funny_polymath
Fractal Fanatic
I've been an Axe-FX user since the Ultra first came out. I now own an original II (i.e. a MKI).
I haven't been in a band of late, and had.. sorta drifted into playing my Princeton (and even my Champ), instead of my Axe. It just didn't sound as good as a real amp to me anymore. Guess my ears changed. I was on 6 something firmware, hadn't played with new amps or cabs, and was just... not into it.
Today, I upgraded to the newest firmware, downloaded the stock patches (which, I must admit, I am still mostly underwhelmed by), and started playing.
I'd played a Blues JR sitting in at a club recently, and really liked it. So, I started with that. WHAM! Within 5 minutes, I was getting the kind of open, clean-to-break sound I love (yeah. I use high gain sounds too, but my bread and butter is a good Fender amp - and I've often felt that the 'open-ness' of these amps was more of a challenge to model successfully than some super high gain monster).
The new firmware is light years beyond what I knew. Axe-Edit is too. And the cabs are too (the basketweave 4X12's are my faves right now). I honestly don't know why people purchase cabs. I'm not knocking it, but the free selection is just fine with me. I know: I probably don't know what I'm missing...
What I DO know is that it's a joy to play my Axe-FX again! Suddenly, it feels warm, alive, lush.
Thanks Cliff, all of you at FAS, all of the user community (except the skinheads, klansmen and neo-Nazis who occasionally send me anonymous, anti-Semitic and threatening emails). Except for the aforementioned hateful folks, this community is really special, and this gear is really special!
Long live FAS!
I haven't been in a band of late, and had.. sorta drifted into playing my Princeton (and even my Champ), instead of my Axe. It just didn't sound as good as a real amp to me anymore. Guess my ears changed. I was on 6 something firmware, hadn't played with new amps or cabs, and was just... not into it.
Today, I upgraded to the newest firmware, downloaded the stock patches (which, I must admit, I am still mostly underwhelmed by), and started playing.
I'd played a Blues JR sitting in at a club recently, and really liked it. So, I started with that. WHAM! Within 5 minutes, I was getting the kind of open, clean-to-break sound I love (yeah. I use high gain sounds too, but my bread and butter is a good Fender amp - and I've often felt that the 'open-ness' of these amps was more of a challenge to model successfully than some super high gain monster).
The new firmware is light years beyond what I knew. Axe-Edit is too. And the cabs are too (the basketweave 4X12's are my faves right now). I honestly don't know why people purchase cabs. I'm not knocking it, but the free selection is just fine with me. I know: I probably don't know what I'm missing...
What I DO know is that it's a joy to play my Axe-FX again! Suddenly, it feels warm, alive, lush.
Thanks Cliff, all of you at FAS, all of the user community (except the skinheads, klansmen and neo-Nazis who occasionally send me anonymous, anti-Semitic and threatening emails). Except for the aforementioned hateful folks, this community is really special, and this gear is really special!
Long live FAS!