Line 6 Helix

[Zigracer]

A bit of a niche use for the Helix and one that I definitely don't expect to be helpful to a large number of people, but here it is for 2 years down the road when that one person searches for it. This is the jazz tone I've been using lately with my archtop. Floating pickup (Kent Armstrong 12-pole), carved solid Spruce top, Maple sides, flatwound strings, etc. The guitar is an Eastman AR810 with a violin varnish. At the time, it was a prototype from Eastman that I had purchased from Lou at Guitars N Jazz after a few had recommended his shop on this forum. That was 5 years ago now.

A few months back I put out a video just playing a solo arrangement with this preset. A few people had asked for a preset walkthrough so here it is. In this video I'll go over a few tricks I like to use on the Line 6 Helix / HX Stomp in order to get a traditional, warm jazz tone out of a floating pickup archtop guitar with flatwounds.

I'll check this out. I have a full size Helix and love it in front of my amps. I've not been as happy with the sound I get out of the amp and cab sims when I use the Helix with a PA or my Bose system. Always sounds too brittle and not warm enough to me. The only other drawback to this amp and cab simulation through the Helix, is that it is a little cumbersome to make a quick EQ setting for the room or as the room changes if you use a couple of different "pedalboards" on the Helix. Whereas with my amp, I can just change the treble/bass with a turn of a knob and it stays that way until I change it, not matter what pedalboard or scene I switch to.

[Picker]

I'll check this out. I have a full size Helix and love it in front of my amps. I've not been as happy with the sound I get out of the amp and cab sims when I use the Helix with a PA or my Bose system. Always sounds too brittle and not warm enough to me. The only other drawback to this amp and cab simulation through the Helix, is that it is a little cumbersome to make a quick EQ setting for the room or as the room changes if you use a couple of different "pedalboards" on the Helix. Whereas with my amp, I can just change the treble/bass with a turn of a knob and it stays that way until I change it, not matter what pedalboard or scene I switch to.

Thanks Zigracer. My Roland JC 40 is too brittle and bright for my no matter how I tweak it, or so it seems with me being the one working the dials. So, I'll be interested in how that works for you. Question for you. I notice there are several Helix models available. Which one would you suggest is appropriate for my possible use, as an effects in, sound out, arrangement on the small Roland JC I'm using for living room practice? Any thoughts you might have would be appreciated.

[gitman]

Read my post here :

What are some good HX Stomp presets for jazz

[gitman]

Thanks Zigracer. My Roland JC 40 is too brittle and bright for my no matter how I tweak it, or so it seems with me being the one working the dials. So, I'll be interested in how that works for you. Question for you. I notice there are several Helix models available. Which one would you suggest is appropriate for my possible use, as an effects in, sound out, arrangement on the small Roland JC I'm using for living room practice? Any thoughts you might have would be appreciated.

I use my big Helix board when performing with a more Pop/Soul oriented group, the Helix Stomp is my go-to unit for everything else, be it Bigband, Solo, duo/trio gigs, whatever. This, my cables and a miniature volume pedal all fit into a small-ish messenger bag - it doesn't get any more convenient.

[McJazzer]

I'll check this out. I have a full size Helix and love it in front of my amps. I've not been as happy with the sound I get out of the amp and cab sims when I use the Helix with a PA or my Bose system. Always sounds too brittle and not warm enough to me. The only other drawback to this amp and cab simulation through the Helix, is that it is a little cumbersome to make a quick EQ setting for the room or as the room changes if you use a couple of different "pedalboards" on the Helix. Whereas with my amp, I can just change the treble/bass with a turn of a knob and it stays that way until I change it, not matter what pedalboard or scene I switch to.

Sorry for the delayed response - in case you're still wondering, the Helix actually has a feature for that exact purpose. It's called Global EQ. Sometimes depending on the venue and playback system I'm using on the gig, I'll make adjustments there which affect the entire unit. It's useful for small venues like restaurants where I'm dealing with reflective surfaces and my JBL tower or Fishman acoustic amp vs. a 90db+ stage.

[Zigracer]

Ahhhh… Never touched the Global EQ. Thanks. I’ll try it.

[Zigracer]

A bit of a niche use for the Helix and one that I definitely don't expect to be helpful to a large number of people, but here it is for 2 years down the road when that one person searches for it. This is the jazz tone I've been using lately with my archtop. Floating pickup (Kent Armstrong 12-pole), carved solid Spruce top, Maple sides, flatwound strings, etc. The guitar is an Eastman AR810 with a violin varnish. At the time, it was a prototype from Eastman that I had purchased from Lou at Guitars N Jazz after a few had recommended his shop on this forum. That was 5 years ago now.

A few months back I put out a video just playing a solo arrangement with this preset. A few people had asked for a preset walkthrough so here it is. In this video I'll go over a few tricks I like to use on the Line 6 Helix / HX Stomp in order to get a traditional, warm jazz tone out of a floating pickup archtop guitar with flatwounds.

Used your vid to set up a nice jazz tone. Sounds very nice. Only difference is I used a Fender Twin amp/cab sim instead. I’ll apply what I learned to my standard set up for rock and pop, as I’ve never really been happy with that. Always sounded too cold and brittle. I think one factor was my choice of using a Deluxe Reverb amp/cab. There’s an annoying ubiquitous hum that seems to reside in that IR that is not in the Twin IR. Thank you for the video!

[Alter]

Besides the stomp, there's now the stomp xl, which seems like a great pedalboard type multi (it's basically the stomp with more footswitches).

My only beef with it is that Stomp came out in 2018, so it's pretty old by effects standards (to buy new)..

[sm80808]

For an "older" unit, Line 6 is pretty good about putting out updates. The last FW update added some nice really nice reverbs.

The HX works pretty well as an audio interface as well.

My practice setup is: Laptop (YT/Spotify/Transcribe) >USB> HX STOMP >Line Out> Amplifier/Bookshelf Speakers

you can substitute an IOS/Android device/Apps with the proper connection kit too.

For practice I only really use the Princeton model with a plate reverb.. so it is pretty overkill for me.

[jim777]

Old thread, but you could always sell the JC40, buy one of these and put a few bucks in your pocket. then you could use the amp you like, cabinet you like, etc.