Trying out the NDSP Quad Cortex
- Thread starter Jarick
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I can't wait until the new Neural-gate when people complain that the plug-ins inside the QC sound different than the standalone plugins that they are using with their dedicated audio interfaces. "the gain doesn't sound the same....."
I'd hope they'd avoid a repeat of the Soldano plug/QC Soldano gate.
la szum
Goatlord
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Pretty sure of just this one thing: that way too many words have been exhausted
and spent on the QC than it deserves (both pro and con). It has become a borderline
religious/political device/topic at this point.
That, in and of itself, is more than enough to have me walking forward and never
looking back.
Ok, a little looking back. Just enough to cover muh own ass.
From a Meta perspective I wonder why is it so divisive?
I don't seem to recall any other platform having such a divisive
presence in the Gear Realm. At least not to the extent of the QC.
and spent on the QC than it deserves (both pro and con). It has become a borderline
religious/political device/topic at this point.
That, in and of itself, is more than enough to have me walking forward and never
looking back.
Ok, a little looking back. Just enough to cover muh own ass.
From a Meta perspective I wonder why is it so divisive?
I don't seem to recall any other platform having such a divisive
presence in the Gear Realm. At least not to the extent of the QC.
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GTR37
Shredder
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Freidman , Cameron , Wizard, Fortin ,Larry ..............Pretty sure of just this one thing: that way too many words have been exhausted
and spent on the QC than it deserves (both pro and con). It has become a borderline
religious/political device/topic at this point.
That, in and of itself, is more than enough to have me walking forward and never
looking back.
Ok, a little looking back. Just enough to cover muh own ass.
From a Meta perspective I wonder why is it so divisive?
I don't seem to recall any other platform having such a divisive
presence in the Gear Realm. At least not to the extent of the QC.
There are lots of controversial and polarizing products ,NDSP is not the first and I am sure not the last
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laxu
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The ones I've tried sound good to me and function a lot like the modeled amps. The tones I've got out of them compare favorable to whatever NeuralDSP does so I don't really see a problem here.
I'm saying that the <= 99 € price point is important psychologically for people buying plugins. When the price is above that people start to consider their spending more.
Plugins suffer from the same issue that mobile apps do, namely they were initially too cheap, so someone selling one for a higher price is going to have buyers used to those cheap prices just bail. At least with plugins you don't have to perpetually update them to keep up with operating system changes.
MirrorProfiles
Shredder
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I can’t really say that’s been my experience - I’d liken it to a Kemper, where if the underlying character of the distortion is vaguely similar to the real amp, it can sound quite close and for something more complex it just sounds off and bad. The technique is actually quite similar to what a kemper is doing, albeit interpolating between all EQ settings on an amp. I’m guessing Audio Assault do something like this too. IMO it’s a quick and easy ham fisted way of making an amp sim - it allows for models to be made very quickly, and they can sound quite close. But it’s kind of crude and not on the same level as companies who are properly circuit modelling (and measuring) real amps. Compare how many models they have released (even in just the last 12 months) compared to a company like Mercuriall. I think they’re absolutely fine for €30-40 or so.
Yep, and that’s absolutely fine. The people who are only willing to pay bargain basement prices don’t want or care enough about each product (or how they’re made) to want to spend full price on them. They’d rather buy more products and have a taste of everything.
The same is true of audio plugins in general - ultimately there are still companies who are doing serious work based on lots of R&D, and are properly supporting and updating their plugins to be stable.
Annoyingly, because of macOS releasing new versions every year, there IS a requirement for developers to constantly update and support their software, and I don’t actually mind paying a bit extra if I can have the assurances that it’s going to work reliably (as opposed to becoming abandonware). Apple has pulled the rug many times in the past, and I’m sure they will continue to do so. Also, users of Pro Tools need aax versions which have their own hoops for developers to jump through.
I don’t really see the difference in price vs modelling approach to be much different with HW vs plugins, except that people generally expect to pay less for plugins (because there is more competition). People absolutely spend more on a Fractal device than they would Headrush or a plugin, because the modelling is better. It’s not just sounds better, or sounds close enough to each other.
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dronerstone
Roadie
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- 933
Legit points!
Please read the following with a grain of salt, or try and skip if you're prone to triggers and love your QC.
It's nothing but my personal opinion/point of view, keep that in mind!
Regarding divisive-ness, maybe because it entered an already well-established and saturated market with some bold-ass marketing claims that some fell for, while others saw through the BS.
I can only speak for myself, but it makes me f**k angry when naive folks buy snake oil, colloidal silver, Grander water, and similar...
Of course, the QC is a decent device, and the above comparison is absurdly exaggerated, but there's a lot of marketing "wizardry" surrounding it, some of which clearly overpromising when it comes to features, future updates, etc.
MirrorProfiles
Shredder
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(not sure if the above is aimed at me or generally) I don’t have a QC so I don’t have a dog in the fight either way. I just don’t think it’s that big of a deal - people can easily search online and see what’s going on and make their own decisions on whether it’s a suitable purchase for them or not.
Worst case someone buys something and ends up selling it - not like that doesn’t go on constantly with music gear anyway.
Basically every piece of equipment that is available for sale has bold claims. I can even think of TONS of gear that has ports for implementing updates that never even got used.
I’ve posted stuff before about Amplifube’s marketing claims (of which I am a customer), and that isn’t even promising things about future updates, it’s about existing tech that was used to sell the product at launch. And, even still, no one at IK is prepared to explain what those claims even mean. It’s just par for the course, it’s a competitive marketplace and (unfortunately) clamouring for attention is important. I can’t say I’m a fan of it, but I also don’t expect anything different. I’m pretty sure Slate Digital said new VMR modules would get added to their subscription every month, it never got remotely close to that.
If i’m going to piss my panties over gear, I’d rather complain about gear I do own, and either something (eventually) gets done about it, or it gets sold. The brand tribalism and chest puffing/smugness of some to me is just as bad as dumbass marketing waffle.
Anyway…did my first gig with it. It’s on a small board together with a Halo. Went into 1 side of a dual guitar gigbag. So..2 items to carry..gigbag and a small amp.
It was a very small room, so I took a fendersuperchampx2 which I had modded with a powerampinput, and I replaced the speaker with an alnico gold. It’s a great little unit to run a modeler straight into the powersection. Often used as one side of stereo setup next to a bigger unit.
Set up a quick preset, 1 lane with a dirty amp, a boost and a low-cut (neckpup sound), 1 lane with a clean amp and a compressor, 1 lane with general stuff, loop to halo, verb, and a solo boost. Hybrid setup, so 4 scenes available to toggle between clean/dirty, top row doing stomps like solo and gain boosts.
Offcourse the usual quirks with a new set up…level adjustments and an EQ tweak here and there…but it sounded very good, and very easy to adjust cause of the rotary knobs…and even more so..cause switching is done with scenes…you don’t have to save every change.
Switches are close together, but it’s fine. Price you pay for a small unit. I do miss functionality that you get “something different” on 2nd click of a selected scene or preset. Like bosses currentnum..or Kempers merge when selecting current pc. I hope that’s on the roadmap…(or already in there but missed my attention)
It was a very small room, so I took a fendersuperchampx2 which I had modded with a powerampinput, and I replaced the speaker with an alnico gold. It’s a great little unit to run a modeler straight into the powersection. Often used as one side of stereo setup next to a bigger unit.
Set up a quick preset, 1 lane with a dirty amp, a boost and a low-cut (neckpup sound), 1 lane with a clean amp and a compressor, 1 lane with general stuff, loop to halo, verb, and a solo boost. Hybrid setup, so 4 scenes available to toggle between clean/dirty, top row doing stomps like solo and gain boosts.
Offcourse the usual quirks with a new set up…level adjustments and an EQ tweak here and there…but it sounded very good, and very easy to adjust cause of the rotary knobs…and even more so..cause switching is done with scenes…you don’t have to save every change.
Switches are close together, but it’s fine. Price you pay for a small unit. I do miss functionality that you get “something different” on 2nd click of a selected scene or preset. Like bosses currentnum..or Kempers merge when selecting current pc. I hope that’s on the roadmap…(or already in there but missed my attention)
Mongillo19
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You wild man. Isn't in against nature to setup a preset before a show
TubeStack
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You wild man. Isn't in against nature to setup a preset before a show
(Maybe on a Fractal.
)What’s the alternative…make presets way before ..and actually stick to those and be happy with it?….don’t sound feasible to meYou wild man. Isn't in against nature to setup a preset before a show
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(Maybe on a Fractal.
Achilles
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Mongillo19
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I wasn't trying to start an argument. I was always under the impression people tended to dial in their patches (for any unit) during practice and then tweak as needed depending on the show/room you were playing in the moment.What’s the alternative…make presets way before ..and actually stick to those and be happy with it?….don’t sound feasible to me
Don't have to stick to said presets but I imagine having one you know sounds good in a loud environment lessens the chances for things to go wrong day of.
Making a preset right at the show without any idea how it sounds with your group (if in a band, no idea what you are doing) sounds less feasible to me
But I've never used a digital device live
Ah..I wasn’t serious …guess I need to start my comedian career in very small roomsI wasn't trying to start an argument. I was always under the impression people tended to dial in their patches (for any unit) during practice and then tweak as needed depending on the show/room you were playing in the moment.
Don't have to stick to said presets but I imagine having one you know sounds good in a loud environment lessens the chances for things to go wrong day of.
Making a preset right at the show without any idea how it sounds with your group (if in a band, no idea what you are doing) sounds less feasible to me
But I've never used a digital device live
I did make the preset in my studio…where I have reference of sounds I know work..so I always compare to those to prevent disaster
I almost never rehearse, unless for a tour (which happens every 3 years or so), and almost never play with the same people. I’m doing Jazz and/or blues/soul stuff with a large portion of improvisation in it. Call the guys / get called, make a list, play the hard parts during soundcheck…helmet on..and go for it
So..I got 1 set of sounds I use for everything, every preset with a high degree of tweakability with feet. Dry/wet under an expression pedal, low mid boost under a stomp for a more rootsy sound, low cut under a stomp to make gain sounds work for the neck pup, clean boost pre gain to get more gain out of existing presets, cleanboost after gainstages for solo boosts….and a generic volume pedal to adjust for “bandenthousiasme”. Same ingredients in all my rigs (kemper/analog/and now QC. Basically 3 core gain levels surrounded by the above. If I did coverbands…I’d use it for that also. Ime..the more presets I have, the higher the number of times I’m not happy after I click a button
Mongillo19
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That's totally fair! Who am I to question someone who actually gets out there and plays live!
Version 1 of a board with QC.
I was planning for 3 expression pedals..but decided on this for now cause the controller has voltage control which allows controlling the Halo..and with that delay levels per scene. (Assuming one can send CC per scene). Controller mostly configured to +/- volume and Halo level. One switch assigned to toggle between 2 lead sounds. Nice detail..the controller can be controlled wireless by small controllers you velcro to your guitar…not sure I’m gonna use that with the abundance of switches on the board. Mooer pedal does wahwah.
I’m gonna look for a smaller board for just the QC and the Halo probably…and put the rest on a satellite as an optional add on.
Now the hard part…deciding wether to sell kpa..or GT core…or both. Tough one…they both served me well…great units…but doesn’t make sense to keep them…rational…
I was planning for 3 expression pedals..but decided on this for now cause the controller has voltage control which allows controlling the Halo..and with that delay levels per scene. (Assuming one can send CC per scene). Controller mostly configured to +/- volume and Halo level. One switch assigned to toggle between 2 lead sounds. Nice detail..the controller can be controlled wireless by small controllers you velcro to your guitar…not sure I’m gonna use that with the abundance of switches on the board. Mooer pedal does wahwah.
I’m gonna look for a smaller board for just the QC and the Halo probably…and put the rest on a satellite as an optional add on.
Now the hard part…deciding wether to sell kpa..or GT core…or both. Tough one…they both served me well…great units…but doesn’t make sense to keep them…rational…
laxu
Rock Star
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Get one of the CME WIDI Jack boxes and plug that into the QC MIDI ports. Then use a USB powerbank for the M2. Fully wireless MIDI control!
