Helix Talk

[Lysander]

Am I working it right? How are you using it?

Very similarly. I always keep the saturation below 5.0, as i find the distortion it introduces to be very sharp and gritty at higher values.

In general, i like Retro Reel as an always-on block adding just a bit of character and grit to the sound, or as a subtle modulation for cleans.

 

[Lele]

What’s everyone’s favorite chorus in Helix? Especially stereo chorus.

I don’t know what it is, but I always have trouble getting a chorus sound I’m happy with in the Helix. It’s always too muddy or congested or something,

My favorite is... Gray Flanger. I keep the manual and regen at zero, set the width fairly low, and then adjust the rate to taste.

 

[Digital Igloo]

Hi @Digital Igloo ,

My favourite chorus is the 70s Chorus. As much as I love it, I have it between a +6dB gain block and a -6dB gain block to account for the (technically accurate) effect it has on output a low input volumes. Would you ever consider adding a Headroom type parameter to it, that I could set to +6dB and clean up my signal chain? I think it would benefit everybody. Thanks!

Makes sense. Will ask the team.

Retro Reel is easily my favorite effect in Helix. Love it to death.

I have like a dozen saturation and tape emulation plugins and still use Retro Reel the most by far.

 

[Sascha Franck]

I have like a dozen saturation and tape emulation plugins and still use Retro Reel the most by far.

Fwiw, separate "per type" plugin suites in addition to HXN would be quite a great thing. Think L6 Delay/Modulation modeler as plugins. With their own dedicated interfaces. And obviously without the need to always load a fullblown Helix instance. Load times are really adding up, even on very modern computers, and in case you only want one single effect, it's kinda overkill anyway.
Leave all the amps and utilitarian things out, just a suite for dirt/dynamic, delay and modulation stuff each (and possibly reverbs as well, but most people would likely use other plugins for that very task).
Could possibly been sold separately (perhaps with a discount for existing HXN users).

 

[ian_dissonance]

Fwiw, separate "per type" plugin suites in addition to HXN would be quite a great thing. Think L6 Delay/Modulation modeler as plugins. With their own dedicated interfaces. And obviously without the need to always load a fullblown Helix instance. Load times are really adding up, even on very modern computers, and in case you only want one single effect, it's kinda overkill anyway.
Leave all the amps and utilitarian things out, just a suite for dirt/dynamic, delay and modulation stuff each (and possibly reverbs as well, but most people would likely use other plugins for that very task).
Could possibly been sold separately (perhaps with a discount for existing HXN users).

They did this with Pod Farm and it was great.

 

[Sascha Franck]

They did this with Pod Farm and it was great.

Oh really? So there was a separate and dedicated instance for, say, a chorus?

 

[Digital Igloo]

Fwiw, separate "per type" plugin suites in addition to HXN would be quite a great thing. Think L6 Delay/Modulation modeler as plugins.

We talk about this every once in a while, but it gets tricky because our category model counts are wildly uneven and trying to balance them out just to warrant splitting up Helix Native seems like a waste: "Hey Ben, can you come up with 40 different filters?" or "Hey Dan, stop working on your new crazy delay because we need the dynamics count higher."

I sure would like a Helix Native Elements spinoff tho', where it's just the individual effects as separate plugs. POD Farm did that too and I use it way more often then the full POD Farm.

 

[ian_dissonance]

Oh really? So there was a separate and dedicated instance for, say, a chorus?

I don’t remember exactly how it was broken out, but I used to put POD Farm delays all over the place.

 

[Sascha Franck]

We talk about this every once in a while, but it gets tricky because our category model counts are wildly uneven and trying to balance them out just to warrant splitting up Helix Native seems like a waste:

Just split it up like the existing categories. And sell all of it as a single bundle (so you don't have to worry about model counts per each category). Could perhaps be all within one UI with tabs to select the category and then a model selection pane. No more than one effect at a time to make it as slick as possible (for those wanting more complexed stuff there's always the full HXN).
I'm absolutely sure I'd use that all the time and all over the place whereas right now I use HXN for guitar stuff only.

 

[Digital Igloo]

Just split it up like the existing categories. And sell all of it as a single bundle (so you don't have to worry about model counts per each category). Could perhaps be all within one UI with tabs to select the category and then a model selection pane. No more than one effect at a time to make it as slick as possible (for those wanting more complexed stuff there's always the full HXN).
I'm absolutely sure I'd use that all the time and all over the place whereas right now I use HXN for guitar stuff only.

Ah, so you mean Helix Native Elements like POD Farm Elements except with everything in a single plugin. Yeah, we should totally do that.

 

[Sascha Franck]

Ah, so you mean Helix Native Elements like POD Farm Elements except with everything in a single plugin.

Exactly. One effect at a time, select per category on top tabs, then use the typical (hideable) model selector on the left. Have nicely looking knobs (there, I said it...), kinda Logic-style would be perfect (colors matching the by now established Line 6 category style), and there we go.
Top categories could be dirt/dynamic, modulation, delay, reverb, maybe synth/filter (just the typical M-series suspects) and obviously leave the fancy amp, cab and ultility/routing stuff out. And please add a side chain option (plus relevant side chain modulation targets of course).

 

[synthpenguin]

Yeah, I’d love an HX One plugin, actually. All Helix effects available to pick from (no amps or cabs, just like the HX One pedal—though adding the IR block to the plugin version could be convenient), 1 slot like the pedal, and the sliders / interface scaled up to resemble something like the Valhalla DSP plugin interfaces (e.g. ValhallaRoom).

 

[Sascha Franck]

though adding the IR block to the plugin version could be convenient)

There's many free IR loaders, so I really don't see the need for that, especially in case the hypothetical plugin would stick to the one-effect-at-a-time approach.

 

[synthpenguin]

There's many free IR loaders, so I really don't see the need for that, especially in case the hypothetical plugin would stick to the one-effect-at-a-time approach.

It definitely wouldn’t be necessary, but I think it would be convenient (especially if it could share / mirror the user’s full Helix Native IR library), and imo it wouldn’t be anymore redundant than e.g. most of the EQs.

 

[Sascha Franck]

and imo it wouldn’t be anymore redundant than e.g. most of the EQs.

Fwiw, I think the EQs could be left out as well, unless there's some new ones delivering whatever special features.

 

[Digital Igloo]

Fwiw, I think the EQs could be left out as well, unless there's some new ones delivering whatever special features.

Not special per sé, but we've deprecated EQ > Simple EQ, Low and High Cut, and Low/High Shelf in favor of a new 7-band Parametric model. Any DSP savings for the smaller EQs wasn't big enough to warrant keeping them, and with the new Parametric Focus view, they weren't any easier to use either. We kept the Tilt, 10 Band Graphic, and Cali Q Graphic models, which get their own unique non-5-zone Focus views.

If you import any Helix/HX presets with Simple EQ, Low and High Cut, or Low/High Shelf blocks, they'll autoload the new Parametric model.