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I don't know why you think its not meant for "pro" use, I'd say it sounds as good as Helix. I was looking at it as a throw in bag backup rig. This is not the same thing as a pocket pod, I have a pocket pod, and that is not meant for live use, it even has a belt clip

I use a full Helix Floor for my main professional stuff. That being said... This right here would be cool for the little local things when I am home or for duo acoustic/Vocal stuff with my singer when she does acoustic events. I've not seen anyone talk about it with acoustic guitars. But if it can do a good acoustic thing it would be perfect for that. And it is perfect for simple grab and go things like a radio show or something like that. And honestly in a real pinch it is a perfect backup to get you through the gig if anything goes down mid show or for hotel room practicing/warming up backstage

I'm a full on helix power user and I'm so pumped about this one. Now I'll have the rack for home, the Stomp on my bass board and then this guy will save me from ripping the Stomp off the board for those quick little jaunts and emergency situations, and the rest of the time it can live in my tech workbox.

To be fair, let's compare it to anything else at 179 bucks. I think this pedal 'is' a game changer for size, price, tones, sheer FX and intuitive control. I just bought it for basic compact, does everything concept. Take it on a travel trip....in the RV! Backup for pedals. Quick jams...

Great video Steve! Seems like a good alternative to the Boss IR2 with way more capability. Wouldn’t be something that would be easy to use live if you wanted lots of variety but still very usable.

Have one coming tomorrow. Planning to test it out live at church on Sunday.

Love that they poke fun at the whole "Helix 2" thing.

You hit it! Before I retired, I had a Pocket Pod on my desk wired to a volume pedal on the floor for practicing at lunch or break. The Pocket Pod did have a usb editor.

I have a Helix Floor that I use in church on Sunday mornings but I ordered one. I play music in church on Wednesday nights and many times, it's just me and the bass play. I'm not changing effects, maybe just adding a boost to the clean. So this will work out great for that. I will get the volume pedal though. I also wanted it to take to my fishing camp. I have a Spark Mini amp (battery powered also) so this will work well with it. I also plan to make a small board with a Boss R-5 Looper, the Pod Express, a volume pedal. And who knows, maybe the HX-1 for any effects that I want to have more control over the parameters.

Got one to use as backup for HX stomp and to use on battery power! Trying it out for SXSW next week!

I think this would definitely work in small live sessions. The possibility to add more foot switches is really nice and the batterie power thing will definitely help to use it in street music performances. Not to forget that lots of bass players don't use that much effects and lots of them don't need lots of switching options while playing (including myself 🙂). And I really appreciate the user Interface. So many options in such a small pedal is really nice engineering. But I definitely will wait for HX Stomp 2 or Helix 2 before I will order a new Line 6 guitar product.

Nice, inexpensive backup for the price point. Not for everybody, especially older guys that don't want to be bending down all night but a nice option for practice on the road perhaps. I've already got the Helix Floor and I run it through my Catalyst power amp in, which can serve as a backup, if ever needed. On top of that, I also have the HX Stomp with a small pedal board for easy travel. Don't need this personally, but I'm sure there will be plenty of interest. Another winner from Line 6.

You definitely can gig with this. Add a external footswitch and volume pedal and you can do any gig. And i have a Helix floor.

This thing definitely seems like a good practice device. Even something to use to warm up with in the green room. And sure, it could probably save your gig if your amp or other modeller goes down at a gig. I agree, for pro use on the bigger stages...probably not the choice unit to use.

I wish this had command center functionality for foot switch expansion. This would then be my immediate back up/fly rig for sure.

looks like it's going head to head with Boss IR2 pedal, which is apparently so popular, I can't find one available in the UK... I think there is a big appetite for a (good sounding) micro rig...

I recently bought a Two Notes Opus as a backup for my Helix that I can easily carry along. I think this could serve the same function.

I've watched several demo videos, and these units are surprisingly good. The in-depth video to watch is the one on the Sweetwater Channel. Pretty amazing, actually.

Can I run this with my guitar amp and cab? For live use?

This is the gear I've been waiting for for several years. . yes it is a game changer . . ordered :-)

I think it is a great idea. In my case, I see myself buying 2...for my 2 sons. The layout is great for someone new to pedals and effects as well. I think it would be very easy to find a decent sound given an effect that might be new to someone and make that fit into the overall sound. Now, in the case of dad....it would be nice to just have one in my office desk....coming from the guy who gigged the entire year of 1999 using THE BEAN!

Given the feature set and the quality of the amp/effect modeling, I wouldn't hesitate to use this on my pedalboard.

I've watched a few videos about the POD Express, and several KZfaqrs have similar opinions to yours. "Not for gigging. A practice device. A great sounding toy. Yada Yada Yada." I disagree. Of course, it can be used for practice, but given that it has 2 footswitches and a jack for 2 more or an expression pedal, I don't think it is intended for (or more importantly, well suited to) use on a desk. Its giong to be used live, either for rehearsals, gigs or both. Besides, this thing has 7 amps built into a small pedal. It could easily be a more flexible (and cheaper) replacement for an Iridium / ACS1 / UAFX Dream, etc. I think it is an absolute NU-X Amp Academy killer (no benefit to that device now that this one exists). Of course since it is cheaper than the Iridium / ACS1 / Etc., you'd have to live without multiple amps or IRs at once, without XLR, etc. But you get more effects than those devices provide. I could defintely see letting this be the centerpiece of a small board, with either discrete specialty effect pedals, or even pair it with an HX One to provide all of the basics plus the special fx. A compact, two device board that covers all of what some players need. If you are interested in more advanced signal chains, sure, two devices won't cut it, and an HX Stomp would be a better choice. But its no toy - it just looks like one (I don't mind plastic, but the red makes it look sort of cheap). Its also a great choice as a backup for a more expensive modeler. Imagine that you have a board wrapped around an HX Stomp, and the Stomp dies at a gig. Swap the POD Express in, and you have an amp/cab plus the most critical effects, along with whatever other discrete pedals you might have on your board. I think there will be a wide variety of buyers, not just the bedroom players and beginners.

No brainer- brought it arrives Friday- add it my teacher amp, take it camping, lotta lotta

I bought an HX one a few months ago and now I feel like this is better and it has models!!! is it going to sound the same as the HX one??

Steve, the POD Express is clearly aimed at the US market or those markets where real competition is allowed. At US $179, this piece of gear appears to be a good deal. However, here in Australia, it is sold at US $251. That's 72% more expensive! If I pay a few extra dollars, I can get other gear that does more. The problem with this specked down gear is that you cannot even modify the amp sound or effects. It doesn't come with PC software to modify any parameters. What Line 6 give you is it. Bare bones, zero customisation. I won't be getting one.

For once actually I don't get Line6 on this. While with the HX One, despite not being a thing for me, I thought it made sense as a successor of the surprisingly succesful M5; this...well to me the original Pocket Pod was a weird and somewhat overprice unit; and back then there wasn't much competition for it. Now, if I had to suggest to a beginner a basic modeller unit, I'd look at brands like Mooer that offer similarly priced units yet with more functionality that could serve well on a long run. If it was for me, as a portable practice unit I'd probably add an extra 100 an buy a used HX Stomp, the only plus this unit has is the batteries that honestly I see them as a feature for really few situations.

Very Powerful little unit. Might be great for certain sounds when recording. Hard to change sounds while playing live.

I've been playing with the Pod Express all afternoon. It sounds awesome, and I love the ease of use. I'm using it on my desk to record direct, and to just jam with headphones. It IS super plasticky, and does feel a bit like a toy, but it sounds great, and for the price I can't complain. The thing that I'm missing is a stereo effects loop, because I like to use an effect (Octave/Boss PS-5) that is not included on the Pod Express. (Putting the PS-5 in front of the Pod Express does not work for me, because it kills the stereo awesomeness of the PS-5, and it sounds like doo doo when placed after the Pod Express). In this respect only, the Boss IR-2 is better. But the Pod Express has great sounding effects in general, and as an easily tweakable plug and play device, it serves its purpose. Glad I pulled the trigger.

The PodExpress is a cutie practice tool for sure! Looking forward to the podcast!

I have a Helix rack and I don't really need this but I might just get it anyway. It's pretty cool and looks great. Very affordable. Hell it's worth it just for the audio interface.

Agree with your overall assessment however I think calling it a toy might be a bit limiting. I think of it more as high end practice tool. I will use it to practice at my desk in between meetings or take it outside and practice in the backyard without having.to run power to it. It fits very specific use cases and perhaps even has more features than I even need.

AA Batteries and a Headphone Jack. What's to not like about that for portability. USB Audio interface and Stereo out is also nice. Models are Helix models. I'd say a good value for under 200. I may get one eventually.

I think these will be great for kids just starting out and hopefully get more kids to put down the Xbox/playstation controller and playing an instrument. But to add. If I didn’t have a hx stomp already I’d buy this instead. Because the hx is such a pain to tweak on the fly.

Isn’t it something for the guy who don’t really like the helix but mis there pedal board. They can get there pedal board back and use this as the main amp and effects

Mooer GE200 and Boss GT-1 and Hotone Ampero Mini Vanilla are same price with this (in Europe).

Where can i get an office job where i can keep a guitar and fx pedal and have a play? My last office job didn't even give me a proper lunch break

I picked one up and is coming in on Friday. I don't see it as a toy. Not a pro and have no aspiration to be - will work just fine for my needs. Don't love the look but ticks all the boxes: No menu diving/simplicity with amps/cabs and some FX.

From other videos, it sounds amazing! Cannot understand why would someone call gorgeous engineering at an affordable price a “high-end toy?” 🤔

I will honestly say that I’m not convinced those amp choices should be the only ones that somebody could get into the unit. If the companion app that goes with the unit allows you to put different amplifiers in those slots then that would be a home run to me. They just released that 2203 in the latest helix firmware update and they thought it was a bad idea to put it in this unit? Hmmm

Hi Steve. Where can I get your t-shirt? I would LOVE to wear one of these around my X-ray box-loving buddies….lol

"It's not meant to be a gigging musician's thing." I disagree. This is more of a gigging device than most modelling pedals which are invariably overly complex and expensive. The average gigging musician is usually quite poor, and so they benefit from devices that are portable, quick to set up, sound good, and are cheap to replace. I got more use in small gigs out of my Pocket Pod than any other device, so I'm glad that Line 6 has finally released a battery-powered pedal that sounds decent, especially when plugged directly into a PA system.

How bout a new Helix instead. As great as it is, it’s almost 10 years old.

Line6 mad at you? Can’t believe they didn’t send you one of each for the channel.

Maybe I can afford this one 😅

Interesting

How about dropping a new Helix floor?

Boss Pocket GT is way more powerful and cheaper .

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Might be idiot proof. Maybe,,,,

Dude great video as usual but you're really starting to repeat yourself on the same topic over and over