Question: Entry vs Mid vs High-End Modelers for Gigging

[projectjetfire]

Well some people know amp design and tweak those like they would the real thing. Others tweak them to learn more about tone shaping and how amps work.

Other people avoid advanced options altogether.

None of those people are doing the wrong thing.

The thing is, the parameters are available.

Beginner's Quick Guide To Essential Amp Parameters (FW 12.03)

The Axe FX III has a seemingly endless number of amp parameters available to tweak. This can be really cool, but it can also be very overwhelming, especially for someone who is new to the Axe FX and used to a real amp. Most parameters are just fine in their default setting, but some are...

forum.fractalaudio.com

As you said before, you can get decent tones without looking at the extras, I do wonder how often people do use them in that circumstance.. but interesting reading. Its prob obvious at this point that I am a fan of the Helix and youve had alot of exposure to the Fractal stuff, so I do consider myself educated which is great.

 

[budda]

Beginner's Quick Guide To Essential Amp Parameters (FW 12.03)

The Axe FX III has a seemingly endless number of amp parameters available to tweak. This can be really cool, but it can also be very overwhelming, especially for someone who is new to the Axe FX and used to a real amp. Most parameters are just fine in their default setting, but some are...

forum.fractalaudio.com

As you said before, you can get decent tones without looking at the extras, I do wonder how often people do use them in that circumstance.. but interesting reading. Its prob obvious at this point that I am a fan of the Helix and youve had alot of exposure to the Fractal stuff, so I do consider myself educated which is great.

I had a helix LT winter 2019 before selling it to get my axe3 Jan 2020. I also had an hx stomp last summer to try out for a band. Not steeped in Line6 but Ive owned 3 of their devices - similar but definitely not the same as how Fractal operates.

No issues with anyone being a fan of what works for them, but trying to frame progress as an oversight is disingenuous imo

 

[Neon_Knight_]

And really, as far as sound quality goes, I don't think they're all that different (I KNOW I MIGHT CATCH HEAT FOR THIS BUT ITS JUST MY OPINION OKAY?). They all sound good, but they all sound like digital modelers.

There are differences between features, memory, processing power etc. (not just between brands, but between each brand's various models), but all of them can do more than the average user needs from them, so for many people all of those differences are moot. I would guess that anyone who uses all of the extra options that Axe FX III offers over Helix is likely to be someone who (without a high-end modeller) would otherwise be spending a small fortune buying and modding numerous amps and pedals.

In terms of differences in sound, everyone struggles (most people completely fail) to consistently identify a real tube amp over high-end modellers in blind audio tests. It seems that people detect more difference in the "feel" of real tube amp vs. modeller than the sound. Purely in terms of sound (which is all that an audience / listener experiences), where people are relatively successful in identifying real amp vs. Helix vs. Axe FX vs. QC vs. Kemper, it's not because any (including the real amp) sounds objectively better, but due to that person being familiar (through significant experience) with a certain modeller tending to sound slightly warmer or brighter than the real amp / other modellers.
I believe the general consensus is that one of Helix / Axe FX sounds inherently darker, while the other has spikier highs and upper-mids. Arguing about which sounds "better" is possibly similar to arguing whether DiMarzio or Seymour Duncan pickups sound better (one brand is known for a lower-mid bump and the other for more presence in the highs). But, if you know what characteristics to expect from each, you have more chance of picking which is which in a blind test, irrespective of which sounds "better".