Writing about web page http://www.voxamps.co.uk/products/tonelab/tonelab_se.htm

I am now the proud owner of one of these monsters.

I decided that it was time to replace the ageing Digitech RP-6 that I’ve been using for almost 10 years (good pedal for the time, but the electronic sound of it bores me now), so I had a look around what was on the market. Had a look at the Boss GT-6, but felt that it was full of gimmicks, not too much for a musician. So I got one of these, from iMuso.co.uk.

Mmmmmmm.

It’s excellent. Really good sounds – the presets are ok, but as ever, it’s once you start making your own patches that you get the sounds how you want them. I can’t comment on how accurate the amp simulations are – I’ve never played through most of the amps it models (c’mon – how many people have actually played on a Dumble?), but they certainly sound good, and distinctly different. To quote a review on harmony-central:

I now have Two Fenders (Bassman, & Blackface Twin), Four Voxs (AC15, 15TB, AC30, 30TB), Six Marshalls (JTM 45, Plexi 50, Plexi 100, JCM 800, JCM 900, Modded Marshall), Soldano SLO100, Mesa Rectifier, Dumble Clean and OD, and an Acoustic Simulator at toe tap … I just saved over $30,000 in vintage amps for $599.00.

And it’s HUGE. And heavy. And comes with it’s own gig bag (!). And it’s got a real, old-fashioned triode valve glowing away on top. Which is dynamically reconfigured depending on the amp that it’s modelling. Which is kinda cool.

There’s a definite learning curve with this thing; it’s massively flexible (2 channels on each patch, so you can switch the amp and cab over if that takes your fancy. Also, a quick Control switch that you can assign to anything useful – tap delay, pedal on/off, modulation on/off, whatever). Once you’ve worked out how to get around it, it becomes second nature. I’m impressed with how much control you have.

Happy purchase.