miurajef

Geez, some of these guys should have their licences to sell gear revoked.  To expand on my set up above, from the mixer I'm going to Lin6 speakers L3t (x2) and L3s (x2).  I played my modelling setup through Bose L1 speakers in the past and it sounded great and I've run it through various other brands when using a house system.  But through these Line 6 speakers it's better than anything else I've tried, it's the most organic sound and coming from a modelling device, it's really hard to believe.  I would recommend their tech/speakers as the compliment to your modelling gear whether you are using Line 6 modelling or not.  Now I can't speak to the Firehawk 1500 directly, but if it stacks up against the L series PA speakers it's gonna kick butt in this department.

I'm sure your setup must sound amazing. My first impulse is also to go for the powered speakers, but I do want to get a chance to try out the Firehawk. There's the appeal of 'still having a  combo around', plus  this 6 way speaker set up has a certain ring to it. I'm very curious about clarity and 'projection' (Marshall cabs for instance are not exactly outstanding in that department). I plan on going directly into the FOH console from the Helix, but I stll want to know if it (the Firehawk) can make  a heavily processed sound audible in most or all of it's nuances, without having to blow  the roof off, so to speak   ;)

Lmfao...and I'm skeptical about that guy's ability to count past 10 without taking off his shoes.

 

"Skeptical about their ability" to build the decades old tech that is the guitar speaker...can't make this stuff up. Music store gear jockeys are hysterical.

Lol, I've heard the guy contradict himself twice within a 3 week span, needless to say I take his 'observations' with a bag of salt. 

Update. I just bought a brand new Variax JTV 89 (the electric sounds are amazingly good, as is the analog guitar as such) , and ordered a Helix.  When I asked about the Firehawk 1500 the guy at the store said he hadn't tried it yet, but he was very skeptical about 'Line 6's ability to build guitar speakers'   :)  To be continued.

You both make good points. It's just that my analogue gear has never (literally) failed me (I must add I'm quite disciplined as far as maintenance is concerned). You're probably right, maybe I should just jump and see what happens :P  Maybe in a year or so Ill have the same amount of trust in the digital stuff as I have now in my old gear. In each case: thanks a lot for the replies!

I could live with the awareness that certain gear will start letting me down occasionally, say, after 5,6 years, and that 5 years later it will be completely written off.  But let's say I climb on stage next month, with all my new Line 6 gear, how relaxed am I going to be?  :) If I have to haul my analogue gear as part of a contingency plan, I will be missing the whole point of making the shift in the first place.

Or you could think of it this way...if your Helix craps out, the Firehawk is your back-up. While the modeling might not be as robust as Helix, in a pinch it could rescue you from a horrible Spinal Tap moment at a gig.

Lol, that scenario has crossed my mind too.  I have to give this some serious thought. I'm basically a 'vintage stuff' guy, I now mostly use a '92 Les Paul, a Mesa Boogie head with Marshall cabs and some boutique pedals, to give you an idea. Now all this (new) Line 6 gear, especially the Helix,  sounds so incredibly well, it's compact, light, easy to use,... that I'm really tempted to  plunge myself into that world. I'm even seriously considering to buy a new Variax (the trouble that would save me...)  As said it all sounds great, the only thing that worries me is: reliability  ;)

L6 demo-ed Helix at NAMM through the Firehawk...it's a viable option. You would be using it for power only, the same way you would slave any other head or combo, because as you've said, daisy-chaining two modelers together is pointless, and almost guaranteed to be a mess.

 

I suggested it because running stereo seems to a priority for you, and buying a pair of L2T's is gonna run you $1500+...whereas the Firehawk is $1K, smaller than your 2 4x12 cabs, and wired to run in stereo.

I see your point, but I would feel slightly uncomfortable having (at least partially) bought 'twice the same stuff' if I were to combine the Firehawk and the Helix, so I'd rather spend more money on 2 L2's, which will also give me a better 'spread'. The other option of course, is to just buy a Firehawk 1500, and then the question is: 'what am I going to miss out on,  compared to the Helix, purely soundwise?'

 

You might wanna look at the new Firehawk 1500 amp...it has some weight to it, but still less than what you're currently lugging around, and it is stereo. Ain't cheap either, but considerably less than a pair of L2T's.

You mean as a stand alone,  or as a way to amplify the Helix? If I understand it correctly, the Firehawk is already packed with a ton of sounds, wouldn't that be overkill? 

Thanks a lot. I suppose the  qualification 'bi-amped' had me thinking they could be stereo  :D

Hello,

I'm about to buy a Helix. For amplification my first plan was to connect it to a (very good) Reussenzehn stereo valve 'guitar slave'  and 2 Marshall cabinets I already own. Geat stuff, but heavy, takes a lot of space, and I'm not getting any younger  ;) .  So I want to go light and compact. Stage Source looks ideal. I would buy 1 unit to start with. Is my assumption correct that if I want to enjoy stereo sound I would need to buy an L2t (as it has 2 separate inputs), or am I mistaken?
I'm aware that 1 unit is probably not gonna give me the great 'stereo spread', so  I will probably buy a second unit which (I presume) could either be a 2t or a 2m.  I then leave the outputs of the helix connected to the first unit, and just connect the second unit with the  L6 link, correct?