FM3 and external switch options?

I am not sure if I am understanding your question correctly. Are you asking: if you use a Boss FS-7 for two external switches, will they do everything that the switches on the FM3 will do? If that is your question, then the answer is yes, and no. It will do anything that the switches will do on the FM3, except they will always have the same functions, no matter what footswitch layout you are on. The switches on the FM3 will change to whatever you want them to do on each footswitch layout, but the external switches (in this case the FS-7) will always stay the same. I have a wish in the FM3 Wish List to give the external switches all the functionality of the on-board FM3 switches, (including being able to have them change functions per footswitch layout), but that is just a wish. Some people don't want that because they would have to assign the external switches for every layout, but to me that is no big deal at all (you have to do this with the on-board ones too). BTW, another thing to note is that the LED's on the FS-7 will be worthless to you, so just leave the battery out of it. They will not indicate anything about what the FM3 is doing.
Thank you very much. This is exactely what I wanted to know.
 
I bought one of these quad momentary switches from Bright Onion pedals in the UK a few months back for my Kemper head which I intend to use with the stand-in switch functionality on the FM3. It was a reasonable £50 including shipping and James will let you customise the switch labels to whatever you want. I'll probably use them as Scene 1 to 4, or possibly Drive, Delay, Phase, Flange. Dunno. Nice to have options though.

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Does anyone know if a 4 button midi based amp channel switches like a Randall RF-4 would work as a stand-alone switch?
 
Does anyone know if a 4 button midi based amp channel switches like a Randall RF-4 would work as a stand-alone switch?
A stand in switch is an analog switch, not midi.

Using midi would be something else...

With what I could find in a quick Google search, I can tell if it can send CCs, PCs or more... So hard to say how it could be used.

I did find a manual for the RF-8 and it seems that can send both. Assuming the RF-4 is just a little brother to that one then it could be used.
 
This is my hybrid pedalboard. It combines a classic pedalboard with the ability to be used as a remote pedalboard for the FM 3. Then I will use the FAS EV-2, the Tap!Tap! Double Footswitch with two softswitches from Looperwerk (handbuilt, great parts and craftmanship made in Germany) and the Peterson StroboStomp HD Tuner. Maybe I will try some of the pedals in front of the FM 3, too. First I wanted to have two boards for every situation but I did not love the idea of switching the Peterson StroboStomp HD Tuner from one Board to the other one and so on... So it became one board with everything I need 😎👏 the Marvel Drive 3 is a great marshall in a box pedal and the Vahlbruch Pipeline reverb is as good as a fender spring reverb (tried it out with several modern and vintage Fender combos).

In conclusion lets say that I love both worlds, classic pedalboard and FAS modeling 🤩
And I wanna have the FM 3 at the back of the stage as I do not wanna risk to get a cup of beer on it 😀
 

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Can anyone enlighten me as to how external switches work programming wise on the FM3? I've ordered a FM3 and deciding to get a MC6/MC8 or something else to go with it. No word on FC6 availability here.

Is it possible to do a simple OMG7 kind of thing with an external 4 button footswitch? Like in scenes mode, you can have the first 4 scenes, presets the same and have 4 FX in fx mode? Or does the footswitch have to be used for only 4 'permanent' functions regardless of which page the FM3 is on? Basically how much flexibility do you have to change what the external footswitch changes on the fly?
 
Can anyone enlighten me as to how external switches work programming wise on the FM3? I've ordered a FM3 and deciding to get a MC6/MC8 or something else to go with it. No word on FC6 availability here.

Is it possible to do a simple OMG7 kind of thing with an external 4 button footswitch? Like in scenes mode, you can have the first 4 scenes, presets the same and have 4 FX in fx mode? Or does the footswitch have to be used for only 4 'permanent' functions regardless of which page the FM3 is on? Basically how much flexibility do you have to change what the external footswitch changes on the fly?

External footswitches plugged into the pedal jacks on the FM3 can be used in a number of ways:
  • You can refer to them directly in any modifiable parameter directly - for example, you could assign a switch to turn a chorus on/off by attaching it to the effect bypass in the chorus block
  • You can assign them to be one of the External controllers - External 3 for example. Then you can use External 3 to turn the chorus on/off rather than referencing the pedal directly
  • You can configure them to work as a Stand-In switch. Stand-in switches are configured to refer to a configured switch setting in a layout. So the footswitch will do the same thing as if you had loaded the layout on the FM3 and pressed the switch.

    For example, using your 4 button footswitch, configure Layout 8 switches 9, 10, 11, 12 for the functions you would like to assign to your switch. Using letters for your 4 button footswitch, you could assign A to Layout 8 Switch 9, B to L8-10, C to L8-11, and D to L8-12. You cannot change what your 4 button footswitch is mapped to on the fly - it will be fixed to refer to what you configured in Layout 8.
With a simple external footswitch, you cannot have any LED reflecting the on/off state because there is no way for the FM3 to tell the footswitch whether or not to show an LED.

If you go with a MIDI controller, you can get one that operates as a generic MIDI controller or you can get one that understands the Fractal 3rd Party MIDI protocol.

With a generic MIDI controller, you can change presets via program change messages and you can use CC messages to do anything that is in the MIDI/Remote pages. There are a number of things that the FM3/FC can do that are not exposed via MIDI CC messages so make sure you understand what you are able to do. As with a simple external switch, there is no way for a generic MIDI controller to accurately reflect on/off states of effects, channels, etc.

With a controller that understands the Fractal 3rd Party MIDI protocol, you should be able to do anything that is documented here: https://forum.fractalaudio.com/threads/third-party-midi-spec.140602/
 
External footswitches plugged into the pedal jacks on the FM3 can be used in a number of ways:
  • You can refer to them directly in any modifiable parameter directly - for example, you could assign a switch to turn a chorus on/off by attaching it to the effect bypass in the chorus block
  • You can assign them to be one of the External controllers - External 3 for example. Then you can use External 3 to turn the chorus on/off rather than referencing the pedal directly
  • You can configure them to work as a Stand-In switch. Stand-in switches are configured to refer to a configured switch setting in a layout. So the footswitch will do the same thing as if you had loaded the layout on the FM3 and pressed the switch.

    For example, using your 4 button footswitch, configure Layout 8 switches 9, 10, 11, 12 for the functions you would like to assign to your switch. Using letters for your 4 button footswitch, you could assign A to Layout 8 Switch 9, B to L8-10, C to L8-11, and D to L8-12. You cannot change what your 4 button footswitch is mapped to on the fly - it will be fixed to refer to what you configured in Layout 8.
With a simple external footswitch, you cannot have any LED reflecting the on/off state because there is no way for the FM3 to tell the footswitch whether or not to show an LED.

If you go with a MIDI controller, you can get one that operates as a generic MIDI controller or you can get one that understands the Fractal 3rd Party MIDI protocol.

With a generic MIDI controller, you can change presets via program change messages and you can use CC messages to do anything that is in the MIDI/Remote pages. There are a number of things that the FM3/FC can do that are not exposed via MIDI CC messages so make sure you understand what you are able to do. As with a simple external switch, there is no way for a generic MIDI controller to accurately reflect on/off states of effects, channels, etc.

With a controller that understands the Fractal 3rd Party MIDI protocol, you should be able to do anything that is documented here: https://forum.fractalaudio.com/threads/third-party-midi-spec.140602/


Are you saying there is a way to have the External Switches change functions per footswitch layout? Because I don't see a way to do that. For example I have two basic footswitch layouts. One for Preset selection and one for Scene selection. I would like my two external switches to be: (for the Preset selection layout), Sw1: Bank Up and Sw2: Bank Down, and then (for the Scene selection layout), Sw1: Go to Preset Selection Layout, and Sw2: Tap Tempo with the Tuner on the Hold function of this switch. Are you saying that is possible? Because I don't see a way to do that.
 
Are you saying there is a way to have the External Switches change functions per footswitch layout? Because I don't see a way to do that. For example I have two basic footswitch layouts. One for Preset selection and one for Scene selection. I would like my two external switches to be: (for the Preset selection layout), Sw1: Bank Up and Sw2: Bank Down, and then (for the Scene selection layout), Sw1: Go to Preset Selection Layout, and Sw2: Tap Tempo with the Tuner on the Hold function of this switch. Are you saying that is possible? Because I don't see a way to do that.

I explicitly said it wasn't possible:
You cannot change what your 4 button footswitch is mapped to on the fly - it will be fixed to refer to what you configured in Layout 8.
 
Any good single latching footswitch recommendations WITH an LED? Want to use it with my FM3 for a solo boost. Thanks!
 
Hi All,
Pretty much a Fractal newbie with a FM3. I was hoping to make some use of my Digitech FS3 but after hearing/seeing how Larry Mitchel's phenomenally uses his FM3, I have to ask myself a question. With all the new functionality of switch layout options, tap and hold functions etc.. Am I just not willing to learn the new functions and gravitating to the familiar?

Google FM3 Footswitch design and Concepts. Tons of ways to set up 3 switches.
Quote from the author of this article "I still personally stick to 1 Preset and use 1 or 2 views on the FM3 itself. I don’t want things to be too complex for my current playing situations. But if I need something more complex, I know it’s there and can use them."

Just a thought.
Loving the FM3! So glad I waited :)
 
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