They sound basically identical, although it's a little more difficult to tell sometimes, when you're arpeggiating licks on one, and hitting big breakup 5 chords on the other. Still, I'll get a used II for less than a grand, before I'll spend 3k for 10,000 more options I'll never use.
Still using an AX8 with zero complaints! Loving the AxeFXiii’s brightness over the 2. Nice to see we have the same speakers! Love me some sexy white Yamaha’s. Thanks again for the IR!
mdub048 not just you. I personally feel they’re very similar, I don’t feel the modeling of amps changed that drastically, the improvements more in power, features, capabilities, effects, etc
Dizzy Krissi I remember Cliff saying years ago something about having many things he wanted to do with the Axe-Fx if it only had more CPU. I think it's still too early to judge how the III will sound in like 6 months or so.
The axe 3 sounds a bit less dull/flat and has a clearer/finer resolution sound to it. Sometimes it sucks spending so much money on gear for a subtle difference lmao. Axe 3 definitely wins though.. Thanks a lot for th is man
I wanted an axe fx for son long but then a I realized that my whole guitar playing life I've only really liked using two different amp sounds. Also I suck far to much to ever justify spending that much money on a piece of gear.
Keith Saavedra Homestly the Helix gets extremely close at half the price.easier useability better IO and functionality. I don't see myself upgrading to axefx anytime soon even though i like how it sounds slightly better
We have an AXE FX 2 and a Kemper at the studio here and I find that the Kemper has more of an "ampy" quality to it. I hear more of that in your 3 examples here as well. It's subtle, but it's there. What I like about the AXE FX is something that detractors may dislike, which is that it seems to almost homogenize variables from guitar to guitar and room to room. I can hear much more variation when I flip through pickup settings on my Kemper than I can on most AXE patches. For live settings, this makes the AXE more desirable (I can control the room better). For recording, I like the Kemper. The other thing with the AXE is that it blows the Kemper away with all the on board effects. Of course, when recording that doesn't matter again because I'm using software effects through sends and synched to tempos, etc... Anyway, that's my two cents. Thanks for the cool vid and nice dry comparisons.
Outstanding demo. Glad I held off of buying a II a few months ago. Both sound good, but the III sounds better. Slightly fuller and bolder on the HBE and 5150III.
@@JoshTannerMusic in my opinion it sounds and feels way better than the Kemper. I bought the Tone Junkie everything pack and worship pack, so I have really good profiles. I think the Fractal is better though. The only reason I haven’t gotten rid of the Kemper is because it is sooo much easier to use than the Fractal.
I have friends that own the Axe Fx Ii and I know will buy the III for its larger screen. Was there really a need for the III? The II really had no shortfalls other than a small screen. I found the sounds only slightly thinner, gainier or slightly cleaner depending on the amp chosen.
If we are just talking about the sound your audience will probably not hear the difference especially live but you will hear the difference. To me my sound makes all the difference in my inspiration to play. It affects my creativity as well. For the small upgrade in sound alone it is worth the upgrade to me. I also know the 3 will grow and so will it's sound just like all the past fractal products and the way Fractal updates their algorithms and is constantly finding ways to improve their product is something I have not seen in any other company. They could be still giving the 3 updates 7 years from now. We just got a major update on the 2 not long ago and fractal was not even selling it anymore. They figured out a way to give it most of teh 3's algorithms and made it sound even closer to the 3. What company does this? The power, the sound, the capabilities, and the potential for further improvements make buying a 3 a no brainer if you are looking for an amp and can afford it. For an upgrade it 's worth while as well in my opinion but there is nothing wrong with the Axe fx 2 XL+.
Listening in a studio. I don't think the sound of the III is brighter than the II as many say. What I hear is a huge difference in how the attack and harmonics are processed. They seem like the same sound, but in the III that attack and harmonics make for a feeling of much higher resolution in the sound, more realistic. I'm sure it would be much more noticeable comparing sounds in a mix, where the III would sound much more clear/defined at the same level than the II.
Very good comparison and funny face! Apart from the obvious high end difference on my monitors the III responds more to pick dynamics and adds more sustain feel to the playing. It feels like it has more but controlled low end whereas with the II the pick veolcities are fading out sooner and the sound is a bit compressed with less lowend but less controlled. In order to differenciate I exaggerated of course. :) Both of the units are badass.
To me it sounds like the III simply has a bit more input gain, and i wouldn't be surprised if they sounded more alike, it this was pumped up a db or 3.
Hardly surprising that they sound the same, they're using the same firmware. It's like using Mac High Sierra on two computers with different processing power. It's still High Sierra which ever computer you use.
Whilst this video is designed to shed light on the matter, too many comments are about how similar they sound. The III is a major upgrade in terms of CPU and connectivity.
I'll probably ask this on an Internet forum later, but now is also a good time. I'm looking to buy Axe FX II soon but I'm looking to play it live and loud. I only have a peavey 6505 combo amp, a steinberg ur22mkii. What would I need to be playing an Axe FX II through an amp or such? Also for recording through a Mac? I'm relatively new to this. Recorded some songs through the steinberg and some amp software on my current computer.
Ryan Brown revording to mac. Nothing, you can just plug it in. Play through an amp: its best to get a clean power amp like a matrix, crown, etc... And run that to a cab
@@squiresuzuki good option frfr headrush 08s, no mic pre and I use a little mixer for room tuning, blown away, my lastest rig boogie triaxis, g magor2 290 and 4x12s, too heavy for one sound, still using one sound but a hell of a lot lighter.
I think It's not only the brightness, in my studio monitors, I feel the lows more clear and dynamic in the Axe Fx III. Maybe in a whole concept of a mix it is not important, but there it is.
I use the Axe FX II XL+ as my audio interface with Cubase 10, and I have to set the Axe FX buffering in Cubase to a sample rate of 1024 to stop pops. That gives me a latency of 25 ms, which is quite noticable when playing VSTs in real time. Is the Axe FX III faster in terms of soundcard and less latency? Thank you!
Dude, if u get pops that's ur CPU, if u work with a better CPU u can get the buffer of even 100 or 60, not 1024 haha i use my headrush gigboard and i get 4ms of latency but because i have a good CPU in my PC
Other than having the benefit of updated firmware, etc. Is there any disadvantage to owning the Axe FII? The thing will keep working right? It sounds so amazing and has so many options I think I would be entertained for a very long time...
Mikä firmis sulla on käytässä Axe kakkosessa? Itellä ollu vaikeuksia saaha kunnon hi gain saundia Quantumeilla. Olit vissiin kans Oulusta, jos en väärin muista? :D
3 eats less attack than 2. But its still far away from ss or tube systems. Its like tuba amp with all-time compression. But if i want sound without compression?
I hear quite significant difference on the Brit 800 samples - AXF FX III sounds much brighter than the ||. I couldn't really differentiate the hi-gain models. Good thing that I am a hi-gainer, so no need to throw my XL to the garbage :D
$2500 MORE? Which back alley to you go to buy your gear? It's the wrong one bro - the III $800 more than sale price of the II and you can sell your used II at almost the same premium so it's really not bad considering everything else you get with the upgrade besides tone.
None of the tonal differences in the 3 seem so far off to me that a little more time with an EQ in the 2 would bring it right there in line with the 3. Not worth all the extra cash to my ears. Thanks for the great video.
I don't think the tone is better or worse and from experience, the audience in venues doesn't care. They are just different. The Brit 800 is totally different though. I don't mind having any of the two. ;) Oh wait! Any video on effects comparison? This is my main area of interest.
Basically not much of a difference. I know that when you're buying a expensive piece of gear like this, you want to justify the purchase to yourself, but I think you got conned. Is it brighter? Yeah, but is that what makes it worth buying if you already have AX 2? No.
Deathshuck Unfortunately the thing that will make you want to buy the III will be Fractal stopping writing updates for the II and forcing you to get one even though the II would handle all the same firmware.
Deathshuck Wait - so you're saying Fractal should stop developing new gear? Actually there are a ton of new features in the III besides the firmware but certainly also the doubled processing power makes it attractive. Do you need if you have the II? Probably not. Do you want it if you love Fractal? Hell yah!
Poul Winther Knudsen Easily a year for sure. I tried a Helix but the amp models are not as good feel wise as the Fractal. If a didn’t have the AXEFX2 to A/B with I would have loved it.
I like my “2”. I would have liked to have heard some clean amps. The TX* was the closest. Using heavy metal amps to judge quality is like trying to autopsy with a sledgehammer.
Same impression here! The JCM was obviously the most dramatic difference but the others were very subtle but a tiny bit more open or airy. Nothing you would ever hear live though. However, the added processing power could imcrease the difference with time. How about modeling Mic placement within the same Cab for example. That could add a lot of flexibility compared to having to use different IRs altogether.
realistically in a mix these will sound 100% the same. the sound difference (on monitors in a studio) is not that much on their own. Id grab a 2 any day and might now
You know when people try to explain why the axe-fx 3 is better, they are just trying to justify the money they spent on it. Because in reality the axe-fx II can do everything already. Extra features like more processing power is only good if you have presets with tons of FX. before I recording solution or playing live the axe-fx 2 is still freaking amazing especially with the Ares 2 update.
I like the color screen of the III, but since I make nearly every setting change from the computer interface app, it’s not a must-have. Maybe if I gigged. Maybe if anybody gigged …
To me it feels that the axefx 3 has more depth/resolution/dynamics. It sounds more 3d/hd/real to me and the axefx 2 sounds more flat/sd and stiff in comparison. Like it's gated and muffled or something 😅 Both sound good but the axefx 3 wins imo
The audience will TOTALLY not notice the difference between them they aren't even going to know if you have an Axe FX a Line-6 or a Korg A-1 so, get the Axe FX 2 it makes perfect sense unless you have a studio in your house.
I bought the Ax FX2 around 2014, I took a week off work to try it out bcuz they have a short window where you can return the unit and get a refund. I ran it through 3 different power amps, a few different cabs and the p.a. speaker Fractal suggests, I forgot the model. I returned it. It lacked that "feel" and still sounded processed. I remember saying "The next unit they release will nail it." I think I meant the unit AFTER the next unit. This sound better, but I still dont believe I would buy it and keep it. I have played Kempers and had a better overall appreciation for those unit than the Fractals. I'm sure a lot of ppl would be very happy with the Ax FX2 and now the Ax FX3, but I'm just too damn picky! I am looking forward to picking up the pedal board with all the ax fx2 effects built into it. I'd love to run one through my amp before buying but Fractal hasnt seemed to make any effort to have these carrier in any music shops. I wonder if it's to keep the price point down, or because they only allow a 14 day return policy and stores would require them to offer a 30 day return policy? Quite telling, if you ask me. When I email Fractal for my return autho, I explained everything I had done and told them I still wanst happy and I asked if they had any suggestions. Without missing a beat, their reply email simply said "Return autho #....write on outside of box, ship to this address." That's how dedicated and invested they are in their product. I didnt try to question them. I boxed it up and sent that bastard back IMMEDIATELY!
