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It's only the venues in the middle (where monitoring sucks, but you're still running everything through the PA) where you'd find an advantage running valve amps, I think.
im a huge 11r fan, I think the delays are amazing and love the modulations, I've A/B the Mesa pre amp models against my real Mesa pre amp, and it's just a flavour difference.
the Headrush looks awesome, but I just dunno if I could give up my real amps, my current set up allows the silent stage if I needed to....
and i I feel clarity is not the be all and end all of great sound reinforcement.
I didnt think I'd be giving up real amps, my jtm45 and pile of pedals sounded lovely, but the Helix sounds better to me, and to the audience the overall sound is miles better than it was
Couldn't be happier and actually love the options of running ampless or with an amp if I so need to - I'm always running FOH direct via an IR anyway so its either a "real" amp feeding that or a modelled one.
The comment above about feel is absolute rubbish IMO, I struggle to tell the difference and if I'm honest, the modelled amp gives a little more consistency and is somehow easier to manage in the heat of a gig - the monitoring used in this scenario is crucial.
I initially started out with the Fractal stuff and was a little apprehensive about L6 being the poor relation - I couldn't have been more wrong - just as good IMO - they all have their party pieces I suppose, but for me, the Helix does it all and is a piece of piss to use - just last night I decided between sets to radically change what I run in various snapshots - could have taken a good hour to get all of that right with other systems - Helix with the UI and touch gig took me all of 5 minutes!!
Best, most inspirational piece of gear I have bought for a long long time
Nil Satis Nisi Optimum
I'm definitely interested in a Helix and powered monitor for home and band use (once I can afford it). Do you still get real amp feedback and the "feel" through a powered monitor ?
Exactly - I use one patch for the whole night apart from a few U2 songs, it 'feels' great on stage, and the out front sound is better than I've ever got with a real amp, it takes me 5 mins to set up, the on stage balance is loads better as I'm not relying on backline for anything other than monitoring.
And yes, a powered monitor will still feedback musically like a proper amp.
Sound just like me before I jumped in and tried one, I was wrong
Yes, straight in to the PA with a Yamaha DXR10 as an on stage monitor, I can change my stage volume independently of the main feed from the Helix.
I mainly use 1 or 2 core sounds on helix, then build a virtual pedal board around it. In fact I have a grand total of 4 patches saved. Of which one is a template, one of for acoustic. The units offer a lot of sound design possibility, but you don't have to use it.
That said I still mainly gig an amp / pedalboard rig, I just like the look of it more.
You don't have to lose the valves if you go Helix
I didn't go Helix to sound like anyone else (though it does all sorts of classic sounds very nicely). I wanted flexibility; I enjoy crafting patches as much as I enjoy playing. The Helix makes both very simple and rewarding.
Ironically, all of this is do-able with a single amp using different patches on the GSP1101, which is vastly underpowered compared to any of the big-hitters. With the way it's configured, I'm guessing that delays are rendered ahead in the audio pipeline...which is something I'm surprised none of the big names do with their units. It requires extra DSP power yes (you're effectively rendering faster than real-time), but nowhere near as much as the (assumed) Headrush solution and is a lot more solid than the Helix approach.