OmniFace

Reaper can do that for any plugin. Every plugin has a list of parameters that can be controlled, and Reaper will just output that as a list with sliders when the UI button is pressed, rather than the plugin's actual UI.

You mean this bug?

There are some tempo markers in the project so that's a good idea to look into. The project is setup so each song has a region, and there are some interlude regions in between where some backing tracks will play and the guitarist can tune, etc. The keyboardist is using Native Instruments plugins to play through, so he has the laptop in front of him. He uses the touchpad to move to each region, or the Region Manager to go to the start. Then he starts the song. At practice we're repeating songs and such so he's frequently moving the cursor around. At a show we would hit play at the beginning and just let it run. When I've tested just running through the project things work fine. But when we practice things get screwed up on the second or third song. We play each song maybe 3 times and move on currently.

It's intermittent to reproduce, so this is a fantastic idea!

I've got a little MIDI problem I'm having trouble with... I have a Reaper project set up for the set list of my band. In it I have a MIDI track that is routed to my Helix Rack via a USB connection. There are MIDI items for each song. And within each I'm calling a preset via Program Change on the Helix. Then I'm using CC messages to select snapshots in different parts of the song. Most of the time things work fine, but the Helix pulls up the wrong patch in the middle of a song sometimes - like it was sent a bad message and reverts to an earlier one. Or like the MIDI item in Reaper is programmed incorrectly (but I'm 99% sure it's not...). Anyone seen similar issues? Not sure if this is a Reaper or Helix problem, or both...

After much digging and a response from Line 6 I've found a way to do this in Reaper. Just updating this for posterity! 1) Set up a track in Reaper 2) Add the Helix Plugin 3) Open the plugin window 4) Click the + button (next to the No preset drop down and the Param button at the top of the window) 5) Click Link to MIDI program change and choose an option 6) Click the + button again and click Save preset 7) Make another preset 8) Add a MIDI item to the track, or another track and send the MIDI to the first track. 9) Use the Bank/Program Select option in the automation. 10 Set the Program number to the desired preset. Note that MIDI is 0 based, meaning the 128 options starts as 0 and goes up to 127. So preset 1 is 0, preset 2 is 1, etc. In testing I found that there is still a delay when switching presets (unlike snapshots). Switching between the first 2 Factory patches had audio gaps between 25-75 ms. These were also delayed. So you'll want to move the Program Changes forward a little so the delay and gap happen at the very end of the section and the beginning of the new part has the proper sound. I DID find that rendering stems, freezing, or even full project renders seem to have a bug when doing this. They don't render fully. Posted that on the Reaper forums looking for help.

I own a couple of PowerCab 212+ speakers along with a Helix. The PC212+ supposedly has a frequency response that rolls of at around 70Hz. This makes the cabinet really not great for Bass Guitar. It's quite thin and the bass sound is disappointing for anything other than some old school like Beatles bass tone. I've already submitted an IdeaScale post for a matching PowerCab Subwoofer, which would be fantastic to make the system work for both guitar and bass. It then occurred to me that the StageSource series already HAS a sub woofer (though not matching the PC series aesthetic). So, I'm REALLY curious if anyone has ever tried them together? In particular I'm wondering if the L6 Link is compatible between the two? Can I plug into the Sub and pass it through to the PC212+ and have them auto configure the high pass properly? Does it also successfully send the control messages to change the speaker model on the PC212+ since it's supposed to be a pass through?

You don't explain why you want to use these two inputs on the amp? The manual implies you need to split the signal into Path A and B, and change Path B to the Send's output instead of the Main. But why are you trying to use the two inputs?

If you set the output to "Multi" it will feed the same signal to the 1/4", XLR, Digital, and USB 1/2 outputs. The signal will be stereo or mono depending on the signal chain you set up IF both sides are connected. If you only connect the Left side of the 1/4" or XLR out, it converts it to mono regardless.

I only own the PC212+ cabs, but have heard that the PC112+ can feel a little under powered in a live band setting. But for a bedroom without a real drum kit, it's probably just fine. That said, the PC212+ cabs do give you stereo with a width control. You can choose different speaker models for each side. And it's loud as F if needed. Plus it looks cool. :) The cabs use neodymium speakers, so they're pretty light regardless. Two PC112+ would give you the option of having a very large stereo width. Though the PC212+ does have the width control to use phasing to make it sound wider, it can't be as effective as two speakers in different parts of the room. On top of that, if you gig, you can put each on either side of the stage so that other band members can hear you better - and control the volume for just their side.

The power amp does play a part in the tone, but how much depends on the amp. A high gain amp is often mostly preamp distortion and the power amp isn't as important. Alternatively a lower gain amp will often use the power amp more. Many older amps are low gain didn't have a master volume. So you just turned everything up to get it to the "sweet spot". Newer amps often do most of the work in the preamp and have a master volume to control level. The Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier supposedly has a "cold" bias setting for the power amp. That means that the power amp is dialed in so that it is used to make the sound of the preamp louder and not really color the tone with it's own distortion. Running a "real" preamp into the PowerCab would probably sound fine, but it would be missing the little bit of influence from the power amp, mostly depending on the amp design. A high gain amp may not sound much different. A low gain amp might not be great.

If you get the PC212+, the 2nd input is designed for this. You can run your speaker modeling on your guitar, but then have an FRFR signal for the mix to listen to. I don't know if the 112 models support two inputs like this or not. This is what input 2 on the PC212+ supports. You get the colored speaker sim, but also the FRFR mix. amsdenj's "colored" comment is true for the 112's which don't have the dual input setup (AFAIK). Yes and no. Obviously it won't produce below 70Hz very well (I believe that's the spec on these), but as far as I know they EQ the speaker to be flat within a few dB's tolerance. So, I don't agree that it's entirely meaningless. :)

Helix has a few bass amps and cabs, but nowhere near as many as the Bass Pod. So it really depends on what tone you're looking for and what that artist's patch used.

Yep. There's also a switch on the back to turn off the cab/mic modeling completely, for use with a real cab. I don't believe the Spider has any HX algorithms, but depending on what you do, that may not matter. If you cant a powered helix, get the PowerCab212+ and don't look back. If you want a decent alt rig for easy practice or to play with friends, the Spider V is a pretty decent choice IMHO.

I have both. I got the Spider V stack for my second guitarist to use. It's been a while since I used it though... I think the new Spiders sound quite good. I haven't directly compared models, but I'd wager they're close enough that most people wouldn't notice. Recording wise it sounded definitely usable from what I recall. Speaker/mic sims were always a weak point in the lesser gear, but I think they're much improved these days. Some people really didn't like the speaker cab being used to output a fully modeled signal as if it was mic'd, even with head adding tweeters. When my guitarist used the stack it was a bit muddy, but I"m sure it could have been fixed with a little work on the tone. It's hard moving from "no amp" in-ear practice to full amp shows. The MKii has the option for "classic speaker" mode which turns off the mic sim and full range functionality so it sounds more traditional. For live that's probably preferable. Not sure how that impacts the DI outputs. The head has the built in speakers and wireless receiver which makes it pretty useful for a practice amp, but it is a little on the large side still.

True, but 24-bits works with 16,777,215 points of amplitude. So, while your example on small integers is correct that some noticeable rounding errors would occur, the scale you chose makes your example meaningless. The number of audio points in 24 bit audio means the rounding errors are insignificantly small. Assuming the audio is integer based, we'll divide this range up into 100 dBs for ease of use. Here are 3 random points using -100db = 0 and 0db = 16,777,215 on the y axis -9dB = 15,267,252.65 -42dB = 9,730,784.7 -86dB = 2,348,810.1 If we round them all we have at max difference of 1 in the 1's place. -9dB = 15,267,253 -42dB = 9,730,785 -86dB = 2,348,810 We have more than enough integers to account for the shift. If we compare the unrounded vs the rounded we have a difference of just a few 100 millionths. -9dB = 1.0000000229 -42dB = 1.0000000308 -86dB = 1.0000000426 So yes, the signal is not technically identical, but the difference certainly negligible. Even if this increased noise it would be unnoticeable in my opinion.

I vaguely remember testing it, but I heard hitting the tap tempo button may start the cycle over. So you can possibly get them synced manually. Not ideal obviously. Sending a Program Change message to select a patch might also reset the cycle?

Interesting. I haven't tried it out, but I'm sure it's worth playing with a bit. The XLR inputs have adjustable input gain levels on the PC up to +12dB. The Line 6 Link may have a gain adjustment but it would probably just be a decrease in signal since it's digital, and would rely on the output gain of the Helix or whatever you're using. If you've not level matched the comparison then the tone should sound different due to the Fletcher-Munsen curves. Though I'd expect the louder signal to have more bass and treble. If things are level matched they should theoretically sound the same? There's apparently an impedance option on the XLR/Instrument inputs (though I don't know if they affect the XLR). If it's set to Instrument impedance. I wonder if it's dampening the treble of the analog signal or something, which could make them sound different. Maybe that might mean that your tone has too much treble and the L6 Link is accurate, but the analog impedance option is toning it down? How does it sound if you record the XLR outs using L6 Link in or XLR in?

Haven't tried it. Could theoretically overheat, but I assume it would auto shut off in that case. That looks like a PC212+ right? I'm not sure if the PC212+ speakers are tilted outwards slightly to help with stereo imaging, or if they both face straight forward. If they angle, you might get a little weirdness sending half the signal into the floor basically. Probably nothing to worry about though.

Not that I'm aware of. The issue is minor though. I wouldn't worry about getting a 2nd one.

I have two PC212+s and one of them rattles with high volume while the other does not. The issues sounds like a loose wire or something. I missed my warranty window, so I'll fix it myself one of these days, but you should either return it for a different one or go through warranty.

The "Ext Amp" jack is used to control the channel footswitch on your amp or enable/disable reverb, et.. It's not for audio. Connect the Helix 1/4" Left/Mono Output to the front of your amp instead. Don't use amp or cabinet sims into the front of your amp, for best results. Or, use them, but plug into the FX return of your amp so the Helix is the preamp. The Helix is a complex beast. You should really consider reading through the manual in the future. At least read up to the end of the Quick Start section.

Very interesting speaker. Awesome that Celestion even provides a DIY cabinet design. I'd love to see some specs on the speaker alone and the DIY cabinet w/ speaker. That said, the PoweCab likely compensates for the EQ curve of the stock speaker. So dropping a different speaker in will probably sound a bit different. The PowerCab uses a 12" with built in tweeter as well, so the differences are probably minimal though. Would be sweet to get a few of these and make a 412 or something, or make some floor monitors.

"noise is added because it masks aliasing noise" I believe what you're referring to is Dithering, which is used when converting an audio signal into a lower bit depth. Normalization is simply raising or lowering the amplitude of the entire track. It doesn't alter the sample rate or bit depth of the signal. It merely says that a audio data point sitting at say -6 dB is now -4.7dB. But it does that for all data points, meaning that means that the S/N ratio stays constant. Both get louder or quieter in equal amounts at the same time. However, using an external interface rather than the USB does mean the signal has to be converted from D to A, then A back to D again. That said, I'd wager that converters these days are such high quality you may have to run them through conversion hundreds or perhaps thousands of times to hear a difference. Plus it means going through the interface hardware coloring the sound in whatever way that device does. That can impact the S/N ratio because the interface will introduce its own noise, and setting the Helix output and hardware input will be important.

"so it'll be 70Hz on the low end, too." Not necessarily. Having multiple speakers means more surface area. This results in better low end response. This is why subwoofer speakers are usually larger sizes like 15" or even 18". That said, the manual does state all PowerCab models have a range of 70Hz-20KHz. So, you're correct in the end. :) The 112 vs 212 presumably have their own EQ compensation curves (for multiple reasons), and the fact that they have the same response listed in the manual means they presumably account for the different bass response down to 70Hz. I bet the 212 has better low end response below 70Hz though, due to the doubling of surface area, but L6 doesn't provide a chart to look at.