regalpierot

Yup, I owned (past tense) a Helix and sold it on. Amazing unit, but with reports of scribble strip pixels dying and displays of that quality just having a shorter life length than your simple LCD (and I guess the amount of freeze ups I experienced requiring a reboot) it just wasn't something I was hugely confident in. I still wanted native Variax VDI input and a floorboard with a bank up and down (Amplifi doesnt) so when Firehawk went to $350 I jumped. Really happy with the purchase and a great unit. I will concede though, it's about time they threw a damn update out there even to add a few extra stomps or cabs etc. Just saying.

I see that setup gets you a lot of p***y :) I've used the TT for about two years now, floorboard first then sold that (the 'two footswitch press' to bank up and down thing wrecks my head) and got the TT. I think it's an amazing practice tool and now that it too is a full USB audio interface and running at $150 it is amazing value. Agreed, if Line 6 ever release a TT version of a Helix preset player my credit card will immediate be called to action.

I was always hoping Line 6 would really something like a 'Helix Player', almost a pedal the size of a TC Flashback X 4 and maybe a small LED display like a Strymon Timeline that you could plug in via USB and upload presets you'd designed in the Helix Editor (or obviously Helix) on. Similar in a way I guess to the way TC Electronic do their TonePrints. I do agree this LT is kinda neither, at $999 you might be better off going a bit extra and getting the big brother. Maybe if it had removed the color display (so had more of a Firehawk thing), touch footswitches and expression pedal and been like $749 that would have been an amazing alternative for those on a budget or needing a backup.

ASAP!!!! First world emergencies :)

I've used a number of loopers for the function in the past. Think the thing I like about this over that option is - when you hit the stop on the pedal it doesn't start to play back the recording. Just lines up the next. I'll do numerous slightly different takes in succession so rather not be disturbed in process - unlike loopers you don't have to stop, save, move up a recording slot etc. all done automatically - that Bluetooth sync, awesome. I have actually recently started syncing backing tracks from IOS to pedal to play alongside. Also able to edit what I record on iPad to chop out bits I don't want then sync back to pedal for working on complimenting parts. It's a super useful $99. And again, no affiliation to TC here just a function the helix doesn't have that compliments the thing.

No commercial gain here for me, just mentioning a product I got that now sits next to my helix and I'm really liking so though it might be of interest to share. It's the TC wiretap, just sits in a send/return loop, usually doing nothing. But every now and again when I'm noodling and inspiration hits, you engage it and it just records the incoming signal directly to a .wav. 8 hours worth of a mono signal on it. Really nice part of the .wav just syncs up to an iPhone or Android where you can share with other band members. Thing has been inspirational. $99, and felt some brothers in arms might wanna at least do a YouTube check out of it.

A send before and another after the signal chain running to the looper would definitely be useful then with the return being at the end of the chain so you could dictate whether a dry it wet signal was imprinted on the looper merely by activating or deactivating a block. Nice one.

Actually, this raises an interesting question. Can a specific FX send\return block only be used once in a chain. The conundrum for me with my external looper is always whether to put it before or after my chain. Before, and you get the dry signal which allows you to alter by adding\removing effects. After and the FX are obviously stamped on the captured loop. For different scenarios each is advantageous. In the past I've had to physically recable, but it just strikes me maybe there's a virtual way. So what I'd propose is have external looper pedal in FX Send \ Return 1. Then add block 1 output and return both at the start of the chain and at the end of the chain. Then just activate\deactivate as appropriate. My senses tell me that you can only use a single instance of the send return per preset, but you never know.

Actually, now I'd say return it, or sell it, or whatever the odd story that keeps contradicting itself it. Buy a Fractal, go on their forum and then repeatedly ask people over and over again to do all the thinking and work for you. Problem solved.

So you've gone from the alleged last opportunity to return it, with presumably a full return or minimal restocking fee, to now having a buyer lined up. Im calling bs, just saying. But if you don't have time to tweak, just download free presets or buy presets from the people who did have the desire to build them laboriously. Problem solved.

Jecriminy, the animosity. OP just sat in quandary a lot of gearheads (of which I'm a card carrying member) face. In reality aaronbrito you aren't going to get an abundance of objectivity on the Helix forum when asking if you should return the unit for the competitors (undoubtedly the inverse responses if you posed a similar question on the Fractal forums). Above all else, people telling you 'yes, buy the Axe it sounds way better' does nothing to comfort the warm fuzzy feeling that what they spent their money on is the best choice. For me, the helix works great. I'm really happy with the sound, the interface and the additional bells and whistles (primarily the audio interface via USB, there's just no way that direct digital into a DAW isn't the path of least resistance for recording). My concerns about the unit are the same ones I'd have for any single entity solution with very high quality components, the concerns of parts failing when the warranty expires.Only way around that is stompboxes which has it's own flaws. I will say that I watched a few of those side-by-side demos between the Axe FX and Helix that were recently put together and in most of them the Axe did sound noticeably better. But as a lot of people pointed out, EQ and IRs can resolve that, and truth be known I've never switched the Helix on and not loved the sound so that's all that matters. Honestly though, and this is more from the perspective of all the gear, guitar and otherwise, I've ever bought. If you are on the fence at this stage I think you already know the answer to your question, return it. The gear I make a connection with I never ever consider selling or being without and it's a very personal thing. As I've said before, Helix, Axe, Kemper, NASA solution wont make a bad player sound good or a good player sound bad.

@rvroberts Yeah, believe me I've tried my iPad a few different times for guitar practice tool even and it always came up short. The analog interfaces (that is the ones that use the 1\8th inch jack) were just poor quality. Very 'tinny' sound and anything slightly overdriven created way too much noise. The best solution I'd found to date software-wise was Positive Grid's BIAS. Have to say though, the thunderbolt connected IRIG HD 2 is stellar, no D\A conversion so the sound is really quality, it also has a dedicated AMP output distinct from the headphone jack. Amplitube has also come on ten fold (hard to say whether it or Bias sound better, but IK one has a built in 8 track DAW that's really impressive, looping of iTune track parts and speed adjustment for practice, a really intuitive looper, channel master FX and a mixing console. My one main gripe with the app not being universal is now gone as any in-app purchases are now shared across devices (actually transferred al my presets to iPhone 6s and it sounds just as good, which is not my practice set up). Worth a play with.

Yeah, my original thinking wasn't so much the ghastly 'fails at the worst possible time' but more the gut wrenching feeling of components no longer functioning as expected. I did however put quite a bit of thought into a proper backup plan for myself. Didn't want to carry a HD or the likes to every gig, or even set up a few stomps etc and hope if I had to use them in a flash that all settings on them would be as I expected. So after a lot of trial and error here's what I run. I have an A\B switch (use the excellent MXR 196), my guitar runs into it and output A goes to the helix. I have my iPad mounted on my mic stand (for a few songs I use it for chord charts, memory aint what it used to be). Running from it I have an IK Powerbridge (so I don't rely on iPad battery) and that feeds into an IK Multimedia iRig HD 2 (which uses thunderbolt connection so digital quality, it's actually really nice). I use an IK blueboard that's mapped to four 'favorite' presets in IOS Amplitube that are get out of jail really, Clean tone, Vibe\Chorus tone, Overdriven tone and heavier Distortion. Now don't get me wrong, I am no IK fanboy, I think they time again find ways to extract as much money as they can from customers, but their stuff is quality especially on the hardware front. I have practiced many many times quickly kicking over from one rig to the next. Worst case for me is if I am in an overdriven part of a song and have to kick over to the clean sound, but just a tap away from getting the right favorite in place. It's not transparent, but it's also not sitting there for anything more than 15 seconds before being back up and running. I could pretty much do the gig on the Amplitube and I doubte anyone would be too upset, and the thoughts of even a reboot of the Helix not getting me back up and running bothers me (as anyone who has ever felt like a tool for more than 5 minutes on a stage while the band proceed and you fiddle with gear and get nowhere). Thing I like is that iPad and accessories I mentioned all add next to no weight or space requirements to what I need to carry, and truth be known I am spending more and more time sitting outside my studio and practicing parts using Amplitube and accessories. Had a really nice multitrack function and can downspeed but pitch keep iTunes library songs. just my 2 cents.

Damnit, I may have jinxed you when I started this thread the other day mate http://line6.com/support/topic/23307-things-i-worry-about/

Just to be clear, I'm not losing sleep over it any more than I lose sleep over the fact that the Microwave might stop working tomorrow. I own lots of synths and samplers and invariably they start to get their functional quirks. I've also owned a few multi units in the past (TC G System, BOSS ME systems) without being too focused on when a footswitch or button would act up without warning. I guess I just think of the Helix as having some rather high end and relatively fragile components (that screen, those touch sensitive buttons,numerous scribble strip displays, multi color footswitch lights) and how I bought the thing before anyone really knows what the longevity of all those parts are, especially with the constant use it gets. It'll happen some day, that control stick will be less responsive, I'll press a footwswitch and nothing will happen, it's inevitable. Just saying more than any gear I think I've owned this is something in the back of my mind the more I use the unit. Odd I know.

Because what's life without some first world anxieties, so rant of sorts in C minor I mean I love the Helix, it represents a lot I had wished for in a single unit and made me sell off a massive maze of pedals on a board, but there's some things that I would be lying if I said I didn't miss about individual stomps and don't sit easy with me, and I guess a good few of these would apply to any single high end solution - The Helix is essentially a computer with fit for purpose tactile controls, inputs\outputs and a display. Computers have shelf lives that are just a lot frailer than a stomp box. I have had 25 year old boss pedals that have never given me a days problem, I'd be shocked if any computer properly works, or works to any acceptable performance level, in half that time. - With that computer in mind, I'm still ever so nervous with the Helix at gigs. While the majority of my freezing issues have been the known problem when the Editor is connected, I've had one or two 'force reboots' when just using the thing unconnected to a computer. When a pedal goes south, typically true bypass will mean the only thing I'm without is that effect till I resolve the issue, not so obviously now that I've centralized all my eggs into a single basket - I kinda get nervous when I see people complain about the following - Scribble strips developing a line of pixels - Foot switches becoming non responsive As I type this my macbook has a few dead pixels, the display on the Helix is sure to get these at some stage. And computer based components, the more clever they are, the more prone they can be to error. Worried that after the 2 year warranty if any of the above issues show up it'll depress me. Weird post I know, to have such an amazing tool as the Helix at our disposal is something not to be critical of. I guess I am just realizing that the one thing I never spent much time being concerned about in the stomp box world was inevitable wear and tear effecting the entire thing as a whole, and the general acceptance that I now have a bespoke computer as the heart of my performance and sound.

Nothing to do with USB ports. Happens all the time to be too, on two separate Macs. There seems to be two issues Pre Version 2.0 - When connected to Mac and editor open computer would report 'disconnected' Helix would still process audio on whatever preset\settings happened to be engaged but was essentially frozen as no buttons or controls responded. Had to be hard booted to get it back to fully operational. Post Version 2.0 - When connected to a Mac and editor open just disconnects (by that I mean the Helix Editor displays a popup that alerts you to the fact that connection was lost). However the Helix does not freeze and stays fully functional. Have to close editor, disconnect and reconnect USB, start editor again. Even though the second issue is far less invasive (as Helix unit is somewhat unaffected) it's also far more frequent. More often than not when I am using the editor I lose connectivity now.

I've always got a minimum month buffer before I update OSX or IOS, rarely does the new feature set warrant the risk of the actual applications I use no longer working. Having said that, I'm really eager to see if anyone suffers that Helix Freeze when connected to Mac Editor. If that ended up being resolved inadvertently, well that would be amazing.

There is an inbuilt human tendency, nay desire to a) Lament about the product you handed money over for b) Be critical of the competitor's solution you chose against. Who wants to feel they bought the lemon. More importantly who doesn't want the dude who bought the other product and puts it above your choice, not to feel like they bought the lemon. Ultimately, and has been said many many times. You can get great tone out of a Helix. You can get great tone out of a Fractal. Neither are going to make a poor player sound great or a great player sound poor. The rest, is just ether.

I've used two Boss FV-500Hs with mine for months, work great and built like tanks

Not sure about your specific questions but just one heads up, because i was playing around with an option in my studio of having a few external effects mounted on a board above the helix I put my unit on a pedaltrain for a few days. I found that the additional slanting the board added (above what's built into the Helix which is built at the perfect angle IMHO when placed on a flat surface) got really annoying. The expression pedal felt at a very strange contour to me and the whole thing didn't feel right with the stomp buttons and angle I was looking at the screen. May just want to sit the helix on a slanted board like the Trio ahead of time to make sure it's for you.

I have seen a lot of people say building your own presets is the way you'll really get the most out of the unit, and it's a fair point, but when i see people post that they have an overall quality question on the unit, building a preset and tweaking away all day seems like a really odd methodology to me. There's so may presets on CUSTOMTONE or made by incredibly adept folks like Glenn Delaune why the hell wouldn't you download some of those and use them as a baseline for working out if it's possible to get a tone you like. If not, your unit is faulty or something outside of the Helix is having a negative impact. I've been playing guitar for 25 year, owned so many rigs over the years, I can tell you that there's zero opinion to it. The Helix sounds really good when you have a well built preset, pure and simple. I'm not saying the thing might be to anyone's taste, but there's no way one person is hearing a bad quality guitar tone and response when so many others hear the opposite. There's a point where quality is simply not down to taste.

I've found a few conversation with some interest in putting one of these things on. I really do like pick guards on Les Pauls and think a vintage blonde one would look great on the sunburst JTV59. Has anyone attempted to install a standard one, if so any tips\tricks\gotchas Also, might put one of the lest paul switch covers on too for the pick up selector. Anyone put one of those on. Really appreciate any input

I picked up my JTV59 about a month ago from Sweetwater. They are constantly on back order there. I think the Helix revived the demand as that's what drove me to get mine. VDI native support and the ability to change models or Tunings per snapshot now and Impulse Response to take acustic models to that next level, it's amazing. I will say this, when I got the guitar (rarely ever do something like that without a test drive, but zero stores anywhere have them) I was initially a bit shocked at the neck. Super thick, all the way down to the nut (at least 60s lLes Pauls taper a good bit around the lower frets). I'd read about being wary to alter the factory action as acoustic models etc are very unforgiving with any degree of buzz. But last week a luthier friend of mine did an amazing job setting up the guitar and world of difference. I have to say, even through the magnetics it plays and sounds beautiful, and being able to flip the switch on stage and get a pretty convincing acoustic nails the thing for me.

Yup @Verne I'm there with you. On any of my synths\samplers etc if there was a computer editor that's what I'd do the lions share of preset building and editing on, spare the rotaries and buttons on the hardware unit for live performance or when I had no choice but to edit that way. Every click, turn, press etc is wear and tear, and even if it's ;have to press a certain button harder to engage' or the likes it always frustrates me. Your choice is usually live with it, or go through the painful shipping to support route...so longterm worth it. Have to say, the lifetime of the components on units that I use software editors for is far longer than the ones where I have to make all tweaks on the units themselves. To me, even naming presets\strips\playlists etc on the helix is a lot of scrolling if you are cycling through the onboard text selection tool...editor is way to go. Sorry to hear your woe, Helix shouldn't have a component completely stopping this soon so no doubt an unfortunate one from the factory