Tip- if you have knobs on pretty much any piece of gear- including a modeler- that turn to easily- there's a relatively easy fix. Take the knob off, take a rubber band and wrap it around the post- keep wrapping it until it's tight and push it down as far as it will go- put the knob back on. The rubber will create a back pressure on the knob that holds it in place. A neater way to go about it is to find a piece of rubber thick enough you can cut circles out of it the same size or slightly larger than the knob, punch out a center hole for the post- and slide the rubber washer you just made over the post, put the knob back on. Leather also works- that's what I use because I work leather, I have it around, and I have punches to punch out a perfect circle the size I want. Plus, leather comes in varying thicknesses that coincide with the ounce or weight of the leather- I use 6-7 ounce for making these washers, it's the perfect thickness. Anything that you can get around that post that will push back up on the knob and hold it in place will work.
Also if your parameters get out of whack as long as you didn’t save it just go to a different preset and then back to the original preset before something got changed
13:43 Nah, that's not sub-par at all. What you're seeing there is "staking" (using an RTV, silicone, or similar material) to prevent connectors and ribbon cables from coming loose, and also to strain-relieve those parts against continued vibration/impact. It may not look pretty, but the fact they did it at all makes it above-par compared to most consumer electronics.
If you ever decide to try the modeling route again and you gig that heavily you might consider a rack version of your modeler with a separate foot controller (plus a backup foot controller). I don't think the model you had was targeted for someone who gigs as much as you do. There is the additional cost, but it will definitely be a more resilient configuration.
"I'm always at ninety-five percent of the tone I'm looking for." This is exactly why I finally moved away from my own multi-effects pedal back to a pedal board in the last couple of months. I appreciate all of your other reasons, but, in the end, it's that one particular reason that finally got to me. Interesting video. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Yeah, after having made this video and thought about it some more, this is really the big reason that I'm going back to pedals. Thanks for the comment!
@@hartejdhiman4438 LOL! Did I miscalculate?! What was I thinking?! By the way, I've been using all analog pedals (other than delay and reverb) for about a year-and-a-half now and I have reached the 100% satisfied mark.
Your playing is beautiful, I’m going to look around for more of it. I have a first new helix floor coming. Just more or less for home use and occasional Church here in there.
I bought a Helix 7 years ago - it was only after a year or so that I began selling off my amps and pedals. Had to make sure it was worthy first. It is.
Solid video. Like many (most?) new guitarists, my Helix journey started off on the HX Stomp four years ago. I was new to the world of pedals, quite overwhelmed by the options. The HX Stomp seemed like a reasonable entry point to get pretty much every pedal sound imaginable, get to know the different effects (and their relevance to my sound), and to learn about signal paths. I graduated to the full-on Helix floor model and learning from patches created by others. It's was a great education in how to dial in my sound. Then, about six months ago, I borrowed a buddy's Strymon Timeline for a weekend. Like you said, the Helix gets you 95% of the way there. But there's something magical in that extra 5%. Have auditioned about 60 pedals since then, and purchased about 12 of them. So my Helix-only era is ending, and I'm starting a new journey, learning the intricacies of building out a pedalboard. A good friend observed that, in my case, the Helix condensed about ten years of pedal education and experimentation into three. It helped me gain clarity about what effects matter most to me and my sound without purchasing hundreds of pedals. If anything, the Helix made me actually care about having my own, unique sound brand. It helped me develop my ear for breaking down sounds I hear in my ear and in my head into their possible component effects (gain/drive, reverb, time-based, modulation, etc.), so that I could recreate them on the Helix, and then tweak to my own tastes. HX Edit is unmatched in how easy it is to swap out effects, reorder them, etc.. You can quickly experiment to hone in on a particular sound you're trying to achieve in minutes. Doing the same thing with physical pedals would literally take hours. I don't see myself getting rid of the Helix in the foreseeable future. Rather, a hybrid approach (Helix + pedals) seems to make the most sense for me.
I'm a total gearhead and I like to tweak knobs and try new stuff. Multifx and modellers are great tools but IME they're not for everyone. I played with analog pedals and digital stuff...and sometimes I faced the "option paralysis" when I started to surf among endless FX choices. When this happens I simply unplug ally pedals and keep them in a closet for a week to force myself to play more and try to get a good tone just with my playing.
I like your strategy. Similarly, on a recent gig, I refrained from using any drive pedals for the entire gig, opting to just push my amp for overdrive. I did it to test if I could function without drive pedals. I think it went well! Thanks for commenting.
Great perspective, you just gained a new subscriber! I'm a prospective buyer for a HX Stomp for bass, and the part that got me was the "options paralysis". As a keyboard player and composer I'm no stranger to this paradox. I'll go to software synths for simplicity and wide choices, only to end up wasting precious creative energy going through the millions of available instruments and presets without ever being able to make up my mind. Then I'll run out and get a traditional synth with knobs and my creativity explodes again, only to be frustrated later with the less flexible options for recording! Sheesh! About your dependence on a single piece of gear for your gigs, I totally get that. Maybe carrying a Stomp as a redundant unit in case of failure might do the trick. Thanks for the great vid.
A great thing about the stomp is you only get 9 blocks and you only have 3 switches... I don't suffer from option paralysis personally, but it think having a clear idea of what you want first, and just treating it like a physical rig helps. Simple patches are almost always the best.
I front a trio playing Rock, Grunge, and post Grunge type music and the snap shot function is indispensable for me as well as the ability to sound like any players tone . I couldnt achieve that with my pedal board which was over 3" wide while also using a VL-2 for my vox . I originally ran it 4 cable to a Marshall then went to QSC K10.2's , now a power cab 112 plus on stage and send from Helix to front of house and I really like that setup . The 3.50 update really took it to another level . My pedal board was always drama , the Helix , easy peasy for me .
I went direct in 2007 with a Line-6 Pod XT Live. Plugged into two Fender Champion clean channels. I took the time to work the sounds comparing them to some of my favorite players and tones. I received tons of compliments on my sounds from other players who saw us live thinking it was the Fenders. They were shocked to learn it was the POD... In 2012 I upgraded to an Axe FX MKII directly into our PA and used a Yamaha monitor for my stage volume. I love the convenience and repeatability of sounds from gig to gig. I'm considering a Helix for my next project. Newer tech, more convenience.
Interesting video. I think it doesn't matter if you're using modelers or pedals... it's always good to have a plan in case your rig suffers a catastrophic failure. I have an HX stomp ready to go in case the Helix dies, but that's because I'm usually doing direct to PA gigs. If I were using an amp, I'd probably keep a spare overdrive pedal with me, so if everything I had failed I could just use that with the amp and get through the gig. But those are just examples. It's just a good policy to create a strategy for such an event. When I used to use rental amps on tour, we had a massive power spike on my side of the stage and took out 3 amps. They only had one extra amp, so the other guitar player used that and I happened to have a Line 6 pocket pod in my backpack that used to practice with. We plugged that into a DI and it saved the gig!
Hey Richie, love your vids and playing. That's some great insight. I think after reading lots of comments like this one, I'll be preparing a spare HX Stomp board in case of catastrophic failure.
Being a Line6 user since 2009 (still have the old POD X3 Live) I find this feedback from a gigging musician very important. Actually, I faced the same problem with the switches and had to open the unit to fix it by myself. Helix is definitely not perfect, but it opens a lot of doors for people who like to experiment with different sounds. Just like you, I wouldn't have learned what I know about effects if I hadn't had the Line6. And yes, the optimal scenario is to have the best of both worlds, an analog pedal board with a HX Stomp next to it. Thank you for your honest feedback.
The liability you mentioned for a single piece of gear was the main point, I agree! I use modeling boards consistently (currently Mooer GE300) because toting pedal boards and amps is a thing of the past in my opinion. Audiences will not hear the difference, unless maybe playing to audience of experienced blues artists.
Even then, they're listening more with their eyes than actually hearing a difference in tone. Digital has closed the gap so much between pedals and amps that it's pretty much impossible to accurately distinguish a digital modelor from the real deal.
Appreciate all your thoughts on this. I can't argue with the aesthetic vibe of having a pedalboard that you curated. But one thing I like about the Helix vs my pedalboard is this: Even with a high quality Strymon power supply and high quality patch cables, I get considerably more noise/artifacts/quirks of various types with my pedalboard than with the Helix. E.g., interactions between certain drive pedals depending on placement, clock noise from certain analog flanger and phaser pedals, who knows what from the multiple AD/DA conversions as the signal passes in and out of various digital pedals. It's definitely more to manage and troubleshoot. In the end I like having both, but I mainly rely on the Helix for recording because of its much cleaner signal path. But live I think I'd prefer the simplicity of a what you see is what you get pedalboard in front of me.
Great point. Managing noise with a pedalboard is its own beast, and one that I had forgotten about. The Helix has some nice built in noise gate parameters. So far, I haven't bumped into any noise/artifacting issues with my new board, but we'll see as I add more. Thanks for the comment.
I appreciate your take! To paraphrase your point, the quest for the elusive 5% ultimately comes down to our needs and subjectivity on the matter. I've always used multi-effects gutar pedals because of their price and on-stage flexibility, so perhaps I've never experienced the 5% you're specifically referring to with traditional guitar pedals. I happen to use the Helix LT for most everything on-stage, and in the studio, because of the vast array of sonic possibilities, and because of its capabilities as an interface and multi-effects processor. I got into live looping a year ago and already I have an entire pedalboard just dedicated to my looping: Aeros loop station; BeatBuddy drum pedal; Midi Maestro midi controller; and Boss VE-500 for vocal effects. Live looping rigs (and the required toe-tapping) can get ridiculously huge in a hurry, turning what should be a musical performance into what looks like a monkey in an on-stage science experiment. Helix snapshots handle my guitar tone and effects to where I don't have to fiddle with them in real time. And thankfully, I get around most of the toe tapping by using bluetooth midi through the OnSong app to control preset and tempo changes for each song on both the Helix and the BeatBuddy. It mitigates button mishaps in real time while reducing button wear and tear. I make performance changes on the fly with the Midi Maestro. Of course, my greatest fear is that my Helix totally craps one day, because owning a backup is certainly cost-prohibitive. Great video!
This was a great video ,very truthful and hit on some important points, I don’t think any of these modelers , Helix , Fractal FM 9 Quad Cortex , Fender Mustang Pro can really hold up to heavy gigging , but I think they have their place , and I don’t think pedals / pedalboards will ever go out of style , There’s just something nerdy cool about pedals and finding your own sound, it’s very personal,and although I think modelers have come a long way,I still find the overdrives a little fizzy like you mentioned their 95% there, but I can hear the 5% difference , anyway I love Helix but i also have always had a minimalistic pedalboard 5 pedals at the moment, it’s all I need , so anyway thanks again for a wonderful review , and subscribed ! 👍
Sounds like we are on the same page! Thank you for the nice comment. I don't upload very often because I am a student but I have a few video ideas brewing, once I find the time.
Great commentary. I went down a similar path. I find pedals and amp to be a much more satisfying playing experience, which usually translates to better playing because I'm more comfortable and having more fun. I now have an HX stomp at the end of my pedalboard now, just for any one-off FX I might want, reverbs, harmonic trem, chorus or whatever. This goes into the front end of a great amp.
I play bass, and so far, what's worked well for me is a sort of compromise between both approaches - I use a multi FX, but an ANALOG multi (Tech 21 Bass Fly Rig v2). I pair it on a pedalboard with a Tech 21 YYZ pedal (for hi gain sounds), and if I ever need more, the Fly Rig's built in FX loop allows me to add. I get the tone and simplicity of analog, with much of the same versatility often attributed to digital multi FX. Granted, a unit like a Helix has way more features than a Fly Rig, but I don't need too much to begin with (and most players don't, if they're honest with themselves).
Same with me Andy. The Tech21 FlyRigs are awsome. I used to play the Bass Fly Rig V1 for some years, but have changed to the SH-1 (Steve Harris) unit. This pedal gives me all the sounds I like (I am much into classic rock). The only other unit I would be interested in is one of the two Origin Pedals for bass. One simulates a Fender Amp and the other an Ampeg SVT. But I have never played any of these myself. No matter what I do, I would always bring a Bass Fly Rig as a back up as it has everything you need in one small unit including a Tuner.
I owned a Helix and believe it or not received waaay more compliments on the tones of my Headrush. Having said that, I now own an ISP Theta Pro dsp and it DESTROYS every other unit. Plus I don’t play Worship anymore which requires a ton of delay options. I’m 54 and come from an era where you plugged straight into an amp and used your volume control. My most simple rig had delay, boost, compressor and wah
Had mine for 6 years now and still love it. I use it 4CM with my custom Anderson 20/45 amp and it replaced a $3000 pedalboard. 4CM is the only way to go live. And the newest 3.70 update sounds as good as anything ever released.
Sure accidents happen; gear takes a beating; but some musicians don't take good care of their gear, some even abuse their gear. No wonder it doesn't last. I had a Helix LT for years, sold it and got the HX-Effects using it with small combo amps in 4CM (Marshall Origin 50C, Line 6 Catalyst 100; just did the CX firmware upgrade), and my Mesa JP-2C rig. I recently got another Helix, this time the Floor. I also use Helix Native. Helix may be getting old, but it sounds good, and works well for me; I've learned how to use it, what works for me, etc. over time; it's second nature. In a live setting, recording, in a mix, practicing alone, etc., I can get what I need; and if I need something, it's usually in there. I still have my 100W tube amps, full and half stacks, I use and enjoy at home, nothing like that experience, but just not practical for me. If I was in a top touring band, with a tech and road crew, that would be a different story....I'd probably have two Engl Artist Edition 100 E651 full stacks (I have a half stack now)...and use my HX-Effects or Helix Floor for effects.
I've been using Helix as my entire rig for studio,. Live, and everything that isn't studio or live...like, what()?() Dead?😂😂 I never used the factory sounds. I never gave shit one if the Plexi model sounds just like the real amp. All I wanted from the unit was to build my own sound & tone, and it surely gave me that. The way I made it work for me was to use the amp/cab/mic/pedal/and whatever models I found to give me the tone I heard in my head. It took awhile. It did. I almost thought that Helix was restricting me like it did for you, until I had a massive epiphany that should have seemed obvious but was not. I have since figured out why that was so. The epiphany was this: _I stopped trying to get 'my tone' by having totally different sounds and tones on every single snapshot and all 8 snapshots on each bank!_ The reason this was so easy to fall into is simple; literally every video tutorial about Helix showed people doing this. I quit watching those videos, and adopted the same philosophy for Helix that I'd use if I bought an Engl Ironball or a EVH 5150, or good old fashioned Plexi, which is dial that damn amp in FIRST until it's giving up tones that are right in my lane as far as making it give me MY tone. Then, once I have the amp set to where it is doing this, I go in and add pedals and rack effects or whatever. Once I have that dialed in and it's giving me everything I want, how I want it, WHEN I want it, it's time for the last step. Write down all my amp knob/pedal knob/other control settings. Save the notebook after screen shotting it into my computer. That is it. I'm done. Take my monster tone out live & slay. In the studio. Slay. I was amazed at how well Helix worked for me when I just treated it like any other more traditional amp/pedal/cab/mic system, because, see, that is what it _is_ now. The only thing I might add is a stereo FrFr powercab set up so I can have lots of thumpy air moving onstage instead of just coming through monitors. Damn thing works great. I have 3 banks right next to each other on the Empty Preset #8. Each one is just the first one I did that I could say THERE IT IS! MY TONE! copied to the next empty space so that I can do things like add a bunch of crazy effects for whatever weird shit I'm trying in some song. But the core tones, the _signature sound,_ that is exactly and always the same. Clean tone. Crunch/push. Thick heavy rhythm. Ripping lead solo tone. Add pedals as needed to season the mix to taste, and play the thing instead of trying to make my 'unique' tone by throwing in every amp and pedal in the unit on each snapshot and winding up with schizophrenic tone issues. Seems to work.
I had have a Helix Floor and played with L2 wedges. I'm really understanding the function and all that stuff around, the routing, midi and so on. I've got never a really satisfying sound near to my miced amp sound in my head. For the knob things and the danger of fluid issues on a gig, I've changed to the rack version with the foot controller and gave the Helix a new chance. I've used the Helix only for effects and as switcher in my rack with rack preamps and a stereo power amp. After a while I've changed only to rack preamps plus power amps and the UAD Stomp for direct to the FOH. My thoughts about the Helix: A very good idea, some good stuff inside but for me not really practicable or not necessary... I'm back to my old stuff.
I understand exactly what you’re talking about. I keep mine for the practicality mostly. My biggest complaint is about the footswitches, I have mine for 5 years now and I had several switches replaced twice, and I need to have done it again. I spoke with Line 6 over the phone and they are aware of the problem, but nothing has changed….I’ll keep my for now, but my eyes and ears are open for something more reliable.
This is interesting as my experience has been the opposite. I have a pedalboard with a switcher that was my main gigging rig for about 5 years. After a spilt beer incident my pedal board exhibited a significant volume increase after about 1.5 hours use. Impossible to trace the problem due to the time lag. This forced me to go down the digital route and I decided on a rack plus MIDI controller rather than a floor modeller to avoid further beer incidents. Honestly I am so happy I did. I much prefer the sounds I am getting with my Axe FX and due to the advanced parameters I can really dial in what I hear in my head. Best of luck with your future gigging.
If something drops on the Helix and turns a knob, all you need to do is change the preset and back again, the accidental change is gone. On the contrary, the traditional pedalboard is a nightmare for accidental changes. Even if you write down all your settings, or even take pictures, it seems like you never can get back to where you were
While it's true that switching between presets is fairly quick and easy, even having to do that unexpectedly can be enough to get me frustrated on stage, especially if it happens during a crucial part of a song. Every second counts, especially on wedding gigs, which comprise the majority of my work. A few seconds during a ceremony procession, or first dance, or father daughter dance, or a final song are extremely important. A club gig is a different story of course, but even then, losing my signal during a solo, or at any time, is not really acceptable. I'm often far from my pedal board because I like to move around the stage. That adds time to a preset switch. Pieces of tape on physical pedals make it readily apparent when a knob has been moved. Pedal knobs are also less sensitive than the Helix knobs, in my experience.
I agree with your assessment for the most part - other than the subjective part of the tones not being 100% what you want. And the only reason I disagree is because I have never used a real pedal board or have any reference to compare to -- so for me, its 100% what I am looking for -- granted, it took years for me to get my tones correct (I am in a rock/grunge cover band, so have to cover a lot of ground -- i don't have a signature tone I use, but several to cover then many artists we cover). but I agree with you 1000% on it being so easy to use, so versatile, and allowed me as a new guitarist to explore any and all types of pedals out there -- and i would say, with the most recent 3.5 update, the new amps and especially the cabs sound amazing -- it was a game change for me as far as sounds - I stopped using all the IRs i had downlead and now use stock cabs for everything. I also don't use as effects loop -- i use 100% everything in the helix..... i want the convenience, it outweighs most everything for me. As far as reliability -- I once had the foot pedal start cutting my signal - I was using it to swell in volume and just cut the whole thing to silence-- and did it a few times during the this one particular gig -- i rebooted and seemed to fix it but scared the piss out of me. So I actually bit the bullet and bought a second one -- both are LT models, so cheaper but still a lot of money -- I actually back up and restore both to match and take the other one as back up to gigs. I realize not everyone has that luxury, but I really don't feel like getting into building a pedalboard right now -- maybe a year or two down the road that will be an adventure i take on -- i want to do it but just no time right now, plus I have 3000 invested in the two Helix ( or should I say Heli) that I am going to ride this out for a while -- like I said, the 3.5 upgrade was a HUGE impact on the sound -- things sound amazing. The other guitarist in my band has a traditional pedal board with a Friedman amp and cab, and we often compare tones, and live -- really hard to distinguish through the PA (you can obviously tell the difference in the room close to his cab). I go direct to PA and have a Mission FRFR for some stage monitoring. Anyway = good luck with your journey and thanks for sharing.
Thanks for posting this. Very timely. I've been running the older HD500X for a long time; you were able to very effectively articulate many of the reasons why I am also moving back to a more traditional pedalboard. I've enjoyed the versatility and have spent (seemingly) a million years noodling through the many high-quality models available. However, at the end of the day, I always ended up back where I started - the same 8-10 models. Good luck with the transition, and thanks again for the video.
I've never seen you on youtube. i don't have a helix but i have had every other digital pedalboard. You've articulated much better than I could as to why I went back to amps and pedals. I've subscribed to your channel now and i'm looking forward to your other revelations.
I understand option paralysis especially if if are a new guy, however if you're an old guy like me and have used lot of gear in real life, then the Helix is a God send, because you can recreate setups without taking up a lot of real estate. I can go through my mind and imagine ideal setups based on experience and get pretty dang close. I've gone full FRFR mode because hauling around amps, loadboxes, switchers, lots of cable and all that made little sense if I ended the same place, and it works. The only thing missing is a little tube flavor, but I may fix that later (tube combos with FRFR speakers). Stay on the tone path 😀
My Helix went down after 5 years of use in my home studio. It left my home about a half a dozen times during that five years. The "authorized" repair facility in my area kept my unit for 3 weeks and then called and said there was nothing wrong with it. When I got home and plugged it in it still didn't work. Called this place and talked to the tech who worked on it who said: "We're really busy here and I really don't want to deal with Line 6 or having to order parts from them. I then issued myself a repair ticket from the Line 6 website and described my issue. After 3 days I got a form letter reply stating that I could go to the same authorized dealer I had just dealt wither send it to them for repair. I finally found a competent repair person to fix it (not affiliated with line 6) and now I have the unit up for sale. Done with line 6.
Good luck going fwd, hope you get to 100% with your new rack. Despite my few issues with it, I'm still all in and even got a 2nd Helix as a backup in case my main one flakes out. Switches wearing out have been my only big issue and I'm fortunate to have a guy fairly close to repair things for me. One of the things I love about it that I didn't hear you mention is being able to simultaneously alter or turn on or off multiple effects or parameters with one footswitch (snapshots) or an expression pedal. The other thing I love is how many updates there have been since I've own them, over 10 years now. Again, hope you can find your happy place with the new board. Cheers.
I've done the all-in-one solutions in the past. Roland VG8, POD, PODXT, Eleven Rack, and none of them could give me the satisfaction I was looking for. So I went back to pedals. I have been through my share of them looking for "my sound" and in that time not a single pedal has ever failed or broke but even if one did it wouldn't cripple my ability to play and replacing one is much cheaper than replacing the all-in-one. When I'm not using one of my amps I use the Strymon Iridium or my new Tonex for my amp sound. One of the things I really didn't like about being trapped in an all-in-one solution was that all the virtual pedals are voiced by one company. With my pedals I have several different sonic signatures and have mixed and matched them to what I consider my perfect pedalboard.
After using a Boss ME50 multi pedal for many years and only having to replace the input jack when the original one became loose and noisy being soldered directly into the circuit board, I replaced it, there was room to mount a new one to the metal frame instead, eliminating the problem. But recently I spent a bunch of time and money putting together a pedal board which sounded great but was much bigger and more involved to set up since I was using the effects loop for some pedals as well as running stereo to two different amps. Well, then at a jam I didn't want to set that all up so I just bought a small amp and the multi pedal and it was so easy and sounded so good that I've been using it again since.
Sold my Helix last month. I used it for teaching and just used one Plexi-Sound. I wish they'd made units with just basic features but with awesome sound.
Try the L.A. Lady pedal. It is a pretty good Plexi emulator with good EQ capability and lots more fuzz and OD options. You can use 2 effects at once in either parallel or series signal paths. Stereo in and out.
@@shelbyguitarmusic had quite a few big name racks (tc, yamaha, eventide), but as good as they might be (and they are), I couldn't justify keeping them for some algos. In any case, got tired of rack and multis with a billion things I simply don't care about. Don't need 30 phasers or Reverbs. Just the one I fancy the most. Pedals are also great for tweeking fast.
Great comments, well done. I appreciate the way you presented a well-balanced and objective viewpoint. As a Helix user for three months, performing gigs four days a week, I understand and share your concern about the potential failure of a single integrated effects unit. However, I have yet to encounter any issues thus far. Personally, I've decided to keep my original #1 pedalboard (solo acoustic) as a backup. I also find using individual pedals more enjoyable and allows for a more carefully selected range of specific tones. Like you, the form factor and convenience compel me to run the Helix, so I continue to rely on it. Given that I perform covers spanning various genres, including current Top-40 hits, Rock, Pop Rock, Country, Motown, EDM, Contemporary instrumentals, Ambient, and Classic favorites, it would be challenging to cover such a diverse repertoire in venues ranging from fine dining and corporate events to more casual Tex-Mex restaurants solely with a pedalboard. Hence, until my Helix fails, I'll remain a dedicated user, keeping a small analog pedalboard as a backup, much like I always bring two guitars. Getting 95% of the tone I desire from the Helix is good enough for me, and certainly good enough for a casual listener.
Hey great comment, and great points. I'm glad you've had a good experience with the Helix. 95% is definitely enough for the casual listener, and if it's enough for you, then keep on keepin' on brother.
Really enjoyed this video. I am old now, so have seen the evolution. Amazing times to be a guitar player. I still have a bunch of tube amps, but also a few cheapo digital boxes of magic. Never settle for less than what you hear in your head :)
I think this is why I only ever bought the stomp instead of a full blown Helix. It’s great but a lot of reliance on a single bit of hardware. I also like variation, I find it amazing that some people can’t comprehend how some companies just do some things better, I much prefer to pick and choose my own tastes. The Helix products are great but believing they’re the best at everything isn’t correct (in my opinion)
I use my Helix for small venues when I need a small footprint. I would always go full analog on the bigger shows. Considering trying out the Tonex options as well.
Tonex is freakin awesome. You can use just the amp captures (turning the cab sims off) into the FX return of a tube amp and basically have a ton of amps at your disposal. It even takes overdrives just like a tube amp does too!
Interesting thoughts and perspective in this video! A selling point on modeling for me has been reliability. I've gigged and toured boutique amp+pedalboard setups and experienced just about every failure you can imagine happen on gigs - amp tubes and reverb tanks, pedal switches, patch cables etc all dying and leaving me silent and fumbling to locate the problem. The more failure points and complexity, the more opportunities for something to wrong and the more difficult it'll be to troubleshoot on the fly (or replace, if need be). I haven't had any issues with my HX Stomp at all so far. And I like that I can store a backup on my computer and if anything goes wrong, get my Stomp fixed/replaced under warranty or drive to practically any guitar store to buy a new one and load my backup file onto it. And frankly with the money I've saved selling off gear, I could probably afford to have a second HX Stomp as a backup.
Thank you! The pedalboard is finished and I have some good live footage of using it. Just need to compile the clips and record myself talking about it.
Appreciated your thoughtful vid. I have a Helix and have a love / hate relationship with it. If I were doing strictly studio recording it would probably be much more of a loving relationship relationship. For live playing I have had issues with reliability due primarily to summer day gigs and heat. Also really struggle to see the screen and button selections in daylight despite trying to keep it in the shade and or use a shade. There have been some really supportive folks in the forums with some good suggestions, but ultimately still problematic even with a Helix that was just a few months old. Performed almost weekly for over 20 years with amps, pedals, earlier versions of modelers, both with and without power amps / cabs. During all that combined time, never had as many struggles as I did in one summer with my Helix, unfortunately. It's a fantastic unit and incredibly convenient. Happy for those who are completely satisfied with it. But at the end of the day, regardless of any reasons, most guitarists have to feel good about what their gear is delivering to them in their particular playing environment overall to really find fulfillment, regardless of anyone else's experiences and opinions. Best of luck finding what really does that for you!
Thank you! Yeah, it's such a great studio tool, I just don't think it's quite meant for the rigors of intense gigging at a "blue collar" level. I don't play a lot of outdoor festivals, but for the few gigs I've had in bright sunlight have been a bit of a pain. And yes I agree, I have to feel good with my gear or I can't get into the zone properly.
I have an hx stomp on my pedal board. The models are great when at home in garage band. Live i use it for compression, eq, delay, modulation, buffer and for lead boost into back line or bring my own maz 18. Midi capabilities are great as well; used to use a DSL 40CR live and using midi to boost amp volume was fantastic. I use pedals for drives, wah, fuzz, but use the hx OD in it for lead boost which works well. I mean with one stereo delay effect you can have dual delays for example. Bang for buck is incredible. I do have a controller and two additional buttons for it, so the stomp on it's one isn't enough in my opinion. But the foot print is so small for what is packed inside. I never liked the modeled amps through wedges, always need a real amp behind me for that feel. Good luck with your change. You'll be happy. Oh, and my usb jack died on my stomp and had to send that across country to get fixed by yamaha, literally took 6 months. Had to buy another one cause we had shows at the time. Now I have two - ha! Have one to sell...wink wink. jk.
I did something similar with an Fractal Fm3. I had an huge pedalboard (that had an hx stomp also) that I used with a tube amp. One day it an opportunity arrived to buy a Fractal, had a lot of digital units stuff but never a Fractal (and was always curious). Result? I sold everything, amp pedals and for almost the past year I’ve been playing only with the Fm3. It’s just so more convenient, plus I’m not constantly searching for my next analog pedal. It’s cheaper and you get great sounds.
@@shelbyguitarmusic I highly recommend the Fractal! My introduction to the FAS ecosystem was the FM3. After trying Helix and Boss modeling and being underwhelmed FAS resolved all of that. FAS Amp models sound and feel the most realistic compared to the real-world counterparts I've played. They respond to volume roll off and dynamics like a real Tube Amp does. Boss was the second closest to this and Helix was a VERY distant 3rd. All the FAS floor units are built like a tank. I've heard great things about their support team when a device has issues, but I've not yet needed it myself. Eventually, my number came up for the FM9 Turbo and I purchased it immediately and received it in the beginning of January. The FM3 has been great but one area it fell short was CPU limit with presets that have more ambient scenes. I could get it to work but with compromises I wasn't happy with. The FM9 has resolved all my desire to own Amps and Pedals (I still have them, but they sit collecting dust). No need to worry about mic setup on a physical Amp. No worrying about taping all my pedal knobs. No fussing with MIDI (I don't hate it as I'm also a software engineer, but FAS Presets and Scenes are just so much better!). Whether I'm at home or in a live setting everything sounds just how I dialed it in. I can plug it into FOH, FRFR speakers, or bypass the Cabinet modeling and go into a Solid-State Power Amp and a physical Cabinet. All variations sound absolutely killer! I think if you got on the list for the FM9 Turbo and bought it in about a month's time when your position in the waitlist is reached you will not be disappointed.
Good video man, you’ve posted some good balanced arguments here. If money grew on trees right ? I went this route and I’d say, you could resolve all these switch issues with a cheap pair of midi controllers. Having all your eggs in one basket is always a recipe for disaster. Modular may help you out yeah. But there are always single points of failure in a rig. Power supply above all. I’d definitely recommend a stomp , and build around it with what you’ve learned, or find another backup entirely and learn to hot swap between your main and backup. My floor sits pretty permanently at home, and the mini pedalboards take the hit outside , or the reverse 🔄. All your eggs in one basket is just asking for trouble.
Hey, thanks for the comment! Based on this one and many others, I think I'll be going the Stomp route with midi control. Seems like it solves most of my issues and retains the benefits I liked about the Helix.
I run into shortcomings as well, and have the same conversation in my mind. But going back to a board with all the powering issues, space limitations, expense, random hums and other patch cable frustrations, and of course tap tap tap of several boxes on the fly to go from rhythm to lead tones....not sure there is any going back. It's easy to forget why the Helix made sense in the first place. The software updates and patches available through third parties keep the tones evolving and improving. Did I mention it's light! I'm getting older. A collection of tube amps and effects are super heavy/expensive and need regular $ervicing. Plus most big amp companies are getting purchased by venture capitalists that cheapen up the guts to make an extra $5.
Thanks for this nice breakdown and the candid thoughts. I own an X3 Live and have been debating on upgrading at some point. The X3 has the same issues with footswitches - on mine the tap tempo of course because it's used so often! I have to crouch down now and jam my thumb on the switch to get it to go to "tuner." It's unforgivable of L6 to not have addressed this in a piece of gear approaching 2 Grr, yikes. I agree it stinks to have to break out the soldering gear every couple of years. Ugh.
I went hybrid. Got an HX Stomp to go onto my board. I have a lot of amp-less gigs (worship mainly) and a few not ampless gigs (cover band stuff) so I still needed some core functions with amps/cabs/IR’s and if I needed a specific effect I could add it. If the effect didn’t sound great then I would look to pedals. I’ve had essentially the same configuration for years minus a few swaps. A few good OD pedals and comp in the front, dedicated tuner, delay/reverb in the loop. I have settings for playing with my amp, settings for going amp-less and anything in between.
Consider the HX Effects. I love it. I keep a drive pedal that it doesn't have anyways, so if it failed I'd be just fine. I don't need the amp sims in Helix so the effects are where it's at.
I have a helix and gigged with it and I’m in the same boat. I’m rebuying traditional pedals, and I’m obsessed with my toneking amp. I won’t get rid of my helix though.
Helix user for almost 7 years, i can understand you in most of the points. I sold all my analog pedals after buying the HD500 and the bought the Helix. My Helix switches started to fail and I was never happy with the sounds and feel. Now I bought the Quad Cortex and I’m happy. The quad cortex is much better and you can capture amps and drive pedals.
Hey Shelby, I've also had the HELIX since 2019. Cool tool. Easy to set up and plug in. Options, options and more options. I've also considered going back to a regular pedalboard and amp. I'd like to see your new pedalboard and hear how that changes your sound.
Hey Tim! Thanks for commenting. My next video will be an in-depth explanation of how I use my new pedalboard on gigs. I'll be splicing in live footage demonstrating everything. Thanks!
No problem. There are a lot of shills on this website. And a lot of people overlook blatant issues because of blind brand loyalty or because they want to feel justified in their purchase of a piece of gear.
interesting take. I feel like the helix really boosted my creative ability where I'm less limited with my selection of sounds. Whereas you said restriction forces creativity. Pretty cool to think that coming from that direction might open doors for me but maybe it was time for you to narrow your options. Just got a Helix loving it so far. The durability does concern me, and you've basically convinced me to get the extended warranty from where i purchased it.
The only real purpose of this video was to share why the Helix is not the right piece of gear for me, not that it's a bad piece of gear. Your experience with it and how it differs from mine is a cool part of playing music - we all gravitate towards different things according to how they make us feel and how they work for our unique situations. Thanks for the comment!
About relying on one piece of equipment, if your amp dies, I guess it is the same story, unless you have 2. I am actually building my board around hx stomp, but also considering just normal amp and then hx stomp is a multieffect unit. We will see.
Yes, that is a great point. Maybe I wouldn't have talked about the Helix in that way if I didn't already have reliability issues with it. My amp was handmade by a local builder who I completely trust. I have full confidence in my amp and haven't had a single issue with it for years, so I suppose I just don't think it will ever fail without warning. Good luck with your build!
@@shelbyguitarmusic I haven't had single valve amp in my life, so I only theoretize, I'm planning to change it and start with some blackstar cv10, seems enough for me. Thanks for your reply. Rock on :)
@@shelbyguitarmusic I have had amp failures on gig several times, valves/tubes are fragile species, I once had to share an amp with the bass player, and another time plying through a monitor wedge, but I play jazz mostly so i survived.
@@ralphkoch9430 Maybe I am lucky! Have not had any serious issues with my tube amps yet. I had the tubes in my old hot rod deluxe go bad on me but I got through the gig. Just didn't have any headroom. I've been playing through a Pete Cage Corsa for about 5 years now and it has been flawless so far!
it's an amazingly sound. Especially the clear piano like bass tone. How do you accomplice this sound? I know you are skipping your Helix - but please pass your knowledge on. All the best!
@@odumabekah4000 drive.google.com/drive/folders/1uFb7B9ph_rqZJLf_KO11_QOa8_hxmeO4 Let me know if this link doesn't work. It has a copy of the preset that I used in the intro to this video. All the best!
Love my processor…..not a Helix. Perfect for home with headphones. But live, I struggled a bit, it sounded good, just not quite like a real amp. Realized I really only need 3 tones. Clean, light crunch, heavy saturated crunch. Tried a friends HRDLX, Bogner Blue for the light plexiglass crunch, Bogner Red for the heavy, chorus, delay, and tuner pedal. Sounds great. We tend to make things more complicated than we need.
I suppose budget has a lot to do with it but if you can have both, a properly tweaked Helix and a properly setup pedalboard, you do it. I find a use for both and one can not replace the other. My regular board is dominated by Strymon pedals which is obviously top end but I would not feel the same about a pedalboard with less than stellar pedals and probably prefer a Helix by a wide margin.
I currently use a BOSS SY 1000 for all my gigs...to me, it's like a BOSS version of Helix...probably the only reason I moved from Line 6 to BOSS, is because I could equip any guitar with the 13 pin capability, as to access the guitar modeling within the BOSS SY 1000, to where line 6's approach was incorporating guitar modeling within a guitar itself, keeping amp modeling and guitar modeling in separate units. Guitarists love their ability to choose the guitar they want to play; the one that feels right to them/ inspires them...but if you didn't like the "feel" of one of the three choices of James Tyler Variax, but you still wanted to use their guitar modeling for on the fly alternate tunings in live situations , then too bad, just use the one you can tolerate the most...for me, if they would have made the JTV 59 in 2 models, one with 24 frets and a floyd, like a Lifeson Axcess but with 24 frets...and the other, leave just as it is for die hard LP folks,, I would have been a happy camper probably even now...but I know what you mean in regard to the Helix being "changing because of an accidental incident" prone...for me, I'd be in the middle of a song, and it would end up out of snap shot mode, and in some other mode, so I'd have to tap dance to get it back to where it needed to be before the song reached to the change I needed to make using snapshots...there's probably a way to make it so that no matter if you do a button mis-push, like pushing two buttons instead of just the one you intended to push, and now because you mis-pushed, you have now entered in the land of OZ, where everything is way different...there must be a way to lock it into, say, snapshot mode, as an example, so that no matter what you do, it won't change into somewhere else...now my what I called my HELIX Junior (LT) is gone, but I'm going to look it up online to see it that "lock it in the mode you want so you don't accidentally footswitch out of it..." so my issue was instead of pushing one button, I would accidentally push two at the same time, and it would go out of snapshot mode into something else, and now the Fred Astaire begins...and the crowd is yelling "Oh yeah! You go, Bobby!!!", when I'm really not trying to dance...hahahahahaha!!! No, I didn't easily find anything online...thanks for the video...
Agree brother. Great at Church and perhaps some inside venues but after dragging this thing around for about a year doing some outside festivals and other shows it became obvious this wasn't going to last. Get a decent pedal board, set it up and rock on......
Very thoughtful advice from a gigging musician on the Line 6 Helix. I am surprised to hear of the durability issues--gives me a LOT of pause. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you! If you scroll through my comments, you will find numerous other people citing the same durability issues. This is a serious problem and Line 6 should be held accountable. There is no excuse.
No lock setting to keep a sound? Hmm, that would suck, like fighting your computer when you have a project due. Great vid, very informative! I think the “modeling”, since synthetic, just doesn’t have to unknown, the ghost notes, the “magic notes, tones or sounds” that come out magically…I wonder?
Just remember to leave lot of room between pedals, once some pedal or patch cable is troublesome or just break, you will be kneeling on your pedal board with spare patch cable to try to find the reason, and it is hard 😀
Wow, can't agree with you more. One warranty claim was the expression pedal started rockin much too loose. Second warranty claim was 3 of my lower button also had multi tap issues. As far as live, after 3 years I went back to an amp because it just didn't feel like home. I think the amp sims didn't work for me. Too many PA guys told me time and time that my sound is thin compared to the other side of stage 2nd guitarist using a 4x12 and pedals. Now I did try a FM9 and it sounded totally awesome in a home environment. Due to price of FM9, I'm sticking with a tube amp.....but I'd get an FM9 for sure. BTW it took forever to tweak a Helix while FM9 sounded great brand new plug it in when I tried it.
Great video. Been having similar feelings. Curious, are you going to be buying anything for amp modeling along with new effects pedals. If so, what are you looking to get?
Hey, thanks! I may buy an HX Stomp down the road and throw it on a small board. I need to look into other options, but it would be nice to just import my presets/knowledge from the Helix to the Stomp.
@@shelbyguitarmusic Right on. I had an HX effects that I just sold. I made the mistake of buying a heavily gigged with one for super cheap but then had to replace 2 of the scribble strips. I sold it out of fear of further issues. I still have my Helix at home but never gigged with it but I'm definitely going to sell it as I know it has a life span and will eventually be unsellable. Now I'm thinking of going with a hybrid solution buying another (and newer) HX Effects for all the time-based and modulation and then adding analog dirt pedals and then something like a Strymon Iridium to add on for home recording and maybe for going direct to FOH. One of the real benefits of both the Helix and HX effects are the Snapshots. Really solves the pedal tap-dance. Real game changer for me live. Maybe Hybrid is the way to go?
Yeah I’m starting to get those foot switch problems on my hx stomp. Barefoot buttons actually really helps on that less dirt gets in it’s been very helpful on that. But I’m currently slowly getting a full rig to replace my stomp so I don’t destroy it out live. Also gear by ceba makes screen guards and other things that could help with the knob problem you got and the life span of the helix.
Great videos and thoughts. Myself I've used multi-effects for years but I always prefer a real amp. In the 90s I used a Korg A3, then I moved to the Boss MS-3 and about a year ago, the HX Effects. I love the HX Effects because it enables me to use either of my current amps (a Revv Dynamis 7-40 tube amp or my Katana MKII head) connected in 4 CM. My drive comes mostly from analog pedals. I have the amp in the HX Effects Loop 2 and a small 4 lopps midi switcher in loop 1 where I connect 3 analog drives and a Boss SY-1. All my gain comes from the pedals and sometimes the amp. Like you, I do not like the built in HX FX drives although they are way better than the ones in the Boss MS-3. The dynamis Red channel is amazing as well and the Katana's Brown channel is my fave on that amp. But my analog drives are my preferred way to work: Wampler Tumnus Deluxe for boost or just a warm overdrive. Then The Revv G2 for crunch (it soundsd better to me than the Kat's Crunch channel but has less gain). So for higher gain crunch I push the G2 with the Tumnus or another boos in the HXFX. Last is my Revv G4 which is my main gain pedal. This one needs no boosting ;) All other effects (comp, mod, delays, reverbs, EQ) are handled in the HXFX and that is also my rig's main controller as was the Boss MS-3 before it. I control my 4 loops switcher and either of my amp (the Revv has midi even if it's a tube amp) with the HX FX. I do not use any built-in effects in the Katana nor the onboard reverb on the Dynamis. I worked the same way with my old Fender "red knobs" Twin I also used as a pedal platform with the MS-3. 4 CM is working great for me and the HX Effects works fantastic for me. To control stage volume if I have to, I can send the Dynamis to my Torpedo Captor then the line signal of that to my CAB M+. With the Katana, no need for the captor, I just send the Line Out without cab emulation to the CAB M+. So I get all the benefits of my amps as well as complete midi control of my rig and most of the time, I use my 4x12 Marshal cab and everything just works. I've thought of going full Helix but I really like the sound and feel of my current rig so why mess with it? :) Line 6 is still a large part of my rig.
Wow, you seem to have far more experience in the multi-effects world than most. I appreciate your insight. Really liking your setup, I'm sure it sounds killer.
The Dream 65 made me get rid of my Kemper, Line6 and Axe FX III, its THAT good and takes pedals extremely well. The money saved covered any needed pedals with plenty of change left over lol.
I love my helix, but, I definitely prefer the feeling i get playing with my pedals and vox amp… I like having the option of both (im very lucky)… but people get opinionated and territorial about the helix, to the point that they get defensive and argumentative if you say anything negative about it 🤷♂️😄
You sound like a car guy who enjoys points and carbs with a manual vs a tesla. The tesla blows the doors off of any old carb car in every way, but it lacks soul and HMI that really connects you with the machine. Ive always enjoyed multifx unit, back in the late 90s. Those were so hard to program, omg you wanna invest time to tweak, try those. Good introspection. Nice to hear your subjective view and actually know why you may feel that way. Ive gone back and forth thru the decades with all tube and analog to digital. The helix is like getting a smart phone after carrying an old slr, flip phone, audio recorder, etc.
That's a great observation as I grew up engine swapping old diesel VWs and fixing dirtbike carbs and all that. I love digital technology of course but have always felt a certain affinity for all things mechanical and analog because those leave me feeling pretty human. Not that digital tech can't do that... it's just what speaks to me and my brain. Thanks for the feedback! God bless you pioneers who took a chance on this stuff back in the day.
I sold my hx stomp twice, but always wanted it back specially when i would hear sounds on songs that i vouldnt get from my pedalboard. Recently i got an hx effects just yo have access to all those effects ibprovably will never use but jjat having them there is a relief as i wont have to buy anything and at the same time i have my main pedalboard ❤ both board together work great
Buying the Helix LT back in 2015 and sticking to it was the best decision I've made in my life. But one thing that keeps coming up is the footswitches failing. And funnily, they are the same switches every time. I've sent my LT off to the repair shops a few times but the same switches fail after some time of use. I paid $500 for the first repair, but the same thing came up again after about 3 months of use, and the second time I was able to request a ticket for the free repair, but the same switches are starting to fail again or double trigger or both and I'm so frustrated. Rest of the unit is perfect, but I think they should've done better with the switches. I might just sell my LT and get the Stomp XL instead, cover up all the switches with a tape so nothing can ever get in there.
I totally agree with the 95% tone thing. I had a helix lt and downgraded to the stomp because for there was so much extra involvement in the lt that i was not using it to its full potential. I ended up keeping all my pedals and my old pedalboard and still plug it in to try and match that sound on the stomp but its never quite the same sound.
Went back to a more traditional pedalboard as well (still using two pedalsized modelers instead of amps, though). Hardware quality isn't great enough so I would really trust it all the way and visibility of the HX Floor is downright abysmal under critical lightning conditions. And then there's a lot of things lacking, for me the main issue is the lack of something such as "global blocks". My pedalboard delivers all these things with ease and I'm having more fun, too.
I just made the switch to helix. I got tired of lugging my mesa boogie fillmore to gigs running my pedalboard, mic it up....plus I setup the pa & run the FOH sound....helix I can setup in 5 minutes and it helps cut our stage volume.... I really love a tube amp but most gigs I play are small/medium sized and volume control is an issue....we actually get a ton of gigs because we don't play super loud
Go over to Mooer's GTRS guitars. You will never look back. You MAY want to consider using AMT bricks before you hit the power amp, but that is really a personal choice. The GTRS guitars will make pedals a thing of the past.
Your comment reminds me about Matthew 13:44 ESV “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. GOD BLESS You brother
Considering it's sold mainly on 'Convenience' I really enjoy the Helix. Especially the 3.50 update.The overdrives aren't so great and I use the amp drives instead. Using a real great amp with pedals is glorious.I still have a ton of pedals that I enjoy so so much. Your experience is understandable.And your story oddly entertaining !
Interesting vid! It looks like you have brought the wrath of the L6 community upon yourself Ha. I have been a long time FAS user 15 years and counting. I tried a Helix when they first came out just to try it. I thought it sounded pretty good, the Vox models were a little off but it wasn't to bad. I didn't care for the built in CC pedal it also squeaked a few drops of 3 in 1 fixed that. I used it for about a month or so while waiting for the AX8 I had ordered. When it came in I pit the two against each other. Some sounds were pretty close others not so much in the end the AX8 in a desecrate listing session the AX8 came out the winner, I sold off the Helix. I have gone to an FM9 which really fits the bill for me. If I was going to change to something else I would probably run a Suhr PT15 IR or some sort of tube amp with a reactive load / IR loader with some sort of multi effects pedal for effects.
Haha yep, I think people get emotionally invested in their gear. It's okay, I understand and welcome the criticism. You're a third person to recommend the FM9. I'll probably check it out. Thanks for the insight and the comment!
My tap tempo on my m13 did the same thing and I repaired it but who knows for how long. I think you just talked me out of the helix. It’s funny that my cheap pedals work fine and my most expensive multi effects units have issues.
Sorry to hear about your m13... How frustrating. Seems like these big manufacturers can get away with cheaping out on build quality because people will buy flashy equipment with tons of features no matter what, especially if they are marketed effectively. I also think that a lot of the players that buy these things probably don't use them enough to run into these problems that fast, so big manufacturers can just move their base onto the next big flashy thing. I need my gear to last years, not months. I love my cheap pedals like Joyo. No issues and they sound fantastic.
@@shelbyguitarmusic I completely agree! I played at church a lot and my pedals never failed me. I had very vivid dreams (or nightmares) of my cables messing up mid song on stage but never happened. But over time my m13 finally messed up (at home thank GOD). It’s still new compared to my other pedals. Shame. Manufacturers are using “good enough” electronics but at the price point, they should be immaculate. I don’t know a lot about wiring but it definitely looks like the inside of your helix was a rushed job. It’s definitely not nice and neat. The helix in theory is great. Even the tones are great but still not quite the same, especially the “feel”. I can’t image how bad it would be to be playing a gig like you said, and your helix goes out, tap tempo is shot, and tuner won’t turn off or on… It’s great when it’s great, but when it’s bad, ITS BAD lol. I’ll gladly buy more Joyo pedals if one fails me. 34.99? No problem 😂
I think with all the dedicated “amp in a box” stomps coming to the market recently, if/when my Helix dies, I might (?) go that route and build a small pedal board.. really hard to commit because the technology is changing daily. Anyway I slice it, hauling amps is not ever going to be in my future again. I am curious what pedals you feel are core for your next board and did you sell your Helix?
I also want to build a small board with amp-in-a-box tech, mostly for my duo gigs. I agree though, the tech changes so fast sometimes it's hard to commit to something. I'll be posting a video on the pedalboard I have built to replace the Helix, but long story short - Input and output buffer - Compressor - Pitch mod stuff (TC quintessence and EHX Pitchfork) - Two stage OD setup - Chorus and Phaser so I can get a leslie sound - Delay, verb, and trem. I have some other stuff but that's the core.
My amazing wife found what was probably the very last one in the US for sale the week before Christmas in 2016, and put it under the tree for me. So I’ve been an amazed Helix user for many years now. It is hands down the best piece of gear I’ve ever used and I’ve not touched my pedalboard since. Each update has made it better and better, and every single one has been FREE. How ridiculous is that? Every time they update the firmware it’s like Christmas again as you get all these new features and sounds to test and incorporate into your rig. Can your pedalboard do snapshots, where you can alter the settings of all your pedals several times in the course of one song all without having to take your hands off your guitar? No, it can’t, only the Helix can. Can you control any aspect of any pedal on your board with your expression pedal? No, but you can with a Helix. If you use a large and complex pedalboard you know the issues that can create (mystery hum, capacitance buildup that can cause tone suck, pedal failure causing your whole rig to go silent until you find and fix the problem, etc) the Helix fixes or eliminates all these issues. In the rare event that you have a problem with your Helix, as a backup, you can easily deploy a laptop running Helix native with all your patches and sounds loaded and ready to go. That’s for a very casual gigging musician. If, like this gentleman, playing music is your main way of making a living, then investing in a backup Helix rig is a VERY LOW COST way of making sure that your rig doesn’t cause a problem during a gig. Compare the cost of a used Helix with the cost of a backup amp and pedalboard. It’s not even close. And if you think you can hear a difference in your tone in a live setting, you’re lying to yourself. One day (maybe soon) they will announce a replacement for the Helix, but until that day there’s nothing better for a gigging guitarist than owning and playing a Helix.
I’ve had the exact same problem with my helix switches. Especially the tap tempo. It’s been like that since the very first pod floorboard. I love my line 6 gear. But the switches have never been good.
I am also at that point where I am wanting a solution that streamlines my guitar rig for gigging - but I find that with these modelers, MultiFX boards, etc. that there's way too much time spent on programming the unit, only to find myself unhappy with the resulting tones. Maybe I'm just too old school, but the amp & pedals route just works better for me. I just need something that is very portable and is quick and easy to set up.
i don't gig anymore but i used the line6 floorpod. we needed to achieve a very small footprint for many gigs and our variety of music really required something like a floor pod. But... one gig something broke on my floor pod at a very important gig. because i was the only guitar player it shut down the gig right there since we were all direct and i didn't run an amp. it ment buying and extra one and making sure it was programmed identical to the main one they are affordable so no big deal but the helix....holy crap 3200 for 2 just so i have a backup. Nothing i will be doing unless i win the lotto.
Yes, that's not something I would do either. I actually ended up keeping my Helix but only using it on rare occasions, which usually end up being duo gigs. It's good for that, but not the heavy weekly gigging I was doing.
I got a helix floor to replace my pedals, but then I got too much option paralysis. When I create. I was picking a random distortion, a random delay ect. Picked an amp. Then created with what I got. Tried that on helix but I was never able to complete something. I still have the helix floor, but thinking about selling it cos I just don’t use it.
I used to use a Boss GT-6 for some gigs years ago and it wasn't uncommon to come back from a break and find all my presets out of wack. I think that was the end of the multi-effects on stage era for me lol. Great tools though for practice and recording though ( I still use my Headrush), but I learned to keep the gigging gear down to a bare minimum.
I’ve been up and down and around and around all pedal mojos and my feel is it’s just overkill and what and how you play it is much more relevant. - I can get buy with a nice AMP - a tight distortion, fat distortion, booster pedal, Wah Wah and Digital Delay. Maybe the Amp Vibrato and 1 easy to use reverb pedal. That can give so many options of sound.
Tip- if you have knobs on pretty much any piece of gear- including a modeler- that turn to easily- there's a relatively easy fix. Take the knob off, take a rubber band and wrap it around the post- keep wrapping it until it's tight and push it down as far as it will go- put the knob back on. The rubber will create a back pressure on the knob that holds it in place.
A neater way to go about it is to find a piece of rubber thick enough you can cut circles out of it the same size or slightly larger than the knob, punch out a center hole for the post- and slide the rubber washer you just made over the post, put the knob back on. Leather also works- that's what I use because I work leather, I have it around, and I have punches to punch out a perfect circle the size I want. Plus, leather comes in varying thicknesses that coincide with the ounce or weight of the leather- I use 6-7 ounce for making these washers, it's the perfect thickness. Anything that you can get around that post that will push back up on the knob and hold it in place will work.
This is a really awesome tip. Not something I had considered. I'm going to keep this in mind for the future. Thanks for the insight!
@@shelbyguitarmusic you can get rubber o rings from pretty much any hardware store or auto parts store but the rubber band trick is a good idea
Also if your parameters get out of whack as long as you didn’t save it just go to a different preset and then back to the original preset before something got changed
Why not go wireless?
Can't you just going to settings and shut the knob off on the Helix I think you can do that the volume knob.
13:43 Nah, that's not sub-par at all. What you're seeing there is "staking" (using an RTV, silicone, or similar material) to prevent connectors and ribbon cables from coming loose, and also to strain-relieve those parts against continued vibration/impact. It may not look pretty, but the fact they did it at all makes it above-par compared to most consumer electronics.
That's great to know! Thanks for the input.
Indeed. The cat lady doth protest too much...
If you ever decide to try the modeling route again and you gig that heavily you might consider a rack version of your modeler with a separate foot controller (plus a backup foot controller). I don't think the model you had was targeted for someone who gigs as much as you do. There is the additional cost, but it will definitely be a more resilient configuration.
Hadn't really considered this. I'll look into it! Thanks.
"I'm always at ninety-five percent of the tone I'm looking for." This is exactly why I finally moved away from my own multi-effects pedal back to a pedal board in the last couple of months. I appreciate all of your other reasons, but, in the end, it's that one particular reason that finally got to me.
Interesting video. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Yeah, after having made this video and thought about it some more, this is really the big reason that I'm going back to pedals. Thanks for the comment!
I felt like this a lot with my Helix floor. I got an FM9 and I'm 100% there now. I'm no longer fighting the unit to get great tone.
Maybe it was 96%, but you still moved away. Oh no, is that a mistake???
@@hartejdhiman4438 LOL! Did I miscalculate?! What was I thinking?!
By the way, I've been using all analog pedals (other than delay and reverb) for about a year-and-a-half now and I have reached the 100% satisfied mark.
Went through the same journey. Pedals -> Helix Lt -> Pedals. Ended up with an hx stomp in combination with my favorite pedals and it’s perfect!
Sold all my pedals to buy one. Never looked back. Love my Helix
Nice! I'm glad it works well for you.
Me too. 6 years later I never want another amp again.
Your playing is beautiful, I’m going to look around for more of it. I have a first new helix floor coming. Just more or less for home use and occasional Church here in there.
@@BobBerardjr772 Thank you so much! The Helix is the perfect tool for church playing. I have used it in that context and it excels.
I bought a Helix 7 years ago - it was only after a year or so that I began selling off my amps and pedals. Had to make sure it was worthy first. It is.
Solid video. Like many (most?) new guitarists, my Helix journey started off on the HX Stomp four years ago. I was new to the world of pedals, quite overwhelmed by the options. The HX Stomp seemed like a reasonable entry point to get pretty much every pedal sound imaginable, get to know the different effects (and their relevance to my sound), and to learn about signal paths. I graduated to the full-on Helix floor model and learning from patches created by others. It's was a great education in how to dial in my sound. Then, about six months ago, I borrowed a buddy's Strymon Timeline for a weekend. Like you said, the Helix gets you 95% of the way there. But there's something magical in that extra 5%. Have auditioned about 60 pedals since then, and purchased about 12 of them. So my Helix-only era is ending, and I'm starting a new journey, learning the intricacies of building out a pedalboard.
A good friend observed that, in my case, the Helix condensed about ten years of pedal education and experimentation into three. It helped me gain clarity about what effects matter most to me and my sound without purchasing hundreds of pedals. If anything, the Helix made me actually care about having my own, unique sound brand. It helped me develop my ear for breaking down sounds I hear in my ear and in my head into their possible component effects (gain/drive, reverb, time-based, modulation, etc.), so that I could recreate them on the Helix, and then tweak to my own tastes. HX Edit is unmatched in how easy it is to swap out effects, reorder them, etc.. You can quickly experiment to hone in on a particular sound you're trying to achieve in minutes. Doing the same thing with physical pedals would literally take hours.
I don't see myself getting rid of the Helix in the foreseeable future. Rather, a hybrid approach (Helix + pedals) seems to make the most sense for me.
I'm a total gearhead and I like to tweak knobs and try new stuff.
Multifx and modellers are great tools but IME they're not for everyone.
I played with analog pedals and digital stuff...and sometimes I faced the "option paralysis" when I started to surf among endless FX choices. When this happens I simply unplug ally pedals and keep them in a closet for a week to force myself to play more and try to get a good tone just with my playing.
I like your strategy. Similarly, on a recent gig, I refrained from using any drive pedals for the entire gig, opting to just push my amp for overdrive. I did it to test if I could function without drive pedals. I think it went well!
Thanks for commenting.
Great perspective, you just gained a new subscriber! I'm a prospective buyer for a HX Stomp for bass, and the part that got me was the "options paralysis". As a keyboard player and composer I'm no stranger to this paradox. I'll go to software synths for simplicity and wide choices, only to end up wasting precious creative energy going through the millions of available instruments and presets without ever being able to make up my mind. Then I'll run out and get a traditional synth with knobs and my creativity explodes again, only to be frustrated later with the less flexible options for recording! Sheesh!
About your dependence on a single piece of gear for your gigs, I totally get that. Maybe carrying a Stomp as a redundant unit in case of failure might do the trick.
Thanks for the great vid.
A great thing about the stomp is you only get 9 blocks and you only have 3 switches... I don't suffer from option paralysis personally, but it think having a clear idea of what you want first, and just treating it like a physical rig helps. Simple patches are almost always the best.
I front a trio playing Rock, Grunge, and post Grunge type music and the snap shot function is indispensable for me as well as the ability to sound like any players tone . I couldnt achieve that with my pedal board which was over 3" wide while also using a VL-2 for my vox . I originally ran it 4 cable to a Marshall then went to QSC K10.2's , now a power cab 112 plus on stage and send from Helix to front of house and I really like that setup . The 3.50 update really took it to another level . My pedal board was always drama , the Helix , easy peasy for me .
I went direct in 2007 with a Line-6 Pod XT Live. Plugged into two Fender Champion clean channels. I took the time to work the sounds comparing them to some of my favorite players and tones. I received tons of compliments on my sounds from other players who saw us live thinking it was the Fenders. They were shocked to learn it was the POD... In 2012 I upgraded to an Axe FX MKII directly into our PA and used a Yamaha monitor for my stage volume. I love the convenience and repeatability of sounds from gig to gig. I'm considering a Helix for my next project. Newer tech, more convenience.
Interesting video. I think it doesn't matter if you're using modelers or pedals... it's always good to have a plan in case your rig suffers a catastrophic failure. I have an HX stomp ready to go in case the Helix dies, but that's because I'm usually doing direct to PA gigs. If I were using an amp, I'd probably keep a spare overdrive pedal with me, so if everything I had failed I could just use that with the amp and get through the gig. But those are just examples. It's just a good policy to create a strategy for such an event. When I used to use rental amps on tour, we had a massive power spike on my side of the stage and took out 3 amps. They only had one extra amp, so the other guitar player used that and I happened to have a Line 6 pocket pod in my backpack that used to practice with. We plugged that into a DI and it saved the gig!
Hey Richie, love your vids and playing. That's some great insight. I think after reading lots of comments like this one, I'll be preparing a spare HX Stomp board in case of catastrophic failure.
Get yourself some "Superzilla". The stuff is AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Being a Line6 user since 2009 (still have the old POD X3 Live) I find this feedback from a gigging musician very important. Actually, I faced the same problem with the switches and had to open the unit to fix it by myself. Helix is definitely not perfect, but it opens a lot of doors for people who like to experiment with different sounds. Just like you, I wouldn't have learned what I know about effects if I hadn't had the Line6. And yes, the optimal scenario is to have the best of both worlds, an analog pedal board with a HX Stomp next to it. Thank you for your honest feedback.
The liability you mentioned for a single piece of gear was the main point, I agree! I use modeling boards consistently (currently Mooer GE300) because toting pedal boards and amps is a thing of the past in my opinion. Audiences will not hear the difference, unless maybe playing to audience of experienced blues artists.
Even then, they're listening more with their eyes than actually hearing a difference in tone. Digital has closed the gap so much between pedals and amps that it's pretty much impossible to accurately distinguish a digital modelor from the real deal.
@@isaacvelasco6498 Especially if the people in the audience are older guitar players as they can't hear much anymore anyway.
Appreciate all your thoughts on this. I can't argue with the aesthetic vibe of having a pedalboard that you curated. But one thing I like about the Helix vs my pedalboard is this: Even with a high quality Strymon power supply and high quality patch cables, I get considerably more noise/artifacts/quirks of various types with my pedalboard than with the Helix. E.g., interactions between certain drive pedals depending on placement, clock noise from certain analog flanger and phaser pedals, who knows what from the multiple AD/DA conversions as the signal passes in and out of various digital pedals. It's definitely more to manage and troubleshoot. In the end I like having both, but I mainly rely on the Helix for recording because of its much cleaner signal path. But live I think I'd prefer the simplicity of a what you see is what you get pedalboard in front of me.
Great point. Managing noise with a pedalboard is its own beast, and one that I had forgotten about. The Helix has some nice built in noise gate parameters. So far, I haven't bumped into any noise/artifacting issues with my new board, but we'll see as I add more. Thanks for the comment.
I appreciate your take! To paraphrase your point, the quest for the elusive 5% ultimately comes down to our needs and subjectivity on the matter. I've always used multi-effects gutar pedals because of their price and on-stage flexibility, so perhaps I've never experienced the 5% you're specifically referring to with traditional guitar pedals. I happen to use the Helix LT for most everything on-stage, and in the studio, because of the vast array of sonic possibilities, and because of its capabilities as an interface and multi-effects processor. I got into live looping a year ago and already I have an entire pedalboard just dedicated to my looping: Aeros loop station; BeatBuddy drum pedal; Midi Maestro midi controller; and Boss VE-500 for vocal effects. Live looping rigs (and the required toe-tapping) can get ridiculously huge in a hurry, turning what should be a musical performance into what looks like a monkey in an on-stage science experiment. Helix snapshots handle my guitar tone and effects to where I don't have to fiddle with them in real time. And thankfully, I get around most of the toe tapping by using bluetooth midi through the OnSong app to control preset and tempo changes for each song on both the Helix and the BeatBuddy. It mitigates button mishaps in real time while reducing button wear and tear. I make performance changes on the fly with the Midi Maestro. Of course, my greatest fear is that my Helix totally craps one day, because owning a backup is certainly cost-prohibitive. Great video!
Bluetooth MIDI sounds amazing. Haven't heard of the OnSong app. Gonna check it out. Thanks!
This was a great video ,very truthful and hit on some important points, I don’t think any of these modelers , Helix , Fractal FM 9 Quad Cortex , Fender Mustang Pro can really hold up to heavy gigging , but I think they have their place , and I don’t think pedals / pedalboards will ever go out of style , There’s just something nerdy cool about pedals and finding your own sound, it’s very personal,and although I think modelers have come a long way,I still find the overdrives a little fizzy like you mentioned their 95% there, but I can hear the 5% difference , anyway I love Helix but i also have always had a minimalistic pedalboard 5 pedals at the moment, it’s all I need , so anyway thanks again for a wonderful review , and subscribed ! 👍
Sounds like we are on the same page! Thank you for the nice comment. I don't upload very often because I am a student but I have a few video ideas brewing, once I find the time.
Great commentary. I went down a similar path. I find pedals and amp to be a much more satisfying playing experience, which usually translates to better playing because I'm more comfortable and having more fun. I now have an HX stomp at the end of my pedalboard now, just for any one-off FX I might want, reverbs, harmonic trem, chorus or whatever. This goes into the front end of a great amp.
Totally agree. Good to hear that the HX stomp works well as a catch-all for effects. Definitely leaning towards throwing it on my next board.
@@shelbyguitarmusic HX edit is great for recording too if you haven't tried
@@jaltsch1 Love HX edit. Just gotta figure out how to use it without the Helix lol.
I meant to type HX Native, not Edit haha!HX Native works great as a plugin.
@@jaltsch1 Oh gotcha. I'll have to give it a shot!
I play bass, and so far, what's worked well for me is a sort of compromise between both approaches - I use a multi FX, but an ANALOG multi (Tech 21 Bass Fly Rig v2). I pair it on a pedalboard with a Tech 21 YYZ pedal (for hi gain sounds), and if I ever need more, the Fly Rig's built in FX loop allows me to add. I get the tone and simplicity of analog, with much of the same versatility often attributed to digital multi FX. Granted, a unit like a Helix has way more features than a Fly Rig, but I don't need too much to begin with (and most players don't, if they're honest with themselves).
Same with me Andy. The Tech21 FlyRigs are awsome. I used to play the Bass Fly Rig V1 for some years, but have changed to the SH-1 (Steve Harris) unit. This pedal gives me all the sounds I like (I am much into classic rock). The only other unit I would be interested in is one of the two Origin Pedals for bass. One simulates a Fender Amp and the other an Ampeg SVT. But I have never played any of these myself. No matter what I do, I would always bring a Bass Fly Rig as a back up as it has everything you need in one small unit including a Tuner.
I owned a Helix and believe it or not received waaay more compliments on the tones of my Headrush. Having said that, I now own an ISP Theta Pro dsp and it DESTROYS every other unit. Plus I don’t play Worship anymore which requires a ton of delay options. I’m 54 and come from an era where you plugged straight into an amp and used your volume control. My most simple rig had delay, boost, compressor and wah
Had mine for 6 years now and still love it. I use it 4CM with my custom Anderson 20/45 amp and it replaced a $3000 pedalboard. 4CM is the only way to go live. And the newest 3.70 update sounds as good as anything ever released.
Sure accidents happen; gear takes a beating; but some musicians don't take good care of their gear, some even abuse their gear. No wonder it doesn't last.
I had a Helix LT for years, sold it and got the HX-Effects using it with small combo amps in 4CM (Marshall Origin 50C, Line 6 Catalyst 100; just did the CX firmware upgrade), and my Mesa JP-2C rig. I recently got another Helix, this time the Floor. I also use Helix Native.
Helix may be getting old, but it sounds good, and works well for me; I've learned how to use it, what works for me, etc. over time; it's second nature. In a live setting, recording, in a mix, practicing alone, etc., I can get what I need; and if I need something, it's usually in there.
I still have my 100W tube amps, full and half stacks, I use and enjoy at home, nothing like that experience, but just not practical for me.
If I was in a top touring band, with a tech and road crew, that would be a different story....I'd probably have two Engl Artist Edition 100 E651 full stacks (I have a half stack now)...and use my HX-Effects or Helix Floor for effects.
I've been using Helix as my entire rig for studio,. Live, and everything that isn't studio or live...like, what()?() Dead?😂😂
I never used the factory sounds. I never gave shit one if the Plexi model sounds just like the real amp. All I wanted from the unit was to build my own sound & tone, and it surely gave me that. The way I made it work for me was to use the amp/cab/mic/pedal/and whatever models I found to give me the tone I heard in my head.
It took awhile. It did. I almost thought that Helix was restricting me like it did for you, until I had a massive epiphany that should have seemed obvious but was not. I have since figured out why that was so.
The epiphany was this: _I stopped trying to get 'my tone' by having totally different sounds and tones on every single snapshot and all 8 snapshots on each bank!_ The reason this was so easy to fall into is simple; literally every video tutorial about Helix showed people doing this. I quit watching those videos, and adopted the same philosophy for Helix that I'd use if I bought an Engl Ironball or a EVH 5150, or good old fashioned Plexi, which is dial that damn amp in FIRST until it's giving up tones that are right in my lane as far as making it give me MY tone.
Then, once I have the amp set to where it is doing this, I go in and add pedals and rack effects or whatever.
Once I have that dialed in and it's giving me everything I want, how I want it, WHEN I want it, it's time for the last step.
Write down all my amp knob/pedal knob/other control settings. Save the notebook after screen shotting it into my computer.
That is it. I'm done. Take my monster tone out live & slay. In the studio. Slay.
I was amazed at how well Helix worked for me when I just treated it like any other more traditional amp/pedal/cab/mic system, because, see, that is what it _is_ now. The only thing I might add is a stereo FrFr powercab set up so I can have lots of thumpy air moving onstage instead of just coming through monitors.
Damn thing works great. I have 3 banks right next to each other on the Empty Preset #8. Each one is just the first one I did that I could say THERE IT IS! MY TONE! copied to the next empty space so that I can do things like add a bunch of crazy effects for whatever weird shit I'm trying in some song. But the core tones, the _signature sound,_ that is exactly and always the same. Clean tone. Crunch/push. Thick heavy rhythm. Ripping lead solo tone. Add pedals as needed to season the mix to taste, and play the thing instead of trying to make my 'unique' tone by throwing in every amp and pedal in the unit on each snapshot and winding up with schizophrenic tone issues. Seems to work.
I had have a Helix Floor and played with L2 wedges. I'm really understanding the function and all that stuff around, the routing, midi and so on. I've got never a really satisfying sound near to my miced amp sound in my head. For the knob things and the danger of fluid issues on a gig, I've changed to the rack version with the foot controller and gave the Helix a new chance. I've used the Helix only for effects and as switcher in my rack with rack preamps and a stereo power amp. After a while I've changed only to rack preamps plus power amps and the UAD Stomp for direct to the FOH. My thoughts about the Helix: A very good idea, some good stuff inside but for me not really practicable or not necessary... I'm back to my old stuff.
Sounds like we are in very similar camps!
I understand exactly what you’re talking about. I keep mine for the practicality mostly. My biggest complaint is about the footswitches, I have mine for 5 years now and I had several switches replaced twice, and I need to have done it again. I spoke with Line 6 over the phone and they are aware of the problem, but nothing has changed….I’ll keep my for now, but my eyes and ears are open for something more reliable.
Since posting this video, I've had many people describe similar issues with the switches. Line 6 needs to do better. There is no excuse at $1700.
This is interesting as my experience has been the opposite. I have a pedalboard with a switcher that was my main gigging rig for about 5 years. After a spilt beer incident my pedal board exhibited a significant volume increase after about 1.5 hours use. Impossible to trace the problem due to the time lag. This forced me to go down the digital route and I decided on a rack plus MIDI controller rather than a floor modeller to avoid further beer incidents. Honestly I am so happy I did. I much prefer the sounds I am getting with my Axe FX and due to the advanced parameters I can really dial in what I hear in my head. Best of luck with your future gigging.
Rack + floor controller is a great option!
If something drops on the Helix and turns a knob, all you need to do is change the preset and back again, the accidental change is gone. On the contrary, the traditional pedalboard is a nightmare for accidental changes. Even if you write down all your settings, or even take pictures, it seems like you never can get back to where you were
While it's true that switching between presets is fairly quick and easy, even having to do that unexpectedly can be enough to get me frustrated on stage, especially if it happens during a crucial part of a song. Every second counts, especially on wedding gigs, which comprise the majority of my work. A few seconds during a ceremony procession, or first dance, or father daughter dance, or a final song are extremely important. A club gig is a different story of course, but even then, losing my signal during a solo, or at any time, is not really acceptable. I'm often far from my pedal board because I like to move around the stage. That adds time to a preset switch.
Pieces of tape on physical pedals make it readily apparent when a knob has been moved. Pedal knobs are also less sensitive than the Helix knobs, in my experience.
Man I think you have a great video and a huge part of why I am going back to amps for a while
Thanks for watching! We will be on this journey together.
I agree with your assessment for the most part - other than the subjective part of the tones not being 100% what you want. And the only reason I disagree is because I have never used a real pedal board or have any reference to compare to -- so for me, its 100% what I am looking for -- granted, it took years for me to get my tones correct (I am in a rock/grunge cover band, so have to cover a lot of ground -- i don't have a signature tone I use, but several to cover then many artists we cover). but I agree with you 1000% on it being so easy to use, so versatile, and allowed me as a new guitarist to explore any and all types of pedals out there -- and i would say, with the most recent 3.5 update, the new amps and especially the cabs sound amazing -- it was a game change for me as far as sounds - I stopped using all the IRs i had downlead and now use stock cabs for everything. I also don't use as effects loop -- i use 100% everything in the helix..... i want the convenience, it outweighs most everything for me. As far as reliability -- I once had the foot pedal start cutting my signal - I was using it to swell in volume and just cut the whole thing to silence-- and did it a few times during the this one particular gig -- i rebooted and seemed to fix it but scared the piss out of me. So I actually bit the bullet and bought a second one -- both are LT models, so cheaper but still a lot of money -- I actually back up and restore both to match and take the other one as back up to gigs. I realize not everyone has that luxury, but I really don't feel like getting into building a pedalboard right now -- maybe a year or two down the road that will be an adventure i take on -- i want to do it but just no time right now, plus I have 3000 invested in the two Helix ( or should I say Heli) that I am going to ride this out for a while -- like I said, the 3.5 upgrade was a HUGE impact on the sound -- things sound amazing. The other guitarist in my band has a traditional pedal board with a Friedman amp and cab, and we often compare tones, and live -- really hard to distinguish through the PA (you can obviously tell the difference in the room close to his cab). I go direct to PA and have a Mission FRFR for some stage monitoring. Anyway = good luck with your journey and thanks for sharing.
Thanks for posting this. Very timely. I've been running the older HD500X for a long time; you were able to very effectively articulate many of the reasons why I am also moving back to a more traditional pedalboard. I've enjoyed the versatility and have spent (seemingly) a million years noodling through the many high-quality models available. However, at the end of the day, I always ended up back where I started - the same 8-10 models. Good luck with the transition, and thanks again for the video.
Thanks Brian! Good luck on your tone journey.
I've never seen you on youtube. i don't have a helix but i have had every other digital pedalboard. You've articulated much better than I could as to why I went back to amps and pedals. I've subscribed to your channel now and i'm looking forward to your other revelations.
Hey thanks so much. Really nice comment. I'm glad I could share some thoughts you could relate to. Cheers.
I understand option paralysis especially if if are a new guy, however if you're an old guy like me and have used lot of gear in real life, then the Helix is a God send, because you can recreate setups without taking up a lot of real estate. I can go through my mind and imagine ideal setups based on experience and get pretty dang close. I've gone full FRFR mode because hauling around amps, loadboxes, switchers, lots of cable and all that made little sense if I ended the same place, and it works. The only thing missing is a little tube flavor, but I may fix that later (tube combos with FRFR speakers). Stay on the tone path 😀
My Helix went down after 5 years of use in my home studio. It left my home about a half a dozen times during that five years. The "authorized" repair facility in my area kept my unit for 3 weeks and then called and said there was nothing wrong with it. When I got home and plugged it in it still didn't work. Called this place and talked to the tech who worked on it who said: "We're really busy here and I really don't want to deal with Line 6 or having to order parts from them. I then issued myself a repair ticket from the Line 6 website and described my issue. After 3 days I got a form letter reply stating that I could go to the same authorized dealer I had just dealt wither send it to them for repair. I finally found a competent repair person to fix it (not affiliated with line 6) and now I have the unit up for sale. Done with line 6.
What a nightmare.
Good luck going fwd, hope you get to 100% with your new rack. Despite my few issues with it, I'm still all in and even got a 2nd Helix as a backup in case my main one flakes out. Switches wearing out have been my only big issue and I'm fortunate to have a guy fairly close to repair things for me. One of the things I love about it that I didn't hear you mention is being able to simultaneously alter or turn on or off multiple effects or parameters with one footswitch (snapshots) or an expression pedal. The other thing I love is how many updates there have been since I've own them, over 10 years now. Again, hope you can find your happy place with the new board. Cheers.
Hey thanks so much! Yeah, I should have mentioned snapshots and multi-effect switching. Good luck on the tone journey!
I've done the all-in-one solutions in the past. Roland VG8, POD, PODXT, Eleven Rack, and none of them could give me the satisfaction I was looking for. So I went back to pedals. I have been through my share of them looking for "my sound" and in that time not a single pedal has ever failed or broke but even if one did it wouldn't cripple my ability to play and replacing one is much cheaper than replacing the all-in-one. When I'm not using one of my amps I use the Strymon Iridium or my new Tonex for my amp sound. One of the things I really didn't like about being trapped in an all-in-one solution was that all the virtual pedals are voiced by one company. With my pedals I have several different sonic signatures and have mixed and matched them to what I consider my perfect pedalboard.
After using a Boss ME50 multi pedal for many years and only having to replace the input jack when the original one became loose and noisy being soldered directly into the circuit board, I replaced it, there was room to mount a new one to the metal frame instead, eliminating the problem. But recently I spent a bunch of time and money putting together a pedal board which sounded great but was much bigger and more involved to set up since I was using the effects loop for some pedals as well as running stereo to two different amps. Well, then at a jam I didn't want to set that all up so I just bought a small amp and the multi pedal and it was so easy and sounded so good that I've been using it again since.
Sold my Helix last month. I used it for teaching and just used one Plexi-Sound. I wish they'd made units with just basic features but with awesome sound.
Try the L.A. Lady pedal. It is a pretty good Plexi emulator with good EQ capability and lots more fuzz and OD options. You can use 2 effects at once in either parallel or series signal paths. Stereo in and out.
Thank you - searching for your OWN SOUND makes PERFECT sense. This kind of artistry I believe is really missing today. Thank you for sharing!
Hey thanks so much!
If you’d still like to use Helix at home for recording then Native is $99 if you own an HX Stomp if decide to put one on your pedalboard
Started with pedals, went to multis, went to rack units, back to multis and pedals and now back to pedals. What a (expensive) ride.
I've skipped the rack gear train so far though I did have a big Steve Lukather kick last year and came pretty close to caving lol.
@@shelbyguitarmusic had quite a few big name racks (tc, yamaha, eventide), but as good as they might be (and they are), I couldn't justify keeping them for some algos. In any case, got tired of rack and multis with a billion things I simply don't care about. Don't need 30 phasers or Reverbs. Just the one I fancy the most. Pedals are also great for tweeking fast.
So glad I never got on the bandwagon. If your gear is in the shop, it's plan b onstage tonite.
Great comments, well done. I appreciate the way you presented a well-balanced and objective viewpoint. As a Helix user for three months, performing gigs four days a week, I understand and share your concern about the potential failure of a single integrated effects unit. However, I have yet to encounter any issues thus far. Personally, I've decided to keep my original #1 pedalboard (solo acoustic) as a backup. I also find using individual pedals more enjoyable and allows for a more carefully selected range of specific tones. Like you, the form factor and convenience compel me to run the Helix, so I continue to rely on it. Given that I perform covers spanning various genres, including current Top-40 hits, Rock, Pop Rock, Country, Motown, EDM, Contemporary instrumentals, Ambient, and Classic favorites, it would be challenging to cover such a diverse repertoire in venues ranging from fine dining and corporate events to more casual Tex-Mex restaurants solely with a pedalboard. Hence, until my Helix fails, I'll remain a dedicated user, keeping a small analog pedalboard as a backup, much like I always bring two guitars. Getting 95% of the tone I desire from the Helix is good enough for me, and certainly good enough for a casual listener.
Hey great comment, and great points. I'm glad you've had a good experience with the Helix. 95% is definitely enough for the casual listener, and if it's enough for you, then keep on keepin' on brother.
Really enjoyed this video. I am old now, so have seen the evolution. Amazing times to be a guitar player. I still have a bunch of tube amps, but also a few cheapo digital boxes of magic. Never settle for less than what you hear in your head :)
I think this is why I only ever bought the stomp instead of a full blown Helix. It’s great but a lot of reliance on a single bit of hardware.
I also like variation, I find it amazing that some people can’t comprehend how some companies just do some things better, I much prefer to pick and choose my own tastes. The Helix products are great but believing they’re the best at everything isn’t correct (in my opinion)
I use my Helix for small venues when I need a small footprint. I would always go full analog on the bigger shows. Considering trying out the Tonex options as well.
Tonex is freakin awesome. You can use just the amp captures (turning the cab sims off) into the FX return of a tube amp and basically have a ton of amps at your disposal. It even takes overdrives just like a tube amp does too!
Thanks for your honest observations.
You bet!
Interesting thoughts and perspective in this video!
A selling point on modeling for me has been reliability. I've gigged and toured boutique amp+pedalboard setups and experienced just about every failure you can imagine happen on gigs - amp tubes and reverb tanks, pedal switches, patch cables etc all dying and leaving me silent and fumbling to locate the problem. The more failure points and complexity, the more opportunities for something to wrong and the more difficult it'll be to troubleshoot on the fly (or replace, if need be).
I haven't had any issues with my HX Stomp at all so far. And I like that I can store a backup on my computer and if anything goes wrong, get my Stomp fixed/replaced under warranty or drive to practically any guitar store to buy a new one and load my backup file onto it. And frankly with the money I've saved selling off gear, I could probably afford to have a second HX Stomp as a backup.
I am looking forward to the pedalboard video. Best wishes on a sell and a build.
Thank you! The pedalboard is finished and I have some good live footage of using it. Just need to compile the clips and record myself talking about it.
Appreciated your thoughtful vid. I have a Helix and have a love / hate relationship with it. If I were doing strictly studio recording it would probably be much more of a loving relationship relationship. For live playing I have had issues with reliability due primarily to summer day gigs and heat. Also really struggle to see the screen and button selections in daylight despite trying to keep it in the shade and or use a shade. There have been some really supportive folks in the forums with some good suggestions, but ultimately still problematic even with a Helix that was just a few months old.
Performed almost weekly for over 20 years with amps, pedals, earlier versions of modelers, both with and without power amps / cabs. During all that combined time, never had as many struggles as I did in one summer with my Helix, unfortunately.
It's a fantastic unit and incredibly convenient. Happy for those who are completely satisfied with it. But at the end of the day, regardless of any reasons, most guitarists have to feel good about what their gear is delivering to them in their particular playing environment overall to really find fulfillment, regardless of anyone else's experiences and opinions. Best of luck finding what really does that for you!
Thank you! Yeah, it's such a great studio tool, I just don't think it's quite meant for the rigors of intense gigging at a "blue collar" level. I don't play a lot of outdoor festivals, but for the few gigs I've had in bright sunlight have been a bit of a pain. And yes I agree, I have to feel good with my gear or I can't get into the zone properly.
I have an hx stomp on my pedal board. The models are great when at home in garage band. Live i use it for compression, eq, delay, modulation, buffer and for lead boost into back line or bring my own maz 18. Midi capabilities are great as well; used to use a DSL 40CR live and using midi to boost amp volume was fantastic. I use pedals for drives, wah, fuzz, but use the hx OD in it for lead boost which works well. I mean with one stereo delay effect you can have dual delays for example. Bang for buck is incredible. I do have a controller and two additional buttons for it, so the stomp on it's one isn't enough in my opinion. But the foot print is so small for what is packed inside. I never liked the modeled amps through wedges, always need a real amp behind me for that feel. Good luck with your change. You'll be happy. Oh, and my usb jack died on my stomp and had to send that across country to get fixed by yamaha, literally took 6 months. Had to buy another one cause we had shows at the time. Now I have two - ha! Have one to sell...wink wink. jk.
I did something similar with an Fractal Fm3. I had an huge pedalboard (that had an hx stomp also) that I used with a tube amp. One day it an opportunity arrived to buy a Fractal, had a lot of digital units stuff but never a Fractal (and was always curious). Result? I sold everything, amp pedals and for almost the past year I’ve been playing only with the Fm3. It’s just so more convenient, plus I’m not constantly searching for my next analog pedal. It’s cheaper and you get great sounds.
Maybe I'll try out the Fractal!
@@shelbyguitarmusic I highly recommend the Fractal! My introduction to the FAS ecosystem was the FM3. After trying Helix and Boss modeling and being underwhelmed FAS resolved all of that. FAS Amp models sound and feel the most realistic compared to the real-world counterparts I've played. They respond to volume roll off and dynamics like a real Tube Amp does. Boss was the second closest to this and Helix was a VERY distant 3rd. All the FAS floor units are built like a tank. I've heard great things about their support team when a device has issues, but I've not yet needed it myself.
Eventually, my number came up for the FM9 Turbo and I purchased it immediately and received it in the beginning of January. The FM3 has been great but one area it fell short was CPU limit with presets that have more ambient scenes. I could get it to work but with compromises I wasn't happy with. The FM9 has resolved all my desire to own Amps and Pedals (I still have them, but they sit collecting dust). No need to worry about mic setup on a physical Amp. No worrying about taping all my pedal knobs. No fussing with MIDI (I don't hate it as I'm also a software engineer, but FAS Presets and Scenes are just so much better!). Whether I'm at home or in a live setting everything sounds just how I dialed it in.
I can plug it into FOH, FRFR speakers, or bypass the Cabinet modeling and go into a Solid-State Power Amp and a physical Cabinet. All variations sound absolutely killer!
I think if you got on the list for the FM9 Turbo and bought it in about a month's time when your position in the waitlist is reached you will not be disappointed.
I get it completely. But still at this time convenience wins for me. Good video!
Super helpful review. Thanks!
You have to admit, it’s a hell of a lot of fun buying all those separate pedals! Looking for that Golden sound….”The Halo”!
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Good video man, you’ve posted some good balanced arguments here. If money grew on trees right ? I went this route and I’d say, you could resolve all these switch issues with a cheap pair of midi controllers. Having all your eggs in one basket is always a recipe for disaster. Modular may help you out yeah. But there are always single points of failure in a rig. Power supply above all.
I’d definitely recommend a stomp , and build around it with what you’ve learned, or find another backup entirely and learn to hot swap between your main and backup.
My floor sits pretty permanently at home, and the mini pedalboards take the hit outside , or the reverse 🔄. All your eggs in one basket is just asking for trouble.
Hey, thanks for the comment! Based on this one and many others, I think I'll be going the Stomp route with midi control. Seems like it solves most of my issues and retains the benefits I liked about the Helix.
I run into shortcomings as well, and have the same conversation in my mind. But going back to a board with all the powering issues, space limitations, expense, random hums and other patch cable frustrations, and of course tap tap tap of several boxes on the fly to go from rhythm to lead tones....not sure there is any going back. It's easy to forget why the Helix made sense in the first place. The software updates and patches available through third parties keep the tones evolving and improving. Did I mention it's light! I'm getting older. A collection of tube amps and effects are super heavy/expensive and need regular $ervicing. Plus most big amp companies are getting purchased by venture capitalists that cheapen up the guts to make an extra $5.
Great comment. All valid points!
Thanks for this nice breakdown and the candid thoughts. I own an X3 Live and have been debating on upgrading at some point. The X3 has the same issues with footswitches - on mine the tap tempo of course because it's used so often! I have to crouch down now and jam my thumb on the switch to get it to go to "tuner." It's unforgivable of L6 to not have addressed this in a piece of gear approaching 2 Grr, yikes. I agree it stinks to have to break out the soldering gear every couple of years. Ugh.
The footswitches are so frustrating! Can't believe you've had the same issue with your X3.
I went hybrid. Got an HX Stomp to go onto my board. I have a lot of amp-less gigs (worship mainly) and a few not ampless gigs (cover band stuff) so I still needed some core functions with amps/cabs/IR’s and if I needed a specific effect I could add it. If the effect didn’t sound great then I would look to pedals. I’ve had essentially the same configuration for years minus a few swaps. A few good OD pedals and comp in the front, dedicated tuner, delay/reverb in the loop. I have settings for playing with my amp, settings for going amp-less and anything in between.
Consider the HX Effects. I love it. I keep a drive pedal that it doesn't have anyways, so if it failed I'd be just fine. I don't need the amp sims in Helix so the effects are where it's at.
I am currently considering an HX effects or stomp for a smaller backup board.
I have a helix and gigged with it and I’m in the same boat. I’m rebuying traditional pedals, and I’m obsessed with my toneking amp. I won’t get rid of my helix though.
Helix user for almost 7 years, i can understand you in most of the points. I sold all my analog pedals after buying the HD500 and the bought the Helix. My Helix switches started to fail and I was never happy with the sounds and feel. Now I bought the Quad Cortex and I’m happy. The quad cortex is much better and you can capture amps and drive pedals.
I think for my next dive into modelers I will try something like the Quad Cortex.
Hey Shelby, I've also had the HELIX since 2019. Cool tool. Easy to set up and plug in. Options, options and more options. I've also considered going back to a regular pedalboard and amp. I'd like to see your new pedalboard and hear how that changes your sound.
Hey Tim! Thanks for commenting. My next video will be an in-depth explanation of how I use my new pedalboard on gigs. I'll be splicing in live footage demonstrating everything. Thanks!
Thanks for the honest review they're hard to come by
No problem. There are a lot of shills on this website. And a lot of people overlook blatant issues because of blind brand loyalty or because they want to feel justified in their purchase of a piece of gear.
interesting take. I feel like the helix really boosted my creative ability where I'm less limited with my selection of sounds. Whereas you said restriction forces creativity. Pretty cool to think that coming from that direction might open doors for me but maybe it was time for you to narrow your options. Just got a Helix loving it so far. The durability does concern me, and you've basically convinced me to get the extended warranty from where i purchased it.
The only real purpose of this video was to share why the Helix is not the right piece of gear for me, not that it's a bad piece of gear. Your experience with it and how it differs from mine is a cool part of playing music - we all gravitate towards different things according to how they make us feel and how they work for our unique situations. Thanks for the comment!
About relying on one piece of equipment, if your amp dies, I guess it is the same story, unless you have 2. I am actually building my board around hx stomp, but also considering just normal amp and then hx stomp is a multieffect unit. We will see.
Yes, that is a great point. Maybe I wouldn't have talked about the Helix in that way if I didn't already have reliability issues with it. My amp was handmade by a local builder who I completely trust. I have full confidence in my amp and haven't had a single issue with it for years, so I suppose I just don't think it will ever fail without warning.
Good luck with your build!
@@shelbyguitarmusic I haven't had single valve amp in my life, so I only theoretize, I'm planning to change it and start with some blackstar cv10, seems enough for me. Thanks for your reply. Rock on :)
@@shelbyguitarmusic I have had amp failures on gig several times, valves/tubes are fragile species, I once had to share an amp with the bass player, and another time plying through a monitor wedge, but I play jazz mostly so i survived.
@@ralphkoch9430 Maybe I am lucky! Have not had any serious issues with my tube amps yet. I had the tubes in my old hot rod deluxe go bad on me but I got through the gig. Just didn't have any headroom. I've been playing through a Pete Cage Corsa for about 5 years now and it has been flawless so far!
it's an amazingly sound. Especially the clear piano like bass tone. How do you accomplice this sound? I know you are skipping your Helix - but please pass your knowledge on. All the best!
Share your email and I'll send you the exact preset I used for the intro! :) Thanks for the comment.
@@shelbyguitarmusicHey man, I’d love to know as well if you’re alright sharing!
@@odumabekah4000 drive.google.com/drive/folders/1uFb7B9ph_rqZJLf_KO11_QOa8_hxmeO4
Let me know if this link doesn't work. It has a copy of the preset that I used in the intro to this video. All the best!
Love my processor…..not a Helix. Perfect for home with headphones. But live, I struggled a bit, it sounded good, just not quite like a real amp. Realized I really only need 3 tones. Clean, light crunch, heavy saturated crunch. Tried a friends HRDLX, Bogner Blue for the light plexiglass crunch, Bogner Red for the heavy, chorus, delay, and tuner pedal. Sounds great. We tend to make things more complicated than we need.
I suppose budget has a lot to do with it but if you can have both, a properly tweaked Helix and a properly setup pedalboard, you do it. I find a use for both and one can not replace the other. My regular board is dominated by Strymon pedals which is obviously top end but I would not feel the same about a pedalboard with less than stellar pedals and probably prefer a Helix by a wide margin.
I currently use a BOSS SY 1000 for all my gigs...to me, it's like a BOSS version of Helix...probably the only reason I moved from Line 6 to BOSS, is because I could equip any guitar with the 13 pin capability, as to access the guitar modeling within the BOSS SY 1000, to where line 6's approach was incorporating guitar modeling within a guitar itself, keeping amp modeling and guitar modeling in separate units. Guitarists love their ability to choose the guitar they want to play; the one that feels right to them/ inspires them...but if you didn't like the "feel" of one of the three choices of James Tyler Variax, but you still wanted to use their guitar modeling for on the fly alternate tunings in live situations , then too bad, just use the one you can tolerate the most...for me, if they would have made the JTV 59 in 2 models, one with 24 frets and a floyd, like a Lifeson Axcess but with 24 frets...and the other, leave just as it is for die hard LP folks,, I would have been a happy camper probably even now...but I know what you mean in regard to the Helix being "changing because of an accidental incident" prone...for me, I'd be in the middle of a song, and it would end up out of snap shot mode, and in some other mode, so I'd have to tap dance to get it back to where it needed to be before the song reached to the change I needed to make using snapshots...there's probably a way to make it so that no matter if you do a button mis-push, like pushing two buttons instead of just the one you intended to push, and now because you mis-pushed, you have now entered in the land of OZ, where everything is way different...there must be a way to lock it into, say, snapshot mode, as an example, so that no matter what you do, it won't change into somewhere else...now my what I called my HELIX Junior (LT) is gone, but I'm going to look it up online to see it that "lock it in the mode you want so you don't accidentally footswitch out of it..." so my issue was instead of pushing one button, I would accidentally push two at the same time, and it would go out of snapshot mode into something else, and now the Fred Astaire begins...and the crowd is yelling "Oh yeah! You go, Bobby!!!", when I'm really not trying to dance...hahahahahaha!!! No, I didn't easily find anything online...thanks for the video...
Agree brother. Great at Church and perhaps some inside venues but after dragging this thing around for about a year doing some outside festivals and other shows it became obvious this wasn't going to last. Get a decent pedal board, set it up and rock on......
Very thoughtful advice from a gigging musician on the Line 6 Helix. I am surprised to hear of the durability issues--gives me a LOT of pause. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you! If you scroll through my comments, you will find numerous other people citing the same durability issues. This is a serious problem and Line 6 should be held accountable. There is no excuse.
No lock setting to keep a sound? Hmm, that would suck, like fighting your computer when you have a project due. Great vid, very informative! I think the “modeling”, since synthetic, just doesn’t have to unknown, the ghost notes, the “magic notes, tones or sounds” that come out magically…I wonder?
Just remember to leave lot of room between pedals, once some pedal or patch cable is troublesome or just break, you will be kneeling on your pedal board with spare patch cable to try to find the reason, and it is hard 😀
Wow, can't agree with you more. One warranty claim was the expression pedal started rockin much too loose. Second warranty claim was 3 of my lower button also had multi tap issues. As far as live, after 3 years I went back to an amp because it just didn't feel like home. I think the amp sims didn't work for me. Too many PA guys told me time and time that my sound is thin compared to the other side of stage 2nd guitarist using a 4x12 and pedals. Now I did try a FM9 and it sounded totally awesome in a home environment. Due to price of FM9, I'm sticking with a tube amp.....but I'd get an FM9 for sure. BTW it took forever to tweak a Helix while FM9 sounded great brand new plug it in when I tried it.
Great video. Been having similar feelings. Curious, are you going to be buying anything for amp modeling along with new effects pedals. If so, what are you looking to get?
Hey, thanks! I may buy an HX Stomp down the road and throw it on a small board. I need to look into other options, but it would be nice to just import my presets/knowledge from the Helix to the Stomp.
@@shelbyguitarmusic Right on. I had an HX effects that I just sold. I made the mistake of buying a heavily gigged with one for super cheap but then had to replace 2 of the scribble strips. I sold it out of fear of further issues. I still have my Helix at home but never gigged with it but I'm definitely going to sell it as I know it has a life span and will eventually be unsellable. Now I'm thinking of going with a hybrid solution buying another (and newer) HX Effects for all the time-based and modulation and then adding analog dirt pedals and then something like a Strymon Iridium to add on for home recording and maybe for going direct to FOH. One of the real benefits of both the Helix and HX effects are the Snapshots. Really solves the pedal tap-dance. Real game changer for me live. Maybe Hybrid is the way to go?
Yeah I’m starting to get those foot switch problems on my hx stomp. Barefoot buttons actually really helps on that less dirt gets in it’s been very helpful on that. But I’m currently slowly getting a full rig to replace my stomp so I don’t destroy it out live. Also gear by ceba makes screen guards and other things that could help with the knob problem you got and the life span of the helix.
Great videos and thoughts.
Myself I've used multi-effects for years but I always prefer a real amp. In the 90s I used a Korg A3, then I moved to the Boss MS-3 and about a year ago, the HX Effects.
I love the HX Effects because it enables me to use either of my current amps (a Revv Dynamis 7-40 tube amp or my Katana MKII head) connected in 4 CM. My drive comes mostly from analog pedals. I have the amp in the HX Effects Loop 2 and a small 4 lopps midi switcher in loop 1 where I connect 3 analog drives and a Boss SY-1. All my gain comes from the pedals and sometimes the amp.
Like you, I do not like the built in HX FX drives although they are way better than the ones in the Boss MS-3. The dynamis Red channel is amazing as well and the Katana's Brown channel is my fave on that amp. But my analog drives are my preferred way to work: Wampler Tumnus Deluxe for boost or just a warm overdrive. Then The Revv G2 for crunch (it soundsd better to me than the Kat's Crunch channel but has less gain). So for higher gain crunch I push the G2 with the Tumnus or another boos in the HXFX. Last is my Revv G4 which is my main gain pedal. This one needs no boosting ;)
All other effects (comp, mod, delays, reverbs, EQ) are handled in the HXFX and that is also my rig's main controller as was the Boss MS-3 before it. I control my 4 loops switcher and either of my amp (the Revv has midi even if it's a tube amp) with the HX FX. I do not use any built-in effects in the Katana nor the onboard reverb on the Dynamis. I worked the same way with my old Fender "red knobs" Twin I also used as a pedal platform with the MS-3.
4 CM is working great for me and the HX Effects works fantastic for me. To control stage volume if I have to, I can send the Dynamis to my Torpedo Captor then the line signal of that to my CAB M+. With the Katana, no need for the captor, I just send the Line Out without cab emulation to the CAB M+. So I get all the benefits of my amps as well as complete midi control of my rig and most of the time, I use my 4x12 Marshal cab and everything just works.
I've thought of going full Helix but I really like the sound and feel of my current rig so why mess with it? :) Line 6 is still a large part of my rig.
Wow, you seem to have far more experience in the multi-effects world than most. I appreciate your insight. Really liking your setup, I'm sure it sounds killer.
The Dream 65 made me get rid of my Kemper, Line6 and Axe FX III, its THAT good and takes pedals extremely well. The money saved covered any needed pedals with plenty of change left over lol.
I love my helix, but, I definitely prefer the feeling i get playing with my pedals and vox amp… I like having the option of both (im very lucky)… but people get opinionated and territorial about the helix, to the point that they get defensive and argumentative if you say anything negative about it 🤷♂️😄
You sound like a car guy who enjoys points and carbs with a manual vs a tesla. The tesla blows the doors off of any old carb car in every way, but it lacks soul and HMI that really connects you with the machine.
Ive always enjoyed multifx unit, back in the late 90s. Those were so hard to program, omg you wanna invest time to tweak, try those.
Good introspection. Nice to hear your subjective view and actually know why you may feel that way.
Ive gone back and forth thru the decades with all tube and analog to digital. The helix is like getting a smart phone after carrying an old slr, flip phone, audio recorder, etc.
That's a great observation as I grew up engine swapping old diesel VWs and fixing dirtbike carbs and all that. I love digital technology of course but have always felt a certain affinity for all things mechanical and analog because those leave me feeling pretty human. Not that digital tech can't do that... it's just what speaks to me and my brain.
Thanks for the feedback! God bless you pioneers who took a chance on this stuff back in the day.
I sold my hx stomp twice, but always wanted it back specially when i would hear sounds on songs that i vouldnt get from my pedalboard. Recently i got an hx effects just yo have access to all those effects ibprovably will never use but jjat having them there is a relief as i wont have to buy anything and at the same time i have my main pedalboard ❤ both board together work great
Everyone has a tone, no matter what you play through. It may be crap, but it’s a tone.
True!
Buying the Helix LT back in 2015 and sticking to it was the best decision I've made in my life.
But one thing that keeps coming up is the footswitches failing. And funnily, they are the same switches every time.
I've sent my LT off to the repair shops a few times but the same switches fail after some time of use.
I paid $500 for the first repair, but the same thing came up again after about 3 months of use, and the second time I was able to request a ticket for the free repair, but the same switches are starting to fail again or double trigger or both and I'm so frustrated.
Rest of the unit is perfect, but I think they should've done better with the switches. I might just sell my LT and get the Stomp XL instead, cover up all the switches with a tape so nothing can ever get in there.
The switches really are just so frustrating...
I totally agree with the 95% tone thing. I had a helix lt and downgraded to the stomp because for there was so much extra involvement in the lt that i was not using it to its full potential. I ended up keeping all my pedals and my old pedalboard and still plug it in to try and match that sound on the stomp but its never quite the same sound.
Still considering the Stomp!
Went back to a more traditional pedalboard as well (still using two pedalsized modelers instead of amps, though). Hardware quality isn't great enough so I would really trust it all the way and visibility of the HX Floor is downright abysmal under critical lightning conditions. And then there's a lot of things lacking, for me the main issue is the lack of something such as "global blocks". My pedalboard delivers all these things with ease and I'm having more fun, too.
I just made the switch to helix. I got tired of lugging my mesa boogie fillmore to gigs running my pedalboard, mic it up....plus I setup the pa & run the FOH sound....helix I can setup in 5 minutes and it helps cut our stage volume.... I really love a tube amp but most gigs I play are small/medium sized and volume control is an issue....we actually get a ton of gigs because we don't play super loud
Go over to Mooer's GTRS guitars. You will never look back. You MAY want to consider using AMT bricks before you hit the power amp, but that is really a personal choice. The GTRS guitars will make pedals a thing of the past.
Your comment reminds me about
Matthew 13:44
ESV
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
GOD BLESS You brother
Considering it's sold mainly on 'Convenience' I really enjoy the Helix.
Especially the 3.50 update.The overdrives aren't so great and I use the amp drives instead.
Using a real great amp with pedals is glorious.I still have a ton of pedals that I enjoy so so much.
Your experience is understandable.And your story oddly entertaining !
I'll miss having it for sure! The amp drives are really great. I'm glad the Helix works so well for you. Thanks for the comment!
Interesting vid! It looks like you have brought the wrath of the L6 community upon yourself Ha. I have been a long time FAS user 15 years and counting. I tried a Helix when they first came out just to try it. I thought it sounded pretty good, the Vox models were a little off but it wasn't to bad. I didn't care for the built in CC pedal it also squeaked a few drops of 3 in 1 fixed that. I used it for about a month or so while waiting for the AX8 I had ordered. When it came in I pit the two against each other. Some sounds were pretty close others not so much in the end the AX8 in a desecrate listing session the AX8 came out the winner, I sold off the Helix. I have gone to an FM9 which really fits the bill for me. If I was going to change to something else I would probably run a Suhr PT15 IR or some sort of tube amp with a reactive load / IR loader with some sort of multi effects pedal for effects.
Haha yep, I think people get emotionally invested in their gear. It's okay, I understand and welcome the criticism. You're a third person to recommend the FM9. I'll probably check it out. Thanks for the insight and the comment!
@@shelbyguitarmusic It's all good man! IF you buy new you do have 15 days to like or not!
I'd prefer the portability but the issue is most multi effects processors aren't as robust as the old pedals. Honestly, I'd bare with processors
My tap tempo on my m13 did the same thing and I repaired it but who knows for how long.
I think you just talked me out of the helix. It’s funny that my cheap pedals work fine and my most expensive multi effects units have issues.
Sorry to hear about your m13... How frustrating. Seems like these big manufacturers can get away with cheaping out on build quality because people will buy flashy equipment with tons of features no matter what, especially if they are marketed effectively. I also think that a lot of the players that buy these things probably don't use them enough to run into these problems that fast, so big manufacturers can just move their base onto the next big flashy thing. I need my gear to last years, not months. I love my cheap pedals like Joyo. No issues and they sound fantastic.
@@shelbyguitarmusic I completely agree! I played at church a lot and my pedals never failed me. I had very vivid dreams (or nightmares) of my cables messing up mid song on stage but never happened.
But over time my m13 finally messed up (at home thank GOD). It’s still new compared to my other pedals. Shame.
Manufacturers are using “good enough” electronics but at the price point, they should be immaculate.
I don’t know a lot about wiring but it definitely looks like the inside of your helix was a rushed job. It’s definitely not nice and neat.
The helix in theory is great. Even the tones are great but still not quite the same, especially the “feel”.
I can’t image how bad it would be to be playing a gig like you said, and your helix goes out, tap tempo is shot, and tuner won’t turn off or on…
It’s great when it’s great, but when it’s bad, ITS BAD lol.
I’ll gladly buy more Joyo pedals if one fails me. 34.99? No problem 😂
I think with all the dedicated “amp in a box” stomps coming to the market recently, if/when my Helix dies, I might (?) go that route and build a small pedal board.. really hard to commit because the technology is changing daily. Anyway I slice it, hauling amps is not ever going to be in my future again. I am curious what pedals you feel are core for your next board and did you sell your Helix?
I also want to build a small board with amp-in-a-box tech, mostly for my duo gigs. I agree though, the tech changes so fast sometimes it's hard to commit to something.
I'll be posting a video on the pedalboard I have built to replace the Helix, but long story short
- Input and output buffer
- Compressor
- Pitch mod stuff (TC quintessence and EHX Pitchfork)
- Two stage OD setup
- Chorus and Phaser so I can get a leslie sound
- Delay, verb, and trem.
I have some other stuff but that's the core.
My amazing wife found what was probably the very last one in the US for sale the week before Christmas in 2016, and put it under the tree for me. So I’ve been an amazed Helix user for many years now. It is hands down the best piece of gear I’ve ever used and I’ve not touched my pedalboard since. Each update has made it better and better, and every single one has been FREE. How ridiculous is that? Every time they update the firmware it’s like Christmas again as you get all these new features and sounds to test and incorporate into your rig.
Can your pedalboard do snapshots, where you can alter the settings of all your pedals several times in the course of one song all without having to take your hands off your guitar? No, it can’t, only the Helix can. Can you control any aspect of any pedal on your board with your expression pedal? No, but you can with a Helix.
If you use a large and complex pedalboard you know the issues that can create (mystery hum, capacitance buildup that can cause tone suck, pedal failure causing your whole rig to go silent until you find and fix the problem, etc) the Helix fixes or eliminates all these issues. In the rare event that you have a problem with your Helix, as a backup, you can easily deploy a laptop running Helix native with all your patches and sounds loaded and ready to go. That’s for a very casual gigging musician. If, like this gentleman, playing music is your main way of making a living, then investing in a backup Helix rig is a VERY LOW COST way of making sure that your rig doesn’t cause a problem during a gig. Compare the cost of a used Helix with the cost of a backup amp and pedalboard. It’s not even close. And if you think you can hear a difference in your tone in a live setting, you’re lying to yourself.
One day (maybe soon) they will announce a replacement for the Helix, but until that day there’s nothing better for a gigging guitarist than owning and playing a Helix.
I’ve had the exact same problem with my helix switches. Especially the tap tempo. It’s been like that since the very first pod floorboard. I love my line 6 gear. But the switches have never been good.
I am also at that point where I am wanting a solution that streamlines my guitar rig for gigging - but I find that with these modelers, MultiFX boards, etc. that there's way too much time spent on programming the unit, only to find myself unhappy with the resulting tones. Maybe I'm just too old school, but the amp & pedals route just works better for me. I just need something that is very portable and is quick and easy to set up.
i don't gig anymore but i used the line6 floorpod. we needed to achieve a very small footprint for many gigs and our variety of music really required something like a floor pod. But... one gig something broke on my floor pod at a very important gig. because i was the only guitar player it shut down the gig right there since we were all direct and i didn't run an amp. it ment buying and extra one and making sure it was programmed identical to the main one they are affordable so no big deal but the helix....holy crap 3200 for 2 just so i have a backup. Nothing i will be doing unless i win the lotto.
Yes, that's not something I would do either. I actually ended up keeping my Helix but only using it on rare occasions, which usually end up being duo gigs. It's good for that, but not the heavy weekly gigging I was doing.
I got a helix floor to replace my pedals, but then I got too much option paralysis. When I create. I was picking a random distortion, a random delay ect. Picked an amp. Then created with what I got. Tried that on helix but I was never able to complete something. I still have the helix floor, but thinking about selling it cos I just don’t use it.
I used to use a Boss GT-6 for some gigs years ago and it wasn't uncommon to come back from a break and find all my presets
out of wack. I think that was the end of the multi-effects on stage era for me lol.
Great tools though for practice and recording though ( I still use my Headrush), but I learned to keep the gigging gear down to a bare minimum.
I’ve been up and down and around and around all pedal mojos and my feel is it’s just overkill and what and how you play it is much more relevant. -
I can get buy with a nice AMP - a tight distortion, fat distortion, booster pedal, Wah Wah and Digital Delay. Maybe the Amp Vibrato and 1 easy to use reverb pedal.
That can give so many options of sound.
True, if you know what you're doing, you can get a lot out of very little.