Can I still add two amps?

C

CLoGreen(thaSoulMachine)

Member
New FM3 user here. I apologize if this has been discussed, but I can't seem to find an answer via search, and can't seem to find it in the manual or blocks guide.

I've seen a few videos of presets that run two amps parallel, but once I place an amp block down, amps become greyed out. It's not one of the blocks that gives me an addition layer to choose between 1 and 2. Is this something Fractal removed or am I doing something wrong?
 
The FM3 can only handle 1 amp block per preset. Gotta upgrade to the FM9 or Axe III if you want dual amps.
 
CLoGreen(thaSoulMachine) said:
New FM3 user here. I apologize if this has been discussed, but I can't seem to find an answer via search, and can't seem to find it in the manual or blocks guide.

I've seen a few videos of presets that run two amps parallel, but once I place an amp block down, amps become greyed out. It's not one of the blocks that gives me an addition layer to choose between 1 and 2. Is this something Fractal removed or am I doing something wrong?
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The FM3 since day 1 only had one amp block.
 
la noise said:
Buy another FM3. Problem solved!! :)
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Get behind me, Santa!! :D

OP; while you cannot have two amp blocks, that's not to say you can't come up with a preset that sounds like it has two amps. You can always use an amp block and a distortion pedal + EQ or something to that effect. But yeah, as others have said, only one amp block per preset.
 
Of all the suggestions and "wish list" stuff I read on the FM3 forum the only thing I wish it could do is run two amps even if it meant a limit on the number of effects you could put into each amp stream.
I don't understand enough about CPU usage or what each block "takes up". Reverb must be more involved than others since it is a big CPU eater. Anyone got a quick and easy answer about why you can have three delays on but not two amps? Just curious.
On a side note, I did run a a/b/ab to FM3 and the only amp I have left (actual 65 Deluxe Reverb) and once I got the levels correct it was glorious!
 
Ugly Bunny said:
Get behind me, Santa!! :D

OP; while you cannot have two amp blocks, that's not to say you can't come up with a preset that sounds like it has two amps. You can always use an amp block and a distortion pedal + EQ or something to that effect. But yeah, as others have said, only one amp block per preset.
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Ha! Yeah, another one would be great. Or just an FM9.

Yeah, I played with the EQ and a bit of drive for few where I wanted to fatten up the sound. It's primarily something I've found I want when using my strat clean, so don't want much drive there.

I'm curious as well about the CPU question. I would think you could have the option, and if your CPU usage goes over, you just need to adjust accordingly, same as with other scenes that get too effects heavy. Mileage I'm sure varies, but in my case, most instances I want the dual amps don't really require lot of effects. A pair of driven amps with a drive and perhaps some very light reverb if I want that thick wall of sound chunkiness, or a pair of clean amps with one brighter and one darker going into some reverb if I want a fat clean sound.

I'm finding you can lean on certain amps that can sound fatter too. I got a pretty good fatter, cleanish sound just flirting with breakup on the Dumble model last night by cleaning up the drive and playing with the EQ sliders.
 
stephenclark1 said:
I don't understand enough about CPU usage or what each block "takes up". Reverb must be more involved than others since it is a big CPU eater. Anyone got a quick and easy answer about why you can have three delays on but not two amps? Just curious.
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The way to look at it is this. Look at the circuit board of a pedal versus an amp. Amp circuit boards are many times larger than the circuit board of pedal. Mostly because most pedals have a single job, whereas most amps are doing many little things at the same time.

As far as the reverb issue, the purest digital reverb units have a circuit board about the size of an amp circuit board-ish. They are single rack mounted units. Basically.

Now, if you try to cram all that into a relatively small unit like the FM3, you're biggest issue is heat. If you overclock the CPU to do more, you have to make sure you have something available to disperse the heat, or you'll fry the circuit. For right now, there is no material that increase CPU power, and disperse heat at the same time. They are working on this, I'm sure.

This is a very simplistic break down, but largely answers your question.
 
Ron_R said:
The way to look at it is this. Look at the circuit board of a pedal versus an amp. Amp circuit boards are many times larger than the circuit board of pedal. Mostly because most pedals have a single job, whereas most amps are doing many little things at the same time.

As far as the reverb issue, the purest digital reverb units have a circuit board about the size of an amp circuit board-ish. They are single rack mounted units. Basically.

Now, if you try to cram all that into a relatively small unit like the FM3, you're biggest issue is heat. If you overclock the CPU to do more, you have to make sure you have something available to disperse the heat, or you'll fry the circuit. For right now, there is no material that increase CPU power, and disperse heat at the same time. They are working on this, I'm sure.

This is a very simplistic break down, but largely answers your question.
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Thank you, it does. My wife came up with the most simplistic answer the other day..."why didn't/don't you just buy the AxeFX III Turbo and be done with it?"
 
The size of the circuit board is not a good metric for predicting the capability of a device. The ATX form factor motherboard in my PC is comparatively huge but my Intel 9900X CPU and nVidia RTX 2080Ti GPU and 32Gb of RAM does not posses the right kind of computing power to do what the FM3 does.

Comparing a dedicated DSP device to other kinds of computing devices is the long pole in any poorly designed description of how these things work and understanding what the capabilities and limitations are.
 
USMC_Trev said:
The size of the circuit board is not a good metric for predicting the capability of a device. The ATX form factor motherboard in my PC is comparatively huge but my Intel 9900X CPU and nVidia RTX 2080Ti GPU and 32Gb of RAM does not posses the right kind of computing power to do what the FM3 does.

Comparing a dedicated DSP device to other kinds of computing devices is the long pole in any poorly designed description of how these things work and understanding what the capabilities and limitations are.
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I know, I know. It was just the simplest way to describe things in my head. And seemed to have gotten the point across.

And your PC sure can. Load up a bunch of Plug-Ins, buy a high end Interface and off you go.

Btw, thank you for your service, sir!
 
Ron_R said:
I know, I know. It was just the simplest way to describe things in my head. And seemed to have gotten the point across.

And your PC sure can. Load up a bunch of Plug-Ins, buy a high end Interface and off you go.

Btw, thank you for your service, sir!
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Plug-ins are expressly what I seek to avoid in my guitar tones and that's why I've been shoulder deep in Fractal for the last ten years.

iu


And you're welcome, Ron. I thought I was doing it for the college money but I got a freight train's worth more than that out of it.
 
skolacki said:
You can't run 2 amps. But you can run 2 different IR's, pan them left and right, and it sounds like 2 amps.
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Exactly, and you don't even have to pan them very much. Start with e pitch block and +/1 8 cents of detune and pan those (IIRC) with a 50% mix. Then. put a very short delay in one of them to give them some space and you've got a little mojo going if you're looking for that double-tracked thing.
 
USMC_Trev said:
Exactly, and you don't even have to pan them very much. Start with e pitch block and +/1 8 cents of detune and pan those (IIRC) with a 50% mix. Then. put a very short delay in one of them to give them some space and you've got a little mojo going if you're looking for that double-tracked thing.
Click to expand...

Stereo is a new toy for me. Played just one speaker since I got the FM3. Bought another amp and speaker so I’ve been having a lot of fun with the possibilities it opens up.
 
USMC_Trev said:
Plug-ins are expressly what I seek to avoid in my guitar tones and that's why I've been shoulder deep in Fractal for the last ten years.

iu


And you're welcome, Ron. I thought I was doing it for the college money but I got a freight train's worth more than that out of it.
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Well that picture brings back every bad memory on the farm. Not as bad as the "it's downpouring rain, twins are trying to come out backwards, you've got to get them turned...and you forgot to pick up a new box of gloves!
 
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