Larry Mitchell
Power User
Hello Fellow Axe users.
I am not sure if this belongs in the GD or in the lounge. please feel free to move it need be. I have gotten a few emails from people in the last week about my Axe Fx use. Some from video confusion and some from this last clinic tour I just cam back from. I just wrote a long response to a woman in MN trying to clear how I am using my gear. I thought that i would post that reply here in the off chance that some else might want to know.
Please remember that I make my living from playing with and producing other artists with various styles of music. Most of the time I am not playing fast notes with high gain swirling around. That's just my stuff.
From my past with Tracy Chapman ('92) where maybe I played 6 solos a night (none high gain) to Rock'n very loud with Billy Squier ('91) where I played maybe 7 solos to the current line up of Native American artists with a lot of it is acoustic or big textures with delays a pitch type things. My gear needs cover a wide range also how I travel with these artist covers a wide range.
Below is my reply to one of the emails. WARNING: it's long winded.
I have only had the Axe FX Ultra since last May or June I think. The first video you saw of my rig on the Mirabal tour, I did not own the Ultra yet. I was using two small pedalboards that fit together to make one large one. Those where going into the two small Fender Pro Junior amps.
Since I've had the Axe Fx, I take that with me for the Mirabal shows, I don't usually use any amps on stage. I just go with the floor Monitors. So I just use the Axe FX direct with the Amp sims. I can hear my guitar through the floor monitors in front of me.
This is a Mirabal show with a Drummer no bass player. I am direct with no stage amps just stage monitors.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11pwwQ_p4vI
That has changed a little bit with Robert lately as we have started using a drummer and a bass player at some of the bigger shows. So that cuts down the amount of available stage monitor mixes, so i can't always have two (left and right) stereo monitor mixes. So I use some kind of amps for monitors. This is the same with the Joy harjo band. When it is the full band. I have two amps listed in the backline gear needs (two Fender Deluxes or Devilles) I then plug out put two of the Axe Fx into the effects return of those amps and out put 1 goes direct to PA. That way I have control over my on stage volume when I need. With Joy though, when it is just the duo I don't use amps on stage. It just Axe Fx direct and I hear myself through the monitors.
Here is a video of me going through the rig with for a Joy harjo Show where we had a full band.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUowkk95oTM
If you see any of the videos from Scandinavia that I did this year with Ellis Hooks. I am did the same thing, I had them rent two small tube amps for onstage but the sound anyone else hears is the Axe Fx Direct. (unless you are are right in front of my side of the stage and with in maybe 30 feet.
Here is a clip from Sweden with Ellis and the audio is from the Camera mic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKnes3LA ... re=related
Now with the Line 6 M9 I have been using that mostly for situations where I don't need the Axe Fx. When I play as a sideman with either Shelley Morningsong or Joy harjo, depending on if it is a duo or an all acoustic show I don't don't any electric guitar solos. So I don't need any distortion or overdrive. Just the effects. In that case carrying the AXe FX can overkill. The M9 works great for just effects and small gigs like that. I did a show with Shelley not long agjust co in Virginia and the PA they had wasn't good enough for her vocals alone. Forget about monitoring my guitar in stereo. All of the artist that I play live with are at different places in thier careers so some are on big stages with great PA and monitor systems and some are in clubs, some are on small stage and in some funky situations with funky PA gear and 1 monitor mix! I try to find out as much as I can before leaving for the gig so I am prepared, but sometimes you never know.
Some video from last show with Shelley in Alaska should be up soon on my youtube page.
I just did a 7 city in 8 days clinic tour for Ibanez. where i did maybe 5 of my songs that needed high gain. But because my back was bothering me before I left I decided to to just take the M9 and an Ibanez tube screamer for that trip. I just used what ever amps they had at the music stores or a few times I went direct --Tube Screamer into M9 into two Tech 21 character pedals (Liverpool and British). It was a lot easier on my back and since this was mostly talking and playing a little bit for these clinics, I decide very last minute not to take the Ultra. I really missed having the Axe Fx for those clinics but my back needed to rest a bit. About 3 minutes into the first song of the first clinic. I started thinking I should have brought the Ultra! But by the 4th day I was thinking I should mail what I had with me home and just use what ever they had at the next store so I wouldn't have carry the 5 pound M9! The M9 is about the size of the Liquid foot Junior so it fit right in my carry-on bag with my clothes. For basic effects it's great. For gain and most of my textures I needed my Ultra. Again, I did more talking at these clinics than playing. so it all worked out well.
The axe Fx and Liquid foot Jr are not that heavy but for me carrying anything through airports EVERY DAY, sometimes going long distances from terminal to terminal and even just checking into hotel rooms every day starts to really get to me. My bad back is from the early 90's when I carried a huge rack around with lots of effects and preamps all the stuff that the Axe Fx does for me now!!
I don't have any videos from the clinic tour yet but I expect some to come in the mail any day now. There will be some clips on my youtube page soon also.
I'm back home now resting and in the studio producing other artists. I have updated my firmware for the Ultra and 9.0 is rock'n hard. I'm loving it. The next time I do a long clinic run with a lot of flights involved, I will have to figure out a way that I can do it with the Ultra. Or if I am just doing a few songs again I may just take a delay and a distortion. I have a crazy amount pedals and things that's fun to use. I am happy that these days there are so many choices though. Both the Axe Fx and the M9 are great and the cover a lot of sounds for me. in either case I am not carting around anywhere near the amount of pedals or rack gear that I used to carry a little over a year ago. That's amazing. They serve two different job requirements for me.
It would be great if Cliff came out with a small pedal version (lite or normal of the Axe FX). That would be the ^&^())_@& for me!
I hope that clears up any confusion you might have about what I am using in the videos and how use some of my gear live.
I may post some of this on the Axe Fx forum as you are the 3rd person to ask me about this since I have been home.
Thank you for asking the good questions!
Have a wonderful holiday season.
Larry
I am not sure if this belongs in the GD or in the lounge. please feel free to move it need be. I have gotten a few emails from people in the last week about my Axe Fx use. Some from video confusion and some from this last clinic tour I just cam back from. I just wrote a long response to a woman in MN trying to clear how I am using my gear. I thought that i would post that reply here in the off chance that some else might want to know.
Please remember that I make my living from playing with and producing other artists with various styles of music. Most of the time I am not playing fast notes with high gain swirling around. That's just my stuff.
From my past with Tracy Chapman ('92) where maybe I played 6 solos a night (none high gain) to Rock'n very loud with Billy Squier ('91) where I played maybe 7 solos to the current line up of Native American artists with a lot of it is acoustic or big textures with delays a pitch type things. My gear needs cover a wide range also how I travel with these artist covers a wide range.
Below is my reply to one of the emails. WARNING: it's long winded.
I have only had the Axe FX Ultra since last May or June I think. The first video you saw of my rig on the Mirabal tour, I did not own the Ultra yet. I was using two small pedalboards that fit together to make one large one. Those where going into the two small Fender Pro Junior amps.
Since I've had the Axe Fx, I take that with me for the Mirabal shows, I don't usually use any amps on stage. I just go with the floor Monitors. So I just use the Axe FX direct with the Amp sims. I can hear my guitar through the floor monitors in front of me.
This is a Mirabal show with a Drummer no bass player. I am direct with no stage amps just stage monitors.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11pwwQ_p4vI
That has changed a little bit with Robert lately as we have started using a drummer and a bass player at some of the bigger shows. So that cuts down the amount of available stage monitor mixes, so i can't always have two (left and right) stereo monitor mixes. So I use some kind of amps for monitors. This is the same with the Joy harjo band. When it is the full band. I have two amps listed in the backline gear needs (two Fender Deluxes or Devilles) I then plug out put two of the Axe Fx into the effects return of those amps and out put 1 goes direct to PA. That way I have control over my on stage volume when I need. With Joy though, when it is just the duo I don't use amps on stage. It just Axe Fx direct and I hear myself through the monitors.
Here is a video of me going through the rig with for a Joy harjo Show where we had a full band.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUowkk95oTM
If you see any of the videos from Scandinavia that I did this year with Ellis Hooks. I am did the same thing, I had them rent two small tube amps for onstage but the sound anyone else hears is the Axe Fx Direct. (unless you are are right in front of my side of the stage and with in maybe 30 feet.
Here is a clip from Sweden with Ellis and the audio is from the Camera mic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKnes3LA ... re=related
Now with the Line 6 M9 I have been using that mostly for situations where I don't need the Axe Fx. When I play as a sideman with either Shelley Morningsong or Joy harjo, depending on if it is a duo or an all acoustic show I don't don't any electric guitar solos. So I don't need any distortion or overdrive. Just the effects. In that case carrying the AXe FX can overkill. The M9 works great for just effects and small gigs like that. I did a show with Shelley not long agjust co in Virginia and the PA they had wasn't good enough for her vocals alone. Forget about monitoring my guitar in stereo. All of the artist that I play live with are at different places in thier careers so some are on big stages with great PA and monitor systems and some are in clubs, some are on small stage and in some funky situations with funky PA gear and 1 monitor mix! I try to find out as much as I can before leaving for the gig so I am prepared, but sometimes you never know.
Some video from last show with Shelley in Alaska should be up soon on my youtube page.
I just did a 7 city in 8 days clinic tour for Ibanez. where i did maybe 5 of my songs that needed high gain. But because my back was bothering me before I left I decided to to just take the M9 and an Ibanez tube screamer for that trip. I just used what ever amps they had at the music stores or a few times I went direct --Tube Screamer into M9 into two Tech 21 character pedals (Liverpool and British). It was a lot easier on my back and since this was mostly talking and playing a little bit for these clinics, I decide very last minute not to take the Ultra. I really missed having the Axe Fx for those clinics but my back needed to rest a bit. About 3 minutes into the first song of the first clinic. I started thinking I should have brought the Ultra! But by the 4th day I was thinking I should mail what I had with me home and just use what ever they had at the next store so I wouldn't have carry the 5 pound M9! The M9 is about the size of the Liquid foot Junior so it fit right in my carry-on bag with my clothes. For basic effects it's great. For gain and most of my textures I needed my Ultra. Again, I did more talking at these clinics than playing. so it all worked out well.
The axe Fx and Liquid foot Jr are not that heavy but for me carrying anything through airports EVERY DAY, sometimes going long distances from terminal to terminal and even just checking into hotel rooms every day starts to really get to me. My bad back is from the early 90's when I carried a huge rack around with lots of effects and preamps all the stuff that the Axe Fx does for me now!!
I don't have any videos from the clinic tour yet but I expect some to come in the mail any day now. There will be some clips on my youtube page soon also.
I'm back home now resting and in the studio producing other artists. I have updated my firmware for the Ultra and 9.0 is rock'n hard. I'm loving it. The next time I do a long clinic run with a lot of flights involved, I will have to figure out a way that I can do it with the Ultra. Or if I am just doing a few songs again I may just take a delay and a distortion. I have a crazy amount pedals and things that's fun to use. I am happy that these days there are so many choices though. Both the Axe Fx and the M9 are great and the cover a lot of sounds for me. in either case I am not carting around anywhere near the amount of pedals or rack gear that I used to carry a little over a year ago. That's amazing. They serve two different job requirements for me.
It would be great if Cliff came out with a small pedal version (lite or normal of the Axe FX). That would be the ^&^())_@& for me!
I hope that clears up any confusion you might have about what I am using in the videos and how use some of my gear live.
I may post some of this on the Axe Fx forum as you are the 3rd person to ask me about this since I have been home.
Thank you for asking the good questions!
Have a wonderful holiday season.
Larry