I played a 5150-III 2x12 Combo this weekend.....I'm surprised how I felt in regards to Axe-FX II

R

romanianreaper

Power User
I have not gone into a guitar store in years where I had the chance to fire up a tube amp and really crank it. This weekend I went to a store with a huge side room for trying out gear, totally separated from the main sales floor, etc. Big room with wood panels covering every wall, gear all around, and just perfect place to crank an amp. Nobody else was in the room with me (barely anyone in the store).

I plugged into an EVH 5150-III 2x12 and was great turning it up and just hitting chords. Obviously that is why we all play guitar. :) It sounded really good and was fun jamming on some VH tunes with reverb on, then off, etc. I didn't even have any effects connected.

The crazy thing is that as great as the amp sounded, I found myself saying "well this sounds really good but what it is going to add to my current setup of an Axe-FX II and Friedman ASM-12? It was not enough of a difference where I felt like I needed to even think about buying it...and it scared me. :)

In a nutshell, I think it showed me that the Fractal tones and a great FRFR are getting scary close to a tube amp, especially with an awesome FRFR solution. I know folks say this all the time but I had to hear it for myself. Now, I realize that a Friedman BE-100 into two 4x12s obviously is going to sound better than an EVH combo, but you get my point. And I will say, I will always love the sound of a good tube amp. Just glad that I don't feel the need to keep jumping into different things. I'm happy with my tones!!
 
Really interesting - I had a very similar experience just a few weeks ago.

My son and I took a day trip to a guitar store a couple of hours away, with the intent to try out a Strandberg guitar (or two). The folks at the shop treated us really nicely and after an hour or so on a little Engl combo amp, we asked if we could go into the booth/room, where we were promptly plugged into a Friedman head and a 4x12.

Normally, we play in the house, into a good hi-fi power amp and two very nice, neutral, speakers (at a good, healthy volume) and felt more than happy with the tones and sound we're getting, but it was such a rush to be on the end of an amp that sounded so good and shifted that much air.

As we drove home, we both remarked at what a wonderful sound the amp had and how nice it felt to play a "real" rig, but neither of us had any feelings of missing out by using an AxeFx. In fact, we felt quite smug knowing we could get that tone (and many, many more), at a more neighbour friendly volume level, without the domestic impracticalities of having a monolithic half stack in the house!

Needless to say, when we got back, we tried the AxeFx's Friedman model and built a preset that sounded and felt just as good (dare I say, if not better?). Gotta love this little black box of magic!
 
I feel the same way a lot. I'm out of town visiting family and I found myself going to the local guitar center just to get some strings (I end up becoming the de facto guitar tech for my friends back in my hometown). They had a used Friedman Brown eye in stock and I figured "eh why not" and gave her a whirl.

What a great sounding amp. But I found that the Axefx gets so close I couldn't even justify the weight, cost or inconvenience when I somehow imagined myself buying the amp. Factor in the fact that I can switch to other amps that sound just as close. All in a 4 rack space.
 
The experience is getting scary close to having $200,000 of gear (well, I realize this figure is very low, but I don't have time to use every amp/cab IR/FX in the box - but around $200,000 worth - on a good day :) ).
 
aPeRSon said:
Really interesting - I had a very similar experience just a few weeks ago.

My son and I took a day trip to a guitar store a couple of hours away, with the intent to try out a Strandberg guitar (or two). The folks at the shop treated us really nicely and after an hour or so on a little Engl combo amp, we asked if we could go into the booth/room, where we were promptly plugged into a Friedman head and a 4x12.

Normally, we play in the house, into a good hi-fi power amp and two very nice, neutral, speakers (at a good, healthy volume) and felt more than happy with the tones and sound we're getting, but it was such a rush to be on the end of an amp that sounded so good and shifted that much air.

As we drove home, we both remarked at what a wonderful sound the amp had and how nice it felt to play a "real" rig, but neither of us had any feelings of missing out by using an AxeFx. In fact, we felt quite smug knowing we could get that tone (and many, many more), at a more neighbour friendly volume level, without the domestic impracticalities of having a monolithic half stack in the house!

Needless to say, when we got back, we tried the AxeFx's Friedman model and built a preset that sounded and felt just as good (dare I say, if not better?). Gotta love this little black box of magic!
Click to expand...


How were the strandberg guitars ? are they dead acoustically ? curious about those guitars...
 
I still have my Mesa Boogie Triaxis and 290 power amp and Marshall 1960AV cab and every once in a while get the urge to play it. Within 5min I'm plugged back into my Axe-Fx II. I really need to sell my old rig but it has a lot of sentimental value because it was the amp I always wanted until the Axe-Fx II came along.
 
The only real benefit to a real amp, is it is pretty much immutable, it is what it is IMHO. Besides weather and power issues, it's going to sound the same and no tweak fest like the axe. Last night had an issue with the output 2, could make due with 1 and a splitter, but problems can happen with anything.
 
Tex Axe said:
How were the strandberg guitars ? are they dead acoustically ? curious about those guitars...
Click to expand...
I know you didn't ask me but I purchased this from the Strandberg NAMM booth. Definitely not dead acoustically. The trapezoidal neck is surprisingly comfy. The fanned frets work as advertised: low strings have that piano-like property while bends are nice and easy on the higher strings. Here's the first song I recorded with my Boden: All That Darkens

 
Tex Axe said:
How were the strandberg guitars ? are they dead acoustically ? curious about those guitars...
Click to expand...

They turned out to be very different to how I expected them to be. My son had been buzzed up to try one for some time and I was really just curious to see how they felt, played and sounded. My son had the first go and as I watched him, I thought "that neck profile and the fanned frets are going to feel really weird", but the guitar itself did ring nicely acoustically.

When he passed it to me, he could see my thoughts all over my face and said "Dad, just play it..." - and to my amazement, it felt very natural within 30 seconds! The range of tones were really impressive (I fitted the same SD JB/Jazz pickups in my PRS Cu22 a few years back and I can't remember them sounding that good).

They seem to be pidgeonholed as prog/metal instruments, but are very much capable of so much more - if you're intrigued by them, it's definitely worth seeking one out to try - I think you'll be just as pleasantly surprised as we were!

Just to finish the story, my son is now putting some money aside, so that once his exams are past, he'll order one and not be distracted at the busiest part of the University year. I'm so proud - I definitely didn't have that sense (or willpower) when I was his age!
 
I'm a 5153 100 watt halfstack guy. I've got 3 of them. 2 ivory 100 watt halfstacks that I run in stereo and a Stealth halfstack. They are collecting dust right now. My Axe-Fx and AX8 are getting all the love. They sound so amazing. Possibly even better than the real amps.
 
I had a similar experience awhile back. Our local GC has a sealed Platinum Room, so you can go in there and jam as loud as you want on some high end gear. I played Friedmans and a Diezel VH4 and a few other staples, like a Dual Rec and Rectoverb combo. Only thing in there that blew me away compared to the Axe was a VHT Pittbull. Almost bought it, but I have zero use for it, even though the tones were awesome for metal.

Nothing in that room made me want to buy any more tube amps lol. Recording/practicing is too easy with the Axe, and nothing I've played since getting it makes me want to mic anything up.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom