Talk Me Into a Helix Stomp (or out of it!)

[Higgie]

2 hours ago, danny-79 said:

Even better  

There's a few things it's not brilliant at, but the number of things it is good at, far outweighs the things it isn't. I wasn't particularly keen on the octave effect so I kept my Octamizers, but the amp sims, cabinet sims, EQs, drives, modulation, delays, reverbs, plus eliminating the need for a DI and tuner make it a must have for me. Stereo outs, a couple of FX loops to integrate some of your other pedals, AND the possibility of MIDI control if you fancy going that way - It really is a super useful and well thought out product.

The way my setup has evolved, I probably could have done it cheaper if I just went with the HX Rack and a controller at the beginning. But what started out as a pretty compact setup with the Stomp, soon evolved into a MIDI controlled monster. By combining it with some of my other pedals, and the ML5/MC8 combo from Morningstar, I can program presets, or turn individual pedals on and off, as well as control different settings, presets and patches in the Stomp, all from one pedal. 

[Naigewron]

HX Stomp has been my only pedal for the past year (well, the Stomp and a few utility pedals to control it). It's a great platform, and it's really flexible.

I'm moving on to an HX Effects as of this week, because my primary need these days is something to go in front of my amp, and I want more footswitches and easier programmability, but I have nothing bad to say about the HX Stomp. The main downside is its lack of switches, which is why I've had to expand it as much as I have, but if you can live with that and create cleverly designed presets and snapshots, you're golden.

Here's my pedalboard as it stands today, and is getting ripped apart and rebuilt with an HX Effects within a few days. I'll happily claim that you can't beat this amount of flexibility in such a compact setup.

Edited May 26, 2021 by Naigewron

[SumOne]

This forum is dangerous. I had no intention of getting a Stomp but now I'm considering if it's worth selling my Tuner, Compressor, EQ, DI/Preamp to fund one. Basically they are the pedals that don't need too much switching on/off and are things the Stomp does well so they can be replaced without the need of buying additional footswitches.

 

Edit: I'm about to put 8 pedals up for sale on here to get a Stomp, I wasn't planning on doing that yesterday! I'm getting a bit addicted to buying/selling/returning pedals for very marginal gains so I'm hoping to follow in the footsteps of @javi_bassist and simplify things and get out of the habit. 

Edited May 28, 2021 by SumOne

[javi_bassist]

2 hours ago, SumOne said:

This forum is dangerous. I had no intention of getting a Stomp but now I'm considering if it's worth selling my Tuner, Compressor, EQ, DI/Preamp to fund one. Basically they are the pedals that don't need too much switching on/off and are things the Stomp does well so they can be replaced without the need of buying additional footswitches.

 

Edit: I'm about to put 8 pedals up for sale on here to get a Stomp, I wasn't planning on doing that yesterday! I'm getting a bit addicted to buying/selling/returning pedals for very marginal gains so I'm hoping to follow in the footsteps of @javi_bassist and simplify things and get out of the habit. 

When I got the Stomp I thought that I would go back to pedals in a year or less. Even my girlfriend told me that was going to happen. However, my interest in pedals is still 0. I kept some pedals I like, but I haven't used in a while. And the good thing is that. if I think about some sound that I want to try, I don't have to wait until I buy another pedal. It is likely to be already in the HX Stomp. It is not perfect, but for its price and the size of three regular pedals, it's now a must for me.

[fretmeister]

I have a Helix rack and I think it is the single best bit of kit I have bought in 35 years of playing.

Amazingly versatile, brilliant for thrashing out new ideas and brilliant for proper recording.

I love it.

[WinterMute]

2 hours ago, javi_bassist said:

When I got the Stomp I thought that I would go back to pedals in a year or less. Even my girlfriend told me that was going to happen. However, my interest in pedals is still 0. I kept some pedals I like, but I haven't used in a while. And the good thing is that. if I think about some sound that I want to try, I don't have to wait until I buy another pedal. It is likely to be already in the HX Stomp. It is not perfect, but for its price and the size of three regular pedals, it's now a must for me.

I kept my old Boss Bass Chorus, nothing sound quite like it, otherwise everything else went when I got the original Pod XT, now the Stomp is my main unit. I think if you have interesting and unusual pedals in your collection they should work well with the Stomp's abilities.

[SumOne]

@Naigewronis there a reason you kept the tuner on the board? Is it so that stomp switch can just be used for other things? 

[SumOne]

Another thing with the stomp downsizing: I might eventually go all out and also sell my Bass amp and cab to get an active PA speaker that the Stomp amp & cab sims would hopefully make sound good. 

[Naigewron]

19 minutes ago, SumOne said:

@Naigewronis there a reason you kept the tuner on the board? Is it so that stomp switch can just be used for other things? 

That's exactly why, yes

[WinterMute]

6 hours ago, SumOne said:

Another thing with the stomp downsizing: I might eventually go all out and also sell my Bass amp and cab to get an active PA speaker that the Stomp amp & cab sims would hopefully make sound good. 

I've done exactly that, I downsized from a Barefaced Big Twin and a Crown XLS1500 amp with the XT pod Pro to a stomp with a QSC K12.2 which is just a brilliant solution for studio monitoring and even small gigs should I ever go back there.