New to Modeling and Want to Dip my Toe in the Water

[JiveTurkey]

Devils advocate crew notice how no one has suggested the FM3

 

[Achilles]

"because you don't want to da anything that's hard" is an assumption. Maybe I'll forget about modeling then and stick to my amps and pedalboard. I ain't no engineer, and ain't got no time for all that. I spend too much time playing the guitar, bass and piano so ain't got much time at all for building a sound from scratch.

No such thing as plug and play with any of them. Even the QC I suggested before knowing your budget.

The odds of turning one of these things on, choosing a preset, and loving it thru your particular sound system right off the bat
are slim to none. Ever notice how pretty much everyone agrees stock presets (from just about any modeler) aren't very good?

Reading through this thread as it's progressed I'd have to say that I don't recommend any modeler for you.
I don't even think you should even go down that road. You're bagging badly on Headrush but that's well within your budget
range and I had more than enough fun with the one I had for a while because it sounded fine for what it was.

 

[JiveTurkey]

"The odds of turning one of these things on, choosing a preset, and loving it thru your particular sound system right off the bat
are slim to none."


@maguchi ; all of this. No disrespect meant at all. Just take it from a batch of grizzled vets in this space

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

I dunno, guys. Remember: this all started with “hey, that sounds great!” With Apple logic amp plugin. I don’t think his panties bunchbupnquite as easily as most of ours.

 

[maguchi]

Reading through this thread as it's progressed I'd have to say that I don't recommend any modeler for you.
I don't even think you should even go down that road. You're bagging badly on Headrush but that's well within your budget
range and I had more than enough fun with the one I had for a while because it sounded fine for what it was.

"The odds of turning one of these things on, choosing a preset, and loving it thru your particular sound system right off the bat
are slim to none."

OK you talked me out of it. I'll just keep using my amps instead.

No, no, not bagging on Headrush at all. I never even heard how a Headrush sounds. I just thought the "Headflush" nickname posted by @Boudoir Guitar was hilarious , so I laughed at it in a post. Don't even know which company makes Headrush. Like I said earlier, I'm new to modeling.

 

[Achilles]

Don't even know which company makes Headrush. Like I said earlier, I'm new to modeling.

Within your budget and about as plug and play as you're going to get.

$400

$800

 

[mbenigni]

I don't know if we've really established any reason for you to run away from modelers. Agree you can't assume factory presets will work for you. Disagree that picking a couple of blocks to string together to suit your own tastes will be all that difficult. (Unless you buy Fractal - ZING!) You're doing the same thing every time you put a conventional pedalboard together.

Just remember that your choice of physical speaker is going to have a major impact, and you're 90% of the way home. The easiest way to get results that sound and feel like a conventional amp is (get this!) to use a conventional guitar cab.

 

[mbenigni]

No, no, not bagging on Headrush at all. I never even heard how a Headrush sounds.

I thought it was great you picked up on our bad habits so fast. Don't say we didn't teach ya nothin'.

 

[maguchi]

Within your budget and about as plug and play as you're going to get.

$400
View attachment 23464

$800
View attachment 23465

If I buy one and like it and swear by it, can I refer to it as "Headflush" then?

 

[maguchi]

I'm easy to please

View attachment 23379

Just remember that your choice of physical speakers is going to have a major impact, and your 90% of the way home. The easiest way to get results that sound and feel like a conventional amp is (get this!) to use a conventional guitar cab.

I'm gonna try both direct to PA and a guitar cab. I got certified in old school sound reinforcement way back in the late '80s, so I should be able to figure out that part.

 

[MindCrime]

1. Budget $500-$750
2. Live only, for recording will use presets built into DAW
3. Both P.A. speakers and guitar amps
4. Not really a lot, just basics like delay, reverb, chorus, phaser, auto-wah and tremelo
5. Not at first maybe after using it awhile

Something to consider well BELOW your budget...the Line 6 Pod Express. No deep diving, just dial in what you want.
Lots of YT videos on this one !! Brand new for $179.99

 

[maguchi]

Let me stop you right there: "panties in a bunch" is on my "Phrases That Indicate the Rest of This Sentence Can and Probably Should Be Ignored" list.

People with panties in a bunch = not significant, statistically speaking.

I wanna know when the phrase 'panties in a bunch' took on negative connotations, and who was responsible.

I think we've ALL got a bunch in our panties.

I believe this might be a good time to suggest "crotchless panties".

 

[Whizzinby]

Depending on your budget I wouldn’t buy a piece of shit modeler and expect digital to be a revelation, especially coming from amps. (Which is glorious, and what the rock gods intended us to use) Even less so if you’re not an effect-head, which is a big area where digital shines, having all the effects in one house.

If one of the amps trips your trigger, I’d look at one of the UA pedals. Most of their downsides won’t affect you if you aren’t a power user (IE no midi, mobile preset switching etc) but they sound good and are simple to control. If you end up digging that then you can skip the mid tier bullshit and go straight to a QC, Helix, FM/Axe. #GameOver

 

[Achilles]

I’d look at one of the UA pedals.

Whizz wins the internet today!
This is THE suggestion for dipping your toes - a pedal sized/style unit!

Another good one. This gives you the basic Fender, Vox, and Marshall,
but there's 3 cabs to play around with along with a nice enough reverb.

 

[Whizzinby]

Whizz wins the internet today!
This is THE suggestion for dipping your toes - a pedal sized/style unit!

Another good one. This gives you the basic Fender, Vox, and Marshall,
but there's 3 cabs to play around with along with a nice enough reverb.

View attachment 23469

Good shout here too.

 

[maguchi]

Depending on your budget I wouldn’t buy a piece of shit modeler and expect digital to be a revelation, especially coming from amps. (Which is glorious, and what the rock gods intended us to use)

 

[TSJMajesty]

Just do it:

FS - FM3 w/HP jack - $650

Very clean, fully functional FM3 w/headphone output(FW 7.0). It is loaded with a major commercial preset pack. $700 plus S/H/Ins. PayPal G&S for both protection. Also available is the Gator case I bought to travel with it, that has some rough but very functional padding to keep the unit tight...

forum.fractalaudio.com

Doesn't meet all your criteria, but that's an amazing deal, just for the effects alone!

Edit:

Oh, and btw the factory presets and the paid ones he's selling it with, you won't even need to bother creating any, I'd wager my paycheck on.

 

[OrganicZed]

$650 for an FM3 is a really solid deal. I can't recall seeing going for less than that ever. That said, the OP specifically stated that he doesn't want to menu dive. IMO, that rules out Fractal. The plus side is that he could probably make a few hundred flipping it at that price.

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

$650 for an FM3 is a really solid deal. I can't recall seeing going for less than that ever. That said, the OP specifically stated that he doesn't want to menu dive. IMO, that rules out Fractal. The plus side is that he could probably make a few hundred flipping it at that price.

“I don’t want to menu surf”

“Fractal is easy. Just surf on over to the preset menu by hitting that right page button a couple of times and scroll away”

 

[mbenigni]

Oh, and btw the factory presets and the paid ones he's selling it with, you won't even need to bother creating any, I'd wager my paycheck on.

Which is a good thing, because trying to do so would probably kill him.

Seriously though, that is an amazing deal. OP should consider jumping on it if it’s still available.