First Big Gig Axe II: Tips From FOH Guy

Mojo? Yeah, right... whatever, this guy had no clue! I have been using my Axe FX 2 on the road for about one year now, smaller gigs, big venues, huge outdoor festivals, whatever, and never had any problems. I use In ear monitoring, so there are no cabinets at all involved, I use the XLR outs to go straight to the desk and the sound is incredible. Our FOH never had any problems, actually he doesn't mess with my signal at all, no eEQs, nothing, he just makes me loud on the PA, and guess what, he loves the Axe FX.
 
Marcus Siepen said:
Mojo? Yeah, right... whatever, this guy had no clue!
Click to expand...

been thinking about this...
we all have our fave lil' 'terms' for things that are not actually correct / formal terms...

"add a little air"
"sounds boxy"
"sounds warm"

jeez.. this list could seriously go on..
never heard 'mojo' before... but thinking about it... in context, it's not that unreasonable...

I wouldn't be so hard on the soundy for his 'mojo' comment..
we all know that real cabs do add their own 'something' to the tone..
try turning your cab block off and listen through the cans or FRFR monitors...
and you'll quickly hear the difference..

I can only guess that this particular guy may have had past experiences when DI-ing rack fx that have not all been good..
and maybe he's had limited / no exposure to the Axe-II [and let's be honest, the Axe is exactly common compared to Line6 / Boss / etc units]..
and likewise.. throwing a lesser unit through a cab would no doubt have a positive impact on the tone [even with it's cab sims set on]..

my guess is...
this guy may not be a dick, he may not be talking crap, or be a dinosaur...
he's more likely acting based upon what he's had experience with...
and setting up the guitars is only part of what he has to do during the sound check...
my guess is that he's playing safe.. and trying to do the best job he can, as quickly as he can based upon his own experience..
and if his FX-unit DI-ing experience is based around lesser units, that'd explain his reluctance to dial out the low end..

we all know that with respect to the Axe, what he says / does is untrue...
but if he's not encountered the Axe before, he won't know what we know...
so his 'mojo' comment, really isn't all that surprising...

it's not a poor reflection on the Axe....
and likewise, it don't mean he's a dick either..
 
I'm with you on that clarky.

Depending on the show, and the rush to get the stage prepped, it's not the best time to try and teach the tech's how to do their job.

I just try to be nice, and live with what I *can* get for the stage sound vs. getting confrontational and then being pissed off in addition to having bad sound.

Richard
 
I had that guy do a show for me! He is from another country, odd accent. His name is Idonthaveaclue Knowitall. Will never forget his sage advice...
 
I've been extremely fortunate in that I have yet to have a sound guy scoff at the Axe FX. In 3 years of going DI, not a single negative comment, "know it all" experience. I've had some apprehensive guys, sure, but when I say I go direct to the board, their response is normally, "XLR or 1/4"? And then I warn them about how hot the signal is because I send the Left side to my Atomic and the Right to FOH. I really should start using Output 2, but whatever. That's what they have a pad for!

I did have a studio guy mic the Atomic as an experiment. That did not turn out good even with multiple mics.
 
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