Unfortunately, when it comes to the POD XT Pro, a lot of people don't realize that you only get maximum benefit when you buy the additional mod packs, adding $100 to an already expensive unit. But, there are tons of tone presets available for download from Line6, from users, and the ability to create/share your own presets. What would be better for you depends on what you need, which one you like better, and which one you can afford. I only use the Line6 software as a 'tone librarian', or as the interface to update the unit's firmware. At the same time, when I interface the XT pro with my computer, I can play my music through the XT pro, by only loading up winamp, and selecting the XT Pro as my 'sound card'. Then I can jam to whatever music I want. When you understand all of the little settings and effects on the XT pro, it can sound incredible, at the same time, when you understand your gear, you can make almost anything sound good, and when you don't understand any of it, you can make the best gear sound horrible.
Do your research, listen to them in person, with as close to your setup as you can reproduce in a local shop, and then decide what fits your needs. The local shop here carries all of our gear, except the guitar, and we can bring in whichever guitar we want to play with, so we can test amps, processors, effect pedals, speaker cabinets, no questions asked, that's how we decided on the XT pro.
