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Helix/L2t inbound


StruckingFuggle
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Ordered an open-box Helix and L2t today.  I'm currently playing through a 60 watt three channel combo along with a rack full of pedals and effects controlled by a loop switch.  It's heavy, complicated, and fragile.  And at the end of the day I'm not getting the sound I want.

 

I use GuitarRig and Amplitube on my Mac, and have been very happy with the sounds I can get using the modelers direct, but have never been able to replicate that sound on a live rig.  Specifically, the Uberschall.  

 

Yesterday I plugged into a Helix/Alto and happened across the Uberschall patch and was blown away.  Don't get me wrong, the tone wasn't great.  The Alto was boomy, the little room I was in had glass and sound reflected everywhere, and everybody knows the presets suck.  But what blew me away was the reactivity, feel, and *potential* was all there.  The bad-lollipop sound I've been getting in my headphones for years was *almost* there on the floor in front of me.

 

I realize it's going to take some tweaking, additional IR, and time in the saddle.  I'm a little nervous about giving up the amp after 35 years of lugging around tubes.  Everything is a compromise, right?  

 

Wouldn't have taken the plunge without this kind of forum and people willing to share their experience and tribal knowledge.  Readying everything I can, already feel like I've got a good head start.  I'll have lots of questions in the coming days.  

 

(sitting by the door waiting for UPS) 

 

 

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Same story here!  Tonight is the first time i'm going to rehearsal without lugging my pedal board and 60w tube 2x12 combo.  

Love that amp, but it weighs 70 pounds and using 4cm is a pain.

Tonight will be just Helix and a monitor!  Wish me luck :)

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Same story here!  Tonight is the first time i'm going to rehearsal without lugging my pedal board and 60w tube 2x12 combo.  

Love that amp, but it weighs 70 pounds and using 4cm is a pain.

Tonight will be just Helix and a monitor!  Wish me luck :)

 

I've put my HT 60 on Craigslist.  Probably have a hard time selling it, but I was never very happy with it from the start.  I liked the clean channel OK, and one of the voicings on the amber channel, but just could not get along with the red channel.  I liked the amp a lot better run into my Mesa 4x12, but who's going to lug around a 4x12 and 60 watt combo?  Not this fat old wannab.  

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No Helix until Monday.  :(  So I made a mock-up of my pedalboard.  I had some 1/2" plywood and wanted to see what the layout would look like with a Pedaltrain classic 32.   You never really know until actually get things down on the board in front of you, right?   I don't want a super big board, but I do have a couple pedals I want in the chain.  I'm modeling what my modeler might look like on a mock-up.  I'm not sure if that's sad or cool.  Either way, I think the 32 will be big enough.  :)

 

917E169B-104F-4DDD-AA75-1A7929361FD3_zpsA2E51F5D-61EA-448E-AA49-7E1A500F0926_zps

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You've probably already considered this, but the Helix already has a slant to the top of the. As you are custom fabricating your own board, you may want to consider whether sinking or recessing the Helix into your custom board may offer additional benefits to protect the jacks and work out better for you. Just a thought....

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You've probably already considered this, but the Helix already has a slant to the top of the. As you are custom fabricating your own board, you may want to consider whether sinking or recessing the Helix into your custom board may offer additional benefits to protect the jacks and work out better for you. Just a thought....

 

Good point. I was wondering if the slant would be too much.   I could make something like this, but make the bigger side flat.  

 

mebEKDB.jpg

 

I wanted enough room underneath for a power strip and pedal power supply, but I'd like it to fit into one of the standard pedalboard bags/cases.  

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Good point. I was wondering if the slant would be too much.   I could make something like this, but make the bigger side flat.  

 

mebEKDB.jpg

 

I wanted enough room underneath for a power strip and pedal power supply, but I'd like it to fit into one of the standard pedalboard bags/cases.  

 

Beautiful piece of woodworking there!

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Helix is here, and after a couple hours I think I'm going through what appears to be the normal panic-stricken what-have-I-done phase.

 

I knew the presets sucked. No surprise.

 

Clean sounds are ok. Having a very hard time with most of the dirty amps. There is a fizz that I cannot stand. It's definitely tied to the drive paremeter. It sounds like fret buzz, but it's exactly the same on multiple guitars (and not present in any clean patches).

 

I only hear it if I pluck low single strings and let them ring. It's a fizzyness that piles on the gain. It's not all amps. I don't hear it in the hiwatt.

 

I know that it sounds like I'm describing fret buzz, but you'll have to trust me that it's the exact same frizzy across all three of my guitars (each with different setup and pickups).

 

It gets worse when I turn up the drive.

 

I've tried changing the input impedance and pad, and run though every preset. I hear exactly the same thing in headphones and the L2t.

 

At first I thought it was a bad tweeter in the L2t. It kind of sounds like a ratting screw or blown tweet. But after trying several patches at different volumes I'm pretty sure it is the modeling, not the cab.

 

Is this expected? Is this the fizzyness of amp models that people write about?

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Helix is here, and after a couple hours I think I'm going through what appears to be the normal panic-stricken what-have-I-done phase.

 

I knew the presets sucked. No surprise.

 

Clean sounds are ok. Having a very hard time with most of the dirty amps. There is a fizz that I cannot stand. It's definitely tied to the drive paremeter. It sounds like fret buzz, but it's exactly the same on multiple guitars (and not present in any clean patches).

 

I only hear it if I pluck low single strings and let them ring. It's a fizzyness that piles on the gain. It's not all amps. I don't hear it in the hiwatt.

 

I know that it sounds like I'm describing fret buzz, but you'll have to trust me that it's the exact same frizzy across all three of my guitars (each with different setup and pickups).

 

It gets worse when I turn up the drive.

 

I've tried changing the input impedance and pad, and run though every preset. I hear exactly the same thing in headphones and the L2t.

 

At first I thought it was a bad tweeter in the L2t. It kind of sounds like a ratting screw or blown tweet. But after trying several patches at different volumes I'm pretty sure it is the modeling, not the cab.

 

Is this expected? Is this the fizzyness of amp models that people write about?

 

This could be a lot of things including in very rare cases a defective Helix. I would start by making sure your gain levels are sufficient (particularly Ch. Vol on the cab and the main volume knob) and experimenting with switching between line or instrument level to your outputs. Inadequate signal has a significant negative/fizzy impact on the sound.

 

You may be hearing too much on the high end. Try a progressively more aggressive high cut on the cab and see if the fizz you are hearing goes away. Another good method for tracking it down is using the sweep method with the parametric EQ to dial out frequencies you don't like.

 

You may want to try experimenting with the microphone type on the cabs as well, they can make a huge difference to the sound. I'm sure some other folks can offer some useful suggestions. Good luck!

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If you are using cab/mics or IRs in your Helix preset make sure your L2t is in PA/Reference mode. With no cab/mic or IR you could try the L2t in Eletric Guitar mode.

 

Also try experimenting with the Cab parameters and settings. You can often get rid of some unwanted noise with the Hi and Lo Cut Settings as well as the Bias setting. And, the Drive parameter interacts heavily with the Master volume (not the Channel volume) level. Getting the right (for you) balance between those two can help.

 

How are you connecting to the L2t? L6 Link, rear panel analog, or side panel mixer? If rear panel set the Helix output to Line level. If side panel use Mic level and make sure the mixer tone and FX controls are off/neutral.

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I've connected the L2t via Line 6 link cable, and it's in PA ref mode. Im getting more confident that it's just an artifact of some modeling parameter for some amp models.

I've just upgraded to the latest firmware, and have been auditioning Mobius presets thus morning. Like, all morning. As in, I can't put this down and go to work. Omg. This is the real deal here.

Patch 01A, with the Mobius on send/ return 1. I raiswd the low cut to about 65hz, and holy lipipop.


I've been comparing the Helix mod effects to the Mobius side by side. It's not even close.

The helix mods are acceptable. I don't expect everything in helix to be mind blowing. If I didn't have a mobius to A/B with it then I'd say they were pretty good.

At this point I'm happy. More than happy. The patches can only get better with some equipment shaping, some good IRS, and time in the saddle.43A0C0A8-2A5B-447C-B62A-CDCF9C60F948_zps

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