00:00:00
what is the best ant modeler in 2024 why
00:00:03
does anyone care about this does Cory
00:00:05
Taylor have an opinion if you're a gear
00:00:08
nerd like me and well of course you are
00:00:10
look at you then this is a topic we
00:00:11
could get into lengthy discussions on
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considering all the variables and
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weighing all of the pros and cons
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reducing every specification down to its
00:00:18
most objectively measurable values
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pouring over Market data and side
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questing into shipping opinions and
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poorly worded and misinformed global
00:00:24
economic news that's definitely true
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because it's on Reddit that's not what
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I'm going to do here I'm going to as as
00:00:30
briefly as humanly possible mention all
00:00:31
of the modelers I own their pros and
00:00:33
cons as it relates to the family of
00:00:35
modelers they come from since each of
00:00:36
these variations have pros and cons of
00:00:38
their own there are six macdaddy
00:00:40
modelers each have various bastardized
00:00:42
children I personally own six of these
00:00:43
modelers some are bastards I'm going to
00:00:45
go through each in a very superficial
00:00:47
way tell you what is objectively good
00:00:49
what is objectively bad and my personal
00:00:50
main praises and gripes with each of
00:00:52
them but first there's one gripe that I
00:00:54
have with most of them they all have
00:00:55
different power sources some have these
00:00:57
IEC cables which are fine I have those
00:00:59
for a lot of things like amplifiers and
00:01:00
Studio Hardware monitors and whatnot
00:01:02
these are great but a lot of devices
00:01:04
presumably to Safe production cost have
00:01:06
power supplies that go on the outside
00:01:07
like an nendo have we learned nothing
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since Nintendo these [ __ ] things
00:01:12
should be banned as a result I have lost
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the power supply to my quad cortex which
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sucks because it's one of those very
00:01:17
specific power supplies but luckily
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today's sponsor was able to come through
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for me and make today's video happen
00:01:23
chocks makes various power supply
00:01:24
solutions for various rigs they have the
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dc7 the 8 expander and the four expander
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and the new New Soul which will be the
00:01:31
one we'll be using in this video with
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the chocks power supplies you can change
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the voltage for each output individually
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and even daisy chain outputs together to
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achieve a higher amperage the unit is
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powered by a standard IEC cable which is
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super convenient and each of the power
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leads uses these RCA style cables
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because they last longer and are more
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tough and have a better mechanical
00:01:47
connection than the standard DC cables
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with a little pin in the middle which I
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think is a cool feature speaking of
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tough these units are built really well
00:01:54
they come in a full metal housing and
00:01:55
feel like they are truly roadworthy each
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power output is isolated and balanced
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and includes LED monitoring meaning the
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LED for the output will turn on and off
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or blink in certain patterns to let you
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know what's going on with your power if
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there's ever an issue every output
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offers 660 milliamps of power and is
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switchable between 9 12 15 and 18 volts
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and all units have an ultra low noise
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output due to their multi-stage
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filtering all units also come with a
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5-year worldwide warranty and with the
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power supply I'm using in today's video
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the so all of this is packed into this
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little Sleek 1-in profile so thank you
00:02:26
to Sweetwater and chocks for sponsoring
00:02:28
this video save yourself a bass full of
00:02:30
unlabeled Tangled cable nonsense and get
00:02:32
one power supply to rule them all use
00:02:34
the link down in the description help
00:02:35
out the channel
00:02:40
groovy this is the quad cortex it is one
00:02:42
of if not the sleekest looking on this
00:02:44
list the quad cortex is very easy to use
00:02:47
with its simplistic design and
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touchscreen interface everything is very
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easy to read and navigate it's also
00:02:51
incredibly intuitive if you're used to
00:02:52
using basic computer operating systems
00:02:54
like Windows or somoma or whatever name
00:02:57
apple is using right now however on the
00:02:58
negative side despite their updates the
00:03:00
company has been slowed to roll out
00:03:01
promised launch features what I
00:03:03
personally like with the quad cortex is
00:03:04
the form factor and the operating system
00:03:06
it's easily my favorite modeler to
00:03:08
navigate and if e of us is a high
00:03:10
priority for you then by all means but
00:03:12
my gripe is that I bought mine at launch
00:03:13
and I'm just now getting to use the
00:03:15
plugins on this unit and I'll take full
00:03:17
responsibility for this one but when I
00:03:18
heard plug-in compatible I kind of
00:03:20
thought that with the beautiful full
00:03:21
color touch display they were going to
00:03:23
use the same Graphics from their apps
00:03:25
which are in my opinion god tier also
00:03:27
when I got it there wasn't much on it
00:03:29
besides the ability to use the capture
00:03:30
feature and a very anemic effect
00:03:32
selection and sharing captures was sort
00:03:34
of centralized through their own social
00:03:35
media Network it's just not at all what
00:03:37
I thought it was going to be when I
00:03:38
pre-ordered it and as such it is
00:03:40
literally sat in the corner collecting
00:03:42
dust until the 3.0 update and this video
00:03:59
[Music]
00:04:02
the quad cortex sounds really all of
00:04:04
these modelers sound really good sound
00:04:06
isn't really an issue for me I think
00:04:07
they all sound great if you know what
00:04:08
you're doing and you know your way
00:04:09
around them which is a big part of what
00:04:10
differentiates all of the units for me
00:04:12
so with the quad cortex here this is
00:04:13
really user inuitive I mean you could
00:04:15
just like click here oh we're going to
00:04:16
add something uh let's add a Reverb and
00:04:19
then we have a good amount of reverbs on
00:04:21
here look at this look look at all the
00:04:22
reverbs we have I like the Shimmer
00:04:24
Reverb
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myself you know I think it sounds good
00:04:32
it's nice it's a good one there are tons
00:04:34
of different effects in this unit as
00:04:35
well and on top of all of this stuff
00:04:38
that you have with the quad cortex you
00:04:39
can also capture analog gear so if you
00:04:42
have an amplifier that you really like
00:04:43
for example um you can actually capture
00:04:45
it with this piece of gear we also have
00:04:47
Wi-Fi with this which is outwardly maybe
00:04:50
not the most impressive thing but in
00:04:52
it's like actual Everyday Use it's
00:04:53
really awesome because you can just
00:04:54
connect to your account uh over Wi-Fi
00:04:56
you can you know download patches you
00:04:58
can update Wi-Fi if you want to it is
00:05:01
really nice to not have to go drag this
00:05:02
thing over to a computer plug it in and
00:05:04
then update it that way you know just to
00:05:06
be able to do it all within the unit
00:05:08
it's a really really big feature I feel
00:05:10
like it's one of the things that I
00:05:10
really like about it on the flip side on
00:05:12
the con side of this I I know this
00:05:14
sounds stupid but like I don't want to
00:05:16
put this on the floor and step on it you
00:05:17
it's almost too nice for that it has
00:05:18
this very nice Apple esque Housing it
00:05:21
all looks and feels very I just feel
00:05:23
like I'm going to ruin it if I step on
00:05:24
it and I know that it's built to be used
00:05:26
on stage is probably fine you can buy
00:05:28
covers for them or whatever but you know
00:05:30
it's like a little thing a little thing
00:05:31
that I think about sometimes the other
00:05:32
thing with the quad cortex and something
00:05:34
that's maybe not even that big of a deal
00:05:35
anymore now that they have the update
00:05:36
3.0 which you can use the plugins in is
00:05:40
uh when it released it just it felt kind
00:05:41
of empty it felt like they promised a
00:05:43
lot and there wasn't really a lot there
00:05:45
and although they have been updating
00:05:46
that it's been several years you know
00:05:48
it's taken to get these updates so if
00:05:49
you were looking to get one now I'd say
00:05:51
you're in a much better situation it's a
00:05:54
much better value proposition in 2024
00:05:56
than it was in 2021 or whenever it came
00:05:59
came out I think there was so much hype
00:06:00
when it released that many of us thought
00:06:02
they would just take the same route as
00:06:03
the keer which is much more open in its
00:06:05
rig sharing and selling ability but they
00:06:07
didn't really do that and everything is
00:06:08
sort of locked down through their own
00:06:10
centralized database there are ways
00:06:12
around this if you want to sell captures
00:06:13
but it's definitely more of a hassle I
00:06:15
also feel like there's this Pleasant
00:06:16
Sheen over everything and this is
00:06:18
tinfoil hat territory but I always feel
00:06:20
like my captures just sounded way more
00:06:21
polished than the actual amplifiers I
00:06:23
was capturing and you might be asking
00:06:24
yourself why is that a bad thing it's
00:06:26
not a bad thing at all what's a bad
00:06:27
thing is me wasting a bunch of time
00:06:29
trying to figure out how to describe
00:06:30
something that might be my own
00:06:31
delusional paranoia so quad cortex sexy
00:06:35
and expensive just like your
00:06:39
mom I'm putting the headrush Prime
00:06:41
second on this list because if I didn't
00:06:42
how the would you even know this thing
00:06:44
existed they had a big launch and then
00:06:45
it doesn't seem like much happened after
00:06:47
that maybe I'm just ignorant and there's
00:06:48
a whole community of headrush people
00:06:49
with their millions of views on their
00:06:51
videos hold on let's do our due
00:06:54
diligence okay this is actually pretty
00:06:56
decent it seems like people are
00:06:58
interested in this I think this is of
00:06:59
the Dark Horse in this race personally
00:07:01
the headrush Prime is a completely
00:07:02
competent and enjoyable unit I remember
00:07:04
saying that I really enjoyed headrush
00:07:06
Prime's clones their version of captures
00:07:08
and having people mockingly laughing at
00:07:09
me because I said that I think it was
00:07:11
the best out of all of the units on this
00:07:12
list that do that we all know who those
00:07:14
people are they're line six PE this is
00:07:15
the headrush Prime core this is my
00:07:18
favorite iteration of the headrush Prime
00:07:20
family of products and I like it because
00:07:23
it's more compact than the headrush
00:07:25
Prime Flagship unit which is just way
00:07:27
too big and heavy uh for me person
00:07:29
personally uh we are using an amp clone
00:07:33
which is another one of the cool things
00:07:34
about this unit it has that capturing
00:07:36
cloning you know amp replicating
00:07:39
technology this is a clone I made of my
00:07:41
vht Deliverance 12 you can get this on
00:07:43
their
00:07:47
[Music]
00:07:52
website where they are strong is there a
00:07:54
jack of all trades easy to use fully
00:07:56
featured and they do everything pretty
00:07:58
well the biggest con is they don't have
00:08:00
an editing application like what are we
00:08:02
doing here you have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
00:08:04
but no app it's a very odd Choice since
00:08:06
that's just the industry standard but
00:08:08
Head Rush wants to die on that Hill for
00:08:09
some reason so just so we're all on the
00:08:11
same page this is a pedal form factor
00:08:13
and if you want to use it you have to
00:08:14
lean down like this no one likes that no
00:08:16
one likes doing this your only other
00:08:18
choice is to put this up on your desk
00:08:20
and God forbid you go with the full-size
00:08:21
Flagship unit which is just massive I
00:08:23
don't know it's just a really odd choice
00:08:25
I made a video a while back about how I
00:08:27
think that this is really underrated
00:08:29
piece of gear because I don't see a lot
00:08:31
of people talking about it in the same
00:08:32
way that I see a lot of people talking
00:08:34
about the quad cortex or the fender tone
00:08:35
Master Pro or whatever this is a very
00:08:38
very capable unit and this might have
00:08:40
the best value proposition out of any of
00:08:42
them what I mean by that is the headrush
00:08:44
Prime core comes in at
00:08:45
$699 it's $700 it comes in at $700 for
00:08:49
that $700 it might have the most flushed
00:08:51
out feature set meaning that you can use
00:08:54
this unit not a piece of software or
00:08:57
something else you can use this ual unit
00:09:00
to capture clone is their terminology
00:09:02
clone amplifiers it has a ton of
00:09:04
different effects ton of different
00:09:05
routing options they did just released
00:09:07
an update for this and add a few new
00:09:09
pedals to it I have not updated it yet
00:09:10
but it shows that they're actually
00:09:12
supporting their product and this also
00:09:13
has a touchscreen user interface it also
00:09:15
has the more graphic looking icons on
00:09:18
here but you can switch these if you
00:09:19
wanted to to classic mode if you want
00:09:21
the more contrasty basic sort of look we
00:09:24
have Wi-Fi connectivity with the
00:09:25
headrush Prime for doing updates and
00:09:26
stuff like that the only thing the
00:09:28
headrush Prime of stuff doesn't have is
00:09:30
an editor it's the weirdest thing ever
00:09:32
like make an editor headrush everything
00:09:34
except the kitchen sink or in this case
00:09:36
an editor next up is
00:09:40
the line six is sort of the Honda of amp
00:09:43
modelers what I mean by that is they are
00:09:44
reliable they also have a size for every
00:09:46
scenario and a price for every budget so
00:09:48
much so that it can actually be a little
00:09:49
maddening if you were just trying to buy
00:09:51
something from them like which HX thing
00:09:53
do you want the one with more buttons or
00:09:54
less how about a pod go that's different
00:09:57
slightly their Flagship Helix and all of
00:09:58
its children cousins and in-laws have
00:10:01
received regular updates since the first
00:10:02
unit was launched in 2015 spanning
00:10:04
nearly a decade of killer ampt modeling
00:10:06
and effects but as such it's starting to
00:10:08
show its age it doesn't have many of the
00:10:10
features that current modelers have like
00:10:11
capturing or cloning or whatever but it
00:10:13
does have a massive selection of amps
00:10:15
and effects and even by today's
00:10:16
standards it still sounds great
00:10:19
[Music]
00:10:23
[Applause]
00:10:31
[Music]
00:10:33
this is the HX stomp XL this is one of
00:10:36
the oldest units on this list and I
00:10:38
think it's aged very very well in fact
00:10:41
I'm always really surprised when I plug
00:10:43
this in that it still sounds as good as
00:10:44
it does at being nearly 10 years old at
00:10:47
this point you know it's received
00:10:49
several updates over its lifespan it's
00:10:51
received a lot of really cool stuff in
00:10:53
those updates new amplifiers new effects
00:10:56
uh all sorts of things now when it comes
00:10:57
to these smaller units they are pretty
00:10:59
Limited in their processing power you
00:11:01
cannot get a lot of effects in this
00:11:03
change and that is certainly true of the
00:11:05
Pod go which is even a little bit more
00:11:07
limited than this as well but if you
00:11:09
were looking at like a helix or Helix LT
00:11:11
something like that you can get a lot
00:11:13
more effects in that signal train it's
00:11:15
just something to consider oh and if
00:11:16
you're a fan of rev amplifiers they
00:11:18
actually have licensed rev models in
00:11:19
here so that's pretty cool that's what
00:11:20
we were actually just playing through
00:11:22
let's go into the Reverb let's go with
00:11:23
something like this Dynamic Bloom it's
00:11:25
one of the newer ones that they added in
00:11:34
I know the operating system is usually
00:11:35
praised but it's another area where I
00:11:37
feel like line six is showing its age it
00:11:39
makes me wonder if line six will release
00:11:40
something new soon and if it will have a
00:11:41
touchcreen and be similar to the quad
00:11:43
cortex since let's be honest they
00:11:44
basically copied line six's homework on
00:11:46
the user interface you realize what
00:11:48
would happen if I hand in my homework
00:11:50
and your handwriting I'll get kicked out
00:11:52
of school you wouldn't want that to
00:11:54
happen would
00:11:57
you would you well now of course
00:12:00
this used to be the most userfriendly
00:12:01
interface on the market but now that all
00:12:03
of these units have started using
00:12:05
touchscreens culturally were're more
00:12:07
familiarized with touchscreen operating
00:12:09
systems and things like that I feel like
00:12:10
the newer units are a bit ahead on that
00:12:13
Mark but I want to shoehorn in this
00:12:15
extra little thing because I think it's
00:12:16
really important I believe they were the
00:12:17
first to cross the plug-in slh Hardware
00:12:20
boundary with the Helix native software
00:12:22
this is something that only they do on
00:12:23
this list unless you count the two
00:12:24
plugins the quad cortex currently has
00:12:26
but that's not really the same thing
00:12:28
essentially with hel native you could
00:12:29
completely recreate your patches in the
00:12:31
software so that your Hardware would
00:12:32
mirror the software and vice versa you
00:12:34
can have your tones out there and in
00:12:37
here so the Helix still holding strong
00:12:39
after all these years just like your
00:12:42
mom this is not only the unit but the
00:12:44
brand I have the least familiarity with
00:12:46
so it's a lot harder for me to be
00:12:48
objective here but I'll just explain my
00:12:49
experience thus far I think the keer
00:12:51
ecosystem or maybe the community if you
00:12:53
want to look at it that way is the
00:12:54
coolest what I mean by that is the fact
00:12:56
that this unit's premise is to build
00:12:57
guitar rigs that you can share with
00:12:59
other people or God forbid sell and try
00:13:02
to make back a little bit of the money
00:13:03
that you spent on the unit you can do
00:13:15
that now this is the unit that I have
00:13:17
the least familiarity with so I went to
00:13:20
my friend who is very familiar with all
00:13:22
things keer uh and that is what you're
00:13:24
hearing right now you are hearing amp
00:13:25
Guru profiles this is a wizard I think
00:13:29
[Applause]
00:13:29
[Music]
00:13:35
I said this with the Helix as well this
00:13:37
is actually the oldest technology I
00:13:39
guess because the technology in this
00:13:41
hasn't really Advanced since the keber
00:13:43
toaster or the rack units you know from
00:13:45
15 years ago or whenever they came out
00:13:47
this technolog is pretty much the same
00:13:49
and it sounds very good like it's aged
00:13:51
very well I like the feel of the unit
00:13:54
everything is very nice Everything feels
00:13:56
very high quality and this comes in at
00:13:58
$700 when you stack this up against
00:14:00
something like the headrush Prime core
00:14:01
you get a lot more features and value
00:14:04
for that money however you're into like
00:14:06
the keer profile and that ecosystem
00:14:08
which is very open like you can just buy
00:14:11
profiles it's been around a long time
00:14:12
it's
00:14:15
uh it's paid its dues now with the keer
00:14:17
profiler player one of the things that
00:14:19
people complain about is that there
00:14:20
isn't as many effects and there's not as
00:14:22
many blocks on every signal chain as
00:14:25
there is on the keer and since I'm not
00:14:26
familiar with that I can't really speak
00:14:27
to it but I can tell you it is in in
00:14:29
effects compared to everything else we
00:14:31
we have four reverbs you know uh we have
00:14:33
three delays and they're all very basic
00:14:36
sort of stuff we have um transpose tool
00:14:40
here that doesn't mean the effects sound
00:14:42
bad that just means that there aren't
00:14:43
that many of them to choose
00:14:54
from again if you're a keer user you're
00:14:56
looking for something way more
00:14:57
convenient to travel around with if you
00:14:59
have your profiles that you like this
00:15:01
might be a good option for you in a way
00:15:02
it feels kind of Open Source but it
00:15:04
still has all of the benefits of a major
00:15:05
amp modeling company it receives regular
00:15:07
updates and the people that stay up to
00:15:09
date with them seem totally satisfied
00:15:11
the keer player experience specifically
00:15:13
was nice because I appreciate that this
00:15:15
takes up very little space it makes it
00:15:16
very easy for me to get in and out when
00:15:18
I want to use it on a whim I also like
00:15:20
the finish and the feel of the unit this
00:15:21
and the quad cortex in my opinion are
00:15:23
kind of tied on their feel and how much
00:15:24
enjoyment I get when tweaking knobs on
00:15:26
them I also really appreciate that this
00:15:28
has modern connectivity and I can get
00:15:29
even more control with an app it's a
00:15:31
really clever way to hide the tech and
00:15:32
give a pedal which is more analog
00:15:34
feeling which is something that I really
00:15:36
really like the only downside to me with
00:15:38
this unit is I think the user interface
00:15:39
and even just the way the rigs are built
00:15:41
is really dated and despite the
00:15:43
modernization through the app I still
00:15:45
don't find the navigation or rig
00:15:46
building intuitive or easy and I'm going
00:15:47
to chalk that up to that's the one I'm
00:15:49
the least familiar with and all of the
00:15:50
more current units have sort of
00:15:52
established and agreed upon way of
00:15:53
building signal chains with the keer
00:15:55
it's just a little bit different and I
00:15:56
had to read the manual and do a couple
00:15:57
YouTube searches for things because got
00:15:59
stuck also the keer player comes in at
00:16:00
$700 which is cool but that price also
00:16:03
comes with the inability to create
00:16:04
profiles so in a way it feels like a
00:16:06
compromise you are making and not as
00:16:08
much of a smaller more affordable way to
00:16:09
get into the ecosystem people speculate
00:16:11
they may update that but as of right now
00:16:13
that's where it is temper it feels like
00:16:15
driving a very old and very expensive
00:16:17
car that your grandfather garaged during
00:16:19
the war next on the list is
00:16:22
the how do you even talk about the Axe
00:16:24
effects or fractal for that matter
00:16:26
without sounding overly pretentious I've
00:16:27
caught myself explaining my my live
00:16:29
signal chain to people only to realize
00:16:30
their eyes glaze over into the back of
00:16:32
their heads when I start talking about
00:16:33
splitting the output signals so that I
00:16:35
have IRS to the front of house while
00:16:36
being able to use onstage cabinets for
00:16:38
all three instruments yes I use it for
00:16:41
all three of them live to both go to
00:16:42
front of house with my impulse responses
00:16:44
and direct for my Solid State power amp
00:16:45
and 4x12 cabinet because I'm that person
00:16:48
who still can't live without pissing off
00:16:49
the sound Guy this is the fractal XX 3
00:16:52
it needs no introduction this has been a
00:16:55
staple of the amp modeling world for a
00:16:57
long time not the XX 3 but you know
00:16:59
fractal audio and they act you know what
00:17:01
I'm talking about it'd probably be
00:17:02
better if I just start dialing things in
00:17:03
here and showing you kind of my main
00:17:05
gripe with this unit and most people may
00:17:07
gripe with this unit this is your signal
00:17:09
chain and every block in your signal
00:17:11
chain from the input all the way to the
00:17:13
output has to have something in it in
00:17:15
order for you to get your signal from
00:17:17
the input to the output so use these
00:17:19
things called shunts a shunt is just a
00:17:21
basic line why it doesn't just do that
00:17:23
by default I I don't know I guess it's
00:17:25
like for routing purposes that's one of
00:17:27
the main advantages of this unit is how
00:17:29
kind of in-depth the routing
00:17:34
is now we do have a crazy amount of
00:17:36
controls here uh we have like all sorts
00:17:38
of filtering EQ there's a boost option
00:17:41
in the amp block so you don't need to
00:17:42
take an extra block to use a boost this
00:17:44
one is the uh 808 modded boost you can
00:17:47
see it's on there we can do all sorts of
00:17:48
different saturation Drive saturation
00:17:50
switch we can change our preamp tubes
00:17:52
down here if we want change different
00:17:54
parameters with the preamp tubes like
00:17:55
the fat cut switch I mean you can get
00:17:57
into the Weeds on this thing and this
00:17:58
also can be a negative with the Axe
00:18:00
effects because it's so deep you can
00:18:01
really do anything that you can think of
00:18:04
with it you really can it's it's kind of
00:18:06
nuts it's an overachieving
00:18:07
self-deprecating child in every sense
00:18:09
look you've won the game you do the most
00:18:12
things the most thorough with the most
00:18:13
processing power anyone who is serious
00:18:15
about their craft uses you but you
00:18:17
forgot one thing in your quest to find
00:18:19
out if you could you never stop to ask
00:18:20
yourself if you should that is my way of
00:18:22
saying this thing is a mess to navigate
00:18:24
without normal daily or even weekly use
00:18:26
my muscle memory forgets how to navigate
00:18:28
the text heavy user interface and I
00:18:30
start moving shunts and disconnecting my
00:18:31
signal path before I figure out what the
00:18:33
hell happened and have to start all over
00:18:34
again let's say we just want a Reverb
00:18:36
right like click on this Reverb no I'm
00:18:38
messing up already see I messed
00:18:40
something up again oh look I'm on cab
00:18:42
okay so what do I need to do here I need
00:18:44
to go
00:18:46
to okay the Axe effects notoriously has
00:18:49
a difficult to use interface I'm not
00:18:50
breaking new ground but there could be
00:18:52
one easy way to fix this make the editor
00:18:54
into an app seriously I don't know why
00:18:56
this isn't a thing while the XFX doesn't
00:18:58
have y or Bluetooth built in like some
00:19:00
of the others and it likely won't
00:19:01
because all of these companies have
00:19:02
these weird Hills they'd rather die on
00:19:04
the editor makes the ax effect
00:19:05
experience amazing it fixes the one
00:19:07
glaring problem the axxe effects as a
00:19:09
modeler has and that's the aggravation
00:19:11
of actually using it and just a quick
00:19:12
note here I am aware of Frack pad and I
00:19:14
am aware that you can use a Bluetooth
00:19:16
midi device to connect to the back of
00:19:17
the Axe effects unit and I've tried this
00:19:19
and while it's very cool and it sort of
00:19:20
solves the problem for me it just makes
00:19:21
me think why doesn't fractal do this
00:19:23
themselves if they released their own
00:19:25
application and it wasn't a third party
00:19:27
and they built Bluetooth in the Axe
00:19:29
effects and made the experience more
00:19:30
seamless without having to spend an
00:19:31
extra $100 or whatever you have to spend
00:19:33
on the app in the Bluetooth module it
00:19:35
would just be way better this is my live
00:19:38
set we have different scenes scenes are
00:19:39
essentially preset states that you can
00:19:41
quickly switch to so I have like my
00:19:43
rhythm my leads on here clean
00:19:53
whatever my lead sound
00:20:05
[Music]
00:20:06
[Applause]
00:20:07
[Music]
00:20:12
I have this flang thing that I use for
00:20:14
two seconds and our
00:20:17
[Music]
00:20:27
set in my personal opinion I think the
00:20:29
Axe effects sounds the best out of any
00:20:31
unit and I'm also a huge fan of the
00:20:33
amount of support that it receives since
00:20:34
I purchased mine so about four or 5
00:20:36
years I think I've had several major
00:20:38
updates and I know you're like oh the
00:20:39
updates must be nice did they release
00:20:40
the new pedal models or something how
00:20:42
about redoing all of the algorithms the
00:20:43
ant modeling is based on you fractal
00:20:46
really goes above and beyond for its
00:20:47
Community unless its features they
00:20:49
actually want fractal if you can imagine
00:20:51
it you can spend hours menu diving for
00:20:53
it lastly we have the new kit on the
00:20:57
Block this is the hardest to give
00:20:59
information on because the product is so
00:21:01
new sure it's got the name brand of
00:21:03
Fender behind it and with their
00:21:04
affiliation or ownership with evh they
00:21:06
are the first ant modeler to have a
00:21:08
licensed evh product in the unit the
00:21:10
user interface is also super intuitive
00:21:12
they went the safe route with the
00:21:13
virtual signal path they also went with
00:21:14
the aesthetic of a visually accurate
00:21:15
signal path with icons that resemble the
00:21:17
actual gear you're using while this is
00:21:20
my preference I know it's not for some
00:21:21
and they want the high contrast easy to
00:21:23
see on stage icons with that being said
00:21:25
unlike the headrush Prime you can't
00:21:27
change the icons to a dumb down high
00:21:29
contrast version yet anyway I say yet
00:21:31
because it's so new and we really don't
00:21:33
know what's in store for it there has
00:21:34
been criticism that it released with
00:21:36
lackluster amp selections and that it
00:21:38
wasn't fully flushed out like other amp
00:21:39
modelers it was in the same Market as
00:21:41
but I don't feel that way about it and
00:21:42
as opposed to something like the quad
00:21:44
cortex launch I thought Fender came with
00:21:45
a fair deal of amplifiers and a lot of
00:21:47
different effects and stomp boxes and
00:21:49
whatnot I would have preferred a few
00:21:50
more amps especially with the evh
00:21:52
licensing but I thought it was still
00:21:53
really well-rounded I did however think
00:21:55
it was a little odd they didn't
00:21:56
incorporate any sort of amp capturing
00:21:58
Tech since that seems to be the new
00:21:59
thing that everyone is doing now but
00:22:01
still aesthetically this is true to the
00:22:03
fender brand from the little details
00:22:04
like the knob slf foot switch encoder
00:22:06
selection these are so cool and so much
00:22:08
fun to twist and that for me is a big
00:22:10
thing okay I'm plugged into the tone
00:22:11
Master Pro we have some
00:22:13
crazy uh effect going on here um you
00:22:16
know the toe Master Pro again one of
00:22:18
these units that has a very easy to use
00:22:20
Simple interface this is way dialed back
00:22:22
from something like the Axe effects or
00:22:23
even the quad cortex for that matter uh
00:22:25
this would be more in the realm of easy
00:22:28
easier to use for your average consumer
00:22:30
and also if you're a sucker for the
00:22:32
graphics interface like I am I really
00:22:34
like this unit a lot because of
00:22:35
[Music]
00:22:49
that there has been some criticism in
00:22:51
the past that uh you know the evh amp
00:22:54
doesn't sound really that great in this
00:22:55
or like the amplifiers are a little bit
00:22:57
lacking I personally don't agree with
00:22:58
these criticisms I think this unit
00:23:00
sounds excellent and especially when you
00:23:02
use it this way through an actual Power
00:23:03
Amp and cabinet I think that it just it
00:23:05
rips dude it sounds so
00:23:07
[Music]
00:23:16
good and while it might not have a crazy
00:23:19
amount of options as something like the
00:23:21
Axe effects I think that we have more
00:23:23
than enough to get the job done here and
00:23:25
it's all stuff that I find personally
00:23:26
inspiring again a lot of that has to do
00:23:28
with the interface the graphics
00:23:29
interface these knobs being encoders I I
00:23:32
really like these I think that's kind of
00:23:33
you know a big consideration when you're
00:23:35
going through all these different units
00:23:36
like which one speaks to you because you
00:23:38
probably get away with doing what you
00:23:40
need to on any of them in all honesty
00:23:42
but the one that you're going to want to
00:23:43
play I think that that has a lot of
00:23:45
weight I really like the way everything
00:23:46
is organized on the tot Master Pro as
00:23:48
well it's all very simple what it seems
00:23:49
like they did is try to recreate the
00:23:51
experience of what it's like to use
00:23:53
analog gear like if you walked into a
00:23:54
room like this and picked out an
00:23:55
amplifier and you picked out some pedals
00:23:57
and you had to hook them all up and
00:23:59
everything like that that's kind of what
00:24:00
it's like and uh you know if you are
00:24:02
used to doing things that way then I
00:24:04
think that this is going to be very very
00:24:05
intuitive for you I like using this I
00:24:08
like dialing in guitar tones and playing
00:24:10
with different effects chains and they
00:24:11
have had a few decent updates since
00:24:13
launching last year so I'd say a fender
00:24:15
is your thing and you like the simple
00:24:16
easy to ous UI the visual realism of the
00:24:18
interface but are okay without amp
00:24:20
capturing or cloning or whatever then
00:24:22
Fender might be your jam Fender the
00:24:23
classic that never goes out of style but
00:24:25
only has one evh model for some reason
00:24:27
so there you have it every modeler has
00:24:28
its own merits and drawbacks and a lot
00:24:30
of times people ask me which one sounds
00:24:31
the best as if that's what they are
00:24:33
basing their purchase on and I'm like
00:24:35
all of them because they can all sound
00:24:37
excellent if you know what you're doing
00:24:38
to me it's always more about the one
00:24:39
that fits your budget does all the
00:24:41
things that you want it to do and most
00:24:42
importantly which one speaks to you I
00:24:44
mean you are going to be the one using
00:24:46
it do you want simplish app type icons
00:24:48
or do you want visual Recreations of
00:24:49
actual gear does capturing matter to you
00:24:51
does having encoders that Double's foot
00:24:53
switches matter these are all things to
00:24:54
consider shout out to Sweetwater and
00:24:56
chocks for making this happen you know
00:24:57
the deal use the link help the channel
00:25:00
say hi to your mom for me if you like
00:25:01
this video make sure to hit the like
00:25:02
button if you really like it consider
00:25:04
subscribing or joining these beautiful
00:25:05
people over here on patreon and I will
00:25:07
see you later while I'll see you on
00:25:09
another time
