Shorten Axe Case?

D

DJD100

Power User
Hmmm, while looking at some gut shots of an Axe I noticed some space between the main pcb near the rear of the case and the front panel pcb.

Would it be possible to shorten the case with some shorter side/top/bottom panels without suffering cooling problems or other issues?

I fly a lot and my guitar goes in the overhead, so I'd love a 2U Axe with a smaller footprint so it would fit under the seat in a soft case etc (though a floor model with built in pedal-board would be even better yet!).

Thanks...
 
Yep, opened mine up only last week and thought about that after seeing how roomy the inside case is. Wasn't sure how it would be affected in regards to heat etc... and i'm not really handy so i'd have to find someone that could mod the case for me.

Obviously this would void the warranty (mine's probably run out anyway) but it would be good to hear from Cliff to say whether he feels it would affect the operation of the Axe FX adversely.
 
I'd suspect that you need to contact Fractal directly to get an answer. I doubt he'd post here regarding modding the case. Just guessing, but that's my opinion.
 
I keep mine in a 2U short case from Gator -- can you get shorter than that? The back of the unit, with the back cover off the case, it darn near flush with the gasket.
 
- obviously, it will screw up the "air" parameter...
- I don't want to stick my hand in that far when changing tubes
- you may have to miss out when Cliff will be handing out free left-over CPUs extras

I could go on an on ;)
 
I would guess it has much more to do with ergonomics than the case. If it was shorter, it would be a pain to reach all the way back inside a standard rack to deal with all your I/O stuff. Your assumptions are based on the Axe-FX as a standalone, but those who use it just as a preamp, FX unit, might not want a teeny box.

Just a thought.

R
 
Sorry, didn't mean to imply an engineering change from Fractal, rather a user mod is all. I'm interested in advice regarding cooling problems and/or audio interference problems with the analog components if the case was shortened.

Airline under seat dimensions are roughly (22" - 24") x (14" - 16") x (8" - 9"), so the (22" - 24") dimension goes to width, the (8" - 9") dimension for height, which leaves the (14" - 16") for the depth. Now the short gator case is 14.25" deep supposedly so it could get aced by a flight attendant assuming a hard case would even fit.

My point is that if the axe and case were between 2" and 3" shorter it might be a slam dunk for under seat carry-on in a shortened 2U rack bag (Axe), or 3U rack bag (Axe, IEM, Wireless).



electronpirate said:
I would guess it has much more to do with ergonomics than the case. If it was shorter, it would be a pain to reach all the way back inside a standard rack to deal with all your I/O stuff. Your assumptions are based on the Axe-FX as a standalone, but those who use it just as a preamp, FX unit, might not want a teeny box.

Just a thought.

R
Click to expand...
 
DJD100 said:
Airline under seat dimensions are roughly (22" - 24") x (14" - 16") x (8" - 9"), so the (22" - 24") dimension goes to width, the (8" - 9") dimension for height, which leaves the (14" - 16") for the depth. Now the short gator case is 14.25" deep supposedly so it could get aced by a flight attendant assuming a hard case would even fit.
Click to expand...


I have a 4u Gator Case (soft) and its measurements are:
Exterior Dimensions
Exterior Length: 14.00''
Exterior Width: 20.25''
Exterior Height: 10.25''

So does that mean that if I get the 3u case (which is only 8.5" high), it would qualify as a personal item?
 
Cliff mentioned somewhere (I can't find it) that the depth of the case is primarily to allow easy manual assembly so he can afford to put them together here instead of on an assembly line in China. There's just enough room for someone to reach inside with whatever powertool is used. So it doesn't sound like cooling is a factor, or at least not a signficant one.
 
Not sure, I got those dimensions off of this site?

http://www.cil.com/bagregs.htm

In general, carry-on baggage must fit under your airline seat or in the overhead compartments. Keeping your carry-on bag measurements within the total dimensions of 9"x14"x22" should allow it to fit in either of those places on most commercial planes.

Another hassle is they're sometimes putting electronics under the seats for the video screens etc, thus making even less room available.

You could go to an airport and ask if you have one nearby?

mitch236 said:
DJD100 said:
Airline under seat dimensions are roughly (22" - 24") x (14" - 16") x (8" - 9"), so the (22" - 24") dimension goes to width, the (8" - 9") dimension for height, which leaves the (14" - 16") for the depth. Now the short gator case is 14.25" deep supposedly so it could get aced by a flight attendant assuming a hard case would even fit.
Click to expand...


I have a 4u Gator Case (soft) and its measurements are:
Exterior Dimensions
Exterior Length: 14.00''
Exterior Width: 20.25''
Exterior Height: 10.25''

So does that mean that if I get the 3u case (which is only 8.5" high), it would qualify as a personal item?
Click to expand...
 
I'm going to find out tomorrow when I attempt to carry on my 3u gator rack bag and Les Paul. I have always had good luck with the guitar (since I explain just how expensive they are).
 
Good luck, and plase report back when you get a chance.

mitch236 said:
I'm going to find out tomorrow when I attempt to carry on my 3u gator rack bag and Les Paul. I have always had good luck with the guitar (since I explain just how expensive they are).
Click to expand...
 
DJD100 said:
Good luck, and plase report back when you get a chance.

mitch236 said:
I'm going to find out tomorrow when I attempt to carry on my 3u gator rack bag and Les Paul. I have always had good luck with the guitar (since I explain just how expensive they are).
Click to expand...
Click to expand...


Well, I'm back and let me tell you, it all depends! On the departing flight out of Ft Lauderdale, the ticket agent was rude, and made things much more difficult than necessary. Obviously, he required me to check in my Axe in the 3u Gator soft rack bag. On the returning flight out of Philly, things were a lot different. The agent looked at the Gator bag for all of 2 seconds and said, "No problem, just carry it on". In fact, not another person even commented on it. Even the agent at the boarding counter who was stopping people from bringing plastic bags with their magazines that they just bought because, as he said, "You are only allowed two carry-on items total". Go figure! The Axe made it without any problem though.

As an aside to the point of this thread, it's not the depth that the first agent had a problem with, it's the width so making the case less deep won't help.
 
As you already found out, each airline will treat you different, depending on size of the plane, the mood of the flight attendants etc etc.. I fly all the time and decided the best was was to pack the Axe-FX gator soft bag inside a heavy flight case, it's been over 3 years and been lucky never had a problem, and just carry on my main gtr, even just the gtr in a soft bag can be a problem on connecting flights with very small planes, sometime I have to gate check it.
I don't think making the Axe FX case a few inches shorter will be of much help, but I'd love to see a version of the Ax-Ultra in a pedalboard.
 
Thanks for the report.

On the leg you did get to carry it on, how was the fit under the seat in front of you?

Would taking a few inches out of the Axe's front to back dimension be advantageous?

Would a 2U rack bag be any better in this regard?

Thank again.

mitch236 said:
DJD100 said:
Good luck, and plase report back when you get a chance.

mitch236 said:
I'm going to find out tomorrow when I attempt to carry on my 3u gator rack bag and Les Paul. I have always had good luck with the guitar (since I explain just how expensive they are).
Click to expand...
Click to expand...


Well, I'm back and let me tell you, it all depends! On the departing flight out of Ft Lauderdale, the ticket agent was rude, and made things much more difficult than necessary. Obviously, he required me to check in my Axe in the 3u Gator soft rack bag. On the returning flight out of Philly, things were a lot different. The agent looked at the Gator bag for all of 2 seconds and said, "No problem, just carry it on". In fact, not another person even commented on it. Even the agent at the boarding counter who was stopping people from bringing plastic bags with their magazines that they just bought because, as he said, "You are only allowed two carry-on items total". Go figure! The Axe made it without any problem though.

As an aside to the point of this thread, it's not the depth that the first agent had a problem with, it's the width so making the case less deep won't help.
Click to expand...
 
DJD100 said:
Thanks for the report.

On the leg you did get to carry it on, how was the fit under the seat in front of you?

Would taking a few inches out of the Axe's front to back dimension be advantageous?

Would a 2U rack bag be any better in this regard?

Thank again.
Click to expand...

It fits under the seat but it is tight. You would have to put your feet on top of the case if you were surrounded by pasengers because it uses all the available space under the seat.

The real problem with it is perception. It really isn't much bigger than a briefcase but it sure doesn't look like a briefcase! Making the Axe shorter won't help. The 19" width of the unit is the problem and nobody is going to use a different width (because of the standard rack). A 2u may work better just because it looks smaller. The best way to get it onto the plane is to avoid bringing it to the check in counter. That way, you would only have to sneak it onto the plane. Once on board, it will fit under the seat so they can't make you check it (well, they could but they probably wouldn't).

Good luck!
 
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