Are you downloading a butt load of presets, or making your own?
What's usual with these processors, is the stock presets suck. I know Line 6 has a free download of Tone Editor/Librarian software that will make doing your presets a lot easier.
line6.com/software/index.html[edit] The link didn't take you to where I wanted to show you.
Under Product...select your Pocket Pod.
Under Software...select Vyzex Editor. (it's all the way on the bottom of the menu)
..then select your OS.
I hope you have XP... ;D it's the most compatible with older software.
Rig with as clean (neutral) a solid state amp as you can find. I found for studio, the best is a pair of active monitors. I use a pair (75watts each) of Behringer B2031A.
My favorite set up though is my Crate amp. It's very clean of all the solid state amps.
I run my processor alone through a S/S amp, and run my backing tracks through another small S/S amp. I don't run anything through my computer, because I'm not into recording. At best I use a looper... but I have some really great backing tracks that beat anything I can make up.
Getting good tone from a computer chip isn't easy. One trick I learned is how to bypass all the tone robbing amp features.
[I've copied some of this next bit off my "Hog's Amps" post on the Crate amp, as it is the best way I can explain it.
I added a photo to show my RCA hook up]
You can hook up using a 1/4" T/R/S Y-cord, but my favorite way to run is with an RCA cable.
The Y-cable lets you run the effects loop, putting the signal between the preamp and the power amp. Think in terms of two blocks, the preamp and the power amp. You will notice a difference in tone on some of your patches, if you split your signal between the two, using the effects loop, giving you line level instead of instrument level. (less noise interference)
Considered as a functional block, an effects loop should provide unity gain - no gain, no loss of signal - and be transparent.
The RCA method lets you bypass the preamp and speaker emulator, and I like this method the best. Notice below; you run the RCA method through the (RCA) CD input, instead of using the effects loop. At least this is how I get the most out of my digital crap, and it's made a huge improvement in the quality of sound.
(( see below I run the left/right (1/4") output on the RP150 to the left/right (RCA) CD input on the Powerblock, via a 1/4" to RCA Monster cable. ))