Axe-Fx III Firmware Release Version 13.00 Public Beta

Table of CPU usage per drive type in v13 Beta.

Box o'Crunch and the Riot family record the highest CPU usage.

If you're low on CPU, it pays off to check out alternatives for diode-based drive types. Like a fuzz, cranked SDD Preamp, Tube Drive or FET Boost.


BB Pre: 9.1

Bender Fuzz: 2.7

Bit Crusher: 3.9

Blackglass B7K: 2.8

Blues OD: 9.2

Box o’Crunch: 9.4

Esoteric ACB: 9.1

Esoteric RCB: 9.1

Eternal Love: 9.1

FAS Boost: 9.1

FAS LED-Drive: 9.1

FET Boost: 2.6

FET Preamp: 2.6

Face Fuzz: 3.9

Fat Rat: 9.2

Full OD: 9.1

Hard Fuzz: 2.5

Heartpedal 11: 9.1

Jam Ray: 9.1

M-Zone Distortion: 9.3

Master Fuzz: 3.9

Micro Boost: 2.6

Mid Boost: 3.8

OD 250 / Gray: 9.1

Octave Distortion: 2.8

PI Fuzz: 3.9

Plus Distortion: 9.1

Precise Drive: 9.1

Rat Distortion: 9.1

SDD Preamp: 2.6

Shimmer Drive: 3.9

Shred Distortion: 9.3

Suhr Riot (all): 9.4

Super OD: 9.1

T808 Mod: 9.1

T808 OD: 9.1

TS9DX +: 9.1

Tape Distortion: 3.8

Timothy (all): 9.1

Tone of Kings: 9.2

Treble Boost: 3.8

Tube Drive 3-knob: 3.3

Tube Drive 4-knob: 3.3


Zen Master: 9.1

Awesome, thanks Yek!

Really chuffed to see my most used/fav pedal (Micro Boost) is only using 2.6! Although my second fav is the Tone Of Kings which knocks it out of the park at 9.2! :)
 
Are some of you guys actually running out of cpu headroom on the Axe III ?
Yes, my vocal and single amp fx chain is at 85% and I’ve turned down the reverb quality and density in both reverb blocks. Tried dual amps and it wouldn’t fit.
 
Damn! a Precision Drive model!
Maybe I'll sell that pedal someday and keep with the Precise Drive models! Maybe there should be more Darkglass pedals such as Alpha Omega because on Metal presets I usally just take a darkglass b7k with a cab model and that's it
 
What else to say ? Just love my afx3 best guitar gear ever ...;)
and now with a crunch box model ! Great
Have a look to Brett vid on utube this morning. Had a real crunch box back in years from Brett demo ...😊
 
I actually still don't use any drive pedals in my Axe III... it started long ago I had this thing to where 99% of the time I would not use drive pedals with my Mesas, I wanted to get tone purely from my amps... "My' sound came from my MKIII blue stripe which is very hot, but when I got the Mark V it drove me nuts to see everyone consider it standard practice to stick a drive in front of it because the amp was "lacking" gain. The Mark V has more than enough gain if you approach it with an old school Mark mindset, and with a lot of trial and error I was able to get the two to match standing next each other.

But yeah I still don't use any drives in my unit, I definitely use the Mesa patches, but tweak em to where I don't need any. I will tell you, I get crazy sustain and dynamics with my AxeIII and my old Ibanez RG3120, it sings like an angel. I haven't tracked anything for about ten years, and now having this unit I'm getting old music and even new recorded. It feels darn good, and definitely has been a big help to me.

Anyone else stay away from drive pedals by and large?
In all my years gigging I never used a drive pedal. Always got my distortion from the amp.
 
Working my way through the Drive pedals in order to update the Drive Guide.

With every major overhaul, everything gets easier to dial in.

So far, the Eternal Love and Heartpedal, at certain settings, are new contenders for a top position in my personal list of favorites.
 
In all my years gigging I never used a drive pedal. Always got my distortion from the amp.
The only drive pedal I ever used when I was gigging full time was a modded TS808. There's nothing like that creamy overdrive sound. I really only used it with my clean channel to give my tone some saturation and bite for solos, etc. I still have the pedal although I will probably never use it again. I love it so much I can't part with it - until someone offers me some stupid money for it :)
 
The only drive pedal I ever used when I was gigging full time was a modded TS808. There's nothing like that creamy overdrive sound. I really only used it with my clean channel to give my tone some saturation and bite for solos, etc. I still have the pedal although I will probably never use it again. I love it so much I can't part with it - until someone offers me some stupid money for it :)
I had an old TS808, covered with paint and with 2 broken knobs. A real pain to look at - but sounding so sweet. Then I got the Axe II and someone offered me very stupid money for it. Gone in a flash.
 
One thing I noticed immediately upon switching from using a Helix to the Axe FX 3 was a huge difference in the drive blocks. I actually liked the Helix but struggled to find a drive block that I could use and it took a fair bit of tweaking to get it to sound half decent. There were some drive models I stayed away from completely because I couldn’t get them to sound good at all. I was so happy to discover with the Axe FX 3 that every drive model sounded great and it was a “tweak to taste” vs “tweak to tolerate” situation now. Now as of today they are improved even more, it’s hard to imagine but I can’t wait to try them out. I don’t use drives all the time but when I do I prefer Axe 3 drives.
 
I noticed it was mentioned by another, but is there any update to whether the B7K pedal will be improved to better reflect the real pedal (ie graphic EQ to be more aligned with the EQ parameters on the pedal)? I had previously brought this up in another post and realized it had become more of a wishlist thing, just curious if this will be improved on as well.
 
Yes, my basic preset template runs at 87%. When I create new presets (one for each song), I delete all the not used blocks. I prefer to have everything in the template and delete what I don't need rather than build from scratch every time.
I personally would love the option to use some of the spare DSP power, when using only one amp block, for effects.
 
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I've reviewed a bunch of Klon threads on here....Still, it would be nice to have one in the group. We have pretty much everything else under the sun here. I think the Klon is every bit as much a part of core of drive pedal family as anything else included. who cares about all of the political nonsensical BS? I'm a big Klon fan obviously. 3 Timmys??? common....Not that things aren't super great with the AXE III, so don't even go there forum people!!! Just want my Klon yo! o_O
 
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