Any absolute 1st timers?

Shai`tan

Inspired
Heyas all. I had a Kemper for awhile and just couldn`t gel with it. Hated it tbth. Just wondering if there are any absolute 1st time Fractal users who have gotten the FM3. If so, what are your thoughts? How hard is it to navigate? I`m STILL waiting for my Invite, but am hoping this thing is not too hard to get into. Any thoughts? Thx.
 
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Heyas all. I had a Kemper for awhile and just couldn`t gel with it. Hated it tbth. Just wondering if there are any absolute 1st time Fractal users who have gotten the FM3. If so, what are your thoughts? How hard is it to navigate? I`m STILL waiting for my Invite, but am hoping this thing is not too hard to get into. Any thoughts? Thx.


Guess there are no Fractal nOObs here. hmmmm
Brand new Fractal user. Coming from Atomic Amplifire 12. I really did like that unit and its functionality. I was a bit worried about the long term prospects of the company so when the FM3 came around I took my cue to make the jump. I couldn't be happier so far, but admittedly have not played any gigs yet. Full disclosure, I am a middle-aged hack that plays in a middle-aged hack cover band.

The FM3 edit is a breeze to navigate and make changes to presets. The three foot switches, despite their massive flexibility, is not as user friendly as 12 footswitches. No way around it. That said, I think I have managed the presets, scenes and effects such that it should be workable in a live setting. The reality is that for 90%+ of the songs we play I'll need one amp sound and maybe a bump for a lead. Changing effects intra-song is pretty rare so I do not think it will be a problem over time. It's possible I'll look into an additional stand in switch at some point if it proves necessary. I don't see me going for the FC6 as it won't really be worth the cost. At least for me.

There are a ton of different options to manage your sound on this unit. Between presets, scenes, channels, control switches, etc., I think you would be hard pressed to find something lacking. I suppose if you require kitchen sink presets, massive ambient swirling tones, or whatever else you might imagine, you may bump into limitations; but, for most general purpose playing I think this unit is hard to beat. And I haven't even managed that the sounds are terrific.

Get one when you can and don't look back.
 
First time user, coming from eleven rack but more recently the Neural DSP Nolly plugin. The Nolly is really close in terms of sound but its nowhere near the feel of the FM3. The fm3 edit (or fractal edit?) Is super easy to use, even for the more advanced features. Didnt really tried to edit patches directly on the unit.

You can edit the switches to your liking and I can see answer most of the needs. You could always buy extra switches down the road.
 
First timer. My last modeling experiences were line 6 (pod 2.0, x3, hd) and eleven rack. Never satisfied and went on a different approach for some years (tech 21 fly rig... really enjoyed the easy of use and portability).

The fm3 was a different beast from the beginning. Satisfying tones out of the box and improving every day along with my knowledge of the unit.

The best review I could give is that I’m playing 3+ hours a day since the fm3 arrival... before it, I could spend an entire week without even plugging my electrics. I’m even recording again!

Hope you get yours soon and enjoy it. The unit is easily tweakable from the front panel and even easier with fm3 Edit... of course there’s a learning curve but I found the UI very intuitive
 
First timer as well. I've played some nice high-end amps and effects for years in a cover band. I've had GAS for years and now can finally say I'm comfortable selling almost everything I have (minus guitars and my CLR). I've only had the FM3 for a week and it does everything (and more) that my other nice, expensive gear does. I'm not sure why I would ever have to buy another amp, cab or pedal. This one does it all. Kudos to the Fractal team and a big shout out to the posters on this forum who have assisted me with answers and advice along the way.
 
First time user here as well. I had high hopes for FM3, and then was slapped in the face by a sharp learning curve. However, I did learn a lot in just few weeks of owning the unit, and now my high hopes are starting to be realized. Sure glad I purchased the FM3.

My previous go to unit (for 4-5 years) was the Eleven Rack, and come to think of it I wasn't sure I liked it at the beginning. I didn't like their distortion pedals, but loved their amp modeling. So I ended up getting real pedals (RAT/DS-1) and sticking them in front of the Eleven Rack. I found a way to make it work. But eventually I started wishing for more functionality, so I jumped to the FM3.

So my experience is just to be patient. For example, as of now I still prefer the to use my RAT/DS-1 pedals with even the FM3. But as I get better at dialing in the FM3, I may not need real pedals anymore. Especially with such a high-end customizable unit as FM3, patience will be rewarded. It will be worth it.
 
First time Fractal user who's only previous digital experience was renting a HX Stomp for a weekend. It was really eye opening to see how well digital has come along, but at that time I felt it was not good enough to replace my pedal board/amp. I do admit that a weekend may have not been enough time to make a full commitment, but I was only trying it due to a cheap rental period.

Similar to @kobestory, I've been focusing on patience and giving myself excessive time to compensate for the steep learning curve. It's a phenomenal product which is my 100% go to for recording right now and into the future. I don't think I will be micing an amp at ear blasting volumes ever again lol. For non-recording purposes I recently committed to the FM3 fully replacing my pedalbaord which was a Boss ES-8 + pedals. Again, I'm exercising patience in deciding a couple things such as if I will need a FC6 down the road, another expression pedal as I already have a EV-1, and if I'll keep my crybaby wah. I thought I would need to fully replicate all of my pedal settings before I commit, but getting in the general ball park was so easy and I have confidence I can replicate these effects as I take more time to figure it out.

Haven't decided if I will be going a neutral power amp route vs. using my amp+FM3 in 4CB. For now I'll stick to the 4CB, but I will definitely try out the power amps as I can access them in stores.

I don't know if I would say if the menus are easy to understand initially, but once you learn it... it feels very intuitive and clever. 3 buttons let you do quite a lot!
 
First time using Fractal modelling but a long time user of the FX8, using amp and cab in 4CM set up. I have an Eleven Rack but I never did get on with it. I only keep it because it has no real 2nd hand value anymore and fills up a space in the rack!

What I would say is don't expect to be 100% happy straight out of the box. I spent the first couple of hours paging through presets expecting to be blown away by all of them, but this was not the case. They all seemed to be distorted or over the top effects wise and I think I got ear fatigue listening through them all trying to find a clean patch. You have to remember that all the patches are really there to demonstrate what the unit is capable off and not to be a gig ready option. You have to dial it in to suit your set up.

I went to an empty preset and started from scratch and I found this a much better way to go using a 'what would I use live' mentality. Keep it simple at first and you will be much happier. I am still trying to get my head around the 3 switches and have bought an extra 2 button switch but still can't get it to do what I want it to. This is a user issue not an FM3 one! I really must RTFM!!;)

I bought from G66 and they give you a 30 day return option and I have gone between keep and return many times with the final decision being to keep it.
 
I'm not a first time Fractal user ,before the FM3 I had an Ax8 and i think its a lot easier to navigate on the FM3 than the Ax8.

I'm on the FM3 waitlist and this is my hope.

I had my AX8 a little over a year. There is a steep learning curve. I was able to get a pretty good sound. (I'm a bassist) in a day of messing around. Life was busy and I never had much time after that, but used it with that sound as my main amp for a year. I sold it at the end of last year realizing I just didn't have time between work & family to really dive deep. (2 months later, the country shuts down and I'm stuck at home. Go figure, right?)The good news is if you don't end up keeping it, Fractal units hold their value really well. When my FM3 time comes, I do feel better prepared to now enter the rabbit hole. :p
 
I feel a need to chime in here, mainly to sing the praises of the many really smart people on this forum who have been kind enough to share their knowledge with others.

I long-described myself as a "tube amp player," and I even hand-built several quite nice-sounding tube amps. Due to a number of factors, I added an AX8 to my stable of equipment around a year or so ago. I really struggled, and I came damn close to getting rid of the AX8, but I got LOTS of help here from other Fractal users on the forum, and eventually I was able to use/enjoy the AX8 quite effectively.

Very recently, I sold the AX8 and acquired a FM3. I am again experiencing the pains of the learning curve, but I am also once again gratefully receiving lots of insightful help from the members of this forum. Point is: newcomers need not fear.....you are in the right place if you want to make this transition, and there is lots of great help available here.
 
My FM3 arrived yesterday. This is my very first Fractal unit - I'm coming from a Line 6 Helix. Minutes ago, I just connected the FM3 to my computer and updated the firmware to 1.05. Very easy! Now I'm going to experiment with setting up a preset from scratch. My initial thoughts, I'm still finding the Line 6 interface easier to navigate, but that's probably just due to familiarity. I did have a chance to go through some of the presets last night and found the sounds to be very inspiring.
 
Brand new Fractal user. Coming from Atomic Amplifire 12. I really did like that unit and its functionality. I was a bit worried about the long term prospects of the company so when the FM3 came around I took my cue to make the jump. I couldn't be happier so far, but admittedly have not played any gigs yet. Full disclosure, I am a middle-aged hack that plays in a middle-aged hack cover band.

The FM3 edit is a breeze to navigate and make changes to presets. The three foot switches, despite their massive flexibility, is not as user friendly as 12 footswitches. No way around it. That said, I think I have managed the presets, scenes and effects such that it should be workable in a live setting. The reality is that for 90%+ of the songs we play I'll need one amp sound and maybe a bump for a lead. Changing effects intra-song is pretty rare so I do not think it will be a problem over time. It's possible I'll look into an additional stand in switch at some point if it proves necessary. I don't see me going for the FC6 as it won't really be worth the cost. At least for me.

There are a ton of different options to manage your sound on this unit. Between presets, scenes, channels, control switches, etc., I think you would be hard pressed to find something lacking. I suppose if you require kitchen sink presets, massive ambient swirling tones, or whatever else you might imagine, you may bump into limitations; but, for most general purpose playing I think this unit is hard to beat. And I haven't even managed that the sounds are terrific.

Get one when you can and don't look back.
How much better is the amp modelling than the atomic amplifire 12??? I am waiting for my FM3 and currently have the AA12 which is pretty good on certain models but not others.
 
I had an axe II for exactly a day and returned it years ago. Did t like the stock presets and didn’t know much about recorded tone back then. Bought and FM3 recently and I’m floored at how good it sounds after spending a little bit of time making a preset. This is really the first time I’ve gotten along with a modeler and I’ve tried a bunch. Truly amazing product, especially for a plexi-lover light me. I’ll be more than happy once the USB issues are fixed.
 
I'll be a first timer hopefully by Thanksgiving. Just got on the list 3/31.

Still have my POD HD from 2010 or 11 and use it when I need to, although I haven't been in love with it for a long, long time. It does some things very well, and most other things are mediocre. I bought a Headrush last fall, and after 3 weeks, I really wanted to love it, but realized that I couldn't connect with it. It just did not resonate with me. I downloaded presets, and copied settings from others, and it just sounded terrible and felt horrible. There was nothing about it at all that inspired me to play. Horses for courses I guess...

I have been interested in Fractal products for years, but it was stupid for me to spend that kind of money on a hobby. However the FM3 is right in my wheelhouse both in terms of practicality and affordability. I don't gig, but I want those sounds for my home recordings. Seeing (and hearing) what Leon and Marco are putting together, I am excited and can't wait to get my hands on this thing.
 
First Timer for FAS but not modeling. I went various plugins but mainly Positive Grid Amp/FX -> Yamaha THR -> Line 6 Helix LT/Native. It took me a solid month to "get" the FM3, in terms of learning the interface/Edit, how to edit/arrange things, etc.. I can now navigate around the FM3 pretty seamlessly. What I don't have a handle on yet are the THOUSANDS of available parameters on the dozens of blocks and hundreds of FX. But I'm not sure anyone but Cliff knows exactly how every editable parameter works! There is definitely a learning curve, for with great power comes great responsibility. When I say that it took me a month to "get it", I mean that it took that long to become comfortable with navigating, controlling, and creating with the FM3. By "get it" I mean not always having to pause to read the manuals or hit up Youtube or the forums. I was able to make it playable the first day as firing up very usable Factory presets was no problem. I would highly suggest purchasing AustinBuddy's Live Gold Pack as that's a tremendous intro to the FM3, primarily the amp models, and is very intuitive and easy to use.
 
I'll let ya know how it goes tomorrow - my FM3 arrived yesterday - first time I've bought anything from Fractal. I have had mostly Line 6 gear (POD, POD XT, HD500, Helix).

I haven't taken the FM3 out of the box yet, and probably won't until tomorrow - it's summer, I'm getting outside!
 
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