Stef Carpenter and firmware updates

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Malvolio

Inspired
Stef Carpenter In Guitar World this month, talking about his axefx:

"...I kept making the mistake of updating the damn firmware, which wiped out all the work I did one too many times."

Glad I'm not the only one :). I don't update firmware anymore since I have too much time invested in my presets to have them all change by a firmware update. Unfortunately that means I can't use the presets everyone here is so generous to share. Too bad firmware updates have to change the sound of existing presets. I suppose there's no way around that.




Edit for clarification: "wiped out" here doesn't mean the presets are gone. It means the firmware caused existing presets to sound different. This has 2 consequences:

- You have to spend time adjusting your presets to get them sound like they used to. But without 2 AxeFX's to A/B the old and new side by side, that may not even be possible.
- It means most presets in Axechange are obsolete. This is true even if you choose never to update your firmware. Kemper users look at us with envy because we get frequent enhancements. But we look at them with envy because they have a robust preset sharing system because the sound of their old presets don't change.

Not saying any of this is good or bad, I just find it interesting someone like Stef faces the same dilemma the rest of us do.
 
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I was under the assumption that no settings changed, unless you reloaded the presets? I updated mine once, then reloaded the presets I created and changed.
 
The main "problem" is the modeling and everything else is coupled with the firmware. If they were separate people could do what they wanted. Get bug fixes, effects updates, or update modeling. Being a programmer I realize how difficult this would be to do.
 
Malvolio said:
Stef Carpenter In Guitar World this month, talking about his axefx:

"...I kept making the mistake of updating the damn firmware, which wiped out all the work I did one too many times."
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Not sure what that statement even means. I've been doing firmware updates on all my Fractal products for years and never lost anything.

Even if the firmware was to overwrite something, one should learn to do backups, restores or even roll back the firmware to the previous version if your not happy with it.

Sorry, but Fractal gives you all the options to do the right thing... it's "your" responsibility to do backups. Take ownership of your mistakes and please don't blame the product. No other company gives this much continuous support.
 
Actually listening to their new release "Gore" right now for the first time and loving it.

Did he use a Fractal like the last album ?

The fact I even have to ask says a lot about the product, yes ?
 
Sharka said:
Not sure what that statement even means. I've been doing firmware updates on all my Fractal products for years and never lost anything.

Even if the firmware was to overwrite something, one should learn to do backups, restores or even roll back the firmware to the previous version if your not happy with it.

Sorry, but Fractal gives you all the options to do the right thing... it's "your" responsibility to do backups. Take ownership of your mistakes and please don't blame the product. No other company gives this much continuous support.
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I Agree !
 
Steph is not a very technical guy... in one of his videos he actually said the reason he uses a specific strap is because "it looked cool". He likes what he likes and he goes with that. He was probably high when he did that interview so you have to know he was probably just talking sh*t.

I would prefer an update at least once a week to get my fix... even though most of the time they address bug fixes, it always feels like I'm about to embark in something brand new!

Don't listen to these posts Cliff... you and your team have to keep innovating to stay ahead of the game. There's nothing forcing the OP to do anything. It's been said before, you don't have to ever update your firmware. Stay on whatever firmware you want, hell... stay on the firmware that came with the Axe shipped with.
 
Sharka said:
Not sure what that statement even means.
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Updating firmware often changes the sound of existing presets. If you have a lot of presets that you've spent a lot of time on, that can be a big deal. Even if you're willing to spend the time to try to get the presets to sound the same again after updating, that can be difficult, especially if, like most of us, you don't have two AxeFX's to compare before and after :).
 
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IMHO, newer is always better, especially when the manufacturer is trying to achieve the ultimate piece of gear. I will always update my firmware to the latest version. It only makes sense. This is where you get the latest technology and enhancements. If there is an issue with the newest firmware update, like bugs, etc., then roll back and restore your saved presets. Technology updates will always split opinions. Take Windows. Tons of users complain when they come up with a new version. So they stay back, let's say with 7, and lose all the benefits of the latest software. For me, moving forward is a good thing, even if I have to spend some time tweaking. And again, if it's that bad, roll back and restore. But always backup any preset you use, that you created, tweaked or uploaded. Of course I'm a new owner. What do I know;)
 
Then why do firmware updates at all. Just buy the unit and leave it the way it was delivered. This way no one ever has to complain about change.:)
 
dpeterson said:
Because bugs get fixed, new amp models, new effects, new ir's, lots of reasons.
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I know that, I was trying to prove a point to all the negative, including you, responses. Re-read the thread.
Bottom line is, upgrade firmware or don't upgrade firmware, your choice. But, if you choose to upgrade, don't complain about changes. I'm new and I can see it's been discussed to death. Firmware updates may alter your tone, due to some changes.
 
...and updating to the latest firmware lets you use presets other AxeFX users are sharing.

No matter what version of firmware you're running, most of the presets in Axexchange are of limited use to you because most of them were made with a different version of firmware. That kind of limits the usefulness of Axexchange.

I'm sure Kemper users look at us and wish they could get frequent new features like we do. But we look at Kemper users and wish we had as robust a preset sharing system as they have. It's a double edged sword. I just found it interesting that someone like Stef Carpenter also wrestles with this issue.

P.S. When people say "backup and then restore if you don't like the new firmware", how do you back up the firmware?
 
Matt_B_77 said:
Heh, that's why after folks complained about the different tone of the new HBE models Cliff is bringing back the original one in 3.0 firmware. :)
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I've seen this mentioned several times in other threads. Isn't the original one already in there now? He left the original version in as BE/HBE V1 and the new one is BE/HBE V2. Seems like if you pick V1 and use 2.00 modeling, you would have the "original" version.
 
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