For all people having to much hope in Helix here is how it performs with highs. Even the somehow "tuned" command line -V120 -X2 -HF2 -SBT450 -TX0 -F18600 just lets pretty audible HF content dissapear all the time. (no spectral observation just listenig) Reminds me on the old fhg implementations. I donīt see it as a serious competition to lame but for speed.
Nothing in this mp3 world beats Lames HF performance smile.gif

You can try this sample.