Harsh Overtones in Moderate to High Gain Patches

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Let me start by saying I do not think this is an Axe III issue.
I have had this issue with my previous Boss modelers and now the Axe Fx III. I even rented a Helix and had the same issue. I really envy everyone who got their Axe home and got to enjoy every preset. I'm hoping someone knows of a magic setting to tame this beast for me.

So basically my problem is that most Moderate to High gain presets have an annoying Harsh distortion over the fundamental distortion (if that makes sense). This occurs from the initial attack until the sound decays a little. It sounds sort of like clipping noise, or another distortion pedal driven hard at higher than pleasing frequencies. I try follow along with someone's instructional video or download their preset and IR and mine sound nothing like theirs.

I am using a QSC K12 in mono horizontal on the floor as a monitor. I also have 2 more K12's mounted on poles so I can choose to monitor in mono/stereo.
I set up the Axe input gain for my guitars. (Tickling the red - and tried lower). Tried turning off Amp/Cabinet modelling, different in/out cables, by-passing my PRESONUS mixer and going direct to the K12's, Headphones in the Axe, running through my studio monitors and 3 different guitars (Godin, Les Paul, PRS Custom 24) All with the same disappointment.

Fingers crossed that someone out there knows what I'm talking about and has that magic fix.

Interestingly I had to turn off Speaker Modelling in my Boss GT1000 to get rid of the harshness. Which I know makes no sense.
I'd like to blame what I'm hearing on my 60 year old ears, but if that was the case I should hear the same thing on the You Tube demo's.

Hope we can all get back to gigging soon.
Cheers Everyone
 
Have you tried lowering the treble side of your pickups?

A high cut at 7k in the cab block at 12db/oct will help a lot too.
 
The QSC K12 is one of the worst speakers I've ever used as a guitar FRFR. The tweeter is beamy and harsh.
Well that is disappointing. We have been using these for several years as our main PA and monitors. Vocals and guitars direct. Always got good comments on our mix. But I'll admit I have never been happy with my digital high gain sounds. I will try some of the other brands of speakers recommended here if possible. I can't see how a different brand will change what I hear in my headphones or studio monitors though.
Our local store mainly deals in Yorkville.

I will try some of the tweaks as well.

Have you tried lowering the treble side of your pickups?
Lowered my PRS so far the darn screw popped out. DOH!!! Had to take the pickup out to put back together. It was time to change the strings anyway. :rolleyes:
 
I think the OP might be talking about the initial crackle.
Wow that is a lot of good information in that link!!! Actually in that case I may lean toward the Fizz, but it is subjective. I guess my speakers are over emphasizing this FIZZ to the point of being unbearable in the PA and my monitors.
 
Are you using a lot of noise gate? If you have a lot of noise in your signal, you'll hear it in the signal when the gate opens, and it can sound pretty ratty with higher gain.
 
The QSC K12 is one of the worst speakers I've ever used as a guitar FRFR. The tweeter is beamy and harsh.

I agree. Even the low priced Harbinger powered speakers sound better in my opinion. When I was shopping for FRFR powered speakers, I brought my Axe-Fx II to my local Guitar Center and tested out all their speakers at stage volume. The QSC K12 sounded like they had a high frequency resonance that made my ears hurt and quickly caused ear fatigue.

I ended up buying a pair of Yamaha DXR12 powered speakers. I wanted to buy the smaller and lighter weight DXR10's but GC had a better sale for the DXR12's. The DXR10's ended up having a good sale a few years later, so I bought a pair of them too.

I know some people that use the Harbinger VARI V2315 and Harbinger VARI V2312 powered speakers and they actually sound really good for being a 3rd of the price of the Yamaha DXR12's and QSC K12's. You can usually get a 15% discount from MusiciansFriend.com too.

No matter what FRFR speakers I use, I set the Axe-Fx global EQ to low pass at 8K. This also prevents high squeal feedback from the tweeter/horn and allows you to use controlled feedback like with a real guitar cab.

I also use my speakers on stands, so they're at ear level, so no need to crank the volume or high end to compensate for a speaker on the floor.
 
Are you using a lot of noise gate? If you have a lot of noise in your signal, you'll hear it in the signal when the gate opens, and it can sound pretty ratty with higher gain.
I'm just talking about stock presets and ones I downloaded. Have not attempted "making it my own" yet. These presets sound fine on the you tube videos... not so good through my QSC's.
 
I agree. Even the low priced Harbinger powered speakers sound better in my opinion. When I was shopping for FRFR powered speakers, I brought my Axe-Fx II to my local Guitar Center and tested out all their speakers at stage volume. The QSC K12 sounded like they had a high frequency resonance that made my ears hurt and quickly caused ear fatigue.

I ended up buying a pair of Yamaha DXR12 powered speakers. I wanted to buy the smaller and lighter weight DXR10's but GC had a better sale for the DXR12's. The DXR10's ended up having a good sale a few years later, so I bought a pair of them too.

I know some people that use the Harbinger VARI V2315 and Harbinger VARI V2312 powered speakers and they actually sound really good for being a 3rd of the price of the Yamaha DXR12's and QSC K12's. You can usually get a 15% discount from MusiciansFriend.com too.

No matter what FRFR speakers I use, I set the Axe-Fx global EQ to low pass at 8K. This also prevents high squeal feedback from the tweeter/horn and allows you to use controlled feedback like with a real guitar cab.

I also use my speakers on stands, so they're at ear level, so no need to crank the volume or high end to compensate for a speaker on the floor.

So do you use DXR's for your mains as well? So you know your sound translates to the PA as you are hearing it on stage. Assuming you use your own PA like we do. My local store in Nova Scotia Canada does sell Yamaha speakers, I'll get them to bring some in for me to rent.
 
I had the issue for years in both my Axe FX III's...I fixed it yesterday, finally, after some good advice here.

I turned the amp block volume down in all my presets...problem solved completely. And they are are all heavy metal distortion tones...Marshall, Mesa, Friedman etc...with distortion blocks.

It was more prevalent once I started to record myself through the USB audio...and I asked that question - the answer was that simple.
 
I'm just talking about stock presets and ones I downloaded. Have not attempted "making it my own" yet. These presets sound fine on the you tube videos... not so good through my QSC's.

I think most if not all of the stock patches use the noise gate. My point is that if your guitar signal has a lot of noise, you won't necessarily hear it when you're not playing because the gate will squelch it. But when you play, the noise can be audible, especially with high gain settings.

Even with my humbucker guitars, I get noise sometimes which makes playing high gain problematic.
 
So do you use DXR's for your mains as well? So you know your sound translates to the PA as you are hearing it on stage. Assuming you use your own PA like we do. My local store in Nova Scotia Canada does sell Yamaha speakers, I'll get them to bring some in for me to rent.

I have used a pair as mains but I usually just use them for my guitar. I refer to them as my full stack because a pair of them can get almost as loud as a pair of real 4x12 guitar cabs. What's nice about them is how wide they spread the sound and not directional like a real guitar cab, so you don't have to stand in a limited spot to hear the best sound.
 
I am so glad I read that article that was posted, I have always had ‘problems’ with that crackle on note decay and now I know it’s normal!!
 
I'm cutting highs and lows drastically, when using FRFR monitors at loud volumes:


Also, I'm adressing harshness coming from the guitar pu's with a PEQ in front of the amp:


That both helped me alot with high gain sounds at loud volumes!
 
Thanks for the tips Kram. I'll try that on one of the factory presents and see how much of a difference it makes with my speakers.

Edit: And Thank You to everyone else as well!! I have read all your replies and will experiment with your suggestions. Watching lots of You Tube as well.
 
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