My footswitches are doing the wrong thing
The unit is in Preset mode, not Stomp mode
Working as designedPress FS6, marked PRESET / STOMP. This is the single most common Helix question and it is one press.
Helix Cheat Sheet (Rev D)Reference
Reference
Troubleshooting
Indexed by what you notice, not by what the subsystem is called — because when something is wrong you know there's no sound, not that it's a routing problem.
9 of the 10 problems below are not faults. They are documented behaviour that looks like a fault, and they are marked working as designed. “Your unit is fine” is a useful answer and nobody publishes it.
The screen keeps changing to a block I didn't select
A foot is resting on a capacitive footswitch
Working as designedNothing is wrong. Touching a switch selects its block on screen without changing the sound — that is how you edit with your feet. Move your foot off.
Helix Cheat Sheet (Rev D)No sound at all
The output block is routed somewhere you are not listening to
Select the Output block at the end of the path and check where it is sending. A preset built for USB or for Path 2 will be silent at the jacks.
Helix 3.80 Owner's ManualPreset Spillover is on and the preset uses Path 2
Working as designedSpillover hides Path 2 and routes nothing to it. If your Output blocks point at Path 2, you get silence. Turn spillover off, or re-point the outputs.
Helix 3.80 Owner's ManualIt sounds thin, quiet, or like half the effects are missing
You are using the RIGHT output on its own
Working as designedBoth output pairs are stereo, and the LEFT/MONO jack is the one that sums to mono. Move the cable.
Helix Cheat Sheet (Rev D)A cab block is running into a real guitar cab
Two speakers stacked. Bypass the Cab block, or use an Amp model rather than Amp+Cab.
Helix 3.80 Owner's ManualThere's hum or buzz
A ground loop between your rig and the PA
Press the GND/LIFT switch on the rear panel, beside the XLR outputs. It is physical, not a menu item.
Helix Cheat Sheet (Rev D)It won't let me add a block
Usually a second amp, or a poly effect.
You have hit a hard cap, not the DSP ceiling
Working as designedFour amps per preset, two per path. One looper per preset. One poly effect per path. These are fixed limits and no amount of free DSP unlocks them.
Helix 3.80 Owner's ManualYou are genuinely out of DSP
Make a stereo block mono, swap a Legacy cab for the newer IR-based one, or replace two amp blocks with one amp into a Dual cab. Each of those buys back real space.
Helix 3.80 Owner's ManualBypassed blocks are still costing you
Working as designedBypassing does not free DSP. Delete what you are not using.
Helix 3.80 Owner's ManualMy delay and reverb tails cut off when I change preset
That is what a preset change does
Working as designedEvery block unloads and reloads. Either build the change as a snapshot inside one preset, or turn on Preset Spillover — hold ACTION and press HOME — and accept losing Path 2.
Helix 3.80 Owner's ManualI lost my changes
The preset was never saved
Working as designedAn “E” beside the preset name means edited and unsaved. Press SAVE twice. Changing preset with the E showing discards everything.
Helix Cheat Sheet (Rev D)My wah works on one preset and not the others
Expression assignments are stored per preset
Working as designedThere is no global assignment. Build the pedal into a template preset and copy that, rather than assigning it again on each one.
Helix Cheat Sheet (Rev D)A parameter I expect isn't there
It is on another page
Working as designedSix knobs cannot show everything. Press ◀ PAGE ▶ — the scrollbar under the parameter row tells you how many pages the block has.
Helix Cheat Sheet (Rev D)