Line6 Helix Stadium Floor

I've been using this for a couple months now so I think it's time to make a review!

I have been using amp modelling for a long time and bought an original Helix in 2020. I have always been somewhat frustrated with my guitar sound. I could get individual good sounds but creating a snapshot that worked well with clean, edge of breakup and more distorted sounds was a real challenge. Something always felt off. If I found a great sound on the neck pickup the bridge pickup was off and so on... I have spent so much money on IRs, tube preamp pedals and even bought a Tonex to use with my Helix. But nothing really solved my issues.

So, when the Line6 announced the release of Helix Stadium I had really high hopes. Was this the final solution to all my frustration? I decided to wait some time for the biggest bugs to be sorted out but when Thomann lowered the price in June time was right. I chose the Stadium Floor since I already have expression pedals and really don't need the scribble strips and the extended features. The smaller size also suits me better since I use it with some other gear on a pedal board.

I plugged it in, chose the US Luxe Black amp with Uber 4x12 V30 and a 160 Ribbon about the edge of the cap a few inches from the grill. Some high-cut at 7,5Khz and low-cut about 100hz. Cut a few dB of 250Hz and 500hz + a little 2,5KHz and 3,2KHz + a gentle cut-off at 5KHz post-cab. The usual stuff that suits my main guitar. I lowered the bass to 2 but didn't even change the other amp settings. Added some room-ambience...

So what's the verdict? I big sigh of relief!! It sounded so natural on all pickups. The dynamics were all there. It just sounded good. Tried it with my analog overdrive and boost pedals. All sounded good and natural. No strange artifacts or weird annoying frequencies. Mixed in an SM57 with the 160 Ribbon and now I had some more bite and clarity. Just great!

I have not found a single Agoura amp that sounds bad. My favourites for the moment are the US Luxe Black, the Brit Jujube and the Revv 120 Purple. The Focus view is actually quite useful as a quick tool to try different settings. I have not really familiarised myself with the Showcase yet but it seems promising. I plan on trying out the Helix Stadium as a gigging platform for solo gigs playing acoustic guitar and singing. I am still exploring many of the options but the sounds are all there! There are minor things that still bug me but they relate mainly to features and what would suit my needs. I can't really evaluate the quality but it seems really sturdy. My original Helix is 10 years old and still working so I expect that the Helix Stadium Floor will hold up just as well.

Very practical and easy to program and get great sounds. I use it for a Pink Floyd cover band. The DynaCabs in the Helix are good, but they still give me the impression that the sounds coming out of them lack a bit of warmth. Otherwise, the Augoura models are very interesting, and with Proxy Profiling technology, you’ll definitely be able to get even more out of them. Let’s just hope that Line 6 supports the Helix Stadium the way they did with the Floor.

Esta Helix es aun mejor que su predecesora, vengo de usar una Floor, y esta Stadium aun es mejor.

Sonido: suena mejor, no solo los nuevos amplis de modelado Augura, también los amplis legacy anteriores incluidos, los cabs de altavoces y micros, pese a ser los mismos, suenan aun mejor. A tener en cuenta también las tres eq globales, una por cada salida, jack, xlr y auriculares.

Usabilidad: la interfaz, gracias a la pantalla táctil ha mejorado y mucho. Ahora es más fácil programarla directamente sobre la stadium que desde el ordenador. La nueva focus view sobre todo es buena en los bloques de eq y en los cabs, es más gráfica y directa. Sobre amplis y bloques no es tan útil, al menos de momento. Viniendo de una floor no me ha costada nada empezar a usarla, importa los presets, favoritos y Ir que tuvieras de una anterior helix sin problemas.

Construcción: se ve resistente, construida toda en metal, a ver como responden los switches y mandos a los años de uso. Esta es mucho más compacta que la XL pero sobre todo, más manejable que las Floor que se me hacían demasiado grandes para llevarlas a ensayos y bolos.

Conectividad: aquí sí que se ha dado un gran paso adelante, wifi, bluetooth, entrada aux... ya no hace falta cables para nada, tan solo el de alimentación y el de salida de audio.

Funciones: también aquí hay mejoras, pero la más grande que es el Showcase, no la he usado... no usamos secuencias, pero parece que puede sustituir al ordenador en ensayos y directos.

Compre la normal en lugar de la XL, ya que no usaba el pedal mucho, por lo que el gran cambio era los displays en los foot switches, pues tengo que decir que no lo he echado de menos para nada. La vista que tiene para tocar, con las referencias de los botones en pantalla sirve bien para tocar en directo o ensayar.

En definitiva, y pese al precio elevado frente a sus competidoras, creo que merece la pena.