Vox Tonelab SE

Yep its easy to use and get a good sound.

I use USA stats and Teles, Squier strats les pauls and Yamahas and it sounds great though my 65 Twin, Laney AOR and Simms Watts 100 heads too. If yuo can't get what you want out of this beastie, I suggest giving it up and do the ironing.

Hmm, iusses for me, I am on my third unit, the patch buttons appear to fail, leaving you helplessly trying to stomp on it and nothing happening, replaced the switches and it works for a while then no change. So replaced the unit. Now if it wasn't so good, then I'd have given up by now and gone back over to Boss, but you know a good thing when you hear it.

Vox uk have been very understanding and sent me the wrong switches, (only 2 types on the SE) but are otherwise easy to get hold of and efficient, so can't ask for more.

Pink Floyd Tribute. It does everything I want it to and has been round the world with me. Yeah, I'd buy another, as I can back up all my settings (which has already come in handy twice) not made anymore, so I guess they'll get harder to find as time goes on.

I've used a variety of mulitFX units direct to the board over the last 10 years in both live and recorded situations. The benefit is that they are both compact and versatile even if second rate to actual tube amps. The average audio consumer doesn't know the difference and multifx units sit well in the mix once you've had time to tweak them properly. I spent most of the last decade using a Roland VG-8EX, but I've also had opportunity to use a POD xtlive, Boss GT-8 and Boss ME-50 as well.

So, I picked up a used ToneLab SE to replace my aging VG-8EX. The biggest sell-point was the layout. I've found the only useable patches with units like this in band setting can must be created on the spot. Anything that sounded good at home did not work in live setting. So I wanted a unit that isn't difficult to tweak on the fly. The ToneLab fit this bill relatively well, IMO, better than the Boss GT-8, that's for sure.

The problem for me was switching from one patch to another, switching from A/B in each patch, engaging/disengaging the FX selector for each one, etc. I felt like I was doing the RiverDance everytime the band played! It was ridiculous, so much so that I decided to get rid of it. The wasn't the only reason: I think I've had my fill of multiFX units after a decade of continual use. I've just had my fill of them. I sold the unit and stripped down to a Fender HotRod Blues Deluxe, ToneLab Sparkle Drive and a Boss DD-3 delay. Last weekend was the first time I used that new setup and I had better sound than I have for a long time.

To my ear, these units are all pretty much on par with each other. The Roland VG8-EX served me well for many years. I've got nothing but good to say about it. The Pod XTlive, to my recollection, had a sterile, overprocessed sound to it that I didn't like. The Boss units were good, perhaps with a forte for heavy rock and metal type distortions. The ToneLab was warmer, an more suited for classic rock styles. All of them cover the full gamut of time based effects equally well and they are a great tool for learning to use effects. I'm not looking down my nose at them or people who use them. I think I've just naturally progressed to another level in my own development as a musician. I probably would have gone over to a tube amp / pedal arrangement earlier, but I've got a young family on the go and the money has had to go elsewhere. Right now, I've got a pretty basic set up, but I can make it happen with that and I'll add to it as I'm able.

The ToneLab SE is as big as a surfboard and solid as a rock, as are most pedals of this sort. I'm sure it will last a long time, but I didn't own it more than six months, so I don't think I can rate this category.

Very easy, if you have used any amp/effect prosessor before this unit is a breeze, if not you might want to read the manual to get an ide for the sound the different amps/effects they try to emulate.

The manual is OK, i guess copyright issues prevent them from telling what amps and effect boxes the try to replicate but this info you can easely find elsewhere.

I use this unit in several configurations:
1. Effect return on a Mesa/Boogie 50W combo
2. Directly into Mixer/PA
3. Into my PC recording system trough a mixer
In my opinion is sounds great in all configurations.

I mainly use modified Musicman guitars (axis, sub1 etc.)

The main reason i use amp modellers is the ease of use, like any normal human beeing i hate carrying stuff around.
Up until now i have used a Pod 2.0 for its ease of use and light weight.
Im not at all a sound "geek", to me it has to be simple and practial.
The reason i got the TLSE was that i needed a backup system in case the Pod should die on me in a live situation.
Instead of bying a second Pod i wanted to test something new.
A got the TLSE and could not be happier, the amps are much more natural and its layout works well on stage.
Now the Pod is my Backup.

It looks and feels very solid.

No opinion

I have been playing for about 20 years and i no longer have the urge to drag heavy tube amps around anymore, so for me the amp moddeling technology is god sendt.
Thank you VOX for creating a great product, now i can travel with my guitar in one hand, my TLSE in the other and consentrate on the music.

I have the tabletop version of the Tonelab (not the SE that has an expression pedal and foot switches for changing programs).

The amp isn't as easy as it could be to save your preferences, but most other features are easy to access and figure out. I had to read the manual in order to learn how to save and delete program banks. However, now that I've done it, I think I could do it again without help. Luckily the manuals are available online in PDF form because I bought the item used.

I use this mostly as a headphone amp and also to do some recording. The tone doesn't *quite* match the excellence of a good tube amp combo or tube head on a stack. However, this does much better than all the competitors I compared it to. I was shopping around for a while checking out everything available and came to the conclusion that this was the only acceptable "amp modeler." The X-factor: it uses an actual (and replaceable) vacuum tube. I'm a tube snob and none of the purely digital or solid state modelers have a desirable tone for me.

Although only boasting one tube, you can get pretty versatile sounds. I usually opt for one of three main sounds: (1) glassy, clean tone used with my single-coil neck pickup, (2) a bluesy tube sound that is also pretty clean but has a little more edge and growls when you push it, and (3) an overdriven rock sound like going straight into a marshall stack.

As you can see, none of my "go to" tones use much in the way of effects. Generally, I don't use chorus, flanger, phaser, tremelo, rotary, wah, or any other special effects. I'll leave it to others to review those features. I do, however, use the reverb and it is usable. Nothing spectacular, but it does the job.

I'm a music gear junkie and have bought some stuff in my life that collects a lot of dust. This is not one. I'm very happy with my purchase of it. It doesn't replace having a real tube amp, but it's the best I can find in copying that sound. Plus, it lets you play through headphones so you're not stuck with solid state sound when practicing or recording at home.

This thing seems very well built. I believe most of it is aluminum construction. It feels solid and I don't anticipate anything breaking.

Haven't had to use customer support, but they do have a lot of downloadable materials from Vox's website, so that's a plus.

I play a variety of music, but lean towards alt/hard rock (think Guns n' Roses or early Pearl Jam) and modern blues (think SRV, Buddy Guy, Clapton, etc) and this suits the sounds I want well.

I never thought I'd care, but the built-in tuner is pretty convenient.

It is pretty feature-rich and a lot of the sound effects I don't even make use of.

A few different features or designs I would have preferred:

1) A 1/4" jack to support generic foot switches (like cheap piano pedals, etc)

2) As far as I can tell, the "Tap" button for setting the speed of the echo always flashes. Always. I almost never use echo so it gets annoying. I just wish it wouldn't flash when echo wasn't on.

3) I could go for more preset reverbs.

4) There should be a USB interface to plug into a computer so you can tweak all the settings you want on a computer and just upload them to your Toneamp..... AND it would be an added bonus if you could run the audio output via USB to a computer so the amp acted as an audio interface too, but that's asking a lot out of an amp modeler.

5) It would also be cool to be able to model bass amps in the same device. Out of curiosity, I tried my active bass through the Tonelab, but no tweaks made a usable sound. Not that I expected it to, but that would be nice to have.

Overall, there is room for improving this amp modeler, but by my ears, Vox is heads and shoulders above its competitors in creating an amp modeler with pleasing, realistic tone.

To readers: if you have any questions about my gear or experiences with the tonelab, feel free to email me.

follow up review, I just bought a virtually new SE on E-bay so that my
much used gig'er can retire to home use.They are starting to fetch more money now as nothing else comes remotely close to the sound or usefulness of this classic pedal.Snap em'up quick when you see em' guy's
they will never be beaten. The chorus/delay sounds are to die for. I don't get the revue's that slag'the tone's, if you have any nous' you can make these sound fantastic.Just show's that ears are everything in the music biz.

Much easier than my former Digitechs but still needs some effort to reach a good level of sound programming.
I normally use the green and red channel so that I program the green = cleaner channel at first and copy the settings to the red channel with a little more gain and a small sound adaption.
e.g. clean fender sound + nearly clean fender solo sound etc.
I use the second pedal for chorus amount or pedal gain but not from 1 to 10. I always adapt the range - that's really a great option.
I do not like that the general volume pedal level is not programmable.

Lot of guitars and amps, but main guitars are a tuned Parker Fly and a tuned Fender Tele Special with 3 Joe Bardens inside.
The sound quality is very good as long as you stay in the clean, low or mid gain area. All amp models have their special range where they work really fine. Do not expect that every model works perfect over the full gain range. I like the Fender clean and Vox crunch best.
The only thing where POD and BOSS are better - is the real high gain range. This is the only thing the Vox tonelab SE cannot provide.
I had big problems only for programming a fat solo sound like Gary Moore.

ALL comments saying that this unit has no bass and is too trebly are correct for high gain sounds.
The good thing is that for all low gain sounds this unit is the best you can get and it is very responsive to pick and volume changes.
It helps when you dont turn the bass to 10 if you want bass. Search for the range when it starts being enough. In this way the bass stays much tighter.

Keep the settings low and simple. Your sound will massively improve.

Perfect still after years of use.

The perfect LOW GAIN all in one unit.
Metalheads - please go somewhere else.

I really checked out everything else in the last years and nothing comes close for low gain sounds.

I gave up hoping for a software upgrade as they brought out the new but castrated tonelab LE.

There is no other unit where you can get so many different sounds with stepping around on the buttons and pedals even within one patch.
GREAT.

very easy to use made the sound that I wanted to hear.love the A and B channels I can switch back and forth from clean to destortion.

the best I've had from a board!I play though a pv mace and duece and it sounds great.the tube is the sound! these amps are hYberd tube and solid so It makes a big sound.presets need some adjustment but not much.very happy with this thing.I Have the desk top model too1!to bad they don't make these anymore.I found one new in the box on 12/23/08 and I ain't telling you wear.I've had the desk top for a year and half and love that too.

too new.but it seems to be a tank of a board.

same here;but I here they are good and back there products up.

I play skyard and outlaws and alot of ozzy stuff allman bro's marshall tucker.this handle's it all.tried all the other ones this is the best.......

Easy. It's basically set up like individual pedals on a pedalboard... each effect is even tweaked by such knobs, appeasing people such as myself who are too impatient to scroll through menus and whatnot. =\ Programming stuff seems easy enough, too... though admittedly I haven't done that despite having the thing for a couple years now (see comment about being impatient, and add "fickle" to that) - I'd just want to keep change them more everytime I used them.

I basically use it like a chain of individual pedals - no presets - and it works wonderfully! I do program the expression pedal, though... mostly the change delay time, flanger depth, etc... Pretty easy.

Right off the bat, the amp modeling is crap. Well, it's not that bad... It's nice for playing late at night with headphones, or quickly plugging in to record and idea. But I wouldn't use the amp sounds for serious recording or live, unless you also have a line of pre-amps, EQs, etc... before and after (and even then I'm not so sure). It does sound kinda thin/weak. Better than Line 6, though.

That said, some of the effects are really great.

* The modulation effects are all good or great... better than most (but not all) individual pedals. The bi-phase especially is wonderful, though I rarely have a valid reason to use it. The tremolo is actually surprisingly warm sounding for what it is. The flanger is kinda meh, but not bad if it's all you have. The Filtron's OK... If you plan on using filter effect religiously, you might not be pleased. But I rarely use it, so when I do it's fine. Pretty much never use the choruses... but they're thick (the stereo chorus is especially nice). The pitch-shifter is useless, as are all pitch-shifters.

* The delays are good for the most part. Definitely digital... but frankly, no one except anal guitarists can tell the difference anyway. And in all fairness, the analog delay actually sounds pretty good (if not artificially fattened up... but sounds close, and it's nice to be able to use a long delay time with analog sound - not possible on my UE-405), and the Echoplus is also a favorite. Both are better than most every digital delay I've ever heard. The Multi-head is good, too.

* The reverbs are very good. Not great, but better than just "good". They're all a bit too practical for their own good, though. It's nice 90% of the time, but that 10% of the time you just want an ultra wet/saturated swoosh there just aren't any good options.

* Some of the pedals are nice. The phaser, Univibe, and wah are all really good (though I rarely use any). I like the "boutique" pedal a lot... it distorts so little but thickens up the sound so well! You can conceivably have a clean sounding guitar with the power of pummeling distortion with it. The acoustic simulator is an acoustic simulator... best to avoid. The compression is really good. Not as warm as my UE-405 or other such analog units, but still very smooth, realistic, and easy. As far as compressors go, I'd certainly have no qualms about it being my only one if need be. The distortions and octave things are kinda meh, though... But it might just be I don't like the sounds they're trying to replicate and less to do with the quality of the sounds themselves. Actually, the DS-1 simulator isn't bad.

* The noise reduction is GREAT. I actually use it for doing vocals. Ha!

* Volume pedals are the best thing ever. I'm so happy the Tonelab has one (though I think the newest version doesn't... which is really lame). I know, it's so simple... it's just volume. But it's one of the most usable pedals ever (not just on the Tonelab, but in general).

* The amp sounds (may as well discuss them)... They're not awful, just really thin and weak sounding compare to real amps. If you boost the hell out of the mids they're kinda usable, but... Again, nice for late night or quick sketches, but not good for any serious application. That said... the Tweed 4x10 with clean tone is alright. and combining the US High Gain amp with the Vox AC30 cabinet and upping the gain to almost max actually creates some pretty amazing distortion, which could probably be used with GREAT results in a serious application if you run it through an EQ.

Overall, nice. My beloved UE-405 sounds better, but the Tonelab is much easier and more versatile (and has way more effects), so I mostly just use it for compression and EQ (not delay - sounds great, but the Tonelab's has longer time. I still use my Big Muff for fuzz and amp for distortion/drive, though... the Tonelab doesn't compete. I also prefer a separate flanger, but when I'm lazy, the T

It's the size of some keyboards and metal. It's probably indestructible. Given I'm not terribly rough with my equipment, and not usually clumsy, but I just can't imagine doing anything to damage this thing short of dropping it from the top of a building or dropping a 40 lbs + amp on it (though both of which are entirely possible, I guess). I guess running it over with a car might do it (though I'm not certain about that).

I've had it for a couple years without a single problem... and it's one of the constants in my set-up.

Never needed it.

Overall, the thing is great. Some effects sound poor, some sound good, and some sound great... and the vast majority range from good to great - much better than any other similar unit, and really any multi-effects units sans some racks that are $2000+ (but those are a bitch to use, so who cares about them anyway?). It's EXTREMELY easy to use... I never even read the manual and figured it out in a matter of minutes (try that with an Eventide!).

If you're someone who wants to add a few effects to your arsenal in a compact and affordable package, this is great and you should definitely check it out. If you're someone who wants tremolo, flanger, reverse delay, rotary, filter, wah, chorus, etc... effects on stand-by to use occasionally but don't want want to invest in buying each individual pedal for rare/occasional use, this is probably the best you can get. If you have kids or live in a cramped studio apartment with thin walls and want to toy around into the wee hours, this is also probably the best you can get. If you're just starting out playing, on a tight budget, but looking for a bevy of pedals to ape Billy Corgan or Kevin Shields or the boys from The Church, then this is probably essential!

follow-up to previous review, I flirted with a Boss GT-10 for a while and got excited, but my old love (S.E.) waited faithfully for me to come back which I have. I will love this forever. Ease of use on gigs
is tops.

Its the sound that can't be beat, and the way you can set 2 patches on every channel with on/off for each effect and two pedals .Run into Bose-mixer and L1,it is all I need. Now running a Godin LGXT and a Roland GR-20 synth , a custom variaxstrat, a 6120jr (love it) and several of my own custom guitars as sale's demo's

I have replaced a f/sw. and also valve but it is simple to strip and fix. Never let me down yet

When you can talk to them ,they sort things quickly and are very friendly.

I am an all-rounder playing most styles and this is my dream pedal apart from the limited effect section that gives compression or wah,
or o/d.It really needed a second effect path ,but hell all you do is set up another patch with the sound you want in the same bank and toggle
between.After all it has 96 patches in 24 banks to load with your own choice of sounds and effects.Why on earth did Korg ruin a good thing and make the L.E. to replace it? Like breeding the best race-horse and then cutting one leg off and calling it progress.I scour e-bay for these now and make sure I have a spare.No-one has made a better multi.

Very easy to use unit and fairly quick too. I would suggest reading the manual when you need to i.e. as a referance.

The two foot controllers are so handy and I find it strange that the new LE model now only has one pedal!! What a pity.

I love the fact that this thing is guitarist friendly and not menu driven like the old effects floor units of the 80s & 90s. Therefore it is easy to edit patches on the fly.

If you can use stomp boxes then you can use the Vox Tonelab SE.

I love the sound quality of this unit. I own around 200 vintage and boutique effects pedals ( as I have been collecting them since I was a kid) and own KOT v4 and a couple of Klons, Mesa Lonestar Special 2x12 etc.

So I know what sounds good (well I believe I do and I get lots of complements on my sound). The Tonelab SE has a really good solid sound and is easy to match up to both single coil and humbucking guitars.

I have used it with my Strats (all very tasty and using either Fender Custom Shop Pickups or Lindy Fralins), Les Pauls (all three are loaded with Bareknuckle Pickups)and Parker Fly Classic.

No excessive hum and I use it live, in the studio and with my Mesa Lonestar Special 2x12, Peavey Classic 20 and even my ZVex Nanohead!!

It is so easy to get a good tone from this unit. I'm well out the honeymoon period as I have owned this thing for over two years now and so have found sounds I can use and built lots of very cool core guitar sounds.

Sits really well with other effects pedals and is easy to record with also, which is a massive bonus for me. I love the fact tghat I can roll up at a gig or a studio and justy bring a guitar and the Tonelab SE and I have a very cool sound straight away.

Sounds beat the Line 6 stuff hands down every time in my opinion and many other guitarists in the know! Buy them now they are cheap[ and learn to program them well as I reckon they are a future classic in the making.

Discontinued now as all the GAS merchants are out hunting for somrthing new and Vox have unfortunately updated to the LE version which is missing that extra foot controller... pity.

Built like a nuclear bunker and designed to be used by guitarists on stages in the real world where punters spill beer on your equipment.

I have gigged without a backup on many occasions.

Pretty good, loads of info on their website and even a free PC / Mac editor available.

Never hads any issues so cannot comment on the phone support.

Easy to use. So even our singer can work it out!!!!

Well built.

Good useable tone.

Lots of variety

Wish it had those really bright blue LEDs as I like them and are easy to spot in gig conditions.

Good.

I love the sound. I prefer to use my V847 for wah-wah and my phase-90 for phaser but that's just personal preference, the tonelab does everything else very well.

I've gigged with it for about a year now and it's endured bumps and scratches, but without any effect on sound or function.

Dunno.

I prefer using single units to multi effect pedals, but the tonelab se is one, so far the only, multi pedal I trust with sound quality.

Very intuitive.

The bypass mode (and by this I mean the amp and cab modeling off) is very nice. The Wah isn't my favorite, but usable. Heavy distortion sounds really aren't very usable. But, it does excel at mediium crunch tones, like its AC30 and old Tweed. Some of the effects pedals are great.

I've gig'd this thing extensive over the past 3 years, and have but 1 comment. The microswitches in the buttons wear out. But then, they wear out on my Line6 boxes also.

Dunno.

If I lost it, I'd buy another. Period. It isn't the end all be all of devices, but easily the best effects box I've ever owned.

Ease of use is relative. Clearly, an all-in-one unit such as this would require a little bit of work to learn its features, compared to say one amp and a couple traditional effect pedals. Compared to similar products, such as pod and the latest digitech, this unit is by far the easiest to operate and learn the features. I would however suggest reading the manual through a couple of times and trying out the various features.

I love the fact that the display is easy to read when standing, ulike the pod. The footswitches are sturdy and I never miss. The are spaced at just the right difference, again unlike many of the others such as POD that require you to have a size 3 shoe size. A nice feature is that when you use the manual knobs to change settings the display will say "ORIG" when you land on the original saved setting, thus allowing you to find the starting point to tweak a bit, although you could always use the arrows instead. The manual is reasonable in length and pretty conscise. I learned how to do most of what it does with one one-hour reading. I like the built in tuner; it seems to quickly register the string I am playing, and again is easy to read from a standing position.

The downside is that this unit is long and heavy, which is of course the reason that this unit is very sturdy and rugged and gives comfortable footswitching space and two expressions pedals. However, this is a small price to pay, while the pod and digitechs are smaller, they only give you the one expression pedal and last space for switching. Which by the way, I've used one of the current digitech all-in ones and the switches are terrible. You have to press two switches down to access the tuner, go from pedal to preset, ect. It takes me 4 or 5 tries to get.

My favorite thing about the tonelab is that you don't need a lot of patchs. Each patch gives you 2 channels, green or red, allowing you to have two seperate amp and speaker cab models. Most of us would use this for a clean and dirty channel. Then you can have one type of pedal effect, mod effect, delay, and reverb effect. The best part is that you can turn them on and off within the preset. You can also elect which ones you want to be on and off when you first select that preset simply by turning them on (or off) and hitting save.

Another useful feature is the two expression pedals. I assigned one to my dirty channels gain. I can easily select the minimum and maximum gain values to suit what I find useful. This makes that preset even more useful since you can say set the minimum to the amount of gain you usually like to have, and then the max to say a little more gain than normal.
I find the tap tempo really useful, I usually use it for a delay. I use my other expression pedal for the amount of feedback in the delay.
Being able to do all of this within one preset is what sets this unit apart for gigging. this enables me to make slight adjustments to my overall sound without editing 10 different presets.

In my opinion this is the best sounding all in one unit. I play a little of everything, and a lot of some things, and find this unit suitable for all. I would say that metal is not its forte. There are other units, such as the pod that have more metalish amp models than the tonelab, But you still get enough to cover that territory.

The tonelab, more than any products like it, has the feel of playing through a tube amp. It always sounds and feels warm to me. The models react well to how you pick and your guitars volume. I've played a lot of digital stuff that does react somewhat, but this thing seems to have that "feel" that we all can't describe very well. I bought this thing to use as a direct device straight into the board with no amp. I must say that I don't miss playing with a real amp very often, beyond missing having my own control of stage volume.

I particularly like the vox models, and I really don't have any dislikes of the amp models, although as with real amps I find some more useful to me than others. To me, I'm sold on this thing simply beacuse it sounds and plays good. I don't feel like I'm playing another digital device. To me that puts this thing in a category all by itself. Before I got this thing I had my eye on a POD. I liked the sounds of the POD, but I hated playing it because of the digital feel. I plugged into this thing out of curiosity and loved how it sounded and how it plays.
The effects in this thing are pretty good. The compressor works well. I like the delays and reverb. I wouldn't say that the effects are to-die-for or boutiqish, but they do they get the job done for someone like me who uses effects sparingly. For this class and type of products, the effects are as good as any of the other modeling devices I've played.

I own a project protools le set up via digi 002. Anyhow, I've used this thing for quiet recording and it does a much better job than anything other non-speaker driven way, including all my amp sim pluggins.

I have had this thing for 2 and a half years and it has worked flawlessly. I unpack it, play it, and pack it up twice a week and it has held up well. Even the gig bag it comes with is still perfect. I would gig, and do gig without a backup. I'm not playing in front of 10,000 people each night, thus it wouldn't be the end of the world if it broke down at some point. I use this thing on my churches praise team, thus on a sunday morning this thing is on from 7:45 until 12:30 to cover all the services. I don't bother to shut it off in between. I imagine this thing will continue to work well. I've never dropped this thing or done anything bad to it so I can't say much more.

Never dealt with the company, never needed to.

I love this thing. Great amp sounds, good effects, and very easy to use and set up. Most importantly, it plays great and reacts like a real amp would, or at least closer than the competition. Unlike every other digital device I've plugged into, this thing has that inspirational feel that is hard to describe. I would recommend it to anyone that is shopping for this sort of device. It does lack a few bells and whistles that some of the other modelers have, and fewer models but I don't miss them. The bottom line is that this thing is simply useful for real live situations, regardless of style. I was always a stombox into tube amp guy for many years and countless shows (and I still am) but this thing is the only one of it's type that I would ever consider using. For someone looking to go direct, there isn't a better option out there. I do have a regular need to go direct at my church and to have a wide range of sounds available, so this device serves a need that my traditional pedal board doesn't meet.

In summary, you need to rate this unit for what it is, not what you would like it to be. These devices can't satisy someone that desires nothing more than an old tube amp and a couple effect pedals with three analog knobs. They are looking for that one sound that defines them. To such a person, these sort of devices present unneeded complexity to achieve this end. If they've found their perfect guitar-effects-and amp and desire nothing else, they would have no use for an emulated version, let alone emulated versions of effects and real amps that they didn't like the real versions of. These devices are for individuals that need a wide range of useful sounds in a convenient and compact setting, as well as the convenience of going direct and volume control (recording in a townhouse at 3 in the moring). As an all-in-one, this thing excels and leaves its competition in the dust.

Couldn't be easier. Very intuitive, and where I had questions, the manual answered them in a few seconds.

I give it a 9 only because some of the effects are a little noisy, and some of the amp models aren't perfect. Let's fact it.... a 10 would be flawless and perfect. This is an excellent sounding rig. I think it's funny when someone reviews a product like this and gives it a 1 for sound. I think they probably can't play, and are half deaf. Anyone with any skill on the guitar, and any concept of how to set up an amp to get a tone can get some great sounds out of this in very short order. I've used tons of amps and digital rigs and all of the modelling plugins, and this stands right up there with the best. If you want to lug around 100k worth of vintage and top-line amps and mics, be my guest, but for 300 bucks on ebay you can pick this up and save a lot of time. If you are doing an album with a great budget, rent the real amps, but this works excellent for most applications.

Excellent. No problems at all. Built like a tank.

Never dealt with the company yet. Website is decent.

I play all kinds of music, and this is a very versatile unit that covers many bases. Been playing for 25 years. Have everything from a $60,000 Schimmel grand piano to guitars by Taylor, Musicman, Gibson, Steinberger, etc.... I would replace it if it went away. Great build, very solid and dependable. In my opinion, it sounds significantly more like a real amp than any of the other competing products, and I tried them all. I do wish they would reduce the noise a little more and improve some of the effects such as the acoustic pedal. If you are considering this or its new little brother, the LE, don't hesitate. It's a great buy and will not dissapoint. (unless you are deaf)

Even a 5 year old can figure this out

Plinky attack not the good kind.
Too trebly
No bass and if you want bass it gets muddy
Harsh

It is the worst I have ever heard

As to tube responds... I have Super Reverb a Bassman and I know what tube respons is. No where near vox guys.

It is useless in recording situations without lots of afterboard eq. Pods do a much better job (NOT PERFECT either)

I bought this thing to get good sounds for recording and for playing late at night when my 8 month old baby is asleep.

I just can't stand the noise as I can't call it sound that comes out of this thing. Uninspiring.

Too expensive for a Korg PX4D sounding aparatus.

I even tried changing the valve to a NOS Phil AT7 and that made it somewhat better.

I fiddled with it for about 14 days and Its going back to the store.

Looks good enough built.

Have had this unit since they first came out...easy to learn, easy to tweak live,I like knobs rather than scrollong thru an LCD panel...some limitations in combinations and a little difficult to pass quickly from patch set to FX set for the current patch.

overall pretty good, but I do have some issues in keeping the clean very clean while still maintaining volume levels with other patches,

I use this with a Boss LS2...thru a Marshall TSL & 4x10....so I can choose to use the amp by itself...

Ive always been a digitech fan so the shift was major for me and apart from the reliability issues its great.

Fater a few months the footswitches started to fail...intermittently unswitchable...so I would end up with some patches unavailable on a night...

back to the shop, they replaced the switches...after a year they are starting to become unreliable again...out of warranty...so I'm faced with a bill to repair..

even though this is high use piece of equipment that sort of unreliability is unacceptable to me...Vox should have done the mileage testing more thoroughly...

I have tried on several occasions to get some support from Vox. Repairs under warranty no issue, but thats local support. They need to be more accessible. Backup makes or breaks a product for me.

We play stones hendrix motorhead elvis acdc blues and anything else that people like. This is a great versatile pedal that in my view beats the competition hands down. Being able to assign control and manually tweak every parameter makes live gigging so much easier. I know some people just bypass the the amp/speaker stages to use FX with their amp..but I prefer the LS2.

Maybe if it had just one amp/speaker bypass control that truly bypassed and just left the FX.

I will buy another vox pedal when they can guarantee that my switches wont slowly fail.

ive used the tonelab se for about 2 years on the road, playing 6 NIGHTS A WEEK, non-stop. ive found the unit good, but unfortunatly had a few problems with it.
firstly, the contacts on the effects have worn and i have trouble switching patches, or in effects mode turning on or off things like delay, occasionally switching between clean sound and drive, i have to repeatdly hit the foot button..
secondly, ive had problems with zero return on the volume, it wont go to zero, so even when the expression pedal is down i still get a signal thru, also the contact on the wah when depressed doesnt always activate.
unfortunatly these things started happening just after the warranty expired. ive learnt to work around it, and im looking at replacing the unit. Ive enjoyed the sounds alot, and the ease of use is great. I was expecting to get a few more years out of it thou..

Had em all,digitech boss etc. Very easy i needed no manual, but have been playin with these all in wonders for years, since the first, ADA MP-1.
I keep tryin em and keep em around for recording and fun.
this and the boss are esiest to use but tonelab wins eas of use for floor processors.

I own a les paul with duncans,ibanez neckthru ,handmade custom strat with ash body and fender neck. A carvin mts head i love so much it keeps amazing me after 6 yrs with it.None of my gear is stock all aftermarket pickups top of the line.
I list all my gear and you will have a book.If i sold half og it i might have a bed to sleep on.kidin
I keep tryin to go simple compact and have it all in 1 unit.Since my first all tube amp i have never looked back at a solid state hence tryin this unit.The tube.
I have been playin for 25 yrs and have a damn good ear.I run sound for local bands and do many other music related things ,nuff said.
Change the peice of shit tube in this unit and it will be top of the heap in budget all in wonders.Like a different amp tone controls have much more affect on the sound.Great tones.What u want to hear u will get damn close.F/X are excelent too better than boss or digiwreck in the 20 bit processing class.
I tried any way you can possibly run it.P.A. solid state stereo and tube heads.If you try runnin this through the front end of and amp it plain sucks no matter how u set anything.Run it straight to a power amp in only and pretty nice.Tube power is the way to go,brings life and breath to this unit with cab sim off unless using pa cabs.But i have a 412 with 2 v30's and 2 g12t75's.and a vertical 212 with carvin brits that are real close to a v30.
I am happy with it for an all in one but it will not reaplace an all tube head and pedals for me!! period
Best used for home recording.
i have a vox ad30vt and i run it through my 212 cab and i believe it sounds better. VOX!!!!!! make a power amp for this unit taylord for it.And i may sell every thing else.well maybe not.

dependable but i always use backups

havn't needed it but like others said the footswitch issue.but i repair my own gear anyway

I play country to blues nemetal and shre and classic rock

i just got it 2 days ago and already built myself 3 outrageous patches.
getting a good sound out of it isn't that hard
but sometimes tweaking it to make it perfect takes some time and sweat , so patience is the key.
the manual is exquisite , it is very helpful , informative and long.

about sound quality , i kinda got one of my favorire sounds of my favorite artists overall , and they are john petrucci and guthrie govan , you cant expect this unit to perfect this sound though , but it could sound close , very close , mostly it depends on you , not on the instruments.
overall all of the effects are perfect for me at least
it could be noisy sometimes if you have no expirience with editing , after getting used to it and understand the unit , you can make it dissapear .
I dont use that much gear
I use a Ibanez Prestige 1570 guitar
and a vox Valvetronix ad50vt
no special tricks and racks

This unit as said before , IS BUILT LIKE A TANK, just today i had to carry it around and it is heavy like a freakin' bazooka!!
it is strong and i think it is bulleproof , it might even have its own gravity systems , i dunno.
i would defenitly use it in a gig without backup.

haven't been dealin' with em'

OK....
im basically an all genere player , most of it is on progressive and stuff , just experimenting stuff trying to make something new.
This thing is an WICKED match to anything if you're good to it yourself , it will be good to you.
as far as i remember , i play around 4 years.
If it were stolen , i will DEFENATLY put some tracking systems on the tonelab before that happend , find it , Murder the guy who took it , and take it back.
i love everything about it , my favorite feature is being able to do anything.
the only products i've been comparing it to is single pedals and the BOSS GT8 , it simply is better than the BOSS for me and kinda suits my fun and needs more then the single pedals
if there is something i wish it has is more tubes, but it is impossible to get nowadays.
This thing inspired me so much that it is unbelivable
it does help me make music alot...
anyway , the last thing I have to say is....
DONT BUY THIS UNIT :)
good day

Just got the latest version SE. Manual is very well written. Its the most user friendly modeling floor unit available. C'mon guys get a stupid bypass switch that you can hit with your foot.

I use the SE through Ampegs. 1976 vt22 and a 72 VT40 .These have the active mid controls and are the best clean tube sound ever. Ive had them all . At age 50 I mean all. The clean tone is where the money is at for me. Theres a zillion great boxes for the od and distortions. I cant find fault with any of the SE amp models . The key is the VR at the back end.The VR is a 12ax7 running as a class ab and a tube output stage complete with ouput tranny load and speaker damping.The wah was a bit to wide ranging but easily changed to a much narrower sweep.I use the Vox in a cover band that does everything from the 50's to the 00's and the tones have to be convincing and feel good.Best unit ever. Most of these in the past I couldnt use at all.

Its brand new. I would never do a gig without a backup. Would you take off on a 3 hr cruise without a spare tire.

Been playing 40 years. Use all types of guitars 50's and 60s strats ( cant take those out anymore. 1990 G&L ASAT is main guitar. Got a 1978 Ibanez Randy Scruggs . Love that one but the pickups have mid quality that can be nasally. Worked great through the Vox.

I found it generally to be quite intuitive,once you get your head `round the basics,it really depends on how technically oriented you are.I`d say it`s fairly uncomplicated,considering the large amount of functions.If you have access to a computer,you can connect the tonelab to it via the pair of midi connections in which case programming/getting sounds becomes a lot easier.

Let me get this straight:you won`t get the exact sound of your favourite Twin/Recto/Marshall or whathaveyou thousands dollars worth of sound,what you get is the ?? 330.00 worth simulation of it.
If you are a purist you may not be interested in this kind of pedal anyway.If you are interested in having a wide range of sounds at your disposal at the touch of a few buttons,then this might be what you need.
Personally I find some of the amp and effect simulation less useable than others:in my opinion the best sounds in the amp simulations are on the crunchy settings,you get some decent and pleasant sounds.Next best are the clean sounds,although except for the twin rev. every other amp is set to start distorting quite early on in the gain stage and so you have to decide for either cleanliness OR volume.Also i can hear some unpleasant digital overtones when I let a chord ring out.
The distorted sounds I`m having the most problems with:
onedimensional and a bit on the muddy side,whatever the eq I use.
I have to say that the manual comes in handy when you decide what model amp simulation you use,as the settings aren`t always used in the same way:for instance,a real VOX AC30 doesn`t have a middle control,so on the tonelab the middle pot is an extra that`s neutralized on 5.A real fender deluxe reverb only has tone control,whereas on the Deluxe rev simulation you have to use the treble and the bass pots to simulate that single tone,but to neutralize the middle pot it has,strangely,to be positioned on 2 (9 o`clock).So although it`s usually strightforward,reading the manual as you go along can really help.
Much of it applies to the various effects,some are better than others, I`m generally not too impressed with some modulations,particularly the phaser,which I find complicated to use and onedimentional.
the delays are fine,you`ll certainly find lots of useful sounds there,I`d just would have liked at least one DECENT multitap.
Thumbs up for the reverse delay,great for those psychedelic Floyd moments.
Reverbs are useable,but I don`t use them anyway,so can`t really give an informed opinion.
The distortion pedals I`m happy with,there`s enough to get a good variety of sounds,from a bit of boost to mild overdrive to full distortion,again,the more the distortion the more unnatural digital muddiness you get.
grouped together with the distortions are the whas,the comp,and some more modulations.This means unfortunately that you CANNOT use a distortion pedal AND wha at the same time,or dist/comp and I find this very limiting.
Generally speaking I`m happy with the variety of sounds I`m getting out of this pedal,considering the cost of it.
I play it through various valve amps,a carvin belair 212,a laney lc50 and a laney lc30:what I found the best is to use the LINE output rather than the AMP output.
The LINE output sounds more transparent,although the trebles need to be attenuated quite a lot.
The AMP output to me sounded a bit too boomy and less clear,so I suggest to take the time to experiment with both.
As for the sounds that I`m not too happy about:
if you listen to it in the quiet of your home you might find all sort of defects,but this pedal is meant to be used live:
I played quite a few gigs with it and I have to say that mixed with all the other instruments,it sounds great,all the possible muddines/fizziness/digitalness will be masked in the mix.

Never had a problem,I`m quite careful though.
Substituting the valve is a pain,in case you want to.I changed three or four different ones but didn`t notice any significant difference in sound.
I use it regularly without backup,if it breaks I`ll do without,that`s how versatile I am!

never needed them.

I`ve been playing for the last thirthy odd years,non professionally but very actively.I`m into vintage more than modern.Couple of Ibanez semiacustics,fender strat,fender tele,tokai sg and tokai 12 string ricky style.I play blues/country /soul/vintage rock and also some r`n`r and jazzy styles when required.I gig regularly in small clubs and pubs and I`m not too fond of big stages where the sound of the musician is in the hands of someone else.I like to be in control of my sound.
I went to buy a boss gt6 and left the shop with the tonelab instead:
never looked back.If lost I would replace immeadiately.there are some things that i would like a bit different but that would be the same with any of these types of effect pedals.possibly the best alternative would be to buy all single pedals separately,which probably have a much better sound,but it would be ten times as expensive and much more complicated to put to work.
VERY NICE,I LIKE.

This is my second attempt at owning an S.E. the first one was a dud and went back, I then moved on to L6 gear xt-live to go with my variax's.After increasing frustration with the all digi-sound, I bought another one,changed the valve for a top-grade one and YES! it is the dogs'danglies.Editing that stevie wonder could do(sorry stevie),sound that pee's on the pod' he-he.

If you have good ears and a bit of common'you can't fail to get great sounds out of these,don't try to make it sound exactly like ???,because all amps sound individual,I have owned lots of marshalls,vox's,mesa's each one different from similar model's. The effects on this are super ,far better than the pod,the chorus is spacy and nice,the wah spot-on,I got this to go into a bose L1 pa and it WORKS.

Generally it seems built for war, got a switch that needs replacing(sticks) also I over-wrote some patches by mistake on a gig,but found others that got me through ok. generally don't need back-up but keep the pod on stand-by.

Have dealt with them in the past,I think they regard e-mails as old-tech and try to communicate by telepathy, pity most of us are not as developed as they are and can't recieve thought transmission.

I am a gig-to-earn pro who play's what I am paid to play at the time so need gear that wil cope with anything , after a 40+year carreer I have played most things guitar/amp wise,and after buying the latest great new thing and fiddling with it and tweaking it ,I end up sounding like ME' oh well, thats life.But I LUV this puppy.Although you need a bike to go from end to end of it (it is long).

This one explains itself. I like the dials. It's a drag having to go through layers of menues before you can do what you want to. Once you've got started, it's more or less trial and error + learning by doing. The manuel is rather amusing, with lots of information concerning the amps, cabinets and FX the unit simulates.

The best sounding model I've had yet. I experimented with the AX Tube that sounded a little brittle, and settled for a Groove Tube. The Vox models are great. The Fenders can be a little compressed in the midd-range when you turn up he gain. I don't like the Marschalls. They have to much bass and lack presence for my taste. The cabinets are very good for recording. The FX are good value for the money. The Wah is great. Of course - This is not the real thing. Don't expect a Twin-Reverb, Marschall full stack and Vox AC30 at the press of a button. This is a good illusion, no more. Like most digital signals, the proof of the pudding is in the natural decay of the tone. The Tone-Lab SE does a good job here, but in the end the fadeing tone falls apart at the seams and vanishe into thin air. I don't use it live. There's not enough dynamics in it to compeate with a band that is rockin'. The closest I got to finding a fitting amp is the Atomic Reactor. But mine has 18 watts. Most bands I play with smother me .

No problems.

I'LL give VOX a good 8 here. They've presented the best modeller for vintage sounds out yet. It's a real little helper in the studio. It's a good help if you are flying and want to take some sounds with you. It's OK for live if you send it through the PA, but I'm used to having my cabinets behind me and hate having to depend on a monitor tech. Together with a Atomic Reactor amp you can get a great illusion going if your band isn't to loud. It's reliable and very easy to handle.

Very easy to program,kind of like a stomp box feel.No endless menus to page through.Manual is pretty complete. The software editor available at the vox site is very good.Highly reccommend getting it.(its free too!)

I use this for my studio and live situations.In the studio,I have been able to dial in pretty much any sound I need.The best part about this unit is the "feel" of the models.I couldn't tell you if they sound exactly like the amps that are modeled,but the overall flavor is there.It responds to playing attack in the way an amp does.I owned a POD 2.0 previously.It recorded ok,but always felt 2 dimensional.The tonelab is more inspiring to me.

Using it live has been more of a challenge to me.I have tried a tech 21 power amp with it,but sent it back.I've tried it direct,but I don't always play into the same PA system,so it has been inconsistent.(can't blame the tonelab for that).I've been running it into the power amp inputs of an Ampeg head and 4x12 cab in stereo,and has been the best solution for me so far.The amp and speakers do color it somewhat,but it's acceptable until I find something else.

The effects are pretty good also.Sure,there are better multi effects and stand alone reverb units out there,but overall,having all this in one pedal board more than makes up for any percieved quality loss.The fact that you can only have one stomp pedal effect "in front" of the amp model seemed limitng at first,but has not been an issue for me.

Had it a year with no problems.The amp I use doubles as my back up,if I need it.Don't reccommend doing any gig without some sort of "plan B".....

It is built really solid.Could be useful if a bar brawl develops at your show.

Never dealt with them.

I play rock pop original music,and I'm in a classic rock cover band.It suits both nicely in my opinion,but that is highly subjective at best.I would definately consider buying another if it were lost,but I think I would go for the amp version (ad60vtx,ad120vtx) and solve my live situation issues.

*******HEAR THE DEVICE INSTUCTIONS IN OVERALL RATING*******It's very easy to handle this unit not only at home while making new sounds but in real time in the studio or live. One movement and you have every type of reverb, delay or modulation you want in the same preset without changing your amp or cabinet...The manual if you read it....is good and have everything in detail..

Look... my favorite artists have spent millions for their sound in amps, effects, sound engineers and guitars' technicians. THIS sound is impossible to be taken by any multiFX... BUT I can assure you that you can take sounds from jazz to black metal with tweaking. And of course with the apropriate guitars...The amps are very good and real esspecially the voxes.... I am a proffessional guitarist and I go straight to PA. Nothing more... NO amps NO cabinets. I make me sound home with my studio monitors and I just have the same sound everywhere I play.It's noisy when you have the rectifier or the marshalls full drive full output...But not as noisy as a line6 or digitech. I think the most noiseless device is the ROLAND VG-88V2 but it's a digital shit....

It's a tank.... I have it 2 years and once someone stepped on the reverb button during a show and it's pressed in. Later at home I pulled it out and everything fine...No buckup..

The only dissanvantage of vox is that they don't have an answer center through the internet... they say go to the shop you bought it... But I haven't needed them yet.

I play EVERYTHING. Funk, blues, classic rock, hard rock, progressive metal. You can hear this device in ****WWW.MUSICWAVE.GR**** by find my name wich is ****AXS**** from the members area. There are 3 songs there.I hope you enjoy. Welcome to the world of tonelab SE. The only thing I wish it had is a compressor in a different place from the distortion pedals. Just this. But if you really play there is no need for compressor in high gain amps.