Guitar sound doesn't cut through with band

I have setup all my presets on my AX8 at home and playing with backing tracks to get the sound.

At home it sounds great but what I got to band rehearsal my guitar was lost in the background and was not cutting through in the band situation.

Does anyone have any tips on setting up presets so that they cut through when playing with the whole band?
 
Mids, mids, mids! Is the most important thing. Modern scooped tone usually sounds awesome alone, but will get you in trouble with a band mix....

But it could be something else in your preset "not working" as well. Best thing would be if you could share the preset, so we can see what is going on in there.

Edit:
Also, you should tweak your live sounds in LOUD !!! Otherwise Fletcher Munson will kick you in the nuts!
 
Mids, mids, mids! Is the most important thing. Modern scooped tone usually sounds awesome alone, but will get you in trouble with a band mix....

But it could be something else in your preset "not working" as well. Best thing would be if you could share the preset, so we can see what is going on in there.

Good point! .... Here is the preset attached. Hope it helps figure out the problem.

Thanks
 

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if you create at bedroom volumes then turn up to gig volumes, the bass and treble will be much louder than you intended. that's why mids help out, and also probably cutting bass and treble. it's the FM Curve referred to above. it's always best to create tones as close to gig volumes and gear as you can.
 
Also - are you going through the PA with other instruments, into a amp/cab, or your own powered cab? I have noticed going direct when no one else is can make even the best presets a struggle to mix well.
 
Yes, mids are what cut through. You might find reducing the low end on your patches might help you turn up your volume a little more. The speakers won't get as flubby at high volumes and your tone will be what you want in the mix.

Also, live music is a lot more dynamic than recorded music. Check kinds of compression you may be using. Reducing compression will allow you to lean into louder sections and cut through more easily when you need to go to "11".

I find that the tones that work well in a band mix are not tones I would dial in when by myself in my music room. The mids are sharper/harsher, with less low end than I prefer when I'm just playing on my own. In the band mix these harsher tones smooth out and just sound right.

If you were using IRs, I'd suggest that you significantly narrow the low and high cuts on the cab settings. But since you aren't using IRs, I won't...
 
Additionally, too much "ambient" effects like Reverb and Delay can cause you to get lost... Although I'm betting is those bastards Fletcher and Munson!
 
A few issues....
  1. You are running into and Amp and Cab. But there is a Cab block in this preset. Are you disabling Cab Modeling in the Global menu?
  2. This is an old, heavily tweaked version of my 'Eruption' preset with a lot of leftover controllers still connected to Delay block #2, but not being used.
  3. The amp has not been reset for the newer firmware versions.
  4. The 'X' state of the Reverb block is very wet, as it was setup for a 'guitar only' song. The 'Y' state is a bit dryer, as it was originally intended for the rhythm scene.
  5. You have the Delay block on in all scenes.
What firmware are you using?
 
Last edited:
A few issues....
  1. You are running into and Amp and Cab. But there is a Cab block in this preset. Are you disabling Cab Modeling in the Global menu?
  2. This is an old, heavily tweaked version of my 'Eruption' preset with a lot of leftover controllers still connected to Delay block #2, but not being used.
  3. The amp has not been reset for the newer firmware versions.
  4. The 'X' state of the Reverb block is very wet, as it was setup for a 'guitar only' song. The 'Y' state is a bit dryer, as it was originally intended for the rhythm scene.
  5. You have the Delay block on in all scenes.
What firmware are you using?

Hi Moke,

As you have probably noticed I don't know much about tweaking the Ax8 but after tweaking lots I ended up with a preset thats got all I wanted on it.

I'm using the latest firmware to date for the ax8.

No, I haven't disabled the cab from the global menu either.

I'll check that out and the other issues you talked about.

Thanks for looking into it, I really appreciate it.
 
So I had my 3rd rehearsal using the Axe Fx II into the duncan powerstage into my Mesa 2X12 cab. I experienced the same thing , when my other guitarist is not playing (he plays through a Bogner into a 2X12, it sounds killer (I dialed in my patches at band volume), when the 2nd guitarist comes in , I disappear, and it's not even a volume issue (I don't think) I am going to use my Jvm next rehearsal and see if it is a volume issue. I'm bumming big time because this rig has been working so well for me. the rest of the band complained that they couldn't hear at all , until I blasted my volume. :( I'm hoping the 2nd guitarist is creeping up his volume and it's not my rig.
 
If you are running a solid state power amp into a guitar cab you need to disable cab modeling.
If it's a full range cab I second this:
Also - are you going through the PA with other instruments, into a amp/cab, or your own powered cab? I have noticed going direct when no one else is can make even the best presets a struggle to mix well.
 
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