Yet another Axe-fx Thread .....

[Gainfreak]

So when are you gonna sell your Mark IV?

I'll never sell it but after I wrote my last post I just dialed in something that would pretty much retire the MKIV for live use and I don't mid saying so

 

[SkyhighRocks]

So when are you gonna sell your Mark IV?

I'll never sell it but after I wrote my last post I just dialed in something that would pretty much retire the MKIV for live use and I don't mid saying so

would ya share that with us please already?

interested in your take.

 

[Gainfreak]

Welcome to the dark side Ralph.

I have a lot of options for running my axe - and the big advantage I've found to running it with a QSC or full range setup is that if you get a happening tone like that, it's going to be the same out the front.

Even if you use a tube power amp and cabs onstage, I'd recommend using the direct outs because you can run those from the 2nd output - this allows you to keep the same levels to the soundboard and you can change your onstage volume however you need without screwing with the FOH mix. Plus through a PA, I've never been that happy with my FOH tone once it's miked and stuff - the axe just gives you the same thing every time, which I really dig.

Been using my QSC setup last few gigs, have an outdoor gig (biker one on halloween, can't wait to see what the biker chicks are going to wear for costumes) that is out in the boonies, so I can run as loud as I want onstage. I'm thinking of running a really 'too much hassle to do this at every pissant gig' setup - either W/D/W or in stereo with two half stacks - my ractifier or Randall MTS head running one Marshall 4x12 and my Bogner on the other. Or maybe 'just' a Randall RT2/50 power amp in stereo running two 4x12s, 6L6s on one side, KT88s on the other.

Pete

Pete!!

We will see how this progresses as this is only a loner lol! I have already decided that I will be buying one as soon as I sell off some stuff. I can't sell off a Kidney because I only have one
With that said, I hear you about never being happy with the FOH sound when being miked up but Ive also had that screwed with when I went direct. The soundguy decided that he was going to eq my sound lol I'll will definitely try both when I get one but one thing Im sure off that this thing kicks ass when used as a preamp and the patches that Ive dialed are cool because I can go from a Led Zep tone to Whitesnake with a flick of a switch

 

[Gainfreak]

So when are you gonna sell your Mark IV?

I'll never sell it but after I wrote my last post I just dialed in something that would pretty much retire the MKIV for live use and I don't mid saying so

would ya share that with us please already?

interested in your take.

crap, I don't even have half a handle on this thing yet!! For started just do what I said before. Go to the recto patch (I think its patch 106) Put a drive patch in front set on treble booster with the level and gain up a bit and you will be close to what I just did. The treble booster will alter the mids more towards what they are like on the MKIV. Im not sure what it will sound like when going direct but it sounds insane going through my 2:90 in stereo out to my Marshall cabs. of course if you want the mega lead you'll need to tune up the verb just a hair and add a stero delay

 

[SkyhighRocks]

crap, I don't even have half a handle on this thing yet!! For started just do what I said before. Go to the recto patch (I think its patch 106) Put a drive patch in front set on treble booster with the level and gain up a bit and you will be close to what I just did. The treble booster will alter the mids more towards what they are like on the MKIV. Im not sure what it will sound like when going direct but it sounds insane going through my 2:90 in stereo out to my Marshall cabs. of course if you want the mega lead you'll need to tune up the verb just a hair and add a stero delay

what speakers are in your cab?

 

[Gainfreak]

crap, I don't even have half a handle on this thing yet!! For started just do what I said before. Go to the recto patch (I think its patch 106) Put a drive patch in front set on treble booster with the level and gain up a bit and you will be close to what I just did. The treble booster will alter the mids more towards what they are like on the MKIV. Im not sure what it will sound like when going direct but it sounds insane going through my 2:90 in stereo out to my Marshall cabs. of course if you want the mega lead you'll need to tune up the verb just a hair and add a stero delay

what speakers are in your cab?

h30's in one cab and weber blue dogs in another (the blue dogs sound very similar to the h30's)
I also played it through my MC90 earcandy cab and it sounded just as insane lol

 

[SkyhighRocks]

are you referring to the "Studio Lead" patch? That's 106 but it uses the USA Lead 2 sim.

 

[Gainfreak]

are you referring to the "Studio Lead" patch? That's 106 but it uses the USA Lead 2 sim.

On mine its called recto 2. I have the regular version at the moment not the ultra but it is also possible that it has been edited.

The amp used is recto 1. I slapped the treble boosted out in front.

 

[cliffc8488]

For MKIV tones you should try using USA Lead 1 and 2 as those are based on the MKIV lead channel. Recto is a Rectifier model. USA Rhy 1 is MKIV rhythm channel and USA Clean is MKIV clean.

There is transformer modeling so you aren't imagining hearing an overdriven transformer.

 

[Gainfreak]

For MKIV tones you should try using USA Lead 1 and 2 as those are based on the MKIV lead channel. Recto is a Rectifier model. USA Rhy 1 is MKIV rhythm channel and USA Clean is MKIV clean.

There is transformer modeling so you aren't imagining hearing an overdriven transformer.

you da man!!
You are going to laugh but the recto model with a treble booster sounds just like my MKIV on the lead channel with the EQ engaged

BTW, Im having a blast with this thing and I can't thank you enough for letting me borrow this thing! You and Tom are the best!

Ralph

 

[blackba]

So what did you hear before that you didn't like? Since you are not hearing that issue now, what have you changed to dial it out?


Are there any bass amp patches in there? It would be cool if it worked for bass as well....

 

[riffy]

For MKIV tones you should try using USA Lead 1 and 2 as those are based on the MKIV lead channel. Recto is a Rectifier model. USA Rhy 1 is MKIV rhythm channel and USA Clean is MKIV clean.

There is transformer modeling so you aren't imagining hearing an overdriven transformer.

you do man!!
You are going to laugh but the recto model with a treble booster sounds just like my MKIV on the lead channel with the EQ engaged

BTW, Im having a blast with this thing and I can't thank you enough for letting me borrow this thing! You and Tom are the best!

Ralph

That is how I get my Pettrucci sounds as well. Especially the lead sounds... To get his rhythm sounds I simply cut off the treble booster and I am back to Recto rhythm grind... Superb thru the 2:90 too! But you already know, I love it direct for recording and playing in the jazz fusion thing live now.

 

[Digital Jams]

Isn't this the case with most modelers? The problem is never really the preamp, it's the power amp. Once they figure out how to model real power tube saturation, then it will be over for tube amps.

I get what you're saying Andrew, but also on some level I disagree. Ralph doesn't like the direct tones, but others do (including me...) Also, I think that most people running full tube rigs rarely come close to really pushing the power section. The guys who do are often using attenuators, which are also a tone compromise. And a whole lot of master-volume amps (most?) sound like ass if the power section is cranked.

I hear what you are saying, some amps get really flubby and not very articulate when you really push the power section. I run a PODXT Pro through a VHT 2/50/2 and yeah the POD effects are not nearly as good, my Lexicon smokes any verb on the POD and the depth and res controls on the VHT help but I am not getting what Ralph is talking about I figure as I know what makes him tick. I was lucky to get my PODXT from someone that spent some time with his patches and the ones I had made toke me an average of an hour to get something ok but not mind blowing. My MK IV or JVM through the rack would still destroy it imo.

Glad you were able to score a demo Ralph, I could see you guys rolling having ablast with your home rig

 

[GITTarzann]

Isn't this the case with most modelers? The problem is never really the preamp, it's the power amp. Once they figure out how to model real power tube saturation, then it will be over for tube amps.

Personally I think the cab sims are a farther from being "there" than the power amp sims.

I have a stereo tube power amp, a Marshall and Mesa power section, Marshall 4X12, Splawn 4X12 and 2 Bogner 1X12 cubes and 2 QSC's...the QSC's are sooo close to being there.
.
There is just a little something missing that I can't find yet. I get really close with some of the custom IR's, but real speaker cabs have a little bit of wood and air that (to me) the FRFR is missing yet.

Don't take any of this as a negative in the sense of the Axe being lesser than a "real" amp though. I listen to just about any tone and I can get something that is just as satisfying to me. There aren't many setups I would trade it for.

 

[Gainfreak]

So what did you hear before that you didn't like? Since you are not hearing that issue now, what have you changed to dial it out?


Are there any bass amp patches in there? It would be cool if it worked for bass as well....

The whole thing with me was that I heard the Axe-Fx through the QSC monitors and that was the unit essentially going direct into a PA so to speak.(same concept) Im running the axe-fx right now through a mesa boogie tube poweramp and out to some guitar speakers and it is punching me in the face right now
it really is a preferance thing and right now Im feeling as if I am hearing what this thing can do for the first time.
There aren't any bass patches that I know of but I could change my guitar to sounds like a bass with some pitch shifting

 

[Gainfreak]

For MKIV tones you should try using USA Lead 1 and 2 as those are based on the MKIV lead channel. Recto is a Rectifier model. USA Rhy 1 is MKIV rhythm channel and USA Clean is MKIV clean.

There is transformer modeling so you aren't imagining hearing an overdriven transformer.

you do man!!
You are going to laugh but the recto model with a treble booster sounds just like my MKIV on the lead channel with the EQ engaged

BTW, Im having a blast with this thing and I can't thank you enough for letting me borrow this thing! You and Tom are the best!

Ralph

That is how I get my Pettrucci sounds as well. Especially the lead sounds... To get his rhythm sounds I simply cut off the treble booster and I am back to Recto rhythm grind... Superb thru the 2:90 too! But you already know, I love it direct for recording and playing in the jazz fusion thing live now.

A man after my own heart!!

 

[GITTarzann]

It would be cool if it worked for bass as well....

There are some recordings at the Axe-Fx forum of the Axe being used to direct record bass parts.

 

[Gainfreak]

Isn't this the case with most modelers? The problem is never really the preamp, it's the power amp. Once they figure out how to model real power tube saturation, then it will be over for tube amps.

I get what you're saying Andrew, but also on some level I disagree. Ralph doesn't like the direct tones, but others do (including me...) Also, I think that most people running full tube rigs rarely come close to really pushing the power section. The guys who do are often using attenuators, which are also a tone compromise. And a whole lot of master-volume amps (most?) sound like ass if the power section is cranked.

I hear what you are saying, some amps get really flubby and not very articulate when you really push the power section. I run a PODXT Pro through a VHT 2/50/2 and yeah the POD effects are not nearly as good, my Lexicon smokes any verb on the POD and the depth and res controls on the VHT help but I am not getting what Ralph is talking about I figure as I know what makes him tick. I was lucky to get my PODXT from someone that spent some time with his patches and the ones I had made toke me an average of an hour to get something ok but not mind blowing. My MK IV or JVM through the rack would still destroy it imo.

Glad you were able to score a demo Ralph, I could see you guys rolling having ablast with your home rig

This thing is a blast to play and its way easier to use then the POD. The POD does not feel like this does and the effects on the POD are pretty weak. This is top shelf all the way and Im positive that Ive found my future live rig

 

[GITTarzann]

I've read some time ago, that you like the PQ3.

You can add the filter before the amp and set it to "peaking" (I think), set the freq., Q, gain and level, and it adds that huge mid hump pushing the front of an amp.

I like it for some things like Night Rangerish tone s...Give it a try YMMV.

 

[Gainfreak]

I've read some time ago, that you like the PQ3.

You can add the filter before the amp and set it to "peaking" (I think), set the freq., Q, gain and level, and it adds that huge mid hump pushing the front of an amp.

I like it for some things like Night Rangerish tone s...Give it a try YMMV.

I tried that but I couldn't get it to work right. Im pretty sure it was pilot error though! Im going to try it again