Aaarrrrgggghhhh! GAS for Axe FX 2!!!!

sorbz62

Hi fellas, Here's the thing - i currently have a few amps - Mesa MKV, jCM800, JCM900, JMP etc, a great perdalboard but ,,,,,,,, I am mega gassing for an Axe FX with all of it effects, direct recording, amp free gigging and so on. I have used a Boss GT8 and 19 live before and I love effects. I like the clips I hear and don't mind tweaking. Do I need to buy one? Jim

viz

Yup.

octatonic

Depends.

sorbz62

On what?

octatonic

Loads of things.

octatonic

Seriously for a second.

Do you record a lot?

If so then absolutely get one- they are great in the studio.

If you want it purely for a live/home practice device then it really depends on you and how much time you want to dick around editing it.

It requires a lot more work to keep up to date (which is optional of course) because with major firmware revisions you need to tweak your patches.

I have my workflow pretty tight now so it doesn't impact me much at all but it took a while.

Jalapeno

I've got a (very) old PoD Pro XT - I use maybe 1 or 2 amps, and 2/3 effects.  Never really tweak much.  It's normally on 1C:BlackFace Lux, much as I'd fancy an AxeFX, I know I'd never use it.

octatonic

Jalapeno said:

I've got a (very) old PoD Pro XT - I use maybe 1 or 2 amps, and 2/3 effects.  Never really tweak much.  It's normally on 1C:BlackFace Lux, much as I'd fancy an AxeFX, I know I'd never use it.

This is the case for a great many people.

I reckon the Axe FX II is one of the most under-utilised devices in music.

I don't see much of a point going for one if the person buying it basically wants to replicate a couple of amps with a couple of effects.

Jetfire

Personally, the one I heard in the flesh wasnt impressive at all... 

Van_Hayden

octatonic;49959" said:

This is the case for a great many people.I reckon the Axe FX II is one of the most under-utilised devices in music.

I don't see much of a point going for one if the person buying it basically wants to replicate a couple of amps with a couple of effects.

Kind of agree on these points.

I've got a stack of amps, I work on, design and test amps most days of the week, I love the sound and feel of them. But I've also got an AxeFXII.

They are great at imitating amps and pedals, and the results for recording are great. In fact for most people in home studio environments I'd say the results are better than mic'ing up a real amp, and when time is important much faster too.

It's also a lot lighter, compact, and more versatile than a conventional rig. That's what initially attracted me, various car accidents have taken their toll on the old back.

So I'd say it could be worth it even if you just want to mimic a couple of amps, if you're recording or have to play quietly a lot or have a dodgy back.

It's never going to be 100% identical in feel to the real amp. It's very very close but the response, especially the attack isn't going to be there Ike the original. It can't be due to the ADC & DAC plus internal processing, that's before you run it through a power amp. I can notice it but then as I mentioned I spend many hours with valve amps every week...although that can make silly high gain sounds easier to achieve and play imho(or I need to clean up my technique a bit more!)

So if you can try one you'll know. And there's the biggest problem with the AxeFX, trying the thing.

I'd also keep your favorite amps.....

Jalapeno

If you're going to gig with a modeller you have to tweak the settings for live sound. To cover the amps/speakers/monitors setup

sorbz62

Thanks guys, I work away from home for extended periods so when I am away I thought I could take it with me with my Steinberger guitar (as it fits in my case!) and record into Cubase on my laptop. When I get home and gig, i would 'probably' be using it for FX only 4cm into a decent tube amp...... maybe!

Van_Hayden

4cm sounds great. Do it. Do it now.

sorbz62

Tell you what - one of the best live setups I had was my JVM with a Boss GT8 in 4cm. It changed channels on the amp, i could have the boss preamps through the Marshall poweramp or just FX. It was awesome and sounded transparent once I'd sorted the levels out.

Van_Hayden said:

4cm sounds great. Do it. Do it now.

Si_

I'll trade you my AxeFX II for your Mark V..

octatonic

sorbz62 said:

Thanks guys, I work away from home for extended periods so when I am away I thought I could take it with me with my Steinberger guitar (as it fits in my case!) and record into Cubase on my laptop. When I get home and gig, i would 'probably' be using it for FX only 4cm into a decent tube amp...... maybe!

That isn't usually the best solution.

Once you've spent a bit of time with the Axe FX you'll know what I mean here.

sorbz62

At first that is.

sorbz62

octatonic said:

sorbz62 said:

Thanks guys, I work away from home for extended periods so when I am away I thought I could take it with me with my Steinberger guitar (as it fits in my case!) and record into Cubase on my laptop. When I get home and gig, i would 'probably' be using it for FX only 4cm into a decent tube amp...... maybe!

That isn't usually the best solution.

Once you've spent a bit of time with the Axe FX you'll know what I mean here.

Si_ said:

I'll trade you my AxeFX II for your Mark V..

I would but it's in Canada!

sorbz62

octatonic said:

sorbz62 said:

Thanks guys, I work away from home for extended periods so when I am away I thought I could take it with me with my Steinberger guitar (as it fits in my case!) and record into Cubase on my laptop. When I get home and gig, i would 'probably' be using it for FX only 4cm into a decent tube amp...... maybe!

That isn't usually the best solution.

Once you've spent a bit of time with the Axe FX you'll know what I mean here.

Si_ said:

I'll trade you my AxeFX II for your Mark V..

I would but it's in Canada!

Drew_TNBD

I wouldn't bother personally. I'm a gearwhore, and even the Axe is just way too much. It's like the Reaper DAW of the multi-fx world... crammed full of options that you (or rather I) just don't need.

They do sound great though. imho. ymmv. etc...

Lew

Drew_fx said:

It's like the Reaper DAW of the multi-fx world... crammed full of options that you (or rather I) just don't need.

You what? 0_o you think Reaper is crammed lol? Never used PT or Logic, then?