AFX II Leslie simulation

Radley

Radley

Experienced
Am I the only one who feels sad that the AFX II Leslie simulation is so inferior to the Kemper's? I hope this will cease to be the case soon, since so many people love the sound of a great Leslie cabinet.
 
Phostenix said:
What makes the Kemper's so much better?
Click to expand...
In essence, it really does sound like a big, well miked (top and bottom rotors) Leslie cabinet with all the complex phasing, amplitude, and pitch variations that make the Leslie sound so unique. On the other hand, the AFX Leslie model sounds noticeably smaller and one-dimensional because it lacks the original's complexity of sound and character. One sounds real, while the other sounds like a different effect...
 
I haven't heard Kemper's, but I do have to say, the Rotary block is really the only effect I feel underwhelmed by. I have spent a lot od time monkeying with it, and I just haven't been able to get the sound my Korg ToneWorks G4 has. I was recording a Leslie part today, actually, and pulled out the Korg. First time I've used an "out-of-Axe" effect in months. I'm sure it's my settings, but whatever I change, it just seems a bit harsh to me.
 
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I like the Axe's Rotary sound, with tweaked settings. Here are mine:

Rotary block is in series, after Amp block.

Rate: I use an IA to switch between 1.400 (slow) and 7.000 (fast). Speed autom. ramps.

Hi Rotor Depth: 50
Hi Time Constant: 0.800
Hi Rotor Horn Length: 80
Hi Rotor Level: 0
Mic Spacing: 0 (makes it mono)
Low Rotor Depth: 50
Low Time Constant: 0.900
Level: 0
Mix: around 60-65%
 
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yek said:
I like the Axe's Rotary sound, with tweaked settings. Here are mine:

Rotary block is in series, after Amp block.

Rate: I use an IA to switch between 1.400 (slow) and 7.000 (fast). Speed autom. ramps.



Hi Rotor Depth: 50
Hi Time Constant: 0.800
Hi Rotor Horn Length: 80
Hi Rotor Level: 0
Mic Spacing: 0 (makes it mono)
Low Rotor Dpeth: 50
Low Time Constant: 0.900
Level: 0
Mix: around 60-65%
Click to expand...

Ya know Yek, it just occurred to me when I read your post that I have my Rotary block BEFORE the amp, which is pretty unrealistic...should be AFTER the amp...DOH!
 
I use a PEQ after my rotary (switched off/on simultaneously) to address the tone balance shift. The PEQ is a massive mid-boost: +8dB @ 620Hz, 0.260 Q with level set to -5dB (hmmm .... could have done that with just a filter block).

I thought there were 2 separate motors, because the low has a slowere speed change than the top horn. But I could be wrong on that.
 
Wow. Really? I have to get my rig up going then and do a clip. Sounds fantastic here. I programmed it to; very different than Yek's though. I use an expression pedal to vary the speeds up and down.

Settings Edit:

Series after the amp and cab.

Rate Controlled by expression pedal - Min 0.670Hz/Max 7.260Hz; 12ms dampening. Other settings stock.
Tempo: none
Low Depth: 85.1%
High Depth: 100.00%
High Level: 3.06db
Rotor Length: 55.5%
Low Rate Mult: 0.851
Low Time Const: 4.198 sec.
High Time Const: 3.023 sec.
Mic Spacing: 100%
Mix Controlled by separate expression pedal: 12ms dampening, other settings stock.
 
Radley said:
Am I the only one who feels sad that the AFX II Leslie simulation is so inferior to the Kemper's? I hope this will cease to be the case soon, since so many people love the sound of a great Leslie cabinet.
Click to expand...

What are your settings on the Kemper? I can see what I can come up with on the II.

Also are you running a mono or stereo setup.
 
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Scott Peterson said:
Wow. Really? I have to get my rig up going then and do a clip. Sounds fantastic here. I programmed it to; very different than Yek's though. I use an expression pedal to vary the speeds up and down.

Settings Edit:

Series after the amp and cab.

Rate Controlled by expression pedal - Min 0.670Hz/Max 7.260Hz; 12ms dampening. Other settings stock.
Tempo: none
Low Depth: 85.1%
High Depth: 100.00%
High Level: 3.06db
Rotor Length: 55.5%
Low Rate Mult: 0.851
Low Time Const: 4.198 sec.
High Time Const: 3.023 sec.
Mic Spacing: 100%
Mix Controlled by separate expression pedal: 12ms dampening, other settings stock.
Click to expand...

Scott, interested to try these when I get home. Very, very different from Yek's.
 
So many choices, so many possibilities, so many sounds, and they all sound great!

I have yet to try running 2 Rotary blocks in parallel, that will make a complex sound!! :)
 
Just to help with the dialing in compared to the Kemper,
Here are the equivalent parameters

Axefx rate = kemper rate
Axefx Tempo = I don't believe you can set the tempo for rotary on kemper - big downer
Axefx Hi rotor depth = kemper distance (the axefx can adjust this for the low and high rotors - the kemper is one setting)
Axefx Lo rotor depth = kemper distance
Axefx Hi time constant - doesn't exist on the Kemper (rates of change are fixed for low and high)
Axefx Lo time constant - doesn't exist on the Kemper (rates of change are fixed for low and high)
Axe-fx Low multiplier Rate - doesn't exist on the Kemper (rates of change relative to low and high are fixed)
Axe-fx Hi Rotor Level = Kemper Low/Hi balance
Axe-fx Mic spacing = Kemper stereo (the kemper has the ability to go to negative values to reverse the rotation) -This would be a cool added feature on the Axe-fx
Axe-fx mix = Kemper Mix
Axefx min/max on rate - kemper speed


Personally, I think the Strymon Lex (other than the real thing) is that target to shoot for. It is extremely impressive.
 
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