester, NY, so many times, I was begging some one to buy that lemon. My friends had similiar troubles with their ART components. So it was not just "a" bad unit. Ironically, my ART DRX 2100 has never given me any trouble. My guess is, that their guitar processors shave problems. I then bought the 2112 Digitech. It was very nice. A year later I went to Guitar Center and AB'd the 2112 vs. the VooDu. The VooDu had it hands down. So i bought a VooDu. The newest Digitech, the 2120, comes the closest. I've AB'd it against the VooDu and it is close. But it is more money. Add in that expensive foot controller and your well over a grand. Another plus for Rocktron is the HUSH System. The Digitech employs a similiar algorithm, but it is inferior. To give the 2120 a fair shot, you should fool with the presets to really "hear" them. Typical Digitech factory programming has the 2120's presets too wet. Ultimately, Rocktron verse Digitech is Mercedes verse Ford. Go to a professional studio and ask what the engineer thinks about the two companies. As for the "what more could it have" question. Only improvement could be altering the effect sequence. You are stuck with the chains Rocktron gives you. For most of us, those chains are sufficient. For the money, you can't complain. If you want, and think you need, virtual pedal boards, spend $3000.00 for an Eventide GTR. I would suggest pocketing the $2300 and getting the VooDu. It will do everything you could ever ask or need.

Fairly clear layout in the beginning, but as you learn to work this thing you WILL SPEND mucho time tweaking on this piece of gear. The manual is adequate and fairly straitforward. I A/B'd the Voodu against every preamp in three different music stores in Atlanta (which took 2 days) and the Voodu was clearly the winner in terms of musicallity and cool features. There were only factory presets in them at the time and yes, most of them were not great, but Eruption, Sighs, and the SRV programs were quite incredible! The potential of this rig was easy to see. I have to give this a 7, because of the amount of time and patience it takes to TRULY dial in YOUR sound.

My idea in buying the Voodu was simple. Build a very "organic" sounding rack rig. All I use is the Voodu, a Marshall 9100 pwr. amp, my trusty Hamer Sunburst Archtop, & a Peavey Wolfgang special. The Voodu and Marshall work great together. I was sick of not getting the sounds I wanted from regular amplifiers and acres of stomp boxes--it was definently time for a drastic change!!! Glad I bit the bullet. Sounds of favorite guitarist are very easily attained and if your wondering----no this thing does not SOUND "digital". It's very natural sounding and has wonderful(!!) effects. My only gripe is that cleaner sounds are harder to get at a decent volume (some patches are much louder than others). I have never noticed any unpleasant noise--in fact, it's the quietest rig I've ever owned. With this many presets, you never run out of sounds to tinker with ( I NAILED Audley Freed's sound from the "Cry of Love" CD the other day--just goofing around--I'm too PLEXI for this Marshall.) Recording direct live or on a home studio is a blast--the speaker emulator really shows it's worth!!

I was skeptical at first, rack gear being new to me. I've performed live with this setup and played a few million hours in the bed room. It is the most "consistent" sounding rig I could ever hope to play through. Lots of compliments from other guitarists and sound guys on the Voodu after walking off stage!! Not a problem-----ever!!

I've only spoken on a few occasions to ask general questions and they have always been friendly and accomodating. Haven't done the upgrade thing via the website, but might later.

I've played for 14 years and am proud to own my Voodu. I play a variety of music--but stick closest with a wide palate of rock. If you are a patient and willing to experiment, you can get incredible sounds from this thing. It seems to fit a player like me perfectly, although if you play Jazz, Country, Blues, or slash your wrist Alternative, and Death Metal monger palm mute low EEEEEEEE until the cops arrest you--this thing does that as well too. If it was lost or stolen, first I would CRY because I've spent ALOT of time tweaking this thing out to my specs and there's no way to save that info. Lately, I've found myself wanting to tweak less and play more. I'm not going to sell the Voodu anytime in the near future--It has served me well for the past 3 years--but I have cut myself off from the development of new amplifier, effects, etc. in that time and I might get something "simpler" and more stripped down, a 180 degrees from the Voodu. I do not recommend this rig to beginners or people with very little playing experience. It's just too much for someone like that to learn. A beginner needs to worry less about effects and worry more about tone and how to "work" an amplifier. That is all hope its been a help!

In general the unit is easy to use. It has several buttons(recall, config, bypass(effects), compare, store) and 6 useful knobs. It doesn't have comfortable innovations, but it is not hard to program. I'd like it to have bigger display, though. A very helpful feature : I can load presets from Internet(www.rocktron.com Patch Bay )even to my non-Online version. The revision number is 1.03(the same as that of the Online version). The manual is easy to follow, but it doesn't have many useful features, for example some sort of FAQ. With bigger display and more helpful manual I'll give it 10.

I use Jackson KE1 guitar with Duncan TB-4 pickup -> into Voodu Valve ->into custom made all-tube amp's effects loop. At the moment when I took the first notes from my guitar this unit seemed absolutely noisy to me. But then I put GLOBAL HUSH parameter to 0 and locals HUSHes to 30-50, and the unit became extremely silent even on high(50-60) gain settings. All the effects are great - distortion, delay, chorus, reverb, pitch shifter, etc. Because the manual is not detailed enough I don't know if I can use wah effect using my footcontroller that doesn't have an expression pedal. BUT! I can't get the superheavy sound (a-la Megadeth, Slayer) from it as I get from my BOSS Metal Zone pedal! This unit "sings" and I'd like it to have more different sounds. But maybe it is because I can't properly equalize the sound and make the right preset. Maybe someone will send me a Slayer/Megadeth/Metallica/Death preset ? PS. But the sound in general is great - I'll give it 10.

It is an old unit. I've got it used with some presets modified. So I recalled factory presets(the guy who had it before didn't know about HUSH! All his presets were VERY noisy) and the sounds now are exactly the same quality as in Online version(some presets are different of course). This rack unit has a hard metal shell and I can put it in the rack and back out without thinking about its valve(12AX7) - the box is very hard to damage. I'll definitely use it on a gig without a backup.

I had too many questions because of the poor manual. I sent a lot of letters by e-mail to info@rocktron.com and EVERY letter was answered back to me by Jim Chowning(National Sales Director). His answers are always very helpful. He answered ALL of my different questions - about power supply, MIDI controllers, difference between regular and Online versions(there is no difference at all exept its face (front panel)) and MIDI cords from computer to Voodu. I'd like to inform you that you need the special cable from Creative soundcard(15 pin) to Voodu(standard MIDI 5 pin) which you can find in computer stores. It is the same cable as for the MIDI keyboard. I'd give 7-8 for the manual and 11 for Internet support. Rocktron is the best in Internet support of its customers. You can download manuals for all Rocktron units from the Rocktron Internet site and you can also download presets for ALL their units !

I play mostly metal - from Progressive to Thrash and Death. Voodu Valve is a very good choice of a tool for all styles of music, especially for lead playing. I couldn't get rythm(Mustaine's, Hetfield's, King's) sound from it(but I could not get this sound from my BOSS Metal Zone MT-2 pedal). I play for more than 6 years. I work in a small guitar shop and I've played hundreds(maybe thousands) of different guitars - a lot of Fenders, Gibsons, Ibanezes, ESPs, Jacksons and of other brands. Best of all I like the feel and the sound of USA-made Jackson guitars and ESP guitars (KH series, for example). I like the sound of Ibanez and I like their (Lo-Pro)Edge tremolo, but I don't like their necks(even Wizard and JEM). My favourite pickups are Seymour Duncan TB(SH)-4,5,6. I like EMG(little bit too sterile for me) and DiMarzio(Fred, Super Distortion), but Duncans are the best. I've played(and owned) a lot of processors/preamps - DigiTech 2101(2120) - both shit (my opinion) for the price they sell at; DigiTech RP-1,5,6,7,10,12 - I don't like the sound; different Zoom pedals(505, 707, 4040, 1010, 8080) - for beginners (I think); Boss ME-8,30 - ok, but not great. The first unit from Rocktron I've had was Piranha tube preamp - it is the best preamp I've ever heard. But I sold it wishing to buy something better. Musicians told me about Voodu Valve and said that Voodu was a better preamp than Piranha. It is wrong - Piranha's preamp is much better. It is a tube. And Voodu is a digital preamp. BUT! if you don't have a lot of money - Voodu is absolutely the best all-in-one preamp/essects processor on the market. Nothing compares to it. If I had a lot of money for my rack upgrade, 1. I'd compare Rocktron Piranha and Marshall JMP-1 preamp(I haven't heard it) and I'll buy a better one. 2. For effects I'll go for Lexicon or T.C.Electronics(both expensive) or Rocktron(Replifex, Intellifex, MultiValve - cheap if used). 3. I'd exactly buy BBE Sonic Maximaizer for my rack (great thing!) 4. I'd exactly buy all-tube amp 5. I'd exactly use Celestion Vintage 30 or G12-H speakers (as I do).
Please mail me if you have ANY questions.

This is loaded with good sounds out of the box and creating your own sounds is straightforward although long winded with such a small display. I bought this without a manual but downloaded the full manual from the Rocktron archives - this is comprehensive but not for technophobes. The rotary access knobs are great, so much more useful than a keypad

I have used this unit direct into my portastudio and live and it's speaker simulator is excellent, but like all guitar effects units and preamps you need to get some volume from an amp and speaker setup to really sound good. The digital effects (chorus, phaser, tremolo, pitch shift, flanger, delay etc.) are superb, the distortion stage is fantastic, the EQ is superlative IMHO but the HUSH does tend to muddy the sound up if you're not careful.

no problems at all

I have contacted the company via Email to ask about some glitches in the version 1.03 software and received a reply from the product manager within 12 hours. Also the manual library is excellent and Rocktron seem to be the only company to support their users with a patch library and forum online (with access software supplied free)

I play rock and blues styles mainly but like to dabble (jazz, funk, reggae etc.), I have been able to produce any type of sound I want from it so far. I would not hesitate to hunt out another if something happened to this one - I searched for 6 months through the available stuff from digitech, peavey etc. & upgraded to this from an ART multiverb alpha 2.0 and Hafler T2 and haven't looked back once. I do find that I seem to spend long hours creating sounds with it and this has eaten into my playing time a little. The only thing I would like to see on it would be a larger display. I would love to be able to see an overview of my patches while programming but have been unable to find a PC based editor so hope to program one (any help gratefully received)

You can't select a preset number directly; you have to turn the dial. Hence, the preset is not switched until you press the Recall button. This two-stage procedure makes it a little inconvenient to audition all the presets one after another. Turn Preset dial, press Recall button, play, turn Preset dial, press Recall button, play, etc.
The Bypass button only bypasses the digital effects; not the preamp. Hence, you cannot hear the unmodified signal.
The selection of effects, parameters, etc, is done via three dials, rather than buttons. Fine, except they are placed in a counter-intuitive order. That is, the right one is used first to select the function, the middle one is used next to select the parameter, and the left one is used last to adjust the parameter. This can be a pain.
The one-line display is fairly limiting, but at least, being LEDs, it is more visible than LCDs.
Quite easy to learn. There's really not much to it. The manual is poor. There are a few misprints, incorrect diagrams and no index.

I am using this with a Novation BassStation (analogue monosynth) directly into a desk.
Yes, the preamp does use a tube, and I'm sure guitar purists can barf on all day about how "warm" and "natural" the sound from a genuine tube amp is, while stroking their beards, drinking their real ale and trading Satriani licks, but I'm afraid this is just not what I wanted. The fact that each configuration has pre-EQ and post-EQ is good, but why does the highest band only go up to 8000Hz? I can hear frequencies twice that, goddamnit!!!
The built-in Hush noise reduction is good! Most presets are very quiet, but even Hush can't hide the noise on some of the high gain presets. Try playing a pure harmonic on preset 60 or 66, and you'll hear buzzing as the note decays. Take Hush off those presets and you'll hear a fearsome crackling even with no input connected!
My unit had a fault with its chorus. Despite having set the delay for chorus voice 1 to its minimum of 2ms, the delay periodically extended, creating a noticeably discrete shadow. Unacceptable.
And there is only one type of reverb!!! No halls, no rooms, no plates. Just one reverb with two parameters; Decay and HF Damping. How rather inadequate.

I don't intend to keep it long enough to tell.

Ditto.

I play 'aving it acid techno, and I use distortion/overdrive to give a dirty edge to my 303 sounds. The Voodu Valve is just not suitable for me, so I don't think I'll be using it. I'm sure it's more appropriate to guitarists.
I actually prefer the sound of my Alesis Quadraverb GT, but that's quite old, and it's started to put out a faint hiss when it warms up. Think I'll try the Roland GP-100 next.

It is very easy to use for someone who is very into sophisticated digital effects gear, a lot more comp. for someone not so well informed. the manual is very well done, and the user interface is fantastic. I gave it an 8 only because I could see lesser informed players getting lost real fast in the basic routing..this would be true of any efx processor with this amount of flexability....

I was one of the first owners of the ADA MP-1, and a die hard user of it, I have owned several lexicon, alesis, yamaha and roland efx and processing equip. through a stereo tube amp into two Bag End ev 12s for 14 years, it took a twelve space rack and a mixer to make all this work, the tone was to die for studio player quality..I now have a two space rack with the Yamaha g-50 synth controller and the Voodu Valve, and I go direct!! This rig kills anything I have ever tried in the past..it sounds awesome..the key thing is to get rid of the presets( I have never ever played a unit with good presets)..and use the cab simulator it is amazing..nothing out there can touch this..the only thing I would add to it maybe a more sophisticated pitch trans. efx box awesome!!! I gave it a nine because I wished it had two tubes for pushing and pulling rather than 1, but it still sounds great...

SO far so good

Never had to contact them

I play experimental to traditional Jazz, but primarily play slick studio type pop, ala Lukather, Huff, Thompson etc, love the heavy yet slick sound. I have a Jackson Soloist #303 ordered straight from the factory over 15 years ago with Alnico 2 Singles in every position, sweet and way bass heavy...(hate those thin Humbuckers) I have been playing for 20 years now, If it werwe lost or stolen I would either buy another one or check out the new Prophecy model by Rocktron..remeber to tweak those sound, there are a tremendous amount of paramaters to deal with, but the rewards are unfathomable

The panel & controls were designed w/a logic that is simple to follow allowing edits to be made by users w/out a high degree of a learning curve. Where edits are not so easy are in that the functions and parameters have such a depth of programmability that players more inclined to simplistic layouts (I just think they're too lazy or impatient to work and learn) may have frustrating experiences. However, such depth and control is what I require to obtain the truly authentic sonic characteristics that I pursue. If I merely wanted to sound like one playing a Marshall or Boogie, I would have purchased those providing I had money. The VooduValve shines in its user interface for it is the product's virtue that I can use it w/out having to refer to the manual.

There has been a consistent sound even under different acoustical settings which I shall name. I love the power & bottom end I am able to produce w/the high gain configuration which I believe parallels the best of any grunges I've ever heard live or recorded thanks to the reactance control and fully parametric low freqs eq pre & post distortion. Smooth glassy tones are also attainable rendering my blues playing w/3-dimensional quality. The clean tones are wonderful as my jazz had never been the same. The 24-bit DSP produces no Lexicon reverbs nor Eventide pitch transposes but such comparisons are quite unfair given the different nature & purposes of the different machines. However I find that, and not only on its own reich, the delays and modulation effects are lush, thick & versatile can rival other high end systems from TC Electronics. The reverb is wonderful for its intended use as a guitar reverb. The HUSH makes even my first guitar, the noisy poorly crafted Squire Strat, more than usable. My only gripe is the severly limited compressor lacking controls & parameters for Attack, Sustain & Ratio (I am quite surprised) forcing the need for external compression before the input as this built in compressor is rather weak. Set Ups- Direct-to-disk: 20-bit 64xoversampling A/D dithered to 16-bits@44.1KHz Headphones: AKG K240M Live Rig: Rocktron Velocity 250, Fender RocPro GE412 Mixing Boards: Soundcraft Ghost 32, Mackie SR24.8

The two years I've had it I have not even changed the 12AX7 just yet. Financial abundance dictates my ability to acquire a back up...no mula just yet therefore no back up. But I have not been disappointed yet. The VooduValve keeps me rocking or strolling, whichever the gig requires.

This is an area I still need to venture into.

For a player at home to a variety of different musical journeys, the VooduValve really complements & helps to inspire both my writing & playing as well are recording & gigging. It is a powerful tool for me w/so many options for tonal control. The dawning of modeling technology has caused me to question the life span of MIDI controllable rack gear w/built in effects. I suspect that the Amp Farm makes recording guitar a freightening venture for purists trapped in a world of traditional tube amps & speakers miced. I too am hooked by the AX2 212 and VG-8. But that future I cannot foretell and it is a dark path. For now, I am still ecstatic about the VooduValve. It is a purchase I have not regretted and shall never say "It was good in its time" about. I love it. It's a different instrument for me and the value makes it all worth it.

simple. the expert functions aren't hard to use like i thought, in fact they are the best part of this unit IMHO

sounds good through a clipping tube amp, direct sounds are ok for demos(good cab. emulator)

The expert eq's really help to detail your sound. processors aren't my thing really, i prefer my amp, as processors all sound sorta phony no matter how good. But, this box does sound killer through tubes.

I love this thing, but it wasn't as easy to program as my ART SGX2000, its the only bad thing about it. Don't get me wrong, its not hard to program, just not as easy as my ART. I don't like turning so many different knobs, but the sound is INCREDIBLE!

This thing is AWESOME! No other words can describe it. I know, everyone has a different opinion on sound, but mine (which is most important when I'm playing) says this is the greatest thing I have heard..EVER! I've owned several processors, none even came close. You must check this out. WOW! Great job ROCKTRON! They even got the Wah right (on the SGX wah comes AFTER distortion, its completely unusable).

I just got it, so I can't answer this yet. But it does have a 3 year transferrable warranty. That is real good!

Went to their web page, it had a lot of useful info, including patches, so I guess there alright in this department.

Nothing comes close, but it DOES have a big sound, if your not into the BIG sound, you may not like it. I LOVE IT! I've been looking for THE sound (you know the one that you know is out there, but you just can't get it) for years. I FINALLY found it! I played this at the store and went home, thought about it and went right back. I'm usually not impulsive..but the sound grabbed me. For a digital efx box, this is REAL stuff. Worth every dime.

I was in the studio and we were listening to our tape. I was so unhappy with the sound I got. I just got my Voodu Valve that day. It was still in the box, but I brought it anyway. My drummer told me to give it a try. (This was at 4:00am) I opened it, plugged it in, ran it direct to the board and set it to a preset called "I'm Broken" and I re-recorded all of my guitar parts right then! Beautiful! The manual is very easy to follow. Editing patches is much easier than Digitech-style editing.

This puppy is quit as a mouse! Thanks to the built in HUSH noise reduction. The effects sound as though they cost $500 a piece!! I am most impressed with the delays. Very controllable.

I have recorded, gigged, and rehearsed with this for over 3 years. I have yet to see ONE problem. I know I should have a backup, but I don't (Yet!) Good thing this is so dependable!!!

The regional sales manager is JOE MORDARSKI. He is the best! He answers all of my questions in detail, he's very down-to-Earth,and just so COOL!!! He gave me a factory tour, bought me lunch, gave me T-shirts & bumper stickers, he even put my name on the back of their brochure! A+++

I would definitly buy a Rocktron product. I do regularly. I love the features, reliability, and design of all Rocktron products. I was shopping for a preamp and I tried ART's SGX2000, I owned Digitech's GSP21 Pro, and also owned ADA's MP-1. None of them compare!

This unit is quite versatile, and it's easy to get real good tone quality. Getting around the 3 main knobs is a little confusing at first but if you don't rush it's straightforward. The manual is very clear and covers every aspect of the unit.

Sound quality is excellent, especially for going direct. I bought this for playing straight into a pa system (if I gotta bring a front end, I refuse to bring a separate guitar amp) and still having authentic amp tonality. The Voodu valve shines at this- very good clean, crunch and full blown overdrive, acceptably good wah, super time based effects, great stereo imaging, good tremolo, great tap tempo delay (only needs 2 taps), and extremely comprehensive real time midi control. You can set up a controller pedal to fade from clean to drive while maintaining the same volume, double or half echo tempos while still "on the beat", plus all the typical stuff. The only bad parts of this unit are a virtually useless (from a guitar perspective) compressor, (just add one between the guitar and the input), and the "wall wart" power supply.

Rock solid, I've had it for 2 years, never a problem, never even bring a backup. This and a midi control pedal setup are the whole show.

I spoke to them early on (I think it's likely I'm the one who discovered some of the weirdness with the compressor because they we're unaware of it when I called- turned out to be a software glitch, and they may have debugged it since. Very friendly folks.

I would buy it again. I swapped a Chameleon for this (under the 30 day return period from a catalog retailer) because it seemed to be all death and distortion, and I wanted something more versatile and "tubey". I'm still not sure how much the tube has to do with the sounds, as the unit is running on 18 volts- not much for a tube, so I imagine that much of what's happening is digital. Nevertheless, it sounds convincing. I bought this to replace a GP-8 thru a H&K red box, but before the Boss GP-100 (with COSM) was available, so I've never compared that.

The Rocktron Voodu Valve has been quite easy to use.

Quality of sound, ease of use, and the technical support I've received from both the retailer and the manufactuer is exceptional. My only complaint is that the reverbs and delays are of great quality, but somewhat generic. I have also purchased the Rocktron Intellifex to handle complicated reverbs and delays.

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