Axe-Fx II Firmware 18.08 Released

I am loving the IIc+ models. At first they sounded more Santana than Petrucci or Hetfield. But after flipping the Fat and bright switches and giving it the old EQ curve I got it right back to where I wanted it and it sounds better than ever!!! Using Ownhammer High Gain Essentials IRs, the mesa and Diezel chinese V30s together.
 
New amps sound awesome FAS. Really digging the Herbie, Citrus and the IIC+. Thanks again! :encouragement:
 
My beloved Herbie is back and better than ever. So good.

Also, not sure if there was any under the hood developments this time or if the preamp tube types make that much of a difference but the feel is better. Way more glassy (tubey) Love it!
 
Note that the old IIC+ models had Deep Pull on. So you would want to use either USA IIC+ Deep or USA IIC+ Brt/Dp to get closest to the previous firmware. My personal favorite is Brt/Dp. These are very difficult amps to dial in but once you hit the sweet spot it's awesome. I just jammed for almost an hour on the Brt/Dp model and it was great. You've gotta get the MV into the sweet spot and then adjust the tone and EQ, then tweak the MV, etc. They all kind of fight each other but once you hit the spot you'll know it.
 
My beloved Herbie is back and better than ever. So good.

Also, not sure if there was any under the hood developments this time or if the preamp tube types make that much of a difference but the feel is better. Way more glassy (tubey) Love it!

There were some tweaks under the hood. G3 was all-new algorithms so we're still measuring and tweaking here and there. The triode models were tweaked slightly and the PI model tweaked a bit. Subtle but definite improvements.
 
This is one of those Firmwares where all the amp's I use plus the TM block and other effects I use sound so so good. I think this is my favorite Firmware to date, it's just full of rawwwr and the top end and bottom just seems solid.
 
Note that the old IIC+ models had Deep Pull on. So you would want to use either USA IIC+ Deep or USA IIC+ Brt/Dp to get closest to the previous firmware. My personal favorite is Brt/Dp. These are very difficult amps to dial in but once you hit the sweet spot it's awesome. I just jammed for almost an hour on the Brt/Dp model and it was great. You've gotta get the MV into the sweet spot and then adjust the tone and EQ, then tweak the MV, etc. They all kind of fight each other but once you hit the spot you'll know it.

I kinda wondered if that was the case after hearing how similar the Pull Deep model was to the old model. Brt/Dp has been my mainstay as well after jamming on this amp for a few hours straight.

I'm also a little surprised people who already knew how to use the amp have had such trouble going from their 18.07 presets to 18.08. Some tweaking to bring the brightness down, but I had immediately felt happier with this roaring amp sim. I actually turned down some gain after trying the 18.08 version of the amp. It seemed to me even easier to get a high gain tone with lots of grind.
 
Note that the old IIC+ models had Deep Pull on. So you would want to use either USA IIC+ Deep or USA IIC+ Brt/Dp to get closest to the previous firmware. My personal favorite is Brt/Dp. These are very difficult amps to dial in but once you hit the sweet spot it's awesome. I just jammed for almost an hour on the Brt/Dp model and it was great. You've gotta get the MV into the sweet spot and then adjust the tone and EQ, then tweak the MV, etc. They all kind of fight each other but once you hit the spot you'll know it.

Is the MV currently defaulting to what you consider the sweet spot to be?
 
Is the MV currently defaulting to what you consider the sweet spot to be?
Excellent question - can I ask the very same about ALL the models where it isn't set to 10 (because those amps never had a true MV)? Cliff, are the amps with MV pre-set to what you consider being close to the "sweet spot" for general use?
 
wow...I have to admit i was pretty skeptical of the IIc+. Im not really a mesa fan since the few real ones I have played through sounded pretty constipated to me. but holy crap, took only about 30 seconds to dial it in just using MV and tone knobs. This thing sounds really good!

thanks Cliff!!
 
Like a loser I am here reading all about the new IIc+ instead of playing it :D

Seriously, good stuff in this thread. It is very helpful to learn from others' experiences before getting frustrated. The IIc is the main sim I use, and all of your comments will arm me in approaching the old patches with eyes wide open. I love FAS and love this forum. Thanks guys!

PS we need some gals here!
 
digging the IIC+ Brt/Dp

anyone wants to check my patch out here it is
 

Attachments

  • IIC+ Crunch.syx
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I'm liking it around 4.0 but that's just me.


Yeah, and what do you know anyways, am I right? :roll




That's actually exactly where Clark Kent said the sweet spot was on the 18.xx Mark IV models after comparing them with the real thing:


http://forum.fractalaudio.com/axe-f...-mark-iv-john-petrucci-guide.html#post1170117



EDIT - Ok, technically he said 4.00 on the master matched the sound of the real thing set with Petrucci's settings, but whatever. If Petrucci's setting isn't the sweet spot, I don't want to know what is. :mrgreen
 
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After reading the horror stories about dialing in a good tone on the IIC+ I was prepared for the worst. However, it turned out to be as easy as pi r squared. I'm a fusion guy, so this won't work if you're a headbanger. I took the USA Lead preset and changed the amp to the IIC+ Deep. Then I ditched the stereo 4x12s and replaced them with an EVM 1x12 (Factory Cab Eight). Bumped up overdrive from 7.5 to 8, reduced bass from 2.75 to 2, hit the Fat switch. Presto, change-o, beautiful, rich, singing fusion lead tone on my PRS 513 bridge humbucker. Satisfying enough that I played it for two hours straight without changing a thing.

Edit: Fyi, I've never owned a Mark, although I did have a DC-5 20 years ago that was killer.
 
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I updated with no issues, after a few minutes I was able to get a killer tone with the IIC+, I think it helps to have owned a mark series amp with this one.

Thanks Fractal!!!
 
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