I don't own an OX or the other gear mentioned in this post, so I have no dog in this hunt, but here a few thoughts:I do like what the PS2 does, and I don’t think the OX will do the one thing that is important to me - make the loud quiet to whatever volume I choose via a potentiometer. Well, that and be a power amp. What the Ox does do that the PS2 doesn’t do, is (by all reports) class leading speaker / mic modeling. In fact the PS2 does not have that ability at all. It does have line out though. This is not an issue with my Mesa, as it has a couple of decent speaker sims. When I eventually get another amp(s), they may not have the speaker sims, so I’m curious about recommended options. I know about the Suhr IR, and the TwoNotes cabm+ and a few others, all IR based. I’m just wondering what else might be out there more along the lines of the OX modeler? Note I’m not really thinking helix/axe/kemper type modeling at the moment. There may not be anything out there other than the ox. I’m just curious. An Ox without the load box functionality basically. I tend toward option paralysis with the whole modeling and IR side of the coin. I like asking these type questions here, as the answers tend to be more well thought out vs. one word “Kemper” or “Helix” posts.
Finally, if I’m thread jacking, someone please kindly let me know.
The speaker and mic modeling on the OX are class-leading principally because the smart folks at UA figured out that IRs are static, unlike real speakers that react in certain ways dynamically as the signal passes through them. Apparently, they model the speaker not just instantaneously but how it reacts over time with an algorithm. They've achieved some pretty interesting results.
Their UAD modeling platform has been around for a long time, and has given them a lot of expertise (in my experience they're the most authentic sounding recording gear models on the market). I take my hat off to them. UA is a brilliant company.
There is an Italian company that has a software technology called Volterra that builds a model based on IRs over time, and I've used it. Sounds great, though the software hasn't worked well with my Macs, and they only model studio gear anyway, not guitar stuff.
A potentiometer isn't necessary with the OX, since all amps have a volume control, and many have one or more master volumes. You can click an OX into a preferred attenuation setting, and use the potentiometer on the master volume on the amp to adjust the level to taste.
I know of nothing on the market that competes with the OX that doesn't simply use IRs.