I've got a POD HD500..
Pros:
For my session Guitarist/Composition work it's very convenient, i can emulate sounds easily with it..
You can perfectly record any Rhythm guitar in ANY style
You can track two diferent amps/cabs at the same time, so you can save time and provide yourself or others with more material to work with..
It's Perfect for all kinds of Rock, Metal, and Heavily distorted stuff, literally limitless in that sense (wich i can't take profit of, cause it's not my style..)
It's Perfect for a Solo/lead tone alla Satriani/Vai/Petrucci etc.. (wich i used to do a lot.. not anymore tho)
It's great for very, veeery, old/vintage tones.. if you're into recreating the birth of rock, jazz, blues and other styles..
Cons:
The Cabs are considerably lacking in quality/variety..
Cant use two Microphones with one Cab
Cant use two Cabs with one Amp (you must duplicate amp too)
Cant use Pod solely as a CabSim (disabling the amp)
Can't load external I.R. Cabs
Dosent have Global Volume Controls/EQ..
or an internal signal chain signal overload indicator
Dosent allow Reamping
Dosent capture notes and send them as MIDI notes
Its FXLoop is very noisy and unprofessional, unusable for professional work
The sound of most its FX is crap, literally.. they are all about "modelling of the real stuff", and it gets the work done for the most part.. but all of it has this digitally->dirty analog feel of indefinition..
I could go on and on...
But the most important thing is:
It cannot make it give me the MOJO lead tone!
It's hard to explain but I cannot plug my USA Strat, and get a proper fussion tone.. similar to let's say SRV, but a bit more distorted/modern..
You can imitate anything in SOUND, and get VERY close indeed, yes... but how it FEELS?
Something is always lacking, and you CAN'T get there.. not enuogh drive, too much fizz, problems with presence, EQ... Cabs sucks big time
Plus it does not feel electrifyed, my hands dont feel the power!!
It all gets lost somehow in the tubey sound of the amps... or in the crappy cabs/mics, god knows..
But It dosent work with my Strat, it dosent work with my real Tube distortion boutique pedal.. it dosent work with my amp (as cabsim)..
And it dosent really work with external Cabs
(tryed lots/all Cab software, and the most famous Cabs on the internet.. and even the Torpedo PI/wall of sound.. none works, the best cab i found (for Rock) is the Lynch one on the TH2 vst)
So, in the 6 months i've had this thing, i havent yet been able to just plug it and enjoy it a SINGLE MINUTE, and i have spent entire WEEKS tweaking it..
Only when recording some rock songs alla Satriani, did i enjoy it, but that was work too..
By comparison:
For "just playing" I enjoy more my amp and my Tube dist.. even with the cheapest transistor amp, i can feel some of the MOJO and electricity on my hands..
and in FX, I surely enjoyed more my Korg AX3000, or even the Digitech RP1..
It's crazy, but you can find better Reverbs on the RP1 or AX3000.. and probably better Delays, Flangers and Chorus...
The Korg had great models of their Distortion/OD pedals.. even better than POD's in some aspects..
It's crazy i'm comparing the POD to those ancient units, but heck, not all that glitters is gold right... big shame on you Line6!
-Having said all this, i'm going to keep it because:
It works perfect for my session guitarist/composition work
There's no alternative.. Boss GT100 is very interesting, and has some features/versatility POD will never have.. but the sound is even worse in some cases..
It will be the perfect MIDI Stompboard/controller for any Kemper/Axe FX future will bring..
Really, the AXE FX controller costs 700€, and has no sounds or expression pedal... POD costs 400€ and it includes all its sounds, etc..
so the POD is like the entrance carpet of your future AXE guitar mansion.. lol
Kemper costs 3 times more, and while it rocks and it's mindblowing at what it does, i dont feel it will be versatile enough on the long run..
Axe FX 2, is the way to go.. Probably overpriced yes (5x the cost)..
But there's absolutely nothing that gets close tho what the AXE is doing...
It models the amps, and electric components just like the POD, but WAY better.. plus it allows for proper IR Cabs use..
it can use I.R. to model outside gear, like Kemper, but with less quality/different sound/tecnique..
its internal routing capabilityes and features are nearly limitless..
It seems their Firmware updates are awesome too, and it gets better and better..
And well just listen to the goddamn thing!
Maybe i'm mistaken tho!
PS: Another thing i'm noticing lately with the POD, is what seems to be a lack of a properly planned/implemented internal routing/signal chain..
There's a LOT of discrepancy in the sound you get, dipending on the configuration of your Inputs and Outputs.. plus there's some odness in the way the POD manages its internal stereo/mono signals..
It's great to have a choice, and the philosohpical view of "there's no right or wrong".. but a theorically proper, or straightforward way wouldn't hurt..
-Another big flaw for me, is the fact that you cannot place FX in a sort of "emulated amp's fx-loop"... (be it just internal, or also routed to the physical fx loop)..
This is fatal: as you can only place FX "before amp", or "after cab+mic", you cannot properly use some external pedals, or even many of the POD's own effects..
It fails even at something basic like a proper Spring Reverb sound.. it's Spring Reverb models are surely good and paistakingly done, but it's of no-use if it cannot be put in its proper place..
I'm no engineer but that's surely not before the amp, or after the cab+mic, right..