Soldano X88-IR

[FuzzyAce]

Worked on a complete rewire of the music room this morning.

View attachment 32288

Unfortunately with the reconfig of the room, I can’t blast this joker in stereo 412 config yet until I get some longer speaker cables. Should be in full flamethrower mode by end of next week.

Have spent about half an hour running this via the main outs into the AxeFX into studio monitors. Altered clean mode is awesome. Some chorus and multi-delay and it’s cooking the dark 80’s clean I like. Crunch is fantastic with my strat, need to check the LP. With my Ibby (hot pickups) crunch wants to gallop into high gain territory. Very tight and snappy with strat.

Spent about 3 minutes in overdrive mode because you know exactly what you’re getting there. (And I mainly got it for clean and crunch )

Hoping to fiddle with it a little more this afternoon watching some football.

Sweet setup.
Only mildly jealous.

 

[Baba]

I appreciate the concern man. My old man passed away. It’s been tough, but I’m crawling back out of the hole.

Condolences brother.

 

[Southpaw-DD]

My condolences as well, Whizzinby. My dad passed away in 2018 and mom last year after having an immobilizing left-side stroke in 2019. My teenage boys had a real tough time with it, too. Blessings to your family though this time.

 

[Eagle]

Sorry to hear that Whizzinby.
Rig looks great.

 

[djd100]

So sorry Whizz!

 

[Eagle]

Worked on a complete rewire of the music room this morning.

View attachment 32288

Unfortunately with the reconfig of the room, I can’t blast this joker in stereo 412 config yet until I get some longer speaker cables. Should be in full flamethrower mode by end of next week.

Have spent about half an hour running this via the main outs into the AxeFX into studio monitors. Altered clean mode is awesome. Some chorus and multi-delay and it’s cooking the dark 80’s clean I like. Crunch is fantastic with my strat, need to check the LP. With my Ibby (hot pickups) crunch wants to gallop into high gain territory. Very tight and snappy with strat.

Spent about 3 minutes in overdrive mode because you know exactly what you’re getting there. (And I mainly got it for clean and crunch )

Hoping to fiddle with it a little more this afternoon watching some football.

Are you looking to go 4C and use ir on the 88 or the 3?

 

[Whizzinby]

Are you looking to go 4C and use ir on the 88 or the 3?

Im largely planning to bypass the digital backend unless recording. I’m going to go straight in with a couple pedals (Comp, OD) and then run the AxeFX in the X88 stereo loop, then out to a pair of cabs via LXII. I’m going to leave the balanced outs (which have the power amp sim and Ir’s baked in) wired to the Axe though for when I just want to record direct. I got presets built this afternoon in the Axe for both methods. (Main outs vs Balanced Outs)

 

[Elf]

Worked on a complete rewire of the music room this morning.

View attachment 32288

Steve Lukather from the 90’s called he wants his guitar rack back!

 

[texhex]

Worked on a complete rewire of the music room this morning.

View attachment 32288

Unfortunately with the reconfig of the room, I can’t blast this joker in stereo 412 config yet until I get some longer speaker cables. Should be in full flamethrower mode by end of next week.

Have spent about half an hour running this via the main outs into the AxeFX into studio monitors. Altered clean mode is awesome. Some chorus and multi-delay and it’s cooking the dark 80’s clean I like. Crunch is fantastic with my strat, need to check the LP. With my Ibby (hot pickups) crunch wants to gallop into high gain territory. Very tight and snappy with strat.

Spent about 3 minutes in overdrive mode because you know exactly what you’re getting there. (And I mainly got it for clean and crunch )

Hoping to fiddle with it a little more this afternoon watching some football.

Im largely planning to bypass the digital backend unless recording. I’m going to go straight in with a couple pedals (Comp, OD) and then run the AxeFX in the X88 stereo loop, then out to a pair of cabs via LXII. I’m going to leave the balanced outs (which have the power amp sim and Ir’s baked in) wired to the Axe though for when I just want to record direct. I got presets built this afternoon in the Axe for both methods. (Main outs vs Balanced Outs)

Epic setup and sorry to hear about your loss.

 

[Whizzinby]

Got another hour or so in. This time using the balanced outs with the power amp sim and IR’s built in. (Didn’t realize you can’t defeat preamps in the Axe, only power amps, was hoping to mix and match power amp sims from the AxeFx but you can’t turn off preamps like you can with the power amp)

Random observations:

• The clean channel is just awesome for SLO clean players. (The 5 of us) The Altered mode adds a cool variant. It sounds more pushed clean, with some hair on it if you crank it. As someone that just loves the regular clean channel, this adds all sorts of new flavors. Very badass.
• It finally dawned on me that the difference between the Overdrive and Crunch mode is largely in the sustain. It has the same muscular sound as the OD channel it just doesn’t sustain like the OD channel so you can play much more snappy chordal stuff without getting devoured in the blanket of midrange.
• I love the switches they used for modes and IR’s where they snap back into center position, kinda joystick style. Just feels cool using them. (I’m glad they use standard switches in the fat and bright switches to easily see what’s engaged)
• IR’s aren’t bad. Slot 1-2 work good for cleans, Slots 4-5 are good for gained up tones. Will definitely preload a few of my faves, but they aren’t bad at all stock.
• Plugging in to the front of this thing just immediately lands you in the vibe. Purple rack, purple RG, we in the zone.

 

[texhex]

Got another hour or so in. This time using the balanced outs with the power amp sim and IR’s built in. (Didn’t realize you can’t defeat preamps in the Axe, only power amps, was hoping to mix and match power amp sims from the AxeFx but you can’t turn off preamps like you can with the power amp).

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

My condolences, @Whizzinby

Next Thursday will be exactly one year since my mother died. It's pretty hard to lose a beloved parent. I wish you and your family lots of strength for the time ahead.

 

[mk5]

Sorry for your loss. Praying for your family

 

[Eagle]

View attachment IMG_4068.jpeg
I have a LOT of programming to do.

 

[Eagle]

I seem to be using my Axe3 as a reverb pedal ATM ,it’s a very nice reverb pedal

 

[djd100]

Im largely planning to bypass the digital backend unless recording. I’m going to go straight in with a couple pedals (Comp, OD) and then run the AxeFX in the X88 stereo loop, then out to a pair of cabs via LXII. I’m going to leave the balanced outs (which have the power amp sim and Ir’s baked in) wired to the Axe though for when I just want to record direct. I got presets built this afternoon in the Axe for both methods. (Main outs vs Balanced Outs)

Another option that I have used since the Ultra is to use the Axe's amp block as a tube power amp sim with tube preamps, works great and allows for really dialing the power section in vs the generic tube power amp sims in the new Friedman and Soldano tube pre's.

The Axe's tube power amp modeling is second to none! I just select the amp model I want to use the power section from, then...

Input trim and gain down (you want the preamp section to be as linear as possible).
Master trim up (to compensate for the above and hit the virtual phase inverter).
Preamp bias excursion low or off.
Null tonestack.
Cathode follower off.
Bright switch off (use high treble, plus presence, and depth).
Preamp sag off (but sometimes on is great too...).

That's mostly it, or use the Tube Pre's preamp settings for a more generic thing. Note that these are just starting tips, and you can use all of the Axe's amp block parameters to do lots of great things to the sound, SIC's, tube choices, input and output EQ, etc, etc, etc.

For something like the X88, maybe start with the SLO amp model's power section, or whatever Fractal has for the X88?

Either way you have access to Cliff's great tube power section work, and speaker tab stuff like impedance curves and a lot more.

 

[Whizzinby]

Another option that I have used since the Ultra is to use the Axe's amp block as a tube power amp sim with tube preamps, works great and allows for really dialing the power section in vs the generic tube power amp sims in the new Friedman and Soldano tube pre's.

The Axe's tube power amp modeling is second to none! I just select the amp model I want to use the power section from, then...

Input trim and gain down (you want the preamp section to be as linear as possible).
Master trim up (to compensate for the above and hit the virtual phase inverter).
Preamp bias excursion low or off.
Null tonestack.
Cathode follower off.
Bright switch off (use high treble, plus presence, and depth).
Preamp sag off (but sometimes on is great too...).

That's mostly it, or use the Tube Pre's preamp settings for a more generic thing. Note that these are just starting tips, and you can use all of the Axe's amp block parameters to do lots of great things to the sound, SIC's, tube choices, input and output EQ, etc, etc, etc.

For something like the X88, maybe start with the SLO amp model's power section, or whatever Fractal has for the X88?

Either way you have access to Cliff's great tube power section work, and speaker tab stuff like impedance curves and a lot more.

Yeah I’m going to try the Tube Pre out today. I’ll try to duplicate a handful of power sections (SLO, 800, Dual Rec) and see what works best.

@FractalAudio have you ever considered adding a drop down in the Tube Pre where users could just select the power amp they want rather then having to manually configure them? (Or modeling a handful of the popular old school rack power amps?)

 

[JiveTurkey]

Standalone power amp modeling isn’t available on purpose, last I read.


Edited for not to gatekeep cause I'll take it if it gets offered up

 

[Whizzinby]

Standalone power amp modeling isn’t available on purpose, last I read.

 

[jellodog]

Standalone power amp modeling isn’t available on purpose, last I read.

That's right.

IIRC, it's because by offering such a feature it would potentially give away some proprietary FAS modelling secrets to those that would analyse such things.

But yeah, I had exactly the same thoughts as you guys concerning the X88-IR + Axe-Fx PA modelling.