Owning an Axe FX I think it does a very good job in front of and in the loop of the ED.
I also have an FCB1010 midi footswitch. Nice thing about that footswitch is that it has two mono 1/4 output jacks that can be used as either momentary or latching switches. 10$ at radio shack got me an aluminum enclosure, 2 1/4" mono jacks and 1 1/4" stereo jack. I wired it up so that I can run two patch chords from the fcb1010 into the box, then take the stereo cable from the ED footswitch and run it into the other side of the box then into the footswitch jack of the ED. So now when I change patches on the Axe fx using the footswitch, it can also change channels based on how I have it setup.
As far as the Axe FX as a single unit to handle all effects in front of and in the loop of the amp. You and I have discussed.
I think it does a great job, but I can not say if it is any better or any worse then individual pedals. For me it does great, but I'm the type of guy who will practice most of the time just plugged directly into the ED with nothing in the loop.
The downside of using the Axe FX in front and in the loop I have found are as follows.
1. You can get mad ground loop noise. Now, I have solved this completely using the ebtech hum x and the little imp transformer. Now it is quiet as could be.
2. Setting the levels. The Axe FX has two inputs and two outputs. Accordingly it has 2 input levels and 2 output levels. So you need to adjust the input level for your guitar, the output going to the input of the amp, the input level coming from the effects send, and the output going to the effects return. This can be a pain. But once you do it, it is really cood
The reason I use it and refuse to use pedals is 2 reasons.
1. I paid 2K for the Axe FX and another 80 for the pedal. Paying any additional money for something the Axe already does makes me want to puke in my mouth.
2. With my current setup I can alter any effect imaginable and change channels on my amp with a single footswitch press. If I were to start using pedals, I would then have to reinvest into a switching system. And even with a switching system, I would not be able to alter things like amount of gain on a pedal, or delay mix and such.
So I can not say whether it would sound better or not. But I will say that it works and works well IMO.
The other added bonus is that as a stand alone unit, it is just freaking amazing. I can go from recto, to plexi, shiva, to jcm800, to ubershall to Mark series and it just sounds great.
