Recording - July 2019 - 22
REVIEW
IK Multimedia Axe I/O
Guitar players come first in the design of this portable interface
REVIEW BY ALEX HAWLEY
T
he AXE I/O from IK Multimedia is a 2-in/5-out
recording interface built with a rugged metal
housing, and designed with guitar players in
mind. It comes loaded with unique features that cater
specifically to guitarists, such as variable input impedance and a dedicated reamplification output. It is built
in Italy with IK Multimedia's high quality converters
and mic preamps, supports 192 kHz recording, boasts
117 dB of dynamic range, and connects via USB 2.0.
It's also designed to integrate with IK Multimedia's
AmpliTube 4, which is included with the interface,
along with additional software bonuses.
Did you say "guitar-specific features"?
The AXE I/O is packed with input options. There are two 1/4"
instrument inputs on the front panel (with independent gain pots
and LED level meters), as well as two combination XLR/TRS
inputs on the back panel, letting it accept two guitars/basses,
mics (with global phantom power), or line-level signals.
The first instrument input includes Z-Tone control and selectable input topologies. The Z-Tone knob controls input impedance, which ranges from Sharp (1 MΩ) down to Bold (2.2 kΩ).
22 RECORDING July 2019
Rolling the knob all the way towards the Sharp side yields a
much brighter tone, comparable to running a guitar through
a standard DI box. Easing the knob towards the Bold side
gradually warms up the tone and softens the high frequencies.
Pushing the Z-Tone all the way to the Bold side sounds a bit too
dark when monitoring the direct sound, but feels at home with
software amps. This is especially true for higher-gain software
amps that have a tendency to have an unruly top end.
The selectable input topologies include Pure and JFET. Pure
is an accurate, transparent preamp that won't color the signal.
JFET is a Class-A buffered input, which colors the sound with
warm harmonics and a subtle midrange boost. Input 1 also
has a pickup selector for choosing between active or passive
pickups. The input topologies and Z-Tone mentioned above
only apply when this switch is set to Passive; the Active circuit
bypasses unnecessary gain stages for a more direct and clean
signal path. When the pickup selection is set to Active, the
input impedance is 10 kΩ.
Also on the front panel is a preset knob, which can be used
with AmpliTube 4 (or other virtual amps). This allows you to
scroll through presets on AmpliTube without putting down your
guitar and grabbing your mouse and keyboard. This is a great
addition for those who like to track or practice with software
amps. Using the software control panel, you can also assign
MIDI controls to two external footswitches or pedals. The external pedals plug into the rear panel of the interface, and can be
Recording - July 2019
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - July 2019
Fade In
Fast Forward
That One Mic: Electric Guitar
Christone "Kingfish" Ingram: Capturing the sound of blues guitar
IK Multimedia AXE I/O
IK Multimedia iRig Stomp I/O
BOSS Waza Craft CE-2W Chorus and DC-2W Dimension C
Lauten LS-308
Strymon Volante
Vance Powell - recording and mixing the Stray Cats latest album 40
PSI Audio A17-M
STL Tones STL Tonality–Howard Benson
LEWITT LCT 040 MATCH
Throwback To The Future
GFI System Clockwork Delay V3
Recording - July 2019 - Intro
Recording - July 2019 - Cover1
Recording - July 2019 - Cover2
Recording - July 2019 - 1
Recording - July 2019 - 2
Recording - July 2019 - 3
Recording - July 2019 - Fade In
Recording - July 2019 - 5
Recording - July 2019 - 6
Recording - July 2019 - 7
Recording - July 2019 - Fast Forward
Recording - July 2019 - 9
Recording - July 2019 - 10
Recording - July 2019 - 11
Recording - July 2019 - That One Mic: Electric Guitar
Recording - July 2019 - 13
Recording - July 2019 - 14
Recording - July 2019 - 15
Recording - July 2019 - Christone "Kingfish" Ingram: Capturing the sound of blues guitar
Recording - July 2019 - 17
Recording - July 2019 - 18
Recording - July 2019 - 19
Recording - July 2019 - 20
Recording - July 2019 - 21
Recording - July 2019 - IK Multimedia AXE I/O
Recording - July 2019 - 23
Recording - July 2019 - 24
Recording - July 2019 - 25
Recording - July 2019 - IK Multimedia iRig Stomp I/O
Recording - July 2019 - 27
Recording - July 2019 - 28
Recording - July 2019 - 29
Recording - July 2019 - 30
Recording - July 2019 - 31
Recording - July 2019 - 32
Recording - July 2019 - 33
Recording - July 2019 - BOSS Waza Craft CE-2W Chorus and DC-2W Dimension C
Recording - July 2019 - 35
Recording - July 2019 - Lauten LS-308
Recording - July 2019 - 37
Recording - July 2019 - Strymon Volante
Recording - July 2019 - 39
Recording - July 2019 - Vance Powell - recording and mixing the Stray Cats latest album 40
Recording - July 2019 - 41
Recording - July 2019 - 42
Recording - July 2019 - 43
Recording - July 2019 - PSI Audio A17-M
Recording - July 2019 - 45
Recording - July 2019 - 46
Recording - July 2019 - 47
Recording - July 2019 - STL Tones STL Tonality–Howard Benson
Recording - July 2019 - 49
Recording - July 2019 - 50
Recording - July 2019 - 51
Recording - July 2019 - 52
Recording - July 2019 - 53
Recording - July 2019 - 54
Recording - July 2019 - 55
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Recording - July 2019 - 57
Recording - July 2019 - 58
Recording - July 2019 - 59
Recording - July 2019 - Throwback To The Future
Recording - July 2019 - 61
Recording - July 2019 - 62
Recording - July 2019 - 63
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Recording - July 2019 - 65
Recording - July 2019 - 66
Recording - July 2019 - 67
Recording - July 2019 - 68
Recording - July 2019 - 69
Recording - July 2019 - LEWITT LCT 040 MATCH
Recording - July 2019 - 71
Recording - July 2019 - GFI System Clockwork Delay V3
Recording - July 2019 - Cover3
Recording - July 2019 - Cover4
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