axe sounding terrible through guitar cab?

timmons10

New Member
Hi guys, I've just received my brand new axe fx 2 today:D and i've been trying to dial in the tone of my mark v head mainly the mark 4 channel which im having a hard time doing, im running the axe in to a matrix gt 1000fx poweramp in to a mesa rectifier cab, im a bit confused by the advise in the manual that says to turn off the cabinet modeling when running in to a guitar cab but when i do the amps sound really thin and harsh. im confused if im running the right settings or not, there are so many variables to figure out with the settings it's really confusing, hope you axe experts can help! thanks
 
Go to the Global menu, and disable cab modeling, and try the Power amp modeling both on and off and see what sounds better to you... Others with the same setup will chime in soon, i'm sure...
 
You are listening through colored speakers not a flat system so you want cabs OFF but amp sims ON.

The knobs do not translate, so 5 on your amp for treble is not the same as 5 on the Axe fx.

That being said reset the amp type, it will be all 5s and tweak from there.
 
You are listening through colored speakers not a flat system so you want cabs OFF but amp sims ON.

The knobs do not translate, so 5 on your amp for treble is not the same as 5 on the Axe fx.

That being said reset the amp type, it will be all 5s and tweak from there.

In most cases the knobs do translate. Usually within 10%.
 
i've tried cabinets off and on with poweramp on and off and the only thing that sounds ok is with cabinets on with the power amp on, any other settings and the sound is really thin and harsh, i guess im just confused about the advise to turn off the cabinet modeling with my setup as it sounds terrible if i do, im just wondering if im getting the best sound with my setup if the instructions and advise say i should be turning the cabs off but the amps are unusable if i do that
 
Power Amp On, Cab Sims Off. If it sounds "thin and harsh" then something is not hooked up or set right.
 
i've switched from stereo to mono but it makes no difference to the sound ,im using output 1/left output by the way
 
I have the same issue too. My setup is very straight forward. Guitar >> AXE-FX II >> Mesa2/90 >> Recto 4*12 Cab.

So that said; I have been leaving the cab simulator on, otherwise, as you mentioned it sounds very thin and tinny.

The sounds I mainly use are pretty basic too, mostly a Marshal and Recto like tones. So I don't know what the deal is. I would love to know if there is more to this or something I am missing out on?
 
with the cab on im getting some good sounds to, im just wondering if its the best sound the axe can give with my setup, using settings that supposedly i shouldn't be using?
 
I guess there must be some trick we are missing out on.

I've been playing for 30+ years. I built and owned many rack units, so I doubt I'm setting it up wrong. For the record, I had the same issue with my "Ultimate" unit as well.

Still sounds amazing even if I have been using the cabinet simulators, but if it's suppose to sound better without it, I would love to know how? =:·)
 
I also have Mesa 2:90 --> Mesa 4x12, sounds amazing.
What you need to do, poweramp on, cab off
In amp block, increase depth, it's usually 0 at reset!
I some ampsims like recto, depth have no effect then put a peq bass boost after ampblock
 
I also have Mesa 2:90 -->
In amp block, increase depth, it's usually 0 at reset!

Okay, now that could be useful information. I will give that a try later and let you know how it goes. Fingers crossed!

Thanks!
 
how loud are you playing? sometimes real amps and cabs need a bit of input volume to sound full.
 
Axe fx 2 into fryette 2/90/2 into two forte vs cabs for me. Power amps off and cabinet sims off. Sounds killer!

For the matrix amp , sims on , cabs OFF.

Doubling up on the filter, (speaker) sounds horrid, if you think it sounds better there is something wrong with your setup or ears.
 
Hey man please give the patches I uploaded to Axe Change a shot, they are EXACT to my Mark V (slave out) so you will have the sound of your power amp and etc and the knobs do translate on that model. I've recorded the mesa and then recorded the axe and there was no difference in gain or frequency. I used Axe FX cabs as well so just turn those off and it should be just like a Mesa Head!
 
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