Fractal Axe Fx 3

  • There's no rush, though I know how you like to put words and intentions in other peoples heads and mouths. Some let you do it, but that's not how I roll.


    I've been a calm, collected customer this entire time, especially when you contrast to your rantings and accusations of being a Fractal troll, which I notice you've backed away from, just as you've backed away from nearly every other pronouncement that you've been confronted on in this very thread. At this point you're just projecting.


    Bad experiences with the Axe-FX are fine and understandable, but that's not what you like talking about. You rattle on about not being able to get tube tone or feel or that tone match is a gimmick or that Cliff is purposefully misleading people or that people on this forum contradicting your accounts are Fractal trolls with agendas or that a patent is not public and can be accessed. Bad experience is personal and is quite easy to share and respect, but you like to go further and grasp at any straw in order to dismiss and discredit, be it another device or person. That is emotionally-impulsive bully territory, whether it's aggressive or passive. Frankly, it has no direct effect on me, but I'll call it like it is because some others won't.


    I have been trying to get you back to talking about the Axe-FX 3 but you keep refusing each offer to hazard a guess at Coldfrixons samples. And there has been more than 1 video including a demo of the Axe3 that you conveniently failed to address. If you're referring to the Cooper Carter video, we both agree that the tone isn't great. But that would be like me judging the Kemper based on a crappy profile or even amp for that matter.

  • Fact is: The EOL cycles introduced by other companies to their products in order to establish a new flagship line have nothing to do with the way Kemper run their business.The Kemper concept, as opposed to others, stands for value and longevity.
    The Profiler that has been on the market since end of 2011 is, now 7 years later, every bit as NOW and modern as if it was introduced today.
    Everybody knows that eventually, perhaps in a few more years time, a Kemper II will see the light of day.
    But suggesting it is outdated only because FAS or Line 6 have established new flagship lines with 'more modern' processors is utterly ridiculous.


    +1 The kemper product business model and marketing strategy is completely different than Fractal or Line 6. It's all about longevity.
    Good for all kemper owners is that Mr Kemper has posted that even if a kemper 2 would come out in the future it would be back compatible. So no sounds lost with all the hard work and time put into making profiles. When I use the Axe fx (same with Ax fx 3 from what I've read), if I update then I lose all the work put into the patches, and have to retweak them. Multiple times every year. That is tough when having 100 favorite patches. They will never sound the same again. So it can be a good thing to jump around between different firmware if one had a better sound.
    Fractal has really put themselves in a corner when claiming each fw is realerer and betterer, because nobody would pass an ABX blindtest and place all the firmwares in the correct order from 1 to the latest. The results would be all over the place. That marketing strategy can go on forever because the confirmation bias is strong and many believe marketing that says so.
    Fw updates and fixes are great for any product, but not losing sounds and spending days retweaking.


    Also, for those who have paid attention over the years, Romeo Rose is now here on the forum.
    Do a little google on that alias (several aliases) and see the fractal forum posts about the notorious klon request and youtube videos.
    All the same patterns. I hope things don't turn really bad.

  • Based on that video, sure. Based on my samples, no.

    To be fair, one doesn't know how the modeled amp sounds. I don't particularly like the tone, but that's a subjective matter. The true determinate is taking a raw amp tone and seeing if you can replicate it. Here's a sample shared with me earlier that doesn't even use tone matching and includes a profile of the same setup:
    http://www.sinmix.pl/2018/02/0…eal-amp-axe-fx-ii-kemper/

  • How do you know he hasn't registered yet?

    It only made sense based on his post counts and posting in the public forum only because if you're not registered you can't post in the private forum but can post only in the public forum. Later he confirmed by stating he registered again in another email because he wants to remain anonymous because of perceived bullying yikes!

  • I'm a Fractal user but I'm considering a second Kemper rig for when I play with a particular artist. Mainly to simplify things for the techs so they don't have to learn too much.


    Personally at this point I can't tell the difference. I really doubt many people can. It's all much of a muchness. Ease of use often comes first so my Fractal gear is purely for the road. I would never take it to a writing session for example, the workflow just isn't there. Kemper, Helix or pedalboard I would for sure.


    Replacing just an amp or simple rig? Get a Kemper. Replacing a complicated rig? get an Axe.


    I'm not sure I'd hold my breath on a Kemper 2 (I'll buy one when it happens). They've been selling the Virus Ti2 unchanged for 9 years!!

  • To be fair, one doesn't know how the modeled amp sounds.


    That's true. I can see how someone might listen to a bunch of Kemper demos and then hear the one with Cooper Carter and come away thinking that the Kemper sounds more accurate though, even if the reality is that the reference amp that the Axe FX III model is based on sounded identical.


    I don't particularly like the tone, but that's a subjective matter. The true determinate is taking a raw amp tone and seeing if you can replicate it. Here's a sample shared with me earlier that doesn't even use tone matching and includes a profile of the same setup:http://www.sinmix.pl/2018/02/0…eal-amp-axe-fx-ii-kemper/


    That's a really good comparison. If he would've cut the low-end just a hair, the Axe FX sample would've sounded practically indistinguishable.

  • That's a really good comparison. If he would've cut the low-end just a hair, the Axe FX sample would've sounded practically indistinguishable.

    I agree. Tiny changes or even tone match could certainly get you there because it's a little darker as-is, but maybe I'm wrong because I've heard somewhere that it's more harsh...

  • I enjoy some of the Cooper Carter fractal axe fx videos, but it was sad to see him, as a very prominent fractal employe, getting caught cheating red handed in a user poll on thegearpage last year. Fractal wasn't doing good in the poll, and he (representing a company) asked for help elsewhere and suddenly fractal did better in the modeler poll. They even posted print screen images of it on tgp as evidence before he deleted his help question. AFAIK he didn't get any reprimand from tgp staff. It's sad to see companies cheating and manipulating gear forums.

  • I enjoy some of the Cooper Carter fractal axe fx videos, but it was sad to see him, as a very prominent fractal employe, getting caught cheating red handed in a user poll on thegearpage last year. Fractal wasn't doing good in the poll, and he (representing a company) asked for help elsewhere and suddenly fractal did better in the modeler poll. They even posted print screen images of it on tgp as evidence before he deleted his help question. AFAIK he didn't get any reprimand from tgp staff. It's sad to see companies cheating and manipulating gear forums.

    I created a poll last year between the Axe FX and Helix with respect to sound quality and effects. The Axe FX won by a huge margin, and I didn't cheat.

  • I enjoy some of the Cooper Carter fractal axe fx videos, but it was sad to see him, as a very prominent fractal employe, getting caught cheating red handed in a user poll on thegearpage last year. Fractal wasn't doing good in the poll, and he (representing a company) asked for help elsewhere and suddenly fractal did better in the modeler poll. They even posted print screen images of it on tgp as evidence before he deleted his help question. AFAIK he didn't get any reprimand from tgp staff. It's sad to see companies cheating and manipulating gear forums.

    If that's true, it's unfortunate. I remember when Will Gelvin got caught making multiple accounts to help with the Gelvin guitar brand in luthier polls. As unfortunate as that is, it doesn't mean his guitars suck, nor would it mean that Axe-FX sucks. Couldn't find the thread, do you have a link?

  • I know how you like to put words and intentions in other peoples heads and mouths. Some let you do it, but that's not how I roll.
    At this point you're just projecting.


    I have been trying to get you back to talking about the Axe-FX 3 but you keep refusing each offer to hazard a guess at Coldfrixons samples.....

    You're clearly pretty frustrated and extremely emotional as you resort to personal attacks claiming I'm a bully because I disagree with you or some of your friends. Why would I, or anyone, want to debate with someone with such ________ attitude. Use your own adjective of choice.


    Regarding Coldfrixons, there's nothing to debate, he insisted that Fractal never told their customers that tone match is the same as Profiling and challenged me to produce one post to that effect. I showed him a post of Cliff Chase stating "profiling" is 99% EQ matching " or Tone matching. He still insisted that customers don't understand that statement as the rest of the world would and I should provide him with Fractal customers posts with that understanding. Disingenuous much.


    Regardless, most of debates are almost useless because it rarely ever happens that someone will say, "Oh yeah, now I understand";


    Sure I initially thought that you could be an extreme AXE FX fan who signed up to defend the AXE, I've seen many of those, but I was wrong and you turned out to be someone with obviously much worse and more serious issues.


    At this point It's up to the the readers to see who's the passive aggressive individual hiding behind false claims of bullying. and other nonsense. Neither of you is worth debating because you lach lack different but crucial basic characteristics of someone worth debating.


    Enjoy your useless debates and rest assured that I will still post my opinion of what I know,


    To post back on topic however, it seems that everyone agrees that the most recent clip of the AXE FX III is terrible and that's not debatable as far as I can tell.


    The clip produced by Fractal to highlight the new and better AXE FX III seems to highlight how everyone here including those who own AXE FX aren't thrilled. Reminds me of all the terrible Metallica clips of various concert where the AXE sounded simply under par. With so many failures, it's only fair for someone to conclude that the AXE core sound isn't ready for prime time when bands like Metallica couldn't sound anything but simply horrible.


    I mean seriously, why should anyone be offended. don't we all want to avoid a similar mayhem with almost every AXE FX Metallica performance sounding terrible, how many times can you give excuses to a product because you don't want to offend someone who loves it. Do I want to risk using the AXe FX and end up with a similar mix to those many Metallica AXE FX II fails? I don't think so.


    AXE FX II clearly has a problem fitting in a mix in a live situation whether we like it or not .


    How do you guys feel about that, do you truly feel that the AXE FX III is going to change the fail rate similar to those of Metallica's?

  • @'Dean_R I pretty much stopped using the forum because of you and a few others. So say what you want about the others but take a long hard look at yourself. You do the Kemper community a massive disservice with you constant prattle. You even make gstring and donpetersen seem rational.

  • @'Dean_R I pretty much stopped using the forum because of you and a few others. So say what you want about the others but take a long hard look at yourself. You do the Kemper community a massive disservice with you constant prattle. You even make gstring and donpetersen seem rational.

    Well, couldn't you have put me and the others that offend you on ignore and then you wouldn't see any of my or their posts?


    You're problems with the moderators is nothing that I can speak of because I'm just a member so I don't know if you can also put them on ignore.

  • Clearly I'm not the only one who notices. In fact, I know I'm not because even if I haven't talked much on the forum, I talk outside of it, and others currently on the forum and in the past echo the same sentiments.


    Dean, I think any honest person reading will see who has been measured and who has thrown around rambling accusations, conspiracies, easily challenged opinions, misquotes, exaggerations, and rather staggering projections. Every time I turn around you've moved the goal posts somewhere else. When I point out exactly what you've said, claimed, and shifted, you accuse me of being emotional, which is telling. I didn't come here to change you or your mind, but I think your posts speak for themselves better than I could. You've shown unable to see even your own irony even as others have done in the past. They mostly just avoid threads you chime into.


    You can repeat all the hyperbole you want, as you are wont to do in the protection of this echo chamber, it's no measure of truth. I think Coldfrixon, as an Axe and Kemper owner is in a unique position to comment on both and I have to applaud his ability to share his knowledge in a constructive way. Conversely, your claims about the Axe showcase rather vividly that you have a predetermined conclusion built in to every premise. It's why you continue to grasp at straws and move the goal posts to desperately justify it. Truthfully, I couldn't care less about your opinions on the Axe, but your pettiness masquerading as legitimacy which is my chief reason for being here. Snobby gear elitism is sad to watch, especially when its not particularly clever.


    So, I think 2 days spent on a half-rate interloper is sufficient. What needed to be said has been said, so now back to the better things I have to devote my time to. Like people here are fond of saying whenever someone voices criticism of the Kemper, "just play guitar", before they come back to lurk the forum all day instead of playing their guitars. In this case, I actually will.


    I invite you again to address the comparisons Coldfrixon posted, as well as myself. I know you won't, because you'd have to confront the fact that the Kemper and Axe aren't half a percent as different as you think. Still, I'd be happy for you to surprise me.


    Good luck.

  • This is getting really distasteful and that is not just pointing at any one person in particular. This Forum is becoming like a soap opera (some threads), and as much as I have read some of the train wreck threads here whilst on my lunch break just for entertainment and morbid curiosity, whenever the AX FX gets mentioned it seems to turn to this! Moderators, please step in and end this crap, it has digressed too far. Also, again not pointing fingers at anyone because I'm not across all the other forums, but this is a KEMPER forum and as much as I get that comparisons and debates are inevitable, there are some people that should not be on here causing trouble. As you were people!

  • Regarding Coldfrixons, there's nothing to debate, he insisted that Fractal never told their customers that tone match is the same as Profiling and challenged me to produce one post to that effect.


    And you couldn't, nor can you produce a post from a single "unsuspecting customer" who thinks Tone Matching is the same as Profiling.



    it's only fair for someone to conclude that the AXE core sound isn't ready for prime time


    If that were true, you'd easily be able to identify the Axe FX in my blind test. Here's another blind test. Same tune, different profile. Which one's the Axe?


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    How do you guys feel about that, do you truly feel that the AXE FX III is going to change the fail rate similar to those of Metallica's?


    No idea what you're talking about. Metallica's live sound for Hardwired was pretty damn good:


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  • Here's one of many Epic fails of the AXE FX II , A pod would have sounded better, no kidding. The guitars were indiscernible and they were using AXE FX II, even my wife who's a Metallica fan. as we we watched, she asked "what the hell is wrong with these guitar sounds." I smiled as I didn't think she would pickup on the horrible guitar tones, and answered, "they used the wrong digital modeler this is a terrible day for digital modeling". :D


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  • Here's one of many Epic fails of the AXE FX II , A pod would have sounded better, no kidding. The guitars were indiscernible and they were using AXE FX II, even my wife who's a Metallica fan. as we we watched, she asked "what the hell is wrong with these guitar sounds." I smiled as I didn't think she would pickup on the horrible guitar tones, and answered, "they used the wrong digital modeler this is a terrible day for digital modeling". :D


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    Yep, that was a fail but obviously has nothing to do with the capabilities of the Axe Fx as evidenced by the 2017 Hardwired performance I posted. And this:


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