Worth upgrading from XL+?

rich2k4

Inspired
I'm wondering if there is enough of a difference to justify selling the XL+ and picking up the 3?

One thing I am thinking is that I am getting more in to electronic music, and perhaps the 3 has greater possibility for weird and crazy sounds? Making the guitar sound like not a guitar, etc?

Are the amp tones better?

How did you justify upgrading?
 
Yup, it was for me - and it just got mo’betta with new firmware 3.0 released today. Improvement/capabilities across the board.

Unmatched.
 
did something specific give you this idea?

Just the huge increase in processing power. I assume that as the unit is upgraded there will be upgrades to effects, etc. I know many people would like an expanded Synth block, etc.
 
I have 1 sound on my xl2+ that I can't beat on the 3 thus far. The 3 wins handily though on every other sound. It feels nice and sounds amazing and is easy to use.
 
100% worth it for me.

I had an AX8 for a while and ended up buying an XL+ last January, just a few weeks before the 3 was announced. I got on the wait list for the 3 and used that wait time to get used to the XL+ and research comparisons between the two.

I listened to all of the early online comparisons between the two, read through forums, etc. and went back and forth on whether or not to upgrade. Taking into consideration repeated online comments regarding the need to actually play through the 3 to fully understand the improvements, I decided to take the plunge after receiving the email offer to purchase in May. I justified the purchase figuring the 3 would be as good as the XL+, if not better, and would only continue to improve with future updates.

When I received the 3 and played through some of the presets, it was immediately clear I had made the right decision. It was better than the XL+ in both sound and feel, IMO. It's faster/easier to dial in tones, there's greater capability, and there are a lot more cabs to choose from when compared to the XL+.

I held on to my Kemper while I had the XL+...sold both after playing the 3. Bottom line, the 3 makes me want to pick up my guitar and play more often! I have not regretted it for even a single day.

As expected, the 3 continues to improve with the frequent updates Cliff has released. I can't wait to see where future updates take this unit!
 
I had the II, then the XL+ for six years combined. I've been through some major updates (Ultra-Res, Quantum, Etc.) and I expected the III to be a similar upgrade. When I first plugged into the III, I was stunned. It's not just another update, it's an entirely new generation!
 
Hi Rich,

Short answer is Yes!
Yes Yes

It's widening the gap with every update.
thanks
Pauly


I'm wondering if there is enough of a difference to justify selling the XL+ and picking up the 3?

One thing I am thinking is that I am getting more in to electronic music, and perhaps the 3 has greater possibility for weird and crazy sounds? Making the guitar sound like not a guitar, etc?

Are the amp tones better?

How did you justify upgrading?
 
The sound, features, and ease of use from the II to the III are substantial, but I haven’t yet seen any responses directly relating to “weird and crazy sounds” you would use for electronic music, so I’d like to pitch in on that directly.

The Midi block, new to the III, as well as the insane routing options on the rear panel, and the 8 channels over USB, are all very helpful features for what you are trying to do. I run Cantabile (a midi VST loader designed for live performance) along with Jam Origins Midi Guitar II. I don’t want to go too deep into how to run it all together, but what I’ll say is that the Midi block allows me to send a custom midi change to Cantabile, and tie that directly to a Preset or Scene change I make on the Axe Fx III. So using this, you can integrate Omnisphere or Kontakt VSTs directly into your Axe Fx patches, and output them through output 1 along with your guitar signal, or any other set of outlets on the Axe.

I play in an electronic/rock/metal band. I tried to set this all up with my II, but integrating the midi changes on Cantabile with the Axe Fx changes with my midi pedal was a PITA. The Midi block changes the game.
 
It beats my XL II+ in all areas except two.

It sounds way better. Even leaving aside the question of whether modeling is noticeably improved or not, it still sounds better because of better, much quieter inputs. This is especially noticeable on high gain, but not only that.

For music with lots of effects I’d say it’s a no-brainer - you can do so much more with it.

It works much better with automation because the MIDI interface is much much faster. Sometimes with the II I ran into problems when several parameters needed to be changed at the same time. The III is way more reliable and changes are instant. So that’s good.

However, it didn’t replace the II in my setup. I don’t use it live because I don’t have a good controller solution. The elusive FCs aren’t available where I live and I have no idea when they will be. The MFC isn’t fully compatible with it and never will be. There are third party solutions that work more or less, but they are expensive, hard to get where I live and even harder to sell. Also, the III can’t transmit MIDI over USB, which is a bummer for me.

But those gripes are just for playing live and the second one is very niche, I would guess. Otherwise it’s a huge improvement, no doubt about it.
 
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