MultiFX - Hints, Tips, Links and Suggestions?

racman · 2012-11-15T05:36:58+00:00

I am attempting a third "bite" at multifx for the convenience factor, after stumbling across a used HD500 at a ridiculously low price at a local music store....

MultiFX - Hints, Tips, Links and Suggestions?

[deleted]

Tokai SA wrote: Lincoln Brewster and the tones he gets using his Pod XT Live or Pod X3.

+100

ActionArnie

AFAIK Lincoln Brewster's patches for the X3 were available for download somewhere. Not sure if he ever did the same with an HD500 or if the X3 patches are of any use on an HD500.

racman

I noted his patches for X3 and I know someone who can get those he uses now for the HD500 (he uses Axe FXII in studio and HD500 for live now).

However, I like Alan's and Tokai SA's suggestion as it will also force me to learn about the unit as I go along as well as get a tone that appeals to me. I enjoy seeing how others set up their patches for ideas but I ultimately want to setup the patch myself, even if it is a copy. Hope that makes sense...

racman

Spent a few hours this morning just experimenting and tweaking the Blackface and "Lux" amp tones. Interesting how the "Sag" and Bias etc effects the different Amp Sim models.

It sounds rather lame that a few hours was spent on just two Amp Sims, Cabs, mic placings etcand a 63 Spring Reverb settings thoiugh! ☹

AlanRatcliffe

RoyC wrote: Interesting how the "Sag" and Bias etc effects the different Amp Sim models.

Yeah, and stock settings on the HDs are rarely what you want though

It sounds rather lame that a few hours was spent on just two Amp Sims, Cabs, mic placings etcand a 63 Spring Reverb settings thoiugh! ☹

Unfortunately that's the tradeoff for the flexibility. How are you finding the tones though.

racman

I am finding the tones OK so far Alan. If that sounds less than enthusiastic then it probably is as a result that I really don't know yet as I am setting up with headphones and then hope to get to the venue and tweak with the actual monitor I use. (I was going to do this yesterday but had a little matter of collecting a few awesome pedals from a fellow GFSA'er who has migrated to a G-system). I think it sounds promising so far but I have no idea until I hear it without monitors. One thing I can already see is that the Drives are going to take a fair amount of tweaking to get what I like though.

I tend to favour more simple pedals as far as controls go. I prefer to select the sound or tone that I want and then look for a simple setup. The perfect example of this is my recently acquired MojoHand Sugar Baby Tremelo - great sound and only two controls. I find most of the effects in the HD500 have just far too many parameters or controls to fiddle with in my opinion. Great for perpetual tweakers but a real pain for me.

AlanRatcliffe

RoyC wrote: had a little matter of collecting a few awesome pedals from a fellow GFSA'er who has migrated to a G-system

I know the one. ? Much like you did, he discussed it with me via PM while thinking about the move. Moving from pedals to multiFX is a big step, and I've done it twice now. So far... ?

One thing I can already see is that the Drives are going to take a fair amount of tweaking to get what I like though.

Yup. And you might still end up wanting to use your favourite drive, distortion or fuzz - I've just started using my OD-11 again.

I find most of the effects in the HD500 have just far too many parameters or controls to fiddle with in my opinion. Great for perpetual tweakers but a real pain for me.

Goes to show - I found the HD's don't offer enough control over the effects for me.

Tokai-SA

RoyC wrote:
It sounds rather lame that a few hours was spent on just two Amp Sims, Cabs, mic placings etcand a 63 Spring Reverb settings thoiugh! ☹

How long you spend tweaking is your choice, Roy.

How much better was the tone after two hours than it was after 10 minutes?...I think you wasted 110 minutes. ?
Most of the 'parameters and controls' in the HD are for show, Line 6 engineers could have just removed them and set them as defaults...you think because they're there they must be tweaked.
Just like the Sugar Baby Tremelo, it could have 5 controls instead of two, so you'd tweak all 5 just because they're there...but 3 of those controls/settings are defaulted inside the pedal.

Why are you setting up with headphones, you'd get better results/settings using a cheap pair of studio monitors to tweak your patches, and they'd interpret better with the monitors you're going to use.

Don't get obsessed with trying to create some kind of magical mystical tone..setup some patches and fire away.

IMO

racman

Good advice Lance - thanks. I guess some of the time spent is also getting to know the system, going back and forth with the original default Amp tone to see if I have actually improved matters.

As far as headphones go it really is so that I can get decent volume without waking the neighbours as I do this early morning or very late at night. Will definitely look at a pair of cheapish monitors though.

@Alan, it was touch and go with the g-system as I could import a new one from someone who owed me a favour, for quite a good price. In the end though it would have defeated the object of convenience I was looking for as I would have needed an Amp Sim and Drives.

DonovanB

Tokai SA wrote: How much better was the tone after two hours than it was after 10 minutes?...I think you wasted 110 minutes. ?

This is a great point. +1

christh

Roy, even if only for comparison purposes, why dont you try a few simple pedals. I have a Tech 21 Sans Amp Tri-A.C. (all the Fender amp models you can want) you can borrow, use your favourite OD and ambience delay, direct into a PA - it must work, imo. I have done the POD thing so many times, and given up.

racman

Thanks Chris, I may just take you up on that sometime. For now I am going to take my pedal board along with me this weekend and try and set up the HD to match the Ethos tones as well as my pedal settings as a good start.

Maybe a little too much is made of the time I have spent "tweaking" the amps, cabs, mics and positions etc, but some good points have come out of it. As stated earlier on, a lot of time was also spent getting to know the system and the different tweakable parameters and what effect they have at different settings. This in itself requires quite a bit of A/B listening. I apologise if it came across as complaining which it is not. However, I still feel that to get the best out of the system it is worthwhile getting to know it. I know of many far better guitarists than me who are quite happy to plug and play with the system but unfortunately that's not the way I am wired ?. I recall spending hours with the previous Boss GP-100 I had while comparing it to a Deluxe Reverb while I was setting it up - a very frustrating but enlightening exercise as I would get the tone to be quite close until I changed volume settings and learned that the modelling didn't respond like the real thing and needed settings changed when volume changes occured etc. Now I know some will highlight that one is not doing an A/B comparison when playing which is true. Some of us enjoy this type of tweaking and others dont. Having owned a HD500 before for a few months and then selling it as I didn't enjoy it at all, I feel that I need to give it a lot more time and effort before I give up on it again.

At the moment my biggest frustration is the Headphone aspect that Lance mentioned as well as the avialable time I have to spend with it but it is showing promise.

If I find I have to use external drives then I may as well go the whole hog and get a G-system with Amp sims and drives etc, but I am not there yet.

I do however already have a suspicion that the HD500 will not cause me to sell my pedals and use it as my only solution, which is quite dissapointing. Besides the drives, I am still battling to get a delay with the wonderful analogue tone of the Diamond MR jr2 (thanks Brent) and Vahlbruch Space Time delays , the MojoHand Sugar Baby Tremelo, and the drives I have (Wampler Paisley , Timmy and Craig Amps Cookies & Cream). While I know 90% of the audience will not notice this, I play music for me first of all and I need to be happy or satisfied with it.

My apologies for a rather verbose post ? ?