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Helix Vs Pedalboard Which One's Right For You!

Chad Carouthers

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Wondering if you should stick with your pedalboard or switch to a Line 6 Helix? In this video, I compare both setups and break down exactly when each one makes the most sense — for gigs, studio sessions, and home players alike.

You’ll learn the real pros and cons of each, how to get that “analog feel” from your Helix, and why the best rig might be a hybrid of both.

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20 Comments

@Superman-pn1rx 11 months ago (edited)

We electric guitarists have a chasing tone, unlike other musicians such as classical guitarists, pianists, violinists, etc., who choose a good instrument and then dedicate themselves to improving their technique, tempo, and musical knowledge. Many electric guitarists get lost in countless pedals, guitars of all types, and processing units.

@bluecollarguitarist 11 months ago

Getting the Helix dialed in allowed me to focus on my playing more and not have to worry about chasing tone. I also have a tube amp / pedal board rig that I use. But I never switch things out because I found a combination of pedals that all get along with each other and can do high gain with a super low noise floor. I use Helix 90% of the time.

@timfletchermusic 11 months ago

I'm so glad that your posting videos again! Always loved your output.

@Ryan_H87 11 months ago (edited)

It’s funny in a way I went the other direction …I wanted to go amp less so I added the Kemper player for a hybrid rig, and loved the Kemper so much I went and bought the full size. I keep both tho. I love my pedals and modelers.

@SkyeHighLive 10 months ago

100!!!! After years of modellers and adding pedals to modelers, I just traded in my last modeler and this week completed my all pedal pedal board. Never sounds better and so happy to be rid of the 100 amp sims and delayed etc…. For me less is more and I'm so happy about it! Your video was super and so timely. Great job!!!

@piktormusic2538 10 months ago

I’m kind of old. I had a similar discussion with another musician back in the early 1980s as more and more synths came with patch banks, versus my 1978 Multimoog, which has no patch memory bank. You teak the unit as fast you can from song to song, often while you are playing something else with the other hand. Being a completely analogue unit that might sound better or worse from night to night and being that I am a human that might set a couple dials a fraction differently on a given night, there was always the chance that I was going to sound better than I ever did before. While a patch memory bank is awesome, and no matter how dialled in I am, I might never sound better from one night to the next.

@benjaminkoskinen5835 11 months ago

Sick Fender u got! I really want the blue one.

@shredguitar 11 months ago

the phrase "chasing inspiration!" paid the whole video! I like too much

@markburton3861 11 months ago

I copied all of my pedals into the HX Effects and now using a mix of the HX and a couple pedals and have zero power and cable issues now, glad it wasn't just me! Thanks for the informative video :)

@erikcore 11 months ago

Yep, having both is the best. Modelers for clean amp and ability to go direct to FOH, while pedals for those raw, dirty tone, and some time-based effects!

@theoversouls 10 months ago

Excellent video! 60 year pro player here. I agree with every point you made and our paths are similar. Helix was... good, not great but good, and, like you I felt it lacked specific drive tones I couldn't ever nail, despite DEEP programming. Years later I tried the Fractal rack - I hated it. It sounded 100% fake to me. I tried every preset and found 2 that were decent. I'm back to pedals and a Boss switcher and couldn't be happier. If I get bored, I just switch a couple pedals out. One plus for the Helix etc is the extreme programmability. I really like being able to program exact setting for heel-up/toe-down expression settings and things like that.

@teotvrdeic8260 10 months ago

great video man, great playing

@mishaelparaiso783 11 months ago

Hey Chad, I commented this on your Insta post about retiring the Helix from your board... your journey seeking for inspiration has been a huge inspiration for us in turn! Thank you so much for sharing this big step in your quest!

@hulamailman 10 months ago

I love that you rocked a pedals, modeller, and kitten hybrid rig. Great video, man.

@rosspowell569 10 months ago

All great points. Ran an HD500 for years as a direct feed for church. Needed consistency. Upgraded to Helix, same consistency. Our other players also used Helix. Missing true tube feel and pedal fun, I finally went back to high school roots and built an independent pedal board with the Tone King Imperial MK2 preamp.
So much fun building it right and getting something different but familiar. Also easier for me to reach down and pull off minor adjustments on the fly with a true board vs digging into the settings in the Helix.

@rovenordiales 11 months ago (edited)

What the other commenter doesn't realize is that you are sharing your JOURNEY. We all have our journey in guitar playing.

Nothing wrong with the exploration and chase of inspiration. We all have a reason why we pick up the instrument. To each his own journey.

Keep doing what you're doing bro. Don't be discouraged. 👊🏻

@verification-explorer 5 months ago

I’m a beginner guitarist, and your explanations really helped me decide to buy the Helix after watching many videos on the topic—thank you for that.

@bluzzjazz 10 months ago

I just can’t bring myself to make the switch to modelers. I’ve played through a tube amp via pedalboard for years. A friend lent a Helix to me for about a year, it collected dust in my office. I used it one time to play Miraculum for a Christmas program. It worked for that because I uploaded a patch to get Brewster’s tone on the song. I absolutely hate spending time diving through menus and setting up signal routing.

@jordan_houghton 11 months ago

this video is freaking great, bro.

@bromporke 11 months ago

Great playing, and I love how much you lean on the Rat, my all time favorite drivestortion. I watched your budget rig video, got a flamma multi mod. I sold all my gear but when I get back into it I was gonna do a hybrid board built around the HX Stomp XL