Transparent boost/OD

[CBTL]

What are people's fave pedal for transparent boost or over drive. I find I always use the tube driver. The helix defenately needs a colour sound power boost as well a treble booster like a range master! I don't think line6 have ever modelled a treble booster. Oh, a talk box too please that can be controlled with the foot pedal 😀

[DunedinDragon]

The vast majority of the time I'll use the Minotaur but I occasionally use Tube Screamer or ProCo Rat.

[HonestOpinion]

I like the Teemah as well as the Tube Screamer for a fairly transparent overdrive. I use a 3db boost on the Output block assigned to a footswitch for a straight volume boost because it has minimal impact on my tone as it is downstream from everything else. Any of the more subtle overdrives can work well to put a little hair on your amp sound by dialing the drive down and the volume up.

[welshboyohelix]

Minotaur by far is the most transparent IMO

[Verne-Bunsen]

I'm keen on the Teemah and the Minotaur, but for the transparent-est of transparent boosts you can also use a gain block.

[captainnemo70]

im pretty new to the helix, but as a simple level boost, ive been using a gain (vol) block at the end of the run and pushing  the level by about 5db, i found any less wasnt getting over the band live, only need about 3db against backing tracks but need more with a band to jump out, 

[zooey]

If you're looking for an actually transparent boost, louder but with no coloration or added drive, just change the level of the final output block. No added DSP cost (though the gain block captainnemo recommends uses very little I'm sure), but also less clutter, and it's always there without having to add it.

 

For a little more push, I like Minotaur, Teemah, and maybe KWB (the maybe is for how colored you think it is, definitely use and like it), but none of the distortions are flat frequency response, regardless of drive level.

 

Compression as a solo boost adds sustain and evens out your level, for better or worse, plus you can dial in however much amp input drive you want with its output level. Lots of people like the LA Studio Comp, but I'm more a fan of the Deluxe Comp.

[MakeItShredNo1]

I was never a klon fan, but my most recent gigs call for more light-to-medium drive, and I'm loving the minotaur model. I now also use it on my high gain patches in conjunction with a post-amp clean boost for solos - the klon helps solos cut.

[MonkeyXT]

Another vote for both straight volume bumps and then the Minotaur for the gently furrier next step up.

For me the Screamer comes in higher up in the gain requirements chain, and is another absolute favourite =]

[WickedFinger]

While I do appreciate the effort to HX component model better drives, I seldom use them and just farm out to pedals I like. The Klon is OK but if I drag out my credible Klon copy not really the same. The clean boost from a Klon is not colorless but imparts a better tone to anything that runs into it or vise-versa. 

While the Helix model is a nice drive thing, I find pedals to be much superior drives and there are infinite options. I want HX level delay and reverb L6, come on, stop with the POD thing, the Helix is supposed to be better, stop dumbing it down with cheese effects. 

A really nice add on to your chain is adding the Mic Studio Tube Preamp in front of the amp set to level 10 line impedance and gain like 4.0 to keep clean, it boosts the amp intensity and imparts a nice tube modeling enhance to the tone. Some like it after some amps as well. 

The least DSP use is the lowest level EQ, just increase the level (aka gain) and keep the EQ flat and that is about as colorless as it gets.

[Rocco_Crocco]

I use a parametric eq after the speaker cab.

[strabes]

Klons, tube screamers, and RATs are not transparent. The former two have a large mid push, the latter is relatively scooped. Of the drives in the Helix, and depending on where you set the cuts, the timmy is the most transparent drive in terms of least amount of EQ change. If you just want a clean boost to make yourself louder, put a gain block (in the volume section IIRC) after the cabinet. If you want more volume and gain, put a gain block before the preamp. 

[PeterHamm]

Timmy and Klon are all I use anymore, but I like the Tube Drive a LOT, too. Maybe I should dial that up again.

[phil_m]

 

While the Helix model is a nice drive thing, I find pedals to be much superior drives and there are infinite options. I want HX level delay and reverb L6, come on, stop with the POD thing, the Helix is supposed to be better, stop dumbing it down with cheese effects. 

 

All the delays on the Helix are HX level... They were all made from scratch for the Helix. Actually, of all the effects on the Helix, all of them are completely new except the reverbs and the 6 HD wahs.

[WickedFinger]

Thanks, the information is rather confusing at times or lack thereof. So are they working on HX reverbs and improved wahs? 

It did seem the delays were sounding very good and the reverbs a flashback to POD days which I do not want to revisit. The POD made me leave L6 the Helix brought me back. I hope there is room in the unit for more updates and we do not get hit with a whole new machine anytime soon. I would be joyed as an option just to have the amp modeling and loop routing on steroids and just farm out to pedals for select thing, that is a winner as so many have tersely different notions of what good effects or models consist.

Personally, instead of the intense component copy of a rather cheesy pedal I would rather have an optimized effect with a bunch of params,

We do not need the Helix to fuzz and what not and is POLYPHONIC tracking possible on the Helix platform for pitch and octave effects??? And yes this is used in many no so expensive pedals using the std 1/4" cable. The new SY300 guitar synth is the flagship while less expensive pedals like the tc electronic sub N up are light years better tracking. The same technology is used for poly tuners and most of them are <$100 now. IS it possible to algorithm that into the software?

I love the Whammy V which is now true bypass and polyphonic tracking the model of the old version Whammy many are trying to use for detune is a fluke at best. Before the V they were all terrible glitch outs. 

The Whammy V Tuner combo also has the drop tune polyphonic feature. Soooooo possible for Helix or not? 

[Dshow]

I use the minotaur most of the time. It seems to work best for my strat.