Fractal Audio Systems VP4 - Virtual Pedalboard

Jarick said:
I think the hard part is coming from a digital modeler mindset rather than a pedal mindset. There seems to be a lot of people who will drop $1500 on three Strymon pedals to run post effects that wouldn’t touch a digital modeler. So this is bringing the effect functionality of the Fractals to that user in a size and format they prefer.

I think the HX Stomp was really the first pedal to do that and it ended up being a gateway for a lot of people into modeling. VP4 won’t blur those lines as much but could be great for many pedal people.
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As one of those people with that kind of dough in Strymon/SA pedals, to me the VP4 is a great alternative for the old Timeline/Mobius/BigSky, or their eventual MX versions. If I were Strymon, I'd be thinking really hard about releasing a single pedal that does all three as two algorithms at a time units instead of a separate big box for each. Because buying a BigSky, Timeline and Mobius MX would cost you something like 3x as much as the VP4 alone, with no real benefit other than "I like Strymon algorithms and more knobs".

What the VP4 does not do is be a direct replacement for the smaller, purpose built boxes. It's never going to be as straightforward to work the multitap delay as a Volante or El Cap, and there's no straight equivalent for what the Deco does on its own. Knobs for most things, easy.

In a similar manner the HX Stomp is a good alternative for multi-algorithm boxes, but not necessarily for the "I like this specific effect and want the best version of that", which is highly subjective.

Jarick said:
I still would love to see an expanded version with loop switching. That would be awesome to be able to run the Fractal for effects with analog pedals and something like a Friedman IRX, and have the Fractal do all the switching too.
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Switching could be improved simply by having better MIDI capabilities on the VP4. You could then pair it with e.g the Morningstar ML5/ML10X. It's not ideal of course.

For my uses, things like loop reordering are totally irrelevant, which is why I went from an analog+digital pedal rig to mostly MIDI controllable. The Boss FZ-1W is the only non-MIDI fx pedal on my current board. Just being able to connect all pedals together normally and then use MIDI to toggle them on/off is way more straightforward. I used the Morningstar ML5 and the underside of my board was a real rat's nest.
 
laxu said:
no real benefit other than "I like Strymon algorithms
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The thing is, it cannot be overstated enough how important this kind of brand loyalty really is. It is responsible for shifting soooooooo much product.
 
Bruce said:
Just shouting into the vastness of the internet and didn’t read 46 pages. As a FAS Wh*re myself, I do not understand why someone wouldn’t just buy an FM3. Sorry if this was discussed for 20 pages and I’m late. The FM3 is only a few bucks more and just has more of everything. Plus it’ll serve as a great backup for your amp should you need it in a pinch.
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Season 10 Finale GIF by Curb Your Enthusiasm
 
Boudoir Guitar said:
Except I/O optimized for 4cm (and a bunch of other stuff in terms of how many of different kinds of blocks you can run, etc.)...
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Desertdweller said:
This is why. To quote Fractal themselves: "The FM3 isn't expressly designed with 4CM in mind like the Axe-Fx III. It can do it but it's not as easy and may not have the same level of fidelity."

Source:

Is Fractal planning an FX-only floor unit?

My company uses a hybrid agile methodology. It's just waterfall with extra steps. Worked in Fortune 500 software dev for many years. Any change in methodology or management practices just added busywork and reduced (or in some case completely crippled) productivity. What actually got things...
www.thegearpage.net
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This is all pretty vague. How is the new unit optimized better for 4CM? There is more than enough IO on the FM3 to achieve it. How is the newer, less expensive unit higher fidelity and in terms of a guitar rig, just how hi fi does the average user need? Not that I’m in the market for any of this stuff right now, but I’d like to see the value in the VP4 but still do not (in comparison to the FM3).
 
Bruce said:
This is all pretty vague. How is the new unit optimized better for 4CM? There is more than enough IO on the FM3 to achieve it. How is the newer, less expensive unit higher fidelity and in terms of a guitar rig, just how hi fi does the average user need? Not that I’m in the market for any of this stuff right now, but I’d like to see the value in the VP4 but still do not (in comparison to the FM3).
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You forgot this by @Jarick:
It’s smaller and is designed to run off pedalboard power supplies. Also simpler interface.
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But since you think it's all pretty vague and don't see the value, I suggest you move on. BYEEEE
 
Bruce said:
I think I’ll hang out, continue to ask questions about the product so I can become better informed all the while putting douchebags with poor communication skills on ignore. BYEEEE
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Is the douchebag the guy that gives a snarky response, or the guy that shows up late-thread, asks questions that have been answered a couple dozen times in thread, and then gets mad that the recap answers aren't sufficiently detailed for his liking?
 
laxu said:
For my uses, things like loop reordering are totally irrelevant, which is why I went from an analog+digital pedal rig to mostly MIDI controllable. The Boss FZ-1W is the only non-MIDI fx pedal on my current board. Just being able to connect all pedals together normally and then use MIDI to toggle them on/off is way more straightforward. I used the Morningstar ML5 and the underside of my board was a real rat's nest.
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What are you doing that using a remote MIDI controller to toggle pedals on/off is better than...just hitting the switch on the pedal?
 
Boudoir Guitar said:
Is the douchebag the guy that gives a snarky response, or the guy that shows up late-thread, asks questions that have been answered a couple dozen times in thread, and then gets mad that the recap answers aren't sufficiently detailed for his liking?
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I was actually happy with your answer and attempted further dialog. No one is reasonably digging through 46 pages of discussion for a few answers, but really in the grand scheme of things, who cares? A couple of you gave answers and I just wanted a little more substance so I asked. One douchebag got snarky. Life goes on. I have my 3/9/III and love them already. I was looking for why the VP4 which is 3/4 the price of my 3 may be a consideration down the line for my tube amps above and beyond my 3 from users who may know. Mea Culpa, I asked.
 
Orvillain said:
VP4 and an FC6 would be a good combination, if the VP4 supported the FASLINK protocol.
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¯\_(ツ)_/¯ or buy an FM9. It's not like the only change here is adding a FASLINK jack to the VP4. It's also now gotta be handling the grunt work of the FC, too. So now the VP4 costs more and can do less processing. Win?
 
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