Synth block polyphonic?

Having said that, what with the processing power of the new platform, I would appreciate a midi block or possibly a dedicated preset whose sole function was pitch to midi conversion. Plug into the axe, midi output, crazy cool.
 
I read this with great interest. I have long dreamt of how to use a simple guitar to get SynthAxe like sounds but have never been satisfied with Roland's pitch-to-MIDI solutions for reasons that probably don't require explanation here.

Bradlake & Jzucker, MIDI Guitar 2 really does require some sensitive tweaking to get usable/comfortable performance when executing rapid consecutive note events so I can see that some people would potentially not vibe with it until they get that spot on. Having said that, the actual VST/synth you use is also quite significant. I can't get the same performance level with all VSTs but when I do get the right match with MG2 it's crazy good.

It's worth considering that some power users have combined technology for optimized performance:
-Hex-equipped Guitar/Boss GP-10/6 separate instances of MG2 in their VST host;
-Hex-equipped Guitar/Boss GP-10/Bidule or Audio Mulch for multichannel rebalancing and mixing/MG2.

This can achieve some pretty impressive results. Pop over to the Vguitar forum and do a few searches. I just put up a post last week where I show MG2 outdoing the GP-10's direct pitch to MIDI over USB (and coming in very close behind FTP). Food for thought.

On the topic of the synth block in the Axe-FX III, it certainly would be very cool to get polyphonic on that and it would certainly have its uses. Imagine Simeon's synth block patches gone polyphonic...that would be wild! Still, they wouldn't perform anywhere near the level of the FTP.

What I think is potentially very cool is that if we can route USB audio from a DAW back into the FX grid in real-time now we'll have the possibility of a very simple routing process to apply wicked fractal FX to our outboard VST synth gear in tandem with everything else the axe is doing to your guitar signal. Of course, this can already be done via multiple inputs but it's finicky at best, requiring non-intuitive settings and extra bits and pieces of hardware to achieve the routing.
yup.
 
One of my most interesting guitars is the 1988 Casio PG-380 , made by the Ibanez team that built the first JEMs and Sabres, a true MIDI guitar with a real MIDI out DIN and classically cheesy onboard synth sounds...bought new , gigged hard on the cruise ship circuit , tracked like nothing else before or since. Still got it and it still works.
 
So, as no one has answered the original question yet it looks like the Axe III won't have a polyphonic synth block :(
 
we don't know until it's released

It does seem that way.
I love my AXE FX 2, I'm on the waitlist for the 3 in two different countries... BUT,... I know this wont go down well on this forum, I think it has been a very poor "Launch / Announcement" of a high end, eagerly awaited (on a global scale) - product.
More in-depth videos of the product working needed really... But hay, ho.
 
Having a true poly synth would be great if the tracking is equally improved.

Agreed. I stopped using the Axe synth block because of that. Too much artifacts and extra noises. It's a bit unpredictable. I have tried adding drive and compressor blocks and everything. But in the end it was not to my liking. I hope the synth block will be improved in the future. More like the EHX synth pedal stuff.
 
It does seem that way.
I love my AXE FX 2, I'm on the waitlist for the 3 in two different countries... BUT,... I know this wont go down well on this forum, I think it has been a very poor "Launch / Announcement" of a high end, eagerly awaited (on a global scale) - product.
More in-depth videos of the product working needed really... But hay, ho.


They announced it and within an hour had hundreds, if not thousands, of people all on the wait list, $2499 in hand, screaming “take my money”, as well as a masSive number of new threads all about the product.

I think cliff and Fractal have proven themselves quite well, and I for one would gladly buy it without playing it, and without needin to see a video etc.
 
They announced it and within an hour had hundreds, if not thousands, of people all on the wait list, $2499 in hand, screaming “take my money”, as well as a masSive number of new threads all about the product.

I think cliff and Fractal have proven themselves quite well, and I for one would gladly buy it without playing it, and without needin to see a video etc.

I agree - it's to be expected - the product and the history of the developers is there for all to see (in a good way - before any bashing)
But I have to try and imagine the "round robin" with the directors of Fractal before the launch - here's our new product and this is how and when we are going to launch it.... It was obvious there was going to be thousands of questions by potential buyers (or just buyers, as is the case with us) I would have liked to have seen an official video by Fractal (maybe even the man himself to have a cameo) to go along with the launch - to showcase the unit showing new features, old features incorporated, a bit of everything really.
Honestly, I don't think that's too much to expect.. Even though I'm fully aware there is no obligation on any part etc etc.
And for me is cemented by the Massive number of new threads a lot of which are questions about what the product can/cant do.
Anyway, it's just my opinion nothing more...The Official vid or vids plural didnt happen - Im still buying 2 units no matter what, I'm over it :)
 
But I have to try and imagine the "round robin" with the directors of Fractal before the launch...
I think you overestimate the size of the organization. :)

The "directors of Fractal" can be counted on one finger. And he's also the chief designer. There's only so much of him to go around. I'm glad he's spending the bulk of his time developing the product instead of showcasing it.
 
sorry that program is terrible.
Midi Guitar 2...terrible? I've been using it, and it is easily better than my Roland hex pickup pitch to midi converters. MG2 is cheap, only requires a standard guitar cable, tracks polyphonic material well, and is fast. It might not be the best pitch to midi solution in existence, but I can't name a single other product that is better at midi conversion from a standard guitar. Not one. At any price. And, as I said, it beats my Roland hex systems. Hands down. "Terrible"? Compared to flawless, perhaps; but not by any objective standard for pitch to midi devices. Only my Fishman Triple Play performs better.

The only 100% reliable alternative is a guitar with wired frets. If anyone is expecting pitch to midi to perform flawlessly on fast runs, they are set for disappointment. But MG2 is the best product of its type. You want terrible, try using a VG-99.
 
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I actually like the synth block and it's the only "synth" i have tried which can get close to the Pat Metheny GR300 distorted violin sound which I think works really well for jazz and fusion. And the tracking is flawless unless you accidentally hit a harmonic or double-stop.

The jamorigin midi was ok for pads and slow playing but it just wasn't able keep up with fast clean playing. I spent a lot of time with the author going back and forth with different settings and in the end he refunded my money. It was better than the GR55 and roland midi pickup but wasn't as accurate as the fishman which I don't feel like bothering with.


Agreed. I stopped using the Axe synth block because of that. Too much artifacts and extra noises. It's a bit unpredictable. I have tried adding drive and compressor blocks and everything. But in the end it was not to my liking. I hope the synth block will be improved in the future. More like the EHX synth pedal stuff.
 
The tracking for the pitch block has a apparently been improved on the Axe III so hopefully we can expect improved tracking on the synth block too.
 
I do like the sounds some people have gotten with the synth (Donnie/Neo violins), but mono tracking is limited and there are artifacts (based on my imperfect picking/playing!). I tend to hear the tracing resolve to lower notes sometimes (an octave or two?) if I don't pick perfectly or accidentally mute or touch another string.

I wonder if (or why not) the poly tracking in the pitch block could be used to feed a poly-synth as it seems to do a good job without obvious artifacts. If so, the pitch block (or a new poly shaping block) could do some kind of tone shaping (ADSR, triangle, sawtooth etc), filtering, resonance, formants, etc on each detected note separately, at least this seems theoretically possible (ignoring any processing limitation).

Of course I have no understanding of the technical details, but I like what the pitch block does (if simply dividing/multiplying the frequency). Adding some additional tone shaping seems like it could move towards a poly-synth kind of functionality.
 
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