Alex Kerezy
Inspired
Hi Alex, I'm a violinist. Been using the AX8 for some time and have gotten some decent presets going from very clean to rocking out, I use an acoustic violin with a Schertler Stat-V pickup, but have used the Baggs on another violin for 30 years. The Stat-V is amazingly feedback resistant and gives a pretty clean sound, cleaners than the Baggs. I have some patches with no amp and no cab, starting with a paraEQ. Other patches I start with the tube pre amp and either add a cab or not. Then I kick it up from there with ODS or double verb amps etc. Just sprang for the AXE FX III but saw this thread so thought I'd chime in. I'm familiar with the Hendrikson. For small gigs I sometimes use a Katana, without the AX8. I would try just a paraEQ, no amp, no cab. Then the tube pre, which you can dial down the drive fairly low. For more volume you may need to crank up the volume [not the master unless you want color.] You can really mes around with the paraEQ and graphic EQs to tune your sound. I generally do not like the compressors for a clean sound with violin, adds artifacts I find or just moves it off the violin vibe. I go out to an FRFR, usually the Atomic Amps CLR. If you are going to an actual amp be sure you set the Fractal forth at scenario and no cab in the preset, but you are probably already doing that. Hope that helps a little.
I've switched to a Bose S1 speaker. It's even cleaner, perhaps closer to an FRFR speaker. I really use it as a monitor because I can never enough of me in the monitors.
Help me to understand the "no cab" in the preset? I use a cab block now tone my sound. I load it with three IRs. They seem to take out some of the harshness from LR Baggs pickup. I got one IR from 3 Sigma Audio, and uh one from a physics professor in Italy.