New LT Owner, Midi Change Issue, Engl Invader II, I'll Pay You!! LOL

[The-Big-Diezel]

Hey everyone, I'm super excited and bummed at the same time. I got the LT but can't get it to do simple channel changes via midi in my Engl Invader II. I've been using midi for over 15 years and yet it's not responding like I'd expect. Before I watch any more videos and waste more hours trying things randomly, I thought I'd come on here and even offer to pay someone who can fix my issue and help me. I'm not even kidding, I just want to get this thing to work correctly and me figure out how to do this asap.

 

Engl Invader II (4 channel head)

Midi dip switch on head is on Channel 1 (in the back)

I am in the LT user preset area just trying to create the most basic patch

I see how to get to the midi control area by hitting the menu button and then the 3rd knob for midi

I go to Midi/Prog and change it to say channel 4 with everything else off = Nothing changes on the head

I don't want to use the Engl store button if I don't have too because I like having it setup so other programmed gear will talk to it asap if I need to swap out for shows, recording, tours etc. So having it store program midi 15 & cc224 etc is not my idea of a fix here.

 

(I call the first pedal switch on the LT #1 and then go sideways from there so I have 4 total switches at the bottom row and 4 total at the top)

When I tap the 1st switch it will go to channel one in the amp, then switch 2 will change Engl to 2 and 3 will change to 3 and 4 to channel 4. It's like the LT is doing matching midi channels with switch 1-4, yet when I go into those channels to see what midi they're on = NOTHING??????

I figured I'd steal the process/chain from the User Preset midi changes yet nothings in there. WTH

 

One thing I noticed is that I can get it to try to change to say Channel 3 on the Engl but it will quickly revert to channel 1 (if I'm doing the midi program tweak in switch 1). So whatever hard midi is programmed in these user presets, I can't get it to change to my liking.

 

Any help would be greatly appreciated, I am willing to Paypal the person who helps me out so I can move onto actually using the pedal effects etc. This is so strange and embarrassing I've contemplated returning it and just using the old school rack gear I've programmed flawlessly for decades. Nothing like have 4 pieces of midi gear that all talk to each other and I can't get just one new one to do it. LOL

[phil_m]

First thing to do is go to Global Settings>MIDI/Tempo>MIDI PC Send and set it to "Off". This setting controls whether or not the default PC message associated with each LT preset is sent out automatically when you load a preset. I think this is what's messing you up.

 

Beyond that, there are two basic ways the Helix sends MIDI commands. You can either assign MIDI commands to footswitches or there are six Instant Commands per preset (Instant Commands can also send commands on a snapshot per snapshot basis). When you go into the Command Center, you'll see the footswitch icons. Those, as you probably guessed, represent each footswitch in Stomp Mode. The lightning bolt icons represent the six Instant Commands. If you only want to change channels on your amp using MIDI PCs, you only need to use one Instant Command. Set it to the MIDI channel your amp is set to and select the PC you want to send. That PC will then be sent when you load that preset. It's as simple as that.

 

Like I said, though, I think the automatic PC send feature is probably the thing messing you up.

[rd2rk]

First, follow phil_m's directions to turn off MIDI PC Send.

 

Here's what's happening. With MIDI PC Send ON, when you select a preset on the LT, it's corresponding Program Change (PC#) is automatically sent. Your Invader is set up with preprogrammed Presets. A preset consists of not only a channel, but a mode and all sorts of other settings (RTM). Probably, there is no documentation as to what exactly the presets do.

 

To switch channels like was happening by default, but only when YOU want to do it, You need to (after setting MIDI PC SEND to OFF) use Instant Commands in Command Center (page 47 in the Helix LT Manual).

 

Program Instant Commands like this (following assumes that you were using Helix presets 01A-01D):

 

Channel 1 = PC#000

Channel 2 = PC#001

Channel 3 = PC#003

Channel 4 = PC#004

 

You can use a single IC to send different PC#s in different Snapshots.

 

Do you like the default settings? If not, to use your incredibly powerful and infinitely programmable device via MIDI, unless I missed something in the very long manual, you don't get to just tell it "Switch to Channel X". You MUST define all of the required settings. Sorry, unless you can find a setting, maybe a dip switch(?), to limit MIDI PC changes to CHANNEL ONLY, that's how it works.

 

The Helix can change channels via footswitch method. It works great with a 2 channel amp. Yours is 4 channel. it MIGHT work. Get a 1/4" TRS cable and connect it from the LT's Exp Pedal2/Ext Amp jack to the Invader's Footswitch jack. Use Instant Commands in Command Center to tell the switch how to operate. Since there's only 3 choices (Tip, Ring, Both), odds are not good that it's gonna work. You may be able to trick it by using multiple ICs (IC1=TIP,IC2=TIP;;IC1=TIP,IC2=RING; etc - maybe it'll toggle the channels?). It's worth a try.

 

If that doesn't work, you'll either have to program each channel change in detail, or get the expensive and hard to find factory pedal. 

 

GOOD LUCK!

[The-Big-Diezel]

Thanks guys for the replies, I got to a solution but at first things seemed worse after I turned PC Send = OFF, it was not responding at all to midi.

 

Here's what my current settings are and worked out to be....

 

Global Midi

Midi Base = 1 (head is on midi 1 also)

Midi Through = On

Midi Over Usb = On

Midi PC Send = OFF

 

Once I changed the Midi PC Send to off, the head no longer changed channels like before. Before it was changing channels but they were just corresponding to hitting switch 1 = head ch 1 etc. At first this seemed like I was on the correct path but I can now see that I wasn't going to be able to tweak the Helix to do exactly what I wanted this way.

 

When I go into my User Preset (say switch 1 and working the way I want) it looks like this.....

 

Command Center

Lightning Bolt

Command = Bank/Prog

Midi Chan = BASE

Program = 1 etc This was the piece that was also screwing me up. I needed for the Midi Channel to be set to Base, not 1 or 2 etc. Now this will change the head to whatever channel I want.

But Program 0 = Midi 1 in the head. I hate this, Behringer does this and it's annoying to be honest but now I can do what I want. Simple midi head changes with.....

Prog 0 = Head Channel 1

Prog 1 = Head Channel 2

Etc

 

Phil_M if you would PM me your Paypal I'd gladly kick you back for your time to get me on the correct path. RD2Rk thanks for also replying, I see where this was coming from now...

Channel 1 = PC#000

Channel 2 = PC#001

 

For those with the Engl Invader 2, I make Channel 4 in the head my rhythm channel and channel 3 the lead. I stored this in the head as the opposite # channel since most players would think Chan 3 is the rhythm and 4 lead. This way other midi pedals could talk to the head and change the appropriate channel to your playing rhy/lead. But the head sounded more scooped on Chan 4 (same knob settings) so I swap them.

 

[phil_m]

1 hour ago, The-Big-Diezel said:

Phil_M if you would PM me your Paypal I'd gladly kick you back for your time to get me on the correct path. RD2Rk thanks for also replying, I see where this was coming from now...

Channel 1 = PC#000

Channel 2 = PC#001

 

Any advice I give on here is free, man... Glad you seemed to have worked it out!