Recording - July 2017 - 41

a great midrange emphasis. Overall
this setting sounds much brighter than
the Stack setting, with plenty of bite and
punch. It sounds awesome with just a little
bit of dirt added-just before breakup. Combo was my go-to setting for most
purposes; it sounds very rich. I typically
left the Presence setting to Normal, as this
model sounds pretty bright without adding
anything extra to the top end.

Final thoughts

The biggest thing for me with amplifier
emulations is getting a sound that's natural
and translates well in a performance setting.
The JDX Direct-Drive does a great job with
this! I love its all-analog simplicity, and it's
been easy to travel to rehearsals with
nothing but my guitar and pedalboard,
with the JDX Direct-Drive comfortably
mounted next to the rest of my pedals. I
haven't had to lug my Fender Twin around
(if you have a bandmate with a third-floor
rehearsal space, you know what I mean!),
and it really saves on setup and teardown
time. I wouldn't hesitate to bring it on the
road for gigs, either.

Radial's 4-Play
The Radial 4-Play ($279.99) is an active direct box with one
/4" input and four XLR outputs. Geared for live use, the 4-Play
is designed for musicians who need to swap out multiple instruments throughout the gig. It lets the player swap instruments
without flagging the FOH engineer to bring his levels down before he unplugs. Four balanced XLR outputs can feed four mixer
channels, each with its own gain, level, and EQ settings properly
preset at sound check. As an active DI, it sounds great with passive instruments.
The 4-Play is housed in 14-gauge steel and includes individual ground lift toggles and
color-coded channel-active LEDs for each output, plus footswitches for Mute and Select.
There's also a 1/4" tuner output on the side panel, with a handy toggle switch for Always On/
On With Mute/Off With Mute. Using it couldn't be easier-just stomp the Mute switch,
unplug your previous instrument, plug in the new one, stomp the Select switch to cycle the
active output to the one you want, and unmute. Problem solved!-AH
1

The three amplifier settings are brilliantly
shaped to give you a ton of mileage. It
would work great for gigs that require
flying, or even just to keep on your board
as a backup for when one of your tube
amps inevitably requires maintenance at
some point on the road.
For guitarists who don't typically use
pedals in their setup, I would hesitate to
rely solely on the JDX Direct-Drive to get
your tone on a gig. While it can be used
as a very full and versatile DI on its own,

the analog amp modeling really shines
when it's interacting with the pedals feeding it. In the studio, I see it being put to
good use for DIY recording environments,
where miking an actual 4x12 isn't an
option-say, at 2 AM with a sleeping
baby in the next room.
For the price, this should be an instant
pickup for working guitarists. While it won't
replace your tube amps, it is a great tool
that you'll likely reach for more often than
you think.

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