Line 6 HX. New effects unit.

[fretmeister]

 

 

 

No bass specific demos yet but with the 2.5 update both the Helix and Hx will have all the legacy fx from the M series of multi effects including loads more compressors and filters and synths. There’s tons of drives in there and the HX can load IRs as well.

 

RRP is £540

 

GuitarGuitar are showing then at £440. Looks to be superb value. Nice and compact too.

[CameronJ]

This is dangerous. Still a good number of Ins & Outs, all the effects but none of the amp sim stuff. Gah!

[jposega]

Super tempting. 

[Al Krow]

2 hours ago, CameronJ said:

This is dangerous. Still a good number of Ins & Outs, all the effects but none of the amp sim stuff. Gah!

Hah, who needs amp sims when you have decent amp?

But it is indeed dangerous and looks like being a really interesting upgrade for a Zoom B3n without being any bigger.

Here's my query: multifx is great for chorus, delay, tremolo and flange and of course being a tuner.

But how good is Line 6 multi for the trickier stuff: filter, octave tracking (low and without latency), compression and dirt? Be really good to hear how it (genuinely) stacks up against the best analogue pedals in these four areas?

 

[jposega]

42 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

But how good is Line 6 multi for the trickier stuff: filter, octave tracking (low and without latency), compression and dirt? Be really good to hear how it (genuinely) stacks up against the best analogue pedals in these four areas?

1

This is indeed a great question. 

Honestly, I'd use it more like many people us a pair of Eventide H9's... octave-up and harmonizer, my dirt boxes and filter in the first FX loop, delays and other stuff after that, and then the second FX loop for... I dunno. Just the fact that it costs less than 2 H9's and can do WAY more than the single-algorithm at a time that each H9 can do makes this extremely tempting because what I really want a multi for is modulations, time-based effects, and other weird stuff. If it has decent compression/limiting and dirt in it, then to me that's just a bonus. 

[CameronJ]

43 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

Hah, who needs amp sims when you have decent amp?

But it is indeed dangerous and looks like being a really interesting upgrade for a Zoom B3n without being any bigger.

Here's my query: multifx is great for chorus, delay, tremolo and flange and of course being a tuner.

But how good is Line 6 multi for the trickier stuff: filter, octave tracking (low and without latency), compression and dirt? Be really good to hear how it (genuinely) stacks up against the best analogue pedals in these four areas?

 

Trust me, I’d be keeping my beloved harem of octavers as I doubt the helix (in any form) can touch them.

[fretmeister]

I sold my octaves when I got my Helix. 

I kept 1, the mxr just so I’ve got a small board for easy carry. 

[Al Krow]

1 hour ago, CameronJ said:

Trust me, I’d be keeping my beloved harem of octavers as I doubt the helix (in any form) can touch them.

 

45 minutes ago, fretmeister said:

I sold my octaves when I got my Helix. 

I kept 1, the mxr just so I’ve got a small board for easy carry. 

Ok that represents a **slight** difference of opinion! 

[fretmeister]

I’ve got one. 

Dont know if CameronJ has.

 

[Al Krow]

Just checked -  if it can nail the octave down without latency, I'm defo interested - and am disappointed that it has no headphone out; no aux in and no DI out.

Three annoying / limiting omissions from my perspective.

Edited January 28, 2018 by Al Krow

[fretmeister]

Assumption: the helix can use any input for anything. Including iPod in type uses so I’m assuming the HX will do that.

 

I’d be disappointed if it can’t. I’ll ask on the Feb group. The guys that designed it are in there.

[CameronJ]

It’s true, the Helixes can make any of their inputs and outputs be whatever you want them to be, routing wise. And I believe all the outputs can be configured to put out instrument or line level.

It would have been nice to see at least one physical XLR out though.

 

[jposega]

The manual is up on Line 6s site. I definitely need one of these...

[Musicman20]

Well the prices are all over the place. £440 is a good price. £540 isn't.

I'll have one at £440 as I didn't need all the Helix amp models and I actually didn't want to go FRFR powered cab with modelling (I like my physical amps).

[fretmeister]

£540 is about 60% of a proper Helix LT. I think that's pretty good really.

 

If the new reverbs are up to Strymon levels then even at £540 it's going to look like cracking value for money.

[CameronJ]

Considering I can fit more than £540 worth of pedals onto a Pedaltrain Nano, the HX isn’t bad at all.

[Al Krow]

Hah! The subject of crazy pedal prices came up on the DG AO Ultra thread - so I worked out what my gigging mini board cost to put together and it came to exactly £540**, including the cost of the PT Nano+ board:

**Ok most of that was second hand and it doesn't include the Ciocks DC5 sitting snugly beneath  

Edited January 29, 2018 by Al Krow

[BassBus]

15 hours ago, Al Krow said:

Hah, who needs amp sims when you have decent amp?

But it is indeed dangerous and looks like being a really interesting upgrade for a Zoom B3n without being any bigger.

Here's my query: multifx is great for chorus, delay, tremolo and flange and of course being a tuner.

But how good is Line 6 multi for the trickier stuff: filter, octave tracking (low and without latency), compression and dirt? Be really good to hear how it (genuinely) stacks up against the best analogue pedals in these four areas?

 

Here's how I've used the filter with a bass. Delay into particle reverb into filter.

14 hours ago, CameronJ said:

Trust me, I’d be keeping my beloved harem of octavers as I doubt the helix (in any form) can touch them.

A wise move. Depends how you want to use octave/pitch effects. I find Helix pitch effects a bit glitchy. They are not polyphonic either if that's what you want. I have Micro POG and Pitch Fork in send/return loops and they work very well with it.

[Al Krow]

Maybe @tonyxtiger can beat the £440 guitarguitar price if we can get enough interest together between us?

Ah...just seen @BassBus's post. If the Helix is glitchy on octave down and doesn't compare to the best octavers, then I'm guessing that it may well not stack up against the best filters, compressors or dirt pedals either i.e. all the stuff that is difficult to nail digitally. But hey, that's to be expected it's asking a lot of a single £540 / £440 pedal to be able to compete with dedicated analogue pedals that are focussing on doing just one thing really well.

I guess I really need to hear one of these Helix's in action before taking the plunge. 

Edited January 29, 2018 by Al Krow

[Quatschmacher]

16 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

Maybe @tonyxtiger can beat the £440 guitarguitar price if we can get enough interest together between us?

Ah...just seen @BassBus's post. If the Helix is glitchy on octave down and doesn't compare to the best octavers, then I'm guessing that it may well not stack up against the best filters, compressors or dirt pedals either i.e. all the stuff that is difficult to nail digitally. But hey, that's to be expected it's asking a lot of a single £540 / £440 pedal to be able to compete with dedicated analogue pedals that are focussing on doing just one thing really well.

I guess I really need to hear one of these Helix's in action before taking the plunge. 

Fxpedalrentals.com is no longer trading at present. Darren’s other business required more time and energy so he needed to stop (at least for the present time). That being said, he may still be able to negotiate something. 

[Dood]

I keep coming back and looking at HX.  I absolutely know that I haven't spent enough time with LT yet, but I still wonder if the HX would be a better option for my current gigging needs. Or, albeit a rather lavish option, it would make a rather cool mini rig. 

[tonyxtiger]

On 29/01/2018 at 10:10, Al Krow said:

Maybe @tonyxtiger can beat the £440 guitarguitar price if we can get enough interest together between us?

Ah...just seen @BassBus's post. If the Helix is glitchy on octave down and doesn't compare to the best octavers, then I'm guessing that it may well not stack up against the best filters, compressors or dirt pedals either i.e. all the stuff that is difficult to nail digitally. But hey, that's to be expected it's asking a lot of a single £540 / £440 pedal to be able to compete with dedicated analogue pedals that are focussing on doing just one thing really well.

I guess I really need to hear one of these Helix's in action before taking the plunge. 

I don’t have an account with those guys so I’d not be able to help at this point. I can explore it tho. 

As Quatsmacher says, I’m not offering rentals at the moment due to time constraints but I’m exploring a way of bringing a larger range for rental in the future so watch this space... 

In the meantime The reverb page is running sales and I’ll put preorders up for the dUg pre soon. 

[Al Krow]

5 hours ago, dood said:

I keep coming back and looking at HX.  I absolutely know that I haven't spent enough time with LT yet, but I still wonder if the HX would be a better option for my current gigging needs. Or, albeit a rather lavish option, it would make a rather cool mini rig. 

Have you posted your fabled mini board yet?!

[Dood]

2 hours ago, Al Krow said:

Have you posted your fabled mini board yet?!

I think you've pointed out and maybe made me realise I have a problem! Overwhelmed by GAS!! - The mini board did exist for a short while. But it's demise I blame on my local music shop offering Helix LT for interest free credit. Mini board has since been consigned to the To Do list and I haven't used it since. But so far, LT hasn't had a fair share of really being used yet either. Two projects never happened and really it's overkill for my function band.. hmmm... or maybe it isn't, I just need to spend more time with it ha ha!! My mind wanders and thinks, "well instead of a big board and a little board why don't I just settle on one medium sized board instead?" - Which could have been the B3n, Boss MS or of course now HXFX. Deciding between each as there's at least one pedal I will always keep at the start of my chain. 

Maybe this isn't a post for the effects forum, but I suspect that my inability to be happy with my gear is due to the short lived fix of new toys... I have zero problems with basses. My Go To bass is spot on. Pedals? oh dear me! 

[Al Krow]

@fretmeister

Any further news / update on the HX. 

You gave the Line 6 a big thumbs up as an octaver (down). Really interested to know what it's like at polyphonic octave up? If it knocks the socks off the EHX POG2 and comes close to emulating an 8 string bass, that would make it a very interesting proposition for me.