Stomp or Headrush Gigboard?

[GmanJeff]

I'd be interested in feedback from anyone who has compared these.  I'm a current Helix Floor owner who finds I am not using even a fraction of the Helix's capabilities and so plan to sell it for something smaller and lighter.  I have started to go directly into the mixer at rehearsals and gigs, so would need amp and cab sims, and I'm considering these two options.

 

I expect I'd probably set up only 6 - 8 patches for frequent use, and ease of switching between up to three of them during a single song (clean, crunch, lead) is important.  I want to retain stage use of the on-board tuner during gigs.  It appears that the limited number of footswitches on the Stomp may make switching presets awkward or difficult on stage (have to press two switches simultaneously to change banks to access more than two presets)?  While I recognize that additional foot switches can be plugged in to the Stomp, that seems to begin to materially transform the price and form factor as compared to going with the Headrush Gigboard, which appears better able to allow changes between presets without adding a cable and an additional box to the rig to achieve pretty much the same end result.  

 

Have you Stomp users found switching between presets easy enough, or do you find the design of the box to limit its on-stage utility to the point where it outweighs the advantages of the small form factor?    

[cruisinon2]

I suspect that the overwhelming majority of Helix owners only use a small percentage of its capabilities... myself included. But I wouldn't trade it for the Stomp if you paid me. 6 blocks in the chain really isn't a lot.  I'd have to strip down what are not particularly complicated signal chains to begin with... it might be overkill, but I'll keep the Helix.

[Kilrahi]

I considered both the Gigboard and the Stomp extensively. At the time, the big pros for the Gigboard was that it had ALL of the processing power of the full unit, was small, affordable, and the easiest to program. It's weaknesses was it was $50 more than the Stomp and bigger. When I looked at the Stomp, it was SIGNIFICANTLY smaller than even the Gigboard, had better sounds (in my opinion - this is the debatable part), a full stereo FX loop vs. mono, and I knew the Line 6 ecosystem and trusted it. It's weaknesses were the obvious 6 block limit. 

 

I pulled the trigger on the Stomp and I adore the thing. After months of using it, the touch screen of the Gigboard has been rendered irrelevant (the Stomp is not as immediately easy to figure out, but after a few hours it becomes a breeze). The six block limitation is still a complaint I have (I hope they open it up more), and I love its small size. I generally prefer it in snapshot mode, with an expression pedal. The easiest way for me to switch a preset is to bend over. There are other options and your mileage may vary. 

 

In my opinion, if adding an additional foot switch really is a deal breaker to you then you'll probably want to test a Gigboard if you can in order to compare. It has ONE extra footswitch than the Stomp. I don't know how much easier that really is. I found the Stomp perfectly workable with its default, but adding an expression pedal just took it to a completely new level. I'd hate to weigh in on the Gigboard too much without ever actually trying the thing.

 

I still prefer Line 6's ecosystem and sounds to Headrush. Its big selling point is the touchscreen, but honestly, that is only an initial strength. So that's my 2 cents. 

[GmanJeff]

Thanks for the feedback, it's appreciated.  I sold my Helix on Reverb quickly and easily, and just ordered a Gigboard. 

 

If I understand it correctly, switching functions between bank up/down and preset ("rig", in Headrush parlance") up/down can be accomplished from the footswitches, as can switching individual effects on and off, with no bending down required during a song or gig.  That's the functionality I don't see on the Stomp, although I remain very impressed with the Stomp's smaller and lighter form factor and understand the tradeoff involved to achieve that.  

 

 

 

[Kilrahi]

35 minutes ago, GmanJeff said:

Thanks for the feedback, it's appreciated.  I sold my Helix on Reverb quickly and easily, and just ordered a Gigboard. 

 

If I understand it correctly, switching functions between bank up/down and preset ("rig", in Headrush parlance") up/down can be accomplished from the footswitches, as can switching individual effects on and off, with no bending down required during a song or gig.  That's the functionality I don't see on the Stomp, although I remain very impressed with the Stomp's smaller and lighter form factor and understand the tradeoff involved to achieve that.  

 

 

 

 

Good luck.  I hope it ends up being exactly what you're looking for.