Amp Modeler Tier Ranking

Tonex and UA Dream/Woodrow/Lion/Ruby probably should be in the "cheap thrills" section as well. Or maybe there needs to be a "Tier 2.5: Buy and accept big compromises" category because these pedals are known what their issues are and software updates are unlikely to happen?

Strymon Iridium is IMO "Tier 1: Buy with confidence". It's limited, but what it does, it does well, with very low latency and a more capable IR loader than most.
 
Helix is tops for me. Kinda stopped paying attention to the rest of the market or gassing for something else to be honest. I'd try a fractal but I'm not sure I wanna devote the time to learn something that complicated at this point. I've sold my kempers two different times now so I think I'm good there. The QC looks cool but the company has turned me off. Headrush and boss aren't even on my radar.
 
You just need to clearly understand your use cases, and then go and look for products that fit those use cases. Then you need to see if the workflow is something you can jive with.

For me, I'm not a simple requirements kind of guy really. So that rules out a lot of stuff.

Products that appeal to me on paper - Helix, Fractal AxeIII, or FM9. Kemper, GT1000, Quad Cortex.

The ones that didn't stick for me are the Kemper and GT1000.

I rag on the Kemper often enough because of its lack of accuracy, but it does sound good. But it really doesn't have the features I need - for example, spillover when you put a delay or reverb in the ABCD slots. You only get spillover when you use the dedicated post-amp slots, but I don't often use post-amp delay and reverb because I like the mushies! So that one thing by itself makes Kemper way less attractive for me. But I have owned 6 of them over the last decade or so! I think I finally got rid of that itch, but when they release a version 2.0, I will happily take another look.

The GT1000 felt like a beta unit, with not enough horsepower for them to whack in all of the proper 500 series effects... and the amp modelling was easily the worst amp modelling I've heard for some time. It was just really basic in so many ways, that I am just not interested in any modeller that Boss makes - until they actually compete with Helix and Fractal, it aint worth my time.

The Quad Cortex just has not matured enough for me to ever want to take a second look. I'm also not a fan of the company, although I do like their plugins.

Things like the Strymon Iridium and all the other amp-in-a-box type devices, they're just not for me really. Doesn't fit my use cases, so I rarely express an opinion on them.
 
The Nux and Ampero units are pretty decent irrespective of their price point, from what I’ve read.
And QC seems to be really popular with pro guys trying modelling for the first time; maybe the form factor or marketing. Idk..
 
Orvillain said:
You just need to clearly understand your use cases, and then go and look for products that fit those use cases. Then you need to see if the workflow is something you can jive with.
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Absolutely.
These devices keep evolving with interesting features and people may or may not want or need them. Every person has their own needs and their decision or interest may hinge on anything. One person may not care if a device has digital I/O, another may see that as a showstopper. One person may want the closest representation of a particular amp, another may want anything that sounds good to their ear. To me, it is far more complex than giving each device a generic score.
 
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Tier 1 -stuff I could get totally good sounds out of: just about anything that can be purchased new today.

Tier 2 - stuff that sounds “too digital” to get good sounds from or whatever - I’d. E trolling pretty deep on eBay.
 
sleewell said:
Helix is tops for me. Kinda stopped paying attention to the rest of the market or gassing for something else to be honest. I'd try a fractal but I'm not sure I wanna devote the time to learn something that complicated at this point. I've sold my kempers two different times now so I think I'm good there. The QC looks cool but the company has turned me off. Headrush and boss aren't even on my radar.
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I totally understand this perspective. Once you find a device that works well and you invest time into learning how to use it, other options become a lot less tempting.

It would take a truly revolutionary product to get me to switch from Fractal to something else. I’m very happy with the sounds and I’ve spent a lot of time learning how to use their editor to do just about anything I could want to accomplish. I’d rather spend my time playing guitar than spend it learning how to operate a whole new device ecosystem. Also, I’m addicted to the constant stream of new firmware updates.
 
the-trooper said:
That's because you have mucho dinero. People with lower purchasing power see their point very clearly because these days you get a fairly decent sounding unit (or even great) with a complete feature set for much lower price.


Paging @JiveTurkey.
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Well past situations can be a big factor too. I am financially comfortable but grew up dirt poor. I "can" buy any piece of musical gear I'd ever desire but I put a monetary value on just about everything I buy, and it's not about how big of a dent it will put in my bank account it's about my idea of what something is worth to me. Also past buying experiences affect things. I paid 4k for a Les Paul merely because some of my friends had them. It went back to the Gibson factory 4 times for workmanship issues and finally I sold it off. I did go through a boutique phase also and found the pedals and amps did nothing more for me than stuff that cost way less.

I don't get into the whole "keeping up with the Jones's thing either and never have. I will never besiege anyone who does participate in such silliness so long as they aren't doing it to me first.
 
GT1000 is great if you want to use X Amps only because the rest suck and be forced to use the Natural Drive because all the other drives suck.



:rollsafe
 
the-trooper said:
Paging @JiveTurkey.
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I've actually done it, and it's so good. Replaced a rack system for pennies on the dollar.
20231011_115827-01.jpeg
 
the-trooper said:
That's because you have mucho dinero. People with lower purchasing power see their point very clearly because these days you get a fairly decent sounding unit (or even great) with a complete feature set for much lower price.
Click to expand...
At the same time, the stretch to the "next tier up" is not necessarily that big, at least compared to buying something expensive like a Helix Floor, QC and up.

Ignoring used devices, the <300 euro tier is understandable, but the 400-500 € bracket for floor modelers is the limbo where I'd rather save a bit more and buy a HX Stomp because the step up in sounds is notable enough.
 
tmp isnt top tier really. While its newist and has that slick gui it has less fenders in it then fractal or helix. Without the slick gui it wouldnt be popular. Imagine an iphone released with no touchscreen and a flip phone? BOMB
 
pipelineaudio said:
In this day and age, NOT making a direct VST you can share presets with your hardware with is criminally idiotic.
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Yep. That's why I like Tonex. The procedure for loading the pedal should be streamlined but the concept of having the same preset in a vst and the hardware is great.
 
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