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The Variax 600 offers an entire guitar collection in a single instrument. Variax combines Line 6's exclusive modeling technology, with a comfort-contoured Basswood guitar, to accurately reproduce the sounds of classic 6 and 12 string guitars plus other fretted favorites. All of the sounds are accessible with just one knob and the 5-way pickup selector. |
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| Features: | 8.8 |
| Sound: | 8.5 |
| Action: | 8 |
| Reliability: | 8.3 |
| Impression: | 8.7 |
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| Overall rating: |
8.3 |
| Reviewer rating: |
8.5 |
| Users rating: |
8.2 |
| Votes: |
69 |
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Variax 600
Reviewed by:
unregistered, on october 24, 2005
6 of 6 people found this review helpful
Price paid: $ 799
Purchased from: Musicians Friends
Features: I own the Line 6 Variax 600. Besides the electronics I was impressed by the one-piece maple neck/fingerboard. Yes, it has all the different guitar models, but the one major feature people don't point out is the ability to Switch between open tunings. There are 10 Custom sound slots aboard the Variax. So far I have the following tunings accessible by the turn of a Switch: open G, open D, open C, G minor tuning, and a special one that I use for Arkansas Traveler (EBEABE). This ability to jump between tunings is a Godsend. For years I just stayed in standard tuning because it was too much to jump between the different tunings. The only bad thing I noticed was that it sounded totally artificial in open D tuning using the the 9th to the 12th frets on the first string. My resolution was to tune up a whole step and make it open E tuning. // 8
Sound: I play everything except heavy metal. That's further up the pike. As I mentioned above the open tunings at the flick of a Switch is totally fantastic. If you purchase a solid-body Variax, for an additional $100 you can buy the Variax Workbench. Here the Variax via USB is now part of a computer program. You can choose different guitar bodies, pickups, and many more parameters to create a custom instrument. This is how I created all the Open tunings. I love the variety of sounds. Certain country songs sound great with the Banjo option. Scarborough Fair is fantastic on the 1966 Rickenbacker 260-12 model. I use to own this model back in the 80s and I was always sad that I sold it. On the acoustic models it is necessary to move the mike (tone knob) away from the instrument. That way it doesn't have such a booming quality. But these sound great with the classical guitar pieces that I play. I spent two whole days experimenting with the different sounds and I was always amazed at the results. I like playing Classical Gas on a 1968 Telecaster Thinline model, go figure. Another jazz blues tune called Another Lonely Day sounded great on the 1957 Gibson ES-175 model. All of this justs adds another dimension to my playing pleasure. The modeling sometimes is not perfect, but good enough. // 8
Action, Fit & Finish: The one thing that I didn't like was an inability to adjust the tonality of the individual strings. To play in better tune between the open strings and fretted notes, you have to check the compensation of each string. With an accurate tuner I am playing the open string then checking the fretted note at the twelth fret. I then adjust the individual string saddles. The problem is that I was not able to make the adjustment on the bass strings because they were already maxed out and I couldn't lengthen the string any further. Yeah, the guitar still sounds alright, but it irked me that I encountered that roadblock. The guitar is too new and I don't want to mess with the tremolo bridge right now. To their credit I didn't notice any other flaws. The action may be a bit high, but this is standard practice. // 7
Reliability & Durability: It's hard to answer this question because I've only had it for two weeks. Sure if the electronics go, it's worthless, but keep in mind that the other guitar I own has active electronics and it also would be a piece of crap if anything happened to it. // 10
Impression: I play classical, jazz, blues, folk. This guitar is a good match for my style because of its ability to go to any open tuning and also I make use of the full inventory of guitar models. I took my crappy Yamaha 12-string Strat knockoff and did the following: I replaced the electronics with three EMG single coil pickups. I changed the nut and bridge for six-string. I sanded all the rough edges on the top side and I repainted it. This is my standby if anything happens to the Line 6. I also have a Dobro Resonator guitar, a Custom Santa Cruz guitar Company Koa wood dreadnaught, and a Martin 12-string. I'm not a professional and I love playing via my computer to the headset. I play acoustic songs on a solid body because it causes less stress as I get older. I also found out that my fingerpicking was suffering because I was trying to hard to project a big volume. With the solid body I can relax more and play alot better. If I want more volume I turn up the knob instead of building up tension in my arms and hands. Yes, I'm happy with this guitar, but so far I don't have any use for the tremolo bar. That will come with Heavy Metal. // 8
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Variax 600
Reviewed by:
unregistered, on november 24, 2005
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
Price paid: $ 799
Purchased from: Music Loft
Features: My Variax is a brand spankin new 600 sunburst. It feels kinda like a Strat and the action is perfect. I tried a 300 before I bought this one and found it to be pretty bad craftsmanship. The 600 is really good, perfect, in fact. The hardware seems like lifetime kinda stuff. It came with all the stuff (foot petal, gig bag, cables). // 10
Sound: OK, this is where it gets controversial. I, personally, love the sounds that this guitar makes. Is it right on perfect? Probably not. Is it so close that people cant tell the difference? Yes. Because I play in a band where we transition really quick from one song to the next I didnt have time to Switch guitars. One song rocks, the next is entirely mellow. The Variax allows me to play a artin D-28, flip a Switch and a Strat. I run one distortion Switch and that is it. This guitar is the most awesome guitar for the stage that I have ever seen. For me it was a bargan at 799. 00. I have a Martin guitar that is four times that cost and never gets any gigs any more. The Variax is just too versatile. And, it uses standard 9 electric strings. So, fretting is just that much faster than on the acoustics with 12s. I might mention that the Variax also has banjo, resonators, scitar, and what seems like an excess of choices in electric rock and jass guitars. If you try the 600 or 700 on stage you will be hooked. // 10
Action, Fit & Finish: The 600 is set up perfect from the factory. The 300 is mostly an excercise in frustration. I paid twice the price of the 300 because I simply couldnt deal with the low quality of the guitar. The difference is huge. My 600 is as good as an American Strat or a Gibson SG. In fact, I think it feels better than the SG. As you know there are no pick ups on the Variax. So, it comes with nothing to adjust. Tune, plug and play. // 10
Reliability & Durability: So far my Variax has been rock solid. I will admit that I am a tad wary of the heavy dependance on electronics in this guitar. But, that's all psychological. This guitar has never even hinted that it will have an issue soon. I play it live twice a week and I never bring a backup guitar, if that tells you anything. I will say that as far as the little things, like strap buttons, they are a non issue. This guitar is built to a high standard and those things wont even need to be considered. // 10
Impression: I have been playing Christian rock, worship, music for 5 years every Tuesday and Sunday. The ranges of the music we make go from head bang to mellow. This guitar is the best fit I have ever seen. I currently own a Martin DC17-E, a Les Paul, a Washburn custom acoustic, a Seagull 12 string, a Yamaha classical, a banjo and a mandolin. Except for the mandolin, this guitar fills all of those rolls at the flip of a Switch. I searched and searched for a guitar that would allow me to Switch gears on the fly and with little fuss. I never dreamed that I would find one this good, with this quality, with this range of guitars, at this price. I dont hate anything about this guitar. I simply cannot find a downside. If there must be a downside, it's that it must be plugged in to enjoy unlike the Martin which is dreamy to play anywhere. // 10
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Variax 600
Reviewed by:
kdownes, on august 29, 2007
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
Price paid: $ 988
Purchased from: Ultramusic, Hervey Bay
Features: A very comfortable guitar. The body shape is nothing like any other guitar. The guitar is slightly weighty though. // 9
Sound: The sound of the guitar is fantastic. Every instrument sounds faithful to its real life cousin. It has everything you would ever need from a 1960 Fender Telecaster to an electric sitar. Whether you are after a balls-out rock guitar or a crisp country tone, this guitar has it all. I play all styles of music from Rock and metal to Blues and Country and the Variax can do it all, no problem. The Maple fretboard really adds to the sound, adding rich tones and harmonics. I currently run it through a Squire amp and Kork AXG1 Multi-effects pedal but I am saving up for a Marshall MG30 and a POD XT Live floorboard. // 10
Action, Fit & Finish: Since getting the guitar, I have only made 2 adjustments. I fitted it with Elixir 10 guauge strings (I don't use anything else) and neck tension was too high, the strings almost touched the frets when it was unfretted. Apart from that, a very, very sturdy guitar. The man Who works at the music store I bought it from has had his from 3 years and all he's ever had to do is replace on of the Peizo pickups. // 9
Reliability & Durability: A very sturdy and durable guitar. I would feel safe taking this guitar anywhere with me. It is built solidly and the electronics are well protected. It would take quite a struggle to destroy this guitar, everything is securely fastened on. I would feel more than comfortable playing many gigs without a backup and I take it to school all the time and I feel safe knowing that it won't be damaged. I've had it for 3 months now and there is not a single tiny little nick in the finish or rust. // 10
Impression: Before I bought the Variax, I was tossing up between an ESP MH-400 and an Ibanez XPT700. When I first saw the Variax I was doubtful. I thought to myself, "would the sounds be real, or would it sound fake?". So I went onto the website and listened to the sounds and I was blown away. It sounded just like the real instruments. Even the acoustic guitars sound as real as any other simulators. Because of Line 6's revolutionary technology, they could record the real instruments and program the sounds individually into each string. And they didn't just pick up brand-new or off-the-shelf models. No, they went for real Vintage instruments that had been played and loved, some for more than 50 years. I've been playing guitar for just over 2 years and this guitar has blown me away. I would suggest anyone and everyone buy this guitar. They also have a model with a locking-bridge, and the V700 has a different shaped body, one-peice neck with Rosewood fretboard, bone nut and pearl inlays, but is about $500 more expensive. // 10
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Variax 600
Reviewed by:
unregistered, on april 03, 2012
0 of 0 people found this review helpful
Price paid: $ 350
Purchased from: guitar center - used
Features: Good guitar, bought it used. Feels good, good weight, frets nicely, stays in tune. And I tend to strum hard, so that's a good thing. Lots of cool sounds on it. I plug it into my Pod XT with a DSL type cable sometimes, change the tone, add stuff via computer, change the tuning, add a virtual capo etc. This part is way cool. Can change the pickup configuration and so on. Also use batteries in it, with a regular guitar cable. Or a power supply... And cable that comes with it, all works nicely. If batteries aren't fully charged, the bottom two strings don't pick up. // 8
Sound: This is ok. The sounds are well, but this is a computerized guitar for the most part. The sound comes through piezo pickups, not magnetic. Therefore when you hit the chord hard, there's no break up. For playing stuff that's all big and thick..it's great, or playing stuff that's just clean, great. But I like to play cleanish, then hit hard and get some break up without having to hit a distortion pedal... Not able to do that.. Not a huge problem, but if I would have known that before I bought it, might have changed me buying it. I know the new stuff have magnetic pickups, that might be better, but doesn't fit my budget. // 5
Action, Fit & Finish: The action is good, I got it used, so not sure on factory set up, but all is well. The thing here with pick ups and such is the battery power not being up causes the e and b not to pickup, but using the power supply stuff fixes that. As far as frets, great. Floating trem is good, keeps in tune well. Tuners are good, like all the cosmetics of this guitar. // 8
Reliability & Durability: It can, I've used it twice live. Would not use it without a back up, I actually use it as my back up. I think the wood and body will last. I foresee having to get electronic work done potentially at some point. Straps buttons are good. Finish is great, it truly is a beautiful guitar. // 5
Impression: I play mostly in church, so thought it would be great for that. Play mostly a rock type style.. Is great for U2 type sounds. Works good for country. Been playing 21 yrs. Have played on 76 Tele Deluxe (that was customized amazing guitar), Fender Strats, Ibanez, Taylors, Fender Deluxe amps, Vox Marshall, now play mostly through Line 6 PD XT live, using a Godin Solidac, not a known guitar, but amazing. Wish I would have known about the break up. If it get lost, stolen, I'm buying something different. Love the variety of instrument. Being able to change the tuning at the switch of a knob. Great banjo sound... Lol, also good simulation of actual instruments. Wish it had magnetic pickups. // 6
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Variax 600
Reviewed by:
unregistered, on july 08, 2011
0 of 0 people found this review helpful
Price paid: £ 550
Purchased from: PMT (Pro Music Technology)
Features: Maple necked 2-tone sunburst Variax 600, LR Baggs trem. 22 medium frets - overall, Line 6 were obviously trying to sit somewhere on the fence between Tele/Strat and Les Paul/SG feel, though definitely leaning more towards the Fender side of things. Consequently, it's a bit like playing a Yamaha Pacifica, in that it's familiar but different at the same time! It definitely looks distinctive though, especially with the absence of conventional pickups - people who haven't seen one before often look puzzled and eventually have to ask how it works, which means I then have to find a way of explaining piezo pickups and DSP without sounding incredibly boring (Pro tip: "Magic" is the best possible answer here).
The guitar came with the usual tools plus a floor-pedal power supply and a reassuringly padded gig bag. PMT also threw in a stereo cable (you need a stereo one to carry the power from the floor pedal to the axe) and a strap, plus a handful of plectrums, naturally! AND I got the tonebench usb interface and software at a discount (always remember to haggle)! The biggest draw for me was the modelling and tuning possibilities, which I'll get onto next. // 8
Sound: I play/perform/record music that's somewhere on the alternative/experimental spectrum, so the ability to make this thing sound as unconventional as possible was just as much a motivation in my purchase as the "real-life" tones that Line 6 marketed it on. It's not very noisy at all, so I had no problems plugging it into a decent rig of pedals (all the better to mangle the tone with), although now I'm using a Native Instruments Guitar Rig 4 setup for my processing, before putting it through an AC30 and/or Marshall 8100 head. Either way, there aren't any noise concerns in the main, although one of the piezos did die on me rather noisily (more on that later).
Tonebench is a must with this guitar - as others here have mentioned, you almost certainly won't want 25 different models of guitar; it's much better to experiment a bit to find the three or four that really suit your sound and then just program some variations on each of those (different tunings, different pot impedances, in and out of phase pickups, series or parallel pickups, different angles or positions for the pickup, etc). In doing this, it's also really important to use your ears rather than your eyes and prejudices! I took a while to shake off my urge to stick with Telecasters and Les Pauls (my 'real' guitars of choice) before eventually deciding that the Danelectro and Epiphone Casino bodies worked best for me (with Les Paul Goldtop humbuckers, mostly) - bear in mind that, while the models are reasonably realistic for the most part, you can create some beautiful combinations that simply wouldn't work in real life!
Ultimately, once these are all setup (takes time and patience), I've settled on some tones that I've yet to hear a "real" guitar emulate. If you're looking to sound like Clapton, buy a Strat, but if you want to get your own sound, you might find this is the guitar for you.
The alternate tuning side of things is a funny one - as with all pitch-shifters, the effect introduces a degree of warble and artificiality that will never sound the same (especially not on a "clean" setting) as a real guitar tuned to that tuning. On the other hand, no real guitar can pull off some of the tunings this one can - I used to spend hours tuning and retuning, and messing around with spider capos and whatever else I could to get the range of pitch that I can now achieve by simply turning a pot! You can tune a full octave up or down in chromatic steps for each string - E and A strings in a deep bass throb, D and G standard, and B and E all plinky lightness? Try doing that on a "real" guitar! Like I said though, if you want it to sound "perfect" and "real", then use a "real" guitar and be prepared to go through a lot of strings! If you don't care if your guitar sounds "weird" (pretty much the definition of good tone, in my book), get Tonebench and get experimenting.
Oh and a quick note on the more esoteric models - Sitar is moderately convincing as a model of the Dano equivalent, Banjo is alright in a mix, but not going to lead any hoedowns any time soon. The resonators are ok, perfectly passable but not especially life-like (if you're going to be playing a lot of Delta, you're better off biting the Bullet and saving up for the real deal, since it's more likely to sound wrong in a typical stripped-down Delta arrangement). The acoustics are ok but a little boomy (mess with the tone control for best results, but it'll still probably sound like a cheap electro-acoustic - fine in a mix, lifeless solo). Lastly, the 12 strings are pretty rotten - they achieve their effect by mixing in a slightly delayed (we're talking <10ms), slightly detuned (+/- up to 10cts) additional note for most of the strings (with a +octave for the high strings). Again, this is fine in a mix, but solo it can sound HORRIBLY out of tune and ugly (if you're not perfectly in tune, it will sound hideous). // 9
Action, Fit & Finish: Factory setup was ok, fairly generic not-too-low action, Standard factor models installed, finish all reasonably neat and tidy (nothing bad to look at, so not on a par with cheap-and-cheerful my-first-guitars, but equally not quite up there at the level of "oh my God it's so beautiful": what you'd expect from a modestly expensive factory made guitar, really). No flaws or issues with anything to do with the finish. I found the factory strings were rather light, and the intonation wasn't perfect (close, but could've been better - wavy around 4th/8th fret), so I quickly slapped on some Skinny Top Heavy Bottoms and spent a couple of hours tweaking and refining until the intonation was absolutely perfect: like most modern guitars (especially those in the Fender-style), it's really very easy to setup, and all you need is a bit of common-sense, the supplied tools, a good tuner and a lot of patience. It's well worth investing that time and effort (or enlisting a tech you trust), since a well-intonated guitar makes a world of difference (and, again, if you're going to use those 12 string models, it's a must!). Obviously everyone's different, and the ability to set up "your" guitar to play the way "you" want it is something I consider vital to all modern guitar purchases... As far as I'm concerned, mine now plays beautifully. // 7
Reliability & Durability: Live, no problems. I'm a bit rough with my gear live, but it's taken the minor knocks and bumps with good grace, and I've never done anything too dramatic to it on stage to hurt it.
As mentioned before, one of my piezos began to die a couple of months ago (after four or five years of use) - the A string started to "fart" occasionally, and then developed a bit of a growly distortiony buzz, and then eventually started to just lose all volume. It was an easy enough fix to strip the guitar down, pop out the bridge, clean down and resolder all the piezos with new ones (I figured why wait for the others to go?) and put it all back together. Not something for beginners, but not a complicated task in itself.
The "brain", however, has caused me problems - I'm talking about the DSP mini-computer in the body which does all the processing. Basically (and I'll spare you the details), the guitar took a fair thwack, neck first, against a stone window-ledge, and apart from taking a decent chunk out of the neck itself, this also seemed to cause severe brain-trauma. I fiddled and messed with it for quite a while myself before giving up and taking it to a guitar tech I know. He managed to pop the brain out and persuade it to reboot, and also patched up the neck-gouge. That was two and a half years ago, and I've had no problems since. Be warned though - the electronics inside this guitar clearly make it more vulnerable to shock than your average axe.
For that reason, I have gigged without a backup occasionally, but only when I've known there were other people around who I could beg/borrow/steal a backup from. I've never had to use a backup, but I wouldn't want to be caught short without one. // 6
Impression: I've been playing guitar for about fifteen years, and most of that time has been spent frustrated at how generic guitars tend to sound. This guitar is no different, in it's factory-standard guise. In fact, many of the models sound passable but not quite perfect for what they aim to emulate. If you want a collection of twenty five different guitars, you're probably best off playing the lottery or planning a bank job, and just buying twenty five guitars. If you want an incredibly versatile instrument with the potential to sound not-quite like any other guitar in the verse, then leap into something utterly different in the chorus, with the facility to play in all kinds of weird and wonderful tunings, give a Variax a go - I highly recommend you see about trying one out with the ToneBench software, either in a music store or renting or something: don't judge it on its ability to mimic other guitars, judge it on how much fun you have making it sound different.
I'd give this a 10, if it weren't for the piezo-death and brief brain-death: both of those were likely my fault (I didn't mention, when I cleaned it down, that dead piezo was caked in sweat from palm-muting, which both shows the value and importance of keeping your instrument clean, and the utter crap of reviewers who said when this came out that you couldn't palm-mute: sure you can, you just need to adjust your technique...), but still I can't really give a 10 to an instrument that becomes completely unplayable (a dead brain leaves you with just the dry tinny piezo tone, which is awful) if you bash it too hard.
Missing features? I mentioned that I record music. One thing I wish this had (might sound crazy after that last comment) is the ability to record the dry piezos and a direct-to-brain input for re-tracking guitar parts: you see, sometimes I'll play the perfect part on one model, and then a few days later after tweaking my arrangement think it'd sound better on a different model. Obviously I'm just being lazy and not re-recording the part, but sometimes there's that first-take magic to a part, and it's a shame that such a seemingly easy-to-implement feature doesn't exist. But that's it, everything else is spot on. // 9
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Variax 600
Reviewed by:
BFun, on march 31, 2008
0 of 0 people found this review helpful
Price paid: $ 969
Purchased from: Turramurra Music
Features: This guitar is a bolt-on and has 22 frets, a maple neck with basswood body, an L.R. Baggs whammy bar, two normal control knobs (one tone, one volume) and another tone know which lets you select from different banks of guitar sounds. Also has a 5-way pickup selector. The huge array of sounds capable from this guitar is amazing, even though some of them you probably wont use too often. The ability to drop (or raise) tune with a flick of a switch is also very neat. // 10
Sound: I mostly play metal, and surprisingly, this does the job pretty well. I also dabble in pretty much anything else apart from country and the huge range of sounds makes this guitar one of the most versatile on the market. The sound is great, the Strat sounds like a Strat, the tele sounds like a tele and I'll be damned, the sitar sounds like a sitar. Maybe not 100% accurate, but close enough so that you can tell them apart unless you were side by side. Then if that's not enough, go grab Variax Workbench to go customize your own sounds and tunings. My only gripe here is that (Workbench or otherwise) they don't have any hi-gain pickups that model pickups like DiMarzios or EMGs. Many people seem skeptical about modeling, and so was I when I first tried it, but it actually sounds pretty damn good. Also, being a modeling guitar, it produces no noise at all (or extremely little) which is great in Live situations and for recording. I use it with a POD X3L and the sounds are endless. Distorted banjo with whammy bar, by the way, sounds terrible. // 9
Action, Fit & Finish: Well, first off, this guitar looks crap. The pickguard along with the missing pickups create a very weird look, which I'm not too fond of. The finish was good, the action was not too bad, the piezos were in good working order, but the tremolo was horrendous, it just wouldn't stay in tune no matter what. I eventually got it set up and now it plays perfectly. // 7
Reliability & Durability: So far, it's withstood live playing quite well. The strap buttons are solid and the finish is nice and thick. The hardware seems like it will last and the guitar feels very solid. I wouldn't hesitate to bring it live without a backup, it's quite dependable, although that's because I can't fit anything else in my car. // 9
Impression: This guitar is a good match for me since I do quite a few recordings at home and I play a variety of styles. I own a POD X3, and this paired up with the POD X3L is a winning combination. I compared this to the Fender VG Stratocaster, and while the Fender had the advantage of being a guitar plus a modeler, the Variax had much more sounds and possibilities along with a much lower price tag. I still hate the look of it, it could be worse, but could also be so much better. My favourite feature would have to be the custom tunings and the range of sounds out of this thing, if it were stolen I'd hunt the guy down and beat the crap out of him to get it back since I have no money to buy it again. // 9
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reviews (
Way to go, guitarest_99. And as far as the guita not being good looking, mine is a beautiful brown sunburst and they look a hell of a lot better in real life. For some reason they don't photograph well. Oh, ad good on you UG, putting the ugliest picture of a Variax you could find at the top. 
