Talk me out of the AXE FX III

  • Thread starter Thread starter Tone Monster
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I have an SLO, Uber, Helios, Mojave Scorpion, Rivera TBR 1-SL and River M60 all going into an amp switcher into a UA OxBox into Friedman ASM12 Monitors. I also have an FM3 which I've been playing nonstop since Christmas. I love everything I have, and look forward to playing through my amps again.

But there's no reason to 'talk you out of' getting an Axe FX or FM3 -- buying one doesn't mean you're denouncing tubes. Why can't you do both? They're just tools. (I also have a Helix and Kemper which are collecting dust...great tools as well.)

And if you do decide to go with the Fractal and don't like it, you can flip it immediately without losing a dime.
 
Had the Axe III about a year and a half ago that had me playing more than ever, was so easy to plug and play. Sold it because tube GAS but I'm probably gonna get a MKii or FM3 again soon as it's just the best for direct home play/recording.

For now I have a Neural plugin for easy home jamming.
 
I hear little birds whispering Axe IV is coming around soon and it is going to blow the III out of the water. But it is a staggered rollout, so Axe V in 2025 is the one I really want
 
I have a Mark V 90W, a Kemper and a FM3. I used to have the AXE III. Save yourself a ton of money and just get the FM3. Honestly though the Kemper sounds better but the FM3 can get you just about any tone you want and the effects are stellar.
 
saxxamafone said:
follows the same schedule as the iPhone releases ;) :D
Click to expand...

I was thinking about just this recently. For folks around my age (60) this need for upgrades began with crayola crayons.

Grade school and you had one option: 8 colors.
Then the buzz on the internet was that Crayola was working on an upgrade to 16 colors! :oops:
Then 24, and 32, and it just kept going. Once you got to the 64 pack they started introducing
marker sets and the cycle started all over again.

If not for Crayola I'd still be happy with my 1998 POD. :mad::mad::mad:
 
Here’s my story. I’ve been a Mesa user for years, last few years I was using Mark IV and V’s. Love how they sound but always wanted more versatility and reliability. I had a Mark V fail on me in the middle of a show, really pissed me off. Anyway, my last Mark amp was another V and I bought an FM3 B stock for $899. I ran the FM3 into the return of the V and when I was confident it exactly duplicated the tone of the V, I sold the V. Now that’s just using the FM3 as a preamp, the V as the poweramp, on a real 4x12. So I’m using the FM3 on a Mesa 2:90 on a real 4x12 and I’d say yes, it’s exactly the same as my real V. I’ve tried this in the past and thought the real amps always won, but now the FM3, for me, is 100% there.

And with this setup I sold all my pedals and don’t miss them. Now, I have any effect I want, wherever in the signal I want. And I’m not endlessly tweaking either. I’d love to dump the 2:90 and go frfr but I’m still a firm believer in a tube power section on a real cab. I had a Friedman ASM and hated the thing, my 4x12 destroyed it.

No, I don’t get the sound of 100 amps since my 2:90 and 4x12 color the sound, but I’m extremely satisfied with my tone and I can dish out 9 scenes of a IIC+ or IV without having to deal with that useless R2 channel!
 
danyeo said:
Here’s my story. I’ve been a Mesa user for years, last few years I was using Mark IV and V’s. Love how they sound but always wanted more versatility and reliability. I had a Mark V fail on me in the middle of a show, really pissed me off. Anyway, my last Mark amp was another V and I bought an FM3 B stock for $899. I ran the FM3 into the return of the V and when I was confident it exactly duplicated the tone of the V, I sold the V. Now that’s just using the FM3 as a preamp, the V as the poweramp, on a real 4x12. So I’m using the FM3 on a Mesa 2:90 on a real 4x12 and I’d say yes, it’s exactly the same as my real V. I’ve tried this in the past and thought the real amps always won, but now the FM3, for me, is 100% there.

And with this setup I sold all my pedals and don’t miss them. Now, I have any effect I want, wherever in the signal I want. And I’m not endlessly tweaking either. I’d love to dump the 2:90 and go frfr but I’m still a firm believer in a tube power section on a real cab. I had a Friedman ASM and hated the thing, my 4x12 destroyed it.

No, I don’t get the sound of 100 amps since my 2:90 and 4x12 color the sound, but I’m extremely satisfied with my tone and I can dish out 9 scenes of a IIC+ or IV without having to deal with that useless R2 channel!
Click to expand...
Well that sucks Dan, thanks a lot. Now I'll start thinking about an FM3. I had the AX8 and it really didn't come close, not through the FX returns nor HH power amp + cab. But I trust your opinion more than some of the fanboys here, no offense. May have to give one a spin....
 
TheGreatGreen said:
If you don't gig (or in other words, don't have the space to crank a real amp), I cannot think of anything that even comes close to the Axe-Fx
Click to expand...
Thanks for the detailed opinion. I agree, and think you deserve acknowledgement for the in-depth response.

I gigged in a rock band for over a decade with Fractal gear and had more pleasure with it than I ever did with the tube based rack I gigged for the decade before.
 
[ Donnie B. ] said:
I was thinking about just this recently. For folks around my age (60) this need for upgrades began with crayola crayons.

Grade school and you had one option: 8 colors.
Then the buzz on the internet was that Crayola was working on an upgrade to 16 colors! :oops:
Then 24, and 32, and it just kept going. Once you got to the 64 pack they started introducing
marker sets and the cycle started all over again.

If not for Crayola I'd still be happy with my 1998 POD. :mad::mad::mad:
Click to expand...

I'm nearing 40 myself and was an early adopter of the AxeFx Ultra.
Great unit don't get me wrong.

But everyone back then was saying it sounded "just like a tube amp" back then in 2008 or whenever it was.
Selling Bogners and Diezels because the AxeFx Ultra did those tones plus more.

I don't know what to make of AxeFx and where we are today.

I think it's awesome that a company keeps improving its products.
But from a tone perspective - seriously how much more improvements can be made?

Tube amps are rather simple at the end of the day.

This might sound weird but I feel like a 'musician' plugging my guitar into a warmed up tube amp.
Part of this feeling goes when plugging into an axefx for me.
Some of the inspiration goes with it.

I'm just babbling here and I know MANY love the Axefx and make it scream.
And when looking at price - the way I've done it certainly cost a lot more than an AxeFx too.

With all the constant upgrades - it feels like many are chasing the tone dragon which can never be caught.
What you buy now will always be out of date and old tech in 2 years time.

Thankfully this logic doesn't apply with a classic tube amp of course.
Once great, always great.
 
Racerxrated said:
Well that sucks Dan, thanks a lot. Now I'll start thinking about an FM3. I had the AX8 and it really didn't come close, not through the FX returns nor HH power amp + cab. But I trust your opinion more than some of the fanboys here, no offense. May have to give one a spin....
Click to expand...

First thing when using a Mark series amp as a power amp is don't use the amp's 5 band EQ and just use the clean channel but watch the presence. I went back and fourth a lot and only was I happy when I really couldn't tell which was which. When I first tried it with the amp's 5 band EQ on it sounded horrible. But through a 2:90 with the deep mode on the power amp set to on it's pretty massive sounding. I would have bought another Mark IV but every asshole out there thinks a Gibson partnership means their old amp is worth 3k now.
 
quote- But from a tone perspective - seriously how much more improvements can be made?

I remember drooling over Ola playing through a podXT on HCAF.

It really comes down to the player don't it?

I get it. My favorite 'tone' moment was playing a 100w cameron plexi. With the cameron turned off, but the joists in the house were vibrating.
 
One thing that's been eye opening (ear opening?) about using the Fractal is how much the perceived sound changes based on volume (or how the speakers/cab react to volume).

With a tube amp, the thinking always seems to be, oh the tubes are starting to get cooking now!

But with the Fractal, it's just the level changing. Something can sound a bit boxy and dark at TV volumes but killer at drummer volumes. Or killer at TV volumes but nothing but zingy treble at drummer volumes. And I don't do any crazy deep editing; this is just with changes to the regular amp controls.
 
saxxamafone said:
I'm nearing 40 myself and was an early adopter of the AxeFx Ultra.
Great unit don't get me wrong.

But everyone back then was saying it sounded "just like a tube amp" back then in 2008 or whenever it was.
Selling Bogners and Diezels because the AxeFx Ultra did those tones plus more.

I don't know what to make of AxeFx and where we are today.

I think it's awesome that a company keeps improving its products.
But from a tone perspective - seriously how much more improvements can be made?

Tube amps are rather simple at the end of the day.

This might sound weird but I feel like a 'musician' plugging my guitar into a warmed up tube amp.
Part of this feeling goes when plugging into an axefx for me.
Some of the inspiration goes with it.

I'm just babbling here and I know MANY love the Axefx and make it scream.
And when looking at price - the way I've done it certainly cost a lot more than an AxeFx too.

With all the constant upgrades - it feels like many are chasing the tone dragon which can never be caught.
What you buy now will always be out of date and old tech in 2 years time.

Thankfully this logic doesn't apply with a classic tube amp of course.
Once great, always great.
Click to expand...
There's plenty of guys out there still using an AX8 or Axe-2. Nobody is forcing you to dump it and buy an FM3 or Axe-3. How many people sold their old Marshall Plexi's when the JVM came out? If it works for you and it's not broke don't sell it.
 
danyeo said:
There's plenty of guys out there still using an AX8 or Axe-2. Nobody is forcing you to dump it and buy an FM3 or Axe-3. How many people sold their old Marshall Plexi's when the JVM came out? If it works for you and it's not broke don't sell it.
Click to expand...
I'd never sell any of mine...just add the digital to the toy room.
 
danyeo said:
There's plenty of guys out there still using an AX8 or Axe-2. Nobody is forcing you to dump it and buy an FM3 or Axe-3. How many people sold their old Marshall Plexi's when the JVM came out? If it works for you and it's not broke don't sell it.
Click to expand...
Yep true for sure - but there's also a perception in the digital world that latest is always best isn't there.
Even on this board, people are talking Axe3 and plexi's
 
saxxamafone said:
Yep true for sure - but there's also a perception in the digital world that latest is always best isn't there.
Even on this board, people are talking Axe3 and plexi's
Click to expand...

Playing the "this one's more real" game is foolish with a Fractal product. They've always sounded great.
Just go back and read all of the initial reviews of the original Axe.

Going all nuts and saying Cygnus is the 'best Fractal ever'! (and each major update along the way) would
have to mean that the original Axe Standard sounded pretty bad - or at least a few dozen updates from
'sounding just like tubes'.
 
It seems to be a touchy subject on most boards, the whole tube amps vs "other" debate, etc, and I get it, but there's no harm in spoiling yourself and using both (depending on your needs). I'm new to the modeling game, just picked up a B-stock AXE III MK II last month and I gotta say, I fuckin' luv what I'm hearing from it, at least in a direct/tracking application. I also own a couple of sorta iconic amps (SLO, XTC 101B) and I'll be keeping them of course. But it sure is fun blending all those sources in my jams now and like someone mentioned, the coloring effects alone in the AXE III are state of the art and I'm having a blast using it in the loop of my heads as well. Win win IMO. If you can swing the money - the AXE III delivers in spades.
 
I am in the both camp too. I had the AX8, but also picked up the FM3, and there is a noticeable difference. I found myself playing the FM3 constantly, so I did unload a couple of Mesa products I just wasn't using anymore, however I did keep my Mark IV. That will never go anywhere. I also picked up a used FX8, as I love having the quality and transparency of the Fractal effects along with the built in relays for amp switching.

My end of day goal is to play more, tweak less. Fractal has done that for me.
 
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