Line 6 Flextone II upgrade advice

[de_dUKe]

Hey good guitar guys,

I've had this 60 watt, 1x12" Celestron, FlexTone II SS modelling combo amp from new since 2001 along with my Fender Stratocaster.. Both remained totally unmodded or tweaked until this year when I rewired and changed the pickups on my Strat.. Was a big change and I like the guitar a lot..

It was then when I thought about Line 6 amp.. It has served me well for what I wanted to do on guitar and seemed to be a complete guitar setup in one box with built in effects and all the synthetic amp and cab options.. Although many of these I seldom used..

Now I'm taking my tone more seriously and have come to realise that the next move is a better sounding amp.. The reviews on the FT II aren't very complimentary about the default tones and others have said they struggle to find good tone despite endless tweaking.. I just think there are better sounding amps out there for my needs.. I haven't played around with the settings too much, just EQ'd the volumes and added some delay or compression where needed..

I play mostly rock and metal, no jazz or blues, so a good heavy tone and a clean channel for the quiet bits would suit me fine.. Home playing only, no gigging, low volume playing (mostly!). I like some of the effects and have the full wah pedal floorboard (FB4) I also now have a midi cable for the amp so can possibly import some settings and tones if that's a good option..

So my questions are these:- will I get a good usable from this amp if I tweak hard enough..? What are some other good sounding metal amps I could trade-in for the FT II.? Should I go small tube amp.? Are tube amps so much better at these sizes and volumes.? Any brands I should focus on.?

Many thanks in advance for you input..

Rock on.. :headbang:

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Line 6 Flextone II upgrade advice

Check the L6 site for software upgrades on that model.

Unfortunately Line 6 amps don't have a good resale or trade in value, so you may as well keep it.

I can tell you that single coil strats sound much better on tube amps.

 

[LesStrat]

Re: Line 6 Flextone II upgrade advice

I'll second checking for upgrades.

Don't base your decisions on the reviews reviews of other people. Ive heard guitarists get amazing tone from sketchy gear.

I saw Sonny Landreth connect his pedal board to a rented Vox hybrid amp, and he still sounded great. Check YouTube videos and you'll find him playing a huge variety of amps, yet always sounding like himself.

What is your budget for getting a new amp?

 

[de_dUKe]

Re: Line 6 Flextone II upgrade advice

thanks guys..

I shall indeed use my new midi cable and update and add custom tones on the Line 6.. That is gonna be the best option for this amp and some more manual tweaking might give positive results..
The amp seemed more suited to the single coils I had in the Strat.. Now it is virtually a HM Strat with humbuckers in the bridge and neck..

Budget would be around $300 and hopefully I could get $100+ for my old amp and floorboard..

 

[allbutromeo]

Re: Line 6 Flextone II upgrade advice

A speaker upgrade could help out a lot, the stock speakers in those amps aren't very good. A V30 or G12M65 creamback will make it sound much better

 

[de_dUKe]

Re: Line 6 Flextone II upgrade advice

..great shout on a speaker upgrade.. and those two model are some of the best and price wise a viable and easy option..

I looked into updating the firmware on the FlexTone II and it is no longer possible.. an eprom was required for the update and they are no longer available from Line 6..
Custom tones and settings can be downloaded from Line 6 users and may prove useful..

On looking on another thread about practise amp suggestions, I noticed lots of players use the newer modelling option of computer based amp sims such as Amplitude and S-Gear.. I have a fast pc with sound card, a requisite guitar to USB cable and I proceeded to download some free trials of said software..
First impressions were excellent and I can see me finding better tones than I could ever from the Flextone II, using headphones currently.. I do in fact need an upgrade to my pc speakers and therefore my upgrade could be for some decent monitor speakers and this could well be the best idea for my home based guitar amp upgrade.. :headbang:

 

[DankStar]

Re: Line 6 Flextone II upgrade advice

Do you use the soldano setting (modern high gain)? I loved that one with my flextone I - that, the JCM800 and the rectified were the best rock/metal sounds in the unit IMO. I do recall EQ settings needing to be vastly different with each modeled amp.

I think there's still a few death metal bands using the flextone head - just saw a picture the other day of a band with one.

I'd say get a little tube amp for giggles and keep the line 6 for ease of use/low volume stuff.

 

[Despair]

Re: Line 6 Flextone II upgrade advice

Line 6 just released Helix Native. It's the best guitar modeller that'll run on Windows or Mac. Most amps, effects, features, etc. And heaviest commitment to ongoing improvements, where their strongest competitors in modelling software for quality give a lot fewer amps and effects and haven't released an update in ages.

Circuit modelling is a very different approach from the older techniques. Plus impulse response quality has gotten hugely better and the variety for sale, even direct from Celestion!

I was initially unimpressed with early Helix demos I heard, had some ugly midrange glitchy grit that I've long associated with modellers, and some other odd characteristics. But after a pile of firmware revisions, it sounds comparable to Axe-FX in the right hands. Amp models haven't quite caught up, nor is there as much deep tweaking available, doesn't seem to cover variac behavior like Axe-FX can. But cabinet/mic models are generally considered better on Helix, though both can load 3rd party/user impulse responses.

There are plenty of decent small amps, but if you want to match recorded tones, modellers are the easiest route. And with right impulse responses loaded, they can come close enough to fool pro guitarists in the studio.

Helix Native plugin costs $399 [with a variety of discounts, $300 if you own a Line 6 Helix rack or floorboard, less for a Helix LT, etc.]. Currently has 104 effects, 50 guitar amp models, 12 bass amp models, 37 speaker cabinets, and 16 microphones. 5 more amp models and 7 more effects expected in 2.30 firmware update, but they haven't announced any more details beyond "by the end of the year."

A small tube amp can be fun, but finding one that sounds the way you want at low volume can be a headache. Many apartment dwellers find them frustrating.

 

[Wattage]

Re: Line 6 Flextone II upgrade advice

My buddy used a Flex II as his main gigging amp for about 5-6 years, he always sounded pro. Lots of covers and it was really versatile.

He's gone thru quite a few amps since but I think he settled on a Mustang III these days

 

[de_dUKe]

Re: Line 6 Flextone II upgrade advice

The Soldano on the amp is my go to setting for metal.. Probably used it 90% of all my playing time and sounded even better with my old single coils.. Was the only way to get anywhere near 'metal' tones.. Completely agree with the hi gain and rectified too.. Along with the spring reverb clean and tweed bassman that was all the settings I ever used..

It's reassuring to hear some players have had success with the FlexTone and will spur me to download some more tones and tweak harder..

The Helix Native seems like a big deal too and I'll definitely look into that as I've been having good results from the amp modelling software I've trialled so far.. Helix Native looks like it could be the top of the pile..I guess Line 6 started this whole modelling thing and it keeps getting better..
Rock on :headbang:

 

[DankStar]

Re: Line 6 Flextone II upgrade advice

Here's the photo I saw with the line 6 head in use on stage - not sure if it's the I or the II

http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/ca...s-ex-deicide-members-on-stage-in-tampa-video/