rayray6

I use the line 6 power supply. Are you on latest Helix firmware?

If you are using a DAW, set the track input (for the track on which you have the Neural DSP plugin loaded) to Input 5. Then, to get rid of the dry signal, on the HX Stomp preset signal chain, turn the Output block's level all the way down to -120.0dB. If you are using the Neural DSP plugin in standalone mode, it may not work. I cannot get it to recognize any other Stomp input than 1 & 2 and even then, there is no signal recognized by the plugin.

That does seem strange, I've never had my Powercab 112 Plus react that way. What were you using with your Kemper before the Powercab?

The speaker models have no mic modeled when output through the Powercab speaker, so compared the cab sims and IRs in the Stomp, it probably sounds more authentic to you. i.e. more like simply playing live through an amp and cab in the room. For a more apples to apples comparison, compare the direct out of the Powercab, which will apply the simulated mic and distance.

Thanks for posting this. I was just looking at the V4 preamp pedals, as I have recently been experimenting with my Powercab 112 Plus and my tube amp with load box. Since the speaker models sound so great when paired with a real amp, I thought the V4 Kraken preamp pedal might be awesome with them, too. I assume you have the V4 pedals in Standalone mode and going straight into the Powercab? Have you experimented with any other effect pedals before the V4, or in between the V4 and the Powercab? Any in particular that work really well? Thx again, I subscribed to your channel.

Just got around to trying this with my loadbox and Powercab Plus. Instant awesome tone with all of the speaker models, it’s like they were made to be used this way. Honestly no matter what I do, I’ve never been able to get the speaker models sounding great with any of my HX Stomp patches or even the default patches (with cab block removed of course) - I always end up playing through Flat mode with IRs or Helix cab models and EQing if I’m trying to get the amp in the room feeling. But my Custom Deluxe Reverb amp through Torpedo Reload and Powercab speaker models sounds perfect. Clean or dirty tones, all the speaker models sounded great, no tweaking required, although it is super easy and fun to try all the mics using the Edit software. I even threw an MXR 5150 Overdrive in front and it was killer. For sure, this is my new go-to setup for playing at home. I feel like this just turned my Powercab into the best piece of gear that I have. If you have access to a loadbox, definitely give it a try. I might have to upgrade to the PC 212 and start collecting some heads!

No I did not return it because it is out of warranty and I also need it to play live until I can replace it. I don't think LIne 6 knows how to fix the problem, so I'm not sure there is any point sending the unit back if you are out of warranty. If somebody has received a replacement unit while out of warranty, I would love to know that. I did not re-open the ticket because, as I said, their final instruction was to bring it back to wherever I bought it. :(

@rd2rk I DID post above (Feb 20) after hearing back from Line 6 Support. They do NOT have a solution the problem. They simply ask you to update to the latest firmware (I already had) and see if the problem persists. Then they say take the Stomp back to your retailer! @Matt70283 unfortunately it appears you have a problem that is different and even worse than what most people in this thread are describing. i.e. most are having the loss of sound when switching presets and quite intermittently. You seem to be experiencing drop outs much more frequently and in a broader variety of scenarios. To me, it seems you have a more severe, but probably unrelated fault in your unit.

Possibly for some users. However, I don’t have a volume block in any of my presets. Also, when the sound drops out, if you do nothing else other than power cycle the unit, the sound comes back. You could be toggling between the same two presets without issue for hours. Then all of a sudden you toggle and it’s completely silent.

I don’t think so, as I have had the issue without the USB connected. I was playing live and I switched presets using the foot switch. Boom, complete loss of sound. I don’t even understand what they mean about a “faulty preset”. That just sounds ridiculous. It should be impossible to make a faulty preset on the Stomp or in HX EDIT. I am on the list for Fractal FM3 and Neural Quad Cortex. Unfortunately it seems the HX stomp will have this random problem forever, so I will have trade or sell it.

I'm glad it is improving for you, however I do think your bug is different than mine. I'm talking about a complete loss of audio when switching from one preset to the next. It is very sporadic, sometimes not happening for weeks or even months.

Just heard back from L6 on my support ticket. Unfortunately they have no suggestion of a fix other than updating firmware to v2.82, which I have already done. They say to take the Stomp back to the store/distributor. My 1 year warranty expired last month, so it looks like I am out of luck. I REALLY hope this bug only occurs when switching PRESETS, so that using Snapshots is a workaround of sorts. Still not ideal, though, as switching Presets in between songs that are played back to back, live, could leave you strumming in silence. Not to mention, having to test if you have sound after every Preset change is not very professional. Even then, if you do lose sound and have to power cycle the Stomp on stage, it takes a while to boot up. All this means I will have to replace my HX Stomp with something else, most likely Fractal FM3, or perhaps Neural DSP quad cortex. At least I can still use my Powercab Plus with those. However, my Mission SP1-L6 expression pedal is fairly Helix-specific, I think. If ANYBODY has found a fix for this bug, please take the time to update the thread. Thanks.

Another tip: If you are going to need an expression pedal, consider the Mission SP1-L6 designed for Helix. It has a toe switch that can be assigned like the other 3 stomp switches on the Stomp, so basically giving you an extra switch. The obvious use it to switch on the wah or other expression effect, but it can also be used just like the other switches to bypass multiple effects simultaneously, cycle through operating modes, etc. Although it can't be used for the Tuner/Tap-tempo function, I don't think. I often use it as a bypass stomp switch (i.e. with multiple effects assigned to the toe switch) when playing in snapshot mode, as the 3 switches on the HX are already assigned to the snapshots.

Being an HX Stomp user, another issue you may run into is that changing Presets can cause the audio to drop out completely in the middle of your performance. The only way to get sound back is to turn the Stomp on and then off again. It is a known issue on these forums, although I have yet to see a fix. Most Stomp users, including myself, that have had the problem seem to report it happens while changing Presets. So using Snapshots might be the more reliable approach at the moment. (and, make sure you still have sound after switching Presets in between songs)

I thought I had this solved by creating a new setlist instead of adding my presets to the default preset setlist. Hadn't had a sound drop in months, until today during rehearsal. Again it happened immediately after switching a preset during a song. I opened a support ticket with Line 6. I see various other threads describing a similar problem, so hopefully they have a fix for it by now. Until then, I am going to transition to using SNAPSHOTS ONLY for scene changes within a single song. Not sure if that is a viable workaround, but I don't think I've ever had the problem when switching snapshots. Sucks because there are a few songs in our set where I like a completely different amp model for clean vs. high gain, which means using preset banks rather than just snapshots. Would love to know if anybody else above has received a response or fix from Line 6 on this. If there is no solution, I will unfortunately have to give up the Stomp for something else. I think I will put a deposit on Neural DSP quad cortex just in case. EDIT: Just read in another thread that you can have more than one Amp block in a straight (i.e. un-split) Preset signal path, which I did not realize before. Therefore, it is still possible to have two different amps in a Preset and use snapshots to switch between them. However, it uses a lot of DSP, so you may find your choices for the second Amp(+Cab) are limited. And, of course, with only 6 blocks available on the stomp, you'll need to be creative/economical with effects. Still, IF this bug only occurs when switching Presets, this might be the best workaround for reliable live use.

Yes I am on v2.82 firmware. I did notice that it happened while I was browsing presets, although I can't remember exactly the sequence of events immediately before it happened. Is it possible that this is related to the EXP1 and EXP2 issue that seems to affect other Helix devices? I use a Mission Line 6 expression pedal with my Stomp. Anybody else using an expression pedal? I am going to create a new setlist and remove all of the factory presets, to see if I can start to isolate the conditions that lead to the problem. Typically my custom presets have just been added into empty slots on the default setlist with everything else in there.

Grrr. This just happened to me WITHOUT my USB cable connected to the Stomp. Now I am worried. Anybody open a support ticket yet? If so, any feedback from Line 6?

Hey salty09, Just to report back, I am definitely loving the Powercab Plus more, now that I run my HX Stop at max volume. The bottom end is definitely there. For example, using the US Deluxe Nrm amp model with 1x12 US Deluxe cab block, I can get a nice warm tone that is very similar to my Fender Deluxe Reverb tube amp. Not sure what guitar(s) you are using, but my strat on the neck pickup sounds great, lots of spank, clarity and full bottom end, too. I've got the Deluxe Compressor block in front and the '63 Spring reverb after, which sounds better than ever. The reverb is really opened up compared to when I built my patches with Stomp volume at 12 o'clock. Took it to rehearsal too and had no problem keeping up with a Bassbreaker 30W, in fact I had tons of headroom on the Powercab. I know you aren't playing loud, but just fyi I think it truly is better across the board. Again, this is mostly in flat mode, with cab simulation on the Stomp. I did try out some of the Powercab speaker models again, too, and they also sounded much better to me than before.

Hey Bob, the PowerCab PLUS has the L6 LINK connection, which I believe allows you to switch speaker sims (and other parameters) directly from the Helix. I don't use it because I have an HX Stomp which does not have L6 LINK. But if you have a floor or rack Helix, I assume that is how you would accomplish that. As far as live setup, there are a fair number of options but yes you would probably run the Helix into PC+ and then PC+ to FOH via XLR out. If you are using the PC+ in Flat mode, the audience will hear your modeler's cab sim through the PA and so will you, on stage through the PC+. If you use a speaker sim in PC+, you will hear that un-mic'd on stage, while the PC+ will apply a mic simulation to the XLR out, which you can adjust in the settings. You can also load IRs into the PC+, in which case I believe both you and the audience will hear the same thing. I'm no expert, so I will you link you to the manual, below! https://line6.com/data/6/0a020a4107835d2fac0e63b03/application/pdf/Powercab Manual - English .pdf

p.s. I am monitoring the Stomp's gain levels in my DAW (Ableton or Logic) with the Stomp connected directly to my computer via USB.

Hey salty09, Are you running your Helix on MAX volume? I was just doing a lot of research on these forums and actually reading my Stomp and Powercab plus owner's manuals. As an experiment, I ended up changing my Stomp Volume knob to control headphones only, which sets the main output to maximum volume. So of course I had to go into my presets and back down the channel volumes on the amp blocks and also the output gain. Basically, following tidbits of advice, I design my patches so the final gain is the same as when all the blocks are bypassed, say around -12db, and then adjust the output gain so the max gain (i.e. on a lead/solo snapshot) hits approx -6db, which is where my Powercab Plus starts flickering into orange on the input signal light. The end result is the Powercab, and my Stomp in general, sounds way better. More full sounding, better response to my touch and dynamics, even naturally occurring harmonics and overtones; it just feels way more like an amp and it is also super loud without being harsh. Not sure if that helps you at all, it has just been my revelation of the past 24 hours. I'm now under the impression that Helix devices were designed to sound best when the Vol knob is maxed and that the Powercab was calibrated to sound best when Helix patches were designed in this way. I'm going to test some of the default presets to confirm, and then also re-visit the speaker models in my Powercab Plus, as I am still running it in Flat mode.

Not sure if you kept your Powercab, but I assume you have the low cut switch OFF on the Powercab? I have the Powercab Plus and generally love it, as I got it for using live. To me the Powercab seems really designed to be used live and in a band setting where you need to cut through the mix. I use it in Flat mode with my HX Stomp and I actually keep the low cut on the Powercab off, but set a low cut in my cab sims on Stomp to around 80 Hz. So far it is working out for me, but most of my playing is with some distortion and really my focus is getting the mids to pop out. Ironically, I feel the speaker models in the Powercab harder to dial in, it seems like the mids are always scooped a bit and I have to compensate in my presets. So, I prefer Flat mode, but you might try the speaker models to get a warmer tone. That said, for bedroom use or even live acoustic or something like that, or even a lot of clean electric playing with high reverb, Powercab probably wouldn't be my choice. I can't get my Stomp and Powercab to sound as warm as my Fender Deluxe Reverb amp for clean tones. I can get the brightness and clarity, but there is still something missing in terms of warmth, especially with reverb. At bedroom levels, I much prefer playing through my Yamaha THR. Warmth for days, whatever the volume. Way easier on the ears and all the settings sound good out of the box. That said, even if the THR was loud enough, I feel like it wouldn't have the bite to cut through in a live setting. So yeah, unless you are using it live in a full band, your other cab solutions might be a better fit.

Seems to work for me. I am able to load Celestion IRs into my PowerCab 112 Plus. But they must be 48k, 200 ms, and Mono. Any of the other Celestion IR formats fail to load.

My PowerCab 112 Plus, as delivered and even after updating to firmware 2.00.1, has 2 IR slots labelled "Unity" immediately after the 6 including Allure IRs. Their level is set to -6.0 dB. Anybody know why those are there?

You're not dense. What version of HX Edit are you using? You may have to upgrade to see everything. Slightly different scenario, as I have HX Stomp, but 'Setlist Import/Export' (in yellow) didn't even show in the HX Edit interface until I upgraded HX Edit to version 2.82.