How far ahead is the III of the II these days?

S

Spear

Member
All I can find is comparisons that are at least 3 years old. I would like to know how the Axe FX lll compares to the ll these days. I haven't stayed too informed but I assume quite a few software updates have been rolled out during the last 2 - 3 years. I would like to know how the Axe Fx ll has aged up to this day against its bigger brother?

I don't care too much about an updated user interface, better connectivity and such stuff, I'm mainly interested in pure tone. I remember when the III came out, the difference between their sounds weren't too drastic according to the comparisons I heard then. Now after a few more years, I'm curious to know how far it has leaped ahead. I still think my II sounds excellent, but it's relative and I have nothing to compare it to.

Maybe someone here has them both and can chime in on the topic? And clips would be very welcome too.
 
I'm relatively new to Fractal, so I've only experienced the latest modeling, Cygnus 2, which gets rave reviews on the forum. Plenty of folks have done reviews of new firmware on YouTube. @Cooper Carter did one on Cygnus vs Cygnus 2:
 
III - II = I The answer must be one.

Seriously though, the amp modeling is more accurate/complex. The pitch block has 4 voices per instance vs 2. Most effects are improved with more types available and updated algorithms. More than double the processing power of the II and Cliff takes advantage of it.
 
mcnoodles said:
I'm relatively new to Fractal, so I've only experienced the latest modeling, Cygnus 2, which gets rave reviews on the forum. Plenty of folks have done reviews of new firmware on YouTube. @Cooper Carter did one on Cygnus vs Cygnus 2:
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Yeah it sounds stellar of course. But even if I try to match my Axe ll with similar settings - or listen to old demos of it - it doesn't serve much as a comparison. It would be super interesting to hear comparisons between the two models recorded with the same gear and processing, so that they would be fully comparable.

I understand that the lll should be a far bit ahead by now and I'm curious to check in on how far technology has evolved. I'm just a bedroom musician so I assume I'm not in need of upgrading my gear, nevertheless it would be cool to see what's up these days.
 
They modeled the Klon in it as well! Not much of a comparison anymore on the amps - just so much more better.
 
I have both. Both sound great. I felt the most progress with the overdrive pedals. I don't use effects much, only an amplifier and a speaker simulation. In the II I didn't use overdrive at all, instead I used a parametric equalizer before the amp. In III I use overdrive pedals instead of EQ. The difference is amplifier to amplifier, for Bogner Ecstasy I always use II, for Plexi I prefer to use III. The guitar is more important to me than whether I play II or III.
 
Jarek said:
I have both. Both sound great. I felt the most progress with the overdrive pedals. I don't use effects much, only an amplifier and a speaker simulation. In the II I didn't use overdrive at all, instead I used a parametric equalizer before the amp. In III I use overdrive pedals instead of EQ. The difference is amplifier to amplifier, for Bogner Ecstasy I always use II, for Plexi I prefer to use III. The guitar is more important to me than whether I play II or III.
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Thanks, really interesting. You don't happen to have some recordings using the same amp in both units as well as the same guitar?

After having listened to several Axe lll demos - even though without direct comparison to an Axe ll - it in general gives the impression to me that it provides a fuller tone (perhaps a clearer bottlm end?) and more sparkling harmonics. Could this generally be considered correct?
 
Cooper Carter said:
It is at this point far more than the single-generation gap implied by "II vs III."
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That's what I was thinking also.

The FX3 when it first came out was an improvement on the AX8 which I had, then Cygnus hit, along with umpteen other improvements, then Cygnus x 2, and you know Cliff isn't sitting still.

I don't remember hearing any blind tests between the last version of the II or AX8 firmware and the current firmware on the FX3, but hearing the difference should be easy.
 
Spear said:
Yes i can read about all the improvements. But some audio clips between both of them would be very valuable to make sense of it.
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I think the biggest problem with audio clips is figuring out what settings to use with the FX3 and which version of the firmware, and where to stop adjusting the parameters in the FX3 because things have changed so much. It could be a big task.
 
Greg Ferguson said:
I think the biggest problem with audio clips is figuring out what settings to use with the FX3 and which version of the firmware, and where to stop adjusting the parameters in the FX3 because things have changed so much. It could be a big task.
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Yeah you're right. It's probably difficult to make it an apples-to-apples experiment. But it would be my closest bet, since i don't have the possibility to try out a lll and find out the difference first hand.
 
Spear said:
Yeah you're right. It's probably difficult to make it an apples-to-apples experiment. But it would be my closest bet, since i don't have the possibility to try out a lll and find out the difference first hand.
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The FX3, FM9 and FX3 sound identical when given the same settings and running the same preset and firmware, so if you had one of the FM* units you could get a good idea. The best you can do without having a unit at hand is to listen to videos by Leon Todd, Cooper Carter or Marco Fanton, or clips from York Audio, or maybe Guthrie Goven's Rig Rundown and the tour with Hans Zimmer, where he's using his FM9.

In my experience, hearing on a stereo or with headphones is a distant second to hearing the rig at stage volume next to you.
 
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I have both the II and the III. Yes, although the II is still a great preamp… the III really out shines it, plus it has more of EVERYTHING.
I also feel, while to some degree you can get an idea comparing the two units on a YouTube video… you’re not really getting the whole picture, and certainly not the feel and dynamics under your fingers.
 
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