NDSP Quad Cortex

[Mongillo19]

Im being serious when I say I'm surprised there hasn't at least been an "update" recently. They were pretty good doing a monthly one even if there was nothing to report on. Going on 2 months now

 

[Mikael Dez]

Im being serious when I say I'm surprised there hasn't at least been an "update" recently. They were pretty good doing a monthly one even if there was nothing to report on. Going on 2 months now

It is strange, and that update in March felt like "ok guys it's been 4 months, here's a crumb". It makes me ignorantly hopeful that when they come back with something it'll be bigger than what was expected. I know I'll be disappointed. I think they're afraid to make any sort of timeline promise given their history.

 

[Mongillo19]

It is strange, and that update in March felt like "ok guys it's been 4 months, here's a crumb". It makes me ignorantly hopeful that when they come back with something it'll be bigger than what was expected. I know I'll be disappointed. I think they're afraid to make any sort of timeline promise given their history.

Yeah that's the only way they can pull it back but I'm skeptical.

I would think they would have alluded to such in last months update (if there was one). It would have potentially taken the heat off them a little.

At this point, you know what you are getting with NDSP and the QC but that doesn't mean it isn't disappointing

 

[mikah912]

It is strange, and that update in March felt like "ok guys it's been 4 months, here's a crumb". It makes me ignorantly hopeful that when they come back with something it'll be bigger than what was expected. I know I'll be disappointed. I think they're afraid to make any sort of timeline promise given their history.

Well, here's the thing: If you don't want to "timeline promise", maybe don't publish a public Wiki page with what PCOM releases are coming for each of the next three firmwares?!?

Hell, at that point, just go ahead and share your dev team's roadmap as an update. This is all pie in the sky, anyway, right?

 

[Los-D]

There’s a roadmap?

 

[mikah912]

There’s a roadmap?

Best I can divine about their developmental priorities (in order of importance to NDSP):

1. "X'-ize the 10 remaining plugins on the old architecture. Get hype videos and new presets ready to make people care.
2. PCOM those and the 6 remaining X plugins not converted. Going by the current rate of 6-7 months for every two converted, well......best not to think about it.
3. Port QC features to Nano Cortex.
4. .................

I'm sure they'd love to sprinkle some new plugins to help the ole' coffers out too, but they're obviously stretched thin development-wise.

As a QC owner, you gotta be good with the unit as it is now+cloud captures, paywalled DLC or just crumbs 1-2 times a year.

 

[Mikael Dez]

Well, here's the thing: If you don't want to "timeline promise", maybe don't publish a public Wiki page with what PCOM releases are coming for each of the next three firmwares?!?

Hell, at that point, just go ahead and share your dev team's roadmap as an update. This is all pie in the sky, anyway, right?

I agree with you - I may love my QC but that doesn't mean I agree with their business practices. That being said I really don't have a loyalty to any digital brand out there - the next modeler I get may just be FAS if it's the right form factor for me.

 

[GTR37]

Based on what they just did for Nano I might be optimistic but I think they might release a massive update For QC in the next month or 2

 

[Mikael Dez]

Based on what they just did for Nano I might be optimistic but I think they might release a massive update For QC in the next month or 2

The only reason I don't think they will is the timing would be shit - AFTER they have their anniversary sale. Unless they were really trying to make that cut but couldn't release it on time.

 

[Mongillo19]

Based on what they just did for Nano I might be optimistic but I think they might release a massive update For QC in the next month or 2

Yeah but the thing with the NC update, while awesome, it didn't add anything the QC doesn't have. It's not like the reinvented the wheel. I imagine they used a good chunk of resources they already had for the QC devices

 

[mikah912]

Based on what they just did for Nano I might be optimistic but I think they might release a massive update For QC in the next month or 2

Really? You haven't noticed that almost all of their firmware development has been converting existing models from QC to NC and from plugin to QC? The last original amp model from last November was a variant of an amp they already had (deluxe Reverb). We're approaching two years since they had a substantive update with lots of original content (CorOS 2.1 in August of 2023).

And even all of that conversion has been far from timely or efficient.

 

[DrewJD82]

Last friday I had a gig in a medium auditorium (600 audience or so). I´m just posting to share some thoughts.

My buddy (lead guitar) used his Quad Cortex. I used my Nano Cortex. Both direct to PA and monitored through wedges provided by the venue.

It was Ok. Perfectly fine. BUT:

- He has some trebly presets (because it´s mandatory for the sounds he needs, since We´re a tribute band and the original sound is that way). With those presets, ""FRFR"" monitor always struggle in the high frequencies, were tweeters start to make strange things... it´s like them resonating or squealing or feedbacking in a way a 12" speaker never does. With IEMS he doesn´t have the problem, so the QC is not guilty, but ""FRFR"" monitors.

- Even when everything was OK, it´s just not the same feeling as having a guitar cab behind you. The tone is there... I wouldn´t dare to say anyone that I´m able to notice sound differences. I most surely don´t. But there´s something that I just dig more with a traditional cab. Same old discussion, I know. Just wanted to share that gig experience.

This is exactly why I still lug cabs around. They don’t even need to be cranked, they just need to shoot some sound at the back of my legs enough for me to know it’s there and I’m a happy camper.

 

[mbenigni]

Best I can divine about their developmental priorities (in order of importance to NDSP):

1. "X'-ize the 10 remaining plugins on the old architecture. Get hype videos and new presets ready to make people care.
2. PCOM those and the 6 remaining X plugins not converted. Going by the current rate of 6-7 months for every two converted, well......best not to think about it.
3. Port QC features to Nano Cortex.
4. .................

I'm sure they'd love to sprinkle some new plugins to help the ole' coffers out too, but they're obviously stretched thin development-wise.

As a QC owner, you gotta be good with the unit as it is now+cloud captures, paywalled DLC or just crumbs 1-2 times a year.

Agree, except for that point about how “they’d love to sprinkle some new plugins but…” Giving plugins top priority because they generate revenue is exactly the path NDSP takes 9x out of 10, even when they’ve got unfulfilled promises to QC owners hanging over their heads.

 

[mikah912]

Agree, except for that point about how “they’d love to sprinkle some new plugins but…” Giving plugins top priority because they generate revenue is exactly the path NDSP takes 9x out of 10, even when they’ve got unfulfilled promises to QC owners hanging over their heads.

Oh, I know they always err on the side of revenue streams. I just haven't seen a new plugin from them for quite awhile.

Morgan Amps suite was the last in Christmas of 2023. That's right around the time that QC development started to slow to a crawl too. 2024 was basically a firmware gap year, and 2025 has been sparse too.

So, Occam's Razor suggests that if a company known for milking their customers goes that long without any additional revenue streams - Nano Cortex release excepted - it's not because they wanted to. They seem to genuinely lack development bandwidth, so they're robbing Peter to pay Paul, so to speak.

 

[laxu]

Oh, I know they always err on the side of revenue streams. I just haven't seen a new plugin from them for quite awhile.

Morgan Amps suite was the last in Christmas of 2023. That's right around the time that QC development started to slow to a crawl too. 2024 was basically a firmware gap year, and 2025 has been sparse too.

So, Occam's Razor suggests that if a company known for milking their customers goes that long without any additional revenue streams - Nano Cortex release excepted - it's not because they wanted to. They seem to genuinely lack development bandwidth, so they're robbing Peter to pay Paul, so to speak.

They might also see that the amp sim plugin market is pretty saturated as is. Updating their existing plugins can bring new interest for those.

I feel like we had a several year period where a lot of companies were putting out amp sim plugins, and now the only one doing that is UA - and most likely because they can just write a user interface for their UAFX code.

You'd think that NDSP would pick up velocity with each plugin converted as they figure out the process to do it and can mostly copy-paste code.

 

[MirrorProfiles]

UA are far from the only company putting out amp sims in 2025. Nembrini seem to be as consistent as ever, Mixwave are growing and growing, Aurora DSP have released several, Mercuriall have released a few recently too (maybe their fastest set of releases?), Bogren Digital have several amp sims products out too. STL release new amp sims almost every month, as well as their official colabs with Wes Borland/J Middleton etc.

A few years ago NDSP were releasing things way more regularly and Line 6 had recently released Metallurgy. Metallurgy turned out to be complete abandonware almost from the get go. Amplitube 5 is quite long in the tooth and it’s hard to know when v6 will come when ToneX is doing so well for them. Perhaps with these companies doing less it just feels that way?

I think for users it feels less exciting right now because there is so much overlap, and any one can basically find a model of any amp they like. UA have the means to sell and market in a way most companies can’t, which is why they’re able to release the same amp models everyone has already. I’m sure all the plugins have been ready to go for some time, but they feel like they can sell more by releasing HW first and then trickling the plugins later on.

 

[mbenigni]

Morgan Amps suite was the last in Christmas of 2023. That's right around the time that QC development started to slow to a crawl too.

I guess you're right. My impressions were skewed because every time I get an email from them, and it's to do with plugins as opposed to QC firmware, I feel that millisecond of dopamine drip, then get mildly annoyed. But now that I think about it, most (all?) of those recent emails concerning plugin development were about "X" updates, not new amps or artists.