vmoncebaiz

I've never been happy running both acoustic sounds and the modeled electric sounds into the same rig. Usually you'll be able to tweak one type to sound really nice while the other one suffers. Best cases I've run into have been using an A/B switcher and sending the variax to a small acoustic combo for the acoustics and rest banks (the Fishman stuff is usually my go-to when Im demoing in stores). Then use whatever electric amp you prefer for the magnetic pickups and the electric models. You can get away without having to bring a second amp along if you send one side directly to a PA. Usually using the acoustic models on a pretty dry path (no amp and no cab modeling) with a little reverb and compression sounds nice right into front of house. If you happen to use an HD500, FirehawkFX or Helix you can do the A/B type routing inside the box.

If you guys are on the fence about which version you'll end up with, Line 6 announced they are lowering the price of Helix rack and its floor control. The rack will now be $1399.99 and the floor control will be $399.99 (US MAP). It really is mainly preference. The rack unit offers a word clock that the floor processor doesn't, and maybe that's a big selling point for studio guys. I get the convenience of having it all on the floor model in one unit, but I've used rack stuff for so long that I already have the cases and racked wireless stuff, so I'll probably end up with Helix rack. The big decider will be how I end up actually using it. Either FR/FR with the floor processor Helix, or with a racked tube power amp and a 2x12 - I'll go with Helix Rack. Hopefully I'll be testing it for my own personal use with engl and fryette power amps through a slew of 2x12s in late January : )

If y'all are looking to dial in some more modern high gain sounds for the Angl Meteor or panama models, try using the "30" mic. It sounds a bit more processed, which sort of lends itself to metal. It works pretty well on its own or blended with your standard 57. For you dudes dialing in bass tones, I've had tons of success setting tones up with a parallel path for the bass DI and using the expression pedal to blend between the DI and the modeled amp sound (Gk has been my favorite so far). I also copy and paste any effects to both paths so hitting a footswitch will trigger the same effect on the DI and modeled paths. Been pretty fun.

I'm not sure exactly what you need to happen with each path. But yes you can have 4 separate paths with separate inputs and outputs on each. And yes path 2A can use the aux input while 2B can use USB channels as its input (and output) for re-amping. If your plan is to record two guitar tones and a backing track simultaneously I would recommend switching the backing track/aux path to 1B, and moving the second guitar path to 2A to get better use of your DSP on both paths.

I agree 100% with making your own patches, or at least tweaking some existing ones to a point where your hands and guitar fit better. With the Vox models on Helix you can try bringing the bias parameter all the way up to get the class A power amp thing happening for you. In general, if I'm playing through a powered speaker, I use the high and low filters on the cabinet models (or in the global EQ) to tailor my sounds. My favorite clean sounds so far have been with the J45 Brt. > greenback25 cab. I tend to use the master volume and my and drive to set to the edge of breakup, then use the guitar's volume knob to dial it back slightly. On the cab, I've been having luck with the 57 or 121 (if you want warmer sounds). With either mic I usually back up the distance 2-3 inches. If the 121 starts to get muddy, bring in the low cut filter on the cab, I've gone as high as 120k with certain guitars and thought it sounded nice. I honestly think the biggest improvements in newer modeling units all across the board are the lower gain and early break up tones.