codamedia

Don't be dissing the back bacon - eh!

That is exactly how I took Soundog's comment as well. It worked beautifully regardless of the position it was on. I thought it was quite humorous. For the record... I'm in Canada, I don't have any dogs in this fight, and I'm not willing to enter any :)

OK... your point was made... But please consider the danger.... The majority of people that buy a helix will not be expecting 9v of power on that input. If they accidentally plug the cable "only to the ring position" that will place 9v of power on their pickups, or their wireless output, or external effects, or ???? I don't know any company that puts power on a standard input... I don't think any company wants that type of liability. IMO: The action of plugging into an XPS is deliberate. Forcing it onto unsuspecting buyers is dangerous.

Where in the world did you get that idea? The Helix Floor, Helix LT and Helix Rack can all power a Variax guitar through the VDI port... just as the HD500, X3 and Xt did. Nothing has changed in that regard. (Edit: Arghhhh. @phil_m beat me to it :) ) If you are talking about the XPS power supplies.... no POD or Helix has ever had that type of power capability. I'm at a loss about not wanting to have to carry a special VDI cable for the Variax. To power it with an XPS you need a TRS cable, a standard cable, an XPS box and the power supply for the XPS. Even the solution you suggest still requires a TRS cable... why not use VDI? This makes me wonder if you really know the benefits of the VDI port in a live situation. Hint: It has nothing to do with "workbench".

I thought it sounded like a positive, yet honest view of the speaker. Exactly what I would prefer reading over the usual "glowing endorsements" I see.

The original link is working fine for me...

Depending on a company's primary distributor location, there will be loop holes to get around the tariffs. The hardest hit are US based company's that have products manufactured in China.

Ahh yes, I keep forgetting that some of those legacy effects force you into the stereo realm. You could just live with the two sides being different... but they would be a little different! Maybe not enough to matter, but that's hard to say. Does the "mono effects send" (used to go to your amp) not collapse the signal to mono already? Or are you putting that send before the reverb?

The Origin Effects Revival Drive is multiple drive styles... not just one. IMO... the touch sensitivity is in the HX as are the blend controls, choose the drives wisely depending on the tones you are after. I'd start by looking at the Timmy (Tee-mah), King of Tone (Tone Sovereign) and Prince of Tone (Heir Apparent). The Klon (Minotaur) is also a great option for some of the tones I heard in the Revival's demos. Looks like a great pedal... but IMO... the HX should be able to accomplish most (if not all) of what I've heard

All you can do is download the latest Helix LT manual, then reference the additions/changes from all the updates since that version. Not German... but this site usually keeps an updated list of amps and effects... it currently included the models from the 2.8 update. Amp List: http://dshowmusic.com/line-6-helix-amp-models/ Effects List: http://dshowmusic.com/line-6-helix-effect-models/ It also has links for updated cabinet and mic lists as well.

Are you running stereo at all? It doesn't look like it to me. If not... make sure all effects are inserted as "mono" and your Left / Right Outputs will already be the same.

I can't imagine 5C being a problem for anything.... that's about 41F. Depending on humidity levels, condensation as the room warms might be a concern, but even then, 5C shouldn't be cold enough to be a problem in this regard. From Page 2 of the manual... "This apparatus should only be used at temperatures between 0° and 50° C." That's operational use.... storage use would be a wider range than that.

What made the big difference for me with the stock cabs was the 2.8 addition of the TILT EQ. Place it after the cabinet block then turn the tilt down (toward the dark position) and I find it works as a great Hi Cut Filter without completely removing all highs.... I generally run that EQ around the "Dark 50" area and find it works wonders on cabinets. I've said it before in this thread... and others. This EQ has a similar effect to moving the mic position from the center (where it is on cab blocks) toward the edge of the speaker. It might not be what you are looking for... but IMO it's a simple and elegant EQ worth a try :) BTW... thanks for sharing your custom IR's... I look forward to downloading them and giving them a try. I especially like what you said here... that makes perfect sense to me. My live presets sound almost "lifeless" at low volumes, but at stage volume they come alive. The opposite often runs true for my studio tones.

Just in case it isn't clear after reading those threads.... Global Settings > Preferences > Tap Tempo Pitch Set that to "transparent" and the problem should go away...

I don't think this can be done without snapshots. I am presuming you don't want to tie up snapshot positions with this task. Why not copy the preset into 5 different locations... then assign each preset a different "capo position" on the Helix.... named accordingly for quick access.

My 2nd bullet point is very important in this regard. Make sure the 1/4" outputs are set to "instrument level" in the global settings. IME, when I run into the power amp input of an amp I run my Helix Volume around 1 o'clock, give or take a little. I always have plenty of room to go either way if needed. When I go direct my XLR's are set to "mic level" in the global settings, and they are decoupled from the volume control (eg: they are wide open).

Noise suppressor.... similar to a BOSS NS-2. They don't gate.... they calculate what the "noise" is and try to lower that without lowering the guitar signal. A GATE is either on or off... it denies all signal, or allows all signal (including noise) based on the threshold setting. You are right... once past a certain threshold ALL gets through so in theory they shouldn't such tone at that point. BUT - if set too aggressively, you will notice it when you play softly, or as a long chord hangs and fades out. At quiet settings is is trying to distinguish between the sound and the noise.... set to aggressively, it may mistake the two. What I like is that a chord can hang without hearing much noise.... I find that better than a hard cut off. That said - GATES certainly have their uses.

This is my experience as well. IMO.... only the HARD GATE is a real gate. The others should be treated as suppressors. There is a difference between a suppressor and a gate... each have their job. I much prefer a suppressor over a gate... but that's just an opinion :)

That has always been a problematic range for acoustic instruments... I'm not in the least bit surprised by your experience. The trick is to not use too wide of a Q, and only cut the amount that is needed.

So be it... if that's what you "have to do" then you have to work with it. I try to pick my battles... this wouldn't be one of them. IMO... this is how I would approach it... Save all the presets you use into a new location with the cab/mic modeling disengaged. (leave the amp model engaged). This way you are not messing with your real presets. Global Settings: Set the 1/4" output to "instrument level" (this can change later if needed) Global Settings: Set the Volume Control to 1/4" outputs only TURN DOWN THE HELIX VOLUME FOR NOW! Keep everything on the marshall turned down... if the Master Volume is needed turn it up to at least half. I suggest this because you want to make sure the power in the Marshall stays clean - allowing the Helix to do it's job.... adjust as needed, but I'd start with it fairly high. Now turn up the Helix as required for the show. If you find you have to run the Helix too loud, turn the master MV up more. NOTE: Unlikely, but If you cannot get enough volume from the Helix.... turn it down then set the Global > 1/4" outputs to LINE and slowly turn up the Helix again. It will be a lot louder!

Yes this should work... both the XLR and 1/4" outputs collapse to mono individually when only it's LEFT output is used. Run the Left/Right 1/4" output to the stage Run the XLR Left/Mono Output to the FOH (make sure phantom power is OFF at the board) If you use the XLR's to feed FRFR's on stage you can do that in reverse.... Run Left/Right XLR's to your FRFR's on stage Run the 1/4" Left/Mono Output to a DI then to the FOH If you are only sending a MONO signal to the house but monitoring in stereo - please make sure your tones work well when collapsed. Panning laws will change levels and phasing/cancellations can occur... it needs to be tested to make sure it still sounds good.

Do you mean when you change snapshots your levels are changing? If so, your effects are not properly setup in regards to gain staging. Unless an effect has a job to make something louder (eg: a boost pedal) then engaging that effect should NOT make the preset louder, it should just add the effect. Almost every effect block added will have a level control on it. Use that to make sure the effect does not add/subtract any level when engaged. Once that is properly setup... any snapshot that simply turns blocks on/off should remain consistent in volume. For times when you use a snapshot to increase the gain on an overdrive... you may also have to decrease the level in that snapshot to compensate. For balancing PRESETS I generally use one of the two methods outlined by @cruisinon2 above.

Odd.... that is not happening here. Maybe a global reset will help. Holding footswitch 5+6 on boot restores Global parameters This should not touch any presets or IR's... but you should always make a backup before any of these types of procedures.

I can respect that... but there is certainly still mic choice and position at play otherwise it's a game of chance. Of course the multi cab/mic solution it's not a REQUIREMENT to get a good tone out of a Helix... but options are a good thing, not a detriment. The majority of guitar players don't know how to choose or place a microphone on their amp... and when going direct that is an aspect of the tone that cannot be ignored. You cannot record a real amp without a mic, and you cannot get to the FOH without a mic. When going direct... it is a huge benefit to understand that part of the signal chain and how much it effects the tone. The EASY BUTTON on a Helix is to just choose an amp and accept the default cab/mic/distance that is provided. I suspect that for the majority, this works fine. However, people are on this thread (and many like it) because that doesn't work for them. That is why I am offering "options" on how to improve their tone. Slightly off topic... but still relevant I love the Helix platform... but I'm also very vocal about the lack of mic placement options. In the live amp world, FIZZ/ICE PICK/SHRILL is most noticeable with a mic at the center of a speaker compared to the edge. I know very few techs (studio or live) that mic the center of a cone, yet we do not have the option to move the mic toward the edge on the Helix. I really don't want to dis the person(s) that made the cabinet models, but I have a very hard time understanding how this was overlooked in the process. It's audio engineering 101... and they missed it.

The thing is... in a recording studio, they need to do all that to capture the sound of the cabinet. Simply placing a single mic into the cone of a speaker only captures a "tiny amount" of what is really going one. It can sound good... but it will NOT catch any of the cabinet/room tone. When using the Helix direct.... you will benefit to think of it from a studio viewpoint. At the very least, you need to think of it from a "live tech" view point. My simplified approach for this would be as follows.... Insert an amp/cab, or separate them... it won't matter Choose a dynamic mic... FWIW, I like the RE20, 421 or 409/609 Pull the mic back about 2 inches The GOTCHA still applies! You cannot move the mic from the CENTER of the CONE toward the EDGE. This is a critical step for getting rid of fizz in the real world, so it is a critical step here as well. To get around that... insert the TILT EQ after the cabinet. Roll back the TILT toward the dark setting. This has a very similar effect to physically moving the microphone from the center to the edge. In the real world every 1" of movement makes a big difference. I equate that to every -10 on the TILT setting. (eg: Dark 10 is 1" toward the edge. Dark 50 is 5" toward the edge, etc... etc... Real or simulated, I like the mic about half way toward the edge... but that is just my preference.