I don't "get" the VU meters...

^this, and 2 other things.
1. I see the new VU meters as a way to develop my starting point based around the zero db line.

2. The best thing I did for myself was bought the MFC extension, and setup the top 2 switches for CC34 and 35. Those are +1 & -1 db adjustments to the output mixer. Then, when I'm playing with my band, I can make instant adjustments to my volume with my feet to get me where I need to be, WHILE I'm actually playing. This feature auto saves the second you do it, so it's a one and done fix, and it's scene by scene. By the end of practice, all of my presets and scenes are where I want them.

This is the way of choice for me. Some songs I want my guitar to sit back in the mix. Some I want them up front and in your face. This helps me set the prefect solo levels, rhythm levels, clean levels, special effect levels... you name it... all at live gig volume.
 
To be honest I was having troubles getting my balances to gel with my new XL. Especially using my unit as an audio interface as well as the guitar pre-amp but firmware 17 took care of this with the USB buffer and Preset VU meters. This is one of the most intuitive firmware updates I remember since 4.0.

What is outrageously exciting is that this is the first generation of some of these ideas. FAS has proven over and over, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that their products just gets better and better. I am hard pressed to think of another company out there that is so responsive, progressive and pro-active. Can not tell you how appreciated this rare company is and how happy I am to be a customer.
 
Dpoirier said:
(and +3dB is twice as loud, remember!).

What am I doing wrong? Is anyone able to make use of this?



Help?
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Im sure this has been mentioned (just read the first post for now) - but +3db isnt twice a loud. Its twice the power. 10db is twice as loud (and also 10 x the power as db is a logarithmic scale not linear).
 
audemia said:
6dB is twice as loud, because VU has a reference to volts (right?) +3dB is twice as loud if you are talking about wattage only
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No - db is not necessarily referenced to volume, its just a scale if were taking POWER (ir watts) then 3db is double power, 10db becomes twice as loud. If were talking volts, then 3db is twice the signal strength and 10db 10x the signal strength - it has no bearing to volume in this case as power=volume, and power = volts x amps. GENERALLY however, in music applications where VU meters are used, 10db is still twice as loud, because the amps in the power equation doesnt change.

Im sure someone will put me right on the last bit if Im off - its been a long time since I covered the theory.
 
Wow, so much confusion. Plenty of good info on this on the 'net if you stick to reliable sources, like WIKI. Anyway ...

+10dB is twice as loud for perceived volume level (that means as perceived, on average, by a large pool of test listeners)
+6dB is double the signal level (that means double the RMS voltage level)
+3dB is twice the power (double the wattage through the same sound system)

Perceived "double volume" is interesting, because different people will guess "double volume" at different dB changes even in the same environment. It's a much harder thing to guess than something we're more familiar with, like "double the length".
 
The term 'dB' is useless without a reference and means nothing. A quick search on this forum will dispel confusion regarding signal levels, power, and acoustic levels.
 
lqdsnddist said:
Yeah, Cliff is anything but "helpful"...or so says the guy who's posted 2 times on this forum, compared to the guy who spends seemingly every waking moment either on this forum responding to post, or slaving away making the best guitar processor ever better with firmware updates, and always for free too might add.

Yep... Cliff sure doesn't know how to treat his customers.... Maybe he should switch business model to that of Line6 et al, where you email support and get nothing back for weeks.

Geez.... CEO of the company and brains behind the product personally responds to users on this forum and some people insult the guy..... wow
Click to expand...


Cliff and FAS are great but it never ceases to amaze me the amount of Line 6 bashing here. I would have likely purchased an Axe a year or more before I did but the whole snobby fan boi stuff really turns people off.

Line 6 likely has 100s of thousands more users. Likely more than 10 times the amount of employees. Report to huge multi national corp. Yet it is surprising their CEO isn't on their forums?



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MrGuitarabuse said:
This must be the best feature ever... (well, almost...) Tried it out on a number of my new presets today and in literally no time at all, I get them almost spot on. This at bedroom level. I expect some more fine-tuning with band and stage level, but still.. flipping awesome!
Click to expand...

Scenes are best feature ever.


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Original poster here again, with an update.

Last night, I used the VU meters differently, just relying on the bar graph and shooting for 0dB, like folks here have recommended. MUCH easier than the jittery numbers. And shooting for 0 (with boosts a little higher, at +2 or 3), knowing that there's a 20dB buffer in there, is also MUCH easier than what I was doing before I asked for advice in the thread. It was a pleasure to use it this way. Thanks Cliff and the Fractal team!

I will be "testing" the outcome at rehearsal on Thursday, but so far, the use model is great. Looking forward to see how close the results are (I'm not expecting a push-button levelling job, but if this gets me close, it'll be a HUGE help).

Thanks to all who clarified the distinction between the Utilities > VU (20dB buffer at 0dB) and the cab block's VU (onset of clipping at 0dB).
Also thanks to all those who corrected the assumptions on doubling the perceived volume / signal level / power (I gather that these are +10dB, +6dB and +3dB, respectively).
 
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