Black Screen of Death and Freezing Issues

[spawn2031]

Hey Line 6,

 

I am getting closer to my expected delivery date for my Helix from Sweetwater and I am starting to get a little concerned about all these reports about the Black screens and freezing issue.  It seems a ton of people are reporting this issue but there hasn't been a whole lot of information coming back from L6 about it or how to deal with it until a fix is released.

 

My question to you guys is, have their been any commonalities found with this issue yet, like all of you are using Variax, etc.., or is it truly 100% random?  I won't lie, since I am going to be using this for live practice and gigs, I am considering cancelling my order until this particular issue is ironed out.  I really don't want to do that cuz I am very excited about it's capabilities but it would be useless to me without at least some guidelines of things not to do in combination until the fix is out for it.

 

Thanks.

[BigRalphN]

I had one on the first firmware revision. I blame it on not doing the optional step of resetting presets. It happens right after a firmware update. I had no issues after the reset. The last firmware update went smoothly and I did the reset. i have had a few other little anomalies, all around editing, but none were big deals. I quick reboot fixed them and I lost nothing. One was a freeze up and the other was loss of sound. I have used it live at church every week since purchasing with no issues. It is funny. I understand people like yourself wanting to off. People need to realize this is a brand new product. There is no way to test everything in a controlled environment. There are going to be issues in an early release once it hits masses like this. But for live performances I have not heard of issues yet.

[jaminjimlp]

the only issue I had was a freeze wile adding a second amp on the 2nd path but I had already filled every block too so I had to reboot and I just cleared another block and loaded the 2nd amp and filled the one I cleared and its not done it again since.

 

I can tell you Get It!!! you will be amazed at what it can do...

[Gawwuf]

I had it happen before 2nd firmware update, no problems of any kind since then.

[duncann]

Same here. Occasional screen corruption and one black screen before 1.02.2 firmware. Neither of those since 1.02.2.

 

The past two sessions I've used Helix I've had one sound dropout each session for less than a second. Startling when it happens. I can't be sure it was Helix's fault or something else along the way to the headphones.

[SWoRd]

I updated to 1.02.2 and made the factory reset including global settings after update, and I have had the black screen 3 times the first day (after the update which was the first I did).

 

I have not been working with it since, but have turned it on and off several times since then to see if the black screen would repeat with an empty Helix, which it hasn't. I have not seen the black screen since I gave up on doing any presets after the 3rd reset on the first day.

 

I can still not make a back up, because the program freezes when trying to save, but I can see the changes made on the Helix and I can also change the name of a patch in the program and it will change on the Helix as well.

 

I can't really decide if I want to bother with recreating the 24 patches I need for our current set list before I get the ability to make a backup. I'm kind of hoping that Line 6 will make a statement about this issue before I spend more time on it. So my status is that I'm still using my HD500 even though the tone and feel in the Helix is much better.

 

It just seems like a waste of time to repeat the same process and expect a different outcome. Isn't that somehow the definition of insanity? For reference I'm using the JTV-69 through the VDI.

[Digital_Igloo]

We now have a 100% repro on at least one particular scenario for HBSOD, and a fix for that particular scenario should be available shortly.

 

It's critically important we gather as much information as possible to track down squirrely things like this. That means if additional scenarios generate a black screen, please contact Line 6 CS ASAP and walk us through exactly what happened. If we can repro something, we can generally turn around a fix very quickly.

[BrownNote71]

Thanks DI. Any way you could share the repro steps so that we can avoid them until the fix gets published?

[SWoRd]

Thank you for that confirmation Digital_Igloo!

 

I know that it's a long shot being able to locate a software bug that you can't reliably recreate, so being able to recreate it is often a major step towards finding a solution. This is good news indeed, and I'm confident that you'll get to the bottom of this with some hard work ... and perhaps a good Shark emulator with hardware trace.

 

I'm looking forward to the update.  :)

[spawn2031]

I understand people like yourself wanting to off. People need to realize this is a brand new product. There is no way to test everything in a controlled environment. There are going to be issues in an early release once it hits masses like this. But for live performances I have not heard of issues yet.

 

I think most of us do realize that when a brand new product comes out.  There's always bugs but if you have something that continually bricks up when using it, well it doesn't matter how good it is if it going to be your only rig.  Which it would be.

 

We now have a 100% repro on the HBSOD, and a fix should be available shortly.

 

It's critically important we gather as much information as possible to track down squirrely things like this. That means users contacting Line 6 CS and walking us through exactly what happened.

 

Sounds like issues are on the mend here though which was my reason for making this thread.  Was just hoping for an update on the current situation which I appreciate greatly DI!  Especially when hearing that news tells me I have no reason to cancel my pre-order.

 

Thanks very much for the info and responses everyone.

[BigRalphN]

I had a freeze up today. All I was doing was changing an effect in a block. Reboot fixed it.

 

Sorry if the bug comment seem directed at you spawn. It wasn't at all. I do think there are people who are understanding and I also understand your concern of it is the major part of your rig. From what I have experienced the issues seem to pop up when editing or after an edit on reboot. I have yet to have am issue live but I use one preset with a switch dedicated to amp switching. The only reason I made the comment is because of posts I have read lately saying it should not have been released yet.

[BigRalphN]

I need to make a report on my freeze up. It did it twice today and I am pretty sure I know why. I didn't have enough dsp for an affect but it still showed up when turning the joystick. When I selected it the Helix froze. When I rebooted it was not available. Tube drive selection n my same loaded preset each time.

[jar1zx]

I had screen flicker on start up one time, did a reset and so far so good. 1.00.0 firmware

So far no lock ups.

[spawn2031]

Na, no worries bud.  I know a lot of folks expected this thing to be perfect when it released.  Not I, I just need to make sure it wouldn't go black screen on me during a performance.  Anything else I can deal with until they work out the kinks.

 

I need to make a report on my freeze up. It did it twice today and I am pretty sure I know why. I didn't have enough dsp for an affect but it still showed up when turning the joystick. When I selected it the Helix froze. When I rebooted it was not available. Tube drive selection n my same loaded preset each time.

 

This would make a whole lot of sense for the freeze ups.  A PC would act like this too if somehow it's programming allowed you to do something that its hardware couldn't handle.  

 

I wonder how many others with the freezing issue have been really pushing the DSP limit when it froze...  :blink:

[phil_m]

I need to make a report on my freeze up. It did it twice today and I am pretty sure I know why. I didn't have enough dsp for an affect but it still showed up when turning the joystick. When I selected it the Helix froze. When I rebooted it was not available. Tube drive selection n my same loaded preset each time.

 

When you say it froze, did the screen go blank, or did the unit just lock up?

[BigRalphN]

When you say it froze, did the screen go blank, or did the unit just lock up?

I am sorry. I should have been more specific. It just locked up. I have been able to replicate it three times. For some reason after Playing the guitar for a bit if I go to change dirt boxes the tube driver shows available. If I select it the unit locks up in an obvious out of memory situation. On reboot it a grayed out. I am pushing the dsp.

[SWoRd]

I tried once again to get it working after having uninstalled and reinstalled everything on the PC. I could turn it on 6-7 times since yesterday with 8 presets without problems, but today I got the black screen again after having added the Uni-Vibe to one of the presets.

 

I still can't save anything from the PC program. Trying to save a preset, setlist or bundle, Windows is shutting down the program after an error message has been shown about the program having stopped working.

 

Is there any way to avoid the factory reset?

I tried to press one of the bank up/down buttons during boot, but apparantly you get into some kind of test mode.

[BigRalphN]

I tried once again to get it working after having uninstalled and reinstalled everything on the PC. I could turn it on 6-7 times since yesterday with 8 presets without problems, but today I got the black screen again after having added the Uni-Vibe to one of the presets.

 

I still can't save anything from the PC program. Trying to save a preset, setlist or bundle, Windows is shutting down the program after an error message has been shown about the program having stopped working.

 

Is there any way to avoid the factory reset?

I tried to press one of the bank up/down buttons during boot, but apparantly you get into some kind of test mode.

What firmware revision are you on? Hopefully now that DI has confirmed that they have at least seen the issue they will be able to narrow it down quickly.

[SWoRd]

I'm on 1.02.2 even though the PC program says 1.02.02. I've updated it several times but the PC program keep displaying the extra zero.

 

One further thing I've noticed since the last black screen i got today (that I haven't reset yet), is that it usually boots to a black screen, stips and LEDs after the initial power on screen that displays correctly, but perhaps every 5th or 6th boot ends up with a black main screen but the correct label in the first (footswitch 1) scribble strip and the one above the pedal is also ok. The rest of the scribble strips are black, but the LED rings are colored correctly and the tap tempo is blinking.

 

So there is a small difference in how it boots?

With the colored LED rings on it is definitely a much cooler looking paperweight.  ;)

[SevenStringJazz]

I'm having the same problem starting this morning. Boots to blank screens and scribble strips. No led rings and a single amp tone with no effects is available. Volume pedal is dead. Powering off and on does nothing. I've had it for a week. Just powered it up this morning and it's blank. Guess I'll just return it for a new one when available. Products usually fail in the first few weeks. It was nice while working. ;)

[SevenStringJazz]

Update to my issue. After performing a factory reset, it came back to life. Of course my presets are gone, but it's working agajn. I'm on the latest firmware.

[DarrellM5]

I had to re-flash firmware 1.02.2 because something must not have worked correctly the 1st time I flashed it.  I thought it was all good but the sound would drop out on one particular factory preset everytime I selected it.

 

Since the re-flash of 1.02.2 I've had zero problems.  I spent most of this weekend putting Helix through a serious workout.  I've been experimenting with Variax, regular guitars, PA, DT25, regular tube amps, headphones, IR's, an external expression pedal, MIDI and some other stuff.  I've been building complex patches that go out to multiple devices as well.

 

I feel that my Helix is very stable at the moment.

[movingmatter]

I just encountered the BSOD.  I have been using Helix for about 2 weeks.  I updated to the 10.02.2 about a week ago.  I have had several rehearsals with it, tweaked it plenty, and unfortunately did not backup my presets.  I have 2 gigs this weekend, kicking myself right now.  From what I have read, the only way to correct the BSOD is to reboot to factory settings?  Is this the only way?

[Joepeggio]

Just got it too (BSOD).  No reason, updated to latest, rehearsed and live gigged with it.  No preset backup due to not compatible with windows 10.

 

Time to start a support ticket.  If no resolve or no windows 10, going back to Guitar Center before 45 day return policy.

[texasdave]

Just got it too (BSOD).  No reason, updated to latest, rehearsed and live gigged with it.  No preset backup due to not compatible with windows 10.

 

Time to start a support ticket.  If no resolve or no windows 10, going back to Guitar Center before 45 day return policy.

 

Updater 1.01 and Firmware 1.03 supposed to work with Win 10… released today

[SWoRd]

I just encountered the BSOD.  I have been using Helix for about 2 weeks.  I updated to the 10.02.2 about a week ago.  I have had several rehearsals with it, tweaked it plenty, and unfortunately did not backup my presets.  I have 2 gigs this weekend, kicking myself right now.  From what I have read, the only way to correct the BSOD is to reboot to factory settings?  Is this the only way?

The only problem is that many of us can't backup our presets!

 

I just updated to PC version 1.01 and then updated the firmware to version 1.03.0 after having uninstalled the previous software. After doing a factory reset including global settings and IR (holding footswitch 9+10), the first thing I tried was to save the preset 01A "UD Double Nrm" in the FACTORY1 setlist by pressing Export. I still get this error message from Windows that directly translated from danish says:

"Helix has stopped working"

"A problem has caused the program to stop working properly.

 Windows will close the program and tell you if there is a solution."

... and there is one button to press that says "Close the program".

 

I'm using Windows 7 home edition and obviously something is still not working, so the only thing I can hope for is that the BSOD is now a thing of the past. It would be a nice precaution though to be able to backup the presets. My confidence in this thing is currently not at a high level. :(

 

... hoping for the best though.

[Joepeggio]

1.01 on my windows 10 works! :)  Pressing export seemed to not work, when I press import nothing is there. But drag and drop worked :)

[thestratmanblues]

New Helix Firmware v1.03.0 available which will solve some of the bugs listed in this forum:
http://line6.com/sup...-available-now/

[BigRalphN]

The only problem is that many of us can't backup our presets!

 

I just updated to PC version 1.01 and then updated the firmware to version 1.03.0 after having uninstalled the previous software. After doing a factory reset including global settings and IR (holding footswitch 9+10), the first thing I tried was to save the preset 01A "UD Double Nrm" in the FACTORY1 setlist by pressing Export. I still get this error message from Windows that directly translated from danish says:

"Helix has stopped working"

"A problem has caused the program to stop working properly.

Windows will close the program and tell you if there is a solution."

... and there is one button to press that says "Close the program".

 

I'm using Windows 7 home edition and obviously something is still not working, so the only thing I can hope for is that the BSOD is now a thing of the past. It would be a nice precaution though to be able to backup the presets. My confidence in this thing is currently not at a high level. :(

 

... hoping for the best though.

I would remove all the line 6 software and drivers. I would even consider deleting any line 6 reference from the registry and then reboot. Then install the latest Helix software first and let it install all the driver's and finally line 6 updater. While there have been issues most people with Win 7 have no problem. There are so many PCS and configurations out there that it can be tough though. Also you could try closing anything you don't need in the device manager before loading the line 6 software. Also check the device manager for any red warnings or cobfkicts.

[SWoRd]

I would remove all the line 6 software and drivers. I would even consider deleting any line 6 reference from the registry and then reboot. Then install the latest Helix software first and let it install all the driver's and finally line 6 updater. While there have been issues most people with Win 7 have no problem. There are so many PCS and configurations out there that it can be tough though. Also you could try closing anything you don't need in the device manager before loading the line 6 software. Also check the device manager for any red warnings or cobfkicts.

Thank you for the tip.  :)

 

I did uninstall both the Helix program and the Updater before I installed the new versions (I also tried that several times with the previous versions), but I did not uninstall the driver. When installing the new versions I chose to install both program, driver and updater. After installation I checked the device manager for yellow exclamation marks without finding any. When displaying properties on the "Line 6 Helix" driver it says that this unit is working correctly.

 

Do you recommend that I'm uninstalling both the Helix program and the Updater and then remove the "Line 6 Helix" driver manually before reinstalling the new software?

 

I also have the Line 6 software for my HD500 installed which is working correctly. Could that be causing any problems?

[petef]

SWoRd,

 

I have been fighting the Helix application error as well.  Both laptops are Windows 7, one finally loaded and runs with the revised 1.01 Helix librarian.  The other does not, ended up doing a clean Windows 7 install (it is a small laptop I only use for HD500/JTV and now Helix management and playing MP3 backing tracks, solo gig).

 

I did try removing all Line6 apps/drivers (including HD500/JTV) and cleaning registry, no luck.  The fact that it failed on a clean W7 install speaks to a lower level conflict (it is an old Sony Viao laptop).  I'm at a loss.

 

I have called this into Line6, they are still looking into the issue (i.e. we are not alone).

 

FYI, I have a Windows 10 machine, it is running Helix 1.01 app fine (will use for this weekend's gigs).

[SWoRd]

PeteF,

 

Thank you for the tip. 😊

I will try to find another PC to see if that will fix the problem.

[duncann]

Oh. That's not good. Have you tried holding switches 6 & 12 while turning power on? That's a safe boot mode, where you can try reflashing the firmware.

 

But before you try that, if you haven't already, try some of the other switch-combo resets.