User Manual
4
Welcome to Helix
Thank you for purchasing Helix Rack,oneofthemostpowerfulandexibleaudiopro-
cessors ever created. We hope it helps drive your search for tonal bliss and spawns
years of creativity, both on stage and in the studio.
As Helix Rack and Helix Control (purchased separately) are designed to be used to-
gether, this manual covers both.
What Have I Gotten Myself Into?
AlthoughHelixmayappearcomplicatedatrstglance,it'sdesignedinsuchaway
that once you learn a few basic concepts and shortcuts, you'll be able to construct
both simple and complex tones at nearly the speed of thought, with very little menu
diving required.
Although you’re likely anxious to rip open the plastic and plug in, wait! At the very
least, check out the big color Helix Rack/Control Cheat Sheet that came in the box,
and keep it handy. Then read the "Quick Start" chapter of this manual and we’ll have
you up and shredding in no time.
NOTE: If you prefer to edit tones from your Mac
®
or PC, download the free Helix
editor application from line6.com/software.
TIP: Be sure to also visit line6.com/videos where we're always adding new
video tutorials covering the latest Line 6 gear!
What’s In the Box?
Helix Rack
• Line 6 Helix Rack
• Full-color Helix Rack/Control Cheat Sheet(readthatonerst!)
• USB ash drive containing the Helix Rack/Control Owner's Manual you’re
reading right now
• AC power cable
• USB cable
• Warranty card
Helix Control
• 25-foot CAT-5 cable for communication with and power from Helix Rack
• Warranty card
Common Terminology
While reading this manual, you may encounter several unfamiliar terms. It’s important
to know what they mean. Don’t worry—there’s no math.
Home
The Home screen is your primary workspace for creating and editing
tones. If you ever get lost, press to return to the Home screen.
Block
Blocks are objects that represent various elements of a preset, such
as amps, cabs, eects, splits, loopers, inputs, outputs, and impulse
responses.
Path
A pathrepresentsthesignalowofyourtone.Helixhastwoseparate
paths, 1 and 2, each with its own input(s) and output(s). Paths can be
serial (single) or parallel (dual). Path 1 can be routed into path 2 for
more sophisticated tones.
Preset
A preset is your tone. It consists of all blocks on the Home screen, foot-
switch assignments, controller assignments, and Command Center
messages.
Setlist
A setlist is a collection of presets. Helix has eight setlists containing
128 presets each.
Model
Each processing block can accommodate one model (or in some
cases, two models). Helix includes 45 guitar amp models, 7 bass amp
models,30cabmodels,16micmodels,and93eectsmodels.
Controller
Controllers are used to adjust various parameters in real time. For ex-
ample, the expression pedal can be used to control wah, or the tone
knob on a Variax guitar can be used to control amp gain and reverb
depth.
Send/
Return
Sends and Returns are used to connect additional equipment to Helix
for eects loops or processing multiple instruments simultaneously.
Helix has four mono sends and returns, but adjacent pairs can be se-
lected for stereo operation.
IR
IRs (Impulse Responses) are mathematical functions representing the
sonic measurements of audio systems (for Helix, speaker cabinet and
microphone combinations). Helix can store up to 128 custom or third-
party IRs at a time. See "Impulse Response (IR)"
Variax
®
Variax isn't just a great guitar, it also contains special electronics that
recreatethesoundofotherspecicguitarsandinstruments,andallow
for instant retuning of each string. Helix and Variax communicate with
one another in unique and powerful ways. See "What is Variax?"
L6 LINK™
L6 LINK provides easy, single-cable, digital audio connectivity between
Helix and Line 6 StageSource
®
monitorsand/orDT-Seriesampliers.
See "L6 LINK Output"