New Axe FX Owner

guitarcal

Inspired
Well, I saved up all last year, and finally pulled the trigger on an Axe FX II XL this morning. This is replacing my Avid Eleven Rack, and from what I read and hear, the difference will be night and day.
Super pumped to join this forum and looking forward to reading all of your wisdom. Hopefully the G3 update is released by the time its delivered!
 
I think we are still a bit away from G3. I'm sure Cliff is working hard to get it all ready but in the thread he did mention it was very time consuming. But you will love the Axe even on 17 it sounds fantastic. Welcome!
 
It's beyond night & day.
I did a side-by-side with an 11R+Exp.pack. The Axe (at FW14.xx) made the 11R sound completely unusable.
Do yourself a favor and read the manual (also check out the Wiki) if you haven't already.
 
Just put in an order for XL yesterday too, upgrade from the Ultra. +1 Reading the Manual. I read all the posts in the Tech Notes forum section this morning. I think some brain matter is leaking from my right ear and I believe I put my underwear and pants on in the wrong order this morning after that, but there is a wealth of knowledge/tips/hints all over the forum.
 
Welcome!!

Read as much as you can, and try not to be overwhelmed by the choices available on thus remarkable device. Take your time. When you first get it, take a few days and go through each factory preset and see what you like. Try to write down the presets that have the effects you REALLY like, and then when you start creating your own presets, you'll have your own reference point.

The folks on this forum are amazing people and remarkable musicians. Even if they think they're not...they are.
 
Good advice has already been given. The only thing i'll say is that I'm fairly new to the device as well. The first thing is to make sure you're using a clean slate, so get the newest firmware and reset all presets and amps to default, and ignore all of the advanced controls for now. There's plenty to experiment with before touching any of the advanced settings, they can be overwhelming.
 
It can get overwhelming real fast. Start with your dream amp and cab and play around to get the best tone before adding effects. You will love it!
 
I also came over from the 11R. I haven't looked back. The main adjustment is the front panel interface on the 11R was way easier to learn and use. Axe-edit makes it a non-issue if you are near a computer though.

The biggest difference to wrap you head around is the abundance of cabinet IR's on the axe, compared to the 8-12 on the 11R. Plus the much larger pallete of amp models. The 11R effects hold their own for the most part. I actually preferred it's reverbs to the axe's until the recent updates to the Axe's reverb algorithms.
 
Welcome aboard! It will be interesting to see what your impressions are, as it seems a lot of us came from tube amps to the Axe-Fx, whereas you are coming from a modeller. And the fact that a lot of us are ex tube amp guys speaks volumes about the Axe-Fx. :)
 
This is replacing my Avid Eleven Rack, and from what I read and hear, the difference will be night and day. Super pumped to join this forum and looking forward to reading all of your wisdom. Hopefully the G3 update is released by the time its delivered!

You'll enjoy it much greater than the 11R especially with the ease of use in Axe-Edit. You can learn to dial everything in with the Green Screen + Dial, but Axe-Edit just makes preset building more fun ;) .

What will you be monitoring/outputting it through/to? That makes a huge difference on first impressions and usage. If you don't have some, get some nice near-field studio quality monitors. Yamaha, Samson, PreSonus, KRK etc.

Welcome!
 
Welcome aboard! It will be interesting to see what your impressions are, as it seems a lot of us came from tube amps to the Axe-Fx, whereas you are coming from a modeller. And the fact that a lot of us are ex tube amp guys speaks volumes about the Axe-Fx. :)

Thanks! I will post back my initial impressions. The eleven rack never came close to my tube amps, so I'm curious how the axe will fair. I'm doubtful it will replace them, but will be very happy if its close.
 
You'll enjoy it much greater than the 11R especially with the ease of use in Axe-Edit. You can learn to dial everything in with the Green Screen + Dial, but Axe-Edit just makes preset building more fun ;) .
What will you be monitoring/outputting it through/to? That makes a huge difference on first impressions and usage. If you don't have some, get some nice near-field studio quality monitors. Yamaha, Samson, PreSonus, KRK etc.
Welcome!

I'll be running the Axe into a Focusrite Saffire which will output to Yamaha HS8 monitors. Hopefully the setup will do the Axe justice!
 
Thanks! I will post back my initial impressions. The eleven rack never came close to my tube amps, so I'm curious how the axe will fair. I'm doubtful it will replace them, but will be very happy if its close.

This was exactly my initial attitude. Wherever my Mesa triple rectifier and Mesa 4x12 cab is after I sold it on eBay I sure hope it's happy. :)
 
Welcome aboard! The AxeFX II XL is positively amazing. I've played through a LOT of boutique gear, studio equipment, and other modeling systems. The AxeFX just lives in a completely different space, far above and beyond the other offerings. Each firmware update is another quantum leap, and the come fast and furious. When I ordered my XL (early last year), we were *just* getting FW13; here we are not even a year later, using FW17 - and on the cusp of another significant update!

You've already made another great connection : this forum. I participate in a lot of user forums for my gear, but there is nothing like this one. It's a never-ending supply of tips, fixes, and wacky punch lines.

I haven't looked back since I got the AxeFX, and have been selling my boutique amps, pedals, and other rack gear. I've done close to 100 shows on my AxeFX in the nine months since it arrived. Love it.
 
User Cabs will be your best friend. The Fractal Cab Packs and Ownhammer/Redwirez ir's are all must haves IMO and can really get you where you want to be. I can't wait for Cab Pack 8 to arrive, that's a FOR SURE MUST HAVE. I have also been through all the other 'modeling' amps and nothing comes close to the Axe Fx II. Congrats!!!!!!
 
I'll be running the Axe into a Focusrite Saffire which will output to Yamaha HS8 monitors. Hopefully the setup will do the Axe justice!

No experience with the monitors, but I use the Saffire.. works great. I can't think of any consumer purchases (houses/cars/guitars/amps/tvs/...) I've ever made that I was completely satisfied with years later... except for the Axe-FX II.
 
Welcome,

Having come from an Eleven Rack myself, you will not be disappointed. :)

I migrated all my settings from the 11R to the Axe, made me realise how wrong the 11R sounded.

Cheers!
 
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