Re: would it be better if i just go and get a POD?
Grandor, professional musicians get paid.
Being the owner of both a Pod 2.0 and a Triaxis/2:90 rig I suppose that I have a little insite into the topic at hand. The Pod 2.0 is a pretty cool recording tool especially if you don't have a deceint room to record in. Like many home bound musicians I have been banashed into the basement. Cenemt floors and block walls, unfinished ceilings and duct work don't make for the prettiest audio recordings. being able to record direct and to store repeatable tones and levels is a big plus to the recording process.
I am able to get very good clean voices from the Pod 2.0 and I can also get close to my gained tones (Triaxis lead 1 red - Recto voice) but I haven't had alot of luck with the Mark II, III and IV voices. Maybe I just haven't tried hard enough but the hot Mark voices are harder to come by. The Mark I pushed voices (Rhythm green gain at 10, lead one green and lead one yellow) are extremely dynamic and very flexable and the Pod 2.0 just doesnt have the dynamic response to fake those on tape. It's a shame really because after you get over the brutalness that is available in the Lead 1 red voice, the Mark I voices are probably the most useful and toneful of all the Triaxis voices.
I guess it all depends on what your priorities are at the moment. If you are looking to record or play into headphones the Pod stuff is pretty nice but I dont know that I'd try to play live through a Pod. A Pod Pro and a solid tube power amp is probably a better way to go and the older 2.0 Pod Pros can probably be had at a reasonable price. The Vox stuff is also getting a lot of praise lately and that might be a way to go as well. One of my students just bought a 30 watt Vox modeler and he swears by it even though he owns a Mesa blue Angel (a killer amp on its own).
Start adding up everything you are going to need to make the Pod 2.0 a live rig before you decide anything. By the time you get a power amp and speakers plus a controller to do your switching you may find that a used Flextone II or one of the Vox offerings is more affordable and more useful.
Then start saving like there is no tomorrow and avoid playing through a tweaked triaxis/2:90 rig. If you go and do that nothing else is going to make you happy. There really is no comparison between a modeling amp in the cans and a Triaxis/2:90 rig opened up in a room.
