Fractal Talk

[Jarick]

Update is very cool. The Lightspeed has been on my very short list of drive pedals I always wanted to try out but haven't yet. I was kind of thinking Lightspeed and Nobels ODR-1 would cover pretty much all the boost and OD you'd want with a good amp.

My favorite though is the new Dyna Cab interface which I missed on the last update I guess. I'm never using more than two cabs so having more options and a much cleaner layout is better. I hadn't really seen the smoothing option before in a very long time so adding that seems to be nice.

 

[Jarick]

Yeah I just don’t like that it’s only 4 blocks and so limited. My big thing is having a device that I can use when I don’t want to turn on my Mac at all, and I also would like it to have amp modeling - I love my Mark V 35 but it’s nice to just have everything in the box.

I've tried the modeler as interface and I just don't like it much. For recording I almost always use the modeler over USB because it's less conversion, but for listening I prefer to use a standalone interface and mix signals there.

If you did want to use as a standalone into monitors, I might recommend a Mackie Big Knob or something like that. That would let you easily control the monitor volume especially if you are powering up/down the unit and want to prevent pops. But that doesn't control headphone volume so it's easier to use a standalone interface IMO.

 

[LCW]

There’s a III Mk II in my area but the dude wants 2250. (FB marketplace).

 

[Mikael Dez]

@Mikael Dez - if you can get along with the rack hardware, I really recommend the Axe FX 3. Cliff is constantly tinkering and adding new firmware releases specifically for that model. They do get bundled and migrated down to the smaller units but it's nice to be on the bleeding edge. Unless you're FOMO resistant, then I'd look at one of the floor units.

FM3 is great for a smaller grab and go but very rugged unit. Now with gapless switching it's going to be really powerful unless you need really crazy effect chains. Switching is limited though unless you like to keep it very simple. FM9 is going to be way closer to the QC in terms of power and switching in one preset, but yeah it is a bit big. All of them sound really good though.

In the end I went through a couple FM3's and a couple rack units (FM9 wasn't out yet) and then settled on the Axe 3. If you can get the Mk1 units under $1800 (or especially closer to $1500), that's a great buy. And that would give you something fun to play with until Stadium comes out and you can make the call to jump or not.

Yeah, I’ve got $1400 saved right now for an Axe III. Next Friday is the 7 day return window where I won’t be screwed if whoever bought my QC gets buyer’s remorse and returns it. Then the hunt starts! Lol

 

[Mikael Dez]

There’s a III Mk II in my area but the dude wants 2250. (FB marketplace).

There are a handful of them on Reverb for cheaper than that (but then you got taxes and shipping)

 

[Mongillo19]

There’s a III Mk II in my area but the dude wants 2250. (FB marketplace).

That's way too much for used. Might as well go new at that point imo

 

[LCW]

There are a handful of them on Reverb for cheaper than that (but then you got taxes and shipping)

Yeah I wouldn’t pay that much it’s only 10% less than new with warranty.

 

[Mongillo19]

Yeah I wouldn’t pay that much it’s only 10% less than new with warranty.

And if FAS does have a 4th sale......

 

[ispunk]

I had my Axe-Fx 3 like this initially but it was annoying to use any of the front panel controls because they are so close to the desk. Raising it was not an option because I didn't want to raise my monitor.

Tilting the unit is a no go because even with a Noctua fan it gets quite noisy unless the rack unit is horizontal.

So I ultimately had the Axe-Fx 3 on a side desk. I'd take a plugin version any day.

I keep a rack on a rolling baker's rack from Amazon. Just roll it over when I'm using the Axe III, Kemper or Helix rack (yes I have all the soon to be replaced rack units), or roll it out of the way when I'm mixing.

 

[- ★ - BROCKSTAR - ★ -]

I keep a rack on a rolling baker's rack from Amazon. Just roll it over when I'm using the Axe III, Kemper or Helix rack (yes I have all the soon to be replaced rack units), or roll it out of the way when I'm mixing.

View attachment 47195

Can I ask what is the purpose of a safe guard on a rack? Do people expect flying debris lol.

 

[AlbertA]

Can I ask what is the purpose of a safe guard on a rack? Do people expect flying debris lol.

For the occasional ^^

 

[KingsXJJ]

That Profiler reminds me of something the CCCP Soviet Space Program would have cooked up for an ill-fated mission.

And for the toasters, "Za zdorov'ye!"

 

[ispunk]

Can I ask what is the purpose of a safe guard on a rack? Do people expect flying debris lol.

Yes I put screen protectors on everything. Just a safeguard from me doing something stupid like turning in my chair with a guitar or bass and smacking the screen with the headstock.

 

[synthpenguin]

I have a few dumb questions about the FM3 ~

Can you run the Cab room simulator at the same time as a standalone Reverb block? I didn't see a clear answer for this in the manual, block guide, or wiki, but I'm assuming you can (I'm mainly interested in this for headphone use, hoping to do a combo of the Cab room simulator and an Enhancer block to get something like the Helix's stereo Dynamic Ambience, but while still being able to have a Reverb block in there)

Related, can you feasibly run a chain on the FM3 that's something like this?: [drive block > the new spring reverb > harmonic tremolo > amp > cab with room ambience turned up > stereo digital delay with mod > enhancer block]. I know this depends a lot on many factors (amp choice being a big one, I assume), and that the improved reverbs use a lot more CPU, but I'm just curious what to expect.

With the Stadium announcement, my plans to go from the HX Stomp to the FM3 have become a little less sure lol, but I'm still leaning FM3 since I really don't need most of what the Stadium offers (and the FM3's size is already pushing it for me haha). I want to make sure I'll be able to 1:1 swap the HX Stomp for the FM3 without running into the latter's resource limitations though, and I'm more or less just using the HX Stomp with a chain like above.

Thanks!

ETA: btw the Fractal manuals are excellent! Really not used to that with guitar gear haha

 

[DLC86]

Can you run the Cab room simulator at the same time as a standalone Reverb block?

Yes

Related, can you feasibly run a chain on the FM3 that's something like this?: [drive block > the new spring reverb > harmonic tremolo > amp > cab with room ambience turned up > stereo digital delay with mod > enhancer block]

I'm at 40% cpu with that stuff on my fm9 turbo (with one of the heaviest drive models plus input gate and gapless turned on)... on an fm3 turbo the reverb would add up quite a bit to that but I think there's enough headroom to run it at the highest quality.

 

[sashimi]

Is the new spring reverb on the FM3 now? Last time I looked into it I thought it was not.

 

[DLC86]

Is the new spring reverb on the FM3 now? Last time I looked into it I thought it was not.

Yes, added with FW 10

 

[sashimi]

Yes, added with FW 10

That was the main thing that stopped me from ordering an FM3 last year and led to buying a Helix LT instead. The other was the lack of variable input impedance, unfortunately that’s not changing with a firmware update. But I still want to try fractal one of these days. Maybe next sale.

 

[synthpenguin]

Yes

I'm at 40% cpu with that stuff on my fm9 turbo (with one of the heaviest drive models plus input gate and gapless turned on)... on an fm3 turbo the reverb would add up quite a bit to that but I think there's enough headroom to run it at the highest quality.

Thank you, that helps a lot!

Honestly, the drive pedal is probably optional with the Amp block input boost (with the HX Stomp, if I don’t need a mid boost I’m mainly just automating the amp drive knob instead of a drive pedal lately), and I suppose when I’m using headphones (so the enhancer and Cab block room sim would be on) I could even turn the Reverb block quality down if I needed to.

That was the main thing that stopped me from ordering an FM3 last year and led to buying a Helix LT instead. The other was the lack of variable input impedance, unfortunately that’s not changing with a firmware update. But I still want to try fractal one of these days. Maybe next sale.

Yeah, sort of same boat on the reverb holding me back before. It was definitely a factor anyway.

The input impedance is less of one for me since I don’t use any built-in fuzzes or anything like that in the HX Stomp outside of the rangemaster (which I only use rarely). I’m luckily not looking for an all-in-one, so some of the trade-offs vs the Stomp matter less to me (especially as I’ve gotten away from dual amp setups)

 

[DLC86]

Thank you, that helps a lot!

Honestly, the drive pedal is probably optional with the Amp block input boost (with the HX Stomp, if I don’t need a mid boost I’m mainly just automating the amp drive knob instead of a drive pedal lately), and I suppose when I’m using headphones (so the enhancer and Cab block room sim would be on) I could even turn the Reverb block quality down if I needed to.

Yeah, if you just need a clean/mid boost there are various ways to achieve it without using a drive block (input boost, input EQ, input trim, GEQ or PEQ block, switching channels in the amp block, and so on).
Also, that was basically the worst case scenario, by reducing reverb quality and density you can save quite a bit of cpu without losing too much tone-wise.
With the reverb active you might even find the enhancer and/or room sim to be redundant, even on headphones.