Petrucci using AXEFX

[ryjan]

I finally had a chance to play one of these and WOW, this thing is over-hyped. The effects were entertaining, but this thing sounded pretty digital to me. I had my suspicions from youtube videos, but I wouldn't judge a tone completely from a mystery recording.

Well, I guess some people just like how things like this sound.

What were you plaing it through? I hooked mine up through my crappy little pa with Behringer active speakers as it sounded fizzy and digitally. When I run it through a QSC power amp into my Marshall cab or through a quality pa system it sounds like a big screaming orgasm inducing machine with a lightsaber. 8)

 

[rocknroll9225]

 

[woodbutcher65]

I have and use an Axe-FX II and while I would not say that it quite matches up to any of my Boogies on the same tones that it's supposed to emulate, if you're careful to adjust the settings properly it'll get you awfully close. It doesn't feel quite so "alive" as a real screaming tube amp but if you were listening to a recording of one or the other and not know which you were listening to, you might guess the wrong one if asked to guess which one is being used at the moment.

The great thing about a modelling amp is that it means you can have as many amp tones as you want without having to haul around that many different real amps. You haul around as many real amps as you WANT to, and the Fractal gives you the tones of the others you'd rather not lug around with you.

I don't hate on modellers (well, not on the Fractals, anyway...) but I don't claim that they're absolutely equal to tube amps yet, either. But they are really good and well worth having.