Mesa Boogie GCX slave and Axe FX wet/dry rig

[Manhell]

Ok I got it now, I was doing some reading and research and I think I got the answer, we are both right in different ways; the Axe Fx has 2 different inputs, the INSTR one in the front and the one in the back, the front one is used for instruments and instruments alone, plugging a line level device there can damage because of the clipping of the input amplifier, but the rear inputs are made to work with line level devices, that's why they seem to have less gain than the front one.

Now the question is, can the GCX handle line level devices?

[Manhell]

Ok I got it now, I was doing some reading and research and I think I got the answer, we are both right in different ways; the Axe Fx has 2 different inputs, the INSTR one in the front and the one in the back, the front one is used for instruments and instruments alone, plugging a line level device there can damage because of the clipping of the input amplifier, but the rear inputs are made to work with line level devices, that's why they seem to have less gain than the front one.

Now the question is, can the GCX handle line level devices?

[nyteowl]

one more thing but out of pure curiosity; are you related with voodoo lab in any way like one of the builders, or researchers or work at voodoo lab?
I am asking this because you usually answer a lot of people's questions and have your text in blue, so I am wondering this for a long time.

I am in no way affiliated with Voodoo Lab. I used a GCPro/GCX in my rig for a good many years and can remember how frustrated I was when I first got involved with MIDI and routing signals through various switching devices, so I am here to share whatever knowledge I have with others so they can get their rigs up and running with as little hassle as possible.

The text formatting is just my personal preference, and believe me when I say there are other contributors here who are far more knowledgeable than I. Although I do answer MIDI related questions, I enjoy working with complicated signal routing schemes, and am constantly looking for new ways to configure the external devices my rig.

[nyteowl]

Ok I got it now, I was doing some reading and research and I think I got the answer, we are both right in different ways; the Axe Fx has 2 different inputs, the INSTR one in the front and the one in the back, the front one is used for instruments and instruments alone, plugging a line level device there can damage because of the clipping of the input amplifier, but the rear inputs are made to work with line level devices, that's why they seem to have less gain than the front one.

Now the question is, can the GCX handle line level devices?

Yes, it will handle line level signals, as noted in the third paragraph of the Overview section on Page 3 of your GCX Manual:

"The GCX has eight audio loops, each with separate IN, OUT, SEND and RETURN jacks. They can switch effects in and out, A/B select or mute sends for parallel effects systems, all at either instrument or line level."

I also saw your thread on the Fractal Forum, and the first person to reply wrote this...

"I would use the rear input of the Axe-Fx because the Slave Out of the Boogie is a line level signal and will probably overload the front input. "

...which is exactly what I've been saying for the last three days. The second person to respond said he was using the 4-cable method, which also uses the Axe's rear panel In and Out jacks.

Maybe I'm beating a dead horse here, but my position has always been you could use the Axe effects with the Mesa, but you should not connect the Mesa's Slave Out to the Axe's Instrument Input. I backed that up with information straight out of the Axe-FX II manual which, for whatever reason, you chose not to acknowledge, but the manual said the proper way to make your connections would be to use the In2/Out2 jacks on the Axe's rear panel.

I must also mention, when you replied to your own post on the Fractal forum, you wrote, "I used the rear input too, but is it ok to do so?" and that is the very first time you said anything about using the Axe's rear input. Everything you wrote in this thread indicated you intended to use the Axe's front panel Instrument Input which, any way you look at it, does not make us both right in different ways because that is the wrong input to use.

[Manhell]

I see, it was miscommunication, I wasn't paying attention so much about the differences in the inputs of the Axe Fx, and that was probably the cause of such misunderstanding.

everything I plug into the Axe goes in the rear inputs so I got this as a granted fact.

I only really understood what was happening when the explanation about the line level came on, I wasn't paying attention to it, but that's why I was searching and asking, my knowledge is still limited and I'm always learning, but now i know what's what.

Anyway, thanks for your time and patience

Cheers

[nyteowl]

As I often say, the devil is in the details.

What I mean by that is my advice, comments, and/or suggestions are only as good as the information I have at hand, but sometimes miscommunication takes place no matter how hard one tries to be clear and concise.

No harm done, and if anything, at least I know you'll avoid plugging line level signals into instrument inputs in the future.

Let us know how the rig is working once you've got it all hooked up.

[domct203]

The slave out is simply a line level output, tapped off the Output Transformer, and is intended to drive other line-level items, like FX Processors & power amps. It is what I use (on my Mesa Roadster) to drive my wet amps in a W/D/W setup.

If the Ax-FX can handle a line-level input you will be fine. Be careful though, the slave can be a really hot signal at stage volumes.

Dom

[nyteowl]

As mentioned more than once in this thread and on the Fractal Forum, the Axe - just as any other amp or preamp - really doesn't want to see a line level signal at the Instrument Input jack.

[domct203]

As mentioned more than once in this thread and on the Fractal Forum, the Axe - just as any other amp or preamp - really doesn't want to see a line level signal at the Instrument Input jack.

Maybe I should have stated "if the Rear-Inputs can handle Line-Level". But I though that would already be clear due to your explainations.

Dom