To my ears its the most "alive" lead sound I've had. Its funny, because right when I bought the AXE II I was contemplating selling it off and purchasing a Bogner 20th Shiva. I even spoke to Scott Peterson about it at the time. This model is just so rich and responsive to dynamics. The clean is gorgeous too. RIght now that model, the BE, and the Mesa Lead 2 are the three channels i feel i can control to my satisfaction. Thanks for reading.