Line 6 Flextone II XL

I've been a Line 6 user for about 10 years. I bought this amp used about 7 years ago (I upgraded from the original Flextone) because I wanted to be able to download tone and use my PC via midi cable to customize all the various tones.

I find it incredibly flexible and I have tones for various styles of music (classic rock, surf, New Wave, blues, jazz, Nashville -- everything but metal). To do all this, it really is key to have the floorboard and I can even switch tones back and forth through a song.

It's one of these pieces of equipment that has far more features than I have figured out how to use, but I imagine others have no trouble. I'm just not that big of a gearhead.

I use it at home to practice (via earphone), take it to rehearsals and gigs. I've used the XLR jacks for recording during a live gig.

I'd say the only drawback -- which is common in all amps of this wattage -- is that it's HEAVY. Oh, if only I had a roadie to move my stuff.

I don't play metal, so others will have to talk about the nastier tones, but since I play rhythm guitar in a cover band, the amp gives me plenty of different tones for various sounds. I get the jangly Byrds tone, the big fat sounds for blues numbers, lot's of crunch for backing up other tones.

There is a tendency on certain tones to have a <click> <click> sound in the background. Truthfully, though, it's probably something I could fix by changing the settings. I'm just a little lazy.

Oh, my main guitar is custom (I made it myself) but it has the look and tones of a high-end Les Paul.

I've dragged this amp to many gigs and rehearsal halls and never had a problem with it. I keep a cover on it when I move it, but otherwise it gets no special attention and has always been a solid performer.

I've never had problems with my amp, but I have gotten information on how to update the chip to the latest revision and found all my questions answered in the various forums.

Plus their downloadable tone library is awesome !

I love this amp ! It gives me everything I need without me having to muck around with various pedals.

Features have been discussed to death so I will only say it has everything I'd want in a SS combo!

Here's where I call b******t on the peeps that can't find what they are looking for in this combo.I changed the stock speakers which were nice to a pair of black shadow mesa's and all I can say is whoa!I play metal,this combo mic'd is more than giggable.Before you knock a product you should really investigate and experiment,you just might find a diamond in the ruff.People are so impatient these days,if it doesn't sound good right off then I don't like it.Anyway SQ on this baby is the shizz!

No problems in two years!!

Nevr used them for repair but they answered some questions and were helpful.

I've been playing 4 years now,I didn't start out playing SS amps,I had friends who cared about me and broke me in on tubes,so I've owned maybe 3 or 4 SS amps total.That said,I've played alot of tube amps that don't have the impressive tone that this combo is capable of with some coaxing,my band practices with this combo and uses it for small gigs and there are always compliments and "Hey would you sell that" comments.I'd buy it again.

Very versatile. A lot of features to go with a lot of amp models.

Unfortunately, this is the one (and most crucial) area where the amp is somewhat lacking. Other reviewers mentioned that at lower volumes it sounds great but once you put it in a band situation, it loses tonal quality. I agree, that is absolutley the case. I generally use the higher gain models such as the Mesa Boogies, Marshalls and Soldano's and once you give the amp some volume, the warmth and punch becomes somewhat shrill and what I refer to as "flabby". I guess other people would call it "muddy". It also takes on a compressed sound. It's not a terrible sounding amp, but if you generally like amps with hi gain and punch, you might want to check out something else, probably with tubes. Having addressed the high gain models, the other models on the Flextone II XL do sound good regardless of volume. If you're into a classic rock or moderately overdriven sound, you will have plenty of fun going through theses models and cabinet variations. This is where I feel this amp shines- the classic rock, mid-rangey, overdrive sound.

I've never had any dependability problems with the amp itself. The floorboard on the otherhand needs to be payed attention to. The switches and the wah and volume pedals need to be tightened on a fairly regular basis and to do that, you have to open it up. Not a huge deal, but still somewhat of a pain in the ass. Other than that, no complaints.

Never had to deal with Customer Support.

Overall, it's an OK amp. As I mentioned earlier, I would recommend it to people who play with a " clean to overdrive" sound. People who play more aggressive types of music should look elsewhere. I played the Flextone in a store where it sounded great, but obviously you can't REALLY get to know the amp until you turn it up and mess around with it. I was happy with it at first but now I'm considering selling it and finding something better. I've had the Flextone II since it came out which was about 5 years ago and have used it often since then, so like I said it's not terrible but there are better sounding amps on the market.

This thing has tons of features. Very appealing in a music store. Lots of "variety" to choose from.

This is where all the features don't really matter. In a music shop at a moderate volume this amp appears to have a lot of depth and potential of reaching an almost endless array of possibilities. Once you get this thing our of the box and use it in a band context the sound turns into cardboard. Very dull, lifeless, lost in mix, over processed, over compressed sound that regardless of how many hours you spend with it will never be able to achieve a professional sound a loud volumes. If you''re in your room playing with yourself it sounds wonderful.

Never gave me problems and I had it for about 5 years. Only gigged with it a couple of times.

Never had the need to call Line 6

Like I mentioned before, if you're a bedroom practice man it's really a good amp. When you're ready to get serious about tone it will become clear that a change of amp needs to be made. However, I forgot to mention that it's a pretty good recording amp too.

Very versatile amp. I bought it without checking it out first for only 250 euro second hand. No regrets yet, I was looking for a stereo amp with enough sounds and FX on board and this is it.

Mwah. Regarding noise levels, okay. Regarding sound quality of all the guitar stuff, okay too. Effects sounds, okay.

However: it is not that clean and stereo as I expected! When I plug in an external stereo device like a mp3 player it sounds great on the headphones but through the speakers it gets distorted and the stereo spread seems to lack all of a sudden.
This lack of stereo matters me most; I bought this amp too because of the rotary speaker effect and guess what, it sounds more like a mono tremolo unit! I was really disappointed about that.
Are there any more people around who discovered that 'problem'?

So overall I'm very pleased with the sounds you can create with the amp but disappionted in it's stereo mode, so the rating gets lower.

Seems very reliable

I have had contact with customer support in England, there they told me my amp was broken probably and needed a new board. I had to go to Belgium for that (from Amsterdam).
When I contacted the repair guys in Belgium and gave them some sound files they tested their own IIxl and that gave almost the same results regarding lack of stereo in rotary mode.

So: who's right?

I was pleased with the effort they took to listen to my problem but I got the feeling they did not really know exactly what their own product is supposed to do or not. Strange.

I must confess I'm thinking about going back to my old setup with a custom built Boogie 15W top, mixing rack, digital fx devices and stereo HiFi amp/speakers. Well. let's wait a while longer....

I bought this amp blind, just read some reviews about it. In short: No regret so far! I was in need for a powerful and versatile, yet simple amp (in general I hate too many knobs). First impulse (as always when it comes to guitar amplification ...): I tested out some tube amp heads, and the Engl Richie Blackmore Signature seemed to be the amp of my wet dreams ... Mesa Boogie's Rectifier Head was very nice, too, but both a little bit far out for the money I had at this time, not to mention the additional box to buy and to transport. Then I stumbled across this little critter and was ravished. A digital amp that sounded really good, was very affordable AND was really simple and "analog" in handling. And loud enough for my needs. And stereo (whats that??). AND the Rectifier was just one of 12 different amp models... AND when I'm in a really strange mood I can always switch on some of this little build-in delay effects, haha

All amp models are useful, life comes in with rising loudness (as always ;-). I don't care about 100% copying of archetype sounds as long as I can play around with the knobs and get satisfying results. If you need the original sound, go and buy the original amp! That does not mean that the sounds of this amp are not "typical" for the models it resembles, but I don't expect a 8x12" fullstack punch out of a 2x12" combo amp. But what it actually does in it's limitations is just terrific ;-)

No problems so far. But of course I am a little bit scary about the reliability of this digital shit inside. But so far no reboots necessary...

Never had to deal with them, but the manual is nice! (I take this as a goos sign)

I am a lucky user!

Whole lot of things going on in this amp, lots of effects, amp simulators, cab types etc. Have to pay extra for the floor pedal tho, which is a big screw up on Line 6's part.

Used it with a Jackson US fitted with Dimarzio Fred humbucking high output pick up, and with a US Fender Strat. Play hard rock/metal style.
I got this amp to save me having to lug my 4x12 cab, peavey classic power amp & rack effects around with me. At first was happy that it saved my back from lifting all that gear to gigs, but soon realised its limits. I guess part of it has to do with me being too naive, thinking that I could get a truly kick ass tone from a solid state amp. It does an OK job at attempting to sound like other amps, but it lacked character and warmth in a gigging environment.
The effects are OK, but a lack of control over their various paramiters make them only suitable for basic reverb sounds. Delay & chorus sounds are very nasty.

The speakers have difficulty handling de-tuned guitars. I tune down half-step and the low notes would make the speakers fart, lacking tonal clarity when muting chords makes for an unpleasant ride.
Due to all of the above, i got rid of the amp after about 16months gigging, so i did give it a fair go.
NOTE: Line 6 products are pretty much worthless as soon as you buy them, as their value plummets. I bought mine for #700 (english) when it first came out in 2002, and withing 12 months could be bought for just over half that brand new. I got #250 for mine when I sold it on. This is a common theme amongst Line 6 products.
I have learned a hell of a lot about the downfalls of solid state amps from my experience with this amp, and will never buy Line 6 product again.

Told that the speaker rumbling was a common theme with these amps, & a that a replacement would make fuck all difference.
Web support was good though, but many guys working in music shops gave it the attitude of 'hey, you buy a new gimmick amp, your gonna get ginnicky sounds', which I gueass is so very true.

I have been playing for 12 years, recording for about 6 of those and am begining to understand the value of great tone. I am currently on the lookout for my next amp, which i aint going to rush into buying until I have tried lots of different ones.
I would say that this is a good starter amp for kids, as there is plenty to keep you occupied whilst trying to find some reasonable sounds (ie effects, speaker emulators etc), but it is hard to find one truly great sound from this amp.
Again, having to fork out another wedge of cash for the floorboard, in order to access all of the amps features, is a fuckin rip-off.
I am very interested to see what happens to Line 6 over the coming years, because they appeared with a flash of cool marketing, but now seem to be dissapearing from many retail oultets.

Bought this thing used on eBay (the only way to go) - see the other reviews for specifics. It is a solid state 2X50W stereo channel modeling amp based on the original POD 2.0 modeler firmware. It came with a cover (nice addition) and the previous owner installed casters as this puppy weighs quite a bit (>60lbs). I already had the expanded floorboard (A MUST) from my bass POD playing days. I bought it because I've switched to guitar and I quickly needed to find my sounds for playing in cover band situations where it was unclear how many styles the other band members wanted to have - you been there too?

Yeah, this thing is very versatile (perhaps too versatile). But don't buy it in lieu of the specific amp brand you "hope" to get out of this beast. This mama is mainly for finding your own sound, without the hassle of the constant buying/selling/demo-ing of the brand amps Line6 states it can mimic, and then eventually expanding upon what you like to best suit your needs.

This amp is also best for us computer geeks who have a midi/USB interface so that we can tweek every nook & cranny of the tone on this monster - You cannot do this easily from the amp interface alone.

AND IT IS LOUD!!! I dare anyone to take this past 6, stand in ffrom of it and try and hold onto their lunch though a gigging situation.

I have yet to figure out the best way to take advantage of this amp being a 2X50 stereo (perhaps a cab extension for one channel placed on the other side of the stage?).

I use mainly humbucker equipped guitars - I am using 73 Gibson LP Deluxe, '03 Epiphone LP Standard, '01 Squier Subsonic Baritone with Screaming Deamons, '81 G&L F-100, '77 Yamaha SBG, but also have an '65 Fender Mustang. No problem getting gain or high frequencies from these guitboxes on this amp -

I have had numerous positive comments at gigs when using the LP's on the rectified setup. I currently use this amp for both rhythm and lead work for a 4 piece alternativerock/grunge music act. I mainly use the rectified and Marshal settings although I have used the cleaner amp models as well for certain songs. This is where this puppy shines for me. The modeled gain effects respond to guitar volume controls just like the Marshalls and Mesa's do - great for live giging. It is for the gain tones and distortions alone that I continue to use this amp exclusively.

Once you find what you need - trash the rest of the sounds and build up the 39 bank of presents with variations of what you really need - You''ll need a computer (mac or PC) and the expanded floorboard to take advantage of this (alas, more cost added to the equation).

One disturbing fact - as this amp is based on the early POD's, the delay, flanging, chorus and TREM effects are not what you would call "deep". I've added an additional Line6 modulation modeler in front (the effects loop is worthless) to get husky univibe and deeper flanging effects that are not available on the IIXL (although they now are on the POD XT and Vetta)

As a consideration when searching for your "sound" - turn off the cab modeling tweeks when playing through this amp. By letting the two installed cab speakers sing on their own you'll find that there is a great deal of personality behind the modeled amps (unlike what a few biased reviewers have stated here). The Cab effects appear to be mods of equalization and frequency and there is a trend to muddy or collapse the amp effects when used on the amp. They are probably find with a POD through a PA or Direct recording.

The amp has been heavily gigged since I bought it 18 months ago. That along with good amount of transporting to and from practice in a non-climate controlled garage it has held up nicely - why not as it is solid state. I have not worried about the need for a backup - I do have a backup POD that could run through the PA if a backup is needed.

The expanded floorboard is a separate problem - screws needs to tighten on the pedals and the switches on a routine basis (no easy task) due to space constraints

However-it is "old" technology. With PODXL and Vetta technology out there now the IIXL is old news.

What customer support - its used baby.

The Line6 web site is generally user friendly and has ooddles of user settings for even the old Flextones and POD 2's. There are a lot of these products out there so that it appears certain thet they will be supported for a few years more. You can get online, search and try tone sttings that are close to where you want to be and then download and modify them - oops, but you do need a computer with a midi/USB chord to do so. The interface software is free and updated routinely. Another point is keeping the Flextone modeling chip up to date with the most recent flashware.

Great for intermediate players who are not amp-bigots, and who need flexibility and power while they grow into their style and in their ability.

The potential owner will need to factor in the cost of computer interfacing, the expanded floorboard (way overpriced when new) and chiropractic care (due to the weight).

I will buy a JTM45 or Rectifier someday soon, but I will not sell this amp even if I do. If it was stolen, I would replace it with a smaller version.

You got allot of features!!! You got amps from jazz till heavy metal you can use. Some of them in never use so i wshed that they could customize it for me :D . You got effects like chorus, delay, tremelo, flanger and some other stuff. Next to that, you got a number of speaker cabs wich in never use. No, you should'nt complain about the features.

Mixed feelings here. Sure there are very good amps in it like: Mesa -boogie, marshall, fender and other cool sounds. You got lead sounds to play the best solo's with. But still there are many amps i never use. Because i don't need them or because they suck!!! Don't get me wrong, other people will love them, but i hate some of them. I also recoment getting a line 6 floorboard. When you have that you have 36 amp models allready build for you. I don't create my own sounds because those 36 are perfect to me. I may custommize it sometimes, but i'm not doing that much. And again i'm not even using the half of the amp models here Next to that, the floor board has a wah-wah pedal, a volume pedal and the easyness for your giggs!!!
Some tiny things are bothering me with the floorboard but you should see the floorboard reviews for that. All with all the sounds are good, but in the future i'm going to buy a tube amp and not a modeling amp. I also won't buy a new one if it broke.

I never had a gig using this amp. And i will never have a gig whit no backup. What i did use the amp for is using it for practising with the band. Replacing it never broke anything. it's still working.

Never used it. The manual is great though

A very good modeling amp but not a perfect one. Good fot backup or band practising amp, recording and sure good enough for medium-small gigs. But i should'nt buy it if you allready have a good amp whit the same amount of volume (2x50 watt) Also check out the felxtone III XL, this amp is likely to be a better amp.

This amp I bought on ebay about a year ago when I wanted to expand my guitar playing and after being impressed the a friends tone with his Line 6 Vetta. I knew the Line 6 name because of their great modeling technology. It's a 212 combo. When I opened the box, the thing was huge, pretty heavy. I would recommend a case with casters for it. It will save you lots of knicks in the tolex and popped discs in your spine. Four programable channels, did not come with a footswitch. You can buy a footswitch aftermarket, (FB4) which has a cool feature that lets you tap in tempo for delay, tremolo, or rotary speaker effects. Also features silent recording out, direct out, headphone jack, Midi out, external speaker outs. Knobs out the wazoo, yet very user friendly.

I play an '96 Epiphone Les Paul Standard and a Squier Tele. I play rock in the genres of alternative/medlodic/emo/blues whatever. I play lots of modern worship, which features a very U2 influenced sound, so the Line 6 crazy effects work great. As said earlier, it is the best modeling amp out there and Line 6 knows what they are doing, Lots of the sounds come insanely close to the real things, namely the Fender Black Face and the Vox Ac-30. The amp also has cab modeling on it, so you can mix and match amps with diffrent style cabs, or match them up with the same manufacturers product being modeled. One draw back I have noticed, is that any high driven gain amp models get really muddy, and takes some knob tweaking to get them to cut. The clean sounds break up nicely at high volumes that somewhat emulate tube amps. I would not buy this amp if you are a gain freak. Line 6 made a high gain modeling amp that does a real good job with those kinda sounds, but this amp pretty much takes care of the blues/jazz/alternative rock sounds. It's also kind of bass heavy, so watch where you turn that knob, or you might fart out a speaker. The effects are really great, and they allow you to adjust them to your taste. I really like the delay, swell delay and the rotary speaker effects, all very adjustable. It has a selection of all their effects combined with delay, as well as them by themselves (ie, flanger, delay/flanger). I pretty much just use this amp for it's amp modeling and use a normal pedal board for effects, that way if I run another amp with the flextone, I won't have to sacrifice effects for diffrent tone. Again, the modeling is about as close as you can come to the real thing. If you are patient, and don't mind experimenting with turning knobs, you can really make this thing shine.

One time I was rehearsing with this amp on a tilt back amp stand and it fell over backwards right on its head. I was worried, but it wasn't harmed and kept on rehearsing like it never happened. Something else I would experience, after leaving the amp on for a while, my sounds would get all weak and mushy. I would turn it off and back on again, and it would be fine. it has only happend twice though throughout the year I have had it. No big deal. If you take good care of it, it will take good care of you.

I have heard horror stories about trying to get Line 6 to fix a problem. Since these things are so digital and high tech, only Line 6 can work on them. The warrantly will go void if anyone other than a Line 6 certified place even OPENS the chasis. It took this guy about 2 months to get his Line 6 amp back after running around town trying to find places that Line 6 would let him take it to fix it. I personally have never had to deal with this. I get the impression that they might be cool people to deal with, because they write their manuals to be pretty funny and entertaining. I could be wrong though..

I've been playing for about 8 years now and this way the first "serious" amp I have bought. It is a great thing to have if you want versatility. It can make some pretty great sounds and tones if you spend some time with it. I have gotten many compliments on my sounds and have inspired some friends of mine to go out and get their own Line 6. Best modeling amp technology.