Fractal FM3 Question

[Lucien2]

Mornin'!

I want to ask you all first because the Fractal Forum will be a lot of confirmation bias and TGP is.....well, ya know. TGP.

For the better part of 25 years I have hewn to the "Just plug into the amp and go" sort of player, playing single coils through Fender amps and using the amp's reverb and "vibrato" (Which is really tremolo but anyways) and maybe a TS9 and a RAT on the floor.

COVID killed most of my gigs and I have turned to recording more, and have begun to expand my pedal collection- Empress Reverb, a harmonic trem, a fuzz, and a chorus. But as a home studio recordist who does not have a dedicated room to transform into an ideal sonically neutral space, I'm wondering if I need to hold up and consider the FM3. For live practice and if I ever play out again, I could disable the amp/cab blocks and run it as a multieffects processor in the loop of my Orange or HRD. And then use the modeling power to get fool-proof tones in the studio.

I'm like a cat, constantly thinking about the jump, wiggling and positioning myself on the ledge....but not quite able to leap due to fear of the unknown. Selling my digital effects plus some other surplus would get me more than halfway there; the pedals I was eyeing next would get me almost all the way there.

SO in a nutshell, I welcome any insight or sage advice from any FM3 folks!

 

[Ventanaman]

I have been gigging with Fractal units for over 10 years - very happy with my sound and consistency. They are great (and complex) tools, and your best bet is to spend time over at the Fractal Forum to see if it is right for you.

 

[DrewH]

The FM3 converted me from tube amps forever. My amps went. My pedals went. All I have is that little box right now. If I want to gig or jam, power speakers. At home it's studio monitors and phones. So simple and I have every amp and effect known to man at the press of a button.

 

[beej]

I sort of toyed with the same thing and bought one last year. Ended up selling it for a few reasons. Not sure if this will be useful to you but I'll throw it out there.

In my case I knew I'd be gigging again, so a lot of the negatives were based around live playing. And at home (online or recording), my amp through a load box and IR loader (Blubox) sounds great, so a good modeler wouldn't necessarily sound any better.

The FM3 is a great unit, but it's not exactly pedal board friendly unless you have a huge board. With 3 switches, odds are you'd still need an additional controller (I have a Morningstar MC6). Add in a wah/volume, etc. and it gets a little crowded.

The bigger issue, for me, is that it didn't scratch my itch for amp sounds. I *love* my amp. It's 2 channels, but with a boost or two I get everything I need from it. The FM3 just didn't get there. Though there are some amazing sounds in the unit, I only ended up using a handful of them. Needing a power amp + cab was also a negative (or rather, it wasn't a huge advantage over a head + cab), as I don't love a modeler through a wedge.

Ok, so what about for effects only? They are excellent. But I didn't really find them to be any better than the effects in the Helix devices, and the HX Stomp is a fraction of the size. So in the end, I replaced most of my effects with an HX Stomp, plus a Collider in the loop (delay/verb), all controlled from the MC6.

There are some great amps in the HX Stomp so I figured I could use them as a backup, but I really haven't been tempted. I guess if you have an amp that works for you, or you don't want a huge range of different amp sounds, there's less of an incentive to go the modeler route.

This takes nothing away from the FM3- it is really an incredible unit. If it were a lot smaller I would have kept it. But the size-to-functionality ratio didn't do it for me.

 

[Ventanaman]

FWIW, I got see Toad the Wet Sprocket and Gin Blossoms show a couple of weeks ago. Toad was running through Helix HD Stomps (no amps on stage) and Gin Blossums were running through some boutique 2x12 combos (Matchless I believe) and there was no difference in the quality of tone at the FOH.

 

[Lucien2]

I sort of toyed with the same thing and bought one last year. Ended up selling it for a few reasons. Not sure if this will be useful to you but I'll throw it out there.

In my case I knew I'd be gigging again, so a lot of the negatives were based around live playing. And at home (online or recording), my amp through a load box and IR loader (Blubox) sounds great, so a good modeler wouldn't necessarily sound any better.

The FM3 is a great unit, but it's not exactly pedal board friendly unless you have a huge board. With 3 switches, odds are you'd still need an additional controller (I have a Morningstar MC6). Add in a wah/volume, etc. and it gets a little crowded.

The bigger issue, for me, is that it didn't scratch my itch for amp sounds. I *love* my amp. It's 2 channels, but with a boost or two I get everything I need from it. The FM3 just didn't get there. Though there are some amazing sounds in the unit, I only ended up using a handful of them. Needing a power amp + cab was also a negative (or rather, it wasn't a huge advantage over a head + cab), as I don't love a modeler through a wedge.

Ok, so what about for effects only? They are excellent. But I didn't really find them to be any better than the effects in the Helix devices, and the HX Stomp is a fraction of the size. So in the end, I replaced most of my effects with an HX Stomp, plus a Collider in the loop (delay/verb), all controlled from the MC6.

There are some great amps in the HX Stomp so I figured I could use them as a backup, but I really haven't been tempted. I guess if you have an amp that works for you, or you don't want a huge range of different amp sounds, there's less of an incentive to go the modeler route.

This takes nothing away from the FM3- it is really an incredible unit. If it were a lot smaller I would have kept it. But the size-to-functionality ratio didn't do it for me.

That's all quite valuable insight. For me, the gigs are gone for good at least for the remainder of this year, so I am writing and recording primarily. I don't have a load box or an IR loader, I'm micing the amp in the untreated room. I'm hoping that I can do better running the FM3 right into the DAW and get better results (at least as the tracks sit in the mix anyway). And I am already lusting after a good $500 worth of pedals on top of whatever gear I'd need to send the amp head to an IR to the DAW which probably gets me all the way to the FM3 $$.

Lastly, I don't have a decent bass amp right now. Running into a powered DI and into the DAW is pretty good, but I bet I'd be way happier running through one of the bass amp modelers. I haven't been happy with the few models baked into Logic Pro so far.

I suppose I need to take full advantage of the trial period and make sure it all IS better in time to send back if it isn't.

 

[TheSash]

You will find many many different opinions.
I can just talk for myself. Back in the days I was a payed professional live and studio musician.
The Axe Fx III did replace every of my tube amps because honestly I couldn’t tell a difference between them.
That does not mean that a Axe or Fm 3 etc. is the best solution for everyone but personally I could not be happier.
I do only play over Studio Monitors and headphones, for rehearsals etc. I do use FRFR speakers.

 

[Astrofreq]

It isn't a Fractal, but I have a Quad Cortex which has been amazing for probably 100+ gigs. I hear the Fractal is great too, but the amp capture feature on the QC really sold me on it. I sold my 80-pound tube Engl combo after making captures of it. No regrets.