laxu
Fractal Fanatic
I may be off base, and I apologize if I am, but wasn't there a supply reason that Fractal had to move to a different set of processors, different display, styles of RAM, etc. Of course as technology develops, as time moves on, there will be something that makes the III look obsolete.
However the thing to consider is that you are getting some 280 amps, more than a thousand cabs, and the best collection of stomp boxes you will ever collect. The value is in having that collection of gear in one box. The thing that Fractal does that makes their products worth buying every few years is that they improve the unit. You are now getting absurd value for your $2200. Of course there will be a new one at some point. I bought a Yamaha synth 5 or 6 years ago. I paid more than $4000 for it, and it has been replaced. I bought a John Petrucci guitar, and that has been superceded. Its gonna happen. The key is enjoying what you have while its the best choice for your money, and then move on. You would pay the same or more for one Marshall or Mesa amp that is modeled in the Axe. If you get the Axe, you will still have 279 or some number more new amps to unbox. It is way worth it.
Sorrry for the rant...
Joe
It has been various things. Axe-Fx Standard/Ultra ran out of firmware space, Axe-Fx 2 processor was discontinued AND it ran out of firmware space. Axe-Fx 3 is probably not at risk for either of those things happening anytime soon as they use pretty much the most powerful things on the market. Axe-Fx 3 mark 2 also increased firmware space so I am interested what that will mean for mark 1 owners in the future.
I dislike the hardware front panels of both the Axe-Fx 3 and FM3 even if they are better than the Axe-Fx 2. It was one of the reasons why I did not buy an Axe-Fx 3 when it was released and went several years without Fractal until I finally decided to get a FM3 used. This is the area where Fractal has the most need for improvement and where they are behind the competition. Helix is easier to use from the hardware, Quad Cortex is massively better to use from the unit so the thing that keeps me as a Fractal FM3 owner is all the little features packed into the software plus the excellent Axe-Edit/FM3-Edit. Without Axe-Edit I would have sent my Axe-Fx Standard back a decade ago when I first tried Fractal.
For the eventual Axe-Fx IV I don't care to see a unit that is ever more powerful, the 3 is already overkill for most users. I want to see an Axe-Fx that is awesome to use whether from the front panel or software editors.
I'd be even ok with just ditching front panel operation altogether for anything but input/output levels if you can have Axe-Edit work from computers as well as mobile devices with good MIDI knob controller support or a separate "Fractal controller" with a "Fractal brain" that is just an I/O box for connecting stuff.