rvroberts

OK - you are starting with a totally different guitar.........so you won't get his exact sounds. He is running 2 different amps together (L&R) - nothing to stop you doing that too. Use a clean Fender and try a Litigator for the Jackson running clean (but just clean almost ready to break up) Try drive around 2 bass down maybe around 2 also - will depend on your guitar and volume you listen at. But the Gretsch probably has more bottom than the Suhr. Mid 4.6 Treble say 5.5 and presence 5 - channel vol maybe 9.5 all depends on your guitar. Stick a deluxe Comp in front of that and you should have a clean sound that is a lot like his. The rest are effects - you can get very similar results with Helix effects - the Minotaur is a Clon style overdrive for example. What you won't do is have every pedal in one patch. You don't have enough DSP. But why would you - he uses a switcher to set up scenes which in your world are patches - you just have a new patch for a new song and you use the 4 or 5 effects you need for that song. His switcher actually leaves everything he's not using out of the loop to avoid the huge mush you would get is you ran through every pedal all the time. With the Helix delays you can get huge stereo effects again similar. Play with them! You will now need to do some work on your own!

Yes.......as they say above - could well be cable or USB problem - change to a different USB port on your computer. But, you are so far out of date, that you probably can't update to the latest version and keep your patches. A lot of amps have been improved - so they will sound a little different. Things like globals have changed - input impedance being one. As it's now per patch, you probably will at least need to adjust that to get back to the sound you were used to. And there are a lot of amps you will probably want to use that weren't there at 1.03! If you use a driven Marshall patch check out the newer Marshalls. The Litigator can do killer clean to gentle smooth distortion - you might not be able to resist that if you like lower gain sounds. So, backup - assuming you can get it to connect (I think v1.4 will still work to save your patches) Save them individually by the way, then you can load them one at a time and trouble shoot any problems. You can then just update to the latest version - 2.20 is out any day now......so if you can wait - it's meant to be a big one. Expect a few long days getting it all working to a good level - you got to explore snapshots too - you most likely will convert all your patches to work with snapshots - most people do.......

Well my first thought is does it have anything at all to do with your guitar/Helix/amp? You were mic'd - could it have had more to do with the mic and the monitor? Some things to consider - what type of mic? Placement of mic/amp/monitor? Gain setting on the mic? It was a squeal? - not guitar feedback? Turning down your monitor fixed it? Feedback when you weren't playing not when you were? Sounds like it was the sound guy's problem to me. Your guitar may well have been overriding the feedback (louder than the sound that was looping back at the mic) when you were playing, so you'd only get it in the gaps. Another potential cause, (but not very likely) - microphonic pickups. But you'd have experienced that with any high gain sound before then. Now obviously you would have had to be there and run some obvious experiments to really know - but I can't see it being anything to do with the Helix.

Our musical lives are spent looking for an ideal that is never quiet reached. Yours is probably different to mine. For me being able to change the actual amps is really powerful. But if I was in AC/DC would I use a Helix instead of all those vintage marshalls that other people move and maintain for me? No, of cause not. So if you really only need a limited pallet of sounds, and you have an amp that is really hitting that sound, you don't need a Helix. If you want to augment that amp with some killer delay - seems the jury is voting Strymon - they definitely get a great rap and you can midi control them. And for every effect out there chances are if you look around and try everything, you will find a solution you love more that the built in effects in the Helix - but the Helix models are extremely good. You can hook it up through something like the GigRig and you have both patch and midi control. Built by a good pedal board company - or by you if you are passably technically savvy, it would be a killer rig where one or 2 amps does your job - lets face it - it offers more flexibility than anything people used 10 years ago. You will end up spending even more than the Helix - but if that's what floats your boat - then do it. If you don't have a road crew and a guitar tech, and you want a nice reliable portable system that sounds killer - use the Helix. If you want the largest number of effects through your existing amp - I'd buy the Fractal FX8 - it's not cheaper I don't think, but it has more effects. If your needs are more just a great overdrive, a chorus and a Delay, I'd go with a simple pedalboard.

Set up your patches flat - then if you get on a boomy stage, you can give yourself a little clarity back with the EQ on the box. You will only need this on a bad sounding stage, and you don't want to do it with global EQ as you will be having that effect out front where everything could sound very different. If the FOH is reasonably tuned, they are already compensating for the room.

Yes, all possible. The question you need to ask yourself is what are you trying to achieve? There are other solutions if you just want programmable effects. I am seeing people start out with the Helix in 4 cable method, and finding themselves transitioning to FRFR ( Helix does the amp and speaker simulation) as they get more confident with modelling - often after doing some recording where they go direct and realise they could be doing that live. So it gives you all those options. But you do pay for them. Still a batch of top quality pedals into a switcher will cost more and still not offer the flexibility. But you will get to pick every pedal though. What makes FRFR win for me is that I can put effects after the speakers - like you do in the studio. And then there's the simpler and lighter rig..........

Surely you would just use another patch with all you snapshots and a pitch shift? Patches are not perfect to change during a song as there is a tiny gap - but there is always time to change them between songs. I use almost a new patch with its own set of snapshots for every song - well I have a number of songs that work with certain patches, so I don't change every song, but I change a lot! Why would you try to get every sound in one patch? Wastes all those cool sounds you can't fit in one patch.

I don't know if Global EQ effects USB input - I've been running tracks through my USB for a while and it sounds OK, so I'd guess not. But, Congratulations for saying the obvious! It's such an easy thing to test. Make dramatic EQ - and listen! I'm regularly reading questions on this forum that are really simple to test to get your answer - be good if others took your lead. Thanks!

OK - the Helix is modelling each part of the chain very well as far as I can tell. So why the high and low cut. Well, let's start at the end! If you go into a recording studio with an amp and put a quality mic on it, the studio engineer never just puts that straight into the mix - it's always EQ'd. Why? Because a microphone in front of a speaker does not sound like we expect a guitar to sound. Our ears have a different response to a mic. We never put our ear to the speaker either! So naturally you need to EQ that sound. All the great guitar sounds are the engineer first adjusting the sound so that it's sounding more like the sound in the room, and then tweaking that sound to sit in the mix. Then they add subtle or less subtle effects from chorus to delay/reverb to enhance the aural spread of the sound in the sound field. It's that combined sound we hear on a recording and is really where all the classic guitar sounds have always come from - guitar-amp-speaker-mic/mics-EQ-post mic effects-mix. That's your Helix. It's not an amp - it is the simulation of that chain. Whether a cab simulation or an IR has any built in EQ is a different issue as with mic placement while recording the IR. Close micing will need more taming. That's how it's always been. So what and how much EQ you need post the mic is specific to each rig/sound creation chain. And finally, there are no rules - but it helps to understand what is happening.

Agree totally that the sound you hear and like through a decent pa style box ( FRFR essentially) is the sound you want to send to FOH. The Sound guy should only make any adjustments needed to suit the room and the total band sound. They shouldn't be much. Regarding levels, I run 1/4in to my on stage box, and run the XLRs to FOH. There is a ground lift. Any decent desk should be able to take line level. I would only use mic level if your mixer could not deal with line. Regarding EQ, if you like what you are hearing, that's what you want your audience to hear. However you got that sound is totally fine. I use a global EQ, but it's definitely not the only way to address tailoring your sound for a realistic guitar sound.

So much for people who say you can't get a nice organic clean tone from a Helix!

No, Actually what I'm saying is only use the Editor. Except for a few global settings you can't access through the Editor - (another thing that needs to be addressed). Well, maybe you find the editor frustrating? I actually prefer using the editor. It's fast enough for me - the graphics don't update as fast as the commands - just change snapshots on the board and watch the time it takes to update in the interface. But I'm not having any problem living with that............. But I am saying be careful mixing the 2 together. That's my experience - be interesting to hear if this is a general experience or just for Mac users with similar OS/hardware configs?

I've done maybe 50 gigs in different venues with the Helix and no DI - almost all of these venues have house systems and have plenty of DI boxes if needed. Many sound guys use a DI by default - then they don't need to trust your equipment. But I never do. As stated above, a dangerous electrical system might be a case where a DI might save you and your Helix, so I'm not going to put using one down - but I'm playing places where that is not an issue. I don't know how reliable that sort of thing is where you play - its a serious issue with heavy legal consequences in my world. The Helix has a ground lift - that's the only bit of kit you generally need. You got plenty of level out of the Helix. I find direct to the PA is working perfectly well............I'd put a DI way down my list - any decent sound guy/system carries a few DIs anyhow.

I use the editor with almost exactly the same setup. I get an occasional hang or loss of connection. One thing that I suspect is at least part of your problem is that there is significant delay between the Helix and the USB/editor. Maybe that's something Line 6 will optimize one day?? I do all my editing in the editor - I suspect if you get far enough ahead of the editor by using the Helix directly you will crash the application. The speed of that communication is very slow. Don't know why - it's just something I deal with. Try not to get ahead of the editor - let it see each change before you do the next - but then, I suspect that's why you are editing on the Helix - its faster! All I can suggest is you either chill a little, or you learn to live with the crashes - I'd try the first one - the potential for some corruption of a patch is somewhat high with constant crashing.

Thank God you asked! t\You'd fry the Helix and most likely your amp. That's almost the equivalent of plugging your mic into the mains! You need a load box to replace the load of your speakers, and you need to find one with either a line or instrument out. Ground lift would be a good idea too. something here possibly - https://www.sweetwater.com/c1117--Attenuators_and_Simulators If you want to use the Helix speaker simulation or IRs - don't use one with speaker simulation.

Using amps that are known for a nice clean sound helps! Almost every valve amp will overdrive at some point. So you need to keep your drive to a point where the amp is clean or at least "apparently clean" which is mostly what guitar players feel good with. (a little harmonic distortion is liked by a lot of players on their "clean" sound) I've been getting a lovely clean sound out of the Litigator running the drive at 2. - so very low. (using a Strat - if you got really powerful pickups, you will need to turn it down more!) What I do is run the master at around 7 and use the channel volume (ch volume) to get a good level out of the amp. All depends on how loud you have some of your other sounds, but around 8ish on the channel volume seems plenty for me! I actually have the bias at 5 - I find on that amp, it adds distortion putting it higher - which I do for a different sound. Also, on your output, (the arrow at the end of your path), you have another volume control for final balance if your combination of devices is perfect, but your total level is still slightly low. Don't go crazy touring everything up - it might sound OK on some driven sounds, but somewhere there I start to hear some digital nasties - turn up your amp not the Helix past a certain point!

I'm going to slightly disagree with the above...........Well not totally! I find that the great range of sound you can get including post processing stuff after the amp makes the FRFR approach a total winner. So the above is a nice easy way into using the Helix, but leads people to take a lot more time to really discover its true power. Also, if you use an FRFR box as a personal monitor, you are not very loud out front - which means you can get a good mix even in a smaller venue. Obviously you might find yourself in a venue where the PA is just not up to any more than vocals - in which case you would need to use your FRFR box like a normal amp and face it out to the audience - but there is still no problem with that. Let me say that with some decent global EQ (from the Helix), any decent self powered PA box can do the FRFR job - obviously there are better solutions as you move up the dollars, but something like a 12" with horn Behringer or better is totally OK in my experience - I even know people who just turn up and plug into the PA foldback - although, I'd personally never want to leave my sound and playing experience totally in the hands of your average sound guy! It all gets down to your own thinking process. The real concern seems to be experience with real amps and pedals, and some idea of the studio experience so you can be comfortable with exploiting the possibilities of the box. Some people end up just using their Helix as an expensive effects box - which I personally still think is a waste. Using the 4 cable method, you get a bit better experience, but I personally think you are seriously limiting the range of sound possible - which, depending on what you play and your own taste might or might not be a good or bad thing. To just remind everyone that the search for the ultimate sound for every track is kind of secondary to just playing well and having a good clean, semi clean, and drive sound, have a look at Tim Pierce doing the Grammy's - gives me stage fright! But he's obviously using his Matchless and a few pedals - but playing so well! Love my Helix, but really........he still nails it!

Seems strange you only get it in the gain channel......well it's perfectly understandable if it's a lot more apparent in the gain channel - cause more gain means lifting the noise floor - but it should be in your clean channel too (just less noticeable). If it is then grounding might be your problem - there is a switch on the Helix for ground lift - (on the back in about the middle) - give it a try.

The standard Global EQ or per preset EQ - that will be something like a reasonably steep roll off at maybe 100Hz (your milage will vary - you might not need quiet as much with the 10") And a highend rolloff at somewhere around 5KHz - again adjust to taste. I've also found some were in the upper mid, a bit of a boost will help you cut through. All dependant on your speakers and your taste. I've not found any limitation on doing that with global EQ - I still get bright glassy strat sounds and fat rock tones with that as a global - some prefer to do it patch by patch............ I run stereo - but if you just use one - run it off your left 1/4" and send the left XLR to FOH (same EQ). Hope this helps you.

Definitely not through the Vox! FRFR is the way to go. But that, as someone already points out can be some moderate studio monitors. (and get great HiFi for free - well your HIFi might actually even be up to it if it's decent??) You can probably sell all the rest! Expect a bit of a learning curve though - it's not hard, but there are a few concepts that you see being misunderstood over and over on the forums. EQ being right up at the front!

Interesting. Well there are a few different issues here...... Firstly the basic question - does it sound good with a Helix going through it? Then there is a totally different issue - how do you want to use it? 1- If it's live on stage with a band......... Is 180º dispersion what you want? Generally the answer is no. But that depends how you put your live sound together. If you play small gigs with almost all the sound coming from the stage, I can see benefits. But mostly what an electric band does live (and it is going more this way as great sound at reasonable levels becomes an aim) is head towards a "studio" setup. What I mean is that each person just monitors their own sound either from their amp- mostly because that guitar and amp interaction is something guitar players love) or through foldback. That foldback also lets them hear as much or as little of the rest of the band as they want/need. So Isolation is good - it lets you build a stage mix that lets each player hear what they need to hear, and it lets that guy/girl out front control the overall mix without fighting sound coming directly from the stage. That's actually one reason why I have a Helix - it lets me feed monster sounds to FOH while being almost unheard past the first few people. So 180º spread is kind of fighting that! Yes, before that technology, you would often find yourself on a stage where you could hear bugger all of the other side of the stage and I think that desire to hear everyone is often confusing a great stage sound and a decent mix out front. But even in the 80's we had side fill for exactly that problem. All stuff that is going the way of the dinosaur. And spill into vocal mics is definitely a problem on any stage. So what I think the LR Baggs system is is a solo or duo sound solution for small venues. It is the PA - not FRFR.(which is your personal monitor. 2- what about other applications like studio? I don't know - if the system is actually full range not tuned to the sweet spot of vocals and acoustic guitar, then it might be a great solution. I'm guessing that from their promotion it's a tuned solution, but definitely worth auditioning. And if you use your Helix in say a duo situation, it again has a strong probability that it will be a great solution. There are other players in that space though like the Bose L1 and Maui systems - different technology but meant to be portable "one man band" sound systems for filling small venues. 3- what about for home? Seems overkill to me, but if it sounds great...........and you don't have a problem with the dollars...........go for it! I suspect in that application it might win over some FRFR boxes in that a lot of speaker systems need to "get going" before they sound good. As in be loud! As a system designed for smaller venues and acoustic music, it is likely to sound good quieter - so that might be a place it wins out.

OK- maybe I'm beginning to understand............ did you say you were using an apogee interface? Why? The Helix is its own interface. And your headphones - are they plugged into the Helix or somewhere else in your setup? Plug the headphones straight into the Helix if you aren't and tell us what you hear.

Please tell us your setup. A very large number of us are getting great clean through to nice natural breakup with no problems. Some of those people are very seasoned pros. If you are running into a guitar amp, or FRFR speakers or studio monitors, you may need to look to your global EQ - but we need to know how you are hearing this thing to be able to advise you.

Funny, although on floor as wedges (why do you pole mount - removes any bass coupling with the floor) - my Behringers sound pretty good. 2 of what you got in stereo. I have serious top end cut - but I tested it with other boxes and they all seemed to need that............

No, sorry but can't help. I've heard about this before though. I don't have the problem (touch wood) - I use my volume pedal as you do except I don't use the Wah on exp2. I have considered it - is that possibly part of the problem? I'm asking as I'm happy to avoid Wah if that's where the problem comes from? Thanks!