Sansamp PSA-1 versus PODxt, your opinion?

[gemini8026]

whacha think. I CANT find an XT to compare to my PSA-1.

Im kinda interested if the POD is a better unit then the PSA-1 in terms of sound quality.

I like my PSA-1, but im just curious, is the XT a step up, or a step back?

I find myself using 3 settings on my PSA-1, everything else kinda soudns dull to me. I dont NEED the effects or fancy stuff on the POD, I just want a classic clean, and super distortion channel.

[Cleveland Metal]

Re: Sansamp PSA-1 versus PODxt, your opinion?

I'm thinking you're just fne with the Sansamp... Although I will admit I believe that the POD might record direct into a PC better...

I just sold my Sansamp for $375 about three days ago to finance my shock rack... Great piece. But, To many preamps around lately etc...

[OklaStrat]

Re: Sansamp PSA-1 versus PODxt, your opinion?

Clean on the XT just plain kills. I mean, if you want an old blackface fender clean, you'll get it in spades with the XT.

The mid-cranked amp sounds are good too. The Marshalls to me have an authentic tone to em.

High gain tones are the weakest point on the xt, but they are still better to me than the old Pod. Give me an idea of what tone you're trying to get and I can see if I can pull it out of the ol' XT.

BTW, I had a PSA-1, and what really turned me off on the unit was the almost 'voodoo' quality of dialing in tones (buzz, punch, crunch indeed.) If I had to choose between the two now I'd pick the XT since can get many more tones with the different cabs and microphone models.

Pete

[Steve]

Re: Sansamp PSA-1 versus PODxt, your opinion?

no the psa 1 is the **** man !!! they sound ****ing cool ! //Steve

[gemini8026]

Re: Sansamp PSA-1 versus PODxt, your opinion?

Oklastrat....

Hmmm....

Well..... as for Cleans, naturally im all about the Eric Johnson / Shawn Lane style sound. Smooth, FULL, and a lil bit of 'verb to keep it nice.

For high gain stuff, the sky is the limit. I love the sound of a dual rec. I know a fellow wont get a pure Diezel sound out of it, but I LOVE the sound of a Diezel amp cranked playing some heavy chords. Soemthing about that sizzle.

I have always loved my Sansamp, but lately I've been questioning it. I just seem to want a new tone :/ that I can't dial in.

[OklaStrat]

Re: Sansamp PSA-1 versus PODxt, your opinion?

Just my personal opinion... I've owned both, if I preferred the PSA, I'd buy another one and sell the XT. There has to be a line 6 dealer near you to try one out. You may love it, you may hate it.

*shrugs* [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[gemini8026]

Re: Sansamp PSA-1 versus PODxt, your opinion?

[img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Thats all I RUN it through is my computer. Im not a gigging musician. I play and practice for myself, therefore I havent tried running it through a proper amp yet.

You have to understand that where I live is FAR from anybody that carries gear. 5 hours one way, 10 hours the other way [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img]

I never even had a chance to play my Sansamp before I ordered it.

Oklastrat, would you be able to post some samples of the tones youve found most to your liking?

The samples on line6's webpage really dont give me an idea of what im lookin for!

[OklaStrat]

Re: Sansamp PSA-1 versus PODxt, your opinion?

here are a few... but I'm not into the metal stuff so much.

members.cox.net/vhpete/womaninlove.mp3
my VHI guitar

members.cox.net/vhpete/FenderDeluxe.mp3
fender clean tone - charvel strat

members.cox.net/musicfiles/all_thumbs.mp3
(acoustic Guild w/pickup through the pod xt)

Pete

[pro-fusion]

Re: Sansamp PSA-1 versus PODxt, your opinion?

I have the PODxt and love it to death. Most of the complaints I've heard about it are from the folks who want to use it as a preamp for live applications. I'm a recordist like you, Gemini, and I think the XT is the best direct box yet made for that application. By the way, those samples on Line6's site suck and are in no way representative of what the XT can do in high-gain applications. Similarly, Line6 did a poor job of programming most of the XT's presets--you really need to program patches on your own to see the unit's capabilities.

I will say that not all of the high-gain amp models on the XT are very good. The Dual Recto model flat out sucks. Oddly enough, the best models for that are the various "Line6" models--the 'Spinal Puppet', 'Line6Insane', and 'ChemicalX' models are great stuff. The Insane model does Recto better than the Recto model does. I use the Spinal Puppet model for almost all of my high gain sounds, and I believe it's the worth the price of the XT by itself--far and away the best high-gain recording sound I've ever gotten.

One other quirk about the XT is that you have to spend quite a bit of time programming it to get the really good high-gain sounds. The XT is unique among these units in that it includes stomp-box distortion models in addition to the gain in the amp models. These "stompboxes" are really the key to the unit. I dial down the gain on the Spinal Puppet model a little bit and put the TubeScreamer stompbox model in front of it for the juiciest lead tone imagineable--and as much distortion as you can handle! I've also had some success putting the Rat stompbox model in front of relatively lesser gain models, like the Mesa Mk. IIC+ model, in order to get that very tight, crisp Petrucci-like sound.

Also, you might want to know that the XT is very sensitive to the guitar that you are using, unlike most modeling preamps. In other words, you won't get a monster metal rhythm tone using a stock Strat--just like on a regular amplifier! But, believe it or not, I've read complaints to that effect.

[gemini8026]

Re: Sansamp PSA-1 versus PODxt, your opinion?

i definately like the sound of Oklastrat's "chicken pickin". Sounds clean and defined.

[Cleveland Metal]

Re: Sansamp PSA-1 versus PODxt, your opinion?

The clean sound that the PSA-1 had was one of the things I really liked about it.

Overall, I thought it was a mighty nice preamp and used it for years. Sounded especially through a good tube power amp. Actually though, not too bad in a Solid state power amp, as that's what the guy told me it was designed for really.

The designer told me that it was made to emulate tubes. It was designed with all solid state in mind, and that it already had tube compression built in. So, it would probably sound weird in a tube amp.

When I used it in my marshall with EL34s that did saturate lwhen played live, I'd agree with him. In my VHT2150 with KT88s, it sounded amazingly cool as it really doesn't saturate like that.

Like most straight preamps, even though it was optimized for solid state, I just didn't like the tone it had plugged straight into a PC soundcard... I think that the POD thing is optimized for that app...