PierM

Correct. But if you read above in this thread, have been said they don't want our Variax guitars to reach the repair bench, which does imply these batteries aren't safe for the variax electronics. Also, you can read similar warnings on the variax FB group...but as you, I never found a single real story about this. Lithium batteries are no joke when it's about overcharging, or something goes wrong during the charge/discharge process, especially on extremely tight installations (see smartphones, tablets catching fire etc...). So I'd really appreciate to know more about this.

Then they arent selling Fractal's ready iRs, just misleading their customers. :) File format and SysEx ID Fractal Audio's modelers process IRs in MIDI System Exclusive format (.syx). Capturing IRs creates WAVE files (.wav). WAVE files can be converted into SYX files using Cab-Lab, to be imported into the hardware. The editors for the 3rd generation processors can also directly import WAVE files and convert these on the fly into SYX format. When using Cab-Lab to convert WAV files to UltraRes resolution, and when using IR Capture to create IRs, two files are created: an IR file (.ir) and a SYX file (.syx). The .IR file is raw IR data which can be imported into Cab-Lab for mixing purposes. Cab-Lab is the only application that can handle .IR files. After conversion from WAVE to SYX, IRs have a sysex ID baked in. They are device-specific. Each amp modeler from FAS has a different sysex ID. This means that a generated SYX file can't be used by every FAS processor.

You can't use .wav files in AxeFx. You always need to convert to .syx via CabLab. I would find odd that they are selling a package that needs to be converted, so Im guessing they are just using a wrong term for that product. At this point I'd ask them if they are actually .wav or .syx. I have many commercial iRs, multiformat, and those for AxeFx are all in .syx.

Fractal does use waveforms formatted as ".syx", which is proprietary. You can't use these in the Helix.

Im also genuinely curious to know what's the risk of using third party batteries. Im asking as a guy who knows something about electronics, not a polemic intent, really curious. As for protections, they ALL have regular ICs, such the standard package 8205, DW01 etc, to protect from overcharge, overcurrents and overdischarge, and to manage things like Load Detection, Current sensor, charger detection etc, . Exactly like the L6. These "chips" are not optional for any Lithium/Polymer battery of that range and type. Without these protections a battery would blow up while charging. I disassembled an original L6 Variax Battery. I cant see anything special from any other battery of that type. Even batteries are super standard ICR18650NH I do understand the warranty warnings, but saying they will damage your variax is a bit of a bold statement, unless I see some proofs of this. :)

Yep, just opening the signal circuit would generate ground hum, like when you plug a guitar cable on the amp, without plugging it to the guitar.

Imho your best option here is to create your own kill switch pedal to be placed between guitar and helix (or whatever pedal you have in front of helix). Still not 100% like a real kill switch, but at least you can build something fast and reliable, that does what it should and sounds properly. You'd just need a little metal enclosure, a grounded (and fast) SPST button that you can step on quickly, and two mono 1/4" jacks. Wired Tip to Tip and Slave to Slave, then the switch placed in between the tip of one of the two jacks, and the slave of the other. When you press the switch you'll send signal to ground, and that's it. The important part here is that the circuit MUST be placed BEFORE any preamp, as if you place after a preamp you are shorting its loaded signal, creating a loud POP. Or just buy one of these; https://saturnworkspedals.com/product/kill-switch-pedal/

It's indeed VERY easy, especially on a passive pickup circuit. It's just a momentary switch wired between the volume pot out terminal and ground.

What you did isnt the same as the stutter effect done with switch or a kill switch, because in your case it happens after preamps (so there is impedance load) and just with a signal gate. Pretty much the same as assigning a gain block to a momentary FS, and moving from 0dB to -120dB when pressed. This is just a post preamp digital volume drop. Maybe is good enough for you, so you could experiment with gain blocks, or an A/B split that jumps from A (pass through normal chain) to B (dead end, -120dB). Still, wont sound like a real Kill Switch. :) PS: another important factor for the stutter effect, is how fast is a switch...and those tactile switch in the helix are pretty slow (lot of switch bounce between 0 and 1)

Nope. Isn't like a tremolo (that is just a modulation of the signal amplitude). :) The signal in this case is being sent to ground, so isn't a volume drop that whatever you do, you'd still get a clean signal decay. The only way to get the proper "pop" and vacuum effect is to short the signal, before this is being sent to preamps (typically just between volume pot and output jack). Of course you need a grounded switch, to avoid the buzz. Same thing when you do the effect with a Les Paul, switching between neck and bridge pup, one set to volume 100 and the other to 0. You are switching from a signal to output to a signal to ground, electrically and instantly.

It's hard to get that effect without going "electrical path", as it happens when signal is being sent to ground (so the signal is being instantly pulled). You usually get this by either pulling a toggle switch (a la Morello), or installing a Kill Switch that does send signal to ground when pressing the button. This should happen before hitting the preamps. With the helix you can just turn volume/gain signal from 100 to 0, which isn't the same thing, even if done with a footswitch set to momentary 100/0/100. I don't think it can be emulated properly.

You could try disabling the Helix Audio in the Device Management, under Sound, Video and Game Controllers. This should allow you to use HX Edit, but unloading HX ASIO.

Actually, by reading that guy, doesnt look like this solution is working, I mean, sounds really WIP and experimental (at least...); Conclusion: - If wiring directly to a cable: Follow wiring in this thread as it works perfectly bidirectionally. - If Wiring to work with wireless bluetooth (CME Widi Master or QuiccoSounf mi.1) - Invert the TX+ to Pin 5 and leave TX- disconnected. You will not have MIDI control from the Variax to external equipment though and due to reduced voltage/current, signal appears to be weaker. NOTE: not certain what could be the long term effect for the WIDI Master or Variax. I am jsut willing to take the risk for Wireless controll. PD. The Sendemodus command F0 00 01 0C 07 00 2A F7 is NOT needed if you just want to one way controll the Variax. It is requried though if you want to enable the Variax to send OUT MIDI, PC messages and CC (Volume and Tone). This is true for the Shuriken latest software version (I assume same for the JTV).

What do you mean with "stopped working"? Does it show up but without showing notes, or it just won't load the tuner page at all - when pressing the footswitch? In this case the first possible cause it the tactile switch failing, either because oxidation or end of life.

I couldnt access anymore with my old account via FB app (app is broken), so I had to do a new standard account. Now is working for me too.

There are like billions of discussions, examples, video tutorials from hundreds of players, line 6 live tuts on youtube and facebook, covering every single Helix/HX aspect. I mean, billions, literally.

If you are clocking the tempo I'd program a MIDI track with all the PC and CC you need for the song.

Totally down over here. Main Ideascale is working, but I cant access the L6 page.

Could be it's a Yamaha choice, but I wasn't doing any CT here. Not my style..:) This is from Thomann; "With great disappointment we have found that Line6 prevents shipments to the US. Please switch to other brands or choose another country of delivery."

DI USB reamp channels are 5 and 6. To avoid hearing the dry from HX Stomp, add a volume block and set it to minimum. This way you should only hear the DI passing through the DAW without the dry signal passing through the preset.

If you are getting crackles and pops I dont think its an AV problem, that was more a thing of the past with old gen invasive AVs. Windows defender is fine, just avoid disks scanning while doing music. Crackles and pops on a windows machine are more because too low audio buffer for the driver/system to handle, hard fault pages and random DPC calls. Suggest you to read this very solid guide to DAW optimization, especially for realtime VST (it's free); https://www.cantabilesoftware.com/glitchfree/

They are available at Thoman in good stock, but Line 6 expressly forbidden the shipping to US of his products. This company is acting weird lately, like doing everything they can to be abandoned from customers...

The only thing that matters for me it's how an instrument feels in my own hands. Everything else, really, I couldn't care less. I do have a big collection of guitars (from very expensive USA CS to cheap MiC), the only thing that I can really say it does differ, even between identical guitars, it's how they feels and react to my fingers. That's some sort of magics that can happen or not, doesn't matter how expensive, what wood or what pickup. My best instruments in terms of feeling, aren't the most expensive. It's a random thing, that I can't control in any way. Since the electric guitar, like any other instrument, does interact with the player (affecting the quality of the playing), I will keep thinking this is the most important thing when I buy them. Then, big variable when it's about electric guitars, it's what genre you do play and how you are processing your raw tone. Tonewood it's just a waste of time. :)

This could help you understanding how it works;

That's why clock and sync pulse exists; you dont just need to send a start command (that can drift depending on latency, buffers, jitter, dpc etc etc), but also how match the tempo of the master clock (through regular pulses timed as fraction of the BPM), and also stop commands. Even clocked loopers can drift as MIDI clock does suffer from heavy midi traffic, so unless it's just a clock being sent, even a wired clock couldnt be enough to keep things in sync. Usually you find this feature on high end loopers, but again, isnt a bullet proof system. Helix just doesnt respond to MIDI Sync so you cant do it. The only looper that I managed to have respecting clock and stay in sync forever without drifting, is the Echoplex Digital Pro Plus....yep, a 30 years old piece of gear.