Tag Archives: Line 6

Become an Instant Guitar Hero with Airiax

Music, , , ,

Airier glovesYeah, it’s an April Fools’ joke in a sea of April Fools’ jokes. It’s April 1st. We get it. But I thought this one was particularly amusing.

Musical instrument and equipment manufacturer Line 6 is currently touting its new Airiax gloves on the company’s homepage. Airiax is a nice takeoff on the company’s line of electric guitars called Variax. These guitars are unique because they contain special electronics that “model” the tones of other guitars. The Variax is loved by some guitar players (like me) who appreciate its versatility, and it’s hated by others who believe it’s inauthentic and lacks the soul of the instruments its replicating.

Line 6’s Airiax gag does a nice job of parodying this dichotomy. Airiax carries the tagline “Air guitar never felt this real.” Yes, that’s right. Airiax gloves make you a great air guitarist. Just plug the Airiax’s wireless connector into any guitar amp and you can shred with the best of them:

Ever since the birth of rock guitar heroes, the general population has envied the class, style, attitude, energy and mating potential of those revered guitar players. Emulation of the player’s sounds, poses and facial expressions has led to the birth of air guitar as a favorite hobby, bar activity and competitive sporting event. Historically, air guitarists were never able to coax convincing tones out of their ethereal instrument, which severely limited true creative freedom and hindered prospects for attracting a complimentary member of the species. After several years of exhaustive research and a few broken fingers, we are proud to present a revolutionary solution to the air guitarist’s biggest problem.

When used in tandem, Airiax gloves faithfully translate finger and hand movements into highly convincing guitar licks and tones, allowing anyone with guts and a few choice moves to churn out the best licks in any style – be it swinging jazz, twangy country, classic rock, or searing metal. Pack them conveniently in any carry-on bag so that you don’t miss those impromptu international jams that only require the slip of a glove. You can even play bass with the ever-convenient finger style bass setting.

This really made me laugh! Click the link above for the Airiax page and watch the embedded video. Nice job with this April Fools’ bit, Line 6!

Line 6 brings Amplifi Remote app to Apple Watch

Accessory, Apple, application, audio, Music, , , ,

Line 6 logoLine 6 is a musical instrument and audio equipment manufacturer that’s been a real industry innovator for nearly two decades. I bought my first Line 6 guitar amp back in 2001 and have been hooked on the company’s products ever since. At this point, it’d be a neck-and-neck battle between Line 6 and Apple as far as which company has made a bigger dent in my overall net worth.

One thing that Line 6 has done recently that’s really intriguing is the development of “remote” apps that work wirelessly with its various products. The first of these connected-app lines is the Amplifi guitar amp/smart speaker system.  Amplifi was designed to bridge the gap between practicing at home and jamming with other musicians. At home, the Amplifi could be used as a speaker for entertainment systems. At the rehearsal space, Amplifi also works as a full-power electric guitar amp.

Amplifi is also the first Line 6 product to use a remote app to control different features of the device. The app originally launched for Android and iOS, running both on iPhone and iPad. Now, Line 6 has brought its Amplifi Remote app to Apple Watch:

The new AMPLIFi Remote v2.11 update enables guitar players to control and access guitar tones via Apple Watch. Guitarists can now access tones, control levels, search the Line 6 Tone Cloud, and use the tuner, right from their wrist. AMPLIFi Remote works with the entire AMPLIFi family, and provides guitarists with unprecedented control over every aspect of their guitar tone and effects.

Amplifi Remote features such as Tuner, MyTones and master/instrument level controls will be accessibly directly on the Apple Watch version of the app. Users will also be able to do a “dictation search” of Line 6’s Tone Cloud service, which will allow them to use vocal requests to search thru guitar tones saved to Line 6’s cloud service. Tones can then be quickly loaded onto an Amplifi device for immediate use.

It’s great to see Line 6’s continued development of things like the Amplifi Remote App. The company has also started rolling out other products that work with similar apps. I’m definitely excited to see what else Line 6 comes up with this year.

Line 6 Releases new G70 Digital Wireless System

Accessory, Music, , ,

Line 6 logoAs a performing musician, it can be a real drag to have to deal with an instrument cable hanging off behind you on stage. You never know for sure if that cord is going to get tangled up in a weird way, potentially damaging your gear (or maybe even you!). Also, cables can be limiting in terms of mobility. Because sometimes, you just want to get out into the crowd and get up close with your audience during a show. Fortunately, modern music makers have access to wireless transmitters that can fix both of these problems. And audio equipment/musical instrument manufacturer Line 6 has just released the most advanced guitar wireless system ever, the Relay G70.

The G70 supports multiple transmitters so musicians can instantly switch between instruments. Each transmitter features a locking 1/4” input that allows guitarists to plug right in without requiring any special cables or adapters. User-programmable presets on the receiver enable performers to control each instrument’s signal routing, levels and more, with the single press of a footswitch. For example, guitarists can route an electric guitar to an amp via one of two assignable 1/4″ outputs, and an acoustic guitar to the PA system through the assignable XLR output. A dedicated always-on 1/4″ tuner output is also provided, in addition to a built-in tuner. And to preserve battery life in multi-instrument setups, the new intelligent sleep mode allows you to leave all your transmitters on with minimal battery drain while connected to the instruments you’re not actively playing.

Relay G70 provides the lowest latency of any digital wireless system, coming in at under 1.5ms. A custom-designed radio with four calibrated internal antennas delivers a lossless 24-bit digital signal and a wide dynamic range of over 120dB. The G70 also never compresses the signal, providing guitarists with the purest possible audio quality. Performers will enjoy 8+ hours of battery life with standard AA batteries, plus up to 70 hours of standby time thanks to the intelligent sleep mode. The Relay system features a rugged but familiar stompbox-style form factor that integrates easily with an existing guitar pedalboard.

Relay G70 is available now for purchase from most audio gear/musical instrument vendors. One receiver and transmitter retails for $699.99 and additional Relay TB516G transmitters are priced at $279.99 each.