The real reason why forums and social media groups are engaged in a desperate plea for touch screens on Fractal Audio products

The most common complaint I see about Fractal units is the UI. I see so many people who say they sold it because it just sucked to use.

I bought an FM3 coming from Quad Cortex, which was a breeze to use, and hated my experience with the FM3 UI, and I spent most my life without touchscreens. I don’t even need a touch screen, the Helix is great to use without one.

I’m about to buy an FM9, and plan to never use it without the editor, the pros of Fractal tones outweighs the con of the awful UI, but I seriously hope Fractal comes up with an improved system in the near future. Bring a touchscreen or improved UI for the many who want it, the rest of you have plenty of options with what Fractal already offers 🙂
 
Suhrbanez said:
The most common complaint I see about Fractal units is the UI. I see so many people who say they sold it because it just sucked to use.

I bought an FM3 coming from Quad Cortex, which was a breeze to use, and hated my experience with the FM3 UI, and I spent most my life without touchscreens. I don’t even need a touch screen, the Helix is great to use without one.

I’m about to buy an FM9, and plan to never use it without the editor, the pros of Fractal tones outweighs the con of the awful UI, but I seriously hope Fractal comes up with an improved system in the near future. Bring a touchscreen or improved UI for the many who want it, the rest of you have plenty of options with what Fractal already offers 🙂
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When the editor came out for the Axe-Fx Ultra, I never used the physical UI on any Fractal Audio device ever again after that. As far as I'm concerned the Fractal hardware might as well just be a box without any buttons or knobs on it because that's how I treat it and how I always will. It's really fast and easy to dial in sounds using the editor, so I don't know why anyone would try to do it any other way. Do you?
 
I was against touch screen, but after a period on hi-end live devices with touch screen, editing FM3 on the fly with buttons is a pain. If there was a few parameters, I'm ok with buttons and knobs. If there are multiple levels, pages, list, scrolls... than touch screen is the only way to go. Sorry.
 
progress in technology = our regress as a social human beings ... as a guy who works from home and does all his business online on daily basis, I'm really starting to miss talking to people face to face
 
Bob G said:
I'm part of the minority that believe that not all technology is an advancement. Social media and smartphones have proven to be regressive technology that has greatly stunted the creative development of humanity.
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Not so sure you are in the minority actually. A lot of people I speak to express that very opinion above - they still use technology, but they realise it's not necessarily for the better.

As for the touch screen thing, I don't give a shit. I wouldn't care if my FM3 had one or not. I'm way past caring about how modelers look and whether they have nice UI etc. I gave up caring about all of that the first moment I dialled in my first tones on an FM3.. the sound is ALL that matters. If I can get sounds like this out of a fractal that I have failed to get out of other devices, I don't care about aesthetics.

The joy comes from the playing and the sound you're hearing, not what the screen looks like.
 
Luddites!

I own an FM3 now but even back in the day yrs ago when I owned a HELIX Floor ( and later many variants of that tech ) I would have appreciated a (robust/tough ) a touch screen. Even if the only change to the firmware and UI had simply been to allow me to simply - er - TOUCH - any block in the preset signal-chain to select it in order to tweak, move or delete.
That would have eliminated the tedium and time wasting and possibly mojo-killing chore of using the Jog-stick on the front panel to navigate to the desired block. And that's besides the added benefit with HELIX Floor of having touch-sensitive foot switches that one could simply touch to instantly select a block.

The reason that wasn't enough for me was that

A) it only worked if the model block had already been assigned to a foot pedal.
B ) it required one to look away from the screen to the stomps, and then back. And when tweaking or working on something on the screen I prefer to keep my eyes on the screen as much as possible and not have to look away to something else.

This all has to do with ergonomics and those here objecting to touch screens because in their eyes there only for the "simple folk", beginners or those too "lazy" to rtfm or such.. are missing the point.

It's all to do with good ergonomics and good HUI practice.

And all this applies equally to future Fractal units.
 
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Axfx is not difficult to use. Imo, there's absolutely nothing wrong with the UI. I've owned many modellers including Helix and find Fractal's UI the most intuitive of any, particularly given the deep level of parameter editing and routing belng made available in Axfx not provided to the same extent in other modellers.
 
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nonchai said:
Luddites!

Even back in the day I owned a HELIX Floor ( and later many variants of that tech ) I would have appreciated a (robust/tough ) a touch screen.

And even if the only change to the firmware and UI had simply been to allow me to simply - er - TOUCH - any block in the preset signal-chain to select it in order to tweak, move or delete.

That would have eliminated the tedium and time wasting and possibly mojo-killing chore of using the Jog-stick on the front panel to navigate to the desired block.
And that's besides the added benefit with HELIX Floor of having touch-sensitive foot switches that one could simply touch to instantly select a block. The reason that wasn't enough for me was that

A) it only worked if the model block had already been assigned to a foot pedal.
B ) it required one to look away from the screen to the stomps, and then back. And when tweaking or working on something on the screen I prefer to keep my eyes on the screen as much as possible and not have to look away to something else.

This all has to do with ergonomics and those here objecting to touch screens because in their eyes there only for the "simple folk", beginners or those too "lazy" to rtfm or such.. are missing the point.

It's all to do with good ergonomics and good HUI practice.

And all this applies equally to future Fractal units.
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having come out very clearly pro-touchscreen. I would only want one in combination with the traditional and current physical buttons, knobs and joy sticking.

The recent Fender ToneMaster Pro for example - which I owned for a while - has too few physical buttons for me. It forces the user to go to the touchscreen for much stuff. I'd still want to be able to do things the old way when I choose to. Whether HELIX or Fractal.

But there again I suppose in the TMP having so few physical buttons etc saves cost and probably front panel space
 
sprint said:
Axfx is not difficult to use. Imo, there's absolutely nothing wrong with the UI. I've owned many modellers including Helix and find Fractal's UI the most intuitive of any, particularly given the deep level of parameter editing belng made available.
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And as soon as ( or supposing ) Fractal make an improvement to this "perfect" UI that makes it more usable, quicker to move around, to do tasks with fewer button-clicks, you're going to complain and ask Fractal to remove those new usability HUI improvements because ion your mind it was already "perfect" ? and nothing wrong with it at all?

Yeah right...
 
nonchai said:
And as soon as ( or supposing ) Fractal make an improvement to this "perfect" UI that makes it more usable, quicker to move around, to do tasks with fewer button-clicks, you're going to complain and ask Fractal to remove those new usability HUI improvements because ion your mind it was already "perfect" ? and nothing wrong with it at all?

Yeah right...
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I never said that did I? Anything can be improved, and if they want to make improvements that's fine (doesn't mean the current UI is somehow wrong). I just don't think higher value UI changes (ie touch screen) are worth the added pricetag, or are worth giving up other more useful improvments for (opportunity cost). What I react to is UI descriptions like "aweful", "terrible", "wrong" ... Its simply not the case, and I'd bet there are struggles other than UI going on in cases where folks come up with that sort of conclusion.
 
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Admin M@ said:
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ya, its true, but why not? - its debateable, and without those cookies it starts to look like there really is something terribly wrong with the UI that needs hi-priority fixing when there isn't (next thing you know were getting a touchscreen intead of more modelling improvements ...). The debate is worthwhile because we know Fractal listens in.
 
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forget touch screens...
I want voice activated so I can simply say "hey FM3..... adjust x param by y amount." Just like my phone.
 
People like touch screens because, when they are implemented well, they facilitate fast and satisfying interaction with the device, whatever it is. It isn't just 'the kids these days' that like them either. Remember, for us guitar players, the ultimate touch screen is an amp.

I love my AxeIII. I use everyday. I almost always use the Axe Edit software for preset creation and major edits. I know the UI pretty well, but menu diving can be a drag, especially when you want to do something quickly.
 
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