Snapshots change wrong parameters. Is this a bug?

[OzzySlant]

Hi guys. I have a Helix Floor unit. Is this happening with your Helix units?

 

I have presets where I assign parameter changes to stomp buttons. Now as I do that, for some reason those parameters automatically become Snapshot assigned too. This does not happen with bypass switches (if I untick the "snapshot  bypass" option in HX Edit), but only parameter changes like drive, volume etc.

For example: I assign a footswitch (stomp button) to change compressor settings. Now snapshots also start to remember those settings, as in one snapshot might have one of those settings, another one the different settings. And now moving between my snapshots can mess up all my settings.

Another example: I assign split block (A/B block) to function as an A/B switch with a stomp footswitch. Now this also becomes part of snapshots, even though I never assigned those parameters to be controlled by snapshots.

Is this a bug? Is this happening with your units or do I have a faulty one? Or am I just missing some settings or don't know how to use snapshots? I'm fairly new to using Helix..

Another question: Is it normal to have a lot of latency if I assign multiple parameter changes to one footswitch in stomp mode? The changes come with a lot of latency, but the sound does not cut off though (like it does in preset to preset switching). But still kinda annoying. I thought switching parameters inside a preset was a latency free way of switching.

 

Thanks for any help!

[phil_m]

1 minute ago, OzzySlant said:

I have presets where I assign parameter changes to stomp buttons. Now as I do that, for some reason those parameters automatically become Snapshot assigned too. This does not happen with bypass switches (if I untick the "snapshot  bypass" option in HX Edit), but only parameter changes like drive, volume etc.

 

This is the intended functionality. The values of any parameters you have assigned to any controller are recalled with snapshot changes. You can override the functionality with parameters assigned to one of the expression pedals by setting the EXP Position parameter in the Global Settings menu to Per Preset or Global, but there is no override for footswitches. What it means, though, is it gives you a lot of flexibility to set the values for those parameters to whatever you want in each snapshot.

 

From page 34 of the manual:

 

[OzzySlant]

Ah I see, I'll then try to make most of this feature as it is designed. Thanks.

Is the latency normal too, when one footswitch is controlling multiple parameter changes in stomp mode?

[phil_m]

2 hours ago, OzzySlant said:

Ah I see, I'll then try to make most of this feature as it is designed. Thanks.

Is the latency normal too, when one footswitch is controlling multiple parameter changes in stomp mode?

 

There shouldn't be any latency, no. I guess my question would be what all are you changing with that footswitch. There are some effects where the audio may need to "catch up" the new settings, in a sense. You mentioned changing compressor settings in your first post. Sometimes doing that can cause a difference in how the compressor is reacting, so it may be you're feeling a different because the compressor is kicking in differently.

[OzzySlant]

It took a video of the latency in one of my presets: https://www.dropbox.com/s/eucb6b7sq7o5ewx/Helix Paremeter Switching latency.mp4?dl=0

It is my "A/B switch" that changes from one compressor to another (bypass one and activate one), and switching from one path to another with gain blocks. Both gain blocks are set at -64dB or whatever the minimum was, and the A/B switch just bypasses one and activates the other, and vice versa. Nothing else on those separate paths are changed in any way. So it's total 4 effects being bypassed / activated simultaneously.

 

I tested with different ways of doing this, like having both compressors on all the same time and changing the mix- and level-parameters to change between them, as well as having gain blocks active all the time and changing the gain parameters with the footswitch. Result is about the same amount of latency.

 

Again this is not a big deal in itself, because the sound doesn't cut off or anything, and the latency isn't much. But the latency itself is still almost as much as switching between presets. I have googled and haven't found even one mention of latency with switching parameters inside a preset, so I'm just wondering is it just my unit doing this, or is this how it's supposed to be? And this is only four parameters being changed, so the latency would be more with eight or so.

[OzzySlant]

I just tested what happens if I bypass total 8 effects with one footswitch in stomp mode. About an 1/2 second latency. But if I assign those same changes to a snapshot, the change is instant. So is this normal for Helix?

One thing I really wish for Helix now is that I could disable parameter changes in snapshots. They allow the bypass functions to not be affected by snapshots, I really wish they would allow me to disable any parameter change in snapshots also. It would have made sense to add that at the same time they added the "snapshot bypass" function. I'll have to see if there is already a suggestion of this in ideascale.

Edit: Also even one stomp bypass in stomp mode is slightly slower compared to snapshot. Like so small difference I never noticed it, it's neglible. But the latency seems to pile up as more effects are switched in with one footswitch in stomp mode

[silverhead]

45 minutes ago, OzzySlant said:

....

One thing I really wish for Helix now is that I could disable parameter changes in snapshots. They allow the bypass functions to not be affected by snapshots, I really wish they would allow me to disable any parameter change in snapshots also. ...

 

I don't understand - please elaborate. Seems to me that if you don't want any parameter changes in snapshots you simply don't assign any parameters to the snapshot controller. What am I missing in your idea?

[phil_m]

3 hours ago, OzzySlant said:

It took a video of the latency in one of my presets: https://www.dropbox.com/s/eucb6b7sq7o5ewx/Helix Paremeter Switching latency.mp4?dl=0

It is my "A/B switch" that changes from one compressor to another (bypass one and activate one), and switching from one path to another with gain blocks. Both gain blocks are set at -64dB or whatever the minimum was, and the A/B switch just bypasses one and activates the other, and vice versa. Nothing else on those separate paths are changed in any way. So it's total 4 effects being bypassed / activated simultaneously.

 

I tested with different ways of doing this, like having both compressors on all the same time and changing the mix- and level-parameters to change between them, as well as having gain blocks active all the time and changing the gain parameters with the footswitch. Result is about the same amount of latency.

 

Again this is not a big deal in itself, because the sound doesn't cut off or anything, and the latency isn't much. But the latency itself is still almost as much as switching between presets. I have googled and haven't found even one mention of latency with switching parameters inside a preset, so I'm just wondering is it just my unit doing this, or is this how it's supposed to be? And this is only four parameters being changed, so the latency would be more with eight or so.

 

What's happening in the video seems more related to the fact that they're compressors. I've seen other people describe this sort of thing, where the compressors kind of ramp up when they're activated. A good way to test it would be to see what happens when you do something similar with to overdrive blocks.

[OzzySlant]

phil_m, I now tested and this does indeed happen with or without compressors. Just the amount of blocks / parameters controlled by the switch makes the latency grow. I tested this now more, and I could do another video with 8 parameters controlled by one footswitch, and the switch is indeed very slow.

 

silverhead, what I mean is that when I assign parameter change to a footswitch in stomp mode, that same parameter then automatically becomes assigned to snapshots also. In my mind this also shouldn't be so, because I assigned the parameter to be changed by a footswitch in stomp mode and not snapshots, but it indeed happens.