Line 6 Variax series 1 - worth the effort?

[BillB]

I inherited a Line 6 Variax 500, which is the first series, without additional pickups. I quite like the general size, weight and feel of it. I also like the principle of ‘many modelled guitars in one’ but accept that it must be a bit of a jack of all trades, and master of none - especially with first generation DSP. I should add that I also have a Vox Custom 25 from the eighties, which is a good general rock guitar, covering Les Paul to Strat type sounds due to some smart pickup switching
https://www.muzines.co.uk/articles/vox- ... uitar/3630
I say this without having a Les Paul or Strat to compare against!

I have been hankering after some more mellow tones, and am thinking Gibson 335-alike. The Variax has a 335 (and other hollow-top) emulations which sound OK to my ears, but again, I have nothing to compare to.

The other thing I have noticed about the Variax is that it is a bit like playing cheeswire close to the nut - which is just not the case for the Vox or my old acoustic (Eko) guitar. So I guess the slots in the nut are a bit high.

So what I am wondering, is it worth thinking about re-filing the nut of the Variax to get a lower action near the nut (and assuming this would need to be part of a full setup) or would I be better off just looking elsewhere for a 2nd hand 335 clone (Aria, Epiphone, Vintage etc). Does anyone have experience of Variax ‘hollow’ tones versus budget 335 guitars? My skills don’t deserve anything special, but playable with a nice mellow sound would be good. Budget… some hundred pounds, although no money currently set aside or negotiated with my better half.

All thoughts welcome.

[adrian_k]

FWIW I tried the first series Variax a couple of times when they first came out. I was in a function band and the idea of have a rack of different guitars all in one was very appealing.

The first time was at a trade show and hard to get a real sense of it but it seemed thin and gutless. Second was in Andertons. I couldn’t get a sound I liked out of any of the settings. I gave it to the sales guy and asked him what he thought. To his credit he said he wouldn’t buy it.

If you do go ahead with it don’t just file the nut slots down, either do, or get done, a proper setup.

I would say if you want a 335 sound get a 335 style guitar. I would say that though because that’s what I did.

[BillB]

Thank you, Adrian, good to know. I have very little point of reference in judging guitar sounds - having had the same electric and acoustic since the eighties!

[N i g e l]

If the "series 1" had a workbench app, it might be worthwhile installing it and seeing what can be fiddled with. For tone reference there are probably a ton of uTubes about this.

On my lJTV, i believe the computer pick up is a piezo on the bridge, which affects palm muting.

[Kwackman]

The Variax has a 335 (and other hollow-top) emulations which sound OK to my ears

That's all that matters.
Lower the nut slots (or get someone to do it) and enjoy.

[BillB]

Nigel, it seems that the software is still available on the Line 6 website, though until tested, I won’t know. If it will work, worth giving it a try, though.

Kwackman, yes true, but I don’t know how far the Variax is from the quality and tone of a 335 clone. Ignorance may be bliss but… it would be good to have some sense of the quality gap from folks who may have that experience.

[Wonks]

I know LPs and 335s and Strats (among many others) but the only Variax I've ever played was the first acoustic one. So I can't help with any sound comparisons.

If you like the sound(s) it makes, then I wouldn't worry too much about how authentic each sound is. There are plenty of Strat pickups that don't sound like vintage Strat pickups, but they still produce perfectly valid Strat sounds. Same for all the other classic guitar sounds.

So if it sounds OK, then get it set up properly.

Otherwise, go and find a guitar shop with a decent selection of guitars, and try some out to see what some of them can sound like. Or do that regardless of what you do with the Variax.

[forumuser667905]

I still own one of the original Variax 500 series guitars [well, sort of - I ripped the guts out of it and stuck them in a Strat body - it looks kind of cool ] and I honestly don't get why other manufacturers have not piled into the whole 'pickup modelling' thing in the same way that they have for the amp modelling thing.... Given just how wonderfully nerdy you can get with swapping pickups in/out of a guitar, it seems odd to me that it never caught on....

Anyway, my modded Variax still uses the original Yamaha neck and, yup, with a bit of DIY setting up (nut slots included), I find it really very nice to play.... and I think the range of tones you can get out of it are actually pretty good.... certainly close enough in character for me to mimic guitars that I could justify buying for just occasional use.....

Not sure if that helps but good luck and enjoy if you do decide to take a punt...

Very best wishes, John

[Music Wolf]

I owned a later model Variax, the JTV69S. That's the James Tyler 'Strat' model with three single coils in addition to the piezo bridge. This must have been more than a decade ago as I had it paired with my Line6 POD500HD modeller.

I'm not a traditionalist, I'm very open to the idea of using new tech when it comes to guitar. I have a couple of piezo equipped electric guitars, I record and gig with modellers (I have a Kemper and a Helix), I use IRs to get acoustic sounds from electric guitars and I add keyboard sounds via effects such as the Boss SY300 and EHX B9. The Variax, despite being a nice concept, just didn't cut it I'm afraid.

The JVT69S was heavy, even without the battery (I was powering it from my POD500HD).

The alternate tunings only really work if your amplified sound is so loud as to drown out the acoustic sound of the strings. Even playing through headphones you could still hear the natural, un-pitch shifted, sound.

Acoustic and 12 string sounds were particularly poor.

It felt as though there was a very slight lag when playing modelled sounds.

I did gig with the guitar for a while but, tellingly, the only time that I ever used it on a recording was in order to get a Sitar sound.

[Wonks]

So, the only real solution is to increase the size of your guitar collection. There is no alternative.

You both help the musical retail industry and become a more fulfilled person.

[BillB]

So, the only real solution is to increase the size of your guitar collection. There is no alternative.

You both help the musical retail industry and become a more fulfilled person.

At last, advice that really speaks to me!

Actually I am torn, a bit like the advice here. Part of me thinks that I should make the instruments I have as good as they can be (curation) by spending some money on a decent setup. However, the GAS-fueled greedy monkey in me wants a a new guitar! I have seen what look like some very nice ones around the £350 mark, and that's without talking to local-ish guitar shops to see what they have.

What I think I will do is to have a really careful listen to the models I am interested in on the Variax and see how clear and artefact-free I think they are, before deciding which way to go. I have found that there is a guitar set-up shop in Hull (nearest large town) so that opens up options in that direction.

Thanks for all your thoughts, really interesting to see the different takes on Variax. Any others are welcome.

[Drew Stephenson]

I have a Variax acoustic 700. Had it since they came out and always been very happy with it - as have the many punters who have commented on my guitar sound* over the years.
Have never felt the need for any tweaking or fettling to the set up.
There is a bit of latency as you move further from the basic models, and yes you can still hear the original notes if you're using the alternative tunings and don't have decent monitoring. But I found these easy things to learn to play through and definitely worth the effort for the advantages.
Never tried one of the 'electric' models though.

* Sound, not playing...

[Wonks]

A bit of latency gives the audience a small head start to get out whilst the going's good.

[BillB]

A bit of latency gives the audience a small head start to get out whilst the going's good.

I was checking out its sounds over the weekend on headphones, and some of the custom sounds, set up by previous owner(s) have alternative tunings. I had to take the headphones off to hear the 'real' notes versus the alternate notes. This would be a quite a strong feature for someone who likes alternate tunings. As for me, I struggle with just conventional tuning, without introducing alternatives to keep track of.

[Stratman57]

I have a left handed Variax 500, they never did a LH version of the ones with magnetic pickups. I find the modelled versions of the strats and teles to be the most authentic sounding. I also found the acoustic guitar simulations quite usable, didn't use the banjo one but did use the coral sitar one a couple of times. Unfortunately the firmware didn't support individual string muting so Keith Richards 5 string open G wasn't possible.

I now have a Boss VG-800, which does allow this along with a lot of other things impossible to do with the Variax.

Regards, Simon.

[Drew Stephenson]

A bit of latency gives the audience a small head start to get out whilst the going's good.

I don't always use the banjo setting...

[Wonks]

A bit of latency gives the audience a small head start to get out whilst the going's good.

I don't always use the banjo setting...

I hope you give fair warning when you're about to.

[Drew Stephenson]

I believe that's required by the Geneva Convention.

[Wonks]

[BillB]

BANJO!
I knew there was a good reason for holding on to the Variax! Thanks for reminding me, Drew.

[Wonks]

BANJO!
I knew there was a good reason for holding on to the Variax! Thanks for reminding me, Drew.

Only two days until bonfire night!

[BillB]

Banjo and fireworks? It's an interesting cultural combination.

[Wonks]

Banjos and bonfires are a match made in heaven.

[Sam Spoons]

Isn't the definition of 'A Gentleman'; "someone who knows how to play the banjo, but doesn't"?

[Wonks]

That’s bagpipes. A gentleman would never know how to play a banjo in the first place.