Time to hand over the vest

Only Modeler that really was nearly as good as Fractal was my old Johnson 20 years ago... I regret the sell years ago because you hardly find it anymore.
Tried Line6, Elevenrack and others... there are all ok, but there was missing something everytime and dialing a "good" tone took some time.
After getting a uses Fractal Ultra I decided to get a FM3 last year and also didn't look back since then.
 
Congrats!

I've been back and forth between Helix and Fractal for several years, and I own both a Helix and Fractal FM3 now (formerly had an Axe 3). I like both devices and don't feel like I have to be dogmatic or pledge allegiance to one "side".

That said, with the current generation Fractals, they sound better in nearly every way and are much easier to use that prior generations, so it gets used 90-95% of the time. To the point the Helix will likely get sold if/when I need the money for something else.
 
I will say that (based on my last Helix experience a while back, assuming it's still true) I really DID like being able to use the built-in expression pedal to edit a selected parameter in real-time while using both hands to actually play my guitar...
 
So, tomorrow I'll receive my unit! I was very close to give up on the Axe for a foreseeable future because of a very sudden oppurtunity to buy a house me and my girlfriend reeeally didn't wanted to lose the bidding of. And becase of that, I needed the Axe money so I had to cancel my order....reeeally didn't want that either. :laughing:

Well, we didn't ending up buying the house anyway which ment I did give Susie at G66 a go ahead to ship the unit. Last week was definately not good for my heart :laughing:

Have heard som Cygnus sounds and it's sound really good for the absolute most, but It's going to be great hearing it for myself through my system. I'm metal player so it's going to be particulary intererting hearing thouse sounds!
 
When you attribute terms like love and family to inanimate objects, you are setting yourself up for disappointment.
 
Axe FX III. Just. Wow. Incredible unit!

Just spent a few hours getting familiar and comfortably with the work flow and how to use it. I won't play so much yet cause I really don't want to get too used to the Ares when Cygnus will be here soon as it seems to change the sound of the amps a bit. But I really like this thing!
 
StevenPersson said:
Axe FX III. Just. Wow. Incredible unit!

Just spent a few hours getting familiar and comfortably with the work flow and how to use it. I won't play so much yet cause I really don't want to get too used to the Ares when Cygnus will be here soon as it seems to change the sound of the amps a bit. But I really like this thing!
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Were I you I might be diving in now anyway — you’ll get more familiar with the III and you’ll be even more impressed when 16Final is released...
 
touch33 said:
Were I you I might be diving in now anyway — you’ll get more familiar with the III and you’ll be even more impressed when 16Final is released...
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Yeah, I've played a fair bit just to understand how things works. But I've stayed in the same boat doing that (Mesa Boogie JP2C) and have not ventured out to other places yet :)
 
I was a dedicated tube amps guy... had Helix for about 6 months, then Kemper for 2 years, and neither of them replaced my amps. Got the Axe III just over a year ago, and have MAYBE turned my amps on three times in 13 months... and quickly turned them back off because they don't sound as good as the Axe III at low volume! :)
 
StevenPersson said:
Hello!

I'm a new member here at the forums and currently a full patch Helix-member but has ultimately decided to hand in the vest and get into the Axe-family. I've been a Line 6 user since 2011 when I first got the Pod HD (had the Boss GT-10 before that one) and five years later decided to level up to the Helix family of products. I enjoy the Helix a lot purely because of it's simplicity and sound (some amps loaded with OwnHammer IR:s indeed sounds really, really good, which was a huge step up from the Pod-series).

However, time and knowledge do something to you and I've learned so much when it comes to guitar sounds regarding what I want and not want. That way, I feel I can't reach further with the Helix. I'm pretty, pretty close, but not all the way there where I want the my tone to be at.

There's certain things in the Helix sound I simply can't get around. I just can't. Other than needing a heck of EQ:ing to get the sound sit well in the mix through my setup, there's a harshness in the high end I find really hard to tame without it affecting the overall sound too much. Also it's quite boxy sounding and I also find some high gain amps pretty undefined in the pick attack. I've tinkered enough throughout the years I've had the unit trying to get around it but I've had enough of it now.

I still love the Helix but I've also fallen out of love with it because I can't take the tone any further to my liking. Probably I've become a bit of a tone snob (may so be it) but I also enjoy the tinkering part (and play the damn thing of course!).

So after a few months of thinking and analyzing I've decided I want a new adventure. The Axe FX really attracts me due to it's sound and tweakabillity and after beeing on the waiting list for a while, It's now my turn and I've decided to go for the FXIII MKII. I've been dreaming about an AXE unit for many years so I'm really looking forward to the next week when it arrives.

Cheers from the north east of Sweden.
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Former Line 6 user too. One big thing you'll notice is you get more significant updates to the unit over the course of a month than the Helix did for the 2 years I used it....or any other Line 6 product. I was a Spider, Vetta 2, Pod HD 500, Pod X3 user at various points. There are no amp packs to buy to get new models or anything.....it is pretty glorious. When I first moved over last year I missed having the PRS Archon as that was one of my go tos in the Helix and.....it was added a few months later.
 
I am also new to the Fractal family. I played a Bogner Ectasy Classic for years with a load of rack effects. I got tired of hauling it around, so I bought the new AXE 3 MK2 in October 2020 and I don’t regret it one bit. My tone sounds fuller and the effects are better than I expected too. Also, the customer service is superior and 2nd to none. Best wishes on your tonal journey!
 
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