Line 6 POD Studio KB37

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List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: $304.96
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• KB37 provides the lowest noise for recording guitar with 12dB more dynamic range than similar interfaces. 37 full-sized velocity-sensitive keys, pitch bend wheel, octave up/down buttons, software-assignable controls.
• ToneDirect monitoring virtually eliminating latency and allows you to record and monitor a fully processed tone. 44.1/48 kHz 16-/24-bit recording (88.2/96 kHz with sample rate conversion)Compatible with USB 1.1 and 2.0
• POD Farm plug-in provides 18 guitar amps, 24 guitar cabs, 5 bass amps and 5 bass cabs, 29 essential stompbox and studio effects and 6 mic preamps in Mac® AU/RTAS®/VST® and Windows® RTAS®/VST® formats
• Free FX Junkie model pack adds 35 more effect models, including synths, filters, delays, and more, to POD Farm. Ableton® Live Lite Line 6 Studio Edition 16-track recording software and award-winning Reason Adapted production software
• 1/4-inch guitar input, two balanced XLR inputs, phantom power, two 1/4-inch line inputs, 1/4-inch stereo monitor inputs, two footswitch jacks,1/4-inch balanced stereo line outputs,S/PDIF digital output,1/4-inch headphone output, assignable VU meters.

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I'm new to creating music on a computer, and my research, along with tons of positive reviews from others, led me to the POD Studio KB37 as a good all-purpose starting point. In terms of flexibility, this package is very hard to beat. The built-in inputs and mic preamps let you record just about anything, from guitar/bass and other electric instruments to vocals and acoustic instruments (using your own mic, of course). For these uses alone, the KB37 is a great way to get sound into your computer with minimum headaches. Simply connect the KB37 to your computer with a single USB cable. It's USB-powered, so you don't even have to plug it into a power outlet.

The hardware's MIDI keyboard and control surface open up a whole new dimension. They allow you to add keyboard parts and adjust some software parameters via real-world knobs and buttons; this is much faster than clicking and dragging onscreen "virtual" controls.

The included software package reveals the KB37's full potential, transforming an otherwise great product into an incredible bargain. Sure, the Reason Adapted (synth, sampler, sequencer, and effects) and Ableton Live (multitrack recording) software are the "lite" versions of these programs, but even so, they're very versatile and powerful. If you're fairly new to DAW software, trust me, even the lite version of Reason is pretty incredible -you'll get a lot of use out of it. It includes tons of sampled real-world instruments, fully functional and tweakable soft synths, drum machine, sequencer, effects, and a lot more. It takes quite a while to explore its impressive capabilities. Once you do, you'll know whether you want to upgrade to the full version, which is available at a discounted price. But again, the lite verion will be plenty for many users.

Finally, you get Line 6's POD Farm software, which gives you an arsenal of stompbox and rack effects for guitar, bass, vocals, and just about anything else. On top of that, it includes amp, cab, and mic preamp modeling. You get everything that most guitar multi-effects units provide and then some. Because it runs on your computer, naming and saving patches is quicker and easier than stand-alone multi-effects units, and you can save as many custom patches as you like. And, unlike stand-alone units, POD Farm is expandable. Line 6 claims that the KB37 allows you to monitor your tone, complete with effects, without a latency problem (a lag between playing a note and hearing the output). This is not an empty promise. On my modest laptop, which runs Windows Vista on an Intel Core 2 Duo T5550 (1.83GHz) with 3GB of RAM, I experience zero latency problems.

All told, for the price of one guitar multi-effects unit, you get everything you need to start a home studio. If you're a full-time keyboard player, this package probably isn't aimed at you. As its name suggests, the KB37's keyboard has only 37 keys. So, there are probably better MIDI keyboard controllers out there for you. Plus, as a keyboard specialist, you'd most likely want a full version of whatever synth software you prefer. On the other hand, if you play guitar or bass and you want all the building blocks for tweaking your tone, adding vocals, effects, *and* getting your feet wet with powerful synths, sampling, and multitrack recording, here it is for a laughably low price.

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This is great!! i bought this to be the heart of my long awaited home studio, and it definately has all the potential to be. the software alone is very usable, great for any music creative process. ableton has been the best so far, pod farm is of course essential for guitar players. but, a week after i got this it stopped recognizing the guitar signal, or any other input other than the keyboard itself. the pod farm program was not responding to any instrument. so i uninstalled, reinstalled, updated drivers, registered my product, everything. still not working. so i went to the line 6 forums and found a guy with a similar problem. he ended up upgrading to pod farm 2.0. i did the same, and everything works again!! i dont know what happened, but of course as with any electronic device today the internet is a crucial tool in making anything work nowadays. i am unfortunate enough not to have high speed where i live, so i had to resolve these problems at work. other than the updating which gave me a big scare and pissed me off, this is a awesome product and will hopefully give me years of music creation.

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The recording interface and software alone would make this unit an invaluable recording tool (see the UX series if you're not interested in a keyboard). Being a guitarist, I initially thought the keyboard and electronic music features would end up being more of a novelty than anything, but after spending time with the included Ableton software I can honestly say that I am very glad I went this route, it is very much a creative tool as opposed to a piece of equipment you wrestle with constantly while you are working on musical ideas.

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There is a lot to like about the KB37. There are also limitations, but in my opinion according to what you will use it for.

When I first saw it I thought it is one of the coolest looking pieces of current equipment I have seen. I love the design ideas. My use is for recording demos on a MacBook Pro using Logic Pro. I had previously been using Focusrite Saffire pre-amps, and I was concerned that the pre-amp quality would be inadequate for my demos. I would have also preferred a longer keyboard, but as I say budget was tight.

The result? Well I gotta say once I got used to how it works, using the KB37 is mostly enjoyable. The pre-amps are not bad certainly useable for demo quality. Not pristine, but pretty good. Much more disappointing is the line out quality. Dull, lifeless and clouded compared even with the ordinary audio line out on my Macbook. These are certainly not up to mixing with, producing nowhere near enough detail, which is a real let down considering they did so well with the pres. I am not so interested in the modelling section as I would take the sound of a mic in front of an amp ANY day over a model, but I actually do like the line 6 sound, and the interface is beautifully laid out from a visual point of view. I have had some noise problems with the models, but I must say I mat not be setting up optimally, as I have only had the unit a couple of weeks.

Overall, as as been said, the unit IS pretty cheap. My Focusrite 2 channel mic preamp/firewire interface cost more than this alone. So I guess you get what you pay for. If you mainly like hooking up loads of guitar models and effects, and wanna program virtual instrument parts from the keyboard, I think you will love this. If you want a studio interface for serious recordings, maybe up the budget a little and get better audio quality. Overall, I think Line 6 are great designers, and I am glad they are around!

I bought this as a way to input some of my instruments into my computer AND have a midi keyboard controller.

Generally I am happy with the product yet finding out exactly how to utilize it completely is not easy and has not that much documentation or support.

it has an impressive bundling of software yet same issue.. not much real support.

PROS

Product has potential.

works well in the LIGHT version of ableton live. as a midi keyboard and AUDIO input.

CONS

Not much documentation and a steep learning curve.

Reason..adapted (one of the included products ) is NOT recognized on windows 7.

no real explanation of how to assign keyboard controls.