billlorentzen

On the issue of patch change latency, it's a total non-issue for me because I take a completely different approach, which was necessitated by being a singer. I go from my rhythm sound to my lead sound almost exclusively with the exp pedal - push it forward for the louder lead sound, or different rhythm sound (as needed for the tune). I do this because I need to stay on the mic a lot and looking down at switches when you're on the mic sucks. My foot easily finds the exp pedals without looking (I use 2 exp). This is also very useful for throwing in a quick line and then reverting back to rhythm. It's way more intuitive than tap dancing switches, trust me. You can program changes to virtually any setting you want - amp knobs, amount of fx, compression, EQ, etc. The other valuable advantage is I can add a little hair and increased volume by pushing part way. And there's NO LATENCY!

I'm a long time HD user and I've got a Helix on back order. I set up patches a bit differently than most: I use an exp ped to go from quieter and cleaner tone to louder and dirtier tone for solos. That's easy enough if I'm just cranking the amp up, but in pod HD, if I wanted to add in a dist pedal, I had to set up two paths and pan across them, because floor pedals don't have a mix function (unfortunately). Can anyone tell me if there are improvements in architecture with helix that make this type of setup easier or more efficient?

I'm a long time HD user and I've got a Helix on back order. I set up patches a bit differently than most: I use an exp ped to go from quieter and cleaner tone to louder and dirtier tone for solos. That's easy enough if I'm just cranking the amp up, but in pod HD, if I wanted to add in a dist pedal, I had to set up two paths and pan across them, because floor pedals don't have a mix function (unfortunately). Can anyone tell me if there are improvements in architecture with helix that make this type of setup easier or more efficient?

I'm interested in this question also, as I have 30+ patches in pod HD 500 that I use on my gigs. I have put a LOT of time into creating my patches and with a Helix about a week away, I'm looking forward to getting a better engine but not all the tweaking and learning the architecture I'll need to do before I can gig with it. Hoping the amps I like in HD are the same ones I like in helix.

I have the same primary desire: the best amp sound. Sure I would love the scribble strips and other features of Helix, but I don't want to accept less than the best tone and feel just for the bonus features. I've been holding off on buying Helix or Ax8 until I either get an opportunity to try them both or until a convincing consensus is reached by other players who have spent time with both. Meanwhile, I'm still making half my living with a pod HD 500, in which I have an enormous time investment in my patches.

Has anyone made direct comparisons between them using the same speaker IRs? I have read that some 3rd party irs sound better than the stock Helix ones.

Cleaning doesn't work when the little black switch has stopped working. I opened it up and the little metal disc had lost its curve. It wouldn't click. I actually fixed one temporarily by bending it a little and super gluing it back together.

I think I found them at Full Compass.

I have two broken foot switches. The small switch on the board no longer has any click to it, and it doesn't work, except maybe one out of 30 pushes. Anyone know where to source these little guys? Also what are the part numbers? Thanks!

Fred used a parrot for recording, not granite discs. Duh!

Cool, I'm sure that will work great for you. Good luck!

I've owned and gigged with an Atomic Reactor (1x12 and 2x12). I still have the 2x12 but don't use it. I much prefer a pair of Yamaha powered cabs. First of all, you get much better spread than from a guitar cab, plus you're not stuck with just one cab sound - the cab is neutral, so you can use the cabs in your modeler for different tones. Also, I use one cab for audience and one for the rest of the band, especially the drummer and bassist, who are often kind of in the back and don't hear what's projected forward. If I'm also running into a PA, I use one cab as my monitor and the other for the rest of the band. Very versatile.

Bump! Boogie is the original, premium boutique amp. It's got tones we need!

Those are great blog posts! I got a nice Eastman acoustic for Christmas that I'd like to incorporate into my rig, but the stock Fishman piezo does not make me at all happy. Has anyone gotten a great sound using an image with Helix that they can post sound samples of?

Unfortunately, you can't control the output vol when you use the apple connector on the bottom of an iPad. I have the capability of connecting my iPad digitally to my Yamaha mixer, but that takes away vol control, so I can't use it.

I play a lot of solo gigs with backing tracks. I'm wondering if Helix can pull off these requirements in addition to processing guitar: 1. Stereo input for tracks 2. Mic input with compressor (LA2A), EQ, verb and delay Some potential problems might be: 1. Changing patches interrupts all signal flowing through Helix. This may not be an issue, as long as I select the right patch before I start the track (I have all my current HD 500 patches configured with exp pedal control and fx buttons so that I don't have to change patches going from rhythm to lead playing within a single song). 2. Not enough processing for the vocal fx (above) plus several fx on the guitar (gate, distortion, compressor, modulation, delay, verb, wah or autowah, and maybe some extra effect, plus of course, the amp. 3. Mic pre or fx not good enough to process vocals to a high standard (I'm an audio engineer, so I'm pretty fussy, plus my vox need all the help they can get!) Anyone doing this, or tried this?

I'm waiting on my Helix, and wondering if any of you have used it much as an audio interface - not just recording guitars, but for other sources as well? BTW, what is the lowest latency?

Hey sbursic, do you find you really need the sub? I have 2 DXR10s and a DSX15, which I use on my duo and single gigs, but for just guitar, with a full band, I don't use the sub. I don't think my guitar goes that low. With the 12s I would think you need it even less.

I don't have my Helix yet, but with my Pod HD, I am very satisfied with my Yamaha DXR 10 powered cabs. They have a mode (EQ) for use as a floor monitor, and sound terrific. I've used other solutions - Atomic Reactor 1x12, Mesa Boogie Satellite, and Reactor 2x12, but, frankly high quality wedges or PA cabs work best for me. I like having two cabs (which I also use with a sub for my single and duo gigs) because it gives me some flexibility for different types of gigs - to cover audience and monitor myself, or go through the mains and use one as my monitor and one to cover the rest of the band. In my opinion, the trick is to have as high fidelity a rig as possible.

Is inputting through one of the spare ins a reliable method for gigging, especially with changing of patches? I've been using the mini input on my HD with perfect success, but figured it might be safer to go straight into the board when I get my Helix.

Scale length makes a big difference in sound. You can't get a strat sound from a short scale guitar, so I wouldn't expect the different jtvs to sound the same.

I use the LA2A "studio" compressor after the amp to increase sustain. It's a very common trick in studio mixing. If you're running much distortion, you will probably need a gate up front.

I've had my HD500 for years and use it several days a week on gigs. My main axe is a custom superstrat with EMG SA singles. I get really great quality and variety sounds with this guitar. On the other hand, I have struggled to get a wide variety of useable sounds, especially distorted ones, with my Ibanez AS120, basically a typical semi hollow with PAF-ish hums, like a 335. Occasionally I use my old original bean Pod with this guitar for practice. I like the general tone I get from that unit better than what I am able to get with the HD. I also got great tones from my next up modeler, a Vox. On both these units, with my Ibanez, I could get nice cleans and heavily distorteds, but the distortion tones on the HD don't cut it for me. I've tried a lot of different amp models, but no joy. I realize semi hollow guitars are not as versatile for distortion, but I think it's more than that limitation. Has anyone else had a similar issue and solved it? I wonder if it has something to do with input impedance? I've tried changing it, but didn't hear much difference.

Great!

If you mean, can the exp pedal turn a distortion pedal on/off, I want to know too.