HonestOpinion

Agreed!

LOL :D

Btw, I don't generally find fizz as I define it (digital artificial sound impacting the mid to high end) to be a problem on the Helix, modeling has come a long way in this regard. It is taming the mids/highs surgically in the right spots that I find to be required with many presets and my particular rig. I used fizz somewhat synonymously with brittle highs somewhat in the spirit of this video to make a point even though I differentiate between the two.

The difference is that you have to press both switches to bring up the bank/preset mode instead of my usual practice of pushing either the UP or DOWN switch. That in and of itself is not a big deal, I could easily get used to clicking both bank switches simultaneously although I do admit to preferring scenarios where I only need to push one switch (that is part of why I love snapshots). It is the additional, second, double-switch click required to get back to my snap/stomp layout that is more problematic. The way I currently have my footswitch options laid out(Snap/Stomp), I can push either bank switch, follow that with a click on the preset I want and the Helix automatically drops right back into my pedalboard layout which has snaps on top, stomps on the bottom. When I try the method you have suggested I have to push both the UP/DOWN switches, select a preset, and then I have to press both UP/DOWN switches again to drop back into the snap/stomp mode. This extra dual footswitch click is what I would be trying to avoid. Do you know of a way to have it drop back automatically? Additionally there is some noticeable lag time when you use the dual Bank switching mode to get to your presets that does not exist when you have the "Up/Down Switches" parameter set to 'Banks'; which switches to Preset view almost instantaneously. The lag might not be significant for most users, but it does exist both getting to the Bank/Preset mode and then exiting out of it. I am just trying to point out the differences in behavior. So the inability to drop right back into Snap/Stomp mode without a double buttton press TWICE and the additional lag were my reasons for suggesting additional external MIDI footswitches for use with your suggested method. They certainly are not required. Please don't get me wrong, I think your proposed solution is a great tip and I am sure there are users who will find it to be just the ticket. It all depends on how this method interacts with your current preferred use of the Helix footswitches.

Voted! I like this idea a lot. I love the current snapshot functionality and would not want to lose any part of it. However, for many tunes It would be a lot easier to just be able to click the same footswitch every time and move through the proper snapshot progression than the current method of having to look down at your pedalboard and nail the correct snapshot switch. I also think silverhead's solution is a great method to use in the interim, particularly if you have an additional couple of MIDI footswitches connected so that you don't have to lose/redirect the bank switches which enable fast bank/preset switching in order to enable the snapshot progression.

Have to agree with all of this. "Drive" is a pretty ubiquitous term in use in the industry. I also think "Drive" is actually a bit more descriptive than "Gain" as it sounds like "Overdrive" and as it is the control that represents driving the preamp stage harder that is essentially the effect it has. As stated "Master" is also pretty much an industry standard. I also agree that "Ch Vol" is confusing and has always seemed a bit redundant to me. It would seem like "Master" should not only act as a traditional "Master" volume control but also control the overall volume of the amp blocks relative to the other blocks. The level on the output block would then be used to increase the overall volume of a preset. I may be overlooking something though. My main suggestion is still that the "Master" volume be moved to where the "Ch Vol" is on the first page of the amp block such that "Drive" and "Master" can easily be adjusted in relation to each other. The next Helix should have an additional encoder button to allow all the critical amp controls to be available at one time, much like a real amp.

I don't know if any of these will get the "Little Wing" tone the intro in this video is going for but here are some of the Hendrix offerings available on CustomTone. They might be a good place to start. http://line6.com/customtone/search/?submitted=1&family=helix&search_term=Hendrix

If you are going to rename it I actually think the "Helix" should be changed to "Helix Suite" or something to that effect. It should absolutely not be changed to "Helix Editor" as this download contains the Editor, Updater, and the driver and naming it after only one of three components contained in the software is even more confusing in my opinion. As has been mentioned however Line6 is working on an improved install process that will hopefully render this issue moot.

This sounds like a very likely possibility. Even if it proves to be the case and it is a false positive Line6 should probably still change the distribution on the USB drive. I remember a while back people were having download issues on the firmware due to a certificate signing issue. False virus warnings (assuming it is one) and certificate errors ultimately don't impact the quality of the software but they do alarm users and are worth addressing.

I guess it was not datacommando who posted this. Apologies for quoting the wrong source. Credit to whoever(?) posted originally. Here is the link regarding fizz that I was referring to.

Fortune favors the bold but stability favors the cautious. Unplugging anything when it is doing a cleanup/rebuild process after a firmware update is a little too intrepid for my tastes.

Awesome site! Thanks for posting!

Was wondering if you are also setting the "Global Variax Tuning" parameter to "Custom" on the second page of the input block? This is required for the Helix to respect the alternate string tunings on the Helix, otherwise it defaults to the tuning on the Variax. You may be aware of this as well and possibly unrelated but I though I would mention it. As usual after a firmware upgrade and global reset you have to set the "Variax Settings" parameter to "Per Preset" (also on the second page on the input block). And to answer your initial question, I don't remember having to switch to Model on the selector knob.

I have the Helix, not the LT but I suspect the behavior is similar. The touch capacitance does work when you are in stomp mode to switch between assigned pedals. I think tmuka probably nailed it, you just want to click and release, not press and hold, to go to stomp mode. Keeping the Mode button pressed down definitely interferes with the touch capacitance behavior and that may well be what you are seeing.

I have not tested to see if the ba I have not tested to see if this is the case but I agree with you that I would expect the volume coming out of the amp block to go up if I drove it with a higher level in a block before it. This is somewhat equivalent to using a hotter guitar pickup with a higher output. It should not matter if the amp is at the edge of breakup or not. An amp can be set to start breaking up by using the Drive parameter while the Master is still set relatively low and the amp still has way more gain on tap. Perhaps at the edge of breakup the volume increase would be less pronounced in some cases but ultimately, higher signal going in generally means higher signal going out. Maybe something is going on behind the scenes like you are using an amp block that is set to do some heavy compression, or maybe there is some innate leveling going on in the Helix to prevent digital clipping.

Voted! For those who like the snapshots the way they work now, nothing would change. This idea may not at the top of my priority list but for those who want a bit more flexibility with snapshot behavior this might be a nice option to have and I think the OP has proposed a straightforward and elegant solution. That doesn't necessarily mean it will be easy to implement as currently in essence all the blocks' bypass state are assigned to snapshots by default. However, great idea!

Glad to hear you got it figured out. When you start handing out gifts and gift certificates for this can a brother get at least partial credit for having posted this ^^^ as the first response on this topic? ;)

This would definitely make me suspect the provenance of my Helix. Could the two users reporting this tell us where they got their LT from. Perhaps these were returns or maybe the vendor is checking the USB drive and infecting it accidentally although this seems unlikely. Some resalers pre-inspect some of their merchandise before sending it out. I would also check my computer for this virus to make sure that this it is not writing itself out to any USB drive that is plugged into it. If I were L6 I would also check a cross-section of the USB drives for the LT to make sure they are not coming from the factory infected.

Great idea! I have thought about doing this myself before and making it a standard part of my update process. Not only do I think you are correct that it might speed up the rebuild process but it might also eliminate those rare freezes after an update due to a problem with a specific user preset. Let us know how it goes, I may just do it myself next time I update. :)

I agree, the Master volume should be on the first page of the screen along with the Drive and easily accessible. The Ch Vol should be moved to the second page, not a perfect solution but better than the current arrangement. Additionally I hope the next version of the Helix includes an extra encoder button so that Drive, Master, and 'Ch Vol' can all be quickly adjusted from the same page. This would much more closely emulate the ergonomics of a real amp. A rough analogy in the real world would be an amp that had the master volume situated awkwardly on the back of the amp. Ideascale submission for this: https://line6.ideascale.com/a/dtd/Put-Master-volume-on-the-same-page-as-the-Drive-in-amp-model/788502-23508

There have been so many good points made here including: The differences between the way a mic'ed cab and an a "cab in a room" sound. This is an important one. The inherent problems in limiting a cab/IR before the fact such that perhaps it sounds fine on an FRFR but not on a guitar cab or even some FRFRs. As has been said, it is easier to remove or attenuate frequencies than it is to add back in frequencies that are not there. The difference in what we are used to hearing depending on where we are in reference to the speaker, e.g. above the speaker, off to the side, farther, closer, etc.. The difficulty in accounting for all of the variances in equipment out there and the impossibility of anticipating what someone will be outputting the Helix to. There are even substantial differences in FRFRs which you would think would behave fairly similarly to each other. Many do but there are still audible differences between various makes and models. Guitar tones that sound fizzy or appear to have too much high end when played without accompaniment can sound perfect in a mix with the rest of the instrumentation. This was demonstrated quite well in the video datacommado posted by showing how fizzy some of the classic solos played on famous records sound when broken out from the mix, and then listening to how well they work within the mix. Only problem with this theory is that when I truly get a fizzy sound I often/sometimes hear it on stage even with all the other instruments playing full bore. Not all fizzy sounds are created equally. This principle does not apply to every type of fizz and I don't think the maker of the video was trying to imply or claim that it does. Not every fizzy guitar sound gets masked properly or cuts through a mix without sounding brittle. Sometimes the fizz does not blend properly with the mix. There are also some substantial differences between stage and album mixes The album mixes are the examples used in the video. Stage mixes can be significantly different then album mixes although his point is a good one and certainly applies to stage mixes to a great extent. Some things that may make it easier for a fizzy guitar to melt into or pop from the mix properly in a studio mix include the amount of final compression and other mastering effects used at the end of the recording process and anything else done post-production. Some of these are processes that are generally not applied at all or to the same extent to a stage mix. It seems like it should be simpler to adjust for a great sound than it currently is and this may not be exclusive to the Helix. Maybe we could use a range of filters designed to be employed with specific types of equipment with some really well designed cuts in just the right places without neutering the high and low end. Essentially some parametric and graphic EQ presets that have been designed by the experts with cuts/boosts in just the right spots. Maybe dirt simple filter settings like "soft", "cut through", "heavy bottom", "airy", etc.. I know that I would like to be able to spend a little less time working on EQ just to get a preset that does not sound to boomy or brittle on the high end without compromising the beefiness of my tone by cutting too much. Maybe however there is no way to do this given the enormous options available for how to set each block and how it interacts with whatever equipment it is fed to. As Spikey suggested you would think that a correctly designed amp combined with the right cab/IR would provide a great tone with no other tweaking required other than getting the settings on the amp block and effect blocks correct but I rarely find that to be the case. It is if often not enough to get the amp/effect settings right. Even though the virtual amp world offers you the additional ability to tweak the cab sound (something you can't do with old analog cabs) I often find I need additional EQ. You also need to be careful using the cab's high and low cuts. Otherwise by the time I knock out the boom, mud, and the icepick my sound can end up being just a bit thinner than I would like. It just feels like with great power comes great responsibility, maybe a little too much responsibility. I love the flexibility modeled sound offers but it could be a little easier to reach tonal bliss. You can't be lazy about it but it should not be a full-time job either. I understand with the huge array of equipment and varying levels of user expertise it is no simple challenge to deliver a classic guitar tone with minimal EQ'ing but I'll bet it could be made a bit easier than it is now. Disclaimer: The flexibility of the Helix is mind boggling and I am getting phenomenal sounds out of it. The Helix just comes with the price of requiring some serious elbow grease. I am sure it requires less effort on some rigs than others.

Another thing to try if you have not already might be to make sure you are not connected by USB while attempting the global reset. You definitely need to download and install the 2.20 "Helix" app first! This is the version that currently matches the 2.21 firmware. The "Helix" app will install the latest Updater, Editor, and driver. It is a good idea to do your firmware upgrade with the latest version of the Updater. It sounds like you may have been using an older version of the Updater when you upgraded to the 2.21 firmware. The operation you are attempting to execute, doing a global reset, is done on the Helix and should not be impacted by what version of the Editor you have installed, however, using the latest version of the Updater should provide some additional assurance that the firmware update is completing properly. And of course ultimately you will need the 2.20 version of the Editor and the latest driver(Windows) to use with the 2.21 firmware. So...I would start at the beginning (after hopefully having backed everything up first). Download and install the 2.20 version of the "Helix" app. This will install the latest Updater, Editor, and driver. Use the Updater to upgrade to the 2.21 firmware. Do it online through the Updater GUI if you have a robust enough connection rather than using a downloaded file offline as you did initially. Do the global reset (FS 9&10). Restore user presets and IRs Restart Helix to allow preset rebuild process (does NOT require global reset)

Do you have the Helix floor or rack unit? Just wanted to make sure, are you are pressing and holding all the way down on the middle two switches on the bottom row (if you have the Helix floor unit) before and during your startup? Don't let up on them until you see the message. If you are doing that correctly and still not seeing the "Will reset..." message I would recommend updating the firmware again. If the firmware installed properly and the Helix is not damaged the global reset option should always work. I have never seen nor even heard of this particular issue before. It is normal for you to see your user presets and IRs from the previous version still in place after you do a firmware upgrade. You will also see the new effects/amps from the new firmware version. It is not until the global reset (FS 9&10) is executed that your old user presets and IRs get cleared. Make sure you get a successful global reset before proceeding with normal operation of the Helix or you almost certainly will have issues going forward.

Glad to see you got it resolved.

For better or worse I am one of the Helix minimalists who prefer as simple a setup as possible to minimize complexity and possible points of failure. I use the Helix's onboard effects whenever possible so I rarely use a loop for external pedals. I do however use one of the sends all the time as an output for my acoustic guitar. The XLR and 1/4 outputs are already dedicated to my electric so I use a Send to feed the acoustic guitar to a different input on the mixing board from the one I use for my electric.