FM9 Firmware Version 3.00 public beta 1

This. Some days, those demons dropped multiple betas on the same day. Gobs o’ coolness, but whew!
Thanks for all of your work! I've done beta testing on software and it is a lot of work. Your efforts, and the efforts of all the beta testers and developers, are MUCH appreciated!
 
This is a fantastic surprise and it's very very cool to have so many of the newest features from the III, particularly the new power amp modeling improvements and the speaker/cabinet additions....yea baby!

I've played thru several amps ranging from clean, mild breakup, crunch, higain/lead for the last while and am already really, really liking what I'm hearing and feeling with these additions and tweaks. The new speaker algos/features add such a nice tweakable rounding and fatness as well as making the whole low end hang together so much nicer with an amazing punch, clarity, and feel. There is something new here that feels fantastic to play.

I'm getting a very sweet speaker compression that 'glues' the overall tone and fattens things up but, more importantly for me, I can still get a very rude bark and an 'in your face' tone/feel tweaking these new algos/parameters...from clean amps to high gain the speaker parameters are delivering some very welcome additions and are extremely effective.

The Deluxe Verb Normal is astounding to play...man this amp feels so good. v3 is going to be an great journey man....

Oh yea, "Speaker Thump" is my new favorite control heh....

Good job everyone at FAS and thanks....
 

VERSION 3.0 – July 13, 2022​

New Features​

  • Added “Scene Ignore” to most blocks. When set to ON, Scene Ignore causes the block to ignore scene changes. Scene Ignore is a per-channel parameter. This allows turning Scene Ignore to OFF on one or more channels which will then allow a scene change to set the block to a desired state if the block is on that channel.
  • Added new Setlists/Songs feature, which can be used with onboard footswitches or an FC Controller to access presets and scenes in custom order during live performance. A new area of the SETUP menu provides full access from the front panel, with a corresponding new area of Axe-Edit which also offers import/export and more. For additional details, please see the Setlists & Songs Mini-Manual, located at: https://www.fractalaudio.com/sss-manual
  • New “Block Mixer” algorithm results in faster/quieter scene and channel changes. This new algorithm allows placing Amp blocks in series without the concomitant sound bursts that would normally occur when switching scenes.
  • New Speaker Drive algorithm in Amp block. This new algorithm more accurately models the frequency dependent distortion of guitar loudspeakers. The default value (upon resetting the block) is 2.0 which gives roughly 1 dB of compression. Setting the value to 0.0 defeats the speaker drive modeling. Higher values give a smoother and more focused sound, rounding off the “sharp edges” and yielding greater compression.
  • Added Speaker Thump control to Amp block. Speaker Thump models the dynamic, nonlinear behavior of a guitar speaker. A value of 5.0 roughly corresponds to an amplifier running into a speaker rated at the same power as the amplifier, i.e., a 100W amplifier running into a 100W speaker. The reset value is a conservative 2.5 which represents, i.e., a 50W amp running into a 100W speaker. Note that the majority of the response is in the subsonic region and the effect is primarily tactile. Existing presets are not affected and the value will be zero
  • Added ability to use Pre-Delay in Reverb block as a simple echo. Pre-Delay now features Tempo, Feedback and Mix parameters. The pre-delay time has also been increased to 1s. Several types have been added demonstrating the capabilities.
  • Added G12T-75 speaker impedance curve.
  • Added 2x12 Class-A Greenback speaker impedance curve.
  • Added 2x12 Two Stone 1265 speaker impedance curve.
  • Added 4x12 Lerxst Omega speaker impedance curve.
  • Added 1x12 Deluxe Oxford speaker impedance curve.
  • Added 4x12 Hipower Pete T speaker impedance curve.
  • Added 4x12 Hipower Lindsey B speaker impedance curve.
  • Added 4x12 USA Semi-Open speaker impedance curve.
  • Added 2x12 Dizzy RV speaker impedance curve.
  • Added 4x12 London Town Tall speaker impedance curve.
  • Added Depth control to Authentic/Tone page for Brit Super, Brit 800 Mod and JMP-1 amp models.
  • Added Diamante Fire amp model based on a Diamond Del Fuego.
  • Factory default FC Layout #8 now contains a new Setlist/Song layout. To load this layout, you can either re-load all of the factory layouts from in SETUP: FC Controllers: Reset, or download the layout and instructions a la carte from:
    https://www.fractalaudio.com/downloads/manuals/fas-guides/SSS-Sample-FC-Layouts.zip

Updates​

  • Improved Amp block transformer/speaker interaction modeling. The “Voice Coil Resistance” parameter has been repurposed/renamed “Speaker Impedance”. The various parameters work as follows: Transformer Matching: Sets the impedance ratio (square of the turns ratio) of the output transformer. Speaker Impedance: Sets the relative nominal impedance of the speaker. To simulate connecting, e.g., a 4-ohm speaker to an 8-ohm output you would set Speaker Impedance to 0.5. Conversely to simulate connecting a 16-ohm speaker you would set it to 2.0.
  • Improved speaker impedance curve fitting algorithm. This results in more accurate and more “colorful” modeling as the previous algorithm tended to damp box resonances somewhat. All the speaker impedance curves have been updated using the new routine. Existing presets are automatically updated to use the updated curves based on the new global setting option “Update Pre-3.x Presets Spkr Imp Upon Load.” If you have modified the stock curve, i.e., changed the LF/HF Resonance parameters, then you will need to re-enter those values into your presets if set to “YES.”
  • Update PI Bias Excursion parameters for many Amp models based on new measurement technique.
  • Improved Amp block output transformer modeling. This requires updated Transformer LF/HF values for the amp models. Existing presets are automatically updated to the new values upon recall.
  • Changed Compressor block so that times display actual milliseconds for the various pedal types.
  • Changed “Drive” to “Gain” for Amp block preamp gain control as this is more consistent with naming in real amps.
  • Muting algorithm improved around FM9-Edit operations such as Block Library, Cabinet download, Patch download.
  • Decreased minimum diffuser time in Delay block to 1%.

Fixes​

  • FC: Layout Link will no longer unduly trigger when exiting the Tuner.
  • FC: Fixed an issue that prevented the Hold function from working for some Stand-in Switches.
  • FC: Preset: Select in Bank switches now stop flashing when the preset is changed by any means other than an FC footswitch (editor, front panel, etc.)
  • FC: Preset: Select in Bank switches now flash consistently when used with Bank: Select switches.
  • FC: Preset: Toggle in Bank switches now consistently and correctly load the "Primary" preset after changing the bank.
  • FC: The STARTUP VIEW of the FM9 will now behave appropriately in all circumstances when an external FC-6 or FC-12 is present.
  • Fixed wrong drive taper in Mr. Z Highway 66 model.
  • Fixed wrong capacitor value in Friedman Smallbox model.
  • Status messages on the main LCD will not immediately be cleared when viewing the Tuner GUI screen.
  • Status messages on the main LCD display and clear properly in all cases when viewing the Setup menu.
  • Text labels that would overrun the assigned text field on the LCD GUI are now truncated to fit.
  • Selecting output configuration "MUTE" no longer causes USB signals to be summed to mono.
  • Parametric EQ and Megatap blocks no longer cause a GUI hang if modifier attached to parameter and update rate is set to FAST.
  • Adjusting a Custom Scale value no longer causes the next value to be zeroed despite the value shown in the edit field.
  • Using the MLM switch combo on the FC-6 more than once changes between the MLM layout view windows.
Isn't today the 14th?
 

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Are long delays to be expected when using setlists and picking different sections from other presets? I wasn't expecting Axe 3 performance, so I'm just asking what our expectations should be so I can build them out accordingly.
 
Are long delays to be expected when using setlists and picking different sections from other presets? I wasn't expecting Axe 3 performance, so I'm just asking what our expectations should be so I can build them out accordingly.
Changes via setlist/song are no different than changes made from a preset footswitch or a scene footswitch. You'll need to use the same considerations you take when deciding what to change mid-song. Someday DSP power will be cheap and plentiful enough that there will be able to be multiple "engines"for seamless switching in all cases, but until then, we all work with what we have.
 
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