Axe Fx II vs Ultra

I am digging the XL. It has many features and the sound is stout. That said I actually prefer a few presets on the Ultra. Opinion only but I think Studio Lead and Poltergeist Pig on the Ultra surpass the XL and I miss Subway Verb, Thick Cali Lead and the Carlos preset.
 
Boogie291 said:
For those who have both units what is the difference is it really big like day and night difference? I am asking this because I have Ultra and I just want to make sure before I will by the Axe Fx II.
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The differences are significant in both tone and feel when compared to the first gen units. The introduction of URIR's was another step forward on the tone side as well. All of the other options you get, USB, front quick knobs, headphone out, scenes and EQ options are icing on top of a very large cake. Just pull the trigger you won't regret it.
 
I loved the Ultra with my Mesa 50/50 and real cabs..
Never liked it to much direct. Too stiff for me, but i never spent enough time tweaking.. And it took serious time for me if i could get it there.

With the AXII i spend max 5 min to get a killer sound trough PA or monitors.. And the feeling is great.
You can get stiff or saggy amps, depending on what amp you pick and what you do with it. I love it.

I would go for AXII if i was running it in PA/Studio.. For use only with tube power amp.. The Ultra is great. But AXII is better at that too... IMHO

I would go for AXII anyway i can put it.. And i did.
 
Karl Houseknecht said:
I don't think you'll be disappointed with the II. It is definitely an improvement on the feature set side as well as the amp realism side. Comments like "it blows the Ultra out of the water" are a bit of hyperbole. The Ultra and Standard were declared as "as real as it can possibly get" during their heyday. So I guess the II is even "realer than it can possibly get". :)
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Quoted for truth. Watch out for hyperbole and internet group think. As Karl notes, if there were no II people would still be arguing that the AF1's were the "best" and "better" than tube amps, etc.

I still own both units. I play them both regularly. Part of how much difference you're going to notice depends on your rig, playing style, etc. Honestly, there is not much the Gen1's can't do and do well. My Ultra is configured with a power amp and guitar cab; it is essentially used as a traditional preamp in that config. In that setup it is a stellar unit; outperforms any tube preamp I have ever owned (and I ran tube preamp based rack rigs for years).

If I were buying new and could only pick one? Yes, the II is unquestionably "better"; it has WAY more features, it continues to develop, FRFR rigs benefit greatly from UR and PA emu updates and if you are going FRFR it is more of a "must"...

But anyone who says "blows away","destroys","worlds apart", etc, I have to scoff at. You're talking like 95% vs 99.9% level performance. Bugatti Owners poking fun at Lamborghini Owners... they're more similar than different when compared to say, a Toyota Camry.
 
Axe II Pros:
- Ultra Res cabs do sound better
- You are not locked to a handful of user cabs.
- Much easier to dial in a good sound quickly, with the ultra, I needed to use bass tightening tricks and stuff
- Presets translate much better between different guitars
- Axe edit is more stable now.
- I think it sounds better
- USB interface - digital reamping.
- Still being improved with new firmware and cab technology

Cons:
- Still being improved with new firmware and cab technology

The nice thing about the Ultra is its a completed product. You can build presets and always improve on them. With the II, if you choose to upgrade to the new firmware, you have to retweak your presets which for me is a big time-consuming headache.
 
I reckon now after having an AFX2 for some time, and reading comments on this forum, that when ppl talk about a modelled amp, an IR or a firmware update, they are telling you about their own ability to dial in a tone using it.

I think the sounds have mostly been there since the AFX2 came out. Whether or not an individual could get it to sound good is another matter. It seems a lot of people, myself included are finding it easier with the recent firmwares. Or maybe people just get better over time with it.
 
it's like night and day, honestly. not knocking the first gen, but I couldn't ever go back to using it after owning and playing through the II.
 
I have both, use the AF2 as primary and often have the Ultra as a hot backup on stage. Although the Ultra sounds great, the AF2 really feels like you are playing a tube amp. Headroom, definition, dynamics, realism and punch are all unbelievable.
 
Bodde said:
I wonder if you have a standard or an Ultra and a Axe fx II why would you still use the standard or Ultra? The Axe II has everything the older units have and more.
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For starters: I have them configured in two different rigs. II -> FRFR, Ultra -> PAmp -> Guitar Cab. There's a different vibe and work-flow for each.

Sometimes I just want a legit guitar cab and no FRFR.
Sometimes I have the II setup for recording and want to leave the II connected in a desktop DAW setup and don't feel like disconnecting/tearing that apart and then reconnecting later.

I guess the answer to that second part == 3rd AxeFx. LOL.

Also, I have a couple of deeply tweaked presets on the Ultra that I adore (as in I don't have 100% on the II)... the rig sounds phenomenal, so, unless I am using the II features, I am not giving up much. Plus more AxeFxs is more and more is good.
 
IMHO the AxeFXII with latest firmware is less of a tweakfest in getting the amp models and cabs to behave in ways that we are accustomed. There have to be another couple dozen reasons that the AFXII is an improvement over the Ultra. If ease of getting to your happy place with respect to amp tones and cab sims are at the front of your mind, and amp tones with a more natural feel to them, then it's the AFXII the whole way...which, by itself, is all the reason anyone could want anyway. USB connectivity, Fractal Bot, AxEdit, Scenes, Tone Matching, X/Y, improved and expanded models of all types, expanded user slots, Ultra Res IRs...all are excellent improvements on an already great product.

Are you just looking for a change, or are you feeling like your guitar tones via the Ultra can go places that you have trouble getting them?
 
I'll be a dissenting voice.

I've owned the AXE II twice - first around FW8 or 9, then again just a month ago (was that 15 or was 16 out? don't recall).
I love Fractal and love the Axe. Personally, I prefer the Ultra. It strikes a better balance between ease-of-use and range-of-options. I don't find all the extra deep-editing parameters particularly helpful, and in fact can be distracting. I don't find all the extra subtle amp flavor variations all that helpful either. The URIRS are pretty great but I'm ok with just "damned good" IRs.

I'm puzzled by the "The Axe II blows away the Ultra" comments. Like so many things - the Ultra and II are up on the flatter part of the diminishing-marginal-returns curve (imo). The tonal limitations reside more in you than in the box.

Even so - so long as you aren't taking money away from something more important in the bigger picture you can't go wrong. Fractal makes good stuff!
 
This thread is such a blast from the past - some of the most established forum members on one thread (just add up the number of posts)! I agree with the comments about "beware hyperbole" but I also note that very few comments appear these days about realism, while when the II had just been launched many, many threads were all about "how close to the real thing" we had got. Someone above notes that firmware 15 or so saw those type of conversations decline rapidly. From this i would conclude people perhaps don't feel the need to prove the 'realism' case any more - they are confident in that aspect, and are more concerned with "what can I do with this thing". Happy times I would say.

just my thoughts!

cheers Gilesy
 
Is the axe2 better then the axe ultra? yes! Does it blow it out of the water? Nope. I consider the axe2 to blow the line 6 stuff away but the ultra does that too. The 2 and the ultra are at the top of the food chain at what they do so I would try one out first just to make sure its gonna be what you expect. Don't get me wrong I love my XL and barely play my ultra now that I have it. But my tones in the ultra were pretty damn good too!
 
Thank You All

Thanks for all the comments, I am now convinced that there is really a big difference between the ultra and the II. Now should I wait till next year Fractal Audio might bring out Axe Fx III.
 
mogvinda said:
I reckon now after having an AFX2 for some time, and reading comments on this forum, that when ppl talk about a modelled amp, an IR or a firmware update, they are telling you about their own ability to dial in a tone using it.

I think the sounds have mostly been there since the AFX2 came out. Whether or not an individual could get it to sound good is another matter. It seems a lot of people, myself included are finding it easier with the recent firmwares. Or maybe people just get better over time with it.
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As a new user who just hopped on the bus at firmware 16.01, its stupid easy to dial in good tones with just a basic knowledge of how the unit works. I have barely touched any deep editing parameters. I've found that once I get the right impulse(s), minor EQ tweaks and getting the gain how I like is really all I need to do.

I never used older versions, so I take that it was never this easy? I guess I joined the crew at the right time!

Boogie291 said:
Thanks for all the comments, I am now convinced that there is really a big difference between the ultra and the II. Now should I wait till next year Fractal Audio might bring out Axe Fx III.
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Given that the XL is still fairly new and has the same processing power as the II, I would guess its still got over a year left in its lifecycle. Its not like Standard vs Ultra.
 
Boogie291 said:
Thanks for all the comments, I am now convinced that there is really a big difference between the ultra and the II. Now should I wait till next year Fractal Audio might bring out Axe Fx III.
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Only after you buy the Axe Fx2. :lol
 
steadystate said:
I have and use both. The II blows the Ultra out of the water. No comparison.
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+1 If you are only using DSP for effects maybe the Ultra keeps up, I don't know. I use only the Axe-FX (no amp) and when I replaced my Ultra with a II it was in fact night and day and that was FW 7. Now we are on FW 16.02 and the II blows the Ultra out of the water completely tone-wise, no comparison. Plus the II allows recording via USB including DIs so it is very flexible (technically it can be used as a sound card but I prefer to have an external sound card). I'd be heartbroken if I had to go back. As soon as you can make the purchase responsibly, do it (don't GAS yourself into debt, you can always record DIs and reamp with a II later).
 
I have a standard and an II - I still generally use my standard for guitar gigs as it's dialed in fine for me and I don't have to re tweak after upgrades - I use the II for bass gigs. I use real cabs and I think the best guitar tone I had with the fractal gear was an earlier version (6,7,8?) of the standard - mind you i just go for a pretty simple cleanish smooth vox tone with a couple of boosts and drives.
 
...one thing i really like about the standard/ultra is the input trim on the front panel - i can clean or dirty up a patch at a gig or compensate for different guitars so easily with that control and I miss it on the II
 
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