Using the FCB1010 to blend two amps with expression pedal

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kitatonic

Member
I just got my Ultra last week and I'm loving every minute of it. I've looked around the forums for information on using an expression pedal to blend two amp sounds, but so far I haven't found the info. Sorry if this has been covered and I just didn't find it.

Basically, I was a Line 6 user before I got my AxeFX. With my Line 6 X3, I could create two different amp sounds. Each would be active at the same time. However, for one amp sound I would set the volume pedal like normal, where heel down is 0% and toe down is 100%. then on the second amp I would set the volume to be 100% at heel down and 0% at toe down, that way I could blend the two sounds.

I would use this in various ways, but my favorite way was to have a gorgeous, lush clean sound for rhythm work with the volume pedal in the heel down position. I could bump it up a little to add some of the louder sound to give it some bite. then I could put the volume pedal at 100% and get my screaming lead tone.
I am hoping that with the AxeFX, I could have a single patch with two signal chains in it, each with complete amp-cab-effects, and then set the volume pedal to blend between the two, perhaps using the volume trick that I used with my Line 6.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. I am going into the studio in a few days and I would love to have this figured out by then, so I can use the AxeFX on the recording.

THANKS EVERYONE for reading this.
 
Yep its possible alright.

Just set up your chains in parallel. Attach a modifier to the volume on each amp and tweak the response curves in the modifier.

I believe it might have been a user here called Dpoirer who has successfully done this. Look into their posts.

Cheers,

TimmyM
 
Re: Using the FCB1010 to blend two amps with expression peda

kitatonic said:
I am hoping that with the AxeFX, I could have a single patch with two signal chains in it, each with complete amp-cab-effects, and then set the volume pedal to blend between the two, perhaps using the volume trick that I used with my Line 6.


THANKS EVERYONE for reading this.
Click to expand...


All of my settings are this way. Build two parralel chains in the matrix (Amp, Cab and FX) and put a mixer in the row in between. Assign the two rows in the mixer to the same expression pedal. Make one channel go from 0 to 100% and the other go from 100 to 0%. VIOLA!!!!

Also, if you have any common effects, put those after the mixer to save space.

It's awesome. I can gradually swell from The Police to Slayer in one smooth action.
 
Re: Using the FCB1010 to blend two amps with expression peda

thanks for all the PM's about this. I thought I would post my own findings for any new AxeFX users just starting to program their expression pedals.

working from set theorist's posting above, I too would assign a single expression pedal to two separate amp sounds within the patch, setting one to respond as 0-100%, and the other to respond 100-0%, allowing me to blend back and forth between the two.

It didnt always give me a smooth transition, but this is a simple fix. What I did was assign other parameters to be controlled by the same expression pedal as well. One main thing I did was have it control the drive on the amp at the same time as it controlled the total volume for that amp. so as I increased the volume, the gain knob also cranked up. this helped with patches where I went from a clean sound and transitioned to a heavy sound, and the gain on the heavy amp would increase and decrease with the expression pedal too. This also allowed me to dial in some extra growl on the clean sound by just blending a little of the heavy amp. this came in handy live when my clean parts were being stepped on by other instruments in the mix. i could just bump my sound a little, but do it fluidly and gradually to respond to a the mix, intead of hitting a switch to on/off a boost or compressor.

I also like having lush reverb on my clean tone, but want to roll off of it for the heavy tone, so I just programmed that to the expression pedal as well. same thing for delay feedback amounts, quad-chorus depth, on and on and on......

Really, just work at it and one expression pedal can do amazing complex shifts in the tone!


Be sure to calibrate your FCB1010 pedals when you get it though. sometimes they aren't calibrated right from the factory.
 
Re: Using the FCB1010 to blend two amps with expression peda

Cool beans. Glad I could help. That was a good idea attaching the gain to the pedal as well. The transition can be a bit abrupt going to distortion. There is also a way to control the curve of the expression pedal; but your method sounds better.
 
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