FacemanJoe

Great stuff. Thank you for sharing!

This hit my YouTube feed yesterday and I loved the tone. I was wishing that i could get the patch, and here it is. Thanks for sharing! Joe

This should help. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9y3tg33qMNI

Thank you for all of the feedback. Great stuff. Working with a new sound at tonight's gig - a super Classic Rock tone based on the Soladano clean channel. I ended up cutting 140hz with my Les Paul and it really cleaned up the bottom end. I can already tell that the tone will cut better. With my Strat on the neck pickup, I cut 200hz with similar effect. Still enough bass to round out the tone, but it definitely reduces that nasty boom. I just kept turning the knob until the bass sounded right. I'll let you know how it works out. Joe

Many thanks Duncann. All good stuff and it will be helpful in my EQ efforts. Joe

Hi all, I've dialed in a great guitar tone and used it at a gig last night. I love the tone but I definitely need to finesse it with some EQ to make it pop out of the mix. I've definitely got some clashing frequencies that need to be cut. Mostly in the low and low-mids based on what I consider to be a muddy guitar sound when part of the overall band mix. I have some questions - 1. Is the parametric EQ in the Helix the best route? If so, I'm thinking that I could record a clip on the looper and experiment that way. 2. I've watched some vids on how to EQ electric guitar sounds at it appears that cutting anything below 100HZ is a definite. Are there any other essential frequencies that I absolutely must address? 3. If I'm using an EQ, doesn't it render the HC and LC cabinet settings redundant? Do I leave those flat? 4. Instead of using an EQ block, can I achieve my goal by using the Global EQ. I'd appreciate learning any best practices from those of you who could do this stuff in your sleep. Thank you. Joe

Nice video. I've been working with loads of IRs this week and after hours and hours (yes, too many hours) of testing, I've come to the conclusion that the stock Helix cabs, with the ability to change mic types and positions very easily, just prove to be a better option for me. Many of the Helix cabs also sound very good. I play low-to-mid gain and I found plenty stock cabs to keep me happy. Joe

Good stuff. Thanks for sharing. Joe

Hi all. Great day of testing IRs with great results. I could use some guidance regarding using two IRs in the same patch. How would I go about doing that? Thanks for any advice Joe

Great feedback. Thanks for the tip. I think I know what you mean, but if you could share an example it would be a great help. Joe

Hello Helix Lovers, I was able to spend some time with some 3rd party IRs from Ownhammer and RedWire and I was really impressed with the outcome. The IRs really opened up my sound and seem almost 3D compared to the stock cab models in the Helix. I love the Helix, so that isn't a criticism. I've dialed in my best tones yet using the IRs and I have several others to work through this weekend. I think I'm about $50 all in for the IRs that I purchased and based on my early results, I'd say it was worth the spend. The only issue is that the IR titles are so long that I can't read what IR I'm using because the title field isn't big enough. Same issue in the editor due to the fact that it doesn't scroll from side to side. I'm going to spend some time renaming the IRs using shorter titles so that I can tell what IR I'm using. All good stuff though. Any day that allows me to chase tone with my guitar in hand is a great day. Joe

Super. Thank you

44.1hz, 48hz, 88.2hz or 96hz? Thanks! Joe

I appreciate all the feedback. As for Glenn's patches, I used the Joe B and his Money For Nothing patches. The others I purchased are great too, but the Joe B patch just hit the spot with me. The others are a bit different from the tone I prefer, but they are all great starting points for building your own tones, in large part because you get to see how Glenn builds his patches. For instance, his use of dual compressors in front of the Wah pedal in Money for Nothing patch is just amazing. Turn off the compressors and the great tone disappears. The man knows his way around the Helix. I think I spent about $30 on his patches and the tones plus the knowledge they conveyed made them worth the price for me. Joe

Hi all. After two weeks of programming Helix I was finally able to put it to work at a gig yesterday. The link is to a short compilation video on YouTube that shows the Helx in action. I ran XLR mono direct into FOH. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q--nO1IWvR8 I'm the player at center stage. Now, for me, the Helix not only offers killer tones; it also offers the ultimate solutions to a simple, fast setup along with an insane degree of real-world functionality that will make it indispensable to me in live situations. I walked into the gig with the Helix in a Gator case and my two guitars in a Mono gig bag. Prior to this, I would roll into a gig with a Shiva head, 112 cabinet, pedal board, two guitar cases and a bag of cables. Well, the Helix sounds so great that I've sold my analog rig. Yep, the Helix is that good and I can honestly say that I don't miss my old rig. My main tone was based on Glenn Delaune's "Joe Bonamassa" patch that uses the jumpered Plexi model. I tweaked the patch and added the wonderful "Teemah!" pedal and the results were just awesome. Tonally, the Helix is really amazing. There is not even a tiny hint or giveaway that the Helix is computer-based. After 30+ years of tone chasing and owning most brands of tubes amps at least once, I can honestly say that the tones from the Helix are as good, if not better, than what I was getting from my analog rigs - and I used to get some great tones from my rigs. With Helix, the tones are 100% authentic and will be more consistent from gig to gig. My fellow guitar player is still lugging his 212 Shiva cab and Shiva head, but his comments about the Helix lead me to believe that he will soon own one. Thanks to all on the forum who shared knowledge as I was working with Helix for the first time. It was a great help and really allowed me to dial in some great tones that resulted in a great live sound. Joe

Yes, you should try the Helix. I've been using tube amps for 30+ years and as a gigging guitarist, I grew weary of lugging amp heads, cabs and pedal boards. i tried a Helix based solely on the great tones I heard in many videos and was totally blown away. The tones are great and the level of programability puts it over the top. I can play a 50 song gig with just a few patches and I can program all types of boosts, gain controllers, etc., which just wasn't possible with my old rig. I now bring the Helix in a nice Gator road case with two guitars. That's my whole rig and I put the Helix into the FOH via the XLR. Simple and powerful. For me, the Helix is a revelation and the tones I'm getting sound 100% authentic and legit. Joe

Awesome. Thank you!

Hi all, I spent all day with the Helix and have really programmed some stellar tones. While tweaking, I came across something that I can't figure out. I have the Teemah pedal in the chain, and I've assigned one of the footswitches as a continuous controller to toggle between two gain settings on the Teemah. The scribble strip reads "gain" and I can't seem to find a way to change that label. Any ideas? Thanks for all of the great feedback on my other questions. It has really helped to improve my learning curve. Joe

Hi all, You've all been so great with your feedback I thought I'd push my luck with another question - this one concerns how you all are setting the "Guitar In Impedance" setting. I did a search but didn't find anything on this topic. I play Les Pauls and Strats. Not particularly hot pickups in either. Should I set to "auto"? Thanks all! Joe

All good stuff. Thank you for the input. I'm going to try these various methods today and see what works best. I'll be sure to report back. Joe

Hi all. New user here and in need of some validation. I've read various posts about how some of your are setting the volume on your Helix and I think I've got mine dialed in but would welcome any info to the contrary. I found the following in my tests with my Helix into my Allen & Heath Wizard mixer: - If I set the Helix volume knob beyond noon, I have to apply the pad to the mixer pre-amp to reduce the signal to a remotely useable level - With volume set at noon, I can dial the mixer gain to the point where the signal floats between -3 and 0 on the gauge - in the "green" zone. Sound good with no distortion. A little lower in volume that I'd expect, but I will just have to adjust all other instruments around the Helix - If I increase the Helix volume or the mixer gain to a point where the signal exceeds zero on the gauge (the yellow zone), I hear some light distortion This tells me that I probably have this set up correctly and shouldn't overthink it. Any input appreciated. Joe

Outstanding! So grateful for the speedy and helpful replies. I was not aware that the channel volume did not impact the tone stack, so that is where I will start. I knew I had to be missing something. I'm loving Helix. As a gigging guitarist, the tone and simplicity of setup create a very sweet gig rig. No more lugging cabs and amp heads and I'll really love getting consistent tone from gig to gig. Thank all Joe

Hi All, I'm new to Helix and in the process of programming all of my tones. I've come up against an issue and can use some help. The issue concerns volume disparity between certain patches. For example, I have a great JTM45 patch, which the master volume on the amp set to 10. It sound great, but I'm finding that my Fender Twin patch, even when set to 10 on the master volume, just can't compete in volume. Is there a way to compensate or do I just have to sacrifice a bit of tone with the JTM45 patch by dialing the master down a bit to level things out? Also, I'm curious to know where you all are setting the volume know on the Helix unit. I'm at noon right now. Thanks in advance for helping a newbie. Joe