V6: Presets don't sound great == FRFR Monitors aren't great?

May be doing a bit of GLOBAL EQuing could help, though in principle FRFR should not need that for reproduction. It can actually help you tune the AXE to your taste (more highs or more lows globally) or acoustic environment.


Quick reminder from the Manual:
The OUT1 and OUT2 pages of the GLOBAL menu provide tone and level control tools for the two main outputs.
BANDS 1–10 (+/- 12 dB)

Output 1 and Output 2 are individually equipped with 10-band graphic equalizers for
fine-tuning of the tone across all presets. This comes in handy when using the Axe-Fx
II in different environments, in which acoustics may vary, or when you change
amps/speakers with no opportunity to adjust your presets.
Output 1 settings apply to all instances of the Output 1 mix signal including the
Headphone jack, the OUT1 balanced jacks, the OUT1 unbalanced jacks, and signal
which may be routed to USB or DIGITAL OUTS.
One exception to note: when COPY OUT 1 TO OUT 2 is enabled in the I/O:AUDIO
menu, the global Graphic EQ setting for OUT1 is NOT copied to Output 2, which is
processed by its own global graphic equalizer in the usual way.
Output 2 settings apply to all instances of the Output 2 mix signal including the
Output 2 unbalanced jacks (FX send) and the Output 2 signal, which can be routed to
the DIGITAL OUTS. (See I/O:AUDIO on p. 135 for more on routing).
 
Don't want to seem repetitive, but have you reset your system parameters yet? It seems a lot of users who have reported the same issue as yours have been pretty satisfied after doing so.
 
Chris Hurley said:
So if the V6 presets aren't sounding particularly great, that pretty much means the sound reproduction apparatus isn't up to snuff?
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i´m with you...very disappointing first impressions...fender cleans sound boxy as never before...sounds like "pride and joy"....come on...definitely not satisfying...
i hope i can find some way to improve it...
 
Do you like recorded music through your FRs? Does it sound "natural" to you? Then the Axe should too. With some tweaking.

Do try other cab sims.

Chris Hurley said:
Unfortunately, I don't have any headphones that I love to play guitar through.

I think this is just a continuing battle with trying to adjust to playing the FRFR versus a guitar cab- that and it seems like my go-to amp Friedman BE seems completely different now. Could be in my head.

I hooked my guitar cabs back up again so that I can at least work from a familiar footing.

Soldiering on though.
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Friedman BE does seem changed. But I didn't spend much time with it since I just got the II.
 
shasha said:
I'm with you on this one. I hate to come off like a jerk, but there was only a handful of stock presets that I was really impressed with, but I just nuked the thing and put them all in there. I'm sure I'll narrow it down soon enough and that I'll be tweaking to my own tastes, but this is hands down the best set I've heard yet. Not even close to be honest.

With that said I'd chalk as much if not more of it to personal taste. Even a lot of the stuff that I kind of cringed over because it was just too effect heavy has me smiling these days.
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Nah. You're just gettin soft. The effects fairies are wearing you down and drawing you in with their siren song!

YOU ARE SLIPPING, MAN!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAYL5H46QnQ
 
i love how the people who say it sucks don't see the TONS of threads and posts saying it rules
 
Space Firebird said:
Also, I read that it is advisable to use a single coil pickup for auditioning the presets, I think this point gets glossed over.
I think the presets are great, a bunch of different amps and cabs already preprogrammed and set up for fine tuning by me.
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+1, I also have the impression that a lot of the presets (especially clean/slight breakup ones) have been tuned to single coils (use a coil split on my guitar). But I would expect it to differ from preset to preset. Do you have a link to that statement by any chance?
 
I don't think anybody at Fractal would officially recommend a specific type of guitar or pickup to use with the first 50 presets. I certainly wouldn't and it doesn't sound like something Cliff or Matt would say either.

Most presets were auditioned with humbucker and single-coil. Various guitars were used (PRS, Fender, Suhr, at the very least).

Some sounds obviously work better with one type of pickup than the other... but then again so do the real amps.
 
I see lots of people who are loving the new release. A number of people are raving about the presets, so I assume that the presets must be fine. I'm just not hearing "it" on my setup and figured that must mean my cabinets aren't very good after all. I wouldn't normally pay that much attention to the presets since presets never really light me up- I guess they are working for most other people. Imagine that.

I reset my system parms and re-uploaded the bank but no change that I noticed.

Recorded music sounds great to me. I haven't measured the cabinets but audio sounds clear, neutral and clean to me. Doesn't sound super hyped. Its not like a car stereo.

I don't usually play with a lot of effects. When trying to get a sound, I disable everything but the amp and cab (if running FRFR). I may eventually use effects on the result, but not while I'm trying to get my bearing.

The biggest thing I'm probably fighting is that I'm back to playing something that isn't like playing a guitar amp again. And before someone says "that's what the audience hears, get over it", no it isn't. Ideally, the audience hears a guitarist who is playing, enjoying and connecting with his instrument and amp. When you strip away the enjoyment of connecting with the amp, what the audience hears isn't the same.

The crazy thing is that I've played shows where I really enjoyed what was coming out of the monitors. The soundman didn't spend a ton of time setting up the mic. Sadly, I don't have access to those folks at this time and there were of course other times where I didn't like what was coming out of the monitors but had to deal with it to do a show. Those of you that have done live shows have likely been there.

Anyway, I was getting close with 5.07. I suspect I can do it again. I was just curious about whether I was the only one that wasn't getting it with my FRFR rig. I'll certainly keep after it.

I appreciate the suggestions- even though I am evidently one of "those people" making one of "those posts". heh. What a jerk.
 
Chris Hurley said:
I see lots of people who are loving the new release. A number of people are raving about the presets, so I assume that the presets must be fine. I'm just not hearing "it" on my setup and figured that must mean my cabinets aren't very good after all. I wouldn't normally pay that much attention to the presets since presets never really light me up- I guess they are working for most other people. Imagine that.

I reset my system parms and re-uploaded the bank but no change that I noticed.

Recorded music sounds great to me. I haven't measured the cabinets but audio sounds clear, neutral and clean to me. Doesn't sound super hyped. Its not like a car stereo.

I don't usually play with a lot of effects. When trying to get a sound, I disable everything but the amp and cab (if running FRFR). I may eventually use effects on the result, but not while I'm trying to get my bearing.

The biggest thing I'm probably fighting is that I'm back to playing something that isn't like playing a guitar amp again. And before someone says "that's what the audience hears, get over it", no it isn't. Ideally, the audience hears a guitarist who is playing, enjoying and connecting with his instrument and amp. When you strip away the enjoyment of connecting with the amp, what the audience hears isn't the same.

The crazy thing is that I've played shows where I really enjoyed what was coming out of the monitors. The soundman didn't spend a ton of time setting up the mic. Sadly, I don't have access to those folks at this time and there were of course other times where I didn't like what was coming out of the monitors but had to deal with it to do a show. Those of you that have done live shows have likely been there.

Anyway, I was getting close with 5.07. I suspect I can do it again. I was just curious about whether I was the only one that wasn't getting it with my FRFR rig. I'll certainly keep after it.

I appreciate the suggestions- even though I am evidently one of "those people" making one of "those posts". heh. What a jerk.
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Skip all the negative folks; they exist on every forum on earth. The Internet is an odd place.

What is your FRFR? (Excuse me if I missed it). What is your setup like? How are your global settings? What guitar are you using? What is your I/O Input setting? Are you hitting the red on the input light at all? Have you just tried to dial up your own sounds yet? Presets are like a taste test to me; I'd rather cook my own food.
 
These are Thee Hallowed se7en steps of presetNESS! << Is that even a wurd?:eek:

1. Change strings...
2. If you have actives: Change batteries...
3. Order Pizza...
4. Get a 12 pack of your favorite drink...
5. Get Pizza, Use the bathroom, Lock door to your music room...
6. Tweak to taste thru YOUR monitoring system, REPEAT...
7. PERIOD!



goodluck8)
 
+1 ..and don't overlook the possibility that maybe your ears are tired at the moment. One day's "bad" tone may "sound" completely "great" on a "better" day (either that or gremlins mess with the Axe when we're away).

Best regards
 
AdamCook said:
I don't think anybody at Fractal would officially recommend a specific type of guitar or pickup to use with the first 50 presets. I certainly wouldn't and it doesn't sound like something Cliff or Matt would say either.
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I tend to use my guitar with SD P-Rails in it for preset auditioning, since I can switch pickups types.
 
As much as the new presets have been "improved" I think the only ones I leave as is and actually use are the Clean ones.
For all of the mid to High gain amps I'd rather create my own as I have definite tones in my head that I want to try and capture and
my patches sound quite a bit different when I go from my BRJ 7 string with BK HolyDivers in it to my Jackson SL2H-MAH soloist with the JB/Jazz combo in it
to my GMW strat with the TB5/59 combo in it, to my Charvel with Dimarzios in it.
I've noticed that the Axe II seems to be pretty 'aware" of the guitar that is feeding the signal.(which to me is quite impressive)
I've been able to dial in my patches to where I like them in 6.0 thru my monitors.
Thru my Art SLA2 into my Recto cab, my patches still sound off to me from where I had them in 5.07 , but I "get" that the amp models have changed
so I'm in for some "re-eq-ing".
come on Atomic and Matrix! those CLR monitors can't get here quick enough :)
 
What I was referring to is yourself posting a completely unqualified comment that was neither a question or a statement. For a question to have any logical sense it requires at least some sort of outlining parameters or points of reference. For instance if you had said "Hey guys, I have just loaded version 6 and NOW the stock presets sound shit through the same speakers" well that has a point of reference to work from, or similarly if you had said "Hey guys I have just bought a new AxeFx II, plugged it into my speakers and it sounds shit" well even that has a point of reference. But to say "Version 6 presets sound shit, is it my speakers" is pointless. You are basically asking everyone to start thinking for you and go through all of the endless possibilities of why a preset sounds shit. It's like saying "Hey Guys, I'm cold, is it the weather or should I put on a jacket?"

I apologize if I came across as a jerk but it is a very busy time on the forum right now as you well know and lots of folks are having problems, including my self, and the least you can do is to give some accurate concise details of what is wrong and how you have attempted to fix it.

My apologies once again
Regards Simon
 
vestapol said:
+1 ..and don't overlook the possibility that maybe your ears are tired at the moment. One day's "bad" tone may "sound" completely "great" on a "better" day (either that or gremlins mess with the Axe when we're away).

Best regards
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There is a lot of truth to this. Environmental issues come into play as well. I've had rehearsals where a rig that normally kills just didn't right. Same room, same everything... different weather or different body chemistry or both. Good point. thanks.
 
Scott Peterson said:
Skip all the negative folks; they exist on every forum on earth. The Internet is an odd place.

What is your FRFR? (Excuse me if I missed it). What is your setup like? How are your global settings? What guitar are you using? What is your I/O Input setting? Are you hitting the red on the input light at all? Have you just tried to dial up your own sounds yet? Presets are like a taste test to me; I'd rather cook my own food.
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I understand that a lot is lost in text communications. People read what I wrote and maybe don't get what I meant and then I don't get what they meant when the reply... oh well.

I have bottom-feeder FRFR equipment. Alto TS112A. Guitar is my Samick Royale RL/2 with regular duncan design korean humbuckers... same as the last five years. I/O is out 1 via XLR to FRFR. Global settings are straight up. Input LED's tickle occasionally.

Look, normally I just ignore presets. Most of the time, the best value I get from them is an example of how to do something crazy with effects. This time around, I heard so much about how good these were and they just weren't doing it for me and it seemed like a sort of solemn reminder that I don't have $1500+ FRFR. I was interested to see if I was the only one that wasn't getting it. They aren't bad, but I'm not hearing any radical difference from previous sets of presets in terms of "wow! That's awesome". I'm not trying to minimize the work done on the presets because my understanding was that Presets universally fail for some large chunk of people and thats just how it works due to all the variables.

I have been trying my own patches. amp+cab. I think I have two thinks at work- the FRFR maybe just isn't that great, FRFR is still sort of foreign to me and my go-to amp Friedman BE has been away at a self-help seminar and now isn't like I remember it. I'll keep after it. Maybe the Cameron's will work better for me now- sort of a reverse.
 
SimonDreyer said:
I apologize if I came across as a jerk but it is a very busy time on the forum right now as you well know and lots of folks are having problems, including my self, and the least you can do is to give some accurate concise details of what is wrong and how you have attempted to fix it.

My apologies once again
Regards Simon
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So basically this boils down to you not feeling like your particular issue has been solved and mine isn't perhaps as well articulated as yours and as such does not deserve attention or comments that could better be spent on helping you.

Is that about the size of it?

I think most forums can handle multiple threads at the same time. That's one of the main reasons why they are divided up various ways.
 
Chris Hurley said:
I have bottom-feeder FRFR equipment. Alto TS112A. Guitar is my Samick Royale RL/2 with regular duncan design korean humbuckers... same as the last five years. I/O is out 1 via XLR to FRFR. Global settings are straight up. Input LED's tickle occasionally.

Look, normally I just ignore presets. Most of the time, the best value I get from them is an example of how to do something crazy with effects. This time around, I heard so much about how good these were and they just weren't doing it for me and it seemed like a sort of solemn reminder that I don't have $1500+ FRFR. I was interested to see if I was the only one that wasn't getting it. They aren't bad, but I'm not hearing any radical difference from previous sets of presets in terms of "wow! That's awesome". I'm not trying to minimize the work done on the presets because my understanding was that Presets universally fail for some large chunk of people and thats just how it works due to all the variables.
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I've got high to low end gear.

From my experience, you should just set your expectations.

I have gigged with 100$ US Kustom powered monitor and loved it. Does it sound the same as my BagEnd wedges + crown amp... not close... but I can still enjoy it and its fun to play through.

The same with my cheap guitars... it doesn't lessen my enjoyment because I know what to expect.

For me, cheaper speakers sound worse the more you crank them... and unfortunately this is counter to the jaw dropping effect of the factory banks... the factory banks are very very good when cranked, IMO.

Richard
 
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