Hey Michael - a few notes in regards to the Lead 1 Red. The TX4 Recto board came in 2 variations: the original, and a “Fat Mod” version. If your board has the Fat Mod, it does tend to mush up, get boomy, lack definition, etc. It’s easily reversible, and I’d recommend a trip to Boogie for servicing and removal of the mod if it has it. That said, here’s a few suggestions for dialing in that mode better. First, set the “Gain” at 6, and keep it there. The Rectifier doesn’t have an additional drive control like the Mark series amp. Setting it at “6” is the default value as if you’re using an actual Rectifier. Set that and forget it, then use Lead 1 Drive only to dial in the gain you want. Don’t be afraid to turn the “Presence” UP. It’s a unique presence control that acts differently than a power amp presence. Setting it at “10” is relative flat, and you start to cut as you lower it. So I’d start at 10 and then slowly back off until you hear what you like. I typically have it set in the 7-10 range at any given time. The bass control takes an excessive jump in lows above 5. You’ll notice a dramatic jump between 5 and 5.5 settings. I’d keep it no higher than 5, otherwise the sub-lows will be hard to control. If you need more, dial it in with an external EQ. Speaking of, I would ditch the Dynamic Voice. The curve is too steep on the presets, and while a subtle settings of around 1-2 may knock some honk out of the sound, anything above will get scooped and boomy. I highly recommend running an external EQ in the loop instead. All of this is based on a non-Fat version. The Fat version is terrible. I’d honestly send it to Boogie for a service and ask them to remove the Fat Mod if it has it. Lead 1 Red should be thick and tight when set and dialed properly. Here’s a quick clip I did a while back that’s 50% Lead 1 Red and 50% Lead 2 Yellow trying to cop a Metallica “Load” sort of tone. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-AmkMhDOEbv8.html&app=desktop
Tri-Axis into ADA Ampulator into the board , using a Fender Strat and Trembucker pickup. That’s how the main guitars were done on the first couple Filter records.
MESA made multiple versions of the Triaxis. The one with the actual Recto sound has what's called a "TX4 board" for Lead 1 Red. The Triaxis without the TX4 boards don't have a Recto sound. They have an entirely different sound called "British Lead" or something like that. To get the best Recto channel, you want a Triaxis version 2.0 with the TX4 board but WITHOUT the Phat Mod. If you get a Triaxis with a Recto board and Phat Mod, you can get the Phat mod removed. Also the Recto tone stack is post-gain staging unlike the Mark sounds you can set them more "normally" and get good tones.
if you read the manual it tells you how to setup each mode, don't be afraid to turn the lead gain and drive down in any of these modes, there is a lot punch when you do that. They also recommend no dynamic voice on LD1 mode, think of LD1 as more classic rock tones. I have version 1. I can get marshall tone all day in Lead 1 Red, dial drive back and gain back and let the power amp do some work. Great Videos, Keep it up
I run that mode with the gain turned down to avoid the flubb. It’s not particularly usable with the gain cranked. That or a Tubescreamer in the front end.
That was the funnest part of owning the triaxis for me....literally stumbling through all the sounds and discovering new tones constantly. I remember when I played live with mine, Lead red 2 was my common go-to.....but hearing the yellow when you play it, makes me want to re-visit a tri......love your vids, keep’em comin’ 👊🏻
Hey Michael could part of the problem be that the Triaxis was meant to be joined with Mesa’s 2:90 power amp which featured switchable features(directly from the Triaxis) like “Deep” and “1/2” which keeps you from having to push the Bass(mush) settings on the Triaxis.
Michael Nielsen I have the trip is with the 2:90 so I can pop the deep setting. That Brit classic setting should almost never need the dynamic voicing in it. Ultimately you should be able to dial in some modded jcm800 vibes with it
Hi. I'd like to give you some crucial tips. I don't know if you read the manual, but from what I see on the video I suspect you didn't, or at least didn't remember all the specific instructions that Mesa gives regarding Lead 1 Red, which is unique in how it has to be set up. To have any hope of getting great tones out of LD1 Red, you need the TX4 Recto Board with NO Phat mod. Big part of the problem with the sounds you got was the Gain setting. As with every mode, low Gain settings (between 1 and 4.5) will give you a tight, crisp and defined OD with good note separation. When pushed over 5, it fattens up greatly the sound and adds tons of Compression. That's cool on other modes to get a smoother, fluid and vocal tone, but Gain over 5-5.5 on LD1 Red is a mushy mess to avoid. Use Lead 1 Drive instead to bring in the Gain and saturation. Then, there's the Bass control. Everywhere else it works between 1 and 5 as a normal Bass knob, never to be turned higher, but in the Recto Mode, the Bass control has to be used between 5 and 10 and stays tight as long as you set the Gain correctly, though I never dial the Bass near 10. The other crucial piece of the puzzle is the Mids control. Other than dialing in Mids, pushing the setting over 6-7 actually shifts the Mids and adds aggression. A setting of 10 is very usable! Treble is to taste, after the Mids have been dialed. People often go to the Treble control with scooped Mids to try to add some grind but that's the Mid's job. To get some of that sizzle, turn up the Treble together with Presence. Last, the Dynamic Voice control. Yeah, it can be cool to crank it up in the bedroom, but high settings on any Mode tends to make you lost in the mix, as in any high gain situation where you scoop the Mids too much. For LD1 Red, the manual does suggest a setting of 0, and that's a good place to start, but adding a little is perfectly fine! Just try to use it in moderation, as a setting of just 1 often does the trick! Even when I play the heaviest stuff, I never use (in general) the DV over 4, maybe 5. High settings are really more useful for clean sounds. To give you an example of how I can get good tones out of Lead 1 Red, I can get tones that are a really close match to my best Lead 2 Red sounds... The TriAxis is just so insanely complex and versatile with interacting controls that there is a long learning curve, even for the best Gear Heads out there! Read the manual from time to time, it helps remembering some functions and always gives you new ideas of things to try. Year after year, even after 11 years, I'm still amazed to find totally new and unexpected good usable gems in the TriAxis! But it's so easy to dial in shitty sounds that some never discover how good it sounds, that and how unforgiving it is so any tiny flaw in technique will be heard. I'll soon get a 2:90, after 11 years, but I've been getting killer tones all those years without, using a Mesa 50/50. Hope this helps!
cant use deep in this mode as well. I had the same experience. Mine was V1 modded with the recto piggyback board. I never used the recto mode even though I came from a Recto rev F previously. I tried, but could never get it tight as you witnessed. Luckily there is so many good tones in that sucker, it didn't matter. Wish I still had my old Tri Axis rack set up, but I came full circle back on 2ch rectos again.
I had a triaxis with recto board and fat mod, reading the manual really helped dial in the sounds. It’s amazing how Mesa was able to put there pre gain tone stacks amps in ld2 along with the amps that have post gain tone stacks in the LD1. LD 2 settings always had very little bass and I used the dynamic voice, LD1 settings bass were a little higher and I never used the dynamic voice. What is the serial number? I wonder if it even has the recto board.
Said it before, and gonna say it again - nobody has the cool gear like Michael. Hey, its been a while since you did a studio tour. Any chance you might show us the goods again? Glad to hear you will be doing vids more frequently!!
@michael ......so if you have to choose 1 of your beautiful rack pres to keep which would if be? I would have a hard time deciding between the Triaxis and Soldano for different reasons. (I know it's a useless scenario, but .......gear talk!!!)
Hi @@wrongprong, I've worded it differently than the manual, but we're essentially saying the same thing. The tone controls come before the gain circuit in the LD2 modes.
Your Triaxis sounds in Lead 1 Red like mine. It's the TX5 board that basically has NO recto sound whatsoever. Here is the story directly from Mesa when I asked them: The components for Tx4 boards run out so the board (which is ONLY for LD1 Red ) was exchanged to the TX5 board. This changed around 8200 serial number (details on web).They haven't bothered to change the manual and left it as "British lead"....HOWEVER.... The TX5 board tries to mimic the Lead Mark IV channel whereas the Green LD2 tries to mimic the rhythm Mark IV channel. So you need to treat your LD1 red in a similar way you would treat your Mark series channels. Its always going to be a bit mushy BUT, I would say that it actually works best with bass close to 0 or just plain 0, DV around 7-7.5, Treble 10, presence 7-10, Gain 10 or at least HIGHER than Lead 1 Gain (more beefy this way, the other way around gets a bit thin and squawky). My best Metal settings are Gain 10 Treble 10 mids 0-2 bass 0 Lead 1 Gain 7 Master 6 (definitely more than 5.5, sounds like shit lower), Presence 7-10, Dv 7-7.5. Try it and tell me what you think...Might get a bit better with some gentle post EQ in the mids and bass....
I think it depends on which version of triaxis you have, not all triaxes came with the RX board...so if you dont have the the recto board its voiced for more of a brit style tone.
Hi Michael. I'm a new subscriber to your channel and I recently watched your "SPX90 Zakk Wylde Rack Chorus" video (and "Zakk Wylde...the shaved years"). Since I'm not yet familiar with all your videos or the questions you've answered from your comments section, has the idea ever crossed your mind about trying to recreate the SPX90's "Symphonic" setting with a bunch of chained chorus pedals? From what I understand about the setting, it's more than one chorus effect...maybe 3 or 4. I was thinking perhaps someone could try to recreate that sound by connecting 2, 3 or 4 chorus pedals (with altered rate/depth settings on each pedal) in series or - with alot of patch cables and junction boxes - connect them in parallel. I've been completely in love with the "Zakk Wylde Ozzy" sound since I heard it all those years ago and, while I knew a chorus/modulation effect was involved, I never achieved the sound. Not even close. So...after hearing the "Symphonic" setting was created with multiple chorus effects, I figured it would be a cool challenge for someone who undoubtedly has more chorus pedals lying around than I do to see if they can achieve similar results. Dunno....just a thought and it could be something you might want to try for a future video. Cheers from a Canadian living in Germany who - two years ago - finally got back into playing guitar after a 20-year hiatus from the instrument. Thanks for any insight. :-)
Hi Robert! Yeah, I've tried with hardware, and with software to recreate it. I couldn't quite capture it. I do like the chorus in the Eventide Eclipse. It's thick and juicy, but doesn't swirl like the Symphonic patch. I'm working on a digital recreation of it for a new pack in Overloud's TH-U. A guitar plugin that I'm developing sounds for.
Thanks for the reply. It's good to know that someone tried to recreate that sound. Thanks for the info. The Eventide is probably out of my price range...unless I beat my bank account harder than I beat my one-eyed snake. I'll keep my eyes open for the plug-in announcement. Cheers.
haha, just like mine, cant get rid of the mush , then once you switch to the other channels you think why bother with lead one red anyways, so much tone and fatness coming from lead 2.
@@glasgowguitarist3636 this is also true. But the "TX4 Recto circuit board" was a replacement/update that was introduced in version 2. mesaboogie.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/217784798-What-TriAxis-version-do-I-have-
I don't think Michael's has the Recto board in it. I have one and if you turn everything up to 10 on the recto setting, it's a chaotic noisy mess of gain, just completely over the top.
The only setting I found out working on Lead 1 Red (accidentally): Gain 10 Treble 10 Mid 2-3 Bass 0 Lead 1 Gain 7 Master 6 Presence 8 DV 7 . Master on 6 is important!!! Tell me what you think guys :) To me sounds like a Recto, flabby (yes , still...) But tight??? Tell me what you think guys :) Edit: If the above doesn't work try this: Gain 10 treble 10 Mid 0 Bass 0 Lead 1 Gain 6.5 Master 6 Presence 10 DV 6.... If that doesn't save your Lead 1 Red, then nothing does :) lol.... My Triaxis is the second non fat-mod generation I think....Its definitely Not the old Recto board which was TOO BRIGHT!!!...I think most Triaxis out there are similar to mine so give it a go.....It's definitely the same as on this video. You will need a "modern" sounding power amp, ideally 6L6 or 5881 tubes, although EL34s are gonna work, as long as you don't have any "bass boost" engaged and stuff...
The recto setting seems to be the only not great sound in this unit. Not a huge surprise personally, not a big fan of recto myself. But I'm surprised it was so different from others. I'm sure someone has been able to tweak a nice sound out of it.
That Lead 1 Red is the worst version they made, it's the phat mod. You can get it removed. The TX4 recto board can sound amazing, but it's about a $300 mod at a Mesa-authorized repair center to have it removed.
Yeah, you can do that. I have "power amp powered IR's" in my Overloud THU Supercab packs of the Mesa 2:90 power amp with the deep switch on which would be cool with it. www.overloud.com/products/bhs-4x12-powered-v. www.overloud.com/products/bhs-4x12-powered-green
You have to have an early version 2 to have a tx4 “recto” board. Version 1 doesn’t have it and later versions went to a tx5 board. If you get the right version you will love the lead 1 red. Has to have a tx 4 board with no phat mod. Tx4 is dedicated to lead 1 red. When they went to tx5 board they reworded the manual to say lead 1 red was modern British sound.
I modded mine to the no fat mod which fixes the lead 1 red channel. The later circuit sounds like absolute shit. You have to undo the new circuit and lead 1 red will sound like it was intended. It’s not hard. Add a few components and remove a few. Hit me up and I’ll send you a parts list.
Flash66@g...... seriously it’s a night and day difference. Red 1 is unusable with the fat mod. After it’ll be your favorite high gain channel for certain. I owned 2. Sold the first with a 2:90 that had an amazing sound and regretted selling it. Second one was atrocious like yours. Tried new tubes in both the tri and 2:90. Still sounded like shit. Did the mod, and the angels started singing! Total Mesa bliss bud!
@@BigHairyGuitars I know lol. But it's what the manual says and I can get good sounds out of recto chanel with DV on 0. Also if I remember correctly there was a recomended setting for the gain (like 6?). Try it. Anyway the magic of the Triaxis comes from all Ld2 and cleans.
