Please note that those are my impressions and therefore very subjective.
So, first of all, a premise that makes the difference already in practical terms.
The electric guitars, any electric guitar, as we all know, uses magnets that capture the variation of the magnetic field induced by the speed of the string vibration.The attack response of the note will depend on the chosen pickup (for me, for example, Di Marzio’s have a faster attack than Duncan’s, which I prefer, but it is a matter of taste, and I'm sure others feel differently).
However, this guitar captures the vibrations of the string using the built-in bridge piezo. That means, in practical terms, a very quick attack that does not already own makes it possible to "simulate" correctly an electric guitar. I would have preferred an electric guitar, I would have preferred a hex magnetic pickup such as the one used by Roland, it is slower, but it already gives more the idea of the type of response you get from the traditional pickups. One trick i’ve used, as i’ve mentioned elsewhere, it is to use the goretex coated elixir strings, the material deadens the attack a bit so it makes thing s a bit better.
When I talked to my luthier and other experts in the field, I have also been pointed out that, since a a piezo has been used, the influence that instrument underneath may have doesn’t really makes such a difference, it could be even possible that will influence the response in a negative way.So, spending much money (the 700 or the newer models do not come cheap), does not really make much sense unless you do not do the routing for the two humbuckers and thus have a mixed system, like they have done with the recent products.It would be much wiser to buy 300 model or, for aesthetics,the 600 Model that also sports a tremolo system.Some people even went as far as buyng new bodies/necks from Warmoth and make a trasplant.
On the Variax, you have one volume pot,one tone pot( on the acoustic simulations, the post works to emulate different miking positions), a five way selector and a rotative pot to choose the banks of simulated instruments.This pot also act as a push pull switch to store new settings in the two custom banks.
I should mention that there are only two banks in which you can store five different sounds each (totaling 10), and must be able to make full use of its drive (normally sold separately). The guitar is battery powered or with the mains adapter supplied with jack and XLR, optional.
For the connection cable to the PC, they do charge a lot, but it is a normal network(ethernet) cable with a special metal end to make the connecting between the guitar and the usb port more safe and stable.With this , you connect the guitar to the USB interface,and then, to the pc, where you can,using the software(and the so called “line6 monkey” for updates), modify the patches or create new ones,alter parameters, tunings etc,before storing them back in the Variax memory.
Now, back to the sounds.
The simulations present on the variax are based on physical models of certain guitars of the famous brands, so it would be more correct to speak of simulations of some guitars belonging to the given model (eg. My normal Fender sounds different from the one of somebody else and so on), thus it is not can have an absolute reference, but only an approximation of it .
That said, the guitar on its one through a guitar amp does seem a little fake, especially when compared to the models that tries to emulate.I’ve compared the simulation with a semi-acoustic Epiphone wildkat with P90’s and the variax lacked "body"; its sound was a sound, shall i say, more of "surface",it lacked some "depth".Things change a bit if you try just to listen to the sound wihhout looking what are you actually have in your hands .
.Even if you play the variax through a mixer the simulation of acoustic models sound a bit sterile.
I must point out that ,instead many people have found a way to create great sounds with it, as you can see and hear on Youtube. Combined with other line6 products, you can use just one tool(like the pod xt live) to create a vast array of sounds that will sound more or less close to the originals
In registration however, things change.
The difference,FOR ME, lies in the approach to this nice toy.The Variax has a sense as a tool to RECORD.The sounds, just as the one of the amp/effect emulators, must be considered having the recording process in mind. Multitrack recording, especially using the Variax together with other instruments, is there where this guitar makes more sense and the difference between the emulated sound and the real one gets thinner, a whole lot thinner .There - always considering what it is-the Variax really delivers. Let’s say you have a song with bass and drums and a keyb.If you add a guitar line with the Variax( using, let’s say, a stratocaster emulation),if mixed properly,it will be very hard to spot any difference.
And the difference will be noted more by tone purists than general public
.About the acoustic models, some are nice some needs some tweaking, the 12 string it is convincing to an extent but it is not perfect. I must add that with the acoustic emulations, the piezo helps since we are more used to hear acoustic guitars amplified/recorded using piezos.
I’ve recorded a track(on the looper) using the dobro emulation and, adding a little reverb and some chorus, the sound was very nice. So, it can be useful if you can use some models as colors, especially if you like the sound but don’t want to buy, let’s say, a coral sitar or a banjo.
I give them strong points for two features: the ability to change tuning in the software memory in the most disparate ways , maintaining the physical standard tuning, so you can play a little bit of everything (and so, for example, you can have a bass too, or, if you fancy that, copy one of the Michael Hedges[R.I.P.] unusual tunings and store both without having to change string gauge and therefore adjust the trussrod). And, also, the ability to change the configuration and position of the pickup and the values of the potentiometers (including capacitors) to your liking (again via software), creating combinations not used yet (like les paul pickups slanted on a danelectro body). In This way you can indulge yourself at will.
Summing up, we must take it for what it is, not for what they would have us believe that it should be .That does not mean that some people are able to create interesting sounds, as you can see on youtube, especially the classical model (the 300 nylon string).For the acoustic version(300 and 700),since they both can store altered tunings, some people were mentioning that when you change the tuning and the you play it with it , there is a resonance of the hole from the strings that are still in normal tuning.On the plus side,you get many different acoustic emulations of different acoustic instruments,all at your disposal,without having to buy many of them.
Let’s talk about the Nylon model.The guitar is very nice, nothing special, but nice,and playable.Of course, the necka nd the fretboard are more similar toa real classical.
The 300 nylon has a 9 presets, the in built tuner, three sliders for mic placement/reverb/volume and two potentiometrs ,one called “Body” and another called “volume”.Since it simulates just two nylon based guitars, a classical one and a flamenco one, the “body”allows you to change seamlessy-to morph- from one model to the other. You can then store the nine presets into the guitar memory.Please note that this one doesn’t have an USB connection.Also the power adapter is made of plastic and it just has a led and a jack in/ out. That being said, the sounds are very convincing, i’ve compared it to a Gibson Chet Atkins issued years ago and they were on par but different in some aspects. It was a very nice surprise. The inbuilt compressor and reverb are very useful and the sounds sound nice even through a mixer.
In general, I think the Variax –if you consider it as an instrument into itself, and not as a emulator- will be useful mainly in the recording process. For some things may still be preferable to use the VG 8 of the Roland. It works using an hexaphonic GK 2 to apply to a guitar you already own and has a lot more storage capacity.I recently got one and i’m still experimenting with it.
For those who play live and / or study and look for new sounds,and don’t want to give up what they love about guitar, I would recommend possibly a nice programmable equalizer (Please note that then if you want different sounds it will be up to you to create them).
Or, and I am very happy with it , i would suggest the Shadow pickup EQ5 of .It works on a different principle.
If you play in a cover band and you have many gigs, it could be a very practical solution, without needing to carry many guitars with you.
I hope this review was helpful,not too boring, if can be of more help, i will be too happy to oblige.
Thanks for your patience!!
