Line 6 Helix (LT)

bazzabalboa

Thinking of selling some stuff and buying a Helix LT and a decent FRFR speaker (Yamaha DXR10).

I have read all the helix threads on this forum, im just wondering what peoples current views on this unit are?
How long have you been using it? Do you still get along with it? etc

Wazmeister

Lots of threads about this, and I'll chip in !

I've been genuinely surprised by how GOOD the Helix is; fantastic routing options and some surprisingly good sounds. Delays and verbs are the weakness, but drives are v good imho.

I LOVE the DXR10 speaker, and it stands up well against most speakers imho.

menamestom

A month or 2 for me.  Very happy direct into an amp.  I have used the modelling for recording and got decent results but don't feel the need to go FRFR.  As effects only it works well.  Some things were better on my old pedal board but as an integrated all in one effect solution it is great.

What I'm hoping for in a firmware update, is a tuner as good as the polytune, pitch as good as a POG and an ambient verb as good as a WET. 

bazzabalboa

Good to hear positive stuff guys. I'm a real nip in this area. Is it correct that all I need is the Helix, an FRFR speaker and 1 XLR cable?

What's the best way to connect the Helix to 1 FRFR?

This really is new waters for me. Currently I am using a Blackstar HT40 combo (brilliant amp). I don't have any cables at home, so I will need yo buy one.

You guys got any suggestions? I could really use some help here fellas

redrighthand

Loving it myself. There are so many possibilities you could play around for a very long time, but the editor (onboard and on a PC/mac via USB) is so intuitive it's easy to get decent sounds, and I've found it very inspiring - I'm definitely playing more.

if you get one:

1. As usual the preloaded presets are hit and miss - don't be put off by them.

2. Don't give up on the stock cabinets - they can sound great without needing to use third party impulse responses (which is slightly more fiddly).

3. Let us know and we can share some presets with you.

i have the DXR10 too. I use an XLR cable. For gigs though the better option may be a 1/4 inch jack to the DXR for monitoring and the mono XLR to the PA - can someone confirm if that's a good way to go.

Oh and the helix is a handy audio interface too. Mine is now permanently attached to my computer when practising at home - so convenient.

get one :-)

Teetonetal

I love Helix
Can't stand the blackstar ht40 and I think helix sounds markedly better.

John_A

redrighthand said:

i have the DXR10 too. I use an XLR cable. For gigs though the better option may be a 1/4 inch jack to the DXR for monitoring and the mono XLR to the PA - can someone confirm if that's a good way to go.

One issue (with the DXR10 not the Helix)  The DXR10 jack input is very high gain and quite noisy, I use the XLR  out to the PA and a jack-XLR adapter to the DXR10 for monitoring. Also have the volume knob just controlling the 1/4" outs so I can turn up without it affecting the out front mix

Voxman

LT can be had now for £751 from Andertons & GAK (last week it was £777!) and the 'full' Helix is £1,037 from Andertons and PMT. So the LT looks pretty good value now and I'm thinking of getting one myself.  However, I'm in no hurry for a couple of reasons.  

First, I want to try out the forthcoming Headrush to compare with Helix, and second I'm convinced that Helix & Helix LT prices are still likely to fall further over the next few months (a couple of months ago LT was still £849 - and it's now almost £100 lower).  For various reasons sales are slowing down - partly due to the economy, falling pound, Brexit, etc, partly because a lot of the original 'target' Helix core market have already bought it, and partly because Helix's are coming up in the pre-owned market (EBay etc) - as the development costs are more than covered there's now scope for prices to come down a bit to be attractive to the 'next layer down' of prospective customers and up sale levels for Line 6.   

I'm a case in point - at £700 I'd be in the Helix market, but I can't justify, over £1,000 for one.  

BTW, found this overview comparison between Helix & LT in case it's useful:

Size: it's about an inch narrower; depth and height are about the same. Helix LT is 2-1/2 pounds lighter (12.0 lbs vs. Helix's 14.6 lbs)

• No scribble strip LCDs (middle eight footswitch assignments appear on Helix LT’s new colorful Performance view)
• Fewer Ins and Outs:
  • 2 Sends/Returns as opposed to 4 (can be stereo linked)
  • No mic preamp
  • No Aux In
  • No S/PDIF In/Out
  • Exp 2 In and dual Ext Amp Out share a single jack (function is globally selectable)
  • No Exp 3 jack
  • No CV Out jack
• Less expensive chassis:
  • Folded steel top chassis as opposed to extruded aluminum
  • Folded steel expression pedal as opposed to cast aluminum
  • Impact-resistant ABS side panels with rubber overmolding (like those on Helix Control) as opposed to cast aluminum side panels
• No separate Phones knob (headphone volume is controlled by main Volume knob)
• No 10 Stomp footswitch mode; Stomp mode is limited to 8 switches
• Pedal Edit select view displays 8 blocks at a time instead of 10

John_A

What I'd like is a Helix Super-light, size of an M9, one DSP chip, one path , 6 buttons, no expression pedal, and a single guitar in and audio out.  I love my Helix, but could gig with much less

horse

I've gone for an lt at £751 - was planning on ordering this weekend at 777, so a nice small extra saving. I'm thinking the product is undervalued at this price and may well rise rather than fall from here but we'll see. 750 seems incredible value either way for what you get

jgmouton

menamestom said:

 As effects only it works well.  Some things were better on my old pedal board but as an integrated all in one effect solution it is great.

Could you please elaborate on what was better on you pedal board?