Does UA have enough pedals to put out a Multi-FX/Modeler?

[banned]

Yes, they'll charge a helluva premium for it. I don't think they're a huge amount better...but I'm thinking a bunch of people will jump ship if they do put out a multi-unit.

Question is - do they have enough in their 'portfolio' to put out a viable product now? Or do we need to see a few more individual pedal releases first?

 

[sashimi]

Sure, but if the question is will they, the answer is no.

 

[banned]

Sure, but if the question is will they, the answer is no.

I think once they've miked the individual pedals for all they're worth, they might introduce a multi-modeler unit.

 

[Karl Houseknecht]

It wouldn’t have MIDI

 

[laxu]

Their MO has been to flood the market with effects pedals. They put out something like over 20 pedals over maybe 4 years? That's more pedals than Strymon has released over their entire 21 years of existence.

The interesting thing is they seem to have released only a rack format UA Volt audio interface in 2025. I would've expected something like a JCM800 pedal at least. Or maybe they feel the T situation in the US is going to put too much of a squeeze on their margins to release something new.

Maybe they are seeing that they've put out too much stuff and people aren't buying. There have been way more frequent plugin sales as well.

If UA were to put out a multifx unit, I'd expect them to fuck up its design in some major way. People asking for fixes and new features would get the old "We can't talk about new features or products" line their rep has been spamming all this time. Anyone asking how to do something would be met with "Just open a ticket with our customer support!"

 

[Richard_G]

Still, if they really wanted to, they could have released a fantastic multi-FX and amp modeler with what they have in plugin format and separate pedals.

 

[Jarick]

I think they could but I don't think they will. Their format seems to work well for them.

 

[ragingplatypi]

If I was in charge of UA I wouldn’t mess with the formula they’ve got. The amp pedals in particular are made specifically for a demographic that does not hang out in this forum.

 

[Jarick]

Everyone hates the Boss Plugout, but I could actually see UA creating a hardware unit that loads their plugins/effects. The big selling point with the Apollo series is they have onboard DSP to load effects low latency and without using computer processing. Well put that into a hardware device with some knobs and switches and some type of UI. They wouldn't have to redevelop much either, they already have the plugins. Maybe they simplify the controls and map them to knobs which is probably what they did anyway for the UAFX pedals. And it would get people into the UAD eco system, maybe get them to sign up for Spark and get that sweet subscription revenue.

 

[Richard_G]

I despise subscription schemes.

 

[Tito83]

100% they do. And that would be an instant buy for me, if I happen to have the funds.

 

[madmarcus1960]

I sprung for the $99 for the 4 UAD amp plugins, plus the free Showman they gave away. I think hey sound very good and would be very interested if they were ported to an all in one. The individual pedals serve "me" no purpose.

 

[paisleywookiee]

 

[BenIfin]

It wouldn’t have MIDI

Yep .... and could you imagine how un-regular FW updates and Additions and bugfixes would be ... not to mention their probably worst in the business customer support and response. You would need your "head read" if they released one and you bought it.

But yeah .... if they do ... F.A.F.O .... its your money .... burn it however you wish.

 

[sashimi]

Given their history of selling plugins for their own hardware, what makes you think you would get all of the models included in the unit? Why wouldn’t they milk it with paywalled plugins like they have forever with their apollo interfaces?

Not to mention their stance on midi, 3rd party IRs, and features hidden behind app registration. You would have to make huge compromises to chose a UA multifx over anything else available.

I also think UA knows it would open the floodgates to real comparisons with Fractal, Helix, etc, they couldn’t hide behind their sycophant fanbase. They are going to stay in their lane because it is working for them.

 

[paisleywookiee]

Given their history of selling plugins for their own hardware, what makes you think you would get all of the models included in the unit? Why wouldn’t they milk it with paywalled plugins like they have forever with their apollo interfaces?

Not to mention their stance on midi, 3rd party IRs, and features hidden behind app registration. You would have to make huge compromises to chose a UA multifx over anything else available.

Yeah, I dig my Volt 476, but otherwise UA can fuck right off.

 

[Richard_G]

There's a thread about pedal brands you irrationally dislike.

Well – I irrationally like UA.

I have a lot of issues with them, and I agree with much of what others have posted above. Still, I like my Enigmatic and my Golden Reverberator. A lot of their plugins are my go-to’s (I think I have pretty much every one of the native ones).

I did sell my Dream and Ruby pedals, though.

 

[sashimi]

Yeah, I have a Volt 2, nice little focusrite alternative for the $140 I paid for it. I also have an apollo and tons of plugins I bought long before they ported them over to native. So UA got more than enough of my money over the years. Now those same plugins are available for like 1/10th of what I paid for them. UA made a fortune on their overpriced plugins for years, now that they finally had to give in to the reality that computers are way more powerful than their dsp chips, they are scrambling to make up for it with every guitar pedal they can imagine. Which I actually like better, at least give me some hardware for the money. I would never put money into a UA dsp platform again.