LINE 6 HELIX VS. POD HD: Does the Helix really sound better? (Amps, Cabs, and FX Compared) 

Helix sounds better because it has a color screen...!

Incredible review! Still helpful 6 years later

Excellent job man, thank you for taking the time to do it and for approaching it the way you did.

I'm a little surprised that the hd500x actually held its own against the Helix.... even sounded better in some ways

it' so nice when a video comparison gets right into it, no throat-clearing and wasted time. This is one of those.

This is a great video- I wish more youtube product demo/comparisons were this articulate and well thought out. Thanks dude.

Thank you. This video has been so informative. It definitely makes me feel more content with my HD 500 X

Wow, you just saved me 1000 $ on upgrades from Pod to Helix. Thanks!

Mitch, I know this is an old video, but I'd like to thank you for an honest comparison and honest comments about the 2 units. I had a Firehawk and a POD, but the Helix was a game changer for me, not only in sound, but especially in ease of use.

I owned a POD HD Pro X a few years ago and ran it into my DAW with an ir loader. I returned it after recording one album..I took a chance on the Helix this year and its night and day to me. I love it.

It seems crazy but I really like the HD500 better. Now I’m thinking of getting one.

I love your videos and how you go about it. You attempt to be as fair and objective and rational as possible. Great job

Amazing video, one of the best on RU-vid about guitar rig & styff. Congratz, VERY helpful!

Great series of videos, very well produced and informative! I owned the Fractal Axe fx2, HD500, and BOSS GT100 all at the same time. I ended up selling the Fractal and HD500 and kept the GT100 because it was all that I needed. I now use the GT100 through my Marshall's effects return (the marshall is now a power amp) and the BOSS sounds awesome. Underated amp models IMO. (*note I do turn off the cab sims)

Nice comparison. I like the way you let the delay and reverb decays ring out rather than just playing over top of them.

Thx for review! Seems, that I'll stay with my POD HD PRO Rack for some more years :)

Thanks for providing a professional-level review. I really get tired of having to dig through dozens of trash videos before finding a good one like this. Well done.

I love that you threw some sithu aye in there, i like the pod 500 tones more for most overdriven tones

I own a POD 2.0, a POD Xt, a GuitarPort, a POD HD500X, have had extensive experience with a Helix and am awaiting delivery of a POD Go. I do not, nor ever have worked for Line6! I also own other units (GT-8 & 10 and Johnson J-Station). I also own a number of amps these units are modeling, so I feel I can give a (somewhat) informed opinion here. The POD HD 500 and Helix are two different technologies, so they should sound a little different. It's really up to the user what works for them in what they want to do with it.The Helix has better processing power, so it can do more. Since we're talking tone here, judge for yourself what works in your particular style. Some may point out fizziness in one unit or another, but that's what EQ's are for! I'm getting the POD Go for ease of use, sounds great and has the Helix technology. I understand the limitations of the unit, but I'm OK with just having one amp available. I have loads of IR's, so that won't be an issue. What I want is a great jumping off point, because I also have external effects, if needed (I tend not to dump stuff for the new, shiny thing if possible). What I heard in this video is a good A/B comparison of the two units. Honestly, I could go with both and be happy. In fact, almost every recording I've made in the last 4 years has had both the POD Xt and POD HD500X on them. Can you tell the difference? Maybe, but even though they're digital, they still feel different to me. Comparing to the originals, you really can't and shouldn't. But comparing the POD HD 500 to the Helix, you get more amps in the Helix without buying Model Packs, more processing power means more effects can be run, more everything, basically! But when it comes down to tone vs. tone, I think they can both do the job! Thanks for indulging my observation! Well done video!

That was a great review for exactly what you said it would be. Stock tones and effects. You presented it very well. Nice job.

I bet this was fun :). Thanks for the info, very useful.

And that goes to my point. Pod HD with decent cabs is awesome. Thanks Mitch.

great video. Thanks for the effects only test.

Awesome! Very thorough comparison.

I found the MESA and ENGL in round 1 the biggest difference. The bottom end was very apparent for my ears. Good work!

Best video multy effects comparison I've ever seen on youtube

I bought my POD500HD second hand about 9 or 10 years ago and I was very impressed with it. I actually sold off most of my old FX pedals to buy guitars (bit of a guitar collector). I have tried out the Helix years ago and it didn't seem to be that much better to me. Just come across this video after all this time, it confirms my thoughts on the two. All in all they are very close, and where they are not, a little tweeking will get you there. Funny thing is nowadays I tend to just go with an amp without any FX at all. So, my POD doesn't get anywhere as much use as it did. But this is a great video and well worth watching, so thanks :)

Interesting overall - and pretty much supports what most conclude about the devices overall. Certainly hear substantial differences - even with YT audio. The "wet blanket" effect over the SLO and AC30 is one good example of that. Another is the thinner / digital sound of the RAT model. Of course the fuzzes are wildly different. The reverbs are incredibly similar - which makes sense. HELIX does "borrow" from the HD models. In some ways, this premise is like saying "Well, most streets have a 25 limit, so let's compare this Audi A8 and VW Passat at 25mph on a residential road and see what separates these cars"

I think this is a very good video, prepared with a lot of thought and a logical approach that gives genuinely helpful info. No question that the Helix is the superior unit with greater clarity, particularly on crunch & higher gain settings - the Pod HD sounded as if it had a blanket over it by comparison, although its clean Fender tones still sounded pretty good. However, I think part of the amp/distortion difference relates to inherent EQ settings and I'm wondering if the Pod HD might sound closer to the Helix with tweaked EQ. I say this because one of the 'techniques' used by manufacturers (and Line 6 are not alone here) is to alter the underlying base EQ settings to make the newer more expensive units sound better with equivalent settings, to over-emphasise the tonal difference. So that what you're hearing is a mixture of true amp/effect modelling improvement but also combined with a better EQ mix. It would be interesting to see how near the Pod HD could get to the Helix amp tones with some tweaking of its EQ, so that any differences you then heard could be more readily accredited to the improved modelling. I would expect the Helix to still sound superior, but the differences might not be quite as pronounced.

In my opinion: Pod HD 500!

Very helpful, thank you for making this video

HD500 is still a great piece of gear and I'm glad to hear it holding its own next to the Helix, but I don't regret upgrading. They both sound good but the feature set on the Helix is what makes it stand out and a must-have in my opinion. Great video!

Thanks, you saved me from pining for Pod HD300/500! I am sticking with Bias Amp 2 and Bias Fx 2.

sick video, as always. would like to see a bias fx vs helix vs ax8 comparison in the future, if u could :)

Considering the difference in sound is very small and the difference in price is very big....I'd go with the hd500. I like both though, great stuff.

Pretty clear difference to me. More detail and clarity in the Helix, while the POD feels a little muffled and grainy in direct comparison, regardless of IRs. Although, once again, this video also manages to highlight the need to import some better cabs, as there are some pretty bad sounds coming from the stock portion of the video. Effects are kind of a wash for me, I think Line 6 always does a decent job with those. The differences I can hear there are still mostly rooted in the differences in the amp tones they're applied to.

Thanks for this awesome video! Now i can stop gasing for new gear and start working on my finger.

good video. sharing very valuable info. Thanks! Not bad playing either!

Glad you did this! Thanks! Yeah, if you have $$ you'll always get the newest 'bestest' just because of being bored. One thing for each I kept noticing -- HD PRO a lower emphasis (unless you played individual notes) and with the HELIX a 'grunge' that hopefully can be removed because I think of very few songs I'd use it in (in the lower mid-tone region).

i have myself a pod500hdx and yeah the helix sounds a little bit more detailed but...it doesnt sound...that much better accordingly to the price gap between them good job man :D nice vid

Cool BTBAM Christmas sweater, I have the same one 😁 Oh and both units sound awesome

very helpfull video and you explain things very well.

Nice video man!

I see you with that Double Helix intro riff. :v Great demo though!

Would LOVE a BiasFX/Ax8 battle....!!! :) You make such smart reviews...!

This is the greatest way to differentiate bro

POD HD500 is such a great value, picked up two for $400 Canadian, jamspace is completely digital now and can record I realtime, its amazing for less then a grand

Great video, great help!

Both units sound good. I can definitely hear more detail in the Helix, especially in the highs and lows but an untrained ear would probably think that both give equally great results.

great comparison video brother I checked out both those units I ended up with a Boss GT 100 and with the proper settings I found it blew the Helix out of the water

My pod XT is the best ever..I like my veggies(beans) organic.

Nice vid bro!

Thanks for making this comparison! Many of the clean tones were identical between the two. When you got the high amps, I thought some of the HD500 amps sounded better (the Helix had more of that fizzy sound) with the exception of the ENGL, which I thought the Helix version was better. Again, great and fair comparison! IMO, the features and functionality do not justify a substantial price difference if the sounds aren’t substantially better…that’s what counts over everything else.

Great test, very helpful! I think the difference is night and day, with the Helix being the clear winner. More detail, more "meat", and more "feel". However the modeling is not the only reason. The Helix has better quality AD conversion hardware, more processing power, better quality preamps, etc. It's also got capacitive footswitches and some other cool things. That is why it's so much more expensive. Plus, it's built like a tank (no plastic knobs, etc), and was really designed with pro touring players in mind. Excellent A/B test!

As a POD HD owner, I was hoping to hear NO or very minor difference. But unfortunately for me, VOX, MESA and ENGL models sounded much better on HELIX. Especially MESA. How I will live now with this knowledge? I want to be happy with my HD! :)

Nice job mate. I have an HD500 and have been considering the Helix so I found this video pretty useful. Cheers from across the pond in Scotland.

You can achieve more clarity using an equalizer before amp and your POD HD gets the same well detailed tone. But of course you'll be missing the IR-Loader and that is the most lack by the HD units.

Thank you ! Helped me

Very similar in sound, but this does not justify the three times more higher price of the Helix IMO. Great review and demo of these pedal boards.👍

Solid comparison - not sure how any updates to the software change the game, but for a 500X owner this is definitely enough to remind me that there’s other gear I could drop some serious cash on first. While I definitely prefer the darker and slightly richer tone from the Helix, the L6 Link into my DT50 gives me a level of live warm/fuzzies and integration I couldn’t justify replacing with a Helix. If I ever get back into more session work via email at least I know where to invest :-)

Now in 2023, I was thinking of upgrading my POD HD500 to a Helix LT which (at least in my country) costs triple and thanks to this video I realized that I was about to make an unnecessary investment. The PODHD500 is still a great value piece, with much better sonic response in some ways than the Helix. Thanks for this video. The work you have taken is really useful and admirable. Greetings from Argentina. (Sorry for the Google translate)

excellent video to showing differences

ty man ! grt vids !!!

Great video. I definitely hear more clarity and presence with the Helix. In that context, it is more like a tube amp. That said, some of that difference could be compensated for through eq settings. Whether or not the difference would be audible in a band mix is very questionable.

Is it just me or did the pod HD sound better? Thanks brother. This was a really professional video. You only said what you had to say and it was great information and demonstration.

Great work! thanx

Thanks for the video excellent comparison very well thought out, in reality for guys that really drive and seek after tone, if you just apply some EQ settings on the POD HD you will get the exact same sound as the helix, as far as I'm concerned you will be wasting your money spending it on the helix compared to the HD they're so close and comparable. Not to mention if you run these units into a DAW and use the effects and EQ settings in there you would never ever be able to tell the difference. Just my opinion.

I heard there were impressive results out of The Two notes CAB with Helix or AX8 . If You have the oportunity to try 'em out . Many thanx for your vids. Keep it up

Hi, great comparison! Cool! I was wondering can you please do a sound comparison between the Headrush Pedalboard and the Line 6 Helix Floor models? Which has better sound effects and better amp models overall? Thanks...

thanks for this video, been wondering this for a while. I had an HD500 but sold it because I spent too uch time tweaking settings. the whole HD line is so cheap used I though about getting another but then thought I'd up to the the Helix. no need for me. thanks

Thank you. Very helpful. All I wanted was to know if my POD HD500 was still competitive vs the mighty helix.

Great comparison .. thanks a lot. What I recon is that for the amp modelling part the biggest difference are in the high gain amps and even more importantly in the cab models. Up to the Plexi both seem on par with external IR. For high gain the Helix wins for me. Though the SLO100 model on PodHD remains ok with a good IR. Effect wise it is more complicated. I find that the drive pedals are anyway not totally convincing in both units so I pass...

Great video Mitch. IMHO not sure the Helix is 2-3 the price better. I run my HD500 into a BBE Sonic Maximizer Stomp, then into my PA or powered monitor. Very happy with my tone, especially with The DR Z model. Some have said the BBE is like taking a blanket off the sound and opens it up. That has been my experience also. That may make up some of the difference in the two units. The cost of the two is still way cheaper than the Helix.

I think I'm going to try using the pod's amp sims and then cab IRs in my daw. OwnHammer cab sims are amazing

I like the line of thinking here! It gives a clear picture of the differences. Great work!

hi Mitch - how did you do the IR impulses? turn-off cab sim - record funny sound and then cab it with IR? great comparo.

What I could make out is that Helix sounds more like real amps...like the real deal... POD HD on the other hand, I felt is more based out of the studio albums and stuff... This was more clearly evident on the ENGL comparison... Helix is much better at the amp simulation part.

They sound very similar I might just pick up a 500x for now and hopefully the price will come down even more

To be fair, the pod sounds great, the Helix just sounded a bit brighter. good demo and nice playing.

The biggest difference between the two that I’ve noticed is the dynamics. The amps and pedals responding to how loud I hit the strings, or what the volume knob on my guitar is. The Helix responds to those changes in a much more real or analog way. Probably not worth the money though. Maybe the stomp box is a good option. What Line 6 did for the Pod and Helix is pretty amazing. Even at the higher Helix price, if you consider you buy a bunch of amps, pedals, cabinets, mics you’re going way over $1600.

I have the PODHD500X and put through an amp or on computer this does a great job I think a lot comes down to the interface differences though I would say the HDpro is still user friendly even if a little limited in area's compared to Helix. I think like anything else you stick a huge price tag on something & people automatically presume it must be radically better.

Once you play on stage, you cant really tell the difference. Specially people are drunk, they dont care much

The differences where a lot more apparent once you switched to the stock cabs. The Helix stock cabs where IMOP a lot more detailed in frequencies especially once you went to the gain stuff. The Pod has decent sounds in it and can be dialed in to sound even better but the Helix just sounds more refined. Does that justify the price difference? Not sure but the flexibility and options available on the Helix no doubt make it an overall better unit. Plus the ability to load those IR's is huge. While for its time the Pod HD500 was a great unit and can still be used to dial in great tones to me the Helix was the clear winner. I highly recommend listening to this with good headphones as thats where the differences become more apparent.

Sweet Mothership vinyl in the back.

Thank you Mitch

The main difference I've heard - is ATTAC, and it's much sharper in Helix. I don't really care about plenty of effects in it - my main purpose is to have couple of tones to play on, but they should be as close to natural as possible, with saving on guitars ADSR. And looks like Helix climbed much higher in that. HD500 sound like a soapbox on a highgain presets and steals couple hundreds of dollars guitar tones on cleans. Thanks for review, really helpful!

TIMESTAMPS COMMON CAB IMPULSE 2:30 Fender Twin Reverb 3:02 Fender Deluxe Reverb 3:24 Vox AC30 3:54 Marshall Plexi 4:21 Hiwatt DR-103 4:46 Soldano SLO-100 5:20 Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier 5:45 ENGL Fireball STOCK CABS 6:48 Twin w/ Twin 2x12 R121 7:19 Deluxe w/ Deluxe 1x12 R121 7:41 AC30 w/ AC30 Silver Bell 2x12 U87 8:11 Plexi w/ 25W Greenback 4x12 MD409 8:40 DR-103 w/ Hiwatt Fane 4x12 U87 9:04 SLO w/ Marshall 1960 T75 4x12 SM57 9:39 Dual Rec w/ Mesa V30 4x12 SM57 10:03 Fireball w/ ENGL V30 4x12 SM57 EFFECTS 10:48 Hot Rod Deluxe clean tone 11:04 Ibanez Tube Screamer 11:32 ProCo Rat 11:56 Arbiter Fuzz Face 12:18 EHX Big Muff Pi 12:53 BK Butler Tube Driver 13:23 MXR Phase 90 13:53 Uni-Vibe 14:16 Boss CE-1 15:11 Hot Rod Deluxe clean tone (again) 15:27 Hall 16:14 Room 16:59 Chamber 17:46 Spring 18:36 Plate 19:31 Echoplex 20:18 2290

damn, i disagree with most comments on here. i thought this would mainly be a matter of the IRs being better on the helix, but on the gainier settings the helix sounds like an amp and the pod sounds like something trying to be an amp. night and day difference even on the same IR. on the built in IRs it's even more of a slaughter, and when you then take into account that you can't load your own IRs into the pod it's basically trash if you don't have a computer along running an IR loader. at which point full software solutions will also kick its ass for less money... i went from wanting to buy a pod HD cause i found a cheap used one to HELL NO in a couple of minutes lol

Great job Mitch. It would have been awesome if had you compared the Trinity Chorus against the Pod HD Tri Chorus (which sounds like shit as well as the CE-1 simulation)... I always thought that the chorus effects on the HD were useless... Maybe the Dimension D was kinda good. Thankfully Line 6 started paying attention to the overall quality of the effects not just the amp modeling. I bought my Helix over a month ago and still waiting for it... It´s a long way for it to come down to South America... Greetings!

As a HD500x owner of 3 years and fine tuned my sounds for a rep of 100+ songs over that period, and tried a range of end to end approaches (various Line 6 DT amps and cab combos, JC120 in stereo, valve power amps into different boxes, straight into various amp cab combos, into FRFR) - I would have to say its not just the sound. The main difference is the feel. Yes the helix sounds like it has more headroom and just sounds generally better - but the feel is the real big difference. Whilst I played through the HD500x and it sounded good, the Helix makes me want to play and with dynamics and nuance. And finally I don't feel I have to spend ages fine tuning every patch to get it to sound feel better - they come together much easier. Is it worth the premium - well put it this way. I demo'd the helix in a store 6 months ago and was convinced enough to spend the time between selling gear and saving to get one. And I think it was worth it. End of the day, that's all that matters.

I'm glad Line6 stepped it up to try and compete with the two top quality competitors. Unfortunately, even though the Helix seems better than the POD, IMO the difference is similarly defined when compared alongside the AxeFX and Kemper.

For me it isn't the sound that was the deal maker but that Line 6 has incorporated back into the Helix series the assignment of parameters to footswitches and MIDI CC that has been with Line 6 MIDI capable devices up through the X3 series that for some crazy reason they omitted from the HD series.

How does picking dynamics feel between the two? That's my biggest concern

Sounds great! Can you share the ir impulses? I ve the hd500 and using the impulses the sound improvement is massive .

They certainly sound similar. And yes the HD is a lot less. But with the Helix I've never had so much fun programming my own presets and setting snapshots that just move swiftly from preset to preset without a miss.

Mesa Rectifier sounds over the top superior via Helix vs HD500...what I'm seeing here is that some tones can be sonically similar through both, others require higher processing power to achieve a more accurate sonic match to the real deal. I guess it all depends on what tones are required for the material you are playing. Thanks for the info.

When I found out about the Helix I was in love. Then I read about the HD500X and saw how many people trashed it. So I ended up getting an HD500X in a trade and guess what? Its fucking great. You just need to spend time editing the patches. Thats it. The HD500X preset patches sound real cheesy because they are meant to entice newer players with how vast and different and wild you can make them sound. For some reason self proclaimed experienced players completely ignored this and immedietely cried when their shiny new toy didnt do exactly what they wanted the second they wanted it.

i liked pod hd more with common cabinet impulse,it was more mid focused n natural sounding to my ears but with its own stock cabinets it wasnt good as helix.

Interesting. The HD actually sounded less sterile than the Helix in several patches.