So I bought a Helix...

    I had a GC 20% off coupon and decided to buy a Helix a few weeks ago. I was thinking, and maybe if I'm honest, hoping that I could replace my KPA and Remote with a single unit and make my rig that much simpler.


    I wanted to like it. I really did. The build quality is amazing - like a tank. The pedals with the scribble strips and color coding is awesome. The interface on the pedal is pretty good. The computer interface/editor is everything I wanted it to be.


    The problem came down to the amp models themselves. The Line 6 really just didn't hold up compared to the KPA. It wasn't bad at all. I have nothing bad to say about it. It's just that to my ears the KPA rigs just sound better.


    If Kemper would make an editor that's as good as the Line6, to me, it would be almost perfect. I'd still love to simplify to a single unit...but I'll manage with the toaster + remote. I'd still love to see effects plugins, but that's not even close to a deal breaker.


    So, it's not a detailed review, but I've spent two weeks with the Helix now. It's head and shoulders above Line6's previous offerings...and I wouldn't fault anyone for buying it. It has a lot of excellent features that I'd love to see from Kemper, including some excellent effects. That said, the amps tones have to be great for me to keep it.


    The Helix is shipping back next week.

    Not to talk you out of your decision, but did you try any third party cabinet IR's with the Helix before coming to your conclusion? I had heard quite a few folks found success with Ownhammer IR's.

    Husband, Father, Pajama Enthusiast

    Like 1
    Quote from schneidas

    Interesting, thanks!
    How did you like the Helix Fx?


    The effects were pretty decent...Line6 does good delays and choruses. I'd prefer analog delays but since my goal is simplicity, I'm living with the internal effects on the KPA (and would with the Line6, too). The flanger/phaser effects are so-so. Compressor options are good. Overdrives/gain effects are decent. Wah is okay. Reverbs are decent, too.


    I'd say the effects get an edge over the KPA overall.


    As for the Ownhammer - I tried a couple of the free IRs...they helped, but I still found the KPA rigs to be better. Maybe I'll give things one more go today...

    The routing possibilities in the Helix are much more evolved tho. Whatever routing you've in mind you can achieve, and even some you've never thought of LOL
    You can for example independently route the delay's wet signal, hence processing just it the way you want, while the dry signal can have its own routing. You can theoretically have 4 independent lines from any inputs to any outputs, and process for example a drum machine in stereo, your vocals and your guitar. You can assign any parameter to any pedal or switch (be it latching or momentary). All the I\O is fully active at any time, so you can do crazy things with a signal coming from the USB port mixed with your instruments...


    A completely different concept from the Profiler, and the current state of the art indeed when it comes to logistics\usage\routing.
    Also, on L6's site there's a blind test between the models and the original, modelled units. I had a hard time perceiving any difference TBH, even tho my ears are not the best in town...
    Note: the low-pass filter is set to 20 kHz by default on all blocks. Setting it to 5-10 kHz would improve the sound of any cab (be it modelled or IR) and is indeed suggested by the L6 crew.


    Like the Profiler, it's a complex, professional machine you must get to know well in order to get the best out of IMO.


    Not to say that the Profiler sounds any worse tho :D

    You're quite right that it has options beyond what the KPA has. Part of my thing is that I want simple...that's what brought me to the Kemper in the first place. I had an Axe FX II and it was a fantastic piece of gear...but I found I spent way too much time tweaking and not enough time actually playing.


    I would never bash the Axe II as I recognize that it is indeed pretty awesome...but it's just not for me.


    The Helix may or may not be, either. I decided after some comments to give it another couple of days. :)

    Quote from mightypudge

    Not to talk you out of your decision, but did you try any third party cabinet IR's with the Helix before coming to your conclusion? I had heard quite a few folks found success with Ownhammer IR's.


    I had the L6 Helix, and yes the Ownhammer IRs made it sound much better. Sold mine and now run 2 KPAs. The simply sound and feel better.

    Shaw


    -- ἢ τὰν ἢ ἐπὶ τᾶς

    Like 2

    Allow an old man to share his experience. I have both the Kemper and the Helix at the moment. Started playing out in 1973. Rock, country, metal, etc. lots of bands. I've managed a music store and i always been a tone tech junkie.
    I started running things line direct back in late 80's, experimenting with various speaker sims, eq's, etc. I finally hit upon what for me was a combination that sounded like a really good miced up amp. For many years now i have been using a Rocktron progap version 1 & 2.... both of which are digitally controlled analog preamps running their full range output into digitech gsp21's for their eq, effects and speaker sim, plus having a foot controller that allows you to store patches and still stomp box fx on/off with settings for that patch. What I achieved and what i always hated about every other thing I tried; and believe me, I have tried everything from prophecy to everything line 6 , Roland, boss, etc was that while all were capable of making some decent clean tones, the distorted ones always had a fizz. You could eq it out, but something was missing from the tone.
    This gear I run is almost as old as me and, make no mistake, it IS going to die. I have always looked for that one piece to replace all of it, I had an AxeFx ultra and II. Good but still not any better tonewise than my old gear when ran through the pa. They left the premises. I started picking up extra pieces of my gear off EBay as backups.
    I saw demos online of the kemper years ago and never followed up.
    Fast forward to Helix. i watched everything i could and thought it was worth a try. Overall, the Helix is truly everything they say. I use effects extensively according to what I am playing and for my ears, the helix, in my opinion, is head and shoulders above kemper in that department, especially in things like the univibe, etc. having owned all the originals back in the day. in ease of use, it is unbelievably well thought out. A lot of thought went into all the different ways it might be used and it is extremely flexible. The amps 'feel" good and respond the way they should. Assigning pedals is beyond easy and routing capabilities are huge.
    Now for the but...... for me in terms of ease of use, routing, effects, etc the Helix is great, and for a lot of players out there, the sounds definitely work. For me however, I have a very specific kind of sound that I want and it's not in there. It would be a simple enough matter to use one of the stereo effects loops in the helix and put my entire rig in there....even control all the on/offs patches etc, from the Helix. I did do that and it works great, but the goal for me was to find a replacement for my old gear that will die sooner or later. Not haul even more gear around.
    Enter the Kemper. I decided to give it a try and I can tell you I won't look back. I did a quick profile of a few of my sounds and to my delight, it exceeded my expectations. Th sounds were dead on as well as the feel. Didn't even refine the profiles. As I said, they were just quick takes, not careful ones and if anything, they sound even better due to the eq, etc that is there. The other profiles are a mixed basket.... some excellent, some not so good, but again they are profiles and the capability of the Kemper is obvious. Don't get me wrong, the effects in the Kemper are still good, Helix is just better, but Kemper continues to refine so I'm sure they will continue to improve.
    Bottom line for me is that the Kemper really delivers the tones I want when I'm gigging. Being able to have my old sounds along with other great profiles in one little box is priceless. It's something I used to say in jest that I wish there was one little box that had everything in it for all your sounds. Guess what?/ This is it! Kudos to Kemper on this one!!!! 8o8o

    Well, you know what they say:


    You can put lipstick on a pig, but in the end, it's still a pig.


    ... or how about:


    You can polish a turd 'til the cows come home, but in the end, it's still a turd.


    This isn't to say that the Helix is a turd. It sounds very good to me, better than the other big player it's in direct competition with, but neither is a Kemper.

    Quote from Monkey_Man

    This isn't to say that the Helix is a turd. It sounds very good to me, better than the other big player it's in direct competition with, but neither is a Kemper.


    The cake is more important than the icing....and Kemper's cake is superior.
    Tone first before anything else.

    The key to everything is patience.
    You get the chicken by hatching the egg, not by smashing it.
    -- Arnold H. Glasow


    If it doesn't produce results, don't do it.

    -- Me

    Like 3

    As a guy that never had more than 3 effect pedals on my "pedal board" at any time (and often had none), the kitchen sink approach from Line 6 and Axe don't really appeal to me. Even when I recorded with reverb or effects on guitar, I often found the net result to sound better to me when I stripped down live.


    Good steak needs no ketchup! :)


    P.S., I drink my coffee black too.

    I hate emojis, but I hate being misunderstood more. :)

    Like 2

    well, I have both of them, one for the studio and one for the live,
    they're both great for me, sound different because they are different and come from different ideas.


    KEMPER:
    amazing and hyper realistic sound with the right libraries or with a really good sampling.
    average level effects, some is better ( I don't like distortions, but with the kemper is not so important)
    rig manager not bad but I think that all the computer editing could be better.
    HELIX
    really good emulations, some is great with the external cabinets
    high level effects, not the top now but there is time to improve them.
    incredible routing and control... I think the best (switches, controllers etc) that's why I use it in live situation.


    obviusly each gear can be used in both situations, kemper is great on stage and helix sound really good on recording...
    it's just my opinion :)

    Quote from viabcroce


    Note: the low-pass filter is set to 20 kHz by default on all blocks. Setting it to 5-10 kHz would improve the sound of any cab (be it modelled or IR) and is indeed suggested by the L6 crew.


    Now that is funny. On all the demos I came across the Helix I didnt like this fizzy-hissy top end. Which clearly gives away the flaws they still have in their models. The first thing I did in the DAW after recording my POD500HD was always to roll off the high end.


    IMHO soundwise the biggest pro for the KPA was its creamy, silky high end. Right out of the box...

    Ne travaillez jamais.

    Like 2

    Yep, this is how a close-mic'ed cab sounds like. I guess the same is true for modelled cabs, as long as you use a mic to test their response.
    Many profiles sound fizzy as well, and for the same reason (here's where Pure Cab kicks in).