PatMarrNC

The ideal ready made patch would include a clean amp, swell, reverb with a long tail, and a bunch of snapshots that have expression pedal settings that use a pitch or harmony effect to create the various chordal bends that are the signature sound of a pedal steel. If such a patch already exists, please direct me to it. Til then, I'll keep experimenting.

Funny how music takes people in different directions. I participate in a number of music forums, but all of them appeal to certain aspects of the craft, and I find that I don't fit in equally well everywhere. On recording forums I'm the odd man because I prefer live performance... on song writer's forums I'm the odd man because I like to play cover songs... on cover song forums, I'm the odd man because usually people are playing their version, while I'm trying to reproduce the original sound... on live streaming sites I'm the odd man because everybody else shows up with a mic and an acoustic, while I have backing tracks and MIDI controlled everything... on band sites I'm the odd man because I play solo... on pedal board sites I'm the odd man because I don't like stomping on pedals, I like MIDI control... This is the first forum I've joined where it seems like a high number of people are doing what I'm doing: buying gear for the express purpose of recreating sounds from thousands of original recordings.. and controlling the complexity with MIDI. We're a small niche of the musical webosphere, but I can tell already there is a lot of knowledge here, and I think this forum is the best fit for me. I look forward to getting to know y'all.

thanks to everybody for your input and suggestions! I ordered a scratch & Dent JTV-69 from sweetwater and it arrived yesterday... which means I spent the entire day playing with it. So far, very happy with what I hear. I am a man who embraces workarounds. Its an imperfect world, and as long as I get from point A to point B one way or another, I'm a happy camper. One observation is that the 12 string guitars don't sound as "12 stringy" as I'd like, so I'd like to hear your suggestions for enhancing the sound of a 12 string. Especially for the solo in the Byrds/ Tom Petty song "Feel a whole lot better when you're gone" Also, I know that leaving the regular 1/4" cable plugged in drains the battery... but is there any similar disadvantage to leaving the Variax cable plugged in? What do the rest of you do regarding the variax cable? Keep it plugged in? Or take it out when you shut things down?

thanks for weighing in Soundog. I appreciate the info.

what a great idea, Codamedia! Thanks for sharing the idea. Even if it isn't a perfect solution, it gives me a starting point, and I appreciate that!

wow, that is definitely cool Gtrman100... Is variax workbench a free program that I download from the line6 web site? I pulled the pin and ordered a scratch & dent model from Sweetwater yesterday, so I'll be needing that pretty soon I guess.

thanks for the great response GTRMAN100! You mention the ability to blend the modeled tone with the magnetic pickups. Does the Variax cable also capture the mag pickups? Or do I need to have a conventional cable plugged in to get both signals? Also, am I correct in thinking that the variax cable is NOT included when buying a variax? In other words, when I order the guitar, will I also need to order a cable?

I hear ya, Amsdenj! "Never say never"... who knows what the future holds, right? Having said that, there are a lot of online music streaming opportunities. Whereas they were once the place where amateurs went to get their moment in the sun, covid has forced a lot of pros to streaming, so audience expectations are a lot higher now. Its nice to keep your gear set up in a streaming space and never have to schlep gear up stairs or across town. My other hobby is animation, and a lot of streaming sites are compatible with OBS studio, which allows green screen. This lets me add background animations to my shows. A lot of sites also allow tipping, so you can make money playing online. Not a lot, but its like busking. If you're bored, jump online for 30 minutes and make a little money. Really, the availability of online streaming and the lack of work involved have made it the better option, as compared to playing out. But I play solo, not with a full band. With a band, the real gig would make more sense.

Donkelly, thanks for taking time to write such a detailed response. You have a lot of information to share, and I appreciate your willingness to share it! As stated above, I have a couple of GK-3 pickups installed on various guitars that rarely get used, and if there is clearance for it on whatever variax I end up buying, I'll probably go ahead and install one on the variax. That way I'll have all the integration between the Variax and Helix, PLUS guitar synth and COSM modeling where it may be preferable.

Thanks Codamedia! Good information!

Spikey, thanks for the honest feedback. I know it ain't all flowers and rainbows, so I appreciate hearing a reality check. Thanks for taking time to voice your thoughts on the matter.

Brue58ski, you make great points and I thank you for taking time to weigh in. I have a couple of nice guitars to pass onto my son, so a purchase that doesn't meet that criteria is OK with me. The lowest cost standard would meet my needs, and it's in the price range of a spare guitar, so I'm willing to spend that much for a toy that will keep me interested for quite a while to come. My gigging days are over except for online streaming, and from what I've read so far, a Variax would satisfy all of the needs I have for that scenario. If I sell half the gear I accumulated for playing live, I can easily buy a variax and have money left over. That pretty much takes price out of the equation. The other gear is just collecting dust anyway, so I reclaim space in my music room and get a new toy. Winning! As far as the life expectancy of the variax, in terms of its support: I'm 68 years old. Pretty sure the variax AND its support will outlive me.

well, Dorfnar, if your goal was to throw more gas on the fire... mission accomplished! I will probably add a GK-3 pickup too. Because too much is never enough. Next stop: see what the limit is on my charge card.... maybe I don't have to wait til I pay off the helix... You know, I think Line6 ought to offer a special deal to anyone who buys a helix or a variax. Once they've bought one, they should get a special deal on the other. It makes sense. Its in their best interest to put more people out there with this combination.

Oh, Maaaaan, Joe... you really know how to throw gasoline on the fire!! Yeah I know, I've been checking prices there and on reverb.com , craigslist and ebay. I just missed the presidents day 15% off sale at Guitar Center. Considering the fact that I just bought the Helix, I'll probably pay it off then buy the variax. Buuuuut.. if you see any sales, let me know!

firehawkkwah, Thanks for sharing your experience with the Variax. My use will likely be very similar to yours

I realize that you weren't suggesting using the Roland instead of a variax... that was just negative me trying to talk positive me out of spending money. But I'm single, so there is nobody here to talk me out of it for long. So a Variax is probably in my future. Thanks again for taking time to reply with such helpful information!

thanks again Waymda... you have told me everything I hoped to hear, including some things I didn't know I needed to ask until you told me! Your workarounds for the artifacts are brilliant, and I would have never figured any of that out on my own, so thanks for that information! Hopefully I won't forget it by the time I buy the variax. What a great resource to be able to pick the brains of experienced users from around the world. The internet is awesome.

Thanks Hey_Joe! I appreciate you taking time to write such an informative and useful response. I suppose I could run the GR-55 into the Helix, using the GR-55 for guitar modelling and the Helix for amp modeling... but then I'd lose the programmability that would be available when using the two line 6 products together. Part of my goal in moving to the helix is to increase the automation of my set list. Every moment spent fiddling with a device makes my audience smaller. Your recommendation to buy a standard is the 2nd such endorsement. If the standard has the same feature set as the more expensive models, it would be a no-brainer.; But I'm willing to spend more if it actually get more capability for the extra money.

thanks Waymda! Good information! Always happy to read positive reviews rather than warnings! So, if I understand correctly, you prefer the standard Variax (the one that resembles a strat) because it also plays like a strat? That is good to know, because my current go-to guitar is a strat, and I love the way it plays. There is a tendency to think that a higher price means a better instrument, and the standard Variax is the least expensive of all the models, so without your endorsement, I might have discounted it as a possibility. But I see they are made by Yamaha, and I have high regard for their products. Just bought a yamaha acoustic AC5R and I love it. I mostly play on online streaming sites, and I depend on technology to keep things moving because the audience will click away in a heartbeat if I have to stop to retune or mess with a pedal. The variax+ Helix ability to have preprogrammed tunings and patch changes embedded in each song sequence, activated by MIDI will provide a hands-free and fast transition from song to song. Thanks for your detailed response. You probably just made up my mind to buy one! Aside from design/appearance does anybody know if the variax features remain the same from model to model? Do they all have the same guitar models? The same predefined tunings?

Helix Rack Noob again. Still in my learning curve, and I'm reading a lot about the advantages a Variax brings to the equation. I've never been exposed to one, but I have had several guitar synths, so I have a general idea about what synthetic guitar sounds like. My question for those who use a Variax: how is the latency? In a Roland COSM device, analog to MIDI has more latency, but the COSM modelling is virtually free of any delay. If the same thing is true of the Variax, I can foresee one in my future. Of most interest is the ability to change tunings without latency or audio artifacts Your thoughts? Thanks in advance for any information you can provide. This is a great community, full of smart people. Lots of good information being exchanged here.

thank Ilya-V for taking time to respond! I appreciate your willingness to share your knowledge with others

Looking for "best practices" advice. I want to use MIDI commands embedded in my sequences to control patch parameters on the fly. For example, when the guitar solo begins, I may need to increase gain or volume, then bump it back after the solo ends. Is this best accomplished by creating a rhythm and a lead snapshot, and using MIDI to change snapshots? Or is it better / possible to use instant commands to directly control the volume or gain property of a patch? I'm just getting started, and I'd like to know the best way to approach this from the beginning so I don't make a lot of messed up patches that need to be fixed later. I already have the unofficial helix MIDI guide, so no need to explain either procedure... I just want to know the general consensus on the best way to approach the task. Thanks in advance to anyone who is willing to take time to respond. I appreciate the help. I should probably add that I have the Helix rack, but I did not get the foot controller, expecting to control it entirely with MIDI.

thanks rd2rk for the useful spreadsheet and helpful explanation! Thanks rvroberts for the more detailed explanation about DSP, including the IR vs CAB consideration. Very useful information for me at this stage of my learning curve.

Hi everybody, total HELIX noob here. So far I'm loving it and finding it to be easy to use... but while customizing downloaded user patches I noticed that not all effects are available for all patches. For example, in a couple of patches I wanted to add an impulse response, but that feature was greyed out in the editor making it impossible to select. At other times, certain Dynamics options or EQ options were greyed out. What is the rule that limits what can be added to a patch? Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.