When wireless editor app control of the Quad Cortex was announced, I was completely stoked! I play acoustic and electric guitar in several bands in a wide variety of venues. I was spoiled by the ease of wireless real-time editing of amp and effects parameters using a tablet, cell phone, or laptop with the L6 Firehawk.
I’m ready and waiting for the Quad Cortex.
Why control a myriad of parameters live and real-time without having to bend down to the floor ? Each show, guitar, audience, song, room /venue has its own vibe . Tweaking verb, delay, mod parameters etc on the fly and at a whim was a blast. Sweeping certain parameters can produce synth effects.
I must admit I am (rather sorely) bummed that the wireless editor functionality did not make it to the first iteration.
NDSP, how’s it looking for the editor?
Would be nice to hear from other people , too.
Cheers!
Not really very worried about it.
I’m used to making edits on the board itself from the pedals days and when the first mobile editors came out I could bot really get used to using them.
On the other hand, MIDI is essential to me exactly so that I can control certain parameters, having the ability to connect expression pedals, my hot-hand and MIDI control units is more usable that an editor app.
Of course, to each his own and if there are users who benefit as much from the app then it is important one exists so that the QC is usable by everyone.
Many people are happy to edit directly on their hardware device (whatever it is). Thanks for your input.
Judging from the gist of your comment, the midi functionality is separate from the editor? Neural likely does not have Boundless energy for development and would have to prioritize. Or is this not the case?
I would think the editor and the MIDI would be separate because a proprietary protocol between the editor and the hardware would give neural more possibilities.
However, even if the editor uses MIDI, like in the old days they used to, the editor itself, the UI , is an extra effort on top of the MIDI implementation.
So answering your question: either the editor team needs other things implemented before they can finish the editor or they were reallocated to other higher priorities functions.
That being said, I think the editor is essential and thus should be launched ASAP
As an example, the Helix has a pc/mac live editor, and it is much easier to edit than on the board. So I think it would be helpful here, even though the Cortex has a touch screen which helps a bit.
Whilst I use Ax8 and Stage at my feet playing live, I have the AxeEdit, and the Kemper Rig Manager on a nearby laptop, I think the editor for the Quad is dependent on where you are going to place it for live use. I’m not going to be on my knees mid gig fiddling with the screen, touch or not. I expect to get the best foot controller (Neural please get one ready) connected, and then use the Quad where I’d have place the Laptop. That way presets & scenes at my feet, knob twiddling at my right hand.
Agree. As adaptive as direct editing on the board can be, bending down to floor level is a pain, and the UI is much more friendly for rapid access to deep level editing.
I like creating and editing with the board on the floor with the two expression pedals engaged so I can test the edits by operating the expression pedals. I don’t always like the expression pedal parameters and assignments, and I’ve gotten spoiled by using a desktop laptop or tablet editor while the device is on the floor where it’s going to be during a show.
Running an editor on a laptop or tablet right by my side on stage is a piece of cake. The quad is very interesting giving its hybrid stomp switches / potentiometers, but I’d rather have it on the floor next to a couple of outboard expression pedals and use the Quad stomp switches while my fingers fly around the editor.
I am really hoping for an editor that works on IOS. Having an iPad next to me during rehearsals, live, and to a lesser degree, in the studio, would be heaven. A desktop app would limit the utility outside the studio as you are then stuck lugging around a laptop. A mobile app hits each need effectively.
I have to imagine the “cortex” app will eventually house this functionality. I am a bit bummed it is not something that is available at launch, but seems like a no brainer for the future.
Not going to disagree, as that’s the way I use the Ax8 and Kemper. But as there is no Quad editor at present and I just can’t see myself grovelling on the floor at the feet of the lead guitarist, [he already thinks he’s Hendrix Reborn] trying to tweak my presets in the middle of a 10 second break , I think I’m stuck with a foot controller and the quad by my right hand.
Editor sure would be nice and it will be there someday. I, for one, am glad that the team is concentrating to get the core units out in the wild instead of implementing bells & whistles they can add later.
Only thing I really hope at the moment is that there would be some communication on schedule and/or progress. Ok, they missed some deadlines they communicated before but is that a reason not to communicate at all?
I don’t need the editor if I keep QC on the desk, but if it’s on the pedalboard, I would like to use
iPad / Laptop editor while tweaking stuff . Hopefully it comes someday
Mine OC is on a pedalboard, as is my Kemper Stage. I practiced with the Stage and iPad the other day and it was great! Given how intuitive the UI/UX on the Neural plugins (not to mention on the actual QC) is, I can only imagine when it arrives that it will great.
I understand the desire for an editor: you already have the device; may as well add an app and get remote access…
My previous experiences with other gear made me aware of how fragile an editor can be. Things like losing access because of version skew between app and device, app bugs, app no longer supported for older device, etc. IOW, the app is great until it stops working. To be fair, I’m not suggesting that any of this will be true of NDSP’s app; I’d be surprised if they don’t consider and address those concerns.
In the near term, if having controls at your fingertips is a critical need, you might consider putting the QC on a stand and using a MIDI foot pedal to “push” the QC’s footswitches. A bit more cost and bulk, yes. But you’ll never need worry about whether a software update will break the editor-device connection, nor about upgrading your phone/tablet in order to keep using the editor when the manufacturer stops supporting older third-party hardware.
