Yeah, once you start using two reverb blocks, and all the channels in each block, it's not THAT hard to the current generation stuff breathing a little hard. Even without getting wild with number of blocks. BUT, its also not that hard to be a liiiiiiittle intelligent about the way you build presets and never have to worry about it, too.
At this point, I've got my Fractal stuff dialed in to the point that its going to have to take one helluva firmware update to get me to bother...so new hardware that I'd have to shell money out for and learn from scratch is even less enticing.
When I first started down the "not-your-POD2.0" modeler route -- Atomic A3 ->Helix LT -> Atomic Firebox w/ pedals -> Kemper -> Amps -> HX Stomp -> Ax8 -> FM3 -> Helix Rack -> Axe Fx III (Jesus help me) I was having at least as much fun playing WITH the devices as I was playing through them. At this point, I'm ALL tapped out on having fun playing with the devices just to have fun playing with them and seeing what kind of rigs can be built/sounds can be created.
The III over the FM3 was mostly about making sure I was getting all the firmware updates as fast as possible; having two reverb blocks; and having the most stable of the Fractal platforms. If I find myself needing to buy into a new Fractal platform...I'd be VERY surprised if the flagship made sense anymore given where prices are headed. They are likely to be in a range that makes "fuck it, just get the best and have a blast" a lot harder -- there's a lot more caution getting thrown into the wind when the rack unit itself is likely $2500 or northwards.
