I Reset My Axe FX III and It Sounds Better
I just passed the first year with my Axe FX III. A lot other gear has left my collection in that time but I feel like the Axe III is one of the best tools for getting tones.
I’ve been frustrated with the Mesa Mark IIc+ high-gain tone. I’ve gotten better at it but it didn’t compare to a real Mark amp to me. Real amps are impractical and I sold my last one to focus on learning how to get the Axe FX III and other digital gear to meet my tonal goals.
I was working on a preset today using the USA Mark IIc model and just out of curiosity, I chose to unlink my preset blocks from the global blocks. I admit to not totally understanding them but I noticed that after I did that, the tone from the model was different and better.
I decided to reset my Axe FX III to default. I have done that before but perhaps not since firmware 22. The result, and point of this post, is that after that reset, the IIc+ model sounded way better with more saturation and gain than it ever has. I found that to be true on other models as well.
I am far from an expert on the technical nuances of the Axe FX III. Mr. Carter’s master class, playing with it, getting frustrated with it all help. I just wanted to make this post in case it helps anybody else.
A post in the Wiki from 2015 says “Doing a system reset and having that "fix" things does not surprise me at all. There are a variety of parameters that affect the overall sound that could be set incorrectly either by accident or by a bug in previous firmware. A system reset gives you a clean slate and ensures that the unit sounds as intended. The only drawback is that any changes you've made to I/O and MIDI control assignments will be lost.” That is quoted elsewhere in the wiki as well.
I hope this helps somebody,
I just passed the first year with my Axe FX III. A lot other gear has left my collection in that time but I feel like the Axe III is one of the best tools for getting tones.
I’ve been frustrated with the Mesa Mark IIc+ high-gain tone. I’ve gotten better at it but it didn’t compare to a real Mark amp to me. Real amps are impractical and I sold my last one to focus on learning how to get the Axe FX III and other digital gear to meet my tonal goals.
I was working on a preset today using the USA Mark IIc model and just out of curiosity, I chose to unlink my preset blocks from the global blocks. I admit to not totally understanding them but I noticed that after I did that, the tone from the model was different and better.
I decided to reset my Axe FX III to default. I have done that before but perhaps not since firmware 22. The result, and point of this post, is that after that reset, the IIc+ model sounded way better with more saturation and gain than it ever has. I found that to be true on other models as well.
I am far from an expert on the technical nuances of the Axe FX III. Mr. Carter’s master class, playing with it, getting frustrated with it all help. I just wanted to make this post in case it helps anybody else.
A post in the Wiki from 2015 says “Doing a system reset and having that "fix" things does not surprise me at all. There are a variety of parameters that affect the overall sound that could be set incorrectly either by accident or by a bug in previous firmware. A system reset gives you a clean slate and ensures that the unit sounds as intended. The only drawback is that any changes you've made to I/O and MIDI control assignments will be lost.” That is quoted elsewhere in the wiki as well.
I hope this helps somebody,