AX8 v Axe-Fx III

T

Tim Staddon

Member
i just can’t decide which to get. I know the axe III is much more expensive and not sure if I’d be happy with the ax8 knowin that I could of bought the axe III.i could buy the cheaper one now and it’s only for my bedroom at the mo but I’ve spent years looking for that perfect low volume bedroom tone. Is the sound quality different between the 2 units.ive already bought a 2 u matrix power amp so one way or another I’m buying a fractal unit. Just struggling deciding
 
AX8 is ultra portable, the Axe III is not. AX8 is primarily to be use live.

Get the III if you will be using it indoors most of the time, way way better in almost every aspect compared to the AX8.
 
If you think you can get the III at some point, then just wait and get one. If you need something now for gigging, then the ax8 would be perfect for that.
 
I got the Ax8 as a quick to set up, very portable jam rig and gig backup safety net. If people are drinking beer, I don’t want my “brains” on the floor if I can help it, so I use the III at gigs instead of the Ax8. Turns out I even prefer to lug the III to a quick jam session over the Ax8 now because it’s so much easier for me to get great sound out of it. I still love my Ax8, but I play the III almost exclusively now. Also, with the right shallow case I would say that the III still does qualify as “ultra portable” compared to every other guitar rig I’ve ever owned. At this point I would only prefer the Ax8 if I were doing a bunch of fly dates.
 
If you love the features of Axe FX 3, but want the portability, it's best to have both: I'd wait for a Axe FX 3 pedalform unit...
But if you want something now, I think Axe FX 3 would be a better idea, just because you can lose less money selling it, when the pedalform thing actually arrives. Axe FX 3 would still be king at that time, and AX8 would be discontinued so it's price will drop dramatically.

Axe FX 2 is probably cheaper than AX8 right now.
You could just get An Axe FX 2, and get more features and advanced Ares amp modelling that sounds almost like an axe fx 3... Then just add a FCB1010 pedalboard and you're set.
 
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Tim Staddon said:
i just can’t decide which to get. I know the axe III is much more expensive and not sure if I’d be happy with the ax8 knowin that I could of bought the axe III.i could buy the cheaper one now and it’s only for my bedroom at the mo but I’ve spent years looking for that perfect low volume bedroom tone. Is the sound quality different between the 2 units.ive already bought a 2 u matrix power amp so one way or another I’m buying a fractal unit. Just struggling deciding
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I have an AXE3 and the rhythm guitarist in my band has an AX8. They both sound great. You cant make a bad decision here.
 
Tim Staddon said:
i just can’t decide which to get. I know the axe III is much more expensive and not sure if I’d be happy with the ax8 knowin that I could of bought the axe III.i could buy the cheaper one now and it’s only for my bedroom at the mo but I’ve spent years looking for that perfect low volume bedroom tone. Is the sound quality different between the 2 units.ive already bought a 2 u matrix power amp so one way or another I’m buying a fractal unit. Just struggling deciding
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If it is only for your bedroom and you have the money, get the III
 
I have both of them. At the moment the AX8 is used live and the III stays at home but I will eventually use the III live (waiting on the FC). If I had to choose one or the other, hands down it would be the Axe III. The III is simply too powerful and offers so much more to just "settle" for the AX8. The first time you work on a preset with the AX8 and run out of CPU you'll kick yourself for not just spending the money on the Axe-Fx III.
 
I'm still waiting on my III, but I did get to borrow one from a friend a few weeks back. The III is absolutely amazing, but to be honest, when I had my back turned I could not tell if I was playing through the III or my AX8. The AX8 sounds fantastic, no question. But the III has tons more processing capability, more effects, use two amps at once, heck you can even run multiple instruments through it at the same time! It is also much easier to use without a computer. With a computer they are both easy to edit, and I've gotten pretty good at modifying presets on screen with the AX8, but the III is the hands down winner here. Bottom line, if you have the cash, get the III.
 
Mark Scrivener said:
But the III has tons more processing capability, more effects, use two amps at once, heck you can even run multiple instruments through it at the same time!
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I'd love for someone to elaborate this further. I'm on AX8 and i do not have the budget for a III as of now but i'll try to purchase one in the near future. Among other things, one of the main reasons for me wanting a III is its capability to run multiple instruments. Question is: is it really doable to use the AFXIII as the brain for the full band (2 guitars + 1 bass guitar) in a live contest? Can each player (with his own dedicated FC) fully control his own instrument without affecting the others'?
 
Marco Sarracino said:
I'd love for someone to elaborate this further. I'm on AX8 and i do not have the budget for a III as of now but i'll try to purchase one in the near future. Among other things, one of the main reasons for me wanting a III is its capability to run multiple instruments. Question is: is it really doable to use the AFXIII as the brain for the full band (2 guitars + 1 bass guitar) in a live contest? Can each player (with his own dedicated FC) fully control his own instrument without affecting the others'?
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1. It really is possible to run 2 guitars and a bass through the Axe III but...
2. It will not be possible to control them independently with multiple controllers.
 
Tim Staddon said:
i just can’t decide which to get. I know the axe III is much more expensive and not sure if I’d be happy with the ax8 knowin that I could of bought the axe III.i could buy the cheaper one now and it’s only for my bedroom at the mo but I’ve spent years looking for that perfect low volume bedroom tone. Is the sound quality different between the 2 units.ive already bought a 2 u matrix power amp so one way or another I’m buying a fractal unit. Just struggling deciding
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Here's my take, as I have the Axe FX III and the AX8. Right now I'm doing a three week tour and I didn't bring my Axe FX III because I haven't gotten a controller for it yet, but I can already tell you I miss several things about it that aren't integrated in the AX8.

For example, the AX8 has one amp boost that you can't change (without having to add a drive block and and add more CPU). The Axe FX III gives you the option to choose what kind of boost you want (TS circuit, neutral, etc etc etc). That's one thing I miss because I use the boost of the amp to save CPU %

Also, I miss the new reverbs of the Axe FX III and the dedicated Plex Verb.

I don't really miss anything amp-wise or tone-wise. The amps in the AX8 sound as good as any. But the freedom of being able to add more than one compressor in the chain, to have four different delay channels, four different reverb channels, four different amp channels, things like that I miss about the III.
 
Marco Sarracino said:
I'd love for someone to elaborate this further. I'm on AX8 and i do not have the budget for a III as of now but i'll try to purchase one in the near future. Among other things, one of the main reasons for me wanting a III is its capability to run multiple instruments. Question is: is it really doable to use the AFXIII as the brain for the full band (2 guitars + 1 bass guitar) in a live contest? Can each player (with his own dedicated FC) fully control his own instrument without affecting the others'?
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With some creative thinking it should be possible for each member to control their own "lane" within the grid. Each instrument would have its own IN and OUT (1, 2, 3 or 4) and assigning the effects to the individual FCs should be possible giving each member control over just the effects in their lane. You would of course have to daisy chain the FCs, there's only one FC connection on the Axe III.

The only way I could see scenes and presets working is to have one person controlling them. With regard to scenes, it's a matter of editing each lane within the scenes for each instrument. A lot of work but definitely doable.
 
Hooligan said:
2. It will not be possible to control them independently with multiple controllers.
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That's what i was fearing. Good to know though, thank you for pointing out.

JoKeR III said:
there's only one FC connection on the Axe III.
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Got it. I do like creative solutions and this forums is an amazing source of creativity. So... is anyone actually using AFXIII to run to whole band in live contexts?
 
If you have the money I'd get the III.

I have both and love both. No question the III is the better option. Sound wise the III keeps distancing itself with every update especially with FW5. The III with a FC (12 in my case) is an absolute dream rig.

I do hate having to lug around a rack case and a pedalboard now though. For quick in and out shows and out of town shows I'm using the AX8 and for bigger shows in town I'm using the III.
 
Hooligan said:
It will not be possible to control them independently with multiple controllers.
Click to expand...

Why not? If you just use channel switching, effects on/off, and assign it all + controllers properly then you could have each controller (easier with the FC's, but probably doable with MIDI with some programming) control a different part of the chain in a patch.
 
Kamil Kisiel said:
Why not? If you just use channel switching, effects on/off, and assign it all + controllers properly then you could have each controller (easier with the FC's, but probably doable with MIDI with some programming) control a different part of the chain in a patch.
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I thought about this, but I just feel like it wouldn’t really be “independent.” I’m also projecting what I want out of my own guitar rig. If it was kept to a really simple rig for each person I suppose it could be done, but it seems like a PITA to me. Maybe I’m just being lazy...
 
It definitely wouldn't have the same flexibility as a separate unit for each player, but it's possible to use it this way if it suits your requirements..
 
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