Helix Bug Reports

[jackwagner]

I started a separate thread on this topic, but I also want to document the issue in this thread in the hope that it will be resolved in a future firmware version. The original thread can be viewed here:

http://line6.com/support/topic/29444-helix-rack-seems-to-get-quieter-over-time/

 

The bug is that the Helix output volume gets quieter over time. Forum member "duncann" pointed me to another thread which had the same issue, but with a different amp block. In my case, my preset contains a Cali 400 Ch1 bass amp block. When the "bass" parameter in the amp block is set to 0.0, the volume gets quieter over time. The volume drop is easily noticed after 20 or 30 minutes or so. Just switch to a different preset and then back.

 

--jack

[duncann]

I started a separate thread on this topic, but I also want to document the issue in this thread in the hope that it will be resolved in a future firmware version. The original thread can be viewed here:

http://line6.com/support/topic/29444-helix-rack-seems-to-get-quieter-over-time/

 

The bug is that the Helix output volume gets quieter over time. Forum member "duncann" pointed me to another thread which had the same issue, but with a different amp block. In my case, my preset contains a Cali 400 Ch1 bass amp block. When the "bass" parameter in the amp block is set to 0.0, the volume gets quieter over time. The volume drop is easily noticed after 20 or 30 minutes or so. Just switch to a different preset and then back.

 

--jack

 

It's seems Line 6 is aware of this bug as they mention it here for Helix Native: http://line6.com/support/topic/29033-helix-native-101-release-notes/

 

Hopefully they're aware of it affecting not only the Mark IV Lead, but the Cali 400 CH1, thanks to your discovery. I wouldn't be surprised if at least more of the 'Mesa' amps are ill as well. Either way, it's only a matter of time before they fix it.

[jackwagner]

It's seems Line 6 is aware of this bug as they mention it here for Helix Native: http://line6.com/support/topic/29033-helix-native-101-release-notes/

 

Hopefully they're aware of it affecting not only the Mark IV Lead, but the Cali 400 CH1, thanks to your discovery. I wouldn't be surprised if at least more of the 'Mesa' amps are ill as well. Either way, it's only a matter of time before they fix it.

 

That's great. Hopefully a fix will come in the next firmware release. Thanks again for your help on this issue!

--jack

[PeterHamm]

That's great. Hopefully a fix will come in the next firmware release. Thanks again for your help on this issue!

--jack

 

What the did was they modeled a tube that was defective by accident... and the defect ended up in the amp model.

 

HAH!

[Joepeggio]

Do a backup, then a factory reset, then restore your presets. If it still behaves abnormally, it's probably a hardware issue, and you should start a support ticket.

 

And maybe a reinstall of firmware...

[ljholland]

When doing a bundle export, I'm getting an yellow error bar at the top that says something like preset data has "invalid formatting".  This happens consistently at 64%.  At that point, the helix editor is locked up and I must force quit.

 

I can export individual presets and have backed up each of my presets without a problem.

 

Mac OS Sierra 10.26.  

[meshax]

HELIX LT black screen.

I've got new helix LT a month ago, updated to 2.21, sounds good, but last night I was working on preset, and pressed amp button to move to amp block, and then screen went black. I can still hear the sound, but no screen. After restart it worked without problems for the rest of the night. This is the first glitch so far. Should I be worried ? Has anyone else experienced this ?

[AlexKenivel]

Helix Floor, Current. Using Editor. Dual delay in signal chain. Left mix assigned to stomp. Rename, change LED color, save. go back to controller assignments, select left mix again, name and color get reset.

[duncann]

Helix Floor, Current. Using Editor. Dual delay in signal chain. Left mix assigned to stomp. Rename, change LED color, save. go back to controller assignments, select left mix again, name and color get reset.

 

I can confirm this. But the editor still has the changed color and name. It's the device that shows otherwise. However, if you switch to a different preset and then back, then controller assign for the dual delay, as soon as Left Mix is selected on that page, the color and name still revert to the defaults, but only on the device.

[th365thli]

My Helix rack inputs stopped working. I know because I go to the tuner and it doesn't register. Anyone else have this issue? I was just playing and suddenly sound cut out. 

[jbuhajla]

My Helix rack inputs stopped working. I know because I go to the tuner and it doesn't register. Anyone else have this issue? I was just playing and suddenly sound cut out. 

Be sure to check the obvious (guitar cable, change to a different guitar), then open a support ticket with Line 6 and they will take care of you. 

[FraKcture]

Been using helix for about a year now without any issues...

yet i had this wierd thing happening with the looper yesterdaynight at a gig...

(i'm at fw 2.20)

 

recorded a loop, everything went fine, but when i tried to stop the loop from playing, it was as if the stop/play switch was acting like it was functioning like the "once" button  :wacko:... 

i could see the play -stop icons alternately lighting up on the scribble strip...

 

a while later i had to make another loop, and this time had no issues whatsoever...

 

The show closes with a final loop,

and then it happened again...

 

very strange indeed, and very bothersome...

 

could this be a software glitch?

or could it be the switch going bad?

 

thanks for any input :)

[dragonfet]

I'm referring to my thread Bug Confirmation: SV Beast Sag Clicking.

It would be helpful if someone can confirm or disconfirm the symptom I'm experiencing.

 

Symptom: Both the SV Beast Nrm and Brt models exhibit a clicking noise after sound was processed if the "Sag" parameter is set to a value of 0.6 or greater.

Steps to reproduce:

1. Create a patch with just an SV Beast Amp in it. Set the "Sag" to a value equal or greater than 0.6, the other controls don't seem to have an influence. Set the input block to something quiet, e.g. USB.

 

Method A:

2. Connect the Helix to a DAW and use a routing with sound only going in and out via USB (Reamping).

3. Monitor the Helix' main output (Channels 1&2), e.g. by arming a track for recording.

4. Play anything for any amount of time, then stop playback.

 

Method B:

2. Set the "Hum" value to anything that produces an audible sound, then move it rapidly to 0.

 

For both methods, there should be a crackling noise following that sounds like static discharge going through a lowpass filter. For "Sag" settings of 0.5 or less, I could not reproduce the symptom.

[phil_m]

I'm referring to my thread Bug Confirmation: SV Beast Sag Clicking.

It would be helpful if someone can confirm or disconfirm the symptom I'm experiencing.

 

Symptom: Both the SV Beast Nrm and Brt models exhibit a clicking noise after sound was processed if the "Sag" parameter is set to a value of 0.6 or greater.

Steps to reproduce:

1. Create a patch with just an SV Beast Amp in it. Set the "Sag" to a value equal or greater than 0.6, the other controls don't seem to have an influence. Set the input block to something quiet, e.g. USB.

 

Method A:

2. Connect the Helix to a DAW and use a routing with sound only going in and out via USB (Reamping).

3. Monitor the Helix' main output (Channels 1&2), e.g. by arming a track for recording.

4. Play anything for any amount of time, then stop playback.

 

Method B:

2. Set the "Hum" value to anything that produces an audible sound, then move it rapidly to 0.

 

For both methods, there should be a crackling noise following that sounds like static discharge going through a lowpass filter. For "Sag" settings of 0.5 or less, I could not reproduce the symptom.

 

Well, the hum setting will create a sound, by design... So some of this might be expected artifacts with these extreme settings. Is this something that's actually causing you a real problem, or is it just a curious observation?

[dragonfet]

Well, the hum setting will create a sound, by design... So some of this might be expected artifacts with these extreme settings. Is this something that's actually causing you a real problem, or is it just a curious observation?

This occurs with any sound being fed into the SV Beast, including normal bass signals. I just included Method B so that other users can try to recreate the symptom without firing up their DAW, but if you think it's unsuitable I'll remove it. Method A should still show the problem.

[phil_m]

This occurs with any sound being fed into the SV Beast, including normal bass signals. I just included Method B so that other users can try to recreate the symptom without firing up their DAW, but if you think it's unsuitable I'll remove it. Method A should still show the problem.

 No, don't remove it... I was just curious how you ran into it... I mean, it could be a bug of unexpected behavior. If it's a big problem for you, I'd suggest opening up a support ticket.

[dragonfet]

 No, don't remove it... I was just curious how you ran into it... I mean, it could be a bug of unexpected behavior. If it's a big problem for you, I'd suggest opening up a support ticket.

I noticed it when playing and even more so when I was testing different pickup wirings. I recorded short dry samples of different configurations, then used the Helix in Reamp routing to test them with different amps. That's where it became obvious.

 

I'll open up a ticket now as you suggested. Though I'm still curious if others have the same issue.

[duncann]

Nerve racking bug this one:

 

This preset: Lead.zip, firmware v2.21.0, makes use of a harmony delay where voice 1 shift and voice 2 shift values are changed via snapshots. However, these values are not preserved (regardless of the snapshot edits global setting) when imported by any method using the current editor, v2.21. Likewise, using the editor, a copy and paste to a different location does not preserve these values. Saving the preset to a different location using the device itself seems successful.

 

For anyone looking to see the correct values, you can open the preset in a text editor and find snapshots named Harmony 1, Harmony 2, .. , Harmony 5. Then look for internalvoice1 and internalvoice2. The values should be:

v1 shift, v2 shift

-3, 4

-4, 3

-3, 5

-2, 3

-4, 3

 

I'm also changing key and scale and these settings are preserved correctly.

[phil_m]

Nerve racking bug this one:

 

This preset: Lead.zip, firmware v2.21.0, makes use of a harmony delay where voice 1 shift and voice 2 shift values are changed via snapshots. However, these values are not preserved (regardless of the snapshot edits global setting) when imported by any method using the current editor, v2.20. Likewise, using the editor, a copy and paste to a different location does not preserve these values. Saving the preset to a different location using the device itself seems successful.

 

For anyone looking to see the correct values, you can open the preset in a text editor and find snapshots named Harmony 1, Harmony 2, .. , Harmony 5. Then look for internalvoice1 and internalvoice2. The values should be:

v1 shift, v2 shift

-3, 4

-4, 3

-3, 5

-2, 3

-4, 3

 

I'm also changing key and scale and these settings are preserved correctly.

 

2.20 actually isn't the most current editor. There is a 2.21 version of the editor as well... It would be worth installing that and see if it makes a difference.

[duncann]

2.20 actually isn't the most current editor. There is a 2.21 version of the editor as well... It would be worth installing that and see if it makes a difference.

 

I just realized that, oops :o, and have since installed v2.21 of the editor. Same result. I should also mention that the values are preserved, even making changes to the preset, as long as the preset is saved in the same location, using the editor.

[dragonfet]

I noticed it when playing and even more so when I was testing different pickup wirings. I recorded short dry samples of different configurations, then used the Helix in Reamp routing to test them with different amps. That's where it became obvious.

 

I'll open up a ticket now as you suggested. Though I'm still curious if others have the same issue.

Update: This has now been confirmed as a bug and might be fixed in a future release.

[hideout]

Nice avatar, dragonfet.  :)

[wilkinsi]

I upgraded to OS X 10.13 High Sierra last week. All day yesterday, I could not use the Line 6 Updater, yet the Helix editor still worked. They are now both working. Could this be coincidence, or is 10.13 trying to fight off the L6 driver?

[pmarchione]

Helix editor

Most currect firmware 2.21 or what ever

Windows 10

 

Drag and drop Multiple Irs from a folder to the ir slots. When they import ther do not copy in order either alphabetically or numerically. Import function at top of the screen works correctly. Found this after dragging and dropping all of my irs from a folder to the hellix. They did not import correctly

 

IE. mesa ,1a mesa 2a, mesa 1b, mesa 2b

ended up all mixed up after dragging and dropping.

[phil_m]

Helix editor

Most currect firmware 2.21 or what ever

Windows 10

 

Drag and drop Multiple Irs from a folder to the ir slots. When they import ther do not copy in order either alphabetically or numerically. Import function at top of the screen works correctly. Found this after dragging and dropping all of my irs from a folder to the hellix. They did not import correctly

 

IE. mesa ,1a mesa 2a, mesa 1b, mesa 2b

ended up all mixed up after dragging and dropping.

 

It depends on how you select the files to begin with. If you just grab them all with the mouse, they won't automatically be sorted. If you have them in the order you want on the screen you're dragging from and select the first one and then hold Shift and then select the last one, and then drag them in, they should drop in in order. That's what's worked for me, anyway.

[JohntheSavage]

Here's a silly question for y'all, certainly not an urgent matter by any means, but definitely a point of curiosity...

 

I have my Helix synced to MIDI clock, which I've been doing for a while now, but today my tap tempo LED ring has started flashing, not blue, but HALF blue and HALF turquoise...!?

 

Anyone else seeing that?  Maybe I've just never noticed this before, but I'm sure it has always just been solid blue all 'round till today (scratches head).  Could it be that I have an LED burned out?

 

Cheers!

[pmarchione]

It depends on how you select the files to begin with. If you just grab them all with the mouse, they won't automatically be sorted. If you have them in the order you want on the screen you're dragging from and select the first one and then hold Shift and then select the last one, and then drag them in, they should drop in in order. That's what's worked for me, anyway.

 

It isn't working like that for me. If I select all with shift and they are in numerical order in the folder they should drop in numerical order in the helix folder. They are not. It works fine if I use the import function and highlight them all. Real weird right?

[daddydoodles]

Somewhat unrelated, but if you have a Mac and use Logic X, DO NOT, I REPEAT DO NOT, update to High Sierra. Your copy of Logic X will no longer work. They want $199 to update Logic!!

[PeterHamm]

Somewhat unrelated, but if you have a Mac and use Logic X, DO NOT, I REPEAT DO NOT, update to High Sierra. Your copy of Logic X will no longer work. They want $199 to update Logic!!

 

Can you confirm this? I can't find any indication that if you own Logic X, you will have to buy it again if you upgrade to H.S.

 

I'm legitimately concerned, actually.

[phil_m]

It isn't working like that for me. If I select all with shift and they are in numerical order in the folder they should drop in numerical order in the helix folder. They are not. It works fine if I use the import function and highlight them all. Real weird right?

 

I meant to reply to this a few days ago, but forgot about it... Anyway, just to clarify something, this only works if you put a three digit prefix in front of your IRs. What I've done is create a separate folder for my IR backups and numbered all of those with the prefix 001, 002, 003, etc. If you do that and then select them in the way I described, they'll be imported back into the Helix in order.

[pmarchione]

Thanks for the info. I will try it.

[RPascarella]

Hi, not sure if this is the best place to post this, but I just updated to v2.30 firmware and ran into a few issues to report:

1) When I first went to the Global settings to change the USB In 1/2 trim level, the value was stuck at 0dB and wouldn't change when rotating the knob.  After paging left and back right again, the value was non-zero and was able to change with the knob.  No issues since.

 

2) I was not hearing audio playback via USB through Helix, so I went to Globals and I could swear the USB In 1/2 Destination value was 5.  When I rotated the knob, I could hear audio.  Now the values allowed are Multi, 1/4", and XLR.  I could swear it said 5 before my change!

 

3) After selecting one of my old presets, I tried changing the amp model from Litigator to Cartographer and the unit froze.  The screen is still showing the list of amps with Cartographer selected.  After rebooting, it is going through the preset rebuilding process.  Maybe all of this was due to presets not being rebuilt?

 

Loving this update!

[PeterHamm]

3) After selecting one of my old presets, I tried changing the amp model from Litigator to Cartographer and the unit froze.  The screen is still showing the list of amps with Cartographer selected.  After rebooting, it is going through the preset rebuilding process.  Maybe all of this was due to presets not being rebuilt?

 

 

...I experienced something like this on one of the beta builds, but not since. Have you rebuilt presets? If not, I actually think re-installing firmware is not a horrible idea, because the problem went away for me.

[jbuhajla]

I always reboot after loading my presets after an update so it can rebuild the presets. 

[PeterHamm]

I always reboot after loading my presets after an update so it can rebuild the presets. 

 

yes, always. always. always.

[MGblade]

don't know if this is a bug or normal amp behaviour, on the train wreck model the overal volume goes up when "lowering" the gain below 2/2.5, so much that I have to compensate with the channel volume between clean and overdrive snapshots.

[MGblade]

compensate the other way around.😞

[Vettaville-nl]

updated to 2.30 went fine.

 

Now when a usb connection is made and pressing the modellist knob down, doesn't result in getting the modellist up to choose from.

Unplug the usb and it works...

 

Of course when using the HX edit you can select them there..  I find it logical to still have the oppertunity to also use the dial/knob on helis (floor) itself

 

thanks for the update and HX edit, time saver already!!

 

Kind regards

Hans

[JohntheSavage]

Just updated to 2.30... All went well for the most part, but my Global Settings did not restore correctly:

 

- Mic In Low Cut reset to zero, but should have been set to 100Hz

- USB In 1/2 Destination was set to a number (5) instead of "Multi" or any of the other actually destinations (I read above that someone else saw this anomaly too)

- USB In 1/2 Trim was set to a random number (I think it was 4.2 if that matters, but I could be wrong about that) instead of being set to zero where it was previously.

 

And several of my patches, once again, restored from backup with many of the footswitch lights reversed â€”Ahem!  This will be the third time that has happened... A bit frustrating.

 

It's also worth mentioning that the tap tempo LED issue I reported early also persists (i.e. the tap tempo footswitch LED has started blinking HALF blue and HALF turquoise when synced, instead of all blue), so it would seem that I have a colour burned-out on one half of that LED ring or something.  Unless it's possible that my complicated MIDI setup has sent some random NRPN message that has caused this anomaly?  Anyone?  Seems a coincidence to me that it happen the vary instant that I changed my MIDI routing.  Anyway...

 

Thanks for the update, Line 6.  Keep 'em coming, eh!

 

Cheers!

[excalibur]

Hello
I have a bug on the v2.3 with the pitch/synth 3 NoteGenerator and 4 OSC Generator
When I recall a preset with one of these effects, it is always "OFF" while the preset has been saved with the effect "ON"