Hey everyone,
I bought a used Quad Cortex yesterday and something feels off with the tone compared to demos online.
I’ve followed multiple “dial from scratch” videos step-by-step (including Josh Middleton’s), using the same guitar, tuning, string gauge, amps, signal chain, and even the same IRs — and my results sound nothing like theirs. Their tones have clarity and focus; mine feel overly bassy, woofy, and fizzy, especially as soon as any gain is introduced.
My setup:
• Guitars: Tele, Strat, ESP LTD Josh Middleton
• Monitors: Yamaha HS5
• Output: Out 3 straight into monitors (not recording, just playing through them)
Even something simple like a Strat into a Deluxe Reverb + cab with a Jan Ray in front sounds unnatural to me — and I own that exact real-world rig, so I’m very familiar with how it should feel.
Higher gain (like a 5150 with the ESP) gets woofy in the lows and very fizzy on top.
I’ve done a full factory reset and also checked/changed global settings, but it didn’t fix it.
It almost feels like a global EQ, monitoring, or output setting is wrong — but I can’t find what it is.
I’ll double check when I get home this afternoon, but I’ve completely reset the unit back to factory settings and have been experiencing the same issues. I know I’m not clipping. Is there a particular setting I should pay attention to?
Does your tone sound the same through a pair of headphones? Have you tried using the XLR outputs? Since you stated you are using OUT3, are you just using one monitor? Have you tried the factory presets?
Thanks for the reply. It’s good that you reached out to support and hopefully they will get you sorted quickly. Is your signal grid using ‘multi-out’ or ‘OUT3’ specifically? When viewing videos online, remember that they are recording to DAW so you are hearing the processed digital tones and not in the room sounds so they will be different . It may be a setting on your monitors or the IR / cab block you are using. You may also need to apply some hi/low EQ cuts to tame the lower and higher ends. There are a ton of variables to consider depending on the tone you are looking for but usually the tones sound great right out of the box. Try OUT4 and or XLR1/2 and see if any difference. Do the factory presets sound okay?
I am not familiar with the HS5 monitors but the reviews state:
Weak Bass: Lacks deep low-end; a subwoofer (like the HS8S) is often needed for genres needing strong bass. Mid-Range Peak: Can sound mid-heavy or “boomy” without calibration (like Sonarworks). Needs Balanced Connections: Requires an audio interface (XLR/TRS) for best results, not 3.5mm computer jacks.
You could also upload one of your presets for someone to try if you want.
I had the same “problem” when I got mine and almost returned it. I honestly thought the unit was defective and was really getting frustrated. The unit you got it most likely fine you just need to learn how to use it. I hate to say it but there is a steep learning curve if you’re used to using real amps, pedals and so on. I found 99% of the presets just sounded horrible to me.
So in a last ditch effort to make this thing work I decided to start from scratch. I read the docs, watched a ton of youtube videos, learned how to gain stage, place pedals, adjust levels, setup EQs to shave off the harsh digital sounds and now I love the thing.
I’d suggest you start out with a new patch, think of what amp and sound you’re dreaming of, then build, tweak until you’re happy with the sound. Also those Yamaha HS5’s are nothing special. I tried them, no low end so I returned them and got a pair of ADAM Audio T5V Studio Monitors. They are priced about the same and sound really good. They have more low end and the top end is much less harsh compared to the Yamaha HS5s.
Again you may think you’re going crazy when you first start using this but I’m telling you ignore all the presets and learn how to create your own amp setups and sounds. I’m still learning how to use this thing but I’m super happy with it now.
Start simple pick an amp head and a matching speaker cabinet. I highly advise setting up a compressor pedal at the start of your signal chain, then any boost pedals, amp head, speak cab on line 1, route your traffic to line 3 and mult out, add any delays/reverbs on line 3. Lastly go into the speaker cab settings and adjust the EQ. Set the HPF to 80HZ and set the LPF to 6000 to start. This will clean up the low end flubbyness and high end digital harshness. If you want a more darker sound set the LPF between 4000/5000.
I wish I could say you just plug in and it sound awesome but unfortunately this is a high end piece of equipment and you just have to learn how to use it.