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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Jul 8, 2019 13:48:37 GMT -7
So I've tried over the years to get it happening with digital and I've always felt "Disconnected". Now Line 6 has come out with a unit that has the effects from their Helix in a stompbox format, called the HX Effects. It looks and sounds cool, and I decided to stick my toe in the pool again. I want something that will simplify things and this looks like it may work. Time will tell, it'll be here tomorrow.
I'm looking forward to playing with this thing. The Helix has some very good tones in it and if I can take some of that DNA and pump it into the front end of a Z it may be something cool.
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Post by Chilly Gibbons (Todd T.) on Jul 8, 2019 18:38:32 GMT -7
I’m anxious to hear what you think. I haven’t dabbled in the digital world since the Pod HD days and things have come a long way since then.
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Post by KeithA on Jul 9, 2019 1:29:28 GMT -7
I've been looking at the HX Stomp as well as I'd like to have a nice, compact multi-errects unit to run in the loop of my Bogner.
Id rather just have the effects and not the amp modelling, etc but the size of the unit is perfect. My local shop has one so I'll have a look one of these days.
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Post by Russell B on Jul 9, 2019 5:45:02 GMT -7
I'm following this Dave. I'm not much on effects, but I'm always looking for something new.
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Post by Buzz Fretwear (Ignatius) on Jul 9, 2019 5:57:28 GMT -7
Buddy of mine is using one and he loves it. It knocked a few boutique effects off his board and simplified his setup.
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Post by Mark (Basement Enthusiast) on Jul 9, 2019 7:05:53 GMT -7
I'd be curious of your thoughts on this, Dave.
I just watched an interview last night of one of my modern "guitar heroes" (Matt Scannell of Vertical Horizon) in which he talks about using the HX plus one other boutique OD on his pedalboard, and that's about it. And it sounds like he even uses the line-out with impulse-responses direct to the P.A. (skipping amps altogether) in some of his fly gigs. He, too, is a self-proclaimed vintage-gear-tone junkie--and I love his playing & tone, myself--so if it's good enough for him... maybe I can get on board with it too.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 9, 2019 8:17:09 GMT -7
I had a Helix LT and it sounded great--better than the Strymon Mobius, which was a little digital-harsh to my ear, as is the Boss MD 500. Hell of a thing to program, though--I object on principle to any effect unit you have to watch a half-hour instructional video to figure out. Hopefully the HX Effects unit will prove a bit more user friendly--I'm looking forward to your reaction.
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Post by jhen86 (jordan) on Jul 9, 2019 14:33:31 GMT -7
I've had my eye on one as well for a while now. Been running all my drives into an Line 6 M9 for years to cover all my verbs, delay, modulations etc before hitting the amp . The HX effects seems to not only have better tones, but allows for more effects to be used at once. Also has a master EQ at the end of the chain that can be tuned for the amp. Seems like a no-brainer upgrade. And the IR functionality could be a game changer if ever in a pickle.
Would love to know what you think of it, Dave!
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Post by daddyelmis (Greg) on Jul 10, 2019 5:21:47 GMT -7
Anxious to hear the report as well. I participated in the “first wave” of high end all-in-one units in the mid ‘90’s with a DigiTech 2101 - it was pretty good for the digital, time based effects, but not great for OD, distortion and dynamic effects. And, of course, huge learning curve, endless tweaking, factory patches just waayyy over the top, etc.
I’d love to have a small footprint, highly portable unit that could handle everything, even if I had to keep my Plimsoul and Clyde wah with it. And if it had truly useable defaults that would be great.
Although I must admit to a bit of “PTSD” at the thought of programming patches, banks, and footswitches again. 😳
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Jul 11, 2019 12:12:18 GMT -7
It's too soon to give a detailed analysis but I've got to say, it sounds pretty dang good. The user interface is intuitive and for all it's functionality is pretty straight forward. The built in patches are for the most part made to show off the range of sound available...but there are a few that will work well with tweaking. The overdrives/distortions are surprisingly good, especially when pushing an on the edge tube amp. But it really shines in the reverbs and delays. A friend stopped by today and showed me a ton of ways to work with it, and if I remember 10% it'll be good. Like anything else it takes hands-on time to get comfortable and productive. I think I've got some "PTSD" too, but this unit is waaaay better than the early multi effects pedals were. You don't have to dive down 10 levels of software to get to where you need to go, and it's easy to navigate back and forth. I'm glad I made the plunge...I'll post some more when I know what I'm doing with it!
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Post by daddyelmis (Greg) on Jul 11, 2019 17:20:48 GMT -7
Dave - if you get a chance to post some clips that would be awesome. Especially the ODs - that’s always been the weak link in multieffects. The digital effects usually sound pretty good.
I’d love to downsize my board 😔
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Jul 11, 2019 19:41:41 GMT -7
I've had my HX Stomp about a month and I'm digging it. I don't plan to use the amps, just effects, but that could change since I already have a FRFR sitting here connected to my Kemper. This is a lot easier to haul out to a jam than the Kemper though. I put it on a tiny pedal board with a pair of extra switches so I can bank up and down, and one of those new tiny Wah pedals.
One thing: if you decide you want to use two switches to bank up and down, you have to set that up in TWO PLACES in the setup. I missed the first and thought the thing wasn't working. Sweetwater agreed and sent another, but it behaved the same. THEN I discovered the second place you have to do your setup. System preferences....
Nice that it has a Timmy in there!
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Post by Deleted on Jul 12, 2019 10:17:50 GMT -7
Curious why you picked the HX Effects vs the Stomp. Same price--Effects is bigger but has somewhat less functionality, apparently. I ask because I'm considering the Stomp, an wondering what got you looking at the Effects instead.
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Post by KeithA on Jul 12, 2019 11:14:34 GMT -7
Curious why you picked the HX Effects vs the Stomp. Same price--Effects is bigger but has somewhat less functionality, apparently. I ask because I'm considering the Stomp, an wondering what got you looking at the Effects instead. Funny, I just assumed he was talking about the Stomp
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Jul 12, 2019 12:21:23 GMT -7
Curious why you picked the HX Effects vs the Stomp. Same price--Effects is bigger but has somewhat less functionality, apparently. I ask because I'm considering the Stomp, an wondering what got you looking at the Effects instead. Initially I was going to get the Stomp but I went with the Effects instead because I don't want to stop using my Z amps and I liked the easier more 'pedal board' type interface style. It integrates with my amps rather than eliminates them. The Stomp will do that too, but I liked the way that the Effects unit is able to easily switch from stompbox mode to 'snapshot' mode. I might regret it down the road, but right now it seems to fill the bill for me very well. With the HX Effects unit I can integrate my present pedal board into it, and run 4CM or straight into the amp. I think you sacrifice ease of moving about like a regular pedal board setup with the HX Stomp.
All that said, I wish I had been able to audition them both in person, but the research I did told me that the Effects has more of what I was looking for.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 12, 2019 13:51:38 GMT -7
Curious why you picked the HX Effects vs the Stomp. Same price--Effects is bigger but has somewhat less functionality, apparently. I ask because I'm considering the Stomp, an wondering what got you looking at the Effects instead. Initially I was going to get the Stomp but I went with the Effects instead because I don't want to stop using my Z amps and I liked the easier more 'pedal board' type interface style. It integrates with my amps rather than eliminates them. The Stomp will do that too, but I liked the way that the Effects unit is able to easily switch from stompbox mode to 'snapshot' mode. I might regret it down the road, but right now it seems to fill the bill for me very well. With the HX Effects unit I can integrate my present pedal board into it, and run 4CM or straight into the amp. I think you sacrifice ease of moving about like a regular pedal board setup with the HX Stomp.
All that said, I wish I had been able to audition them both in person, but the research I did told me that the Effects has more of what I was looking for.
Makes sense--thanks! I'm kind of drawn to the Stomp's standalone potential--the idea that it could act as a backup in case of amp failure, or I could skip the amp altogether (conceivably) and gig just with the Stomp. Not sure I'd want to, but the notion's kind of intriguing.
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Post by daddyelmis (Greg) on Jul 12, 2019 14:38:53 GMT -7
Curious why you picked the HX Effects vs the Stomp. Same price--Effects is bigger but has somewhat less functionality, apparently. I ask because I'm considering the Stomp, an wondering what got you looking at the Effects instead. Initially I was going to get the Stomp but I went with the Effects instead because I don't want to stop using my Z amps and I liked the easier more 'pedal board' type interface style. It integrates with my amps rather than eliminates them. The Stomp will do that too, but I liked the way that the Effects unit is able to easily switch from stompbox mode to 'snapshot' mode. I might regret it down the road, but right now it seems to fill the bill for me very well. With the HX Effects unit I can integrate my present pedal board into it, and run 4CM or straight into the amp. I think you sacrifice ease of moving about like a regular pedal board setup with the HX Stomp.
All that said, I wish I had been able to audition them both in person, but the research I did told me that the Effects has more of what I was looking for.
This is exactly why I’m also looking at the Effects vs the Stomp. If I was seriously thinking of going “ampless” I’d be looking at a Kemper. Although I guess the Effects does allow use of IR so you can run straight to FOH (instead of or in addition to the amp) - just doesn’t have amp modeling. As it is, I love my Z’s - I would just like a simpler board set up. It’s the same reason I went with multieffects in the ‘90s - although those were all rack mount with pedal/midi controllers.
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Jul 12, 2019 14:59:56 GMT -7
Initially I was going to get the Stomp but I went with the Effects instead because I don't want to stop using my Z amps and I liked the easier more 'pedal board' type interface style. It integrates with my amps rather than eliminates them. The Stomp will do that too, but I liked the way that the Effects unit is able to easily switch from stompbox mode to 'snapshot' mode. I might regret it down the road, but right now it seems to fill the bill for me very well. With the HX Effects unit I can integrate my present pedal board into it, and run 4CM or straight into the amp. I think you sacrifice ease of moving about like a regular pedal board setup with the HX Stomp.
All that said, I wish I had been able to audition them both in person, but the research I did told me that the Effects has more of what I was looking for.
Makes sense--thanks! I'm kind of drawn to the Stomp's standalone potential--the idea that it could act as a backup in case of amp failure, or I could skip the amp altogether (conceivably) and gig just with the Stomp. Not sure I'd want to, but the notion's kind of intriguing. You know, if push come to shove the HX Effects has two effects loops that are programmable and could be used to send a line direct to desk. You could also put an EQ inline (or maybe an IR, I need to learn more about it) with the send so that it would be a good feed to the FOH desk. Just thinkin' outloud...
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Jul 12, 2019 15:01:30 GMT -7
I've been playing with it all afternoon and I'm getting a feel for it. There are some really good tones in that box. I'll post a clip in a week or two when I get it dialed in. What's cool is that it doesn't alter the amp's base tone too much, no more than a pedal board would anyway.
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Post by daddyelmis (Greg) on Jul 12, 2019 16:02:46 GMT -7
Makes sense--thanks! I'm kind of drawn to the Stomp's standalone potential--the idea that it could act as a backup in case of amp failure, or I could skip the amp altogether (conceivably) and gig just with the Stomp. Not sure I'd want to, but the notion's kind of intriguing. You know, if push come to shove the HX Effects has two effects loops that are programmable and could be used to send a line direct to desk. You could also put an EQ inline (or maybe an IR, I need to learn more about it) with the send so that it would be a good feed to the FOH desk. Just thinkin' outloud... I read that the Effects had IRs so that you can send a “cab sim” signal to the FOH board while sending the effect to the amp. Back when I ran a DigiTech 2101, I’d send the “cab sim” output to the board, and my amp mic’d to the board and mix them. If we had small venue gigs I would occasionally lose the amp and just run to the board to control volume. The Line6 Effects appears to be able to do this as well.
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Post by daddyelmis (Greg) on Jul 12, 2019 16:25:33 GMT -7
Dave - if you get a chance and it’s convenient - could you measure front to back on the unit and let me know? I’m trying to figure out how this would (or wouldn’t) fit on my board. The specs say 7.9” but you know how specs are.
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Jul 12, 2019 16:59:27 GMT -7
Interesting. I have the HX Stomp. Seems to have all the same stuff you're talking about, plus the amp sims. It can do IR as well. I'm only using the effects for now.
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Post by KeithA on Jul 12, 2019 17:47:15 GMT -7
Interesting. I have the HX Stomp. Seems to have all the same stuff you're talking about, plus the amp sims. It can do IR as well. I'm only using the effects for now. Actually, when I look at this now the 'Effects' seems more a fit for what I'd want. I'd only want delay/modulation/reverb effects and a button to turn each one on/off (overdrives I'm indifferent to). I'm not sure if the 'Stomps's" three buttons can be assigned this way.
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Jul 12, 2019 18:38:22 GMT -7
Dave - if you get a chance and it’s convenient - could you measure front to back on the unit and let me know? I’m trying to figure out how this would (or wouldn’t) fit on my board. The specs say 7.9” but you know how specs are. The chassis dimensions are 10 13/16" wide, and front to back it's 7 1/2". BUT, the jacks are all on the back so 7.9" sounds right. If you use 90 degree pancake plugs, allow 8 1/8", maybe 8 3/16". Plus the power cord plug sticks out a little further, and at that point it's going to be about 9 1/2". That's if you had to back it up to a wall so to speak.
There are six rubber feet screwed into the bottom of the chassis which according to a friend with the full blown Helix are removable, and you can then screw the screws back in. Then apply velcro of your liking and you're good.
Keith--- My original plan was to use only the delays, modulations, etc. and use analog pedals in the HX loop for drives. However, I'm finding that the drives on the HX are very usable, at least at home. It's a little premature but I may be using the digital drives. I am shuddering as I type this , I'm a dyed in the wool analog man. I want to keep my drives analog! It's honeymoon stage. I've got to give it some time. I've always gone back to analog before, every time.
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Post by daddyelmis (Greg) on Jul 12, 2019 20:24:42 GMT -7
Awesome ... thanks!
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Post by KeithA on Jul 12, 2019 20:39:59 GMT -7
Dave - if you get a chance and it’s convenient - could you measure front to back on the unit and let me know? I’m trying to figure out how this would (or wouldn’t) fit on my board. The specs say 7.9” but you know how specs are
Keith--- My original plan was to use only the delays, modulations, etc. and use analog pedals in the HX loop for drives. However, I'm finding that the drives on the HX are very usable, at least at home. It's a little premature but I may be using the digital drives. I am shuddering as I type this , I'm a dyed in the wool analog man. I want to keep my drives analog! It's honeymoon stage. I've got to give it some time. I've always gone back to analog before, every time.
Thanks Dave. I certainly would not want any drives, for sure. I want the time-based side to run in the loop of my Bogner (trust me, no drive pedals required with that one!). Right now I'm running an Earthquaker devices Dispatch Master delay/reverb but I'd like to have all of this plus chorus/flanger, etc. in one pedal to run in the loop. I think I'll drop out to the dealer tomorrow to have a look. They have both the Stomp & Effects in stock.
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Jul 13, 2019 4:28:27 GMT -7
Keith--- My original plan was to use only the delays, modulations, etc. and use analog pedals in the HX loop for drives. However, I'm finding that the drives on the HX are very usable, at least at home. It's a little premature but I may be using the digital drives. I am shuddering as I type this , I'm a dyed in the wool analog man. I want to keep my drives analog! It's honeymoon stage. I've got to give it some time. I've always gone back to analog before, every time.
Thanks Dave. I certainly would not want any drives, for sure. I want the time-based side to run in the loop of my Bogner (trust me, no drive pedals required with that one!). Right now I'm running an Earthquaker devices Dispatch Master delay/reverb but I'd like to have all of this plus chorus/flanger, etc. in one pedal to run in the loop. I think I'll drop out to the dealer tomorrow to have a look. They have both the Stomp & Effects in stock. Hopefully the dealer will know his stuff on the Helix effects. I didn't start to really appreciate it until my buddy who is a zen master on his Helix came over and spent an hour running through the different ways to use it. It blew my mind, and of course I've forgotten half of what he showed me. But it is a very cool tool.
I have so many truly great analog drives that I want to find a way to use them. But I've really got to spend time and do A/B comparisons to determine what's going to work best.
In the end it's what Doc said once..."Tone, tone, tone, tone...is there a substitute?"
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Post by Deleted on Jul 13, 2019 8:52:42 GMT -7
So, I'm thinking pretty seriously about acquiring either the Stomp or the Effects unit. Looks to me as though the Effects unit is a bit more intuitively set up for live performance, while the Stomp is maybe handier for digital recording. I'm picturing either one going straight into the front of an amp like the Z-Lux, which doesn't have a loop--set the amp clean and away you go. But I'm curious about routing these critters into the loop on something like my Friedman Mini Dirty Shirley, which is a Marshall-esque amp with a really nice natural high-ish gain thing going on--think Marshall 18-watt without the transformer burnout issues. Run the HX unit into the loop, I guess, using just mods and time effects--and then a boost, which is really the only kind of dirt pedal I'd need (okay, maybe a fuzz) into the front of the amp, I guess. But is there a way to split the HX's output so I can run the mods into the loop and then the HX's overdrives, etc., into the front, if all I bring along is the HX? Does this even make sense to anybody but me?
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Post by daddyelmis (Greg) on Jul 13, 2019 10:09:40 GMT -7
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Post by Deleted on Jul 13, 2019 10:54:41 GMT -7
Huh--crazy. I'm familiar with the basic 4-cable method, but this is really interesting and weird. So, the HX knows internally which effects got to the front of the amp and which go to the loop? That's some 9-dimensional shizzle right there.
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