What's preventing you from getting a Helix Stadium?

[MIJLOVER]

Honestly, @Jarick hit on the biggest obstacle in my opinion: This is a mature niche market with a good amount of competition. The SaaS company I do marketing for grapples with the same problem, and all of our messaging now is focused on "replacements" or how easy and advantageous it is to switch from your existing system to ours.

Additionally, the economy sucks and disposable income isn't abundant for a lot of people.

I agree with this 100%, but at this price point it's good to secure those early sales, when most buyers have to be excited to the point of "slightly irrational" in order to pull the trigger.

Nevertheless, I'm sure it will do great over the long haul. I still expect to buy one sooner or later. (Probably sooner LOL.)

I don’t disagree with your statements, because a lot of it is just general, factual advise. But I will say that people should keep in mind that they’ve already hit a number higher than their predictions, which was higher than what Yamaha expected.

Stadium is already a success. And as time goes with perhaps increased selection of hardware and perhaps software offers, a bunch of people dismissing it now, will end up with some kind of current iteration of Line 6 device. It happened last gen, bet it’ll happen again.

Anyway, off to start a “why haven’t you bought a AM4 thread”

 

[mbenigni]

Line6 is well liked as the good all-rounder. Helix Stadium improves the usability, but so far not that much else. Future is trustworthy progress, but unknown.

That's an interesting observation: that thus far, Line 6 appears to have fixed the one thing that was least broken.

QC has lost a lot of its initial selling points. Touchscreens are found on many other devices, Helix UI has been copied by others as well, and modeling + captures is not unique anymore. It's only advantages now are the ability to run multiple captures at once, and the very compact QC Mini form factor. Whether they can turn their slow progress into something that separates them from the pack remains to be seen.

I think you're understating the QC's strengths here; its selling points are evidenced empirically by its continuing sales. Those selling points may no longer be unique to the platform, but the bottom line is that it does many of those things (e.g. V2 captures, form factor) exceedingly well - irrespective of whether their recent uptick in rate of improvement holds.

 

[mbenigni]

Perhaps I’m misremembering but I have a possible false memory of bugs and stability being a part of that ultimatum. I’m too lazy to go look it up.

I think the way it played out was DI asked, "Do you want this without Showcase or should we wait?", and half of TGP said, "WE WANT IT RIGHT F'ING NOW WE DON'T CARE IF ITS LITERALLY ON FIRE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

So, both interpretations are partly accurate LOL.

 

[Sascha Franck]

1. Honestly, it sounds like you should buy a Stadium LOL.

No. At least not yet. See, I have 2 boards that I'm absolutely fine with for all gigs to come for the next number of months. In fact, I'm so happy with how things work I could imagine to keep using them for a lot longer (ok, I'm a bit scared about Boss Tone Studio not being supported anymore one day, as a Mac user that's always a potential issue, similarly for the Tonex One editor). The Stadium would reduce that to one rig but I'd still keep the smaller board because it's kinda modular and I can add analog pedals at will. So there'd not be much to gain for me so far.

2. OK, obviously, there will be people who already have their rigs sorted out, who therefore don't need a shiny new product, who therefore will not buy said shiny new product. But this has been true of every shiny new product of every kind since the invention of consumerism. It's easier to sell a car to a dude who needs a car, for instance. And I think we can reasonably assume that there are some players out there who are still gearing up, and who might need some of what the Stadium brings to the table. Along with the (probably larger) pool of players who just want one on account of QoL improvements, fun-factor, etc.

Well, I don't disagree. But I know plenty of folks (myself included) who just don't hunt new stuff all the time. TGF and such, with everyone owning all 5 top tier modelers at once, aren't exactly representative. Many people just call it a day once the sound they were looking for is there and possibly add a dirt or FX pedal here and there but that was it.

P.S. And actually a third take-away: not worth $1800... we heard the same thing back when Helix launched (adjusted for inflation). I didn't think this held up to scrutiny then, nor now. It's not worth $1800 if you don't need it. (See above re: selling cars to dudes who need cars.) But if you do, there's a lot of functionality on offer and more to come.

While I said it's not worth €1.800, that possibly wasn't too accurate. In case you don't have any great modeling device yet but want/need one, it's possibly worth more than that. But in case you already have a working system, even if it's not the latest and greatest, you might just have no interest in forking out that much money for what might add little value.

Having said that, just around 2 weeks ago I went to a "test show" of a mate's band (selected friends only, happening on a rehearsal stage). He's playing a Kemper Stage. And well, his sound was almost phenomenal (pretty great player, too). I obviously had a little after show tech talk with him and he said he's got absolutely zero reasons to buy something else (he's pretty well informed about all things modeling). In fact, he also owns a Kemper toaster serving as a backup and as a recording device. I think he'll still be playing the same KPAs in 10 years to come. And as said, the sound was just great.

 

[mbenigni]

This a dickish comment. I just misremembered is all. No malicious intent.

Here’s DI’s post on the issue for anyone trying to clarify. It does not mention bugs being part of the equation.

Post in thread 'Line 6 Helix Stadium Pre-Launch Discussion'

Sep 5, 2025

Just posted this on Chad and Chris' FB Group:

Hey, everyone! Apologies for the occasional all caps.

Here's an OFFICIAL update on Helix Stadium XL:

• 1.0 firmware has been complete for a while. This is the firmware that gets burned into brand new units at the factory.
• Because regression testing, distribution, integration, and validation takes months, 1.0 will clearly be out of date by the time Helix Stadium XL units find their way into users' hands. Therefore, 1.1 firmware will be available on day one; it adds a ton of missing features, bug fixes, sonic improvements, and DSP...

• Digital Igloo

• 
• 
• 

I... think you guys are making the same argument?

 

[mbenigni]

Anyway, off to start a “why haven’t you bought a AM4 thread”

This sounds slightly passive-aggressive. But I have non-rhetorical answers to that one as well, and I love to hear myself type.

 

[MIJLOVER]

That's an interesting observation: that thus far, Line 6 appears to have fixed the one thing that was least broken.

Now Helix was broken? The only thing that upset me from time to time on OG Helix was the squirrels or note decay distortion. SO frustrating when I was sitting alone with it - made me avoid certain amps. And it’s completely gone on Agoura.

The fact they chose to make it even faster to use is a massive plus - the touch screen feels as responsive as a phone/tablet.

 

[mbenigni]

No. At least not yet. See, I have 2 boards that I'm absolutely fine with for all gigs to come for the next number of months. In fact, I'm so happy with how things work I could imagine to keep using them for a lot longer (ok, I'm a bit scared about Boss Tone Studio not being supported anymore one day, as a Mac user that's always a potential issue, similarly for the Tonex One editor). The Stadium would reduce that to one rig but I'd still keep the smaller board because it's kinda modular and I can add analog pedals at will. So there'd not be much to gain for me so far.



Well, I don't disagree. But I know plenty of folks (myself included) who just don't hunt new stuff all the time. TGF and such, with everyone owning all 5 top tier modelers at once, aren't exactly representative. Many people just call it a day once the sound they were looking for is there and possibly add a dirt or FX pedal here and there but that was it.



While I said it's not worth €1.800, that possibly wasn't too accurate. In case you don't have any great modeling device yet but want/need one, it's possibly worth more than that. But in case you already have a working system, even if it's not the latest and greatest, you might just have no interest in forking out that much money for what might add little value.

Having said that, just around 2 weeks ago I went to a "test show" of a mate's band (selected friends only, happening on a rehearsal stage). He's playing a Kemper Stage. And well, his sound was almost phenomenal (pretty great player, too). I obviously had a little after show tech talk with him and he said he's got absolutely zero reasons to buy something else (he's pretty well informed about all things modeling). In fact, he also owns a Kemper toaster serving as a backup and as a recording device. I think he'll still be playing the same KPAs in 10 years to come. And as said, the sound was just great.

tl;dr - You and your friend don't need a car. But can we agree that people often buy cars, and sometimes they buy new ones?

 

[mbenigni]

Now Helix was broken? The only thing that upset me from time to time on OG Helix was the squirrels or note decay distortion. SO frustrating when I was sitting alone with it - made me avoid certain amps. And it’s completely gone on Agoura.

The fact they chose to make it even faster to use is a massive plus - the touch screen feels as responsive as a phone/tablet.

Not my meaning at all. Helix has long been regarded as the industry leader in terms of UI/UX. I'm only pointing out the irony of Line 6 having done so much work on UI/UX improvements. You don't have to run defense on this one.

 

[Devin]

My lack of wanting one

 

[JiveTurkey]

 

[mikah912]

I don’t disagree with your statements, because a lot of it is just general, factual advise. But I will say that people should keep in mind that they’ve already hit a number higher than their predictions, which was higher than what Yamaha expected.

Stadium is already a success. And as time goes with perhaps increased selection of hardware and perhaps software offers, a bunch of people dismissing it now, will end up with some kind of current iteration of Line 6 device. It happened last gen, bet it’ll happen again.

Anyway, off to start a “why haven’t you bought a AM4 thread”

Great point that gets waaaaaaaay buried:

The Stadium Floor/XL is a massive success, and it'll continue to be. Pretty much instantly took the top spots on Sweetwater, and only the QC Mini has approached them (currently #2 in between the Stadiums at #1 and #3).

 

[Whizzinby]

This a dickish comment. I just misremembered is all. No malicious intent.

Here’s DI’s post on the issue for anyone trying to clarify. It does not mention bugs being part of the equation.

Post in thread 'Line 6 Helix Stadium Pre-Launch Discussion'

Sep 5, 2025

Just posted this on Chad and Chris' FB Group:

Hey, everyone! Apologies for the occasional all caps.

Here's an OFFICIAL update on Helix Stadium XL:

• 1.0 firmware has been complete for a while. This is the firmware that gets burned into brand new units at the factory.
• Because regression testing, distribution, integration, and validation takes months, 1.0 will clearly be out of date by the time Helix Stadium XL units find their way into users' hands. Therefore, 1.1 firmware will be available on day one; it adds a ton of missing features, bug fixes, sonic improvements, and DSP...

• Digital Igloo

• 
• 
• 

I wasn’t specifically responding to you. There were several comments above it touching on the same topic, so I was more broadly replying to the flow of discussion.

I’m commenting on the idea that L6 in some way created a poll asking “Hey, do you want the hardware now, but on an unstable FW version” versus asking people if they wanted the HW before Showcase was ready. I don’t think it’s entirely fair to deflect anything on to users unless Showcase timing is seemingly everyone’s gripe here?

 

[JiveTurkey]

 

[MIJLOVER]

Not at all. It’s so much fun to use already and I know where just scratching the surface, and we’ve ain’t seen nothing yet.

They’ve already been squashing quite a few bugs. Looking forward to getting more Agoura amps in March along with Proxy.

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

After reading this thread, my forehead is sore and red, just like the palm of my right hand.

 

[EOengineer]

I wasn’t specifically responding to you. There were several comments above it touching on the same topic, so I was more broadly replying to the flow of discussion.

I’m commenting on the idea that L6 in some way created a poll asking “Hey, do you want the hardware now, but on an unstable FW version” versus asking people if they wanted the HW before Showcase was ready. I don’t think it’s entirely fair to deflect anything on to users unless Showcase timing is seemingly everyone’s gripe here?

All good - I appreciate the correction even if not specifically pointed at me. The truth is important.

Nobody is happy about the bugs, including L6 I’m sure. It’s not a huge issue for me as I kind of expect this stuff with a new flagship on a new platform, but totally get why it’s throwing some folks off.

 

[mbenigni]

After reading this thread, my forehead is sore and red, just like the palm of my right hand.

 

[MIJLOVER]

Not my meaning at all. Helix has long been regarded as the industry leader in terms of UI/UX. I'm only pointing out the irony of Line 6 having done so much work on UI/UX improvements. You don't have to run defense on this one.

Buddy I remember you from the old days - I know you keep it real But I pointed out that I actually think the Agoura amp is as big of a jump as the UI, because I know that was probably your biggest gripe with the OG (maybe apart from your USB obsession)

 

[MIJLOVER]

Great point that gets waaaaaaaay buried:

The Stadium Floor/XL is a massive success, and it'll continue to be. Pretty much instantly took the top spots on Sweetwater, and only the QC Mini has approached them (currently #2 in between the Stadiums at #1 and #3).

I assume the floor will take over in the total compared to XL - mostly driven by price, but also form factor.

The XL is compact enough for me, it’s probably the best size-weight ratio to me.