Fractal Audio Systems AM4 - Amp Modeler

[JiveTurkey]

Well, in the US, it’s $569 vs $699.

Location can def play a big part in the math here, which I guess is typical with Fractal stuff and some other brands (Marshall… lol)

4 switches, amp models and not relying on captures from someone else, interface. It's a no-brainer from the US pricing side of this discussion.

 

[Mongillo19]

4 switches, amp models and not relying on captures from someone else, interface. It's a no-brainer from the US pricing side of this discussion.

DID THEY NOT WATCH THE PROMO VIDEO

 

[JiveTurkey]

DID THEY NOT WATCH THE PROMO VIDEO

Some GREAT holiday options from some of the players in this space. Others; um...

 

[Baba]

AM4=gateway drug if you aren't already there. Or the best backup rig you will get in the digital realm.

1,000%.

They may have finally gotten me

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

Maybe I’m just a size queen but the fact that this fits in front of a gig bag is sweet for a fly rig. Also the form factor for pedalboards will make this attractive for a lot of guitarists.

I have to say I don’t get wanting to put pedals in the front pocket of a gig bag. It’s like sliding the pedal into a laptop sleeve and tossing it into the gig bag with the guitar. Especially flying I wouldn’t put it there. Gig back pockets are for papers, picks, strings, cloth, etc.

 

[holoholo]

I have to say I don’t get wanting to put pedals in the front pocket of a gig bag. It’s like sliding the pedal into a laptop sleeve and tossing it into the gig bag with the guitar. Especially flying I wouldn’t put it there. Gig back pockets are for papers, picks, strings, cloth, etc.

Idk I put those in other pockets

 

[TSJMajesty]

The turd was applied with love!

Oh I know.

 

[ejecta]

Yeah you definitely could. But IMHO, the Stadium amp sims totally hang with the Fractal ones. The effects though? Not so much. I think Fractal on the whole has better effects. So... I think VP4 is more suitable. There again, if you didn't need total FX domination... AM4 gives you amps and effects to mess around with.

Thanks for the input! I don’t have Fractal unit at the moment to compare the amps. That’s where I’d have the most interest is amps and cabs and I’m in no hurry to compare because I like what I’m getting out the Stadium.

I do like Fractal’s effects and think some of the effects are among some of the best ones out there. However if I only want to augment effects where I think the Stadium falls short, I’ll just use a board made of some offerings by Meris, Kelley, Eventide etc that I like over Fracatl versions of that.

 

[SonVolt]

Wait... why did they leave off the Pitch block?

 

[markus506]

Hmmm...it's been about 15 years since I have a Fractal unit, but this seems like a good time to dip my toes in the pond. I'm assuming this would work great in the loop of my Helix (mostly just using it for amp modelling), but also as a great backup.

 

[TSJMajesty]

Wait... why did they leave off the Pitch block?

My guess... DSP usage.

 

[JiveTurkey]

1,000%.

They may have finally gotten me

 

[- ★ - BROCKSTAR - ★ -]

Wait... why did they leave off the Pitch block?

Quoting cliff from a few pages back

"
The choice of effects was so that you couldn't overload the processor. Running a Reverb and a Plex plus the Amp block would exceed the processor's bandwidth.

Engineering is all about tradeoffs. It's a constant juggle between price, size, features, power consumption and performance. As such, no product will be perfect for everybody. In an ideal world DSPs would use no power and have infinite clock speeds. Until then products will have to make compromises.

At some point we can revisit the effects inventory."

 

[TSJMajesty]

Quoting cliff from a few pages back

"
The choice of effects was so that you couldn't overload the processor. Running a Reverb and a Plex plus the Amp block would exceed the processor's bandwidth.

Engineering is all about tradeoffs. It's a constant juggle between price, size, features, power consumption and performance. As such, no product will be perfect for everybody. In an ideal world DSPs would use no power and have infinite clock speeds. Until then products will have to make compromises.

At some point we can revisit the effects inventory."

Oughtta be a Sticky for the entire forum. Sometimes.

 

[ian_dissonance]

My guess... DSP usage.

I think a regular whammy-style monophonic pitch would be ok. As a treat. NGL, if this had a pitch block I’d have probably already ordered it and started planning on selling some other stuff.

 

[- ★ - BROCKSTAR - ★ -]

Comparison reason. Back when I started with vp4 and fm3 in the spring. Since the vp4 is the same size as the am4, you can see the comparison here next to the fm3.

 

[metropolis_4]

Wow, I’m out of the loop and just saw this!

I wasn’t expecting all the effects, I’m kind of surprised by that… almost like they made it too powerful… like “what’s the point of the FM3” powerful.

I could use this as a full rig for a bunch of stuff I do

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

Wow, I’m out of the loop and just saw this!

I wasn’t expecting all the effects, I’m kind of surprised by that… almost like they made it too powerful… like “what’s the point of the FM3” powerful.

I could use this as a full rig for a bunch of stuff I do

The point of the FM3 is for it to become what it always should have been -- an FM0 that is more powerful, but smaller, than this thing.

 

[AlbertA]

 

[AlbertA]