Digital_Igloo

Nope—your foot controller would need to transmit a specific CC for both press for release. If your controller can't send a CC on release, how would Helix or Helix Rack know when you've lifted your foot?

Currently, this is the way Helix works as well. Helix's MIDI engine is certainly capable of responding to per-block CCs with both on and off values in the future, but you'll want to add this to IdeaScale.

The Helix application truncates or lengthens all IRs to 2048 samples.

You can assign a Gain block to a switch for an ultra-transparent boost, or even better, assign up to 8 parameters to a single switch (Amp mid gain, master volume, etc.) and then label it TommyLeee'sBoost.

Yes, I suppose, in the same way you can use a Mac Pro with an iPad.

Each of the four paths can have only one output, but the Multi output selection includes XLR, 1/4", Digital, and USB 1/2. Sure. Either place an effects send at that point or create a split and route the new path's Output block to a different destination.

Yep, including me.

There's always a chance. Helix doesn't currently have MIDI sync, but if it ends up getting it, there are all sorts of things that could shake out from it.

Not at launch, but it's at the top of our list of post-1.0 features.

Yep, Phil nailed it on the head. At the risk of sounding like a salesman, Helix Rack without Helix Control is going to be way slower to get around. A ton of work has gone into making sure they work together in the exact same capacity as Helix floor (touch select, touch assign, pedal edit mode, a metric ton of customizable feedback, duplicate last-one-wins expression jacks, etc.). In fact, the single Helix Rack/Control Cheat Sheet and Owner's Manual assumes you're using both of them together. If you have a third-party MIDI remote sitting around, go ahead and use it, but spending more than a couple hundred on an alternate MIDI controller is a huge waste of money, IMO. Seriously. You'd be missing out on 80% of what makes Helix so fast and easy to use.

Just one looper per preset for now.

Yes; sorry. That's what "up to 24-bit/96kHz" meant to imply.

Up to 24-bit/96kHz. Yes, Helix utilizes SRCs. S/PDIF can be used as an input for one or more of the (up to) four input blocks; currently, it can't be used as an FX Return.

Yes. You can even reamp two tracks at once. Yes.

I presume like any other piece of electronic gear; we didn't install rubber gaskets, if that's what you're asking. If drunk people keep spilling liquid on your gear, maybe Helix Rack/Control is a safer bet. Or... gear insurance?

We love Strymon. They are, after all, partly made up of ex-Line 6ers.

No, Helix will not improve your playing after 10 beers.

Yes. Each Helix preset can have up to 64 controller assignments, so the expression pedal could potentially control all 64 parameters at once. The only other limitation is that each footswitch can be assigned to up to eight things, including block bypass (latching or momentary), controller (latching or momentary), or Command Center assignment (latching or momentary). We've tried it with several (Line 6, Mission, BOSS, etc.), but I understand that there are still a lot of weird expression pedals out there. Currently, there's no compensation for resistor value or polarity.

Yes. The normal Parametric EQ has three fully parametric bands with high and low cut filters. It's also available as a Global EQ. Not sure how equivalent it is, but you can approximate things with two or more block locations. A dedicated low res block is #1 on my personal, super-selfish model wishlist. Yes. Your guitar and vocal signals can have discrete inputs, processing, control, and outputs. Hmmm... Actually, yeah, you can do this, but it's not a global feature. You'd split off a parallel path right before the output block (set to XLR) and route it through any reverb and then out the 1/4" outs. Then set the Global Settings > Ins/Outs > Headphones Monitor to "1/4" Outputs". This lets you to set up special headphone mixes with any blocks. Or swap the XLRs and 1/4" outputs in the above scenario.

Oh yes. The mic pre is the same one from StageSource M20d.

Yes.

Almost none, but that probably has more to do with both the L2s and Sennheisers being really flat. I might tweak the Global EQ, but that's generally to compensate for room modes.

Not right away, unfortunately. Helix 1.00 officially supports JTV and Variax Standard only.

We don't expect anyone to ever need four amps or 32 effects. The point is that if you really need to, Helix can do it if you choose your blocks carefully. Actually, a lot of other products could do it too, but instead they choose to artificially limit the number of simultaneous blocks in certain categories. That's not necessarily a bad thing—limitations make things easier to grok, more predictable, and eliminates "DSP anxiety." We do it too in other products.

There are two primary footswitch modes. In Preset mode, you get 8 presets or 4 presets plus 4 stomps. In Stomp mode, you get 8 stomps or 10 stomps. There's currently no option for 8 presets and 2 stomps, as Bank/Preset Up/Down are always active in Preset mode. Yes. Yes. Yes. Can't talk about it, but one could surmise that if we were to offer new models, yes, they would appear in firmware updates.