Question: AX8 with Quantum v8 or v10...which is better?

[John Ganske]

I purchased my first AX8 in Dec. of 2018, it came with Quantum v10...loved it! I then recently caved to the Kemper Profiler Stage (KPS), bought it and sold my AX8 (mistake)...as I considered buying the new FM3 (when released) if the KPS didn't workout. As it turns out the Kemper was only ok...I much prefer the AX8 though - lesson learnt. I've since returned the KPS and yes...bought another AX8, this one however had Quantum v8 installed and the sonic difference in regard to amp tones between these units is very different...IMHO. I much prefer the amp tones I'm able to get now with Q v8 and over those that I was getting with Q v10. I'm not sure if there's a difference elsewhere between both of the AX8's (I use the same IRs in both AX8s) or if it's simply the software that makes the difference...has anyone else noticed the tone of the amp models in Q v8 to be warmer and more natural than that of Q v10? I actually didn't even use amp modeling with my first AX8, instead I routed two Kingsley tube preamps (Constable Marshall Plexi and Maiden/Fender) in the AX8s effects loop to achieve true tube amp tone. However, with Q v8 the amp modelling sounds as good as my Kingsley preamps. I'm sure that Q v10 offers a few more amps, effects etc... if so what am I missing and are there differences tonally betweeen each version? Thanks!

 

[addedc]

I am glad you brought this up, John. I had my AX8, Atomic CLR rig really dialed in when I was on v8. I got a lot of compliments on my tone.

I still get compliments with v10, but maybe not as many. I had to tweak presets in the shift. I put the difference down to that and have been too lazy to go back and dial everything back to what I liked before at gig volume. It still sounds great, but a little bit of that magic is missing. At one gig on V8 a guitar player in the audience thought I was lying to him when I told him there was no mic'd amp hiding somewhere off stage. That hasn't happened lately.

And yes, there is a tonal difference between all the firmware releases. That's why Fractal built in the option to be able to dial back. In almost every firmware release, some players prefer the prior version.

 

[John Ganske]

I am glad you brought this up, John. I had my AX8, Atomic CLR rig really dialed in when I was on v8. I got a lot of compliments on my tone.

I still get compliments with v10, but maybe not as many. I had to tweak presets in the shift. I put the difference down to that and have been too lazy to go back and dial everything back to what I liked before at gig volume. It still sounds great, but a little bit of that magic is missing. At one gig on V8 a guitar player in the audience thought I was lying to him when I told him there was no mic'd amp hiding somewhere off stage. That hasn't happened lately.

And yes, there is a tonal difference between all the firmware releases. That's why Fractal built in the option to be able to dial back. In almost every firmware release, some players prefer the prior version.

Thank you for confirming this addedc , I can hear/feel a huge difference in Q v8. I first noticed this when I bought my AX8 and while watching AX8 YouTube vids from Leon Todd and Burgs, no matter how much dialing I did...I just couldn't get my AX8 to sound the same. My solution was to add the mentioned Kingsley preamps into the AX8s EFX Loop for my amp tones and then use the AX8 as a controller along with it's great effects. Now however with Q v8 I find the FAS amp models very comparable to those I achieve with my Kinglsey's.

 

[Geezerjohn]

Sonic magic is in the ears of the beholder regardless of what firmware version you are on. Go with what you like.

 

[Lee Servis]

For what it’s worth - and i fully appreciate my answer doesn’t specifically address your v8 Vs v10 question - I have to agree with Geezerjohn.

 

[John Ganske]

Sonic magic is in the ears of the beholder regardless of what firmware version you are on. Go with what you like.

Certainly true, thanks for your input! However, my main point was that...my first AX8 (with Q v10) didn’t sound as convincing and the amp tones vastly improved with my second AX8 using v10, at least to me. I'm personally much happier with Q v8 and honestly feel I can leave my Kingsley tube preamps off my pedalboard now, for me that’s huge. I wanted to check with other AX8 users on the forum to see if anyone else had a similar experience.

 

[John Ganske]

I prefer 8 as well if you are asking for personal opinion. I remember Austin Buddy describing 8 as more of a "vintage" tone and 10 being more "modern" tone if that makes any sense to you. There was a pretty good discussion about 8, 9 and 10 on his thread as he was doing updates to his tone packs. In the end it's what your ears say yes to.

Thanks Nathan, your reference to Austin Buddy describing v8 as being more 'Vintage' sounding and v10 more 'Modern'...sums this up quite well It's not to say v10 is bad by any means, it was much brighter and less warm to me and I find that v8 is better match for my personnel taste and since I've only played on two AX8s with two different Quantum versions I wanted to see if it indeed was a difference between the AX8s themselves or the FAS software - thanks all!

 

[artzeal]

I prefer v10: IME, the power amp/speaker interaction modeling is better with v10, and I find I have far less (or none) advanced parameter tweaks to dial it in to my tastes with it than I did with earlier versions.

I have some of Celestion's IRs , and the IRs that match actual speakers I have in cabs (A-Type, G12-35XC, Lynchback) are almost spot on if I turn off the cabinet block and FRFR monitors, and use a SS power amp to a speaker cabinet. With v8, I felt the need to use an EQ block to and tweak to adjust for the difference between a cab model to FRFR and using an actual cabinet. With v10: its close enough, I don't have the need for additional EQ.

FWIW, I generally prefer more or less vintage amps: Over the years I've had the AX8 I've mostly run with the Tweed Twin and Brownface era Fenders, AC15, DC30 and Trainwrecks for EL84 vibe, Carol Ann Tucana, Dumble variants, and a Friedman or some other Marshally type. I gravitate to Deizels for focused higher gain, Hiwatt for really clean stuff: So with these amps, anyway, 10 works great and less fuss to dial in.

I'd start from scratch with v10, rather than adjusting v8 patches if updating, though.

 

[John Ganske]

I prefer v10: IME, the power amp/speaker interaction modeling is better with v10, and I find I have far less (or none) advanced parameter tweaks to dial it in to my tastes with it than I did with earlier versions.

I have some of Celestion's IRs , and the IRs that match actual speakers I have in cabs (A-Type, G12-35XC, Lynchback) are almost spot on if I turn off the cabinet block and FRFR monitors, and use a SS power amp to a speaker cabinet. With v8, I felt the need to use an EQ block to and tweak to adjust for the difference between a cab model to FRFR and using an actual cabinet. With v10: its close enough, I don't have the need for additional EQ.

FWIW, I generally prefer more or less vintage amps: Over the years I've had the AX8 I've mostly run with the Tweed Twin and Brownface era Fenders, AC15, DC30 and Trainwrecks for EL84 vibe, Carol Ann Tucana, Dumble variants, and a Friedman or some other Marshally type. I gravitate to Deizels for focused higher gain, Hiwatt for really clean stuff: So with these amps, anyway, 10 works great and less fuss to dial in.

I'd start from scratch with v10, rather than adjusting v8 patches if updating, though.

Understood and these great points to consider...thanks for sharing!

 

[John Ganske]

I prefer v10: IME, the power amp/speaker interaction modeling is better with v10, and I find I have far less (or none) advanced parameter tweaks to dial it in to my tastes with it than I did with earlier versions.

I have some of Celestion's IRs , and the IRs that match actual speakers I have in cabs (A-Type, G12-35XC, Lynchback) are almost spot on if I turn off the cabinet block and FRFR monitors, and use a SS power amp to a speaker cabinet. With v8, I felt the need to use an EQ block to and tweak to adjust for the difference between a cab model to FRFR and using an actual cabinet. With v10: its close enough, I don't have the need for additional EQ.

FWIW, I generally prefer more or less vintage amps: Over the years I've had the AX8 I've mostly run with the Tweed Twin and Brownface era Fenders, AC15, DC30 and Trainwrecks for EL84 vibe, Carol Ann Tucana, Dumble variants, and a Friedman or some other Marshally type. I gravitate to Deizels for focused higher gain, Hiwatt for really clean stuff: So with these amps, anyway, 10 works great and less fuss to dial in.

I'd start from scratch with v10, rather than adjusting v8 patches if updating, though.

Thanks...I very much appreciate your insight and for sharing your FAS knowledge on this matter! For me though I find v8 much more suitable for my sonic tastes, I felt that v10 and although it does sound good, was very refined and overall much brighter than v8 - hence the 'vintage-vs-modern' comparison. Obviously there's much that can be modified and tweaked in the AX8 to compensate for this but...having gone from v10 to v8 was huge for me, in regard to being able to achieve the type of amp tones I was seeking all along from v10. With v10 I only used my AX8 as an effects controller and for cab sims and then routed tube preamp pedals into the AX8s EFX loop...with v8 my FAS presets matchup nicely against the Kingsley tube preamps and are almost undistinguishable between the two.