AX8 - Preparing for a Gig

Nimbas

Nimbas

Inspired
We can't always have access to the venue ahead of time. In light of that, do you guys find that your patches translate well if you've designed them with monitors and plan on going direct to the board at the venue or do you try and design them with a PA or CLR or something at home?

I had a practice last night and my beautiful tones I had prepared at home with my studio monitors sounded only faintly similar at the venue. Reverbs and delays that were lush and full at home were barely audible at the gig. Drives didn't seem to push the same, some quieter, some louder than I expected - and the driven tone most times just didn't translate well.

I tried to experiment some with stereo output mode vs summed, but couldn't tell much difference.

I wasn't too upset because I played acoustic a few weeks ago at the same place with a different unit and it was gorgeous at home and sounded like a tin can there. To be clear this isn't the unit it's just me learning - any preference or additional advice for me?

How can I get tones to translate better without venue access?

Additional background I used just one guitar, one patch the whole times with 4 scenes. I had X/Y states only for the drive pedals.

The scenes concept is awesome BTW.

EDIT:

I am hearing myself there through in ears coming back from the board - with the mix of the rest of the band. I have independent control of each channel I am hearing via in ears. The units are like Avioms but are something else there - Behringers perhaps can't remember.
 
Nimbas said:
We can't always have access to the venue ahead of time. In light of that, do you guys find that your patches translate well if you've designed them with monitors and plan on going direct to the board at the venue or do you try and design them with a PA or CLR or something at home?

I had a practice last night and my beautiful tones I had prepared at home with my studio monitors sounded only faintly similar at the venue. Reverbs and delays that were lush and full at home were barely audible at the gig. Drives didn't seem to push the same, some quieter, some louder than I expected - and the driven tone most times just didn't translate well.

I tried to experiment some with stereo output mode vs summed, but couldn't tell much difference.

I wasn't too upset because I played acoustic a few weeks ago at the same place with a different unit and it was gorgeous at home and sounded like a tin can there. To be clear this isn't the unit it's just me learning - any preference or additional advice for me?

How can I get tones to translate better without venue access?

Additional background I used just one guitar, one patch the whole times with 4 scenes. I had X/Y states only for the drive pedals.

The scenes concept is awesome BTW.

EDIT:

I am hearing myself there through in ears coming back from the board - with the mix of the rest of the band. I have independent control of each channel I am hearing via in ears. The units are like Avioms but are something else there - Behringers perhaps can't remember.
Click to expand...

How do you sound through the FOH PA? IEMs will rarely translate exactly what you hear on studio monitors or big FRFR setups. That's just the nature of speakers sitting right in your ear canal. Is your FOH channel EQ flat?

I design my presets on studio monitors (not crazy expensive, I'd call them mid-market) and they translate very well to a large venue with a flat, tuned PA. The only thing I have trouble guessing is how saturated to go with reverbs and delays, because large venues have a ton of natural reverb. When I err on the side of less reverb, it usually works better at the venue. Drives and levels translate perfectly.
 
philipacamaniac said:
How do you sound through the FOH PA? IEMs will rarely translate exactly what you hear on studio monitors or big FRFR setups. That's just the nature of speakers sitting right in your ear canal. Is your FOH channel EQ flat?

I design my presets on studio monitors (not crazy expensive, I'd call them mid-market) and they translate very well to a large venue with a flat, tuned PA. The only thing I have trouble guessing is how saturated to go with reverbs and delays, because large venues have a ton of natural reverb. When I err on the side of less reverb, it usually works better at the venue. Drives and levels translate perfectly.
Click to expand...

They give me a single XLR - it ends up at the board and I've asked them to EQ me flat. I have no idea how the sound is then routed back to my in ears via that little mixer on my music stand, but that's how it works.

One thing I thought was weird is at home right now I'm going direct to Yamaha HS7's - I have their volume on the back set to noon at +4. On the AX8 the volume is at noon also. At the venue last night i sent the same signal and they told me I had to turn down because I was close to clipping the board and they couldn't turn the gain down any more. I had to turn down to like 20% power as read on the output indicator - looked at it in the VU meter page. Maybe this is fine but I've always thought you want to send as strong a signal as possible.

Another thing that happened later was after rehearsal someone was playing my guitar and I went out front to listen, and it didn't sound like my AX8 at home. The sound seemed very degraded to me - like cheap radio or something.

I was a little bummed but when I got home I plugged up to my stuff to cure my dark cloud and everything sounded glorious.
 
Let the sound guy do their job, tell them to start flat is probably something they do anyway. I don't know someone who doesn't do this. PA is going to do what it does, you are going through another channel strip, crossovers, amps, then speakers, it cant sound exactly the same.
 
I'm still learning myself, but what I've found useful, is to play along to some decent backing tracks - similar to the style you play.
You can get heaps at guitarbackingtrack <dot> com.

I've found some of my presets that I thought would be great, get lost when you add a full band mix.
If you can set up the backing tracks and your AX8 to run into a single FRFR speaker (via a mixer, or computer interface, etc.), you should hopefully be able to get more of an idea of how they will translate to a gig setting.
Remember to get the FRFR volume up to a decent level - make it as gig like as you possible can.
 
Callan said:
I'm still learning myself, but what I've found useful, is to play along to some decent backing tracks - similar to the style you play.
You can get heaps at guitarbackingtrack <dot> com.

I've found some of my presets that I thought would be great, get lost when you add a full band mix.
If you can set up the backing tracks and your AX8 to run into a single FRFR speaker (via a mixer, or computer interface, etc.), you should hopefully be able to get more of an idea of how they will translate to a gig setting.
Remember to get the FRFR volume up to a decent level - make it as gig like as you possible can.
Click to expand...

A mate of mine hires out a rehearsal studio for an afternoon whenever he gets some new kit. He runs everything at performance level and works the sound until it is what he wants to hear at playing volume. After that - he knows how it will stack up in a real performance. I plan to do this in the next couple of weeks - time allowing.
 
Callan said:
I'm still learning myself, but what I've found useful, is to play along to some decent backing tracks - similar to the style you play.
You can get heaps at guitarbackingtrack <dot> com.

I've found some of my presets that I thought would be great, get lost when you add a full band mix.
If you can set up the backing tracks and your AX8 to run into a single FRFR speaker (via a mixer, or computer interface, etc.), you should hopefully be able to get more of an idea of how they will translate to a gig setting.
Remember to get the FRFR volume up to a decent level - make it as gig like as you possible can.
Click to expand...

A mate of mine hires out a rehearsal studio for an afternoon whenever he gets some new kit. He runs everything at performance level and works the sound until it is what he wants to hear at playing volume. After that - he knows how it will stack up in a real performance. I plan to do this in the next couple of weeks - time allowing.
 
i have my output set to 9:00 o'clock on my Axe FX II for my signals going to the mixer. I tried noon first, but that gave them too much signal, so I would guess it is the same with the AX8. I had to do this at church, and left it that way for my own band as well.

As far as I'm concerned, nothing sounds very good through the Aviom mixers we use at church, especially guitar. So far, I have used the church's Fender Deluxe or Vox, and they sound great back stage in the guitar amp closet, but not very good through the Avion and IEMs.
My Axe II sounded much better, but I am toying with the idea of getting a small 4 channel mixer that I can run from my new AX8 to it, and the stereo outs from the Aviom, so my guitar sounds better in my ears.
 
I mix my presets with studio monitors.........and I have my FRFR....in the room with me...so I can see how it sounds...out both....you can't just mix with studio monitors and call it a day...because there are to many variables when going to FOH...so keep your FRFR close by when building presets....so you can get a reasonable facsimile of what it will sound like FOH...so far I've been pretty dead on doing that..no surprises...unless the sound dude has got crap for a sound system.....then your kind of butt out....on the FOH...hope that helped some
 
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