My first Axe II experience playing live...

[Home Skillet]

I received the II last Tuesday and I thought I had all the time in the world before using it live that coming Sunday (yesterday) for worship service. I was wrong, the week was filled with things to do and family from out of town to spend time with. Nothing wrong with that, I just thought I would have some time to play with it. Now here comes Sunday, check this out, our bassist, rhythm guitarist (acoustic), pianist, and other lead vocalist called out and said they won't be able to make it for worship service. Ohhh boy... So that just leaves me, my drummer, and 2 female vocalists. On top of that I had no time to really dig deep in the settings and get all my delays, trem, OD and boosts set correctly. I just decided to keep it simple. I selected the 65 Bassguy, made sure the compressor was to my liking, slight reverb and delay. As for the OD and crunch, I set the amp's master to around 4.5-5 and used my pots to clean or crunch things up, I normally use the OD block for this but I had no time left. MAN.....I have never been so happy with my tone, it really sounds 3D. Also, to compensate for not having a bassist, I turned up the amp blocks bass setting a touch higher than normal and lowered the lowpass freq. Seriously, I cannot wait to spend more time with this unit to get it to sound even better. With the richness of the tone, no one was even missing the piano and bassist. Just want to send a huge message of gratitude for Cliff and EVERYONE at Fractal for putting out such an awesome unit.

 

[Tone Seeker]

I normally switch patches to go from clean to overdrive but yesterday at worship I was really enjoying working my volume control. The Ultra responds very well, and I'm truly looking forward to working with the AxeFX II in a few weeks.

I enjoyed reading about how you morning went, and how the AxeFX II performed for you.

Terry.

 

[jnapo]

Tone Seeker and Home Skillet

I have been considering the Axe FX for application in a worship setting also. Our team is working on getting the stage volume down. Right now my Mesa is put back stage and mic'd. The volume then is still a little load for them so I have turned down and now the gain on the console is so high that an noise in my rig is magnified beyond necessary.

I would like to hear what you are doing for stage monitoring with your system. Where I play we have the Avion system and each person gets there own mix to in ears. Are you guys using in ears and if so can you tell me what you are using.

Also have you gone out into the house and worked with the sound man to get the tone that you think you should be getting. I have been told that you have to tweak the Axe for the destination i.e. it can sound good at home in your studio and not sound as nice when plugged into a console.

Would love to hear from you on your experience and recommendations.

Thanks

 

[Tone Seeker]

I would like to hear what you are doing for stage monitoring with your system. Where I play we have the Avion system and each person gets there own mix to in ears. Are you guys using in ears and if so can you tell me what you are using.

I play through in-ears. I use a set of j-phonic SP . . .

(In-ear monitors. Professional Choice.｜j-phonic)

(j-phonic K2 | Sensaphonics)

I find that guitar tones and music translate very well from my Dynaudio BM-5a studio monitors to the j-phonics. j-phonic are manufactured by the Japanese arm of Sensaphonics. Sensaphonics specialize in in-ears systems for professional musicians. They acquired a firm in Japan, who then took the Sensaphonics 2X-S drivers and put them into a universal in-ear configuration. They are very comfortable and you get the equivalent of a professional IEM for about half the price. The downside, relative to a custom fit IEM, is that there is less isolation. Our stage is still relatively noisy, so I wear a set of ear muffs over mine.

Also have you gone out into the house and worked with the sound man to get the tone that you think you should be getting. I have been told that you have to tweak the Axe for the destination i.e. it can sound good at home in your studio and not sound as nice when plugged into a console.

That all depends on the quality of your FOH and your home system (and their respective rooms). I consider my studio monitors as my reference and since my in-ears sound almost the same, home and stage tones align with each other. I took my Ultra back to the FOH board a few weeks ago and all I had to do was take some bite out at 3KHz (-3dB). That said, my guitar does not sound anywhere as nice on our church FOH as it does on my studio monitors. It's just not as pleasant. Patch changes or eq adjustments however, will not address that, and I would hear the same difference if I were using a mic'd tube amp.

Hope that helps. Feel free to ask any other questions that you might have.

Terry.

 

[Home Skillet]

I would like to hear what you are doing for stage monitoring with your system. Where I play we have the Avion system and each person gets there own mix to in ears. Are you guys using in ears and if so can you tell me what you are using.

We are using Mackie SRM450v2's for stage monitoring. We tried in ears but just didn't work for us at the time. We may try them again but right now we are using electronic drums so that alone helps with our levels. If it was up to me, I'd bring the real drums back, cage and mic them.

Also have you gone out into the house and worked with the sound man to get the tone that you think you should be getting. I have been told that you have to tweak the Axe for the destination i.e. it can sound good at home in your studio and not sound as nice when plugged into a console.

We practice at another location so my patches do sound different but not too much. There are sometimes I have to dial in my OD levels and also bass levels & low pass cutoffs, but it's really easy with any of the Axe units. Once I get to church and setup, it takes me no longer than 5-7 minutes to get everything how I like it. Also, I go straight into the board and have a dedicated floor monitor.

Also, I try to dial in tones at home but it's not ideal. I have a Mesa Triple Rec, so I have to turn off the cab sim. This will be coming to an end as I'm picking up some Rokit 8 g2's tomorrow. it should help me dial my tones a little more accurately.

 

[Big Joe Daddy]

Tone Seeker and Home Skillet

I have been considering the Axe FX for application in a worship setting also. Our team is working on getting the stage volume down. Right now my Mesa is put back stage and mic'd. The volume then is still a little load for them so I have turned down and now the gain on the console is so high that an noise in my rig is magnified beyond necessary.

I would like to hear what you are doing for stage monitoring with your system. Where I play we have the Avion system and each person gets there own mix to in ears. Are you guys using in ears and if so can you tell me what you are using.

Also have you gone out into the house and worked with the sound man to get the tone that you think you should be getting. I have been told that you have to tweak the Axe for the destination i.e. it can sound good at home in your studio and not sound as nice when plugged into a console.

Would love to hear from you on your experience and recommendations.

Thanks

Jnapo,
Here's my two pennies worth. Our worship director has been overhauling the sound system at our church over the past few months. We went from passive wedge monitors to the HearBack in-ears system recently. The HearBack system has really improved things by eliminating a lot of stage volume and giving everyone 'more me' in their mix.

As for the Axe FX II, it's a perfect fit for the church setting. I also run the mixing desk from time to time so I've had an opportunity to check the sound at FOH as well. I have a wireless rig for my guitar so I can wander out front during rehearsals to check things out. We're running a Presonus StudioLive mixing desk and I've basically set the EQ on my guitar channel flat. I throw on a tad of compression on my channel just in case I hit something a bit too hot accidentally. I'm running one XLR from output 1 on the Axe to the snake and that's it. It's so easy. I use everything from Yek's violin patch to a JCM 800. The beauty of the Axe FX is that you can get some high gain tones when necessary, but at reasonably tame volume levels.

I dial in my presets at home with a QSC K12 cranked up pretty good. I don't like to dial in tones with headphones. I prefer to move a little air. With my regular band, I use the K12 for a wedge and run my vocal monitor through it too. The K12 has two inputs which makes it handy.

So anyway, I think the Axe FX is killer for a church setting. Go Fractal!

 

[MKeditor]

Congrats Skillet on making the switch. Good times ahead for you as you discover the endless tones available.

I've been running the magic box for worship since '08. At first with a VHT 2502 through a pair of cube cabs loaded with v30's. It was good but when I switched to FRFR it all came together for me. Then the tones in the house were much closer to what I hear on stage through my powered wedges. Now the FOH doesn't eq my channels. Just plug it in and turn up the faders.

I serve at a few churches in the area. The one I am currently booked at the most does IEM's with the Aviom. Thanks to the valuable advice from a few people on forums I have been able to adapt. The Axe-FX with patches set up for FRFR has a big advantage with IEM's over a mic'd cab. It will sound much closer through buds to what you're used to. Speaking of buds, they're mission critical for me. I use Sensaphonics and are happy with them. I have DBX's IEM processor to add room ambience,eq and compression. That made a major difference. Without it the click track feels like woody woodpecker was jabbing my brain. Dry vocals sounded like they were in my head. The DBX reverb makes it sound more natural and less claustrophobic. Panning singers and players is really helps too. A Shure PSM 900 wireless provides a turnkey cable free IEM experience.

I do keep my speakers on stage when running IEM's so my guitar still sustains or feedbacks when needed. That's what works for me.

 

[Tone Seeker]

I serve at a few churches in the area. The one I am currently booked at the most does IEM's with the Aviom.

I have DBX's IEM processor to add room ambience,eq and compression. That made a major difference. Without it the click track feels like woody woodpecker was jabbing my brain. Dry vocals sounded like they were in my head. The DBX reverb makes it sound more natural and less claustrophobic. Panning singers and players is really helps too.

MKeditor, I saw your post over on The Worship List about the DBX IEM processor and I started looking into them. I use the reverb on my small A&H mixer to add some ambiance to my mix but I imagine the quality of reverb in the DBX would take things to another level. I'm curious though. Do you use the other features (e.g. compression, EQ, stereo adjust) and what difference have they made?

On a related topic, does the Aviom provide a stereo feed, or are you panning mono signals?

I see you have a Liquid Foot Pro mounted in a NY Pedalboard. How do you like the pedalboard? Any difficulty getting the Liquid Foot mounted and/or keeping it in place?

Nice rig!

Thanks.

Terry.

 

[MKeditor]

Thanks for the kind words! I modified a stock patch on the DBX called "Rockin Buds" I adjusted the reverb and EQ. That was it. That patch does have compression. It is a great unit that can be picked up used for a decent price. New they go for silly money. The other guys in the band were jealous and wanted reverb too. The drummer came up with a low budget/compact solution that he is thrilled with: Line 6 Pocket POD | Sweetwater.com. He is using the tube preamp setting and some other goodies to sweeten his mix. He used it Sunday for the first time and grinned the whole time. He says he can never go back to dry ears again. The downside to that is that is mono input.

I take the stereo feed from the Aviom into my half space mixer. The Axe-FX is routed there as well. The Left and Right out go to the DBX then to the Shure wireless.

The NYC board is cool. It is not as heavy as a ATA flight case. The bottom is the board and the case just attaches via latches. I wouldn't want to fly with it but it is the best solution for around town that I have seen. The Pro and pedals attach via Velcro and never moves.

 

[Tone Seeker]

MKeditor. . . everything in your post was helpful. Thank you.

I had meant to ask you a question about your Sensaphonics in-ears. I believe I read that you use the 2X-S. Do you also use them with a portable music player (iPhod, iPhone, etc.) and if so, how easy are they to drive?

I ask because Sensaphonics also sells a 2MAX, which appear virtually identical but are easier to drive. They have a lower resistance and increased sensitivity. However, that may alter the response a bit, so I would prefer going with the 2X-S when I finally decide to order a custom molded set. I'm just not sure if the 2X-S would be suitable for use with an iPhone.

Thanks.

Terry.