rd2rk

The FW version remains the same. The reset just shakes out any accumulated digital glitches.

If the receiving unit recognizes an Up/Down MIDI message, yes. If not, then no. For instance, using Helix as a controller for Amplitube, you can use the Amplitube LEARN function to use any momentary CC assigned to Helix Footswitches to do Preset Up/Down. Other devices/sims might have hard-wired CCs for this.

In case it wasn't clear, ITRW the amp's FX loop is between the preamp and the power amp, the idea being to not have the preamp coloring and amplifying the sound of the FX. You can't do that with Helix. That said, lots of people LIKE having the time based FX before the amp, among them David Gilmour and Joe Satriani. It's the way it was done before amps HAD FX Loops! Also, on recordings, it's not uncommon to add reverb and delay in Post (after the cab). The method @theElevatorssuggested is another way, although the MIX control accomplishes the same thing, it sounds better to him, and therefore it IS better! I always run Reverb and Delay in parallel so that the delays aren't reverbed. To me, it sounds cleaner, less cluttered. There's lots of ways to skin this cat. Try them all and use what works best for you.

Further to what @MusicLaw and @lou-kash said. After I made my reply, I was looking at the old Eg and thinking "Mmm, haven't played you in a while." I'd just spent a couple hours playing through the PC212+. I turned on the Eg (4cm to my Floor) and played for another hour, till dinner, then another hour after. It really does sound different from the PC212+, which sounds great, especially for ambient stuff, but sometimes feels like it lacks...something.. The Eg weighs less than the PC212 does (32 vs 48), is smaller and easier to carry, and I can stuff the HXS in the pouch of my Steinberger's gig bag and be out the door. Hmmm....maybe it's time to get that extension cab....yep! I'm keeping the old tube amp!

My HXS is my "office" box. I run it into a 3way Sony bookshelf system (2x6+10). Sounds great. My Helix Floor lives in my "studio" and goes into either a PC212+ or a pair of Rokit6 Studio Monitors. Sometimes I use it 4cm into an Egnater Tweaker 15-112 when I'm feeling nostalgic for tubes. Not very often. I often create great sounding presets on the HXS and transfer them over to the Floor. Some just sound better on the office rig. If you do this, get a quality set of monitors with a sub. It adds that little bit of extra "body" to the sound.

Yes, that's what I said. If you've made custom presets, don't forget to back up first. If support gets back to you, after making sure that you're on the latest FW and HX Edit, that's what they'll tell you to do. It's SOP for troubleshooting.

Rock On!

Start with the stock amp+cab. Use the amp's tonestack to get close. Regarding the stock cabs - try different mics and distances. Once you've gotten close and know what works you can use separate amps and cabs for different placements in the signal chain. Here's a link to an excellent primer on mics and placements: DialingInYourTone.pdf (redwirez.com) All IRs are not created equal. What sounds good is subjective. Most IR creators provide a free demo version. The free Redwirez Marshall cab IRs are a good place to start. If you want to ultra fine tune your sound with virtually every mic and placement option known to man, Redwirez is the way to go. Also try the free York Audio Mesa 212. His single IRs and mixes are much easier for a beginner to work with (less options). York Audio IRs are currently my faves, much less fizzy overall than many of the others, and I've tried all the major players. Justin has a great ear. After you've done the above beginner steps, use EQs to fine tune the sound. Lastly, consider your playback system. Guitar amp? FRFR? Studio monitors? They all sound different.

The world of IRs (including Helix Cab sims) requires much searching for the proper IR/cab sim for the best sound. The sound you hear from the PC212+ will never be the same as what you hear from FOH. Different playback systems sound different. Using the Helix cabs, you can control that (somewhat) using different mics/distances and Hi/Lo cuts at the cab block. Helix cabs tend to be darker than IRs, but not always. Choosing the best IR for the preset is the tricky part. No simple solution, just lots of experimentation. FWIW - after trying many brands of IRs, I've found the IRs from York Audio to be excellent. YMMV. The FRFR modes affect only the sound you hear from the PC212+, since they affect whether or not the HF driver is on. You can't hear that through the PC212+ XLRs. If the signal from Helix is stereo, yes. Helix cab/IR blocks are MONO, unless you're using the DUAL CAB. Any MONO Block placed after a stereo effect (or the DUAL CAB) collapses the signal to MONO. The FRFR mode has no affect on whether the signal is stereo, only whether or not the HF driver is on or off. In FRFR mode, using the cab/IR blocks on Helix, the signal level to the PC212+ XLRs is the signal level from Helix. The Output Knob on the PC212+ affects only the volume from the physical PC212+, NOT the XLRs. Whatever level is hitting the PC212+ input is the level at the XLRs. Yes, as it reduces the bass coupling effect of the PC212+ speaker and the floor. It'll sound even better with the entire cab on a stand. When you use PC212+ speaker emulations (no Helix cab or IR), the signal you hear on stage from the PC212+ is the actual speaker. The signal from the XLRs is an emulation of the the speaker emulation, plus an emulation of a mic on that speaker. VERY different animals. If you use IRs loaded on the PC212+ (vs cab/IR blocks on Helix), the level to the XLRs is louder even using the same IRs. That means that your stage level will be louder (control that with the PC212+ volume knob), but more importantly, the level from the XLRs will be hotter. If FOH is competent, he'll adjust for that with his Channel input level, but if you're using a mix of IRs on Helix and IRs on PC212+, this will drive him crazy. Since all you hear is stage level, you can't compensate for that on the fly. Best practice IMO - use one configuration on all of your presets. If you want to be able to switch between PC212+ and your amp, use IRs on the PC212+. Test your presets at performance level with the rest of the band. They may find that annoying, but it's part of the process. Off to work now. If I think of anything else, or you have further questions, I'll come back later.

Global Settings>Footswitches>Up/Down Swirches

We've done all we can for you. Time to contact support. Intermittent problems are the worst, especially on computers and it is, after all, a computer!

There's three states, therefore, assuming your amp works this way (see post by @datacommando) you need a TRS cable.

The DZL doesn't need to have an FX Loop, it's just a fancy pedal. Plug the HXFX SEND into the DZL Input, and the DZL Out to the HXFX RETURN. In Global Settings set the Send/Return Level to INSTRUMENT. Don't forget the FX Loop Block in the HXFX signal chain.

How about we start with: 1 - what version of the FW is on the Helix? 2 - what version of HX Edit are you on?

Also, I'm not clear if disconnecting the USB cable got rid of the noise. if YES, and Helix was the ONLY USB connection to the computer, maybe it's the USB cable. Is it the original OEM cable that came with Helix? I read somewhere that some of them had problems. Cheap cables such as often come with printers sometimes have problems in audio situations. Above I mentioned cable routing. Sometimes if you have audio cables running parallel to power cables, that can cause noise. Again, spitballing. There's so many possibilities, without being able to actually be in the room, it's all I can do. Hopefully, the factory reset will fix it. Fingers crossed....

Do a FULL Factory Reset. (REBOOT holding 9+10). Don't forget to back up first!

OK, so we're back to the guitar. See the above questions about your guitar/pups. You mentioned multiple guitars. What kind? Multiple cables too? What kind?

You are suffering from the dreaded USB Ground Loop problem. Disconnect all USB cables from the computer EXCEPT Helix. Add them back one at a time until you find the culprit. Sometimes it's a specific combination of two or more. Depending on the type of computer you have, it may have one or more USB ports on a direct MB connection, and others on internal or external USB Hubs. You always want the Helix on a MB port, but most other USB devices can use external hubs. SOMETIMES a powered hub for those devices (especially those that draw power from the hub, like hard drives and things with lots of LEDs) is what's necessary. I have 10 USB devices connected to my laptop, and tracking down the ground loop was a ROYAL PITA! Eventually I found a combination that worked and have since lived happily ever after.

You can also try unplugging everything but the Helix from the Power Strip (it's filtered, right?). If the noise goes away, add things back till the noise returns. If unplugging the USB as suggested above fixes it, then follow the same procedure with the USB cables connected to the computer.

If the socket you moved the Helix to is on the same circuit as all the rest, it won't help. Try unplugging the USB cord from the Helix (not the other end). Any better? If, while holding your guitar, moving your position relative to, well, anything, changes the noise, the problem could be your guitar. Single coils? If the pups are active, check the battery. Spitballing here, maybe we'll get lucky....

That IS a very strange noise! Are you using a wireless transmitter or a cable?

There's a problem in your environment. The wifi was one. What else might be a problem? Where's your cell phone? How close are you to your computer? How about cable routing? Power cords in parallel with audio cables? Unshielded cables where you should have shielded? Is everything on the same circuit? Is that a circuit that you're SURE there are no appliances, flourescents or rheostats on it? Is everything plugged into emi/rfi filtered power strips? USB ground loops (pray not, these are the worst!) I'm sure this is frustrating, but random problems like this are the hardest to troubleshoot, and since many thousands of us use Helix every day in many environments without such problems, we have to look at your specific surroundings.

When your rack arrives, make sure it has FW v3.11, and that HX Edit is likewise on v3.11. Select the Output Block, and you'll see the a tab with the DT25 settings in the Bypass/Controller Assign section. Those are the DT25 settings that you have control over, using footswitches and snapshots, over L6 Link. As for your w/d/w-4cm configuration, just take a split before your wet effects and give that path it's own Output Block, assigned to DIGITAL. Should work fine.

If the "Headphones Monitor" setting in Global Settings>Ins/Outs is set to MULTI, then you're hearing BOTH the Digital Out with cab and the XLR Out without cab. If it's set to XLR, then you're only hearing the XLR without cab. That could be the problem.

It's not a stupid message at all, and is one of the BETTER features of Helix IR management. If it wasn't there, people would be loading presets and wondering why they didn't sound right, spending hours looking for the problem, then screaming "Why doesn't Helix TELL us when the original IR is missing??? That's just STUPID!!!" Better to know than not.