Love the Lonestar

[gtrbldr_h]

Just wanted to state it. There seems to be much love for the Freedman, but the lonestar should have its own thread. Great addition to have a medium gain USA flavored amp. I feel like this one is going to replace my standard worship patches for driven sounds (used to be a pushed matchless channel 2 with Klon for drive).

 

Tnx for adding it

[ric1966]

I’m totally on board! Lonestar is my new favorite crunchy amp, at least until the rabbit discovers something else shiny down in the deep hole that is Helix!!!!! It has plenty of gain for lead tones without an OD in front, but an 808 works great with it too.

 

Line 6, THANK YOU for this amazing, free update.

[dmock66]

I've only had a few minutes to test drive the Lonestar - but I agree - stunning tone from it.  Well done Line 6!!!

 

Good call on this being the cornerstone of a P&W preset.  I have a base preset that I typically swap in/out my amp du jour - and I will make a copy of it with the Lonestar.

[jimbojamz]

I’m totally on board! Lonestar is my new favorite crunchy amp, at least until the rabbit discovers something else shiny down in the deep hole that is Helix!!!!! It has plenty of gain for lead tones without an OD in front, but an 808 works great with it too.

 

Line 6, THANK YOU for this amazing, free update.

Nothing in life is "free" you paid for that update when you paid for the Helix. imo

[jbuhajla]

I've only had a few minutes to test drive the Lonestar - but I agree - stunning tone from it.  Well done Line 6!!!

 

Good call on this being the cornerstone of a P&W preset.  I have a base preset that I typically swap in/out my amp du jour - and I will make a copy of it with the Lonestar.

I'm going to drop it into my go to P&W preset this evening to give it a go. Currently it is Litigator based. 

[amsdenj]

I can't believe it, but Cali Texas  Ch 2 has replaced Litigator as my goto amp model. The Cali Texas Ch2 has a really wide range of gain with Drive 1 and Drive 2. Drive 2 I believe has a bypass cap (since the Lonestar has one on both Gain controls). So depending on where you put Drive 1 and Drive 2 relative to each other, you can get really fine control on the brightness of the amp. keep Drive 2 turned down and Master turned up for a traditional bright Fender amp. Keep Drive 2 turned up pretty high, and preamp distortion created by Drive 1 will warm up. All the preamp tube saturation created by Drive 1 and Drive 2 (with Master turned down to about 5) is before the tone controls so they have a big impact on preamp distortion. The voicing switch works well to fatten up single coil pickups for a very nice, warm, full tone. This is a really wonderful and flexible amp model.

[Phil_Fee]

Yeah - I know the Lonestar sound well and this new model is really good. Looking forward to the clean channel from that amp too because that is one of my favorite clean amp sounds - check out some Andy Timmons on youtube for examples.

[Coleman48]

I can't believe it, but Cali Texas  Ch 2 has replaced Litigator as my goto amp model. The Cali Texas Ch2 has a really wide range of gain with Drive 1 and Drive 2. Drive 2 I believe has a bypass cap (since the Lonestar has one on both Gain controls). So depending on where you put Drive 1 and Drive 2 relative to each other, you can get really fine control on the brightness of the amp. keep Drive 2 turned down and Master turned up for a traditional bright Fender amp. Keep Drive 2 turned up pretty high, and preamp distortion created by Drive 1 will warm up. All the preamp tube saturation created by Drive 1 and Drive 2 (with Master turned down to about 5) is before the tone controls so they have a big impact on preamp distortion. The voicing switch works well to fatten up single coil pickups for a very nice, warm, full tone. This is a really wonderful and flexible amp model.

 

Thanks for the info. I'm liking it as well & haven't even started turning knobs. 

[noelzhu1986]

Lonestar is like instant andy timmons. love it. can't wait for the clean channel.

BE100 is pure rock n roll machine. I'll never go back to the marshall model to be honest.

[markman87]

Nothing in life is "free" you paid for that update when you paid for the Helix. imo

I respect your opinion but I disagree. I mean they could choose to not release anymore now, and Helix would still be worth more than the price of entry. But I appreciate that they continue to add content and functionality to an already great product. :)

[twohandband]

I'm going to drop it into my go to P&W preset this evening to give it a go. Currently it is Litigator based. 

What the heck is P&W?

[soblivion]

What the heck is P&W?

I'm pretty sure it is Praise and Worship, although I mistook at first for Passion and Warfare.

[twohandband]

I'm pretty sure it is Praise and Worship, although I mistook at first for Passion and Warfare.

 

Ah, a church gig. I have a buddy that plays drums for one of those big contemporary churches. Does a Wednesday rehearsal and a Sunday morning show and gets like $400 a month. Great, cushy gigs if you can get them.

[jimbojamz]

I respect your opinion but I disagree. I mean they could choose to not release anymore now, and Helix would still be worth more than the price of entry. But I appreciate that they continue to add content and functionality to an already great product. :)

I bought my Helix in part bc of the promised updates and consider it part of the deal. If they stopped the updates I wouldn't get rid of it (at 2.5 - at 1.0 i would have in a heartbeat) , however I would feel I had been misled. I realize they wont update it forever, but if they had never updated it from v1.0 I wonder how many would have bought it? I sure wouldn't have. Just my .02 worth. It's good you appreciate the updates, And do too, but I stand by "it's built in to the price" how else do they pay their people for the "free" upgrades? 

[markman87]

I bought my Helix in part bc of the promised updates and consider it part of the deal. If they stopped the updates I wouldn't get rid of it (at 2.5 - at 1.0 i would have in a heartbeat) , however I would feel I had been misled. I realize they wont update it forever, but if they had never updated it from v1.0 I wonder how many would have bought it? I sure wouldn't have. Just my .02 worth. It's good you appreciate the updates, And do too, but I stand by "it's built in to the price" how else do they pay their people for the "free" upgrades?

Yeah, that's true. I see your point more clearly. And Line 6 did say they would be expanding on Helix. DI explained that new hardware stuff they make also pays for those things (like the HX effects will pay for some updates, the LT paid for some of the updates and so forth), so it's not only the first sale they made when they sold us Helix. Of course updating with new firmware will also allow them to sell more Helices going forward, because it gets more attractive with each new release. So in that way, it's a win win!

 

So expecting updates for some time is not out of line as long as one doesn't expect something super specific. We don't know what's coming, only that something is coming :)

 

Thanks for your explanation!

 

Btw, the Lonestar is fantastic. Going from clean to overdriven in such a smooth way. Takes pedals very well (both overdrive and fuzz) :)

[cruisinon2]

...how else do they pay their people for the "free" upgrades?

With sales from the next device they release...

 

DI weighed in on this topic just recently, and spelled out their philosophy quite clearly:

 

That's not how we see it. Sustained development (R&D, sound design, feature design and implementation, etc.) on Helix is paid for by sales of future hardware. For example:

• Snapshot development in Helix Floor/Rack/Control was part of Helix LT development and therefore paid for by Helix LT users
• M-Class model development was part of Helix Native development and therefore paid for by Helix Native users
• The next big features and models will be paid for users of HX Effects
• The features and models after that will be paid for users of the next box
• And so on

Because all Helix and HX hardware/software shares a common code (or at least it will in a few months), our development dollars go a LOT farther, because everything gets rolled into the previous hardware/software. So in a way, updates are free, because someone else is paying for them.

However, it is true that if we just hacked another company's code—or licensed an engine instead of creating one ourselves—we'd be able to charge less. World-class engineers and sound designers need to eat too. But Helix would not be less than $1499 if there had been no plans for updates.

So whether you agree or not, as far as L6 is concerned, you bought what was in the box, no more, no less. The guys who bought the LT in the second wave, and now the new HX effects unit are paying for your Helix updates...

[jimbojamz]

Yeah, that's true. I see your point more clearly. And Line 6 did say they would be expanding on Helix. DI explained that new hardware stuff they make also pays for those things (like the HX effects will pay for some updates, the LT paid for some of the updates and so forth), so it's not only the first sale they made when they sold us Helix. Of course updating with new firmware will also allow them to sell more Helices going forward, because it gets more attractive with each new release. So in that way, it's a win win!

 

So expecting updates for some time is not out of line as long as one doesn't expect something super specific. We don't know what's coming, only that something is coming :)

 

Thanks for your explanation!

 

Btw, the Lonestar is fantastic. Going from clean to overdriven in such a smooth way. Takes p

edals very well (both overdrive and fuzz) :)

I need to try the LS. I've been geeking on the placater all weekend!

[markman87]

I need to try the LS. I've been geeking on the placater all weekend!

 

Well, the BE 100 is also crazy good. Better than I had anticipated! Love it with the gain at 2 and then switching from BE to HBE mode! Awesome :)

[jbuhajla]

I can't believe it, but Cali Texas  Ch 2 has replaced Litigator as my goto amp model. The Cali Texas Ch2 has a really wide range of gain with Drive 1 and Drive 2. Drive 2 I believe has a bypass cap (since the Lonestar has one on both Gain controls). So depending on where you put Drive 1 and Drive 2 relative to each other, you can get really fine control on the brightness of the amp. keep Drive 2 turned down and Master turned up for a traditional bright Fender amp. Keep Drive 2 turned up pretty high, and preamp distortion created by Drive 1 will warm up. All the preamp tube saturation created by Drive 1 and Drive 2 (with Master turned down to about 5) is before the tone controls so they have a big impact on preamp distortion. The voicing switch works well to fatten up single coil pickups for a very nice, warm, full tone. This is a really wonderful and flexible amp model.

Yep, it is the hub of my goto preset now...

[jbuhajla]

Ah, a church gig. I have a buddy that plays drums for one of those big contemporary churches. Does a Wednesday rehearsal and a Sunday morning show and gets like $400 a month. Great, cushy gigs if you can get them.

Yep, praise and worship. Although, it could work for Passion and Warfare as well (love me some Vai). 

 

I don't play at a mega-church with a big budget. Small-medium size, and I volunteer my time for it. I love it. 

[twohandband]

Yep, praise and worship. Although, it could work for Passion and Warfare as well (love me some Vai). 

 

I don't play at a mega-church with a big budget. Small-medium size, and I volunteer my time for it. I love it. 

 

I absolutely won't step onto a stage unless I'm getting paid... but then I'm not religious, so it's a bit different I suppose.

[jbuhajla]

I absolutely won't step onto a stage unless I'm getting paid... but then I'm not religious, so it's a bit different I suppose.

I hear ya. I am not religious either, but I am a believer. I do enjoy it tremendously, and it is a way for me to support the church and everyone that attends. I don't have time to play for other things other wise. Our entire worship band is all volunteer. 

[robbieb61]

Those church gigs seem to be prevalent among a lot of members here. 
I don't see anything wrong with taking whatever gigs are available.

Wasn't that long ago that live music RULED and there were literally dozens of clubs in any given area with live bands performing. These days, you're lucky to have even one or two within 30 miles. 

I've been lucky and still get to perform in smoky bars (Vegas baby) where my feet stick to the floor and there's a hint of urine in the air. lol  Now THAT is rock-n-roll.  heh-heh

[DunedinDragon]

I just upgraded my performance Helix since I didn't want to do it prior to the weekend.  And I have to say I totally agree on the Lonestar as a go to medium crunch monster.  I haven't had time to play with it too much but I dropped it into one of my Litigator based presets and that thing came ALIVE.  Nothing against the Litigator but the Lonestar has this very dry crunchy feel and I can really have some precise control over how my crunch I want.  Very professional studio sound going through a Celestion Redback IR with a mix of an R121 and MD421.  Good job L6!!

[gtrbldr_h]

I just upgraded my performance Helix since I didn't want to do it prior to the weekend. And I have to say I totally agree on the Lonestar as a go to medium crunch monster. I haven't had time to play with it too much but I dropped it into one of my Litigator based presets and that thing came ALIVE. Nothing against the Litigator but the Lonestar has this very dry crunchy feel and I can really have some precise control over how my crunch I want. Very professional studio sound going through a Celestion Redback IR with a mix of an R121 and MD421. Good job L6!!

Haven’t tried that IR yet, but that sounds like a great suggestion. #guesswhatiwillbetestinglater :-)

[twohandband]

Those church gigs seem to be prevalent among a lot of members here. 

I don't see anything wrong with taking whatever gigs are available.

 

Wasn't that long ago that live music RULED and there were literally dozens of clubs in any given area with live bands performing. These days, you're lucky to have even one or two within 30 miles. 

 

I've been lucky and still get to perform in smoky bars (Vegas baby) where my feet stick to the floor and there's a hint of urine in the air. lol  Now THAT is rock-n-roll.  heh-heh

 

Yeah... I still make most of my money playing but a two hour drive between shows is a good day, you know? 4-6 is not uncommon, and sometimes it's 8-10. I don't tour anymore but I play with a few regional acts that do nice rooms... corporate events, banquets, casinos, etc. The driving is brutal but that's what you do if you wanna make money these days.

 

My thing with the $$$... we don't want people getting the idea that what we do is not worth anything.

 

Can anyone talk about how the Lonestar model works with strat pickups? I'm getting kind of excited about all the good things I'm hearing. I should have my Helix Wednesday.

[willjrock]

With sales from the next device they release...

 

DI weighed in on this topic just recently, and spelled out their philosophy quite clearly:

 

So whether you agree or not, as far as L6 is concerned, you bought what was in the box, no more, no less. The guys who bought the LT in the second wave, and now the new HX effects unit are paying for your Helix updates...

I dont buy that even one ioda. Its one of those things were theres really no way to prove otherwise, so you can pretty much say whatever you want. 

 

L6 would really not have had a choice at this point.  My first version was 1.04. Compared to AX8 at what $1099? Helixes would have been collecting dust on all the sweetwater shelvs of the world for $400 more. Their only other option to compete with an AX8 in that price range would have been to needlessly build another box and that would have been a sure fire way to pi55 off the faithful.

 

 

Furthermore i had heard plenty of talk of helix being called an unfinished product at that time...is it just a coincidence that L6 is still working on it?  Could you imagine all the wasted man hours researching, developing, modeling, just so the people who bought helix could have a free gift?!  ......and then basing the nuts and bolts of one product on what a future product might sell? Im sorry but theres not even a small chance id believe that line. Im sorry you guys, the update has been cancelled. We didnt sell enough hxfx over the last stretch :)

[cruisinon2]

I dont buy that even one ioda. Its one of those things were theres really no way to prove otherwise, so you can pretty much say whatever you want.

 

L6 would really not have had a choice at this point. My first version was 1.04. Compared to AX8 at what $1099? Helixes would have been collecting dust on all the sweetwater shelvs of the world for $400 more. Their only other option to compete with an AX8 in that price range would have been to needlessly build another box and that would have been a sure fire way to pi55 off the faithful.

 

 

Furthermore i had heard plenty of talk of helix being called an unfinished product at that time...is it just a coincidence that L6 is still working on it? Could you imagine all the wasted man hours researching, developing, modeling, just so the people who bought helix could have a free gift?! ......and then basing the nuts and bolts of one product on what a future product might sell? Im sorry but theres not even a small chance id believe that line. Im sorry you guys, the update has been cancelled. We didnt sell enough hxfx over the last stretch :)

Well this is still America...sort of... and we can all believe whatever we like. Either way, it's no skin off my a$$. I was merely quoting the guy who works there.

[willjrock]

Yeah i get it man. My vent wasnt directed at you, but more at those ive heard in the past repeating this as absolute truth....and that his comments there dont make sense to me, on so many different levels. It just seems like the strangest, most random approach to a product i could even think of.  No disrespect meant.

[soundog]

...this thread has branched into interesting side discussions on religion and corporate profit models.

 

On topic, I just tried the Cali Texas CH2 (using @amsdenj's notes) and its enough to make a believer out of me.

[HonestOpinion]

With sales from the next device they release...

 

DI weighed in on this topic just recently, and spelled out their philosophy quite clearly:

 

So whether you agree or not, as far as L6 is concerned, you bought what was in the box, no more, no less. The guys who bought the LT in the second wave, and now the new HX effects unit are paying for your Helix updates...

 

 

I dont buy that even one ioda. Its one of those things were theres really no way to prove otherwise, so you can pretty much say whatever you want. 

 

L6 would really not have had a choice at this point.  My first version was 1.04. Compared to AX8 at what $1099? Helixes would have been collecting dust on all the sweetwater shelvs of the world for $400 more. Their only other option to compete with an AX8 in that price range would have been to needlessly build another box and that would have been a sure fire way to pi55 off the faithful.

 

 

Furthermore i had heard plenty of talk of helix being called an unfinished product at that time...is it just a coincidence that L6 is still working on it?  Could you imagine all the wasted man hours researching, developing, modeling, just so the people who bought helix could have a free gift?!  ......and then basing the nuts and bolts of one product on what a future product might sell? Im sorry but theres not even a small chance id believe that line. Im sorry you guys, the update has been cancelled. We didnt sell enough hxfx over the last stretch :)

 

I think you both make good points as well as those made by DI. The big picture is that ongoing development probably depends to varying degrees on a host of factors ranging from the initial readiness/completeness of a product when it first hits the market, how it compares with competing products, its sales numbers - both initial and projected ongoing, how many other unrelated products are diluting development resources, the profit margin per unit, the degree of pride the company takes in the product, the level of satisfaction of users, the number of bugs present that need to be fixed, etc.. I don't think there is any one single factor that drives updates although there can certainly be one that becomes the most important or even overriding determinant.  I will say that I have seen lack of sales absolutely put the brakes on update releases such as the Line6 M20d mixer which simply did not receive enough sales to merit further development. It started out as a really good and relatively "complete" mixer, despite its lack of a GEQ unless you owned Line6 speakers(which was kind of a shame), but it was more than adequate and quite ground-breaking in its initial release state.

 

I think the overriding principle in the Helix as it regards to updates is the sheer genius and huge benefit of the consolidation of the HX code and apps across the entire product line(Helix, LT, Native, HX FX, and whatever is still to come). This adds an economy of scale to new updates and innovation that makes it cost-effective to do updates and provides benefits that accrue to every user of an HX product. I think that is what DI was getting at in the quote above although I hardly think it was the only thing that would have driven updates but it is probably the most important factor. What a fantastic architecture this consolidated codebase is as it holds greater promise of further improvement because each update improves the entire line of products, generally increases the level of user satisfaction, and hopefully helps to improve or sustain sales across all of the HX devices.  If they maintain this consolidation every new HX product released holds out the possibility of improvements for owners of the older devices. At some point I am sure they will revamp the whole line to the next generation of "HX II" devices that follows "HX" and their focus will shift to that(probably is a bit already) but until then this is a win-win for Line6 and everyone who owns a device in the HX family!

[jbuhajla]

 

 

Can anyone talk about how the Lonestar model works with strat pickups? I'm getting kind of excited about all the good things I'm hearing. I should have my Helix Wednesday.

Haven't tried the strat (Seymour Duncan classic stack plus pickups) yet, but my Tele with SD vintage stack pickups sound FANTASTIC through the Lonestar model. I modified my Litigator based presets with the Lonestar model. 

[twohandband]

Haven't tried the strat (Seymour Duncan classic stack plus pickups) yet, but my Tele with SD vintage stack pickups sound FANTASTIC through the Lonestar model. I modified my Litigator based presets with the Lonestar model. 

 

Mmmm... I'm not using stacks. All my guitars have Strat pickups I wound myself to a late-50s spec. I'm a weird breed; a metalhead who absolutely hates humbucking pickups! So I'm kinda hoping somebody can chime in who is using a straight vintage-wound single. Thanks for sharing your experience; the Lone Star is one of the first damn things I'm going to try. 

[amsdenj]

Can anyone talk about how the Lonestar model works with strat pickups? I'm getting kind of excited about all the good things I'm hearing. I should have my Helix Wednesday.

What I noticed compared to Litigator was more focus in the mid frequencies creating a warmer, thicker tone that really works well with single coil pickups. You have to bring the gain and bass down and presence up for double coil pickups or its maybe a bit too thick. Also having the extra gain stage along with the 50W power amp provide a lot of options for preamp vs. power amp distortion. Its an extremely flexible amp.

[DunedinDragon]

 

 

Can anyone talk about how the Lonestar model works with strat pickups? I'm getting kind of excited about all the good things I'm hearing. I should have my Helix Wednesday.

 

My experience with the Lonestar was using a Strat Elite and is pretty much the same as ansdenj.  The mids are pretty good as is but I had to dial back the bass quite a bit.  I wanted a relatively clean string sound with just a bit of bite so I ended up dialing back Drive 1 to 3.6 and Drive 2 to 4.8 and then came up a little bit on the channel volume.  I found the highs were just a bit too harsh so I dialed back the presence quite a bit and that fixed it.  The mids stayed pretty much centered in the 5.0 area and the Treble is up around 7 or so.  The only other accommodation I made for the Strat is the same as I always do with the Strat and I dial back the 4Khz area about -2.0db using the Parametric EQ to reduce the Strat twang.  No low cut, but I used a high cut up around 7.5Khz on the Parametric EQ.

 

Basically this ended up with a nice tight clean but slightly crunchy sound with a lot of tight, dry punch on power chords and some nice clean bite on arpeggio picking.  Reminds me a lot of some of SRV's stuff as well as some of the older Doobie Bros sounds.

[twohandband]

My experience with the Lonestar was using a Strat Elite and is pretty much the same as ansdenj.  The mids are pretty good as is but I had to dial back the bass quite a bit.  I wanted a relatively clean string sound with just a bit of bite so I ended up dialing back Drive 1 to 3.6 and Drive 2 to 4.8 and then came up a little bit on the channel volume.  I found the highs were just a bit too harsh so I dialed back the presence quite a bit and that fixed it.  The mids stayed pretty much centered in the 5.0 area and the Treble is up around 7 or so.  The only other accommodation I made for the Strat is the same as I always do with the Strat and I dial back the 4Khz area about -2.0db using the Parametric EQ to reduce the Strat twang.  No low cut, but I used a high cut up around 7.5Khz on the Parametric EQ.

 

Basically this ended up with a nice tight clean but slightly crunchy sound with a lot of tight, dry punch on power chords and some nice clean bite on arpeggio picking.  Reminds me a lot of some of SRV's stuff as well as some of the older Doobie Bros sounds.

 

Cool... that sounds like what I like, and it's nice to run across somebody who actually knows how to dial a strat! Only thing I would question is the 4k cut; it seems to me that would rob you of some of that Hendrixy glassiness which for me is what a Strat pickup set is really all about. Looking forward to trying that model.

[jeremyn]

Cool... that sounds like what I like, and it's nice to run across somebody who actually knows how to dial a strat! Only thing I would question is the 4k cut; it seems to me that would rob you of some of that Hendrixy glassiness which for me is what a Strat pickup set is really all about. Looking forward to trying that model.

That cut may be there to compensate for the cable resonance of that particular pickup/cable pairing. Different cable, different cut (or no cut depending on where the resonant frequency ends up).

[DunedinDragon]

That cut may be there to compensate for the cable resonance of that particular pickup/cable pairing. Different cable, different cut (or no cut depending on where the resonant frequency ends up).

 

Not really.  It's just about the particular tone I want out of the Strat in this case.  I wouldn't use it if I wanted that spanky feel, but in cases like this where I'm looking for a more traditional crunch like Texas blues, it gives it a meatier sound.  The same holds true even on the Tele though I usually want spankiness if I'm using the Tele.

[markman87]

Yeah... I still make most of my money playing but a two hour drive between shows is a good day, you know? 4-6 is not uncommon, and sometimes it's 8-10. I don't tour anymore but I play with a few regional acts that do nice rooms... corporate events, banquets, casinos, etc. The driving is brutal but that's what you do if you wanna make money these days.

 

My thing with the $$$... we don't want people getting the idea that what we do is not worth anything.

 

Can anyone talk about how the Lonestar model works with strat pickups? I'm getting kind of excited about all the good things I'm hearing. I should have my Helix Wednesday.

Love it with my strat. It has low output pickups. you'll not be disappointed :)

[dickbanks]

Love it with my strat. It has low output pickups. you'll not be disappointed :)

 

...I should have my Helix Wednesday.

My advice to you--sleep well Tuesday night....

Because Wednesday night--you may not sleep at all... :D