The ToneMatch presets only gets you so far depending on the pickup system in the guitar and your playing style. I have found that I need to have something to seriously tweak the EQ to get the best sound out of the S1. Just about everything I've tried as worked fine including a K&K preamp, an LR Baggs PARA DI and the Boss VE-8 which I love for guitar and vocals. I think the 6" speaker on the S1 limits the use of Keyboards. I don't have a lot of experience with amplifying keys but the general consensus on AGF is that you need at least something with a 10" woofer, better yet 12". I just added a QSC k8.2 powered speaker to my setup for when I need more power. The Bose works great as a floor monitor in that instance.

Scott Martin Thank you for replying. I have the Bose L1S1 wB2 for larger venues. I recently got a used B1 to use for smaller rooms because the B2 is really big bass sound and easily takes over. I also have a Samson XP1k which includes a mixer. I use that with the L1 and the 500W speakers more for monitors when band is really spread out. The S1 Pro was for being able to travel light and unplugged outdoors mostly w guitar. All my other equipment needs power. I am considering the V8 after your review. That can go everywhere w me and would replace some existing stand alone pedals I use for compression, chorusing, tuner, etc. It also opens up an extra channel to use for vocals with the S1. I do wish it had another channel for 3 part harmonies. I also just purchased a couple FiFine cordless mics w plug in receivers (1/4”) from Amazon that I am pleased with.

We were pleasantly surprised with the VE-8. I was using a LR Baggs PARA DI to EQ my guitars, then through a TCE BodyRez, through a TCH Harmony G-XT and finally to a mixer. My wife does most of the singing but I had a mic as well for the few songs I do and the few harmonies I manage. I picked up a VE-8 used online hoping it might be a one-stop solution and after a bit of tweaking found it was exactly that. It replaced every pedal I listed above in my guitar signal chain and it runs on batteries. Plus it added a notch and a looper. The reverb is not bad and there's chorus and some other effects. The harmony pedal works well. We don't use the looper much. We find it easy to use, it's robustly built and good looking as well. I've even taken to carrying it with me to open mics and running my guitar through that since it's tweaked for my guitars and the notch on the fly is a real bonus. For traveling light it's awesome but we also have taken to using it for our full setup. If we need more power than just the S1 I have just added a QSC k8.2 which I just did a video demo on. With that setup we use the S1 as a monitor and the QSC as FOH. But it's just the two of us so no band.

Scott Martin found one used but never used for $200!

That's what I paid for me. Definitely worth it. Many people seem to be intimidated by the lack of physical EQ controls but I found it pretty easy to learn. Let me know if you have any questions if you buy it.

You are correct - the VE-8 goes into the S1 with just a standard 1/4" guitar cable and the ToneMatch switch is set to off.

Thank you for your prompt response. I really enjoyed your review, especially the part where you say "unfortunately my wife doesn't need that" I am sure you meant "fortunately". This review was extremely well done. I learnt a lot. Cheers!

Sure! www.amazon.com/gp/product/B073ZNSZSH/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1