February 2016
My updated collection of presets for
Axe-Fx II XL, firmware
Quantum 2.
Right-click a link below, select Save or Download, unzip the downloaded file and use Axe-Edit or Fractal-Bot to load a preset or a preset bank.
- Main preset — single preset with 6 scenes. No global blocks.
- All sounds — my general purpose presets, stored in a bank file. No global blocks.
- All sounds (global blocks) — same as 2. With global blocks and required system data.
- Amp + Cab — my collection of basic amp+cab presets, featuring my favorite amp models. No global blocks.
- Presets for cover songs — my presets for the cover bands I play in. No global blocks. Version with global blocks available upon request.
Created by …
- These presets were created by me. Some are tweaked versions of factory presets. Some are tweaked versions of presets created by others (see bottom note).
Designed for …
- Every type of amplification / output: FR monitoring, direct-to-FOH, power amp + speaker cabinet (cabinet simulation disabled), headphones, recording., stereo or mono.
- Single coils and humbuckers. In some presets "Amp X" is designated for single coils and "Amp Y" for humbuckers.
- These presets are designed to be played loud! If you always play at low volume, you may want want to add some bass and treble.
Global Blocks
- I use global blocks in many presets. For your convenience I provide versions of presets with and without global blocks.
Global, I/O and Tuner settings
- Power Amp Modeling: yes. Cabinet Modeling: yes. Spillover: both. Global Amp Gain: 0. Input 1 Left Select: front. Input 1 Mode: left only. Output 1 Mode: stereo. Output 2 Mode: sum L+R. Scene Revert: on. Ignore Redundant PC: on. Display Offset: 1.
Amplification: Studio Monitors, FRFR amplification, Direct-to-FOH, Headphones
- My equipment: 2x Atomic CLR active wedge (home monitors, live monitors), headphones.
- This is the direct signal with cabinet simulation, through Output 1. Turn up OUT1 on the front panel to hear sound.
- I/O > Output 1 Mode is set to Stereo, even when running just a single output/monitor. The presets can be used in a mono setup without the risk of phase cancellation.
- I use the Global EQ to finetune the overall sound.
Amplification: Power Amp and Cabinet
- I use the same presets when playing through my Matrix GT1000FX power amp and traditional guitar cabinet. The cabinet is a Port City 2x12 Wave Vertical with EVM 12L and ASW KTS-70 speakers or Port City 1x12 Wave with ASW KTS-70 speaker.
- The FXL block in each preset routes the signal to Output 2, bypassing the Cab block.
- Some presets have a GEQ placed in front of the FXL block, bumping high frequencies. This improves the sound of "acoustic" and synth presets through a guitar cabinet.
- Output 2 Mode sums the stereo signal to mono. I've made sure there's no phase cancellation when running mono.
Amp blocks
- Many presets contain two Amp blocks. Amp 1 handles clean tones, Amp 2 handles dirty tones. In some presets X is designated for single coils. Y for humbuckers.
- I use a scene controller to vary gain in scenes 2-3-4-5-6 of my main preset.
- Advanced amp parameters in my global amp blocks are at default.
Cab block
- I use an UltraRes Cab block. In Stereo Mode to preserve the spread signal of stereo blocks before it.
- I usually use 3rd-party IRs, but I replaced those with stock cabs in the provided presets.
- No mic simulation, because the IRs I use have mics already baked-in.
- Other parameters are at default, except for Low Cut/Hi Cut.
- Some presets link to specific user cabs. Slot 2 contains the UltraRes guitar body IR. Slot 3 contains James Santiago's EchoPlex IR. Slot 5 contains a cello IR.
Presets
- The picture below shows my presets in the correct order, using 5 presets per bank.
- Some presets feature multiple scenes. If so, it's indicated in the preset title.
- The first preset (MAIN) is dedicated to my basic amp tones, using 6 scenes (clean - dirty - rock - heavy - lead 1 - lead 2). Scenes 2-5 are duplicated in presets 2-5 for quick access when switching presets.
- The preset levels are roughly balanced, using the VU meters and by ear.
- CPU usage is always below 90%, with an USB connection.
- Delay and Reverb are placed in parallel rows in most presets, because this makes it easier to manage levels.
- About the cover songs presets: I don't try to copy the exact amp tones, I stick to my favorite amp models. I do recreate some effects. Often a preset uses more than one scene, but never more than five. Scene which are not used are muted.
- The bar character "|", used in preset titles, instructs my RJM controller to hide the characters following that sign on the display.
Grid Template
- My default grid template features the effects shown below, saved as global blocks on my Axe-Fx II XL.
- Input gate settings are modest. Output mixer settings are at default. Input Impedance is set at 1M, which prevents "popping" when engaging the Phaser or Wah.
- All presets work well in stereo and when summed to mono (no phase cancellation).
- VOL — Attached to Envelope, for automatic volume swells.
- COMP — Compressor.
- WAH — Assigned to External 1 (pedal). Auto-engages.
- PEQ 2 — Applies EQ for "focussed" single lines.
- DRIVE — X = FAS Boost. Y = SDD preamp.
- FEEDBACK SEND/RETURN — Extends the routing.
- PHASER — X = Phase 90. Y = Uni-vibe. Placed in parallel, to save space.
- FLANGER — Jet flanger.
- FILTER — Boosts the amp's input stage.
- AMP(s).
- PITCH — Micro-pitch (detune).
- ROTARY — Leslie. X/Y are set to different speeds.
- TREMOLO — Rate controlled by an external controller.
- DELAY — X = short delay. Y = louder and longer.
- REVERB — Mode and quality setting depending on preset, mostly London Plate. Sometimes Spring Reverb when the CPU load is already high. Reverb Hold is assigned to a switch in some presets.
- GEQ 2 — Volume level boost for leads. X = 4 dB. Y = 2 dB.
- FXL: Routes the signal to Output 2 to feed a power amp and speaker cabinet. In some presets a GEQ is placed in front of FXL, bumping the highest frequencies, to improve the sound of "acoustic" presets and synth tones through a guitar cabinet.
- CAB — UltraRes IR(s). Set to Stereo to preserve the output of stereo blocks before the Cab block.
Foot Controller, Pedal, Switch
- I use a RJM Mastermind GT/22 foot controller, with a single expression pedal (video). My presets are optimized for this controller. The presets lend themselves also for use with the MFC-101.
- External controller 1 is a Mission EP-1 expression pedal (with switches and spring-loaded). Assigned to External 1. The pedal functions as a Wah in many presets. In other presets it fades in shimmer, operates as a Whammy or does other things (preset title: "/p"). I can also use the RJM controller to switch the pedal between tasks within a single preset.
- External controller 6 is an additional switch for some presets. Indicated in the preset title with "/s".
Credit for ideas include Cliff, M@, Javajunkie, Simeon, Bakerman, Swedish Chef, Fremen, AustinBuddy and others.