Help...is this all in my head?

mesaboog

mesaboog

Inspired
Hey guys. Long time Axe-Fx user here. I am currently gigging regularly and have been for with the AFX for many years. I have a question that I am hoping you guys can help me with. Last Saturday, I played my first gig with the new 18.07 fw and was extremely happy with my tones. Nice thick tones that were cutting through the mix nicely. Best I have ever sounded. Although I have always been happy with my tones from the AFX which is why I hadn't upgraded since 13.02. I am monitoring with a single QSC K12.

So here's the problem. Last night at rehearsal, I was super unhappy with my tones. Everything seemed to be thin, nasal, cocked wah sounding. I went so far as to double check my presets to make sure the wah was auto off as it should and recalibrated my FCB1010 pedals just to make sure wah was off. Came away from rehearsal bewildered shaking my head wondering if my ears were just having a bad night or playing tricks on me.

Decided to fire up again this morning at home and have another listen to see if things have changed and I'll be damned if everything is just sounding thin and nasal....especially the high gain presets. Lower mids seem to have gone away. The attack on the strings is shrill/ice-picky. I checked to make sure that power amp modeling was on and cab was active. Looked through all the settings and don't see anything is out of whack. Checked my speaker (K12) settings all OK. I am wondering if there is something obvious that I might be missing here. Thinking I should maybe reinstall the firmware?

At a loss. Any help would be appreciated.

Scott
 
It's every preset. Just running through the factory presets is giving me this issue where they were ALL sounding great a week ago.
 
Yeah, it is set to Sum L+R, and cab modelling IS active. I just backed everything up and am re-installing the firmware as a crap shoot.
 
mesaboog said:
It's every preset. Just running through the factory presets is giving me this issue where they were ALL sounding great a week ago.
Click to expand...

Did you update the presets from the support page? AFX II Original/Mark II

The jump from 13.02 to 18.07 is huge, that is the biggest firmware gap I have heard in a while. If these are modified Factory Presets, I suggest just clearing a couple presets and building some from scratch with reset block values. Not sure where/what else to help you start since you are only monitoring out of the K12 which is working for many other individuals on the forum. Try making a couple fresh presets and re-dial in a few tones starting simple.
 
I had this happen a few years ago and I think people thought I was losing my mind...me as well. :) I just remember thinking that there is no way this is normal. I would sound great one day and horrible the other. I ended up downloading the firmware again and it sort of fixed itself. I couldn't put my finger on why and never figured it out. I think sometimes a problem can happen during download and the system just needs a reboot.
 
Yes, I am using the newest factory presets. They ALL sounded stellar the day I updated. The K12 has always been great for me. Been using it for years. I just reinstalled the firmware and didn't make a difference. Like I said things were great just after updating to 18.07. It is just the last couple days that I am experiencing this. I have a head cold and am now wondering if that might be playing a factor here. However, I would think that things would be more muffled and I would be complaining of lack of highs. Weird...I have never been unhappy with my AFX tones. Somethings up. Maybe the speaker.
 
Does the K12 have any kind of switch or setting for floor monitor, pa, etc.? Or a low cut? It kind of sounds like something like that,
 
Yep, same spot at rehearsal and home. I've double checked the K12 settings. Normal / Line as I have always had them. I think it must be my ears and this cold. I am going to step away for a week and hopefully will be back to tone happiness soon. Thanks everyone who replied. Much appreciated!

Scott
 
Cross check and troubleshoot using different guitar, all cables, no MIDI or other unnecessary connections, and different speaker system. How does it sound using the front panel headphone output?

Use the USB recording interface to record something and then listen back using headphones on your computer. If it is passing the same tone along via a recording, then it is inside the AxeFx, likely. If not, then it is probably something after the AxeFx or in a Global setting perhaps.

just a couple thoughts.
 
Do you have expression pedals plugged in? Do you have a wah block on your presets? If so, take them off the grid entirely and see if the issue goes away. There was a change in the CC# assignments of the wah block this firmware I believe. Just trying to rule out the wah actually loading since you say it sounds like a cocked wah. Also, try resetting all system parameters to see if that helps.

Good luck and please keep us informed if you find the answer.
 
If it were a computer/phone/tablet some sort of reset would be in order. I'd suggest the same here.
 
Sometimes I get this when there is a modifier attached to a wah block. Even if the block is inactive, if it has the modifier attached (to the pedal I normally use for volume), I get a nasally thin sound until I manually remove the modifier from the block. Then it's all back to normal. Could also be affected by other types of blocks (EQ, filter, etc).
 
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jimfist said:
Cross check and troubleshoot using different guitar
Click to expand...

This. I've had this happen and then found out the input jack on the guitar had gone funky. Or, if you have active pickups, it could be the battery. But I have had it happen where all my gain is gone, no power or oomph. Then I wiggle the jack, and bam, all is good.
 
could there be some stereo to mono summing going on somewhere that's causing strange phasing?
or hearing one side of stereo instead of being truly mono?
 
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