themetallikid

Meaning you basically use it as a 2x12 FRFR cabinet?

Yeah rd2rk, I've been following your posts when the PC conversations come up which is what made me want to consolidate it here a bit to help decide if it would benefit me at all. The powered wedge I care around is a EV 15", and while the 15 is a bit much for guitar, it gives me enough low end response to help sorta hear what subs may be doing or picking up in a FOH type system. Just wasnt sure if the form factor of the PC vs Wedge would be a benefit...with the added benefit of off-loading the cab/IR dsp requirements and allow me more flexibility in preset design. Doesnt seem that it would be worth it as much right now.

I would basically be using it to offload the IR/Cab blocks from my Helix, and also have a more traditional 'backline' for stage volume. I see some like the on board speaker models, and some prefer IR's. I've been happy with the stock cabs, but I do have a collection of York IR's I could load in and revisit some settings to adjust...if I had to.

The split cabs for me are a necessity of this project and the tone I'm trying to emulate. HOWEVER....this has taught me something that I have utilized in another project. I dont have my Helix connected right now, but I can attach a preset tomorrow night maybe and you can download and see what difference it makes. You have a stomp, so I dont know if it'll work though. For me, this project runs 2 amps. I'm using one amp to get an edge of breakup to mild breakup tone on one amp into a cab I label "Brite" cab and the other with a darker sound into a "Dark" cab. If I remember correctly, I'm about drinks in at the moment and going from memory, my rig template for presets for this band is this: Amp A - Fender Deluxe - Mesa EQ (highlighting 750/2.2khz/6.6khz to help with bite/clarity - Brite Cab (I think its the Vox 2x12 with a 57 or 421 mic. Amp B - Orange Rockerverb - Mesa EQ (highlighting 80/240 frequencies, scoop 750 a few db, and add 2.5/6.6 to add enough definition) - Dark Cab (Mesa V30 cab, 160 Mic I think) With this setup, I need a thick chunky type sound, but adding the Fender gives me some nice clarity to the pick attack.

Well, my damn mind just wont shut off with this stuff. Its a good thing is a paid hobby and not a career. lol. I agree...the number of times I told them I was running a line level signal and still blew ears out when they turned my channel on makes me shrug. lol The band before us, one guy was using a Marshall head into an Orange cab with a 57 on it. Sounded horrible on its own, but sat well in the mix. Credit to the sound guy there too. Singer/Guitar guy was playing a Headrush. It was decent, without sounding biased, I liked my helix better, but there are so many variables its like comparing apples to deoderant. Not even close with information given. I did find it interesting he was going into a 1x12 power cab, but then had that mic'd. That confused me a bit, why not run direct out. Does the direct out not just send whatever speaker sound you have out the output link?

FIrst of all, I'd like to say thank you to everyone here that is helpful in their responses, but also those that ask questions that also prompt myself (and others) to approach things differently and explore a bit to educate yourself about rigs/blocks/effects etc. Big shout out to those who post video tutorials (Jason Sadites to name a primary one for myself, and others who just escape me at the moment). Those tutorials have helped me think about things and approach things without a guitar in my hand and allowed me to really do some neat things. Why all these words? My Stone Temple Pilots band had our first headlining show this past weekend. While the venue was, a'hem, not the grandest.....the crowd was into our setlist (after another band opened for 2 hours). All that is great....but my real satisfaction comes from programming my Helix and being happy with it, but also being efficient and well prepared for sound guys as we do not run our own sound and I dont like to let that control go away easily. HOWEVER.... While we performed great.....at the end while tearing down, I asked the sound guy (who I had already qualified as a great guy, knowledgeable, geeky like me with gear, and an overworker in his field compared to others) how my guitar sounded...and he said it sounded great. I asked what he did to help me get in the mix to file that information away when I make my next adjustments...and his response, "Dude, I didn't have to touch your guitar. I ran your guitar flat. Thats the first time I've ever run a guitar players rig flat. Anyone that has to EQ your guitar in a mix, needs to retune their PA!" I immediately put my arms in the air, and with a fist pump added a 'F*ck yeah'!! I then asked how my lead boosts were, and he said they were great. He literally had to do nothing to my guitar all night. I've never felt such satisfaction from a group of 25 presets in my playing life. 30 years, 16 of that is running direct (Boss, Line 6, Fractal). Just wanted to share as it was 2 days ago and I'm still proud of those comments. Edit: Oh, and yes....for those that say the stock cabs aren't good enough. Maybe in a studio realm they lack something a special IR does have. But my presets in this set all used 2 stock cabs in parallel.

Yeah the band had gone for 10 years and I was just done, needed to move on. I'm happier...lol. My current headphones are closed back and i like the isolation. Just wasnt sure if there was a benefit to the open back that I'm not aware of. For the cost, I think I'll try the Beyer ones, It seems we are on the same page with a lot of stuff and I respect your review you gave here..... Appreciate that.

I have searched, and the 2 popular ones I see most are (correct me if I'm wrong: Sennheiser HD600 - Open Back - $400 roughly Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro 80 Ohm - $160 roughly What will I noticed with the variation between open back and closed. My current phones are closed...but I dont have any experience with open back ones. My current phones are pretty heavy in the 240hz range and pretty light on the 6k range. Which is why i need to find a more 'flat' response set. I've been able in the past to dial in with my headphones into my bands PA system, however my band is no more...and PA systems will fluctuate a bit more going forward for me, so I just need a better straight up reference pair. Also dialing in the acoustic simulator is impossible with those 2 frequencies running wild I mentioned above. I really would only be using these for preset creation, practicing at home to Spotify....so I dont need studio, mix-mastering level of quality....but I need something quality as I dont have the budget to try, replace, try, replace. Also, my gf will likely buy them as a birthday gift, so I'd prefer to not have to exchange her gift being that she will basically buy whatever I suggest. lol. I guess from a quality sound perspective (ignoring the closed vs open back concept) what would be the difference between the two models? Secondly, how does the closed vs open back affect my first question? Appreciate any help here. The information on this topic is overwhelming and I know I'm dumping a glass of water into the ocean by asking in another thread, but I feel I've come down to these 2 options and its hard to sort out opinions, reviews etc with all other posts in those threads.

When in Command center/Stomp Mode, you can program the layout/switches however you like. For FS 1 & 2, I choose HX preset Previous & Next. However the text on the scribble strip only displays 'Previous' Or 'Next'. However if I instead choose HX Preset 01 or HX Preset 05, it pulls the name of the preset onto the scribble strip. I set all my presets up this way as 'my' template for live performance. FS 1/2 are to navigate to the previous/next preset. If I need to jump to skip a song or go back to one I skipped I exit STOMP mode and yes, I have it set to 8 presets, so then I see the presets, choose the one I need, enter stomp mode again, and there is my layout for that song. Again, with the previous/next buttons as I mentioned above.

I havent searched Ideascale yet, but, wanted to see if others thought this useful or if I'm missing something in a setting somewhere. Now that my tribute band is up and running setlist wise. We shouldnt be swapping setlist order very much....however.... if we do (or other projects where we do shuffle things a bit) I would find this helpful. Right now there are 2 ways for me to set up my 'layout' on the Stomp Mode. I always assign FS 1 & 2 for Previous/Next presets. The issue with this (a petty one sorta) is that I enjoy not having to carry a paper setlist on stage or the hassle of trying to get one printed (I dont own a printer). In order to avoid those 2 pitfalls.... It would be great if the Prev/Next options would display the preset name/snapshot name instead of just 'prev' or 'next'. I can get around this by assigning an actual preset # to FS 1 & 2. For example, if I'm on preset 1 - Dead and Bloated, I would assign FS 2 to trigger preset 2 - Crackerman and it displays Crackerman in the scribble strip. And so forth through the setlist. Not sure it would be hard to code that in, but could we get the Previous/Next functions to also pull the preset/snapshot names?

Yes I agree, and typically I dont 'explore' much as I design a per preset/song thing. I wonder if they could incorporate a right-click menu option that read convert to A/C or Amp only/Cab only, or split Amp/Cab option. I get your point, but would be nice if there was a more efficient way to duplicate those blocks when splitting.

I think what he is asking, and I agree with him on an easier way to do this. If I have a preset that uses the Amp+Cab block, and dial it in. Then I want to explore some IRs to use, or Im going through a power cab and no longer need the attached cab portion of the Amp+cab block.... Is there an easier way to go from Amp+Cab> Amp Only other than adding a duplicate Amp block and clicking back and forth to make sure settings of the Amp portion match, then deleting the Amp+Cab block. Sometimes in my presets when I'm exploring ideas like that, I don't have the DSP available to add another cab block. Which for me, then means, storing blocks as favorites (even if they arent), deleting those blocks from the preset, adding the amp block, comparatively adjust to match, then delete the A+C block, readd the other blocks I marked as favorites.

Here is how I hook mine up, as I like my guitar separate from the 'band monitor mix'. XLR output > front of house sound 1/4" output > monitor wedge, that I bring as my own reference for tweaking and such. That way no sound guy can alter my guitar/monitor sound and I get a good reference to make adjustments. In my global settings I change the Main Volume knob output to control the 1/4" output only so I can adjust as I need for stage volume. Also that way the FOH sound gets a consistent signal from me every time. No guessing where 1:00 is when trying to determine their signal level.

The best workaround I have found/seen is: 1) set your buttons for snapshot one. Assuming your layout doesnt for the preset doesnt change...... 2) right click, choose copy all 3) right click, choose clear all. this will bring you back to the regular HX Edit screen 4) enter command center again, right click, paste all (verbage may be different in the menu) This will paste your layout into every snapshot slot. if you want to 'stack' as the feature was intended, then go to that snapshot at the top dropdown and change the one that you need. If your like me where you have the same layout per preset, even with multiple snapshots being used (meaning I dont 'stack' the snapshots, I just have 3 snapshot buttons for the 3 snapshots) this is the best way. Its a horse a piece if I only have 2 snapshots if its faster, but 3 snaps per preset or more and it saves time. I really hope they do tweak it and make some sort of a stackable or preset level parameter in command center that allows you to avoid having to do this if you dont use it.

It does, but I'm missing how that applies to my preset. I got it 'fixed' by also assigning FS7 to the Level B parameter in the merge block after the effect. However, when I initially removed it from the Mute All/Normal function and only had it on Level B, it was also still present in the signal (all be it low enough to not be heard while I was playing). It was only when both were assigned and engaged that it killed the entire signal so only my dry signal came through.

shouldnt the 'mute all' parameter mute ALL of the signal though?

That I was well aware of. Knowing that though, I didnt know if it actually changed any routing being that it was bypassed. Being that the 70's chorus is right before my split to 2 different amps....when bypassed, am I losing that stereo split (not that it really matters as I'm finding out as I'm not running any other stereo effects prior anyway)......but my mind couldnt let the question go.

So my STP tribute band is doing the song Meatplow. During the 2nd verse there is what sounds like an open E string (I dont know for sure, havent learned the note yet, Probably an F# as the rest is going off that, heh, idk) going on during the 2nd verse. I was just going to ignore this part, until I watched Jason Sadites video of the Rachet delay block walkthrough. When I heard him doing his thing, it immediately stood out as an ear candy effect to add that overdubbed part into the 2nd verse. Simply capture the note, let it sit there in the background under the 'Mute All' parameter until the 2nd verse, tap tempo the song once we start and add it in when we get there.....mute again when its done via a Stomp foot switch. Programming is all good. I have 1) Bypass set to footswitch 5 to engage the effect and capture the audio before the song starts 2) Mute All > Normal switching set to footswitch 7 for toggling during 2nd verse. 3) Set on a parallel path so I maintain my dry guitar I have attached my preset. As soon as I record the audio, even with Mute All engaged, I can hear it in the background. When I click FS7, it certainly comes on at the 'normal' FX level, but engaging the Mute All function again goes back to much quieter, but not muted. What am I missing on this?? Appreciate any help. Meatplow.hlx

I've noticed this as well. However, its not all the time. My presets that I've been using are fine. I copied them to other slots to experiment with some different block types and I have this issue.

I will try that out tonight when I explore some more. Appreciate it.

Usually before the split block, I would only have a wah, maybe a 'shared' TS808 for leads, but the main block before the split is the 70's Chorus...but there are enough songs that I dont need that sound on to warranty exploring what I've been asking so I dont have to drastically worry about weird signal flows etc. If I understand you correctly these will give me the same result 1) Guitar > Split block > Path A Amp/Path B amp 2) Guitar > Stereo Gain block > Split block > Path A Amp/Path B amp So yes that would save me DSP. Can you verify the back end of my signal routing; that these result in the same sound: 1) Merge block > Stereo Delay > Stereo Retro Reel > Left Mono output 2) Merge block > Mono Delay > Mono Retro Reel > Left Mono output That would save me some DSP on the back end as well. Also isnt the Heliosphere's reverb based on the Dynamic room? That could then replace my delay/reverb blocks to save some dsp if the above mono conclusion makes no difference.

Yeah, I confuse myself thinking about it as I can understand/believe both of those scenarios. So my next question, is there any benefit to maintaining a stereo split before the 'split' point of the path by adding a stereo gain block? My signal splits into 2 different amps (Tweed/Mandarin), which then goes out 1A/1B feeding 2A/2B respectively into appropriate IR's. I have a dynamic room reverb on the Mandarin path before it merges on its way to a Retro Reel and then output. My brain short circuits when thinking about the differences between collapsing stereo>mono and all that. I don't really run stereo, however I do like the split amp thing for this project. Having that stereo chorus is greatly accurate to the STP sound. In the aspect of saving more DSP for some further accurate sounds....is there any difference in using a mono Retro Reel (or any mono block really) and collapsing the stereo>mono....vs just letting the output connections being L only doing it? If I can save some DSP by using a mono block vs stereo if its not making any difference at the output location then I'm fine with that too.

I have several of these that pop up in my mind daily, however this one I haven't been able to find anything about it. I know that DSP is used as soon as a block is put into a preset. Whether its bypassed or not, does that affect routing? I'm assuming not that if its in the preset its splitting/summing as it should. In my presets for my tribute group, I have the 70's chorus (stereo) right before the split for a dual amp signal flow. Sometimes I do not need the chorus effect, but during down the mix to 0% kills the 'dry' signal getting through (duh!). So I have it bypassed and just not active in any snapshots. I assume that it is still splitting the signal L/R. Now the dumb(er) part of the question....I could really use the DSP that the 70's chorus takes up. Especially when its not in use. Is there anything it is doing when bypassed that I 'need' to keep the signal flow consistent the rest of the way through the preset? Again....I'm assuming not as bypassed means its out of the signal flow and at the split its no different than if its not there.

Pretty simple, its like any guitar rig. With what you have listed there..... Guitar > Wireless > Helix Guitar In > Helix Output > Power Amplifier > 2x12 Cab. The Helix just replaces your amp/pedal section of your previous rig.

OH, my mistake, I thought (again, in my quick dumb thinking) that control could link with Native as well. If I couldnt practice or control like I was playing live, then its really not a solution for me.