It is still special playing through a 4x12

I love the Axe but still think that there are far to many Amps/Caps not sounding very good. It sounds if (many of them) only the Eq has been set differently. Hard to hear the signature difference between them. Especially the caps are really hard to find the "one" or "ones". 95% is only variyng in the eq expression. When this is said it could be me not capable of setting thing's right and that could be the problem with Axe in general. I tweak and tweak and can't hear s... after half hour and the next day it sounds different to me again starting to adjust again. Far to many factors going into the sound when you also have guitar, pickups, caps, amps to select in Axe lib. So I thought that and really good pre amp/amp would be easyier to get a good setting and easy to adjust on the fly. This is damn hard one the Axe if you don't know the effect of almost most parameters. But for peoble who likes to adjust forever, buying new caps, downloading new firmware in the seek of better sounding - that's also fun but not very produvtive I think.

So I went the Petrucci way having the basic sound (if one is not addicted to have 20 different basic sounding) coming from the Mesa setup (Triaxis, Mesa 2:90) and setting up a parrallel FX system having only the FX part from the Axe being digitized but leaving all the true signal from pre amp/master staying analouge. I feel the attack is much more aggressive and reacts faster. Takes up time to go through AD/DA converters and all the other digital stuff there is going on inside the Axe.

More in the clean section, I cannot get the rich sound (twang) out of my Fender Master built Strat (Jason Smith) as I can from a small Pandora rehearsel box. This is when using the Axe through the CLR's (FRFR) and Atomic 2x50 with Atomic passive reactors. All in all 4 caps driven from 3 amps. This beatiful sound never comes out of this extreme nice guitar and just wondering how much dammage there is done in this FRFR setup. I could have a shity guitar and in that combination the Axe could make it sound a hole lot better but not with very high end guitars. Kind of digitizing hell but agree - this is the best until now in this price level and still I use ALL the other effects but not the emulator anymore. This is done far better with traditional amps most of the time.

i disagree with just about everything here, lol...
 
There isn't much that will sound and feel like a 4x12 cranked cab that isn't moving air like that. But if you don't need to feel the ground shaking, you can certainly get the sound alone. When I went to FRFR someone wisely told me "think of it like your recorded sound." That was an epiphany of sorts. No, it doesn't feel like the mass decibel output, but it does sound like it. Much preferable to a loud amp turned down. So it is the real sound of an amp driven hard without the ear shattering volume. Like a recorded track. Once I started thinking that way FRFR and I have gotten on quite well ever since. I don't miss the 4x12 anymore, and find I am quite fond of all the musical and interactive positives of being able to hear myself well while clearly hearing what my band mates are doing at an enjoyable overall stage volume.
 
I reject the assertion that there is any significant difference using the Axe II. Running the Axe in to a Matrix power amp and into a traditional cab is indistinguishable from running a tube amp into that same cab.

^ This!
 
I need to try out a high end FRFR setup some time.... On 2 occasions I tried FRFR, and it sounded and felt very foreign to me. Even at the LA Amp Show 2 years ago, I didn't like what I was hearing. But I haven't heard the CLR, or some of the other real high end FRFR formats.... Right now, through a tube amp and regular guitar cab, I have that familiar sound and feel, but it's a big compromise, because I have to turn power amp and cab modeling off.

The clips of the FRFR setup at this years amp show sounded really good, but I think I heard someone say they were 2,000.... A bit rich for my blood... For now anyway...
 
Yes it is. I have a Pair of Port City OS 2x12 Cabs. For fun, I brought them down to my friend's studio, stacked them both up and powered both with a matrix Gt800fx power amp (Stereo, A side for one cab, B for the other) and cranked them up. Definitely moved some air.

Unfortunately, too loud for most stages unless I get booked at an Arena sometime soon. Loads of fun though
 
There isn't much that will sound and feel like a 4x12 cranked cab that isn't moving air like that. But if you don't need to feel the ground shaking, you can certainly get the sound alone. When I went to FRFR someone wisely told me "think of it like your recorded sound." That was an epiphany of sorts. No, it doesn't feel like the mass decibel output, but it does sound like it. Much preferable to a loud amp turned down. So it is the real sound of an amp driven hard without the ear shattering volume. Like a recorded track. Once I started thinking that way FRFR and I have gotten on quite well ever since. I don't miss the 4x12 anymore, and find I am quite fond of all the musical and interactive positives of being able to hear myself well while clearly hearing what my band mates are doing at an enjoyable overall stage volume.

This is very well put and the same way I have learned to approach FRFR. When I want to wail, I hook up my Mesa 4x12, other times I just turn on my K12. I like having options and that I can run them at the same time. Plus, like you said, you can run an FRFR at low volumes and sound like a recorded cranked amp.
 
I still fire up my Line 6 Bogner HD100 > JCM 900 Lead 1960 every now and then. Same with my Line 6 Vetta II 2x12 + 2x12 ext cab from time to time.

I can get the same tones (or better) 'in the box' using my AxeFX/headphones so not to disturb my wife and neighbors. I don't miss the amp/cab thing, but it's still fun..."for old times sake".

Having a selection of toys to play with is always fun. It's a quality problem to have.

#FirstWorldProblems
 
having 4x12's at my house just doesn't work, rooms are to small and the amps they are generally plugged into are just way to much ontop of it.
They spend their time at the studio/band house, where they get backlined for misc people a lot.
Though there are times where i am working on something that I just really want that kinda of atmosphereic overkill to compare while working on a tone. So it gets used as reference.
 
I run 2 x 2x12 (friedman) for stereo (or can sum to mono 2x2x12) using a Matrix GT1000
Likewise, w/ headphones I run the AXE Cabs for keeping quiet - always happy

Love the options :)
 
My current rig I've been working a while on for "my" original live sound is Fricking Amazing... I combine a real tube amp with two models in FRFR.

Consisting of a new 2014 DSL100H and two stock 1960B cabs, in mono while, running the DSL's loop through in/out 2 on the axe, then using 2 amp models on out 1 L/R to two Atomic CLR active wedges.

Yes one could run W/D/W but I am enjoying tri-mono more and with all the Axe's ability's the options are endless.

If any of you guys have a tube head, you should really give this type of setup a try. I love it.
 
Just wanted to follow up my post from last week. Normally I bring one of my two DXR10's to rehearsals and playing live, but after trying out the 4x12 last week I decided to bring and setup my two DXR10's just to see if it would be different. I changed a couple of presets with stereo cabs panned hard left and right (Caroll Ann OD-2 into OH 212 MAR-66 Green mix and Modern mix as an example), changed my default delay to a stereo (Memory Man) delay and wow, this was also a big step up from my standard setup. It's just sounds a lot bigger running two speakers compared to my usual one. It's almost annoying.

Since it was a week between the different listening experiences I couldn't really say for sure if the 4x12 was more satisfying but I think no. All in all prefer to run the two DXR10's. Dispersion is a lot better with the FRFR cabs, I like running different cabs with different amps and DXR10's are a lot more convenient to handle than a big 4x12.

It's all very exciting given my upcoming custom Xitone cab, more details to follow :)
 
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My current rig I've been working a while on for "my" original live sound is Fricking Amazing... I combine a real tube amp with two models in FRFR.

Consisting of a new 2014 DSL100H and two stock 1960B cabs, in mono while, running the DSL's loop through in/out 2 on the axe, then using 2 amp models on out 1 L/R to two Atomic CLR active wedges.

Yes one could run W/D/W but I am enjoying tri-mono more and with all the Axe's ability's the options are endless.

If any of you guys have a tube head, you should really give this type of setup a try. I love it.

Dude I'm gonna find a way of trying that. I've got plenty of gear to do that with, so it's just a matter of experimenting. Great idea though :D
 
On the other end of the scale I've gigged AxeFX via Matrix GT1000 into a 1 x 10" greenback cab mic'd to FOH.
Like old times with a Princeton :) So many options & all valid...
 
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