Emulating a tone - step by step

R

Rocksalot

Member
I'm currently at the pick-a-preset and play level regarding my Fractal knowledge. I do pretty well with getting what I want from the effects, because I've owned a million over the years. its natural to add some vibe or delay or EQ to a sound.

What's not second nature for me is how to dial in a basic tone. and by that, I mean use the Ax3 to emulate a very specific tone from a record. I haven't owned a million amps over the years, so never had all the options for tone sculpting that the Ax3 offers.

I know Cory is coming out soon with a video series that will explain all the Ax3 functionality. that will definitely help me, but i'm looking for something maybe more specific.

Does anyone know if there is a step-by-step guide on how to break down a basic tone and recreate it with the Ax3 (or Ax2 or AX8, doesn't matter). Really just looking for a workflow or approach like....
1. pick the right amp/cab
2. set the drive/gain/furr
3. set the eq

I read a book once called "Mixing with your Mind". There was a chapter in there called "Cracking Compressors" and the guy explained it so well...
1. set the attack level first - listen to just the attack and get it right
2. then set the release level - listen to the release and get it right
3. then set the ratio - the overall quality of the effect
4. then set the threshold - when does that effect "grab" the sound

anything like that one-two-three approach exist for amp modelers? i'm first in line for it if it does.
 
I'm with you. It's definitely overwhelming. If I'm building my own preset, I usually start with the input at the far left, the output at the far right, and connect them. Then I add an amp I know/love (for me, it's the Mark IV). Then I pick a cab (this is a nightmare with so many choices). Then I start to tweak and add stuff (drives, delays, etc.).

I've been carefully tailoring the same preset since the day I got the III. I think it gets a little better every day; more versatility, more functionality, more balanced volume between scenes... Almost every day I learn or discover something that I use to make it better or more useful to me.

One thing of note: you do not NEED to tweak every parameter of every block. The amp block alone has around 100 parameters available. you can stick with the basics that you'd find on the front of your favorite amp or dive deep. Same with the drives, delays, verbs, etc.
 
Research whatever you can about what was (supposedly) used for the original tone (including the guitar). Try to re-create the rig with the same (or as close as you can find) models and signal path (if available).

Or, find a factory preset that get you in the ball park, and tweak from there.
 
I think there are a lot of different approaches. What I do is figure out what the signal chain is comprised of in the physical world. Amp, effects and settings of those.

I then go into the fractal unit and pick the closest amp and effects and match settings and create the same signal chain using the grid in ax edit.

Then I play it and tweak it.

Of course some people use the tone matching and IR creation capabilities of the fractal tools to exactly match a physical amp and cabinet. I don’t have the tools to do it this way so I use my ears and method above.

I usually end up finding a different and better tone while tweaking the settings in ax edit.

The amp models are very good and controls are very similar to real world controls. Use the fractal wiki amp guide and drive guide to get more detail on exactly what real world amps were modeled.
 
Dialing in tones are a nightmare for those of us with no prior knowledge of amps. I've been teaching myself while asking for help on the forums all the time about how it's typically done and what to listen for and such. It's really hard because there are so many things to tweak that aren't always necessary to tweak. I've been playing with the Axe II for a few years now and I'm STILL trying to master it. I'm getting a lot better with it but I find that I'll take a break from it and come back realizing that the tone I have won't cut it. Trying to nab certain elements of a good tone is hard when you don't know how they're generated or how they work.

The other part of that equation is mixing in general. You'll have what you think is great by itself but then record it with the rest of the instruments and find that it's not enough in one way or another. It's all part of the process of developing a good ear.

As far tone matching goes, I can NEVER get that to sound right. I don't know what the secret is there. Nothing I can do works with that. I may have to give up with it.
 
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