Fractal Axe-Fx
- Thread starter Josh Lawson
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links like Ebay, Amazon, and others.
:eargasm: THAT SOUNDS FUCKING AMAZING!!!!This site may earn a commission from merchant links like Ebay, Amazon, and others.
The Dark Wolf
Contributor
Wow. That does sound amazing. Doesn't sound like modelling at all, to me. 
Used666
Well-Known Member
Heres another
http://www2.hku.nl/~tymon/axe/PolyAxe.mp3
(not me btw)
Tymon=Guitarist for Cynic as far as i know
http://www2.hku.nl/~tymon/axe/PolyAxe.mp3
(not me btw)
Tymon=Guitarist for Cynic as far as i know
Salvation
Active Member
HOLLY SHIT !! HOLLY SHIT>> THAT SOUNDS FUCKING INSANE .
Same question over here.. If it already models power amps and speaker cabs.. should i just get a cheap solid state amp?
Whatever you do, do NOT get a cheap solid state amp to go with the Axe Fx, it will ruin its nuances and tonal qualities.
There are plenty of configurations for the Axe. The regular preamp - poweramp - cabinet, is a nice one if you've got a nice poweramp and cabinet (plus if you feel there is ANY sterile-ness in the Axe at all, which you shouldn't if you are using it properly, a tubed poweramp and cabinet remedy it fairly well). I recommend something like an atomic reactor combo for this, but you can use whatever you like. Make sure when you do this though you turn the cabinet models OFF, from there you get the beef from your poweramp and cab rather than the axe itself.
However, if you want NO coloration, then run it through a PA or HIFI system, or some sort of FRFR amplifier like a keyboard amplifier. My mentor runs it solely through the PA at his venues and it sounds amazing that way.
Josh Lawson
Banned
Now guys, don't take this the wrong way, but does anyone else smell a hint of Digitech all over this product? Who is Fractal? Where did they come from? I'd be amazed if there is not a connection between Harmon and Fractal, somewhere...on some level. Not that this is a bad thing, and I'm really not trying to start a flame war, just a paranoid hunch, I guess.
Smells more like bullshit to me...
Used666
Well-Known Member
Ya i dont even distantly see a possible connection......
Spinedriver
Well-Known Member
I'd say that if there was some kind of connection, there wouldn't be a 4 month or so waiting list to get one. (I've heard more than a few times that if you want a brand new one, it can take up to a few months to get one because of the backlog).
I seem to recall on the Fractal webpage that it's just a guy who saw what direction all the other major companies (Line 6, Digitech, etc..) were headed with their modeling technology and he said 'all they have to do is this'... and he built the Axe-Fx, leaving all of the others in the dust as far as quality goes. Granted it costs more than twice what a Pod X3 Pro goes for but as many have said, the effects on this are even better than the Eventide processors so if you want the best, you're gonna have to pay for it.
I seem to recall on the Fractal webpage that it's just a guy who saw what direction all the other major companies (Line 6, Digitech, etc..) were headed with their modeling technology and he said 'all they have to do is this'... and he built the Axe-Fx, leaving all of the others in the dust as far as quality goes. Granted it costs more than twice what a Pod X3 Pro goes for but as many have said, the effects on this are even better than the Eventide processors so if you want the best, you're gonna have to pay for it.
I've been reading up on the AxeFx a lot lately and it seems interesting, but as a bit of a tube snob I'm skeptical. I'm gonna listen to those clips when I get home.
If there was a Digitech connection don't you think that Digitech would have just bought them out and hired the team to design and release it under the Digitech brand? That idea doesn't make sense to me.
I've read all of the stuff on the website and everything in the manual, and the method they use does make a lot of sense. I've also seen recently how good amp emulation has gotten from hearing ReValver III which shocked me and my co-guitarist Nate.
Besides Cynic is anyone else in a major band using it?
Line6 has gotten very close with the SpiderValve, but it still sounds like a Line6, and with the AxeFx apparently being worlds above them I find this very interesting.
About the wait times, looks like the backup has been cleared on the regular models, but there's still a 2 to 4 week wait on the Ultra version.
If there was a Digitech connection don't you think that Digitech would have just bought them out and hired the team to design and release it under the Digitech brand? That idea doesn't make sense to me.
I've read all of the stuff on the website and everything in the manual, and the method they use does make a lot of sense. I've also seen recently how good amp emulation has gotten from hearing ReValver III which shocked me and my co-guitarist Nate.
Besides Cynic is anyone else in a major band using it?
Line6 has gotten very close with the SpiderValve, but it still sounds like a Line6, and with the AxeFx apparently being worlds above them I find this very interesting.
About the wait times, looks like the backup has been cleared on the regular models, but there's still a 2 to 4 week wait on the Ultra version.
Used666
Well-Known Member
I gotta be honest, try an axe fx and you'll see exactly how close they really got which in this case isnt close at all.
Holy fucking shit.
That is unbelievable.
U2 guys seem to be attracted to the AF because it does so many fx in one box. I'm not a big Edge fan myself but apparently his tone and fx use is pretty respected.
$2k is in line with a very nice tube head - if it's any good it's worth it, I guess.
What you have to remember here is that the effects alone in this thing are on par with an Eventide Eclipse or a TC G Force which are both what $1500?
Basically what you get with the AF is a monster processor plus the best amp modeling I've ever seen / heard / used for a little more than the Eclipse or G Force.
IMHO, the modeling itself is worth the price alone. I hear people complain about the price but when you break it down it's not bad at all.
My last rig was a Vetta II head ($1700 new), and an FBV ($300 new). I went with the Axe Fx thinking that even if the modeling was even on par with the Vetta that the fx upgrade would be worth it for sure. The modeling is so much better it's not even on the same level. I don't even think of it as a modeler anymore.
My second favorite live rig ever was a Mesa Mark IV ($1200 used), a Mesa Rectoverb ($800 used), a TC G Major ($250 used) into a Mesa Recto Cab ($800) new with a Midi Mate out front doing the control ($100 used).
I'm using the same cab and controller but I replaced that monstrosity with my Axe Fx ($1500) and a Carvin DCM 600 ($225). I don't miss it at all.
Hell my Triaxis / 2:90 / G Major rig cost a lot more too and the Axe kills that rig.
I started out with a Peavey Classic 50/50 and loved it for a year. A few months ago I switched out to a Carvin DCM 600 and it actually sounds better. It has all the same vibe and 3d mojo to it but it's consistent as hell now.
Cliff has absolutely nothing to do with Digitech or any other company. There's rumors that he's developing a product with Atomic but other than that he's independent. It's a very small company and I've been around since nearly the beginning of it. The whole reason there was a waiting list was that the company was so small and the owner / developer Cliff absolutely refuses to cut corners on quality and so he'd often have to wait for parts from different distributors.
The guy is insane about customer service too. He update the firmwares constantly and is seen regularly on the forum answering questions and working on feature requests. His company is the exact opposite of the big faceless corp.
Okay one more post and I'm done...
A lot of guys are using this with FRFR rigs and for direct recording with great results but I love mine the most with a power amp and cab. I can still coax better tones using it as a pre amp / processor than as a direct tool and that's the way I used it.
I do on occasion run a split signal with cab and mic sims going direct to board live and cab and mic sims off to my real amp and cab instead of micing it and it sounds pretty cool. I love that feature when I know I'm going to need to turn up my amp onstage for the usual volume war without screwing up my FOH feed.
A lot of guys are using this with FRFR rigs and for direct recording with great results but I love mine the most with a power amp and cab. I can still coax better tones using it as a pre amp / processor than as a direct tool and that's the way I used it.
I do on occasion run a split signal with cab and mic sims going direct to board live and cab and mic sims off to my real amp and cab instead of micing it and it sounds pretty cool. I love that feature when I know I'm going to need to turn up my amp onstage for the usual volume war without screwing up my FOH feed.
Josh Lawson
Banned
This is good to read. I wondered how he got the venture capital to start a company like this. That is Why I posted the "DigiTech" theory. That and the fact that they look a bit like 2101s looked in the early '90s. When something comes out of "nowhere" like this, it makes me wonder, but like I said, I am really glad to here Fractal is independent and not affiliated to DigiTech at all, in anyway. Thanks for clearing all of this up.
Used666
Well-Known Member
http://www.musicgearsource.com/fractal.html
An interview where he states that hes been an electrical engineer for over 20 years. They make some good dough in that field of work. I also read that hes worked for the military.
So you recomend get a solid state like the Carvin?? does it give you good bottom end? do you use the power amp modeling on the Axe FX ? or you turn off both Cab and power modeling ?
I love my Carvin power amp. I would recommend keeping a very open mind with the Axe Fx. There are guys that run them through PA cabs, guys who run direct to board, guys who use tube power amps and cab, solid state power amps and cabs, some guys run them into their favorite tube heads, tube combos, etc.
The Carvin gives me plenty of bottom end, but I'm sure the Recto 4x12 I'm running it through helps that a bit.
I've always had the power amp sims turned on and the cabs turned off when running into a power amp and cab, even when I was running a tube power amp with it. The thing is, unless you're running a tube power amp loud enough to get it to start "contributing" to the tone with power tube compression and drive then you really won't get the same vibe as a Marshall Plexi cranked up.
I tried running with the power amp sims off into my Classic 50/50 and some models did pretty good while others really sounded weak and thin. Then, I'd turn them on and the one's that sounded weak and thin really came alive.
For vintage amp models that didn't have a master volume in real life you really need it be cranked up to get the sound that you know and love from them and that's hard to do with a tube power amp unless you're running it as loud as you would say a cranked Marshall Plexi and at least for me that was totally impractical.
One of my favorite features of the amp models is the depth of control. It's like modding your own amp. You can change the sag in the power section of any amp and make it act like another amp. For example, if you love the tone of a Recto but don't dig the spongy reaction time you can drop the sag control and make it as tight as solid stater, or vice versa. Want a Mark IV lead tone to be crazy spongy and touch sensitive you can crank up the sag.
When he released one of the last few firmwares he gave you the option to change out the tone stack for that of another amp. Originally the Axe Fx only had Active tone stacks to choose from and now it also has passives for each particular model. If you want to take the tone stack out of a Plexi and put it in Fender Twin, you can. You can also change the location of the tone stack either before or after the preamp gain. You can also go into the advanced menu and change values to the amp's design itself. That can come in very handy, for example you can change the shelving to tighten up the low end, etc.
The bottom line is there is so much stuff you can do before, after, around, with, etc. to your tone and it all sounds good. It may sound complex and hard to dial in but it really isn't. You can actually get a very good tone right off the bat, and just dial it in closer and closer to what you want. If you have a lot of time and love to tweak you can get frightening results in both the feel and sound of stuff.
I love it the most because I used to love playing Mesa Boogie stuff but I always played small clubs and home studios where you couldn't get stuff up and loud enough to make them really come alive but with the Axe I can get that at very modest volumes. The effects are just crazy good and I use quite a few of them.
