Sticking with the FM3? Upgrading to FM9? Why?

Frodebro said:
The reason I chose the FM3 over the AxeIII in the first place was I really like the compact form factor. When the FM9 was announced I was thinking about the extra horsepower, but then I realized I rarely go above 70% on the FM3 anyway. I'm good... For now. If it turns out I need "more," then I'm going whole hog and getting the big boy and an FC-12.
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That would be my choice as well. My only issue now is plunking down a CC card and having not having enough funds to pay the CC bill in a month's time. My feeling is there's not a lot to sell in my household that would offset the cost. Think I'm gonna need to rent myself out as Rocky the Wonder Pony for a few months...:sweatsmile:
 
bleujazz3 said:
That would be my choice as well. My only issue now is plunking down a CC card and having not having enough funds to pay the CC bill in a month's time. My feeling is there's not a lot to sell in my household that would offset the cost. Think I'm gonna need to rent myself out as Rocky the Wonder Pony for a few months...:sweatsmile:
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Sell a kidney. That's why we have two, you know.
 
Ha! I will be moving to the FM9 just because it's my god given right! in all seriousness I want the extra power, Already running with an FC6 so why not.
 
Am still between a rock and a hard place regards the FM9. Would not mind selling my FM3 and FC12, though the math tells me the cost of the FM9 will still be above the sales prices of both items.

Do I need the extra footswitches? Maybe not, only 7 or 8 receive regular use. Would the extra processing power be of benefit? Of course, who doesn't want more horsepower under the hood? Does the benefits outweigh the cost? THAT'S my issue, and would it be possible to sell my current items somewhat close to the current MSRP price of the FM9?

These are all questions many of us are asking ourselves, and still am not sure if the wait time for the FM9 would be worth it.

What I can say is, my FM3 would likely be sold with my Temple Duo 17 effects board with its FAS-Link and XLR speaker jack connectors; pre-built and ready to connect to with a FC6 or FC12. If my choice were to upgrade to the FM9; some important needs like space constraints would require re-building my Duo 34 board so the FM9 could fit correctly with plenty of room to breathe.

Time to do the math again, with updated sales estimates. Will see if the FM9 is worth the effort of selling the FM3 / Duo 17 and FC12.
 
WKSmith said:
You should name your FM9 that!
.... or at least a preset.
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Am seriously considering a preset...anyway...into the breach...my FM3 and FC12 will be on sale (eBay) Monday morning. Have calculated what would be somewhat reasonable numbers for those who wish to consider either discounted items. Best wishes to folks who might like to purchase either item (FM3 & FC12 sold separately for a wider audience).
 
I had an AX8 thinking I might do gigs but I don't so FM3 is great for me. I mainly record with it and as long as the AMP model architecture remains in line with the Axefx3 for as long as possible then I am happy.
No Tone Matching on the FM9 as well.
 
ethomas1013 said:
I'll be moving to the FM9. I have made the 3-buttons with a stand-in switch work, but it's still not my preference. The FM3/FC6 combination was just too big. I know the FM9 isn't much smaller than that pair, but it hits the sweet spot for me. I'll probably give the FM3 to our Worship Leader. He has a Headrush unit and those are terrible.
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I thought you gave up on modeling ? lol. I bought a mint used FM3 that arrived the day the FM9 was announced. I hit the waitlist at 2pm. Sold the FM3. Just waiting now. Sold my Helix Floor. Still have a Stomp. Have a Quad Cortex which is actually pretty sweet. Also bought a used powered Kemper just before Covid and only got to use it on 3 gigs. I like that too.
 
I'm keeping my FM3 to use on gigs where I only play steel guitar. It's perfect for that. I'll use the FM9 on regular guitar gigs and gigs where I play steel and regular guitar. The three switches and limited CPU on the FM3 have been a real problem for me on regular guitar gigs. The FM9 looks exactly like what I've been wanting.

I'm planning to get rid of my Axe-FX III and my FC-6. That rig is too cumbersome and more power than I need. It sounds great, but I think the FM9 will have the same sound, minus a few bells and whistles I don't use.
 
Frodebro said:
Sell a kidney. That's why we have two, you know.
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Uh, I think I'd better keep both my kidneys. Never know when one will f@rt out on you. Then where would I be? On an entirely separate body parts waiting list! Thanks but no...doing some extracurricular financing this week...both my eBay sales went through... 👍
 
Intoodeep1113 said:
I thought it might be interesting to see some different viewpoints here. Since The release of the FM9, I'm sure many have asked themselves this question! the FM9 looks like an amazing device and much closer as a successor to the AX8. It also has double the processing power of both the AX8 and FM3 allowing it to run 2 amp blocks, 2 reverbs, and a few more things all at the expense of slightly larger size (or smaller if you currently use an FC6 with your FM3!)

The FM3 has worked quite well for me and I plan on sticking with it for now. 1 amp and 1 economy reverb hasn't hindered me from having the best sound/playing experience I have ever had. Plus, I travel for work pretty often, and the FM3, MC6, and expression pedal fit into a small backpack. The FM9 would likely push me over my flight weight limit (its pretty strictly enforced on the plane we fly on). A also generally run the FM3 on the desk next to me with the MC6 on the floor, and the FM9 would be a bit bulky for that in my case as well.

But maybe at some point in the future I will upgrade to the FM9. What are your guys thoughts/reasons for staying FM3 or going FM9?
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I didn't by the FM3.. I was one of the loud bunch who was screaming for the FM9 when the FM3 came out..FM9 ..Dream come true!!
 
DavidE said:
I thought you gave up on modeling ? lol. I bought a mint used FM3 that arrived the day the FM9 was announced. I hit the waitlist at 2pm. Sold the FM3. Just waiting now. Sold my Helix Floor. Still have a Stomp. Have a Quad Cortex which is actually pretty sweet. Also bought a used powered Kemper just before Covid and only got to use it on 3 gigs. I like that too.
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Hey man, hope you are doing well!

I'm still required to use a modeler at Church (silent stage), and I do use the FM3 for FX with an amp. But I have a regular jam with some old friends and the amp is king in those situations! I'm done trying to use a modeler with FRFR as an amp substitute. FRFR is not for me... but that's another topic best left out of this thread!
 
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ethomas1013 said:
Hey man, hope you are doing well!

I'm still required to use a modeler at Church (silent stage), and I do use the FM3 for FX with an amp. But I have a regular jam with some old friends and the amp is king in those situations! I'm done trying to use a modeler with FRFR as an amp substitute. FRFR is not for me... but that's another topic best left out of this thread!
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Gigged a TON over the summer. All acoustic duo though. The band I was in died when Covid hit. I’ll be looking for another after surgery on my left hand for arthritis and playing to stay in Florida January through April.
 
I am currently on the 'wait list' for an FM3 and looking at mint condition FM3s on reverb.com. The used ones are still over $1K though some have 'make an offer' etc. To me, the only reason to go for the FM9 would be the much larger processing power of that unit vs the FM3. I think this would make the FM9 far more updatable in the future. However I think I read somewhere that there are dedicated processors for some of the reverbs on the FM9 as part of the overall processing structure. This might mean that in reality the processes left over are not as much as one might think. Maybe someone could comment on that. In any case, the smaller footprint of the FM3 combined with its other qualities makes for a nice entrance for me into the Fractal world. I use an external looper and the smaller footprint of the FM3 possible would be a better fit for now.
 
Intoodeep1113 said:
I thought it might be interesting to see some different viewpoints here. Since The release of the FM9, I'm sure many have asked themselves this question! the FM9 looks like an amazing device and much closer as a successor to the AX8. It also has double the processing power of both the AX8 and FM3 allowing it to run 2 amp blocks, 2 reverbs, and a few more things all at the expense of slightly larger size (or smaller if you currently use an FC6 with your FM3!)

The FM3 has worked quite well for me and I plan on sticking with it for now. 1 amp and 1 economy reverb hasn't hindered me from having the best sound/playing experience I have ever had. Plus, I travel for work pretty often, and the FM3, MC6, and expression pedal fit into a small backpack. The FM9 would likely push me over my flight weight limit (its pretty strictly enforced on the plane we fly on). A also generally run the FM3 on the desk next to me with the MC6 on the floor, and the FM9 would be a bit bulky for that in my case as well.

But maybe at some point in the future I will upgrade to the FM9. What are your guys thoughts/reasons for staying FM3 or going FM9?
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Pretty simple for me... The FM3 is more than enough power and I mounted it on a Metro 20 with a mini expression and Boss FS-7.
BUT, even with very clever scene / channel / footswitch programming it's not perfect (many times cannot recall if FX assigned to Boss FS-7 are engaged or not) and the actual weight and size of the small board is more than the FM9 will be.
Also, I do a lot of acoustic duos as well and one thing I have not been able to comfortably do is looping live. I feel like with more easily accessible footswitches I will be able to use on the FM9 that will expand the overall usefulness exponentially. This is before even considering dual amps (I play stereo live) as well.
I sold my FM3 and I'm enjoying my pedals + Strymon Iridium rig while I lay in wait for my FM9 invite.
 
Nsurround said:
I am currently on the 'wait list' for an FM3 and looking at mint condition FM3s on reverb.com. The used ones are still over $1K though some have 'make an offer' etc. To me, the only reason to go for the FM9 would be the much larger processing power of that unit vs the FM3. I think this would make the FM9 far more updatable in the future. However I think I read somewhere that there are dedicated processors for some of the reverbs on the FM9 as part of the overall processing structure. This might mean that in reality the processes left over are not as much as one might think. Maybe someone could comment on that. In any case, the smaller footprint of the FM3 combined with its other qualities makes for a nice entrance for me into the Fractal world. I use an external looper and the smaller footprint of the FM3 possible would be a better fit for now.
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Really depends how you use it too... my FM3 is mostly for jamming with other people or just practicing. For practicing I don't need a ton of blocks so I can use the reverb if using headphones. For playing out I don't usually use reverb in my patches at all, so that frees up quite a bit of CPU for other effects if I need them. The portability is a big plus too.
On the other hand I also have an AxeFX III for studio use and recording where I need to get those more complex sounds..

If I needed to do both things and couldn't afford to also have the AxeFX III I'd probably get an FM9, for a do it all unit it seems well suited.
 
As i had mentioned prior i really
like the FM9 but it is on the FM3 update schedule , for me i
want to see the pitch block get updated it would be great to just have a separate virtual capo( simple pitch) if the full block requires to much processing a CPU
 
Sticking with FM3

a) I can do everything I need in a live setting WITHIN ONE PRESET

b) I have the III in my studio for bigger workloads
 
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