Axe II vs. Pod HD - trying to decide?

[Vince]

I agree with the other posters. I had the Axe Ultra, and loved it. The rectifier and triaxis tones were just about perfect and I loved a lot of the other modelers on there. It's truly an awesome unit. Having said that, I now own the HD500, and though it's scope is more limited, for what I use it for it's perfect and I love it. I don't think I'd buy back an Axe FX again simply because of the difference in price. I have my modeller now that is great for recording. Next to buy an amp head to crush my ear drums with!

[rhettro]

One thought as far as the Pod taking a bit of time to dial in a decent tone...

As someone who was initially over-thinking everything and making everything more complicated than it needed to be, I think keeping things simple is the key. As someone mentioned, don't even try to use a preset. They're fun to skip through just to get a sample of the unit's capabilities, but not a good indicator AT ALL as far as sound quality.

If you can get a decent tone out of a "real" setup (amp, effects, etc.), you really should have no problem here if you have a decent system to monitor the Pod. Grab an amp, pair it with a cab that compliments it, mic it, adjust amp controls as you normally would with a real amp, and sprinkle in the usual pedals such as noise gate, tube screamer and EQ. I see patches where people are going nuts (dual amps, multiple EQs, multiple gates, etc.) to get a simple high gain tone. I find that to be totally unnecessary.

[Chris]

Originally Posted by fuzznug

One thought as far as the Pod taking a bit of time to dial in a decent tone...

As someone who was initially over-thinking everything and making everything more complicated than it needed to be, I think keeping things simple is the key. As someone mentioned, don't even try to use a preset. They're fun to skip through just to get a sample of the unit's capabilities, but not a good indicator AT ALL as far as sound quality.

If you can get a decent tone out of a "real" setup (amp, effects, etc.), you really should have no problem here if you have a decent system to monitor the Pod. Grab an amp, pair it with a cab that compliments it, mic it, adjust amp controls as you normally would with a real amp, and sprinkle in the usual pedals such as noise gate, tube screamer and EQ. I see patches where people are going nuts (dual amps, multiple EQs, multiple gates, etc.) to get a simple high gain tone. I find that to be totally unnecessary.

Spot on.

[Daniel]

Originally Posted by DslDwg

I think this is just confirming what I already thought.

IMO the Axe II gets you 20-30% more capabilities and better sounds but at 5x price - just not sure it's worth it for the bedroom.

Fixed

[Jeff]

I think for a lot of people it comes down to price, unfortunately. If you can afford to have the AFX AND your favorite amp, then go AFX. If you have the money to have the AFX, power amp, controller, and cab, then go AFX.

But if the choice is between parting with an amp (or other gear you love) and buying an AFX, or keeping all your stuff and getting a POD HD, then the POD is a great alternative.

It's nice that we do have that option, because before the HD series came out, the cheaper alternative really sucked.

[Daniel]

Very true jeff

[DslDwg]

Originally Posted by Daniel

Fixed

The HD POD Pro is 699 and if you're willing to wait list the Axe it's 2199 so technically it's 3.15X the price

[DslDwg]

Thanks for all the discussion guys - this and Chris' other thread really helping that I think I'm going to give the Axe a go.

Like I said the money is not the issue - except that when I talk about spending $2200 on any piece of gear I get an uncontrollable twitch.

I won't be giving up anything - I will thin the herd a little and likely the Axe will become my main for playing and recording. Honestly even a 1x12 is overkill in my house and I'm never playing with a drummer so I just don't need the volume.

[Daniel]

Originally Posted by DslDwg

Thanks for all the discussion guys - this and Chris' other thread really helping that I think I'm going to give the Axe a go.

Like I said the money is not the issue - except that when I talk about spending $2200 on any piece of gear I get an uncontrollable twitch.

I won't be giving up anything - I will thin the herd a little and likely the Axe will become my main for playing and recording. Honestly even a 1x12 is overkill in my house and I'm never playing with a drummer so I just don't need the volume.

you can always try the Axe Fx standard for around 1k - 1.3k instead of jumping straight for the Axe II. Then grab yourself a Tech-21 Power Engine and you're all set.

[DslDwg]

Originally Posted by Daniel

you can always try the Axe Fx standard for around 1k - 1.3k instead of jumping straight for the Axe II. Then grab yourself a Tech-21 Power Engine and you're all set.

I do appreciate the suggestion - if I'm going to do it I'm going all the way. I'd hate to think I'd want additional features from the II and have cheaped out to buy another version of the exact same thing.

So Daniel want to buy a Vypyr 120 cheap lol.