Guitars & Gear in my Home Studio. What else do we need? I am a seasoned content creator who has combined his passions to create an experience for all of those who love making music. This love starts with my guitar but has extended to the entire music creation process. I embrace other instruments and I LOVE the process of producing, recording and mixing. I also produce all aspects of the content on this channel. I am truly the Lonely Rocker. Oh, and I love to tell stories. It's about the process, the gear and the people I've met along the way. At my core, I'm a guitar player in a home studio and I love to Rock! If you want to join the ride, please subscribe. You don't need a band to Rock and Roll! I'm Dan, the self-proclaimed Lonely Rocker. And I look forward to seeing you in my next video!
What's the point of focusing on something if you can just click on it to change the value. I swear, there needs to be a meeting of the minds when it comes to standards in the audio industry. MIDI is really the only success story I know of, and it's from the '80s.
I just added a Helix rack to my rig. Ive been using the even older TC Electronics G System and what even amp I’m into for about 15 years using the 4 cable method. The G system is rock solid but hasn’t been updated in who knows how long. The helix does all the it did with the added benefit of way more FX and routing options. Now my amp of choice is the Synergy Syn 2 (rack) with a Friedman and a bogner. I still think amp or pre amps are better than any modeler/ profiler. Plus having my core tone as outboard gear I don’t have to adjust every preset when I decide it’s too bright or not enough mids ect. But over all the helix has been a huge improvement to my setup.
Sounds phenomenal! I have both 900 and 800, but most of the time like the 800 more. Not that it is better, it depends on the song. I never loved the G12T75 the Marshall cabs and combo's come with. They definatly don't do the 900 justice in my opinion. With the right speaker they sound really good.
And you get all of Melda's FX to use for free kind of, you get the whole shizzle built in....amazing....Turbo Delay and Turbo Reverb, that's just crazy.....
On this last Father's Day I got a really great deal on a Tube Meister Deluxe 20 at Long and McQuade. It sounds great! I've got amazing results tracking with Cabinet emulation on and off (plus IR). This is my very first tube amp and I'm wondering.... Is it possible to run plugins (for instance, Amplitube modulation pedals) into the FX loop? Do you have experience with it? Great video, thanks for sharing your knowledge and thoughts.
My pleasure! Enjoy it! In hindsight, I think I'd prefer the Tubemeister. I never use the built in effects on the GMD40. As for FX into the amp, I guess if you have the outboard gear to route the signal out of your computer and through the amp you could do it but that would be hard to explain in the comments. Plus I've never tested that. You'd need to take a DI out of the interface, run it through the amp and then back into the interface and set the correct outputs in the software. But watch those levels! Would be a fun test hough...good lick and enjoy the amp!
Great video!! The biggest difference I've always found is feel.. I've owned Helix/Hx stomp , ToneX , FM3 and Axe fx 2. Even Kemper.. I've literally had them all... They do all sound very similar , And in a mix you just cant pick them apart. Helix just doesn't deal with distortion very well it's very digital sounding and feeling almost compressed to the others. And you really gotta work hard to get a good tone. I often found myself using amps and overdrives that i wouldn't normally use to achieve a tone I liked, Because some of the models just aren't as close to the real thing and other units. Found myself boosting a Stupor OD and dialling back amp gain a little over using a traditional 808 or a Horizon drive because the feel just wasn’t there in the Chugs. I even purchased a Horizon drive and run it into the FX loop of the helix and it sounded so much better than the model inside the Helix so there’s definitely room for improvement from L6. The Kempers Horizon drive was spot on to the real thing and actually forced my sale of the pedal and shortly after the sale of the Helix.. All that being said the Helix is a great unit easy workflow especially for entry level musicians! You cant fault them however they have risen in price quite alot recently here in the UK.. Basically used Fractal/Kemper/QC money i wouldn't be buying one of those new that's for sure. The ToneX wow that thing blew me away to start with, So open and warm feeling and very close captures to the real thing. Only downside no effects and the gain staging/editor can take a bit of getting used to.. But i'd have one of those over the Helix all day. The Fractal is just the winner in every aspect. I've done numerous comparisons A/B testing with other units. But for me the ToneX was the closest feeling/Sounding to The Axe Fx for me %100. if you're on a budget ToneX is just simply amazing. I literally couldn't pick those apart it was just the fact it didn't have the onboard effects like the Fractal does. But it's soo cheap! Worth every penny.
Thanks!! And thanks for your input. I find benefits with all 3 platforms for different reasons. And I mainly still record real amps. But all 3 have found a place in my studio and each has a specific job so that's great....
@@LonelyRocker %100! They’re definitely all excellent tools! We’re both lucky to of owned all of these units and got to try them out! You definitely have to of had all 3 and tried which unit works best for you because they all do have their own unique features and workflow. If I could have the simplicity of the Helix, Combined with the possibility of the Fractal and the Capturing of the ToneX. That would be the clear winner to me… It really is just what currently works best for you
Love that guitar. It makes a lot of appearances on my channel and I did a whole video about it a few years ago. It’s still up if you can find it. Cheers!
This is a great informative post. It must be, because it attracted 'been-there-done-that' commenters, who have turned the comment section into a 'book store.' 😂
I used digital technology in the 90's (Peavey Tubefex). By 2004 the two units I have malfunctioned (within the wafer layers(pre-CPU era)) so now I have 2 boat anchor rackmounts. Gone to Tube amps and pedals from then on, lesson learnt.
Great Guitars these! The quality on these is amazing. And really well spec’d hardware for the money! I had the C7 and truth be told I really wanted to love it but I just didn’t.. I can’t speak much on the 6 string but with the 7 I really did not like the weight of it.. It was almost as heavy as my Les Paul. It just didn’t feel like a modern metal guitar in that aspect compared to others like Jackson, ESP and Ibanez.
My fender Mustang is an example. You see in video games that don't keep servers online, or how UPlay lost all the data for Ubisoft games...anything that has an app has a limited lifespan as new versions of the os make them redundant. If I go buy a 68 Traynor hand wired amp, it can be rebuilt with parts off a shelf. I can not go fix my mustang from 2000s if it has software issues. I had a Digitech RP50 that acted up and basically became a brick as it was more to repair than to buy a newer better unit.
I have had (and still do) tube amps throughout the years. Drive pedals have gotten so good now that I've gone to building pedal boards (15 of them now) based around mini pedal board mounted amps. I have five Moorer Baby Bomb 30s, a JOYO Bluejay, a TC Electronic BAM200, and a Seymour Duncan Power Stage 170. I'd challenge anyone to blind A/B sound comparison challenge anytime.
It is truly a great time to be a guitar player. So many great options. I just think digital products should be digital and analog should be analog. No hybrids!
Tonex and Helix sounded good. in the first example I preferred warmer tone of the Fractal (if more muffled than the other two). When you ran them all through the same cabinet the Fractal evened out compared to the others. The Helix is a little digital sounding to my ear. In the end, you are correct. It doesn't really matter that much. Like guitars it's the player more than the guitar.
I have 3 SLS basses, 2 Hellraiser basses and 1 GT bass, I play these with a heavy right hand technique and do not have these issues on the bass side. This is coming from a player that has a signature Mike Lull bass and used to quality. Interesting though, thanks for sharing. 😎🤙🏽💥
I bought my helix in 2020. I came from the TC electronics g system. I use to love the G system but it was so heavy. the helix gave me a solution for internal distortion , effects in general and amp modelers. 2024, I still loving my pedalboard and each time know it better.
Awesome video. You provided an approach that is a great guide for explaining the difference , understanding the difference between what you "hear" and what is the source of that tone. You rightly point out that it can be a brighter module that needs tweaking or just a switch in cab profile to get it closer to George Lynch territory. Many have tried to reverse the flow of these virtual profilers straight into the trash can. You did a good job
IR definitely plays a huge part in digital. Similarly, Speakers play a huge part in physical systems. If I’m not mistaken the axe fx holds longer or higher resolution IRs. It’s more expensive of course, and that may or may not be a factor here, but it’s maybe worth noting that tonex has basically one product. Neural only makes garbage so although they make plugins it’s still all garbage. Fractal has a wider product line. By price point this is pretty fair comparison, but I’m not sure otherwise. I do notice that the YT people tend to say, it’s only the studio that matters so plugins rule. But plug ins feel and sound weird, the feel is often completely overlooked, and what we get out of the box is no higher quality than the old digitech RP8 lol 🤣 Sure with lots and lots of tweaking and adaptive eq and mastering plugins, etc and they might be identical in a full band mix for high gain, but is that really a time and cost effective alternative? This seems to overlook that the vast majority of a guitarists time is sitting and listening to an amplifier, studio is a small percentage, and idk who spends their searching for and listening to demos. So, it’s tone and feel. But I would add too that it’s not always a full band mix, moreover, it seems to be much more apparent for clean guitar than it does for high gain sounds. I love fractal. I think tone x is excellent. I have a strymon iridium that I used for an entire LP, but I could buy a little amp with the money I’ve spent on sub par overpriced garbage based on trying to consider the current opinions on it.😊
There are many considerations but I think this simple test showed many overthink this. I might try this again with different amps to see if the results are similar.
If you've watched my channel at all you'll know I 100% agree with that statement. But I've found a greta hybrid model for my studio....great recording solutions using both real amps and modelers....
Many people don't understand that an amplifier ,especially when high gain is used, will sound completely different when recorded into a mic or DI than naturally.
I’m a helix fan because that was what was in my budget when I made the switch and I now know that system intimately. None of them are inherently better than another. I just picked the one I like. The exception is the Fender. I’ve not been impressed.
@@LonelyRocker it does, but I wonder if it’ll be a situation like the quad cortex, too little too late. I work for a major dealer for all of these, and the Quad is hardly ever talked about anymore. The Helix still gets a lot of love. The fender is not promoted as heavily.
I want this guitar so bad after researching it. I went to Sweetwater website and there are no hardtail verisions of this guitar. I called my Sweetwater sales engineer and he would not order one or ask to have one ordered for me. I can find them at other distributors but afraid to pull the trigger with a place I am unfamiliar with. Going to keep hammering Sweetwater about it! Do you know if Schecter is aware of this flaw in their locking tuners? I dont want to or should have to change anything on a brand new guitar. This is cant be a hit or miss thing as there is obviously something wrong in the production of the locking tuners. The neck movement is another issue I have read about in several different models of Schecter guitars. So sick of companies passing off garbage to consumers for stupid expensive prices. We shouldnt have to worry about QC issues at all. I have been around awhile and do not remember so many guitar company QC issues back in my day. Sad actually. Thanks for the content, I just subscribed
That's why I highly recommend buying guitars local and trying them. I've fallen in love with so many pictures only to be disappointed once I played them. My findings are not scientific but a good split of comments have had issues with the tuners while others have had no problems. Schecter has not said anything about this as far as I know.
@@LonelyRocker Unfortunately I have no local shops anywhere near me anymore to go to where I currently live. Growing up we had multiple shops and if they didnt have something we could go up to 48th St in Manhattan to Mannys and Sam Ash they would. I no longer live in NYC. So now I am at the mercy of other peoples reviews and online outlets. I have recently gotten back into playing guitar and cant believe what I am finding out as this journey of mine advances as far as quality and pricing in guitars is concerned. Makes me wish I hadnt sold all my gear back in the day. Ah, I am just disappointed, sorry for the rant
@Skram72 no worries. Well aside from the tuners I still like this guitar. I have to be careful with the neck thing. But swapping out tuners is easy and worth the upgrade in this case. Good luck with your hunt!
I believe it does. It's a tricky piece of gear. You need to set it up right. Some who complain just don't get ti it setup properly. But I only use it in Logic and it has been great.
I've had really good luck with the string butler on my Les Paul, even after installing a vibrato (Duesenberg Les Trem). The guitar's stability was really bad before. Also, the video thumbnail is hilarious!
I’m still using the string butler but I eventually pulled off the Bigsby. I think this guitar has neck issues. I may have to do for real what you see in the thumb 😂😂😂😂
Nobody should be surprised that the cabinet/mic or IR are so important. If you have e.g. a Helix and you just switch through the available mics on any given amp/cab combination, the differences in sound can be absolutely massive.
Oh agreed...the exercise though was to reinforce that concept by switching out the modeler and using the same cab to show how much f a factor the cab is...I think that point was made... :)
They can all reach the same thing. I've been in the Fractal world for a few years now though, and to me it's my go-to because I only play within my "studio" and can tinker with all the settings.
I think that's the point. It's all about comfort now. That's your gear and you know it well. And you can enjoy it without a FOMO complex thinking there is something way better out there...because there isn't :).
