Does anyone actually want these super tiny modelers?

[dk_ace]

I see the point of them I think. Throw in the bag for jamming, warming up with headphones, etc. Put it on a pedalboard as a backup plan or if I only occasionally have a situation where I need a direct solution and want to just use the board. I’ve toyed with the idea of building a large rig with top notch pedals, plus a small good modeler all controlled by a switching rig.

None of these things has been compelling enough for me to buy one yet though.

D

 

[newholland]

I'm saying once you start dipping the toes into the waters; it gets a bit GASsy and dangerous!

hahaa.. youre a prince amongst men jt im pretty good where im at, tbh- and id haveta play one i really loved to go that route, and beings as i know like two other guitarists in the region who share any type of musical DNA, im betting it wont happen anytime soon

 

[JiveTurkey]

I see the point of them I think. Throw in the bag for jamming, warming up with headphones, etc. Put it on a pedalboard as a backup plan or if I only occasionally have a situation where I need a direct solution and want to just use the board. I’ve toyed with the idea of building a large rig with top notch pedals, plus a small good modeler all controlled by a switching rig.

None of these things has been compelling enough for me to buy one yet though.

D

And beyond this; I can't leave well enough alone and would automatically start concocting ways to turn the micro-turd into the full size unit

 

[megametal7]

 

[dk_ace]

And beyond this; I can't leave well enough alone and would automatically start concocting ways to turn the micro-turd into the full size unit

See my last use case there. That’s the problem. When I go down this road I end up trying to build an analog rig that will do literally everything I do with my FM9, and then I think “what’s the point if it just does what I already do?” so then I go and add a handful of pedals that push it places the FM9 doesn’t easily go to. Then I take a step back and bask in how awesome that would be. Then I add up and realize it’s like a 10K pedalboard that weighs 75 lbs, has a massive amount of cabling, and would be an absolute bitch to program for gigs. Then I delete the mockup and tell myself to never do this again. 6-12 months later I repeat the cycle…

D

 

[Progressive_disclosure]

I’m following the new NAM stuff right now since in my situation I’m considering something super small to practice with. Just headphones, and preferably id I want something I can put my small pedalboard in front of. I need to keep my footprint small and in that I’m consistently shifting around my pedalboard and HX Stomp between rooms when I don’t or can’t use the amp. So getting a small enclosure capture player with Bluetooth audio playback, a decent headphone jack and basic reverb/delay is on my radar. I’m guessing having as extra/toy is a pretty big market compared to top shelf modelers. Thus far I’ve been unimpressed with the options I’ve tried so the NAM stuff is enticing of they actually can be decent sound-wise.

I also feel a bit like I’ve read for example @the swede write about. I want to play sometimes, not get caught up dialing in bc something is a bit off or just trialing new amp models. That’s what I do mostly when I’m on my HX Stomp only and it’s getting tiresome.

 

[saarangnarayan]

I’m just waiting for the mythical FM0. The rest (mini ToneX, Nano Cortex etc.) is all window dressing tbh

 

[HomespunEffects]

What I don’t want is the giant all in one floor boards. The Helix and GT-1000, et al., just aren’t for me. I do enjoy the smaller boxes that i can add other things to.

 

[TubeStack]

Clearly people want them, as they seem to be selling well, no?

 

[gonzoknife]

For all the hate Boss gets sometimes, the IR-2 did small modeling it right. IMHO it's the perfect small form factor modeler. Size of a pedal, all the basic controls you need and simple footswitch operation. I've been using mine almost exclusively lately with my pedalboard because pedalboards are fun. It also means I can plug in my FM9 to the same "FRFR" by switching the cable. I don't need a real amp and "FRFR" taking up room.

There's also something mentally different about using the IR-2 and my FM9 for me. With the IR-2 I treat it like an amp. Set it and forget it. With the FM9 my brain figures out new ways to complicate things. Maybe I should be using a different amp? What if I put the phaser after the reverb? My brain knows there are options and wants to investigate them all which distracts me from actually playing.

 

[jellodog]

YES!

Tiny limited capture player is working fine for me. But...

1. I knew what I was getting into and accepted that from the start
2. I alternate between:

• Full Axe-Fx and foot controller which lives in one place.
• Laptop + interface + plugins + monitors
• Nano Cortex + headphones at various spots around the house away from the Axe-Fx. I often play the NC on the bed upstairs.

I like the limited nature of the NC so that I just get on and play with it. Turns out that the single delay suits my patches really well and the reverb is pretty flexible. It does not have to be a "do everything solution" and in fact was chosen deliberately because it isn't.

Best modeller and "do everything" device I own is still the Axe-Fx but I don't always feel like sitting in that one spot and playing it.

And like others have said, it's sometimes enjoyable to have an amp voice in a box plus a few pedals, but I don't do that as much, at the moment. I did use the NC + Strymom Brig + headphone amplifier a few weeks back and that was super enjoyable.

 

[Sascha Franck]

But the Tonex One feels like it's too far into miniaturizing it, severely compromising its usability for smaller size.

TBH, I think it's excellent, much better than its bigger brother. Obviously, that is only true in case you're using it as a one trick pony. As in using it as just one single amp channel. This is what I've been using my Amplifirebox for over the last years and the Tonex One certainly would've been a better fit as it's smaller.
Get an affordable loop switcher, slap two of them in some loops and there's your basic two channel amp layout with plenty of options to go further. Or just run your pedalboard into a single one. All that at very, very little cost and great size.

 

[GuitarBilly74]

For live playing, something like this should have at least 3 footswitches for instant access of clean, crunch and lead.
I gig with single channel amps all the time but its not something I'd do with a modeler. The whole point of it is to be able to access different tones.
For the studio, I guess it doesn't matter.

 

[Someoldqueenorother]

Does anyone actually want their modeler to have an absolute minimum number of controls and rely 99% on a mobile app? Why would you pick that over something marginally larger that offers more onboard control?

I run a stereo pedalboard into left and right instances of Amalgam's JC-120 capture within a plugin host. If some silly thing happens and I play live in the future, I want the same sounds so 2x Tonex Ones set in the same way as the software is perfect for me. I don't want to have amp channels, I won't use the Tonex FX, I don't want to piss about with the gain.

What is lacking in the market right now is a pedal dedicated to stereo amps and cabs. Couple these to reverb that has pre- or post-cab functions and I'm happy.

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

After the Tonex One, there's been a lot of devices coming out in the same super small form factor, some with quite extensive features.

I get that they are tiny and cheap, so probably get sold a lot as Christmas gifts. Cost is likely a big draw in countries where average income is much lower like Latin America or Asia.

I get why a large Tonex can be inconvenient to cram on some pedalboards mainly to serve as amp/cab sims. But the Tonex One feels like it's too far into miniaturizing it, severely compromising its usability for smaller size.

But just making these things the size of say a Boss, Strymon/Source Audio (El Cap, Nemesis etc) pedals would already let you cram in way more controls, maybe even a small screen like the Walrus ACS1 Mk2. They'd still be compact enough to fit any pedalboard without issues.

The HX Stomp/GT-1000 Core form factor already allows for full blown touchscreen, do-it-all modelers ala Hotone. That's still tiny for what these can do, and can clearly be quite affordable, just not dirt cheap.

Does anyone actually want their modeler to have an absolute minimum number of controls and rely 99% on a mobile app? Why would you pick that over something marginally larger that offers more onboard control?

If all I want is one or two amp tones in a box and everything else from pedals, I don't care about control. modeling quality, cost, size are all that are really important, in that order. You could snag two ToneX Ones for $250 and build a true stereo rig around it. That.Is.Nuts.

Honestly, I think the rarer situation is the person that NEEDS lots of control over their amp-box.

I recently snagged an OG Atomic Amplifirebox for $120. On the one hand, it's got knobs, including for reverb, and has a footswitch you can use to toggle a (good sounding and very useable) boost and/or other stuff on/off.

On the other, there are three amps in it that I like to use. When I toggle from one amp to the other I've gotta redial in knobs to where I want for the new model. To get something that has actual presets AND useable controls to use with those presets, I've gotta get up into the $400 range, which I don't want to do. And that only gives me one amp. What I'll probably do instead is add a ToneX One for $125; keep the Amplifirebox set always on the Deluxe Reverb model; use the ToneX for maybe 3 other amp sounds.

 

[laxu]

Obviously personal tastes are what they are. I don´t agree in this. I think the form factor isn´t spot on because of footswitches being cramped. That´s why I would have prefered less switches for the same size. And then, a bigger unit for the full blown ship.

To me most of the crampedness comes from having a second row of footswitches.

My point is... in my mind, the NC is NOT what a DualCortex should be. I perfectly see a gap between the NC and the QC to place an intermediate unit, more in the style of the Stomp (name it HX or Ampero). The NC is not designed to have all the functionality of the Stomps. If someone buys it for that, then it´s a bad buy. For my use case, it was a far better option than "stomps".

To me the lack of even a small screen (e.g a few lines to show preset or model name) is a big failing on the Nano Cortex. In its current form, it can't seem to decide if it's an amp/cab sim, or a modeler, but it's priced closer to a modeler. It has all the tools to be a modeler with limitations, except a drive block and more options in any fx category.

 

[EOengineer]

 

[laxu]

If all I want is one or two amp tones in a box and everything else from pedals, I don't care about control. modeling quality, cost, size are all that are really important, in that order. You could snag two ToneX Ones for $250 and build a true stereo rig around it. That.Is.Nuts.

Honestly, I think the rarer situation is the person that NEEDS lots of control over their amp-box.

I recently snagged an OG Atomic Amplifirebox for $120. On the one hand, it's got knobs, including for reverb, and has a footswitch you can use to toggle a (good sounding and very useable) boost and/or other stuff on/off.

On the other, there are three amps in it that I like to use. When I toggle from one amp to the other I've gotta redial in knobs to where I want for the new model. To get something that has actual presets AND useable controls to use with those presets, I've gotta get up into the $400 range, which I don't want to do. And that only gives me one amp. What I'll probably do instead is add a ToneX One for $125; keep the Amplifirebox set always on the Deluxe Reverb model; use the ToneX for maybe 3 other amp sounds.

For me it's the opposite. I feel like I'm messing enough with controls on amp and cab sims, and I want to tweak that stuff for e.g different output systems, different volumes, different guitars etc. All this is dead easy stuff on real amps where it can be more set and forget than on modelers that for me tend to be all about variety.

Trying to build stereo rigs out of multiple tiny pedals seems like it gets complicated to manage real quick over a single pedal that does stereo amps/cabs in itself.

 

[Jarick]

I like them as a concept, something that you could use as say a beefed up low latency interface with a computer or embedded in a larger rig that's MIDI controlled. I don't see them as useful on a pedalboard for instance, where you want some feedback and controls.

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

For me it's the opposite. I feel like I'm messing enough with controls on amp and cab sims, and I want to tweak that stuff for e.g different output systems, different volumes, different guitars etc. All this is dead easy stuff on real amps where it can be more set and forget than on modelers that for me tend to be all about variety.

Trying to build stereo rigs out of multiple tiny pedals seems like it gets complicated to manage real quick over a single pedal that does stereo amps/cabs in itself.

This is the way of the devil. Have a rig that can do a few things. Plug into the rig and play. MAYBE you need to adjust some things occasionally when you're in a different room that sounds quite different; more often than not there's not a lot of need for that.