The Line 6 FBV 3 Pedalboard is an advanced foot controller that is designed for hands-free control of Line 6’s Firehawk, Amplifi, and Spider lines of guitar amplifiers as well as POD. It is also possible to use the FBV 3 to control Mac or PC MIDI apps via USB, using the Line 6 FBV Control application. I just upgraded my first generation FBV Express to an FBV 3, for use with my Amplifi 150.

The FBV 3 has thirteen foot switches, each with a surrounding LED ring. Five of the switches have assignable colors, synched to the assigned effect type, but that function only works with the Firehawk 1500 Stage Amp. The pedal can be used for both volume and wah. The FBV 3 has a 1/4″ phone jack input for an expression pedal. There is an illuminated 20-digit display that shows the currently selected effect. The hardware case is constructed of steel. Both the case and switches are rugged enough to handle gigs, though I use mine solely in my home studio.

You can tap in a tempo for your active delay or modulation effects of the current preset to follow. If you press and hold TAP, you enable a chromatic tuner. The TAP button also functions as an exit button from Live Edit mode.

Resources

You should upgrade to FBV3 Flash Memory firmware v1.0.2 here.

You can download the manual here.

Tips

You should connect your FBV 3 to your Line 6 amplifier using a CAT5 ethernet cable. Line 6 recommends against using CAT6 cable. They also warn you not to use a crossover Ethernet because you will fry your unit.

Areas of Improvement

The FBV 3 has received mixed online reviews by users because the multi-color LEDs only work with the Firehawk 1500 Stage Amp. Amplifi owners continue to wait in the hopes of a firmware upgrade to either the FBV 3 or Amplifi to enable any color other than red. This is still an issue after upgrading to firmware v1.0.2.

Updated on December 20th, 2017