Here's a Tip for anybody who wants more dynamics and pick attack

GotMetalBoy

GotMetalBoy

Power User
Hello Axe-Fx IIers!

I'm sharing a technique I have been using for many years w/ modelers to get more dynamics and pick attack.

Here is what I do: (NOTE: Input Noise Gate info can be found on page 113 and INSTR IN on page 133 in the manual)
1. Make sure your INSTR IN level is set correctly, so it rarely hits the red
2. Make sure for this example Gate/Expander [GTE] is disabled
3. Set the Input Noise Gates THRESH high: -10dB (ex: -20dB to -0dB)
4. Set the RATIO low: 2.0 (ex: 2.0 to 3.0)
5. Set the ATTACK fast: 1ms (ex: 1ms to 10ms)
6. Set the RELEASE medium: 200ms (ex: 100ms to 500ms)
7. Select a medium or high gain Amp model like the Brit JVM or Brit Pre and set the DRIVE to 8.0
8. Now start picking soft and then gradually harder. You should be able go from gritty clean to saturated distortion

What we’re essentially doing is using the Input Noise Gates as an Expander. With the threshold set high, it’s applying the effect to almost your entire instruments signal. The Ratio setting will set the amount dynamics you get, so if it’s set to 2: you’ve doubled your dynamics, 3: tripled, 4: quadrupled... If you find you can’t get enough gain or your sound is decaying too fast, try raising the Release. If you are getting a lot of noise b/c you are using a high gain Amp w/ Drive set high, you can add a Gate/Expander [GTE] after the Amp Block and set the SCSEL(sidechain) to Input 1.

I have been using this technique for many years and is 99% of the reason I purchased the Axe-Fx II b/c it has an input gate and sidechainable gates. In my past rig, I was using an ART PRO GATE which is a programmable 8 channel gate, Boss GT-PRO, Mesa Boogie TriAxis and a spliter. The Axe-Fx II can do everything and more in 2 rack spaces than my old 5 space rack could. It’s great not having to carry around a huge rack, w/ multiple patch cables running everywhere and having to program 4 Midi Devices to all play nicely :)

I actually started using this 2 Noise Gate technique b/c of a friends mistake not following my instructions correctly. He was getting a really nice huge chunky dynamic sound out of his very cheap guitar rig. I was a little annoyed b/c he wasn’t very technical and I had spent countless hours and dollars trying to perfect my sound and noise floor. I had already known how to use side-chained gates and they were one of the secrets to my tight high gain sound. I took a look at his rig and he seemed to have his gate setup like mine (Guitar into Gate Input 1, Output 1 to Amp In, Amp Send to Gate Input 2, Output 2 to Amp Return) but then I noticed he didn’t have the link button enabled and all his knobs didn’t make sense. I pushed the link button and started getting a lot of noise from his amps decay. I then lowered the Release and he lost all his dynamics and gain. I then realized he was using Gate 1 like an expander and then Gate 2 as a normal gate and not side-chained. I put all his settings back to the way they were b/c they worked for him and he would never understand my explanation to make them better. I went home and started changing my rig config and then realized I would have to split my signal and use 3 gates. I bought a 4 channel Gate and Splitter and split my signal and sent Signal 1 to Gate 1 to Amp in and set it up like an expander, Signal 2 to Gate 2 to act as the side-chain input and enabled the link button, Amp Send to Gate 3 to Amp Return ...The rest is history and Thank You Fractal Audio for making my life so much easier!

Sorry if this should be in the Axe-Fx II Preset Exchange section but it's not an actual preset, so I decided to post it here.

Thanks,
Lou
 
That is quite an interesting find/use.....interesting how accidents can result in an awesome find! :)

I will try this out when I get home later. Thanks a lot for sharing! ;)
 
Niklas Nilsson said:
Funny, I use compression after the amp on all my clean and crunch presets because I want LESS dynamics ;)
Click to expand...

My technique is for increasing input dynamics and best used with distortion to shape your tone by your picking attack. You can still use my technique with a compressor after the amp to tame the output volume dynamics, so you can fit in a mix better.
 
Another Way to Do It Something Similar

This post passed me by but it's a good suggestion IMO and it works when adjusted correctly. This is something I've done when I want to get more dynamics and it works really well for semi-clean patches where you want to contrast the clean with the distortion as you change how hard you pick.

If you want decreased overall dynamics at all times but also want a stronger pick attack at the same time, you can use the compressor. The controls are set sort of opposite the expander settings. Set the threshold very low to have the compressor always on, set the attack to the max (100ms) for a starting value, and set the release to something fast, around 30ms seems to work well. Use peak detection so the compressor gain will go back up fast between notes. If the attack isn't fast enough reduce the attack time setting to your tastes. This is an old trick often used on bass drums to give them a "slap" and more clarity, but it works with guitars too.

The idea is the compressor will let through the attack without attenuation then reduce the gain per the attack setting when the note settles into the sustain mode. Placed before the amp block it increases the distortion during the note attack but decreases the sensitivity of the distortion to playing dynamics. Placed after the amp block it gives a "sharper" attack sound but doesn't change the increased level of sensitivity of the distortion to playing dynamics that was created with the expander.

If you use the expander per the OPs instructions before the amp block and the compressor after the amp block per the above instructions you can get a serious "bite" in the attack but maintain the enhanced dynamic response to the distortion level. You can also control the degree to which this affects the low vs. the high notes by using the side-chain with an EQ on it to affect how much the attack is changed on the low notes vs. the high ones.

Experiment for best results. It's also possible to increase your attack by using both methods but keep the overall dynamics at unity (1:1) by setting the ratio of the compressor to about the same setting as the ratio of the expander. If you expand 2:1 and then compress 2:1 you get an overall 1:1. For a natural response of distortion to playing dynamics place both before the amp block.

Go wild!!!

This is one of the things that I love about the AXE. The signal routing possibilities are endless and only your imagination limits your ability to create sounds you'd never get with any other processor, even almost all dedicated non-guitar processors.
 
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Very helpful post. I don't have a complete grasp of your earlier 3-gate setup - that's a lot of gating work and I'm glad I never had to go there - but it does remind me of my years of trying to mix and match gear and modelers - at one time I had a nice distorted tone on a VOX tube emulating amp, and micing it at low volume wasn't sounding very good, and I was afraid the roommates would complain with it louder, but found I could record the signal direct using the clean model on a POD - but through the speaker emulation of it - that was surprisingly useful but I thought, "This is ridiculous". it was when I realized I had exhausted cheap alternatives to real tube amps, mics, and generally real gear. The Axe FX is so ideal for achieving professional mixes, and doing all these hard to do fx and tricks, and the direct signal sits wonderfully. A guitar teacher was at my house the other day, and was noticing how good my guitar sounded. I asked him, "You know what you're playing through, right?" He said, "Yeah, the speaker. I have a Mackie setup myself". He never realized what the amp was he was playing through the whole time he was there!

Well, thanks a lot for this helpful hint - I'm sure I'll use it when I want to add nuance and expression.
 
To get that Breaking the Chains Dokken thing going change the db to 14, for Rock You Like Hurricane try 16db.

You can feel the notes bloom in the chugga chugga sections.
 
GotMetalBoy said:
Hello Axe-Fx IIers!

I'm sharing a technique I have been using for many years w/ modelers to get more dynamics and pick attack.

Here is what I do: (NOTE: Input Noise Gate info can be found on page 113 and INSTR IN on page 133 in the manual)
1. Make sure your INSTR IN level is set correctly, so it rarely hits the red
2. Make sure for this example Gate/Expander [GTE] is disabled
3. Set the Input Noise Gates THRESH high: -10dB (ex: -20dB to -0dB)
4. Set the RATIO low: 2.0 (ex: 2.0 to 3.0)
5. Set the ATTACK fast: 1ms (ex: 1ms to 10ms)
6. Set the RELEASE medium: 200ms (ex: 100ms to 500ms)
7. Select a medium or high gain Amp model like the Brit JVM or Brit Pre and set the DRIVE to 8.0
8. Now start picking soft and then gradually harder. You should be able go from gritty clean to saturated distortion

What we’re essentially doing is using the Input Noise Gates as an Expander. With the threshold set high, it’s applying the effect to almost your entire instruments signal. The Ratio setting will set the amount dynamics you get, so if it’s set to 2: you’ve doubled your dynamics, 3: tripled, 4: quadrupled... If you find you can’t get enough gain or your sound is decaying too fast, try raising the Release. If you are getting a lot of noise b/c you are using a high gain Amp w/ Drive set high, you can add a Gate/Expander [GTE] after the Amp Block and set the SCSEL(sidechain) to Input 1.

I have been using this technique for many years and is 99% of the reason I purchased the Axe-Fx II b/c it has an input gate and sidechainable gates. In my past rig, I was using an ART PRO GATE which is a programmable 8 channel gate, Boss GT-PRO, Mesa Boogie TriAxis and a spliter. The Axe-Fx II can do everything and more in 2 rack spaces than my old 5 space rack could. It’s great not having to carry around a huge rack, w/ multiple patch cables running everywhere and having to program 4 Midi Devices to all play nicely :)

I actually started using this 2 Noise Gate technique b/c of a friends mistake not following my instructions correctly. He was getting a really nice huge chunky dynamic sound out of his very cheap guitar rig. I was a little annoyed b/c he wasn’t very technical and I had spent countless hours and dollars trying to perfect my sound and noise floor. I had already known how to use side-chained gates and they were one of the secrets to my tight high gain sound. I took a look at his rig and he seemed to have his gate setup like mine (Guitar into Gate Input 1, Output 1 to Amp In, Amp Send to Gate Input 2, Output 2 to Amp Return) but then I noticed he didn’t have the link button enabled and all his knobs didn’t make sense. I pushed the link button and started getting a lot of noise from his amps decay. I then lowered the Release and he lost all his dynamics and gain. I then realized he was using Gate 1 like an expander and then Gate 2 as a normal gate and not side-chained. I put all his settings back to the way they were b/c they worked for him and he would never understand my explanation to make them better. I went home and started changing my rig config and then realized I would have to split my signal and use 3 gates. I bought a 4 channel Gate and Splitter and split my signal and sent Signal 1 to Gate 1 to Amp in and set it up like an expander, Signal 2 to Gate 2 to act as the side-chain input and enabled the link button, Amp Send to Gate 3 to Amp Return ...The rest is history and Thank You Fractal Audio for making my life so much easier!

Sorry if this should be in the Axe-Fx II Preset Exchange section but it's not an actual preset, so I decided to post it here.

Thanks,
Lou
Click to expand...

Ok i tried all of this And I can see how it works well with your picking dynamics. The only problem I had with this was that when i went to do any lead work my signal was just not cutting through anywhere near as much as when I was doing chords.
 
Wow.. This really works. Awesome. Thanks! Though, like geamala mentioned it might not have enough signal to cut when you want to lead. But for me, I really haven't dialed deep into it. I just know when I brought my Axe to my service and was practicing, the patch I made with GotMetalBoy's suggestion (Just an Amp and a Cab block, none the less) was one of the best or if not, best sounding patch I've come across! So, cheers!
 
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