Line 6 POD X3 Live or Boss GT-10 ??

[rocker41]

Hi group, I just ordered me a gt-10 and am hoping I will be happy with it. I know no one has heard much except what boss has leaked to us but I was wondering if I could pick your brain. I have been using a tone lab desktop and love it but find it limiting on effects also I own the digitech rp350 and it is ok in some ways also but not quite the sound I am looking for, so I decided to upgrade (hopefully). I thougth about the line 6 pod x3 live and was wondering if any of you have tried it that currently own the boss gt-8 and how it compared.

I currently own a marshall jvm410 and I love it, some may not but that is a different discussion. I plan to try the gt-10 with the four wire method and am really excited and waiting for it to ship. I am also thinking if there is something I may be missing in the same price range maybe you guys could give me a little direction.

Thanks for any feedback

[amenity421]

Hey dude!

Try EVERYTHING!!!!! its all a matter of taste.....


Drag your rig to guitar center and try everything out.


T

[lp_bruce]

Hey dude!

Try EVERYTHING!!!!! its all a matter of taste.....


Drag your rig to guitar center and try everything out.


T

Agreed. I tried the new Pod and thought is sounded like the old one, and I've never really cared for its tones. Also tried the other competition, and wound up with a GT-8. I think you should try out as much as you can so can because everyone's needs/tastes/ears are different. I know it's common sense that gets repeated here a lot (I'm certainly guilty of it), but it's the truth.

Peace,

[Newysurfer]

Agreed. I tried the new Pod and thought is sounded like the old one, and I've never really cared for its tones. Also tried the other competition, and wound up with a GT-8. I think you should try out as much as you can so can because everyone's needs/tastes/ears are different. I know it's common sense that gets repeated here a lot (I'm certainly guilty of it), but it's the truth.

Peace,

+1 :horns:

[frenchfries]

I'd tend to say "try everything" because I use Boss AND Line6 for a long time.
This said, there's a problem with the X3: the hardware seems to be of a variable and... "discussible" quality. For example, I've bought myself a X3L and at home, I've realized that the pressure of my foot was heavy enough to make the patches change randomly. Line6 has designed a firmware update (!) to solve this trouble. But I don't know if the hardware has been improved in factory and I won't buy another X3L before to to be sure of it (I've returned the first unit to the shop; anyway, the loop wasn't useable in 4CM in my case while it works well in my GT8).

[darcym]

Pretty hard to comment on a product thats not been released yet.

[lp_bruce]

Pretty hard to comment on a product thats not been released yet.

Yeah, I think a lot of talk about the GT-10 is premature. The only one here who has played through one (I think) is Radley, and that was at NAMM, so it's not like he was able to really kick it around.

Peace,

[greggpj]

While I cannot comment on the GT-10 vs. the xt3 Live, I can comment on GT-8 vs. xt Live. I after hearing the GT-8 and seeing all of its features, I sold all of my POD gear and went with the GT-8. The huge drawback for me in going from POD to GT-8 was the online editing and computer interface. But the other features were so compelling and the tone was so incredible that I was willing to forgo the ease in creating tones. Plus I found that the POD tones were not balanced at all – one can be very soft and the other very loud with very little way to adjust the two. That was a hug bummer for me. Now comes the GT-10 with a much better tone creation interface and an easier hookup to the computer. If they leave the tones the same, that will be enough for me. Line 6 was good for a time, but they are being surpassed by Boss in a big way.

[ash1]

i think boss is so far behind line 6 its pretty shocking really how can they bring out a gt10 that sounds just like my gt8 are you serious .

[Newysurfer]

Pretty hard to comment on a product thats not been released yet.

C'mom Darcym - its been hapenning here for weeks. Endless speculation about an imaginary product is routine business for many. Why stop now :icon16:

[wxs3]

While I cannot comment on the GT-10 vs. the xt3 Live, I can comment on GT-8 vs. xt Live. I after hearing the GT-8 and seeing all of its features, I sold all of my POD gear and went with the GT-8. The huge drawback for me in going from POD to GT-8 was the online editing and computer interface. But the other features were so compelling and the tone was so incredible that I was willing to forgo the ease in creating tones. Plus I found that the POD tones were not balanced at all – one can be very soft and the other very loud with very little way to adjust the two. That was a hug bummer for me. Now comes the GT-10 with a much better tone creation interface and an easier hookup to the computer. If they leave the tones the same, that will be enough for me. Line 6 was good for a time, but they are being surpassed by Boss in a big way.


I have to agree with greg here. I found the gt-8 while looking for a Marshall Modern vintage review on you tube. While I was temporally satisfied with my Pod Pro, I saw a number of guys using the GT-8. Then I saw Rob Marcello's demo on youtube and had to have it. I have since sold my pod pro and have my 2.0 pod on ebay currently. The GT-8 without a doubt, smokes line 6 in effects, type of amp models, types of applications, effects etc. Boss has done a GREAT job with the GT-8, I can only imagine what the GT-10 sounds like. For now, I love the 8!!!

[ZaKoR]

C'mom Darcym - its been hapenning here for weeks. Endless speculation about an imaginary product is routine business for many. Why stop now :icon16:

I think it's wise to consider imminent products when making a purchase decision. Etc.

There is nothing wrong with speculation on a NON-imaginary product which has probably been under production for a good month now. IMHO

It is speculation but it's based on the evolution of an established product line and an Owner’s Manual which outlines the features in a detailed way. Not exactly pie in the sky. :icon_tongue:

[wilkinsi]

On comparison of the GT-8 vs. X3 Live, I'd say the Boss is actually the easier and flexible for my needs. I might be concluding a little early as I've only had the X3L a few days.

[orcatraz]

i think boss is so far behind line 6 its pretty shocking really how can they bring out a gt10 that sounds just like my gt8 are you serious .

What is it exactly that makes Boss so far behind Line 6?

[lp_bruce]

i think boss is so far behind line 6 its pretty shocking really how can they bring out a gt10 that sounds just like my gt8 are you serious .

In what way? Personally, I think the GT-8 is ahead of the new Pod (to my ears), so I'll be curious to see where the GT-10 takes it.

Peace,

[wilkinsi]

In what way? Personally, I think the GT-8 is ahead of the new Pod (to my ears), so I'll be curious to see where the GT-10 takes it.

Peace,

+1. This X3L is starting to piss me off. A few tantrums later and I might be able to get it to do what I want. So far, it seems to be restrictive. For example, you can't have more than 1 mod effect at one time, and chorus is classed as one. On the GT-8, you have an independant chorus PLUS TWO FX blocks. I'm gonna keep battling with it til next week.

[microwerx]

So are the switches on the Line X3 Live squeeky? I tried it out in the store and those thinks were squeeking pretty bad. I originally thought that they were supposed to be Carling type switches until I felt them. What is your personal experience?

[wilkinsi]

You might've just got a naff one. I don't get any squeaks from mine.

[guitarkirb]

i think boss is so far behind line 6 its pretty shocking really how can they bring out a gt10 that sounds just like my gt8 are you serious .

The same way Line 6 can come out with another incarnation of basically the same POD technology that really doesn't sound fundamentally different.

IMHO of course...

[orcatraz]

The same way Line 6 can come out with another incarnation of basically the same POD technology that really doesn't sound fundamentally different.

IMHO of course...

Well...maybe "more of the same" is to some, an improvement. :icon12:

[orcatraz]

+1. This X3L is starting to piss me off. A few tantrums later and I might be able to get it to do what I want. So far, it seems to be restrictive. For example, you can't have more than 1 mod effect at one time, and chorus is classed as one. On the GT-8, you have an independant chorus PLUS TWO FX blocks. I'm gonna keep battling with it til next week.

Dude, you're smarter than I am. I banged my head against the wall for 8 months before I sold the XT Live. I just kept thinking that "there's a pony in here somewhere". Sometimes I'm such a stubborn old dork. :confused:

[nas]

I have the GT-8 and the Line6 POD xt Pro. Im playing over 15years on various amps and stomp´s. If you guys searching a Good Healthy Preamp/Distortion tone
then there is nothing better than line6 stuff, in the effects section the GT-8 is little better.
sry just my opinion.

[robmartino]

I've been closely comparing the Boss GT-10 and POD X3 Live as effects solutions for my Chapman Stick setup. Up to this point I've been using a rack of old Boss effects (a pair of GX-700s and SE-70s, some of which are starting to get flaky) and using one of each for each side of the Stick, so I can do some parallel processing sounds. It's great that some of these newer units are allowing this dual effects approach.

One advantage (for me at least) of the POD is that it has two instrument inputs, I could get away with using one floorboard for simple gigs and have an effects chain for each side of the Stick. The POD also has two completely separate effects chains, while the new Boss has dual path but only one set of effects to arrange in the paths (before, after, or in one of the chains). So for example you couldn't have two different reverbs or different comps without using FX1/FX2 for one of them. On the other hand, as someone else pointed out, you can only have one mod effect on the POD in a chain at once, so once you use it for chorus that's it (and I tend to use other things like auto wah, slow gear, etc.)

But ultimately I'll probably want a pair of floorboards to achieve dual chain for each set of pickups, and in that case the Boss GT-10/GT-10B combination looks like the most flexible... I'm already used to the Boss sound and effects architecture, the parameters and assigning switches to different functions seems a lot more tweakable, and I like how you can switch between the two channels based on playing dynamics. It also allows smooth preset changes by maintaining reverb/delay tails, which is important for live playing. Effects are more important to me than amp/speaker modeling, and I didn't like the sound of the original bean POD but perhaps there have been improvements since then in quality, I'll just have to compare side by side when the GT-10 comes out.

There is also the possibility of going all out and getting a pair of VG-99 but that would get quite expensive (two units and installing two GK-3s on my Stick).

[wilkinsi]

Bah! I can't alter the FX chain on the X3L like I can on the GT-8. This POS is going back to the shop.

[lp_bruce]

I'll just have to compare side by side when the GT-10 comes out.

That's what it should come down to, in my mind. I play the GT-8 because it sounds the best, and most real, to me (using all features in exclusively live situations). Features and flexibility are nice too, but I'm primarily interested in tone.

But I know guys that I really enjoy as players who use Line6 or other MFX solutions. I think it's possible to get good tone from any one of the GT-8's primary competitors.

Peace,

[Kassanova]

MFXs are like pretty girls; people gravitate to different ones based on their preferences. I happen to prefer the Boss sound over the Line 6 sound and also over the Digitech sound. I like the "warmth" of the Vox units but since the head (AD120VTH) based on the same technology, I don't need a Tonelab MFX. If I wanted to go without amp/cab modelers, in my opinion, Boss/Roland is the only one that would cover all of my needs in a standalone unit (aside from the Axe-FX Ultra, but that's like a movie star - lots of men want her but she's out of the league of many). I have nothing against Digitech per se. I liked the samples I heard of the GSP1101. It sounds like a winner. If I am going to go with a rack/ft. controller setup however, I'd go with a VG-99. Its highly impressive to me even though it sounds a little artificial to my ears when using the GK3 pickup. Still, I'd rather have one if I were spending that kind of money. I'm going to check out the new players in the game as well - T.C. Nova, StompIO, etc. but I'll probably still end up with the Boss. Flexibility is too important for me to be crippled by a unit.

[minstreel]

What already has been said: it's all about taste. Today I just sold my xt-live, I've had it for almost a year and haven't used it at all. Just played through a bunch of presets, but the in my ears my GT-8 left it way behind.
A couple of years ago I've had a Flextone II XL amp. Their website convinced me to buy one, but the result was a big disapointment. The sounds of my previous set-up (Marshall VS8280 + GT-5) was much better, both in sound and flexibility and luckily enough I still had it and immediately sold the Flextone.
I think that the succes of the Line6 products can be contributed to their excellent website and marketing. The website can convince you to buy one of their products, which is from their point of view a good thing. Boss could do much better on that respect; a virtuoso like Rob Marcello catches the interest from guitarists for the GT-8/10. Maybe that the Boss-website in a while can compete with the Line6-site.

TJ mentioned a few months ago that, when going from one patch to another on the xt-live as well as the X3Live the change in sound is very abrupt, not at all smoothly as on the GT-8. A few months ago I visited a demonstration of the X3-live and could clearly hear what TJ mentioned.

[64Hymn]

MFXs are like pretty girls; people gravitate to different ones based on their preferences. I happen to prefer the Boss sound over the Line 6 sound and also over the Digitech sound. I like the "warmth" of the Vox units but since the head (AD120VTH) based on the same technology, I don't need a Tonelab MFX. If I wanted to go without amp/cab modelers, in my opinion, Boss/Roland is the only one that would cover all of my needs in a standalone unit (aside from the Axe-FX Ultra, but that's like a movie star - lots of men want her but she's out of the league of many). I have nothing against Digitech per se. I liked the samples I heard of the GSP1101. It sounds like a winner. If I am going to go with a rack/ft. controller setup however, I'd go with a VG-99. Its highly impressive to me even though it sounds a little artificial to my ears when using the GK3 pickup. Still, I'd rather have one if I were spending that kind of money. I'm going to check out the new players in the game as well - T.C. Nova, StompIO, etc. but I'll probably still end up with the Boss. Flexibility is too important for me to be crippled by a unit.


Interesting analogy! Yes, pretty girls are nice... but in the end, the one's that are more "flexible" ARE more fun...

Okay, enough inuendos here. I have been a Line 6 owner for 3 years... I would have imagined that I would have gravitated to the X3, however I was becoming more and more dissatisfied with their products. The GT10 is far superior, not only in build... but in flexablity and sound. However, to each his own...

Do your comparisons, then head to GC and play each... oops, I forgot to mention, the WON'T let you play the X3... afraid it might get torn up!

For me, I chose the GT10.

[Ricig]

I know that I can trust BOSS. For me, peace of mind = BOSS. It's like i've grown up with them, I understand how their stuff works and how to operate it. If someone were to take a shot at me, i'd use the GT-10 as a shield. They've earned some brand loyalty with me.

I'm experienced enough to realize marketing is just marketing and i'll make a buy decision based upon everything BUT what the marketing says. I trust BOSS to not lay an egg with their next generation product (unlike "New Coke").

With all the freaking variables there are in the tone equation, it's not even worth trying to split hairs over the tone of each individual unit. None of us have the same ears anyway. High tone potential exists on all but the very worst of gear, but still, in the wrong hands can be made to sound like poop.

So given the closeness of the tone factor between like products across big league manufacturers, I really give more weight now to the other intrinsic qualities... other than tone....peace of mind, flexibility, versatility, personal experience, price.

Will this unit empower me to create? Are it's tools well thought out and thoroughly put together? More importantly, can I teach it to fish? (i.e. what is the probability I will be able to coax a sound from it that i haven't even thought of yet?)...or will it just hand me a deliciously prepared Bass, Haddock, Trout, Salmon, etc. and hope that i don't make any special requests from the Chef the next time around?

Sorry to blabber on. It's such a tired subject for me, yet I have so many thoughts on it and i still get passionate about it.

For me, it is becoming less and less about the particlular "tone of any unit" and more about "could I make it sound the way i want or or could I make it do what i want"? Quite frankly, I don't even know what I want sometimes other than "good tone". So in the end for me, it's the promise of empowerment that I find most appealing. That will clinch a buy decision for me. It is then my fault i figure, if i can't employ the tools in the manner necessary to achieve the right sound for me.

[lp_bruce]

Ricig >> No reason to apologize about going on. I feel the same way. BOSS has a well earned reputation for reliability. I never have to worry about their gear puking on me, which is huge (to me).

Peace,

[yaront]

Just got the GT-10 yesterday... I already have an X3 Live.
I'll be tweaking like crazy for the next 2 weeks to figure which one stays.

I'll post my results...

[timowens]

Hi Yaront,

I did the same thing, I started out with an X3L and then got a GT-10 (I still have both). Without trying to influence your findings, I'm looking forward hearing your comments on how they compare and which one you'll be keeping. It would also be helpful to know what kind of music you play (the kind of tone you’re looking for) and what kind of rig you’re running them into (FRFR, 4Cm, guitar amp input, etc.).

Tim

[gt8joe]

I also currently have both the GT-10 and X3L. The only problem I'm having with the GT-10 is that I can not get a high quality hi-gain (disturbed/godsmack) type sound out of it also the crunch setting are a bit harsh but you can fix that with a eq setting. Everything else about it is great; it's built like a tank, and I always like being able to just hit the ctrl pedal and have eight different assigns happen at once.

[yaront]

timowens, I'll write as soon as I feel confident enough comparing them. I'll detail the rigs I used as well as my experience and what I'm looking for.

It'll be a fully featured best seller I tell ya...

So far I had the X3 for a while and I got used to it, so I'm doing the same with the GT. I haven't hooked up the X3 in 3 days :-)
Once I familiarize myself totally with the GT I'll start comparing.

Though I have a feeling my ultimate say to everyone will be "go hear for yourself" :icon15: