Gear Review: Line6 Toneport UX-1

Acquired From: Guitar Center
Price Paid: $100

I cannot tell you how impressed I am with this little magic box! This was easily the best $100 I've ever spent on gear. It plugs into your computer via USB cable, and you plug your instrument or mic into it. BAM, instant recording studio! Another great thing about the Toneport is that it is a direct replacement for your computer's soundcard, and for most of us, it's a much needed upgrade to the one we already had. It's ZERO latency, and for all of you who've been fooled by that line before (as have I many times) Line6 actually delivers on this promise. You'll never have that "lag" between what you play and what comes out of your speakers. On top of everything else, it comes with not one, but TWO great pieces of software. You get the "Gearbox" software, and the new "POD Farm" software. Both of which are just about the coolest things your computer will ever have installed on it, and definitely the most fun you've had in a long time. For awhile I had been picking up my guitar maybe once a week. Since I purchased my Toneport UX-1 I have literally been playing for hours a day. You'll just never get bored with it! Imagine having every single amp or effect pedal that you've ever dreamed about, without taking up a room of your house, and for the mere price of $100. THAT'S WHAT THIS IS!!! You open up Gearbox or POD Farm, put together your amp/effects chain, and just start jamming. On top of that, there is an online element to it. Right from the Gearbox program there is a button called Tonelocker. You click on it, a web browser opens in Gearbox, and you pick through a HUGE inventory of presets arranged by Song, Album, Band, and Guitarist. Say you want to play the lead from "Voodoo Child". You just look it up, click on it, and instantly you are playing with the exact same tone Jimi had when he recorded it! It also does vocal processing, using a diverse selection of preamp and mic models. Hell, the things even got a built-in tuner! The only drawback to it thus far is the absence of an expression pedal, of which I hear is going to be present in the next version of it. The Toneport UX-1 is compatible with all software DAW's that I'm aware of (and I'm a DAW freak), and it even comes with one. You get a special "Line6" version of Ableton Live Lite, so you can record with it right out of the box! Your computer doesn't even need to be all that fast to run it. My computer has only a Pentium 4 CPU and 1Gb of RAM, and it handles it without a single problem. So, to wrap it up, it's a zero latency recording interface, an amp and effects modeler, and a guitarist/bassist/singer's best friend. Buy one, you won't regret it!

The following specs and system requirements for the Line6 Toneport UX-1 were copied and pasted from Guitar Center's website:

Pro amp, cab, stompbox, and studio effects models from the PODxt and Bass PODxt
High-quality vocal preamp models
GearBox software provides hardware-like interface
18 guitar amp models
24 speaker cab models
5 bass amp and cab models
30 stompbox and studio effects
6 mic preamp models
1 XLR mic input
1 - 1/4" guitar/bass input
Stereo line inputs
Stereo line outputs (2 - 1/4")
Stereo 1/4" monitor input
Headphone out
Over 100dB signal-to-noise and dynamic range
Unique low-latency monitoring regardless of recording software's buffer size
44.1/48KHz 16-/24-bit recording
96kHz mode with built-in sample rate conversion for simultaneous input and output
USB-powered
Rock-solid drivers: ASIO, WDM, Mac OS X

Windows system requirements:
Pentium IV 1.2GHz or better (2.5GHz or more recommended)
Windows XP (with SP2 only) or Windows 2000 (with SP4 or later)
512MB RAM minimum (1GB or more recommended)
1GB free HD space minimum (10GB or more recommended for recording)
Drive speed 5400rpm minimum (7200rpm or faster recommended)
CD-ROM drive
Internet connection for online features

Mac system requirements:
G4 800MHz or better (G4 1.5 or better recommended)
OS X 10.4 or better
512MB RAM minimum (1GB or more recommended)
1GB free HD space minimum (10GB or more recommended for recording)
Drive speed 5400rpm minimum (7200rpm or faster recommended)
CD-ROM drive
Internet connection for online features

USB:
One free USB 1.1 or 2.0 compatible port on computer, or self-powered USB hub (requires power from USB, so bus-powered USB hubs are not supported)