Have I bought the wrong product?

Hi all,

So I received the FX8. Initial impressions - well built and sounds great. However, I think I may have bought the wrong product.

I was under the impression it was basically and Axe Fx without the amp models. But I am a little concerned that some of the FX I want to create are possible with the Axe but not the FX8.

An example is a modulated reverb (heavy chorus and slightly detuned) similar to the RV5 or the Strymon Big Sky. When I look at suggestions on the forum people talk about placing the reverb in parallel with the dry signal and then adding a chorus after the reverb and mixing it back with the dry signal.

However, the suggestions appear to relate to the Axe. Doing a bit of digging I realised that the Axe routing has a grid that will allow a parallel wet effect to be run into another (say a chorus) and then mixed back with the signal. I can't see how to achieve this on the FX8. So far I havn't been able to get the reverb to sound like this.

Perhaps I was naïve although I researched the product and never having owned an Axe I had no idea about this grid. I genuinely thought that the FX8 had the capability of the Axe's effects only in a floorboard.

Can anyone clarify this for me? If it is possible to get the FX I want (as described above) then great (perhaps some advanced reverb parameters I need to look at?). Otherwise I may need to return the unit and think about my options.

Thanks
 
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It is true the AxeFx has a grid and many more routing options for working with effects blocks. It is quite possible the FX-8 can't create the sound you seek. There are many AxeFx presets with complex routing that the FX-8 can't replicate due to that difference.
I wish I had better news for you..
Hopefully someone familiar with the particular sound you are seeking can post here and verify if the FX-8 can create it.
 
It's true that the FX8 doesn't have a grid - the AX8 supposedly will have a simplified grid where manually placing a chorus after a parallel verb would be possible. I'm concerned about running shimmers in parallel (if I can't find a single block to create my shimmer effect).

But FX8 does do modulated reverb: have you tried the MOD DEPTH and MOD RATE parameters on the advanced parameters page? The manual suggests turning the reverb mix to 100% while dialing in the depth and rate, and then backing it down to the desired mix level.
 
You might not have bought the wrong unit, but you might have to wait until further firmware updates become available to give you what you want.

If this was confirmed as a future upgrade I would wait but I have 30 days to return it.

Thanks for the reverb mod suggestions I will have to play with it tonight
 
If this was confirmed as a future upgrade I would wait but I have 30 days to return it.

Thanks for the reverb mod suggestions I will have to play with it tonight

You can do a modulated reverb with the FX8. Fractal products have always required investing some work in tweaking for some users' specific sounds. You didn't buy the wrong product, you just need to be willing to experiment with it.
 
Two things:

You can do parallel routing with the FX8, just not as complex or flexible as the AxeII. Read the manual.

The AX8 was confirmed by Cliff to have the same 4x12 grid as the AxeII. He also said It won't have all the FX blocks that the AxeII has.
 
I was disappointed that the FX8 does not have al of the FX in the Ax like the synth block. But otherwise, so far so good.
 
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