Presets and Pickups

This is a good topic for patch creation. I've made neck patches that sounded very bright but then made the bridge pickup less usable or bridge patches too dark for middle or neck....

Taking into account the range of tones in different pickups is a good idea to make a flexible patch so you don't have to keep track of which patch was optimized for which pickup. I tried to embed the pickup permutation in the patch name (when I had switchable single or humbucker in bridge and neck position, and a blender pot to mix the bridge+neck pickups, even when using the in-between 2 and 4 selector switch positions). It was too much for my little brain and I gave up on that. I'm back to a simple 5-position strat and trying to make patches that sound good but different with any selection, with varying amounts of tone and volume.
 
stm113 said:
It just sounds like mud, I lower the pickup height, mess with input settings, lower the gain and nothing really works well for it.
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Exactly what guitar is it, if you don't mind me asking. I have an ESP LTD EC-1000, and for anything high-gain, nothing comes anywhere close to the EMG 81 in the bridge. Clarity and punch to spare. Chugging is clear as day and soloing is full.
 
Also had an LTD EC-1000 and you're right - EMG 81 had the clarity of a guitar played backwards through a tuba.....
 
Philip34 said:
Exactly what guitar is it, if you don't mind me asking. I have an ESP LTD EC-1000, and for anything high-gain, nothing comes anywhere close to the EMG 81 in the bridge. Clarity and punch to spare. Chugging is clear as day and soloing is full.
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It's an ESP LTD EC-Redburn.

StickMan said:
It could be a faulty pickup. I'd be curious to know how it sounds through a regular amp.
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The guitar sounds good through a regular amp. I'm not a huge EMG fan anyway but it sounds nothing alike when compared to playing through an amp vs. the AF2.
 
1) remember that the EMG 81 cuts through like a hot knife, compared to other pickups, passive or active. It has plenty of gain and even more focus. Your amp settings ought to be less bright and slightly less overdriven with the 81, than if you tweaked for a passive pickup.

2) the EMG active pickups (not sure about the passive ones) have a built-in preamp of sorts, so the gain structure may sound slightly different than say, a JB/59-equipped guitar with the same amp settings.

What kind of amp/sound are you trying to get in the AxeFx?
- for metal, my favorite is Djentlemanly- so versatile and great without any tweaks.
- for rock, Mark Day's preset is instant hi-gain Marshall- if you don't like so much delay/modulation/Reverb, Just turn it off. Use the guitar's volume knob- works wonders.
- for a fantastic "Vox" sound, try the Matchless HC30 (TMA) on AxeChange.com - my personal favorite Vox sound
- for clean, try either the stock Band-Commander preset or try Cooper Carter's Bandmaster preset on AxeChange.
 
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Philip34 said:
1) remember that the EMG 81 cuts through like a hot knife, compared to other pickups, passive or active. It has plenty of gain and even more focus. Your amp settings ought to be less bright and slightly less overdriven with the 81, than if you tweaked for a passive pickup.

2) the EMG active pickups (not sure about the passive ones) have a built-in preamp of sorts, so the gain structure may sound slightly different than say, a JB/59-equipped guitar with the same amp settings.
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@Philip34 makes a good point. If you plug an EMG or other active pickup into a preset dialed in for passive pickups, the results won't be ideal.
 
electronpirate said:
No rules.
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This! Basically trial and error and just use your ears. If you don't like a certain guitar or pickup with an amp take the next amp or tweak it until you find something you like. Also what you like might be something another person doesn't like at all. So it's what sound you have in your head that you strive for.
 
stm113 said:
It just sounds like mud, I lower the pickup height, mess with input settings, lower the gain and nothing really works well for it.
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When I first got my AXE, mud and the blanket effect was an issue,. I tried lowering the gain and master, but it took away from the sustain I was trying to achieve. I found, searching early on, to use the bass cut in the amp block and set my bass settings as low as 1.25. Also don't be afraid of presence. I tend to stay away from brightness, as it makes things too harsh. I was using the amp's EQ for shaping, but am now leaving it flat and using an EQ block at the beginning of my preset chain, to shape the tone before it hits the amp. Another thing is many amp and cab combinations can be too muddy or bright. I would pick your amp then sample the cabs, (you can bring up the cab page in AXE Edit then click the little pin on the top right to scroll through the cabs to sample them), until you find one that you really like. The cab block can make or break your tone.
 
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