FX8 V5.04 Released

I haven't posted here before, but I want to say something. Almost three years ago, I was so excited at the prospect of an effects-only processor that I signed up for Fractal's waiting list and waited a full six months for the opportunity to pay $1,250.00 plus shipping for an FX8. Now we're at the point where in addition to updates being nonexistent, the admins of the forum are purposefully ignoring requests for a simple status update from users. The answer seems pretty obvious - "you aren't getting any more updates," but the lack of support and common courtesy being shown to paying customers has completely eroded my confidence in the company. I won't be selling (or giving away) my FX8 - it's a great unit as-is. But nothing lasts forever, and when it comes time to replace it, I will not be purchasing from Fractal again based on this experience.
 
dannyboyeee said:
I haven't posted here before, but I want to say something. Almost three years ago, I was so excited at the prospect of an effects-only processor that I signed up for Fractal's waiting list and waited a full six months for the opportunity to pay $1,250.00 plus shipping for an FX8. Now we're at the point where in addition to updates being nonexistent, the admins of the forum are purposefully ignoring requests for a simple status update from users. The answer seems pretty obvious - "you aren't getting any more updates," but the lack of support and common courtesy being shown to paying customers has completely eroded my confidence in the company. I won't be selling (or giving away) my FX8 - it's a great unit as-is. But nothing lasts forever, and when it comes time to replace it, I will not be purchasing from Fractal again based on this experience.
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Did you buy it for updates, or because it does what you need it to do? That honestly seems like a foolish reason to stop supporting an entire company.

It reminds me of when people say they got a bum pack of strings from X brand (in their years of playing) so now they've switched brands.

Replace it with a Line 6 while it's still worth most of it's value.
 
Budda said:
Did you buy it for updates, or because it does what you need it to do? That honestly seems like a foolish reason to stop supporting an entire company.

It reminds me of when people say they got a bum pack of strings from X brand (in their years of playing) so now they've switched brands.

Replace it with a Line 6 while it's still worth most of it's value.
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Actually, the FX8 product page STILL says "In the tradition of all Fractal Audio Systems products, the FX8 is fully compatible with Fractal-Bot for preset sharing, easy backup and restore, plus firmware updates as new features are added." So yeah, I'd consider updates to be a selling point on their part - in addition to the fact that the "easy backup and restore" doesn't actually work with the latest firmware update.

Your analogy about buying a bum pack of strings doesn't make a lot of sense; it's not as though I've bought 50 Fractals and gotten one bad one. I spent a lot of money on a product, and while it does work well at the moment, it's the general attitude and disinterest in customer support that's soured me on the brand as a whole. I'd actually have more respect for them if they came out and said "the FX8 has reached end-of-life and we are no longer working on updating or supporting it." Simply ignoring requests for information is unprofessional.

It's honestly a little weird to me that you would defend a company that doesn't seem to care about your patronage or satisfaction with their products. It's not even that this is confined to the FX8; they've largely ignored the AX8 and Axe-FX II since the III was released. I'm glad you're happy with your FX8, I'm happy with mine as well. I'm just saying that the next time I need something in the effects processor/amp modeler arena, I won't be handing money over to a company that is developing a reputation for regarding older products (and their user base) as unimportant whenever they release something new.
 
dannyboyeee said:
Simply ignoring requests for information is unprofessional.
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To be fair, they haven't been ignored...

Admin M@ said:
...the FX8 is not an orphan, it's just not at the front of the line yet.
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dannyboyeee said:
...I won't be handing money over to a company that is developing a reputation for regarding older products (and their user base) as unimportant whenever they release something new.
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Fractal has a better reputation for supporting older products than any other company you can name.
 
dannyboyeee said:
The backup/restore bug that was never addressed after November, 2017 would seem to indicate otherwise. It's not an insignificant issue.
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Name one company in this industry that does a better job of supporting older products.

Yes, it would be great if the backup/restore issue in 5.04 were fixed. And I'm confident that it will be.
 
Rex said:
Yes, it would be great if the backup/restore issue in 5.04 were fixed. And I'm confident that it will be.
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Are you as confident now as you were in November, 2017? I think the time frame is important. If they fix it in 2024, I hardly think an "I told you so" would be in order.

I have personally had great success in the past with product support from Line6 and TC. As far as my experience with Fractal, I've had two situations. One is the issue that we're currently discussing. The other regards a ground loop which began when I first got my FX8. I contacted Fractal and was advised that I should buy two of their Humbuster cables for a total of $70. When this had no discernible effect on the buzz, I contacted Fractal again, and was basically told that I was SOL.
 
Honestly, I'm not here to argue with you guys. Am I wrong in thinking we all want the same thing here? Fractal made a great product, but they're not supporting it - or their user base - the way they should. That's all I'm trying to say.
 
dannyboyeee said:
Are you as confident now as you were in November, 2017? I think the time frame is important.
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Yes. They've recently stated that it's not an orphan product. Historically, they've batted 1000 on such things. Yes, I'm disappointed that there hasn't been a fix yet. I get that. But it will come. Fractal's not a huge company, and their resources are limited.


dannyboyeee said:
I have personally had great success in the past with product support from Line6 and TC.
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When has either of those companies provided a product update after a newer product was in production?

I can't speak to your issue regarding your ground loop, except to say that if Humbusters had no discernible effect, it wasn't a ground loop.


dannyboyeee said:
Am I wrong in thinking we all want the same thing here?
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Nope. Not wrong at all. :)
 
Stating that it's not an orphan and actually proving it are two different things. Actions speak louder than words. The size of the company is not an excuse; Fender is a very large company and I've had very bad experiences with their support. On the other hand, Friedman is a small company that provides excellent product support.

I'm not sure what the noise is, but it wasn't there before I got the FX8 and it's not there when I take it out of the chain. Putting a gate in the loop takes care of it, although that's a workaround, not a solution. The point is that Fractal advised me to buy more products from them in order to fix an issue with their product, and when that didn't work, they gave up - and didn't allow me to return the cables because I couldn't prove that there was anything wrong with them.
 
And the flip side of that is that one of Fractal's customer support staff gives out his personal number and does work on weekends to make sure customers are taken care of. I've been to the HQ, I've met some of the staff. The fact they can do what they do with their size is pretty wild.

Like I said, buy the Line 6 - it's new and it should be getting updates. You've had good customer service experience with them as well. I don't know why you'd bother to hold on, given what you've told us.

Your first (or second) post of 6 is just to say "I agree, they left us behind." That seems like a lot of work for no reward. Just send it in an email?
 
Then I guess maybe Fractal shows favoritism towards certain customers, since I didn't receive anything even resembling that treatment?

I appreciate your advice, but I can make up my own decisions about what I do with my gear. As I said before, the FX8 does the job and I've made a sizable investment into it, so I'm not looking for a reason to get rid of it, but it's not going to last for the rest of my life. Fractal already got my money, getting rid of the FX8 out of spite doesn't hurt them and it doesn't help me.

I'm sorry you seem to be taking my criticism of Fractal's business practices personally. I'm just relaying my personal experiences and opinions in an open forum in hopes that maybe something positive will come of it.
 
I don't take it personally. They don't pay me ;). I just don't understand why you're sticking around.

I'm pointing out that the unit that you now feel ripped off on is still worth most of what you paid for it (and will go down not up). So to me, you might as well swing over to something that is getting the attention you seek from a company you prefer. Doesn't that make sense? Keeping it and not using it upon replacement is way more of a financial loss, than selling it to get something that is getting updates consistently. If the updates are your issue, why are you holding onto a unit that isn't getting them? The helix LT/fx/stomp will be getting updates and it's quite comparable to the FX8. Line 6 customer service has made a better impression with you than Fractal. Why stay chained to something you dislike enough to only post that you dislike the after-sale service? That seems spiteful to me.
 
Ok. Let's do some math. I spent $1250 plus shipping plus another $70 for two useless Humbuster cables, meaning that I'm close to $1400 invested in the FX8. They're listed at about $800 on Reverb now - meaning that, in a best-case scenario, I would actually get $800 for it. As we know, the asking price on used gear isn't necessarily the same as what you'll actually get, but let's go with the best case. That means that I'm going to lose $600 - nearly 50% - on a unit that's only about two years old. This rate of depreciation is not going to remain consistent - it's not going to lose $200 of its value every year. If I were to wait another few years and still get $500 or $600 for it, that would be a better investment, wouldn't it? As I've said more than once to you, I did NOT buy it specifically for updates, but Fractal did (and still does) promise them as a selling point. In addition, being able to backup and restore presets is an important feature which Fractal also advertises.

Why is your attitude "like it or leave it?" Don't you think there should be room for "improve it" as an option too?
 
If they're not improving it, then are you still liking it? Not updating within a year is enough for you to say "no more, I'm done with this company" - but you're waiting unnecessarily. Other systems let you run multiple effects, complex routing, editing via computer, etc. Either way you're losing money - so why wait to lose more money? Why wait to learn a new system and new product that you're going to be moving to anyway? If you're not sticking with the product, why wait? Someone else could be really happy with your FX8, and you'd have everything you wanted from the getgo.
 
First, I'm not sure how many times I have to say this before it gets through to you, but I did not buy an FX8 specifically because I wanted updates. However, updates were promised as part of the package and they are not being delivered.

Second, are you going to give me the extra $600 or so I'd need to make that into a reality? Obviously, you're more interested in telling me how I should spend my money and being argumentative than in having a productive conversation on the shortcomings of Fractal. Come on, just admit that they screwed up on their last update and have spent a grossly inordinate amount of time fixing it. I promise it won't hurt.

And please do me a favor and stop trying to tell me what I should buy or sell, it's patronizing, unproductive, and impolite. I will tell you - I think this is the third or fourth time now - that I'm not selling my FX8 right now, so you can drop that line of discussion.
 
Rex said:
To be fair, they haven't been ignored...

Fractal has a better reputation for supporting older products than any other company you can name.
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First of all, the FX8 Mk II is the current shipping version of a product that FAS continues to sell in their online store. It’s a current product, not some long sunsetted product. So comparisons to “older products” isn’t appropriate.

Line 6 does firmware updates to their currently shipping products very frequently. If Line 6 neglected updates to any of their Helix products, you better believe people would be complaining.

All I’m saying is let’s try to be intellectually honest about things.
 
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