Axe-Fx II "Quantum" Rev 7.02 Firmware Release

steadystate said:
I agree with all five points.

The low end is less "tubby", but still as powerful. Same for the highs....the attack is more pronounced without being piercing in any way. The entire spectral "tilt" for lack of a better term has changed for the better. More separation between notes in a chord.

Various amp models are even more distinctive from one another. The attack, grain of distortion, eq, "knock", "squish", and all other useless terms are unique to each model. Compared to the II, the Ultra models all sound very similar. IMO, the II no longer has a "sound of its own".

Advanced parameters are not as necessary. I previously used Character (among others), but find I no longer need to use it to accentuate the attack. I still need to fine tune some of my presets, but the improvements are well worth the effort.

The Triaxis modes freaking SMOKE now. I'm not sure if the power amp used on the Boogies has changed, but I love the power amp breakup on the cleaner models.
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Does anyone else think that everything sounds way more mid-heavy than before? I am mostly a high gain person, and I am finding myself using an EQ to -8db at 500hz on almost every sound.

I do agree that the high end sounds way more clear. My other digital units just sound fuzzy and messy in comparison. I also agree that I am hearing more differences between amp models. I dont use many advanced parameters in general, but still usually turn up preamp dynamics to about 2 o'clock to add some high mid crunch/aggression.
 
Thomas Larsson said:
What if your master volume is set to low for the motor drive to get going ?
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Then use the motor drive in the cab and crank the level (output) of your amp block. I'm not sure why you're so low on signal level though, might want to revisit your levels across your blocks.
 
it might be that he's adjusting motor drive in the amp block using axe edit and viewing the axe fx screen while doing it. if he's on the dynamics page, he needs to scroll across to the motor drive parameter to view it's corresponding dynamics meter, otherwise he's actually viewing the sag dynamics meter
 
simeon said:
it might be that he's adjusting motor drive in the amp block using axe edit and viewing the axe fx screen while doing it. if he's on the dynamics page, he needs to scroll across to the motor drive parameter to view it's corresponding dynamics meter, otherwise he's actually viewing the sag dynamics meter
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Good call.
 
ben ifin said:
As an XL + KPA and Helix owner ..... maybe .... just maybe ..... some of the totally over-the-top 2nd-coming-of-Jesus-hyperbole with 702 is turning some off (?) .... to that end .... see this thread .... took all of 2 secs to find

https://forum.fractalaudio.com/threads/roll-back-or-not-undecided.69557/ <= 4 years ago

Replace the FW 9 comments with pre- Q702 comments and the FW10 comments with the current 7.02 / Motor Drive comments and ..... well ..... it could be any thread in this current Q702 discussion ... now ... 4 years and probably dozens of Alpha / Beta / Final FW's later.

Sure Ive gone to 702 and default motor drive settings etc..... its all good ..... yes it -is- differnet .... most notoicably at gigs via my CLR ....... used it for probably 4 shows so far .... no better / worse than 6 .... bit differmet ...... but its all good.

But honestly .... to quasi-quote the ST Nigel interview ......... " if you start gushing at 11 with every FW update " ...... what are you going to say when Cliff has his next epiphany on, say, "tube-crytsal-latticing" [ :) ]

Not havng a go at anyone or anything, but man .... this 702 " biblicisation " has just gotten stupid.

Ben
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We don't all hear and feel the same, experience the same or have the same levels of passion... so, would it be better for us to be all the same? We 'all' have to put up with a lot because of our differences or learn/enjoy a lot because of our differences.
Just saying!
 
Moke said:
My take on it......
  1. The Amp distortion has more 'grit?' almost leaning towards 'Fuzz?' More accurate I guess? As Cliff said 'Spitty'
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Yeah, agreed... Speaker Drive defaulting non-zero contributes to this, too, IMHO. While there are other contributions, like algorithm changes in the power amp modeling as per the release notes, etc; the Speaker Drive is (IMHO) easily discernible as added 'gritty' distortion in the higher frequencies. I turned it down or off in a lot of my presets after my amp resets as I'm not huge fan of this change since I had intentionally dialed in a fair amount of 'hair' in the high end already and for some the speaker drive was noticeably too much.

That's the great thing about release notes... they can really get you zoned in on taking advantage of new stuff or understanding what to look for.
 
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zenaxe said:
Speaker Drive is (IMHO) easily discernible as added 'gritty' distortion in the higher frequencies. I turned it down or off in a lot of my presets as I'm not huge fan of this change since I had intentionally dialed in a fair amount of 'hair' in the high end already and for some the speaker drive was noticeably too much.
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Depending on chosen amp and cab, speaker drive adds some nice upper mids mojo to a crunch tone. If a crunchy amp needs to be a tad "angrier" with a bit more upper mid cut, I've found speaker drive is an option vs. grabbing 1k in amp GEQ.
 
ben ifin said:
https://forum.fractalaudio.com/threads/roll-back-or-not-undecided.69557/ <= 4 years ago

Replace the FW 9 comments with pre- Q702 comments and the FW10 comments with the current 7.02 / Motor Drive comments and ..... well ..... it could be any thread in this current Q702 discussion ... now ... 4 years and probably dozens of Alpha / Beta / Final FW's later.



Ben
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steadystate said:
If any firmware is a significant improvement for me, I'll sing its praises. IMO Q702 is a significant step forward. Not just different...better. Calling this "biblicisation" is stupid....not to have a go at anyone.....

I understand your point, but this firmware is one of the few that stands out to my ears and hands. I made detailed recordings before updating to directly compare the 6 and 702, and the difference is not subtle.
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There's a lot of valid points made here. I get when a new FW rolls out and those of us who have been long time users are familiar with the nuanced or sometimes more substantial changes and are tickled pink about it. I think with any forum or 'converted' users of any product there is an inherent fanboy mentality to greater or lesser degrees. I did laugh a bit to myself other day when I came across an older thread similar to what Ben quoted above and noted to myself that there's a certain level of confirmation bias going on (for myself).

I think for someone who is visiting the forum or is aware of Axe fx the contrast is lost when every FW elicits comments of 'Holy F**k!!! this is the ONE' etc. There are always improvements and man we are lucky for this level of service. I agree with steadystate about certain FW standing out. For me, Q6.03 and now Q7.02 are real standouts. Before that, I think It was maybe FW11 or something like that. The thing I appreciate most is that minimal tweaking is needed to get these authentic sounding amp models.
 
Chewie5150 said:
There's a lot of valid points made here. I get when a new FW rolls out and those of us who have been long time users are familiar with the nuanced or sometimes more substantial changes and are tickled pink about it. I think with any forum or 'converted' users of any product there is an inherent fanboy mentality to greater or lesser degrees. I did laugh a bit to myself other day when I came across an older thread similar to what Ben quoted above and noted to myself that there's a certain level of confirmation bias going on (for myself).

I think for someone who is visiting the forum or is aware of Axe fx the contrast is lost when every FW elicits comments of 'Holy F**k!!! this is the ONE' etc. There are always improvements and man we are lucky for this level of service. I agree with steadystate about certain FW standing out. For me, Q6.03 and now Q7.02 are real standouts. Before that, I think It was maybe FW11 or something like that. The thing I appreciate most is that minimal tweaking is needed to get these authentic sounding amp models.
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A while back I learned that we listen out for different things. I used to read the "best thing since sliced bread" comments and think that must be the way some Americans greet every change. Then v18.0 arrived, and made a tremendous difference to what I was hearing. So behind all the fanboy hysteria and confirmation bias there are changes that do make a difference, but rarely do they have the same impact on everyone.

FWIW I use clean and lightly overdriven sounds, and 7.02 is a noticeable improvement for me.
 
I did some recording last night with my Axe-Fx II and 7.02 playing heavy stuff and it sounded great. I still prefer 6.02 beta on my AX8 through my CLR's for live setup.
 
Roland said:
A while back I learned that we listen out for different things. I used to read the "best thing since sliced bread" comments and think that must be the way some Americans greet every change. Then v18.0 arrived, and made a tremendous difference to what I was hearing. So behind all the fanboy hysteria and confirmation bias there are changes that do make a difference, but rarely do they have the same impact on everyone.

FWIW I use clean and lightly overdriven sounds, and 7.02 is a noticeable improvement for me.
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Just because we like a release were labeled fanboy? That label gets old. I am sure if a release was horrible then there would be a lot of screaming about how much they hate it.
 
Chewie5150 said:
There's a lot of valid points made here. I get when a new FW rolls out and those of us who have been long time users are familiar with the nuanced or sometimes more substantial changes and are tickled pink about it. I think with any forum or 'converted' users of any product there is an inherent fanboy mentality to greater or lesser degrees. I did laugh a bit to myself other day when I came across an older thread similar to what Ben quoted above and noted to myself that there's a certain level of confirmation bias going on (for myself).

I think for someone who is visiting the forum or is aware of Axe fx the contrast is lost when every FW elicits comments of 'Holy F**k!!! this is the ONE' etc. There are always improvements and man we are lucky for this level of service. I agree with steadystate about certain FW standing out. For me, Q6.03 and now Q7.02 are real standouts. Before that, I think It was maybe FW11 or something like that. The thing I appreciate most is that minimal tweaking is needed to get these authentic sounding amp models.
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The funny thing about the argument that people here are fanboys is that I guarantee you that Cliff's excitement when he does something is legitimate, and yes, like anyone actually scaling a mountain versus those who watch, he would logically be more excited, but also since he's so directly involved in checking and testing (and has some serious backup in terms of users being willing to update their patches for each new attainment along the journey) couldn't it also be that's he's excited about specific aspects of modeling that a fanboy-naysayer might just completely miss. I'm mean this could be arrogance or blind loyalty on various sides, but I don't see it that way. I'd say its fine tuning and unique expertise. IMHO For products like Kemper and Helix, I've wondered if a product like the Axe FX could be just an overwhelm of options. What strikes me now with this Firmware is that its gotten to be closer to an even playing field in terms of ease of use, but retains its benefit to us who appreciate and are excited about the nuances, and "feel", and trainload of useful options.
 
AtomicBlaze said:
Just because we like a release were labeled fanboy? That label gets old. I am sure if a release was horrible then there would be a lot of screaming about how much they hate it.
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Nope. I'm just quoting the terms used a few posts back, where people have been discussing how much of the reaction to a new firmware release is real, and how much is hyperbole. I'm pointing out that we each listen to different things. The updates that excite me, as a low gain player, might not excite a high gain player, and vice versa.
 
I agree with you cobbler .... In my experience, people with Low self esteem tend to invalidate others in an effort to 'feel' more in control of their own shortcomings... this is a common self defense technique employed by those who wish to avoid the painful acknowledgment of their own personal issues.
 
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cobbler said:
You really seem to have issues over others excitement and/or happiness with FW updates since you often feel the need to continually make such comments. Yes, many of us also peruse that "other forum". My experience has been that with some updates I don't hear or feel a lot of differences and with others I do. On some I don't hear any difference at all or the tone change is so subtle it's lost on me. As I am older and my ears are not what they used to be I tend to get more excited when improvements in dynamics are made. We are all different, we all have different presets and how we dial them to our tastes. And we all are at different skill levels with respect to playing and use of the gear involved. What may be a significant change for some may not be for others. So why do you feel the need to diminish others observations simply because you don't share their opinion?

2nd coming to Jesus hyperbole? Seriously? It must be nice to be so experienced and all knowing that you can categorically state that others experiences and opinions are so exaggerated and not to be taken literally.

I also could take less than 2 seconds to pull up similar threads about thousands of products that were touted to be the best ever with no real need for improvement only to see advances in technology or innovations change that ceiling.



That is your experience and I have no reason to doubt your findings because it's your presets, your tone, your ears, and your experience. That doesn't exclude the fact that others, including myself, might hear or feel things differently. Some say it's worse, some gush and say it's the best ever, some say it subtle. Why do you feel the need to diminish others experiences as hyperbole?



Some people like the frequent updates, some do not and it's been discussed a lot here. I have updated often and don't hear/feel the changes others do at times but who am I to tell them they are exaggerating or their experience is not legitimate? On the other side, sometimes I hear and feel things others don't. Does their differing opinion change my experience. Nope. We all have different gear, we all dial in our presets differently. What might be noticeable thru your CLR might be indistinguishable through other monitors etc. etc.



I disagree with you wholeheartedly here. I think you are most defiantly having a go at many as you have often done. Your extremely condescending tone in this and many other posts with regards to "fanboyism" says it all.

I have absolutely no issues with people stating their experience and how a FW update effects their circumstance. I most certainly do when you post condescending comments and diminish other peoples opinions simply because they don't agree with yours.
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Ya nailed it.
 
Chewie5150 said:
There's a lot of valid points made here. I get when a new FW rolls out and those of us who have been long time users are familiar with the nuanced or sometimes more substantial changes and are tickled pink about it. I think with any forum or 'converted' users of any product there is an inherent fanboy mentality to greater or lesser degrees. I did laugh a bit to myself other day when I came across an older thread similar to what Ben quoted above and noted to myself that there's a certain level of confirmation bias going on (for myself).

I think for someone who is visiting the forum or is aware of Axe fx the contrast is lost when every FW elicits comments of 'Holy F**k!!! this is the ONE' etc. There are always improvements and man we are lucky for this level of service. I agree with steadystate about certain FW standing out. For me, Q6.03 and now Q7.02 are real standouts. Before that, I think It was maybe FW11 or something like that. The thing I appreciate most is that minimal tweaking is needed to get these authentic sounding amp models.
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For me, there are certain firmware versions that stand out more than others. But the cumulative effect is what I appreciate the most. The overall sound quality of the amp models has changed dramatically since I got my Mark II. I have never experienced this with any other product before.
 
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