As a self-confessed pedal addict, I've been guilty of hoarding enough stompboxes to fill multiple pedalboards and leaving many of them to gather dust or sit out of sight in a drawer. That all changed last year though, because I bought a Line 6 HX Stomp to replace all the delay, reverb, and modulation pedals on my 'board. I also got myself Helix Native to go alongside my unit, not realizing I'd end up using it more than the HX Stomp itself for daily practice and recording sessions at home.
Now, Helix Native is notoriously expensive, but for a limited time, you can get it with a massive $160 reduction at Sweetwater, taking the price down from $399.99 to just $239.99. It's not quite Black Friday prices, but considering the ridiculous amount of amp and effects models you get alongside the ultra-deep customization options, it's well worth the outlay in our book.
I use my HX Stomp pretty sparingly in a live context. It covers reverb, delay, and modulation effects, for the most part, living in my amplifier's effects loop. When it came to using it for recording in my DAW however, I found myself running out of DSP blocks as I needed to simulate my Orange amp in the chain, as well as the numerous overdrive, boost, and octave pedals that run in front of my amp.
Luckily I'd taken advantage of the upgrade offer available for Helix Native when you purchase an HX unit, so I could harness all the power of the HX Floor for significantly less money than splurging on the hardware unit itself. This means no issues loading up a clone of my regular setup when recording at home, as well as using more in-depth sound design style tones with multiple amplifiers and a myriad of delay and reverb models.
The amount of amp tones on offer in Helix Native is frankly ridiculous, whether you want pristine clean tones, edge of breakup, or modern metal sounds. The effects are similarly expansive too, offering a whos-who of stompbox models from the most esoteric modulation pedals to countless famous overdrive models.
Best of all, and something I hadn't realized before I entered the Helix ecosystem, Line 6 is constantly issuing updates that add new models and features. Since purchasing my unit last year I've already received new amps, cabs, and effects models, and prior to that, there was a huge update for all the cab models that resulted in much more realistic sounds. This means despite the relatively high cost of entry, I feel like I've already gotten more than my money's worth.
