bartnettle1

It is really odd about the s/pdif noise, it seems a good way to AB FX and amp models if it marries up as intended I get the impression it is the HD rather than the s/pdif from what your saying. Did you try your other HD500?

Yes, some of you guys are holding out on us! I get the feeling you don't want anyone else to have it. And you want it all for yourselves. LOL First impressions? Pros and Cons.

The HD only has s/pdif out and the Helix will have to slave to it. Remember too the HD inputs. Aux set to a different than the guitar input. There is also a level control on the s/pdif out in the menu which might need attenuating. Good luck, very interested if all works well and also how you like the sound of the HX amps and FX etc

How are the choices compared to the HD models. Are all the essentials there in your opinion. Also, please give an appraisal of amp quality alone. Looking forward to an HD HX comparison video And of course a Fractal HX Kemper comparison too! But first impressions are good too! Cheers

Try updating only the USB driver first, then the drivers for the HD300. If still a prob with all updated try just uninstalling the HD 300 drivers and go back to earlier version.

It is great that those first impressions are positively good and I for one appreciate the reviews. The Aussie dollar is starting to improve too which will help get my unit sooner rather than later, but not right now unfortunately. This feedback is welcome from new users I assure you! Cheers

I agree, a change of mic is a good first change, especially if your tweaking on the fly to an audience. Another smooth in front of audience edit is the Amp stack or combo, here you can wind off that shrill and zero in the focus frequency in the lower mids to beef it up but you will need to up the volume a bit. But now we have the Global EQ you could just shelve the high end and zero in on the mid bell to the lower mids and beef it up there. Remember an amp and cabinet naturally roll off a lot of top end after 12k or less and virtually nothing above 16k. With digital you have up to 20k at least and it sounds brittle pushing higher than air on a mic cabinet. Which brngs us back to your mic. Some have a resonance in the wire basket that can be picked up even on the modeler and especially the 57

Thanks, I can hear the FX are a notable improvement over the HD models. I like it when you give us the dry amp and turn on and scroll thru FX.

Wouldn't it be great if the exchange rate improved! It has since we got rid of that embarrassing Prime Minister Tony Abbott.

Thanks for your feedback on it. Especially from someone not talking out their arse. The IRs are a feature that allow you to make your very own no-one else has got patch. I am keen to find out if cab IRs improve on what is there. If not you might be right about them not needed. That the cabs are better than in the HD500 is very promising. But, The IRs are a very real selling point especially if they can be as good quality wise and the advantage is flavor.

Lower the gain and clean up the amp and signal chain. Also often one can over correct a problem that you may of already handled but subjectively your so in the zone it continues to stick out. One way to really tell if it is still there is change your monitoring. Try good headphones or another set of speakers or amp. If it still erks you try changing the output mode to a stack or combo and roll off alot of top end and zero in with the focus. Or use an EQ even the global one. Finally, As you can get all too sensitive. Have a break, make a coffee go outside get some quiet time and then have another go. You will find the fizz covers such a broadband of the spectrum zeroing in on it and attenuating it a little rather than alot helps keep a tone there. Fizz can also be present when micing an amp and listening in a control room. What sometimes solves it is changing the mic and checking on different monitors if really gone or not. Same goes on the HD. Try swapping a mic

That is a non-sense statement. The Helix, with all of it's advancements, is still inferior to many products. It may be mass produced, compact, and affordable to those on government assistance. But it, in no way shape or form, is sending anyone in the tech industry 'back to the drawing board'. HOW DO YOU KNOW? How do you know that a pending release is not getting reviewed? What is it inferior to? Perhaps my statement was whimsical. Beg my pardon I will bare this in mind for your benefit. Actually I just noticed your a bit of a downer. Your opinion your statements. You are definitely in anotheer camp

Now you know it was thew USB it is fairly easy to replace the one on the circuit board. A few screws. You dont have to remove the footswtch board. Just a few ribbon cables But then again save yourself the hassle if all working okay. Well Done!

This has a couple of early patches with minimal FX. Paul get get a lot of dynamics out of a guitar but that aside the quality of the amps are unmistakably there

True, or another manufacturer of modelling comes out with a standout device. I think the Helix pretty well set any back to the drawing board!

Just had a thought. What if; The Helix gains Prosumer level popularity holding its own against AxeII and KPA In the buzz its forerunner gets a resurged demand as a cheaper alternative of the pedigree that is Helix. Off loading your HD500X etc for a while might saturate the market and from what I see a price drop but hang on, in the wake of Helix could actually go up. This is my foretelling. Dont undersell your HD model just yet

Gorgious amps sounds at the start, great!

What about editable start end times and/or crossfade length?

Use the mix parameter

The InEar monitoring is the way to go as it saves your ears from prematurely failing. Getting used to them or cans is also handy in the Studio. I use to gig and done plenty of concerts outdoors and you can get thrown and not hear across stage Hearing your bass thru a 3way coming off the back wall of a venue takes getting used to if all your done is rehearse and parties. And that is different to playing on headphones at home. The only liability of in ears is with the band playing beyond what the FOH system can handle, Slew rates of Power Amps have improved but the bigness of the sound to the audience wont be heard in InEar Monitoring. Hopefully you can feel it without it being a reflection off the back wall!

Thanks for the video. I really liked the second eg with 1 Screamer. So sweat yet crispy! The acoustics were realistic too! I too love my HD500. It delivers in spades! I am going to get a Helix! ONEDAY I am in no rush. but from what I have heard there is no mistaking more head room of detail in the FX while to me the amps less so but that may change when I hear AB amp no FX comparisons. Up till now any videos I have heard on the Helix (ALL)have had at least a reverb in the chain. Knowing me all may change trying one out in a store near here! How much lower can the $Aussie dollar go! Shoulda got a USA credit card. dang

There is no doubt the HX FX are a vast improvement over the HD FX modeling.

Awesome. Just love the routing flex on this and really sounding good. AU$2400 is a bit beyond me. Damnation!

Good point and fair enough. Getting opinions is ur post title!

I'll admit it! I was the one who started all this percentage improvement idea. Originally I deduced that as the hub of the Helix is a computer it stood to reason improvements were not linear but a log algorithm not to unlike the increase in amplitude needed increase spl. Lets call listening to a mic'd speaker driven by an amp and monitored in a control room of a studio with decent monitors as the real deal recording wise and arbitrarily as close to 100% there as you can get. It may not be the best mic'd example of that type of amp ever but mic placement being adequate and captured some excited air molecules. Lets call this 99.9% there in sound quality. Lets add some pedal FX prior the amp and now with some added noise in the mix lets arbitrarily call it 98% sound quality. Lets just stick to Amp models for now. Consensus has the KPA and some of the better profiles getting 95% there. Almost indistinguishable from the real thing. Lets put in the POD HD 500X which I believe gets about 90% of the way there compared to the real thing Where do you put the Helix? Expecting it to be 40-50% better than the HD500X is not possible. That is why I claimed a 5% improvement over the POD HD modeling which would put the Helix up there. Now this is in a control room over monitors not in room with power amp and cab. It is a guesstimate and I never claimed it as it is but what it could be