Thinking about going to the dark side

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rp108

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I am strongly considering dumping a few of my amps and a cab to go with an Axe-Fx II and FRFR setup. Here are some of my reasons and please chime in, I am sure I am not the only one that has thought about doing it or maybe you already have. :)

When I go out to a gig, I bring a cement block pedalboard, two tube heads, 4x12 cab, 2x12 combo, two guitars and it sucks. Besides lugging all this shit, setup takes forever. Then I have the sound dude yelling at me because I want to turn my 120 watt tube head past two. :doh: It would be nice to show up with a two space rack, light pedalboard, couple of guitars, and maybe a monitor depending on the place.

When I am at home recording, I seriously can't get over how good my Line 6 POD HD Pro sounds. I was tracking some solo stuff last night and doing some rhythms and then comparing them to a recording I did with my Bogner half stack, $2500 pedalboard and I started to :cry:. I actually preferred my Line 6 sound. I am sure if I dicked around more with the mic placement on the cab, added another mic, try another cab, different tubes, and blah...blah...this is the kind of shit I am getting tired of.

I have been using tube amps for over 20 years and remember the rack craze of the late 80s that carried over into the 90s. I think that's why I have been put off for so long about digital guitar rigs. Maybe times are changing. If my Line 6 sounds this good, the Axe-Fx II will probably be tits. I feel with a unit like this it would help with tone chasing as well. I may be wrong but with all those amp models, cabs, effects, I feel like you could spend HOURS AND HOURS tweaking if you get the itch to chase.

Ok, after all that rambling. Am I high or does this sound like something I should consider? If anyone has made the switch, please share your thoughts as well.

Edit: After doing some research I am not getting an Axe-Fx II. Continue to discuss though, someone else might be interested to make the switch.
 
Some people are having success with the Two Notes Torpedo products. They also have a section here on the board!
 
Modelers are great. At FOH or recorded direct, I can't tell them apart from the real thing. I just don't enjoy playing them. I end up in a rabbit hole going tweak tweak tweak.

For what it's worth, I was very underwhelmed by the Axe FX II as of Version 6. Not a tremendous leap from cheaper modelers (if any leap at all) IMHO.
 
Why take so much stuff.
I've got two guitars, board, one head, 2x12 and a Crate Powerblock in the car.

If your amp is too loud for the sound guy put a rectangle guitar case in front of your cab.
 
cardinal":i5oxxvey said:
I just don't enjoy playing them. I end up in a rabbit hole going tweak tweak tweak.
This. Love tweakin on a real amp. Not so much on a digital box. :thumbsdown: :doh:

However, for recording I'm diggin the lil Two Notes Cab. It's easy to dial in a good tone and you can use your preamps! :yes: Some peeps use it live with success as well. Ymmv.
 
Badronald":3hdx905r said:
Why take so much stuff.
I've got two guitars, board, one head, 2x12 and a Crate Powerblock in the car.

If your amp is too loud for the sound guy put a rectangle guitar case in front of your cab.

I bring two heads because one is a backup for either myself or my brother. I use a 2x12 combo amp for cleans because I like the way it sounds and it's easier to use an a/b switch than some expensive complicated switching system on one amp. The pedalboard isn't that large just weighs a ton.
 
make the spare head an Orange Micro Terror, seriously loud as fuck and with a overdrive would get you through a show at a pinch, and it's the size of a slr camera
 
I used to have a Dark Terror actually. Orange amps aren't really my thing although I get what you are saying. I have a feeling I would be trading one set of problems for another. I am curious though to hear from people who made the switch and either stuck with it or went back.
 
I went over to the Kemper side for a good point of time last year to early this year. I switched back because I wasn't happy with what I was getting live out of it. Recording was good but with the Two-Notes and my Marshall head and combo, I really like what I am getting out of it better. My pedalboard is great and I like having instant control over it instead of having to go into menus to make changes. No thanks. If I had an axe FX....I'd be forever tweaking....like I was with the Kemper. I spent so much time downloading and adjusting profiles, doing update after update. It just got to be a real pain in the rear.

It's a great tool but not for me.
 
Not to derail the thread but what are you using for a back up amps? I can't decide. Been wanting to get something small to have when my head blows up and it will, my luck.
 
zewango":xxh9fru8 said:
Not to derail the thread but what are you using for a back up amps? I can't decide. Been wanting to get something small to have when my head blows up and it will, my luck.

Assuming you are a metal player, I would recommend a 6505+. It's not small but you can get them cheap used. Warning though, it may take over your main amp. :rock:
 
I've ridden this merry-go-round several times and I wound NEVER sell any tube amps to fund a digital unit ever again..... let alone go solely all digital unless I couldn't afford anything else or lived somewhere where it was impossible to play an amp at volume.
 
I went Axe-Fx for about a year before switching back. If you dig your Pod HD the the Fractal unit will knock your socks off.

Here's what I liked about the Axe-Fx:
The amp models are amazing and the fx are among the best out there.
The routing is great and there's routing and programming options for any conceivable way you'd need to run it.
FOH sound is (IMO) better than you'd get with a mic'd tube amp. No mic placement issues or stage noise to worry about.
I had three different preset banks set for each of my three different rigs.
Rig 1. I brought two guitars, midi pedal, and 4 space rack with the Axe-Fx and solid state power amp. I used this set up for gigs with a great PA/soundman and where I knew I'd get a good monitor mix.
Rig 2. Same as above but I also brought two monitor wedges. I liked having control over some stage volume and that "Amp-in-the-room" sound. This rig came out when we didn't know the soundman or the PA was shitty.
Rig 3. Same as Rig 1 but I brought a 4x12 cabinet so I could run like I had a traditional head/cab setup.
In any of these different setups I had the option of running two different sets of outs from the Axe-Fx either with completely different sounds in case I wanted to run straight to FOH or if I just wanted to turn off the cab models on one to go to my power amp and 4x12.
Ultimate in efficiency and flexibility.

Here's why I went back to tubes:
I tweaked for more hours than I practiced. My playing went to shit because I was so caught up in finding every different tone I could that it took over every time I picked up a guitar. And this unit is DEEEEEEP.
After I clawed my way up and out of the rabbit hole I discovered that I really only focus in on one clean tone and one or two dirty tones. I don't use any fx, boosts, gates, or anything else other than a guitar and a multi channel amp so I just keep it simple.

If you play a lot of different covers and want to nail the original artist's tones as close as possible without spending thousands on heads the the Axe-Fx will be a dream come true for you. If you're just looking to lighten up your gig loadout but like having your tone still then I'd suggest finding a single head the does what you need.
 
rp108":1d4zxz7c said:
Badronald":1d4zxz7c said:
Why take so much stuff.
I've got two guitars, board, one head, 2x12 and a Crate Powerblock in the car.

If your amp is too loud for the sound guy put a rectangle guitar case in front of your cab.

I bring two heads because one is a backup for either myself or my brother. I use a 2x12 combo amp for cleans because I like the way it sounds and it's easier to use an a/b switch than some expensive complicated switching system on one amp. The pedalboard isn't that large just weighs a ton.

My 2.135 cents -
1. Get a Radial Hot British (or whatever they call their 2 channel preamp/distortion pedal and an E-H Magnum 44 power amp and your back amp is covered.
2. Get over the complication of switching channels on 1 amp and learn how to do it or set up the magnum 44 as your clean tone and bring a small 1x12 cab for it. Or try to clean up with the volume control.

Because of my back for most gigs I downsized to the Pink Taco, pedal board, and 1x12 monitor type cab. It sounds thin in the room but through the pa it is fine. At church I leave a 4x12 so I have less to move.

Good luck!
 
I love my axe fx bc I live in an apt. and I looooovvveee recording direct to my macbook. It's just so much easier to deal with my axe fx than all the amps I've gone through. Sure, I've sent a bit of money but my direct recorded tones are amazing and I can play anytime I want with killer tone without disturbing my landlord. Also,like someone above said, If you love the line 6 hd pro the axe fx II will make you shit your pants...just saying
 
guitarmike":2rhwvgk9 said:
rp108":2rhwvgk9 said:
Badronald":2rhwvgk9 said:
Why take so much stuff.
I've got two guitars, board, one head, 2x12 and a Crate Powerblock in the car.

If your amp is too loud for the sound guy put a rectangle guitar case in front of your cab.

I bring two heads because one is a backup for either myself or my brother. I use a 2x12 combo amp for cleans because I like the way it sounds and it's easier to use an a/b switch than some expensive complicated switching system on one amp. The pedalboard isn't that large just weighs a ton.

Get over the complication of switching channels on 1 amp and learn how to do it ...

I think you are underestimating the complications of switching channels on an amp. You try switching to your clean channel at the same time turning off an overdrive pedal, turning off a noise suppressor, turning on the effects loop, turning on a reverb pedal, turning on a delay pedal, and then reversing it going back to the high gain channel. That would be the ultimate tap dance. No thanks. :)

Also, I used to have a GCX and GCP. It made switching easier, I just needed a full time tech to keep up with the rack and lugging a large rack around is worse than a 2x12 combo.
 
lessthan12":238ouq19 said:
I love my axe fx bc I live in an apt. and I looooovvveee recording direct to my macbook. It's just so much easier to deal with my axe fx than all the amps I've gone through. Sure, I've sent a bit of money but my direct recorded tones are amazing and I can play anytime I want with killer tone without disturbing my landlord. Also,like someone above said, If you love the line 6 hd pro the axe fx II will make you shit your pants...just saying

I am sure the Axe-Fx II is a great sounding unit for recording. The Line 6 is actually very comparable.

 
glpg80":tnfsicf6 said:
Don't do it - we have cookies! :D

I am not. I cranked my Uberschall today through my Bogner 4x12, turned on the Timefactor and Phase 90 playing Panama. Yeah, nothing like tube amps punching your balls in. I think my frustrations are learning how to mic cabs when recording and dealing with sound dudes. Oh and the lugging part is because I am getting old. :(
 
Go axe fx 2 with a fryette 2/90/2 power amp
It totally changed my thought on the axe .. I was gonna sell mine because i couldnt dial a good tone through effect return of my heads ..
With the fryette i have the perfect setup and i usualy use it with my other guitarist .. Were both plugged in the axe and both have our own patches and effects chain
I have 1 mfc and use external switches to plug another footswitch for my friend so he could switch his effect lines when needs to

2 x 2u gator road case shallow ,a backpack with pedalboard and beer , a guitar and my 2 thiele cabs
Perfect setup for me and my other guitarist mate so far
 
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