I am a big fan of how Kemper basically tells you exactly what each parameter does for all of the effects. Does the QC have anything like this anywhere? The manual is petty light when it comes to details about different effects/models.
Good on Kemper for including those details. Most modelers donāt. @MP_Mod posted this link which, if you navigate over to the effects section at least tells you which pedal the QC is modeling. You can then go look up the manual or description of that pedal. Nowhere near as handy I know, as having a quick reference for all the QC model parameters.
Quad Cortex Virtual Devices List (cortex-device-list.vercel.app)
Iāve been hoping for in-depth descriptions since the beginning. Might make a good feature request
Well, some kind of āparameter guideā could be helpful but honestly, when it comes to how much of their ressources NDSP should spend on CorOS developtment vs. writing extensive parameter guides, Iām for 100% CorOS development.
In the case of Fractal Audio it has proven to be more effective having a community driven wiki. So, instead of pushing NDSP to write a heavier documentation, I would encourage the community to contribute to the already existing wiki: Quad Cortex Wiki
BTW, the kemper has some very unique parameters for tone shaping while QC mostly has parameters that are authentic for the specific device, the effect was modeled after. In this case, itās probably best to look up the parameters of the original device. Up to now, I did rarely encounter a parameter on the QC thatās not self explanatory or at least familiar / similar to other gear.
I guess I didnāt even think of looking at the parameters for the actual amp/pedalā¦ makes sense though. Thanks
Yes! This is what we need more of!
I put a few entries in the wiki recently, but it really doesnāt seem to be getting used as much as the Virtual Device List. Wish itād catch on, it could especially help with frequently annoying, I mean frequently asked questions.
Some of the parameters Iād like to know more about are in the modulation engines, which donāt correspond to an actual, specific pedal. One particular label canāt even be read on the QC, itās obscured. Hopefully thatāll be fixed in CorOS2. Yes, users can research what through-zero flanging and the like are if theyāre not already familiar but itād be nice if the manual specified more details, especially if there are interactions between parameters that arenāt as obvious.
I just jumped over to the WIKI and published new pages with all the effects categories and their respective effects.
Probably makes the most sense to start providing details on the effects that have the most arcane, complex, or unintuitive parameters.
Very happy to see a WIKI for the Quad Cortex. Hope people jump in and create accounts on the WIKI so they can add, improve, and update. It takes a village.
Need to figure out a good format going forward for publishing each effectās parameters and their description/explanation. Maybe a format like the following for this very simple pedal example (suggestion only):
Model: Green 808 (QC model name)
Based On: Ibanez Tube Screamer (pedal/rack the model is based on; might also want to place this on the page above that has a list of the model names)
Based On Link: (link to the web page the original pedal/rack effect was based on)
Description: Moderate overdrive based on JRC-4559 chip (description of pedal)
Parameters:
- Overdrive - Increases gain/breakup
- Tone - Modifies tone
- Level - Increases volume
Tricks & Tips:
- Raise the āLevelā and lower the āOverdriveā for a clean edge of breakup boost.
Category:FX - Quad Cortex Wiki
Even though it is a pedal many wonāt need guidance on, I added an example parameter description page for the āGreen 808ā pedal. For anyone adding their own pedal descriptions to the WIKI feel free to go to the link, go into edit mode and cut and paste the formatting. Then just replace with your own content on the model you are adding info for. Also feel free to improve the format if you have a better idea or addition. The link for the parameter page for the pedal is:
https://quadcortex.wiki/Green_808_-_Ibanez_TS-808
Thanks for your effort
BTW, @Beggars is the creator of the wiki, as far as I know.
There is another thread, regarding the wiki: Quad Cortex Wiki
I just saw that @dan answered in this thread, saying, NDSP āwill be doing something like thisā.
So there seems to be some intention for an official wiki but thatās all the info we have now.
@HonestOpinion Your work on the Wiki has been incredible. Youāre amazing. Thank you.
@2342 Thatās correct. I set it up as the current NDSP site and PDF format for the Quad Cortex are not easy to navigate and there appears to be a lot of stale information around.
@Beggars Thanks so much for starting the WIKI. It will be a great resource in the future! Lots of smart, creative, and technical folk on this forum who could make substantial contributions.
Thought it might help some other WIKI publishers to point out that if you change the name of a link on a page, it may strand the page below it and no longer link properly. You can easily fix this by searching for the stranded page name, clicking on it, and going into edit mode. Now look for the āMoreā pulldown and select the āMoveā option. This will allow you to relink the page to the page above it.
Wouldnāt be hard to put a little description for each setting in the UI. Something like a little question mark one can tap on.
FWIW I have done well by looking up the manual for the amp or effect that is being modeled. QC models of amps that I know from the real world respond exactly as the hardware versions.
As far as we know from interviews with NDSP, the QC models (of amps and drive pedals at least) are based on capturing the real devicesā response in all possible combinations of the available knobs and switches. Therefore we should expect the virtual controls to respond like on the real device.
Unless we get additional tone shaping parameters like on other devices (e.g. sagging, definition, pick, etc.), thereās actually no need for deeper parameter explanations.
on the āengineā -style effect models there are several parameters that could use additional info; these are based on a general type of effect, not any specific piece of gear. Those are the ones Iām thinking could use even a brief explanation of some of the more esoteric settings
From my 30 years of experiences related or in IT industry - there are geniuses writing fantastic code sometimes. Very rarely good product managers. Then unicorn-like people, who are able to write good manuals.
Then there is the obvious cost factor. āIdiots-proofā software, or brilliant manuals cost a lot of money because of time, and brains hired to create them.
So - the āgood enoughā approach is taken. And usually it wins.
The other answer could be: as QC is rather expensive, targeted on sound specialists and professional guitar players - why spend time on something ābasicā, those guys know? Thus - saving resources for more important development, like critical bug fixes.