shawnt113

@datacommando I finally got the chance to mess with this preset yesterday. I know it’s been a while. So here’s what I got to say: 1- Thank you for taking the time to put it together, that was super awesome of you. 2-YOU ARE THE MAN! It’s doing just what I want it to do for bass. I threw it on a bounce of the bass, added a stereo widener then bounced it to its own track. Then blended it with the Un-effected track. BAM!!! 3- Did I mention YOU'RE THE MAN!?!? Thank you very much!

I want to be able to go up also because most of my guitars are tuned 1/2 and 1 whole step down. The only time I play standard is in church or the random jams with people in standard.

Hey all... I am looking into getting a pedal to simulate retuning of a guitar. I could only see me doing 1/2 step up or down maybe 1 whole step at most. I have a patch on my Helix that does this, but it's a little glitchy so I want something to be more stable. I've read on several of them, I thought I was going to go for the Digitech Ricochet but it will not do 1/2, its 2nd is a major second (whole step). Has anyone used a pedal to do this? If so what has been your experience?

Thank you, I’m gonna check it out. I only recently became aware that I’m even interested after watching a video with Rick Beato where he was discussing using that preset gently on the distorted bass track to give it a little character and movement. Since I've also heard it’s great on backing vocals.

Anyone here have experience with the Symphonic preset from the Yamaha SPX90? If so, any way to replicate that in Helix native? thanks guys!

Check out this Rig Rundown, at 17:22 Jake E Lee kicks in an effect with a killer swell that gives that reverse vibe. I don’t care for the Octave or the Fuzz, just want that swell effect. Anyone been able to do something like this?

Over half of the IR’s in the Axe (II) are FAS made cabs, though there are quite a few 3rd party ones. That being said, I really only use 3rd party IR’s with either my Helix LT, Native or Axe FX. You are certainly right that they make a night and day difference. Also, I want to add that FAS just released(as in last night) a Beta fw to get the II’s amp modeling as close as possible to the III’s. I didn’t get much time with it, but I can say for sure the Mesa MKII C+ sounds quite a bit more alive now. I still think I need to dive into The Helix more to see if I am just approaching it wrong.

I get what you’re saying, I guess one of the reasons I compare to my Axe Fx is because all that I have been able to compare my AF2 in real life (with the exception of a couple one being the Bogner Shiva) are pretty darn impressively close, so it seems like a good point of reference. I can get good tones out of the Helix, but it does take a lot more work that with the Axe, especially when I am using Helix Native, part of I think could be how I am running my guitar into my Scarlet 18i8, right now I am in the preproduction phase of recording an album and about to start really digging in to how I am going to track guitars, maybe I will have some break through in this process. My current plan is to record DI tracks and reamp through my Axe FX though it’s not as convenient by a long shot. I very well may end up using Native for effects, especially since I can automate.

I never owned an Eleven Rack but had opportunity to spend a good amount of time with it. It was cool but the sound quality to me wasn’t near to being on par with the AF2, I’d say it was better than my Vetta but not by a mile or anything. It would be interesting to see if the hardware of the Head Rush makes a difference and how much. I agree on the Boss unit too, I have a GT Pro, it’s a good unit, especially if you’re running it in 4 Cable method with a real amp. There is a guy here in NC that has a studio, gets killer guitar tones and his live rig is a GT Pro into a Mesa/Boogie tube power amp. It sounds pretty good. I tried the same method and got decent results but the tale tell sign to me is the top end. Bite vs. fizz/shrill. The reason I stayed away from Kemper, other than I already had my Axe FX was the fact you couldn’t tweak. I also still don’t get how it (or even if it) reproduces the distortion correctly. I get that it can essentially take an audio version of a snap shot of your rig but what about the gain structure, as far as how it distorts? I think only the FAS gear and the Helix are really doing that right. Does anyone know how the Kempers do on this? I have only played a Kemper once, I wasn’t impressed. I guess we just didn’t bond. @Kilrahi I’d still like to hear some of your stuff!!! Good discussions here, I’m a total gear nerd.

I looked at the Head Rush before the Helix. Am I wrong that their algorithms are pretty much unchanged from the Eleven Rack? While I’ll stand by saying that the AF2 is better, in amp modeling quality I can confidentially say that had I not used my that AF2 as much as I did for 6 years before buying my Helix, the Helix would blow away everything modeling wise I’ve ever used prior. If they could just get that 10-15(maybe 20)% and it may not even be that much, improvement in the amp sim quality I’m hoping for, I’d gladly sell my AF2 and roll on with Line 6 only. You said you’ve bought presets? Maybe i should consider that, or at least download some free presents to see what everyone else is doing. Maybe I am just approaching the Helix wrong.

I see what you’re saying and I definitely did some double talk. Something I would ask you is about your experience with Axe FX? How long did you own one? What firmwares? If you haven’t owned one, how many opportunities did you have to really dig into it? Being an 18 year customer, I can also agree that L6 sat out to do the best modeling they could and even as far back as the Axsys and I think at certain times they achieved it given the technology available at the time. The difference now is that the technology exists to take it further and while L6 has made a very fine product with the Helix, it is not the amp modeling is not the same quality as FAS’. Curious, what kind of music do you perform or record with your unit? While we disagree on this, I’d like to hear your stuff. Clearly you care about tone so I think I’d really enjoy checking it out!

I respect your opinion, I’ve used Line 6 products consistently since 2001 when I bough my first Flextone II, I currently own 7 Line 6 products aside from the Helix LT and Native. I’m always pulling for them, I love their products, that being said (and I know this is going to sound horribly disrespectful and I certainly don’t mean for it to) I don’t think there is a universe where someone can honestly say that the Helix sounds as good as the Axe FX in terms of the amp models. I want it to, I want it to sound good enough for me to sell the AF2, I just don’t need it anymore other than the Helix just doesn’t compare on recordings.

@Phil- you’re not wrong about confirmation bias and how it plays into our expectations. @Kevin- I understand what you’re saying, I think we’d both agree we’d rather have killer tone over accuracy (though there are times I just want dead accuracy). To me getting the clarity (note separation) the gain structures and the dimension of real amps goes a long way to the quality tone that I am chasing. thanks guys for discussing this with me!

I’ve read about the new Helix update and am looking forward to it but I really wish Helix would take a look and work on the overall realism of the processing (and more detailed work on certain amp models). I’ve always enjoyed Line 6 effects, with the exception of most of the drives, (with the Helix the drives are quite a bit better) but the amp sims still need work. Compared to my Axe FX (II) there’s still some things missing. Clarity, depth/dimension and maybe gain structure which may relate back to the former. My AF2 while still isn’t 100% on being as “3 Dimensional” as the real deal, I’d say it’s 90-95% or greater the way there. The Helix just isn’t there. Feature wise, the ability to swap power tube types would be awesome (especially if a EL34/6L6 combo could happen). A bass cut to the amp input would be cool as would the ability to tweak the drive pedals a bit, like taming the mid honk of a tube screamer, pulling back the gain of the DS 1, or tweaking the OCD to not be as tight/focused/compressed sounding. I know these features would be less “realistic” but I think would be welcome. As far as additions, I would LOVE to have the mighty Mesa Mark II C+, Silver Jubilee and Bogner Ecstasy. I would not be hurt if another plexi made its way in the mix. I know opinions are subjective, and I really dig using my Helix, convenience wise it’s amazing and because of that it gets 3-4 times the use of my FAS, but it’s just that when I go back to the Axe FX, I remember that the Helix needs improvement.

I guess to each their own. I like it, but that’s just me. Like I said I would take some of the lows and gain out. I would dial it to be a little less scooped sounding. I like having the fizz to dial out with a high cut filter a lot more than I like not having it and trying to “boost” it in. here is an example of a Shiva in the studio, a tone that I love

Thank you guys for all of your replies. I haven’t had a chance to go back to mess around with this further, but I’m hoping to be able to tonight. To points some of you have made. Though I start with the cab sims in the Helix I almost always end up using third party IR’s, usually Ownhammer Heavy Hitters or the new GNR pack. Y’all are right that adjusting from the amp in the room to mic’d cab through monitors, I had to adjust to that several years ago when I got my first modeler. I also have to agree that with the Helix, you just can’t get that playing through a real tube amp vibe, but with the Axe FX you can, and the Kemper is not too far behind based off the couple of times I’ve used one. if this weekend doesn’t yield good results I think I’ll take the advice of taking this to the gear page. I again want to thank you all for your advice and for keeping it positive and helpful. You guys rock! Below is a video I came across that jibes with my recollection of the amp and really other than being a bit bassy and the gain is higher than I’d use this is really the tone I was shooting for. I think he said he ran a 57 on a v30 for this.

I messed around with native last night and and pulled up the Shiva and Uberschall models for fun on some DI tracks since I have experience with the real amps (granted it’s limited and some years ago). I have to say these models are nothing like what I remember from the real amps. I know Bogners tend to be a little dark but these models, I couldn’t find a way to dial the dark/mud out. The Shiva I was able to experience was a 25th Anniversary edition so that may be one of the reasons for the difference, but what I recall of the Shiva, when pushed into high gain was that to me it was everything my 5150 wanted to be when it grew up. The tone was in the same ballpark just refined and much more 3 dimensional. It wasn’t scooped but it did have some cut in some of the mids that I feel are needed with a 5150. The model in the Helix is no where near the glory of that. On the Uberschall model, the Helix is missing the tight/focused sound with the effortless gain. There is a difference between tons of gain and “effortless” gain. It’s overly dark even muddy and the presence knob does not behave in any fashion similar to what I recall the real amp does. Both seem to have too much low buildup in the input, which I tried to dial out with an eq block to no avail. Also, both miss the mark on the texture and complexity of the gain on the amps. I don’t know if this is just an example of L6 modeling algorithms overall, which in all honesty can’t compare to FAS (yet but I have hope) or if these models are just amps that L6 didn’t really invest much time or attention to. FWIW my Axe FX II doesn’t do these models justice either but in the AF2 they are much closer. Has anyone had any luck with these models? I think I am going to try again tonight to see if I can get better, usable results. p.s Though it may not seem it, this is not a post to bash Helix, it is however my honest assessment of this experience. Also I am hoping someone will have some helpful advice (beyond trying a different model) I mean isn’t the point of getting modelers to experience in the digital world what we do in the analog?

Has anyone here heard one of these or better yet know how to get that on the Helix? It has this percussive attack that’s almost unpitched at the beginning of a note. The only other way I could think to describe Is like a tight clean note attack about 5-10ms before you hear the amp. I’ve never owned or played through one but I have played with a guitarist that used one and it was glorious. Any advice m?

I’ll try that tonight, do you usually put the eq before or after the amp block?

I checked out that video yesterday, the Native sounds great in that which makes me think I did something wrong last night. However, even in that video I still noticed the definition and note separation of the Helix is not on par with the AF3. I’m gonna play more tonight to see what I find. I’m going to actually reamp a DI track that I recorded through my AF2 and maybe dona quick mix of the AF2 tones and the Helix tones to see how the compare. If I can get the Helix to make me happy it will certainly be more convenient for reamping.

I’ve been messing around with Helix Native tonight, comparing it to tracks I recorded with my Axe FX II there are some noticeable differences. Native certainly doesn’t have clarity that the Axe FX does. Gonna need to do some more playing around before I pull the trigger.

I downloaded the trial last night. Going to mess with it this weekend and likely order Monday with some other stuff from Sweetwater.

Bumping this hoping it will happen again soon, very soon!

I almost always wind up with Bit O Honey. I think if they ever stop sending that I may have to rethink where I order from!

As an owner of both a Helix and an Axe FX II I have to say that at this point the Axe FX sounds and feels better, there is more clarity, note separation and depth. Also the consensus tends to be that the Fractal Model are far more spot on. I play my Helix more due to the portability factor, and leave my AF2 at home for recording:reamping. I’m not knocking the Helix, it’s much, much better than my Vetta or Pod X3 Live and when I don’t compare it, I really dig the Helix. That said when I plug back into my AF2 I CAN tell the difference. I haven’t however, tried the new firmware so that opinion may change. One thing that would make me seriously think of ditching the AF2 is if as a Helix LT owner I could get Helix Native at $150, that would make reamping much easier and really make me question how much the difference is worth vs the convenience and user friendly aspect of the Helix.