Use a Microphone with POD HD500X - Patch - Singer Songwriter HD500

The Line 6 POD HD500X has a microphone input (XLR) and a preamp with quite a bit of gain.  This patch shows how you can turn it on and use the mic!  If you're recording acoustic guitar with the HD500X, or using the mic for live vocals, this one's for you.

If this entry has helped you, please consider becoming a Patron, Click below:

Become a Patron!

The newest demo for the POD HD500X Mic preamp XLR input uses the best of the POD FX family.  A warm, quiet, detailed preamp, a studio eq, cool delay and a thick compressor.  Don't forget your favorite reverb!



As more musicians and podcasters are doing the bulk of their singing and narrating at home, the POD HD500X keeps holds it's own with a powerful feature set that offers features that really add up both in AND out of the box.

I'm speaking mainly of the mic preamp, compressor, and studio eq for starters. The built in preamp gives substantial gain when using the recommended Vintage Pre. Though Line6 never comes right out and states how many db of gain the unit affords(they slyly use the word "healthy"), if you set your gain staging properly you shouldn't have any problems.
The tube compressor does a good job of squeezing your vocals. Set the threshold lower if you want more compression(voice of God) or lower if you just want to take the peaks out of your performance. The level knob offers a hefty output or as we call it in the studio- "makeup gain."
Additionally, the Studio EQ is a solid performer giving 11db of cut or gain with either a low pass filter(ranging between 75hz to 1.4khz,) or a hi frequency band(8 options ranging from 200hz to 8k). Use several for multi band tone shaping.

The pic below shows how to activate the mic preamp:

The following demo i a few years old, and specifies how to make the separate paths- one for guitar and one for a microphone (Shure SM57), and then adds a few effects(don't forget, this is also a pedal board which happens to be a powerful stompbox modeler!) to make the features a bit more useful.  Also, you'll need an XLR mic cable to use the onboard mic preamp inside the POD HD500 or HD500X.


If the video is helpful, please "like" it!  Regardless, I hope you enjoy the demonstration and it is helpful to you in your path to sonic bliss... P.S. Don't forget to click the SPOTIFY follow button!>>>

To elaborate a bit more, the HD500 (and hd500x) allow you to set up 2 independent paths, complete with separate fx for each.  So, I often use one channel for vocals (and vocal fx) and the other channel is dedicated to guitar(and related guitar fx).  Here's how you can make a patch that will allow you to do both.

First, we must make 2 paths by moving the amp symbol up, which adds a second path.  Then I add a "Mic Preamp" under the preamp+eq menu.  I prefer the Vintage Pre.  I move that down into the acoustic mic channel.  Now we must go into SYS/IO and change input #2 to Mic, which is the XLR connection.  Now add whatever fx apply to your situation.  Delay, reverb, eq- just be sure you keep them on the same path as the mic pre.  The other channel can be used for electric guitar, or bass if needed.

Part of my music career is about performing solo. Sometimes, that means being prepared perform under less than ideal circumstances.  Often there's a P.A. system provided at venues I play, but sometimes there's not...for example, a house party.

Looking through the myriad of multi-fx processors on the market, I was drawn to the HD500 because of this mic input and preamp feature.  However, it takes a bit of learning to set up the paths correctly, so I made a demonstration detailing how to use the microphone feature.  In the demo, I make a patch which turns on the mic and some fx.  I hope this will be of great help to singer songwriters who choose to use the line 6 pedal.

Line 6 Pod HD 500X Video demos, and will it work for gigs?

The Line 6 Pod HD500X has lots of features, but what does it offer to gigging musicians?  

As a working musician, I'm constantly being faced with the question of whether to bring vintage gear to gigs.  Despite the cool factor, it's often cumbersome to bring a myriad of vintage pedals to a gig, especially when you'll be walking 10-15 blocks to and from the subway.

So, for the price of about 2.5 boutique pedals, or 4 or 5 well manufactured mass-produced ones- Reverb pedal, Distortion pedal, chorus pedal, Compressor? (Don't forget to buy a decent tuner...)  I decided to take the leap and (re)learn how to use a multi fx pedal again.

So far I've been pleased with the results and I've now got a myriad of (useful!) FX and amp models.   Ultimately, I was interested in a stomp box modeler to replace my current pedal chain.  I also often record demos which mainly use a "direct guitar" or DI scenario.  It works well for that purpose too.  In any given "pedal board" setup I use, The HD500X has proven to be more than worth the money paid.

So here are a couple of videos demonstrating some of the amps and effects that the pedal has to offer.    These feature some of the tube amp models and vintage fx that the Pod HD has become known for.






 
I love vintage gear and I often use it to achieve tones that inspire me.  Maybe this isn't the "perfect" choice for everyone, but I hope it will inspire musicians to be creative and open minded about gear!  Perhaps there is a pedal, amp, guitar, drum that will inspire you!