Can Line 6 answer the AxeFX and ElevenRack?

[allenc5150]

I have a PODxt that I use for practice and it sounds fairly decent. But that modeling technology is now several years old and Fractal and Digidesign have come out with these two rackmounted products that absolutely kill anything Line 6 puts out. It has been a few years since the POD X3 dropped, and I find myself wondering if Line 6 is about to introduce some new and hardcore modeling technology onto the market as their answer to the AxeFX and ElevenRack. Anyone care to share any inside information on this?

[ElDiabloBlanco]

I believe some new stuff is coming shortly from Line 6 that is supposed to be a big upgrade from the current modelers but still at that kind of price point - just sayin'!
I as well would be interested in some inside info....

[mtmartin71]

There have been hints of something on the horizon. To the previous point, it's questionable what they can do at their preferred price point. From a market standpoint, they seem to have sunk everything into the $700 and under club and most stuff around $300-400. They are the best marketers for sure. They do make you think you can spend $300-400 and get what the other are offering.

[dspellman]

Originally Posted by mtmartin71

There have been hints of something on the horizon. To the previous point, it's questionable what they can do at their preferred price point.

It's more than possible for Line 6 (and for virtually any larger manufacturer) to cover both the 11R and the Axe-FX with a virtually identical unit (or better) at Line 6's price point; there's little in the actual electronics package that would produce problems with that, and given the Line 6 volume, little in the R&D process that would cause issues. Worth noting that the models in the XT have been around for a pretty long production run and they haven't changed in the X3 (the X3 adds other features, but the models themselves remain the same as in the XT).

Having spend a few hours at Line 6 in the last few weeks and having seen a few things I shouldn't have, all I can tell you is to ask Rich Renken.

[mtmartin71]

Originally Posted by dspellman

It's more than possible for Line 6 (and for virtually any larger manufacturer) to cover both the 11R and the Axe-FX with a virtually identical unit (or better) at Line 6's price point; there's little in the actual electronics package that would produce problems with that, and given the Line 6 volume, little in the R&D process that would cause issues.

Having spend a few hours at Line 6 in the last few weeks and having seen a few things I shouldn't have, all I can tell you is to ask Rich Renken.

I've seen Rich make mention of cool stuff in the pipeline. If they give me the Axe or 11R in a $600 package, I'm all for it. Competition is great. Right now though, they are lagging behind by most people's standards.

[dspellman]

Originally Posted by mtmartin71

I've seen Rich make mention of cool stuff in the pipeline. If they give me the Axe or 11R in a $600 package, I'm all for it. Competition is great. Right now though, they are lagging behind by most people's standards.

*mmmmmMMMMMmph...*

[Pietro]

They're probably not lagging sales-wise... Although I am delighted enough with my X3Live and my M13 that I will probably need to set aside some dough to pick up the X4Live or whatever...

[travisvwright]

Wait slowdown. I haven't even figure out my X3 yet.

[octatonic]

Given their history of using cheap parts and converters I doubt it.
I'd owned a bunch of Line 6 gear over the years (POD PRO XT, Echo Pro, DL4, Guitar Port) and tried a lot more.
The only one I can live with is the Echo Pro which they discontinued.

[Electric I]

I hope so & it's about time all the bigger companies stepped up their game.

Looking forward to see what's announced at winter namm.

[hobbes1]

trying to pull gag off of "dspellman".....let it out man, don't hurt yourself!

[shasha]

Originally Posted by dspellman

It's more than possible for Line 6 (and for virtually any larger manufacturer) to cover both the 11R and the Axe-FX with a virtually identical unit (or better) at Line 6's price point; there's little in the actual electronics package that would produce problems with that, and given the Line 6 volume, little in the R&D process that would cause issues. Worth noting that the models in the XT have been around for a pretty long production run and they haven't changed in the X3 (the X3 adds other features, but the models themselves remain the same as in the XT).

Having spend a few hours at Line 6 in the last few weeks and having seen a few things I shouldn't have, all I can tell you is to ask Rich Renken.

The only thing that I'll say is that the highend processors like the TigerSHARC are still pretty pricey and considered overkill for a lot of the companies out there.

There's little doubt that they could make something that is even better than what is out there IMHO.

But every single time a major manufacturer steps up to the plate it seems that they end up scaling back on cost of components in order to increase profit margin. And lifecycle isn't something that any of them ever seem to want to improve upon meaning that they don't want to put themselves out of business by building the end all be all box. There's just little incentive to provide a product that will never need to be replaced with a newer model.

It's a balancing act and there is a sweet spot for each target market. For $600 I just don't see them using the best available components on the planet and making the money they want per unit.

[lafours]

I hope so..

Line 6 has it over everybody in Computer integration, GUI, editors, and the physical form and interface..

[KHAN]

Originally Posted by dspellman

It's more than possible for Line 6 (and for virtually any larger manufacturer) to cover both the 11R and the Axe-FX with a virtually identical unit (or better) at Line 6's price point; there's little in the actual electronics package that would produce problems with that,

The only things in Line6's way to produce an Axe-FX quality box are:

• High end processor.
• Pro audio quality analog components.
• Pro audio quality converters.
• Cliff's brain.

Other than that though, they're golden...

[NuSkoolTone]

What's nice is the 11R and Axe-FX set a bar at their given price points. It also puts a ceiling on what Line6 can charge and still be in the game. ToneLab IMO has the lower end covered for under $300 AFAIK. So that leaves L6 between $300-800 to carve out a niche. Too close to the higher end and people will go for the 11R. If they don't shoot high enough on the lower end, they might not get the sale.

I'd be willing to bet that L6 has some amazing stuff locked up behind it's doors. It's a matter of what's economically viable to meet their profit margins. They may very well have algorithms that are comparable to the better units that require expensive hardware to run. We'll just have to see what they let out the door! Conversely, if it's amazing and meets a low price point, it could put downward pressure on pricing of the better units or accelerate updates. These things tend to leapfrog each other.