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HX Stomp as the core of a board (with pictures)


Karis_shem
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Hi guys,

 

Just wanted to share you my new board, based on the HX Stomp. Used to have an Helix, and it is a fantastic machine, but the HX Stomp made me want to create something new, lighter, compact and maybe even more powerful. Actually, i saw the main drawback of the stomp (only 6 blocks and limited DSP power) as an advantage (or maybe an excuse). I love pedals, and this was an opportunity to build something new with the Stomp in the center and great stuff all around. Here’s the result :

 

IMG_1.jpg

IMG_2.jpg

IMG_3.jpg

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So the chain is like this :

Guitar>G10>Buffer>Pitchfork>H9 Pre>Sunset>H9 Post>HX Stomp>Nemesis>Ventris>Out

 

Initially i planned to use the HX loop somewhere, but it’s one block less and i found it noisy anyway…

 

Everything (except the Pitchfork) is commanded by a Morningstar MC6 Mk2. You can select a preset (switching all the pedals like you want them) and the go directly to a page with all the controls for that given preset (snapshots, effects, link to another preset). Up to 16 messages per button, so you can just control everything.

 

The Pichtfork (despite being a great pedal) is out of my « MIDI reach », and i plan to replace it with the upcoming C4 from Source Audio if it sounds well (which is probably the case). Or maybe i’ll go the Arduino way, but that’s a different story.

 

The Strymon Sunset is now MIDI, and it’s a great deal since i can have different OD’s according to my snapshots. Wonderful OD’s

 

The Source Audio pedals are connected to the Neuro Hub (under the board).

 

The H9 is the « all around » thing. To be honest i would have prefer to integrate the Strymon Möbius, but as the plan was to keep things compact, i choose the Eventide option.

All of this is (perfectly) powered by 2 linked Strymon Ojai. These things are small, not noisy and really convenient for smaller boards. For the G10 (which is 5V) i use a 5v>9v converter.

 

I spent a lot of time choosing the perfect board, cause i don’t like to have gaps between pedals. So i made a lot of tests with Photoshop, testing the different sizes and pedal orientation. In the end, i found the Rockboard Tres, which is perfect for my needs. Built like a tank, really convenient, and you can add a module (3 different models) for power plug, expression pedals and audio outs.

 

There are a lot of flat cables, to save space. The midi flat cables are done by Rockboard and the audio cables by EBS.

 

As you can imagine, it’s pretty crowded under the board (37 cables) but here’s the result :

IMG_4.jpg

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The total weight is around 6kg (Helix one was 12,5kg), and the size is way better for travelling, so now i think my Helix will stay at home for recordings and the HX Stomp board will travel with me ;)

 

Of course this is a crazy project. The Helix alone is capable of doing all of this for maybe half the price, but this was not my point here.

 

I’ll be happy to answer your questions if you’ve got a similar project.

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  • 2 months later...

Now this thread is more my speed :)

Gotta admit, as much as I resisted it, the MIDI control options open up a whole new world... I've got the MC6 configured for patch and snapshot + bypass looper controls primarily, but always have a hidden quick-jump menu one click away that has deep dive commands set up for the looper, stomp, Riverside, and Big Sky that I can jump in and back out of easily to tweak on the fly. It's wired up to support 4CM, direct out to FoH, or both simultaneously (amp is in an fx loop). Loving it!

IMG_20181225_152328_535-02.jpeg

IMG_20181225_123244-01.jpeg

IMG_20181226_210609-01.jpeg

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  • 1 month later...

Hi, guys! Thanks for sharing! This is exactly what Im planning to do. But I have one single doubt..and I m hoping that you could help me... How does exactly the HX takes pedals?

 

Acording  to your experience is there any patch/ confoguration/ amp model/ IR ,,etc that would help make the stomp take OD and other effects pedals in the best possible way?

 

Thanks guys!

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2 hours ago, Bufalonazal said:

Hi, guys! Thanks for sharing! This is exactly what Im planning to do. But I have one single doubt..and I m hoping that you could help me... How does exactly the HX takes pedals?

 

Acording  to your experience is there any patch/ confoguration/ amp model/ IR ,,etc that would help make the stomp take OD and other effects pedals in the best possible way?

 

Thanks guys!

Honestly the only thing you really have to be attentive to is the input impedance. By default it'll be set to 'auto' which sometimes lends itself to impedance mismatches that cause awkward volume drops or pedal misbehavior. If you pay attention to your pedals' output impedance & set the Stomp's input to something appropriate, it behaves amazingly well with every amp model I've tried.

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  • 6 months later...
  • 2 weeks later...
On 12/3/2018 at 5:23 AM, Karis_shem said:

Hi guys,

 

Just wanted to share you my new board, based on the HX Stomp. Used to have an Helix, and it is a fantastic machine, but the HX Stomp made me want to create something new, lighter, compact and maybe even more powerful. Actually, i saw the main drawback of the stomp (only 6 blocks and limited DSP power) as an advantage (or maybe an excuse). I love pedals, and this was an opportunity to build something new with the Stomp in the center and great stuff all around. Here’s the result :

 

IMG_1.jpg

IMG_2.jpg

IMG_3.jpg
 

I just added a stomp to my setup. I also have the Eventide H9 Max. How are you using the stomp with the H9?


 

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  • 3 months later...
On 12/3/2018 at 7:25 AM, Karis_shem said:

The total weight is around 6kg (Helix one was 12,5kg), and the size is way better for travelling, so now i think my Helix will stay at home for recordings and the HX Stomp board will travel with me ;)

 

Of course this is a crazy project. The Helix alone is capable of doing all of this for maybe half the price, but this was not my point here.

 

I’ll be happy to answer your questions if you’ve got a similar project.

This is exactly what I was looking for! I have a question 1. Regarding the Morningstar MC6, how do you set it up with the HX? I know it involves MIDI but how do you program it and to what parameters...

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5 minutes ago, designchef said:

This is exactly what I was looking for! I have a question 1. Regarding the Morningstar MC6, how do you set it up with the HX? I know it involves MIDI but how do you program it and to what parameters...

It's dead simple using Morningstar's editor - you can do it manually on the controller itself, but it takes much longer - I'd strongly recommend the editor - look for info and user guides on Morningstar's website.

 

Regarding useful commands for controlling the HX Stomp, here were the main ones I used:

e17367857ce3f73beade31e0ab99d3f8.0.thumb.jpg.2664ebaba2ab71db7342e5ab9e6f9f88.jpg

 

Disregard the channel 6 bit - you'd set the midi channel on the mc6 to whatever you've got the HX configured for.

Preset selection is a midi PC (program change) with whatever number preset you want. The others are all midi CC (control change) message types with the id selecting what type of control and the message value being the setting eg on vs off (second column in my picture)

 

This is all out of the user manual - I just had stashed it in a spreadsheet for quick reference.

 

Cheers 

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Just love the sunset.

Really versatile. Really convenient (for example the led change color to remind you the position of each knob/toggle). The addition of MIDI made it perfect for me. 

 

The range goes from clean boost to heavy distorted sound (OD is the main focus). 

 

Also, it works really well with the HX stomp (sound-wise). In fact, it's perfect if you want to do some gain staging (which is my prefered method) cause you've got 2 pedals in here plus what you add in the Stomp... 

 

I made quite a lot of changes in my board, but the sunset is still there and i don't plan to change it soon.

 

If you chase versatility (and gain staging), you may also consider Chase Bliss Brothers (more on Fuzz). I'm not really convinced though i love what they do : more complicated, and i prefer the Sunset sounds (as i don't use fuzz often, i do it with the stomp). Also, the Boss OD-200 (even more versatile, and once again mùy personnaltaste goes to Sunset).

 

For a cheaper price the L.A Lady (Source Audio) might be a great choice.    

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Wow, some great boards there! I have a really simple setup, I hit the API comp / EQ pedal first, then the stomp for everything else. I play rhythm guitar only, so HX for my amps, cabs (unless I bring a tube amp out) and basic effects:  reverb, delay, boost, etc...even then I don't use a lot of effects so the stomp works out perfectly. 

Pedal Board 2020.jpg

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On 2/7/2020 at 3:59 PM, thoro said:

 

I love the HX Stomp and built a small pedalboard using a Gator GPB-LAK-GR.

 

I modded it to work as a MIDI switch. Works like a charm...

 

 

Very, very cool! Love the DIY approach

 

I use the same board (the black version). Such a perfect size for the Stomp and a couple of extras.

 

EWB02kL.jpg

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