Ultra Firmware Version 9.00 Released

I'm really digging this update! This is by far the best firmware update since I've had the Ultra! (7.04)

The Rotary sim is a HUGE improvement, so is the univibe, they sound great Cliff!!
All the amps sound/feel like there's more "life" in them, not that they didn't sound good before, but the dynamics seem to pop out at you. Gotta go now, it's time to play and tweak!!

Thanks again for AWESOME service!
 
bmi said:
Does the reworked models include parasitic phenomenoms??
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I was going to guess no - here's a quote from Cliff I saved from some time ago:

The issue I've had with the older amps, especially Fenders, is the variability from unit to unit. No two sound exactly alike. I attribute this to the rats nest wiring. The old Fenders tend to have resonances in the power amp, most likely due to parasitic feedback. This causes a peak in the frequency response at a high frequency. I have a way to model it but since it's so variable and inconsistent I don't use it. I've also found that if you like that sound you can replicate it with some EQ after the amp block. Use a peaking EQ around 10K with a fairly high Q. Adjust freq, gain and Q to taste.
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...but then I came across this:

I've been acquiring tube amps also just for the sake of model verification. I measure them and then measure the Axe-Fx and make sure the model is accurate. In the past I've just done verification with the SPICE model but the problem with the SPICE model is that you don't have any parasitic data. In some amps the parasitics are significant enough to cause deviation from the SPICE model. The parasitics manifest themselves as resonances and having the real amp allows me to identify them and add them to the model.
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...so it sounds like in some cases yes (my guess would be, where they're more consistent, maybe).

And by the way, this is an awesome update. I have a short business trip this week so I wouldn't be able to play with the Standard update for a couple days anyway...but I'm very much looking forward to it.

Thanks Cliff, you nut.
 
Hawt Dawg!!!

JGR said:
Regarding the cold-biased 39K cathode, the SLO was the first to use this to get that constant, asymmetrical clipping. The Mesa Dual Recto and Peavey 5150 ripped off the SLO preamp design, so these models should be affected as well in the update. The only other one I know of that stole a lot from the SLO including the 39K value is the Hughes and Kettner Triamp, but it isn't modeled here.

JR
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The 'severely starved-cathode clipping sound' is unique, and certainly worthy of in-depth modeling. Knowing Cliff, I believe this will be the most thorough & accurate modeling of this particular circuit to-date. I personally can't wait to hear the new Amps and Verbs included in 9.0. Only Fractal delivers so consistently!

Unfortunately, I am still on vacation & won't be able to update my Ultra until Thursday - thanks again Cliff!!!

~Rad~

PS: I edited this message less than 5 minutes after I posted it, and yet the 'edited notice' is added - why must this be? A bit on the overactive side, no?
 
Downloaded and installed this evening without so much as a hiccup, probably took less than 10 minutes.

Plugged in skimmed through my presets, hit update presets..... :shock: :eek: :D

Awesome, just awesome. I have been hanging out alot lately on the Soldano model and it's great. The updated Bogner models are just outstanding, Plexi also. The univibe is excellent, not that it was bad before. One thing I noticed right away was the power amp compression and dynamics, there is an almost intuitive interaction there that makes it's so easy to work, almost like it plays itself. It felt really good before but there's a great improvement in feel noticeable on just about every one I flipped through. I can't wait to get a chance to crank it with the band.

Great job.

Thank you Cliff!
 
Is it my imagination, or did something get altered in the cab module with the DRIVE control?

It used to seem like the amount of drive I heard was independent of the input level to the cab sim and I heard more high frequency roll off than distortion. Now it seems like it acts more like a real speaker - the harder the amp drives it the more it breaks up, and it breaks up before it rolls off the highs. It sounds like a different speaker distortion algorithm to my ears.

Like I said, probably my imagination. I've got it cranked really loud tonight - maybe that's distorting my perceptions. I didn't have a chance to extensively explore all the features of 8.09 in the short time I've had it before loading 9.0.

Is it my imagination? It's not in the release notes so I'm guessing it is.

Or could it be a log taper that's giving me a finer level of control?

EDIT: After more experimentation I've concluded that my amp models before the cab module must have had lower output levels in the patches I created with 9.0. Maybe it's the log taper of the amp LEVEL affecting the output volume of the amp.

Stephen Cole
 
vAmp said:
Were new amps not mentioned, overlooked by me, or reserved for Xmas 6-pack? :p
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My apologies... I was wrongly thinking the Bogner and SLO100 would be new amps :oops:
It's getting time to delve more into this box ;)
 
Re: Hawt Dawg!!!

Radley said:
PS: I edited this message less than 5 minutes after I posted it, and yet the 'edited notice' is added - why must this be? A bit on the overactive side, no?
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I think it's fair, since someone already replied in shorter time than that. There's a kind of logic to it ;) Like you could have gone and changed your message to make the following reply look stupid, without people having some indication. We know you aren't really like that :p
 
Awesome!

Are the new preset banks just updated versions of the old ones, or do they really contain new presets?
 
THANK YOU CLIFF! I'm friggin' pumped for this update!

Downloaded, but can't install yet... when I'm 100% sure we're good on this EP we're cutting I'll upgrade (just got done with guitars tonight... I think). I don't want to have to try to punch in on a track and realize my tone is different!
 
Totally Awesome!!!

I was really debating about letting this one go by because of the editor (Lars's) lagging (understandably) but all the raves...

It's in. Gotta go mop the floor first. :evil:
 
logicroxx said:
My mind is blown. Again.

There is no Santa Clause, only Santa Cliff.


Thanks, Santa :D
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Yeah, thanks Santa Cliff! What a support!!!
But now I have work to do on the xml file... ;)
 
Been playing with it for a while now. The uni-vibe and rotary are a lot better indeed. They sound great now.
And preset switching is fast, a lot faster than the G-Major 2 for example.
The pre-9.0 Euro 1 amp sim was kind of weak but is much improved now.
Well done.
 
Don't know if anyone had this experience, but I used 2 different midi interfaces to update. Both times it said Firmware update failed after looking like it was all working for 10 minutes. After the 2nd time I looked at my utility screen and it said 9.0, so, in spite of the failure notice, it worked. I used the new editor.

So, if you're doing this and it says "failure," check to see if it really failed or if the notice was wrong.

Haven't had a chance to test yet as it's way early here, but the reports have me very excited.

Thanks again for the great work,

Mike
 
Re: Hawt Dawg!!!

Radley said:
PS: I edited this message less than 5 minutes after I posted it, and yet the 'edited notice' is added - why must this be? A bit on the overactive side, no?
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Hey Rad -- if you modify a post after somebody reads it you get the "edited" comment. Obviously the release of 9.0 firmware is a hot topic, and rightly so! ;)
 
Raca said:
Yeah, thanks Santa Cliff! What a support!!!
But now I have work to do on the xml file... ;)
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Cheerleader_QA81FU.gif

Gimme an 'X'.... Gimme an 'M' .... Gimme an 'L'.....

Gooooooooooooooooo Raca!
 
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