Is my FM3 overkill for bedroom playing? I'm wondering if it was designed for a bigger venue or a recording situation, so perhaps I'm not getting all the benefits given my volume levels and application.
I don't think so. Really, it depends on your finances, though. Did you go into debt for it? Can you pay your bills? Are your forgoing something else? Or maybe just feeling a little bit of buyer's remorse?
If it's too much of a stretch, it's overkill. If not, then it isn't.
Does dedicated hardware with a DSP always sound better than a plugin running through my Macbook?
My ears cannot tell the difference between say Archetype: Nolly and my FM3, going through my Rokit 7 studio monitors. Compared to the FM3, I was expecting that plugins would sound more... robotic? The sound equivalent of a pixelated image. However, if there is a difference, I'd like to get my ears accustomed to the best of the best from the beginning, even if I can't detect it yet (cause I will at some point).
There is no such thing as "always" in audio. Even about that statement.
A dedicated hardware DSP is always going to have less going on inside it than a general use computer, and that's really the only absolute difference. A software update isn't going to inhibit your ability to play. You won't have to wait for plugins to get updated to work with M1/M2/whatever's next. Etc.. That is definitely a benefit. A corresponding downside is that it's a lot harder to find someone capable of fixing them if there's actually a hardware problem.
All the different ways of modeling analog gear are slightly (or significantly) different ways to solve the same problem...how to make a guitar sound good in relatively specific ways taking into account the criteria you listed (mostly big, heavy, loud, expensive amps). IMO, none of them sound light-years ahead of anything else. I like Fractal a lot because it seems to work with how my head works, and I find it inspiring to play, and there are a couple subtle things I think they get right that others gloss over. But, it's not like I've tried all of them. Still, I'm happy with my choice.
I have never felt that satisfaction from plugins. In other parts of my musical life, I love plugins and would generally choose them
over the hardware they model (or because there isn't hardware that does what they do, whether digital or analog). You may feel differently. Whatever you like is what you should use, assuming that you can afford it.
I don't want to deal with latency ever. Plugins seem fine but again I want to use the best my budget can buy, even I can't tell the difference yet.
Stop worrying about it unless it's a problem. Seriously.
A lot of big acts (probably the majority) are using IEMs with wireless systems. A lot of them are also using wireless systems instead of guitar cables. Every big show (and most small venues) use a digital mixer for FOH. A decent number of relatively small bands are carrying their own digital mixers just for monitors these days.
All digital conversion and processing incurs latency. Including hardware modelers. It's short, but it's there.
Analog processing also incurs something like latency, depending on exactly what processing you're talking about. And tubes take a tiny amount of time to respond. Sound also takes time to travel through the air.
Ever wonder why a symphony has a conductor? It's because if the players were only responding to what they hear, they'd never be in time. They're too spread out. They have to watch the conductor to play in time with the people on the other end of the stage.
If you can keep time, the latency is not a problem.
Sound travels a meter in about 3 milliseconds. Relatively normal latency through a DAW is about the same experience as keeping time with a drummer who's like 8-10 feet away. People have been doing that for a long, long time. It was a lot worse 10 years ago. Heck, it was worse 5 years ago. Today....everything is so fast that it's not really a problem. YMMV, obviously. But, if it's not bothering you, it's not likely to start. It's only going to get better as time goes on.
What would you suggest? Given my modest use and requirements, would you say an FM3 is overkill?
Not unless you can't afford it.
