Matrix GT1000FX "Modified to respond even more like a valve power amplifier"

Sorry again :( Im REALLY Not concentrating. Something to do with a holiday later today, completing on a house purchase the day I get back, then moving (with the family already at the new location) over 200 miles and a bit of sea - followed by my return to work as a single block living in a rented room. Just lots to organise, book, check, cancell etc - a little stressed at present :)

Of course, CAB sims OFF, Power Amp Sims ON.
 
I'm happy with your answer Paul. I just ordered a Matrix GT800FX yesterday because I wanted to use the Power amp sims :))) I currently don't use the power amp sims because I am using a tube power amp (Engl 840/50)
 
MatrixAmp said:
Hi there,
I think the question it best answered by some of our customers that have used the GT1000FX with guitar cabs rather then FRFR ?
I expect that someone shall answer soon.
My best regards
Matt
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What does the difference of the used speakers have to do with the question of the OP? And maybe Matrix should answer this question don't you think?
 
OldNo.7 said:
This is what I do too.

The Matrix is supposed to be a neutral amp, so I think you would want the power amp sims on. I'm surprised that paulmap8306 runs with them off.

I think the comments on the Matrix site is probably more about "response and feel" than about the tone. But I have the GT800FX, not the GT1000, so what do I know......

I haven't heard a GT1000.
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I thought my Mosvalve was neutral as well but I don't think it sounds good at all with amp sims on.
 
Hello there,

wanted to share my opinion about the Matrix GT1000. Received one on Monday. First impression was really good. Running it with my Ultra into guitar cabs with the power amp sims ON and cab sims OFF. After a few days I got tired of the sound I was listening to; boxy and harsh nothing like I was used to. I started tweaking back and forth thinking it was me. I got a Matrix to replace my Engl Invader (to heavy, I mean 27 kilo's or 3,7 and the same possibilties soundwise as seen on many post on this forum, nobody can refuse that!). I have used an ART SLA 2 as well but that one did not do it for me. I was using only the power amp of the Engl by the way (effects loop return). So, tired of the sound I was hearing and tired of tweaking I took my Engl back to make a A B test. The Engl wins by far at this moment. What am I doing wrong? My presets are basic just Drive and Amp block. Sounds good on the Engl. Sounds boxy and harsh on the Matrix. I am also missing lots of dynamics. Yes I have allready tweaked the Global out 1's equalizer as shown on the Matrix web site. Any tips?
 
coosvandorsten said:
Hello there,

wanted to share my opinion about the Matrix GT1000... Running it with my Ultra into guitar cabs with the power amp sims ON and cab sims OFF ... Any tips?
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Yes! heres how I run my AxeII ... I run mine amp sims ON as I'm not expecting the Matrix to sag or distort like a valve amp, I'm expecting it to be clean, so I need the cab sims in the AxeII to do that bit for me. .. and cab sims OFF, if you have a guitar cab, you want to have the cab sims OFF, turn cab sims ON when you have an FRFR set up.

Basically, if you have a valve amp, you are stuck with the tone and response of that amp, amp sims OFF, your tone is coming from the amp. If you have a "flat" resposnse amp like the Matrix, cab sims ON, your tone is now under control of the AxeII

If you have a guitar cab, then cab sims OFF, you cabinet response is fixed by your guitar cab. If you have FRFR, cab sims ON, your cabinet resposne is now under control of the AxeII

If you have been running your Engl valve head with amp sims ON, you have basically grown used to, and tweeked your patches for a double-dose of amp sims ... once from the AxeII and once from the Engl ... if you have tweaked and made patches with a double dose of amp processing, they are never going to sound right in other setups. The basic idea is that you shoudl be able to take the patches you like from a valve-amp + no amp sims to solid-state+amp sims and get a verys similar result .. same as the cabs ... guitar cabs + no cab sim shold sound similar to FRFR+cab sims on. Getting this the wrong way round will lead to patches that cannot be shared with other users, or cannot be run in other setups and sound right.

So to recap, if you have a valve amp, turn amps sims OFF, if you have a solid state amp turn amps sims ON.

If you have guitar cabs, turn cab sims OFF, if you have FRFR turn cab sims ON.
 
coosvandorsten said:
Hello there,

wanted to share my opinion about the Matrix GT1000. Received one on Monday. First impression was really good. Running it with my Ultra into guitar cabs with the power amp sims ON and cab sims OFF. After a few days I got tired of the sound I was listening to; boxy and harsh nothing like I was used to. I started tweaking back and forth thinking it was me. I got a Matrix to replace my Engl Invader (to heavy, I mean 27 kilo's or 3,7 and the same possibilties soundwise as seen on many post on this forum, nobody can refuse that!). I have used an ART SLA 2 as well but that one did not do it for me. I was using only the power amp of the Engl by the way (effects loop return). So, tired of the sound I was hearing and tired of tweaking I took my Engl back to make a A B test. The Engl wins by far at this moment. What am I doing wrong? My presets are basic just Drive and Amp block. Sounds good on the Engl. Sounds boxy and harsh on the Matrix. I am also missing lots of dynamics. Yes I have allready tweaked the Global out 1's equalizer as shown on the Matrix web site. Any tips?
Click to expand...

Try amp sims off too? Like I have mentioned, with my current Mosvalve power amp and Marshall cabs, I have to turn amp sims off or it sounds horrible. Every setup is different though.
 
coosvandorsten said:
Hello there,

wanted to share my opinion about the Matrix GT1000. Received one on Monday. First impression was really good. Running it with my Ultra into guitar cabs with the power amp sims ON and cab sims OFF. After a few days I got tired of the sound I was listening to; boxy and harsh nothing like I was used to. I started tweaking back and forth thinking it was me. I got a Matrix to replace my Engl Invader (to heavy, I mean 27 kilo's or 3,7 and the same possibilties soundwise as seen on many post on this forum, nobody can refuse that!). I have used an ART SLA 2 as well but that one did not do it for me. I was using only the power amp of the Engl by the way (effects loop return). So, tired of the sound I was hearing and tired of tweaking I took my Engl back to make a A B test. The Engl wins by far at this moment. What am I doing wrong? My presets are basic just Drive and Amp block. Sounds good on the Engl. Sounds boxy and harsh on the Matrix. I am also missing lots of dynamics. Yes I have allready tweaked the Global out 1's equalizer as shown on the Matrix web site. Any tips?
Click to expand...

I don't know how it sound with Axe Ultra, cause I really hated this unit, but with my Axe II,after switching from VHT power amp and little tweeking with global EQ and some power amp simulation,I'm in Guitar Heaven (using Cornford 2x12 all pine made cab)..You have to compensate a little this boxyness of transistor power amp with EQ cause it's deferent beast, and should be ready to go..

Now sometimes I go back to my Splawn Nitro and compare the sound to be sure if I'm not cheating myself..I'm not ! Axe II and Matrix GT1000FX sound as good as Spalwn or better..Even more powerfull (1000 watts!) much cleared low end, and really sweet sound in my case..
Cheers :)
jacek
 
Thanks CrazyTrainer,

your analyse is correct. However I did/do not use the Power Amp sim ON with the ENGL. With the ENGL it is set to OFF to avoid exactly what you describe. Sorry for the cause of misunderstanding.
 
coosvandorsten said:
Yes I have allready tweaked the Global out 1's equalizer as shown on the Matrix web site. Any tips?
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I would get rid of this. First, that was for the Matrix GT800, you said you have the GT1000. I believe that is for using presets designed for a valve amp with the matrix without tweaking your presets. It really is better to just start your presets from scratch. He says that in the video.
 
mrpollack said:
I don't know how it sound with Axe Ultra, cause I really hated this unit, but with my Axe II,after switching from VHT power amp and little tweeking with global EQ and some power amp simulation,I'm in Guitar Heaven (using Cornford 2x12 all pine made cab)..You have to compensate a little this boxyness of transistor power amp with EQ cause it's deferent beast, and should be ready to go..

Now sometimes I go back to my Splawn Nitro and compare the sound to be sure if I'm not cheating myself..I'm not ! Axe II and Matrix GT1000FX sound as good as Spalwn or better..Even more powerfull (1000 watts!) much cleared low end, and really sweet sound in my case..
Cheers :)
jacek
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Thanks for the info. I will start from scratch, been encouraged by your video's. Hut ab! Very nice sound and playing
 
Yes now we are talking!

Thanks for all the reply's.

Just to let you know which way I went.
I started from scratch, got rid of my old presets completely. Power amp sims on cab sims off. No Global EQ adjustments but I did adjust the output levels according to a post that was referred to by Matrix Amp web site FAQ's. Once that was settled the rest was relatively easy. Getting suburb full rich sounds even with my Fender single coils. Something I could not manage before. Happy Matrix user now.
 
FWIW.....

I use a power amp and a guitar cab. This is a personal preference simply because I don't use my Axe to "copy" anything. I use it the same way I'd use any other rig, as a tone generator. I go after the sounds in my head and use it to get there. So the FRFR thing doesn't mean that much to me since I'm not trying to clone anyway. For my direct board feed, with a few exceptions I tend to use a cab sim (on every patch regardless of amp model type) that approximates the cab I'm actually using, so the audience hears pretty much what I hear. I don't mind playing direct and using monitors to hear myself, the Axe is superb for this, and in certain situations that works better, but for the most part I'm just using it as part of my stage rig. I'm interested in the Matrix primarily due to weight considerations. I currently use a Rocktron Velocity 300, which I like but don't love, primarily for space (one rack space). I do like the tweakable features on the Rocktron.

My best tone is when I hook my Axe up to my Mesa 50/50. That is a very clean, very strident amp with a broad frequency range, tons of headroom, and lots of depth (and weight, which is why I don't lug it around). The transients just jump out better, and the sibilance is very present, which is often lacking with SS solutions.

I have a theory about this and I welcome Cliff's insight.

A modeler ultimately is re-creating something else, and in my view we've reached the point at which the technology can reproduce the modeled compents and the sum of the parts with high accuracy. But one must still amplify the model in order to hear it, and this is where it gets tricky. The common wisdom is that you need at least 4-5x the power for a SS amp to equal the transient response of a tube amp with the same power rating, and this is part of the reason that folks are gravitating towards higher powered solutions for digital products. I've done quite a bit of testing of this and I've found it to be true. If you plug the axe thru a 50w SS amp, it sounds great at whisper volume but as you turn up it sounds (and more importantly, FEELS) lifeless compared to a tube amp. But plugged into a tube amp like the mesa, it explodes with much more tactile realism. Plugged into a much stouter SS amp (in my case I A/B'd the Mesa against a 2000w PA power amp) the difference becomes much less apparent; the headroom of the burlier SS amp helps the transient response. My ears still prefer the tube power amp, but again, the Mesa 50/50 is a clean and strident amp that lends color but (unless you are peeling paint with volume) does not add power amp breakup.

In other words, the Axe can model and reproduce the transient response of the real deal, but you can throttle that when you put an amp between you and the axe that can't reproduce the sound as well as the feel. (I repeat this ad-nauseum to the naysayers over at The Gear Page).

To those who suggest turning off amp sims if using a power amp into guitar cab, I submit that I would never turn off the amp sims in the Axe since I'm amplifying but not trying to replace the characteristics of the modeled amp. The sweet spots of those amps are all in different places, and it would be quite difficult to replace the tactile characteristics of all those different amps with one solution. I suppose one might turn them off if one used something like a Mesa 20/20, which is a low-wattage amp designed to lend its own color and feel and can sag or break up at semi-manageable levels. But personally I wouldn't use that amp simply because I don't want the tone and feel of EL84's all night. And if one used an EL34 based amp and wanted to use that to get Marshallesque crunch... hope you are playing in a blimp hangar, because there aren't too many clubs that are going to let you get into the torque curve of an amp like that (and if that's your tone, buy a Friedman and be done with it).

Very curious about the Matrix, lighter is gooder at my age!
 
coosvandorsten said:
Thanks for all the reply's.

Just to let you know which way I went.
I started from scratch, got rid of my old presets completely. Power amp sims on cab sims off. No Global EQ adjustments but I did adjust the output levels according to a post that was referred to by Matrix Amp web site FAQ's. Once that was settled the rest was relatively easy. Getting suburb full rich sounds even with my Fender single coils. Something I could not manage before. Happy Matrix user now.
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Sounds good! Where's the best place to pick one of these up?
 
jojo - I'm in San Antonio and have a Matrix GT1000FX you are welcome to check-out. I'd actually like to compare it to the Mesa. I've used the Axe with Fryette stuff in the past, but I want to see how the Matrix compares to a tube power amp for my purposes. I will say I like the Axe/Matrix combo alot.
 
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