Triaxis V1

[johna156]

Hello everyone.
I'm thinking of buying a used triaxis V1 S/N: 026xx
I've read the differences between the v1 and v2 and since I don't really care for the cc thing, I was wondering what's the difference tonewise...
If anyone has the V1 triaxis, please tell me what kind of sound I will get from the lead 1 red channel.
I mostly play hard rock and classic metal tunes, but would also like to be able to have some nice nu metal palm muted chung. Is this possible with this preamp or should I look for aomething else?
Btw, I will be using it with my 50/50 Boogie power amp...
Thanks in advance for your help...

 

[DrCode]

Hello everyone.
I'm thinking of buying a used triaxis V1 S/N: 026xx
I've read the differences between the v1 and v2 and since I don't really care for the cc thing, I was wondering what's the difference tonewise...
If anyone has the V1 triaxis, please tell me what kind of sound I will get from the lead 1 red channel.
I mostly play hard rock and classic metal tunes, but would also like to be able to have some nice nu metal palm muted chung. Is this possible with this preamp or should I look for aomething else?
Btw, I will be using it with my 50/50 Boogie power amp...
Thanks in advance for your help...

I have this exact setup - I mainly use the lead 1/2 yellow channels though. I would describe the red channels as 'hairy' - pretty saturated if you crank the gain up.

I love this setup, I've had my Triaxis since '93 and have never found anything I like better. I will admit it took quite a bit of tweaking to get the sound I was looking for. I added an Aphex Aural Exciter w/ Big Bottom that I use VERY sparingly to punch it up a bit. I don't really use the Big Bottom part at all since the Triaxis has plenty of bottom end.

I think it's really tough to buy an amp w/o at least hearing it so PM me if you'd like and I can send you some clips of different settings, red channel, etc... I also have a bunch of tunes posted on Guitars101 (search DrCode and in my profile you can find links to them) that were all recorded w/ my Triaxis & 50/50. Take care! -dc

 

[johna156]

Thanks a lot for your help!
So, you have the v1 right?
I'm just confused a little bit if I should buy the V1 or just wait till I find a nice deal on a V2... You see I don't have the chance to go in a music store here and try one out (and besides even if I did, they wouldn't have the V1).
The thing is that I don't mind for the cc thing... I just want to be able to get nice sounds and program change capability... I have also found another one from ebay that is V2 with phat mode, but the thing is that the seller has only feedback as a buyer and not as a seller (100% though). Also the V1 is a European model so that means I can use it straight up while the V2 one is from the US so I will need a power transformer (220V to 110V) to use it.
What would you recommend? Every possible help will be really appreciated guys, since both auctions end pretty soon and I have to decide...

 

[disassembled]

I recommend the V2. I have owned 4 V2's and my current V2 was upgraded from V1. All of the channels sound the same (except for LD1 Red) between them. I've owned the currently manufactured Triaxis with the Boogie Searing lead instead of the Recto board but I recommend getting the recto board because it offers a nice contrast to the other channels in the Triaxis. The current LD1Red is really flubby and sounds similar to the other channels.

You can't go wrong with either version so it doesn't really matter if you are after the classic Mark series tone. The resale of the V2 is a little higher than V1's.

I feel my current setup bridges many gaps users complain about when sticking with the Triaxis and that is they don't have any marshall tones, lack of controllable GEQ, etc. I bought a Digitech GSP1101 based off many positive but i was very skeptical and initially wasn't impressed with the preamps but the effects are pretty good. After tweaking some detrimental settings I found the missing link and now can have great boogie tones ala the Triaxis as well as marshall and whatever else the GSP1101 provides. The GSP also bridges the gap of having strong midgain tones in the Triaxis because I can now add a tubescreamer infront of the Triaxis it gives me a tone I was looking for in the Triaxis but couldn't find it in stock trim.

BTW my current Triaxis has the "phat mod" and i owned 2 others that were "non phat" and I would say they are both usable but the non phat is easier to dial in. When i had a Roadking head I thought I could get the Phat mod fairly close to the Vintage mode of channel 3 of the RK. I had to set the controls to some odd settings but they were close enough for my liking. I have to admit that I don't like typical rectifier settings to begin with (typical meaning most tone controls around 12 o'clock) so my assessment might not mean much for traditional recto users.



If you don't need more than 2 channels you should also check out the Studio or Quad preamps.

Greg

 

[johna156]

Well guys, I just bought of ebay a studio pre amp!
I do love that IIC and IIC+ sound, so I guess it was the way to go, since I do prefer simplicity and all analogue sound chains...
My only concern, since I haven't heard it before, can it deliver really nice high gain sounds? Do you think it will do a nice pair with my 50/50 Boogie power amp?

 

[disassembled]

Well guys, I just bought of ebay a studio pre amp!
I do love that IIC and IIC+ sound, so I guess it was the way to go, since I do prefer simplicity and all analogue sound chains...
My only concern, since I haven't heard it before, can it deliver really nice high gain sounds? Do you think it will do a nice pair with my 50/50 Boogie power amp?

Since you just bought it why don't you just wait and see when it arrives?


Greg

 

[johna156]

Of course I will do that, it's just that when you buy new gear and you can't actually use it for a few days, you just have to ask these silly questions
Anyway, thanks for the suggestions.

 

[Gregwor]

I just traded my v2 with phat mod for the v2 without phat mod and I can't stress how much better and more flexible the one without the phat mod is. the phat mod lead 1 red was unusable to me.. the bass response was terrible and the gain in general was so mushy. I haven't ever opened up a v1 but john marshall at mesa told me that v1 had the same board as the new phat mod v2's which is a tiny board. The v2 non phat mod has a great big pcb that I'm convinced is the best thing ever hahaha. Obviously it's preference but yeah. John also mentioned that the overall voicing of the phat modded versions is quite a bit different, and I couldn't agree more. The phat modded TA seemed to have a chirpy characteristic to it which calibrating didn't help. It was the most abrasive sounding piece of crap ever. I A/B'd it against another brand new one it was identical.

Long story short, the new TA's suck. Get something with a serial in between T-1631 and T-8279. Sweet.

 

[18&Life]

even if you don't care about cc changes(maybe tomorrow you will),
Triaxis V1 is very old (v1= first year of production), so is always better a new car than a rusty one.
You will never know what it suffered through decades !!! :shock:

 

[straitouttahell]

even if you don't care about cc changes(maybe tomorrow you will),
Triaxis V1 is very old (v1= first year of production), so is always better a new car than a rusty one.
You will never know what it suffered through decades !!! :shock:

So, according to your logic, I should throw away my Quad and buy a new TriAxis :lol:

 

[msi]

I'd suggest ignoring him.

 

[18&Life]

even if you don't care about cc changes(maybe tomorrow you will),
Triaxis V1 is very old (v1= first year of production), so is always better a new car than a rusty one.
You will never know what it suffered through decades !!! :shock:

So, according to your logic, I should throw away my Quad and buy a new TriAxis :lol:

:lol:
Obviously not but it is a higher risk buying something with 15 years.
Not everybody take good care of their equipments.
Just be careful and test it as much as you can.
If you can test it,don't buy it.

 

[msi]

No, not everyone takes care of their gear. But I have a very early triaxis that I had mesa service for less than 100 dollars. There was the guy who bought the fucked up trem-o-verb that pretty much got the whole pcb replaced by mesa. I'd say when you buy an older piece of mesa gear it was built with integrity. And if it needs to be serviced they're not going to poke you in the eye then **** you when your bent over in pain. My triaxis, 2:90, three channel dual rectifier, and trem-o-verb are all second hand, and all work flawlessly. Besides, new doesn't mean better. Or did you read that in a manual somewhere?

 

[18&Life]

Obviously you don't know how to read.
I never said new is better,I said being an old gear,he will never know what the other(s) owner(s) did to it.
A new one at least comes from mesa and it's under warranty.
I only will buy a triaxis V1 if its owner was a friend of mind and the only one owner.
If he buys a new one and if it has a problem,mesa will fix it under warranty.
If he buys an old one(15 years),he will never know how many problems it could has or will has (or not).