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JeffTadashi « Flexible routing, and much more! »
Published on 06/05/12 at 19:32Line 6 POD Farm 2 (now in version 2.5) is Line 6's latest software version of their amplifier and effect emulation. In comes in two forms. A standalone that can send wet guitar signals directly to a DAW, and the capability to utilize Line 6's hardware direct monitoring. It also includes the VST, RTAS plugin version of the software, which can be inserted into any standard DAW, and it allows for the tweaking and changing of the effects and amplifiers after the tracks are recorded. The plugin version has the same preset format as the standalone, so it is very easy to switch between presets on the two different platforms. The plugin version also includes lightweight, individual effect versions of the emulation software, such as Delays, Reverbs, Filters, Mods, Guitar Amps, Bass Amps, and more. This way, if you only need to add delay, you don't need to load the entire plugin.
SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE
Line 6's standalone works great, and I have never experienced any lag or excessive cpu usage. The plugins are another story. If you are planning on having 5, or 10, or more instances of the Pod Farm plugin, you may soon run into cpu problems. The plugin, particularly the amplifier, cabinet, and microphone modeling, are very cpu-intensive. This is similar to other cabinet-emulating effects and plugins, as they are usually done with convolution (just like convolution reverb), and that is extremely resource intensive.
OVERALL OPINION
The overall sounds of Line 6's Pod Farm are what you'd expect from Line 6: pretty descent emulations, but extremely versatile, and in the software formats, extremely convenient. I find myself using Pod Farm all the time on vocals, and for scratch tracking heavy guitars. There is clearly a difference between the emulated Mesa Boogie sound and the real thing, but for getting new song ideas, scratch tracks, quickly recording ideas, Pod Farm cannot be beat.
SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE
Line 6's standalone works great, and I have never experienced any lag or excessive cpu usage. The plugins are another story. If you are planning on having 5, or 10, or more instances of the Pod Farm plugin, you may soon run into cpu problems. The plugin, particularly the amplifier, cabinet, and microphone modeling, are very cpu-intensive. This is similar to other cabinet-emulating effects and plugins, as they are usually done with convolution (just like convolution reverb), and that is extremely resource intensive.
OVERALL OPINION
The overall sounds of Line 6's Pod Farm are what you'd expect from Line 6: pretty descent emulations, but extremely versatile, and in the software formats, extremely convenient. I find myself using Pod Farm all the time on vocals, and for scratch tracking heavy guitars. There is clearly a difference between the emulated Mesa Boogie sound and the real thing, but for getting new song ideas, scratch tracks, quickly recording ideas, Pod Farm cannot be beat.