Where to try the new modellers?

NelsonP

Unfortunately you'd probably need to travel down to Andertons. 
That way you can also throw the Amplifire 12 into the mix (too good to miss in my opinion).

Failing that I'd probably take a leap of faith with the Helix LT. If you don't like it you can always exchange it for something else.

crunchman

NelsonP said:

Unfortunately you'd probably need to travel down to Andertons. 
That way you can also throw the Amplifire 12 into the mix (too good to miss in my opinion).

Failing that I'd probably take a leap of faith with the Helix LT. If you don't like it you can always exchange it for something else.

I was in Andertons at the weekend.  They definitely have a Kemper with loads of Amp Factory profiles plugged into an active PA speaker.  They should invest in a few Michael Britt profiles - they would probably sell more units.

mrkb

Andertons had a Kemper and a Helix and a Atomic CLR FRFR monitor last time I was in - all in the custom shop fender room. 

NelsonP

They had a Kemper, Helix, Amplifire 12, Positive Grid bias, Boss GT100 and various other bits and pieces when I was last there.

What they didn't have was many people how knew how to use them or get the best out of them.

bloodandtears

looks like PMT or Sounds Great is my only option then...

guitarfishbay

NelsonP said:

They had a Kemper, Helix, Amplifire 12, Positive Grid bias, Boss GT100 and various other bits and pieces when I was last there.

What they didn't have was many people how knew how to use them or get the best out of them.

Which will have a big impact on how much you get out of this kind of trial.

I still think the best thing to do is a lot of research then buy either where you get a good returns policy, or used at a decent price that won't lose you money if it isn't for you. There's so much stuff in any of these units that it'll take you quite a few hours to scratch the surface 

bloodandtears

guitarfishbay said:

NelsonP said:

They had a Kemper, Helix, Amplifire 12, Positive Grid bias, Boss GT100 and various other bits and pieces when I was last there.

What they didn't have was many people how knew how to use them or get the best out of them.

Which will have a big impact on how much you get out of this kind of trial.

I still think the best thing to do is a lot of research then buy either where you get a good returns policy, or used at a decent price that won't lose you money if it isn't for you. There's so much stuff in any of these units that it'll take you quite a few hours to scratch the surface 

how good is, say a Helix, out of the box??  I, for one, like simple..  time consuming is not usually an option.. I like the quick download route.. spoon feeding etc..  and ulitmately.. is it really that much better than my HD500X that I would A-B it with lol

NelsonP

Agreed - you do need quite a while to try them out.
And good discipline to not just find your favorite high gain preset and start shredding.

When I went there I even took along my old POD so that I could A/B it vs the new stuff. First time I came out thinking that the new stuff wasn't much better. No idea how I got to that conclusion other than I just didn't know what I was doing!
Makes me chuckle now as the new gen modellers are so much better.

If I were choosing now it would be a straight fight between a Helix LT and AA12.

I'd also recommend taking a good long look at the features and what you will use in reality.
Things like connectivity (e.g. does it have an aux in), usability, quality of the editing software etc often get overlooked.
...and it's very easy to get fixated on stuff that you don't really need.

bloodandtears

NelsonP said:

Agreed - you do need quite a while to try them out.
And good discipline to not just find your favorite high gain preset and start shredding.

When I went there I even took along my old POD so that I could A/B it vs the new stuff. First time I came out thinking that the new stuff wasn't much better. No idea how I got to that conclusion other than I just didn't know what I was doing!
Makes me chuckle now as the new gen modellers are so much better.

If I were choosing now it would be a straight fight between a Helix LT and AA12.

AA12 rifle??

guitarfishbay

bloodandtears said:

guitarfishbay said:

NelsonP said:

They had a Kemper, Helix, Amplifire 12, Positive Grid bias, Boss GT100 and various other bits and pieces when I was last there.

What they didn't have was many people how knew how to use them or get the best out of them.

Which will have a big impact on how much you get out of this kind of trial.

I still think the best thing to do is a lot of research then buy either where you get a good returns policy, or used at a decent price that won't lose you money if it isn't for you. There's so much stuff in any of these units that it'll take you quite a few hours to scratch the surface 

how good is, say a Helix, out of the box??  I, for one, like simple..  time consuming is not usually an option.. I like the quick download route.. spoon feeding etc..  and ulitmately.. is it really that much better than my HD500X that I would A-B it with lol

I don't own a Helix but I did own a HD500X which I sold after getting the Axe FX 2. I do think the Axe FX 2 is easier to program and considerably better sounding and feeling to play through.

How are you intending to amplify the unit? 

If you really want the spoon fed option and are going FRFR/Monitors the best choice might be a Kemper - if you get the right profile you probably wouldn't need to tweak the amp sound much if at all. I think @Wazmeister has a Helix and a Kemper.

bloodandtears

guitarfishbay said:

bloodandtears said:

guitarfishbay said:

NelsonP said:

They had a Kemper, Helix, Amplifire 12, Positive Grid bias, Boss GT100 and various other bits and pieces when I was last there.

What they didn't have was many people how knew how to use them or get the best out of them.

Which will have a big impact on how much you get out of this kind of trial.

I still think the best thing to do is a lot of research then buy either where you get a good returns policy, or used at a decent price that won't lose you money if it isn't for you. There's so much stuff in any of these units that it'll take you quite a few hours to scratch the surface 

how good is, say a Helix, out of the box??  I, for one, like simple..  time consuming is not usually an option.. I like the quick download route.. spoon feeding etc..  and ulitmately.. is it really that much better than my HD500X that I would A-B it with lol

I don't own a Helix but I did own a HD500X which I sold after getting the Axe FX 2. I do think the Axe FX 2 is easier to program and considerably better sounding and feeling to play through.

How are you intending to amplify the unit? 

If you really want the spoon fed option and are going FRFR/Monitors the best choice might be a Kemper - if you get the right profile you probably wouldn't need to tweak the amp sound much if at all. I think @Wazmeister has a Helix and a Kemper.

I use FRFR .. an ALTO...

not sure if the Kemper is practical/suitable for live... latency etc??  both the Kemper and Axe FX2 aren't cheap either lol

menamestom

bloodandtears said:

looks like PMT or Sounds Great is my only option then...

I went to Sounds Great and tried the LT the other day, I was there half an hour but they said stay for a couple of hours if I like.  I always find PMT reasonable as well, to be fair.

NelsonP

bloodandtears said:

NelsonP said:

Agreed - you do need quite a while to try them out.
And good discipline to not just find your favorite high gain preset and start shredding.

When I went there I even took along my old POD so that I could A/B it vs the new stuff. First time I came out thinking that the new stuff wasn't much better. No idea how I got to that conclusion other than I just didn't know what I was doing!
Makes me chuckle now as the new gen modellers are so much better.

If I were choosing now it would be a straight fight between a Helix LT and AA12.

AA12 rifle??

Have a LOL.

That'll teach me to be too lazy to type amplifire 12

Wazmeister

Zero latency on a Kemper