HX Amp/Cab models vs IRs etc

ewal

Apologies if this has been covered in other Helix threads.

I'm just dialling in my recently bought Stomp XL which I got to replace an HX FX and beloved American Sound (such a cheap, simple and effective amp sim solution).

I'm not fussy amp sound wise - just a nice chimey Fender clean will do me. There's decent options there on the Stomp - got the US Princess sounding good and have previously used the US Deluxe and Double models. But alot of the other models don't really sound that useful?

Are there any gems I should be exploring and also is it worth exploring the IR route? And if so, where should I start with getting a decent IR? Create one from the American Sound? ;-)

mudslide73

I stopped using IRs when they redid the speaker interface. There's so much control you can make any of them sound good. @JohnCordy did a great video on this.

I'm a big fan of the mid gain Marshalls and their variants (Placater is good). I've found my sounds have really come on since the Dynamic Plate, Room and Hall reverbs were introduced too.

kennedydream1980

York Audio, instant satisfaction as far as IR’a go.

guitarmangler

I’ve always thought that gong down the IR route wold be a bit of a black hole for me, personally, so I’ve tried to stay away. That being said , I pretty much only use the the free ML Soundland ‘best IR in the world’ IR for everything. Have been meaning to see if I can get the helix to sound like it, will try over the weekend .

Musicwolf

mudslide73 said:

I stopped using IRs when they redid the speaker interface. There's so much control you can make any of them sound good. @JohnCordy did a great video on this.

Likewise.  Also, rather than chasing my tail with different cabs, I've set up two cabs in favourites called, imaginatively, 'Clean' and 'Rock' and I restrict myself to these as they work well through our PA system.

For amps my whole set list is based pretty much on US Deluxe Vib, Essex A30 and, occasionally, Cali Texas Ch2.  The only time that I use IRs is for acoustic simulation treating a piezo bridge.

Bats_

Since the cab engine update, I don’t think IR’s are needed with Helix kit now. 

Before, definitely but since the update the cabs are so much better and you have almost endless options unless you want a very specific IR. 

Make sure you’ve updated. 

ewal

I'm currently playing about a shortlist of Helix amp/cab models to see which ones stand out. Shortlist currently:

US Princess
GrammaticoLG Brt
USDeluxe Vib
Divided Duo
JazzRivet 120
Mandarin Rocker
Moo)))n Brt
Cali Texas 1
US Double Nrm
Who Watt 100
Matchstick 1

There's been a few surprises already - the Mandarin Rocker has a very nice big clean sound for example. Although the other thing is amp volume appears to vary between models, so need to be careful that I'm not attracted to a particular model just because it's louder. I'm going to whittle the short-list down, start to play about with what amp model goes with what guitar and pedal combination.

Up until I got the Stomp XL, I was really an any amp sound will do, as long as it's clean, with decent headroom sort of guy...

Heartfeltdawn

ewal said:

Apologies if this has been covered in other Helix threads.

I'm just dialling in my recently bought Stomp XL which I got to replace an HX FX and beloved American Sound (such a cheap, simple and effective amp sim solution).

I'm not fussy amp sound wise - just a nice chimey Fender clean will do me. There's decent options there on the Stomp - got the US Princess sounding good and have previously used the US Deluxe and Double models. But alot of the other models don't really sound that useful?

As I'm on a monster Smiths kick at the minute, my favourite chain on Native goes like this: 

Minotaur (mono) -> JC-120 on the left chain, Twin Normal on the right --> mono Deluxe Comp --> stereo Chorus --> stereo Dynamic Room --> stereo Graphic EQ with 8khz and 16khz right down. 

It's a zingy combination. Absolutely loving it. Won't be able to run this on the Stomp XL that will be with me next month but no matter, I have pedals. I found having the compressor after the amps helped. Yes it's a mess in terms of stereo and summing to mono but it works and that is all that matters

fretmeister

The recent ish cab update is so good that I hardly ever use third party IRs anymore.

In fact I only use 2 now, a Celestion own G12-65, and one of Marco Fanton’s Mesa 412 with V30.

 But the stock cabs are now my go to.