Why the Mark V has replaced my AXE-FX as my main gig rig

[gag halfrunt]

I never thought the day would come when an amp would dethrone my Axe-FX. But it has.

For those of you who don't have much experience with an Axe-FX, it is, in short, the real deal tube amp replacement. Once you learn to dial it in, you can get virtually any amp tone out there. And perhaps even better, you can get "your tone", a completely original tone (if there really is such a thing anymore). Once you learn how powerful the amp sim controls are (and how they interact - Power amp sag with the master volume, etc), you realize you are jamming the most powerful tone generator ever created. 5 years after its creation, and it's still the most impressive advancement in guitar tone in the past 20 years. It's not for everyone, but for a pure on-stage or studio tone machine, there's no equal anywhere.

So why have I switched? I just really miss gigging an amp. And now that I've found the first amp I feel that has GREAT cleans, GREAT crunch, and GREAT high gain, the pull to go back is just too strong.

I admit that it makes no sense. The Axe does so much more than any 10 tube amps can do. Logically, I really should not have switched. But I guess I played tube amps for so many years, starting in the 70's, that it's just indelibly printed on my musical DNA. Once an amp came along (the M5) that could do clean, crunch, and gain with no compromises, the Axe's days in my gig rig were numbered.

Just a little history:

I bought my Axe in early 2008, and began gigging it soon thereafter. It really is a cover band guitar player's dream. There's a learning curve to it, that's for sure. And the deepness of the menus and the sheer vast capabilities are sometimes daunting. But it delivers the tones in spades. Engl, VHT, Marshall, Recto, Bogner, old Fenders, Diezel, Cornford, etc, - it does a TON of great amp tones. Then there are are the studio quality effects. Really good.

If you need a lot of different amp tones (especially for live playing), the Axe-FX is dream come true. It's not just "the new POD." It's on par with tube amps, if dialed in correctly. And the MIDI switching capabilities make it very gig-friendly.

I play in a hard rock cover band, and I work hard to match my tones to the original bands. So, as flexible as the Mark V is, it can't cover all the dirt ground that I need to cover. So I have configured a pedalboard with 9, yes NINE dirt boxes on it, plus chorus, tuner, and wah (did I mention that I never lost my love for great pedals, either :mrgreen: ). With these and the Mark V, I've got all the tonal bases covered for my band.

My Axe is getting a well deserved rest right now, back in the studio. The Mark V is in the rehearsal space, in the gig rotation.

 

[YellowJacket]

I don't blame you for switching. Between the all the power options and all the tones, you can basically have any flavour of 'Mark' tone you want out of the V. It astounds me how good the Mark V sounds at low volumes. The perfect practice and gig rig all in one!! Just need a thiele 1 x 12 with a c90 for home and a 4 x 12 for gigging.

 

[thunder100]

Almost same here

Although not so much giggin I started to carry the F..king heavy Mark V to the Church worship.Not because its better then Axe-->axe can do all a Mark V can do

Just for historic reasons-->let the Mark V do the Mark's,let the rest do the Axe

Roland

 

[Rkorn]

I had a rig for gig and one for home practice... Now that I have a V I have cabs for gigs and cab at home... the V comes and goes!
It's good to be like when it I started... with the amp back and forth

 

[gag halfrunt]

I don't blame you for switching. Between the all the power options and all the tones, you can basically have any flavour of 'Mark' tone you want out of the V. It astounds me how good the Mark V sounds at low volumes. The perfect practice and gig rig all in one!! Just need a thiele 1 x 12 with a c90 for home and a 4 x 12 for gigging.

+1 on the great low volume tones in the Mark V. It was one of the biggest surprises for me with this amp.

 

[iceman]

Have you ever consider or dabbled with the Triaxis? For a gigging cover band situation it might be ideal. The tri is pretty much the MKV in midi format (yeah yeah, minus the various power modes etc). Although I do think the cleans are superior on the V (others may tend to disagree though), the dirt channels are on par IMHO.

 

[gag halfrunt]

Have you ever consider or dabbled with the Triaxis? For a gigging cover band situation it might be ideal. The tri is pretty much the MKV in midi format (yeah yeah, minus the various power modes etc). Although I do think the cleans are superior on the V (others may tend to disagree though), the dirt channels are on par IMHO.

I tried the Triaxis before I bought my Axe-FX. The Axe-FX does so much more, so if I was wanting to stay with a rack, the Triaxis would really be a step backward from the Axe-FX, imo.

But again, I was really missing gigging with an amp, so the Mark V brought me back with all its tones.

 

[SBG200]

Congrats OP, you've seen the light!

As a coverband player primarily, I prefer the V over something like the Axe FX mainly because for all the time tweaking menus, precise modeling of original amps, effects etc, in the end it really doesn't matter one bit to the average listener. It's hard to take yourself out of a musician's mindset when thinking about this, but really, the average cubicle working chick, electrician, insurance salesman, etc out drinking Jager bombs at the bar will barely notice if there even is guitar AT ALL, let alone that you nailed the perfect '84 JCM 800 or Splawn Quickrod tone for that one song. Frankly, even those three guys in the back with their arms crossed picking apart the band won't notice a big difference in tones when you have the whole band mix to sort through. It's self-indulgent (but admittedly fun) to dial in all those tones, because in the end, as long as you provide a solid steady beat, good vocals, good stage show, and no major trainwrecks, then you're job as a coverband player is 95% done (the other 5% being filling up space with guitar, hitting a few signature solos/melodies, etc.) Proof of this is trios (G/B/D) out there covering stuff like 80's keyboard-heavy tunes and Lady Gaga stuff and the crowd totally eating it up. I see this all the time around here.

If you're doing it for yourself and you have the time, knock yourself out, but if you think you "need" to hit all those authentic sounds and effects, you might want to reconsider.

 

[gag halfrunt]

Congrats OP, you've seen the light!

As a coverband player primarily, I prefer the V over something like the Axe FX mainly because for all the time tweaking menus, precise modeling of original amps, effects etc, in the end it really doesn't matter one bit to the average listener. It's hard to take yourself out of a musician's mindset when thinking about this, but really, the average cubicle working chick, electrician, insurance salesman, etc out drinking Jager bombs at the bar will barely notice if there even is guitar AT ALL, let alone that you nailed the perfect '84 JCM 800 or Splawn Quickrod tone for that one song. Frankly, even those three guys in the back with their arms crossed picking apart the band won't notice a big difference in tones when you have the whole band mix to sort through. It's self-indulgent (but admittedly fun) to dial in all those tones, because in the end, as long as you provide a solid steady beat, good vocals, good stage show, and no major trainwrecks, then you're job as a coverband player is 95% done (the other 5% being filling up space with guitar, hitting a few signature solos/melodies, etc.) Proof of this is trios (G/B/D) out there covering stuff like 80's keyboard-heavy tunes and Lady Gaga stuff and the crowd totally eating it up. I see this all the time around here.

If you're doing it for yourself and you have the time, knock yourself out, but if you think you "need" to hit all those authentic sounds and effects, you might want to reconsider.

Thanks, man.

I definitely am in the tone game for myself. I learned long ago that nobody appreciates great tone but me (or different great tones ), and the crowd only really notices if you don't play really well-known stuff right, or if your tone is absolutely ice-pick terrible. You could play a Peavey Bandit with some Boss pedals, or a POD, and most wouldn't notice or care. But I would. My tone defines me, and I DEFINITELY play better when I'm sounding good. I just wouldn't respect myself in the morning after a gig if I had marginal tone :mrgreen:

I've been missing amps for awhile. Having said that, I still would not have come back if I had to compromise on tone. But the Mark V definitely has the goods.

 

[metalheadx05]

My tone defines me, and I DEFINITELY play better when I'm sounding good. I just wouldn't respect myself in the morning after a gig if I had marginal tone :mrgreen:

I totally agree with you 100%! I play in an original hard rock/metal band and bad tone is a distraction. I'll be on stage thinking "What the hell is going on with my tone? What can I do to improve it? Less gain? Less bass? Oh crap, here comes my solo! Where's my boost?" With so many distractions on stage (channel/effect switching, back up vocals, watching out for cables/headstocks/drumsticks, lighting or lack of, interacting with the crowd) it's nice when you don't have to worry about your tone. When the tone is perfect all I think on stage "Yeah! Let's do this!"

I ditched my Tri/2:90 cause I felt it wasn't "breathing." The tone is there but IMO it was "sterile" kind of along the same lines of EMG pickups. I picked up a Mark V head and took it straight to the gig with the only test being at the trade. As soon as I started the first song I thought "Yeah... This is what the Tri/2:90 was trying to do but just couldn't achieve." I am yet to try an Axe-Fx and probably won't anytime soon since I have my Mark V and this awful bias against modeling amps (**** Vetta! Lol).

 

[MBJunkie]

I am sure the Axe-FX Ultra is the "real deal" for excellent tone versatility and feel of all amp modellers out there, but I enjoy just plugging into my V and playing.

I know how to obtain great tones with my V playing live, and am able to confidently change to some modes in some of the channels between songs with excellent results.

I am sure that I would enjoy the great sounds offered in the Axe-FX, but I am lazy (don't want to screw with all of the dialing) and I am extremely happy with my tones that I achieve from my MkV! 8)

 

[gag halfrunt]

My tone defines me, and I DEFINITELY play better when I'm sounding good. I just wouldn't respect myself in the morning after a gig if I had marginal tone :mrgreen:

...
bad tone is a distraction. I'll be on stage thinking "What the hell is going on with my tone? What can I do to improve it? Less gain? Less bass? Oh crap, here comes my solo! Where's my boost?" With so many distractions on stage (channel/effect switching, back up vocals, watching out for cables/headstocks/drumsticks, lighting or lack of, interacting with the crowd) it's nice when you don't have to worry about your tone. When the tone is perfect all I think on stage "Yeah! Let's do this!"

...

Bro, I have BEEN THERE :mrgreen:

I know the exact feelings you are describing. Bad tone is a tremendous distraction to us tone meisters. Thankfully, the Mark V delivers great tone in spades 8)