Talk me out of getting a 5153 lol

SCROLL

Member
Recently started playing guitar (mostly melodic metal type stuff) regularly again after taking a break for a few years when my last band broke up. My awesome GF wanted to buy me a nice piece of gear, and since I don't have a good amp (just a POS practice amp at the moment), she ordered me one of the amps I've always wanted - a 100w 5150 III Stealth head that is currently on backorder. Thing is, I don't plan on playing in a legit band again, aside from jamming with some friends on the weekends. I'm thinking this rig will be overkill for playing at home, and a PITA to lug back and forth to friends' houses. But, it is the amp I've always wanted! Then the other day, I remembered the Axe Fx exists lol. I have been doing lots of reading about the FX3, and now I'm torn between getting the FX3, or the 5153. I feel like the FX3 will be better suited for playing at home and will be easier to travel with, as well as having almost limitless options to the sounds I can make. Am I going to miss out on anything the 5153 offers, or am I just being dumb and should grab the FX3 instead, because it really sounds like the better choice for my uses at this point in my life. Did any of you go through something similar? What persuaded you to go one way or the other? Thanks for reading my dumb post lol.
 
Lots of us here will be biased towards the Axe FX III since most of us are owners. But I know a lot of us also have sold our real amps after getting the Axe FX. I've got a couple I intend to hold onto (A PRS mt15, like a 15w archon that sounds great and is very portable. And a Jet City 22w amp since it's a really nice platform for modding).

The Axe has the regular 5150 III Green/Blue/Red channels, and the 50w version Blue channel(which is different than the 100). It doesn't have the Stealth versions yet, but having those definitely scratches the same itch. It also has about >250 other amp models of different amps and channels which give you something to do when you're feeling different. And you can easily control volumes, and record, etc. and it was still sort of a pain to lug it and a powered 10" PA speaker to jams, but it wasn't worse than a full sized head and 112, and way better than a 100w head and a 412.

Owning the real amp can still be fun, and it would also probably suit your needs, but the Axe covers almost all your bases going forward where the real amp might be more annoying for certain things.
 
If you’ve got a $2k budget, why not an FM3 + a power amp like the Seymour Duncan PowerStage 200 or Matrix GT1000FX? Still cheaper than the Stealth head, and infinitely more versatile.

I get the real amp bug every now and then, but then I consider how my Axe Fx results might not translate to the real amp and be inferior. A major variable is volume. I can control the various volume/gain controls on the Axe much more easily and without consequence (ie painfully loud noises). I may not be able to accomplish the same with a real amp.
 
Buy both 😅. Me for example I will never sell my tube stack , I play a lot with the 3 , but I have a pleasure playing with the real stuff .... Like playing a vinyl . Depends where you come from , your age /experience in music ... a lof of thing . Maybe some people sold their amp after owning a 3 but most of my friends own both their favorite amp and sim ... with the 3 in your hand you will never know how the 5153 really sounds without a mic .
 
Don't do it. There.

If you want a versatile and lightweight setup, and since I have no other details about your speaker/cab setup, I'd recommend the FX3.
I dont have speakers/cab right now. I would be buying speakers for whichever setup I go with.

Lots of us here will be biased towards the Axe FX III since most of us are owners. But I know a lot of us also have sold our real amps after getting the Axe FX. I've got a couple I intend to hold onto (A PRS mt15, like a 15w archon that sounds great and is very portable. And a Jet City 22w amp since it's a really nice platform for modding).

The Axe has the regular 5150 III Green/Blue/Red channels, and the 50w version Blue channel(which is different than the 100). It doesn't have the Stealth versions yet, but having those definitely scratches the same itch. It also has about >250 other amp models of different amps and channels which give you something to do when you're feeling different. And you can easily control volumes, and record, etc. and it was still sort of a pain to lug it and a powered 10" PA speaker to jams, but it wasn't worse than a full sized head and 112, and way better than a 100w head and a 412.

Owning the real amp can still be fun, and it would also probably suit your needs, but the Axe covers almost all your bases going forward where the real amp might be more annoying for certain things.
Thanks! Yea the 5153 tones I've heard from the FX3 sounded really good. If I get a tube power amp for the FX3, will it give me that chest thumping feel you get from a loud tube amp? I think that's about the only thing that kind of concerns me as far as going digital, but that could just be me being skeptical about change lol. But otherwise I agree that the Axe will cover anything I could want.

If you’ve got a $2k budget, why not an FM3 + a power amp like the Seymour Duncan PowerStage 200 or Matrix GT1000FX? Still cheaper than the Stealth head, and infinitely more versatile.

I get the real amp bug every now and then, but then I consider how my Axe Fx results might not translate to the real amp and be inferior. A major variable is volume. I can control the various volume/gain controls on the Axe much more easily and without consequence (ie painfully loud noises). I may not be able to accomplish the same with a real amp.
Well, my GF technically has a ~$2k budget lol. I can spend around another 1k on top of that for speakers, power amp, etc.. I was thinking about maybe getting the 5153 and the FM3 as another option.

Buy both 😅. Me for example I will never sell my tube stack , I play a lot with the 3 , but I have a pleasure playing with the real stuff .... Like playing a vinyl . Depends where you come from , your age /experience in music ... a lof of thing . Maybe some people sold their amp after owning a 3 but most of my friends own both their favorite amp and sim ... with the 3 in your hand you will never know how the 5153 really sounds without a mic .
Yea I've only ever played tube amps, and I love the real stuff too, but I couldn't do both. I could probably do the 5153 and the FM3. I think I'd rather just go all in on one or the other though.

Did you also post this question on whatever 5153-oriented boards there are? If not, you've already made your decision, you're just looking for encouragement :)

Which is fine!
I came here first. Yea I think I might just be looking for encouragement at this point lol
 
I own a 5150 combo, and I the FX3. With the FX3 you get pretty much every 5150 ever made, and they sound amazing, plus you get loads of effects. Another good thing is that you dont have to wait for the axe 3 to show up. And like everyone is saying you could pair it with a power amp if you wanna run it though a cab. It really just depends on what you want.
 
I played a 5150 iii head and 4x12 cab, really didn't care for it. I have used the 5153 model in the Axe III for a couple of gigs with no complaints.
 
I own a 5150 III Stealth and totally love it. I also have an Axe-Fx III. If I had to choose, I'd keep the Axe.

Again I completely love the Stealth, and if Fractal Audio didn't exist it would be one of my top picks for modern high gain amps to own, but the Axe-Fx is in a "never have to think about amps again" league of purchase that can get so close to the 5150, 5150 II, 5150 III 50w, and 5150 III 100w (and the Stealth if you dial it in right) that you really can't tell the difference between them and the real thing unless you A/B them and listen very hard while playing them yourself, and even then being able to tell is dicey. I'll also say that the real Stealth is quite a loud amp, and if I didn't have a Reactive Load to put it through, I do think it would be too much to handle at home. And it's not exactly versatile.

If I didn't have a rig and had the money to buy a 5150 III Stealth + cab, I'd instead get an FM3 + SD Powerstage 200 + cab.
 
Last edited:
I love the 5150 III Stealth in both 100 and 50w versions. Fantastic sounding amps and they look great! With me saying that, I sold my 50W version back in the early fall. Not a weighty amp to carry around but with the 212 and a pedalboard, it is a bit of a pain and being older now with not the greatest of back, I prefer to take a lighter setup with me to rehearsals and practices.

Having the Axe III and the FM3 gives me access to a whole pile of amps and cabs. You just can't beat that with one single amp. The amount of options, amazing tones and ability to run FOH or direct into whatever you record with is worth it alone.
 
@SCROLL How often do you plan to take it to a friend, or out in general.

If it's a lot, then the FM3 is something to consider. I love my Axe FX. But,in a rack case, let alone with the Matrix Amp, Furman power and rack mixer, like I ran, is still not that light to carry around.

Even with the FM3, unless there is a power amp, combo amp, etc to plug into, it's still little bit to tote. Now, if you consider, you can likely lose a pedal board as well, then it becomes less bulky.

Those that GIG, find it a godsend as far as what they tote around, because they can plug into the FOH.

So, I suggest, you look at it as to the Fractal's complete versatility. Why have just a 5153's tones? Why not also have a JCM800, Silver Jubilee, Fender everything, etc? How about combining 2 amps for something new. Yep, Axe will take care of that.

Want to record? To use that 5153, assuming you can get it loud enough to record at home, means a lot more equipment, to either mic it up, or be a speaker load and DI.

What about Effects? Want to use drive and boost pedals? Axe has a bunch of those. Reverbs, Delays, tremolos etc. etc. All covered. With that 5153, ad more and more to the cost, for rack effects, or pedals.

How many players can use that 5153 at a time? Just one, right. With the Axe FX, that is not the case.

And, frankly, IMHO, NOTHING beats the Axe FX (or FM3, or even Kemper, Helix etc) for home and studio use, tone and versatility. To get the cranked amp tone and feel, at home, with that 5153 WILL take a substantial extra cash outlay. And, then, you still just have that one amp's tonal pallet.

NOW, if that is the end all, be all tone you want, and will ever want, and it was a dream amp, well then, you might be very happy.
 
If you are going for the AxeFx, I strongly recommend getting a power amp and a cab. Studio monitors or FRFR are a completely different experience and you may not like it.
 
,
@SCROLL How often do you plan to take it to a friend, or out in general.

If it's a lot, then the FM3 is something to consider. I love my Axe FX. But,in a rack case, let alone with the Matrix Amp, Furman power and rack mixer, like I ran, is still not that light to carry around.

Even with the FM3, unless there is a power amp, combo amp, etc to plug into, it's still little bit to tote. Now, if you consider, you can likely lose a pedal board as well, then it becomes less bulky.

Those that GIG, find it a godsend as far as what they tote around, because they can plug into the FOH.

So, I suggest, you look at it as to the Fractal's complete versatility. Why have just a 5153's tones? Why not also have a JCM800, Silver Jubilee, Fender everything, etc? How about combining 2 amps for something new. Yep, Axe will take care of that.

Want to record? To use that 5153, assuming you can get it loud enough to record at home, means a lot more equipment, to either mic it up, or be a speaker load and DI.

What about Effects? Want to use drive and boost pedals? Axe has a bunch of those. Reverbs, Delays, tremolos etc. etc. All covered. With that 5153, ad more and more to the cost, for rack effects, or pedals.

How many players can use that 5153 at a time? Just one, right. With the Axe FX, that is not the case.

And, frankly, IMHO, NOTHING beats the Axe FX (or FM3, or even Kemper, Helix etc) for home and studio use, tone and versatility. To get the cranked amp tone and feel, at home, with that 5153 WILL take a substantial extra cash outlay. And, then, you still just have that one amp's tonal pallet.

NOW, if that is the end all, be all tone you want, and will ever want, and it was a dream amp, well then, you might be very happy.
Man, this is literally what I ran in my head yesterday. It's a no brainer. I told my GF to cancel the 5153 and she ordered the Axe Fx 3 today. I'm beyond excited!

If you are going for the AxeFx, I strongly recommend getting a power amp and a cab. Studio monitors or FRFR are a completely different experience and you may not like it.
I went to some music stores and pawnshops today and picked up an old 6L6 powered Peavey Classic Series 60/60 power amp that was in great working shape for a good price. I also have an EVH 2x12 on layaway at a pawnshop lol. In time I'll pick up some decent monitors for recording at home, but I don't see an FRFR setup in my future at this point, unless I decide to play live again.

@SCROLL What's your experience with modelers?
Very little. I used to have a rackmount Line 6 POD like 15 years ago, and a Korg Pandora PX4 lol, but nothing that compares to the Axe Fx.
 
Either way you're about to have a whole lot of fun with guitars right?!? Sounds like a win-win to me. FWIW, I have a 5150 II head and the trusty Axe-Fx II/Matrix GT1000FX combo and if I was forced to choose I would go with the Axe without hesitation.

As you mentioned playing metal I think you'll want to check out this Leon Todd video about setting up your power amp + cab with the Axe-Fx . I struggled to get the low-end chunk I was looking for in palm-mutes until I found and set the resonant frequency for my cab as shown in the video. Good luck and congrats!
 
Back
Top Bottom