It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Subscribe to our Patreon, and get image uploads with no ads on the site!
Base theme by DesignModo & ported to Powered by Vanilla by Chris Ireland, modified by the "theFB" team.
Comments
View my feedback at www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/comment/1201922
Clarky might well be a Fractal Fan but it's in his interests to get the Helix working for him too. I'm a Fractal fan but I still want to try Helix native for myself as it has some bass stuff not in the Fractal gear. Quite a few guys have already tried both Helix and Fractal, so I'm not seeing much "perceived wisdom" really
I find the Helix is much quicker to get a usable sound with. The Fractal when I had one took way too long to get the sounds I wanted, and I found the low-end was always very difficult to control.
I also really appreciate the simplicity of the available controls. The amps just sound more like real amps right out of the gate to me.
Can't say I've struggled with low end, I've heard it but never struggled to dial it out or tighten it up.
I will agree that UI on Helix is immense and I got some nice stuff out of it, not as keen on those tones as I am with the Fractal though.
View my feedback at www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/comment/1201922
Let me know what you think.
I find the Axe FX very easy to dial in quickly for my tastes. The main thing I've preferred consistently vs Helix clips is the low end. The Helix high gain amp bass seems wider but less punchy, like it's either got less transient, or it's hitting at a deeper frequency. That probably does make it easier to control. I remember either band passing/low passing all the .wavs in the comparison we did and thinking the order of punch was Amp - Fractal - Line 6. But that's less about the deeper low end more upper bass I guess.
Regardless I use EMGs so I doubt I'd have deep low end issues on anything, they chop off most of the sub at source for dat tightness.
There have been a ton of videos comparing them. Those ones Mitch Baker did were responsible for a lot of the Fractal guys sitting up and taking notice of the Helix. If you go back and watch those videos, quite a few of the models sounded better on the Helix than the Fractal. The Recto sounded way better on the Fractal though, so it's by no means a rule.
I still prefer a real amp for recording though.
There have been bass and clean to mid-gain sounds I've thought sounded great on the Helix. The main reason I want to try Native is the bass gear.
It came down to feel for me, I expect a tight thud when I do palm muted arpeggios. And a clean and full bodied saturation for chords. For clean sounds, I like bell like tones, like a sustained piano. The Axe FX delivered the feel I wanted.
I think the key is that we're all looking for something different.
View my feedback at www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/comment/1201922
I've seen a good few shootouts on YouTube that show you can dial them for similar sounds - so it's purely personal preference.
Describing a tone as "superior" suggests it's quantifiable - how did you quantify the axe fx versus the helix?
Interestingly, I listened to an ac30 and ac15 comparison between the units and the helix definitely sounded better as-is. Once the afx was dialled in (which took a bit more effort iirc) they sounded absolutely identical. Of course, it's YouTube so...
I think it's fair to say most people are beyond saying one sounds better than the other - it's about what works for the individual.
Having owned an AC30 combo, and a Rectifier half stack, the Axe FX models sound like they should and are easy to dial in for my tastes.
I dont actually think many people are well placed to do a good neutral comparison, whether by imbalance of experience with each unit or by personal motivation (wanting X to beat Y). Plus the methodology is impossible to make totally fair - if you pick a comparison IR it's likely to favour the stock voicing of one sim over the other anyway, meaning all dials the same isn't that useful.
I thought the comparison Drew did was about as fair as it could be made, assuming that I don't suck that is (I dialled in the Axe FX patches).
@Drew_TNBD I've heard those clips before and definitely passed comment on it elsewhere, great video and congratulations on some sterling work :-) My two pence, I think the real thing sounds the best and the Helix sounds great too. I don't tune down to C and tend to stay in standard tuning, mostly and don't have to deal with such low frequencies usually - so my use case is slightly different.
View my feedback at www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/comment/1201922
Interestingly, I loved (seriously) the ac30 model on the pod farm software (probably similar to a pod 2?). Perhaps it's relatively easy to model? The feel wasn't quite there, but old school foo fighters and generally great sounds were there.
I agree about comparing them - it's almost pointless. It either works or it doesn't - if someone offered me a straight swap for my pedal board and amp for a helix I'd have it as it sounds great and is easily used. I'd do the same for an axe fx or kemper to be fair!
Yeah everyone's a troll....