I'm done

[Gasp100]

I've been through everything multiple times with modeling gear -- I've had it ALL multiple times. The only things I have not tried are top notch FRFR or top notch solid state power amp / cabinet. This is for many reasons, mainly lack of funds and beyond that, lack of wanting to dedicate funds to a monitoring solution (especially as a primary home player).
Finally I have my "rigs" and I'm done. I've had a Suhr Badger 18 in my house for a couple of weeks and it's a benchmark amp for me! Used, the price is acceptable. It sounds GREAT loud and great very low volume. This one was upgraded with a well broken in Scumback M75 which is an amazing speaker and it sounded like a fantastic Vox mixed with a miniature Plexi. The Badger compresses at lot so 18 watts might not be enough to cut clean head room live... but it's sweet. My son plays drums so I can beta test all of my gear with him on the kit at volume which is extremely helpful to really know if patches/rigs are lining up correctly.
Well... the Badger is gone. I'm rocking the AxeFX II with 8.01 into the Matrix GT800FX into a Port City OS 1x12 with ASW Crossroads. The speaker is STILL stiff, but finally breaking in a bit and man it's getting creamy tones with any Marshall-esque patch from the II.
I tried this exact rig with an 11R and it sounded pretty nice, slightly metallic but very good, especially for the price. Side by side the Badger still ran circles around it because of the M75, compression and tube sweetness (no other way to describe).
But with the II the gap is almost completely closed -- and the wins on the recording/studio front, headphone options, incredible built in FX and FINALLY seriously versatile and killer LOUD, realistic tones through this live rig are astonishing. Big, huge, lush cleans... FX sound amazing (better than any pedal or multiFX I have ever used). Each amp sim sounds very much different (1987x treble vs. Plexi Normal vs. JTM45... totally unique sounds through this setup!).
I just need to trade my 3 space rack for a 4 space and grab a midi controller and I'm done. I guess I could even capture an IR from this power amp + cab? Might be cool.
This is an easily transportable and compact rig that is super versatile and should be able to handle any stage (backline duties, monitoring, FOH, etc...)
Okay, back to playing LOUD and enjoying it!
(I shoud mention that I use global EQ on output 2 to boost 1k, 2k and 4k by 1.5-2.0). Also, this particular II is almost completely silent The GT800FX fan is a tad noisey in a totally silent room but beyond that the entire setup is almost completely quiet at idle as well as a fantastic noisegate on the II.

 

[shredmiyagi]

I'm a bit intrigued by the Port City cabs.. hearing rave reviews.

I thought FRFR/AxeFX were meant to be?

Do you have all the power amp / cab modeling turned off on the Axe?

 

[Willowdale]

Have you thought of trying a Scumback M75 in the Port City??

 

[mmcm4]

I'm a bit intrigued by the Port City cabs.. hearing rave reviews.

I thought FRFR/AxeFX were meant to be?

Do you have all the power amp / cab modeling turned off on the Axe?

I love running a cab with my AxeFX. I think FRFR would be neat to try, but I'm not ready to mess with it yet.

 

[KJR123]

Also, this particular II is almost completely silent

Any idea why your axe-fx II is so quiet? Was there a fan change?

 

[stratzrus]

I just need to trade my 3 space rack for a 4 space and grab a midi controller and I'm done. I guess I could even capture an IR from this power amp + cab? Might be cool.

From what I've heard, capturing an IR from your own cab can be a big plus. It may make it easier to get the tones you're used to when recording or feeding FOH.

I'm a bit intrigued by the Port City cabs.. hearing rave reviews. I thought FRFR/AxeFX were meant to be?

There are many good reasons to go FRFR and some good reasons to go amp and cab.

Neither is inherently better than the other, each has advantages in certain applications. If you are gigging in venues where the audience primarily hears the FOH, using a FRFR monitor should enable you to hear a tone very similar to what the audience is hearing and that can be an advantage. It will also allow you to dial in tones at home and you'll have the same tone when you gig once you make global adjustments for the venue.

An advantage of using an amp and cab is that it is easier to get the "amp in the room" tones at home and on stage because you actually have an amp in the room. For playing at home and playing in venues with no sound reinforcement you can have an experience that's similar to what you had with your traditional amp. It will have the same limits of a combo or traditional cab though, specifically more off axis high end roll off. A good FRFR monitor will have wider dispersion and will sound more uniform in the room.

I chose to use an amp and cab because I had them already when I bought my Axe FX and the gear I had happened to be well suited for that application. With an amp and cab you don't have the FRFR learning curve nor the hassle of having to match the right IR with the proper mic and mic placement. In short, it's an easier and quicker way to get results that are likely to sound better at home but there are drawbacks when gigging.

Which one is best for you depends on your own particularities and tonal preferences. Each has its pros and cons.

 

[Fractal Audio]

That's what you always say, LOL. ;-)

 

[chrishurley]

I thought this was going to be an "I'm done, going back to amps..." post.

 

[Sixstring]

That's funny I thought you already had an Axe II... Though I doubt your done, that high end FR monitor is calling you, Buy me Greg buy me....

 

[JPenn]

congrats!!! i would really love to try an axe, but the funds just aren't there. i have managed to do a few gigs just using my old spider valve head straight out of the xlr and fed thru my vocal monitor. i am really looking fwd to the day when i can purchase a hi end modeler/frfr. i'm not sure i'll ever go back to a real amp again

 

[Scott Peterson]

RCF.... Matrix.... Meyer Sound... it's the siren's call...

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Forum Runner

 

[lspaulsp]

Way to go GASP. I'm glad you're happy always loved your posts.

 

[Spider-Man]

Glad to hear that you have settled on a solution that's working well for you!

The AxeII totally killed any amp GAS I have and it's working great for me with my FRFR monitors (either the Verve 8ma or the RCF NX12 depending on how much volume I need).

Now if only I could do something about my guitar GAS problem....

 

[Count_Chocolat]

The axe 2 completely killed my amp gas. On a parallel, over the past 2 years I purchased a suhr classic and a suhr S4. That has completely killed my guitar gas. While my K10 sound quite good, I think that is the last piece in the chain where I have not yet found the game ender!

 

[tweedster]

I don't have amp or FX GAS anymore, I have FRFR GAS now. I have 2 FBT 8" powered monitors, and I'm jonesing for a pair of RCF 12". I will be running everything through this pair (MIDI bass & drums, live vox and piano, and AXE-FX II. Now to come up with the scratch. The EV 112p looks good, but does it sound good? Only the ears know (and they can be fooled for short periods of time).

 

[shasha]

Since the AxeFXII the only GAS I get is from Taco Bell.

 

[moo cow]

I've got a k12 and a ev112 that I run as a stereo rig. The k12 is quieter, less hiss, but sounds a touch warmer to my ears. But my ears aren't golden like some folks here so I'm pretty easy to please. HOWEVER when I started running stereo outs the whole 3D thing came alive, even at bedroom levels. Now I don't like to play it without both.

 

[fr8_trane]

Greg are you running it with the cab sims off? Modelling always sounds better to me running into a real cab with the cab sims off.

Also like someone else said if you like the scumback speakers so much why not swap one into your port city?

 

[Yek]

I've been through everything multiple times with modeling gear -- I've had it ALL multiple times. The only things I have not tried are top notch FRFR or top notch solid state power amp / cabinet. This is for many reasons, mainly lack of funds and beyond that, lack of wanting to dedicate funds to a monitoring solution (especially as a primary home player).
Finally I have my "rigs" and I'm done. I've had a Suhr Badger 18 in my house for a couple of weeks and it's a benchmark amp for me! Used, the price is acceptable. It sounds GREAT loud and great very low volume. This one was upgraded with a well broken in Scumback M75 which is an amazing speaker and it sounded like a fantastic Vox mixed with a miniature Plexi. The Badger compresses at lot so 18 watts might not be enough to cut clean head room live... but it's sweet. My son plays drums so I can beta test all of my gear with him on the kit at volume which is extremely helpful to really know if patches/rigs are lining up correctly.
Well... the Badger is gone. I'm rocking the AxeFX II with 8.01 into the Matrix GT800FX into a Port City OS 1x12 with ASW Crossroads. The speaker is STILL stiff, but finally breaking in a bit and man it's getting creamy tones with any Marshall-esque patch from the II.
I tried this exact rig with an 11R and it sounded pretty nice, slightly metallic but very good, especially for the price. Side by side the Badger still ran circles around it because of the M75, compression and tube sweetness (no other way to describe).
But with the II the gap is almost completely closed -- and the wins on the recording/studio front, headphone options, incredible built in FX and FINALLY seriously versatile and killer LOUD, realistic tones through this live rig are astonishing. Big, huge, lush cleans... FX sound amazing (better than any pedal or multiFX I have ever used). Each amp sim sounds very much different (1987x treble vs. Plexi Normal vs. JTM45... totally unique sounds through this setup!).
I just need to trade my 3 space rack for a 4 space and grab a midi controller and I'm done. I guess I could even capture an IR from this power amp + cab? Might be cool.
This is an easily transportable and compact rig that is super versatile and should be able to handle any stage (backline duties, monitoring, FOH, etc...)
Okay, back to playing LOUD and enjoying it!
(I shoud mention that I use global EQ on output 2 to boost 1k, 2k and 4k by 1.5-2.0). Also, this particular II is almost completely silent The GT800FX fan is a tad noisey in a totally silent room but beyond that the entire setup is almost completely quiet at idle as well as a fantastic noisegate on the II.

Interesting!

I've used my Axe-Fx with a 100w Scumback M75 in my 1x12. But the 100w version of the M75 is too dark [EDIT: upon further investigation it wasn't the M75 which was too dark]. I put my EVM back in, which I like, but I still want to explore further "greenback" possibilities.

This ASW Crossroads speaker certainly looks promising, gets great reviews and has enough power with 70 watts. It's expensive though. Love to hear more about your experiences with it, at low and medium-to-high volume levels.

Edit: I also use FR montoring (the excellent RCF NX SMA12), but given the choice, I prefer a power amp+real cab for stage / backline amplification.

 

[Fractal Audio]

I'm looking forward to checking out some of the FRFR options at the convention next weekend. I'll give my opinions after.