Disappointed with Helix Stadium XL – Preset Gaps, Missing Features, and Unfulfilled Promises

[tufanderince]

I’m honestly not satisfied with the Line 6 Helix Stadium XL.

 

The biggest issue for me is the 1–2 second audio drop when switching between presets. On the Helix Floor, there was a preset spillover solution where you could achieve seamless transitions by using a single signal path. That worked well.

On the Stadium XL, this is completely missing, which is very disappointing—especially for live performance.

 

This unit costs €2350, yet it feels like it’s missing several essential features that already existed on older Helix models. For a flagship product at this price point, this is hard to justify.

 

Additionally, Proxy / Capture features were mentioned or expected, but they are still not available. There has been no clear roadmap or communication, which raises concerns. It honestly feels like development and feature delivery are not being handled very well.

 

I also expected much more innovation, especially considering AI integration. With today’s technology and with Line 6 being under Yamaha, I expected new intelligent features, smarter sound design tools, or at least some forward-thinking additions. So far, none of that has materialized.

 

Another major downside is the very limited modulation effects. The modulation section feels weak and shallow. Being under Yamaha, I expected a much wider sound palette, something closer to Kronos-style depth and versatility, especially in synth-like textures and complex modulations.

 

Overall, for the price, the Helix Stadium XL feels unfinished and underwhelming. I expected evolution—what I got feels more like restriction.

[silverhead]

I can understand your disappointment. Of course, disappointment is a corollary of expectations. Recall that, late in development, Line 6  publicly polled users with the question “Would you prefer a more complete and finished product that will be released later, or a less complete product available sooner?”  The clear user preference was sooner, with additional features coming later. Accordingly one should not expect a complete product at this point. You’re absolutely right that promised features like proxy capture remain unfulfilled, as expected. Will other features like preset spillover be added in a future firmware release? I certainly expect so, but I’m not putting any timing on that.

 

Helix Stadium is still very much in its early development. It will, and already has, been much improved. For instance the Showcase feature was not released in v1.1; it arrived in v1.2. Also, v1.2.1 was released very recently, fixing some 50-odd bugs. 
 

I think anyone who owns a Stadium device now should consider themselves to be early adopters, complete with the associated bugs and glitches. You don’t have to use it yet. You can wait for several more months until it is more complete and less buggy. Most users responding to the Line 6 outreach wanted it sooner rather than later, and that’s what Line 6 did. 

 

Who knows what Stadium will become? Recall that the original Helix product has evolved significantly since its release. It is hardly recognizable now compared to that time. The same will happen with Stadium. As you point out it is currently unfinished.
 

Of course, your feelings are your own and they are legitimate based on a certain set of (reasonable?) expectations.

[PaulTBaker]

I can also see why you would be disappointed.  My expectations for the current product were not as high.  The main reason I wanted it was because I always needed "just one more stomp" on the Helix Floor!  This has given me that.  Of course I may be wrong (I thought I was wrong once, but I was mistaken:)) however, I believe this model has the potential to open up so many more capabilities, I'm sure some we didn't know we needed!  Your AI integration is an example of that.  This platform seems to be able to handle things like that.

 

So like Silver said, it comes down to expectations.  

[Semetery]

The poll was 'with Showcase or before', not unfinished or stable, wasn't it? We paid full price, I don't think expecting it to work properly and be gig-ready at $2200 is crazy. People who weren't aware of the poll at all certainly wouldn't be okay buying the Stadium and not knowing they were buying an early-dev form of it.

 

WITH THAT, I believe it's going to be completely awesome. I just think it's frustrating right now. I'm trying really hard to be positive because the company history says a lot of good.

[silverhead]

You’re right - the poll was ‘later with Showcase or earlier without’, but still clearly unfinished with other promised features yet to come.
 

btw…. my earlier comments are my own. I don’t represent Line 6 in any way. They might not want to characterize current owners as early adopters, nor would they say that it was released in early-dev form. Both the initial version and the subsequent Showcase version were released when the features they offer were considered sufficiently robust and stable while at the same time meeting marketplace commitments (release in the fall of 2025).

 

I look forward to many more years of Stadium development and ongoing feature additions and enhancements.

 

 

[jpdennis]

I understand the OP's disappointment if a finished product was expected by the OP.  However, Line 6 is deploying more as they can via current and soon to come updates.  They are addressing the bugs slightly faster, which I can say due to the expeditious way I have been contacted by Line 6 support during the recent four tickets I created.  I know that they are being careful to not address too many bugs without testing what is broken in the process of final release of updates.  And I have read that Proxy is being demonstrated at NAMM, though I am not physically at NAMM. 

 

The Stadium XL is usable for what I need right now and has made headway with the updates.  My memory may be bad, however, I believe they are committed to delivering updates in a tighter timeline than when the Helix Floor and Rack was first released.  I may search when I have some time.

 

jpd