NDSP Quad Cortex

[Mongillo19]

Wait! Is the Kraken based on the Rockerverb?

No, the kraken is based on a jcm800/hot rod Marshall and a 5150.

 

[Whizzinby]

As long as all of the I/O remains intact, and there’s a significant savings vs Quad Cortex, could be a winner.

$999

 

[JiveTurkey]

No, the kraken is based on a jcm800/hot rod Marshall and a 5150.

Sounds like a great combo. $2400 and no presence knob is just

 

[laxu]

Sounds like a great combo. $2400 and no presence knob is just

The Kraken V2 has one...

In Finland it's only about $1666 including 24% VAT.

 

[JiveTurkey]

The Kraken V2 has one...

I remember looking at Victory stuff and there were no presence knobs? Am I inventing that or was it a V1 thing?

 

[GTR37]

Noise issues and poor wifi connection come to mind first as hardware issues that could be fixed.

They have kind of solved the wi fi with the editor you can now just use you computer
Is it ideal ? No but for most I think it will help

 

[laxu]

I remember looking at Victory stuff and there were no presence knobs? Am I inventing that or was it a V1 thing?

Yeah the V1 didn't have it for who knows why. I didn't like the Victory Kraken or Sheriff that much honestly. Would be interested in trying the Kraken V2 and Super Sheriff.

In hindsight I should have kept my Victory VC35. Loved how that thing sounded through an Alnico Gold. For a very close match, try the Axe-Fx AC-20 Deluxe 12AX7 Treble model but use the "Ideal" controls. With the VC35 mid boost enabled, the Matchless DC-30 was the closest model.

 

[laxu]

They have kind of solved the wi fi with the editor you can now just use you computer signal
Is it ideal ? No but for most I think it will help

So you are saying you would be doing QC -> USB -> computer -> WiFi -> Cortex Cloud for backups/content management?

 

[Jarick]

I have had minimal issues with WiFi on mine, and no ground/hum issues. I realized that may be luck of the draw. But I think mine was an earlier model.

The power supply is really cheesy for a $1600 unit. It's a cheap flimsy wall wart from a company called "Golden Profit". I tried last week to hook it up using my Voodoo Labs power supply but it didn't fully power on. That's a more robust supply and the specs are almost identical but it had something like 2A output instead of 3A and that didn't seem to be enough.

 

[GTR37]

That certainly seems pretty optimistic as a design, and would probably be hated for the cramped switches too.

Something more like the Hotone Ampero II Stomp might be possible with a larger touchscreen and 3 switches that act as encoders as well. That's still only slightly larger than the Boss GT-1000 Core or HX Stomp. About the same as a Strymon Bigsky or Volante, or half the QC if you rotate the pedal.

That would be a great product for NeuralDSP because it makes the entry to their ecosystem cheaper, which potentially leads to more people buying their plugins to expand the capabilities.

It's honestly weird how NeuralDSP has fumbled on business opportunities with their device. The Cortex Cloud is ripe for being a platform that sells professional captures and presets for a percentage cut like smartphone app stores, but it seems to be very quiet on that front.

Yes, that was just a mock up done by a customer
I just remember Doug commenting it was very cool and certainly in the future they would be looking at things like this
They had also trademarked several names before QC was even released “dual cortex” was one of those

Regarding the screen and number of encoders you are probably right , the easiest thing to do is re use the same screen from QC that they probably have a ton in stock
And if they are going after the HX Stomp , FM3 the 3 encoder option certainly places it in the same category
Basically like and Ampero mini w 3 switches or the Ampero stomp would make sense
I secretly would love if the had 5 or 6 switches like an Atomic but as you said space will make it cramped like the
Original QC

I am interested though , it has a lot more than the first time I had one , crap you could not even get auto engage on the wah .
Now there’s the editor , a bunch of improvements more amps fx , and the plug compatibility coming this June/July

 

[GTR37]

So you are saying you would be doing QC -> USB -> computer -> WiFi -> Cortex Cloud for backups/content management?

Yeah , I would just leave it hard wired in my music room if I am recording anyway

 

[GTR37]

$999

I like it but where is your main volume ? On the back
That design is fine though 3 buttons and a bank up / bank down - hold for tuner
And paint it black
It shows up the leds way better IMO

 

[Lysander]

I like it but where is your main volume ? On the back

Works just fine for the Stomp XL!

 

[GTR37]

Works just fine for the Stomp XL!

True , and if they are using any design as a blue print

 

[Jarick]

I'm not sure how will the UI would translate if they shrank the screen. It works great now but the screen is almost as big as an HX Stomp by itself.

 

[Aleksi]

They have kind of solved the wi fi with the editor you can now just use you computer
Is it ideal ? No but for most I think it will help

That's a fairly recent workaround. I had to use my phone hotspot and have it right next to the QC whenever I wanted to download updates or make a backup or anything that requires the internet. Even though my router was at most a meter away. It was also really noisy compared to the FM3 that replaced it.

 

[laxu]

I'm not sure how will the UI would translate if they shrank the screen. It works great now but the screen is almost as big as an HX Stomp by itself.

I'd say there's leeway for making it smaller without making touch targets too small.

They could shrink the block knobs section to not have virtual knobs but just value and scale like Helix. That would save a lot of screen space, and not having 4 paths should too. Selecting fx would mean more scrolling and there would be more pages depending on how many controls there are.

 

[GTR37]

I'm not sure how will the UI would translate if they shrank the screen. It works great now but the screen is almost as big as an HX Stomp by itself.

I think it depends if they are only going for one signal chain they could shrink it a bit
That said they already have their screen design down so retooling and reordering different size touch screens is going to be most costly for than repackaging the current model I think reducing

The amount of encoders
Reducing the I/O especially if it does not need to capture
Would probably shrink it and allow them to use the same screen

 

[Whizzinby]

They have kind of solved the wi fi with the editor you can now just use you computer
Is it ideal ? No but for most I think it will help

The fix for wifi is hard wiring it?

 

[Lysander]

The fix for wifi is hard wiring it?