New user with Muddy ER11

[1960lespaul]

So after hearing so many sound clips and wanting an eleven rack I finally have one. So far I hate it. I hated the previous owners patches. All low gain amps. So I reset to factory settings. This does have the expansion pack. Not much in the presets in the way of high gain presets at all. But all of the presets sound muddy. Let me also say all I want to do is use this for live. I am running stereo into a Peavey 60/60 power amp and into a 4x12 again in stereo. Cab sims are off. I also dont like that one output is on the front. I suppose I could use the xlr outs. I was hoping this would make my rocktron prophesy a backup but as it stands this isn't even a suitable backup. I am hoping to download the stand alone editor on my laptop as it has windows 7. My desk top has vista and wont load. Is there something I am doing or not doing that would cause the muddiness? I really wasn't expecting this since I have owned both prophesys and a Fractal standard and out of the box they were good.

[singtall]

i have the 11R and Prophesy, and the 11R is my main rig. there is plenty enough eq in there to get the tone you want. put a para eq after the amp model and tweak away.

your speakers will play a large role in what sounds good. unless you have V30's or some other midrange heavy speaker, stay away from the Recto for example.

the Soldano amp model sounds a lot like the Prophesy Mega channel, maybe start there.

[Barry Johns]

Originally Posted by 1960lespaul

So after hearing so many sound clips and wanting an eleven rack I finally have one. So far I hate it. I hated the previous owners patches. All low gain amps. So I reset to factory settings. This does have the expansion pack. Not much in the presets in the way of high gain presets at all. But all of the presets sound muddy. Let me also say all I want to do is use this for live. I am running stereo into a Peavey 60/60 power amp and into a 4x12 again in stereo. Cab sims are off. I also dont like that one output is on the front. I suppose I could use the xlr outs. I was hoping this would make my rocktron prophesy a backup but as it stands this isn't even a suitable backup. I am hoping to download the stand alone editor on my laptop as it has windows 7. My desk top has vista and wont load. Is there something I am doing or not doing that would cause the muddiness? I really wasn't expecting this since I have owned both prophesys and a Fractal standard and out of the box they were good.

Are you using the Main outs or the amp outs to feed your power amp?

You should be using the Amp Outs, one on the front and one on the back of the unit.

You need to go into setup per the manual and make sure you have it properly configured for use with an amp.

You also have to look at the amp sim output level as well as the overall output to the amp, make sure both are properly gain staged.

I use mine, and after I did the above, I get awesome sounds from my 11R. I have mine going into a Marshall 150watt Power amp then feed two 2x12 cabs.

[singtall]

another thing to consider:

how is your para-eq's set on the Prophesy? the Prophesy Mega amp by itself is kinda like a Soldano, but if you put an eq in front and an eq after it it totally changes everything.

try an eq both before and after the amp model in the eleven rack and do the same thing eq-wise as you are doing to the Prophesy.....then you will get a better idea of what it sounds like compared to the prophesy.

[zedhed]

Originally Posted by 1960lespaul

I am running stereo into a Peavey 60/60 power amp and into a 4x12 again in stereo.

Firstly, one speaker cabinet does not constitute a true stereo setup....you need two (or multiples of pairs) for left & right respectively.

For live use, as suggested use the 'Output to Amp' jack/s to your onstage Amp/s (make sure the 'to amp' position is set correctly so your not sending a simulated amp/cab signal to a real amp/cab) and use the XLR Main outs (Line level) to the PA Mixing desk (which also allows more guitar in the foldback mix if required).

Not sure if you are familiar with this site which has a myriad of user presets to download;
http://www.elevenrackpresets.com/

I have never found a preset that doesn't require some tweaking to suit my own needs but there are plenty to chose from to use as a starting point. If you're not getting a good sound, you are doing something wrong.

[1960lespaul]

I am using the amp outs and have done everything mentioned already. I hated the pre loaded presets. Now that I finally have everything loaded on to the computer I was able to download plenty of patches. I have moved away from the ledge lol. These are much closer to what I was expecting and need only tweaking. Sorry for the venting. I was so excited when I got it home and was really dissapointed. Feeling much better now. The stand alone editor is a life saver. Man I really would prefer to use the XLR to keep everything clean. So far it has been 1/4 inch only. Is there really a noticable difference?

[singtall]

the biggest thing that i noticed (back when i was using an amp and real cabinet) was that the 1/4" outs had less gain than xlr. i had plenty enough amp, so it wasn't a deal killer.

feel free to try the xlr outs if you want to. i doubt you will ever use the 1/4" outs and xlr out to mixer since you will never get the xlr outs to sound like your real cabinet. it's just easier to mic your real cabinet.

that's my experience anyway.

[Darryl Ramm]

The really noticeable difference depends on where you set the amp1/amp2 outputs to be in the rig chain. The main outputs are always at the end of the rig chain. There should just be no reason to use the main XLR outputs to drive a guitar amp/guitar amp power section. There is enough output there to do this (make sure you understand the multitude of gain/volume settings throughout the Eleven Rack). It is maybe not as well laid out there as the Axe FX/Axe FX GUI--although very good once you understand what is going on.

[Barry Johns]

Never use the main outputs when using with a non full range cabinet regardless of amp! NEVER!!!!! Sounds like garbage!

ALWAYS, did I say ALWAYS, use the amp outputs! Use just one for mono, or both for stereo!

This is all discussed in the manual, I like many I presume, did not read the manual and had lots of frustrating results because of that!

My rig now sounds amazing using a Marshall 9000 tube power amp with 2 2x12 cabs! Wish I had a mesa boogie 2:50 instead!

[Barry Johns]

Originally Posted by Darryl Ramm

The really noticeable difference depends on where you set the amp1/amp2 outputs to be in the rig chain. The main outputs are always at the end of the rig chain. There should just be no reason to use the main XLR outputs to drive a guitar amp/guitar amp power section. There is enough output there to do this (make sure you understand the multitude of gain/volume settings throughout the Eleven Rack). It is maybe not as well laid out there as the Axe FX/Axe FX GUI--although very good once you understand what is going on.

+1,000