FM3 newbie question (have one arriving Monday)

B

billybob71

Member
OK i wanted to make sure that my application of the FM3 is possible and that I am going about this the right way. I have been using a direct to mixing board pedalboard rig for the past 6 years with my duo. That rig is- Timmy- Keeley Red Dirt Germanium- Keeley DDR- Strymon Flint- Ethos Clean- out the speaker sim jack into a Allen and Heath Zed 10 mixer and out to 2 QSC K10s. I have been relatively happy with this set up and done hundreds of gigs this way with satisfying results. I got on the FM3 waitlist In Feb and along came the email so I took the plunge and ordered. The first thing i am gonna do is set up my PA and current pedalboard and try to replicate it using the FM3. My thought is if i can i will have basically the same set up i have been using but with much more versatility for recording. My current pedals pretty much stay in the same setting from gig to gig but i do occasionally bend over and slightly adjust things like volume or high cut or delay time depending on the room sound or if i am outside etc. The Ethos Clean and Timmy and the reverb from Flint stay on all gig, the delay and slight break up from DDR get toggled on and off thru out the gig as does the red dirt germanium, and tremolo. I have been watching alot of tutorials on FM3 and my plan is to use scenes so switch 1 will toggle between my base clean sound and slight break up, switch 2 will toggle my lead sound and crunch rhythm, switch 3 Tap Tempo. I was gonna add 2 Boss FS 5u one to toggle trem on and off and one to change view to my fx in case i want to tweak on the fly. Also thinking of adding an expression pedal to control delay mix level. I am sorry for this long winded post, if anybody has any tips or advice it would be much appreciated, especially those of you who made the switch from more traditional pedalboards. Also i know each switch will have a hold function but i am not sure i will need to utilize that. Trying to keep it simple and functional for gigs.
 
The scenes sound good, but I'm not sure how switching view will allow you to tweak on the fly. Tweaking on the fly is the main issue I have struggled with when using modellers. The Helix was good, because you could just touch (not press) the footswitch assigned to an effect, and the main parameters page for that effect would appear in the screen, and there were 6 physical knobs you could then tweak. (Great implementation, but the base modelling quality in Line6 products just was nowhere near Fractal the last time I checked.)

I don't really know how to do that with the FM3, and I don't have it with me right now. I do remember that from the home screen you can press button D to go to controllers. If you attach those controllers to the key parameters that you would typically want to tweak, then it might be possible to tweak on the fly effectively. This post has prompted me to check this out as soon as I can.

I would download the manual and read all about controllers.

Someone with better knowledge, or the FM3 by their side, might provide a better answer!
 
Yeah, just looking at the manual I would say read chapter 9 Modifiers, especially the part about Manual Controllers on page 66.

Can't say 100% it gives what you want, but looks promising.
 
TY Simon for the reply. I did try a Helix a few years ago and sent it back within a few days (dont know if i gave it a fair chance) it just seemed it was far off from the sound quality of my pedal board and i was gonna have to spend so much time to get it close. I will download the pages in manual you suggested ty!!
 
billybob71 said:
Also Simon have you used your FM3 live and if so how did it work for you?
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Yes. It has worked very well indeed for me in terms of sound quality. I've had many compliments, and people saying they can't believe it's a modeller. The weakness has been the on the fly tweaking that you are also looking to do. I find for instance that I might have a preset with a low gain scene, and a higher gain scene using a different amp channel. They may be very different in how well they cut through the mix once I get up to rehearsal or gig volume rather than at home in the studio at low volume.

I want to look at the manual controllers so that I can adjust this on the fly, then save the result.

So thanks for this post, because it made me think about it!
 
Simon Godden said:
The scenes sound good, but I'm not sure how switching view will allow you to tweak on the fly. Tweaking on the fly is the main issue I have struggled with when using modellers. The Helix was good, because you could just touch (not press) the footswitch assigned to an effect, and the main parameters page for that effect would appear in the screen, and there were 6 physical knobs you could then tweak. (Great implementation, but the base modelling quality in Line6 products just was nowhere near Fractal the last time I checked.)

I don't really know how to do that with the FM3, and I don't have it with me right now. I do remember that from the home screen you can press button D to go to controllers. If you attach those controllers to the key parameters that you would typically want to tweak, then it might be possible to tweak on the fly effectively. This post has prompted me to check this out as soon as I can.

I would download the manual and read all about controllers.

Someone with better knowledge, or the FM3 by their side, might provide a better answer!
Click to expand...
One of the things which is up to come are those mythical "performance pages". Those would be directly do what is asked for.

But as you said - up to now, the controllers (especially manual controllers) are the way to go. You could also use the "external" controllers, but you have to dive through more menus to change them.
 
moerker said:
One of the things which is up to come are those mythical "performance pages". Those would be directly do what is asked for.

But as you said - up to now, the controllers (especially manual controllers) are the way to go. You could also use the "external" controllers, but you have to dive through more menus to change them.
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Yes completely agree - this is a great feature on the Axe III, and I really want to see it on the FM3
 
yeah you know how it is, you get to a gig and during the first few songs im bending over and tweaking a little, not doing huge changes just maybe a bit more or less high cut on the ethos or timmy or a bit more gain on a drive pedal or a bit more overall volume, it all depends on the sound of the room or if i am outside and where the mains are, we put them behind us so i dont have to use monitors. I know this sounds OCD lol and the audience prob doesnt notice these small tweaks but it makes a difference to me as a player and will drive me nuts if i cant adjust something and have to live with it the whole gig.
 
Don't limit your manual investigation to chapter 9. Check out the BLOCKS GUIDE too, and the chapters on working with presets and scenes from the front panel. In fact, read it all so you know what you're skipping if you do skip.

Also, if you really like tweaking the tone on the Timmy, why not run it in front of the FM3? This will save a little CPU power and give you some basic hands on controls if you need an instant tweak.
 
And from what you are saying it sounds like it is gonna be important for me to create my live preset at the volume i am gonna be playing out at and make sure i am hooked up to my PA when doing so. also I am gonna keep my pedal board until I am completely sure the FM3 can replace it. I dont mind bending over here and there to adjust something i guess i am just confused on how the 5 knobs under the screen can be utilized for this.
 
Admin M@ said:
Don't limit your manual investigation to chapter 9. Check out the BLOCKS GUIDE too, and the chapters on working with presets and scenes from the front panel. In fact, read it all so you know what you're skipping if you do skip.

Also, if you really like tweaking the tone on the Timmy, why not run it in front of the FM3? This will save a little CPU power and give you some basic hands on controls if you need an instant tweak.
Click to expand...
OK ty i will do that, and the idea of keeping the Timmy so i can utilize the high cut has got me thinking TY!! I usually only tweak the timmy once or twice per gig to find that sweet spot -right amount of boost, break up and high cut. depending on the guitar im using and room sound at gig.
 
billybob71 said:
And from what you are saying it sounds like it is gonna be important for me to create my live preset at the volume i am gonna be playing out at and make sure i am hooked up to my PA when doing so
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Yes that would be ideal. I would really recommend Austin Buddy's Live Gold presets. He has dialled those in at high volume. I have found they translate well to loud use in my rig. You just have to resist the temptation to up the bass and treble on them when listening at low volume in the studio. Fletcher Munson curve and all that.
 
Simon Godden said:
Yes that would be ideal. I would really recommend Austin Buddy's Live Gold presets. He has dialled those in at high volume. I have found they translate well to loud use in my rig. You just have to resist the temptation to up the bass and treble on them when listening at low volume in the studio. Fletcher Munson curve and all that.
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OK and what might make all this simpler for me is the fact that im only using this in a duo, 2 guitar and vocals. so i am not trying to cut through a band mix or get out over a loud drummer.
 
Admin M@ said:
Don't limit your manual investigation to chapter 9. Check out the BLOCKS GUIDE too, and the chapters on working with presets and scenes from the front panel. In fact, read it all so you know what you're skipping if you do skip.

Also, if you really like tweaking the tone on the Timmy, why not run it in front of the FM3? This will save a little CPU power and give you some basic hands on controls if you need an instant tweak.
Click to expand...
And to further your suggestion I could use the FM3 to replace my Ethos Clean and Flint and keep my Timmy and other Drive pedals so i still have all my easily tweakable drive stages at my feet. all these options are very exciting thanks for all the help guys!!
 
I'm just trying this out with the manual controllers. It works well enough. I have two issues with it, both relatively minor:
  1. I can't attach any labels to the manual controllers, so I need to remember what I use each one for;
  2. If I switch preset, it goes to the home screen, and I have to press button D again - at least it does remember which page of the controllers menu I was on though, so it is only one press to get back to where I was.
 
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