So I pulled the trigger

C

CLoGreen(thaSoulMachine)

Member
I've been looking into Fractal for a little while now, reading up, watching tons of videos. Finally last night decided to pull the trigger, and got my shipped email a little while ago. So excited!

I had a lot of fun with a Code 50 for awhile, but also a lot of frustration, which only got worse over time. Went the other direction and got rid of it to upgrade to a TMDR, which sounds really nice, but needed me to rebuild a pedalboard, which I had dismantled and sold years back. Been working on that little by little, but really haven't been thrilled with the tones I've been getting in most cases. Also, I mostly play quiet or with headphones due to two small kids and a wife that works at home, which is NOT what that amp is for.

Finally decided to give this a shot. I really enjoyed tailoring the tones, I realize. It was the frustration of the limitations and in various cases the quality of sound I'd get that turned me off with the Code. I know that definitely won't be the case with Fractal, so I'm excited to dig into it and see what I turn up.
 
You'll love it. There is a learning curve as with anything new to you but well worth it. Please read the manual while waiting for it to arrive, you'll be glad you did. The forum is always here to help but please try and search for your question before asking as in most cases it has already been covered. Things that would seem like they should be super simple such as adding a Wah or Volume with expression pedal can seem like WTF is going on here frustration but once you understand adding a modifier to an expression pedal it opens a whole glorious world of possabilities. Just about anything can be controlled with your foot and up to 32 things all at the same time!

Enjoy your new hardware!
 
Thanks! For sure, I already paged through it once focusing on things I know I'd use immediately and constantly, and yesterday began reading the whole thing page by page, with plans to move on to the Blocks manual after that. Also been watching Leon Todd's videos, which holy hell, he has some good content!
 
As someone who just recently bought their first Fractal, spend time just learning how to get an amp/cab sounding good before moving onto all the great effects. Make sure to try quite a few different amp models too. You may find that an amp model you didn't expect will become your favorite and vice versa. It's definitely worth reading the amp block guide on amps before your unit arrives. The Fractal is extremely configurable and with that is a lot of items that can and need to be adjusted. It was a little bit of an overload for me being new to Fractal. Now I can't imagine having anything else.
 
Hell I'm going on 5 years and would say I have to consult the manual at least once a week. LOL
CRS is real people!
 
I agree, this is a unit that will always require looking at the manual. That's why I suggested just looking at the section about Amp blocks before it arrives. It will take several days just for that to sink in. Not that it's bad thing by any means, it's actually a great thing. I'd rather have a lot of adjustments that I don't have to tweak as opposed to NOT having them and really needing them.
 
Yes sir, good move! Spend some time with it (and the manuals, both user and block), learn from others, ask questions. Before long, you’ll be here answering questions yourself!
 
Thanks for the advice and the encouragement guys! Yeah, I'm definitely expecting a learning curve. Though I am sensing some similarities with sequencers I've used in the past, as well as some editing and design software I'm passably comfortable with. So hopefully I can get in the groove before long.

Definitely I'll take your advice on the amps first thing. It really seems like the best way to get the lay of the land. Then once I have that in hand, I'll start playing with tweaks, effects, making scenes with channels and controllers and all that more advanced jazz.

Just saw it'll be here in time for the weekend! Gonna have lots of fun digging in! 💪🏼
 
I purchased my FM3 last year and it was the best purchase I have ever made gear wise. I was like you, taking a leap of faith. You will be glad you did. Watch the videos on youtube from Leon Todd and the G66 guys like Cooper Carter, Marco Fanton and Frank Steffen Mueller. Those videos help me out a lot (still!)
 
Man oh man, this thing is fun! Been playing with it all weekend, finding favorite presets. Really loving some of these Fenders, like the Baseman and Band Commander, plus and the JM45 actually sounds better than Marshall's take on the JTM in the Code. The Deluxe Verb sounds so much like my Deluxe TM, if I swap the cab for the Cream backs, I'm pretty sure it'll be identical.

And for gainy stuff, there are seemingly endless killer options! Really loving the Friedmans, Wreckers, OD Dumbles and Atomica. The Whole Lotta sounds awesome for some Zep on my LP. Even got lost for awhile in some of the ambient presets.

This morning I started making a Jimi preset with various scenes by following Austin Buddy's how-to, then making some tweaks and expanding from there...learned a TON of new stuff watching that one 17:00 video! And nailed down some seriously sweet Jimi tones.

I'm in love with this thing!

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I should mention I haven't even dug into Edit yet because I didn't realize my dongle didn't have a USB B port, so I had to order a B to C cable from Amazon that won't be here until tomorrow. I know that'll be a whole other playground to explore as well.
 
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