Line 6 Helix Stadium

[MirrorProfiles]

I keep in thinking what I thought from the beginning: NAM is not an option for a company wanting to compete and differentiate in the top tier market.

Embracing NAM would mean that any brand would have the same quality as yours... So there'd be no reason for investing and developing something for everyone else's profit.

I reckon another way of looking at it is the quality of modelling or capturing will soon be a given/moot, and all of the other features and usability will have more importance. I think we’re on the cusp of modelling quality not being the criteria that we seperate modellers with.

There’s already very little difference between standard NAM, Tonocracy, STL tracer, and ToneX is only marginally worse. It’s all much of a muchness, but if you bring a better experience then you’ll capture the market. If you have good I/O and automatic processes for making the models and training, you’re already ahead of most.

 

[James Freeman]

I like how Hype is a not so subtle hint to what the QC is doing.
Also the symbol for the capture/clone tech is a sheep.
Line 6 easter eggs all over this.

 

[HotRats]

Among all the stuff packed in there I deeply love the 2 stomp layers, something I've asked for since the introduction of the new command center.

I know you didn't add this feature for me, @Digital Igloo, but I'd like to think you did

 

[mbenigni]

Just watched the live stream and the amount of new features and innovations they've added to this thing is mind-blowing.
Kudos to Line 6, that's almost as good as the Kemper mk2!

PS: this might look like a minor thing, but I'm happy you can finally have multiple splits per path

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That’s a major thing (even though I know I know FAS already has it…) What is that keyboard icon after the amp block on the split? Synth block??

 

[EOengineer]

I was watching the L6 release video like:

 

[Dom Mcsweeney]

I keep in thinking what I thought from the beginning: NAM is not an option for a company wanting to compete and differentiate in the top tier market.

Embracing NAM would mean that any brand would have the same quality as yours... So there'd be no reason for investing and developing something for everyone else's profit.

Besides, I still think that NAM, being great as a computer based solution, is still too CPU heavy for standalone units. It must be optimized so the price of computing power is not a problem.

For me, it's preferable that top brands develop their own capturing system. This guaranties more research, more improvement and better products, thanks to competition.

So, Line 6 do support IRs (.wav files), of a specific length / specific size. This keeps CPU cost to a reasonable limit when they are run on Helix hardware.

You can do the same with NAM, either when deciding on parameters before training your own models, or by re-training / converting to a different format.

I fail to see how supporting NAM in some way or form would be for "everyone else's profit"?

It would 100% be a net positive for customers who owned a Stadium, and it could definitely be done in a way that didn't compromise CPU power consumption.

''Guaranties more research, more improvement and better products, thanks to competition''
- they could also collaborate with someone, who is an expert in this field, optimizing it for their platform. This is not to say they can't do it on their own as I'm sure they have the skills to, or even better if this wasn't so single minded. (eg. why not support both .wavs / .nams and their own format?)

 

[DLC86]

That’s a major thing (even though I know I know FAS already has it…) What is that keyboard icon after the amp block on the split? Synth block??

Could be. The specs on their website list 2/4 drum trigger inputs, I wouldn't be surprised if you can also connect a midi keyboard to this thing... and maybe even enable variax guitars to play polyphonic synth

 

[Lysander]

A couple interesting Reddit comments from Line 6's Igor Stolarsky (a.k.a thebishopgame):

 

[Sedaxel]

I fail to see how supporting NAM in some way or form would be for "everyone else's profit"?

From a pure business perspective, if a top tier company brings NAM compatibility (full NAM, because crippled versions would let them in a weak position), then they are setting their amp tones to the same bar that any other company, expensive or cheap, can have. How can they ask more money for their units then? Of course, amps are not the only selling point of a unit, but it's still relevant, and it will be until sims become identical to valves.

The only way for a company to be profitable is... Being better than the rest. Compete. Differentiate. MirrorProfiles says that nowadays there's little differences in digital amp solutions, and that's true. But even so, marketing can pump a brand or destroy it. And let's remember the disastrous beginning of amp tones of the TMP with that SIC issues and whatnot. That was a serious prestige problem for them.

Honestly, I don't want to see NAM everywhere. I want to see different solutions, I want to see a race and improvements. NAM is the present, but I don't see it being the future because there are things to improve. And resources from companies can materialize those improvements.

 

[eggpl@nt]

Y'all I'm still digesting everything so allow me one simple question - I'm strongly leaning toward the Stadium. Is there any reason to instead consider the XL? I don't want the pedal. I'll be OK without the scribble strips. I don't need the additional I/O.

Are there any other differences related to processing, features, etc, that might enable XL to do things the Stadium cannot?

 

[MirrorProfiles]

I don’t think the majority of users care about a modeller reformatting NAM models to something less accurate. Most don’t make models, nor know what it’s supposed to sound like. Plus they’re (likely) using it in a different environment to a DAW and the tradeoffs are worth it.

IMO this next generation will have less focus on “which one sounds the best” and rather the focus will be more on the experience. Line 6 can likely build a system to make adding/trying/making/sharing/editing/searching models much better than doing it with individual NAM files. The amp modelling will likely be at least as good, and more flexible than amp captures too, so for a user I don’t see it being a huge deal like it might seem right now. Line 6 could easily make their own platform and through the number of users out there it would sustain itself just fine.

In a lot of ways, I think if it can import (and reformat NAM models) and make its own proprietary models, while having good metadata and search features, it’s probably better than supporting NAM natively.

 

[[Nathan]]

One persons major dislike of NAM in a modeller perfectly balances out another persons overly enthused want for NAM in a modeller. I’ve genuinely thought about it a bunch for a long time and I have to say I’m kind of indifferent either way.

As long as the capture workflow is rock solid and seamless to do back to back reamps (cloud training or local overnight training is perfect), just let me batch capture an amp. Possibly has some scope for packs and nice things like that then it doesn’t “have” to be NAM in my books. Of course it would be better if NAM could convert in either direction but realistically I’m buying a line6 product and whatever lets them do the best job they can, I’m fine with.

 

[Lysander]

Y'all I'm still digesting everything so allow me one simple question - I'm strongly leaning toward the Stadium. Is there any reason to instead consider the XL? I don't want the pedal. I'll be OK without the scribble strips. I don't need the additional I/O.

The XL has also an extra instrument input, two extra FX loops, and an extra control input for footswitches/exp pedals.

I'm on the same boat as you, and i think i'm going for the regular Stadium. I'll miss those scribble strips (they appear to be OLED displays from the HX One, looks great!), but the non-XL it's just so tiny, and i plan to carry it around.

 

[Dom Mcsweeney]

However it pans out, I guess there is the 'non-destructive' recording side of things by way of using a plugin in a daw.

I do wonder if they plan on any of their new engine tech and new cloning tech being part of a plugin in the future.
If it's not going to be in NATIVE, then perhaps there will be a completely new Helix plugin in the future.

Would be a shame if not.

 

[molul]

A couple interesting Reddit comments from Line 6's Igor Stolarsky (a.k.a thebishopgame):

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Ugh... I really hope this means there will be a separate Helix Stadium Native, and not that there will never be a plugin version of the Stadium software.

I won't say Native was a key selling point for me when I bought my LT because I didn't know about it, but since I bought it, it's been essential for me, and I think it's a big thing that differentiates Helix from all the competitors.

I hope Line6 doesn't go the same route as NDSP and starts selling separate small plugins instead of the whole thing. Being able to exchange presets between my DAW and my LT is something I wouldn't want to loose.

 

[holoholo]

Wait did I see that there's automation? So if you are running tracks in stadium, you can program it to snapshot change on it's own? No more stomping required? That would be fn killer.

 

[molul]

Glad to see they finally got a touch screen and rotary foot switches. I’d like to see Fractal follow suit.

Rotary footswitches? I don't think they showed that.

 

[paisleywookiee]

I'm gonna say it; as epic as this announcement is, I don't like the name. Stadium? Stadium XL? What's the Stomp and Stomp XL replacements going to be called, Helix Backyard BBQ and Helix Frat Party?

Alright, that's as much negativity as I can muster on this release.

 

[LP59]

I reckon another way of looking at it is the quality of modelling or capturing will soon be a given/moot, and all of the other features and usability will have more importance. I think we’re on the cusp of modelling quality not being the criteria that we seperate modellers with.

We've been there for a couple of years now. It's just been a waiting game to see who finally understands this. It was never going to be Fractal. Kudos to Line6 for realizing where the market is in 2025.

 

[[Nathan]]

However it pans out, I guess there is the 'non-destructive' recording side of things by way of using a plugin in a daw.

I do wonder if they plan on any of their new engine tech and new cloning tech being part of a plugin in the future.
If it's not going to be in NATIVE, then perhaps there will be a completely new Helix plugin in the future.

Would be a shame if not.

Yeah that would make me very happy honestly, possibly god tier plugin for my uses.

Rock solid legacy helix tech, new helix offerings. My own captures, updated / new helix plugin with creature comforts that are sorely needed over helix native, all in one plugin, I’m so in.