Rhett Shull Axe-FXIII Review

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That’s the impression I got from the video and looking at the filenames of his package. I could be wrong.
 
Watching him mess with the UI it's obvious he just plain doesn't KNOW the interface so this review should be taken with a grain of salt. Put it this way.....you can take the best journeyman CNC machinist and put him in front of a machine with an interface he doesn't know and he will be absolutely useless and frustrated. Any machine interface has to be learned. If you are looking for child like simplicity and intuitiveness you shouldn't buy a modeling rig as advanced as fractal....you should probably just stick to Boss pedals with a maximum of 4 knobs....just saying.
I like Rhett's content....but damn man...learn the F interface. It's really not that difficult.
 
I get the frustration with navigating on the unit I also exclusively use axe edit, but to say that affects how you use it live seems a bit disingenuous, you wouldn't be swapping cabs every song if you hauled tube amps to your gig, why would you be doing it on the axe? set your sound and use 3 knobs to eq to taste for the venue, but im no expert 😊. I enjoy the myriad options, if I wanted it dumbed down I would have just bought a pod
 
KyleHowdy said:
knew this would be posted here lol. I think the UI is amazing because of all the options we get as a user. It is EXACTLY what I wanted in a device.

I also did comment to let him no he's doing a big no-no; reverb in parallel not mixed to 100%.
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Yeah he had tons of mud on the tones, but not in the mixed song part, sure he dealt with it in post. He's a Rookie at our Unit and It only took 2+ yrs
 
yek said:
That’s the impression I got from the video and looking at the filenames of his package. I could be wrong.
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Alright, I watched the video.

Here's hoping "tweaked a few parameters" was just a poor choice of words on his part otherwise "tweaking a few parameters" and then turning around selling factory presets as your own work falls squarely into unconscioable behavior in my books.

Looking at the Maz factory preset next to his screen shot of Axe-Edit, at least he's moved the reverb around.
 
When I first got my III, I didn't use the editor at all, specifically because I didn't want to come to rely on it, to HAVE to have a computer to change stuff. That's worked out fine for me. I can get around fine on the front panel. There are some operations, bulk changes in particular, that are definitely faster in the editor, but the basic functionality of navigating to specific parameters of specific blocks and changing them most definitely isn't a problem.

To his point about overload for users who don't want an nuclear powered swiss army knife kit, it might be cool if there was a Fred Flintstone mode, where you didn't have to avoid the engineering degree tabs, they just didn't show at all.

At least he said it sounds good :)
 
It's hard to disagree with anything he said. The only question is: How is important is front panel editing? For most people the answer is "it's not important.". Anybody working in a home studio already has a computer connected and will use the editor. At a gig, aside from adjusting BMT, it's going to be rare to do preset editing. The use case where it matters is: You bring your Axe-FX to a recording session, set up in the studio and the producer says: "give me a sound that's a cross between John Mayer and Eddie Van Halen. " If you need to create a preset from scratch like that, I think most people would find it challenging to do so using just the front panel.

In fairness, while the Helix would be better, it would still be cumbersome. The Kemper, unless you already had a profile for that, you'd probably be out of luck. The QC has the best front panel interface for this kind of thing, but even that would be a pain.

IMHO the solution to this problem is not to be found on the front panel at all. A better way to go would be to offer a phone or iPad editor. In other words, for the use I case I mentioned above where you are away from your computer and you need to create a preset from scratch, the best solution is to use your phone/iPad. Just pull out your phone, connect it to your Axe-FX with Bluetooth, and use an app to do the editing. The built-in interface features on Android or iOS are efficient, robust, and mature, and the result would be miles better than any front panel could ever hope to be.

Again, front panel editing is a non-issue for most people. As somebody said above, he seems to be reaching to find something to criticize to give his review credibility.
 
Dave Merrill said:
When I first got my III, I didn't use the editor at all, specifically because I didn't want to come to rely on it, to HAVE to have a computer to change stuff. That's worked out fine for me. I can get around fine on the front panel.
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Dave I did the EXACT same thing...I used it for almost 6 months without using the editor. Forces you to learn the interface. That being said I pretty much use axedit exclusively now. It's such a nice editor. Only thing I wish is for an authentic type tab for some of the effects...but even that really isn't necessary.
 
Dave Merrill said:
When I first got my III, I didn't use the editor at all, specifically because I didn't want to come to rely on it, to HAVE to have a computer to change stuff. That's worked out fine for me. I can get around fine on the front panel. There are some operations, bulk changes in particular, that are definitely faster in the editor, but the basic functionality of navigating to specific parameters of specific blocks and changing them most definitely isn't a problem.

To his point about overload for users who don't want an nuclear powered swiss army knife kit, it might be cool if there was a Fred Flintstone mode, where you didn't have to avoid the engineering degree tabs, they just didn't show at all.

At least he said it sounds good :)
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One more thing about UI. There are two major reasons the Helix UI is so good, which I agree it is:
  • It's a much simpler unit with way fewer parameters, so fewer screens, so less navigation.
  • it's an all-in-one, and the footswitches double as capacitive buttons, just touch one to navigate to the block it controls. It's not just that it provides lots of instant-access navigation points, which it does, it's that it's obvious how to quickly -- one touch -- get to all the blocks you use enough to link a switch to them. Even if you want to go to some other block, chances are good it's near ones of those quick ones.

Point is I don't see how that last one can be applied to Fractal great without major hardware changes. But as I said, the front panel is fine for me.
 
Justincase said:
Dave I did the EXACT same thing...I used it for almost 6 months without using the editor. Forces you to learn the interface. That being said I pretty much use axedit exclusively now. It's such a nice editor. Only thing I wish is for an authentic type tab for some of the effects...but even that really isn't necessary.
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Not me, I'm still 80% front panel. Picking up a mouse with my pick hand isn't so great either.
 
My thoughts, and experiences, on the effectiveness of the UI, and the utility of the many AMP block options, definitely don't agree with his....

I've always found the front panel editing of any Fractal device, save for the AX8, to be easy, efficient, intuitive, and tweaking them on the fly, even live, has never been an issue for me. Front panel tweaking is easier then ever before with the Performance Pages, new quick block access tweaks, and the various value encoders/buttons found on the II, FM3, FM9.

I've had processors that have offered a thousand times less functionality with front panel UI's that were truly difficult to deal with, and I've frankly never understood the hate Fractal's UI gets. Sure, there's always room for improvement, but wow....

I've also never understood why people get so hung up on having too many options and why it's such a problem, especially since you don't ever need to navigate away from the "Authentic" page to dial stuff in. You get the sense some people think it's almost 'stupid' to have advanced parameters available. But, for many users, they understand, 100%, what all of those controls do, and appreciate the ultimate power and flexibility offered. That is a huge attraction and benefit of Fractal stuff IMO.

I take the time to learn the UI on all the devices I own, and, like some other users here, didn't connect my FM3 to an editor for some time after getting it, simply tweaking, and learning, the unit exclusively from the front panel. I had absolutely no frustration doing that....

And, I also know several Helix players/owners that cannot edit from the front panel as "it's just too weird and difficult", and edit exclusively with the software editor, so there's also that heh. Editing on the Helix, while perhaps easier (in many ways due to it having a much reduced feature set), is still 'complicated' enough for many users. Not being able to effectively bond/use a modelers' UI isn't exclusive to Fractal...not by a long shot.
 
I thought the review was actually well done and showed the Axe III in a very positive light. I don't fault him for his negative take on the UI but what I saw was someone who has not really used the front panel and thought he'd show the UI in his review without taking any time to learn it. I do think it was a bit dramatic but it served its purpose; people are watching it and talking about it.
 
JoKeR III said:
I thought the review was actually well done and showed the Axe III in a very positive light. I don't fault him for his negative take on the UI but what I saw was someone who has not really used the front panel and thought he'd show the UI in his review without taking any time to learn it. I do think it was a bit dramatic but it served its purpose; people are watching it and talking about it.
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Exactly, Rhett has been using the Axe III for awhile now and seems to prefer it for the studio. He is a fan of the L6 Stomp for touring (his justification is that it is much easier to replace the unit in the event of a failure--I agree). I believe he is more adept at the UI than he lets on in the video. He does make valid points for the uninitiated though (let's be honest Fractal's UI leaves something to be desired). Obviously his goal is to get views as a youtuber, thus being perhaps a bit dramatic/playing it up.
 
I have used just about every reverb, delay, multi fx processor that has been out in the last 20 years and the axefx is pretty dang simple. Ever tried getting around on a Lexicon PCM81 or Eventide SE..Digitech DSP 256XL, GSP2101, Intellifex, Boss GT5, VG88...blah blah...the axe is worlds ahead. I love the helix interface and if the axe incorporates something similar fantastic..but I think his front panel UI consternation was a bit over the top. I also love axe edit way more than the helix editor. So...his review...meh.
 
GlennO said:
IMHO the solution to this problem is not to be found on the front panel at all. A better way to go would be to offer a phone or iPad editor. In other words, for the use I case I mentioned above where you are away from your computer and you need to create a preset from scratch, the best solution is to use your phone/iPad. Just pull out your phone, connect it to your Axe-FX with Bluetooth, and use an app to do the editing. The built-in interface features on Android or iOS are efficient, robust, and mature, and the result would be miles better than any front panel could ever hope to be.
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Enter FracPad ;)
 
boleary2 said:
I have used just about every reverb, delay, multi fx processor that has been out in the last 20 years and the axefx is pretty dang simple. Ever tried getting around on a Lexicon PCM81 or Eventide SE..Digitech DSP 256XL, GSP2101, Intellifex, Boss GT5, VG88...blah blah...the axe is worlds ahead. I love the helix interface and if the axe incorporates something similar fantastic..but I think his front panel UI consternation was a bit over the top. I also love axe edit way more than the helix editor. So...his review...meh.
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Totally!!
256xl wasn't bad...lol
2101...omg what a pain in the ass but being one of the first units with total freedom in the effects chain was sooo cool. Just getting it to work from that tiny screen was craziness.
Screenshot_20220113-234444.png
"Bonehead simple"
🤘😂
 
I bought the Axe2 new, and learned the interface pretty quick. With 3, maybe I haven't tweaked enough which says the tones are too good, or I don't play enough, but I'm still a bit lost with the front panel after all these years. The combination of real buttons and changing press/twist button functions under the screen get me every time.
 
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