Fractal Talk

[KingsXJJ]

Pretty exciting! Great time to be about to open the box as a second time AxeFX III user! And to think I was pretty ecstatic about the tones I was getting back then… about 4 years ago.

 

[texhex]

@holoholo The new modeling engine is called Cygnus X-3.
Cygnus X-1 is a black hole. (and a Rush song )

The photo is a black hole.

 

[la szum]

Oh, it's a boosted JCM800, I had the amp Gain at 6.66 and the Master somewhere around 6-7 w/ an SD-1 boosting it. I've tweaked it since then.

That's my rig man!!!





It's crazy that it is basically the same pairing I use and yet I sound nothing like that.

 

[Stone]

Gain at 666 ?

 

[GTR37]

Gain at 666 ?

That’s actually a Zakk setting
His overdrive is gain 6
Tone 6 level 6 , I had read

 

[jellodog]

Interesting comment from Cliff:

Axe-Fx III Firmware 25.00 Public Beta (Cygnus X-3)

Well, I can run the editor with fw25/connect -- but that doesn't mean the editor is 100% compatible yet. So beware and let's all hear from Fractal Audio directly before you try to do anything with the last editor and new fw25.0. It may be that it is okay - but I never assume! The only thing...

forum.fractalaudio.com

(for those that aren't glued to that firmware 25.00 thread)

 

[LP59]

I admire the hell out of Cliff for the constant pursuit, but I'm not anticipating a detectable sonic difference for a rube like me. I've long been at the "how much better can it possibly get?" point, personally.

I'd unironically love to see the measurements though.

I too admire his relentless pursuit of perfection, but is it really worthwhile to make more of these kinds of changes? It's not like there aren't other things on the AxeFX that need attention.

 

[jellodog]

I too admire his relentless pursuit of perfection, but is it really worthwhile to make more of these kinds of changes?

Yes?

I mean, if it wasn't for that constant improvement I wouldn't have bought it in the first place because the tones are so good. It's what got us here.

And it's not like FAS operates in a MI market vacuum. Competitors are always snapping at their heels. If they don't move forward, the company would eventually be at risk as others catch up.

 

[LP59]

Yes?

I mean, if it wasn't for that constant improvement I wouldn't have bought it in the first place because the tones are so good. It's what got us here.

And it's not like FAS operates in a MI market vacuum. Competitors are always snapping at their heels. If they don't move forward, the company would eventually be at risk as others catch up.

I too bought an AxeFX because it sounds so good. But does making it 0.00001% more accurate make a difference to the distance between it and the competition that anyone will notice? The top modelers all sound great now. It's all the other things, like UI, that make a difference now.

 

[eggpl@nt]

I too admire his relentless pursuit of perfection, but is it really worthwhile to make more of these kinds of changes? It's not like there aren't other things on the AxeFX that need attention.

That was kinda the point of my post following this one you quoted. Some updates, like this one for instance, may be more for Cliff than for the user base or what the user base wants.

The Axe is as much a commercial product as it is a project for Cliff, and so the product priorities (as seen by the user base) may not always align with the project priorities (as seen by Cliff).

 

[jellodog]

But does making it 0.00001% more accurate make a difference to the distance between it and the competition that anyone will notice? The top modelers all sound great now. It's all the other things, like UI, that make a difference now.

I understand your point, but I'd also be interested to hear what you think after living with the Cygnus X-3 enhancements for a while.

For me personally, the sound is everything; the UI could be an excel spreadsheet and I'd probably still use it if I knew I could get it to sound like it currently does for me

 

[eggpl@nt]

I understand your point, but I'd also be interested to hear what you think after living with the Cygnus-3 enhancements for a while.

For me personally, the sound is everything; the UI could be an excel spreadsheet and I'd probably still use it if I knew I could get it to sound like it currently does for me

Knobs > Cells > Abacus > Sliders

 

[LP59]

That was kinda the point of my post following this one you quoted. Some updates, like this one for instance, may be more for Cliff than for the user base or what the user base wants.

The Axe is as much a commercial product as it is a project for Cliff, and so the product priorities (as seen by the user base) may not always align with the project priorities (as seen by Cliff).

That's a good point. Cliff will always tinker with the amp modeling and in the early days that meant the AxeFX got better in ways that were important to all of us. Lately though, the amp modeling tinkering seems be more because it's fun for him, and not because it's useful for users. He's earned the right to do whatever he wants with it, but this doesn't seem to be going in a direction that interests me.

 

[jellodog]

Knobs > Cells > Abacus > Sliders

Within Cells Interlinked.

 

[DrewJD82]

That's my rig man!!!





It's crazy that it is basically the same pairing I use and yet I sound nothing like that.

Hahahahah laying claim to an SD-1 boosted 800 is like laying claim to an 808 boosted Dual Rec or 5150, that's public domain, man.

And not that crazy at all, it's almost as if..........almost..........alllllllmooooooosttt.....

It's the Orville w/ the Aldrich.

 

[State of Epicicity]

Accuracy above all for me. That's why I think it's worth it to go for Fractal products, especially if you can afford an Axe-FX III. I don't think this firmware is Cliff just having fun. He's doing it for guys like me who'd like it to be as close to the real deal as possible. If intermodulation distortion is more present in the real deal, I'll gladly make new presets where I can hear and feel the way the amps actually sound and respond in the real world.

No one else has this dedication to accuracy.

 

[KingsXJJ]

I’m always going to fall on the side of improving things. That sort of support is rare and I appreciate it.

Whether it is a 5% or 10% or some made up number like 0.00001%, which sounds like hyperbole to me, it’s still an improvement. I welcome it.

This is a full point release which Cliff calls a “remastering” of amps, etc. anyone who has heard the remastering of an older album knows how considerable of a difference that can be. Disagreement seems like b*tching just to b*tch. I don’t get that at all.

I am grateful and excited! If you don’t care, skip the update for chrissakes.

 

[Mongillo19]

am grateful and excited! If you don’t care, skip the update for chrissakes.

You can still be grateful and excited but also view things differently. LP made a good point imo.

It's Cliff's product at the end of the day so he will always do what he wants, but I don't think it's wrong to prefer focus on "improvements" that would move the needle more significantly than something that is already very very good (amp modeling).

No need to dissuade conversation

But tbf UI updates probably means a new Gen for any huge changes

 

[KingsXJJ]

I don't think it's wrong to prefer focus on "improvements" that would move the needle more significantly

Such as?

I am not dissuading conversation. I’m engaging in it.

 

[Mongillo19]

Such as?

I'm really not trying to turn this into a huge debate lol

Everything can be improved, you said as much yourself. But UI is the low hanging fruit that comes to mind for many.

Anyway, glad you are enjoying your fractal device!

And if I'm tracking correctly you've had a fractal unit for 4 days and already feel the need to tell people what they should and should not want