Helix LT - Snapshots question...from a yet to be born owner

[themetallikid]

Well greetings....My Helix LT is on its way from Sweetwater.com and I'm already salivating at rejoining the realm of good solid tones/gear.  I'm a long time follower on the Rig-Talk forum, but tend to lurk rather than post a ton of stuff.  I enjoy the forums for sharing tips/tricks and experiences that I just havent had, and ones I've had that others havent.  

 

Little about me, I had a Fractal Ultra (original Ultra, not the II) for about 7-8 years and last year sold it and downgraded to the Boss GT 100.  I only did this cause I got a decent offer on the used gear I was selling and really didnt need to spend a lot for the $700 local bar gigs I do.  Just couldnt justify the spending of another $1500 or so.  I went back to the Boss GT series as I was quite familiar with the programming tactics and tricks that Boss uses from my past history with the 3,8,10 series units.  It made sense to go with what could get me up and running the quickest.  

 

Well had some issues the last gig, that I will not tolerate, and it get me realizing that the COSM models Boss uses are not better today, than they were back when I had the 8 (10 years ago).  Definately no way near the level of the Ultra that I had gotten and loved for so long.  Anyway, was comparing the units of the Helix LT/Native and the Fractal Ax8.  Eventually the extra features of the Helix won me over as I think the amp models are close enough to me between them and I like the presentation and ease of programming the Line6 units seem to incorporate.  

 

Anyway...On to my question....

 

I'm pretty sure I get the Snapshots thing, but my question is......I know that there can be as many snapshots as you allow (based on the stomp switches layout).  I myself will more than likely be going with the 4 presets on the top row, and 4 snapshots on the bottom row.  I tend to program a song per preset for my band and switching snapshots will make achieve all song sounds pretty slick.  BUT....can I put a snapshot into in any snapshot slot?  Or will it always go in chronological order?  Meaning, I have 4 snapshot slots, can I always have Snapshot 4 (far right button) always be my lead snapshot?

 

I'm thinking this is not possible and it will always go in chronological order.  

 

 

 

Thanks in advance for any help, I look forward to picking your brains when I get stuck.  CHEERS!!!

[rvroberts]

You can arrange your shapshots however you like - keeping to the bottom row in the layout you are suggesting (which incidentally is how I run mine).

Obviously, if you have filled every slot and then you change your mind, you will have to recreate one as you copy and paste snapshots.

I tend to have my low gain sound on the left and the solo sound on the right and some variation like chorus somewhere in between.  I also probably have amp gain and delay settings varying across the presets - but it's all just copy and paste for rearranging.

[DunedinDragon]

Just be aware you don't HAVE to use snapshots to achieve different sounds within a preset.  You can also use multiple assignments in regular stomp mode to achieve the same effect.  You may still choose to use snapshots if you're comfortable with it, but either way you're going to have the same DSP limits per patch.  That shouldn't be a problem if you're using a patch per song.  I also use a patch per song, but I've never felt to the need to use snapshots.  I just use multiple assignments to a stomp.

[themetallikid]

Thanks for the responses...

 

RV - Thanks, it seems like you run the same preset design as I do for order.  I typically run my clean on the left and heavy stuff on the right, when I'm running preset mode.  With the Snapshot options, I think I will probably run this way, and maybe this will clear up my question.

 

snap 1 - Song intro sound

snap 2 - First sound change

snap 3 - 2nd sound change

snap 4 - I would like to always set this snapshot to be my lead sound, whether snap 2/3 are being used or not.

 

 

Duned - Thanks as well for that offer.  Coming from the Boss/Fractal realm, I'm familiar with setting up Assigns/Modifiers to attach several changes to one button or signal change.  With the Fractal, I've assigned a 'lead' button IA for instance and with my Boss, I had the 'CTL' button which I could assign for the same duties.  I've also attached all lead changing parameters to an expression pedal so that toe down was rhythm, toe up was lead sound.  I'd like to get away from all that 'extra' programming and just setup a lead version of the preset using the Snapshot idea.  

 

My question was more, do I have to use snapshots 2 and 3 in order to have the ability to use #4?  Or can I have presets that only use #1 and #4

[silverhead]

You can use only Snapshots 1 and 4 if you wish. Snapshots 2, 3, and 5-8 will still be present but you can ignore them.

[Digital_Igloo]

There are always 8 snapshots. You can choose to access all 8 at a time, 4 at a time (top or bottom row), or in order, sequentially, if you set your BANK UP/DOWN switches to SNAPSHOT UP/DOWN:

1. Hold both UP and DOWN switches to cycle through BANK, PRESET, and SNAPSHOT UP/DOWN.

• ​On Helix and Helix Rack/Control, the scribble strips update to reflect the change
• On Helix LT, the inspector header reads "FS1/FS7 set to [type] UP/DOWN"

If your snapshots aren't in the order you like, you can quickly reorder them:

1. Touch and hold two snapshot switches for one second and press Knob 6 (OK).

[themetallikid]

You can use only Snapshots 1 and 4 if you wish. Snapshots 2, 3, and 5-8 will still be present but you can ignore them.

 

Ok, so i could set up all 4 scenes, just turn off all blocks for scenes 2 and 3, and leave the names blank so it onlt appears that there are scenes 1 & 4?

 

Reason being is that i tend to wander off stage for solos, and its easier for my bass/other guitar player to know that one switch is for leads. Lol, trivial i know... But just trying to hammer out programming things before hand.

 

 

2nd question: if i choose to go with the amp/cab option right away for programming simplicity of 50+ presets, can inlater on adjust just the cabinet portion or just the amp portion or do i need to start with thos3 blocks seperated to have that flexibility?

 

Just trying to avoid dialing in a sound and then having to recreate it later on with new blocks.

[jbuhajla]

You can name snaps whatever you want. For a while I had presets on top, snaps on bottom, snaps named INTRO VERSE CHORUS LEAD. I am back to 10 stomp mode now though, generic preset, not preset per song. 

 

I have some presets saved with my favorite amp/cab settings, so I can just copy paste that preset as a starting point for new preset. Using Amp/cab block will allow you to tweak all parameters the same as using separate blocks, but you need separate blocks to be able to put effects in between amp and cabinet. 

[MusicLaw]

Ok, so i could set up all 4 scenes, just turn off all blocks for scenes 2 and 3, and leave the names blank so it onlt appears that there are scenes 1 & 4?

Reason being is that i tend to wander off stage for solos, and its easier for my bass/other guitar player to know that one switch is for leads. Lol, trivial i know... But just trying to hammer out programming things before hand.

This could be done. However, there is no method to simply lockout one or two Snapshots. You may want to keep the names of your Snapshots clearly legible. Snapshots support different (i.e. altered) Parameter Values -- as well as the Bypass/Enable Status -- for the Blocks in the Preset. All the Blocks in a Preset will be present in each Snapshot! Snapshots do not support removing nor repositioning/resequencing of Blocks in the Signal Path. Keep this in mind as you consider how best to have your bandmates recognize which Snapshot to enable.

2nd question: if i choose to go with the amp/cab option right away for programming simplicity of 50+ presets, can inlater on adjust just the cabinet portion or just the amp portion or do i need to start with thos3 blocks seperated to have that flexibility?

Just trying to avoid dialing in a sound and then having to recreate it later on with new blocks.

The trade-off here is that if you change cabinet selection in an Amp+Cab Block, all of the Cab's Parameter values revert to that selected Cab's Factory default settings. Thus, it can be an arduous task anyway. One approach is to begin with the combined Amp+Cab Block to see how they suit your needs, and adjust the Amp and Cab Parameters as desired. Once you get the settings dialed in for what you prefer, then consider using separate Blocks for the Amp and for the Cab. And, above all, when you find your desired settings, it is highly recommended that you Save that as a separate custom template Preset configuration named as you choose, in any Library or Resourse SetList of your choosing. That way, you will have it to recall and revise as you proceed.

[themetallikid]

Thanks again guys, the response here is very encouraging and i k ow some of the questions im asking are splitting hairs a bit.

 

 

Musiclaw- generally my preset/snapshots will be setup as follows

 

1-beginning sound only

2-bridge/verse/chorus sound as needed

3-bridge/verse/chorus/lead sound as needed

4-lead only

 

In that setup, i should almost always have snaps 1 and 4, but 2/3 would be song specific. They will be there, but named as blank. Most the songs i ne3d the help on are single sound +lead sound anyway so only 2 snaps needed. Its just easier to tell them to always hit "this" button.

 

To your 2nd point, i generally always create a base of presets for template reasons: clean, gritty/breakup, classic, 80s, boosted 80s/90s, modern. That allows me to always have backups and easier to copy paste when setting up song specific presets.

[MusicLaw]

If you'll be Copying to Duplicate your customized template Preset for your various songs, the Snapshots in the source Preset you Copy will be present in the resultant Presets. Thus, whatever parameter variable settings and names you have created for Snapshots 2 and 3 (in your source Preset) will be present in the duplicated Presets. If your customized template has the actual names and Parameter Value settings for those Snapshots, you would need to Edit those Snapshot Names and Bypass Blocks or reset Parameter Value settings for the various Presets for songs containing those Snapshots that you do not use.

 

It may be easier to start with two versions of a customized template Preset. One for the Songs that use all Four Snapshots, and the other for the songs that Do Not Use Snaps 2 and 3. This way your customized template Preset for the later case could already contain the "NONE", BLANK" or "DONOTUSE" Names for Snapshots 2 and 3 as well as the Bypassed Blocks, or reset Parameter Value settings. This would reduce the amount of editing needed for subsequent song Presets.

[themetallikid]

I agree... I will probably have a few preset templates for snapshots as well...