Hx stink help for a newbie

[iamduwe]

Hey all, I just got my first helix product, the HX Stomp, and I love it! But it is very very overwhelming. I’m using the 4 cable method exactly as it shows to set it up manual, but I’m having a few issues. Can someone show me how to properly place a line of blocks so I can use my amps preamp channel, then have a reverb and delay going through the fx loop? Do I place the fx loop block as the first one? Because that’s the only way I can get the sound of my amp coming through. Sorry if it’s a dumb question, it’s just a lot to take in so far!

[Kilrahi]

It's not a dumb question. It's very confusing at first.

 

One thing that really helped me is to carefully examine the 4cm presets for examples.

 

Anyway, to answer your specific question, place the FX block PRIOR to the blocks you want in the loop. ALL blocks placed after it are processed in the loop. All blocks BEFORE it go to the preamp.

[iamduwe]

2 hours ago, Kilrahi said:

It's not a dumb question. It's very confusing at first.

 

One thing that really helped me is to carefully examine the 4cm presets for examples.

 

Anyway, to answer your specific question, place the FX block PRIOR to the blocks you want in the loop. ALL blocks placed after it are processed in the loop. All blocks BEFORE it go to the preamp.

 

 

Thank you for the help! I’m going to start working on some setting with that now! But for my next journey... can you change the individual switch colors while in snapshot mode?

[iamduwe]

Also, is there any significance of having two paths for blocks using 4 channel mode?

[Kilrahi]

 

1 minute ago, iamduwe said:

 

Thank you for the help! I’m going to start working on some setting with that now! But for my next journey... can you change the individual switch colors while in snapshot mode?

 

No, in snapshot all switches are the standard white. This is because the colors don't really relate as you're thinking in terms of "snapshot 1, 2, 3" instead of "green for delays, blue for modulation" etc.

[Kilrahi]

16 minutes ago, iamduwe said:

Also, is there any significance of having two paths for blocks using 4 channel mode?

 

Do you mean 4 cable method?  I just want to make sure 'cause I tend to think of channels more as paths, and the Stomp only has two paths (Helix has 4). 

 

It honestly just depends on what you want to do. For example, do you not want to have your delayed signal get impacted by the reverb? If you don't, then split the path.  When doing 4 cable methods or wet/dry/wet stuff, I prefer to use split paths over one path with an FX block because of the limitations on the Stomp with 6 blocks.

 

So, instead of a chain that looks like this:

 

Distortion + Amp/Cab + FX Block + Modulation + Delay + Reverb (6 blocks)

 

I could instead have one that looks like this (or variations on this idea):

 

Distortion + Amp/Cab (Split signal into path A & B) >>>> Signal A goes straight out output left into guitar in on amp. >>>> Signal B = Modulation + Reverb  (5 blocks - so room for one more block like an EQ, compressor) >>>   Path B goes out send left/right into amp effects return. 

 

However, I use a flat response system which this kind of thing tends to work well on. I haven't really experimented with a traditional amp using the above. If it will let you put a cable in the effects return, without having one in the effects send, it seems like it should still work well. You'd probably just ditch the amp block. 

 

Keep in mind, to do the latter approach you don't connect the cables in the same way you do with the 4 cable method. It's slightly different. You also might find yourself needing to tweak the wet/dry pass through and mix balances on a lot of the blocks. It takes more fine tuning, but you save a block, if that makes sense. Personally, I think it gives you more control too and ends up sounding better, but it depends on the sound you like. To each their own. 

 

 

 

[iamduwe]

19 hours ago, Kilrahi said:

 

Do you mean 4 cable method?  I just want to make sure 'cause I tend to think of channels more as paths, and the Stomp only has two paths (Helix has 4). 

 

It honestly just depends on what you want to do. For example, do you not want to have your delayed signal get impacted by the reverb? If you don't, then split the path.  When doing 4 cable methods or wet/dry/wet stuff, I prefer to use split paths over one path with an FX block because of the limitations on the Stomp with 6 blocks.

 

So, instead of a chain that looks like this:

 

Distortion + Amp/Cab + FX Block + Modulation + Delay + Reverb (6 blocks)

 

I could instead have one that looks like this (or variations on this idea):

 

Distortion + Amp/Cab (Split signal into path A & B) >>>> Signal A goes straight out output left into guitar in on amp. >>>> Signal B = Modulation + Reverb  (5 blocks - so room for one more block like an EQ, compressor) >>>   Path B goes out send left/right into amp effects return. 

 

However, I use a flat response system which this kind of thing tends to work well on. I haven't really experimented with a traditional amp using the above. If it will let you put a cable in the effects return, without having one in the effects send, it seems like it should still work well. You'd probably just ditch the amp block. 

 

Keep in mind, to do the latter approach you don't connect the cables in the same way you do with the 4 cable method. It's slightly different. You also might find yourself needing to tweak the wet/dry pass through and mix balances on a lot of the blocks. It takes more fine tuning, but you save a block, if that makes sense. Personally, I think it gives you more control too and ends up sounding better, but it depends on the sound you like. To each their own. 

 

 

 

Thank you so much for the info! How would you hook up the cables using your method?

[Kilrahi]

38 minutes ago, iamduwe said:

Thank you so much for the info! How would you hook up the cables using your method?

 

Sure. It's not too complex:

 

Cable connections:

1. Guitar in to HX Stomp left input. 

2. 1/4 cable from HX Stomp left output to Amp input. 

3. 1/4 cable (I use a TRS stereo cable because I like the stereo option, but a simple TS cable works) from HX send to FX return on amp. 

 

Internal Signal Flow:

There are many ways you could do this (though they all involve split paths) - but my most common is the following:

 

1. Distortion of choice in block 1.

2. Hybrid Amp/Cab block.

3. Signal path split into path A and path B.

4. Path A exits out to left send on HX Stomp.

5. Effects of choice for path B

6. Path A exists out HX Stomp send. 

 

Experiment around with that and see what you think. You can put more effects prior to the HX Stomp amp block if you want, more after the amp block in Path A, or you can split the path A and path B prior to the amp block.