CAN'T figure out Pitch Whamy - Help!

[gsmccoy]

I just can't seem to get this.  I simply want to use the Pitch Wham like a simple guitar tremolo bar.  When I toe the expression pedal, I want the pitch to drop 2 steps, and then return to normal when I heel the pedal.

 

Simple, or so it would seem.

 

I am using the HX Effects unit with a Roland EV-5 exp pedal.

 

I would greatly appreciate any advice.

 

 

[j_hotch]

Seems straightforward: set min pitch value to zero and the max to -4.  Map the pitch parameter to your expression pedal. What trouble are you having?

[gsmccoy]

18 minutes ago, j_hotch said:

Seems straightforward: set min pitch value to zero and the max to -4.  Map the pitch parameter to your expression pedal. What trouble are you having?

 

The min and max values are percentages, not steps.  There is no "-4" value.

[datacommando]

3 hours ago, gsmccoy said:

 

The min and max values are percentages, not steps.  There is no "-4" value.

 

Hi gsmccoy,

 

On the Helix Floor unit the options from left to right are: 

 

Position: 0 - 100%

Heel Pitch: -24 to +24

Toe Pitch: -24 to +24

Mix: 0 - 100%

Level: I’m not near my unit at the moment so I don’t t have the figures, but it is not pertinent to your situation.

 

O.K. The position tracks where your pedal is in the range of the sweep

Heel and Toe are the semitones shifts above and below your original pitch, unison = 0

Mix is how much pitch shift is mixed with your original.

 

I really don’t think the options on the HX FX will be any different to these.

You should be able to set minus 4 on the Toe Pitch and zero on the Heel to get the effect you want to create.

If not I guess you must be looking at something else?

 

Hope this makes sense and here’s a pic that “syngen1790” posted a couple of years back.

 

[gsmccoy]

When I move the pedal, the pitch travels from -24 to +24.  I does not matter where I set the knobs.  The pedal movement changes it all.

[datacommando]

20 minutes ago, gsmccoy said:

When I move the pedal, the pitch travels from -24 to +24.  I does not matter where I set the knobs.  The pedal movement changes it all.

 

Hi, again,

 

First off you tell us “The min and max values are percentages, not steps.  There is no "-4" value.”

 

Well, it seems that yes there is, because the issue now is that the pitch moves from -24 to +24.

 

How did that happen?

 

If you bother to check page 33 of the Helix FX Owner’s Manual it explains what you need to do, because, I’m sorry, I give up!

 

One day people will evolve to the point where they consult the literature provided with the unit before saying it doesn’t work. 

 

Sorry for the outburst because I usually like to help Helix users, if and when I can, but.... 

 

If ignorance is bliss there are a whole bunch of people headed for nirvana!

 

Enough!

 

Let’s go back to RTFM before anything else.

[gsmccoy]

Sorry to exasperate you so, but I have been over page 33 several times.  This is from the manual (page 34, actually)

 

 

These values are expressed as percentages, just as I said in the post above.

 

I have successfully assigned the parameter to the pedal.  That is not the problem.  My problem is I cannot seem to limit the response.  No matter what I do, the pedal sweeps from -24 to +24.  I want it to sweep only from 0 to -2.

 

I appreciate your attempt to help.

[datacommando]

1 hour ago, gsmccoy said:

Sorry to exasperate you so, but I have been over page 33 several times.  This is from the manual (page 34, actually)

 

 

These values are expressed as percentages, just as I said in the post above.

 

I have successfully assigned the parameter to the pedal.  That is not the problem.  My problem is I cannot seem to limit the response.  No matter what I do, the pedal sweeps from -24 to +24.  I want it to sweep only from 0 to -2.

 

I appreciate your attempt to help.

 

Hi,

 

O.K. I apologise for the rant, as I don’t own a HX Effects box, but the engine is the same as the floor Helix minus the amps and cabs.

 

You have managed to assign the parameters to the expression pedal. I guess what is happening is that you have the unit in “Learn” mode and when you sweep the pedal from heel to toe what’s happening is the thing is registering the 2 octave travel from -24 to +24 as 0 to 100%. This is obviously not what you want. What you want is not to be having the box learn the position of the EXP1 but to have it show the pitch shift, i.e. -2.

 

You may have seen this video which shows applying parameters to pedals - if not it may help.

 

You really don’t need to have your HXFX learn - just point it in the right direction.

 

Hope this helps.

[datacommando]

15 hours ago, gsmccoy said:

Sorry to exasperate you so, but I have been over page 33 several times.  This is from the manual (page 34, actually)

 

 

These values are expressed as percentages, just as I said in the post above.

 

I have successfully assigned the parameter to the pedal.  That is not the problem.  My problem is I cannot seem to limit the response.  No matter what I do, the pedal sweeps from -24 to +24.  I want it to sweep only from 0 to -2.

 

I appreciate your attempt to help.

 

Hi, once again,

 

I'm more intrigued than exasperated with this dilemma. So I decided to go the extra mile, just for the hell of it.

 

I'm now in the studio with my Helix beside me. As previously noted the effects in both HX and Helix are the same and have the same functions - it's just that Helix has the amps and cabs. Here's what I found. First I selected an empty preset slot and created Pitch Whammy in the signal path. As you could see from the picture in the earlier post my options are: Position, Heel Pitch, Toe Pitch, Mix and Level. I would imagine that the parameters are identical on the HX. One thing to note is that with the Helix, Whammy FX are automatically assigned to the built in expression pedal, and it works flawlessly, but for the purpose of this test I used one of my external M-Audio pedals with the EXT2 input. Anyhow as noted in your original comment I set Heel Pitch to 0 and Toe Pitch to -4 then moved the expression pedal and at position [0%] the guitar pitch is standard and when moved forward to [100%] the pitch drops by 4 semitones. I then changed the shift to -2 and again the pitch drops, but this time a whole tone. This is all that is needed to change the range of the pitch shifter, simply set the amount of pitch shift required in the Heel and Toe ranges.

 

If I check the controller assign set up for the Pitch Whammy the Parameter is set as "Position" and the Controller is "EXP Pedal 2" (which is my external, yours would be Pedal 1). The Min Value is set at 0% and Max Value 100% (this is the sweep range from 0 to -4 or whatever you have). That's it - nothing to learn - it just works. If you are not able to achieve this then I would suspect that firstly something is bypassing the Whammy effect, or there may be something amiss with your Roland EV5. If none of these I would raise a ticket with Line6 support.
 

I hope this makes some sense and aids you in your quest for Whammy heaven.

 

Best regards

[paulemurin]

I was trying to do what the OP is describing--using the Wham Pitch effect to drop the pitch down a whole step w/ the exp pedal, and ALMOST got it.

 

I'm doing this in stompbox mode. So I set up the Wham Pitch on a block, and assigned that block to a footswitch so that I can turn it on and off at will. Then, with the effect on (not bypassed), hit the menu button, then hit button 2 (controller assign), then hit button 6 (learn controller), and move the exp pedal so that it "learns" it. Then, on that same screen, set "min value" to 0 and "max value" to -2. 

 

So this basically does what the OP describes, BUT...the pitch shifting is not smooth. I can hear it drop a half step, and then another half step, but it's not smooth. Anyone know if there's a way to make it a smooth dive?

 

EDIT 12/5:  I figured it out in HX Edit. Not sure why it was so hard to figure out, but I'm new to the Helix. Here's how I did it in stomp box mode...YMMV. 

 

1. Enable the Pitch/Wham block, assign the bypass to the footswitch of your choice. 

 

2. In the Edit window, set the heel & toe values to 0 and -4 (-4 gives you 2 whole steps)

 

3. Go to the Bypass/Controller assign window, look for Pitch Wham in the list, set the "Pedal Position" parameter to EXP 1 (or 2, whichever you want).

 

4. The "Bypass" parameter should also be there in the list if you assigned it to a switch (step 1). If you see any other paramaters with assignments, clear them. 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 5, 2018 by paulemurin
Solved my own problem