endyamon

Thanks for the reply and the good suggestions! I will check out the PirateMIDI Click which seems perfect!

Hi everyone, I recently bought a Victory Kraken V4 Amp with 2 switchable channels and I am wondering if it is possible to use the HX Stomp XL in some smart way with the Kraken preamp. My target is to use only the HX Stomp XL to switch between patches that use channel 1 or 2 in the amp without using the amp's footswitch. I saw a video on YT and I know that this is possible with an additional piece of gear that converts MIDI to TRS signal, but this is quite expensive. I know that in FAQ it is explicitly said that, unlike Helix Floor/LT, the HX Stomp/XL don't have the "ext amp" socket (why? this is really so bad :( ) and so it is not possible to switch real amp channels, but I also read a comment in Reddit mentioning the usage of TRS cable in EXP1/2 socket for this purpose. Do you have any experience or suggestions? Or do you know if there are cheaper MIDI/TRS converters? Thank you!!

Hi all, I have a loud noise/hum issue when I use the HX stomp with some compact power amps like Ashdown NEWT or Hotone Loudster. The configuration is very simple: Guitar -> HX Stomp (mono 1/4 out)-> Newt/Loudster (there is only 1 input available). I tried with other multieffects and no hum/hiss, so the issue should not be on the Next or the Loudster. Even with Helix LT there is not any noise, but with HX stomp the noise is clearly there (with high gain patches is loud) and the situation gets better only if I use the Ebtech Hum Eliminator between HX Stomp and power amp. Reading on the forum I understand that there is maybe some ground issue with the HX stomp power supply unit (and if it's real, this is quite disappointing as I am not having this issue with other cheaper and older multieffects). I have a very compact setup with just HX stomp and Ashdown Newt. I created some patches on my HX stomp that sound perfect to me and I would like to use this setup as the main one, but this noise is not acceptable. Is there any suggestion to fix this issue without adding the Ebtech Hum Eliminator in the setup (I would like to keep the setup as compact as possible)? I cannot find an Hum X with european plug, but maybe there is another power supply to replace the official one that can fix this issue. Please share your experience. Thanks!

Hi guys, sorry to refresh a thread of December 2018, but I just bought a PRS MT 15 and I have an Helix LT and a HX Stomp and I was just wandering if it is possible to switch the channel amp with these 2 pedal boards. I read about the hum issue and I read about a midi switcher but it is quite annoying to spend more money on high end equipment to fix this kind of issues... Anyway how did you solve this problem? Were you able to use 4CM on the amp in the way it's meant to be? Please share your experiences, I need some advice (I am still in time to return the amp, even if I don't want... The lead channel is awesome). Thanks everybody!

I would have liked to buy the full HD bundle amp pack, but with 22% taxes the final cost was too much for me, so I had to choose and I bought the Metal Pack. I do not blame Line6 for that (there is nothing to blame), it's the law (an european law) and I obviously prefer paying Line6 for new amps rather than paying taxes on software (or any intangible asset), but that's it. The frustration (and a bit of confusion) is because some time ago (before January 2015 if I am correct) we european customers (I speak for Italian ones at least) could buy items from non-EU countries paying the item's local taxes and not the customer's local taxes. So, for example, if I bought a software from USA I didn't pay 22% taxes. Now it's different and our country's tax is applied even if I buy outside.

I agree. Not my intention to feed the forum fight, but maybe the definition "Metal Amp" is quite confusing... What is the definition of "Metal Amp"? Is it corresponding to "High Gain amp"? I don't think so, because the JCM800 is a vintage mid-gain amp but it is universally recognised as "metal amp" because a lot of 80s metal bands used it and is actually present in the metal pack. For the same logic I think that JC-120 could easily be inserted in the metal pack (just because a lot of metal bands used it), even if it is not a metal amp for definition. So we might assume that Line6 gift for metalheads will be the new JCM800 in the metal pack. My real hope is that this new firmware shall bring an easier customization and high gain sounds that need less tweaking. Some high gain sounds with POD HD are quite hard to achieve (you have to study the manuals and the superb meambobbo's bible and then work for hours on the machine) and the equalization is really painful (especially if you want the punch but not the mud). If the new amps in the metal packs will be easier to configure and will have that punch, than I will be very happy to spend an extra 50$.

I am still a bit confused... It seems that Firehawk will have hd amps and it will be also stage oriented. Does it mean that it will be more user-friendly in parameters and connections? Even when connecting to an amp? Honestly POD HD is not a "plug and play" machine, the learning curve will be shorter in Firehawk? I believe that on the stage it's quite difficult to change settings or fx via smartphone or tablet, so it should be some sort of "create patch and forget" device with the exception of some quick tweaking in eq / drive / fx level (depending on cab and acoustics)?

True, the Uber pre sounds a bit thin to me too. Actually I prefer using the full model which is way better (I go through power amp and guitar cab), just cutted the mids and played a lot with the mid-focus eq. Now it's my reference amp for a good american hard rock / metal sound.

I really hope that the global EQ will be a little more complex... I was thinking about a 5 band parametric EQ (low, low-mid, mid, mid-high, high) and it would be nice to have also "contour" and resonance parameters. These are "master" parameters that you can usually find in competitors' global eq.

When I first used the POD HD500X I was really disappointed: through my guitar amp and cab it sounded horrible. Then I began to tweak and to study. It was hard, needed a lot of patience and time, but at the end I created some quite good patches for my live performance. Now I am considering buying a StageSource L2m because I believe this machine is designed suited for this type of output than the classic guitar amp/cab. Anyway I also owned other floor units like Digitech (RP360 and RP1000), Zoom (G3 and G9.2) and Boss (GT6). For my genre and music (I play hard rock and metal) the Line6 POD HD is the best choice so far (for my budget at least), and I kept only the RP360 as backup (just because there is no equivalent, 3 indipendent button with pedal, lightweight and at low budget in line6 offer) but I admit it is the less "plug and play" unit I have ever owned (just think about the percentage in eq, for example) so I easily understand if someone gives up.

This NAMM sounds good to me. Nice to see a Variax at a more affordable price (now I can consider to try to play one of them and see if it is comfortable). Quite curious about Firehawk FX too. If there will ever be a smaller (for dimensions and cost) and lightweight version in the future, I should really consider buying one as a backup of my POD HD500X (for home recording and rehearsal). But the really good news is the POD firmware update, really happy! A bit less happy when I found out we have to wait until April (2 months of GAS are a torture), but it's ok. The global eq will be quite useful: often when I use different real cabs I have to change a lot of eq parameters to adapt the patch (sometimes during the soundcheck which is really painful). Hopefully this add will simplify and accelerate this process (but PLEASE no percentage but frequencies)! The additional metal amp pack is really interesting, finally the peavey 5150 and the Bogner Shiva, good choice! I read the discussion about the JC-120 and I admit that should be nice to have the wonderful JC-120 clean in the metal amp pack, but it is true that this is a vintage amp widely used and designed for jazz. What about selling the amps individually as well as in packs? Could be a solution and an opportunity. Going back to the firmware update... Do you think there will be some improvement at noise gates fx? Actually they are quite weak, do not suppress feedback and sometimes they kill sustain too.

Ehi everybody, just a little update for the feedback problem. I found that the main issue was the eq effects I had on the chain. Eq effects (I use both mid-focus and studio eq or parametric eq) add a gain stage that has to be leveled really accurately. I didn't understand why I was having a huge distortion with a patch with less gain than another patch which had also a screamer in the chain! Then I began tweaking with the mid-focus eq effect. The mid-focus BEFORE the main distortion is the key! It can REALLY change the behaviour of the chosen amp or distortion effect. Setting it up in a particular way I found I can obtain a really good, warm and fat distortion only with the drive of the amp. If I add a screamer then the distortion goes in the brutal zone with high gain amps (anyway I don't need it with Treadplate or Uber). It is important to keep the gain of the eq effect quite low otherwise there will be a lot of feedback (no matter how many noise gates you have), so it is important to level the eq effect low enough to give the right amount of bite and distortion without the feedback issues (so it is better to tweak it after having set the amp drive at the desired level -more or less-). After this, to be sure to eliminate any feedback, I reduced the guitar-z input to 230k, shifted the hard gate right after the screamer and before the amp and finally I lowered a bit the pickups. Tried yesterday and, even if the sound needs some other adjustments (it was right at low volume, but a bit muddy at high volume... still need to change some eq maybe), there were no feedbacks! Thanks guys for all the support!

Really good advices guys, thanks! I have to say that I changed my cables recently buying very low noise cables ("Reference Labs" cables, italian made high end cables, so damn expensive but really good for noise reduction and dynamic) so the gate at the very first position could be unnecessary. Good idea to shift it after the screamer. For the volume... I noticed that (for feedback) it's better to have the pod with max master volume and a lower power amp output than viceversa. It can be an impression of mine, but also the manual says that at maximum volume there is the better SNR. Maybe I have to find a compromise between the two volumes (I would like that in a live situation the volume is the only real variable for my chain).

I will try that too (they could be quite high actually). Tone or sustain do not suffer, but do you notice some change in the dynamic while playing?

Thanks guys! Yesterday I started some quick tests on my patches. In particular: - I turned down the gain on the screamer (about 25 - 28% max) - turned down gain on the uberschall (about 48 - 54% max) - Turned down the mixer (-3db) With these tweaks the feedback were a bit reduced, but a real improvement has come with: - reducing the screamer gain (22%), bass (50%) and high (45%). - inserting a second HARD GATE (the first is in first position) just after the amp (I use only hard gates, they do not suck the tone like the noise gates, but kills the sustain a bit, so I assigned it to a pedal in order to deactivate it when I need sustain and there are no pauses) - inserting a MID FOCUS EQ at the very end of the chain: it completely changed my tone, but after some time I could add some punchy bass (LP around 25%) and some bright with the HP. I found it really useful to shape my tone (even if it is completely unfriendly). - Global setting set to Patch dependent, input 2 set to Variax (only for single patches, for dual I keep Guitar for both inputs) and Input Z set to a lower value than 1M (I tried 230k) Now I still have feedbacks sometime, but much less than before, so I am confident this is the right way and now I should only test these parameters in all configurations and with gig volume.