Posted by Norm on 7/20/2008, 9:46 pm, in reply to "Re: More AXE-FX Tone"

Well let me get on my soapbox about Line6! I totally agree that they will probably copy the other guys homework and that is OK. Why reinvent the wheel? But those s#%& heads could have made something this good a long time ago and didn't do it. IMHO all this guy did was use the very best components available and follow the normal progression of tech advancements. Line6 had and still does have the lion's share of this market already and they are making plenty of money selling products made with the cheaper components. I don't believe they intended to move to the next level while they had the only game in town sowed up. This reminds me of AT&T before we had the option of other phone companies. They were making a killing on long distance because nobody else was in their market. They lost big time when people found out how bad they were getting taken and many people won't ever go back because of that even if they are competitive now. That is why they are now "THE NEW AT&T." How about the "NEW LINE6?" We are the guys that used to sell the digital fizz modeling equipment but now we use the best parts available. Come on back, we promise we won't do it again! I am really pissed now. Seriously though, all of this needed to happen in order to move on with the tone chase. I am a little closer to what I was looking for so I am happy for now. I see now that you were right when you said there was no finish line. --Previous Message-- : I would think that Line 6, since they were : really the first company to bank primarily : on modeling, would take the Axe-FX apart and : try to raise the bar in some next generation : product. If that were to happen, they'd : probably have the infrastructure and : manufacturing resources to meet demand. : : As for the pickup, it sort of doesn't : surprise me to hear that it doesn't do it : "all". Very few things do! : Thanks for the report. : : JB : : --Previous Message-- : Hey Jason, : I had one of those A3 Korg units too!!!! I : loved that thing for about 2 years. At the : end of that time the limitations of the unit : were becoming painfully obvious so I moved : into the Art Express with the 12AX7 built : into it and was OK for about another year. : Then I went back to real tube amps with : Line6 supplements and I have never been : seduced by another digital processor until : now. This unit will take another 6 months : for me to "master" but my initial : feeling is that the pendulum is swinging to : the digital side again now for me and I : would like it to stay there. This is the : first unit that takes full advantage of the : present state of the art components and I : have no reason to believe that the : components will do anything but get better : from here on out. There are enough pluses to : out way the minuses again now. I expect that : the big boys will take a look at the inside : of this thing and realize that the bar has : been raised. When that happens, they will : all produce another level of these more user : friendly at cheap prices. : : BTW I tried out a P-RAILS bridge position in : a friends guitar. I just got mine in for the : neck position but haven't installed it yet. : As I thought the P90 part was great but the : humbucker and single coil rail were not as : impressive to me. There seems to be some : trade off but there is also a lot of : versatility. It isn't that the other 2 : sounds are bad either, they are just not : what I would pick for a stand alone : humbucker or stand alone single coil. I : think for me, the neck position is a better : place for this pickup anyway so I am looking : forward to installing it and seeing how it : sounds there. I will keep you posted. : : --Previous Message-- : Norm, : : Do you remember the old Korg A3 units from : years ago? : : : http://www.shanzuguitars.com/guitar-gear/guitar-effects/Korg/korg-a3.asp : : I bought one when they were brand new and : had just hit the market. I was in my teens : and had never really owned any decent rack : stuff before. At the time, it was like a : work of art to me. This was before modelers : were around, but it was the first thing I : saw that did the chain layout that is : relatively commonplace today. It sounds : like the Axe-FX has a similar thing going on : with layout. With the A3, it was like : using a space age computer (in a good way). : Even the display was really classy for the : era. You could take the effects chains and : switch them around. Presets galore and user : banks everywhere! I bought all the : expansion cards that were available. Each : one was like getting a whole new collection : of tones. Years later I sold it long after : I stopped using the A3. I passed it on to a : friend who was an A3 devotee and he used it : for a long time afterwards. He was truly : excited to get the cards since they'd been : out of production. : : I guess the old saying "There's no time : like the first time" rings true for me. : I had a blast exploring that unit. Just : tweaking and tweaking with no regard to the : time passing by. There's definitely that : side to me which still exists, but on the : whole, I still go for simplicity. Making : the two worlds meet compatibly is the fun : part. : : I think I can count on one hand how many : comprehensive guitar-focused rack units I've : owned. By these, I'm referring to the : all-in-ones that do everything from : overdriving to the time domains. I have : long preferred a few pedal effects into amp : of choice. I've certainly owned a lot of : studio rack gear. The only true tone : processing rack item I have today (not : including mic preamps, etc) is a Line 6 Bass : POD. In the past when I had the rack : stuff...I had a Rocktron Intellifex : (remember those?) and later, a Roland : GP-100. : http://www.greenoak.com/gp100/gp100.html : : : I did jump on the POD rack train for a brief : period for attending to some direct : recording applications. That GP-100 though, : to my ears, still sounded better and was : just overall superior to any POD that I had. : I guess Roland quit making it. I used the : GP-100 often for late night home : practice/recording, and occasionally for : some studio sounds. That was really the : first modeling device I ever had. I gave it : to a friend a couple of years ago because I : hadn't been using it for a good while. Make : no mistake, it was not as satisfying to me : as my amps, nor did I run it into a loop and : disable the COSM circuit. I used it as a : very straight-ahead into the console thing. : For what it did, though, I found more : utility out of it than any other similar : product. : : I'm still partial to the feel and physics of : real amplifiers, particularly tubes. : However, I've always kept an open mind on : digital technologies. The Fractal unit is : something I'd like to plug into sometime : just to see what's going on with it. If it : were something to make me inspired to play, : as well as suitable for live use, then : surely I'd give it a shot. The reason I'm : not pressing to have one at the moment is : because I'm happy with what I have. Also : gotta fill up the tank : : Nevertheless, I'm very appreciative that you : are taking the time to post these videos. : It's enjoyable for me to hear the unit and : to hear you play. : : JB : : : : : : : --Previous Message-- : The patch runs noise : gate-comp-filter-amp(Metal=a custom type : similar to a British type but with more gain : and a modified British tone stack with high : frequency emphasis)-cab(4x12 30 watt vintage : celestions)-graphic EQ(slight boost at 1K : and 2K with slight decrease at 4K and more : roll off at : 8K)-delay-reverb-enhancer-output. : You could consider this a tweaker's dream or : a players nightmare. I have the amps drive : and gain almost all the way up and the mids, : treble, and presence set about 60%. The bass : is about 40%. : : --Previous Message-- : Thumbs up! Can you describe how you : constructed the patch with the Fractal? : Enjoyed watching the riffs. Keep 'em : coming. : : JB : : --Previous Message-- : Here is a link to another video lesson I did : with a Neal Schon patch that I programed : into the AXE-FX. : : : : : : : : http://www.vanderbilly.com/Guitar-Lesson-Journey+-+Separate+Ways+Studio+Version+Solo,7131,1.html : : : : : : : : : : : :