Helix with a talkbox

[patdixon]

I use an MXR Talkbox which worked very well in the output of the LT. Since I started using 4cm I tried it in the send (amp input) & in the return but It seems to work best first in the chain between (wireless) guitar and the Helix input. I haven't tried putting it into a second loop path because no matter what the output when active is still the tube picked up by the vocal mic. 

 

Any thoughts, would it be worth the effort to try a second loop, effectively making it a block? 

 

Thanks,

 

 

[themetallikid]

That's how I would try to use it. I had that same  issue with the Banshee Talkbox.  If I ran it in front I was 'stuck' with the on board distortion model which I didn't care for. 

 

I would run it in the loop of my Fractal/Boss units and then insert it after the preamp block.  I would then set the talkbox controls in a way that the gain was low enough to pass some signal, but not enough to really dirty it up.  I would increase it as sort of a dirt pedal addition to the preamp coming from my main unit, but wouldn't ever get past 9'oclock on the dial.  The level would need to be increased for the output usually to about 3'oclock to compensate, but that's expected with such low gain settings. 

 

This also allowed me to place the talkbox unit in a position that I didn't have to reach with my feet.  I could just setup a preset/snapshot that would be a copy of my regular rhythm preset but with the FX Loop block engaged and the main output muted. 

[GML11]

I just bought an MXR Talk Box to use with my Helix LT.  I thought I could just run it in front of the helix like a regular pedal, but it doesn't work.  I am not that proficient with setting up the Helix (just got it).  Looking for directions on how to set it up from start to finish if anyone can help?  From plugging it in an where (In front, effects loop, etc..), to inserting a patch if necessary. Thanks

[brue58ski]

I just bought an MXR Talk Box to use with my Helix LT.  I thought I could just run it in front of the helix like a regular pedal, but it doesn't work.  I am not that proficient with setting up the Helix (just got it).  Looking for directions on how to set it up from start to finish if anyone can help?  From plugging it in an where (In front, effects loop, etc..), to inserting a patch if necessary. Thanks

 

 

Talk boxes get their effected signal from a mic. Traditionally this mic gets it's signal from the amp. The MXR talk box does not work the way traditional talk boxes worked. Normally the traditional talk box took it's input directly from the amp's output. WHAT??? Yup, that's right. The sound you heard (reference Peter Frampton Do You Feel Like I Do (Live)) is the amp's speaker outputs going to a speaker inside the talk box and that internal speaker's sound goes to the tube that goes up to the mic. That tube goes into your mouth and has the speaker's audio coming out of it. That's right. It's just the audio the tube picks up from the talk box's internal speaker. The mic then picks up the altered sound coming out of the tube in your mouth. Your mouth, of course, creating the effect. The mic then goes out to the PA. It does NOT go back to the amp. That's the sound your hear. The mic picking up the tubes sound coming out of your mouth. The talk box then had a 1/4" output that (theoretcally) sent an unaltered signal back out to the speaker cabinet. So the effected signal comes from the mic going to the PA, NOT the cabinet.

 

What all of this means is you need to have both the talk box AND the mic's output gong into your LT.

 

The MXR talk box creates it's own "guitar amp' internally, so you don't have to hassle with that. BUT the effected signal is still only coming from the mic. The 1/4" output is just the uneffected guitar signal which you plug into the amp. The LT has no mic input so the only way to get the "effect" is to run the mic into an effect return block. You would then make the effect return block the input of the second path which is your talk box's effected output. To make this clear, going from your guitar to the talk box, to the Helix only gives you the guitar output gong into the Helix. The talk box's effected signal is from the mic, which gets it's signal from the noise created by the tube going into your mouth and your mouth changing it's shaped to create vowels. What you should wind up with is your amp with no talkbox signal on path 1 and your talk box mic signal on path 2. You can then craft the sound by mixing path 1's and path2's signal.

 

Again, the talk box 1/4" output is just a continuation of the guitar cable. It has NONE of the talk box's effect in it. The whole effect's signal essentially comes directly from your mouth with the tube in it. The tube has the distorted sound coming out of it and going into your mouth. The mic picks that up and THAT is your effected signal.

 

Hope this makes sense.

 

 

 

[themetallikid]

On 10/3/2022 at 9:13 AM, brue58ski said:

I just bought an MXR Talk Box to use with my Helix LT.  I thought I could just run it in front of the helix like a regular pedal, but it doesn't work.  I am not that proficient with setting up the Helix (just got it).  Looking for directions on how to set it up from start to finish if anyone can help?  From plugging it in an where (In front, effects loop, etc..), to inserting a patch if necessary. Thanks

 

 

Talk boxes get their effected signal from a mic. Traditionally this mic gets it's signal from the amp. The MXR talk box does not work the way traditional talk boxes worked. Normally the traditional talk box took it's input directly from the amp's output. WHAT??? Yup, that's right. The sound you heard (reference Peter Frampton Do You Feel Like I Do (Live)) is the amp's speaker outputs going to a speaker inside the talk box and that internal speaker's sound goes to the tube that goes up to the mic. That tube goes into your mouth and has the speaker's audio coming out of it. That's right. It's just the audio the tube picks up from the talk box's internal speaker. The mic then picks up the altered sound coming out of the tube in your mouth. Your mouth, of course, creating the effect. The mic then goes out to the PA. It does NOT go back to the amp. That's the sound your hear. The mic picking up the tubes sound coming out of your mouth. The talk box then had a 1/4" output that (theoretcally) sent an unaltered signal back out to the speaker cabinet. So the effected signal comes from the mic going to the PA, NOT the cabinet.

 

What all of this means is you need to have both the talk box AND the mic's output gong into your LT.

 

The MXR talk box creates it's own "guitar amp' internally, so you don't have to hassle with that. BUT the effected signal is still only coming from the mic. The 1/4" output is just the uneffected guitar signal which you plug into the amp. The LT has no mic input so the only way to get the "effect" is to run the mic into an effect return block. You would then make the effect return block the input of the second path which is your talk box's effected output. To make this clear, going from your guitar to the talk box, to the Helix only gives you the guitar output gong into the Helix. The talk box's effected signal is from the mic, which gets it's signal from the noise created by the tube going into your mouth and your mouth changing it's shaped to create vowels. What you should wind up with is your amp with no talkbox signal on path 1 and your talk box mic signal on path 2. You can then craft the sound by mixing path 1's and path2's signal.

 

Again, the talk box 1/4" output is just a continuation of the guitar cable. It has NONE of the talk box's effect in it. The whole effect's signal essentially comes directly from your mouth with the tube in it. The tube has the distorted sound coming out of it and going into your mouth. The mic picks that up and THAT is your effected signal.

 

Hope this makes sense.

 

 

 

Someone asked this in another thread and I havent had a chance to look into it, but its an interesting thought.

 

With the Helix Floor (full Helix version) that has the mic input.  Could you essentially add a Send 1 (or 2,3,4) block to send the signal to the Banshee, but then return the mic sound into the Helix Mic Input?  I know that part is easy, but the options at this point could be interesting

 

1 - get an XLR > 1/4 cable to go back into the Return 1 Jack 

2 - go into Mic Input, but then would need to make sure that the 2nd path is set to Mic input and that could cause problems for some presets

3- is there  a block you can insert that would take its feed from the Mic Input similar to how the Return 1/2/3/4 would work?  So you would go Send 1 and the next block would be an input block?  I'm thinking this can't be done, but if you could fit your preset in the top path with a send block being the last block before the output, you could use Path 2 to be your Mic Input and you'd have a talkbox path then.  

[brue58ski]

I have done this in the Helix floor and it works great!! I added a send between the amp and cab. However, I cannot remember exactly how I returned the mic's signal. I think it was assigning it to input 2 and then input 1's & 2's output volume would be assigned to Snapshots. But I'm not sure. I will check when I get home tonight and update this.