Modeling guitars, anyone?

[Dennisthe Menace]

Our lead singer owns one. They are not bad, just not 'authentic' sounding. And my God, that guitar sucks batteries like a Caddy sucks gas!!

[vjf1968]

I think that most people approached the guitar as a modeling guitar to achieve authentic guitar sounds which is really a mistake. I feel that any guitar of that nature should be utilized to achieve sounds that are not capable via a standard guitar/amp set up. Bands like Genesis, King Crimson, Yes, Radiohead and their ilk would obviously have way more uses for the modeling functions then say a surf or country band.

It was really an instrument for a niche market. Kudos to Fender and Roland for attempting something new while using a familiar iconic instrument.

[jfine]

When the Line 6 Variax came out I was really intrigued. It looked like a godsend for guys like me who played Top-40. (I still would be, if there were any gigs left.) My impression was that the sounds were decent--some were really cool (the sitar was lots of fun)--but the dynamics left a lot to be desired. I felt like I was playing through a compressor that was sucking out the pick attack--everything felt slightly delayed, and my picking dynamics weren't coming through very well. So, nice try, close but no cigar--if it doesn't respond like a guitar, it doesn't matter how cool the sounds are--I can't use it.