Spider Valve

[hippietim]

Thursday I got a call from GC that they had the 1x12 combo in. So I went that evening to try it out. This amp is hilariously cool! No shit. This thing is really a fantastic amp. I tried it out with a PRS and a Tele (might have to buy the Tele but that's another post).

At no time did I feel like I was playing through a POD. Occasional patches gave you the sense that you were playing through a nice amp with a cheeseball effect setting (just like if you dialed up a cheesy effect setting on your Eventide).

The amp sounds great clean, crunchy, dirty, and *really* dirty. It is loud - plenty of headroom for sure. Some of the presets are really great - and some suck of course.

Modelers often neuter your guitar but plugging in a Tele vs. a humbucker equipped PRS really made a difference. A clean "Nashville" patch with a Tele sounded like it ought to. A crunch patch with a Tele sounded greasy and nasty. The same patch rounded out nicely with the PRS.

The effects are fine - hopefully there is a way to do more tweaking than is readily apparent. The reverb was a bit weak but I don't use much reverb anyhow.

I ended up picking up the combo and the shortboard. I've been out of town for the last couple days so I haven't plugged in at home yet - that comes today - I'm interested in hearing the wah and how the foot controller works out.

[scotty]

Thanks for the review.

[semagic]

thanx for the review, i played the 1x12 sat at g.c. i thought it sounded good, in fact i'll buy the 1x12 in a month or so. if anyone is intrested in the spider III 1x12 it will be in the classifieds soon...

[Axewielder]

Interesting! I mess around with a POD from time to time, and I've noticed the "neutering" effect. If I record the same track using the Marshall patch with my WR1 (custom custom pup) and my King V (JB pup), they sound very similar and the subtle differences are stripped away. Sounds like a major improvement with the Valve in that area?

[daisp]

Cool, been thinking about the head...

[Racerx2k]

Interesting, as I've read reviews, where others have said they thought it sounded sterile. Hmm...

[Fretburner]

Pretty cool clips here: http://www.line6.com/spidervalve/tour.html

[chrisolson]

I tried one out today. I'm still VERY happy with my decision to pre-order the head. It sounded great and was LOUD!!! I can't imagine what a 100 watt head with a closed bcak cab is gonna be like...

[deflep]

Pretty cool clips here: http://www.line6.com/spidervalve/tour.html

The clips sound good but unless you hear this live you'll never know if it actually sounds warm enough to compete with a real tube amp.....definitely curious ..

[toejam]

The clips sound good but unless you hear this live you'll never know if it actually sounds warm enough to compete with a real tube amp.....definitely curious ..

Uh, it is a real tube amp.

[hippietim]

I got some playing time with mine yesterday. I hooked up the floorboard which is definitely a must to take full advantage of this thing. The Wah is good but it won't make you want to sell your vintage Vox or anything.

I tried it with a H-S-H Strat for a good while and it worked really great. Switching pickups actually mattered - you could distinctly here the singles vs. the humbuckers. The amp "feels" right unlike past modeling amps I've used.

The effects are not very tweakable - I was hoping there'd be deeper editing by playing Twister with the buttons and knobs but no such luck. I would give the effects a C+ over all - they sound good but the inability to dial them in is a let down.

It has an effects loop but it has no MIDI support. So you can't have one foot controller switch amp patches and an external effects unit at the same time. You also can't switch the loop on/off either.

So as a grab and go rig with average effects I think this is a great setup.

[lhrocker]

Can you use the Spider valve with a FBV longboard also?

[jgcable]

I am totally happy with my Vetta but I would be interested in a Vetta Valve. The Spyder series doesn't have enough editing features for me.
Sounds like a real nice grab and go amp though.
Its also nice to see a company that actually listens and responds to its customers.

[hippietim]

Can you use the Spider valve with a FBV longboard also?

I would think so - it isn't mentioned specifically in the manual. I'd guess that some of the buttons will just have no effect though.

[Robotechnology]

I very much liked the preset called Still Of The Night. Yes the amp sounds better that a Spider III. Is it me or are the presets on the combo's dialed in for a closed back cab? The bass response on HALF of the presets is just as flubby or flubbier than a Mesa Mark or Recto with the bass control set on 10 I like 3 of the 12 amp model tones. The rest not so much. For the money after you tweak the eq for a clearer sound out of the combo's you can't go wrong though. It's a question of budget. I think Line 6 has raised the bar for the $999 and under amp range. If I was just starting out today or doing my first amp upgrade, a Spider Valve is probably what I'd get.