Metropoulos Forum

This happened to me last night at Guitar Center, Flint. I was in there with a couple of buddies and purchased a few things...well I made a comment to one of my friends about a POD that was sitting there. It wasn't a very nice comment, something to do with crap or something like that....but anyways the salesman heard me. He said that he would bet me $100 that I couldn't tell the difference between a POD running through a 4x12 and a Plexi. I almost died laughing. This ought to be the easiest hundy I've ever made.

I made the comment to him that I'm a Marshall guy....he said that the POD was better than a Marshall. Ummm...whatever.

Sorry, I just don't like something that tries to sound like something else. Just because you stick a Porsche engine in an S10 doesn't make it a Porsche.

Do the challenge! Bring your plexi in and make him look like a fool! You know you want to Speed

The flip side of this story is the REAL Guitar Center Challenge:

Find a knowledgeable salesperson........I DARE YOU!!

What a joke. I'm going to have to go in and do my favorite GC trick.
I find the most arrogant know-it-all sales person and let them show me shit for a half hour or so. Knodding and saying "uh huh" like I'm buying every word.
Then I tell them I'm really ready to buy anything today, but here's my card for later.

Metropoulos Amplification


And some of them still don't get it. "Well just come see me when you're ready to take that Crate home with you". Unbelievable!

George

As Rick James would say, "Bitches..."

The last time I was in a GC I had an asinine experience where one of these know-it-all sales guys acted like I was a fool for wanting to buy a single 6V6 tube for my Champ when we aaaaaaaall know Fenders all run on class-A needing 2 or more tubes and MUST be replaced in pairs to work right or else something bad will happen apparently. I almost died of laughter if the guy wasnt so obnoxious. What I should have done is made the guy a $100 bet that a single 6V6 sounds better in my Champ then 2 6V6s and laughed all the way to the bank as he tried to find the second tube socket. The sad thing was he wasnt even trying to up his sale. He suggested I buy a Mesa set because they were cheaper and "better anyway." He was just so ridiculously stupid and indoctrinated by music store bullshit he thought he was helping me out.

George I would love more then anything to steel your move. Can you send me some cards I should bring my JTM clone which is very nicely done and looks every bit as pro as most boutique clones, and tell them its a super expensive boutique amp from Germany called Sidenbach and see what they do when they fire it up. Its so pro and custom and hand made theirs not even any name plates or markers on the controls. Its not only a Sidenbach, its a freakin Sidenbach prototype!!!

I'm not for or against either the POD or Marshall, but somebody as sure as you seem to be about himself would have taken the man's bet.

I'm not the best at this, as I'm in the process of building my first tube amp ever. I think to be far a 3rd party would have to tune the POD and a '59 or '87 head (not yours). Because who knows your amp better than you. Live I'm positive, it's no contest, you would be able to tell. But how about a recording? That could be a little tougher.

Still $100 is $100. Take his money!


just for laughs.....how much would it suck if EVH or Satch came out 20 years from now and said, "I used POD for recording on every album since 1989!"

Speaking of GC stupidity, who wants to buy that Tiger Flamed/Gold Inlayed/Left-Handed PRS from Guitar Center in Roseville for a Guaranteed Lowest Price of $10,999???

Com'n tho. Thats just rediculous. Ive owned a POD and messed around with one for a long time. It was basically just a toy for me and I mostly used it to play with headphones but there absolutely was NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER a time when I couldnt tell a POD from a Marshall. Even a flat bad sounding Marshall. Anyone whos ever played a Marshall and ran a POD through an amp and cab setup will agree with me. Maybe recorded the right way (and thats a big IF) it may do a great impression as thats the way the POD is mostly designed to work best but sitting next to two cabs and hearing the difference. Even if I liked the POD its models dont come close in the real world like they do in recording situations. That doesnt mean they sound bad (I think they do) just theyre not close. 10 out of 10 times I can walk into a club and listen to the PA nd know the guitar player is using a POD. Im not being arrogant I swear I can and that only comes from having owned one. Though I cant say the same for PODs on record. Thats a bit harder. My hating it is my opinion. My telling the difference is physics.

I think the modelling stuff has gotten to where it probably sounds pretty good as a recording. But if anyone can't tell the difference in the room with both, if they can't tell which one leaves them flat and uninspired and which one flaps their nuts in the breeze, well, that person deserves that POD.

I thought I would check GC out when they came to my area about 3 years ago. Once was enough! The place was packed with people( mostly kids in relation to my age) who seemed really gulable to anything that a salesman told them.

I'll stick with my local guy who I've been dealing with since 1983 and makes you feel like an old friend and doesn't try to high pressure you into the latest and greatest piece of crap that claims to be as good as a Marshall.

Even recording, the POD is only good at certain things. (I speak from experience) If you want high gain or really clean, then you are in good shape. But it just can't nail a good, overdriven tone. the sound isn't there, plus it feels lifeless to play through. No sustain, no feel, no nothing, IMHO. It nakes you feel like you are fighting your guitar to play anything, almost like you have 30 year old strings on it. Just didn't cut it for me. Plus, it doesn't clean up well with volume knob adjutments.

Zoso wrote:Even recording, the POD is only good at certain things. (I speak from experience) If you want high gain or really clean, then you are in good shape. But it just can't nail a good, overdriven tone. the sound isn't there, plus it feels lifeless to play through. No sustain, no feel, no nothing, IMHO. It nakes you feel like you are fighting your guitar to play anything, almost like you have 30 year old strings on it. Just didn't cut it for me. Plus, it doesn't clean up well with volume knob adjutments.

As a [one time] POD owner I couldnt agree more with that assesment.

You need to seriously go take his money, and his job away from him.
People that work there and say things like that don't deserve to have that job, yet alone be the manager of the place.
I own a pod and think it kinda sux. Of course when I bought it a couple of years ago I was desperate and going through an emotional breakup with a distortion pedal at the time. I was confused!