GutchGtr

This... ^^^^ I run the HX Stomp as my time & modulation effects into either a Tone Master Deluxe or Tone Master Twin (Both are Blonde version with Creambacks). I like the reverb and trem on the Deluxe, so I plug the board into Channel 1 of the "Vibrato" side and set these FX on the amp. Build your effects chain in the Stomp, leaving out the amp/cab. Something to keep in mind - The TM Deluxe starts to break up at just before "5" on the channel volume. Unless you want to use the natural overdrive of the amp (and it sounds great!), keep the volume below 5 or learn to use the volume control on your guitar to control the grit level. Below is a pic of my current board (In middle of downsizing). I use the Nobels as my primary overdrive, the OCD when heavier is needed. The Tumnus is being used as a clean boost for solos, etc. I use the Morningstar to turn Stomp FX on/off via MIDI, programmed per preset. The Stomp buttons change preset and set tempo. This base setup gets gigged regularly and performs flawlessly. I keep trying to find a pedal/sound the Stomp can't provide. HX Stomp wins every time...

Agree 100%. I take full responsibility for not having a back up at the ready. If nothing else, the failure forced me to develop a backup plan which, for the short term, is the Helix. I still use the modeling tech via an HX Stomp, but am not completely reliant on it. Granted, the current pedalboard isn't as flexible as a Helix, but I find I only used a couple presets with a couple snapshots in each. The amp model I leaned on the most in the presets was a Twin, so grabbing the real deal made the most sense. I love the Derailed Ingrid, but can use pedals to get close to that tone. At the end of the day, I would prefer the simplicity of the Helix and a PowerCab, and will eventually get back to it. For now, however, I'm getting my 'Analog' on and it's working pretty well.

I hope the weekend is incident free for you and everything works great! Looking forward to hearing your feedback next week! Cheers, Dave

Had a similar situation happen with my floor unit. Helix -> Powercab 112+ via L6 Connect. Latest firmware, everything was working fine. Had a gig a couple months back where the system completely froze up as soon as I tapped preset 1A in the User 1 folder. No response from any button/control. Full power cycle, still froze. Pulled together a quick backup (Stole the lead singer's amp) and limped through the show. Got the unit home, did a full reset and it came back to life as expected. Tapped preset 1A again - FREEZE. Reset again, and then deleted preset 1A - Helix has worked fine ever since. Not sure how the preset became corrupted, but it wreaked havoc on the system - to the point where I've semi-retired the main Helix and transitioned to a hybrid pedalboard using HX Stomp and outboard pedals into a Fender Tone Master Twin. For now, I can't trust the Helix to be reliable for a show. I hope I can some day, but not now...

Just got back into Variax this weekend and was wondering the same thing Re: Monkey. Neither MacOS or Windows 10 supports Monkey. The JTV59 I just picked up used was built in 2014 and, based on the lack of maintenance performed on the rest of the guitar, I highly doubt anyone updated the firmware on it. I'd *Love* to find a way to get under the hood of this thing and make sure I'm getting top performance. I've owned the Standard and JTV-69, and sold them both due to lack of comfort when playing. This JTV59 just fits my hands so well and the mag p'ups sound great - It's reaffirmed my faith the technology, and I can't wait to gig with it and the Helix!

Thanks for the reply and reminder! Never thought of this place as just a support forum, but I think you're probably right. Oh well - I appreciate the answer! :-)

Greetings campers... Long time Helix lover/user here. Have been looking for a compact desktop alternative to the Helix for casual practice and writing. Have Helix Native for recording, but don't want to go through the hassle of firing up Studio One and setting up a track to use it. Looked longingly at HX Stomp, but didn't want to lay out the cash... Well, the gods smiled down upon me at work last week and dropped a good-sized Amazon gift card in my lap. So, this weekend I went shopping for a desktop effects unit, and ended up pulling the trigger on the Amplifi TT. It should be arriving Wednesday. Now, I've read all the threads about intermittent BT connection and hassle with the app. I've also watched the YouTubes and saw some cool features and pretty good tone. My expectations have been appropriately tempered. However, I am still pretty stoked about being able to sit down, plug the G10 into the guitar (Have had it for a couple years for use w/Helix- works great and never leaves my desk), and start playing! I guess I'm looking for a little commiseration with like minded folk who bought into the Amplifi TT system and are happy they did so. Anybody out there? Any secret tips or Easter Eggs to be aware of? Don't make me regret the decision before it even arrives!!!

Did the update last week. The system worked flawlessly before, but after the update the unit is now bricked and useless. Transmitter won’t charge and the receiver flashes red. Unplugged overnight. No different. Left to charge the unit - still dead. Tried reinstalling update - no change. I understand the mandatory shutdown in California is making a mess of things for Line6, and I’m not going anywhere either, so it’s not an immediate need to repair. Will put in a support ticket and wait my turn... Stay safe y’all!

I bought a used JTV-69 and just registered it as a product like it was a new one. It's now in the list.

Legacy effects and HX reverbs. I'm already pleased as punch with the available amps and most everything else Helix offers (Workflow, I/Os, audio quality, HX Edit ease of use, etc.). Would love to see improvement on the tuner, but I have zero problem using an outboard unit until they get around to that challenge. To be perfectly honest, if L6 never did another update, I'd still be over the moon happy with Helix. It is most incredibly powerful, flexible, easy to use, fantastic sounding piece of guitar related gear I have owned in 40+ years of playing. Any improvements/additions they make are simply icing on the cake...

Yeesh -- You guys rip through new upgrade features faster than my dog rips up dirty socks! I've barely scratched the surface of the last upgrade (Mainly because I'm spending so much time playing/tweaking the Trainwreck amp model - Love that one! :wub: ) ...

Finally picked up the Helix carrying bag from Sweetwater. Dayum -- This thing is solid!!! Just thought I'd share. Carry on... ;)

Thanks for the replies. I'd also like to hear from the design folks at L6 to find out to what extreme they ran their thermal stress tests on Helix. RoHS (lead free) solder has a much higher melting point as compared to traditional tin/lead, so that works to our advantage, but there are also component stresses that come into play. Better safe than sorry. As for a shade or "umbrella" for the unit, that's a definite! I've drawn up a couple ideas using narrow dowel rods or PCB tubing and dark fabric that can be quickly & easily assembled to form an awning over the Helix. Clean looking, would block sunlight and still allow air flow, and is flexible enough for cables to run underneath the fabric. Would be easy to break down and wrap up (Like silverware in a paper napkin) for easy cartage and storage. Total construction cost would be under $20. Just need to borrow a sewing machine to create the loops in the fabric for the rods to pass through and hold the awning in place...

Played my first outdoor gig with my new Helix today. Sounded great, worked flawlessly during the 45 minute set. Although the TFT display was near impossible to see in the direct sunlight (Except for Tuner Mode), the scribble strips were bright & clear making patch and snapshot changes easy. After the show, the surprise came when I went to pick the Helix up -- It was friggin' HOT! I mean, it was all I could do to grab it and carry it off the stage before quickly putting it down to avoid burning my hands! It was on stage in direct sunlight for about two hours, and the black Aluminum case soaked up every ounce of solar energy it could! The question is this -- Should there be a concern that this type of temperature extreme will cause problems with the internal components? Solder joints, ICs, etc? What thermal testing was performed to the unit prior to release? I have another outdoor gig in a couple weeks and it's a full three hour show with the unit again soaking up lots of sunlight. I'm a bit concerned about thermal shutdown or fatigue on the electronics impacting the unit mid-show... Thanks in advance!

There's a thread going on in the James Tyler Variax section that is discussing this problem. Check it out here: http://line6.com/support/topic/27566-vdi-cable-connection/

The one I got from Sweetwater had the issue with the out-of-alignment RJ45 plug. I got the cable plug aligned inside the ethercon connector, but it still wouldn't work. Took it apart again and checked the outer shell by trying to insert it in the jack -- No go. That's when I realized it was was slightly out of round, preventing insertion. Ordered the replacement assemblies and replaced the originals -- All good now.

Received the replacement ethercon connectors yesterday and did the swap on the Line 6 cable. Everything working wonderfully now!

Nice price on the connectors! Are you using ruggedized cables or standard fare? I'd love to go down the same road, but I'd prefer to stick with the added flexibility and durability of ethercon cables offered by L6/Bose/etc...

I have the same problem with a cable I just ordered from Sweetwater as well. After futzing with it for several hours (disassembling, reassembling, etc.) I was able to get one end to work, but ai found the other end is ever-so-slightly out of round, making it impossible to fit in either the Helix or the Variax output jack. Using an ethercon cable I use with my Bose L1 system, I confirmed that the equipment jacks are fine -- It's the plugs on the Line 6 cable that are causing the problem. Because I cut off some of the Heat shrink on the ends of the cable to facilitate a more true angle of the RJ45 connector inside the Ethercon shield, I can't return the cable to Sweetwater. So, I just ordered replacement Ethercon connectors from Newark Electronics. Here's the order info if you want to go down the same road: Stock No: Manufacturer Part No: UOM: Quantity: Price: Extended Price: 35C0563 NE8MC-B Each 1 2 $4.61 $9.22

Greetings! Over the past three weeks, I've dived head first into the Line 6 pool by first selling off my analog pedalboard to get a Helix, and then picking up a Variax Standard this week. I'm absolutely loving the features and flexibility of the Helix (Not to mention the quality of sound I'm getting from the unit). The Variax arrived yesterday afternoon, and I spent the rest of the day/evening/night checking out the models and features. After initial run through, did the standard new guitar routine -- Tighten the tuning machines, snug up all screws, check relief. Changed strings to 11s and tweaked saddle height to minimize fret buzz based on all the other threads that discuss this issue. Pretty happy with setup now. I can see this being a very powerful musical tool! My question is on the acoustic instrument modeling -- Specifically the six string acoustic guitar models. In working on a setup with the Helix, I'm getting close to what I want to hear from these models, but am having difficulty getting the final tweaks set right. For the time being, I'm focusing on the J200 for strumming and the 0-18 for fingerstyle. In adjusting the Mic position (Tone Control), if it's set too close the tone is boomy. When pulled away to reduce boom, I start hearing a lot of "Room Reflection" as the tone gets thinner and less realistic. To compensate, I've going for the bassier setting, then dropping a 10 band EQ in line after a little light compression and trying to pull back the lows (60/125/250 Hz), and the high freqs while pushing up the mids a bit to reduce the hollowness. I've dropped a little plate reverb in after the EQ. This combination seems to work okay, but I'm wondering if anyone here has other suggestions to further improve the acoustic tone? Thanks in advance!