AFIII Sounds better direct than playback through Logic?

[TheHumanFretboard]

Hi there, I have my Axe FX 3 hooked up to Logic Pro on my MAC via a USB. The strange thing is that the sound coming direct from the AFX3 sounds awesome (via monitors) but when I take same sound recorded in Logic and play it back, it sounds OK but nowhere near as good as the sound coming DIRECT from the AFX3. Anyone else find this or have a suggestion where I might be going wrong?

Many thanks in advance for your help.
G

 

[getlostinsound]

A couple of things to check:
1. Are you sure that you’re hearing them at exactly the same volume? When picking a preferred tone, people will almost always “prefer” the louder one. Make sure you’re listening to the playback at the same level as the live guitar.
2. Are you playing in stereo? If so, do you have your 2 recorded tracks in Logic panned hard left and right? Going from stereo to mono can make things sound “worse”.
3. How loud are you monitoring? If you don’t have your speakers turned up very loud, you’ll get used to the actual acoustic sound of your pick on the strings along with the Axe FX, and you’ll perceive it as part of the Axe FX tone. Then, when the track is played back, you’ll miss out on that high-frequency attack sound you were hearing. To check this, record the guitar and play it back using only headphones, or with your monitoring system cranked to the point that you can’t hear your pick on the strings.

 

[Rex]

3. How loud are you monitoring? If you don’t have your speakers turned up very loud, you’ll get used to the actual acoustic sound of your pick on the strings along with the Axe FX, and you’ll perceive it as part of the Axe FX tone. Then, when the track is played back, you’ll miss out on that high-frequency attack sound you were hearing.

This.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that your recorded tone sounds duller and flatter than your live tone. That's the jangle of your guitar strings adding brightness to what you hear.[/QUOTE]

 

[RevDrucifer]

I ran into this issue as well-

Go to File-Project Settings-Audio and check to make sure the sample rate is 48kHz. Mine automatically loads at 44.1kHz and I was noticing a considerable difference in the tones when playing stuff back. It’s much more dull with 44.1.

Just keep in mind, if you change this on a session you’ve already recorded in, it’s going to change the pitch of the tracks you’ve already recorded.

 

[TheHumanFretboard]

All, my apologies for replying so late but with all this craziness, work has been mad. Thanks for all the responses and help here, I did not have the stereo (per getlostinsound’s “2”) and sample rate (RevD) on right. Now it sounds much better. You are awesome folks - really appreciate the help. Wishing you all the best. Thanks again. G