duncann

So maybe there's a miniscule amount of truth to a modeler making you sound like guitarist X. :) The inspiration I get simply because of the tones Helix produces has yet to wear off for me. Sometimes that inspiration makes me play better too.

I'd say no about the factory presets, but when adding a volume block, or any block, I agree that it should have no assignments on it for the sake of consistency because when it does you have to carry extra rules or exceptions around in your head, that are easily forgotten about, when building presets. But it's a very minor thing and also a matter of preference. I wouldn't consider it a bug. You could put it up an ideascale.

The graphic images are still there, but the text is gone. Haha. Not very nice of it. And if you try and load a preset in offline mode that has any of the model pack amps in them, it will replace those amps with something else. For example the 5150 is replaced with the Solo-100 overdrive. That's one of the things I never like about the model packs. There's no offline mode for them, as Brue58ski pointed out. No reason really for the word choice. Sometimes a strange, and probably incorrect way, of phrasing things pops into my head and I act on it without much thought. I do the same thing with guitar phrasings. :) Nothing's really removed from the device itself when getting rid of the model packs, they are always there. It's just the authorization to use them goes away. I mentioned it earlier because it actually takes effort on your part to remove that authorization, so a simple reset or firmware flash won't affect them, they'll still be there.

The only way the pack will vacate the HD is if the HD is connected to your computer, the license manager is running, and you manually deauthorize the pack. So the answer is yes. The only ambiguity about this is if you deathorize the pack using your support account on Line 6's website, instead of the license manager. Then run the license manager and log in with the HD connected. It might automatically deauthorize the pack on the device itself. Not sure. Running the editor or the Monkey program won't do anything to the packs. In fact, I remember doing a firmware flash, followed by a reset, and all the packs were still accessible.

I remember a time also, 80s, when all you had was basically one tone, that's it. Make it work or fake it or whatever, fck it. I was never one to collect mega amounts of pedals either so I just had to make do. Besides, all those pedals gets expensive. Easily more than Helix costs today. Having a Helix back then would have seemed like magic. I hope they fill in some of the holes for effects. Mostly filters. Definitely an auto volume. No more amps. And like others have mentioned, adding to the functionality of Helix would be great. A couple of examples would be scenes and the ability to apply a tweakable modifier/controller to any other block. Beyond that, I don't see how much more they can really add to significantly improve Helix from what it already is. Which might be when the extraneous amps start showing up.

Hmm. That's an interesting question. Someone from Line 6 would have to answer about the differences in reset options between the floor and rack versions. My guess is most of them are the same with the differences being in the diagnostic/test mode stuff. The LED FUN would fall in that category. By the way, the LED FUN doesn't actually do anything useful. For the scribble strips, I don't think there is a way to dim them on either unit.

One thing that would eliminate pick noise completely is an auto volume with a really quick swell-in. Unfortunately, Helix doesn't have this effect yet. Other than that, the different amps seem to reproduce pick noise differently. It's part of the character of the amp. Maybe the mic helps contribute to it's presence, but my guess is not very much. It's more part of the amp in combination with technique. You'll probably never get rid of it without resorting to a drastic measure like I mentioned above. I personally like pick noises. You can change the way notes sound, a lot, by simply changing the way the pick hits the string.

When I did use two amps, pre-bass pack, the signal going into the amps was EQed, by both the bass's active EQ, a couple of EQ blocks, and a couple of tube compressors to add some warmth and help even out the signal to give some decent volume. Nothing after the amps/cabs except some reverb and maybe delay. So I guess that means I didn't hi/low pass the amps and used them as a final way to shape the tone. Or maybe I shaped the tone using the amps first and then added the EQs before it later on, I can't remember. I wonder if finding a good balance using all those settings is like tweaking the TARDIS. After the bass pack and then Helix, I've happily abandoned the idea of more than one amp. It's just unnecessarily complicated. But when using two amps to combine cleaner and distorted components, I can see where it would be useful. Never tried that. Something new to try.

Let's see. Therre's the Tuck n' Go (Ampeg® B-15NF Portaflex®), Cali Bass (Mesa/Boogie M9 Carbine), Cali 400 Ch1 and Ch2 (Mesa/Boogie 400+ Ch1 and 2). When I first sat down with my bass and Helix, I tried them all, but something kept pushing me towards the SVT Bright channel. I have no memory of the Tuck n' Go, so I must not have thought much at all of that one. The Mesa/Boogie ones, particularly channel 1, I remember I found quite interesting and almost wound up using it. The SVT Bright provided the best low- and high-end of them all, while still remaining without any sort of distortion. It has the best balance and just seems easier to tweak that balance.

Simply put, one should not buy Helix if the number of amps is a priority. I'm sure we'll be seeing more in the near future, as well as effects. DI and others have dropped enough not so subtle clues about this. Another thing missing from the AX8 is an audio interface. Also, don't forget that the firmware for the Axe FX series has been in development way longer than Helix.

Saw him live way back when. I think it was the late 80s. His stuff truly is timeless. Haha. Seven words you can't say on television: sht ps fk cnt ccksckr mthrfckr tts Although some of those are no longer on the list, the idea behind that skit still holds true.

Off. Or use it to compensate for environmental acoustics.

The limitation is because of available DSP. You can have two 1024 sample IRs on the same path, in series. @FacemanJoe: Don't be afraid to try cabs and IRs in series. I get interesting results, sometimes good, doing this, depending on the IR. I kind of think of it as a way to EQ a built-in cab, or the other way around if the IR is first.

If it happens again and if you haven't already, perhaps try a global reset: hold footswitches 5 & 6 while turning power on.

I'm not seeing this. Note that when assigning the output of path 1A or 1B, the selection option of path 2B is grayed out unless the split on path 2 is dragged down from path 2A to have it's own input block, creating path 2B.

I use both through headphones always, never any other way. Both sound great. Although I don't use the headphone output on either device. I have another audio system that I hook the headphones into.

Thank you. That must be what happened. It's reproducible. Your workaround works too. But it doesn't survive a reboot, so you have to remember to switch to the tuner every time you turn Helix on. Until they fix it, I'll just leave the tuner muted and not worry about it.

Firmware 1.12.0. Yesterday I noticed I was getting a dry signal mixed with the processed signal at all times for all presets. I don't know what caused it. I'm fairly certain I did not change any global settings, presets (100% sure) or any DAW settings (100% sure) prior to noticing this. Monitoring was done via the SPDIF output. Doing a global reset (5 & 6 footswitch method, leaving presets intact) seems to have fixed the problem. Tried reproducing it but can't. Not very helpful, I know, since I can't reproduce it, but thought I'd mention it nonetheless.

I believe the built in cabs (IRs) are 16-bit 48kHz. I use 24-bit 48kHz for the little I use. One of them, Taylor 314ce-Earthworks, is 32-bit 48kHz. No problems with either of those formats. Ultimately, it's not going to make any difference. You could leave things to chance by blindly picking one of the four out of hat.

Delighted to be of assistance. A month without Helix. Ugh. That's gotta be a tough one. Hope you have some equipment in the meantime.

Yes, you can pan each path however you want. I'm not sure how useful that would be for a bass tone though. When using two amps with different settings and mixing the two together in the end, it is more likely to be that each amp would compliment the other one. Each amp would have specific spots in the frequency range, so one amp would take care of the higher end, while the other amp would focus on the lower end. Doing this can sometimes produce better results than just one amp producing all frequencies, which I found to be the case, even necessary, for the HD unit that doesn't have the bass pack unlocked.

I remember reading, on these forums I think, that Line 6 could fix the dead zone problem on these pedals with a firmware update. Doubt that's going to happen though. I've gotten really used to the short travel when using a wah. So much so that using the onboard pedal for wah is a real drag now. On the other hand, these short throw pedals are really, really bad for volume control.

Identical amp settings is exactly right. Although they don't have to be identical. It just becomes more difficult to find something you like when they aren't identical, because then not only can you have two different cabs and mics, but two different amps with all the settings that has! Too much even for me. Prior to getting the bass pack, that is actually what I had to do to get a decent bass tone, and it was an extended version of a nightmare.

Tried you're preset. Nice tone. Makes good use of the processing power of Helix. I also don't hear the ringing on either of my guitars, one of which has a PAF Pro in the neck. Did you figure out what's causing the ringing?