Bought A Line 6 HX Stomp.........................

[Jeffblue]

I have owned TC Electronics G System and Nova System and I liked them a lot. But I really like my Art SGX-2000 and SGX-2000 Express and I will never let them go. I have learned much about effects/preamps with these units. My favorite presets are Blackface Twins and '51 Tweed Vibrolux so I wrote down the EQ settings for these. I then set all of my EQ settings to either one of these and I like it.

I then attempted to add these EQ settings to the HX Stomp and to my ears, is much improved and more amp-like and realistic. Some of the effects and amp modeling seem just a little harsh and in need of tweaking.

[Sirion]

Re: Bought A Line 6 HX Stomp.........................

I have both the G-System and the HX Effects. I really like the sound of the latter, but it doesn't really work that well with my main amp, so I am holding out for the day when I find a loop that works well with it. The HX Effects sound very respectable, though, and is much more versatile. You may not get 100% there, but I have found that in many cases you can do a lot by adding an EQ to individual effect, as you say. Both units are more than good enough for me not to want to bother with pedals.

[Despair]

Re: Bought A Line 6 HX Stomp.........................

The Helix amp modelling is actually excellent, though it does lean more raw, compared to Fractal Audio's Axe-Fx in particular which tends to a smoother idealized amp sound. But you can get to the same places with either. Key is the speaker cab/mic settings. Ribbon mics tend to run fatter/less harsh, especially when backed further from the cab, in Helix's cab models.

Main issue I have with Helix is Line 6 seems to like to shoot their cab models with the mics aimed at the brightest, harshest point on the speaker. Hopefully a future update adds angled & off-axis mic location options to make the builtin models more useful.

But for now, I tend to prefer to use Impulse Responses, which sidesteps the whole issue AND offers ability to change IR with snapshots, so same amp can use 8 different speaker/mic/EQ settings in one patch. Which can be as subtle as shifting mic position and angle for more treble, to entirely switching from a twin P12N for cleans, to Alnico Cream for smooth midrange, a V30 4x12 for modern mid-focus, or a G12H30-55 for classic barky dark mids with a present bite.

You can get a bundle of free IRs from Line 6 at https://line6.com/allure/. Most IR sellers have a sample up on their website, though many of them are not representative, or of a particular speaker that may or may not appeal.

I tend to like Celestion Plus IRs, particularly the "High Gain All" [All mics] options for most of their speakers, but I'd suggest waiting for their big sales, though they do have a free sample up, I didn't think the sample was remotely as good as their own. The Suhr collection is a great place to start, a bit beefier than Celestion's standard cabs. Most Celestion Plus IRs run a bit bright, tend to slot well into mixes. The Suhrs are just a bit warmer so stand up better by themselves.

Ownhammer gets a lot of props, especially their "412 MRBW GNR M25 MMMC" set. Which is an amazing all-around G12M25 cabinet. Tend to require post-EQ more often to sit in mix, but in exchange are often more satisfying and less fussy solo.

[Despair]

Re: Bought A Line 6 HX Stomp.........................

Oh, forgot to mention the obvious downside of IRs for Stomp users: It eats up one of your 6 slots in a patch. Learning how to get close to the sound you like with the builtin cab models, by tweaking mic position and the high & low cut built into the cab, will help for single pedal grab & go situations. You can change mic distance, hi/low cut freqs, early reflection percent and level with snapshots, too, though sadly not the mic or speaker cab.

Oh, I think the Stomp only has ready access to 3 snaps, due to form factor issues (though more may be accessible with external footswitches/MIDI CC).

If you are using the HX Stomp as a recording interface, you may want to look into Helix Native (plugin version of the Helix... Spring patch is going to offer a mode with more simultaneous effects than you can do with any of the hardware units... If you have a fast enough computer). There's a discount for Helix hardware owners, which I believe stacks with the periodic 30% off sales Line 6 offers on their software.

[Jeffblue]

Re: Bought A Line 6 HX Stomp.........................

Thank you for all of that, you are more experienced than I. I need to learn about IR's and how to use them. I am an old school guy trying to understand and utilize all of these new technologies. I appreciate any information that can get me there. I like running these new technology effects into vacuum tubs amps and analog pedals. Trying to achieve the best of both worlds.

[LesStrat]

Re: Bought A Line 6 HX Stomp.........................

A bassist friend of mine recently got the Stomp.

I've been a Helix Floor user going on 2 years.