Question About Pairing AX8 with Mission Engineering Gemini 2

It is great to hear from other Fractal owners using the Gemini powered cabs. My first practice with the ax8/gemini went well. I set the gemini volume at about 3:00 o'clock and the ax8 out 1 knob at about 9:00. It was plenty loud with those settings, and I did not experience any clipping. Our drummer was not at this practice, so I may need more volume at our next practice when the full band will be there. I will report back after my next practice this coming Saturday evening.

I appreciate all the info from each of you!
 
curious said:
Mako, apparently the Output knobs in Ax FX II and AX8 do not work the same.
Click to expand...
this may be true. but what really matters is how loud the Presets are.

i can make my presets so that 100% on the physical Out 1 knob is very quiet, and i can make presets so that 15% on the Out 1 knob is very loud.

so there is no "correct" place to set the Out 1 knob - it all depends how your presets are made. most people make their presets so that 9 o clock on the knob is sufficient level to the next device, so i suggest starting there. you can definitely turn below 9 o clock, or above 3 o clock. but for a quick "how do i do this" explanation, i typically say 9 to 3 o clock is a good usable range.
 
practiced with our full band this weekend for the first time. the ax8 paired with the gemini worked extremely well. I did not run through the pa, but instead used the rig like a traditional back line. I need time to tweak and setup presets for specific songs and tones, but I excited about the possibilities!
 
Razor said:
practiced with our full band this weekend for the first time. the ax8 paired with the gemini worked extremely well. I did not run through the pa, but instead used the rig like a traditional back line. I need time to tweak and setup presets for specific songs and tones, but I excited about the possibilities!
Click to expand...

@Razor let's compare notes. I had two gigs last weekend. On Saturday I brought my laptop to the gig and put a stand next to AX8 so I could use Ax Edit on the fly. It worked very well to make adjustments when necessary. I also did not go through PA. I set my Out 1 knob to about 12 o'clock (I started at about 10 but had to adjust up during the gig) and that seemed to work well with the level of my presets. I set the level of the Gemini II to about 11 o'clock and the Empower knob to about 2 o'clock which seems to allow for enough of the FRFR effect but with a bit more mid to cut. The other guitarist in the band really cranks his mids so I found it necessary to adjust the EQ in the Global section to add a bit of mids to the overall sound. It seemed to work well. There were a few presets that didn't cut as well but with some tweaks it mostly it went very well. Would love to hear your thoughts.
 
Curious, You are ahead of me in terms of practical experience. My jam band consists of another guitar player who primarily plays acoustic, drums, lead singer, bass player (when he shows up). The other guitar player and vocals are routed through the PA. My gemini is near the rear of the room, so the PA speakers are closer to where I stand than the gemini. Despite the proximity, I am sure the gemini can cut through easily. I have not had to adjust any eq settings yet, however, I am sure things would be different if the other guitar player was on electric more often.

I have not really had time to set up presets and have been basically just winging it on the fly. Yet, I have been mostly satisfied. I plan on spending time this weekend to program specific tones and presets. I will keep you posted on my journey with the ax8 and gemini. Please keep me posted on yours. I appreciate being able to compare notes!
 
Just received my Gemini 2 today to pair with my AX8. Do you guys have the power amp sim off in the global settings?
 
DMMC85 said:
Just received my Gemini 2 today to pair with my AX8. Do you guys have the power amp sim off in the global settings?
Click to expand...
Why would you? The Gemini has a solid state fiat power amp... Unless you got the passive version and you are using it with a tube power amp, you probably should leave power amp modelling on.
 
Thanks. That is what I was thinking too, but I'm still pretty new to the digital world. I turned off the sim and got rid of some of the harshness.
 
DMMC85 said:
Thanks. That is what I was thinking too, but I'm still pretty new to the digital world. I turned off the sim and got rid of some of the harshness.
Click to expand...

I recommend dialing in your desired tones with sims fully on. The beauty of the Gemini 2 is you can really capture the best of each amp, cab and effect. Search the other threads on this subject. The tone will sound different to you at first but you get used to it. I have now done about 5 gigs with it and it’s incredible how cool this thing sounds. Try some of the presets from Moke and Delaune. These guys know what they’re doing and are great players. When you hear their presets they sound a bit harsh playing at home but at gig level they sound amazing. Use this forum! Amazing knowledge available here.
 
curious said:
I recommend dialing in your desired tones with sims fully on. The beauty of the Gemini 2 is you can really capture the best of each amp, cab and effect. Search the other threads on this subject. The tone will sound different to you at first but you get used to it. I have now done about 5 gigs with it and it’s incredible how cool this thing sounds. Try some of the presets from Moke and Delaune. These guys know what they’re doing and are great players. When you hear their presets they sound a bit harsh playing at home but at gig level they sound amazing. Use this forum! Amazing knowledge available here.
Click to expand...

I also recommend leaving the sims on which I believe most agree is the purpose of frfr with a modeler. I think you will love the ax8/gemini combination.
 
Razor said:
I also recommend leaving the sims on which I believe most agree is the purpose of frfr with a modeler. I think you will love the ax8/gemini combination.
Click to expand...

@Razor how's it going? You dialing in your tones? Interested to hear how you’re using your Gemini
 
curious said:
@Razor how's it going? You dialing in your tones? Interested to hear how you’re using your Gemini
Click to expand...

Hey Curious,

I intend on putting together some presets this weekend, specifically for the songs we are working on. We have two practices coming up and I hope to have the presets ready to try out. I will let you know how it works out. Thanks for keeping on touch, and please let me know how your journey with the ax8 and gemini progresses.
 
Razor said:
Hey Curious,

I intend on putting together some presets this weekend, specifically for the songs we are working on. We have two practices coming up and I hope to have the presets ready to try out. I will let you know how it works out. Thanks for keeping on touch, and please let me know how your journey with the ax8 and gemini progresses.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I bought some presets from Moke for certain tunes my band does. They all sound great. Also, once you have them you learn how he dials in the amps and uses effects, etc. you may want to check it out. Learning a lot from Leon Todd too. Cheers.
 
curious said:
Thanks. I bought some presets from Moke for certain tunes my band does. They all sound great. Also, once you have them you learn how he dials in the amps and uses effects, etc. you may want to check it out. Learning a lot from Leon Todd too. Cheers.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I could use some guidance on creating presets, or I may purchase some as you did. My time allotment for music is not what I wish at this time. It may be easier to use some of Moke's. I appreciate the tips!
 
Razor said:
Thanks, I could use some guidance on creating presets, or I may purchase some as you did. My time allotment for music is not what I wish at this time. It may be easier to use some of Moke's. I appreciate the tips!
Click to expand...

I know what you mean. I have an intense day gig. I really only have big chunks of time on the weekend. I read the forum daily to follow threads that are helpful. I will find some vids that were really helpful and send them to you. There are also tons of great presets on Axe Exchange which are free. You can learn a lot by downloading those and then observing the settings. I have been saving good amp and effect blocks in my library to have when I need them. I will send you some vids that were helpful. Also, I just created presets from scratch and played with settings to learn what they do.
 
Razor said:
Thanks, I could use some guidance on creating presets, or I may purchase some as you did. My time allotment for music is not what I wish at this time. It may be easier to use some of Moke's. I appreciate the tips!
Click to expand...

This in is really great since it shows how to pack a lot of blocks into one preset:

Smittefar said:
It seems like I forgot to add this. @nicolasrivera shows tricks for fitting many FX in a single AX8 preset without running out of CPU



I have been somewhat swamped lately, so please feel free to add more tutorials, as you find them. I know of a few that should be added.
Click to expand...
 
Razor said:
Thanks, I could use some guidance on creating presets, or I may purchase some as you did. My time allotment for music is not what I wish at this time. It may be easier to use some of Moke's. I appreciate the tips!
Click to expand...

Here is a great vid by Burgs which shows how to create a great Plexi preset. He shares some good tips on how to dial in tones, etc.

Smittefar said:
Here are a few topic based videos

@Burgs shows us how to build a simple but very versatile rig based on a Marshall Plexi - this is basically all you need to start building your own presets.
Click to expand...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom