My friend had one of these and he got great heavy tones out of it, he just passed away unexpectedly, but still have great practice jams to listen to that we recorded.
I just got one of these and I’ve found the best way to get rid of that “digital fizz” is to put the treble down to nothing, and crank the presence. Use those power valves to give you the high end instead of the digital preamp! Edit: Just got up to the bit where you touched on that haha.
I ALWAYS wanted one of these but couldn't afford it when it came out. I was in love with the POD and when I played one at GC it was like having a tube powered POD. As recently as two years ago and many amps later I had all but forgotten about this head. I tried to order a used one from GC and they ended up calling me and cancelling my order because they couldn't get it to work. 🤣 I since learned that these things were plagued with issues.
I had that exact rig around 8 years ago! Spider valve, Mesa oversized 412, with the floorboard is all I ever needed back then. Used it for church band, then take it out for my metal core band lol
I used this used amp for about 8 years up until last year. A lot of those years I played almost every weekend live and went on a few tours as well. I got compliments all the time about how good my tone was considering I was using a Line 6 amp. That amp served me well for all that years and never once had an issue with it. I'm all Helix now though. Highly recommend that amp though if you need something decent on a budget.
@@hollandoats4738 I actually ended up using the HX Stomp live recently. Still micing a cab. HX Stomp > Seymour Duncan Powerstage 170 > Mesa Boogie 2x12. Works great
A kid with a $350 budget? How about a grown man with a wife and kids and a $350 budget? These come up on reverb from time to time, and being a budget man, Line 6 is really not that bad. Purists can say what they want, but priorities are different for everyone. For a local metal band with a bunch of guys with families, I think I might pull the trigger. Solid review dude.
Look into a Vox Night Train, $400, killer all tube sound. I used to own the spider valve, it sounds GREAT to me but only if the wattage knob on the back is turned up high. The biggest downside is that these things break. Literally the first two I ordered fresh from the factory defective, and they break too frequently for me to feel comfortable buying a used one for the price they're selling for
Definitely brother. I see no wrong with getting this amp. I just got a dsl after I was rocking a 2000s solid state Marshall Mg 250 dfx(which had great tone for gigging/practice) and actually miss it due to it shitting out the input signal
I have the Spider Valve MKII. I use the onboard stuff to tone down the fizziness of the high end. I use the amp model that is based on the Diezel Herbert with the tube screamer model in the amp. Use the built in gate/noise reduction too. The presence on this is your friend and can be your enemy all at once I usually don’t go past like 2 o’clock with it. Lol
Great video . Very well done . I just got this same amp in a 2x12 Celestion combo . Amazing amp . So easy to dial up great tones . I've been playing for over 35 years . I Had all the big name historic tube amps . My favorites were always Marshalls , Mesas and Fenders . I dont miss any of my old beasts with this Line6 / Bogner amp . A very worthy amp . Glad I came across this gem . Its a keeper ! A great amp when put in the right hands .Should be worth a lot more !
I picked one up on a trade a few months back. Not a bad amplifier, it does take some dialing in but you can get some decent tones out of it. It's slightly lacking in the low end, but you can turn on the boost in the settings and it helps a little bit. Plus you activate the onboard EQ to help out with that. Also make all the effects post instead of pre, it takes the harshness out.
I have the line 6 dt25 it is a great sounding super versatile amp also designed by bogner. It is my number 1 amp at the moment. Might be worth checking out. Cheers.
I’ve owned the MK2 for years now. It’s lighter than lugging one of my other amps around. I use the amber metal setting and my effects pedals though the “loop”. I mainly use it as a backup amp now.
I have this 40w 212. It's a quite good sounding amp and really versatile. Like you noticed, a little bit finicky when it comes to master/patch volume settings. The orange metal is a dual rectifier and with a high presence, lower treble it sounds better. Also the blue metal has a "special" mid control which changes the type of distortion. from the manual: "Blue LED: - This sound was created to be an aggressive high gain Amp Model with a unique Mid control that will sweep though an entire spectrum of tone on one knob. The Mid knob for this Amp Model changes the character of the distortion. When set to minimum, the distortion exhibits Fuzz pedal characteristics. When the Mid is set to noon, it mimics the creamy modern high gain amp tones. And when the Mid knob is turned up to max, it’s very much reminiscent of that Class A sound." I have the FBV express mark 2 foot switch for it, which has both volume and wah, so it's really quite a full package. I do kind dislike that the other foot board, the FBV shortboard enables the built in boost and noise gate that you can access easily only with that board. It's almost as if they pay walled features behind different tiers of foot switches which I dislike. The noise gate and boost are otherwise kind of hidden behind buttons and levers. (Hold tap and increase drive past 12 to enable boost and reverb past 12 to enable noise gate). I love the orange blues amp with a single coil neck pickup and built in tape delay, sounds really sweet and bluesy, and for metal, I use the orange metal channel which is the Mesa dual rectifier model, like I said, with lower treble and always presence at top. Peace!
I think the opening riffing sounded really good! I’m so glad people like yourself are exposing tone snobs. Let’s be real most people are just jamming in their house and are never gonna tour the world. This amp gets great sound for that and you could play in a garage band with it. If it sounds good it sounds good doesn’t matter what the name on the front is.
I bought my Spider Valve mark 1 2x12 new about 15 years ago... I love it, I blend it's crunch tone with a boosted Roadster 2x12, eq'ing the Spider for more treble/mids with delays and using the strengths of the other amp to cover the bottom end/tube distortion. Pots are almost always scratchy on these models but they are great amps especially when you buy the shortboard controller.
Sounded decent. Even has various other boost and modelling functions. Probably a great concept ahead of its time and not ideally executed, but bettered by the Peavey Vypyr Tube.
Vypyr us awful its a toy version of the amp’s it models , its what a 12 yr old who never played a real high gain amp would perceive to be high gain. This line 6 is far more tonaly accurate and adjustable
I’ve never been a fan of the Spider stuff but I do play a Vetta 2 and love that amp! What’s funny is people would tell me uh dude you should try a Marshall or a Mesa or whatever was there amp of choice so one day I took off the line 6 logo and glued on a Marshall logo from an old cab and everyone would say….cool you got a new amp! See dude I told you …that sounds soooo much better!…….doooough! FYI…I too love a Mesa Boogie Mark11C+ Mark 4 ,Mark 5 , Recto’s and Marshall’s Silver Jubilee! Just sayin! Lol. On my vetta set up I combine an Engle and a Silver jubilee throw in some stereo delay and hall reverb and several other effects, loopers and beat buddy in a combination of through the front and through the fx loop all in stereo running through a Celestion loaded 2x12 and 2 single 1x12 celestion loaded cabs for that big stereo in the room sound! And I send out of my looper a stereo signal to the board! Really big finished sound!
Dude like half of metalcore/deathcore/hardcore bands used to have at least one of these on their gear line up back in the day they always sounded tight
Hey Kyle, nice video. Did you happen to have he manual for that head? There are a bunch of random features that are hidden in the buttons based on what channel you are on, can really fix some of the less desirable sounds. Not sure why they did that but, if you havent checked out the manual, might find some things you would like
Honestly I think it is a good amp and underrated. At the mmoent, I use an axe fx 2 and the other guitarist uses this amp. They work pretty well together.
I used this amp on a record and got a lot of great reviews on the guitar tone. Kyle, you have to spend days getting the best tone out of it. What I did to help the tone was put Groove Tubes in the amp unbelievable difference and way cleaner in the overall tones. I used the Hanger 18 preset as my base tone and built my tone off of that. These amps are great if you have the time to work on the tone. I don't know if you knew this but Andy Laroche from King Diamond used this exact amp on tour for several years because it had everything he needed in an amp, he also used the extended footswitch that Line 6 offers.
I bought one of these after watching this video. Not disappointed. I wanted to get into effects just for fun without breaking the bank. Best part of this amp is that it turns down to quiet bedroom levels even with a 4x12 without loosing its tone. My 5150 sounds like mud turned super low.
I’ve watched this video several times also and thought about getting one. I have the EVH 2x12 and 4x12. I am really curious about how it would match up.
Picked one up a couple days back. Didn't expect much but after some squirts of contact cleaner to free up the pots it's positively surprised me. You might find the buzz in the high gain reduces using different speakers. V30's are somewhat scooped, and the amp is by nature scooped. The Line6 Celestion G12H-90 works well for me, with plenty of thump down low and measured mids and highs. But yes, this is the cheapest 100W tube head (with Bogner power section) on the used market.
I love your reviews, dude. You're actually honest, pointing out positive and negatives, not just using honesty as an excuse to shit all over things you don't like. That, and you like very similar tones to the ones I like, so it's actually pretty useful for me to see how you react to certain things. Any chance we could see you rip through a Randall Diavlo RD100? I know you did the 45 watt but the 100 has that blue channel that's more up our alley than the red channel on the rest of the line (more sizzle on the high end, more mid forward, and more gain in general). I run one as my main amp and I'd be very interested to see how you dial it in.
he TAppreciate the feedback, my man. Glad you find the demos helpful! As far as the RD100, I've owned one before and agree about the Blue Channel. Will def try to track another down.
Funny how many people recommend channel volume low, master volume high. That’s how you don’t get tube distortion. There are two 12AX7 gain stages between channel and master volume. Turning up channel volume will drive them harder. Underrated amp, you can find here for less than €200 on the used market.
They're not really gain stages, one is an input buffer similar to the single tube in something like a Marshall Valvestate, and the other is a phase inverter between the preamp and power amp. The distortion is all digital, unless you crank it up and get power tube breakup, but that's not really desirable for most heavy styles.
@@arthurreid6108 Both triodes have 200k plate resistors and 2k cathode resistors. First one with a bypassed cathode resistor calculates to a gain of 76x, second without a bypass capacitor has a gain of 43x. How much distortion you get from them, that you can debate, but they are most certainly gain stages.
I've used this amp for 12 years actually because the amp was complete with built in effects. So when on tour it was just plug and play.. however, after some time working with different guitars the drawbacks of the amp became evident as the sound became more and more annoying. Some context here... one has to develop a sound recognition throughout the years as a rock guitarist. At greater volume the amp doesn't seem to hold up very much and you can hear that the sounds are 'created' so to speak. As I progressed further in playing different styles this amp didn't do the job good enough anymore. At this point I have a Marshall JVM410H which sounds way different and better at all modes.. more strength, body, punch, attack, sustain .. and so on. But hey, this Line6 sure looks awesome and is reasonably priced. So for the home rock/metal guitarist, this is a great amp to rock your way!
The head sounded good on this end when you kicked in the MXR. It really brought it to life. I would love to hear this verses a Bogner Ubershal to hear the difference. Awesome video as always.👍🏻
Line 6 spiders are one of those things that sound good for what they are, but will constantly end up in the hands of beginners who don’t know how to use them.
This was my first tube amp. I loved it. A guy in another band had a krankenstien+ and wanted to trade amp for amp. So I took that trade. I’ve never owned another line 6 amp. It wasn’t terrible but they haven’t made a better amp imo since this amp. I’d like to see another tube amp with their current modeling
@@themodernguitaristAfter seeing the POD Go with the HX software I'm pretty sure we will get an HX Spider/Spider HX/Spider Helix. There was a video interview from Namm 2020 or 2019 and someone high up in Line 6 said they had 5 years of products planned out. I'm sure covid messed things up but I think we'll see it 2022 or 2023
if you want to see another tube amp with their current modeling, then a Helix connected thru its Line 6 link output connected to their DT's all tube amp line Line 6 link input should do it.
best review I've seen yet of this amp. Better then A LOT of solid states. Good shit. It can fill a certain niche with the right boost in front. Gonna go find one now. You should find a Marshall Valvestate 8100 and demo that.
I liked the MK1 better than the 2. One thing is, they are incredibly loud. Almost uncontrollably loud. The power section is actually really clean. I used the FX loop and bypassed the pre amp with an axe fx for a while. Its pretty clean power amp
Ive had a couple of these and they were pretty good to me. Kinda miss it. Could find these in the 200 to 400 range but when i went on reverb i was shocked to see them selling for 600 and 700
I had the money to pull the trigger on an evh little floor amp and still pulled the trigger in this instead. I had one for many years and I had so much fun on it I couldn't help it.
The Spider valve is beast. You should do a blind folded spider valve vs. Your rectifier. Or better yet get your great grand daddy’s Marshall out and vs that against the spider valve. No pedals. Just the heads.
I can see tht by your user name and your great grandaddy reference tht you're probably young, so I won't be too harsh. Line 6 is crap you'll realize this once you get a little older bro.
@@williamb.mcclellan4456 sorry wrong about the age and the spider valve. I have a peavey 5150 head as well as the spider valve. I had a Marshall jcm 800 in the 80s that I used live for years. The Spider Valve is a beast if you know what your doing
@@erinaig Ok I was off on the age. But the fact that you used to play live in the 80's AND still use Line 6 tells me you probably played in some Metallica tribute band and still do 😂😂😂
There's a noise gate on there there's extra boost on there there's all kinds of different things on there if you start pushing the buttons or read the manual
I honestly loved this amp so much I bought a second one after my first one broke. Then the second took a shit too. I didn’t bother repairing either amps
You should sit right in front of the cab, that way you get full speaker dynamics.. From the side any cab sounds thin.. Even micd it can throw you off.. This amp is really good, just watch out for the dist settings from preset mode. You have to go into the sub menus to tweak the treble harshness down.. Digital clipping sucks..
Had one of these and sold it week after. Something about the way it seemed like a metal options had 1 trick. Wish my experience with it was nice. I didn’t hate it but wasn’t enough punch for me
It has taken quite a while to figure out how to dial in great tone with my bogner 2x12 combo. Cleaner louder channel settings with dialed back gain seems to get the best soaring lead tones for stuff like UFO and Priest. Also connecting to an extension cab really improves everything. I am Currently connecting the send out to the front of my supro black magic. Its amazing what a difference that has made in overall tone and now getting sustain for days. Thanks for the great video.
The MkII version is so much better - i have 2 and been using them for the past 10 years. I constantly get compliments. I play 70s, 80s and 90s rock/metal and no down tuned stuff. Its the Bogner power amp section that makes this amp.
I had one of these years ago. Sold it because I wanted to make my rig smaller for my one bedroom apartment. Sometimes I kick myself for selling it but I also have a Peavy 6505MH and an Orange Tiny Terror, so I'm not lacking in the tone department.
When these came out I would always play it when I visited my local shop. I never owned one, but I did hear two complaints: 1) I was told in a band mix it can tend to disappear and have that solid state amp quality where it gets lost and 2) since it's Line6 it proves to be tough to find a tech that will work on it/repair it.
Which is ludicrous, those things are repair friendly. The tube stage is a text book no frills power amp with two preamp stages, the digital board has multiple test points for signals and voltages. Odds are anyway that a broken SV only needs a new voltage regulator.
I did the same thing! Although I will say, my favorite channel on this head is clean with my pedalboard running through it - using a TS9 for classic rock and Dark Matter for hard rock/metal. Man, does that 10 band EQ bring out the perfect tones though!
I believe this is the2nd version of this head.I have the 1st version. Did they solve the overheat problem.? I don't use it anymore but it is a pretty good amp.
No offense man, love your videos but I think you're not sure how to dial in this amp. I played a MK2 version of this when they first came out and thought it was actually very good sounding. The gain control needs to be set higher on the metal and insane settings. That will effect the EQ too.
I had this head back in the day with the cab was matched, which had similar results as the Mesa has. Good cab, but the high gain sounds where to buzzy for me. I ended up selling the head and keeping the cab.
I have both the HD100 and the MKII. I prefer the MKII by far plus it has a looper. The HD100 seems to me not as tame real screechy feedbacks a lot. Even with EMG pickups and drive at 1 o’clock
I always found that the best tone I got out of any line 6 spider was max gain crunch channel. Max gain crunch sounds legitimately good still as my practice amp
I think some has to do with having stock tubes or not. I run all JJ's in mine and though it's not my number 1 amp, I have it dialed to where I could do just about any gig ranging from oldies to nu-metal and lots in between. For me I have the opposite experience from Kyle. I find the in-between tones it's weak point and where it shines is ultra clean and high gains. Typically if I use it for a rock gig I use the clean channel with a Sparkle Drive and Timmy stacked. My absolute favorite way to use it though is Helix direct to power amp in/return. It is the best way I have found to power my Helix and I have tried a lot of different ways including Powercab+ and some high end FRFR's.
no dave mustaine had a custom line 6 rack mounted power amp that he used for a time but it never came to fruition as an actual product, he used a combination of rocktron prophecy and marshall rack preamps through the line 6, I think this was just his live setup though i doubt he used it on any records
The DT50 is simpler to the outside and more complex inside. Spider Valve is essentially a POD and a clean tube amp in one box. DT50 takes the POD HD preamp models and a tube power stage that adjusts the analog parts on the fly to match the preamp model. I have both amps, they’re both good.
They wont specify what hd series he actual used . I know the gear page says hd100 but actually spilled the beans and let out it was a hd147. Which can’t be that different. But I am huge Larocque fan and really want a Dean custom c550 fr black so I can get abigail cover airbrushed on it. So if you can get hd147 for a few $100 more I may go with that one over the 100. Just trying to share some info on that
It also said he uses the dean c350fr which is total rubbish. He uses the 550fr or the USA version on tours. Look at them they are all neck thru with real Floyd rose ebony boards and his custom shop Seymour Duncan custom larocque pickups. I believe you can have these very closely hand wound in custom shop to his but won’t give details lol.and of course his m-ii esp or caparison Horace. He is such a note for note player live, one of the raw talents I have ever heard among dime and Randy Eddie de martini in my book.seen him in 80’s here in Houston and Abigail tour among a few fate shows. Long live the King! Andy’s a beast and heavily give Mike Weed his props, dude can tear it up also. So another words most gear reviews try to get you in the ball park. But know for a fact he hears used Marshall’s. Mark v mesas and the hd147 and the line 6 hd147 he Brings 2 and a Marshall to gigs in case the 6’s poop out live. Must be something decent under the hood. But h uses Marshall,mesa. Diesel, and an Engle fireball from what research I’ve done . Just thought I would chime in and know there is a big brother to this which probably sounds $400 better. Gonna start seriously looking at these right now the 147 is going 675-850 so I may jump before they’re 1600.?
Yeah 18 year old me was enamored by this amp to no end but 38 year old me thinks it's just garbage modeling pushed through some tubes. I can only imagine the hell trying to EQ the fuzz out of the high gain settings.
I had an old line 6 AX 212 2x12 combo,If you can figure out how to use it you can get some fucking killer high gain tones out of it.it had a rectifier setting and I swear it sounded sooo god damned good
I have the MKII 2x12 Combo w/ V30’s & honestly it’s a great amp! It’s not the best amp I own & I don’t play it as my full time amp but, is super fun to pull out and sesh on every so often. I have this amazing clean tone setting as well! Definitely recommend!
Just picked up the combo version of this for $85 at a pawn shop so far don't have much to say for the built-in effects however bypassing the preamp and using your own FX sounds decent it is a tube amp after all.
@@LEON4PRES I've heard about the first generation version having some overheating issues as well I seen a video A guy ran a thermal camera over the inside that shows the suspected culprit where if you put a heat sink or thermal pad over the chip the heat dissipates better and it shouldn't be a problem mine is the first gen version so far I not had that issue yet mine came with a disconnected Drive pot I picked one up for $2 at the local guitar store haven't soldered it in yet as I bypass the preamp and the effects anyway I'm not a fan of the built-in at all and use a different preamp GP 200 modeler also came with a celestion vintage 30 at that price for me it was worth the Gamble I'm picking up a cheap cabinet in the future and going to put some decent speakers in it to run it on and I hear good things in the UA-cam world I think Glenn fricker had a video about doing this about the supposed great outcome it should be a great budget amp so far I enjoy this little project and it sounds fine.
@@steveclark9934 The 100k ohm pots for the master on these sucks. They’re supposed to be linear pots, but they go from nothing to full blast with like a 1 mm turn. Could I wire another pot is series? Or just replace the pot, again.
@@steveclark9934 as far as overheating, a guy on a Line6 forum put in two CPU fans, he says its awesome now. They put the Tubes right under the steel chassis that the PCB’s are mounted two.
I have one. You’ll have to pry it out of my cold dead hands. Or 5 grand. Lol. Got it the first 6 months it was available. And the Short Board. So awesome Perfect for Cover Bands. Flexible enough for Creating tones. Loud 100 💯 has TUBE PUNCH. I love mine.
Yeah towards the end I think it sounds like shit... You've got to crank the channel volume all the way. It's gets super warm and smooth with beautiful harmonics. My lead tones are super silky smooth. I don't know I've got mine dialed in to perfection. I can send you evidence so you know I"m not trippin.
Just Curious if anyone who has owned one of these has found that pushing one of the crunch channels with a TS9 or something was better than using the insane/metal settings. Was their enough gain/distortion/presence ? I'm in agreence with Kyle here, that high end fizz and low end drive leaves much to be desired. I can grab one dirt cheap right now at a local pawn shop and don't know if I should even bother. Thanks in advance for any input.
My comment might be a little late being 2 years after your comment above (🙃) but I run the TS9 through the clean channel and use a MXR 10 Band EQ Pedal and I’ve been really happy with what I got from it. Without the EQ pedal, it’s missing a lot of mids and doesn’t punch as hard but it’s a game changer with it!
My opinion this amp was designed for a gigging top 40 player who needed a lot of sounds at his fingertips. It is nothing more than a pod they slapped a few tubes around and paid bogner to put his name on. It's got a lot of sounds but none that are any good. It is the China army knife of amps. Unfortunately I have 3 heads and 2 combos. I got them because they were dirt cheap. I'm afraid to sell them because whoever buys them will throw a brick thru my window.
My friend had one of these and he got great heavy tones out of it, he just passed away unexpectedly, but still have great practice jams to listen to that we recorded.
?
@@heyjarrod ???
Condolences
I'm so sorry for your loss!
@@Scatterurremanez thank you
I just got one of these and I’ve found the best way to get rid of that “digital fizz” is to put the treble down to nothing, and crank the presence. Use those power valves to give you the high end instead of the digital preamp!
Edit: Just got up to the bit where you touched on that haha.
Smart
I read this as he touched on it
i was OBSESSED with this amp back in the early 2010s....
I ALWAYS wanted one of these but couldn't afford it when it came out. I was in love with the POD and when I played one at GC it was like having a tube powered POD. As recently as two years ago and many amps later I had all but forgotten about this head. I tried to order a used one from GC and they ended up calling me and cancelling my order because they couldn't get it to work. 🤣 I since learned that these things were plagued with issues.
I had that exact rig around 8 years ago!
Spider valve, Mesa oversized 412, with the floorboard is all I ever needed back then.
Used it for church band, then take it out for my metal core band lol
I used this used amp for about 8 years up until last year. A lot of those years I played almost every weekend live and went on a few tours as well. I got compliments all the time about how good my tone was considering I was using a Line 6 amp. That amp served me well for all that years and never once had an issue with it. I'm all Helix now though. Highly recommend that amp though if you need something decent on a budget.
Do you use your Helix direct through PA or do you use it through a guitar amp? If so, which amp?
@@hollandoats4738 I actually ended up using the HX Stomp live recently. Still micing a cab. HX Stomp > Seymour Duncan Powerstage 170 > Mesa Boogie 2x12. Works great
A kid with a $350 budget? How about a grown man with a wife and kids and a $350 budget? These come up on reverb from time to time, and being a budget man, Line 6 is really not that bad. Purists can say what they want, but priorities are different for everyone. For a local metal band with a bunch of guys with families, I think I might pull the trigger. Solid review dude.
Its a great amp. I've had mine for about 10 years and it's a monster. Great low budget amp I'd recommend to anyone
Dude noooooo get a quilter and a mooer amp pedal you can get one used for 250-280 and it blows this away no question
Look into a Vox Night Train, $400, killer all tube sound. I used to own the spider valve, it sounds GREAT to me but only if the wattage knob on the back is turned up high. The biggest downside is that these things break. Literally the first two I ordered fresh from the factory defective, and they break too frequently for me to feel comfortable buying a used one for the price they're selling for
You can buy killer $300-400 preamps to put in front of it from time to time
Definitely brother. I see no wrong with getting this amp. I just got a dsl after I was rocking a 2000s solid state Marshall Mg 250 dfx(which had great tone for gigging/practice) and actually miss it due to it shitting out the input signal
I was in a band with two guitarists who used these amps. We sounded amazing!
One of the best sounding local bands I’ve ever played shows with used these amps! The tone was massive!
i have this head its badass! these amps will become a collectors item for sure
I hope you're right!
But can't be fixed if digital board goes unfortunately
I have the Spider Valve MKII. I use the onboard stuff to tone down the fizziness of the high end.
I use the amp model that is based on the Diezel Herbert with the tube screamer model in the amp. Use the built in gate/noise reduction too. The presence on this is your friend and can be your enemy all at once I usually don’t go past like 2 o’clock with it. Lol
Great video . Very well done . I just got this same amp in a 2x12 Celestion combo . Amazing amp . So easy to dial up great tones . I've been playing for over 35 years . I Had all the big name historic tube amps . My favorites were always Marshalls , Mesas and Fenders . I dont miss any of my old beasts with this Line6 / Bogner amp . A very worthy amp . Glad I came across this gem . Its a keeper ! A great amp when put in the right hands .Should be worth a lot more !
I picked one up on a trade a few months back. Not a bad amplifier, it does take some dialing in but you can get some decent tones out of it. It's slightly lacking in the low end, but you can turn on the boost in the settings and it helps a little bit. Plus you activate the onboard EQ to help out with that. Also make all the effects post instead of pre, it takes the harshness out.
I have the line 6 dt25 it is a great sounding super versatile amp also designed by bogner. It is my number 1 amp at the moment. Might be worth checking out. Cheers.
I’ve owned the MK2 for years now. It’s lighter than lugging one of my other amps around. I use the amber metal setting and my effects pedals though the “loop”. I mainly use it as a backup amp now.
6 Minutes in and I am legitimately shocked at how good this sounds. Wtf?
Ya it’s definitely not your usual spider
I have this 40w 212. It's a quite good sounding amp and really versatile. Like you noticed, a little bit finicky when it comes to master/patch volume settings.
The orange metal is a dual rectifier and with a high presence, lower treble it sounds better. Also the blue metal has a "special" mid control which changes the type of distortion. from the manual:
"Blue LED: - This sound was created to be an aggressive high gain Amp Model with a unique
Mid control that will sweep though an entire spectrum of tone on one knob. The Mid
knob for this Amp Model changes the character of the distortion. When set to minimum,
the distortion exhibits Fuzz pedal characteristics. When the Mid is set to noon, it mimics
the creamy modern high gain amp tones. And when the Mid knob is turned up to max, it’s
very much reminiscent of that Class A sound."
I have the FBV express mark 2 foot switch for it, which has both volume and wah, so it's really quite a full package. I do kind dislike that the other foot board, the FBV shortboard enables the built in boost and noise gate that you can access easily only with that board. It's almost as if they pay walled features behind different tiers of foot switches which I dislike. The noise gate and boost are otherwise kind of hidden behind buttons and levers. (Hold tap and increase drive past 12 to enable boost and reverb past 12 to enable noise gate).
I love the orange blues amp with a single coil neck pickup and built in tape delay, sounds really sweet and bluesy, and for metal, I use the orange metal channel which is the Mesa dual rectifier model, like I said, with lower treble and always presence at top.
Peace!
I think the opening riffing sounded really good! I’m so glad people like yourself are exposing tone snobs. Let’s be real most people are just jamming in their house and are never gonna tour the world. This amp gets great sound for that and you could play in a garage band with it. If it sounds good it sounds good doesn’t matter what the name on the front is.
I bought my Spider Valve mark 1 2x12 new about 15 years ago... I love it, I blend it's crunch tone with a boosted Roadster 2x12, eq'ing the Spider for more treble/mids with delays and using the strengths of the other amp to cover the bottom end/tube distortion. Pots are almost always scratchy on these models but they are great amps especially when you buy the shortboard controller.
I have one used it for years best amp line 6 ever made
I agree but no ventilation. They overheat.
Sounded decent. Even has various other boost and modelling functions. Probably a great concept ahead of its time and not ideally executed, but bettered by the Peavey Vypyr Tube.
Vypyr us awful its a toy version of the amp’s it models , its what a 12 yr old who never played a real high gain amp would perceive to be high gain. This line 6 is far more tonaly accurate and adjustable
The Peavey vyper, better than this valve head, ???? What planet are you on bro???
I have the amp set up. Spider Valve HD100 with a Mesa cab. I love it.
I’ve never been a fan of the Spider stuff but I do play a Vetta 2 and love that amp! What’s funny is people would tell me uh dude you should try a Marshall or a Mesa or whatever was there amp of choice so one day I took off the line 6 logo and glued on a Marshall logo from an old cab and everyone would say….cool you got a new amp! See dude I told you …that sounds soooo much better!…….doooough! FYI…I too love a Mesa Boogie Mark11C+ Mark 4 ,Mark 5 , Recto’s and Marshall’s Silver Jubilee! Just sayin! Lol. On my vetta set up I combine an Engle and a Silver jubilee throw in some stereo delay and hall reverb and several other effects, loopers and beat buddy in a combination of through the front and through the fx loop all in stereo running through a Celestion loaded 2x12 and 2 single 1x12 celestion loaded cabs for that big stereo in the room sound! And I send out of my looper a stereo signal to the board! Really big finished sound!
Dude like half of metalcore/deathcore/hardcore bands used to have at least one of these on their gear line up back in the day they always sounded tight
Hey Kyle, nice video. Did you happen to have he manual for that head? There are a bunch of random features that are hidden in the buttons based on what channel you are on, can really fix some of the less desirable sounds. Not sure why they did that but, if you havent checked out the manual, might find some things you would like
That Mesa 4x12 makes everything sound great! Seriously im convinced a broken crate gx15 from 1997 would rip through that cab
Honestly I think it is a good amp and underrated. At the mmoent, I use an axe fx 2 and the other guitarist uses this amp. They work pretty well together.
I used this amp on a record and got a lot of great reviews on the guitar tone. Kyle, you have to spend days getting the best tone out of it. What I did to help the tone was put Groove Tubes in the amp unbelievable difference and way cleaner in the overall tones. I used the Hanger 18 preset as my base tone and built my tone off of that. These amps are great if you have the time to work on the tone. I don't know if you knew this but Andy Laroche from King Diamond used this exact amp on tour for several years because it had everything he needed in an amp, he also used the extended footswitch that Line 6 offers.
Yep I agree with completely, I used mine to power my X3 live years ago
I loved this when I had it. It’s broke just stopped working one day I still have it though. I have a fractal axe effect 3 now so it’s amazing
I bought one of these after watching this video. Not disappointed. I wanted to get into effects just for fun without breaking the bank.
Best part of this amp is that it turns down to quiet bedroom levels even with a 4x12 without loosing its tone. My 5150 sounds like mud turned super low.
I’ve watched this video several times also and thought about getting one. I have the EVH 2x12 and 4x12. I am really curious about how it would match up.
Picked one up a couple days back. Didn't expect much but after some squirts of contact cleaner to free up the pots it's positively surprised me. You might find the buzz in the high gain reduces using different speakers. V30's are somewhat scooped, and the amp is by nature scooped. The Line6 Celestion G12H-90 works well for me, with plenty of thump down low and measured mids and highs. But yes, this is the cheapest 100W tube head (with Bogner power section) on the used market.
Probably the only line in the spider series that sound any good. Spider valves have my respect
I love your reviews, dude. You're actually honest, pointing out positive and negatives, not just using honesty as an excuse to shit all over things you don't like. That, and you like very similar tones to the ones I like, so it's actually pretty useful for me to see how you react to certain things. Any chance we could see you rip through a Randall Diavlo RD100? I know you did the 45 watt but the 100 has that blue channel that's more up our alley than the red channel on the rest of the line (more sizzle on the high end, more mid forward, and more gain in general). I run one as my main amp and I'd be very interested to see how you dial it in.
he TAppreciate the feedback, my man. Glad you find the demos helpful! As far as the RD100, I've owned one before and agree about the Blue Channel. Will def try to track another down.
Funny how many people recommend channel volume low, master volume high. That’s how you don’t get tube distortion.
There are two 12AX7 gain stages between channel and master volume. Turning up channel volume will drive them harder.
Underrated amp, you can find here for less than €200 on the used market.
They're not really gain stages, one is an input buffer similar to the single tube in something like a Marshall Valvestate, and the other is a phase inverter between the preamp and power amp. The distortion is all digital, unless you crank it up and get power tube breakup, but that's not really desirable for most heavy styles.
@@arthurreid6108 Both triodes have 200k plate resistors and 2k cathode resistors. First one with a bypassed cathode resistor calculates to a gain of 76x, second without a bypass capacitor has a gain of 43x.
How much distortion you get from them, that you can debate, but they are most certainly gain stages.
Your saying solid state alot. But if it's a solid state pre, then what are the 12 ax7 pre valves there for?
Cheers Dave 👍
That first tone was really really good.
good job.. i still use mine for 8 string playing... fortin 33 and fortin zuul.
I've used this amp for 12 years actually because the amp was complete with built in effects. So when on tour it was just plug and play.. however, after some time working with different guitars the drawbacks of the amp became evident as the sound became more and more annoying. Some context here... one has to develop a sound recognition throughout the years as a rock guitarist. At greater volume the amp doesn't seem to hold up very much and you can hear that the sounds are 'created' so to speak. As I progressed further in playing different styles this amp didn't do the job good enough anymore. At this point I have a Marshall JVM410H which sounds way different and better at all modes.. more strength, body, punch, attack, sustain .. and so on. But hey, this Line6 sure looks awesome and is reasonably priced. So for the home rock/metal guitarist, this is a great amp to rock your way!
The head sounded good on this end when you kicked in the MXR. It really brought it to life. I would love to hear this verses a Bogner Ubershal to hear the difference. Awesome video as always.👍🏻
Line 6 spiders are one of those things that sound good for what they are, but will constantly end up in the hands of beginners who don’t know how to use them.
This was my first tube amp. I loved it. A guy in another band had a krankenstien+ and wanted to trade amp for amp. So I took that trade. I’ve never owned another line 6 amp. It wasn’t terrible but they haven’t made a better amp imo since this amp. I’d like to see another tube amp with their current modeling
Can’t go wrong with the power section!
I wish we could get a Line 6 amp with Helix modeling.
@@themodernguitaristAfter seeing the POD Go with the HX software I'm pretty sure we will get an HX Spider/Spider HX/Spider Helix. There was a video interview from Namm 2020 or 2019 and someone high up in Line 6 said they had 5 years of products planned out. I'm sure covid messed things up but I think we'll see it 2022 or 2023
I'd take that Trade too, a Krankenstein+ with 6550 is way more bad ass then this Line 6 head.
if you want to see another tube amp with their current modeling, then a Helix connected thru its Line 6 link output connected to their DT's all tube amp line Line 6 link input should do it.
Also, the cab you are using helps with this amp.
The Valve Spider 4x12 cab does have v30s and a closed back... or the combo is open back.
best review I've seen yet of this amp. Better then A LOT of solid states. Good shit. It can fill a certain niche with the right boost in front. Gonna go find one now. You should find a Marshall Valvestate 8100 and demo that.
I've been using the Mark II model for a decade. It's really not a bad amp.
I liked the MK1 better than the 2. One thing is, they are incredibly loud. Almost uncontrollably loud. The power section is actually really clean. I used the FX loop and bypassed the pre amp with an axe fx for a while. Its pretty clean power amp
Yeah that's how I run mine Helix going into the effects return
I'm using my MKii that way because the digital board went out. Running a JHS Andy Timmons V2 pedal
Ive had a couple of these and they were pretty good to me. Kinda miss it. Could find these in the 200 to 400 range but when i went on reverb i was shocked to see them selling for 600 and 700
I had the money to pull the trigger on an evh little floor amp and still pulled the trigger in this instead. I had one for many years and I had so much fun on it I couldn't help it.
Huge fan of mine. Is it the best, no. Is it the best for budget hobbyists? ABSOLUTELY.
The Spider valve is beast. You should do a blind folded spider valve vs. Your rectifier. Or better yet get your great grand daddy’s Marshall out and vs that against the spider valve. No pedals. Just the heads.
I can see tht by your user name and your great grandaddy reference tht you're probably young, so I won't be too harsh. Line 6 is crap you'll realize this once you get a little older bro.
@@williamb.mcclellan4456 sorry wrong about the age and the spider valve. I have a peavey 5150 head as well as the spider valve. I had a Marshall jcm 800 in the 80s that I used live for years. The Spider Valve is a beast if you know what your doing
@@erinaig Ok I was off on the age. But the fact that you used to play live in the 80's AND still use Line 6 tells me you probably played in some Metallica tribute band and still do 😂😂😂
Damn I got busted lol! Forgot to switch back, fuck!
There's a noise gate on there there's extra boost on there there's all kinds of different things on there if you start pushing the buttons or read the manual
I honestly loved this amp so much I bought a second one after my first one broke. Then the second took a shit too. I didn’t bother repairing either amps
:(
I bought mine used and got 10 trouble free years out of it before the digital board went
@@theophany1770 mine were 2 mk 1 series. i couldn’t touch anything cuz the volume would shoot to 10 every time. the had an overheating issue i guess.
You should sit right in front of the cab, that way you get full speaker dynamics.. From the side any cab sounds thin.. Even micd it can throw you off.. This amp is really good, just watch out for the dist settings from preset mode. You have to go into the sub menus to tweak the treble harshness down.. Digital clipping sucks..
Had one of these and sold it week after. Something about the way it seemed like a metal options had 1 trick. Wish my experience with it was nice. I didn’t hate it but wasn’t enough punch for me
It has taken quite a while to figure out how to dial in great tone with my bogner 2x12 combo. Cleaner louder channel settings with dialed back gain seems to get the best soaring lead tones for stuff like UFO and Priest. Also connecting to an extension cab really improves everything. I am Currently connecting the send out to the front of my supro black magic. Its amazing what a difference that has made in overall tone and now getting sustain for days. Thanks for the great video.
The MkII version is so much better - i have 2 and been using them for the past 10 years. I constantly get compliments.
I play 70s, 80s and 90s rock/metal and no down tuned stuff. Its the Bogner power amp section that makes this amp.
Haven't tried it yet but I'll be sure to get that one on the channel as well!
I used mine with eq pedal in fx loop to cut out that hiss. But when set to be really loud, it farted and lost its composure.
I had one of these years ago. Sold it because I wanted to make my rig smaller for my one bedroom apartment. Sometimes I kick myself for selling it but I also have a Peavy 6505MH and an Orange Tiny Terror, so I'm not lacking in the tone department.
Yeah I'd consider both of thoe a tonal upgrade over the Line 6. It's not a bad amp, but also not the best.
It is a tube amp with digital control and fx. It is a good amp.
I'm learning to get my tone "fine tuned" from watching your videos
Glad to hear it!
When these came out I would always play it when I visited my local shop. I never owned one, but I did hear two complaints: 1) I was told in a band mix it can tend to disappear and have that solid state amp quality where it gets lost and 2) since it's Line6 it proves to be tough to find a tech that will work on it/repair it.
Which is ludicrous, those things are repair friendly. The tube stage is a text book no frills power amp with two preamp stages, the digital board has multiple test points for signals and voltages. Odds are anyway that a broken SV only needs a new voltage regulator.
Like what Ellerby said about finding the Line6 DT series
I have one and I love this amp!! I use a MXR 10 band EQ to shape the tone more. Other then that this thing is a beast!!!
I did the same thing! Although I will say, my favorite channel on this head is clean with my pedalboard running through it - using a TS9 for classic rock and Dark Matter for hard rock/metal. Man, does that 10 band EQ bring out the perfect tones though!
Nissssssssssssssssssce 🍻
That red schecter is popping on the screen!🌋
Taylor Delaney got some fantastic tones out of it man , they are a sleeper amp for sure
My line six has been modded. It has an input and output transformer so I get more tube saturation (sag) and much less fizz.
I believe this is the2nd version of this head.I have the 1st version. Did they solve the overheat problem.? I don't use it anymore but it is a pretty good amp.
No offense man, love your videos but I think you're not sure how to dial in this amp. I played a MK2 version of this when they first came out and thought it was actually very good sounding. The gain control needs to be set higher on the metal and insane settings. That will effect the EQ too.
I had this head back in the day with the cab was matched, which had similar results as the Mesa has. Good cab, but the high gain sounds where to buzzy for me. I ended up selling the head and keeping the cab.
Is that Feathers by Coheed at 4:30?
yes
I had one of these and loved it. When wife and i separated she stole it (and everything i had) and disappeared like a fart in the wind
I have both the HD100 and the MKII. I prefer the MKII by far plus it has a looper. The HD100 seems to me not as tame real screechy feedbacks a lot. Even with EMG pickups and drive at 1 o’clock
Man i had one of these...kinda want anther one ,it was fun to chung on with a 7 string. I have a DT25 and it's definitely a better amp!
Sounds really good!
Insane blue sounded ok too
I always found that the best tone I got out of any line 6 spider was max gain crunch channel. Max gain crunch sounds legitimately good still as my practice amp
I think some has to do with having stock tubes or not. I run all JJ's in mine and though it's not my number 1 amp, I have it dialed to where I could do just about any gig ranging from oldies to nu-metal and lots in between. For me I have the opposite experience from Kyle. I find the in-between tones it's weak point and where it shines is ultra clean and high gains. Typically if I use it for a rock gig I use the clean channel with a Sparkle Drive and Timmy stacked. My absolute favorite way to use it though is Helix direct to power amp in/return. It is the best way I have found to power my Helix and I have tried a lot of different ways including Powercab+ and some high end FRFR's.
Didn’t Dave Mustaine have a signature Line 6 amp that was based on this? Seems I remember something like that.
no dave mustaine had a custom line 6 rack mounted power amp that he used for a time but it never came to fruition as an actual product, he used a combination of rocktron prophecy and marshall rack preamps through the line 6, I think this was just his live setup though i doubt he used it on any records
Try the vypyr tube amp
I've always wanted to try or hear that thing!! They seem kinda rare
If Corporate Death from Macabre can make it sound cool, it is cool.
Has any famous bands used Line 6 live?
Keep those awesome Vids coming. 🤘
So what is the difference between this and the line 6/bogner DT50 head?
The DT50 is simpler to the outside and more complex inside.
Spider Valve is essentially a POD and a clean tube amp in one box.
DT50 takes the POD HD preamp models and a tube power stage that adjusts the analog parts on the fly to match the preamp model.
I have both amps, they’re both good.
You always get it to Crush. A little to tweaky for me, but not bad sounding
Vaguely related, but the Spider Valve 4x12 is an incredible steal. It's like a mix of a Traditional/Stilleto and ubercab.
1000% bro. Been my main cab for 10 years. Had Engl Mesa etc too
Darn good crank it up.
Andy LaRocque has used one these for years
They wont specify what hd series he actual used . I know the gear page says hd100 but actually spilled the beans and let out it was a hd147. Which can’t be that different. But I am huge Larocque fan and really want a Dean custom c550 fr black so I can get abigail cover airbrushed on it. So if you can get hd147 for a few $100 more I may go with that one over the 100. Just trying to share some info on that
It also said he uses the dean c350fr which is total rubbish. He uses the 550fr or the USA version on tours. Look at them they are all neck thru with real Floyd rose ebony boards and his custom shop Seymour Duncan custom larocque pickups. I believe you can have these very closely hand wound in custom shop to his but won’t give details lol.and of course his m-ii esp or caparison Horace. He is such a note for note player live, one of the raw talents I have ever heard among dime and Randy Eddie de martini in my book.seen him in 80’s here in Houston and Abigail tour among a few fate shows. Long live the King! Andy’s a beast and heavily give Mike Weed his props, dude can tear it up also. So another words most gear reviews try to get you in the ball park. But know for a fact he hears used Marshall’s. Mark v mesas and the hd147 and the line 6 hd147 he Brings 2 and a Marshall to gigs in case the 6’s poop out live. Must be something decent under the hood. But h uses Marshall,mesa. Diesel, and an Engle fireball from what research I’ve done . Just thought I would chime in and know there is a big brother to this which probably sounds $400 better. Gonna start seriously looking at these right now the 147 is going 675-850 so I may jump before they’re 1600.?
The crunch boosted was the best
:'( Got some PTSD flash backs from when a really good band I recorded was dead set on using their HD100 valve. PooPoo Amp
Yeah 18 year old me was enamored by this amp to no end but 38 year old me thinks it's just garbage modeling pushed through some tubes. I can only imagine the hell trying to EQ the fuzz out of the high gain settings.
I had an old line 6 AX 212 2x12 combo,If you can figure out how to use it you can get some fucking killer high gain tones out of it.it had a rectifier setting and I swear it sounded sooo god damned good
I have the MKII 2x12 Combo w/ V30’s & honestly it’s a great amp! It’s not the best amp I own & I don’t play it as my full time amp but, is super fun to pull out and sesh on every so often. I have this amazing clean tone setting as well! Definitely recommend!
9:28 when you feel z crunch, you know your thare! Biligerent amatuerness! Perfect Hwarrah ahhahh hah hah hah hah hah
Just picked up the combo version of this for $85 at a pawn shop so far don't have much to say for the built-in effects however bypassing the preamp and using your own FX sounds decent it is a tube amp after all.
Anyone still have this amp? I know it's got master volume and overheating problems. Is it worth fixing?
@@LEON4PRES I've heard about the first generation version having some overheating issues as well I seen a video A guy ran a thermal camera over the inside that shows the suspected culprit where if you put a heat sink or thermal pad over the chip the heat dissipates better and it shouldn't be a problem mine is the first gen version so far I not had that issue yet mine came with a disconnected Drive pot I picked one up for $2 at the local guitar store haven't soldered it in yet as I bypass the preamp and the effects anyway I'm not a fan of the built-in at all and use a different preamp GP 200 modeler also came with a celestion vintage 30 at that price for me it was worth the Gamble I'm picking up a cheap cabinet in the future and going to put some decent speakers in it to run it on and I hear good things in the UA-cam world I think Glenn fricker had a video about doing this about the supposed great outcome it should be a great budget amp so far I enjoy this little project and it sounds fine.
@@steveclark9934 The 100k ohm pots for the master on these sucks. They’re supposed to be linear pots, but they go from nothing to full blast with like a 1 mm turn. Could I wire another pot is series? Or just replace the pot, again.
@@steveclark9934 as far as overheating, a guy on a Line6 forum put in two CPU fans, he says its awesome now. They put the Tubes right under the steel chassis that the PCB’s are mounted two.
@@steveclark9934 thanks. BTW.
I have one. You’ll have to pry it out of my cold dead hands.
Or 5 grand. Lol.
Got it the first 6 months it was available.
And the Short Board. So awesome
Perfect for Cover Bands.
Flexible enough for
Creating tones.
Loud 100 💯 has TUBE PUNCH.
I love mine.
It DOES NOT need all of those
Presets.
Killer on its own.
You need to do one on the crate gx1200h
Yeah towards the end I think it sounds like shit... You've got to crank the channel volume all the way. It's gets super warm and smooth with beautiful harmonics. My lead tones are super silky smooth. I don't know I've got mine dialed in to perfection. I can send you evidence so you know I"m not trippin.
04:30 that tone rips
A local black metal band used these and it sounded great for that stype but im not sure I'd like the high gain tones in a different context.
Should I sell it or keep it? Thanks :D
Just Curious if anyone who has owned one of these has found that pushing one of the crunch channels with a TS9 or something was better than using the insane/metal settings. Was their enough gain/distortion/presence ? I'm in agreence with Kyle here, that high end fizz and low end drive leaves much to be desired. I can grab one dirt cheap right now at a local pawn shop and don't know if I should even bother. Thanks in advance for any input.
My comment might be a little late being 2 years after your comment above (🙃) but I run the TS9 through the clean channel and use a MXR 10 Band EQ Pedal and I’ve been really happy with what I got from it. Without the EQ pedal, it’s missing a lot of mids and doesn’t punch as hard but it’s a game changer with it!
My opinion this amp was designed for a gigging top 40 player who needed a lot of sounds at his fingertips. It is nothing more than a pod they slapped a few tubes around and paid bogner to put his name on. It's got a lot of sounds but none that are any good. It is the China army knife of amps. Unfortunately I have 3 heads and 2 combos. I got them because they were dirt cheap. I'm afraid to sell them because whoever buys them will throw a brick thru my window.