Helix sound muffled after update

[yoan_buisson]

Hello !

I've read many threads on the topic and this is not a "my preset sound dull because I'm learning to use the Helix" question. I've been using the Helix for years, and I was quite satisfied with my tone, I use EQ, high/low cut... and I know what tone knobs are for :).

But recently I did the 3.5 update, (I'm a bit late to the party) and since then I find most of my preset to sound dull and muffled, especially on neck pick up. I have tracks I recorded before the update and I can hear the difference. One of my favorite preset was a clean Twin vibrato channel, what I loved about it was that glassy, snappy tone, very responsive to the touch. Worked great as well with humbuckers to get a clear neck pick up sound for Jazz. Now it feels I have to fight with the guitar, it's not as responsive and sound thin.
 

I've spend the last few days tweaking without success, has anyone experienced similar change after update ?
I haven't done a factory reset after the update, could that be the reason ? If yes which button am I suppose to press for the reset please ?

Thank you,

[silverhead]

On 4/20/2023 at 3:05 PM, yoan_buisson said:

....

I haven't done a factory reset after the update, could that be the reason ? If yes which button am I suppose to press for the reset please ?
..

Yes. The reset sequence depends on your specific Helix device. Read the Release Notes on the Downloads page. Could also be you need to Restore your Global Settings from the backup file.

[Schmalle]

Correlation is not causation - you're the first person I'm aware of that attributes dull-ness to the 3.5 update.

Probable candidate causes that came to in my mind:

• guitar faulty or tone knob closed
• longer cable
• lower input impedance setting
• global eq

[yoan_buisson]

On 4/20/2023 at 4:05 PM, Schmalle said:

Correlation is not causation - you're the first person I'm aware of that attributes dull-ness to the 3.5 update.

Probable candidate causes that came to in my mind:

• guitar faulty or tone knob closed
• longer cable
• lower input impedance setting
• global eq

 

Possibly, but I've done the test with the same guitars as before, so all the other parameters remained the same. Or it's my ears that have changed :)

[datacommando]

On 4/20/2023 at 8:05 PM, yoan_buisson said:

I haven't done a factory reset after the update, could that be the reason ? If yes which button am I suppose to press for the reset please ?

Here ya go:-

 

https://helixhelp.com/tips-and-guides/universal/reset-options

Also following the firmware update, your hardware device should have restarted and gone through the process of “Rebuilding Presets”, to bring them into line with the latest format. If that has been done, and then subsequently you reloaded your old presets from the backup file you made before updating the firmware, this should happen again the next time you power up your unit. You may encounter generally weirdness if these things haven’t been done.

 

Hope this helps/makes sense.

[Schmalle]

On 4/20/2023 at 10:54 PM, yoan_buisson said:

Possibly, but I've done the test with the same guitars as before, so all the other parameters remained the same. Or it's my ears that have changed :)

A great thing that no one does is to record a sample before changing things - like updates, factory resets, string changes etc.

Easy and much more objective than relying on memory - also it can be shown to others.

[boraince]

I recommend checking out the input impedance setting, there's a setting about auto impedance in the general settings bewteen using the impedance of the first pedal in the signal path or the first enabled pedal.

[yoan_buisson]

Thanks, I've checked impedance and indeed it make a big difference. Today I've updated to 3.6, I'm going to do the full reset and back up to start clean.