Just ordered FM3 Turbo. What to expect?

T

ThomasOnguitar

New Member
Hi guys! Just ordered a fm3 turbo. I have never played any fractal units before, so im kinda stoked about this. Brief history.. I have been using a Quad cortex for about a year, before that i was using the Line6 Helix with tube amps. Sold all my tube amps + my line6. Went all in with the QC. Now a year later i`m kinda on the fence about the thing. Its a super cool and userfriendly unit,but it lacks something. Amp captures are very good, but fx kinda suck. It also seems Neural are more focused on the whole plugin thing now. So.. now I am entering the fractal world! Any experience with both units guys? pro`s and con`s? Cheers!:)
 
The best amp models on the QC are about on par with fractal. Fractal has a much higher quantity and quality of fx. Routing is much more limited on the QC. You can't have as much stuff in a preset on the FM3 but you have gapless channel/preset switching to make up for it. The UI is not as bad as some like to say, but the QC is definitely easier to use.
 
If you’re going to use FM3 as a usb recording interface you need to read the thread about Latency Compensation Measurement and adjust your DAW settings.

​

 
Awesomeness!

Make sure to read the manual. The answers to the majority of newbies questions can be quoted directly from the manual.

My top tip: Grasp an immediate understanding of the differences between presets, scenes, and channels.

Great resources: Leon Todd and Cooper Carter

Welcome and have fun!
 
As it's delivered to your door, the clouds will part and make way for the sun to shine. Birds will all flock to the closest tree and begin to chirp songs of joy and contentment. From there, as you begin to open the box a small voice from inside will be singing your favorite song.

Enjoy your FM3.
 
Last edited:
scarbodave said:
I second this tip. It seems many coming to Fractal from Helix find the Fractal approach limiting until they truly embrace the way presets, scenes, and channels work.
Click to expand...
I'll put another vote for really understanding how this works. I primarily live in scenes for everything I do.

On this note, if you are going to be using this for live performances, I'd say spend a little time on:
  • How Fractal switches work and can be configured. The Fractal switches might be one of the most clever and useful technical features I've every experienced.
  • How to modify layouts/views. While the out of the box layouts are awesome, but learning how to customize these was a game changer for me. The Per Preset functionality is for sure amazing.
 
TheloniusJ said:
How Fractal switches work and can be configured. The Fractal switches might be one of the most clever and useful technical features I've every experienced.
Click to expand...

Once you get started with Presets, Scenes, and Channels (which is indeed the best place to begin!), especially for live use, you'll want to get your head around Layouts and Views.

As @TheloniusJ says, the Fractal footswitches are extremely versatile, and you can get even more functionality if you add external footswitches.

I've made a set of custom Layouts for a two button footswitch - check out the guide to see what these can do:

https://forum.fractalaudio.com/thre...ustom-layouts-for-2-button-footswitch.206487/

:)
 
I think you'll quickly notice that the Fractal models have a lot more individual personality to them. Everything kind of sounds the same on the QC. It's come to the point that when I can identify the QC sound almost immediately, regardless of which amp model is being used, but there's no way can I do that with Fractal.
 
ThomasOnguitar said:
Wow! Kinda overwhelmed at this point! A lot to take in. I quess I should put in the time to really learn this thing. A 1000% Thanks you guys!
Click to expand...
I'd recommend to start reading the manual before it arrives, watch some of the videos about it. Take the day off from work on the day it arrives, hook it up to your DAW, SET YOUR INPUT AND OUTPUT LEVELS. Then, go through each preset, channel the inspiration that comes from the amazing sounds you're making and record whatever comes from your heart and brain in that moment. New gear == fresh ideas.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom