Digital_Igloo

Hmmm, that wasn't my intention; thanks for the heads up. I'll change that when I get to the office. EDIT: Updated illustration, added two lines where the signal integrity is stereo.

Helix currently supports mono IRs, but yes, it can run up to four IRs—two per path (DSP permitting). Let's take a Ping Pong Delay with echoes that jump from left to right and back every 300ms. If a Split block splits a stereo signal into separate mono Left and mono Right paths (which Helix does NOT do), the Amps will be fed different signals—Amp 1 gets the Left at 300ms, Amp 2 gets the Right at 600ms, Amp 1 gets the Left again at 900ms, Amp 2 gets the right again at 1200ms, and so on. Doesn't matter whether the amps are mono or not (they are), they're passing different signals through at different times. If the two paths are later panned hard left and hard right at the mixer block, the signal bounces between your ears and these differences make the resultant signal sound wide and stereo-like. See diagram A below. But if a Split block splits a stereo signal into two identical stereo Left+Right paths (as Helix does), the Amps are being fed the same signals—Amp 1 and Amp 2 both get the Left at 300ms, the Right at 600ms, the Left at 900ms, and the Right at 1200ms. And because they merge these two duplicated stereo signals to mono (like amp models in all other modelers), the result sounds mono-ish, because they're passing the same signals through. See diagram B below. Adding Pan blocks to each Helix path before the amp forces the paths to pass through different sides of the Ping Pong delay at different times, which makes them sound stereo. See digram C below. Or if we eventually add a Split > Separate L/R block, it'd do the same thing, but wouldn't waste two block locations. EDIT: Since this writing, we've added Balance Parameters to the Split > Y block. Panning these hard left and hard right effectively accomplishes the same thing as adding two Pan blocks after the split. There are good reasons for not making stereo amp models: (Almost) no real guitar amps are true stereo; that is, they don't accept a stereo guitar, process each side separately, and spit them out separate outputs Stereo amp models would take literally twice the DSP; as Helix's Amp+Cab models are the most DSP-intensive category, you might not have enough horsepower to add stereo effects to pass through them anyway! Any true stereo amp model would effectively be just two identical mono amp models with virtual pan blocks before them anyway. So really, by adding those Pan blocks before the two Helix amps, you're effectively creating one big stereo amp model :) EDIT: Wasn't entirely satisfied with my verbiage, so I drew a picture. Think of the green dashes as Ping Pong Delay echoes; if it's above the line, it's in your left ear, if it's below the line, it's in your right ear, if it's on the line, it's mono.

So much more succinct, amigo. I type way too much. :P

TL;DR: Yes, Helix can approximate this. All of Helix's paths are stereo, and the Split Block splits both the left and right signals to both A and B. What's happening in your other modeler is that its split separates the left and right signals to two separate mono feeds into two mono amps, which if their downstream paths are panned hard left and right, will appear stereo. Any stereo effects are indeed summed to mono into the amp, but the path after the split was more than likely mono to begin with. With Helix, it sounds mono because both the left and right signals appear at both paths, and when merged to mono at the amps, don't give the same stereo width as two mono paths—the sonic difference between the amps and cabs give you a bit of separation, but you're right, the effects before them will appear mono. However, you can do what you want in Helix with two additional blocks: After any stereo effects block but before the Amp block on each path, add a Volume/Pan > Stereo > Pan block. Pan one Pan block all the way left and the other all the way right. "Pan" is actually a misnomer, as the block actually acts as a stereo balance control; that is, when panned all the way to the left, it'll pass only the left side of, say, a ping pong delay. The reason we don't call that parameter "balance" is because few people know the difference, and "pan" is much more ubiquitous. Make sure your Merge > Mixer Pan parameters are panned hard left and hard right as well. We have a wish list item for a new Split > Separate L/R block that would send the left side to Path A and the right side to Path B. Not sure how far down it is tho'. It'd save two block locations, but the DSP savings would be negligible. EDIT: Since this writing, we've added Balance Parameters to the Split > Y block. Panning these hard left and hard right effectively accomplishes the same thing as adding two Pan blocks after the split.

Highlight the setlist you want and either press the joystick or move it right. Helix will load preset 01A within that setlist.

It's extremely subjective, but personally, I prefer Helix Rack/Control over the floor version, especially for live use. Duplicate expression pedal jacks, AES/EBU and wordclock in, other band members across stage can control their paths via standard footswitch, all FX-looped pedals are tucked away in the rack, the only cable on my part of the stage is a single ethercon (wireless otherwise), etc. Setup for three band members is all of five minutes.

Contact CS and they should be able to get you sussed out.

Have you had a chance to speak with CS? They should be able to get you sussed out.

Helix can't currently map individual blocks to incoming CCs, but if you first assign a block to a footswitch (here's where Helix Control really shines, as assignment takes all of 3 seconds from the cap-sense switches), the footswitch's state can be enabled/bypassed via global CCs: CC49: FS1 CC50: FS2 CC51: FS3 CC52: FS4 CC53: FS5 CC54: FS7 CC55: FS8 CC56: FS9 CC57: FS10 CC58: FS11 CC59: Exp Toe Switch Assign a block to a footswitch without Helix Control is still pretty easy: Press MENU and then Knob 1 (Footswitch Assign). Use the joystick to select the desired block and turn Knob 1 (Footswitch) to select the desired footswitch. Repeat step 2 as necessary and press HOME to exit.

Great! Expression pedals are all over the map, and some simply aren't compatible with Helix at all. Glad you got it sussed out. :)

Yep, the reverbs (and 8 of the ten wahs) were taken from M-series/HD—everything else was built from scratch in HX. To be honest, we just ran out of time, and the only alternative would've been to have waited longer before release. Then no one here would be talking about Helix, because it'd still be top secret. We'd love to develop new HX reverbs for Helix; they're on our (gargantuan) to-do list. In the meantime, I've been connecting my Lexicon PCM 91 ($1999 for one reverb block) into FX Loops 3 and 4. Love that box. I'm not sure exactly what chip is in the H9; Strymons typically dedicate an entire SHARC to one effect only, but I'm not sure how its speed compares to one of Helix's two 21469 450MHz SHARCs. Personally, I get a lot of mileage out of Helix's reverbs, but I've also owned an M9 for many years. Not really. If someone posts something akin to "WHY does Line 6 do [X]?"... we'll simply answer why. If there are technical limitations, we'll explain them. If there are serious design considerations, we'll discuss them. If a request isn't in line with reality, we'll explain the reality (regardless of someone's acceptance of said reality). If we like a request, we'll post a link to IdeaScale. There are plenty of companies with dedicated, milquetoast PR reps who spew disingenuous platitudes left and right. With Line 6, users have the opportunity to communicate with (and sometimes complain directly to) the very people who design and develop Helix. We're just passionate gear heads who love designing gear; "Hey DI, mind explaining how [X] works?" goes a lot farther than "LOL FAIL."

It will be updated eventually, once enough models and features have been added. But yes, now with Yamaha as parents, the manual has to be translated into more than 20 languages. Unfortunately, printing specialized manuals for each region is a logistical nightmare, so you're looking at a 1,000-page-plus behemoth. "$1500 deserves a paper manual." If anything, it deserves the most elegant approach to disseminating the latest information, and currently, that's best provided via a full-color PDF with dozens of TOC and in-text hyperlinks. If Helix had black-and-white displays and red LEDs, yeah, maybe a one or two-color, 1000-page paper behemoth that'd increase the end user cost by at least $50 wouldn't be grossly inappropriate. Actually, we could probably afford to print a huge manual if we switched to a black-and-white screen and lost the RGB LEDs—they probably cost close to the same.

Not sure what you're expecting—Helix has already received nine firmware updates. That's nine updates before some people have even had their preorders filled. We've been extremely transparent regarding imminent plans, and effectively gave everyone a three month roadmap; anyone who thinks we're not supporting Helix simply isn't paying attention. Lots of stuff still to come.

Germany too—that's fine; we knew it was going to be an uphill battle in certain regions. Not at all concerned; we're playing the long game with this one. At least Italy and Germany are fans of a great product—the Kemper is really a clever bit of kit, and Christoph's a genius. I'm a huge fan of his Virus synths as well.

Great—thanks! Are you running El Cap 10.11.4?

Not happening here—Also on 1.10.0. Is something else special about the preset?

As 1.10 (now 1.11) is a Public Beta, you have to click the Beta box to the right.

Whichever row you choose to view presets (Upper Row or Lower Row), treat the other row as a "window" into Stomp mode. However, if you want to swap stomp locations—and you're on FW 1.06 or higher—from Stomp mode, touch-hold (but don't press) two switches and Helix lets you swap them.

Today we released a Mac OS X driver that improves audio performance and supports sample rates up to 96 kHz. It has no impact on editor communication. However, there's good news. Since OS X 10.11.4 was released publicly, Apple also released a slew of developmental diagnostic tools that helped us figure out a way to bypass the low-level USB port communication issue. This means that yes, even mid-2012 MacBook Pro Retina computers will be able to use the next release of the Helix application/editor. Even my mutant stepchild only-computer-in-the-building-that-fails works, and it's working well. Hasn't lost communication all day, and I've been custom labeling/coloring scribble strips from my laptop like a mad man. We still need to add copy/paste and fix some lingering bugs, but we're getting close. Helix Mac Driver 1.00 Public Beta Release Notes Helix Mac Driver 1.00 is a public beta that improves multichannel audio performance. It supports the following sample rates: 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz, 88.2 kHz, and 96 kHz. IMPORTANT! Installing the Helix Mac Driver 1.00 Public Beta precludes using Helix with the class-compliant OS X Core Audio driver. The driver is available here: http://line6.com/software Be sure to click the Beta box, otherwise you won't see it! After installing the driver and restarting your computer: Make sure Helix/Helix Rack is connected to a dedicated USB port on your Mac. Do not use any sort of USB hub. From the Apple menu, select “System Preferences…†and click the Sound icon. Click the Output tab. Line 6 Helix should appear in the list of devices. Click “Line 6 Helix†(or “Line 6 Helix Rackâ€). Click the Input tab. Line 6 Helix should appear in the list of devices. Click “Line 6 Helix†(or “Line 6 Helix Rackâ€). Open your DAW. In the list of audio devices, you may see two items—Line 6 Helix and (Helix Audio). Choose “Line 6 Helix†(or “Line 6 Helix Rackâ€) for both Input and Output. If for whatever reason you want to uninstall the Helix Mac Driver: Navigate to Macintosh HD/Library/Extensions. Inside the Extensions folder, you should see an item named “L6Helix.kext.†Drag this file to the trash. Empty the trash and restart your computer. Helix will return to using the class-compliant OS X Core Audio driver. Known Issues On rare occasions, loss of audio occurs after waking your computer from sleep Audio artifacts may occur while adjusting UI controls in several DAW applications

The Command Center messages only apply to Stomp mode, so if you're in Looper mode, the switches can't send out custom MIDI messages. Actually, they don't currently send anything at all, but we'd like to have them eventually send the same messages as to which they respond. Incoming CCs can still control parameters/enable Stomp mode switches regardless of the current footswitch mode. So, for example, even if you're running the looper, the blocks can be controlled/bypassed via MIDI.

If mono is the concern, note that you can connect just the left side of the 1/4" or XLR pairs and Helix will automatically sum the signal to mono. No in-preset stereo summing required.

Yep—the May 2016 issue of Guitar Player is on my desk right now. Helix review starts on page 100.

I'll freely admit that pitch bend (and by extension, aftertouch, poly aftertouch, and SysEx) was omitted because it doesn't really fit within the confines of what one would expect from a guitar-based MIDI controller. But seeing as certain Roland guitar products do indeed respond to pitch bend, it's certainly worth requesting it on IdeaScale. EDIT: Never mind; I see you've already done this. Cheers!

We need at least ONE person to say "Yes, I'll pay $999 for wireless VDI" to keep our hopes up... So far, crickets.

In Pedal Edit mode, you can increment/decrement through IRs by pressing FS10 (VALUE–) and FS11 (VALUE+).