Is the Axe-FX just a passing fad?
- Thread starter InAbsentia_
- Start date
No, rather because it will eventually become obsolete. Case in point: No tube amp or speaker cabinet has yet become obsolete. A 5150+Mesa OS cannot be considered a fad because it will simply not go away. Not unless there's a paradigm shift in the way the guitar is recorded for Metal. Impulses are close, but no cigar. The AxeFX is impulses.
It's TGP that's to blame and the attitude of certain users/evangelists that resort to rather deplorable personal attacks when the discussion is not going their way. That said the intrinsic value of an AxeFX is not quite comparable to the value of the separate units that it emulates. A Plexi will never be cheaper than an AxeFX. This might in and of itself be ridiculous but it's not really the most logical world we live in
Valid point and I support it fully. The unit is unmatched in what it does today.
I'm not so sure I like them at all after that episode on guitarampmodeling but YMMV.
guitarguru777
Member
And you know this cause you have played through so many Uberschalls in your life. You probably have never even seen one out side of a photo or someone playing one on stage. I doubt in a a big way you have played through one...
A: for long enough to know what it can do, and compare the AxeFX to it
B: for long enough to even dial in a good tone on it
Now that being said, how many times have you actually played through an AxeFX? How many times have you plugged YOUR guitar into it, and plugged it into YOUR DAW / Amp and took the time to tweak it so it sounds good?
Never huh ... ya just what I thought.
Yet, you make these outlandish claims having never even used one, and you just judge by the tone you hear online that it HAS to be an AxeFX cause they claim it is.
I have sat down with the AxeFX for a few hours and got usable tone. Nothing that totally blew me away, but enough to say "hey this could be a great studio tool". My 5150 and Marshall Cab slays the 5150 model AxeFX even more so when running it direct.
All of these GREAT TONES you are hear are these guys taking the AxeFX and pumping it through the power section of a real tube amp. So WTF, Do you really need a $2k preamp when the Engl 530 or Marshall JMP1 is half the price? Even the Digitech 1101 is cheaper and sounds just as good when run through a tube power amp. Especially the ENGL Simulation in it.
So how is the 2k price justified when you can get BETTER tone from the real gear for less money? If the Versatility alone is worth 2k thats up to the user. But I personally only use 3 tones live. Clean / Dirty / Lead, and there is nothing better then my CE-2 and DD-3 boss pedals live no matter what anyone says.
Why? That cab was removed directly after the complaint.
I really miss that impulse, it was perfect for me. Haven't found one that was better after that one, I use the original impulse now but it just isn't the same.
crillemannen
Member
+ 1
That's what i mean!!! I would rather spend 2k on a real amp then going that long route spending twice as much just for the effects...
For a live situation i would probably use 1 lead tone, 1 rythm tone and 1 clean tone + a delay in the fx. Thats all i need. Not 1000 different simulations.
Josh Burgess
Member
I used to own an Uberschall, and I'm not even that big a fan of it (much prefer my 5150/5150 III), but the old Uberschall sim on the Axe-FX totally sucked in comparison to the real thing. I've heard they have reworked it since I sold my Axe-FX though. So, maybe it's better now...
I like the Axe-FX, mostly for the effects and clean sounds, but for $2K I felt like I really didn't need or would use a lot of the effects. I'm mostly into time/space based effects like delays and reverbs... I loved a lot of the complicated ambient/atmospheric patches, but there were a lot of effects that would go to waste too. I also found some of them pretty cheesy and not really up to the same level of quality as others... the synth, for example... I would never use that in place of even the most mediocre sounding software synth...
If someone gave me another Axe-FX (or I had an excessive amount of cash to pick another up) I'd be happy and definitely put it to use, but most of us have to prioritize our spending, and I just think I had better uses for the money.
There's also lots of little things I don't like about it... things like:
1. The sample rate when going direct in digitally is 48kHz... I always work in 44.1kHz, so that's just annoying to me...
2. The outputs can only be line level. It's not possible to have them set at instrument level. This can be really inconvenient when wanting to use it live with a real amp... for example, the 4 cable method... If Eventide can put a switch to toggle between line level and instrument level on a $300 delay pedal, then there's no reason something as expensive as the Axe-FX shouldn't have the same capability.
3. A lot of the people who post on their forum act as if they are part of a cult or something... it's a bit ridiculous.
4. Although it does many things really well, it really just doesn't nail the high gain saturated modern metal kind of guitar tones most of us here are into (in my opinion). I prefer a real amp and cab nowadays, but the best high gain digital amp sim tones I've heard have all come from the POD/POD Farm. People bag on the POD all the time, but if I couldn't mic up real amps and cabs I think the kind of tones Joey Sturgis/Joshua Wickman/etc. get with the POD would probably be the next best thing. Hell, even guys like Andy Sneap and James Murphy use POD Farm for bass tones... and I think most people already know the POD can pull off pretty nice clean tones (as can other amp sims... Amplitube Fender is another good one)...
And yes, I tried it through poweramps and a cab. I directly A/B'd with the 5150, and it just didn't sound as good to me... I tried it with both a VHT 2/50/2 and the power section of a 5150. I also tried using my real tubescreamer in conjunction with the Axe-FX... but no matter what I tried, it lost to the real amps... I had the thing for two years, and I gave it a fair shot, so I don't really think my opinion is all that biased... EDIT: If I ever were to try it out again, I think I would want to try it out with the Mesa 2:90 poweramp... might not make much of a difference, but maybe...
I honestly think a lot of the big guys like Vai or Petrucci that have started using it are using it at least partly just because of how much buzz there is about it right now. These kinds of guys have always had huge racks of effects... which might be proportional to the size of their egos... They always want to be on top of the latest and greatest, you know? A lot of people see guys like that are using it, and then they must have it... I don't know. I guess nowadays I care a lot more about what kinds of gear my favorite producers are using than what kind of gear my favorite musicians are using...
I like the Axe-FX, mostly for the effects and clean sounds, but for $2K I felt like I really didn't need or would use a lot of the effects. I'm mostly into time/space based effects like delays and reverbs... I loved a lot of the complicated ambient/atmospheric patches, but there were a lot of effects that would go to waste too. I also found some of them pretty cheesy and not really up to the same level of quality as others... the synth, for example... I would never use that in place of even the most mediocre sounding software synth...
If someone gave me another Axe-FX (or I had an excessive amount of cash to pick another up) I'd be happy and definitely put it to use, but most of us have to prioritize our spending, and I just think I had better uses for the money.
There's also lots of little things I don't like about it... things like:
1. The sample rate when going direct in digitally is 48kHz... I always work in 44.1kHz, so that's just annoying to me...
2. The outputs can only be line level. It's not possible to have them set at instrument level. This can be really inconvenient when wanting to use it live with a real amp... for example, the 4 cable method... If Eventide can put a switch to toggle between line level and instrument level on a $300 delay pedal, then there's no reason something as expensive as the Axe-FX shouldn't have the same capability.
3. A lot of the people who post on their forum act as if they are part of a cult or something... it's a bit ridiculous.
4. Although it does many things really well, it really just doesn't nail the high gain saturated modern metal kind of guitar tones most of us here are into (in my opinion). I prefer a real amp and cab nowadays, but the best high gain digital amp sim tones I've heard have all come from the POD/POD Farm. People bag on the POD all the time, but if I couldn't mic up real amps and cabs I think the kind of tones Joey Sturgis/Joshua Wickman/etc. get with the POD would probably be the next best thing. Hell, even guys like Andy Sneap and James Murphy use POD Farm for bass tones... and I think most people already know the POD can pull off pretty nice clean tones (as can other amp sims... Amplitube Fender is another good one)...
And yes, I tried it through poweramps and a cab. I directly A/B'd with the 5150, and it just didn't sound as good to me... I tried it with both a VHT 2/50/2 and the power section of a 5150. I also tried using my real tubescreamer in conjunction with the Axe-FX... but no matter what I tried, it lost to the real amps... I had the thing for two years, and I gave it a fair shot, so I don't really think my opinion is all that biased... EDIT: If I ever were to try it out again, I think I would want to try it out with the Mesa 2:90 poweramp... might not make much of a difference, but maybe...
I honestly think a lot of the big guys like Vai or Petrucci that have started using it are using it at least partly just because of how much buzz there is about it right now. These kinds of guys have always had huge racks of effects... which might be proportional to the size of their egos... They always want to be on top of the latest and greatest, you know? A lot of people see guys like that are using it, and then they must have it... I don't know. I guess nowadays I care a lot more about what kinds of gear my favorite producers are using than what kind of gear my favorite musicians are using...
ParsonsMatt
Alas, Tyranny
What the hell kind of drugs are you on dude?
A tool as versatile/deep as the Axe-FX for only a "few hours" and you write it off? Funny. After criticizing Drew for the same thing in the same post...
Not really. Samhillband on youtube gets awesome tone with an ART SLA2 SS power amp, and many good recorded clips are direct.
The Axe-FX is not JUST a preamp. It is also an effects unit on par with Eventides that -also- cost $2000.
If you don't need a wide variety of tones or effects.. then you are correct... the Axe-FX isn't for you. But that doesn't mean it isn't worth the $2,000 price for the Ultra, or the $1,500 for the Standard. $2,000 is a very reasonable price given the quantity and quality of amp simulations and effects.
drew_drummer
Dancefap
What the fuck are you talking about? You're the one acting like a whiny bitch, not I. There is a difference between calling you guys out on your utter idiocy, and being a whiny bitch.
And there are at least two people here also saying that calling it a fad is just wrong.
And you need to fucking learn to read. I've already said I don't care about authenticity. I used Mesa's, Peavy's, Marshalls, Oranges, and Laneys. You're right, I've never played a real Uberschall. They're not that common over here.
But what I said was that the MODEL was fat. I made no comparison with the real amp. So pull your head out your arse. Or go fuck yourself. Either way... I've got to tell you, I've noticed you've been a bit of a cock towards me in several threads now, and I'm just about ready to call you a cunt and ignore you.
drew_drummer
Dancefap
You absolute FUCKING MORON. I've said twice now in this thread and another thread before that I WENT TO A GUYS HOUSE YESTERDAY AND USED AN AXE FX FOR SEVERAL HOURS! I took my guitar, and had a few cups of tea with the guy, some good chattage and some good riffage.
Get that through your idiot brain.
drew_drummer
Dancefap
As for the 5150+Recto being impossible to be a fad. I don't think that is true judging by the definition posted earlier:
noun
a temporary fashion, notion, manner of conduct, etc., esp. one followed enthusiastically by a group.
noun
a temporary fashion, notion, manner of conduct, etc., esp. one followed enthusiastically by a group.
guitarguru777
Member
Josh Burgess
Member
Eh, it depends how loosely you define the word fad... a case could be made for metal itself being a fad... or any other genre of music... or even guitar playing...
drew_drummer
Dancefap
LOLZ .... Drew you will always be a cunt no matter what
I Love you
I love the sound of backpeddling. Catch you later faggoth the 2nd!
drew_drummer
Dancefap
Well this is the problem. No one has acknowledged that the word fad is bullshit. It's something people use to dismiss something else, without giving it the critical thought that it requires.
guitarguru777
Member
No backpedaling at all. Plain and simple its comes down to you are trying to find a way to justify a preamp that in another few years will be obsolete, and every time someone tells you its a waste of money you cry.
Do what ya want but in a few years when the thing is worthless cause something better comes alone we will all just stand here and say "We told ya so".
You are better off spending the $1500 to $2k on a few good tube amps and being happy with it. For the price you could get a used 5150 and a used Dual Recto and have a shitload of tones at your disposal. Hell if you up it to 2k you can throw a 530 Engl in there too. but anyway .... you have your AxeFX GAS and that's on you.
Do what ya want but in a few years when the thing is worthless cause something better comes alone we will all just stand here and say "We told ya so".
You are better off spending the $1500 to $2k on a few good tube amps and being happy with it. For the price you could get a used 5150 and a used Dual Recto and have a shitload of tones at your disposal. Hell if you up it to 2k you can throw a 530 Engl in there too. but anyway .... you have your AxeFX GAS and that's on you.
guitarguru777
Member
Oh I did twice ... called it a trend and not a fad. But then again ... either way its not gonna last.
drew_drummer
Dancefap
You tit. How dare you... actually how dare you!?! You make me want to vomit.
All I'm saying is that its value is SUBJECTIVE. I've not denied anyone else their opinion, just gave my own. That isn't crying... that's just the reality of the discussion.
At that point, I will have had years of usage from the thing. I wont care about 'we told you so' ... that's just the dumbest thing you've said so far.
A few good tube amps? Have you ever been to England? Finding a few good tube amps for £1825 isn't going to be that easy. Sure... 2nd hand... maybe.
I think you've got some issues man. You're hounding me for no good reason other than disagreeing with me. Did I bust out the insults with Jarko? No I did not. We agreed that we have some common ground, but not enough where we hold the same opinion.
Get on your bike.... have fun going backwards!
guitarguru777
Member
