Presets

The information on this page supplements the official manuals.

Number of preset slots

• Axe-Fx II: 384.
• Axe-Fx II XL and XL+: 768.
• FX8: 128.
• AX8: 512.

Importing old presets into the Axe-Fx II Mark I or II

• Due to space limitations in the Mark I/II BOOTROM, firmware Quantum 5.00 and later is not backwards compatible with presets created prior to firmware version 15.08. This limitation only exists for the Mark I/II. XL and XL+ still maintain backward compatibility.

Importing presets

• Beside the factory presets, you can load presets from others users into your Axe-Fx II. Presets have a .syx file extension. Presets are available in the user forum and Axe-Change.
• If you use Fractal-Bot or a Fractal Audio editor or a MIDI librarian such as Snoize SysEx Librarian (Mac) or MIDI-OX (Windows): make a connection between your computer and the Axe-Fx, load the .syx file and send it to the Axe-Fx. The Axe-Fx is always ready to receive presets in this way. If you upload a preset onto the Axe-Fx this way, the preset is not yet stored on the Axe-Fx but kept in a buffer. If you want to keep it on the Axe-Fx, select a preset slot and save it.
• Preset files are also kept in bank files. You can use Axe-Edit to pick individual presets from a bank file.
• Cliff: "There are two possible destinations for a preset: the edit buffer or a defined preset number. The destination is encoded in the data. If it's not going to the edit buffer then the preset was harvested from a hard drive somehow. When you load a preset with Axe-Edit it sets the destination bytes. However if you use a librarian then the preset may go to the edit buffer or to a defined preset location depending upon the destination bytes. You can identify the preset destination from the data. If the seventh byte is 7F then it will go into the edit buffer, otherwise it will go into preset memory. For example: F0 00 01 74 03 77 7F 00 goes to the edit buffer whereas F0 00 01 74 03 77 01 02 will go to bank B preset 2 (patch 130)." source

Sharing sounds between Axe-Fx II models, AX8 and FX8

• Axe-Edit lets you transfer presets from an Axe-Fx II Original/Mark II to a XL and XL+. But not the other way around. But you can share individual effects blocks between all devices through the Block Library.
• The utility FracTool lets you share presets between the various Axe-Fx II models and the AX8. It's a preset converter. It also solves various conversion issues.
• An alternative way to share preset settings is to create a CSV file which lists all parameter values. The editors offer this functionality.
• Yek: "When I transferred all my presets from the original Axe-Fx II to the XL, I kept a log of changed parameter values. These are the ones you may want to check before and after transfer:
  • COMP — TYPE and SUSTAIN and MIX and AUTO
  • PEQ — FREQ TYPE (bands 1 and 5), GAIN (all bands), LEVEL
  • GEQ — 16k slider, LEVEL
  • TREMOLO — LFO PHASE and START PHASE and WIDTH and TYPE
  • MIXER — BALANCE
  • CHORUS — LFO PHASE"
• A walkthrough by Yek.
• Another conversion issue is the difference in effects that support X/Y. Cliff: "Any blocks that have X/Y on the XL but not on the Mark II will not import the bypass state as that is stored differently. You need to manually adjust the bypass state after import." source
• [http://axefxtutorials.com/2016/02/importing-block-files-into-fas-gear-and-saving-presets-as-block-files-to-share-among-devices-axe-fx-ii-ax8-fx8/ AxeFxTutorials article about sharing blocks.

Preset size

• In rare cases a preset can get too large (too many bytes). This is not the same as overloading the CPU. There's no warning or checking mechanism for this. If this happens, certain values won't get stored, or revert to zero upon recall. This does not happen often. It seems to occur mostly when the user makes use of a very large number of modifiers/controllers.

Preset level

• See Preset output level.

Preset switching speed (lag, audio gap)

• For gapless switching, use Scenes.
• Cliff's comments:
  • "With any device that features flexible routing you have to mute, switch then unmute. This takes time. The reason is that if you don't do this then you'll end up with sound from one of the blocks that may have moved to a different position possible causing a loud pop or other artifact. For example, if you have a simple amp->cab->delay preset then you switch to a preset that has delay->amp->cab the sound from the delay will get amplified during the switch so you have to mute everything, wait for the signals to decay, rearrange the blocks, then unmute. Products with a fixed routing can switch faster since they don't have to worry about rearranging blocks. The Axe-Fx amp modeling is also far more intricate and complex than other products and this requires muting the amp modeling for a short time to allow the bias points to settle." source
  • (Axe-Fx II): "Dropout is only 20-30 ms. If you are experiencing more than that then your MIDI controller is not programmed properly." source
  • (AX8) "Our modeling is very detailed and whenever the amp model changes the "virtual circuit" needs to be reconfigured. We can switch quickly but often this causes clicks and pops due to the reconfiguration. So the amp block needs to run silently for a bit so things will settle. Then we unmute the block. This mute period is what you are hearing. Most other products just use a fixed algorithm and change the input/output EQ and gain. With this type of algorithm you can switch quickly without clicks and pops but, of course, you don't get the realism and detail." source

Preset-Cab bundle

• A Preset-Cab bundle is a single file containing the preset and one or more user cabs.
• You can save a bundle in Axe-Edit or AX8-Edit using the menu.
• You can load a bundle into Axe-Edit or AX8-Edit using the Import button.
• Do not not share IRs which are protected by an EULA, license, copyright etc.

Loading a blank preset on startup

• Axe-Fx II: press and hold RECALL on startup.
• AX8: press ENTER when the splash screen is displayed.
• FX8: press ENTER when the splash screen is displayed.
• Software editors: select Preset > Initialize.

Moving presets on the hardware

• You can move a preset by using Store > Swap on the hardware. Or use the software editor.

Deleting all presets

• The Utility menus provide a command to delete all presets at once.

Printing a preset or user cabs list

• In the software editor, select Tools > Export as Text > Preset List.

Creating a list of the values of all block parameters of a preset

• In the software editor, select Export Preset as CSV.

(Re)naming presets

• On the Axe-Fx II:
  • X: Insert a character at the current cursor position.
  • Y: Delete the character at the current cursor position.
  • A: Select an upper-case character.
  • B: Select a lower-case character.
  • C: Select a number.
  • D: Move the cursor.
  • < >: Move the cursor.
  • Value: Select any character from the character set.
• On the FX8 and AX8:
  • Value/NAV: Move the cursor.
  • A: Select an upper-case character.
  • B: Select a lower-case character.
  • C: Select numbers and symbols.

Guidelines for creating presets

• For those with OCD, here's a checklist to verify the consistency of your presets:
  • Stick to the same grid layout/routing whenever possible, to simplify viewing and editing. May increase preset switching speed as well.
  • Re-use effect blocks with preferred settings and levels, through Global Blocks (Axe-Fx II), or saved/recalled effects from the editor's library.
  • Assign external controllers in a consistent way.
  • Even if delay/reverb won't be used in a preset, consider inserting a bypassed Delay/Reverb block just to enable spillover.
  • Verify that effects before Amp and Drive blocks are not set to stereo.
  • Be aware that certain effect blocks sum the signal to mono (Amp, Drive, mono Cab).
  • Check your settings (I/O, and blocks) for correct mono/stereo operation to prevent phase cancellation.
  • Make sure that the block settings, and Output Main Level, enable unity gain, in engaged and bypassed state.
  • Set Mix, Level and Bypass parameters correctly when placing effects in parallel rows.
  • Make sure that the overall preset level matches other presets and does not clip when engaging a volume boost, Wah, etc.
  • Check the preset's Noise gate settings. Turn it off when not needed, to save CPU.
  • Use a consistent way to boost the signal level of presets for leads.
  • Use a consistent naming scheme for presets.
  • Make sure that effect blocks are set to the correct X/Y state.
  • Check the preset's tempo settings.
  • Verify that you're working in the correct preset scene.
  • When using one Amp block: use AMP 1, never AMP 2.
  • Need variations of tones: use X/Y and Scenes.
  • Make sure that CPU usage stays below 90% (connecting USB will increase CPU usage). Note that CPU usage can vary, depending on the X/Y state of effect blocks.

Axe-Fx II preset editing: tutorials

• Tutorials by Cooper Carter for G66:
  • Build an Axe-Fx II preset for live performance.
  • Get a great clean tone with the Axe-Fx II.
  • Get a great crunch tone with the Axe-Fx II.
  • Get a great lead tone with the Axe-Fx II.

Axe-Fx II and AX8 preset editing: grid template

• Here's a template you can use for designing your presets "offline":