The Pod XT line is inredible. You can get 95% of the Edge's tones out of them. The other 5% is attributed to the one off stuff like Korg A3, Doppleganger, Shimmer, etc. You can honestly get a great Vox AC30 sound out of them, better than the reissue ones in my opnion. If you are planning on using other effects and want to go MIDI, then I would suggest going with the Pro version. If the XT Live is all you would need, then go for it. It has everything there, including tap and controller functions (stomp, mod, delay, reverb). They are great for going direct into a system. If you're going to use with an amp, you want an amp that doesn't color your tone. So using a Pod XT with a vintage Vox AC30 wouldn't sound good b/c the amp tone is already there with the Pod. There are a couple of options here.
Some of the cheap solid state amps are good amazingly enough b/c they just act as a powered speaker. Like all the Crate stuff, those amps sound like crap b/c they sounds so dry, but work great in this situation b/c all the tone comes from the Pod XT.
Another option is to just get a powered speaker, but this can be more expensive. JBL makes one that is like $500, but the sound is unbelievable b/c it is so hifi. He actually uses this really well when he plays DI, b/c then he used the JBL and another monitor with just his guitar.
Another option is getting a good tube amp that doesn't color tone. There are kind of hard to find though b/c that's the whole point of a tube amp. Amazingly enough, HIWATT's are good options, but are very expensive ($2000). Using a tube amp really takes out any digital sound that the pod has. The Vox Valvetronix series with an effects loop is another idea. Instead of going from Pod to input, go Pod to effects return. This way it bypasses the preamp. Also with the Valvetronix, you would have backup effects in case anything happened.
Lastly, check out Atomic Amps. The amp is designed to work with the amp modelers like the Pod stuff. It's just a tube amp with no preamp, so it gives warm tone with out any color. Aren't very expensive either ($450).
