IR's have muddied the waters!! - Feature Request NEEDED!!

[greekjgg]

When I got the Helix back in January it was simple and easy to use! I downloaded a patch from the website that somebody posted, and I was good to go. 

 

Now IR's have made the process almost annoying. Don't get me wrong, the IR's sound great when used properly. But the process to "demo" a patch is not user friendly

 

1. I have to load the patch.

2. I have to see what IR's your using

3. then figure out where to get them

4. load them

5. assign them

6. Uninstall the patch cause it sucks!!

 

Line 6 Helix Feature Request!

 

1. Line 6 Custom Tone Site Needs to have the ability to leave feedback for a patch. A patch can be downloaded 100 times, but it can still suck!! Half the time it gets rated by accident. We need to be able to leave feedback.

A. Dude, its WAY too low.

B. Dude, this sounds NOTHING like whatever your trying to replicate. 

C. Dude, STOP uploading patches cause you suck at it!!

 

2. The Custom Tone Site needs to be able to filter  patches with or w/o IR's. The site also needs to have a better way to list what the IR's are. I also think that a "audio" sample should be included so that we can see if its even close enough to try. 

 

3. The storing of IR's on the Helix needs to be simplified. I don't know what the alternative is but the way it is now is not convenient. Its not   "complicated"; I just spend more time loading patches/IR's than "playing" now it seems. 

[BillBee]

Your gripes regarding Custom Tone are a repeat of every generation Pod Owner. Just wait until the same bad patch gets uploaded and uploaded (and uploaded) as if the next generation fixed it. Madness I say.................. :) 

[dfranks]

I totally agree that there should be the ability to actually hear the patch before downloading it, even just a 5 - 10 second audio clip would be very helpful. A rating system would be helpful as well.

[vmoncebaiz]

Patch sharing in general can be very tricky.  The guitar, pickups, speakers, string guage, and the player all change the way the end result sounds. Not to mention the player's ears, perceptions, and preferences. Even with a sound clip posted, they way some one plays will react differently to the patch - especially on more dynamic processors like Helix.  I think you'd still be left dissapointed.  There is a rating system on customer tone, but again it still deals with all the variables listed above.

 

I think using other peoples patches work best when you find a person that has similar gear and tastes as you do, but I always think it's worth tweaking.  I started looking at presets as starting points and opened up to the idea that 9/10 times you can make a better sounding preset for your style and needs if you're down to tweak.  The most usefull thing I've found with other peoples patches is copying specific effect blocks and pasting them into my own patches, for instance getting the exact timing for an Edge or Gilmour type of delay.

[greekjgg]

I agree that tone, strings, etc....all will make differences but in the end I think a better rating system and ability to leave feedback like the Ultimate Guitar Tab forums you can quickly dial in if loading a patch will be worth your time or not. Right now there is no way for people that shouldn't be posting patches to get the hint that they shouldn't be. 

 

Additionally, the IR loading needs simplified. IR's should be attached to the patches. Its to complicated I have to worry that a certain IR is in slot 71 to link it to my patch, etc. 

[HonestOpinion]

I agree that tone, strings, etc....all will make differences but in the end I think a better rating system and ability to leave feedback like the Ultimate Guitar Tab forums you can quickly dial in if loading a patch will be worth your time or not. Right now there is no way for people that shouldn't be posting patches to get the hint that they shouldn't be. 

 

...

 

The idea of being able to give constructive feedback might be helpful and ultimately might up everybody's game who contributes presets. I also like the idea of being able to hear the preset before downloading but as far as getting an idea of which posts are preferred, you can do that now.. You can sort by the rating and pick presets with four or five stars. This will essentially spare you from having to go through presets with low stars or that have not been rated yet. No stars or low stars can be (although not always) an indication, particularly on an older preset, that it is not particularly popular or well received, especially when it has been downloaded many times. If the preset you contributed 2 years ago has been downloaded 500 times and it has 1 or 0 stars that is a pretty good indication that it did not go over well. If you have uploaded several presets that fit that profile you might want to review your preset design or do a better job of describing how to get a good sound out of your presets in the description.