How do you monitor your Axe-Fx III?

jamesblonde

jamesblonde

Member
Hey everyone,

I am new to the forum so forgive me if this has been asked/covered already. I was wondering what everybody uses to monitor the AxeFx III while home recording. I am currently using a pair of JBL speakers and they seem to get the job done but I may be looking to upgrade my setup soon. Do you think Yamaha NS-10s would be a good option? I know they are used primarily for mixing so I figured they would be a good monitoring system while dialing in tones. I'm also curious how everybody monitors their AxeFx III while playing live with a band. I'm sure that is a completely different animal than monitoring for home recording. Any feedback is appreciated.

Check out my first two presets on AxeChange under the username: jamesblonde
 
When I was researching monitors, the Yamaha S10 came up pretty often. I'm sure a quick search on the forum will be fruitful. Live, I still tend to run a poweramp and 4x12, but you'll find plenty of FRFR players and people running direct.
 
world vs venkman said:
When I was researching monitors, the Yamaha S10 came up pretty often. I'm sure a quick search on the forum will be fruitful. Live, I still tend to run a poweramp and 4x12, but you'll find plenty of FRFR players and people running direct.
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Thank you! What monitors do you use when home recording/jamming at home?
 
I have to keep the external volume down so I use several different brands of studio headphones and earphones. Live I'd use my FRFR pointing at me. I want that acoustic coupling.
 
Eliju said:
I use a matrix wedge with their gt1000 amp. Sounds great and very reliable
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What kind of wedge do you use? And I have a pretty inexpensive QSC power amp. Do you think that will get the job done like the matrix or is it worth splurging for a gt1000?
 
jamesblonde said:
What kind of headphones and FRFR do you use?
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Audio-Technica ATH-MA40X - These are general quality studio headphones. I like the sound of them better than the equivalent Sony.
Sennheiser HD-650 - Great headphones but they're higher impedance so you need to have a headphone amplifier. The one in my Scarlett does well.
Shure SE535-Red - These are stunning. Every time I put them in I am impressed with their clarity and fidelity.

HeadRush 112 - it's not the most expensive, but it gets loud and has a flat enough sound that it works for what I want. I'll probably add a 108 as a "wet" just because I like stereo sound. There are other brands that have a bit more accuracy but it's easy to spend a lot of money for just a little improvement and I'm not interested in chasing that particular unicorn.
 
Live, I use a QSC K10.2 - just for some stage volume (I also use IEMs). At home, I bounce between Yamaha HS5's, the aforementioned QSC, and Sennheiser cans (I want to upgrade those to open-backed model). I should have a sub with the HS5's, but I've gotten accustomed to the sound / feel of my patches without the extra low end.

I used to run a GT-1000 into Mesa Thiele's with EVM's, but that required placing the cab block at the end of the signal chain (just before output) and splitting the un-cabbed signal off to Output 2. Output 1 would go to FOH.
 
If you’re mixing a lot then NS10’s can be valuable, but they wouldn’t be a good pick if you’re looking for the most enjoyable sound while jamming at home. The NS10’s ubiquity is due to the reputation that they don’t do your sound any favors, and if you can make a mix sound good on those, then your mix will sound good on just about any system.

if you want the warm and fuzzies while tweaking tones, they aren’t the right route IMO
 
I’m using a pair of Genelec 8030B nearfield monitors. So far they’re working out great... I use them for video editing as well as recording and mixing.
 
jamesblonde said:
What kind of wedge do you use? And I have a pretty inexpensive QSC power amp. Do you think that will get the job done like the matrix or is it worth splurging for a gt1000?
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The Matrix CFR. I think that's the only wedge they make. My band uses QSC K12s for FOH and they sound pretty good, so I'd guess that any good wedge you drive with it will sound good.
 
I’m using a pair of QSC K10.2 while recording at home. Out 1 to the QSCs and Out 2 to audio interface. Tried headphones but wasn’t into it. Preferred having some volume in the room while recording.
 
A pair of Yamaha HS-5’s, which is great for the small studio I have. I also have a sub hooked up to them because the HS-5’s don’t really put out a lot of bass, at all.

Surprisingly, the presets I made using them translated GREAT to running it into a power amp and into a 2x12 w/WGS Retro 30’s. I figured it’d be lacking or too much of something in one way or the other but when I was curious how it sounded, I just plugged it all in and had fun cranking up to ear-bleed levels.

I just got a pair of Beyerdyanmic DT 990’s. Haven’t used them to dial in anything or mix yet until I get used to them first. I wanted something that I’d enjoy listening with and they’re great for that, as well as showing my how bad some of my edits are in Logic. :D
 
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