UPDATE: Guitar Doubler Shootout Video
I recently put together a full video and detailed blog breakdown comparing Guitar Doubler Effects across different setups. We put the Line 6 Helix doubling algorithms (Double Take, ADT, and Kurt Ballou’s Simple Pitch trick) head-to-head with the open-source TONE3000 plugin's Stereo Spread & Align feature, as well as rack options like Soundtoys MicroShift and EchoBoy.
Quick Takeaways from the Doubler Comparison:
- TONE3000 Stereo Spread: Uses dynamic pitch and time drifting to take a mono performance and split it into a natural, wide stereo sound—behaving more like a true second take than a static delay.
- Line 6 Helix ADT vs. Double Take: The Helix ADT (Automatic Double Tracker) delivers vintage tape-style double-tracking, while Double Take acts as a dynamic modulation-based doubler that changes based on picking velocity.
- Kurt Ballou's Simple Pitch Trick: Pitching down by ~8 cents with a 14ms delay on a hard-panned second path remains a reliable workhorse method inside the Helix.
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The Volume & Gain-Staging Catch: When using Double Take, pay close attention to output levels—selecting 2 or 4 doubles introduces a noticeable volume drop compared to 1 or 3 doubles. (A per-block normalization feature like TONE3000's would be a massive update for Helix!).
Read The Full Post: Stereo Doubling Decoded: Tone3000 Spread vs. Line 6 Helix Double Take, ADT, & Pitch Block
Helix Double Take (double tracker) explained
Check out my Line 6 Helix/HX Stomp Presets
This information is from Sam, the Line 6 sound designer for the Double Take (double tracker) effect on Helix:
"The Double Take is a new double tracking effect made specifically for the Helix. Having spent a lot of time listening to a plethora of double tracked instruments, we found that the way a part is performed has a huge effect on how the layered tracks would feel. With this in mind, we wanted to make a new double track effect that responds dynamically with the way the player performs, adding the real-world dimension and depth you would get from having multiple recordings of a single part. This led to a whole new design from the ground up, with a lot of tuning available for the amount and types of variation between the doubled voices. This makes for the ability to have an incredibly realistic sounding and feeling double tracker with the ability to shape the feel at your finger- (and foot-) tips."
Doubles
The main Doubles knob controls the number of double tracks into the mix from one to four generated voices, and in the stereo versions, the dry signal is assigned to a specified pan location. (Dry signal is underlined)
- 1 = Left and Right
- 2 = Left, Center, Right
- 3 = Left, Left, Right, Right
- 4 = Left, Left, Center, Right, Right
Note: As each extra voice is added, there is a post-effect level compensation such that the overall dB remains about uniform. You can make up this change with the two output knobs if you want the same level hitting whatever you send the doubled tracks into. Also, since these are hard pans, you can also use the "stereo width" block to control how wide this effect is in the stereo field.
Slop
The Slop knob controls the amount of the slight variations in timing and pitch you would hear from each of the doubled voices. The variations are what we like to call "Defined Randomness" as this amount and timing is directly coupled with the dynamics of the original part. This knob controls the heart of this effect, as it will define the voices from tight and refined at low settings all the way to wild and dynamic at max. With this knob, you can set it such that with a softer touch there isn't much change to the original performance, but the harder you dig in, the more the doubled voices' strings stretch, slap around, and become widely de-correlated.
Sensitivity
This knob controls the sensitivity of the slop feature. The lower this parameter is set, the less dynamic behavior there will be from the voices. This can be viewed more or less like a threshold or input gain of a compressor, but specifically for the slop's detection algorithm.
Source (Stereo only)
The Double Take can have a true stereo path. This parameter determines how the input signal is processed by the effect:
- Mono: Input will be summed to mono then processed by the Double Take.
- True Stereo: Each side will be sent as a true stereo path, and each extra voice will be sent to the side of the source pan.
- Left Only: Only the left input will be sent into the Double Take.
- Right Only: Only the right input will be sent into the Double Take.
Dry and Wet Levels
Controls the level of the original dry signal as it passes through the effect. (Note the Dry Level Location above).
Note: In "True Stereo" mode, the dry signal for the right will only be used for the doubles and will not pass through the effect. In "Right Only" mode, the Right channel will be sent to the left or center according to the Doubles parameter.
Personally, I like to put it either after my amp and cab if I'm using the stereo version, or in mono right in front of the rig just after my guitar... but I'm sure all you lovelies will find some more amazing uses! Hope you guys found this informative and it helps you have fun. :)
I use this effect on a few of my original songs like the live version of "Things To Change" if you would like to hear what it sounds like.
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