Official Axe-Fx Q&A thread!

[Andromalia]

In practice, the main difference between the II and III tonally that I could discern was, that the II was so picky about the guitars I needed separate patches per guitar, while the III is more realistic in tone changes when I switch. With the II some patches I did for my Amfisound were unusable with EMGs etc, that doesn't happen that much with the III. Probably something to do with the inputs more than the DSP or programming.

 

[Elric]

the thing thats the most understated thing Ive noticed is, with brand new guitar strings, the Axe's and Kemper sound unreal. Like stunningly amazing.

The second guitar strings are a few weeks old, the kemper starts to sound shit and the axe stays sounding marginally consistent with that snappiness somewhat intact. The kemper turns to horrible fuzz city on old strings.

If I were rich, I would restring once-twice a week on home practice, or before every show on tour.

WTF are you talking about?

 

[lewis]

WTF are you talking about?

Whats so hard to understand?. Once strings start to wear a little, the kemper doesnt sound as good as the axe.

 

[theicon2125]

Is it still worth buying the II XL+ or just go straight for the III? I'm considering the III even though it's way overkill for me because it will have support for a long time.

 

[Decapitated]

Is it still worth buying the II XL+ or just go straight for the III? I'm considering the III even though it's way overkill for me because it will have support for a long time.

Really depends on what your needs are and how much you want to spend. I got the III and couldn’t be happier. I think if I had purchased a II XL+ I would have wished I had just gotten the III. Never played through a II but the III is truly amazing to me...and yes, total overkill but I love it.

 

[LeviathanKiller]

Is it still worth buying the II XL+ or just go straight for the III? I'm considering the III even though it's way overkill for me because it will have support for a long time.

I would get a used II XL+ and wait for the Axe-Fx IV (4) when it eventually comes out. To me, it seems more reasonable to save some money and learn on a device that won't be changing that much from here on out THEN once you have a good grasp on things, get the newest version so you can comfortably appreciate all of the updates.

That said, the III has changed some params and the layout of different controls so maybe it would be better to learn on there since future models will resemble the III more than the II XL+.

Also, you can't easily move your presets from the II XL+ to the III. They have to be converted, they'll sound somewhat different, require adjustments, and there's only 512 slots instead of 768 so you'd have to whittle them down if you went over 512 on the II XL+.

 

[laxu]

Is it still worth buying the II XL+ or just go straight for the III? I'm considering the III even though it's way overkill for me because it will have support for a long time.

The biggest reason to get the 3 is the improved user interface both on the front panel and the software UI as well. The biggest reasons to not get one is that it doesn't sound all that different from II at the moment and is totally overkill for all but power users. In several years time maybe it sounds different enough to warrant getting over the 2 but right now I would get a used II, any version will do.

 

[Shask]

I have an Axe-FX II, but the next one I will probably buy is the next generation floor unit..... AX8-II or whatever it will be called.

 

[theicon2125]

I have an Axe-FX II, but the next one I will probably buy is the next generation floor unit..... AX8-II or whatever it will be called.

Any idea how long it will be until that comes out? Because that would be ideal over the rack unit for me.

 

[Shask]

Any idea how long it will be until that comes out? Because that would be ideal over the rack unit for me.

Nope, no one does. I can't imagine more than a year or 2 though..... because it would be designed around the newer DSPs they are using in the Axe III. I would assume the programming for the DSP in the AX8 and Axe II is coming to an end.

I would have probably bought the AX8 if it were out when I got my Axe-FX II. It is all overkill for what I use, lol. I love the Axe II, Matrix GT1000FX, and FCB1010 rig though. It is a lot of fun.

 

[mnemonic]

Hooray, I’ve finally made a patch that justifies the axe FX II since I’m technically using two amp blocks in it.

For a while I’ve had a patch to simulate tube poweramp only for when I want to run one of my many preamp pedals into it (when I’m too lazy to turn on and warm up my 2/50/2). It consists of the ‘tube pre’ model as the preamp is supposed to be flat, then just turning on power amp modelling (supply sag set above 0.00) and with the speaker page copied from some other amp model. Maybe some other advanced settings changed I forget now. Anyway it works really well and is just kind of ‘generic poweramp’ but it does sound decently similar to my 2/50/2.

I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with the Recto models since I do dig the Recto sound but the models always were too muddy and loose and it was difficult to get them dialled in right.

So I thought, why not turn off the power amp modelling in the Recto model and run it into my ‘power amp sim’ tube pre model? I did that and after some tweaking, it sounds really great. Stays punchy and clear, doesn’t get that ‘bottoming out’ sound in the low end, and isn’t fizzy.

I guess I did kind of go into autistic levels of tweaking, but the end result is pretty fun.



From what I remember the axe FX ii sounded pretty similar to the Ultra when it first came out, and it took some time to differentiate itself and improve enough to the point where there was a clear difference. I guess that’s where we are with the III.

 

[Shask]

Hooray, I’ve finally made a patch that justifies the axe FX II since I’m technically using two amp blocks in it.

For a while I’ve had a patch to simulate tube poweramp only for when I want to run one of my many preamp pedals into it (when I’m too lazy to turn on and warm up my 2/50/2). It consists of the ‘tube pre’ model as the preamp is supposed to be flat, then just turning on power amp modelling (supply sag set above 0.00) and with the speaker page copied from some other amp model. Maybe some other advanced settings changed I forget now. Anyway it works really well and is just kind of ‘generic poweramp’ but it does sound decently similar to my 2/50/2.

I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with the Recto models since I do dig the Recto sound but the models always were too muddy and loose and it was difficult to get them dialled in right.

So I thought, why not turn off the power amp modelling in the Recto model and run it into my ‘power amp sim’ tube pre model? I did that and after some tweaking, it sounds really great. Stays punchy and clear, doesn’t get that ‘bottoming out’ sound in the low end, and isn’t fizzy.

I guess I did kind of go into autistic levels of tweaking, but the end result is pretty fun.



From what I remember the axe FX ii sounded pretty similar to the Ultra when it first came out, and it took some time to differentiate itself and improve enough to the point where there was a clear difference. I guess that’s where we are with the III.

I have never had much luck running parallel amp blocks. I have started using X/Y though lately, which is useful if you have a controller.

Yeah, I figure the III will be at an amazing level above the II in about 5 years. It took the II 3-4 years before it really differentiated itself from the Ultra.

 

[mnemonic]

I have never had much luck running parallel amp blocks. I have started using X/Y though lately, which is useful if you have a controller.

Yeah, I figure the III will be at an amazing level above the II in about 5 years. It took the II 3-4 years before it really differentiated itself from the Ultra.

I’ve also not had much luck with parallel amp blocks. That patch is series though, more like preamp block into a power amp block.

I keep looking on eBay at the cost of a used Fcb1010, then I look up what I need to do to program midi, and immediately lose interest. Then I forget about it and do it again like a month later. Maybe one day I’ll give it a shot haha

 

[Shask]

I’ve also not had much luck with parallel amp blocks. That patch is series though, more like preamp block into a power amp block.

I keep looking on eBay at the cost of a used Fcb1010, then I look up what I need to do to program midi, and immediately lose interest. Then I forget about it and do it again like a month later. Maybe one day I’ll give it a shot haha

I have only had mine a month or 2, but I put it off also for years because of that. I figured it would be a huge PITA.

However, I found This editor:
http://host.mtnsys.com:81/faq-fcb/PCEditorBeta.htm

And that made it super easy. I can program it in like 5 minutes. You just need a plan before you do it. I tried a few different ways (presets, vs scenes, vs FX on/off, etc...), but I decided on that I have the top 4 left buttons as presets 1-4. The top button 10 is tap tempo. The 5 bottom buttons are scenes 1-5. I have the left pedal as wah, and the right pedal as delay/reverb mix. (One preset I have it as Whammy). It is a pretty simple setup, as I really only use 2 of those presets, and the other 2 are just experimental variations (for trying different amp models, etc...). The 5 scenes in a preset are basically amp, amp+OD, amp+Chorus, amp+Flanger, and Clean amp (Y state) with Chorus. I can mix in delay/reverb on any of them with the right pedal.

So, basically, the programming part is easy with the editor. Deciding on your plan of what you want it to do is harder.

 

[laxu]

Any idea how long it will be until that comes out? Because that would be ideal over the rack unit for me.

Most likely at least a year. They are still heavily in bug fixing mode for the 3 and even the foot controllers aren't out afaik.

 

[lewis]

ok so we have two Axe Fxs (Axe II XL and an AX8) that we are going to be gigging with.
Got the 18i20 handling backing tracks and midi. How do we setup everything so the macbook, and logic, using the 18i20, changes Axe FX presets automatically?

 

[Andromalia]

So many cabs now, I'm almost always using the same one, anyone has a stock cab they like so I can check it out on the III ?

 

[LeviathanKiller]

So many cabs now, I'm almost always using the same one, anyone has a stock cab they like so I can check it out on the III ?

The Misha Mansoor ones are all I use for right now
The Engl cab is my favorite. Named "Angle" in the packs.

 

[narad]

Is anyone actually buying a III. I feel like the II had immediate widespread adoption, and the III had almost immediate price drops and non-stop spamming me about sales. Imagining a huge warehouse full of sitting inventory somewhere.

 

[MaxOfMetal]

Is anyone actually buying a III. I feel like the II had immediate widespread adoption, and the III had almost immediate price drops and non-stop spamming me about sales. Imagining a huge warehouse full of sitting inventory somewhere.

There's a lot more competition now, even from within Fractal with thier AX and FX lines.

The Kemper is getting cheaper as it becomes more commonplace. The Helix has a strong following. More and more VSTs are coming out.

There are just so many different products and form factors vs. almost a decade ago when the II first came out.