hi guys i just bpught a 2nd hand ultra yesterday. any tips?

Pegasus

New Member
I thought I'd bite the bullet and go for it.
does anybody have any short cuts to the alternative of reading the manual etc.
I had a matrix power amp with it as well so got the full kit ready to burn
 
No.

Really, read the manual. Sure you can mess about and work a fair bit out yourself, but really, read the manual. Or at least have it close by for reference. There are a load of options in this thing, not just in terms of the amp/FX, but the internal routing, the physical I/O, the global stuff, etc. There are also a lot of parameters that you'll probably want to be looking up what they actually do, especially in the adv. parameters of various blocks.

On top of that though, understanding what stuff does can give you ideas on how to better use the thing, come up with things you otherwise might not have thought of trying, etc.

Also... as well as the manual, the Axe-FX Wiki is a great resource.
 
yeah, im a bedroom twanger, needed some wonger so had to sell my ultra.

im now trying to squeeze a tone from a pod hd300 :((

tips..hmmm

1. forget all the default presets, they show what the unit can do but suck.
2. tweak!!..roughly at first, then fine tune. theres soooo many parameters...tiz very daunting.
3. if you ever get in need of money....sell the tv!...sell the furniture! ..sell your kids!! don't part with the ultra and end up with a poxy pod!
 
1. forget all the default presets, they show what the unit can do but suck.
Yeah, I never really heard too many tones I really liked in any of the presets, but some of them can give you some great ideas on what can be done with the unit in terms of FX, routing, internal controllers, etc..

The other thing I guess is, start simple and build it up from there. If you were handed a big 2 x 20U rack rig to play with, you wouldn't just have everything running in the signal chain at once and start tweaking from there. You'd start with the amp stuff and dial in the core sounds first, and then start switching in and playing with the FX and whatnot. The Axe is no different really. There are a lot more options available than your average rig, but that also means it can pretty easy to get lost if you just go nuts with it. Just take it a step at a time and build sounds up like you would with any other rig.
 
I just got a standard last night in the mail. I started by assembling a bunch of IR's and presets from throughout the forum.

I think it's key to understand that you're not going to find your 'grail tone' by downloading other people's presets and IRs (due to a variety of reasons)- but what it does do is allows you to see how experienced AXE owners set up their rigs and you can learn their techniques by looking at their presets. Also it gets you started on getting used to using IR's and seeing how they can INCREDIBLY affect your tone.

My collection is ongoing, but if you'd like to download them, I could throw them onto dropbox at lunch today.
 
Good suggestions. I think the Wiki is an easier read than the manual for the modern, internet-induced-ADD person like myself. Ditto wrt to checking out the signal chains and setting for some of the better presets you find. One upside to the stable FW version is that presets are not a moving target for the Gen 1 units.

I'd recommend exploring existing capabilities before diving into the morass of IRs though. There are just so many out there that it becomes a time sink and given that there are MANY built in IRs of high quality, I'd say building knowledge of the base tool set is more important than confusing yourself with that world of possibility.

For initial learning, I'd say focus on learning from simple existing presets that you like the sound of and making your own with straightforward amp->cab signal chains and sparse FX/EQ. Then when you get some traction start using the IRs and advanced setting to take things to a new level.
 
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