Any news about a new firmware release?

[rarellano]

It's been 236 days since the last POD Go update. HX 3.7 has 10 new amps, 9 new cabs and 5 new effects (personally, I am very interested in the Brit 2203) and I couldn't find any information about a new firmware release that includes some of the new features of HX 3.7. Somebody knows about it? TIA.

[silverhead]

Yes, somebody knows about it. But they’re Line 6 employees and never announce updates in advance. Anything you hear from anyone here is speculation, including my own speculation that it’s coming in 86 days, or on Oct. 19th at 3:46 PM, whichever comes first. Don’t know what year.

[olerabbit]

Since 2018 L6 offered 1 great upgrade each year for Helix and since 2020 for PodGo, too.

Helix: 11/2023 V3.70 + service update 3.71 in 1/2024

PodGo: 11/2023 V2.0 + service update 2.01 in 12/2023

 

So we all hope for another great upgrade to be published at the end of this year to keep PodGo competitive.

 

For PodGo I hope that L6 finally frees the EQ slot. Great annoyance until today and the biggest competive disadvantage in my opinion.

[silverhead]

On 8/2/2024 at 5:47 AM, olerabbit said:

….

 

For PodGo I hope that L6 finally frees the EQ slot. Great annoyance until today and the biggest competive disadvantage in my opinion.

I think it would be simple to ‘free’ the EQ slot in terms of removing the firmware constraint. It’s also clear that this would not change the overall DSP available in the device. And since EQ is among the least DSP-intensive blocks it’s unlikely to allow a 5th flex block in the signal chain. In other words you likely won’t be able to replace the EQ block with much else. So while it could be done I don’t think it would have much impact in preset construction. In fact it might simply cause frustration. It would appear that you have an extra block available but when you try to add any FX in that block the options will mostly be greyed out, except for the EQ section.

 

I like to think of dynamic DSP as a bookshelf, and amp/FX blocks as individual books of varying thickness sitting on the floor and organized into different sections. Building a preset involves taking books from the floor and putting them on the shelf. Obviously you can only fit a limited number of books on the shelf. The thicker the books are, the fewer will fit. FX in the amp and cab/IR sections are among the thickest books. Books in the Wah, Vol, and EQ sections are among the thinnest. All other books (FX sections) are of varying thickness but the vast majority are significantly thicker than anything in the EQ section. When the shelf is nearly full removing a thin book like EQ won’t allow you to add a thick book like Delay.

[silverhead]

…. which makes me think. Rather than freeing the EQ block I would love to see a firmware update showing a signal chain view that reflects the relative DSP utilization of each block by varying its width. The current display shows all FX blocks to be the same width. I’d love to see, for instance, the Wah, Vol and EQ blocks to be very thin while the width of the flex FX blocks would be thicker or thinner than each other depending on the selected FX. That would complicate the textual labeling in the display but would provide a more intuitive image of what’s going on under the hood. You would be able to visualize why blocks are getting greyed out, and swap out a thick FX with a thinner one to gain the space (DSP) to add an additional one.

[olerabbit]

Thanks for your input, silverhead. The bookshelf is a nice comparison. I understand your message which is a PodGo-specific view of things.

 If I take a look at the competitors PodGo has some disadvantages. Please take a look at the attached comparison.

 In my opinion there is a need for action to avoid that PodGo falls behind.

[grdGo33]

On 8/3/2024 at 6:22 AM, olerabbit said:

Thanks for your input, silverhead. The bookshelf is a nice comparison. I understand your message which is a PodGo-specific view of things.

 If I take a look at the competitors PodGo has some disadvantages. Please take a look at the attached comparison.

 In my opinion there is a need for action to avoid that PodGo falls behind.

 

You can download a preset which replaces many of the currently pre-assigned slots with empty slots, which gives you more flexibility.  Personally, I haven't bothered because I more often run out of DSP rather than blocks (so many effects you can stack before you lose the character of each effect), but if you want, bit of search will lead you to this 'hacked' patch!

[olerabbit]

Hey grdGo33, 

the EQ-slot issue is PodGo specific. L6 are absolutely not willing to solve this issue. Their decision, of course. So what.

 

What I am much more worried about is the fact that the 2 mentioned competitors offer better features today than PodGo does.

PodGo offers 4 free slots. Mooer GE1000 + Boss GX100 both offer 9 free slots: more powerful hardware = more flexibility + better options.

 

Helix is 8 (?) years old, PodGo 4 years. Each mighty update brings the hardware to its limit, I fear. Slowly but surely it is time for successors.

[silverhead]

Your POD Go, although now behind the curve in your opinion, still has some value on the used market. Perhaps you should sell it and buy another device if it will improve your musical experience.

[grdGo33]

On 8/4/2024 at 4:51 AM, olerabbit said:

L6 are absolutely not willing to solve this issue.

 

It's not a bug, it's a feature.  The PGO was essentially a limited mini-Helix, at like a third of the price?  So yes, there are limitations.  The main seller for me were the effects quality, which at the time were pretty unique.  Not entirely sure if it's the same today, and there likely is more competition than there was 4 or 2 years ago.  Does it still hold up in 2024?  I don't know.  I've done the exercise 2 years ago and you can see the result below.

 

But yeah I'll concede that just removing the limitation of having some blocks 'locked' could be easily done for L6 in 2024, without cannibalizing their other products like it might have at the time... 

 

Quote

Mooer GE1000 + Boss GX100 both offer 9 free slots: more powerful hardware = more flexibility + better options.

 

How is the sound quality and quality of effects though?  That was still one of Go's strengths at the time.  I'd still choose quality over quantity today.  For instance, reverbs.  Their early fancy reverbs like Ganimede, Glitz, etc., reverbs were great.  But their later dynamic stuff got even better, supposedly favorites of some, even considering $$$ dedicated reverbs like Strymon, Eventide and others. 

[theElevators]

There are hacks to free up blocks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlDhCZOOv9U&ab_channel=HeyWorshipLeader

But the whole point of Pod Go is to dumb down the signal routing for people.  You always have an amp, wah, volume control, etc.  I made it work for me, after downsizing from the full-blown Helix.  It's more than enough to get usable and diverse sounds-- if you use one preset per each song, like I do.  Rather than adding a bunch of stuff to the signal path, like I do on the Helix, I started making use of various blocks' controls more.  Like you can use a reverb echo, which can double as both delay or reverb... so if needed I can change various parameters and make all my 4 snapshots sound however I want.  So take it from somebody who REALLY likes his effects--Pod Go is great and with some creativity can give you more than enough sonic variety. 

[olerabbit]

The PodGo has best features for use in a band. But has the fixed EQ issue.

No chance to get this solved I fear - so I don’t want discuss things which will never change.

 

The smallest Helix products are HX Stomp/Stomp XL. They both miss PoGo’s band features.

If I want a PodGo with freely assignable slots, I have to pay double the price of a PodGo - for Helix LT. 

 

That's pretty expensive for 1  additional assignable slot in my opinion. 

[silverhead]

On 8/9/2024 at 10:32 AM, olerabbit said:

The PodGo has best features for use in a band. But has the fixed EQ issue.

No chance to get this solved I fear - so I don’t want discuss things which will never change.

 

The smallest Helix products are HX Stomp/Stomp XL. They both miss PoGo’s band features.

If I want a PodGo with freely assignable slots, I have to pay double the price of a PodGo - for Helix LT. 

 

That's pretty expensive for 1  additional assignable slot in my opinion. 

What are the POD Go’s ‘band features’ that are missing in the Stomp/XL?

 

The Helix LT provides much, much more than 1 additional assignable slot. Firstly, it has 2 DSP processors so immediately you have double the processing power; hence approx double the price. Secondly,  it has a theoretical limit of 32 assignable slots, although - like the POD Go - dynamic DSP management means you will likely encounter greyed out selections long before that. However, a Helix LT preset can easily hold a dozen or more assignable amp/cab/IR/FX blocks. It allows for much more powerful and sophisticated presets including two amp/cab models, multiple delays, distortions, reverbs, etc. And finally it provides more inputs and outputs as well as more routing options.

 

Perhaps you wouldn’t use any LT features other than 1 additional assignable block. But it’s simply not true to say that’s all it offers over the POD Go. It doesn’t meant the LT isn’t worth it. Just not worth it to you, and that’s perfectly fine.

[olerabbit]

Dear silverhead,

you ask ME: "What are the POD Go’s ‘band features’ that are missing in the Stomp/XL?"?

 

I think L6 product managers will answer to your question better than I ever could.

 

Anyway, I will describe my needs. I play guitar in a band and am the singer.

I have to change sounds and volume/boost (for solos) while I’m still singing.

I need a device which I can use „half-blind“. PodGo is perfect for me.

 

 

I don’t need the all these surely great and advanced features of Helix. I only need one more assignable block in my PodGo.

 

 

[stapani]

Olerabbit, you wrote these 4 years ago:

in this topic 

 

"Ok, if Pod Go’s processor power might reach its limit then I understand that a fixed EQ slot is safety measure."

 

"Surely it is L6's decision as manufacturer alone to do so.

If I buy a Pod Go I accept this strategy."   And you are still here blaming Line 6 not giving you what you want?

[grdGo33]

On 8/11/2024 at 7:25 AM, olerabbit said:

I only need one more assignable block in my PodGo.

 

On 8/3/2024 at 10:36 AM, grdGo33 said:

You can download a preset which replaces many of the currently pre-assigned slots with empty slots, which gives you more flexibility.  [...] but if you want, bit of search will lead you to this 'hacked' patch!

 

On 8/5/2024 at 5:36 PM, theElevators said:

There are hacks to free up blocks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlDhCZOOv9U&ab_channel=HeyWorshipLeader

 

[olerabbit]

@ stapani:

 

I bought my PodGo just 4 years ago. I wrote this in the honeymoon period. At that time I naively thought: 1 block more or less doesn’t matter.

But I was very wrong. 4 years of experience later I miss this assignable block a lot. It reduces my sound design significantly today.

 

Even the good old POD HD 500 had 8 blocks you could load with any FX you wanted. Now 14 years later (!) PODGo only offers 4 assignable blocks?

Today important competitors like Boss or Mooer don't have any restrictions in the signal chain - except processing power which applies for all brands.

 

@ grdGo33:

I understood your message very well. But I am neither a technician nor a programmer. I fear something unwanted to happen after the hack.

I want to be sure that all the updates for my PodGo will work without any problems. PodGo is my only sound source, so I prefer „never change a running system“.

[cruisinon2]

On 7/30/2024 at 11:14 AM, rarellano said:

It's been 236 days since the last POD Go update.

 

I'd wait till it hits 300, then sell...;)

[theElevators]

I personally don't understand the point of upgrading firmware.  On the Helix I'm on the same version 3.11 from a few years ago.  All I see is constant new bugs that get introduced.  If something is working, I don't want to risk messing up my presets that all work great, just so I could have a hypothetical ability to play around with a couple new effects. 

[grdGo33]

On 8/20/2024 at 12:35 PM, theElevators said:

I personally don't understand the point of upgrading firmware.  On the Helix I'm on the same version 3.11 from a few years ago.  All I see is constant new bugs that get introduced.  If something is working, I don't want to risk messing up my presets that all work great, just so I could have a hypothetical ability to play around with a couple new effects. 

 

That's only because those who upgrade without issues don't make threads about it.  I had issues with my 1st update, years ago, but all updates since them have been working perfectly.  I'm sure a high % of people never had any issues at all.

 

In the case of Go, firmware has some bugfixes, but most appealing are obviously new features, like new effects or the cabs system.  I'm definitely with you with the if it ain't broke, don't fix it.  But software is typically a different beast.  The longer you wait, the harder it will be for you in the end.

[somebodyelse]

On 8/20/2024 at 5:35 PM, theElevators said:

I personally don't understand the point of upgrading firmware.  On the Helix I'm on the same version 3.11 from a few years ago.  All I see is constant new bugs that get introduced.  If something is working, I don't want to risk messing up my presets that all work great, just so I could have a hypothetical ability to play around with a couple new effects. 

Well, the v3.50 update made the Helix run more efficiently, hence the improved cab modelling and increased mic placement adjustment.

 

I've had my Helix nearly 5 years, since v2.80. and got a POD Go last week.

Only had two updates go sideways.

First one was the very first one I did on the Helix and was user error. I fixed it within 20 minutes. Haven't had an issue since.

Second one one was two days ago on the POD Go, when I deliberately 'bricked it', in order to try an help out a couple of guys on here. I had it up and running again within half an hour.

 

Having read all the 'Update failure' threads over the past 5 years, the causes of the failures are always an iffy USB cable, software running in the background or USB port settings.

 

Otherwise, if you do your updates through Helix/POD Go Edit (and actually read the instructions), and NOT the L6 Updater, it's fool-proof.

You CAN revert to previous firmware versions and reinstall a backup - you DO back it up occasionally? - if you run in to a bug. Top tip: Don't delete old back ups...

 

Like the other guy said, no one ever posts when nothing goes wrong - there are a few hundred thousand Helixes on the go, and probably less than a hundred threads about update failures.

 

[theElevators]

On 8/22/2024 at 5:15 AM, somebodyelse said:

Well, the v3.50 update made the Helix run more efficiently, hence the improved cab modelling and increased mic placement adjustment.

 

I've had my Helix nearly 5 years, since v2.80. and got a POD Go last week.

Only had two updates go sideways.

First one was the very first one I did on the Helix and was user error. I fixed it within 20 minutes. Haven't had an issue since.

Second one one was two days ago on the POD Go, when I deliberately 'bricked it', in order to try an help out a couple of guys on here. I had it up and running again within half an hour.

 

Having read all the 'Update failure' threads over the past 5 years, the causes of the failures are always an iffy USB cable, software running in the background or USB port settings.

 

Otherwise, if you do your updates through Helix/POD Go Edit (and actually read the instructions), and NOT the L6 Updater, it's fool-proof.

You CAN revert to previous firmware versions and reinstall a backup - you DO back it up occasionally? - if you run in to a bug. Top tip: Don't delete old back ups...

 

Like the other guy said, no one ever posts when nothing goes wrong - there are a few hundred thousand Helixes on the go, and probably less than a hundred threads about update failures.

 

It's not just the update process I was talking about--it's the firmware bugs and unexpected behavior. 

 

I've personally seen several things completely break in my presets after updating.  For example the new and improved bypass behavior in 3.17? (I think) completely messed up all the presets where everything used to work. Like you modify one preset in HX Edit, make wah turn on when you are in the "toe down" position, but it updates other unrelated presets and as a result their on/off wah switching is reversed, etc.  Also I keep reading about Glitch delay working differently, or a level of some block being different after upgrading. 

 

Or my personal favorite known issue of the Helix LT going back to the signal path view after the tuner, instead of the performance view where you see the virtual scribble strips.  I've had that annoying bug resurface and managed to make it go away by tweaking some settings back and forth.  But do I really want this thing to come back again?  Heck no.  If I'm playing a show, I don't want to be tapping needlessly, it's unacceptable. 

 

So all I am trying to say is that if you are a studio musician or a tinkerer--go and get the latest and the greatest.  For me though, when I had to rely on my Helix to be able to play 26-preset sets, I did not want to risk anything getting messed up.  Sometimes some things are not immediately apparent.  It's a computer, so a certain series of steps can lead to unacceptable live results.  I would need to do a good amount of testing of all of my 100-or-so presets to check that everything is still good.  If not, revert to the previous firmware version.  Once again, if you only use one or two presets, this doesn't obviously apply. 

 

 

[rarellano]

On 7/30/2024 at 11:37 AM, silverhead said:

Yes, somebody knows about it. But they’re Line 6 employees and never announce updates in advance. Anything you hear from anyone here is speculation, including my own speculation that it’s coming in 86 days, or on Oct. 19th at 3:46 PM, whichever comes first. Don’t know what year.

I know it was a kind of joke, but v.2.01.0 was released on december 7th, almost a year (336 days). The gap between the 2 last firmware updates of Helix was 205 days.

Spoiler

 

 

[silverhead]

Aah, yes…. but the gap between your initial post to start this thread and your most recent post hours ago is 100 days. So, well, there ya go. All sorted now. Start holding your breath!

[dnottis]

Somewhere I read Helix 3.8 will come out first, then Pod Go will get an update.  So .. another 100 days? 

[rarellano]

On 11/8/2024 at 7:37 PM, dnottis said:

Somewhere I read Helix 3.8 will come out first, then Pod Go will get an update.  So .. another 100 days? 

today, in fact...

[dnottis]

..and there it is for Helix and HX...

[silverhead]

Mark your calendar ... in pencil.

[grdGo33]

Sh!t we missed the 2.0 one year anniversary guys..   Can't believe it's already been a year!  For myself, still rocking on the Go, but using mainly the same ~10 patches lol  Don't remember trying out the newer features of the 2.0 it's been so long, and I don't think I've been using any/most stuff from new patch like amps and effects...

 

Guess what I'm saying is that I came here to see what was happening with the next patch, but in practice, for me at least doesn't really matter in the end, Go still rocks!  

 

But hey, it's been a year, it's probably time I give a go to the new 2.0 features!  It'll surely feel like some new stuff for me!  LOL

 

https://line6.com/software/index.html?hardware=All&name=POD Go Edit&os=All&submit_form=set