Helix Rack as audio device - some kind of global bypass?

[astueger]

Hello!

I hava a Helix Rack and use it as audio device for my PC. All fine so far. The only thing that bothers me a bit is that when I do "normal things" on my PC, I have to turn on the Helix to have audio - of course. But then there is always a preset loaded and therfore some processing going on.

Is there a way to put the Helix in some kind of global bypass mode? So that it only lets audio signlas through (from PC to speaker/headphone) but does not do anything else?

[silverhead]

Unless your preset has the Input set to a USB channel there is no audio processing being done by the preset. The PC’s audio is passed directly to the Helix outputs without any processing.

 

Are you noticing something in the audio that makes you think processing is occurring? If so please elaborate.

[astueger]

Thanks for the answer.

No, there is no processing of the audio going through the Helix. Everything fine. But I meant something else. As soon as I turn on the Helix, a preset and therefore all the blocks in the preset are loaded and present (ready to make sound when I plug in a guitar and start playing).

What I meant by a "global bypass" is to turn off all the DSP processing inside, so it just works as a sound card. Nothing else.

My thought behind it is to (maybe) save some energy when you don´t need it.

Right now, I have simpy created an empty preset, which I select when I only need the Helix as sound card.

[silverhead]

The DSP engine runs when the device is powered on. That’s what the device is designed to do; that’s pretty much its purpose. I can’t imagine that there would be any ability to turn it off  or any energy saving if it could. In fact, the DSP engine has to be running in order to determine whether the USB audio input should be processed (the preset’s Input block setting). I think the energy difference between the DSP engine being turned off vs. it being on and doing no processing is something very close to zero.
 

Would you turn a radio on and then want to turn off its antenna reception? Or a vinyl record turntable and want to disable its needle? Poor examples perhaps, but DSP is the reason the Helix exists.
 

I can’t see any advantage, really, in using an empty preset. Your desire seems well intentioned but quite superfluous. To further add to the irrelevance you could set the input on your empty preset to an unused hardware input (e.g.Aux). That might set your mind at additional ease. But really, let it go…..

[astueger]

Thanks again for the answer.

I think you are right, maybe I am overthinking things.

[bobruz]

If you're using Windows and the Helix is off, the computer should default to your normal sound source.

If Helix is on and you want to use your normal sound source.  Click the speaker on the taskbar and choose a non-helix source.

 

bobruz

[DunedinDragon]

If it puts your mind at ease I have one of my Helix Floor units that's been attached to my main desktop computer since I got it in 2015 and is used as my audio interface with my two Yamaha HS7 studio monitors and it works just fine every day since then with no problems.  I figure since I have to power up my speakers anyway, powering up the Helix is really no different than If I had a standalone interface that requires power.  Both, as well as my Casio stage piano are all powered on and powered off via a single Alexa enabled wall plug in so it's easy to turn them on and off.