twystedriffs

Hey guys thanks for the insight. I have been playing guitar for 30 years but I've never been too much of a Tech head. I just twist stuff till it sounds good but when I switch to Line 6 products I like to abuse it. I know some guys that have 4 or 5 patches that use, I'll use 25 + on a night. On the X3 live I went into the front of the amp and I found the little extra EQ and Gain gave me how much bigger tone and overcame some of the issues with the pod. My cabinets are a line 6×12 and a crate by the way. With the helix I am going into the effects Loop of the crate and was hoping that would give me a similar sound to what you would hear in the PA or if I recorded straight into my studio. Maybe I just like my patches too hot? I have a small practice PA set-up at home, not FRFR, maybe you should play around with the settings on that. Make a duplicate setlist and tweak it for going to the front of the house. By the way I also like my cabinets like I always have. So I guess my live rig sounds great but it's just not compatible to use any other way. Guess it's time to look into FR system because that's really the way I wanted to go with helix. I learned on my second day of playing with it to turn all the speaker cabinets off and just amps or preamps. I have a Living Color sound I've been working on where I actually put a speaker cabinet on the second chain with a distortion pedal on it and it gives a cool undertone. But after buying Helix and reading all these reviews and forums I feel I'm missing half the bag not being able to use cabinets and IR settings in my gear. I have to have some stage volume so miking has always been the only solution for me. Yes I have started down the path so I must follow it LOL.

First off, I play in a very diverse rock band, and a Police tribute. I just upgraded to helix after a long ride on pod x3live. Same issues, bust first my simple rig. Line 6 stereo out into 2 crate powerblocks each on a 2x12. I create tons of patches, and get complimented on my sound a lot. But my patches are always so much louder than the preset material. Completely unusable in the studio direct or headphones. But through an amp and speakers sound great. I was hoping helix would balance that out, but same thing. Very loud custom patches compared to the presets. At the same time i am missing some just overall live sound with these new hix patches. Ive tried into the front of the amp, and as a loop, and not much difference. Sounds great untill the drums and bass kick in. Gonna play with global eq at next rehearsal. The editing is a breeze, love so much about it, just wush i had a live sound that could go into a PA or recording console and be at least workable. Mine are so harsh and tinny. I hear alot of improvements in the helix, but still some of the same issues. Ive only had it a week now, but have made about 15 patches and have about 50 hours on it. Yes i stayed home from work for 2 days when it arrived, cause i really want to start gigging with it asap.

So I am running my helix into 2 crate powerblocks, one with a 2x12,the other a 4x12. Amp level all the way up, eqs at 50, and the amp gain at 25%, just enough for volume. I am finding amp models alone sound much better and louder than amp/cabs or with a cab. Am i missing sonething here? Even when i crank the cab volume, it just doesnt come close to the volume and tone as the amp model by itself.. before i make too many patches, just wanted some opinions. Should i run the amp differently?

Ahh, thanks, I knew it was in there somewhere.. i got quite alot accomplished 24 hours with it but still need to figure we're a few things are!

Got my helix Tuesday! After 7 years pushing my live x3 to the max its a great update. Problem.is, i use dozens of sounds, Ive already programmed about 7 for our band. I spend years tweaking my pod, and im curius if there is a good way, or an good advise, on making all my levels consistant. And also for adding a lead boost. After a get a tone where i want it, how do i set a final level without altering my tone? Seems to be a common problem when i make aounds as opposed to presets..thanks guys and gals

Bummer. Does it still control the models if not the tunings? As far as saving an acoustic on one preset and a les paul on the next for example? Thanks for the input, guess ill just have to try it on tuesday, and order a standard soon..

Just about to get my helix in the mail, i have an older variax. Should it work fine with the helix? And can i use the alternate tunings in helix without variaz workbench? Thanks