specracer986

I bought my Helix used, I'm guessing about two years ago now. I've never had a problem with it, but I'm fairly light on my feet. I don't stomp the crp out of the switches or the pedal. I don't let the unit bounce off the floor when I move it. I don't twist the connectors around when plugging things in or out. I'm light with the joy stick. I think you can avoid a lot of hardware issues by not acting like a gorilla with it. I've had no problem with updates either.

Since you just got both the Helix and PC+, it's really hard to say what you need to do. More than likely a dozen things, since there's no secret setting that makes everything sound great all at once. Gain staging your entire signal chain, is a good start. Make sure you have a line level signal hitting the PC+, strong enough to keep the light green to amber. You may need to go into the PC+ edit and raise the level of the speaker sim you're using. As far as the PC+ goes, I gig with mine. I think it's great. My DXR12 rarely gets used since getting the PC+.

The other guitarist in my band has a Tyler Strat that he had made for him. I've never played it, but he's very happy with it. Though he did mention that he had way too much invested in it. He has the same sentiments about a Collins that he owns.

I'm cool with whatever they give us. It's a great product and I like riding along as they try to make it even better. Fun stuff.

Looks very nice. I've done two of my JTV's with Warmouth necks. In the picture, the one on the left is pretty similar to yours, Wizard profile, SS 6105 frets, Earvana nut. That one is a 24.75" scale conversion neck. I ended up selling it as it was too bright for me. I loved the way it looked, but I was constantly fighting piercing highs and my presets for that guitar had to be different than my other JTV 69. Also, my experience wasn't too good with the Gotoh side adjuster. I did three necks like that, and won't order it again. Live and learn.

Usually when this happens, someone will suggest you burn all your cash. I don't know how that's supposed to help, but you might try it. ;)

This is my main guitar. My strings attain old age, usually after three weeks. I rarely have a set on for more than a month. I replaced the bridge, because I was getting a slight groove in the top of three saddles. Put on new strings and did a complete setup. Couldn't get good intonation. The bridge is sitting and functioning properly. The strings are the same brand and gauge that I always use. I'll take it in to get checked out. I have a luthier to the stars that I use. He's very good. I just like doing as much of my own work as I can.

Ok, I guess it's due for a trip to my local luthier to see why I can't get it right. I also did my Tele last night, and it was spot on, with no problem. Not so with the Variax.

I posted this in the Helix forum for some unknown reason. But I'm having trouble getting my JTV69 to intonate. This is my first floating bridge and I'm figuring it's probably normal not to be able to get it spot on. The closest I can get it is just slightly flat. Is this pretty normal?

I have a Helix and one PC+. But I can tell you that at this time, if you want Helix to change speaker modes as you change presets or snapshots, then you need to do that through a midi cable. It's very simple to set up. I program it into pretty much all of my Helix patches now. It's a pretty sure bet that Line 6 will eventually make the midi changes travel through the L6 link cable. So that will eliminate one cable, but still require programming the midi into the patch. Maybe they'll surprise us and create a PC block for the Helix presets that will put all the settings in one place.

I feel lucky to have never had much trouble with my Helix. So, I would never tempt fate by loaning it or renting it out. I have an Ampli Fire Box as my backup. Small, so it's easy to carry along with my regular rig. I've never had to use it, and if I did, I would be at a big disadvantage compared to what I have set up in my Helix. But at least I'd be playing.

Thanks for doing the experimenting for me. I've really wanted a Freq Out, and I'm surprised I haven't bought one. But I mainly play my Variax with the VDI cable. Looks like that's not a good combo.

Since they now have the PowerCab+ to integrate into the Helix a little better, I suspect midi will get a good overhaul with the next update.

For the first year I owned my Helix, I was going for the pure processed recording tone and getting it with my DXR12. Then I bought a PowerCab+ and I realized I like things a little more raw and unrefined. I rarely use the FRFR setting on the PC+. The initial change was a small shock and took a little bit to get used to. But now I'm much happier with my tone and I occasionally test myself by plugging into the DXR and it reinforces that I made the right switch for me.

Another option that I find to be a nice compromise are 9.5's from DiAddario. I use them on my JTV69.

I tried this when that article first came out and it sounded like ca ca. I messed around with it for a short time but it wasn't working for me. Could have been user error.

Sorry if this is too late to be of help to you. But the most common problem you might run into is the model knob not functioning because the original knobs were built faulty and didn't push the shaft down far enough. It can be an easy fix by putting some small piece of cardboard inside the knob and then reattaching it onto the shaft. That's what I did, and I haven't had to mess with it since.

The PC Plus comes with a speaker mode preset "000 Flat". That preset has three options you can select: FRFR, LF Raw, LF Flat. FRFR uses the HF driver, the other two don't. If you want to switch between those three options using midi, then you need to create two more presets so that all three have their own position for midi to call up. Another surprise is the preset "007 Natural". I use that one a lot. I never use Global EQ, but I agree that the L6 Link should be handled like any other output. Maybe there's a reason for that that we don't know about.

The written documentation for the PC Plus is not fully accurate. Among other things, they list LF Solo mode, which is really LF Raw. LF Flat mode does not use the HF driver, but does have some EQ added, unlike LF Raw which is the LF driver with no EQ. LF Flat is probably the secret weapon of the PC Plus. I'm guessing that what you are reading about the frequency range for Flat mode is referring to FRFR mode.

The PC Plus has LF Raw and LF Flat modes. Both are the LF driver without HF driver. Flat has some EQ added, Raw has no EQ. LF Flat is very usable for a lot of situations, Raw less so but I have used it. The standard PC has LF Raw but not LF Flat. I rotate through various settings and I find a lot to like and I don't get stuck on any one setting. The included IR's are very good, as are the Live Ready Sound IR's and some I got from M Britt. That's really what I like about the PC, is it's given me lots of options to play with. The other guitarist in my band is a pure tube snob and he says my tone with the PC Plus is way better than what I was getting with my DXR12. I agree. My tone is a little more raw and unrefined, but much more guitar cab sounding. When I read about guys doing a direct comparison between the PC and an FRFR, I feel they are missing the point of the PC. It's an alternative product, meant to be used a little differently. If you embrace that, you'll get good payback.

The Plus can be upgraded to new speaker sims when they become available, and you can play backing tracks through the USB to play along to. Those two features are a strong argument for buying the Plus, IMO. I'm switching speaker modes with my Helix patches, using midi, and it's real easy. I guess if they make that happen through the L6 Link, it would be nice, but I really don't care because the midi implementation is simple and works every time.

I was concerned about volume before I bought my PC+. My band is very loud, but I'm having no problem keeping up with them. I do have the PC+ up as high as 3 o'clock at times, but that's as far as I've had to raise it.

On order from who? Aren't there plenty for sale online?

I buy a lot of things used, including my Helix, and I worry every time. So far I've been pretty lucky. Hopefully this episode will be as quick and painless as possible. You have to admit, it would be quite a trick if a company could design a product to start failing soon after warranty was expired. I'm surprised that the failure rate in our mass produced world isn't higher than it is.

I'm just happy to know I'm not the only one frustrated with getting logged out constantly. Misery likes company, I guess.