Perhaps you haven't been following our attention to the effects:This has been going on for years- way back to the Axe-FX II. One version will be "more open" and another version will be "tighter" and its almost like an oscillation at this point where things go back and forth from one version to the next. I have no doubt that the accuracy is improving upward, though I expect if you could graph it you might see something like the volatility of a tech stock.
The biggest problem with just stepping off the train is that you miss out on all the other improvements and fixes along the way and there have been major improvements.
I compared the Axe-FX IIxl+ to the Axe-FX III last year and found myself thinking that Fractal had the amp sim part of the problem licked years ago. The biggest reason why I couldn't just keep the IIxl+ is all the other stuff that has been fixed and added.
I've been encouraged by the extra attention to effects in recent times. I'd like to see Fractal spend six months or a year ignoring the amp modeling and just focusing on effects and utility improvements. The amp stuff has long long long since been beyond good enough and those other areas would probably enjoy leaps and bounds. It may be that effects aren't as interesting to work on.
18.00
Overhauled the Compressor block:
Improved Tape preamp types in Cabinet block.
17.03
Improved Stack/Hold implementation in Delay block so that “texture” is applied to audio when Stack/Hold is on.
Improved Pedal, Optical, Tube, Analog, JFET and Dynamicomp types in Compressor block. Auto Attack/Release has been removed from Pedal and Dynamicomp types as it is no longer applicable. NOTE: These types now inherently perform automatic makeup gain. You should audition any presets using these types and adjust the Output Level accordingly.
17.01
Added 10 FullRes IRs to the Legacy bank provided by Valhallir and York Audio. These are at the end of the bank. These can be loaded into the IR Player blocks or into Slots 3 and 4 of the Cabinet blocks. Note that Slots 1 and 2 of the Cabinet blocks do not support FullRes.
Added dedicated Pitch Shifting to the Reverb block. This can be used to create “Shimmer Reverbs” easier than using separate Pitch and Reverb blocks (and with less CPU usage). Several new types are included to demonstrate the capability.
Overhauled the Megatap block. See the updated Blocks Guide for details.
Added Modern Gate type to Gate block. This type is similar to the Classic Gate except the gate opens in a constant linear-in-dB manner. This naturally makes the attack slower as the gate first opens and can be used for both traditional gating and for special effects like audio swells.
Added new types to the Multitap Delay block.
Added new types to the Plex Delay block.
Added LFO for filter in Plex Delay block.
Added new types to Flanger block.
17.00
Version 17 introduces FullRes™ Impulse Response processing. FullRes processes IRs up to 64K points with zero latency using a novel technique. This provides up to 1.37 seconds of response time. Seasoned producers and engineers often mix in “Room Mics” during recording to increase the depth and liveliness of recordings. However, the typical live room has a reverb time of 500-700 milliseconds, well beyond the 20-40 ms afforded by typical IR processing. FullRes allows capturing the full response of a typical live room and even the response of small-to-medium halls and clubs. FullRes can also be used for convolution reverb applications for reverb times less than 1.37 seconds.
Added 1S1588T diode SPICE model to Drive block. This is the Toshiba version of the 1S1588 and is reportedly the diode used in the “best sounding” TS-808s. The T808 OD models have been updated to use this diode. Existing presets are unchanged.
Added “Valve Screamer VS9” and "Maxoff 808" Drive models.
16.03
Improved Delay block algorithms and models. Improved menus by adding a basic Config page with the essential controls and an Advanced page with all the controls for that model. Added a Master Time control.
Added Compander type to Compressor block. The Transients control adjusts the transient modification. Values less than zero soften the attack, value greater than zero emphasize the attack.
16.01
Updated Blackglass 7K Drive block model. Previous model was incorrect due to defective reference unit.
Increased gain range of Filter and Parametric EQ blocks to +/-20 dB. Also increased gain range of input EQ in Amp block. Existing presets are automatically updated.
Improved Reverb algorithms. Added a couple new types.
Etc., etc., etc., etc.