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theElevators

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Everything posted by theElevators

  1. Guitar pad is a single non-adjustable volume cut. Some guitars are much hotter than others. There is no global gain control... (bummer!!). To overcome this, you have various options: 1. Use a wireless such as a Shure, and cut the volume or boost the signal on the receiver. That's what I personally do if my main guitar breaks my spare guitar needs a 3 DB boost on everything so all the filters work the same way, etc. 2. In the beginning of your chain, add a volume block that add/cuts the signal. You can assign it to a button in the pedalboard mode, to get the desired level. 3. Add a gain block at 0 in the beginning of every preset. Once you decide what guitar you are using at the gig, adjust the gain before the show and save every preset. Very easy. In the other band I kept switching up the guitars, since it was just "rock". So I would re-do my presets a couple of weeks before the show, once I made up my mind which axe I was using. 4. Build your presets with multiple inputs. Some people claim it adds certain noise, but in my testing it worked flawlessly. Here's a video how to set it up, if needed: Every guitar is different. Every guitar has a different EQ. To REALLY make all your guitars sound and behave similarly, you need to measure what each guitar does, and compensate. That's what Billy Gibbons's guitar tech did--he stored various EQ/gain settings for all his different guitars, that way he could play an SG, a Tele, or whatever else and the sound would be very very close.
  2. Are you running a recent firmware version? First do back up your helix, reset to factory, restore from backup. Try re-saving every preset. Add a block, save. Remove a block, save.
  3. Is your EXP 1 selected in all snapshots? Or are there snapshots where it switches to EXP 2?
  4. Helix can run 4 signal paths. Granted, you will sacrifice DSP, so you won't be able to add as many blocks as you want, if you take your processing power and slice it by 4. You won't be able to go to town with your effects at all. In terms of things going wrong... It's difficult to make adjustments to your balance live. That's the biggest issue that I see. Also, no preset works 100% when you first try to use it live, so the EQ / gain will most likely need to be tweaked. Add to that, the fact that you have multiple presets--it just becomes an unnecessary pain. Imagine, the vocal microphone starts feeding back in the middle of the song, for example. If you only control one thing (guitar), then you can quickly reach down, turn yourself down, etc. Now if you're running 3 things, then you will start to scramble. Second issue: monitoring situation. The beauty of running your guitar through the Helix is that you can control your on-stage volume yourself, while the XLRs are left to the sound guy. Now you lose that ability to quickly make volume adjustments, because Helix does not come with a hands-on mixer. I guess you can let the sound guy control your balance of all 3 things. But I would not recommend this. For home rehearsals, if you have HX Edit open and you can quickly make adjustments: levels, increase reverb, etc.
  5. Yes you are correct! Snapshot Edits is the setting indeed. Basically you can change that setting, that way you won't have to resave your layout 8 times. Then revert it. The stackable snapshots are a new-ish feature. I personally don't have any use for it, because if the layout changes, it will throw me off. But if you toggle 2 sounds back and forth, maybe it's easier to assign both changes to the same button. There are so many possibilities, whatever floats your boat! You can also have 2 buttons "next" and "prev" to cycle through all 8 of your snapshots. So if you play a song that has 8 sounds, you can simply create a snapshot for each, and order them accordingly. But you may wear out your "next" button pretty fast lol
  6. use 2 independent paths. IMO it's not worth it, unless you have a small coffee shop gig. Too many things can go wrong. I have a video how to set up independent paths: You can create a template preset, then make copies of it and tweak it. That's what I do--I copy a preset and modify it, I never build something completely from scratch, because I have figured out my "rig". By default, new presets have 2 signal paths. All you need to do is tweak the input and the output, and 2 things will be routed independently. You can route each path to a different output: Return 1, 2, 1/4" XLR, or EVERYTHING.
  7. well, that was for everybody, for a few days. now it clearly works ;)
  8. try cleaning it with deoxIT. Pretty sure you can just drip it down the shaft.
  9. Toe switch.... meaning click the pedal in? Yes, you can bypass/un-bypass different things within a preset. I only know how to do this in HX Edit. 1. Add a block, for example distortion. 2. Right-click on the block, select "Bypass Assign", scroll down to "EXP Pedal Toe". 3. Remove all other bypass assignments, such as "snapshot bypass" 4. Now, the block will only be bypassed/un-bypassed when you click the pedal in. End-result: when you click the pedal in, you are able to toggle the on-off state of a given block. Save your blocks in a specific state. If you assign multiple blocks similarly to how I described, you are able to toggle on/off multiple blocks. You can turn one block on, turn another off. Or turn on two blocks, while turning off a third block, and vice versa. Helix toggles the bypass state, against what is saved in your preset. If you want to have the toe switch toggle between distortion and wah, then turn one thing on, turn another thing off, both assigned to the same toe switch. I personally can't stand this toe switch, and instead use snapshots, where I mix "OUT" certain block that are not needed, and mix "IN" blocks that I want to control within a specific snapshot. By mixing out, I mean, I set the "MIX" parameter value at 0, that mean whether or not the block is turned on or off, the sound remains unchanged. Learn how to assign block parameters to snapshots, it's pretty useful: simply right-click on the parameter and assign to snapshots, you'll get brackets around the value, and you can save those values to be different within each snapshot.
  10. These are "stackable" snapshots. You need to select each snapshot, and re-do the assignments of all the buttons 8 times and save each time. You basically have an ability to have 8 different layouts, depending on which snapshot is currently selected. In other words, all buttons can completely change every time you select a particular snapshot in pedalboard view. So you can toggle through all your sound changes by pressing the same button. I personally find it unnecessary.... There's a workaround to not have to do this, the way it worked several versions ago: In Global Settings, change the setting for Snapshot Edits. After you save everything, you can revert that setting back. Otherwise, yeah, you need to do this multiple times. It's more complicated, but gives you extra flexibility!
  11. Pod Go is not a professional-grade piece of equipment. Helix is pretty good, but not perfect. ALL Line 6 gear has absolutely garbage footswitches... ALL! As a touring guitarist, I can tell you that you need to constantly maintain your gear to make sure everything works 100%, and ALWAYS have a backup with you. I don't play bass lines with my feet, just switch my sounds around 6 times per song. I have 2 Helixes: LT for home practicing and all the outdoor gigs and Floor one that I baby and only use at professional gigs. The Floor quickly developed an intermittent issue with 2 buttons not always engaging after a year and a half. Got it cleaned and now it's fine. Also the expression pedal was note screwed in right from the factory, so I had to disassemble it and tighten the screws of the claw, otherwise it would start drifting and loosening. I have mine in Space Gray, and the paint is of really bad quality and scratches easily. My LT which I used a lot more has been almost completely fine, except the same 2 buttons stopped being as reliable, but still always worked, unlike on the Floor. I also bought it used, and it just seems a lot more solid. Cleaned the footswitches, and everything works 100% after 5 years. My Pod Go--one of the footswitches started crapping out after a month and a half of use! I again cleaned the switches and it's been fine. I only used it live 4 times lol. The footswitch design is even worse than on the Helix line. You have your metal button inside the plastic. It attracts dirt, it oxidizes, and starts getting scratchy/crunchy. It's a shame really. If it were built better, it would have been an amazing machine. The sounds out of it are fantastic. It's truly a mini-Helix, just not built for serious live gigs where you don't want your buttons to **** fail!! Line 6's biggest selling point is their usability of their gear. To set up snapshots is a piece of cake, meanwhile on other boards you really need to jump through hoops, e.g. FM9... way too complicated for no reason, also limited in terms of what's allowed in the signal chain. If you want reliable modeller, go with the Fractal FM9, for example. Their footswitch design is contactless (SSS), so they should never wear out or require cleaning, like on the Helix. The only problem I've heard from Fractal boards is the internal battery sometimes fails and you lose all your presets! That battery should last around 10 years, but some users claimed that their board lost all presets within a month. Helix doesn't use a battery btw. Every other modeller has the same crappy tactile switches and they go bad, that's just how they are built. I think it's a deliberate point of failure so people would spend more money and buy more gear. Even with tactile switches, if they used gold-plated ones that cost 5 dollars per switch, they would last forever. But instead, it's cheap Chinese junk. My coffee maker has higher quality switches. My cheap Chinese mechanical computer keyboard has all its buttons still working. My 19-year-old Nord electro keyboard had every single footswitch working flawlessly. In terms of portable wireless units, Shure GLXD16+is the only thing that is not a piece of garbage.... if you want to have a reliable professional system. Everything else that is cheaper is a toy. Shure is for serious musicians and is very reliable. I played outdoor festivals, clubs in Israel, all over Europe, Canada and all over the US. This is the new industry standard for "non-stadium" live acts. If you are playing a stadium, then you need something with even better frequency management and range. If you want more info, visit my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@accidentals_hacks
  12. Everything that I have in my presets works identically. Check your cables, a cable crapping out can do all sorts of weird things to your tone/tracking. I've seen that myself on several occasions. Also check that you are in fact using the same blocks as before...
  13. Every guitar is different. But I would add a nice tube compressor and 10-band EQ to get rid of the noisy/scratchy highs. The EQ is very powerful and can completely transform the sound of your guitar.
  14. Check that you are using headphones without the microphone line. Just a thought. Helix only supports a stereo signal, not a triple signal jack...
  15. Check Global Settings / EXP Pedals. You can have EXP 1 and EXP 2 position persist globally, per preset, or per snapshot. You probably have it set "Per Snapshot"? I have my EXP pedals set to "Per Preset" (which makes the most sense to me). I have EXP 2 controlling 6 different things in one of my presets. Some blocks are audible in certain snapshots (mix = 100%), while in others the blocks that are not applicable are mixed out (mix = 0%). I also have some blocks auto-engage, when I put the expression pedal past 5%, for example wah, or tremolo. I need my expression pedal to remain where I leave it when I change to a different snapshot. Also, when I first enter the preset, I want the first sound that you hear without any wah/tremolo/freeze, etc. So I save the preset with the EXP 2 at 0%. And even if I forget to put the expression pedal in the heel position prior to switching to that preset, none of the bells and whistles will be audible: wah/tremolo/freeze will be off. I use a preset-per-song approach, and that's why this setting works for me. Some people like to use a global volume pedal, and they use it to set their overall volume. They have a volume block in all their presets, and assign the EXP 1 or 2 to the same block in all their presets. In Global Settings, they set EXP 1 or 2 to "Global". That means that once you set the pedal to a specific percentage, its settings remain the same when you change presets. I cannot think of any other application of setting EXP pedals to persist globally, except this. If you set it "Per Snapshot", then both of your expression pedals will jump to the value saved in each snapshot. You gotta make sure that when you save your snapshots, you first put the expression pedal in the desired position. For example 17% in snapshot 1, 68% in snapshot 2. When you change snapshots, that's where your expression pedal percentage will go to, regardless of where your physical expression pedal is. You start rocking the pedal, and the Helix now reflects the change. Helix is very flexible, and supports lots of different workflows. Highly customizable... So you can choose the settings that make sense to you.
  16. Helix allows you to add Global EQ to 1/4", XLR or both outputs. When building presets, forget that Global EQ exists. Make it sound good coming out of mixing monitors. An intended way to use your modeller is to send XLR L/R to FOH, and use 1/4" for stage volume, to be able to hear yourself. Or use in-ears. In order to hear themselves on stage, many people use an FRFR, a power amp + cab, or go into an effects loop of an amp + cab. In all 3 cases (with some exceptions), there is no way to adjust your EQ. So. If you go direct to FOH, then: Global EQ is meant to be able to adjust your on-stage sound and nothing else. Sometimes you go to play a show and the stage is super-resonant, and it keeps rattling when you play a certain note or chord. Or the stage is surrounded by ceramic tile, and your ears are hurting because everything is loud and shrill. Global EQ to the rescue! Unlike your typical amp high/mid/low, Global EQ is extremely flexible. When I toured, I mostly left the Global EQ off for the on-stage amp. However, since the clubs I played were not all huge, sometimes the on-stage sound would interfere with the overall mix. That's when the sound guy would ask me to adjust my sound a certain way. Or sometimes, the stage is too boomy, and I would have to make the adjustment myself so I would not sound like one of those cars with a giant subwoofer in the trunk! In summary: Leave the direct FOH mix to the sound guy. Don't add any Global EQ to the XLR outs. Sound guys can apply whatever EQ they want to what you are sending them. Use Global EQ to compensate for the unforeseen stage acoustics. And nothing else. Every room is different. Even if you play with the same exact lineup, same exact club, same exact sound guy several days in a row, the room may sound different on any day due to: humidity, temperature, number of people, where people are, how worn out your strings are.
  17. Always back up before you start any experiments, it's quick and easy. Maintain all iterations of your backup files, so you can go back and retrieve something from last week. Keep multiple copies of your presets in different set lists, in case you accidentally break something and you have 10 minutes before you need to start playing your show.
  18. Order your presets in the order of your show. Press "mode" and enter your stomp view. Then as you play the show, keep pressing "up" to play the next song. You will remain in the stomp view. Processors with 1000s of preset options like the Helix were meant to allow a preset-per-song approach. Most bands who play live follow a set list order that they figured out beforehand. That's how I use the Helix, and many bands who use sounds specific to each song do the same. If you have fewer presets than the song in your set--no problem! Just copy the same preset over, rename it to correspond to the name of the song, and reorder it in your set list. It's so convenient. You won't even need to have a paper set list with you... I used to play 24-song sets, and organizing the presets in the set order was a lifesaver. One button press, and you are in the next song. And I did exactly what I explained above--some songs had identical sounds, but still the preset was named after each song. You can even keep one set folder of your "master" presets, and use other folders (aka set lists) where you create copies of the same presets, but name them differently. What do you think?
  19. On the Helix LT the external pedal will always be EXP 2. On the Floor you can have EXP 2 and EXP3 (one more external pedal). On the Helix rack, you can have all 3 pedals. You cannot toggle between 0--100% wah and 0--100% volume by simply sweeping the pedal. That could also get extremely confusing! Helix allows you to enable/disable different blocks if you bypass-assign these blocks to an expression pedal. Basically, you can invert the bypassed/un-bypassed status of multiple blocks. So you can un-bypass your wah, while at the sam etime bypassing the volume, and vice versa. Steps: First, for both blocks remove all the default bypass behavior in HX edit (such as toe switch bypass). Also remove the Snapshot Bypass assignment for both blocks (right-click in HX Edit, uncheck "Snapshot Bypass". Make sure in the "Bypass Assign" section, nothing is selected. In HX Edit, right-click on the first block, select bypass assign, select EXP 2. IN Bypass/controller assign section, you have several parameters to specify: Position: percentage of where your pedal is before the effect is bypassed/un-bypassed Wait: When your expression pedal is lower the the percentage specified above, after how many milliseconds to return the block to the original state And you can leave the behavior as Toggle. In your specific preset and snapshot, save the wah block as bypassed, and volume block as un-bypassed. Assign the volume pedal percentage and the wah position to EXP 2-- by default both blocks will not be both using EXP2, so you need to change that. Then for the wah block, select Bypass Assign, select EXP 2: * Set the position at 99%. Set the "wait" value to 1000 MS, leave everything else as is. Then for the volume block, select Bypass Assign, select EXP 2: 2. Set the position at 99%, Set the "wait" value to 1000 MS, leave everything else as is. End result: you can use your volume pedal from 0--99% of the EXP pedal path. If you go to the toe position, volume pedal will turn off, and the wah will start working. You will be able to do your Voodoo Chile Hendrix things. But once you put the EXP pedal in the position of 99% or less, after a full second the wah will switch off and volume pedal will turn on. --- ALTERNATIVELY Simply bypass/un-bypass either block in specific snapshots. Snapshot 1 will have wah enabled/volume disabled; Snapshot 2 will be the opposite. While both blocks are controlled by the same EXP 2 pedal, only one will be audible. You can still use the percentage-based engagement of the either block in specific snapshots. You can assign both blocks to the same EXP 2 pedal, but "mix out" the block you don't want to use: assign the "mix" parameter to snapshots, and set to 0% or 100% for either block. That's what I personally use: I control 5 different things with one expression pedal in one preset, but only one thing is being heard in each snapshot, because I'm using the "mix" parameter for these blocks. https://youtu.be/GskCbzmKXGU?si=7H_ZEozIJoYsC_tj https://youtu.be/H5PMjg-oZJ8?si=WI0b3HNpM4ZNG-B1
  20. If you want to remove the the up/down buttons while still using all 8 snapshots, then you can again accomplish this using the Command Center. Recreate the snapshot layout without up/down buttons, with 10-stomp mode enabled. The video I had posted earlier accomplishes exactly that: If you want to simply always remove up/down buttons everywhere, there is no way to do so. You can use 2 Grolsch washers on each button to make the buttons more difficult to press.
  21. You can change the layout of your Helix, but that only applies to the stomp mode. You can either add individual/multiple effects and assign them to various footswitches, and/or you can assign preset changes/snapshots--the latter can only be done with the Command Center. So in essence, your Helix will have 2 layouts: the regular default one, and another one that you can go into if you press the "mode" button. If you are using Helix LT (which you are), then you cannot repurpose up/down buttons to do anything else, besides up/down. Helix LT allows you to assign things to only 8 footswitches in the stomp view. You can however remove the functionality for up/down buttons to make them do absolutely nothing using a hack--uploading Global Settings with 10-stomp mode enabled from Helix Floor. It's a hack, and not intended functionality. That is something that I personally use, and you can watch this video to see how to do it: https://youtu.be/UTQ8wJaXZnc?si=rZ1xHjcUP0VP1eQ8 To be able to use all 10 footswitches for presets/snapshots/stomps, you need to buy the Helix Floor or Rack. Once you enable "10-button stomp" in Global Settings, then you can assign all 10 buttons as you please.
  22. Try to reset to factory settings and see if it starts working. Part of the upgrade process is to reset to factory settings, and then restore from the backup you had created.
  23. I have played at several stages where it seems only I was suffering from the ground loop noise. I use a power amp + cab as a personal monitor. To solve the ground loop, I had to power on my power amp from a completely different power source—an outlet on the other side of the stage and a long extension cord.
  24. Yeah harmonics are not exactly in tune and have added overtones that throw some tuners off. When you tune your guitar there is no reason to play the harmonics.
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