Axe FX III - the Blog

Roland · November 2021

My FC-12 was faulty. G66 swapped it out against UK stock. I’ve no experience of AxeFX repairs, but wouldn’t be surprised if they handle that the same way. Most repairs are going to be at a component replacement level, which can be done in the UK, with the faulty item either being trashed or returned for examination.

WiresDreamDisasters · November 2021

I bought a B-stock FC12 and it came from UK stock too. Hope I didn't get your faulty one Roland!!

Roland · November 2021

If it’s the same one then Sukh will have fixed it.

mrkb · November 2021

Sukh as in the guy in Newcastle that sells the magnetic labels ? That would explain how he got “lent” a FM9.

Jonathanthomas83 · November 2021

paulmapp8306 said:

DefaultM said:

Does the price from G66 include tax etc like if you buy something from Thomann they sort it for you up front?

As roland says, you pay it BUT G66 reduce their price for UK customers accordingly. What you end up paying inc tax, is the same p[rice the rest of the EU pay with theres, pretty much.

Ah that's good to know and not immediately clear. Thank you!

paulmapp8306 · November 2021

mrkb said:

Sukh as in the guy in Newcastle that sells the magnetic labels ? That would explain how he got “lent” a FM9.

Hep. hes a great guy - used to live down south and weve met on a couple of occasions.

Roland · November 2021

Firmware 18.00 public beta is out. Not even going to think about upgrading until the full release have been out for a week or so.

Roland · November 2021

Another non-musical update.

Remember that I’m triggering lighting rig changes using the Midi block to change colourway when I change scene, and an external pedal which cycles between static, chase, and strobe settings. It’s been annoying me that I have to dedicate scene 1, which is my clean amp scene, to static lights. I really want the lights to pulse whilst playing, providing energy to the performance. At the same time I want quiescent lights (almost static) between songs.

Then I remembered reading the manual which talks about which scene to default to when changing preset. Page 47, Setup: Global Settings: Config

The solution is to use scene 8 between songs, and switch to scene 1 just before playing. Easy to set up. Copy scene 1 to scene 8, save the preset on scene 8, and change the “Default Scene” to “As Saved”. Scene 8 has purple lights, which will help me remember to change to scene 1 before playing.

paulmapp8306 · December 2021

liking that

Nerine · December 2021

Have enjoyed this thread so far.

I’ve been thinking of making the digital switch to an FM9 and Friedman ASC12.

Bigger gigs, take the powered cab, smaller ones, just the FM9.

Obviously gotta wait a while for the FM9 to become available, though.

DavusPG · December 2021

Yup the latest video from Leon Todd on the FM9 firmware updates suggests that it can do all I would need it to, although after a very near miss with a drunk punter, a pint of lager and my FC12 at our last gig, I'm thinking that keeping the "brains" of my rig tucked away at the back is a much better option than having everything there on the floor in front of me

TeleMaster · December 2021

DavusPG said:

Yup the latest video from Leon Todd on the FM9 firmware updates suggests that it can do all I would need it to, although after a very near miss with a drunk punter, a pint of lager and my FC12 at our last gig, I'm thinking that keeping the "brains" of my rig ticked away at the back is a much better option than having everything there on the floor in front of me

Same thing. Last gig I had notable drops of beer over my FC12. The only other thing you can do is insure it and then you're covered. Although with the levels of supply it could take a while to get a replacement.

FarleyUK · December 2021

Yeah, that's why i went rack mount for this 'iteration' of my modelling choices. Just makes more sense to me, and while it's maybe less portable, I also have a power conditioner rack unit in with the AFX3 that I can use to power a load of other stuff from a single plug - so that helps to also justify it for me.

Roland · December 2021

Having had drunks and dancers tripping over I prefer to have the minimum on the floor in front of me. An FM9 would be nice if I were touring with a proper stage. On the toilet circuit I’d rather use rack gear.

Roland · December 2021

A music related update. In an attempt to reduce cpu usage I’ve swapped the acoustic AMP block for a Filter block. It’s currently a flat filter because everything below 60Hz is blocked in the guitar channel on our XR18 mixing desk. If I ever need it I’ll change it to a high pass filter. Sound wise no one seemed to notice at last weekend’s rehearsal.

I’m also playing around with a Compressor block. Normally I don’t like compression, preferring to control volume and sustain with my fingers. One or two of the songs we’re looking at really need compression. The main culprit is David Guetta’s Titanium, for which I’m also having to automate changes in the Reverb mix. So far I’ve managed to avoid song specific presets, but I think that’s going to have to happen. In which case I’ll probably have to use per-song layout on the FC-12 too.

Roland · January 2022

Since last year I’ve focused down on one Amp type: the Two Rock, to make it easier to get consistency of sound. I like Dumble style amps, but to get clean, crunch, and lead sounds has meant using three different models. Whereas with the Two Rock I can get it all from one amp model. In rehearsal I’ve been matching it with a 2x12 Two Rock IR. it seemed to work in rehearsal.

Last night was our first gig of 2022. In my IEMs, and out front, my guitar sounded too harsh. So today I’ve opened up the rabbit hole that is IRs. Today was also an opportunity to upgrade to firmware 19. I can’t say whether I notice any difference.

jacob · January 2022

I noticed a huge difference with the latest poweramp modelling improvements. FW19 sounds more open and pleasing than previous versions.

Roland · January 2022

@jacob It’s interesting with upgrades. Where there’s an improvement in the sound it’s usually with openness and clarity as modelling artefacts are removed. We all play such different styles of music that it’s easy for some of us to notice a difference, and some of us not. I’m down to one amp type at the moment, with only two scenes using an overdriven amp, and I haven’t noticed much change in those scenes. Nowhere near as much difference as I’m hearing as I experiment with IRs.

Roland · April 2022

Roland said:

Last night was our first gig of 2022. In my IEMs, and out front, my guitar sounded too harsh. So today I’ve opened up the rabbit hole that is IRs ...

It turned out that I’d changed one of the IRs without noticing. I must have nudged a dial at some point, and gone to an adjacent IR. The digital equivalent of knocking an SM57 out of position near the speaker cone. Easily fixed once I’d found it.

Then I went down another rabbit hole auditioning amps. It was prompted by my new guitar build where a change of treble bleed circuit means it has less top end than its predecessor. For a lot of pop covers I need a clean sound. Sometimes very clean. Sometimes with just an edge of breakup on the higher note, but with the low notes still clean. I guess I grew up to the sound of Fender amps.

So I’ve got a Vibroverb configuration to try at this morning’s rehearsal. However much testing I do at home it’s only when I play with the band that I know whether a sound actually works.

FarleyUK · April 2022

Cooper Carter just released a very good video (as usual) covering some handy EQ tricks to make you stand out in a mix - https://forum.fractalaudio.com/threads/3-live-eq-tips-the-pros-use-to-take-tones-to-the-next-level-fractal-friday-with-cooper-carter-24.182815/#post-2246093

Roland · April 2022

Yeah, I knew the first two: high & low cut, and boosting around 1kHz. (I actually boost at 950Hz). The pick attack cut at 2.8kHz is new to me, and useful because it can be used to increase sustain without increasing compression.

FarleyUK · April 2022

FW 19.06 beta is out, which includes the much-requested Song and Setlist functionality.

Roland · April 2022

FarleyUK said:

FW 19.06 beta is out, which includes the much-requested Song and Setlist functionality.

19.6 is going to be interesting. For years I’ve been limiting my amp and effects choices to minimise the amount of switching I have to think about at a gig. My first line of switches on the FC12, and on the MFC before it, and on the Behringer 1010 before that, and even on the GT6, has gone: Clean, Crunch, Drive, Lead, Acoustic. Set list functionality will let me rethink that approach.

Usually I wait a few days to let any bugs appear. On this occasion I also want to finish playing with the Vibroverb, by which I mean get the preset to a stable state, before starting a new venture.

Jonathanthomas83 · April 2022

FarleyUK said:

FW 19.06 beta is out, which includes the much-requested Song and Setlist functionality.

Can you elaborate on what this means please mate? Sounds useful!

mrkb · April 2022

Jonathanthomas83 said:

FarleyUK said:

FW 19.06 beta is out, which includes the much-requested Song and Setlist functionality.

Can you elaborate on what this means please mate? Sounds useful!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtWYWkQrlyw

Jonathanthomas83 · April 2022

mrkb said:

Jonathanthomas83 said:

FarleyUK said:

FW 19.06 beta is out, which includes the much-requested Song and Setlist functionality.

Can you elaborate on what this means please mate? Sounds useful!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtWYWkQrlyw

Bloody 'ell, that's very cool! Thank you for the link!

DavusPG · April 2022

Didn't think I'd need the setlist function but it's very handy as it turns out, not only for gigs, but also for rapid recall/comparison of scenes from different presets.

I've been laid up with Covid for the last 10 days and have spent quite a bit of time tweaking various tones, but I won't know how good they really sound until I get into our rehearsal space and play them through the PA at volume with the rest of the band. Have loaded them into different "sections" of a couple of "songs" along with my current favourite tones so I can instantly compare/tweak them side by side.

Going to be useful for levelling different presets/scenes too I think

FarleyUK · April 2022

Used the set list function at a short gig last night - worked really well!

mrkb · April 2022

Just received a email from G66 saying new FC12 with bigger lcd strips is available! Fixes my only issue with the FC12.

TeleMaster · April 2022

I’ve sold my Axe and FC12. Good luck with yours guys. Great unit but I’ve gone back to an amp!

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