Axe FX too overkill for bedroom only playing?

I think I understand now. Since I'd rather go with a more traditional guitar look. A powercab such as Line 6 powercab or others, may just be what I need and coupled with either an FM3 or Axe Fx.

At the moment, I have no amp and only play using headphones and Neural DSP plugins. I don't want to be bound to the computer when I play though. I was considering the Katana just to have an amp, and may in the future, down the line when I have more free money, my finances are more in order and the Axe Fx 3 is more affordable. I may buy one with a power cab.
What's your budget?
 
is there any other option? Is there a powered monitor that looks like a cabinet? where I can put a rack or FM3 on top of it?

I'd rather have the traditional look of an amp as much as possible. How come the Katana and Catalyst have a 0.5w built attenuator in them, but most power cabinets out there do not have attenuators.

When you can't try anything, is almost impossible to decide to what to get or what to pair. I read countless of posts on reddit and here of people being disappointed in Axe Fx or that they end up hating it for all the money they spent, they thought it would sound a lot better and it didnt
The "attenuator" in the Katana and Catalyst are most likely not much more than just a global master volume control for conveniently setting them to a range of volume that is most suitable for the situation. There is absolutely no need for this in a Fractal based rig because you can just control the overall volume with the output volume knobs on the Fractal.

Cab sims will never sound the same as a guitar cab in a room. They are a representation of what a mic on a cab would hear. You can mix cab sims together to tailor this sound and adjust them in various ways. This allows you to pair the perfect cabinet simulation with each amp model. Otherwise you will notice that different amp models don't sound quite as distinctly different. This is a phenomenon you can hear with real amps and cabs too. It takes time to get used to and learn how to work with cab sims.

In that sense your Katanas and Catalysts are more straightforward as they have just that one guitar speaker, which is often a jack of all trades, master of none to make it work decently enough for the different amp models in the unit. It's a compromise. The Line6 Powercab attempts to be more like changing the speaker in a 1x12 or 2x12 to different models. I haven't tried it so I can't say how well it works but experiences are very mixed. Some love it, some don't, some just use it as a fullrange speaker because the speaker modeling does not work well for their preferences.

The benefits of studio monitors in a home situation are that they are relatively compact, don't need to be played very loud to sound great and you get full stereo sound. The stereo makes a big difference for many effects. Whether you put the monitors on a desk or not is up to you. That's just the convenient place for most people as they often double as speakers for e.g mixing your recorded tracks or just watching YouTube videos.

You will see people unhappy with pretty much any guitar product ever made, even if it's just a one knob pedal. In many cases it's user error and more about what else you plug into it. Just like you would not plug a world class tube amp into the cheapest, shittiest guitar cab you can find, you don't plug a Fractal into the shittiest fullrange system you can buy. I have no love for those cheap Headrush units for example.

That's why earlier in this thread I recommended that you buy a FM3 + good studio monitors over spending the same money on an Axe-Fx 3 alone. While the Axe-Fx 3 is more capable than the FM3, it's all moot if all that great tone is mangled by a bad output system.
 
Cab sims will never sound the same as a guitar cab in a room.
I absolutely, 100% take issue with this comment. I've done tests with other musicians and they could not tell the difference. With an isolated track and in a mix. And with them in the room listening to both live. Sound is sound.
 
Yeah in THAT case, but not a cab in the Room like he said, put a cab in the room and now put on the Sound through monitor speakers, huge difference

Please reread my comment. I did that. They couldn't tell. If you know how to use IRs, this is a non issue. And with a lot of plug ins, you can move the mics around and get just about sound you hear out of an "amp in the room".
 
Cab sims will never sound the same as a guitar cab in a room. They are a representation of what a mic on a cab would hear.
I have to agree with you.... especially thru little 5" speakers. They are incapable of moving air like a real cabinet plus you don't have the cab resonance you do with a real cab. That's not saying they sound bad and I'm sure players can get used to it but they definitely sound, feel, and interact with the instrument differently. Although still not quite 100% the F12-X200 in a cab is really close and a good trade off for those of us that require that interaction to get in the zone.
 
Last edited:
Its definitely not overkill! To be honest i had a mk1 katana and i just couldn't get along with it. The od/dirty channels were so meh so i ended up using a Victory preamp(which was amazing) sold it for the full amp but then sold that since i couldn't justify keeping it.

What I LOVE about the Fractal is that it's a comprehensive all-in-one unit that can cover anything i need it to and at a great price(even for the axe fx 3). I'd buy one of the newer fractal units, get a pair of good monitors and you're set.
 
The "attenuator" in the Katana and Catalyst are most likely not much more than just a global master volume control for conveniently setting them to a range of volume that is most suitable for the situation. There is absolutely no need for this in a Fractal based rig because you can just control the overall volume with the output volume knobs on the Fractal.

Cab sims will never sound the same as a guitar cab in a room. They are a representation of what a mic on a cab would hear. You can mix cab sims together to tailor this sound and adjust them in various ways. This allows you to pair the perfect cabinet simulation with each amp model. Otherwise you will notice that different amp models don't sound quite as distinctly different. This is a phenomenon you can hear with real amps and cabs too. It takes time to get used to and learn how to work with cab sims.

In that sense your Katanas and Catalysts are more straightforward as they have just that one guitar speaker, which is often a jack of all trades, master of none to make it work decently enough for the different amp models in the unit. It's a compromise. The Line6 Powercab attempts to be more like changing the speaker in a 1x12 or 2x12 to different models. I haven't tried it so I can't say how well it works but experiences are very mixed. Some love it, some don't, some just use it as a fullrange speaker because the speaker modeling does not work well for their preferences.

The benefits of studio monitors in a home situation are that they are relatively compact, don't need to be played very loud to sound great and you get full stereo sound. The stereo makes a big difference for many effects. Whether you put the monitors on a desk or not is up to you. That's just the convenient place for most people as they often double as speakers for e.g mixing your recorded tracks or just watching YouTube videos.

You will see people unhappy with pretty much any guitar product ever made, even if it's just a one knob pedal. In many cases it's user error and more about what else you plug into it. Just like you would not plug a world class tube amp into the cheapest, shittiest guitar cab you can find, you don't plug a Fractal into the shittiest fullrange system you can buy. I have no love for those cheap Headrush units for example.

That's why earlier in this thread I recommended that you buy a FM3 + good studio monitors over spending the same money on an Axe-Fx 3 alone. While the Axe-Fx 3 is more capable than the FM3, it's all moot if all that great tone is mangled by a bad output system.

Thanks, I have a better understanding of all of this now. At this moment, I have no amp, as my Peavey blew.

I'm just using Neural DSP with headphones or I leave the headphones on their hanger and raise the volume to hear sound without having them on my head, they're are open back. I don't know if the higher volume would be bad for my headphones tho.

I will need some form of speakers for my computer as I have a cheap soundbar, but I was looking at powered studio monitors. They're not cheap either. For example, the Adam audio TV7 is $275 for just one. So, that's over $500 there. The Yamaha HS8s are even more expensive. $800 for the pair.

FM3 is 1k. So is quite an investment compared to just getting a Katana lol

I could buy the Adam monitors to use with Neural DSP for now.
 
A 100W tube amp with a pair of 4x12 cabs dimed would certainly be overkill in the bedroom... the Fractal thru some decent monitors or SS amp and guitar cab.... no, just sonic awesomeness
 
It sounds like money is the biggest issue for you.

Just buy something cheap in that case. A software app and set of cheapish monitors will do a job. Personally it wasn't a good enough solution for me but if you just wanna play some geetar then go for it
 
Thanks, I have a better understanding of all of this now. At this moment, I have no amp, as my Peavey blew.

I'm just using Neural DSP with headphones or I leave the headphones on their hanger and raise the volume to hear sound without having them on my head, they're are open back. I don't know if the higher volume would be bad for my headphones tho.

I will need some form of speakers for my computer as I have a cheap soundbar, but I was looking at powered studio monitors. They're not cheap either. For example, the Adam audio TV7 is $275 for just one. So, that's over $500 there. The Yamaha HS8s are even more expensive. $800 for the pair.

FM3 is 1k. So is quite an investment compared to just getting a Katana lol

I could buy the Adam monitors to use with Neural DSP for now.
I'd give the Line6 Catalyst a go. The Line6 Helix custom models have been great to me so the Catalyst should sound pretty good and is inexpensive. If you can try it and return it if you don't like it, you are out shipping costs at most.

Of course things like studio monitors and a FM3 end up becoming an expensive one time purchase but once you have the output systems, provided they don't fail, you can keep them forever. My Genelecs are probably like 8 or 9 years old at this point.
 
Thanks, I have a better understanding of all of this now. At this moment, I have no amp, as my Peavey blew.

I'm just using Neural DSP with headphones or I leave the headphones on their hanger and raise the volume to hear sound without having them on my head, they're are open back. I don't know if the higher volume would be bad for my headphones tho.

I will need some form of speakers for my computer as I have a cheap soundbar, but I was looking at powered studio monitors. They're not cheap either. For example, the Adam audio TV7 is $275 for just one. So, that's over $500 there. The Yamaha HS8s are even more expensive. $800 for the pair.

FM3 is 1k. So is quite an investment compared to just getting a Katana lol

I could buy the Adam monitors to use with Neural DSP for now.
Buy a set of Mackie monitors for $200 or less for the pair. Done.
 
I’m waiting till i finish nursing school to buy an axe fx but for now my neural dsp plugins going through a pair of kali audio lp6 monitors or sennheiser hd6xx headphones have been pretty solid.
 
I sold my 100w amp head, 4x12 cab, tons of effects pedals, pedalboard, mic, everything exactly because it was overkill for home playing.

Bought the Axe FX and it is PERFECT for bedroom playing, and I haven't put it through a PA yet but I absolutely will/would before going out and buying amp heads, cabs, other gear again.

In short: Betteridge's law of headlines is an adage that states: "Any headline that ends in a question mark can be answered by the word no."
 
I’ve been a home player only for years now and tried literally every modeller to get good Marshall tone at sensible levels. My neighbours were great and didn‘t complain, but even a 5w tube amp is too loud for a small semi detached house like mine. My 100w Marshalls would make things move on the shelves! Hehe. Ridiculous for a house my size.
Every single modeller was at least a compromise, but mostly a disappointment.
I was thinking the same as you, but had tried everything else so picked up the Axe FX3 on release. I still don’t use a fraction of its potential, but the fact that I can get those glorious Marshall tones at low volumes alone has made it worth the investment ten times over. Honestly, I’ve got a better 80’s metal tone than I ever did with real amps.
For me, Fractal is definitely the best modelling tone, but maybe more importantly, it’s so easy to get it. If you’re familiar with an amp, it’s literally seconds.

The AFX3 has done so much more for me though, that I would say it’s easily the best value for money guitar purchase I’ve made. It’s broadened my horizons for so many amps (all I owned were Marshalls or derivatives), but especially the Fender family and I barely used any FX before. It’s given me the chance to try things I never would have and become a more rounded player. I love spending an afternoon just playing around with a new amp.
I still suck, but in a more rounded way. ;)
 
Was thinking about this thread and the discussion about getting good sounds at low volumes. So I recently picked up a Yamaha THR30ii for couch playing and it actually sounds pretty damn good once you access the app for deeper editing. I then setup my Atomic CLR's (connected to my Axe Fx III) for same space and just turned down (attenuated) the outputs and boom. It was sounding glorious. Yamaha sounds great at low volumes but soon lose the benefit when you try pushing more volume out of 3.5" speakers. With the CLR's, being FRFR, They sound amazing at low volumes and equally amazing at louder volumes. I'm returning the Yamaha. So maybe get a solution that won't hamstring you when it comes to different scenarios. FRFR/studio monitors would be great for that ; they just may not have the form factor/aesthetic you're after. Playing through hybrid digital amps/powered cabs , I'd say will give you the form factor but you're going to compromise tone. On the thought of a powered cab...i'd sooner go with a Friedman ASM 12 or xitone etc over running through a katana or Catalyst.
 
Last edited:
Funny Chewie, because I was doing the same. Money obviously plays a big part in this decision for the OP, and understandably so. I felt a bit bad for harping on about the Axe FX is the greatest thing ever, when it’s a lot of cash when you factor in a cab, monitors, etc.
Saying that though, I could have saved myself a shitload of time and money over the years by going fractal from the start. Like I said, apart from the Kemper, I‘ve owned nearly every modeller and some are better than others, but until the AF3 they ALL felt like a compromise to my big boy Marshalls, even at home. The AF3 changed that, especially when I picked up some Adam A7x monitors. I’ve never even thought about buying an amp or pedal since and every one of my beloved amps is packed away.

I would never recommend that anyone stretch beyond their means. I’ve been there in my youth and (literally) paid for it. For years.
The katana is a great bit of kit and a fraction of the price, but, for me personally, the tone search was over when I went fractal. It’s a big investment for sure, but definitely worth it for me.

OP, maybe audition a katana if you can and see how you like it. If you’re happy and don’t have that feeling that you’re compromising, you can save yourself some money.
 
Was thinking about this thread and the discussion about getting good sounds at low volumes. So I recently picked up a Yamaha THR30ii for couch playing and it actually sounds pretty damn good once you access the app for deeper editing. I then setup my Atomic CLR's (connected to my Axe Fx III) for same space and just turned down (attenuated) the outputs and boom. It was sounding glorious. Yamaha sounds great at low volumes but soon lose the benefit when you try pushing more volume out of 3.5" speakers. With the CLR's, being FRFR, They sound amazing at low volumes and equally amazing at louder volumes. I'm returning the Yamaha. So maybe get a solution that won't hamstring you when it comes to different scenarios. FRFR/studio monitors would be great for that ; they just may not have the form factor/aesthetic you're after. Playing through hybrid digital amps/powered cabs , I'd say will give you the form factor but you're going to compromise tone. On the thought of a powered cab...i'd sooner go with a Friedman ASM 12 or xitone etc over running through a katana or Catalyst.

I have a THR 5w myself and for the price and what it does, it's really, really good. Awesome to travel with.
 
Back
Top Bottom