Jang
Member
I'm a relatively new Axe-FX II user. My main reason for buying was with the aim of selling off now underused piles of tube gear and effects to have a neat'n'tidy rig that could fit in a small rack case more orientated towards home recording and sporadic gigging.
In the first instance I needed an amp that would take the Axe-FX's sounds and pump it through a cab – vanilla stuff. I thought about trying a cheap, budget option first but the Axe-FX has been such a revelation that I really want to embrace it and get the most out of it.
When the Axe-FX first came onto my radar a couple of years back it seemed that tube valve amps like the VHT were the ultimate option, judging by forum chatter, but when I finally starting looking to 'go Axe' seriously and acquire one, Matrix's generally incredible user feedback and confidence in the the products had to be taken seriously. I was a 'valve=goodness' guy but, hey, they are heavy, need maintenance and can sometimes go unreliable. If SS could do the job, well, that's better, right? IF it can do the job.
Anyway, my GT1000FX 2U turned up earlier today.
The unit comes efficiently well packaged in quite a small box (I thought it might have been the A3 photographic paper I ordered) with and small instruction manual. Unlike other amps I've bought over the years, where I'd be wondering how the tone of the valve circuitry would enhance my music, the Matrix serves a completely different purpose – to faithfully and accurately reproduce the sonic goodness of the Axe-FX II at volume. In a sense it's a bit more like some audiophile buying a HIFI amp to get the most out of a high end CD player. However, I was looking in the first instance to use a guitar cab and not explore full range for the time being. The Axe sounds good through my small studio monitors but that means, yet again, I'm hunched near a desk making music. I prefer to practice or work out new ideas away from all that – guitar and amp, old skool style.
Plugging in the amp and switching on the 2u there is essentially no noise from it unless you stick your head right up against the grill. We live within earshot of an A road, so even the distant rumble of traffic or the plumbing or just any tiny domestic noise means you don't hear a thing. The amp will be for live/loud use (hey, it's a power amp) but if you are neurotic about hum and whirr and fan noise on your gear, this will salve your OCD. For me, I'm sure I'd have been a happy camper with the 1U but the unit's so compact anyway I thought, hey, you never know when super-quiet might be valued for recording. They cost the same. You pays your money and all that... Still, it is pretty cool to have classic tube amp sound but without any whirr and hum at all.
I started running the GT1000FX though a 16ohm, wired for mono, 2x12 Zilla Studio Pro cab, which is loaded with Tayden High Brit and Great Brit speakers. These are retro-orientated speakers that really start to sing with a bit of volume but even at low domestic levels the Matrix+Zilla combo worked a treat. My main patches are set up with a 2x12” cab sim, and when cab sims were turned off in global settings, they sounded recognisable and equally gorgeous through this set up – pristine, transparent, plenty of ooomph across the frequency range, not thin or boomy anywhere. I used just one channel into 16ohms and there's a lot of power on tap even from that. Bridged I guess this would be good as a bass amp, which'll be great for occasional bass gigs (I currently don't own my own bass amp).
The fact that it was great from the first notes played is a great sign. I've never stuck with anything music-related that I felt I had to get used to or mess around with because it wasn't the best fit for my needs. The Matrix certainly delivers that 'first strum thrill.'
The Zilla's been used for the most part with a Peavey head, but also with a Marshall, someone else's Orange head and, briefly, a Bassman head, so I know how various amps sound through it. I also have a Fender DeVille combo on hand. Here's the thing, with the Axe and the Matrix to my ears you can have a great-sounding, believable Plexi heads, Fender heads, make-believe heads, ubergain heads, etc. all in one compact package. It doesn't really feel or sound different whether the cab is spitting out tube sound or Axe-fx/Matrix sound (but the latter has much less hum!) I know you probably know all that – I'm still in the Axe-FX honeymoon where I still don't quite believe how things have moved on in the last decade.
Here's another thing... I do not need tube stuff anymore. I really don't. It's all going. All of it. I'll never bother using it now for sure. I know 100% that with the Axe-FX II and the Matrix GT1000FX I'm good.
The construction of the Matrix is reassuringly British and 'industrial'. This looks like it has been built to be used hard. The connectors all look like solid parts. It's a world away from cheapo budget stuff, which is always nice when you've dropped a pile of dosh! There's orange light that glows inside (forum member Clarky called it 'lava') and seeping through the muscular grill on the front combined with the blue LEDs it does look really cool. It would look amazing on a dark stage. Sci-fi fun!
Also I should say the Matrix guys and gals have been brilliant over email. They really are focussed on customer service. They give you exactly the product you want, answer your queries fast, make it easy to buy and leave you happy.
In conclusion, I can see why this amp is becoming seen by lots of users as a kind of Axe-FX 'industry standard.' It's ticked every box on my immediate needs. But it's quiet for recording if I need it to be and there's always passive monitors and full range to explore with it if I ever feel the need so it's pretty much future-proofed.
In the first instance I needed an amp that would take the Axe-FX's sounds and pump it through a cab – vanilla stuff. I thought about trying a cheap, budget option first but the Axe-FX has been such a revelation that I really want to embrace it and get the most out of it.
When the Axe-FX first came onto my radar a couple of years back it seemed that tube valve amps like the VHT were the ultimate option, judging by forum chatter, but when I finally starting looking to 'go Axe' seriously and acquire one, Matrix's generally incredible user feedback and confidence in the the products had to be taken seriously. I was a 'valve=goodness' guy but, hey, they are heavy, need maintenance and can sometimes go unreliable. If SS could do the job, well, that's better, right? IF it can do the job.
Anyway, my GT1000FX 2U turned up earlier today.
The unit comes efficiently well packaged in quite a small box (I thought it might have been the A3 photographic paper I ordered) with and small instruction manual. Unlike other amps I've bought over the years, where I'd be wondering how the tone of the valve circuitry would enhance my music, the Matrix serves a completely different purpose – to faithfully and accurately reproduce the sonic goodness of the Axe-FX II at volume. In a sense it's a bit more like some audiophile buying a HIFI amp to get the most out of a high end CD player. However, I was looking in the first instance to use a guitar cab and not explore full range for the time being. The Axe sounds good through my small studio monitors but that means, yet again, I'm hunched near a desk making music. I prefer to practice or work out new ideas away from all that – guitar and amp, old skool style.
Plugging in the amp and switching on the 2u there is essentially no noise from it unless you stick your head right up against the grill. We live within earshot of an A road, so even the distant rumble of traffic or the plumbing or just any tiny domestic noise means you don't hear a thing. The amp will be for live/loud use (hey, it's a power amp) but if you are neurotic about hum and whirr and fan noise on your gear, this will salve your OCD. For me, I'm sure I'd have been a happy camper with the 1U but the unit's so compact anyway I thought, hey, you never know when super-quiet might be valued for recording. They cost the same. You pays your money and all that... Still, it is pretty cool to have classic tube amp sound but without any whirr and hum at all.
I started running the GT1000FX though a 16ohm, wired for mono, 2x12 Zilla Studio Pro cab, which is loaded with Tayden High Brit and Great Brit speakers. These are retro-orientated speakers that really start to sing with a bit of volume but even at low domestic levels the Matrix+Zilla combo worked a treat. My main patches are set up with a 2x12” cab sim, and when cab sims were turned off in global settings, they sounded recognisable and equally gorgeous through this set up – pristine, transparent, plenty of ooomph across the frequency range, not thin or boomy anywhere. I used just one channel into 16ohms and there's a lot of power on tap even from that. Bridged I guess this would be good as a bass amp, which'll be great for occasional bass gigs (I currently don't own my own bass amp).
The fact that it was great from the first notes played is a great sign. I've never stuck with anything music-related that I felt I had to get used to or mess around with because it wasn't the best fit for my needs. The Matrix certainly delivers that 'first strum thrill.'
The Zilla's been used for the most part with a Peavey head, but also with a Marshall, someone else's Orange head and, briefly, a Bassman head, so I know how various amps sound through it. I also have a Fender DeVille combo on hand. Here's the thing, with the Axe and the Matrix to my ears you can have a great-sounding, believable Plexi heads, Fender heads, make-believe heads, ubergain heads, etc. all in one compact package. It doesn't really feel or sound different whether the cab is spitting out tube sound or Axe-fx/Matrix sound (but the latter has much less hum!) I know you probably know all that – I'm still in the Axe-FX honeymoon where I still don't quite believe how things have moved on in the last decade.
Here's another thing... I do not need tube stuff anymore. I really don't. It's all going. All of it. I'll never bother using it now for sure. I know 100% that with the Axe-FX II and the Matrix GT1000FX I'm good.
The construction of the Matrix is reassuringly British and 'industrial'. This looks like it has been built to be used hard. The connectors all look like solid parts. It's a world away from cheapo budget stuff, which is always nice when you've dropped a pile of dosh! There's orange light that glows inside (forum member Clarky called it 'lava') and seeping through the muscular grill on the front combined with the blue LEDs it does look really cool. It would look amazing on a dark stage. Sci-fi fun!
Also I should say the Matrix guys and gals have been brilliant over email. They really are focussed on customer service. They give you exactly the product you want, answer your queries fast, make it easy to buy and leave you happy.
In conclusion, I can see why this amp is becoming seen by lots of users as a kind of Axe-FX 'industry standard.' It's ticked every box on my immediate needs. But it's quiet for recording if I need it to be and there's always passive monitors and full range to explore with it if I ever feel the need so it's pretty much future-proofed.
