Line 6 Helix Stadium Talk

[Baba]

Link to relevant section of the manual.

There are currently six different footswitch modes—Stomp A, Stomp B, Preset, Snapshot, Combo, and Transport.

TL;DR: FS6 (MODE) is the most important footswitch—it toggles between the two footswitch modes you use most (Stomp A and Preset are assigned by default, but these can be changed). To access the other four footswitch modes and some helpful functions like Quicksave, Mute All, Click On/Off, Info Open/Close, and Click Open/Close, press and hold FS6 (MODE).

From Command Center, Stomp A and Stomp B can be set up to incorporate footswitch functions from any of the other modes. So two switches could be preset up and down, two others could be looper functions, etc. What's more, Stomp A and B commands can change values per snapshot, so if you, say, assign Snapshot 2 to a stomp for Snapshot 1, that same switch can switch to Snapshot 7 from Snapshot 2.

There's more footswitch goodness coming later.

There is but I'm not the most qualified to talk about it. Plus, I'm currently at LAX.

Lol, my feeble brain cannot comprehend this yet today, but, I love it.

 

[Karl Houseknecht]

Playing the two models side by side, you can definitely feel/hear a difference.

My guess is that's going to be the case for the "older" HX models like this one, and that the difference will be smaller for the ones that came out more recently. Have you found as big a difference in the 2203 HX vs Agoura model?

An aside: Liked your demo but same feedback as GuitarJon. Appreciate that you have favorite IRs (and ones you sell), but can we hear more with the native cabs?

 

[Karl Houseknecht]

Not meant for people on this forum per se, but are there any Fractal Audio fans out there who can be like "cool unit, good for line 6, enjoy guys!". Cause, I'm seeing much more of the other approach...

I am also a huge Fractal fan and have been for years, but that hasn't stopped me from playing a Helix since it was released. And it's not stopping me from getting a Stadium and playing that alongside it. In fact, I'll probably be selling my FM9 and just keeping my FM3 around to both have a different flavor and a more compact unit to use with acoustic/dobro/lap steel/pedal steel.

The Fractal forum shut down all discussion on the Stadium, which I sorta get but is also kind of a shame. That place can get a little weird.

 

[EOengineer]

My guess is that's going to be the case for the "older" HX models like this one, and that the difference will be smaller for the ones that came out more recently. Have you found as big a difference in the 2203 HX vs Agoura model?

From a short test last night, the Agoura 2203 is better. The Hx 2203 is my favorite amp model in that platform, and I play a 2204 just about every day. The Agoura model feels better under the fingers, is more dynamic, snarls more, but still maintains the kerrang that makes the Hx version so great.

I think as more people play through the unit we’re going to see more chatter about the improved playing experience winning folks over. It’s my favorite part of the upgrade so far and I’ve only had 30 minutes with it.

 

[Karl Houseknecht]

Yeah, I use basically two amps in Fractal and HX: 2203 and AC30TB. As long as those are good in the Stadium, then I'm going to be a happy camper.

 

[fr8_trane]

Well... I guess I'll be the first .... The tuner is easily as good as the Axe FX III now.

It wasnt on the Helix? I use strobe mode on my Helix and its fine. Not as accurate as my turbo tuner so I wouldnt use it for setups but quite good enough for live gigs.

 

[EOengineer]

I want to be careful not to overstate this, but I suspect a number of the folks calling Agoura a “small incremental improvement” have probably not played the hardware.

For those of us that remember moving up from POD -> XT —> HD -> Helix, I’m sure you remember how significantly the playing feel improved with those iterations. Agoura feels EASILY as big a step forward in that arena as any prior iteration.

 

[laxu]

Well... I guess I'll be the first .... The tuner is easily as good as the Axe FX III now.

How does it track for a bass? I remember the Fractal tuner was just a little bit iffy for that sometimes.

 

[fr8_trane]

From a short test last night, the Agoura 2203 is better. The Hx 2203 is my favorite amp model in that platform, and I play a 2204 just about every day. The Agoura model feels better under the fingers, is more dynamic, snarls more, but still maintains the kerrang that makes the Hx version so great.

I think as more people play through the unit we’re going to see more chatter about the improved playing experience winning folks over. It’s my favorite part of the upgrade so far and I’ve only had 30 minutes with it.

I'm curious about how the hype control affects the 2203. The helix model is uncompromisingly bright which I know is where the kerrang lives and the real amp is a bright beast. But all those 80's guitar tones we love were tweezed in the mix to make them smoother.

 

[JiveTurkey]

I tried Hype with a few of the new amps and ended up pulling it back down to the default that loads with the amp block.