Axe-Fx III 16.00 Beta 11 "Cygnus" Firmware - Public Beta #8

[Variable]

So to update my original comment, I pulled my BE-100 Dlx out tonight and hooked it up to a Suhr RL going into input 2 on the Axe. I created a preset where I could easily flip back and forth between the BE channel on the real amp and the BE v2 model in the Axe going into same IR. I reset the amp block, put B/M/T depth and presence all at noon on the model and amp, the structure switch on the amp was in the high gain position, SAT, FAT and C45 were off. The master on the real amp was at around 9 o'clock and I turned the master volume on the model down so it was just under the point that it started to max out the headroom meter. I'm not sure how Cliff had the response and thump switches set (or if he modeled the Deluxe version for that matter), so I put them in the middle position. I also assumed the "v2" model corresponds to the voicing switch being in the left position, which is the middle of the road as far as brightness. I selected the Greenback impedance curve since that should match the curve on the Suhr RL. To A/B I alternated between plugging directly into input 1 on the Axe and the input on the BE.

I wouldn't say my real BE has 50% less gain than the model, but it does have noticeably less even with the gain on the model and amp both set to 10. There was also a good bit more low end on the model, but that may be due to the response and thump settings not being the same. I could easily fix that by tweaking depth, bass or the input EQ low cut. Overall the model sounds pretty close considering I'm not 100% I have all of the response/thump/voicing switches set the same as the modeled amp. But I can't really explain the gain difference. Maybe I need to look at my input settings on the Axe to make sure nothing wonky is going on there.

Yeah, "50%" is a ballpark since it's hard to fully judge gain given its subjectivity when only listening and not measuring. Tonally the real amp and the models are very similar, but the amount of gain seems to be the biggest difference I'm hearing. To my ears the Deluxe also sounds a little more open and less compressed than the model.

My understanding is that the Axe models are based off of the two channel BE-100, post 2016 updates.

 

[Thomas Obester]

Yeah, "50%" is a ballpark since it's hard to fully judge gain given its subjectivity when only listening and not measuring. Tonally the real amp and the models are very similar, but the amount of gain seems to be the biggest difference I'm hearing. To my ears the Deluxe also sounds a little more open and less compressed than the model.

My understanding is that the Axe models are based off of the two channel BE-100, post 2016 updates.

yes, real amp has less gain for sure and dlx be’s are indeed more open and less compressed.

I like 2015 BE’s the best, which people often describes as they had always like an OD in front of them, but it is just big low cut in preamp IMO.

be50 and 100 dlx are just way fuzzier sounding and closer to marshalls.
because of that, I think 2015 and older were the best friedmans.

If I want a marshall, I’ll buy marshall...

so in the end, maybe cliff made hbe models to sound closer to real HBE, which I am not fan of on a real amp.

 

[My name is mud]

well I have tried the speaker dynamics etc ... I dont feel any difference while tweaking really . dont know if I am deaf today or if the thing is very very light . maybe in high gain dist you dont hear it dont know . I have tried with less distortion and nothing more or less

 

[Joe Bfstplk]

well I have tried the speaker dynamics etc ... I dont feel any difference while tweaking really . dont know if I am deaf today or if the thing is very very light . maybe in high gain dist you dont hear it dont know . I have tried with less distortion and nothing more or less

It works with the output section overdrive, so if the master volume is set low enough that there is still headroom on the headroom meter in the amp block, you won't hear much difference.

 

[Forever Again]

so in the end, maybe cliff made hbe models to sound closer to real HBE, which I am not fan of on a real amp.

I recall Cliff stated they were updated to the 2018 models, unless that was a different amp altogether.

 

[Thomas Obester]

I recall Cliff stated they were updated to the 2018 models, unless that was a different amp altogether.

yup 2018 regular be is very similar to deluxe Be’s and very likely the same circuit.

maybe that’s why people dig BE models but no HBE’s in new fw...

 

[2112]

Here's some HBE v3 fun

 

[skydog]

That's where I live, mostly, so I shall explore

Love a great Bassman!

 

[Brian Coonan]

Been on vac for a week and just fired up beta 11 - seeing an odd flicker on a empty block on the axe that I've not seen before...here's a vid and the preset - wondering if anyone else is seeing it? It's not just a refresh flicker, double checked that. Went back to beta 10 and it's not there - same preset.

 

[stratzrus]

Love a great Bassman!
View attachment 81081

That was my rig in high school. Bought it new at the local Wurlitzer store in Philadelphia. They also had a Vox Super Beatle, a Phantom VI and a Phantom XII that I really wanted but couldn't justify a guitar that I couldn't play sitting down.

 

[Twister]

Revisiting my core presets and I'm continually caught off guard at just how much the Fenders have changed. The core amp of this preset is the '65 Bassguy Bass model and it used to get a bit farty and fuzzy in the low ends if I pushed it too much with input signal. It's a lot more strident and the bottom end holds together a lot nicer now. The top end isn't a sizzly for the same settings.

No clips. Working through wine and a Dead & Co re-play of a Mexico show. But do enjoy the preset. It's built around my PRS HB Spruce so a darker guitar with some mid-output humbuckers. Adjust to suit your guitar.

View attachment 81076

Preset: https://axechange.fractalaudio.com/detail.php?preset=8796

That's a very nice preset, thanks! Could you share your envelope follower settings? I'd love to hear just exactly what you're hearing.

 

[Brian Coonan]

Been on vac for a week and just fired up beta 11 - seeing an odd flicker on a empty block on the axe that I've not seen before...here's a vid and the preset - wondering if anyone else is seeing it? It's not just a refresh flicker, double checked that. Went back to beta 10 and it's not there - same preset.

Hmm, so now I'm seeing this on multiple empty blocks after reverting to beta 10 (same preset as attached above. I loaded it into a blank preset slot and got the same result.

When I first switch to it it's fine, but now I notice when I use the nav buttons on the Axe itself to scroll around the preset, there are empty blocks flickering on and off.

I should also state that it doesn't affect the sound. I can replicate it in other presets that I've created from older firmware, and in some of the AB presets, while I don't get the flicker, I see blocks in the grid that appear to be 'on' but don't have anything in them but I do NOT see the flicker or any blocks that are on in the factory pre's....so, it leads me to believe that it might be just firmware related and that I have to recreate the presets (st least the ones I did from scratch) from, um, scratch on the most current firmware.

Does that sound like logical troubleshooting to people?

 

[Randalljax]

Speaking of Easter ,did anyone find the second egg yet?
we know shred mode and boost was the first , where is #2

 

[iaresee]

That's a very nice preset, thanks! Could you share your envelope follower settings? I'd love to hear just exactly what you're hearing.

I'm constantly fiddling with the envelope controller settings. What feels good seems to vary with the wind. But roughly they stay in this range:



I recommend mapping the four left most controllers to peformance controllers on the III so you can fiddle with the envelope settings quickly, while playing. Like this:



With my PRS it sounds like this:

 

[iaresee]

@Twister and here's the Space Junk scene in action

 

[unix-guy]

Love a great Bassman!
View attachment 81081

When I was in high school, my good friend's dad (who used to play bass) gave him a matching Bassman head and cab (2x15, I think) and a Hofner (or maybe Vox, I can never remember) "violin" bass with flat-wounds on it.

We were metal heads so we were running 2 guitars with distortion pedals into it plus sometimes a bass and a mic!

It was like a mini PA for us... Clueless about what we actually had

 

[skydog]

That was my rig in high school. Bought it new at the local Wurlitzer store in Philadelphia. They also had a Vox Super Beatle, a Phantom VI and a Phantom XII that I really wanted but couldn't justify a guitar that I couldn't play sitting down.

Fractal has accomplished a great tribute to the mid 60’s Bassman. It’s a phenomenal amp, and a different vibe altogether over its other contemporary Fenders. The Cygnus Fenders sound great. I have most of the real things, and Fractal’s models have them spot on. (For these comparisons, I have to put these at identical volumes and use the same real speaker cabinet.)

 

[bread]

Cranked beta 11 today up at the warehouse on the little DB Accoustics rig. The speaker dynamics make a bigger difference than I imagined at gig volumes. I'm also using less compressor- in fact only on cleans mainly.

I still have a different preset showing on Axe Edit to what I left the unit on when I reboot sometimes and once it twice when I reset the Axe FX it came back very muffled sounding but another reboot did the trick. I don't know if it's Cygnus related so I'll reinstall the firmware in the morning and see if it solves the issue.

Before I forget I hooked up the circular and panned delay blocks that @guitarnerdswe built and posted on the presets thread. Oh my are they amazing. I turned them up a little and left them there and are now my 80s rock preset and lead channel so that's very much for posting those.

Off for a beer now ...

 

[LiamH]

While everyone, including me, is really, really pleased with the authentic feeling tube / transformer / speaker interactions Cygnus achieves with the latest Beta, I noticed something, maybe remembered it from previous versions in fact. A little thing that could use correcting.

While resetting amp blocks and getting back to a baseline for some of my favourites, I got to the JC120 model. I know it's not a tube amp, but I love the model, and do use it occasionally. Whether in "authentic" or "ideal", although there is no Master Volume in "authentic", resetting the channel sets the Master Volume to 5 instead of 10. I had a slightly confused few minutes while I worked through each amp page in Axe Edit, reverting to my original preset, and then soft resetting to try and figure out where all the volume had gone. That was where it had gone. I know what to do to get back, but it might save some head scratching for a few others. I think the model might need checking too, it doesn't seem quite as clean as it used to, but it may just be me.

Must say, Silver and Black Face Fender models sound sublime with the improved dynamics. Never looks like much is happening on the "speaker dynamics" page indicator, but I can really feel it. My home turf is Marshalls, on and either side of the edge of break up, and they are just amazing in Cygnus. I used to have 2 4x12 cabs that I really loved and had hung onto. Changing the speaker interaction model between similar models, and selecting representative IRs in the Axe FX slightly painfully reminds me that I sold the wrong one! (Kind of knew at the time, Pulsonics are revered for good reason...)

Liam

 

[yyz67]

Hmm, so now I'm seeing this on multiple empty blocks after reverting to beta 10 (same preset as attached above. I loaded it into a blank preset slot and got the same result.

When I first switch to it it's fine, but now I notice when I use the nav buttons on the Axe itself to scroll around the preset, there are empty blocks flickering on and off.

I should also state that it doesn't affect the sound. I can replicate it in other presets that I've created from older firmware, and in some of the AB presets, while I don't get the flicker, I see blocks in the grid that appear to be 'on' but don't have anything in them but I do NOT see the flicker or any blocks that are on in the factory pre's....so, it leads me to believe that it might be just firmware related and that I have to recreate the presets (st least the ones I did from scratch) from, um, scratch on the most current firmware.

Does that sound like logical troubleshooting to people?

Yeah, I've been seeing that for a while, maybe even in 15. Usually in the lower left. Probably innocuous but could be a sign of something off in the graphics code.