Live Presets DI

NMG

Experienced
Hi everyone.

I been using axe fx into pa when live for about 3 years, always used a Drive Pedal into a clean amp, through my own cab sim straight to the desk.

Recently i switched away from relying on a drive pedal for the gain and start using AMP X/Y (or could that be A/B) to switch between a Clean amp model and a High Gain Model.

Im not really sure on the result of my sound yet. We played last week and in my opinion the sound engineer had me way too quiet. This is evident in the recording i took from the venue.

A friend sent me this message a few days after seeing us for the first time.

"Hope you don't mind me asking but just reflecting on your gig.
Is your sound intensionally very compressed and sitting in the background? I know the bass seems to be king in that tiny room but I had two thoughts. I realised very quickly that you know how to play a guitar and my initial reaction was " That's a brave move sitting so far back in the mix with a compressed sound that just creeps into the front when it has a solo" to thinking "I can't hear fuck all because the last band didn't know the meaning of restraint and somehow higher frequencies are eluding me and I can't hear the six string!"
Basically am I prematurely deaf or was it intensional. "

So maybe using the amp model type is a bit new to me.
Incidentally, this night the first time EVER that i also came across another Axe fx user, he had only had the unit 6 moths months and hardly knew what i was talking about when we were discussing PA sim on/off, his sound also sounded a bit weak in the mix.

I can admit that the venue does not have the best sound, but the other bands with the "real amps" sounded full and loud.

Could someone with good experience and who has had great success with playing through a hi gain amp model, through a cab sim, playing DI into desk send me their preset?? I feel i need some guidance right now on setting up this preset to sound as good as the other musicians we are playing with.

Technical details. fw Q8.02 OP 1 Cab sim to desk. OP2 to (no cab sim) matrix amp > Real Cab.
Im using a single coil american strat.
Ive attached a preset where the cab block references slot 1, i have also uploaded a cab impulse file

Had Axefx2 for 6 years and i will absolute appreciate any help on this.

Neil.
 

Attachments

  • 2x12.syx
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  • NMG example preset 8 7 17.syx
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You have a lot of things going on here: (Caveat...I haven't tried your preset.)

-Clean amp with a drive for high gain? I know it's your process, but there are so many good high gain amps in the Axe you might use. Maybe supply what you're playing to give us some perspective here.
-You need reference to how you're being dealt with at the board. If your DI sound is good you need to match up what you're hearing on stage to what is going FOH. Make SURE that your sound guy is doing you right by keeping it flat and keeping you up in the mix. This is a long argument here in that many sound guys do not know how to deal with DI feeds. If you can pull aside the time, even in a sound check, work with him to figure out what works.
-If it all fails, have you tried just micing the cab itself. It's ham-handed, but in the absence of solutions, give it a run (back to the 'sound engineer doesn't get it' argument.)

I'm moving this to preset exchange, where you should poke around and look for something that might help.

R
 
What does an amp model be drive pedal have to do with how loud you are on the PA system?
 
What does an amp model be drive pedal have to do with how loud you are on the PA system?
The amp model and drive pedal have charactaristics tonally that will either be louder or quieter than other models.

Ive used models that require me to be SO LOUD that the purple signal light is nearly white and other members have still wanted me louder, its just not cutting through. Where as some models have a better ability at cutting through and dont require me to be so loud.
 
You have a lot of things going on here: (Caveat...I haven't tried your preset.)

-Clean amp with a drive for high gain? I know it's your process, but there are so many good high gain amps in the Axe you might use. ..

R

Yeah i know! As i stated, im moving away from drive pedal distortion and now relying on an amp model for the high gain, or call it distortion!
I think my input gain/distortion control in this preset in the OP is way too high and that is possibly making it sound compressed.
I guess im after a relyable preset thats using a highish gain amp model that has been used straight into pa. Something that doesnt sound compressed, as my spectator pointed out.
 
The amp model and drive pedal have charactaristics tonally that will either be louder or quieter than other models.

Ive used models that require me to be SO LOUD that the purple signal light is nearly white and other members have still wanted me louder, its just not cutting through. Where as some models have a better ability at cutting through and dont require me to be so loud.
This kinda doesn't make sense. One amp model vs another isn't "louder." And if it is, you compensate with the Level parameter. "Cutting through" is typically all about EQ, usually having to reduce the low end.

What purple light are you talking about? How are you defining "so loud"? Relative to some meter? Or with your ears?
 
Amp models are tonally different in their EQ shape so some will cut through better than others.

What im after is a preset that sound less compressed and more punchy than the one i posted.

The purple light is the level indicator on the Matrix amplifier.
 
I encountered the same problem. After a gig someone said "I see you're doing great things, but I cannot hear it". My "bedroom" sounds are great but to transfom them to the stage is a differen thing. The sound gets eaten by the rest of the players.
I now put a 5 band eq in front of it: -1.5, -0.5, 2.4, 4.8, and 1.0. It's better. Have you tried something like this?
 
Amp models are tonally different in their EQ shape so some will cut through better than others.
Not that drastically I'd say. And that's why Amps have EQ anyway. I'd say the Cab sim is just as important, if not more.

I'm guessing you just have too much bass frequency that we can't really hear, but it would make all meters go crazy.
 
I encountered the same problem. After a gig someone said "I see you're doing great things, but I cannot hear it". My "bedroom" sounds are great but to transfom them to the stage is a differen thing. The sound gets eaten by the rest of the players.
I now put a 5 band eq in front of it: -1.5, -0.5, 2.4, 4.8, and 1.0. It's better. Have you tried something like this?

yeah i have used the Amps eq. i will try to experiment more with it.
 
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