Line 6 Helix Stadium Pre-Launch Discussion

[…] EDIT: Found Thomann's still hidden pages for it. These are with Finnish VAT 25.5% :cry:

Thanks for the links! I just pre-ordered the non-XL version. :banana

1797 EUR incl. 19% German VAT at Thomann, which is actually a little bit less than I expected (1799.99 USD are currently 1546,70 EUR, +19% VAT = 1840,57 EUR).

IMG_0069.jpeg
 
Last edited:
For anyone who has ordered from Andertons in the U.K. I already replied to their email and said ‘I’m happy to go ahead’ but didn’t get a reply (yes, I know that patience is a virtue). As they’re available to order and pay in full on the website I decided to ring them to pay the balance.

The guy I spoke to wanted a BACS transfer; he said a credit card was not possible. His manager said the same. Finally, I got through to another chap there who did a credit card over the phone. Said they are ‘not setup to do secure transactions unless it’s via the website’. But also couldn’t send me a website link to pay. This is bonkers as you can pay the entire amount via PayPal, credit card, bank card if you simply go on their website as a new customer. But if you’ve put down a deposit their initial response is to ask for BACS for the balance. This, coupled with their ‘no regular credit’ might be an issue!

The reason I wanted to pay with a credit card - I always pay the balance to avoid interest but I would rather have a few more weeks with the money *and* card protection rather than BACS where you say goodbye to the money immediately with no protection.

I explained that, as they’d sold out of pre-orders already, he’d probably be having this exact same conversation with an awful lot of other people, especially as they’re not doing their usual credit terms. You never know, me saying ‘brace yourselves, others will be in touch in the same boat’ might mean they find a more elegant way! But just in case that’s why I’ve mentioned it here so you can allow adequate time on the phone to get through to the guy that can do this.

Anyway, as I’ve paid in full and will be receiving one fairly soon, do I get some honorary Timbucks to spend on a new hot tub? :)
 
Man, I've wasted so many hours over the years on the phone to Andertons... they can be a bit infuriating sometimes.
But usually they do alright generally.

Absolutely - I’ve always found them good to deal with. You never know a shop until you’ve seen how they deal with an issue - I’ve had a couple over the years and they were fair and helpful. Which is why I’ll gladly give them business - I had a nightmare with a small independent a few years ago and the difference, with Andertons, was impressively positive. Hopefully my post didn’t come across as me having a go at them - they’re a fine shop but I think this is a little bit silly.

Hopefully they’ll find a way to send people a payment link or similar. Or just gladly accept the card over the phone rather than saying no several times before finally relenting as it’ll get a little boring for them and, although I’m a polite old fart who patiently went through it all with grace, not everyone is. Makes sense for their finance guys to make it easy to pay so some poor new hire doesn’t get given a bunch of crap over the phone by someone with a short fuse as those guys are everywhere :)
 
Interesting glimpse at EU pricing including Italian VAT 22% on that website:
  • HX Stadium: 1999 €
  • HX Stadium XL: 2399 €
I wonder if the non-XL Stadium price is a placeholder because that's almost 30% on top of the US Sweetwater price after converting it to euros. The XL is tiny bit more than US price + VAT.

EDIT: Found Thomann's still hidden pages for it. These are with Finnish VAT 25.5% :cry:

I would say retailers have recently received a more specific release window.

OTOH, I like the Spanish prices I'm seeing: 1830 and 2238€, including VAT.
 
A question for @Digital Igloo (if you’re ok to answer of course :) )

I know that Showcase is not going to be on the XL at launch. Does the ability to load backing tracks come under the umbrella that is ‘Showcase’ and therefore won’t be available at launch? Or is it called something else so it’ll be there? I think it’s within showcase but I’m not 100% so was wondering whether to look forward to that next month or next year. Either is good - just wondering :)
 
A question for @Digital Igloo (if you’re ok to answer of course :) )

I know that Showcase is not going to be on the XL at launch. Does the ability to load backing tracks come under the umbrella that is ‘Showcase’ and therefore won’t be available at launch? Or is it called something else so it’ll be there? I think it’s within showcase but I’m not 100% so was wondering whether to look forward to that next month or next year. Either is good - just wondering :)
Showcase if I understand it correctly is the playback engine so I with think your backing tracks , stems , etc will come through that
But if they keep schedule it not a long wait like in December fo 1.2 w 3 new Agoura amps and who knows what else they have planned
 
A question for @Digital Igloo (if you’re ok to answer of course :) )

I know that Showcase is not going to be on the XL at launch. Does the ability to load backing tracks come under the umbrella that is ‘Showcase’ and therefore won’t be available at launch? Or is it called something else so it’ll be there? I think it’s within showcase but I’m not 100% so was wondering whether to look forward to that next month or next year. Either is good - just wondering :)
Correct; no song playback with 1.1 "The Day One Update." It's definitely part of 1.2 "The Showcase Update," which is finally starting to shape up nicely. Pretty bare bones to start, but it's fun.

Three new Agoura amps (seven channels) in 1.2 too.
 
Man, I've wasted so many hours over the years on the phone to Andertons... they can be a bit infuriating sometimes.
But usually they do alright generally.
I once said they were just box shifters on thefretboard, fucking years ago, and "the Captain" picked me up on it. But my opinion hasn't really changed to be honest. I like them well enough, but long gone are the days where you felt like a valued individual customer. Nowadays, you mostly just feel like a mark.

Back in the day when I used to go into the shops on Denmark Street, and know some of the guys first names. Again, long gone.
 
Correct; no song playback with 1.1 "The Day One Update." It's definitely part of 1.2 "The Showcase Update," which is finally starting to shape up nicely. Pretty bare bones to start, but it's fun.

Three new Agoura amps (seven channels) in 1.2 too.
Great - many thanks for the answer on this and I’ll look forward to exploring in a few weeks :)
 
No and nope. Two separate models of channels 3 and 4. They sound good and compare nicely to their Fractal FM9 equivalents, for what it's worth.

But VH4 isn't an Agoura model yet, so if or when that happens...only then is that a possibility.
Oh. I dunno why I thought I remembered it was in the Agoura list. Ok cool. Thanks!
 
Back
Top