Edit your Helix on an iPad or iPhone
Plug an iPad with an M-series chip into your Helix or HX and Helrig opens the preset the pedal is playing. Turn a knob on the glass and you hear it from the pedal. On an iPhone or another iPad, a Helrig Box does the same over Wi-Fi.
On Android? Helrig for Android →
Which device connects how
| Device | Edit presets | Connect to your pedal |
|---|---|---|
| iPad with an M-series chip | Yes | Yes over USB, or a Helrig Box |
| iPad without an M chip | Yes | Yes with a Helrig Box |
| iPhone | Yes | Yes with a Helrig Box |
What you need for USB
- An iPad with an M-series chip and iPadOS 16 or newer, for example an iPad Pro from 2021 on or an iPad Air from 2022 on
- A USB-C to USB-B cable that carries data
- A Helix Floor, LT or Rack, or an HX Stomp, HX Stomp XL or HX Effects
Your first session
- Install Helrig for iPhone and iPad from the App Store. It’s free.
- Sign in and plug your pedal into the iPad with a USB-C to USB-B cable that carries data.
- The first time, Helrig shows how to turn on its USB driver, with a button that opens the right page in Settings. Turn the driver on, then go back to Helrig.
- With Helrig Connect or Helrig Pro, Helrig opens the preset the pedal is playing.
- Switch Live on, tap a block and change a parameter. You hear it from the pedal as you move it. Live is off every time you connect.
- Save it to a slot. Helrig keeps a copy of what was in that slot first, so you can undo the save.
On an iPhone, or an iPad without an M chip
These devices have no USB connection Helrig can use. A Helrig Box plugs into the pedal and puts it on your Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz). You build it yourself from a Waveshare ESP32-P4-NANO and free firmware. About the Helrig Box →
Getting a preset onto your iPad
Save the .hlx anywhere the Files app can reach it — iCloud Drive, a mail attachment, AirDrop from a Mac — then pick it in Helrig. A .hxb device backup or a .hls setlist works the same way, and you can pull a single preset out of either.
Your presets will not be greyed out when you go to pick one. iOS dims files whose type it does not recognise, and it does not recognise .hlx, .hxb or .hls — so Helrig asks for any file and works out what it is from what is inside it.
What’s free, what needs a license
The app is free to install and edit with, no account needed. Connecting to the pedal needs Helrig Connect, a one-time purchase, or Helrig Pro, which includes it.
If your pedal doesn’t show up
- The USB driver is off. Follow Helrig’s instructions and use its button to open Settings, then turn the driver on.
- The cable is charge-only. Try one that carries data.
- Your iPad has no M-series chip. It can’t connect over USB; a Helrig Box connects over Wi-Fi instead.
- Helrig says “Pedal found” and nothing connects: sign in with an account that has Helrig Connect, Helrig Pro or a running trial.
Made for a touch screen
It is the same editor, not the desktop layout shrunk down. Helrig changes shape when you are working on a touch screen:
- Controls are sized for a fingertip rather than a mouse pointer, so you can change a parameter without pinching in first or aiming carefully at something tiny.
- Tapping a value to type a new one does not make the page lurch and zoom, the way mobile web forms usually do.
- On a phone you see a useful run of the signal chain at once, instead of one block filling the whole screen.
- One tap zooms out to the entire preset. Even on a long chain you can still tell blocks apart by colour and see where the signal splits and comes back together.
- Nothing you need to reach hides behind the notch or the home bar.
Everything else is the full editor: blocks and parameters, snapshots, footswitch and MIDI assignments, parallel routing, per-path DSP, undo and redo, conversion between devices, and export.
Where it helps
On stage. The tablet on the mic stand, the preset readable at a glance, a tweak between songs without a laptop.
In the rehearsal room. Fix the level of a lead sound with the band playing, on the pedal, from the tablet.
On the couch. Go through your presets and tidy them without sitting at the desk.
Questions
Is there HX Edit for iPad?
No. HX Edit runs only on Windows and macOS. Helrig for iPad and iPhone is an independent editor from the App Store.
Which iPads connect over USB?
iPads with an M-series chip and iPadOS 16 or newer. Apple only lets the USB driver run on those.
Can I connect my Helix to my iPhone?
Yes, through a Helrig Box, over Wi-Fi. An iPhone has no USB connection Helrig can use.
I bought Helrig Connect on helrig.com. Does it work on my iPad?
Yes. One license works in every Helrig app. Sign in with the same account.
Can Helrig damage my pedal?
Helrig backs up the slot before it saves, reads the preset back to check it, and can put the old one back. It won’t save a preset it can’t write faithfully, or one over the DSP limit. Before your first connection, make a full backup in HX Edit, the same as before a firmware update.
Do I need HX Edit?
Not to edit presets. Firmware updates and the pedal’s global settings stay with HX Edit.
Get it
Disclaimer
Line 6, Helix and HX are trademarks of their respective owners. Android and Google Play are trademarks of Google LLC. iPad, iPhone and App Store are trademarks of Apple Inc. Helrig is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them.