Axe PC

[rickenbacker198]

Software is in private beta at this time. Public demo is not too far off.

Great!! :mrgreen:

 

[G.9]

Just a couple basic questions... looked for a "search this topic" button but couldn't find any... will Axe-PC sound the same as the Axe-FX Ultra, or is there a discrepancy in sound quality? Also, the only thing limiting your amount of effects is processing power, correct? None of that Gearbox effects cap.

 

[FractalAudio]

Just a couple basic questions... looked for a "search this topic" button but couldn't find any... will Axe-PC sound the same as the Axe-FX Ultra, or is there a discrepancy in sound quality? Also, the only thing limiting your amount of effects is processing power, correct? None of that Gearbox effects cap.

If you use our audio interface it should sound identical.

 

[G.9]

Just a couple basic questions... looked for a "search this topic" button but couldn't find any... will Axe-PC sound the same as the Axe-FX Ultra, or is there a discrepancy in sound quality? Also, the only thing limiting your amount of effects is processing power, correct? None of that Gearbox effects cap.

If you use our audio interface it should sound identical.

Will it have MIDI inputs and outputs?

About the GUI...

Would it be possible to use only the GUI (no vST part) instead of the editor ? Working the same way as the editor, communicating via midi with the Ultra or Standard (without owning the actual Axe PC hardware). I think that could be very useful for many reasons. First of all it would make transfer between a vSt Axe and a real Axe a lot easier. Build a patch on your PC in the studio, transfer it onto the Ultra for a gig...

This question has probably been answered... but just my thoughts. I think there'd be a computer to Axe-FX processing discrepancy. If effects are limited only by your computer's power (it should be this way, unlike with Gearbox's effects cap) then there would be a huge difference between the load an Axe-FX could handle and what the computer could handle. Axe-FX has a lot of power in its dual cores, but I'm not sure if that could compare with a fully rigged, 8-core Mac Pro. So if you constructed something that ran well in the Mac Pro, it might be a patch that overloads the Axe-FX Ultra.

 

[bounce]

Okay, cool.

 

[lucB18e]

Re: Axe PC / specific grid effects, public API orVST/AU inserts?

Hi, just curious...
I've understood the HUI will be a grid like the very good Mr Lars editor
with the standards effects end perhaps those of the ultra.

As there is no more memory limits like in the standard,
Has fractal audio ever think to :
- develop specific grid effects for the axe pc ? (more mono synth effects for instance ) or
- the option to put vst or audiounit plugin into a cell (would be great)
- or give a standard simple API (like VST for instance) to allow third party or hobbyist to developp their own effects with access to all fractal controler (pitch, sequencer, enveloppe, etc...) : would be very fun...

luc

 

[HedgeHop]

- or give a standard simple API (like VST for instance) to allow third party or hobbyist to developp their own effects with access to all fractal controler (pitch, sequencer, enveloppe, etc...) : would be very fun...

Or you can do it the opposite way : use the Axe as a plugin inside a bigger host (bidule for example), do whatever routings with third party plugins (no grid, no limitations), and use the controllers from the host.

 

[OverAmp]

Forgive me if I missed the answer to this, I saw discussion but no firm details. Will the AxePC software be discounted for those who already own Axe units?

 

[G.9]

Again, will the Axe-PC have MIDI inputs to use in correspondence with a footswitch in a live situation?

 

[Tone Seeker]

Will there be Pro Tools support, either upon release or down the road?

Terry.

 

[G.9]

Question... will this be USB bus-powered or will it require a separate AC adapter?

Also... will the two inputs be hybrid XLR/1/4" or just 1/4" instrument inputs?

 

[Matman]

Re: Axe PC / specific grid effects, public API orVST/AU inserts?

> the option to put vst or audiounit plugin into a cell (would be great)

Hoping for this too!!! This should have happened in GuitarRig a long time ago-- either for technical or marketing reasons, it hasn't.

 

[rick_steel]

I'll be extremely happy if this comes out as an RTAS as well as VST. Any chance of this happening Cliff?

 

[JMZ93]

Wait until you see our GUI.... schweeeeet.

Uh oh, usually fancy grahpical interface means blind and visually-impaired musicians, engineers, producers, home studio hobbyists etc. can't use it. Not always, but generally the more things stray from common Windows or Mac screen objects like dialog boxes, buttons, sliders etc. the less chance we have of accessing anything.

Yes, we're an infinetesimally small part of the market, so I can't argue for accessibility on economic grounds.

However, usually when things are designed with accessibility in mind, they end up being more intuitive, user friendly, and just plain easier to use by all, sighted or otherwise.

For example, consider studio hardware. The more expensive the gear, chances are the more actual physical controls it will have, because engineers don't want to deal with two buttons and 20 nested menus.

But back to Axe PC ...
Since the hardware product is a nightmare, (the software editor doesn't seem accessible although it could probably be made so) i'm hoping the VST version will have some standard GUI elements our screen reading software can identify and read. Barring that, I hope the VST version exposes its parameters to the host application (Sonar or whatever other DAW software), with logically named parameters and values that are real-world numbers. Even if the stand-alone version is invisible to our screen reading software, making all parameters available to the host application gives us other opportunities to access them. (PC/Windows example, the Track Inspector in Sonar)

Cliff, are you developing the Axe VST and stand-alone on PC or Mac, or some other platform?

 

[JMZ93]

You're never going to beat the performance, ruggedness and ease of use of the Axe-Fx.

How many physical controls are on the front of the hardware unit? From what little I could glean from the manual, it sounds like there is only one knob for scrolling through lists of things? Just asking since the image of the front pannel is well, a jpg image.

Laptops are fragile, easily stolen and prone to reliability problems. Also, you'll never get the latency performance out of a PC that you will with an Axe-Fx. OS limitations prevent this. For some people the extra-low latency of the Axe-Fx is worth the money.

Especially with it tied to a usb interface :lol:

hmm I wonder what John mcLaughlin is using? Doesn't he tour only with a macbook and Logic Pro Audio? Low enough latency for a cat like McLaughlin must be quite possible ...

 

[Shaloha]

John McLaughlin and Allan Holdsworth discussing their use of Guitar Synthesizers... McLaughlin talks about his setup (GuitarPlayer, 2005)...

"Recently I’ve been using a Godin Multiac guitar with an internal RMC pickup system, driving a Roland GI-20 MIDI interface, connected directly to a 1.6GHz Apple laptop running MIDI software. I’ve been using it a lot in the studio while recording my upcoming CD, and also live, particularly with Remember Shakti. It works like a dream, with practically no latency, and is easily the best guitar synth that I’ve ever tried."

http://www.guitarplayer.com/story.aspx?content_id=13160

 

[grape]

Is there any news concerning Axe-PC?

I don't own an Axe-FX but I am waiting for Axe-PC. I thought about buying an Axe-FX to lessen the load on the computer but I can't justify going backwards to a rack unit. The can't give up the benefits of "re-amping" using plugins, storing virtually infinite presets, not having to deal with sysex editors, using multiple plugin instances, etc. So I'm waiting for Axe-PC. I'm even willing to dedicate a new machine to it if necessary.

I read that there will be hardware that will act as a dongle. Will this hardware include Midi, Footswitches, controller pedal inputs, and audio IO? If we choose to use different IO, will the other parts of the interface be usable? I'm familiar with the Guitar Rig way of doing things and while I don't use their IO, I still use the Rig Kontrol for as a foot controller. I'm hoping I can do the same with Axe-PC but honestly, having the VST plugin alone with the ability to use controller data is enough for me to begin with.

Any news/timetable would be great. I am terribly excited but want to pace myself in this waiting game.

 

[slave]

I'm also just waiting for the AxePC Hope there is news soon about release date, price and the hardware unit.

 

[grape]

I'd like to "echo" what JMZ93 talked about concerning accessibility. Although I do not require it I always wondered how people deal with the lack of it. Music applications tend to have very odd interfaces and they tend to change visually from release to release. I don't know which ones are accessible but it seems to me that plugin standards should at least address this issue.

Unfortunately there isn't a common toolkit used for plugins so it is very difficult to standardize. But 9 times out of 10, making an application accessible improves the application for everyone. Accessibility implies 100% keyboard navigation which means all knobs must have text inputs. That alone is missing from most VST plugins but is useful for "dialing" in exact values.

Anyway, Fractal, if you're listening, please consider accessibility when designing the AXE-PC. Maybe that's not feasible in the first release but I'm sure you'll be able to find several guitarists on this board alone who can give you very helpful feedback for version 2.

 

[GuitarDojo]

The demo is time limited: 15 days. Also, it will only run for a few minutes and then shut down. You won't be able to access all the amp models or effects and you won't be able to save or recall presets.

We still need to discuss the whole discount for existing customers thing. I'm guessing we'll be able to do something.

OOH OOH OOH!