phil_m

Well, if you download and run the installation package for HX Edit, that gives you everything you need. It includes the latest version of HX Edit, Line 6 Updater and the latest drivers.

You need to download and install the latest version of HX Edit.

Yes, I see that you agree with yourself... :-)

Just overwrite with another one. If you want to delete it, simply copy and paste one of the blank presets labeled <New Preset> in its slot.

So, if you think there's a product that has all the amp models and effects you want, why not just use that product instead of expect another manufacturer to essentially copy what they're doing? I can tell one thing for certain, and that's that Line 6 is really not interested in trying to recreate the feature set of the Axe FX in the Helix. They have their own vision for what the Helix is going to become. Certainly that means more amps and effects in the future, but it doesn't mean trying to please everyone...

Well, Line 6 has probably releases almost just as many original effects as modeled ones for the Helix... I haven't sat down and counted them all, but a lot of the modulations, delays and reverbs (well, all the reverbs) are Line 6 original creations. Part of the issue is you can't necessarily model a digital effect. It's not like they can tear apart a digital reverb pedal to model the components, because everything responsible for the effect is simply built into an algorithm.

Huh?

You can't change the factory defaults, but simply raise the level there and re-save the preset.

I think every time I've seen someone post about this error, it's a result of using an older version of HX Edit with a newer version of firmware. Both the firmware and HX Edit need to be updated to the latest version, and that's 2.70 for both of them.

That one says $53.14 in shipping for me... Maybe that auction is using eBay’s shipping calculator so it varies based on buyer location.

Well, I just looked at eBay, and there are few HX Effects units going for around that, but the sellers are also charging over $50 for shipping... So, that’s not quite the super deal it seems at first glance. Consider that it’s not all that difficult to get a new HX Effects for $525 if a retailer has a 15% off coupon.

I can tell you with a lot of certainty there aren't any immediate plans to release an "X" version of the Helix anytime soon. The main reason the HD500X was released was the SHARC processor that it was used was discontinued by the manufacturer. If something like that happens, perhaps Line 6 would have to change their plans, but it's not something that would be done in the span of a few months. It still takes development time to change the hardware. I would still be totally comfortable buying a new Helix right now. As to the horsepower, I've been using the Helix for three years, and there really hardly been any instances where I haven't been able to do what I want to do in a preset. It really only becomes an issue if you want to create a true dual path with amps and cabs in each path... It's true that the DSP limit in Native is a false limitation. It's not based on the computing power of your system. The rationale behind it to create cross compatibility between the Floor, LT and Rack presets and Native. Having the DSP limit in Native ensures that any preset you create in Native can be exported to the hardware. They have talked about giving an option to remove that limitation in Native so you could insert whatever blocks you want. There's a simple workaround as it stands right now, though. Simply add as many instances of Native as you want in your DAW track and make things as complex as you want.

Voltage regulation wouldn't necessarily have anything to do with voltage drop unless there was a way for the power supply to vary the voltage based on the load. But that's not really a typical feature of these type of switching power supplies. Voltage drop is purely a function of the distance and load. Being the draw from the Stomp is relatively high, voltage drop could be more of an issue compared to a more typical stomp pedal. I'm also, wondering, though if it's your audio lines picking up some interference from the power cable along the way...

You need to have a DAW or at least a VST loader to run Native. It’s a plug-in only, not a stand-alone application.

It’s still true that HX Edit really is the only thing you need to download. The HX Edit installlation package includes the latest version of HX Edit, Line 6 Updater and all the latest drivers. Even if you have Updater installed, the version you have will be replaced with the newest version. The only thing that’s changed regarding the instructions is that now they say to use the newest version of HX Edit to make the backup before installing the update. You can actually do it either way - create a backup with the previous version of HX Edit or the new one.

You don’t need to download the .hxf file. Just download and install the latest HX Edit installation package. That has everything you need. Then run Line 6 Updater with the Stomp connected via USB. For some stupid reason Microsoft Edge tries to open the .hxf file. It’s not a file that can be opened like that. You can save it somewhere if you want. To do that, you could right click on the link for it and hit “save target as”. That will let you save the file wherever you want. It’s not really necessary, though. Updater downloads it for you during the update process.

Can you select USB 7/8 as the inputs into whatever you're using? Those will always be the dry path.

No, phantom power has no effect on the Stomp.

If the Harmonic Flanger model is stereo, yes, there are some greyed out effects after that. The only available, for instance, is the mono version of the Ganymede. One thing is that a stereo uses almost twice the DSP of the mono version, so putting a chain of stereo blocks together we'll eat the DSP up faster. I actually recreated this chain both in my Helix and in the Stomp and had them both connected to HX Edit at the same time. Since HX Edit has multi-device support now, each has its own window. When I compare the lists of effects that are greyed out on each device after adding the Harmonic Flanger, they appear to exactly the same. One thing I will say is that I wouldn't say there were hardly any effects available after adding the fourth block in your example - there were more available than unavailable. That's the same in the Stomp and the Helix.

It sounds like you're probably hearing comb filtering or phasing. The Blackmore has a knob beside its effects loops jack labeled "Dry Effect Balance". You'll want to make sure that's turned all the way to the right so the the loop is effectively a serial loop. If you have any dry signal mixed, the dry signal going through the HX Effects and through the amp will be out of phase with each and everything will sound bad.

The mix parameter may be tripping you up. For the maximum effect, you'd want to have it at 50, not 100. The mix knob is essentially a balance knob that control the wet/dry mix. You get the deepest phase and flange sounds with the mix at 50.

Yep... 100% sure. All Helix products are using the SHARC ADSP-21469 chip. It's just the Floor, LT and Rack have two of them, and the HX Effects and Stomp have one. BTW, the Fractal FX8 uses a single SHARC ADSP-21469 chip as well, just for comparison's sake. There are simply some amp and cab models that are a lot more DSP intensive than others. Sometimes if you put in an amp, a cab, and the '63 Spring Reverb model, you won't have left for much else at all on a path. With some amp models you can have a lot more. On the Helix itself, you can have up to 16 blocks on a processor path, but it's not like you can fill them all up with DSP-intensive blocks. It's really more for the sake of routing flexibility than being able to max out blocks. If you create an effects-only Helix patch, you can load a lot in there, but unless you want 16 EQs in a path, you wouldn't be able to use all the blocks.

Once you drag a block down to the second path, you have to go to the Split and Merge blocks where the two paths split and come back together and move those down. Those will create new input and output blocks for that path and separate it completely from the first path.

Just to be clear, the Stomp uses the same processor as the Helix uses. It's just the Helix has two of them, whereas the Stomp (and the HX Effects) only has one. So if you hit the DSP limit with six blocks on the Stomp, you would hit the DSP limit on the Helix if you tried to create that signal path on a single processor path. You could add more blocks on the Helix by dropping down to Path 2...

You're returning it? Let me ask you this... Is there anything else with a similar footprint that can do what it does? Yes, I understand it can be frustrating to have your expectations and reality differ, but I think if you stick with it, you'll learn to work within the limitations of the unit. I mean, it still does an awful lot in a tiny package.