Getting ready to take the plunge

S

scrmnglspl

Member
I have been squirreling funds away for a year now and I'm just a few hundred dollars away from ordering a new Ultra.

I have been looking at this forum for the entire time I have been saving for the Axe and I am very pleased with the community atmosphere between all of the users and even those closely involved with the product.

I am currently using a Digitech GSP1101 with a Control 2, a VHT 2:90:2 Power amp and a Bogner 412 cabinet modded to be stereo. I plan pon updating the 1101 to C48 (or 49, since I've heard whispers of such a thing over on the digitech forum) to use the 1101 and Control 2 to control the Axe. I read that this is possible via MIDI and plan on doing this until the MFC101 is released and I can save the funds to get one of those. That ought to be fun as it will be my first foray into MIDI anything. I've had the Digitech for about two years now. Before that, I was 100% amp and pedals.

I plan on easing into the Axe, using it with the VHT at first and micing, then running a direct line with the cabinet as a monitor, and eventually going completely FRFR. (I'm getting older and hauling around the 412 is getting a little old, although I love the response and feel of a 412).

I've skimmed through the wiki, and there are some people in my town that own the Axe and I've had the opportunity to try theirs out. I am very excited. However, I'm posting to see if any of you Axe vets can provide me with any information that you wished someone had told you at the outset, and possibly any additional items that make life with an Axe easier.

I look forward to communicating with all of you. I'm chomping at the bit to place the order. So close, yet so far ehh? :D

Thanks,

David.
 
Nice genuine post..you will fit in well, welcome!! :) It's nice to see you have done your homework..best advice is to keep reading and learning from the great community of people here and enjoy your ax journey!! :)
 
scrmnglspl said:
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However, I'm posting to see if any of you Axe vets can provide me with any information that you wished someone had told you at the outset, and possibly any additional items that make life with an Axe easier.
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I wish I had known (right at the beginning) that I would end up with an FRFR setup. I would have saved oodles of cash (by avoiding to buy guitar amps and guitar cabs), and I would have saved oodles of time (by tweaking my patches for FRFR and FOH, instead of wasting my time tweaking them for a <Marshall>/<Mesa>/<insert other amp and cab brand here>).
 
What I like about the Ultra so much, is the capability to get just about any tone that you want. You can go from over processed to organic, glassy plickety acoustic to detah metal, and you shape and form the tone anywhere with the GEQ and Para Eq as well as pan effects and .

As your ear grows and changes so will the way you tweak. This is a COMPULSION of mine !!!

Don't listen to any bad reviews. I have high highs and very low lows when I want them. Its all there.

Full range speakers are completely different from guitar cabs. I find the full range speaker gives a more even buttery tone, somewhat more compressed and polished. The cabs give it real raw guitar tones. So this is why so many people have conflicting opinions, as well as "everybody" for the most part usually have different guitars/ pickups/ cabling/ amps/ cabs etc.

Its all good ! Best bang for the buck. And the support here on the forum is AMAZING !
No question goes unanswered, unless it was asked in the past so much it gets referenced.

Have fun with it and good luck !!!
 
Thank you for your responses! :)

You know, I've considered going FRFR as soon as I get the Axe. Just to see what happens. I have a feeling I may never turn back. I have a question about that: Those of you that are going FRFR in live situations, are you finding that a stage monitor mix from the PA is enough or are you using a separate monitor just for the tones coming from the Axe? I do quite a bit of controlled feedback live and I definitely want to keep that aspect going. Not to mention, as I previously stated, I love the feeling of moving air with a 412.

Any advice or feedback will be welcomed.

David.
 
I bring my own monitor system (IEMs or powered wedge) so as not to be utterly at the mercy of the occasionally less-than-clueful sound engineer.
 
scrmnglspl said:
Thank you for your responses! :)

You know, I've considered going FRFR as soon as I get the Axe. Just to see what happens. I have a feeling I may never turn back. I have a question about that: Those of you that are going FRFR in live situations, are you finding that a stage monitor mix from the PA is enough or are you using a separate monitor just for the tones coming from the Axe? I do quite a bit of controlled feedback live and I definitely want to keep that aspect going. Not to mention, as I previously stated, I love the feeling of moving air with a 412.

Any advice or feedback will be welcomed.

David.
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Separate monitor for my Axe on stage. For two reasons: (a) I need control on my own stage volume (so I use output2 for my on-stage FRFR, and output 1 for FOH), and (b) for the same reason you mentioned: to get controlled feedback.
 
Im also getting ready to take the plunge and have been reading a lot of stuff on the forums…I originally just wanted to eliminate my pedals/rack switcher and other rack gear and just use the Ultra for that but with the Atomic wedge speakers it seems like the way to go.

I have watched tons of youtube vids on the Axe Ultra, finally other than U2 vids ( luv U2) to really see how flexible it is. I think what help sell me on it was the Gilmour,Knofler,Brian May, Chris from Megadeth, etc. tones coming out of it. I also seen A/B comparison of pedals and amps that sounded exact. Really impressed with everything I have heard. I wont be getting rid of my amps but I think the pedals and rack effect are going to be sold off to help finish funding this.
 
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