LINE 6 POD 2.0 [42/97] Black panel

MODELED AMPS & CABS: WHICH AMPS AND CABS ARE MODELED?

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Middle knobs just sitting there. That just didn’t seem right, so we ﬁgured out a

way to put those knobs to work without mucking about with the authenticity of

this Amp Model’s treble tone control. We set up the Bass and Middle as post-

Amp Model controls, which essentially lets you EQ up your tone as you would do

on a mixing console after recording your amp. Set the Bass and Middle knobs at

halfway to put them in “neutral,” and try the Treble knob somewhere above

halfway for a classic Tweed sound.

Tweed Blues - The classic ’59 Fender Bassman 4x10 combo was the amp

that started it all – instant rock and roll tone. Originally a bass guitar amp, the

Bassman became a Blues staple for 6-string guitarists. It has the fat bottom end

you’d expect from a bass amp but also has the Fender twang on the top. The

Bassman was the “blueprint” for POD’s Tweed Blues. Incidentally, when Jim

Marshall built his ﬁrst amps with Ken Bran they were heavily inﬂuenced by the

early Bassman. One of the interesting things about the Bassman is just how

interactive the Mid and Treble controls are. The Mid control isn’t a bandpass, as

in most tone control setups. Instead, it’s almost like a second treble control. The

two are additive, so if you’re running the Middle knob higher than halfway up,

you’ll ﬁnd that the Treble control might give you more bright than you really

want. On the other hand, when you turn the Middle knob down, you’ll probably

want to boost the Treble.

The Bassman, like many of the amps modeled for POD, didn’t have a master

volume. So to get the kind of tone that the Bassman can deliver at higher gain

settings, you had to crank it up loud enough to do some serious damage to anyone

who might be standing close by. With POD, you can get that kind of tone at a

bedroom or studio level – or through your headphones even! Try a Drive setting

of about 4 or 5 – it’s guaranteed to dredge up the best R&B licks you know.

Black Panel - The Holy Grail for many blues, country, and “roots” players

has been a blackface Fender Deluxe Reverb. (Of course, now that POD’s here, that

may all change.) After listening to quite a few candidates for modeling, we

stumbled upon an extremely cool ’64 Deluxe. Most players love a Deluxe when it’s

turned up to about 7 for a nice gritty sound that cleans up when you back off your

guitar’s volume knob just a little. Notice how the tone control response changes as