Helix Screen Protectors

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The Line 6 Helix is built like a tank. Mostly. Unfortunately, it seems that the plastic used for the screens is fairly soft, and susceptible to scratching. Take a look at this picture of my Helix on stage – yes, it’s mostly dust but you can also see some fine scratches. The scratches seemed to have occurred not from carelessness or accidents, but rather from my occasional cleaning with a microfiber cloth. It would certainly be possible to improve these scratches with a light polishing (as I showed at the end of my polishing article). But if you have a brand new Helix, I definitely recommend applying some kind of screen protection before the scratches occur.

Helix On Stage Scratches

A brand new Helix comes with some temporary plastic film over the screens. Removing them is soooo satisfying…

Helix Factory Screen Protection Film Removing Helix Factory Screen Protection Film Removing Helix Factory Screen Protection Film

Virgin Helix Screens (1 Of 1)

Here’s the brand new Helix with the screens in perfect condition. Let’s put some protection on those screens before they get scratched up!

I considered buying some Lexan polycarbonate sheeting, which I could cut to size, but it seemed like attaching the plastic securely to the Helix was going to be challenging (double sided tape?). I also looked into 3M Scotchgard paint protection film (typically used on car finishes), but worried about the opposite problem- the adhesive is intended to be quite permanent, and I want these protectors to be removable without introducing damage.

Tech Armor Screen ProtectorIt occurred to me that a typical phone screen protector could work, if I could find one large enough. Since I’ll need to trim these to fit, I need the old-school plastic film type, rather than the more prevalent tempered glass protectors. I found this inexpensive 2-pack of anti-glare screen protectors for the 12.9″ iPad Pro from Tech Armor. These are for newer iPad Pro, so there’s no big hole for the home button (just the ugly notch at top). So this leaves us a bit more film to work with.

The low price is also important- I wasn’t sure how well this would turn out! Also, I play a lot of outdoor daytime gigs, and I wear polarized sunglasses. Sometimes, adding a screen protector can introduce terrible rainbow moire effect on a screen- and there’s really no way to know whether this would be the case with these screen protectors without trying it. The matte finish on these protectors should be less prone to that kind of issue. But worst case, I only invested $10 in this experiment!

Cutting Helix Screen ProtectorThe film must be trimmed quite accurately to fit. The main Helix screen is 5 1/2″ x 3″. The long button strips are 17 1/2″ by  11/16″.  And the strip of above the volume/wah treadle is 3 1/16″ x 9/16″.

I use a brand new razor, a good safe straight edge, and a cutting mat, which allows me to cut very accurately and safely.

Cutting Helix Screen Protector 2For the long strips above the buttons, I cut two pieces, with the dividing line right down the center of the buttons, which is slightly off-center on the unit itself due to the longer empty space on the right of the rightmost switches near the treadle.

I first cut them oversize, and them overlap them and make a vertical cut through both of them simultaneously, to ensure that they will butt up against each other perfectly. The final size of the two pieces are 8 1/4″ and 9 1/4″ long.

I temporarily use a piece of tape to connect them together, to keep the the matching edges organized. The piece of tape on the corner of the main screen is to assist in removing the backing. Note, the backing side feels smoother than than the front matte side.

Cutting Helix Screen Protector Corners For the main screen, and the treadle screen, I cut the corners with a pair of scissors, since the screen enclosures are rounded.

The long button strips should not have their corners cut.
Now with the film cut, it’s time to mount the protectors. This will not be fun.

If you’ve ever applied a screen protector to your phone or tablet, you’ll know what a pain this can be. Dust is the enemy. The first step is to use a isopropyl alcohol wipe to clean the screen, and then use a dry lint-free wipe and a fine microfiber cloth to gently clean the screen.
Tech Armor Kit Helix Screen Protector Wipe Helix Screen Protector Microfiber Cloth
Then, with utmost care and exactitude, you must place the screen in exactly the right spot and lay it down. Luck with play a major role.
As it lays down, you must keep the dust at bay, by swearing at it profusely. Inevitably, some dust will get trapped under the protector, and you can use your fingernail to lift up the corner of the protector and use one of the provided dust removal tape stickers to get it out. It’s important to have clean hands, to avoid finger oil and sweat from interfering with adhesion. Even with clean hands, if you end up having to lift the screen too many times, you’ll find that the edges of the protector will no longer will lay down perfectly.
The small treadle screen is fairly trivial to apply. Either start with that one to build confidence, or leave it til the end as a salve for your wounded pride.
I started with the main screen. Positioning this one wasn’t too difficult. Then using a card, fingernail or the microfiber cloth, I pushed all the bubbles out. If you find a bubble won’t come out, it’s likely because a particle of dust is trapped under the protector. I had to lift the protector a number of times to remove dust, and ended up with the two lower corners not quite perfect. Sigh!
The long button strips were the most difficult. Positioning them was much harder than I expected. I have no photos of the process, because it was too difficult to coordinate. For the left piece, I found it easiest to butt up the piece to the left screen edge, where it meets the aluminum, and then guide the rest of it down over the screen. Similar for the right piece, it helps to butt it up against the right edge of the left strip, making sure it’s aligned at top and bottom, and then guide it on down. Again, I had to lift the edges several times to deal with trapped dust, and the end result is an imperfect center join.
These photos are rather unflattering:
However, in actual use, with the screens on, I’m quite satisfied with how these turned out. The center joins in the long button strips don’t bother me as much as I feared. The matte finish is very nice and there is no issue with polarized sunglasses.
And I have enough material left over from the 2-pack to make another set of protectors. I may replace the main screen protector to tidy up those corners, if I can get up the gumption to do this all again!
Finished Helix Screen Protectors Finished Helix Screen Protectors Finished Helix Screen Protectors Finished Helix Screen Protectors Finished Helix Screen Protectors Finished Helix Screen Protectors