Helix 3.7: The Freeman Update

[the-trooper]

Definitely is a source! But the gear we play with hopefully also inspires us.

Nah, that's just something we tell ourselves to justify more toys. People used to sit down at blank staff and write music (literally). Many still do.

 

[FuzzyAce]

Definitely is a source! But the gear we play with hopefully also inspires us.

Gear comes from within.

 

[Mongillo19]

Nah, that's just something we tell ourselves to justify more toys. People used to sit down at blank staff and write music (literally). Many still do.

Hard disagree. I'd just sell your gear and get a Walmart bundle then.

There is of course such a thing as excess but to say that inspiration only comes from within is foolish.

This is a stupid argument so we can just agree to disagree

 

[Sascha Franck]

Bummer. Seems like an odd omission for a team obsessed with workflow...

Well, yes - but when you think about it, only sort of. Controller communication is one thing (and a must, of course), handling audio data streams something quite different. And to add the latter just for a tuner (and maybe some gain LEDs - which I would personally like to have here and there) might be too much of an effort. Which I can understand.

 

[Sleezy E]

Schrödinger's Modeler

Would I have written this piece of music with or without the new firmware?

 

[laxu]

Correct, you can't. HX Edit isn't an audio host by any means, just control software.
Would be cool to have a tuner there, though.

It doesn't have to be an audio host, it could simply receive tuner data (detected pitch values) from the Helix. Afaik this is how Fractal's tuner works in Axe-Edit.

 

[eggpl@nt]

Well, yes - but when you think about it, only sort of. Controller communication is one thing (and a must, of course), handling audio data streams something quite different. And to add the latter just for a tuner (and maybe some gain LEDs - which I would personally like to have here and there) might be too much of an effort. Which I can understand.

Axe Edit can display the tuner, which is why I find it odd and comparatively inconvenient that HX Edit cannot. I'm not gonna pretend to understand the intricacies under the hood, but Axe Edit is my baseline, and I just want everything to work similar.

Double-clicking to enable/disable a block is another thing I miss working in HX Edit vs Axe Edit.

 

[Elf]

Inspiration comes from within, little grasshopper.

The Latin word itself means "to inhale; to breathe in" I think I understand where you are coming from but to deny that external things can't inspire us does not make sense to me.

 

[eggpl@nt]

The Latin word itself means "to inhale; to breathe in" I think I understand where you are coming from but to deny that external things can't inspire us does not make sense to me.

I think you might be taking that comment a little too seriously and literally...

 

[dronerstone]

Gear comes from within.

I cringe at that one particular "sound like you're using effects without using any" FB page.

 

[the-trooper]

I'd just sell your gear and get a Walmart bundle then.

When it comes to inspiration, yes, you absolutely could sell everything and create beautiful music on a Walmart bundle.
You think a writer will write a better book on a RGB backlit keyboard than on a typewriter? No, he will not. Likewise musician will not create better music with a different distortion pedal. You think Mozart searched for that one special piano?
Inspirational distortion pedal doesn't exist. The best it can do is to make you play more, i.e. spend more time playing and the more you play, the more time you create music, better chance of you getting inspired, but certainly not by that pedal.

There is nothing wrong with liking gear, collecting it if that is your thing, talking about it... This is, after all, a gear forum, and that is why we're not selling our gear for a Walmart bundle. But let's not lie to ourselves.

You either have it or you don't, and no pedal will ever change that.

I'll just leave this here.

 

[dronerstone]

When it comes to inspiration, yes, you absolutely could sell everything and create beautiful music on a Walmart bundle.
You think a writer will write a better book on a RGB backlit keyboard than on a typewriter? No, he will not. Likewise musician will not create better music with a different distortion pedal. You think Mozart searched for that one special piano?
Inspirational distortion pedal doesn't exist. The best it can do is to make you play more, i.e. spend more time playing and the more you play, the more time you create music, better chance of you getting inspired, but certainly not by that pedal.

There is nothing wrong with liking gear, collecting it if that is your thing, talking about it... This is, after all, a gear forum, and that is why we're not selling our gear for a Walmart bundle. But let's not lie to ourselves.

You either have it or you don't, and no pedal will ever change that.

I'll just leave this here.

View attachment 13977

You sound like you've never tried a Micro Synth, Poly Chorus, POG 2, Superego, or other CRAZY stuff by EHX (or similarly "creative" company).

I know what you mean, but this is about notes/chords only. Certain sounds can propel your playing/ideas/creativity/riffs into outer space...

 

[Sleezy E]

 

[SwirlyMaple]

I'll just leave this here.

Oh. Oh dear. I guess you haven’t stumbled into the world of boutique piano lovers yet The only difference is it’s so cost prohibitive that mere mortals have to use utilitarian pianos or they’d have no piano at all.

 

[FuzzyAce]

You think a writer will write a better book on a RGB backlit keyboard than on a typewriter? No, he will not. Likewise musician will not create better music with a different distortion pedal. You think Mozart searched for that one special piano?

Better is subjective. Different isn't.

Each instrument is special, even typewriters. The way an instrument feels and sounds directly influences writing decisions, unless of course you write everything in your head first. But even still, an instrument has its own voice and idiosyncrasies and will sound different even with the same notes.

 

[Mongillo19]

I'll just leave this here.

Are we shifting the goalposts so that we are talking about getting the right tone instead of inspiration to play?

 

[SillyOctpuss]

Just trying out the dripman and stock cab, damn this is fine. It's a nice change from my usual go to fender the princess model. The dad blues is strong with this one, with some spring reverb it's a little bit

but stick on a tube screamer and some delay and you're easily into

Good job line 6. I haven't even tried the catalyst amps yet.

 

[Mongillo19]

Just trying out the dripman and stock cab, damn this is fine. It's a nice change from my usual go to fender the princess model. The dad blues is strong with this one, with some spring reverb it's a little bit

View attachment 13981

but stick on a tube screamer and some delay and you're easily into

View attachment 13980

Good job line 6. I haven't even tried the catalyst amps yet.

This model is under the bass amps right?

 

[Sascha Franck]

It doesn't have to be an audio host, it could simply receive tuner data (detected pitch values) from the Helix. Afaik this is how Fractal's tuner works in Axe-Edit.

Oh right, didn't think of that.

 

[synthpenguin]

You think a writer will write a better book on a RGB backlit keyboard than on a typewriter? No, he will not.

tbf a lot of very famous writers use a typewriter over a computer, or an old computer over a newer computer, or a specific word processor specifically because they think it helps them write better. And sometimes it helps them write differently. Or it provides a tool or medium that lets them develop a creative process through which they can accomplish their best work (or be productive at all). There are probably stories and books we've gotten that we never would have except that a writer was able to find inspiration from a typewriter they never would have found from writing by hand, or was able to organize things with software like Scrivener, or was able to efficiently collaborate with someone far away via a word processor and the internet, or so many other factors. And getting into writing is a much cheaper thing than most forms of music, but these are definitely things that writers care, think, and talk about.

Also, pianists—even if just sticking to acoustic piano—definitely obsess over the sound and feel of their piano(s), and spend a lot of money on them (and maintaining them). When you bring digital pianos into the picture, it's even more of a thing—not evening counting workstations, synths, etc. And they definitely find inspiration from these things too. Playing a bad-sounding piano (or a piano that sounds bad for what you're after), or a piano that feels bad (for you) to play, is no fun at all, and is the opposite of inspiring.

All that said, I do agree that music gear in general is haunted by a lot of consumerism and gear-chasing over actually learning gear you have and playing. And a lot of people encourage it and push narratives that you have to buy x to achieve y sound, even when you can probably get close enough with the z you already have. It's definitely a problem, and I don't want to downplay that at all.