So is anybody actually using the Axe II with bass? Clips?

InsideOut said:
I've found that I like recording my bass through the axe II without amp or cab. My preset (based on one I found here on the forum) just uses comp, reverb and resonator. Here's a recent recording and the preset. Hope they help.

Click to expand...


like this tone a lot. Sounds like the player and the bass are doing most of the work here (nice!). Was the bass tracked in stereo, with the resonator pans in full effect? I like the way the bass really fills up the space. What kind of bass did you use for this?
 
InsideOut said:
I've found that I like recording my bass through the axe II without amp or cab. My preset (based on one I found here on the forum) just uses comp, reverb and resonator. Here's a recent recording and the preset. Hope they help.

Click to expand...


Heh, glad someone found my preset useful. :) Nice job. :)
 
Thanks. :) I think I finally got my preset using the amp sim adjusted properly. I almost hate sharing presets though because the variables (bass, pickups, EQ on the bass or lack thereof, type of bass, cabs, etc...) make it almost pointless. I can post them as a starting point, but people still have to tweak them for their gear. That's why I haven't posted much. Maybe I'll post some more this weekend now that I have my adjustments made.
 
jimfist said:
like this tone a lot. Sounds like the player and the bass are doing most of the work here (nice!). Was the bass tracked in stereo, with the resonator pans in full effect? I like the way the bass really fills up the space. What kind of bass did you use for this?
Click to expand...

Thanks! I used my new Ibanez SR300. I'm totally a guitar player, so my bass skills are less than desirable. I like the way this bass fits in a recording though and it plays really easily. As for the resonator, I can't remember if I had it bypassed or not :eek:ops. I think I did bypass if for recording just so I would be able to place it in the stereo field better, but I suffer from CRS (can't remember sh$t).

DLM, yes I'm quite happy with this preset. However, I would love to see your current ones with amp and cab. I know they are just a starting point. I've never downloaded another users preset that didn't require at least some tweaking. But a starting point helps.
 
I never use cabs in my presets. I really cant stand the way the cabs make the bass sound. I'll give them a once over and post them tonight or tomorrow.
 
Ok, I just did some re-tweaking. My ears are so tired at this point I can't be sure of anything right now, plus they were tweaked in headphones. I guess it doesn't matter since you'll have to re-tweak them for your setup and gear anyway. I'm including suggestions for pickup position and EQ knob settings as well. Except for the fretless one, these were made using a Schecter Stiletto Custom 4 bass with EMG Hz35 pickups. I'm a finger style player and rarely use a pick unless what I'm doing needs it, so take that into account when trying the presets. The Bass Bright Wah preset however should be played with a pick.

Notes:

Bass.syx - Mellow bass using the amp sim. For finger style playing. Bass: bridge pickup, bass eq knob max, treble eq knob centered.
Bass Bright.syx - For slap mainly. I'm not really a slap player, but here's a preset you can use. Bass: bridge pickup, bass eq knob max, treble eq knob max.
Bass Fretless.syx - For fretless bass. I use this with my Schecter Stiletto Studio 4 fretless. Bass: Either pickup, bass eq knob max (or middle), mid eq centered, treble eq centered.
Bass Bright Wah.syx - Bright bass with a wah effect. It also has a rotary effect you can enable or disable depending on what you want. I like it on. Bass: bridge pickup, bass eq max or center, treble eq max.
Bass No Amp Sim.syx - A modified version of the one I had posted previously. This has both mellow and bright/slap EQ settings. Enable the top GEQ for mellow tones, disable the top and enable the bottom GEQ for bright/slap. Having both GEQ's on would be like crossing the streams. Twould be bad, so don't do it. :)

Hopefully someone will get some use out of them, or at least be able to use them as a starting point.

View attachment 10136
View attachment 10137
View attachment 10138
View attachment 10139
View attachment 10140
 
Last edited:
jimfist said:
Maybe they care, and maybe they don't, but it seems to me that they would much rather spend their time and firmware updates addressing things other than bass guitar stuff.
Click to expand...
If I'd be given the choice between new bass amp models and more stable USB functionality, I'd for sure go for better and more stable USB support!


jimfist said:
All that said, the AxeFx is still a fine preamp/audio tool for creating tones for bass guitar.
Click to expand...
Could not agree more! The SV model and the Tube Pre allow for lots of good tones. If you spend $30 for the RedWirez IR you get incredible versatility from what we have available right now!

If only RedWirez would sample those Trace cabs :evil
 
I actually have a Fender Bassman 60w amp I bought just as a portable amp to have around. Calling it a bass amp is a stretch to say the least. In the Axe you could doctor it up to be one I guess, but in the real world, they just suck for bass. :p I know there were different incarnations of the Bassman and it was originally intended as a bass amp, but man, the one I got anyway just sucks for getting any decent bass tones out of it.
 
Last edited:
DLM said:
I never use cabs in my presets. I really cant stand the way the cabs make the bass sound. I'll give them a once over and post them tonight or tomorrow.
Click to expand...
I did not find the factory cabs to be very useful without heavy tweaking, but the RedWirez IR are excellent!
 
DLM said:
I actually have a Fender Bassman 60w amp I bought just as a portable amp to have around. Calling it a bass amp is a stretch to say the least. In the Axe you could doctor it up to be one I guess, but in the real world, they just suck for bass. :p I know there were different incarnations of the Bassman and it was originally intended as a bass amp, but man, the one I got anyway just sucks for getting any decent bass tones out of it.
Click to expand...

oh interesting. i prefered the bassman to the svt sim in the ultra for bass. never thought to try the tube pre though
 
I don't use the tube pre for bass, but I do have an effects preset or two that I use it on, which I use quite a bit with bass. I tried it for regular bass presets though and didn't care for it that much. Something about the tonal qualities of it with bass just didn't do it for me. Others may have had better luck with it. For the effects preset I'm using it on though, it works perfectly fine with bass. I haven't posted the updated versions of my effects presets, but they all work with bass as well, and a couple of them sound absolutely spectacular with bass.
 
DLM said:
I don't use the tube pre for bass, but I do have an effects preset or two that I use it on, which I use quite a bit with bass. I tried it for regular bass presets though and didn't care for it that much. Something about the tonal qualities of it with bass just didn't do it for me. Others may have had better luck with it. For the effects preset I'm using it on though, it works perfectly fine with bass. I haven't posted the updated versions of my effects presets, but they all work with bass as well, and a couple of them sound absolutely spectacular with bass.
Click to expand...
The tube pre has the LOW FREQ RESONANCE set very, very low. If you turn that one up, say to 6 or 7 (even with a high Q) it starts sounding like a very tight bass amp. Something like a Thunderfunk ...
 
DLM said:
I actually have a Fender Bassman 60w amp I bought just as a portable amp to have around. Calling it a bass amp is a stretch to say the least. In the Axe you could doctor it up to be one I guess, but in the real world, they just suck for bass. :p I know there were different incarnations of the Bassman and it was originally intended as a bass amp, but man, the one I got anyway just sucks for getting any decent bass tones out of it.
Click to expand...

I like the sound of the Axe bassman as a bass amp when using a bass cab.

I think the right cab impulses plus speaker resonance settings are the key to getting good bass tones from the Axe, more so than having a 'proper' bass amp model.
 
I do believe that the early Fender Bassman amp models in the AxeFx are based on the early 1960s (1959) Bassman, widely sought after by guitarists. Those early model Bassman amps, though designed for bassists, didn't have the headroom to compete unless you were recording or in a pretty small venue. They would break up too easily, which is exactly what attracted guitarists to them.

Now, if the Bassman tone is your cup of tea for bass (and it definitely DOES have it's fans, predominantly in the recording studio), then sure, we technically have 2 bona fide bass amp models in the AxeFx. I'll guarantee you that the Bassman model was not put in the AxeFx with bassists in mind, just as the Ampeg SVT model was not put in there to attract all of those 6 string guitarists who use a real SVT in their performance rig.

If you're not using some kind of Full Range speaker system for listening, I can see why cabinet sims in the AxeFx are useless, and even then, I didn't start to find what I wanted from cab sims until going the 3rd party route with the Redwirez Big Box bass impulses. Since then, I'm finding that I like more of the "non-bass" amp models for use on bass, and sometimes just changing the tone stack will yield some surprising results.

This is all about flavors of tone IMO, and being able to express those flavors more quickly and easily, which is why a handful of bass amp sims would be helpful, though perhaps not urgently necessary. For "classic" bass sounds, the fact is that the late 1950s thru 1970 had guitarists and bassists interchanging their amps all the time. Many amps were just designed to be LOUD, without necessarily a lot of science going into why one might sound better for guitar or bass than the other. Eventually guitar/bass amp technology and quality sound reinforcement caught up, and powerful stage monitor "foldback" systems, 24 input channel mixing desks with close mic'ing made the necessity of all that back line volume an option rather than a necessity...

...which leads us directly to the AxeFx, which replaces all of that physical gear (preamp, tube power amp tone, cabinet, mic, EQ & dynamics processing, special effects) in a 2 space rack unit. I'm hoping that networking technology will eventually replace the output connectors from the AxeFx to the FOH desk.
 
muleskinner said:
I think the right cab impulses plus speaker resonance settings are the key to getting good bass tones from the Axe, more so than having a 'proper' bass amp model.
Click to expand...
You nailed it! You can even use the USA Clean + easily for bass, key is again tuning the speaker resonance freq to fit a bass amp.
A parametric EQ after the cabs will iron out whatever frequencies you do not want. I use it for mid-scoop style slap sounds.
 
muleskinner said:
I like the sound of the Axe bassman as a bass amp when using a bass cab.

I think the right cab impulses plus speaker resonance settings are the key to getting good bass tones from the Axe, more so than having a 'proper' bass amp model.
Click to expand...

Although I agree with the statement, providing a few more widely sought after bass amp models could make this task a little less "experimental" and more "immediate", as has been done in spades with the vast choices in guitar amp models. I don't want to rehash old forum threads here as this has already been discussed at length previously. The focus of the AxeFx is clearly for guitarists (not a gripe - it is what it is), which means that bassists have no choice than to use our ears and ingenuity to find what we're looking for...as always...LOL

(...and the countdown begins where guitarist/producer types tell us bassists that we don't NEED any more bass specific stuff in the AxeFx, etc....10...9...8...)
 
  • Like
Reactions: jon
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom