shawnmx

It's been stated elsewhere on this forum that running cables into a Variax's digital input and its 1/4" input simultaneously will eventually fry the guitar's electronics. This has been brought up in cases where someone wants to connect both types of cables to a device like POD or Helix. Maybe it'd behave differently with the digital input connected to a computer instead but beware of the risk.

I've used 9's on my JTV69 for a few years and I think they play (and sound) fine. But I did go thru some ordeal getting the guitar back together after I took the factory 10's off. I'm kinda relieved to see some other people mentioning how the bridge will "pop loose" if you remove all of the string tension. I thought I was the only one who had this problem. Also, I'd not seen a trem bridge like this before and had no clue how to change the strings. There's a post in the old archived forum from me asking about it. I'm also curious to know how "blocking" the trem would help in keeping it from popping loose. It seems the only way this could work would be to push down on the tremolo arm and put the block under the back of the bridge while strings are being changed. I understand blocking a floating-style trem but JTV69 doesn't have a cavity underneath like a Floyd Rose would. Anyway, from here on out, I'm only ever gonna remove all the strings at one time if I absolutely have to.

Thanks for sharing those. I can see the delay in switching patches on the Firehawk. Not sure it's deal breaker level for me but it's good to see what it looks like in real time and compared to another processor.

Good to know. Thanks!

Thanks for the responses. I'm weighing the pros/cons between Firehawk and Helix and I like both for different reasons. (And of course, the price difference is a major factor.) Is anyone using Firehawk with either an L2t or an L2m (or other FRFR speaker)? I have an L2t and this is what I'd prefer to use with the Firehawk. The thing I really like about the Firehawk is the iOS editing. I'm visually impaired, so having a larger screen is nice (especially now with the iPad Pro). I don't live near any guitar shops that carry Line 6 stuff, so it's pretty much impossible to try these things out before buying.

Those of you using the Firehawk, especially at gigs, can you comment on any latency when switching patches? This seems to be a criticism that's come up often about the Firehawk. I know it was supposed to have been improved with a firmware update but I am still curious. I know it's a lot to ask but I'd love to see a short video/hear an audio clip of someone simply strumming some chords continuously and switching between patches in order to see what the latency (if any) is really like.

Tune the guitar as you normally would any guitar. If you create or use specialized tunings thru the modeling electronics, those tunings will be based on how the guitar strings are actually tuned. So, it's best to just tune the guitar to standard tuning. You can use any string gauge you want. I prefer 09's but that's just me. All Variax guitars ship with 10's and many people use and like that gauge.

Make sure the battery is properly seated in the charger and let it charge for at least 2-3 hours before putting the battery into the guitar. It probably doesn't have enough power right now to function properly.

If the Spider has an effects loop, you could set the amp to a "clean" setting and use the Helix thru the loop. If it doesn't, your only option would be to run the Helix in front of the amp (guitar >> Helix >> Spider). That's technically possible but it probably won't yield the best results. (Still, you can try it out and see what you think.) Overall, if the Spider doesn't have the loop, you may want to switch a different amp that does have one.

If you want actual help from the community, you should tell us some of the problems/symptoms you're having with the instrument. Or as TheRealZap has suggested, you can also file a support ticket. The few times I've done that over the years, I've always received good service.

Make sure the guitar is unplugged while not in use. Leaving a cable connected may cause the battery to drain even when you're not playing.

If you're wondering if you can transfer your existing tones from the HD500 to the HD150, I'd say it's unlikely. I'm pretty sure the two units don't use the same modeling engine. If you're hoping to use the HD500 to control the HD150 in place of a floorboard, that just flat out won't work. Take cruisinon2's advice. Don't run two modeling devices like this in the same chain. I'd suggest finding a comparable amp to the HD150 that has an effects loop and using the HD500 with that.

If your iOS device has a Lightning port, this is what you want: http://www.apple.com/shop/product/MD821AM/A/lightning-to-usb-camera-adapter There are imitators out there but they tend to be unreliable.

To the best of my understanding (I may be wrong), the mags are completely passive. If you run a standard guitar cable from the 1/4" output into an amp and get no sound at all with the modeling turned off, you've got a real hardware problem. Could be just a bad output jack but who knows? Do some basic troubleshooting by swapping out the cable. If the problem persists, you should file a support ticket and get a warranty claim going.

I've never tried a DT amp. I have used HD500 with L2t, tho. I think it's a good solution. You should be able to take an output of the HD500 (including L6 Link) and run that into the L2t and take another output and run that to the PA, if needed.

You'll need some type of accessory to bring audio into your iOS device. If you want to take the Helix's USB output, you'd need to buy Apple's Camera Connection Kit. That'll give you a USB interface for the iOS device. With that, you should be able to play into your Helix and record on the iOS device on Garageband just fine. If you don't specifically want to use USB to bring audio into the device, there are plenty of other input accessories such as the IK Multimedia iRig that would work with an analog Helix output instead.

Did that Variax/Vetta app ever actually get released?

That's actually an intriguing option for something like this i hadn't even considered.

I'm just thinking of troubleshooting 101 here. The re-flash has already mentioned, and should be done. After that, test the alt-tuning function by plugging the guitar via 1/4" (not Variax) directly into an amp and then try it. This'll ensure that there's nothing like a Pod patch or something else engaging the modeling and magnetic pickups at the same time.

No problems here, either. For some reason, your browser isn't loading the CSS.

A couple things you can try that might help: 1.) Go into System Preferences >> Sound and select the Pod as the input. Then, make sure the Input Volume control is all the way to the right. If this fixes the problem, you may need to do this again in the future when using the Pod. 2.) Turn up the Pod's Master volume control.

I prefer .09's and I like Elixir brand. i've used them on my JTV-69 and I think they sound fine.