jmansf3 Posted December 27, 2017 Share Posted December 27, 2017 I'm having an interesting issue with my volume knob not working when using the VDI cable into my Helix. For starters I made sure all software is up to date. When I use my variax with the 1/4" cable into my Helix everything works perfectly. When I use the VDI cable my volume knob acts weird. For magnetics with the volume rolled completely off I still have plenty of volume although the gain does change a little. With the modeled guitars the volume knob does work although the guitar still wont turn completely off. I have made sure none of the controls on the variax are locked out on the Helix and everything is set to Don't Force. I cant figure out what is going on here!!! Anyone else have this issue? it seems to have happened since the 2.3 Helix update. Thanks John 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisinon2 Posted December 27, 2017 Share Posted December 27, 2017 When in doubt, reflash the Variax firmware. It's pretty much the only user-serviceable "fix" when these guitars start acting weird. Could also be just a dirty pot...contact cleaner can work wonders. That's worth a try, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psarkissian Posted December 27, 2017 Share Posted December 27, 2017 http://line6.com/support/page/kb/_/general-faq/cleaning-pots-and-faders-r816 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseyboy Posted December 28, 2017 Share Posted December 28, 2017 I've not experienced this exact issue but I would ask if you're using the VDI cable with a battery pack installed? There seems to be reports and my personal experiences of weirdness about battery pack + VDI. "For magnetics with the volume rolled completely off I still have plenty of volume although the gain does change a little." Don't understand this comment? Volume rolled completely off yet plenty of volume? Personally noticed a small difference in magnetic output gain between 1/4" audio and VDI. Assumed they're sending passive/analog audio down the 25' Ether cable which might explain the drop off? But another user said he thinks it's converted to digital inside the guitar and sent VDI? I dunno what to believe and nobody who really knows is saying. I've moved over to 1/4 audio only output and been much happier with no further glitches other than maintaining battery swap/charging. Later is no big deal for me since well versed in rechargeable battery pack systems. Oh, there's a feature that kinda surprised me even though I probably skim read about it in manual/forums - when volume control is rolled off with a model engaged, the system goes to sleep in about 7-10 seconds. Roll it back up and the model selector LED comes back on. I haven't checked if it does this when connected to VDI because frankly, I haven't used VDI in a long time. But it does this on battery exclusively using 1/4" audio output. And don't use electrical contact cleaner which isn't specified for potentiometers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbrillow Posted December 28, 2017 Share Posted December 28, 2017 http://line6.com/support/page/kb/_/general-faq/cleaning-pots-and-faders-r816 This link just takes me to the Latest Articles page. I don't see one relative to cleaning pots & faders... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psarkissian Posted December 28, 2017 Share Posted December 28, 2017 Odd,... that link usually works. Go to the Knowledge Base, type in "pots and faders" in the search window, and "Enter". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmansf3 Posted December 30, 2017 Author Share Posted December 30, 2017 ‘Volume rolled completely off yet still plenty of volume†What I meant by that is the volume was not turning off even though the pot was rolled completely off. The gain(distortion) would lessen a little but still pretty much had full volume. Thanks for all the replies. I do have an update. I tried using the VDI cable that came with my variax and everything worked perfectly. I then plugged my old cable back in and everything still worked perfectly. I used the guitar last night with that same old cable and all worked perfectly. While I’m happy everything is working properly again I’m worried about the problem popping back up at a gig. I need VDI since I’m controlling the switching with my Helix although it’s comforting to know in a pinch it still functions as a regular guitar with the magnetics and a 1/4†cable. Thanks John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbrillow Posted December 30, 2017 Share Posted December 30, 2017 Odd,... that link usually works. Go to the Knowledge Base, type in "pots and faders" in the search window, and "Enter". Thanks for the suggestion, which works as-expected. Was kinda surprised to see the admonition about WD40, which seems to frequently be recommended for this use. I've used it in the past with seemingly-good results, but it would appear that they might be short-term, if it contributes to gunk buildup... Fortunately, I bought a can of DeoxIT some time ago, and have used that exclusively since that time... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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