A couple of questions regarding the AXE's accessories

Velokki

Velokki

Inspired
Nice and simple:

1. I am definitely buying the Axe FX II and a foot controller with it. I did think from the beginning that the MFC-101 was the only reasonable alternative, but I've seen some people get decent results with more affordable foot controllers as well, from cheaper brands such as Behringer etc. So, what are the best things in an MFC-101 that I wouldn't find on cheaper pedals? What makes the MFC-101 your pedal of choice?

2. Will a Matrix Q12a be loud enough to do small gigs with? And enough to be heard next to a pounding metal drumkit in rehearsals? And can the Q12a also be used as a bass amp?

Many, many thanks for those who take the time to answer!
 
I started with a Voodoo Labs Ground Control Pro, which certainly works well, but eventually sold it and got an MFC. Having the 2-way communication between the two is handy, so you can see what effects are on, or present, and I wanted an on-board tuner.
 
The Q12a is pretty loud and sounds awesome. I find it a bit more directional than a guitar cab so that in a rehearsal it is important to place it in a stand angled towards you. I use a pair and don't even need to crank them up to be heard in rehearsals.
 
I was unsure about getting the MFC and thought could make do with a Boss GT6 acting as a MIDI controller. It was possible to change patches with it, but no scenes, a separate power and MIDI cabling was also required, the patch names had to be changed manually.
Some of the biggest things about the MFC in my opinion are - breeze to make it work with the Axe, Scenes - one of the most powerful and intelligent features I never experienced until now, Just one ethernet cable to power up the MFC and then if you have a expression pedal which requires no power of it's own, the cabling becomes neat, tidy and very easy, As soon as you change patch names they reflect directly on the MFC. These are my thoughts. I'm still discovering more each day and someone more enlightened can perhaps add to this,

I don't know what other wonderful features are up the sleeve for the AxeII+MFC, but hope there are more which continue to blow us away :)
 
MFC isn't cheap, but as long as you can afford it, I think its worth every penny. It just works so flawlessly with the Axe unit. You've got the preset names right there in really big letters, you can access a tuner, control the looper, can have up to 4 EXP pedals, and when you change presets, all the effects that are active change as well, so you know whats loaded and what is active with the bi-color LED's. Plus when you step on those switches it tells you what you just did via the LCD. Just not going to find all that in other units.

Plus, it can be powered via the Cat5, so you have just 1 single cable to run, no dealing with power supplies etc.

Its built like a tank as well, its a tour worthy piece of hardware, and its also super customizable. You can program it to do whatever features you want pretty quick and easily.

Its just been really thought out by actual musicians rather than engineers.
 
I would really think twice before buying the MFC. Get through the list of features that the MFC offers in comparison to cheaper midi controllers and then decide if it's worth the extra cash for you:

- two-way talk between Axe and MFC. This is useful when using scenes, as normal MIDI controllers can not update the LED status of IA switches when changing scenes
- tuner display (check the additional note below if that matters to you!)
- tap tempo LED
- expandability for external pedals and switches
- no complicated manual midi programming of individual presets required

Note that the tuner display of the MFC is very slow and laggy. I ended up never using this feature, as I simply could not get the same accuracy as when tuning with the Axe front panel display. If you can't have your Axe in visibility range on stage, I really recommend getting an external tuner pedal!
Note that the cross-talk between the MFC and Axe only really matters if you use scenes. If you use presets instead, normal midi controllers will be sufficient, as the IA switch states will always be determined by their initial on/off state of the preset and you can hardcode that with every midi controller. Well ... requires you to dial in the on/off states of effects on all presets on the midi controller manually, however.
Also note that the MFC does not have an on-board expression pedal, so depending on how many expression pedals you need, you might have to invest 100-200 bucks more to get those. The Behringer FCB1010, for example, has already two expression pedals on the board.
I also think that the buttons on the MFC are sometimes a little bit inaccessable. The board itself is very high; the switches in the upper rows are difficult to hit (at least with my large shoes, lol). The buttons on the MFC are not really suited for tapping tempo either, as they are not "smooth" enough. I ended up buying an FS-5U for tapping tempo.

Long story short: The MFC is a great piece of gear and if you can afford it, you won't do anything wrong with buying it. If you use a lot of IA switches and not so much scene/preset switching, the MFC really shines. If you mostly change between scenes and presets, you will probably be perfectly fine with a cheaper midi controller without missing anything.
 
I had to make the MFC decision a couple of months ago. I had a Rocktron " All Access" sitting here that I could have easily used. I bit the bullet and got the MFC for a few reasons. The instant communication with the Axe FX, the patch names are right in front of you in big bold letters with no programing, the tap tempo with flashing light, the tuner and most importantly for me is it's easy to program sets before I get to the gig. I start from the first song and scroll through the sets, every song has everything preset, I work with "scenes" in most songs. This controller is just so powerful combined with the AXE, with minimal program time. I'm not sure if I could run any other controller the way I run the MFC. Definitely worth the money, for me anyway.
 
I opted for the Gordius Little Giant 2, and I'm ever so happy with the controller. Very versatile and very very small!

It can do the 2 way communication for the tuner, which works like a charm.
Power over Midi, so only one cable to the front of the stage.

I have set it up as follows. There are 10 buttons. One of them I use for what in Gordius terms is called a direct bank. The direct bank has 8 stompboxes with FX I use often (compressor, drive, pitch, chorus, flanger, phaser, delay and reverb)
One of the 10 I use for tap-tempo and tuner (combined function)

The remaining 8 switches I've configured per bank with 4 presets and in each preset 4 scenes.
For Wha I use the auto-engage feature of the Axe FX, so it doesn't take a switch.
 
hpgn said:
The Q12a is pretty loud and sounds awesome. I find it a bit more directional than a guitar cab so that in a rehearsal it is important to place it in a stand angled towards you. I use a pair and don't even need to crank them up to be heard in rehearsals.
Click to expand...

Surprising - as the measured spread of the Q12s is a LOT wider than traditional cabs.
 
Personally I don't think the MFC is worth about 8x the price over a FCB1010 but then again I feel most MIDI controllers are damn expensive for what they are.
 
laxu said:
Personally I don't think the MFC is worth about 8x the price over a FCB1010 but then again I feel most MIDI controllers are damn expensive for what they are.
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+1
I use a FCB1010 with UNO chip so i get "stompbox mode", wich makes the unit very usable for me.
I have looked at the MFC for a while and might buy it some time but I think its a bit expensive, allthough it would be nice with some better quality controller.
The FCB1010 feels a bit cheap, no wonder since you get what you pay for, and the expression pedals isnt the best.
If the MFC had one or two expression pedals I would order it right away.
 
I am another happy user of the Behringer FCB1010. I've been stomping on it for more than 10 years.

Did someone mention that it has 2 expression pedals included? ;)

Anyway, there is an entire section of this forum dedicated only to MIDI controllers:

Other MIDI Controllers
 
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Whoa, very informative answers, thanks a lot! Yeah, I'd understand if the MFC was like 399 or something, but it's EIGHT - FRIGGIN - HUNDRED. I really have to have a think about this now. Anyone know whether the Line6 stuff works on the Axe? I'd be interested in the FBV Shortboard MK II because of the reasonable price and the great feel of the buttons and the expression pedal.
 
Velokki said:
Whoa, very informative answers, thanks a lot! Yeah, I'd understand if the MFC was like 399 or something, but it's EIGHT - FRIGGIN - HUNDRED. I really have to have a think about this now. Anyone know whether the Line6 stuff works on the Axe? I'd be interested in the FBV Shortboard MK II because of the reasonable price and the great feel of the buttons and the expression pedal.
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Any programmable MIDI board that allows to send PC and CC messages works.
 
L6 shortboard is a great controller, but it doesn't have a midi out, only USB, and it can't be plugged into the Axe usb port.

I used to use the Roland FC300, which is a pretty nice controller with 2 EXPs, lots of switches and rugged build. You can find them for under $300 used and I think they are the best bang for the buck controller. It worked well for my needs, but I came across a used mkII FBC for $750 shipped (not huge savings but no waiting either) that was like new so pulled the trigger on that.

All and all it was pricey, but so is the Axe II.

In a way, its like buying an expensive sports car and not putting the best tires on it, sure it will run okay with lesser ones, but you don't get the full performance.

I totally understands budgets and all, but at the same time, if your going to drop $2200 on a high end processor, I think having the best (subjective) controller for it only makes sense too. Same goes for monitors, lesser stuff can sound okay, but it really shines with a good FRFR system over a budget PA system. Just shows everything it can do better.
 
lqdsnddist said:
In a way, its like buying an expensive sports car and not putting the best tires on it, sure it will run okay with lesser ones, but you don't get the full performance.

I totally understands budgets and all, but at the same time, if your going to drop $2200 on a high end processor, I think having the best (subjective) controller for it only makes sense too. Same goes for monitors, lesser stuff can sound okay, but it really shines with a good FRFR system over a budget PA system. Just shows everything it can do better.
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A different MIDI controller won't make it sound better. The MFC might offer more options under your feet, but with scenes a lot of what I used to do with IA switches has gone out of the window.
 
lqdsnddist said:
In a way, its like buying an expensive sports car and not putting the best tires on it, sure it will run okay with lesser ones, but you don't get the full performance.

I totally understands budgets and all, but at the same time, if your going to drop $2200 on a high end processor, I think having the best (subjective) controller for it only makes sense too. Same goes for monitors, lesser stuff can sound okay, but it really shines with a good FRFR system over a budget PA system. Just shows everything it can do better.
Click to expand...

The majority of people listening to live music will not be able to tell the difference between a good FRFR system and a budget PA system.

Before I purchased the Axe-FX 2, the MIDI controller setup I have controlled 8 different MIDI devices (not including triggering the DAW). It was nice and easy to change 3 different device presets with just pressing a single button. Including the Axe-FX 2, I am down to 5 MIDI devices and still using the same MIDI controller. (It would be only 2 MIDI devices if I was able to get a good bass tone out of the Axe...)

In the end, it is all about knowing how to work with what you already have to get the most out of something.
 
laxu said:
A different MIDI controller won't make it sound better. The MFC might offer more options under your feet, but with scenes a lot of what I used to do with IA switches has gone out of the window.
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Of course a different controller isn't going to make it sound any better, but what it can let you do is take more advantage of the very high end modeler you own with some amazing routing and control options. Nothing wrong with something as simple as a Tech21 midi pedal for some quick patch changes, but there is something to be said for having the option for 4 EXP's, more scene switches not to mention also have specific IA (Scenes are pretty awesome though, but sometimes I like to get a bit more spontaneous)

You can just do more with it and if your the type who really wants to take advantage of everything it can do, the MFC is the best choice for that. Granted though not everyone wants to dive into the routings etc, but I personally do. If I paid $2200 for a unit, I want to wring every sound possible out of it.
 
Longhair said:
The majority of people listening to live music will not be able to tell the difference between a good FRFR system and a budget PA system.

Before I purchased the Axe-FX 2, the MIDI controller setup I have controlled 8 different MIDI devices (not including triggering the DAW). It was nice and easy to change 3 different device presets with just pressing a single button. Including the Axe-FX 2, I am down to 5 MIDI devices and still using the same MIDI controller. (It would be only 2 MIDI devices if I was able to get a good bass tone out of the Axe...)

In the end, it is all about knowing how to work with what you already have to get the most out of something.
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Majority of people also can't tell if your using an Axe II or a Zoom G3, nor do most really care. Yet we as musicians (or perhaps the type of musicians who spend lots of time on gear forums talking about gear) still want to get the best tone we can. Its why we spend the money for the Axe instead of the HD500 et al. Because we can hear a difference, and we think that difference is worth 4x the price.

Again, I totally do agree with making the best of what you've got, and if your on a budget, a MFC might be a luxury that really isn't needed, and a FCB1010 can give lots of bang for the buck.

On the other hand, if you've got a good job etc and can afford a MFC, it really does add a lot of enjoyment to the Axe II. It could be said to be a little frivolous but if your plan to keep your Axe unit for a while, extra $500 probably isn't going to really be felt too much in the long haul and it works well.

One could get by on less sure, by sometimes it makes sense to spend a bit. You always hear about some elderly person having no heat turned on, eating canned tuna (or cat food) all to save money, and then after they die its found out they have hundreds of thousands of dollars in their bank account. They could of more than easily kept their home nice and warm, enjoyed good food etc for their final years.
 
Thanks for everyone who's replied. I've read all messages through many times. The community's response has been awesome, and I'm really thankful for that.
I've still not made a definite decision of what I will go for, mainly because I don't want to be making any compromises with the foot controller I will buy, but dishing out 800 € doesn't sound tempting either. Agh, why must decision be so hard to make!

But in the meanwhile, I'm still wondering whether someone has tested or has the ability to test the Matrix Q12a as a bass amp. It'd be awesome if someone with experience or more knowledge could chime in!
 
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