DSP Usage and Snapshots (HX Stomp)

[hdoran]

I've maxed out my DSP in something I built and am curious if there is a creative way to use snapshots to recover back some of the DSP? Just to illustrate my question, suppose my FULL chain is:

distortion -> amp1 -> amp2 -> cab -> delay -> EQ

 

In snapshot 1 , I would ONLY have the following turned on:

amp1 ->  cab -> delay -> EQ

 

And in snapshot 2 I would only have the following turned on:

distortion -> amp2 -> cab -> delay -> EQ

 

I'd like to add a reverb to my full chain but cannot because I've maxed out the DSP. But, snapshot 1 or 2 on their own individually require less DSP.

 

A work around of course could be to build 2 different presets and I would have enough DSP to add the reverb, so I could go that route. But, would prefer to use the snapshot to avoid latency issues with switching presets.

 

Before doing so, is DSP calculated based on the full collection of things in my chain even if they are toggled on/off with snapshots?

 

[silverhead]

Sorry. Snapshots don’t affect DSP usage. The preset’s DSP requirements take account of all blocks in the preset, whether or not they are used in any particular snapshot. Unfortunately the answer to the last sentence/question in your post is Yes.

[codamedia]

You already got an answer to your question(s)....

I'll just provide a few tips....

• Amps use a lot of resources.... that is probably the vast majority of your resources. 
• Since you separate the amps and cab.... check the "pre-amp version" of one (or both) to see if you can it is suitable enough instead of the full model. 
• For your effects, make sure you are NOT using any stereo versions unless you absolutely need it!
  eg: Once you go Stereo you have to stay Stereo... before that, keep it Mono! 

 

Here is a link to a helpful chart showing DSP usage of each amp/effect. Sometimes an acceptable substitution for an effect is all you need :) 

https://benvesco.com/store/helix-dsp-allocations/ 

[hdoran]

2 minutes ago, codamedia said:

You already got an answer to your question(s)....

I'll just provide something to watch for. 

• Amps use a lot of resources.... that is probably the vast majority of your resources. 
• For your effects, make sure you are NOT using any stereo versions unless you absolutely need it!
  eg: Once you go Stereo you have to stay Stereo... before that, keep it Mono! 

Here is a link to a helpful chart showing DSP usage of each amp/effect. Sometimes an acceptable substitution for an effect is all you need :) 

https://benvesco.com/store/helix-dsp-allocations/ 

Thank you. I was actually watching some of these videos before posting this question. Very helpful, thank you.

[MusicLaw]

If you can find that one of HX Stomp's Amp&Cab block selections, configured with radically different parameter settings might cover the range of tones you are otherwise seeking to achieve from using two different amps, Snapshots would absolutely be the way to go!! It may not be doable. But it could be worth the exploratory exercise. Hope you can make it work. Post back to share what you might find, so others may share in the learning. 

[hdoran]

11 hours ago, MusicLaw said:

If you can find that one of HX Stomp's Amp&Cab block selections, configured with radically different parameter settings might cover the range of tones you are otherwise seeking to achieve from using two different amps, Snapshots would absolutely be the way to go!! It may not be doable. But it could be worth the exploratory exercise. Hope you can make it work. Post back to share what you might find, so others may share in the learning. 

 

Here are few things to share for posterity that are somewhat creative things to use. The 3.0 firmware gives HX Stomp users 8 blocks. But, there are kinda secretly 10 blocks. Page 20 of the user manual lists ways to optimize DSP and here is a trick some might use to make better use of DSP and blocks that is not described in the section of the manual.

 

True, there are literally 8 blocks, but to left of the chain is the "Main L/R" icon. Click on that and we reveal an option to turn on an input gate and adjust the threshold parameters. This can also be toggled on/off or parameters adjusted with snapshots. So, if someone has a noise gate occupying a block, try removing that noise gate and instead use the input gate in the Main L/R instead. My experience so far is it works just as good as putting a noise gate in one of the 8 blocks.

 

On the other right side, one will see the "Main L/R" block. Clicking on that reveals volume options to pan or adjust levels. Those too can be adjusted with a snapshot. So, if one has a volume booster in one of their 8 blocks you can remove it and instead use the parameters in the Main L/R. Combining this with a snapshot can be used for level boosting for solos etc.

 

So, there is a work around to "buy" two extra blocks if you need a noise gate or a volume boost. That is, you can use all 8 blocks + you can use the input gate on the leftmost L/R and the level booster on the rightmost L/R. Combining those with snapshots gives a user a lot of adjustable parameters to build a pretty robust pedal board.