Need reality check on stock presets- HB neck pickup Bass flabbiness for clean Fenders

Lkdog

Lkdog

Power User
Maybe I am just ignorant as most of these amps I have never used in real life, but it seems like an inordinate of the stock presets with basic amp settings have absurd amounts of bass in the stock presets.
When on neck pickup on typical low wind humbucker guitar they are really flabby and dark, especially the Fenders 59 Bassguy, or 65 Bassguy, Vibrato King, Plexi Normal, Deuxe Tweed and some other non Fenders- the Vox's, JTM 45,

Others seem Ok, CAE clean, Z 38, Matchless, etc.

Do people just tweak these presets or create their own?
Doesn't matter the guitar and all have low wind PAF neck pickups (see signature).
Bridge and middle typically sounds good on same presets.
 
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I ONLY use presets I build from scratch.
Yes you can use other peoples presets, but they don't have my exact rig, technique, hand tone, or guitars.
So most presets are a wash. Good for learning how things work though.
Tweak the default presets to your hearts desire. :)
 
Funeral said:
I ONLY use presets I build from scratch.
Yes you can use other peoples presets, but they don't have my exact rig, technique, hand tone, or guitars.
So most presets are a wash. Good for learning how things work though.
Tweak the default presets to your hearts desire. :)
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Cool.
I guess I wonder a couple things about the amps in general:

1) Do the Drive, B/M/T and Master knobs (and gain setting if present) all work specific to how they do on that amp in real life- or is there a FAS paradigm?
2) Maybe what I am asking is if I go to the Matchless Chieftan or Fender Bassman website and they say "try these settings"- does that translate to the amps in the AXE FX II?

I feel like I am shooting in the dark sometimes. I do refer to the WIKI when some info is there.
I need to do more homework I guess and need to dive in and learn how to tweak better!
 
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Lkdog said:
Cool.
I guess I wonder a couple things about the amps in general:

1) Do the Drive, B/M/T and Master knobs (and gain setting if present) all work specific to how they do on that amp in real life- or is there a FAS paradigm?
2) Maybe what I am asking is if I go to the Matchless Chieftan or Fender Bassman website and they say "try these settings"- does that translate to the amps in the AXE FX II?

I feel like I am shooting in the dark sometimes. I do refer to the WIKI when some info is there.
I need to do more homework I guess and need to dive in and learn how to tweak better!
Click to expand...

------------Don't bother, you will just end up frustrated. The best thing to do is built your basic amp and cab, and put a looper block first in your chain. set it to mono, and record a lick and loop it. Then tweak hands free by ear with just the amp controls. When you get it as close as you can to the tone you want, if you have an isolated recording of the tone you are after, do a tone match.

-----------------------------EDIT----------------------------
Cliff says the settings are the same below.
 
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IIRC, the stock presets are dialed for single coil guitars, and yeah those vintage fenders can be pretty flabby with humbuckers.
 
And there also is "nothing" wrong with tweaking the presets to taste. Depends what you want to do. I always turn everything off but the amp & cab and start from there. Then I add a FX-see how that goes and so on and so on.

Or build your own as was stated above. There is no rule. All depends on you.
 
Lkdog said:
Cool.
I guess I wonder a couple things about the amps in general:

1) Do the Drive, B/M/T and Master knobs (and gain setting if present) all work specific to how they do on that amp in real life- or is there a FAS paradigm?
2) Maybe what I am asking is if I go to the Matchless Chieftan or Fender Bassman website and they say "try these settings"- does that translate to the amps in the AXE FX II?

I feel like I am shooting in the dark sometimes. I do refer to the WIKI when some info is there.
I need to do more homework I guess and need to dive in and learn how to tweak better!
Click to expand...

1. Yes, those knobs work exactly like the real amp. Don't listen to anyone who says otherwise.
2. Yes. See #1.
 
I'm sure this varies dramatically by user, guitar, playing style, material, etc. I have a similar perception of the stock presets for me and they usually aren't usable out of the box. I always tweak them or start from scratch. There are also a lot of good presets on the forum and Axe-Change.
 
FractalAudio said:
1. Yes, those knobs work exactly like the real amp. Don't listen to anyone who says otherwise.
2. Yes. See #1.
Click to expand...

I have watched CLIff over the years go from having the knobs do a Fas paradigm to full blown following amps, it's pretty amazing, he always looking to improve, something that is rare with other popular modeler companies. Those other places say "oh we did this and that and the amp's are so much better" but you end up getting the new system only to find it has some cockedwah type thing going on lol.
 
i find some of the presets a little bassy as well. simply turning on the "cut" switch in the amp block works wonders with most of them. also try turning on the "bright" switch if it's off in the preset. two really quick and simple ways to tighten up the amp. try it with the plexi 100 preset.
 
Yes, over the releases the stock presets have gotten flubbier with humbuckers, especially in my 58 RI Les Paul. If you want to use a preset as a starting point, besides simeon's suggestions (which all help), I often reduce the input gain to simulate a lower-output pickup, and that helps a lot. I've found setting it to .65 or so cleans up the CustomBuckers in my RI nicely. The more articulate 490/498 pickups in my Custom can handle a higher setting; as has been said elsewhere, use your ears to find what works.
 
SeasonOfPain said:
Yes, over the releases the stock presets have gotten flubbier with humbuckers, especially in my 58 RI Les Paul. If you want to use a preset as a starting point, besides simeon's suggestions (which all help), I often reduce the input gain to simulate a lower-output pickup, and that helps a lot. I've found setting it to .65 or so cleans up the CustomBuckers in my RI nicely. The more articulate 490/498 pickups in my Custom can handle a higher setting; as has been said elsewhere, use your ears to find what works.
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I have lower wind PAF pickups in my three guitars (Throbaks) which are pretty low output and detailed.

Have had a 490r/498t set before. That 498t is pretty hot.

All helpful ideas in the thread to clean up the low end. Using the CUT switch is nice tool.

Thanks.

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One last question for now:

How does one approach using the INPUT DRIVE when it does not exist in the real amp?? (Is there a setting where it is neutral as if it did not exist?).
It clearly adds gain when turned up (Fender Deluxe Reverb for example).
Is it supposed to function as a gain control for amps that do not have a drive control in real life?

What does it do when there is an actual OVERDRIVE control on the AXE FX controls?

Thanks.
 
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A correction... the control I meant to refer to is Input Trim (vs. Input Drive, which increases drive AND shifts tone, vs. Overdrive, which increases gain without affecting tone. See a more detailed description by Cliff of the two drive controls).

Lkdog said:
I have lower wind PAF pickups in my three guitars (Throbaks) which are pretty low output and detailed.

Have had a 490r/498t set before. That 498t is pretty hot.
Click to expand...

That's what I would have thought, but for some reason, the CustomBuckers on my RI are muddier than the 490r/498t's. While the latter definitely have more gain, they sound/feel tighter in the low-end.
 
SeasonOfPain said:
A correction... the control I meant to refer to is Input Trim (vs. Input Drive, which increases drive AND shifts tone, vs. Overdrive, which increases gain without affecting tone. See a more detailed description by Cliff of the two drive controls).



That's what I would have thought, but for some reason, the CustomBuckers on my RI are muddier than the 490r/498t's. While the latter definitely have more gain, they sound/feel tighter in the low-end.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the link on the Input Drive.
Helps me understand it a bit more.
Will try tweaking the Trim some also.

I had a 2013 R9 and 2014 R8 before I got my present R0 (with Throbaks) and really liked the Custombuckers.
The 498t I had was in my Es 333. It was pretty crunchy, but nice.
 
If it's tubby, try dropping 500hz somewhere.

E.g. The Amp Block GEQ: change it to var q and drop 500hz to -3db or to taste.

Or it might be scooped? Sometimes for me what may seem like too much bass is often not enough mids. A scooped sound will appear to be bass heavy when it is really mid shy.
 
DropTheSun said:
See #1.
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What do you mean see #1? So are you (and Cliff) saying that the Master Volume now works exactly like the real amp?? According to the Wiki:

"The model's controls match the tapers of the modeled amp (within 10%), except for Master Volume and Presence/HiCut."
 
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