silverhead

Good to know. Thanks for clarifying, and sorry for any confusion I may have caused.

The newer Variax models, beginning with the JTV a series, are based on newer modeling technology. Personally I think the sound is better but it’s a highly subjective determination. Lots of people still prefer the older modeling in the pre-JTV models. The biggest difference is that beginning with the JTVs Variax guitars now include mag pickups as well as the modeling so you are left with a playable guitar when the electronics eventually fail (and, like all electronics, they will…. someday).

Firstly, understand that Helix Native is a plug-in to your DAW (Reaper) and is usually applied to a pre-recorded dry (unprocessed) track. It is not really designed to be applied to live playing due to potential audible latency (a time lag in the audio while Helix Native processes the incoming audio before sending it to the track output). The normal workflow is to first record a dry track, and optionally a wet processed track in Reaper. Here’s a step-by-step workflow you can try: 1. Connect your Helix to your computer via USB. Helix is now your computer’s soundcard so you need to also connect your speakers/ monitors/headphones to the Helix audio outputs. Otherwise ypu won’t hear any sound. 2. Configure Reaper to use your Helix and it’s ASIO driver as the audio input and output device. Make sure you specify that all 8 of the HELIX USB channels are made available. 3. Arm two tracks for recording in Reaper. For the Record Input of one track - the dry track - specify Helix USB channel 7 which (by default) sends the Guitar Input signal directly to Reaper, unprocessed. For the wet track specify Helix USB 1/2 for stereo, or just USB 1 for mono. Turn software monitoring OFF on both tracks. Your Helix provides hardware monitoring. 4. Record your guitar part. You should see both tracks being recorded. You may notice that the incoming level of the dry track is lower than the wet track. This is normal - do not attempt to increase it. The waveform will seem unusually narrow. That’s because it captures the relatively low level of a DI guitar signal. It’s meant to be boosted by plug-in amp sim processing, just like your guitar signal is meant to be boosted by a real amp. 5. Apply Helix Native as a plug-in on the dry track. 6. if you use the same preset in Helix Native as you used for the wet, processed, recorded track both tracks should sound the same after adjusting the Input and Output levels in Helix Native. 7. Keep the processed track as long as you want but it will probably eventually become obsolete if you continue to make changes to the preset using Helix Native as your recording project evolves. Personally, I no longer record the original wet track. I just record the dry track because I expect that I will make changes using Helix Native that renders the original preset obsolete. When your recording project is finished you can export your preset from Helix Native and import it into your Helix device so that you can bring your studio tone to the stage if you wish.

Try decreasing the incoming USB level in the POD Go rather than the outgoing level from your computer. See Global Settings -> Ins/Outs pg 2.

You can copy/paste snapshots within a preset using HX Edit but you can’t reorder them or copy/paste between presets. Every Paste operation overwrites the snapshot currently occupying that slot, leaving you with two instances of the just-Copied preset. So the best you can do is strategically copy/paste until you have three of the four in the order you want and then manually recreate the final one. Perhaps a couple of the snapshots are very close, maybe even a couple of blocks bypassed from one to the other. Look for the similarities to decide the simplest way to proceed. You may need to temporarily paste a preset in a location other than its final destination. And, yes, you will need to do this for every preset you want to reorganize.

The XT won’t resolve your issue. You need a digital connection (cable) from the Variax guitar to a separate hardware device that connects to your computer via usb. The XT is one example of that separate hardware device. The simplest and most common separate device is called the USB Workbench Hardware Interface. It was originally shipped with your used Variax 500 guitar but it seems it wasn’t passed on to you. Here’s what it is: https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Workbench--line-6-rj45-to-usb-i-o-for-variax-workbench These can be difficult to find at a more reasonable price but sometimes come up in used marketplaces. This is not called a VDI cable. It’s more than a cable. It’s a standard RJ-45 cable with a dongle and a USB cable. The dongle sits between your guitar and the computer. This will allow the Variax Workbench program to communicate with the guitar. This RJ-45 cable is less robust than a VDI cable because it is designed for an editing session using Workbench when the guitar is not moving around much. By contrast, a VDI cable has RJ-45 connectors but is shielded at both ends to protect the connectors. It is a cable that connects the Variax guitar to a Line 6 device that has a VDI input jack, like the Pod XT. It is used for live play when the protective housing is required to keep the connections solid as the cable ends move about and come under stress as the player moves around.

I realize I'm coming in late here, and I confess I haven't read the entire thread. But I believe I understand correctly that you are using the same mic model in both the Mic Input and the Return input and you are trying to get the same input level at the Return input that you are getting at the Mic input. You might find useful information by looking at the Mic In Gain level that you are applying at the Mic input (see Global Settings). Does it stand to reason that to equalize things you should apply the same gain amount (+dB) at the Return input?

You can see a link at the top of this page called Customtone. That’s a public space for Line 6 users to share presets. You can filter by product. Right now a search for POD Go presets shows 1764 presets available. To audition them you need to download them individually and use POD Go Edit to get them into your POD Go device. Might sound like a bonanza, but there’s a caveat. This space is not moderated in any way, so preset quality is highly variable. Anyone can upload a preset and describe/tag it however they want. Doesn’t mean it will sound like that in your environment using your guitar, your speakers/monitors, and your ears. But you will probably find some that are at least good for a starting point for further tweaking. It will get exhausting. To help with that, click on the Downloads/Rating button to sort them in order of highest rating.

I’m not entirely clear on your desired workflow. Do you need to use Helix as the audio interface for recording at the same time as the mixer? Or will you use those two devices at different times and just want to avoid needing to dis/reconnect cables? Are you using a Windows computer (the following comments assume that you are). Using Helix as the audio interface requires that it be connected to your computer via USB. Then, in your DAW you need to specify that the Helix ASIO driver be used and that Helix will be your audio input and output device. For recording you need nothing else. Connect your guitar or mic to the Helix inputs, arm track(s) for recording, select the desired USB channel to record as the track’s input from among the Helix USB Send options, and connect your speakers/monitors to the Helix Outputs. Note that in this setup your mixer is not used in any way. It can remain connected to your computer but it will be ignored. When you want to use your mixer using Helix as an input device you will need to connect the Helix audio outputs to your mixer’s inputs, and your speakers/monitors to the mixer’s audio outputs. Connect your mixer to your computer (usb?) and configure your computer/DAW to use the mixer, not Helix, as the audio interface. In this setup your Helix can remain connected to your computer via usb but it will be ignored by your DAW. You could still use HX Edit. In terms of connections and cables you will need to have your speakers/monitors connected to the appropriate device, either your Helix or your mixer. If you want to have a permanent setup that does not require dis/reconnecting your speakers you can insert another device (an A/B switcher) that takes audio output from both your Helix and your Mixer and allows you to switch between the inputs as desired so that you hear only one of them at a time through your speakers/monitors. Hope this helps. Please clarify if my assumptions are wrong, or if you’re looking to do something else.

I’ve moved this to the Helix forum for greater visibility.

No. But if you tell us what Line 6 product you are using I will move your post to the proper forum where it will get more visibility. Perhaps others can offer their thoughts on workarounds.

At the top right corner of the HN panel you can see a symbol that's supposed to look like a keyboard (?). That's a switch that will pass your keystrokes from Cakewalk through to the HN plugin. Activate it when you want use the keyboard in HN.

Check your Global Settings for Switches/Pedals. There are options there that determine the behaviour and display of the switches. If all else fails, consult the manual for descriptions of the options.

Technically yes. That's why I suggested the service center. On the other hand the risk may be low unless there are several layers of disassembly and you're unable to put things back together properly. Only one way to find out I guess. What sort of risk-taker are you?

I agree with everyone else here - the problem is the high input level on the dry track. One thing to add….. This is the other side of the coin to another topic that comes up here regularly. People often complain that the input level of the dry signal sent by the Helix (USB 7 and 8) is too low. They look for ways to boost the level thinking that the low level will cause problems. But as discussed in this thread it’s low for a good reason. It’s meant to be reamped.

If there’s rattling there’s something loose. It’s a ticking time bomb before it may land in a spot that will cause a short circuit when the device is powered on. Get it resolved. If it’s still under warranty take it to an authorized service centre. If not, start investigating how to take the device apart bit by bit to find the loose screw or whatever. Or, leave things as they are until it shorts out…. which it may never do, but……

If you are using HX Edit you need to make sure you hit the Enter key after changing the name. This is required to complete the name change. Otherwise the change is discarded when you shift the editor’s attention elsewhere.

My first thought is: Don’t expect it to ‘work’, whatever that means to you. You’d need to find EQ a settings on the real amp that are completely neutral, which is an oxymoron since an amp’s tone stack is designed to colour the sound rather than leave it unaffected. And each real amp would require different settings. There’s no one-size-fits-all. And there is the fact that everybody’s ears and preferred tone is different. Anything anyone else suggests here would be pretty much useless to you. The only thing you can do is experiment with your own amp and find what works best for you. But back to my original comment - don’t expect it to ‘work’ in the sense that it will leave the incoming signal unaffected. My second thought is: You posted this in the lounge, which is not product specific. Let us know what Line 6 product you are using. You mention ‘stomp’. Does that mean the HX Stomp? When I know the product I will move this to the appropriate forum for greater visibility and response.

The 4CM concept does not exist in Helix Native. There is no real amp in the signal chain. If you want to use a real physical amp you would employ the re-amping setup described in the amp’s manual (if it has the capability) rather than Helix Native. Depending on your DAW you may or may not be able to send MIDI commands to Helix Native to emulate the footswitch operations. I described this procedure in detail recently, as follows…..

I believe Snapshot change involve MIDI CC, not PC, commands. Helix responds to MIDI CC 69 with values 0-9 for Snapshot changes. Check both manuals for details on the specific commands that Helix requires, and how to send them from your midi device.

Use Snapshots. That feature in Helix was designed to do exactly what you want. It supports different sounds (with some constraints) within a preset and avoids the need to switch presets mid-song. It also allows midi switching of Snapshots. The best way to start understanding Snapshots is, unfortunately, by reading the manual. There’s a whole section covering it.

Yes, that's the best method imo.

Yes and no. Your POD HD500X device is not supported with the Variax 300 but may have limited capability. It will probably be able to store and recall Variax models properly using the POD Presets. For full compatibility with your 500X you might want to look for a chance to get a Variax JTV or later model rather than the 300. The Variax 300 ‘editor’ is called Variax Workbench (not Workbench HD). It allows you to edit the patches/sounds (aka models) stored in the guitar and organized into Banks (Tele, Spank, etc.) The Variax Workbench product is very old now and may not be compatible with recent computer OS; you may need workarounds to use it. A compatible POD HD device allows you to store Variax parameters in the POD HD presets. These presets don’t actually change the sounds/models stored in the guitar but they do send commands to the Variax that causes different models to be loaded in the Variax and also different Vol/Tone knob values. The HD500X fully supports Variax JTV and later models, including alternate tunings and using JTV Vol/Tone knobs as controllers for HD500X FX block parameters. It also uses the newer Workbench HD editor which is compatible with current computer OS. The POD HD500 (not X) is fully compatible with the Variax 300 but again, older and retired technology. Having said all that, you will certainly have a lot of fun exploring the Variax concept with a Variax 300 and a POD HD500X. You’ll just be limited compared to today’s technology and you may face some technical issues getting everything working smoothly.

Yes, it is a power supply issue, likely grounding. You can try plugging the Stomp and PC into different circuits in your household wiring. You can also try different USB ports on your computer. You can buy a hum-eliminator device. You can use a desktop rather than laptop PC.

I agree. I have a pair of 5” that I use sometimes but find them a bit underwhelming. Much better low end on bigger speakers.