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You might get more relevant info if you describe your setup (speakers, guitar, pickups, etc.)

Are you sure it's the patch and not your pickups? What are you using?

No, He is like me and has to be right all the time ; ). Next he will be telling us how the tuner in the editor is not working right..., err....

Man that brings back some great camping memories!

Hmmmm... what about modifying an old, used Coleman stove? Gut it, and put foam padding on the bottom to lift the Helix up some?

Another option is to use the Simple Pitch shift. Only change the pitch by 5-15 cents. I like 6.9 cents. Then change the delay to 20-30 ms. Mix to 100% if you put it to one side and want a stereo image. In my opinion, this sounds better than Double Take but still not quite as good as the Mimiq.

Not sure how much help I'll be, but I'll give it a go. I don't have a Katana, but just read about it a bit and checked out some images. It looks like it is engineered for other external modelers (such as Helix) and should be plug and play just using the Power Amp in. I wouldn't personally try to mess with 4CM, probably not worth the effort and cables. https://www.boss.info/us/products/katana-50_mk2/ Amplify Your External Gear The Katana-50 MkII rocks as a standalone amp, but it also excels as a powered cabinet for a favorite preamp, modeler, or multi-effects unit. Connecting to the rear-panel Power Amp In jack bypasses Katana MkII's preamp and effects, letting you tap straight into the Tube Logic power section, complete with grab-and-go Power Control. And with BOSS Tone Studio, the input can be easily optimized for your particular gear with a high-pass filter and adjustable gain. So with other modeling amplifiers I have with similar logic of plugging into power amp in or effects return to bypass the internal modeling (Line 6 Spider Valve MKii and Positive Grid Bias Head), I just use Helix full amp models (not just preamps), turn the cabs off on the Helix presets, take a 1/4" cable from Helix left/mono out to the amp's power amp in/effects return and done. Great sound usually. I don't know anything about the Katana's Tube Logic Power section tech and the coloring/effect that may have. But generally, the less coloring by the amp, the better/controllable/predictable the results with a modeler. Maybe someone with a Katana will chime in. They do look like cool amps.

Most headphones have a single driver/speaker where the HR has separate HF and LF driver. Headphones also usually have some engineered fabric between the driver and the users ear, not just for comfort. This can really smooth things out in a good set of headphones. This may sound a little odd to you, but this is cheap/free to try. If you are feeling crafty, try laying some fabric (towel, pillow case, etc.) over the HF driver on the HR speaker. Fabric layers can filter/attenuate and smooth out frequencies, especially high frequencies with a compression horn, which may help with the near field harshness. You might experiment with multiple layers or different fabrics. If you find success with fabric and want to improve aesthetics, you can always attach it behind the grille of the HR. Mesa uses engineered, coated grille cloth in their speaker cabinets to tame high frequencies and smooth out the cabinet sound. Other manufacturers do as well. Even the coaxial FRFR designs like Line 6 Powercab and Mission Gemini have the HF driver under a fabric center dust cap of the 12" LF/woofer driver. Plus I imagine they use engineered grille cloth as well. Anyway, good luck and have fun!

Based on this thread.... he's actually using POD GO, not a Helix. He came to this forum because the other one was really quiet. Can't say I blame him :) https://line6.com/support/topic/56650-sound-quality-frfr-vs-headphones/ Simple test..... Make sure your global EQ on the POD GO is OFF.... When going to your FRFR, use the normal outputs, NOT the amp out. Start with an empty preset... completely empty. Add a Fender Deluxe Vibrato Channel (probably labelled "US Deluxe VIB") amp and default cab for that amp Add a spring reverb If that doesn't sound like a classic clean Fender tone, something is wrong in your setup, or with the unit!

You're comparing apples and oranges. Not know what kind of headphones, some consumer brands add a lot of EQ to sweeten the sound which you wont get through a speaker. You also have to bear in mind powered speakers are simple PA speakers and they're going to sound harsh up close. That's why people tend to not sit next to them in clubs. Everything here is guesswork without seeing what you've got in your signal chain. One thing is for sure, the sound you'd be getting in a live performance will be MUCH more like what you're getting from the HR than it will from the headphones.

Also, what Helix configuration? Amp/Cab/IR?

Agreed..... Oh.... it's opened up again - LOL! Couldn't you have just left it with your first line instead of invoking more discussion?

Ive been playing out off and on since the late 60's, so don't go there. You seem to judge people you know "nothing" about. Sure, certain jobs don't need a huge mixer- DUH. So yes Mr. Obvious small mixers don't have individual channels with Phantom power. Use a direct box that blocks the 48 volts. Done! I don't disagree with this, but that doesn't mean it's broken, it just means it was designed that way. Who knows why that is. Im sure they will address this in Helix 2.0. That said, You seem to declare there is something very wrong with Helix design wise as a show stopper issue, when there isn't. Could it have been designed better? Sure, like everything else that you and I both own AND don't own (that's me being Mr. Obvious now ; ) ). That doesn't mean Helix is broken. But, even if Helix was able to take the 48 volts without ANY issues at all, Id still run with a direct box just to be pro-active for protection purposes if nothing else. That goes for my Kemper, Axe FX and others as well. That cover all the bases? Good. Oh yea, as far as running Helix in the summer Sun, Id try hard not to do that if at all possible just for the heat build up if nothing else.

Ah! You found it, many users on here never do. ;-)

Yea, that's how it's done in recording studios and live... on a mixer, you leave the return up and the fx in the loop and just control the amount from each track that gets the delay/verb with the send on that track, and when you turn the send all the way off the trails continue and the original continues without effect. Can something like that be done in helix instead? I would think so, just how it is now, right? just change what the button controls?

This is looking cool - but the Helix will be lifted up WAY too much for my likings, couldn't properly operate the EXP pedal. Now, one might be able to modify this guy, but it might become a lot of work or as expensive as a custom case. Fwiw, here's one of my custom cases (I'm using this since 25+ years already, will possibly survive a nuclear war), as you can see, I took great care to get the front edge as low as possible, the design is pretty much as an L-rack (in the L-portion of the lid there's some space for cables and such, pretty handy): Quite unfortunately, it's not wide enough to fit an additional EXP pedal and a little patchbay kinda thing that I defenitely want to have (to never plug directly in and out of the Helix anymore), so I will likely have to build a new one. And depending on whatever possible solutions for the daylight dilemma, I may alter the design a bit...

OMG I love that! I looks really similar to the product I used, but of course mine looked like metal with black surfaces. And.... your version would be fire proof! Global warming and all that... this might become relevant ;-)

I "never" run 48 volts anywhere near my Helix in's or out's, but that's just me.

The whole phantom power thing with the XLR outs is because of anti-pop circuitry, not because of the quality of the jacks. Phantom power won’t damage anything. The signal will just be attenuated.

I would look at the 10 band EQ and see if every one of the frequencies is being used to shape the sound. If only a couple of areas are EQ'd then you can translate that to Spider V's PEQ. In an instance where more than 4 bands are being EQ'd it will likely involve some guesswork and going by ear. Try to visualize the EQ curve created by the 10 band EQ and then try and and recreate it the best you can in Spider V.

Oh, really Alexander, you are a very silly child. I don’t know where you got the idea that I’m employed by Line 6 as a “hooray-sayer”? But, DILLIGAF!

Oh, we could happily go there. Besides, owning the Zoom doesn't mean it's also a modeler I used under sunlight conditions... Yes, it does. Every bit. An XLR out crapping out once there's phantom power running into it is poor quality, absolutely no way around it. They should perhaps have done that in fact. But unfortunately they apparently hired hooray-sayers such as you (or the rest of the Line 6 defense squad). I am absolutely aware of that. That doesn't mean I shouldn't criticize things. Yeah, been thinking about something like that already. So far, I'm likely to build a new case somewhen (post-Corona, doesn't make sense right now) and will consider to use the lid as a sort of shield. But it'll look quite bulky, so I'm still searching for better solutions. The jacks themselves are fine - but I was explicitely saying "XLR outs". And at least for me, these contain both the jack and the "functionalitly". The latter being severely crippled.

Looks like my question already got responded to with great alacrity. Ok, I was already aware of the phantom power issue and that is a legitimate gripe with the Helix. @Sascha your post did make it sound as if the XLR jacks were low quality. The way they were implemented in regards to phantom power is very problematic and should definitely be fixed, at least in the subsequent generations of hardware. That is, as others have already pointed out, not the same as implying that they are "bad quality" jacks. While several of your criticisms of some of the hardware and design choices made for the Helix are perfectly legitimate there is also a wealth of high quality components and design in the box as well. it seems like this might be a good time to trot out this fairly exhaustive early review(see link below) of the Helix from a reviewer who actually took it apart and did a deep dive. You may feel somewhat reassured with his well founded conclusion that the Helix is incredibly well designed with some top notch components. At least in many important respects. It does have room to improve but starts with a very solid foundation. I will stipulate one thing however and I realize it is strictly anecdotal and based on my own experiences with a fairly broad number of Line 6 products. I generally come to Line 6 because of their incredibly innovative technology with its intuitive interfaces that offer a wealth of options but are still unbelievably easy to use. It appears(to me) that they do need to work on reliability and design when it comes to some of the hardware they use and connect with on their devices. I have personally owned several Line 6 devices that have had what are essentially primarily not computer/electronic but instead connectivity/control and mechanical problems and failures. Either way they provide incredible tools for making music. The Helix still remains the first modeler, after many years of trying just about every one on the market, that was able to woo me away from stomp pedals and tube amps and cause me to actually switch over to playing gigs entirely with a modeler. For that alone they deserve major props. Before the Helix every modeler I tried either ended up at best on my pedalboard being strictly used for effects only or got relegated to the dustbin in favor of my analog stomps and a tube amp. https://tonymckenzie.com/line6-helix-effects-unit-floor-pedal-inside-and-out-review.htm

It's funny how much effects have improved in the last 30 years; there's now such a wealth of deep dive editing that we have the first world problem of sorting through all the available options. Before I got the Helix last year, I was a bit concerned that the modeled amp count was still lower than my Digitech RP-1000. As it turns out, the Helix power amp parameters alone can make a single amplifier model have the potential to be the equivalent of several different Digitech models, just by adjusting the bias or sag options (absent, along with a number of other parameters, on the RP-1000). I'll tell you- I remember back in the early 90s when the Digitech RP-1 was considered the shiznit with its four (COUNT 'EM- FOUR!) distortion options. Now? I can have half a dozen or more distortion tones in the same patch with some creative footswitch assignments if I want. Ditto if I was using an Axe-FX, to be fair.

Great story...Your boss example is very similar to how I discovered my problem with the X3 Live years ago. I don't get worked up over "gear quirks" anymore. All gear has quirks.... find the problem, replicate the problem for confirmation... then work around it! When I buy gear (including the Helix) I read the forums to learn about the quirks... then if I come across them myself I won't be surprised. This one took my by surprise... but I still had a hunch of what it might be so I didn't panic :)

I just took the time to do a couple of tests... and have come to the conclusion this was indeed a "sun related" incident. I took a flashlight to the area around my expression pedal.... and sure enough, without moving the pedal (leaving it in a fixed "full on" position I was able to vary the reading of the pedal with the flashlight alone. Not a lot (I could drop reading from 100 to high 80's) but enough to convince me sunlight (at the right angle) could certainly have an effect on the expression pedal. This is not a problem I am overly worried about... the light angle and strength has to be very specific. In my case it was a "setting sun" hitting the side of the unit dead on... a position I may NEVER find myself in again! Unless this rears it's head with regular sunlight, or stage lights - I'm not concerned about it.

TL;DR: skip to the end for a possible solution I've spent the past 4 days troubleshooting this. Different drivers, different video cards, sound cards, USB ports, cables, everything I could think of. I was able to consistently reproduce the issue, namely that I could use HX Edit 2.70 and Native 1.70 perfectly on my desktop, but all versions of HX Edit 2.71 / Native 1.71 and newer flat out wouldn't work on the same computer, despite working just fine on my laptop. I can confidently say it has nothing to do with the Helix device, the USB cable, or the USB port. (there are other issues that can crop up from each of those, but not THIS issue) You can identify the issue without the Helix connected at all, just from HX Edit opening with a semi-transparent background rather than black, or Native not showing anything at all when loaded. When HX Edit opens with the transparent background, you can let it sit there forever and it will stay open. Once you connect the Helix, you'll see the title bar momentarily switch from No Device Connected to the name of the Helix device, then the program vanishes. This is what HX Edit is supposed to look like if you open it without a device connected: And here is what it looks like with no device connected when it isn't going to work: The trees are part of my desktop background. Both of those screen shots are taking on the exact same system, same OS install, hardware, software, drivers, etc. Same HX Edit version (2.90). The only difference is the UEFI/Bios drive order. I stumbled on this by chance as I was testing a clean install on a different drive. This desktop has 2x stand alone Samsung 970 Evo NVME drives, (OS on one of them), a SATA Bluray drive, and 2x 6Tb SATA drives set up as a mirrored Microsoft Storage Spaces drive. When the bios detects either of those Storage Spaces connected drives before the others, HX Edit and Native won't work. As long as any other directly accessible drive is seen as Disk 0, HX Edit and Native work like they should. And this is really easy to check: open a command prompt as Administrator and type the following commands: DiskPart List Disk You should get a list of the drives in your system. Look on the left for the Disk number and make sure the list starts at Disk 0. It doesn't have to be the drive your OS is on, it just needs to show up as Disk 0 and show a status of Online. When my Storage Spaces drives are detected first, my drive numbers start at 1 or above, Drive 0 isn't listed at all, and HX Edit/Native won't work. I am able to consistently reproduce both the problem and the fix by shifting the bios drive detection order. I think what is happening is that the software does some sort of quick hardware detection at startup, and gets hung up if Disk 0 isn't online. (The emulated Storage Space drive will show up as a separate, higher Disk number) I suspect the same problem might occur when the first disk is part of a RAID. So if DiskPart doesn't show a Disk 0 with a status of Online, go into the bios and try to re-order your drives. On my ASRock Z390, I was able to do this by just disabling both SATA controllers, restarting, then turning them back on. That shifted the NVME drives to the front of the line, with the SATA storage spaces drives at the end. (Note: this is the drive detection order, NOT the boot order) You could also try changing the physical port your drives are connected to. Or if all of your drives are part of a storage space or RAID, you could try adding another drive to the mix.