Customer Reviews

Line 6 Tone Port UX2

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Out of all the equipment that I have for my home studio, is is by far my favorite. Basically the Line 6 TonePort UX2 is a USB audio interface. As you can see from the picture it has multiple connections for your instruments, pedals, microphones and speakers.

What you may not know is that the device has its own built-in ASIO drivers, which essentially means you can use the device as an external sound card. The ASIO, IMO, is about as good as you are going to get in this price range. It does a considerably better job than my laptop's built-in ASIO (Sony Sound Reality) at reducing CPU load while minimizing latency.

This port also comes with its own software, GearBox, but that has already been phased Line6's Pod Farm. It comes with an updater so you can get the software for free, however if you want it in VST format you are going to have to shell out another 50 bucks. Pod Farm has a myriad of effects and amps and tons of presets for bass, electic and microphone. I am running this software on Windows Vista and I have not had any compatibility issues.

One thing you should note is that like any sound hardware you do have be conscious of your grounding otherwise you will hear feedback (buzzing).

I purchased the UX2 to replace my M-Audio MobilePre USB and I was quite amazed with the increase in quality of my recordings. The effects and emulators that are built in are very nice and transfer quite well onto your recordings. I'm using the UX2 with GarageBand on a Mac and I'm very happy with the setup. My only complaint is that the UX2/GearBox effects cannot be used directly within GarageBand so I'm unable to tweak effects once I've recorded my take, they're part of the signal and cannot be edited.

Overall you'll be very happy with this product!

While the device itself shows some potential, you will probably feel burned by the included software and overall nature of this purchase. I cannot recommend buying this product unless you are prepared to shell out additional monies for hidden expenses such as plug-ins and non-demo versions of applications. Unfortunately these additional purchases merely bring the product to a basic competitive level instead of offering anything special. I find this form of product marketing and packaging to be the ultimate in customer betrayal. I didn't get what I thought I was buying.

Upon opening the deceptive box and installing it I immediately felt "burned". You are basically being sold a "broken" piece of hardware that needs to be "enabled" and the installer itself attempts to lure you to a web site to buy more software.

Out of the box you can expect to plug in an instrument or mic, dial a tone, and commit a performance as a recording. That's basically it! But let's say you want to play with Line 6's famous Pro Tones after you record? Get out another $100 for an additional "plug-in" purchase. Clearly this type of functionality is the beautiful advantage of the computer platform, and while this device is technically capable of doing this, it won't unless you pay more to "un-break" the device.

So.. out of box, if you are not satisfied with your take you must erase it and start over: a music-making nightmare. Why Line 6 would do this to their customers and hold up the carrot of additional functionality for $100 is just insulting. It's no fun and its anti-music.

This state of affairs ruins what could be a perfectly fine hardware experience. The device itself seems solid and I appreciate the headphone jack for its decent power. All the potential fun that the computer offers to musicians is held away from initial Toneport UX2 buyers. Line 6 has ruined the "fun".

This is a fantastic item! Would recommend to anyone wishing to record thier music to computer. Enough bells and whistles to satisfy your creative juices! Pretty easy to setup and use. Just the ticket for connecting that guitar to that computer. Two instrument inputs, two mic inputs and line in and monitors in and out, digital out and a footpedal switch for versitility in set up. Amp and effect Modeling and recording software round out the package. Totally awesome!!!

I got this 2 years ago. It's an excellent piece of hardware, supported by excellent software. My setup is an MXL990 mic, a Dell Vostro Core2 running Vista with 2GB of RAM. I use Sonar Home XL for recording, although I've also used Audacity. If you need to get high quality sound into your computer, the TonePort is the best inexpensive way to get it. High quality sound, lots of options and digital effects with the included free software. Really versatile for a home studio.

Since I got this, I started an a capella quintet, so I need more places to plug in mics and I'll be upgrading sometime soon. For now, this works great. My brother has used his to record professional-sounding recordings. Good stuff.

I bought this to replace an M-AUDIO MobilePre USB interface I had been using with an old POD 2.0. I ended up preferring this setup over playing through a practice amp at home, but I was missing the ability to upgrade the software on the POD.

The UX2 replaces the two other devices and adds extra functionality. It still works as an interface for whatever recording software I want to use, and I can also use it instead of a practice amp. The big plus for me is that I was able to go online and purchase additional amp and effects models from the Line 6 web site; but that's also one of the reasons I'm only giving it 4 stars, since the software included with the UX2 is pretty lame without paying to upgrade it.

It comes with standalone and plug-in versions of both GearBox and POD Farm (which both use the same models, just different interfaces, and POD Farm adds dual tone functionality). In standalone mode, the software utilizes Line 6's ToneDirect monitoring, which allows you to monitor your signal with no latency. It works just as well as they claim it does -- I can hear no delay at all between my playing and the speakers. When loaded as a plug-in inside recording software, you can reduce the latency by decreasing the buffer size. The advantages of using the VST/RTAS/AU plug-ins are great enough that a little latency isn't a big deal by comparison; anyway, I was able to get it down low enough that it was barely noticeable.

Out of the box, the software isn't that impressive. It has a handful of amp, cabinet, and effects models, but nothing you were probably really hoping for (no '68 Marshall variac'd, Peavey 5150, Bogner Uberschall, etc.). The UX2 comes with a free FX Junkie model pack, but for the really popular amp models -- Marshall, Diezel, ENGL, and lots of vintage and boutique amps -- you'll need to buy extra model packs from Line 6. Not having these packs gets annoying when you try to take advantage of downloadable presets, which can be found on Line 6's site and scattered across the Internet; most of them will have some component that's part of a pack you don't own. Luckily, Line 6 usually has specials for buying multiple packs; I was able to get every single model pack for $99, bringing the total cost for the UX2 up to about $250 -- still well worth it, in my opinion.

The other software that comes with the UX2 isn't even worth installing. They're stripped-down demo versions of Ableton Live and Line 6's RiffWorks; you'll want to buy the full version of either program if you want to be able to use it for much of anything. Instead I use Reaper, on open-source recording program similar to ProTools or Reason (check it out at reaper.fm -- only 50 bucks, and it has a full-featured trial that doesn't expire), but you can use the UX2 to record with any recording software that supports VST/RTAS/AU plug-ins; it even works well with Apple's Garage Band.

The UX2 itself seems a little flimsy, but it's held up well so far. It's plastic, though, and I worry that the input jacks will come loose or break the first time I accidentally trip over a cord. But no use fretting about that while it's in tip-top shape, and it's got some pretty nice features. Two instrument inputs, one volume-padded for high-output pickups; two mic inputs; phantom power; digital S/PDIF output; stereo monitor input; L/R analog input/output; and stereo headphone output. It also has two footswitch inputs, though POD Farm doesn't yet support MIDI control (so, for example, the Line 6 MIDI expression pedal will connect, but you won't be able to use it to control a wah or volume in POD Farm).

Overall, I'd say this is a great deal for only $200, and you can find it even cheaper if you look (I got mine for $139.99). The closest thing I found was Native Instruments' Guitar Rig, which comes with a footboard/interface and modeling software, but costs around $400. Even with the additional cost of the model packs you'll probably want to buy, this is relatively cheap for a full-featured interface with great modeling software. Just don't plan on using the included demo versions of the other software. Get a different recording package.

If you play Guitar, Bass, or you sing YOU MUSY HAVE THIS.

Ease of use: So its fairly easy to use, when you get into the nitty gritty it can get complicated but there are forums our there and figuring it out usually isn't that hard. Also they come out with new software to make sure you keep playing. They update their patches frequently.

Performance: What you can learn from this thing is incredible. It has many different effects, amps, cabs, and with a subscription to Line 6, you can get tones (to make your guitar sound like, say Jimmy Hendrix), tracks (to play along with or without your instrument), lesson on all things guitar, and tablature that will not only change for you as the song moves along but will change the sound of your guitar according to the part if you want. (changes from rhythm to lead or other)

I use this with my guitar and microphone (either at the same time or differently depending on what I want to accomplish that day). I have recorded some songs on my own and my friends have to (however to record i used garage band.. but i did use UX2 for the sound). This piece of equipment will make you better. I strongly recommend this to all musicians.

I really wanted to give this product 4+ stars. Unfortunately that is just impossible with its major drawbacks. As previously mentioned, the software included is horrendous. I had my Toneport UX2 for a full year, purchased it last Christmas. It worked excellently, providing no hassle other than the terrible software. However on December 27th, 2008, a year and 2 days after i bought it, it decided not work. When i plug it in it is not detected, and neither of the two gauges light up. I tried all of the recommended 'solutions' as stated by the Line 6 website. Nothing worked and now im left with a big black and red paper weight. Dealing with the software was manageable due to the well performance of the product, however since it just randomly decided not to work at all, this product cannot be rated any higher than a single star.

I use mine primarily to record bass guitar and electric guitar (using Ableton Live as my DAW). The UX2 is perfect for me, and I'm surprised how much I like the GearBox software. I'm able to dial up great sounds for my basses and guitars. The array of amps, cabs, and effects is varied and powerful, and there are some nice practice features, like the built-in tuner, metronome, and audio player (for playing along with mp3s or wavs). The best thing, though, is the "ToneDirect" monitoring. You can monitor straight off the headphone jack of the UX2, which cuts out most latency issues.

The only thing I'd really like to see for it would be a dedicated foot controller of some sort. You can make it work with some third-party MIDI controllers, but it is, from what I read, a little tricky. If Line6 made one for it, I'd be happy to buy it.

I wrote a full review of it over at [...]. You can check that out for more details.

I used to use this to record with my band about a year and a half ago, and I recently moved to a new town. I had to buy one for myself to use while I'm here. I use this to connect my laptop to my PA system and re-record my songs. Gearbox is a great program and it allows you to get almost any sound you want. Set up was as simple as run the CD, and plug it in! Great buy, shipped in half the time it said it would, and Amazon has the cheapest prices I've seen.