FM3 VS Quad Cortex

[hippietim]

@iamcaseydilla - here's a simple test you can do to see which is the best choice.

1. Plug your guitar into your Axe-Fx III and play. That's what an FM3 will sound like.
2. Unplug your guitar from the Axe-Fx III and play. That's what a QC currently sounds like.

 

[simeon]

I watched Paul Davis (pre?)view of the QC....

that bit of the video you linked to where he was playing the marshall preset. again...that horrible "clutter" in the tone. i don't understand why none of these reviewers comment on it. sounds absolutely horrible to my ears.

i wish paul davids would try the axe fx III. he loves his amp and the kemper version of it sounds like ass. the fractal version sounds amazing.

 

[simeon]

rabea prefers the QC over the kemper. it's interesting how another profiling unit had to come along to show everybody how bad the kemper really is. i'm sure he'd love the III...he's big on massive dual amp stereo tones

 

[vika12]

I know exactly what you mean, so frustrating. But there are solutions out there. For example, Eventide H9 has a barrel plug but it is self capturing; you have to really want to unplug that thing. Maybe the QC has that? At $1600 I would expect it to.

I'm not sure about that ... I'd hope so but ...

 

[northtrader]

...... i wish paul davids would try the axe fx III. he loves his amp and the kemper version of it sounds like ass. the fractal version sounds amazing.

Probably doesn't want to know that, heaven forbid, a "modeler" can replace and maybe out perform his prized amp?

I just don't get it when people try to compare a 'profiler' based unit (kemper, QC) to the Fractal eco-system - which is based on mathematical modeling of amp circuitry and audio manipulation. ¯\(ツ)/¯

There's no comparison.

I first started down the path of the "is there a good modeler out there?" about 20 years ago.
Man, I went through a lot of gear looking for a product that sounded good, was versatile and didn't require lugging a cabinet and pedal board around.
I knew my search was over when I entered the Fractal Universe with the purchase of an Ultra back in late 2008. Cliff's work was miles ahead of anything available at the time.

Fast forward to today. Cliff's work is still miles ahead of anything out there!

A 'profile' based unit seems like a complete joke to me compared to the Fractal approach to tone generation and audio manipulation but then again, I'm not wowed by touch screen devices and GUI window dressing so I'm probably an 'odd man out'.

My 2 cents.

 

[vika12]

Probably doesn't want to know that, heaven forbid, a "modeler" can replace and maybe out perform his prized amp?

I just don't get it when people try to compare a 'profiler' based unit (kemper, QC) to the Fractal eco-system - which is based on mathematical modeling of amp circuitry and audio manipulation. ¯\(ツ)/¯

There's no comparison.

I first started down the path of the "is there a good modeler out there?" about 20 years ago.
Man, I went through a lot of gear looking for a product that sounded good, was versatile and didn't require lugging a cabinet and pedal board around.
I knew my search was over when I entered the Fractal Universe with the purchase of an Ultra back in late 2008. Cliff's work was miles ahead of anything available at the time.

Fast forward to today. Cliff's work is still miles ahead of anything out there!

A 'profile' based unit seems like a complete joke to me compared to the Fractal approach to tone generation and audio manipulation but then again, I'm not wowed by touch screen devices and GUI window dressing so I'm probably an 'odd man out'.

My 2 cents.

I agree -- the "capture" thing is interesting technology, but unless you have lots of amps / pedals to make captures of (which I don't); and unless you are willing to make numerous captures of the same amp / pedal at different settings to obtain snapshots of tones you want, I don't see the point. The Fractal models basically do that work for us and then, just as importantly, provide loads of parameters that we can adjust to create new sounds

 

[bdrepko]

The only benefit of capture for me is access to amps that are not yet modeled in the Fractal. Even then, there are so many good amp models in Fractal land that I doubt I would miss anything.

 

[Nick Barba]

I agree -- the "capture" thing is interesting technology, but unless you have lots of amps / pedals to make captures of (which I don't); and unless you are willing to make numerous captures of the same amp / pedal at different settings to obtain snapshots of tones you want, I don't see the point. The Fractal models basically do that work for us and then, just as importantly, provide loads of parameters that we can adjust to create new sounds

Having access to both seems like a win. Cliff can't model every amp ever made (well maybe he can he seems to work super hard) and capturing an amp takes way less time and anyone can do it with the right tools. Also it's my understanding that captures take less processing so could be useful if that is needed in a patch.

 

[sprint]

 

[guitaryates]

I can definitely think of situations where a capture device would be advantageous. If you own the amps and want to recreate the exact sounds live. Maybe a tribute act going for as much authenticity as possible. Not saying modeling can't do those but to me it seems like capture is better suited for those tasks. It's also way less processor intensive so maybe you can add a ton of effects (side note: waiting to see how the QC CPU load is using a modeled amp and effects).

I think modeling is definitely better for discovering your own sound. No matter how good a capture is it will never react the same as a real amp or a great model for things like turning your volume down.

The other thing I don't like about captures is it can be like IR overload. Auditioning 100 different Deluxe Reverb captures to find the one that works for you. My brain doesn't work like that and I don't want to spend time doing it. I've rarely even messed with changing IRs on my FM3. If I can dial up a great sound with the stock cabs in a factory preset I'm happy and move on. I have playing to do.

 

[Randalljax]

Glenn Fricker got one.

The UI on it really looks great. Really like the rotary encoders. Not sure why he needs to question the AxeFX about being obsolete in the title lol

Apart from Fluff i can honestly say this man gets the worst tones i have ever heard
when Captain Lee dials in a better tone than you and you are a studio engineer producer by profession WTF

 

[FractalAudio]

Apart from Fluff i can honestly say this man gets the worst tones i have ever heard
when Captain Lee dials in a better tone than you and you are a studio engineer producer by profession WTF

I'm going to leave your reply but any video that has "paid promotion" will be deleted.

 

[Bodde]

I think there are a lot of biased opinions here. I guess we can only really judge it if we try the Neural ourself. Or compare them side by side. Some treat them like they are the enemy or something. I have no real opinion yet. I think it is good to have another player on the market. Still happy with my my Axe fx. Not planning on walking over to the dark side....

 

[Randalljax]

I'm going to leave your reply but any video that has "paid promotion" will be deleted.

thank you
thats understood , i was just replying to the actual post w video i i am so sorry it got carried over

 

[Deadpool_25]

My FM3 sounds phenomenal whether through my HS7s or through an amp FX loop. The vast majority of the time I’m just using factory presets with very minor tweaks to B/M/T/G/P/R. I’m far from a power user and don’t need to be. I just want the damn thing to sound great, which it does with almost no effort on my part.

The QC has literally two things that are attractive to me: the ability to run two amps at once, and a super slick UI. Admittedly the UI still needs work as Paul David’s’ video showed, but it’s already looking great and will almost certainly get better.

I originally had a QC on order (was in the first 1000 actually) but canceled. I decided I just didn’t want to drop the $1600 for those two things when so much is still unknown.

And I could buy a 2nd FM3 for less. Still wouldn’t have a sexy UI but that could be pretty fun anyway.

 

[Randalljax]

My FM3 sounds phenomenal whether through my HS7s or through an amp FX loop. The vast majority of the time I’m just using factory presets with very minor tweaks to B/M/T/G/P/R. I’m far from a power user and don’t need to be. I just want the damn thing to sound great, which it does with almost no effort on my part.

The QC has literally two things that are attractive to me: the ability to run two amps at once, and a super slick UI. Admittedly the UI still needs work as Paul David’s’ video showed, but it’s already looking great and will almost certainly get better.

I originally had a QC on order (was in the first 1000 actually) but canceled. I decided I just didn’t want to drop the $1600 for those two things when so much is still unknown.

And I could buy a 2nd FM3 for less. Still wouldn’t have a sexy UI but that could be pretty fun anyway.

i think for sure Kemper is much more a target than Fractal
at this point , and agreed the UI is really nice but i am not hearing anything that Fractal cant do in the tones and the fx are pretty limited at launch , the other thing i cam guarantee is the update schedule will not be anywhere near what we see and are spoiled with Fractal
there are a lot of ??? Right now
the best comment was above that said people buying now are basically buying potential

 

[mikeyg]

I think I might order an FM3 today.

I was an early adopter, and there were enough issues at the outset that I thought I’d check back later. Has it improved in terms of available blocks? Because I was maxing out with a OD reverb and delay before. Whatever the actual hardware differences, at least in the initial analysis, QC seems to optimize the hardware better than the FM3. I was seeing demos where the CPU was barely cracking 50% with some relatively complex chains

I have a QC on order, who knows when I’ll get it in hand.

I still have my Kemper Stage too ...it’s a good time for modeling and profiling!!

 

[darrenw5094]

I think I might order an FM3 today.

I was an early adopter, and there were enough issues at the outset that I thought I’d check back later. Has it improved in terms of available blocks? Because I was maxing out with a OD reverb and delay before. Whatever the actual hardware differences, at least in the initial analysis, QC seems to optimize the hardware better than the FM3. I was seeing demos where the CPU was barely cracking 50% with some relatively complex chains

I have a QC on order, who knows when I’ll get it in hand.

I still have my Kemper Stage too ...it’s a good time for modeling and profiling!!

So, you'll have the Kemper, FM3 and QuadCortex all at the same time?

 

[mikeyg]

So, you'll have the Kemper, FM3 and QuadCortex all at the same time?

Hope so!

 

[jlynnb1]

I think I might order an FM3 today.

I was an early adopter, and there were enough issues at the outset that I thought I’d check back later. Has it improved in terms of available blocks? Because I was maxing out with a OD reverb and delay before. Whatever the actual hardware differences, at least in the initial analysis, QC seems to optimize the hardware better than the FM3. I was seeing demos where the CPU was barely cracking 50% with some relatively complex chains

I have a QC on order, who knows when I’ll get it in hand.

I still have my Kemper Stage too ...it’s a good time for modeling and profiling!!

you're saying you were maxing out with 4 blocks?