Noobie - down the AX8 rabbit hole pt.1

[PhillyGTR]

Hello Fractal world! I took the plunge about 2 weeks ago and got the AX8. I am a touring / studio guitarist for the past 25 years and I've used almost every setup imaginable: pedals, rack & floor processors, stereo amp rigs, 4x12 stacks, 2x12 combos, 4x10 combos, etc etc etc. As a hired gun, I have been in many different situations that require particular rigs to fit the occasion, point being I have a lot of real world experience with all sorts of gear, both expensive and cheap stuff. I'm not at all a snob and have always believed whatever sounds good to my ears, helps me feel inspired and makes the artist or producer I'm working for happy is a good and useful tool. Simple philosophy. I like all kinds of music, all kinds of pedals, guitars and amps. Ok, on to the AX8...I've been aware of the Axe FX for a few years but didn't want to go the whole rack + foot controller + extensive programming route because I've been into a LO-tech 'stomp box ->Mesa Lonestar 2x12' mode for some time with great results. I like Bearfoot, Emma, Xotic, Wampler for drive, Malekko Vibrato, and Strymon for modulation and time based FX, Ola, El Cap and Flint respectively. I get great sounds from these boxes and have spent much time putting together a pedal board that is compact and efficient. I feel really confident every time I hit the stage or studio with my reasonably small and portable rig. However, it's not uncommon to fly somewhere and get a crappy Twin or worse, a Hot Rod Deluxe with beat speakers. On the plane ride home I always think, man it would be great if there was a convenient, well made, all in one solution: amps, cab sim, FX, integrated foot controller, actually sounded GREAT and was easy to use! I finally found exactly that in the AX8. This is absolutely THE product I have been waiting for and I couldn't be happier with the sounds I'm getting as well as the ease of editing, saving and tweaking on the fly. While the cost may seem expensive to some, I think this unit is a bargain considering the features, robust construction and most importantly, excellent sound quality. This is a professional piece of gear all the way around. The amp knobs are surprisingly one of the best parts of the AX8. Thy respond as a real amp would: brighter, darker, thicker, spankier, louder, dirtier with the quickness. I've never experienced that kind of responsiveness with any processor I've used. Finding presets, scrolling through banks, tuning, editing FX, changing pedal types, assigning foot switches - all extremely easy on the fly. I'll go into more specifics about amps, cabs and FX in my next post but I just wanted to shar my extremely positive feedback after my first actual gig with the AX8. Oh by the way, I haven't even used Ax-Edit yet. I forced myself to edit exclusively on the unit so I'd be totally comfortable on stage making changes just like you would with an amp and pedals. Anyway, I'm completely sold and I'm really looking forward to using this in the studio later this week. Thank you Fractal for creating a processor that I consider to be in the Goldilocks zone - just right!

 

[2112]

That's exactly the situation that spurned me into getting an Ultra, and now an AX8. Nothing like stress free and consistent tones wherever you go!

 

[PhillyGTR]

That's exactly the situation that spurned me into getting an Ultra, and now an AX8. Nothing like stress free and consistent tones wherever you go!

Yup - sometimes with pedals / amp setup you wonder why your sound is so different gig to gig but I suspect there's some psychosomatic stuff going on. With the AX8 you can be certain it is all in your mind, for the most part. I listened back to the recording of the show last night and it sounded pretty much studio quality through the house. There's a lot of sonic detail that really comes through the mix. I am a happy camper right now.

 

[Rex]

Welcome to the fold, @PhillyGTR ! As you're discovering, it's one sweet piece of kit.

One thing I've consistently found with Fractal gear: they've thought of pretty much all the angles. The first 20 things that popped into my head along the lines of "Wouldn't it be cool if...?" — it turned out you already can.

 

[JerEvil]

Man I am really wanting to make myself learn to edit through the actual unit when mine arrives but it seems quite intimidating.

What are the amp models you are leaning toward so far?

 

[Rex]

Man I am really wanting to make myself learn to edit through the actual unit when mine arrives but it seems quite intimidating.

It's only intimidating when you haven't tried yet. Grab the manual, and poke a few buttons. You'll soon have some "Oh, I get it!" moments.

 

[DaveO]

Welcome to the robust world of the AX8 it's truly an amazing floor unit ive had mine for a full 3 weeks but have only spent limited spare time exploring it and some of the video tutorials as well as the manual, there are some gr8 resources in the forum I've found them and their posts to be extremely useful & friendly I'm sure u will too...
Happy New Year!

 

[PhillyGTR]

Good to know there's so much depth. Can't say I'm surprised given all the flexibility. A perfect example was on day 1 I was like 'no auto wah??' And then I found the modifiers and the ADSR and boom, a perfect envelope wah effect. Thanks!

 

[PhillyGTR]

Man I am really wanting to make myself learn to edit through the actual unit when mine arrives but it seems quite intimidating.

What are the amp models you are leaning toward so far?

If you just force yourself for a couple hours the editing on the unit becomes pretty intuitive. I still have a couple erroneous button pushes here and there, but mostly it's pretty easy interface. As far as particular amp models, I haven't really been paying THAT much attention, completely on purpose, because I want to sort of organically find tones I like without creating a psychologal bias due to the names. I definitely dig all the Fender models, super dynamic and just the right hair. and The Dumble models are so fun to use as a solo tone. The JC-120 is great for clean RnB stuff and I really like the Engl high gain sound. My first gig with the AX8 was a total success, I have zero hesitation leaving ALL my pedals at home after only the 1 gig. Good luck!

 

[vick1000]

The I/O and routings can get a little overwhelming at first, but just think of the rest as building an actual rig from pedals, amps, and cabs. Then rejoice in the fact that you can alter the circuits of all of them with a few clicks of the mouse. Just remember you have everything you need to build a signal from where you plug in your guitar, to what leaves the speaker/microphone of a normal rig. Depending on what you are sending the signal to, you will use the blocks to complete the chain. Which is why using a FRFR setup takes advantage of all the possibilties and power of the unit's design.

You can just play with the factory presets for while. Then pick a blank preset, and build that dream rig you always wanted, then tweak the ever loving crap out of it.

 

[PhillyGTR]

The I/O and routings can get a little overwhelming at first, but just think of the rest as building an actual rig from pedals, amps, and cabs. Then rejoice in the fact that you can alter the circuits of all of them with a few clicks of the mouse. Just remember you have everything you need to build a signal from where you plug in your guitar, to what leaves the speaker/microphone of a normal rig. Depending on what you are sending the signal to, you will use the blocks to complete the chain. Which is why using a FRFR setup takes advantage of all the possibilties and power of the unit's design.

You can just play with the factory presets for while. Then pick a blank preset, and build that dream rig you always wanted, then tweak the ever loving crap out of it.

Tweaking presets is exactly what I've been doing. I'm really curious about the whole FRFR speaker thing. I may try that on my next gig. I used a Hot Rod Deville 4x10 last night, which typically I don't like. Plugging the AX8 straight into the return sounded GREAT. I did turn off the power amp modeling as well as the cabs of course. I've been a studio rat for about 30 years so for me the routing is so logical and well thought out. I find this box has everything I need and nothing I don't.

 

[vick1000]

Using FRFR is where the FAS modeling gear really shines, the power amp/cab sims and related options are nothing short of a game changer in the industry.

 

[PhillyGTR]

Interesting. have any suggestions as to FR speakers, placement, settings or any other tips for squeezing every drop of goodness out it? I have so many types of power amps and cabs (both tube and solid state) I just kinda felt like using those without the cab sims would be the best 'guitar' sound. But now you've got me going down a new rabbit hole. I have some QSC K8,K10,K12 which are plastic boxes and the much better sounding KW12 which are made of wood. I'm obviously going to experiment with those first BUT I'm sure there are speakers made just for this purpose yes?

 

[Rex]

Interesting. have any suggestions as to FR speakers, placement, settings or any other tips for squeezing every drop of goodness out it? I have so many types of power amps and cabs (both tube and solid state) I just kinda felt like using those without the cab sims would be the best 'guitar' sound. But now you've got me going down a new rabbit hole. I have some QSC K8,K10,K12 which are plastic boxes and the much better sounding KW12 which are made of wood. I'm obviously going to experiment with those first BUT I'm sure there are speakers made just for this purpose yes?

Go with the best, most accurate boxes you've got. That's it. The better they perform when you send them a full mix, the better they'll perform with your AX8.

There are FRFR speakers made for guitar modelers. They trade off a little of that sonic accuracy in exchange for a bit more of the resonating-cabinet vibe. And some players are only satisfied by a real, flesh-and-blood guitar cabinet firing at the back of their knees. But you owe it to yourself to try a good FRFR speaker (or two) and see which side of the line you fall on.

For myself, I went FRFR years ago and never looked back. The cabinet you choose is perhaps the biggest single factor in voicing your tone. And when you go FRFR, you get 180 built-in factory cabinets to choose from, plus more than 500 slots to load third-party cabs (or your own capture of your favorite cab and mics). As an added benefit, you get to hear what FOH hears, and no "real" cabinet can give you that.

 

[Smittefar]

I know many players who swear by K10 or K12 for their FRFR needs.

Other players need to have a roaring 4*12 to perform.

Try the different options and see what you prefer. But if you really want the full potential of the modelling gear, FRFR is the better choice. An AC30 just doesn't sound quite right through a closed back 4*12 with V30s

 

[PhillyGTR]

Go with the best, most accurate boxes you've got. That's it. The better they perform when you send them a full mix, the better they'll perform with your AX8.

There are FRFR speakers made for guitar modelers. They trade off a little of that sonic accuracy in exchange for a bit more of the resonating-cabinet vibe. And some players are only satisfied by a real, flesh-and-blood guitar cabinet firing at the back of their knees. But you owe it to yourself to try a good FRFR speaker (or two) and see which side of the line you fall on.

For myself, I went FRFR years ago and never looked back. The cabinet you choose is perhaps the biggest single factor in voicing your tone. And when you go FRFR, you get 180 built-in factory cabinets to choose from, plus more than 500 slots to load third-party cabs (or your own capture of your favorite cab and mics). As an added benefit, you get to hear what FOH hears, and no "real" cabinet can give you that.

I can see the whole cab IR thing will be the next aspect I'll probably delve into - I'm def gonna try a K10 first, then the KW12. I hope the K10s sound good because I'd bring 2 and run a stereo rig.