Helix LT is now available for order. Cut down version - ish.

stickyfiddle

Sporky said:

stickyfiddle said:

I'm slightly confused about the switches. The blurb says it has 8 stomp switches where the full-fat Helix has 10, but both units actually have 12 switches. Is it that more of these can be customised in the full version, whereas the end pairs on the LT are fixed as Bank up/down and Mode/Tap? 

I believe you are correct.

Full-fat Helix lets you use the two leftmost switches for control, looks like LT does not.

Ta. Don't imagine I'll need 10 at once, so probably not a problem. 

Bridgehouse

Sporky said:

Music's over-rated.

Tinkering.

That is the future.

There's a lot of guitar music I hear that sounds like tinkering....

gearaddict

My current pedalboard doesn't have anything particularly high end on it...

Diago pedalboard - £105
Marshall echohead - £79
Crybaby  GCB95 - £89
MXR micro amp - £94
DS1 (ok, modded) - £60?
Joyo tremolo - £29
Morpheus droptune - £100
Zakk Wylde phaser - £84
Snark tuner pedal - £40
1-spot PSU - £35
Cables and velcro and stuff - £50?

Total cost = £765

Plus I have a load of pedals knocking around in the cupboard and  a Pod HD500X (£400+ new) which would deffo be surplus to requirements if I got a Helix.

Wow...I really didn't expect it to add up to that much!

The problem with this logic though, is that I probably wouldn't sell everything if I bought a Helix. So I would end up owning all that stuff PLUS the Helix.

sweepy

It is a neat bit of kit but I can imagine many kicking themselves a few months down the line that they didn't get the " Full Fat" Helix .I see the analogy as buying a base model car and finding it to be a pita on motorways when for a little more you could have had the better engine etc 

guitarfishbay

fretmeister said:

I've never been one to not use an amp of FX block because the name was wrong.

Before the Pearce BC1 model appeared I was getting very close to it by blending a 5150 and a fuzz with some interesting EQ choices. I've got a real Ampeg SVP-BSP (which is Ampeg's version of the BC1 albeit with some control parameters missing / baked in) and the modeled version is better. Not only is there more control, the real BC1 and the Ampeg are right hissy bastards at full gain. The Ampeg has a noise gate but it is far too harsh.

The model is still a bit hissy at full throttle but the levels are so much lower. Then add the Helix own gate and it's close to perfect. I'm even thinking about selling the SVP-BSP now.

The L6 Litigator amp model is great on bass too - it's a bit like an old Bassman but with a slightly different flavour to it. It's a cracker.

Yeah similar stuff with me and the Fractal.  I used to have a Dual Rec, multiple 4x12s, several of the standard guitar mics etc... I find I'm preferring the results with the Fractal and it's way faster and I can do it at a sensible volume.  I honestly sold all my guitar gear except for my favourite cabinets and my barebones pedalboard (and I've loaned out a few of those pedals).

I've still not found anything that covers all the bass gear (sounds) I want to but I'm sure it's only a matter of time - be it L6, Fractal, or other.

Teetonetal

sweepy said:

It is a neat bit of kit but I can imagine many kicking themselves a few months down the line that they didn't get the " Full Fat" Helix .I see the analogy as buying a base model car and finding it to be a pita on motorways when for a little more you could have had the better engine etc 

Well I am kicking myself (sort of) for not waiting. It has all of the bits of a helix I use, and none of the bits I don't and it's 30% less.

sw67

This has got me interested. I wouldn't replace my pedal board as someone has fell on my pedals at least 3 times at gigs and i wouldn't relax with a £800 multi fx in front of me. It would make a nice partner for my Roland JC22 for home use.

sweepy

It will be interesting to see how it fares after a few months, I have a feeling that there will be a fair few on the s/h market pretty quickly as there was tbh with the Helix 

Teetonetal

sweepy said:

It will be interesting to see how it fares after a few months, I have a feeling that there will be a fair few on the s/h market pretty quickly as there was tbh with the Helix 

It doesn't feel like the S/H market has been particularly awash with helix in recent months? The v2 software made a big difference and I think it's now pretty established that Line 6 will be spending time on it (LT and native helps that)

Though, I'd be happy If I could pick one up for 400 GBP in a years time...

Voxman

Bridgehouse said:

And if @Voxman isn't convinced now, I'm going to take up fishing and join Carp Talk.

Re 'convinced' - I think Helix is great, good pedigree company, very well built, great tone/features - but from what I've read it was released with a lot of bugs with a few still being sorted. And at £1200 it is expensive (I'm not necessarily saying over-priced, just expensive), and it's quite heavy.  I have no real issue with the weight, but I'd only be interested if the new price came down to around £900.  The LT doesn't interest me.

In the meantime, here you go mate, knock yourself out! 

Bridgehouse

@Voxman - why doesn't the LT interest you?

Heartfeltdawn

I lost all interest in fishing once Stillwater Trout Angler magazine folded. 

welshboyo

Voxman said:

Bridgehouse said:

And if @Voxman isn't convinced now, I'm going to take up fishing and join Carp Talk.

Re 'convinced' - I think Helix is great, good pedigree company, very well built, great tone/features - but from what I've read it was released with a lot of bugs with a few still being sorted. And at £1200 it is expensive (I'm not necessarily saying over-priced, just expensive), and it's quite heavy.  I have no real issue with the weight, but I'd only be interested if the new price came down to around £900.  The LT doesn't interest me.

In the meantime, here you go mate, knock yourself out! 

Bugs? - yes, a few very early on..

I have gigged mine well over a 100 times now and apart from me being a total idiot it has not once showed any evidence of a "bug" - I think you need to read more recent reports...FW 2 + has drastically altered things.

Why doesn't the LT interest you - what do you feel is missing from the LT?

mixolyd

Price is much more attractive than the original Helix, if still a little nosebleedy but hey it is a lot of unit.  

All they have to do now is make it sound as good as the Kemper and I'm in!

sweepy

You said the K word and I thought I was being good by not mentioning the F word, you scamp  

fretmeister

mixolyd said:

Price is much more attractive than the original Helix, if still a little nosebleedy but hey it is a lot of unit.  

All they have to do now is make it sound as good as the Kemper and I'm in!

I don't think L6 have any plans to cripple it to Kemper levels.

mixolyd

sweepy said:

You said the K word and I thought I was being good by not mentioning the F word, you scamp  

Life's too short to be good! 

sweepy

Musicians rarely buy music gear with their heads, its going to be an interesting Journey for Line 6, hopefully they will treat it as a premium product as the profit margin on the LT must be immense in comparison to the Helix and reinvest it in some other interesting products

UnclePsychosis

guitarfishbay said:

Heartfeltdawn said:

fretmeister said:

1 sales conversion in 11 = bankruptcy in the long run.

Bankruptcy in the long run with 1 in 11, no doubt, but I don't know his exact sales conversion so can't judge on that front. What can be judged is that a small company selling some fairly exclusive products has survived and thrived despite a really shitty recession and have gone on to develop new stuff.

And again Sporky is repeating the same story from years ago (by his own admission), as if it still applies today now that he's no longer in the market having made his choice.

Well, to be fair, it seems lots of the Fractal fanatics (not necessarily here) are also repeating their stories from years ago where Fractal weren't competing with astoundingly good alternatives available at approximately £1000 less, backed by giants like Yamaha / Line6.

The market has changed significantly. Companies don't always deal well with change. Lets hope Fractal adapt because choice is good for us consumers.

 

guitarfishbay

UnclePsychosis said:

Well, to be fair, it seems lots of the Fractal fanatics (not necessarily here) are also repeating their stories from years ago where Fractal weren't competing with astoundingly good alternatives available at approximately £1000 less, backed by giants like Yamaha / Line6.

The market has changed significantly. Companies don't always deal well with change. Lets hope Fractal adapt because choice is good for us consumers.

Well since the Helix was announced the Axe FX 2 has had 7 major firmware releases, 35 new amp models, re-modeled and updated all drive pedals, new FX including compressors updated delays etc.

While there's been no headline grabbing new hardware unit, the software updates have been great IMO.