Countdown 0.5...

I think someone would do us all a huge favor (or perhaps not, depending on how sarcastic we're all feeling today) if they would post a summary of what Countdown 1 was on G66's page. It's currently down and I suspect won't be up for a while...
 
Randalljax said:
Maybe the Nebula is to show universe or universal ..It kinda been hinted at that all the resources are in place .maybe it is an outsource but to an American building facility that can mass produce.

Lower prices ,a multi product line Extreme ,Lite ,and mass distribution and products in stock ..
In addition the Axe Edit GUI release and a Huge firmware ver 11 release
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Isn't the most detailed cab simulation called nebula?
 
sampleaccurate said:
I agree. I also have to wonder, if there was a new hardware unit about to be announced, how would Fractal keep it secret unless it hasn't gone to production yet? Somebody would have leaked something by now it seems to me at the factory that silk screens or labels the front panels, if not somewhere else in the chain. On the other hand, it's easy to make a circuit board for a retrofit or add on without the people at the factory that makes it even knowing what it will be used for.
Click to expand...

Good point!
 
OH MY FUCKING GOD!! Please please please tell me there's a nebula update???? I tried my ultra with the nebula IRs and that combo is the BOMB!!!

*crosses fingers*

Or all cabs updated to nebula programs??? Woah...

*creams pants*
 
Can anyone offer any speculation (wild or otherwise) as to how the expansion port on the MFC101 might figure into any of this?
 
shasha said:
Why would no one expect to see something new come out within the next 2 years?
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First, I think people need to calm down. No matter what is announced, this is nobody's worse nightmare. I'm anxious to see what's next.

Having said that, I think the analogies to things like computer upgrades ring false.

People are aware of the general pace of upgrades for computers, so it is never a complete surprise when a new model is announced. In AxeFx reality, nobody had (or has) any idea when a new model might be announced, and I've seen many posts from perspective buyers asking if a new model might be announced soon. The response is always the same, and has been repeated through most of this thread--no way, there aren't any better DSP engines available yet.

Some, perhaps many, buyers feel that they made a large commitment to buy an AxeFx. $2000 feels like a lot of money in the world of guitar processors, even though everyone soon realizes that it is actually a great value. In any case, people tend to have a strong attachment to and a certain pride in owning an AxeFx, at least in part because it is the best and they are part of the AxeFx community.

If you acquired yours recently, say in the last six months, it may seem that you made the wrong choice and should have waited just a bit longer. Maybe, but let's at least wait for the announcement instead of agonizing over shadows.
 
I would love to hear what Cliff thoughts of the insanity of this thread when the dust settles, and he releases the 1u unit tomorrow, offering his congratulations and a free first unit..in humility i will take it off his hands, and tell him he's not the messiah..


"He's a Very Naughty Boy"
 
greyanaroth said:
OH MY FUCKING GOD!! Please please please tell me there's a nebula update???? I tried my ultra with the nebula IRs and that combo is the BOMB!!!

*crosses fingers*

Or all cabs updated to nebula programs??? Woah...

*creams pants*
Click to expand...
Sounds cool! Never heard of the Nebula IRs. I own the Redwirez and use the exclusively
 
I just dug through all of Cliff's posts from 13 months ago up to when the countdown started, here's all the relevant ones:


FractalAudio said:
2010 08 17:
I've yet to take a vacation this year. I'm currently finishing up the MFC-101 and two other projects that I can't talk about. I haven't had any time to work on Axe-Fx software.

2010 08 22:
My guess is the new Pod is using the new ADSP-21469 DSP. The fastest version runs at 450 MHz. It's a decent DSP for the price. About half as powerful as the TigerSHARC in my tests. My guess is they're using the 400 MHz version.
If it has two of them then it will rival a standard Axe-Fx in power. For the price it seems unlikely it will have two unless they really cheaped out on the rest of the parts.

2010 09 16: Should I buy axe-fx Ultra?
Firewire is on the way out. If we were to come out with a new version it would probably have USB.
No new version in the works though. Working on some other projects.

2010 09 18:
There is a new SHARC processor family: the 214xx series. My bet is the new Pod stuff is using a 21469.
I have evaluated the 21469 extensively and while it is a good processor it is only about half as powerful as a TigerSHARC. We are actually working on a new product based on the 21469.
The problem with the SHARCs is several things:
- The core design is very old. They are still using the same basic core from almost 20 years ago.
- The internal bus bandwidth is mediocre. The TigerSHARC has four 128-bit internal data buses that run at full speed which means the core is never starved for data.
- Too few registers. You have to constantly push and pop with the SHARCs because the register file is so small. This increases function overhead so either your functions run slower or you have to increase your block size (and concomitant latency). The TigerSHARC has a huge register file and since there are so many scratch registers you rarely have to save any registers on the stack (this can also be a disadvantage since you have to save all those registers during a context switch so you have to code your interrupts carefully).
- The SIMD implementation is crude. It would take too long to explain the details.
- Small internal memory. The maximum available is 5 Mb IIRC.
- 48-bit instruction word. The long instruction word means instruction use 1.5 times the memory as data does. So that 5 Mb memory is equivalent to 3.3 Mb in practice.

The new SHARCs have on-board accelerators (FIR and IIR). In theory this should be great but unfortunately the accelerators only work at half the clock speed so they don't really buy you much.
One advantage of the new SHARCs is the on-board peripherals. They include SPI, I2S, UARTS, etc. This reduces system cost. The TigerSHARC has no on-board peripherals, it is designed for one thing: number-crunching.
The SHARC is the value line and for the money the new SHARCs are great but a TigerSHARC still easily outperforms them.

2010 09 18:
Do any of you use AES/EBU (as opposed to SPDIF) in your studios (that's the digital XLR connector).
Doing some product research and wondering if anyone actually uses this anymore.

2010 12 17: Re: Hey Cliff ! Any new chrismas firmware ??
Don't expect anything ground-shaking. Just some minor stuff. We're working hard on Axe-Edit and a few other things.
Click to expand...

Nothing interesting between last December and this countdown...
 
If it was back up, G66 is down again. I'm out of antacids. I agree, Fractal owes recent purchasers nothing more than what they delivered, that being said, if there's new hardware, I'll wish I had waited- I bought a Standard 3 weeks ago, which I shall love either way.
 
I think all the people who are freaking out that there unit is obsolete should wait and see
From what I have observed Cliff is always giving out free cool software updates
Whatever it is I am sure he is not leaving you behind or is forgetting about all of the loyal users .
I am confident this will be cool for all the current users or a least some good stuff is coming to ya
 
I just went back and read 2 or 3 posts regarding the Ultra from around 2008. Cliff was very open about it and how it was going to be positioned. There was also discussion of a lesser expensive "LT" model. A few comments:

1. I have very much enjoyed the nature and vibe of the way Fractal Audio (i.e. Cliff) chooses to do business. All things considered, from what I've seen in the short time I've been a part of this thing, I don't think it follows that something as shocking as a new hardware unit that renders ours obsolete or even significantly less desirable would be in character.
2. If it was a new hardware unit, I find it difficult to believe that we would not have heard of it somehow, somewhere. Cliff woud have had to put prototypes and test units out there and some rumor would have hit this forum. I also think he would have said something about it.
3. While this could be the "LT" unit described years ago, the clues given point to an exponential improvement, not a budget minded offering.
4. Cliff has stated that he has been working on Axe-PC. I think it just took a while.

My hope is that it somehow builds on and takes advantage of the hardware unit, not rendering it obsolete. I bought in 6 months ago from Tone Merchants in LA. Even then, I was nervous that a new model was on the horizon and asked a lot of questions about that. I know...no guarantees. I wouldn't expect there to be. But one can hope.

I too wish this were being announced today. I have a feeling I'm going to be very distracted at work tomorrow.
 
To all those thinking they'll feel slighted if it is a new version of the Ultra, I can only offer this. (And not to make a comparison to the Fractal units) I used a GSP-2101 for years. They came out with "newer, better" hardware such as the 2112, 2120, 1101. I tried a couple of those units and none compared to my original 2101. And of those GSP units the original 2101 is still the most sought after I believe. Newer isn't always better. Even if it is a new Ultra (which I doubt) you may still have the best one. I haven't been able to buy an Ultra after trying for a couple weeks. If it is a new hardware version I'll probably not even bother until it's been out for a while. The review reading process will start all over...
 
Well first off I'm not going to have a stroke over this...I'm having fun, but I am concerned about the health of the people getting all worked up over this. We don't know what's going on for certain, but regardless of what it is no one is going to be hurt as a result. It's just stuff; you can buy stuff anytime you want (of course you need money to do that).

I bought my AxeFX about 6 months ago (can't believe that it's both been that long and that short). I understand how someone who just bought one a short time ago could feel like they may have missed out on something better; it's human nature to think that. But regardless of whether it's a computer, a cellphone or a potato peeler there is always going to be something new and shiny to come along to tempt us. I always tease my operators and editors about not letting them go to NAB because they'll come back with a million dollars worth of crap with blue lights on it (blue lights seem to be the thing that drives these guys into a frenzy right now). You end up replacing a ton of stuff that works fine for no reason other than something is newer and fancier looking in many cases.

Here's another way to look at it.
  • If the AxeFX does everything you need it to and does it well right now then nothing changes here. You should be just as happy tomorrow as you were 10 days ago.
  • If the AxeFX is missing something and this new product resolves that issue than you should be extremely happy that something now exists to fulfill your needs.

So you have one of two choices...be happy or be extremely happy.

I do think that tomorrow that there will be a big laugh at a lot of our expenses though.

The only thing that sucks for me is that I've got meetings all frickin' day long tomorrow and I'll probably be out of the loop until well into the day when all the 911 calls are sent in.
 
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