Should I upgrade my interface? (Line 6 POD Studio GX)

[AkiraSpectrum]

Was wondering if I would get better performance and sound quality if I upgrade my Line 6 POD Studio GX to something like a Universal Audio Volt 1.

Line 6 POD Studio GX specs:

Line 6 - POD Studio GX

Line 6 - POD Studio GX

www.long-mcquade.com

UA Volt 1 specs:

Universal Audio - Volt 1 USB Audio Interface

Universal Audio - Volt 1 USB Audio Interface

www.long-mcquade.com

thank you!

 

[Matt08642]

I feel like my main concern would be drivers. From what I remember that GX is like 10+ years old, so if you end up upgrading operating systems in the future, L6 might not put out new drivers.

That being said, you could pick up the UA from L&M, test it for a few days, and return if there's no difference/you don't feel it's worth it.

I went with a MOTU when I upgraded, not much more expensive and highly recommended: https://www.long-mcquade.com/158312...USB-Audio-Interface.htm?ref=suggestive-search

Basically 0 latency, and they constantly release driver updates.

 

[downtunesaddict]

I've understood that the volt can adjust your input when using very hot pickups, it may be a great improvement, compared to the line6 stuff which is pretty old, right now. I've purchased the volt 2, have to test it with a X2N loaded guitar to check this

 

[owlexifry]

Was wondering if I would get better performance and sound quality if I upgrade my Line 6 POD Studio GX to something like a Universal Audio Volt 1.

Line 6 POD Studio GX specs:

Line 6 - POD Studio GX

Line 6 - POD Studio GX

www.long-mcquade.com

UA Volt 1 specs:

Universal Audio - Volt 1 USB Audio Interface

Universal Audio - Volt 1 USB Audio Interface

www.long-mcquade.com

thank you!

i was using a pod gx for the longest time until just last year. it just works and never failed me.
but i wanted to upgrade. i wanted less noise.

so for an upgrade, with so many options promising XYZ, idk, after reading all the spec sheets, to me it looked like the budget stuff is all the same shit with different marketing budgets.

by budget stuff i mean, focusrite scarlett, motu m2, UA volt, audient, etc.

eventually just settled on a focusrite 2i2 because it's cheap, does the job, and for quick pre-pro demos, it doesn't need to be 'the best'.

if anything, having a proper preamp / interface that allows the user to control the input gain is enough of a win in itself (over the line6 GX).
and just about every audio interface will do this.
less noise is nice too

 

[ESPDave]

I highly recommend upgrading from the Line 6. I upgraded from the older UX2 which was no longer supported by Line 6. I went with the UA Apollo Twin, huge difference in quality but my line 6 interface was also almost 20 years old. The Apollo has a built in cpu to power the UAD plugins that the Volt can't use and also has thunderbolt/usb-c for lower latency. The UAD plugins are amazing, I use the ENGL Savage and it sounds very close to my actual Savage.

 

[AkiraSpectrum]

I feel like my main concern would be drivers. From what I remember that GX is like 10+ years old, so if you end up upgrading operating systems in the future, L6 might not put out new drivers.

That being said, you could pick up the UA from L&M, test it for a few days, and return if there's no difference/you don't feel it's worth it.

I went with a MOTU when I upgraded, not much more expensive and highly recommended: https://www.long-mcquade.com/158312...USB-Audio-Interface.htm?ref=suggestive-search

Basically 0 latency, and they constantly release driver updates.

Yeah I know line 6 has drivers for win 10 (which I'm using on my main PC) and it works well but my guess is that they wont be updating drivers going forward.

Yeah I just grabbed the UA Volt 1 from L&M. Hoping to test it out tonight!

I've understood that the volt can adjust your input when using very hot pickups, it may be a great improvement, compared to the line6 stuff which is pretty old, right now. I've purchased the volt 2, have to test it with a X2N loaded guitar to check this

I've never had issues with clipping on my GX, although, I don't have very many super hot pickups, so that might be why.
I just got the Volt 1 and will be testing it today to see if I can get better performance and slightly better sound quality.

i was using a pod gx for the longest time until just last year. it just works and never failed me.
but i wanted to upgrade. i wanted less noise.

so for an upgrade, with so many options promising XYZ, idk, after reading all the spec sheets, to me it looked like the budget stuff is all the same shit with different marketing budgets.

by budget stuff i mean, focusrite scarlett, motu m2, UA volt, audient, etc.

eventually just settled on a focusrite 2i2 because it's cheap, does the job, and for quick pre-pro demos, it doesn't need to be 'the best'.

if anything, having a proper preamp / interface that allows the user to control the input gain is enough of a win in itself (over the line6 GX).
and just about every audio interface will do this.
less noise is nice too

Yeah right! My GX I've had for well over 10 years and its always just 'worked' for me without issue.

I've never had an issue with noise but I've had issues with latency. Sometimes i'll get pops etc. when playing.

Yeah it seems as though most of the main options offer very comparable options with very minute differences. That said, based on reviews and from what I've seen, most seem to suggest UA volt nudges out the focusrite scarlett gen 3.

In the end I'm hoping I can get better performance (low latency without popping/cut-outs) and perhaps slightly better audio quality (96 khz in GX vs. 192khz in Volt ).

I highly recommend upgrading from the Line 6. I upgraded from the older UX2 which was no longer supported by Line 6. I went with the UA Apollo Twin, huge difference in quality but my line 6 interface was also almost 20 years old. The Apollo has a built in cpu to power the UAD plugins that the Volt can't use and also has thunderbolt/usb-c for lower latency. The UAD plugins are amazing, I use the ENGL Savage and it sounds very close to my actual Savage.

Cool!
Yeah, supposedly the sample rate is higher on the Volt 192 khz vs. GX's 96 khz and supposedly the UA Volt's have really good preamps and converters for the price.

The way I figure it, a new UA Volt should have a better preamp and converter than my 10+ year old Line 6 GX, so hopefully that leads to a noticeable difference in performance and maybe even sound.

 

[AkiraSpectrum]

UPDATE:

Performance: Big improvement.

Sound Quality: Improved. One issue I had with the old Line 6 POD Studio GX was that it always had a 'dullness' to it, especially noticeable in the lows and highs and the 'attack'. That issue is now gone.


Very happy with my purchase of the UA Volt 1. Good price, good quality unit.

 

[ezboarderz]

i have used the UAD volt and its ok. The headphone output is pretty garbage though. The preamps could be better and dont compare to the apollo series.

I personally needed a 4 input audio interface (guitar DI, raw amp DI, Stereo Guitar Inputs from my load box/IR Loader) and the best option honestly is a used apogee quartet. If you dont need 4 inputs, im sure one of the cheaper ones will suffice or even a used UAD arrow/apollo can be found for a similar price.

It gets you really really good DI input and the mic preamps are awesome. You should be able to snag a used one for something like $500 or so depending where you are.