specracer986

1. I bought my 89F used, so I'll let someone else answer this one. 2. I have the original Line 6 cable that came with my JTV69 and a new Line 6 cable that I ordered a few months ago from their website. The two cables are completely different. The new one is much thicker cable that doesn't get as tangled as the original cable. So I would say you're in good shape with the one you ordered. 3. I like a gig bag. Hard cases take up too much space and I don't baby my JTV's. They're my workhorses.

Acoustically, I agree with you. But the more processing you do, the less effect that will have on the tone. Case in point, the Petrucci series of guitars from Music Man, like the JP15. It has one of the thinnest necks you'll find on an electric guitar. I wouldn't describe John Petrucci's tone with Dream Theater as thin.

It seems to me that a pedal board with a Helix attached to it, would be way too large and cumbersome for me to want to mess with it. For the few pedals that I'm thinking of using with my Helix. I will probably put together a small board just for those pedals and set it beside the Helix, and maybe put together a small cable snake to connect everything. Lava makes some nice snakes.

I'm at 2.20. Knowing I can now use the Updater for this FW only update is a nice bit of info to learn. That should make things a little easier today.

I agree. I never expected my JTV69 to become my #1 guitar. I bought it out of curiosity after seeing a pro player use one at a gig. I wondered what it might add to my Helix experience. It's opened up all kinds of doors for me. I'm looking forward to the next generation of Variax that I hope L6 is working on. I consider them quirky, but I've embraced that. When I play gigs, I see other guitarist looking at me, wondering what the heck I'm playing. I had one ask me why I never change the selector knob. When I told him that was all programmed into my Helix patches, he had a blank stare. The one thing I don't like about it, is it killed most of my gas for other guitars.

I have a JTV69 and 89F. There's a lot to like about the JTV's including that the mag pickups sound very good and the models give you plenty of options. I would recommend spending some time with it before deciding to mod it. The spank (Strat) models are pretty useful and you can always create your own single coil model in the Custom spot by using the Work Bench HD editor. I also fancy the maple neck of the 69S and may end up getting one of those also. I use my JTV's with my Helix and it's a great combination. I put a Warmouth Strat replacement neck on my 69. But I haven't messed with the electronics and probably won't.

Wow, what a club. I just turned 66 a couple days ago, 4/20, seriously! I've been using my Helix to play in my band and occasional gigging. I still work full time, but I'm going to retire in a year and I hope to be able to spend more time playing and gigging. We do covers and originals and will probably start to do some recording soon. When I went to the Helix all day seminar at Line 6 headquarters a while back, I was expecting to be the only old guy. Actually it was mostly old guys. Kind of weird. I wonder why we're attracted to high tech and the young guys not as much? Or so it seems.

When you are hooked up to the pod with the vdi cable, you won't be drawing power from the battery. It's only when you are using a standard 1/4" guitar cable that you will wear down the battery. I don't think the vdi cable will charge the battery. It just doesn't draw power from the battery while you're using it. When you use a standard cable, remember to unplug the 1/4" cable when you're not using the guitar, as the battery will keep discharging as long as the 1/4" cable is inserted. You should have gotten a charger for the battery. I keep an extra battery charged and swap them so that I can keep playing while the one is charging. As far as keeping the battery installed so that you don't wear out the contacts. I don't know what to say about that. I'm pretty ocd, but life is too short to worry that much.

If you like thin necks, then the 89F will feel pretty nice. On the other hand, the 69 neck can be replaced with a Warmouth or other Strat replacement neck and you can order exactly what you want. That's what I did. But, I also bought an 89F, which is working out good for me. If you like your necks on the chunky side, then the stock 69 or 59 neck may be just right for you.

Looks great. I'm sure it will be very satisfying, playing something that you so heavily modified. Not too many people would have the guts to do that.

I've had my Helix for about a year and my JTV69 for six months. The combination is killer for me and I've lost all gas for amps and even other guitars. I bought a JTV89F to act as a backup since I gig and if my JTV69 did have a problem, I wouldn't want to have to go back to a standard guitar. I program the guitar model, volume, tone and sometimes alt tunings into each of my Helix presets and snapshots. I don't have the plink problem with either of my JTV's. I think that condition mostly shows itself when playing metal, but I could be wrong. The only problem I've had with my JTV's is when I first got the 69, the model selector wouldn't always engage which is a very common problem. Like everyone else, I had to stuff some filler up in the knob, then place it back on. Since then I've had no other problem. But I have to admit, I think that the problem with the model pot not engaging is a design flaw, and I think L6 should have replaced all of the pots on all of the guitars. But that's just my opinion, and I know what that's worth. The only other complaint I have is the Tele model is kind of dull. Not much twang there for me. But the Strat models sound great as do all the other models. I did put a Warmouth replacement neck on my 69, but that's a personal choice, not a design problem. The stock neck is a little chunky, I like thin, and the fret wire is a little taller than I like. I'm learning to live with the fret wire on my 89, so it's not that bad I guess. I really do love my Warmouth neck though, so I'm glad I switched it. I would have no reservations with recommending the Helix / JTV combination to anyone that was interested in them. It's turned my world upside down, for the better.

Helix doesn't do an automatic restore, if that's what you were thinking. If you did a backup of your presets by exporting the set lists. Then all you need to do is import those set lists back into Helix and they will be ready to use.

I just ordered one of the USB High Speed Isolators. I get hum when the USB is connected and I am running the editor. I've put up with it but I'm hoping this will eliminate it.

I bought my 89F as a backup for my JTV69. I do ocassionally play it, but not a lot. So I don't have enough seat time with it to tell you that it's lacking at certain parts of certain songs. I actually haven't noticed any lack of sustain, but again I do most of my serious tweaking and playing with my 69. I'll make a point of doing a little testing when I can. Have you checked the settings in WBHD? Possibly the higher strings are not set to 100%?

More options are always good. If it has full Variax integration, it may become my Helix backup.

Or that you updated the firmware without updating the editor? I did that once,

I'd like to see the completed project. The new body shape looks kind of cool. I've been thinking lately that since I can't sell my old JTV69 stock neck for very much, if at all. That I might just try to reprofile it myself as a little project.

Well, I'll pile on. I did the 2.20 update with no issues. I also updated WBHD. I'll probably tweak my Variax a lot more now that I can just access WB through the Helix. Thank you L6.

Ready! Set! Go..............

I respectfully disagree that it's over rated. There's nothing like bouncing some harmonics around the room at band volume and playing off of them. A very satisfying experience. But, not totally necessary.

I feel fairly certain by your comments that your main problem is the integration of the Helix with your sound system. The fact that you have to turn the Helix up to 80% to even hear it says a lot. With my FRFR, I normally run the Helix at about 10 o'clock. I never have it past 12 o'clock. I've only used the Helix one time with cheap headphones, because it sounded like total doo doo. That wasn't a fault with the Helix. IMO, the Helix is a pro piece of gear meant to be used on stage with a flat system, pushing some air. It works great in that situation, and if you work backwards from there it can work fine in the bedroom with a flat system that doesn't move as much air. My experience is that with a smaller playback system or into a guitar cab, the results aren't as favorable. Again, just my opinion.

I whole heartedly agree. My new Warmouth neck made my JTV69 my #1 guitar. I went with their Standard Thin profile, SS frets, Earvana nut, Mahogany neck with Bubinga fretboard. The bubinga is really smooth. I had a Variax decal made for it, so it looks authentic.

I have two Variax registered and I didn't get an email. I followed the link posted above and did the survey. It's good to see they are thinking of a next generation Variax. It's a pretty decent platform to work from now. A new and improved model might generate some gas.

One thing I'm not getting from your description. Did you have an alternate tuning programmed into the Helix patch you were using? If not, then the Helix getting a command to change the tuning sounds like a problem with the JTV. I'm also deep into the JTV / Helix combination, and yes I worry about some quirkiness that goes on occasionally. I'm hopeful that it's going to all get better with each firmware update, or WB update.