All 3 Variax's compared! Do they sound different?!

[@aljoschalong625]

Very nice that you played the same thing and cut it (almost seamlessly) together. I closed my eyes and tried to find out when you changed. I could do it, but it was the little sound that comes with cutting. I could not hear a difference - but maybe my hearing is just not good enough. But actually they're very close. And it was also helpful in deciding which one I will get. Thanks.

[@jonathanebare3768]

Thanks for the video!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I've been very confused on which one to get and your analysis was spot on and direct.

[@tripore]

Excellent review and analysis. That helps ! Thanks

[@johnkruton9708]

Thanks for this comparison. I recently bought the JTV 69 and now I will probably buy the 89F as I really love the modeling capabilities of these guitars, however the pickup sounds are also required when i play. Loving the idea of the actual guitar sound from the pickups installed, but then switching up to the modeling as required....the Drop D tuning is fun, just have to tune out listening to the actual strumming sounds as they are off from the output sounds. Something that most reviewers of the Variax modeling don't mention much. My Helix is coming this week and I can't wait to mess around with it.

[@pugdealer82]

Glad you liked it! The 89F is an awesome guitar, and I'm sure you'll love the helix and how you can control the variax with it. When using alt tunings, you better have the speakers loud or use a good pair of headphones, or the acoustic sound from the strings will clash with the sound you're hearing from the speakers...it's weird!

[@1969kot]

Rod Inatie A

[@karymwillemsen5564]

I was waiting for this vid. Thank you very much sir.

[@tonysmith72]

Thank you for this. VERY informative. I enjoyed it and appreciate your time.

[@artisanwest9730]

Nice! I could hear the difference on several setups. The JTV-89F is really beautiful too.

[@lauraharmon6508]

Great comparisons. It helps me to make a decision. I see you like Muse, as do I.

[@guitargeek57]

the subtle differences are ones that you'd notice between one guitar of the same brand/series and another. They are certainly there but hardly noticeable outside of a side by side comparison.

[@norrisdurrant4019]

Thank you , this comparison was quite informative and revealing.

[@Grandpa.Dan8881]

Good review, 24 frets, bolt on neck & FR vs hard tail, all must factor in a little, but still, very close. Good job, Thanks...

[@RobTackettCovers]

I'm pretty sure the piezo pick ups are the same on the 69 and the 59 (I'm pretty sure from the LR Baggs company), but the ones on the 89F are GraphTech. Awesome comparison. I think they are close enough, though, that if you were using your 89f in a gig and broke a string, you could quickly swap out to either the 59 or 69 and you'd be back in business. Thanks for sharing your work in comparing these guitars!

[@mariorojas3724]

Please compare it with the olders models...Variax 300, 500, 700🙏 Great video by the way!!!

[@lineaelastica5976]

Thank you very much, I finally found a comparative trying and undesrtood a lot. Maybe the different bridges are influencing very much the sounds.

[@ewanobrien8747]

Scale length is VERY important. The 59 has a shorter scale length compared to the other 2, hence the warmer (or duller) sound. I have the JTV-89 with the fixed bridge (NOT Floyd), and I absolutely love it! I prefer the tighter string tension of a 25.5 inch guitar, but I also prefer the tuning stability of a fixed bridge, especially when playing live. To my ears, the fixed bridge sparkles a little more than the tremelo versions, because less of the string vibration is absorbed by the tremelo springs... I have 11 guitars, 10 of them have 25.5 inch scale, and 10 of them have fixed bridges. (ie: I have 1 strat & 1 Les Paul) I am AMAZED that the fixed bridge '89 was so rare... It's easily the best Tyler Variax. Best neck. Best tone.

[@my59lespaul]

are the pickups ceramic in this guitar ?

[@ewanobrien8747]

Not sure... The magnetic pickups on the 89 are pretty loud, rock oriented pickups, quite well balanced in my opinion, like a hot PAF, but not so crazy loud that they distort all the time. If I'm playing live in standard tuning, I quite often switch to the magnetic pickups for a little boost during solos. They are a little hotter than the modelled pickups. They also 'pick up' a little more noise and feedback of course...

[@tronlady1]

10+10 = 20

[@djlat]

I had the 89 fixed bridge as well but it had issues so is at line 6 for repair.. recently i bought the 59 and i love it. i like the beefy neck and shorter scale but i am also a les paul guy so im biased. I mainly play my gold top but have a few strats as well. If you're looking for a fast playing neck then the 89 is definitely the one you want out of these three. IMHO

[@deanbibb3680]

I believe the construction of the neck is a huge factor. The set neck and neck- through construction guitars I have owned sound better (to me) than bold on guitars. I own the JTV69 and want the 89F so your video was of great interest to me. Thanks for sharing it.

[@elevenAD]

now you have to get a Shuriken to compare!!!!

[@shaamaan]

Good god, is the Shuriken sexy... I have the 89 (non-F version), and I feel like a boyfriend who's contemplating an affair when I look at the Shuriken!

[@-thirteen]

is it an oxymoron to have multiple variax guitars?

[@MichaelColart]

Roflmao

[@AlexVonCrank]

Thanks Rod great video. I also like the fixed bridge 89 but they are just too ugly imho... I wound up sending back 3 JVT's as I couldn't get along with the 59 and 69 neck profiles and the squeaky 69 bridge. In the end got a limited edition emerald green Variax standard that I will make a few upgrades to (locking tuners and possible warmoth neck replacement down the road). I found all Variax's to be somewhat visually unattractive but the emerald green on is gorgeous. I've always loved the technology but the guitars themselves have been a bit underwhelming. At the moment the shuriken and the green standard are my favourites. Maybe a new video for you...?

[@l3ertuz362]

I like everything about the james tyler variax except for that headstock logo - I'll probably erased it if I have one

[@anthonywurst2548]

Thanks. Nice work. Different bridge types also makes a difference :)

[@deanbibb3680]

I do notice a difference in tone, both in your video and here with my own JTV Variax guitars. I own a JTV69, a JTV59P and will soon own a JTV89F. My current guitars do sound different in both model and magnetic operation. One thing I wonder about is a difference in the bridge humbuckers in the 69 and your 59. I know a different pickup set is used in the 89 models, and they are hotter output than the ones in the 69 and 59. I wonder if the 59 has a more "vintage" sounding pickup? I can't compare here at home because my 59 has P90's.

[@Fromagreatheight]

If your 89 is a floyd, it has ghost pickups, not LR baggs pickups (regarding piezo pickups not mags). There's definitely a tonal difference, but it isn't too different.

[@9Sheep]

Very nice video, thank you!

[@covinhas87]

Just a note, Ibanez RG's has 16" radius neck. 10" is for LesPaul.

[@pugdealer82]

That's it...my bad!

[@my59lespaul]

i was told 12 inch for les paul

[@bloozman666]

Hey nice video. I have the JTV59. LOVE it but I am not a fan of the chunky neck. I like the shredder guitar 89 but have 3 questions. 1-can you change preset tunings to be like the ones on the 59/69 tunings. 2-can I still play a slide on that thin neck of 89? 3-Dos the double-stop bends make the 2nd note a little out of tune because of the Floyd-Rose and the bend? Because I am trying to choose between a Floyd-rose 89 and a Fixed Bridge 89 Thank so much in advance!

[@EricChanning7]

Those Piezo pickups are very sensitive to the distance between the string and the bridge changing the tone and volume.

[@chuckyjo1970]

If not mentioned, the sound can be altered on the models using line 6 software

[@johnjudge12]

The Strat sounded brighter than the other two on 2 sets of headphones......strange. Tho I agree the scale length is what makes the "Paul" sound warmer, should that not have any influence since the modeling is pre-set? Humm.....

[@daganhaddad]

was just mentioning this the other day - w/exact same bundle in both 59 & 69 on same patch - 59 is quieter (models)

[@pdb4]

It's more the scale length than the wood. The 59 has a shorter scale length giving it a warmer natural tone. It's physics.

[@johnstudiob2481]

thinking of getting the 59 are the black ones a pain to keep clean they certainly look nice

[@pugdealer82]

a black guitar is always harder to keep clean. Just buy whatever color you like best, don't think too much about cleanliness

[@joanCas1994]

Do more videos with these guitars specially the jtv89-f

[@teerexness]

Excellent review, but I feel that you left out an important Variax category with the older Variax guitars. Which are still readily available on eBay and elsewhere at very reasonable prices. They still work just fine with the newer Helix-era gear, except for Variax-specific editing. This has to be accomplished through the older Variax interface or a POD HD-era, VDI equipped processor. Not as much of a hardship as it may sound, since the stock pre-HD models sound superior anyway. If you need something custom, get your older "plumbing" out, do your edits, save 'em and move along. In 10 years, I've created precisely 2 custom Variax models and they are both just custom tunings. YMMV. So I'm sitting surrounded by a Variax 500 transplanted into a Gretsch Duo Jet and a Variax Standard. I can tell you, without a doubt, the older (Variax 500) acoustic models were MUCH better. They really messed up the acoustic models on the "HD" guitars, and you really hear it when you can do an A/B comparison on them as easily as I can. It's less surprising that different magnetic pickups are always going to sound different. The Variax Standard's single coils sound really good, and I wasn't really expecting that when I bought it. But of course, so do the Gretsch's black-face Filtertrons. Ultimately, the Gretsch gets the nod as my #1 stage guitar due to it's superior acoustic and Rickenbacker 12 string model sounds.

[@usafirefly7967]

Each different but similar. The 69 strat(ish) and the 89 overall sounds like both the 59 and 69 with the 89 a little better with clarity. But strat is clear too.

[@pastorkev777]

The 69 is brighter, 59 warmer and 89 more mids. Now I would choose the strat regardless, but the sound difference isn't big enough to choose a physical instrument you like less of another. There are always ways using different string and pics to mimic a brighter, warmer or middy sound.

[@pugdealer82]

yeah, the difference isn't dramatic, and not enough to influence the body choice when buying new, but I do prefer my 89f in many ways

[@pastorkev777]

I like the 69 and will get the standard do to the control layout.

[@mhavens9]

I have seen where the Tunings on the 89 is different on the knob than the other models. Like they are more for "shredding". Are the tuning options on your 89 different from the ones on the knobs of the others?? And would it matter? I know there is workbench where you can do your tunings however you want - right?

[@FrankowwYT]

The JT89F is so uncomfortable to play, at least for me (always a Fender guy); man I had to sell it, it was really hard to play it.

[@skidogbill]

Could also be the shorter scale length.

[@theozimbro]

Man, what about the batery quality and duration? And the plugs? I've heard about connection through some RJ45 cable? Is it trustable?

[@pugdealer82]

Andre LL I don't use the battery as I power the guitar through the vdi cable from my pod or helix. Never had any issues with the cable

[@juno7893]

Can we get an acoustic nylon sound from a Variax?

[@pugdealer82]

nope

[@juno7893]

Thanks

[@guitargeek57]

its the #1 requested upgrade to the Variax... so it might happen some day

[@pugdealer82]

yup, and Line 6 usually listens to their clients!

[@Fromagreatheight]

all the instruments the Variax emulates are steel string based, so it can capture those sounds easily. A nylon string changes the entire sound source, so you're not going to get a super convincing nylon sound if they tried, but they could probably get a steel string as close as they could if they tried. Either way, you wouldn't expect 100%

[@JJDPROMEDIAPRODUCTION]

The 89 feels and plays the best imho..

[@MarcusFHurt]

Great Video... Thank You !!

[@Gtrmanify]

my big question is does the Shuriken Feel better that the Jtv strat I had it didn't like the way it felt physically . does the shuriken feel more quality?

[@d77sauce]

I'm a bit confused. Does it matter what tuning the guitar is in? Like, does the Variax bypass the "strings" when it's modeling the acoustic sound or doing alternate tunings? I guess what I mean is what would happen if you added the baritone shuriken to the mix and if it would be in baritone tuning while doing these models you recorded. Thanks for any help

[@ZedChuva]

I had the Sunburst 59, and loved it. Only issue was palm muting with high gain using modeling was... terrible. It had this open, whoopy, airy sound to it, so I only ever used it for acoustic modeling. Sold it cause of stupid life, but am looking at getting a Shuriken down the road. And I have to, gently disagree with your opinion on the "tone wood" point. Firstly, tone wood doesn't exist, but that's not the debate here. When using the modeling, even if tone wood was a thing, it would make no difference, cause you're using essentially a model of a totally different guitar. Scale length will make the only difference.

[@s.gharavi1614]

yep. it's scale length.

[@elevenAD]

great vid,all three had there strong points , over all i liked the 69 most.

[@misterefe]

Thanks, that save me a lot of money!

[@varietypa...5606]

There is some difference. On mags 69 has most poor sound, 89 - most powerful. I have JTV 59. For me it`s best one.

[@MrRafaztar]

Boas, és português, não és? Só reparei pelo papel na parede, e depois o sotaque. Já tinha me perguntado se estas guitarras teriam alguma diferença

[@pugdealer82]

yup, tuga da silva! Pah, eu pensava que a parte digital faria com que não houvesse diferença, mas afinal há uma pequena diferença. não é nada de outro mundo, mas há "nuances"

[@MrRafaztar]

Rod Inatie ya! Gostei do vídeo, obrigado! Keep it up

[@glealg]

to querendo comprar uma 89F pelo ML mas aquela sua 59 preta parece ter mais harmônicos dentro das notas soa mais intenso.. faz sentido pra você ?

[@Hugosanches594]

What about standar version?

[@icarusxx7]

It's real the issues playing palm mute with high gain? I'm planning to get one variax and this is the only thing that make me doubt

[@silentstormstudios]

I heard no difference between the different guitars with the modeled sounds, but a huge difference with the magnetic pickups.

[@Kamikaze3557]

Variax standard ?

[@ryanblumenow]

89 to me sounded really nice.

[@joebeardotnet]

I'm not sure why you find the difference surprising. These guitars fundamentally are dependent upon what the strings themselves are doing. Wood, neck, fingerboard, nut, break over the headstock, bridge construction, body/neck joint, all affect the vibration of the string. The peizos pick up the string vibration, and the electronics modify the signal the piezo produces. If the vibration of the string is different, of course the modeled tone will be different. I own a 59 and a 69. I am unsurprised by the fact that the 59 seems to do better than the 69 at 'Gibsonish' modeled tones, and the 69 does better than the 59 at 'Fenderish' modeled tones. For a revelation, try stringing up your 59 with phosphor bronze strings, and try the acoustic models that way.

[@pugdealer82]

joebeardotnet it's digital sound replacing the signal from the piezos, so I figured the output would be the same...I guess it's not that simple

[@Dream-Academy]

How did you record... signal path was? Btw the different bridges will sound different... as well as the wood as well as your touch.

[@Fromagreatheight]

You used the same strings, all new? Strings will make a huge difference.

[@pugdealer82]

yes, same strings, new, changed at the same time

[@Fromagreatheight]

I think physical differences will make a difference, and like I said, the 89 uses different piezo pickups, but it's not too different to be a deal breaker.

[@byronp24]

All 3 have UNIQUE SOUND

[@k8923]

The floyd had the best overall sound IMHO.

[@0013619511]

They all sound week notes inside chords are not standing out Open chords is the best clean sound !

[@Bassistking]

You're missing the Variax Shuriken

[@pugdealer82]

i guess so! :)

[@MalCooper]

Comprehensive specs found here line6.com/support/page/kb/_/guitars/james-tyler-variax-guitars/james-tyler-variax-variax-standard-variax-shu-r31

[@Enzoheavenly]

The pots cannot be the same...

[@FirstRuni]

Variax is useless to listen online. It is very important to take it and plug it on.(imo)

[@videomusic1381]

Yes they really sound like crap live

[@NotFromSt8Farm]

one word... Shurikan

[@pugdealer82]

you mean shuriken

[@stonelark]

@@pugdealer82 You mean .... Stratocaster.

[@atrothe]

They all sound the same to me. I really wonder if there is a real upgrade from the 600 to the later models. Does anyone know if it that different?

[@keithjohnston8629]

atrothe I have a 500 and two 600s, they don’t have any magnetic pickups at all. The current Standard and James Tyler models have magnetics.

[@ymelfilm]

Scale length. Otherwise,I wouldmt care much.

[@retiresoon5639]

Yes there is a difference. Just another proof that wood and construction makes a tonal difference even in modeling electric guitars.

[@Katzper100]

personally i think is better to buy roland gr55 instead an variax guitar. more options

[@Shred_The_Weapon]

In hindsight, I think the 69 has the thinnest sound.

[@mikeball188]

To much yak!

[@MM-rr1kp]

acoustics sounded ok everything else sounded muddy