just scored a new amp - line 6 content

[Fragle]

yep, the infamous line 6 "toaster" HD147

i've been thinking about a non-tube amp for home and band rehearsal use for quite some time now, and when i came across that ebay deal i couldn't resist 570 euro shipped, not a bad deal if you ask me.
of course, expect a few reviews once i got it (figured out how to use the damn computer, that is )

now, originally i wanted to sell my jcm800 to get this sort of amp, but well, as of right now the marshall is still sleeping in the closet i can't quite manage to sell such a classic - and good sounding - amp, even though i need the cash more than ever now

btw, any thoughts/hints/ideas/starting points how i should set it up? i'm basically going for an all out metal tone along the lines of VHT, framus, 5150 and the likes. heavy, balanced, not too compressed/overgained, with good definition.

needless to say, i'm excited

[Sinistas]

Awesome, I tried one and it sounded killer!

[Special-K]

Great one!

I`m now really a fan of Line 6
You must play a little with the EQ and you
get the tone you want...

[jgcable]

yep, the infamous line 6 "toaster" HD147

i've been thinking about a non-tube amp for home and band rehearsal use for quite some time now, and when i came across that ebay deal i couldn't resist 570 euro shipped, not a bad deal if you ask me.
of course, expect a few reviews once i got it (figured out how to use the damn computer, that is )

now, originally i wanted to sell my jcm800 to get this sort of amp, but well, as of right now the marshall is still sleeping in the closet i can't quite manage to sell such a classic - and good sounding - amp, even though i need the cash more than ever now

btw, any thoughts/hints/ideas/starting points how i should set it up? i'm basically going for an all out metal tone along the lines of VHT, framus, 5150 and the likes. heavy, balanced, not too compressed/overgained, with good definition.

needless to say, i'm excited

Congrats... you are not going to need much help with the HD147. It sounds killer right out of the box! Much of the reason for the 2.5 upgrade on the Vetta was to incorporate all the HD147 features that everybody wanted. That is a real metal monster. You won't believe how loud it is.
Post a review when you get it.

[buzzsaww]

I have one, not a bad amp your Cobra will destroy it though

[jgcable]

I have one, not a bad amp your Cobra will destroy it though

You might be surprised. It does a fantastic Ubershall.

[buzzsaww]

I have them both, plus a Vetta, and owned a Flextone 1 and 2 before coming to Japan, there isn't any comparison in the high gain department really. The Cobra destroys it. The Cobra has a wonderful clean channel but the Line 6 stuff wins there.
Don't get me wrong, it's a great amp, versatile with a ton of features. Makes recording a breeze. I'm not a hater at all just that in this case there is no comparison.
I also have a Powerball, the Cobra destroys that too The Powerball patches do not sound like the real thing when stacked up head to head. A good approximation maybe.

[Mordor]

You might be surprised. It does a fantastic Ubershall.

That is just waht I was going to reply
The HD147 is much more amp-like to control than the Vetta right? You should not have problem with it.
Congrats!

[buzzsaww]

The control scheme is the same, the knobs are laid out in a different manner on the control panel. The Vetta also has a global bass and treble function and way easier access to modifying the numerous settings.

That is just waht I was going to reply
The HD147 is much more amp-like to control than the Vetta right? You should not have problem with it.
Congrats!

[Fragle]

of course my cobra most certainly is the better sounding amp. but then again, i didn't score the 147 in order to replace my cobra, it's more like i want to SPARE the cobra for live and recording use

the thing is, right now i have 3 amps, cobra, 5150, jcm800, and out of these three my line 6 pod 2 -> PC rig gets the most playing time go figure.
i frequently use the cobra at band rehearsals, though, so often that i'm seriously worrying about killing the tubes just for band rehearsal where sound doesn't really matter *that* much imho.

actually, the thing that turned me to line 6 was the fact that my friends from illdisposed used to use flextone heads (sounded better than other bands using all tube gear most of the time, only when playing large shows with killer PA systems i could hear a difference) and recently switched to HD147 heads (which sounded even better). plus JF from kataklysm used a pod xt live -> marshall tsl fx return rig the last time i saw them, and they had a kickass sound.
while i don't intend on using the line 6 live, that certainly made me thing about the difference between digital and all tube amps in a live and loud metal situation.

[Thor Von Clemson]

how does the thing stack up to the 5150 for metal?

I used a flextone II HD head for years and I liked it a lot. Right now I am using a 5150 head with no fx or anything and I am thinking I want something more versatile. I really like my 5150 so if I switch to something else it better be damn good. I like how you can control everything easily with the longboard and you can come up with many different patches instead of having one tone. If the HD can be loud, cut well for loud band practices, and cut through live then I am on it... possibly.

Can you record direct with it?

[Fragle]

got it today, but so far played it only briefly. first impressions:
-NEEDS to be turned up. sounds like total fizzy shit at bedroom volumes, but once the master gets anywhere past 10.00 it actually starts to impress me
-has a very distinct almost piercing high end quality that i need to spend some time on dialing out/eliminating it
-awesome clean sound
-effects are decent, too. one question: how do i adjust the number of delay repeats?
-it does not quite seem to like my framus 212 cab, too bright (and i like bright!).
-as for the accuracy, well, right now i can't tell for sure, but i checked out the 5150 model (btw, the hd147 is sitting on top of a blockletter 5150, so i know what i'm talking about ) and it definitely was in the ballpark. the presence is modeled very accurately, the mids seem to be higher voiced though. and just like the original the gain gets totally insane anywhere past 1:00 right now i like it best with the gain at noon and the compressor on, which i guess is the digital equivalent of my tubescreamer->5150 lead channel (gain almost noon) rig

any further tweaking ideas and hints are greatly appreciated!

btw, yes, you can record direct with it. it has XLR outs, and even a headphone jack!

[data187]

great amp.
try it thru a genz benz cab.
talk about palm mutting heaven.

[Diego_]

Someone of you guyz know the price of this HD147? It looks great and I'm big fan of line6 products.
Do you finally think HD147 is a better amp than Vetta?
thanx

[Thor Von Clemson]

Fragle,

How well does it cut through a mix compared to a 5150? My band practices pretty loud and I generally like to have my amp do the work during gigs.

I am strongly considering getting an HD 147.