I’ve had my QC for several weeks. There are things I love and things that need to be improved. It’s a mixed bag at present. But I keep reading all these negative comments and many are unwarranted. They compare the QC to Fractal and Kemper, Helix. Devices that have been around for years. I own an FM3. It’s a great unit. But I gig with the the QC. The Fractal is a great sounding device and the effects and editing features are second to none. I find my self creating amps on the FM3 and Capturing them on the QC. The QC, IMVHO, just sounds better. If you’re a Fractal fanboy or girl that’s great. To each their own. Give NDSP some time and they will come thru. If you don’t want to wait, that’s fine too. Sell the QC and buy something else. It’s a free market. I’ll be happy to wait on future updates. I’m sure they’ll be worth the wait.
I agree, I’ve owned several pieces of Line 6 gear (POD X3, HD500, SpiderValve), a Kemper profiler, and the headrush pedalboard, as well as MIDI controlled tube amp heads and other random stuff. The QC is pretty great. It hands-down beats the Headrush, but they are not at the same price point anyway. I’ll take the QC over the Kemper, too.
I’ve never had any fractal gear but honestly if the FM9 had come out before I got the QC I might have gotten that instead. The form factor, the touch screen, the UI, and the cool knob/buttons really make this a wonderful piece of gear. The hardware is there, the software will evolve as we go and I’m with you, this is my gigging gear already.
Thank you both for the votes of confidence. I think I’ll hang in there. I’m on the waitlist for the FM9 too but it looks like their supply chain issues are horrific and months out still at best. Hoping for the QC to come in January. I’ve gone back and forth and back again and the form factor and UI just seem unbeatable.
Fractal is a proven platform for sure. I bought the FM3 because my first 2 QCs went south. I had to have a gigging backup and the FM3 seemed the logical choice. I’m actually glad I bought the FM3. The ability to create really great amps is a real boon for me. I’ve found running the FM3 thru UAD Plugins and capturing the results to the QC is resulting in some great tones. I’ve even Captured some of my favorite plugins also with astounding results! Weird thing is if I had never had an issue with my first QC I would never have bought the FM3. The FM3 and the QC work very well together.
People singing the endless praises of Line 6 seem to have forgotten the tones of the Spider amps and the ungodly hiss of the DL4 delay pedals. Helix might be good now, but it took them DECADES to get there. The QC was fantastic out of the gate, not perfect, but soooooo good.
I remember the POD and their FlexTone amps. They were lifeless. But they got better, a lot better. The QC is good now. It will only get better. People need to use what makes them happy. Like I’ve said. I like my FM3, but I love my QC much more! The QC has that feel factor.
Taking nothing away from Fractal. A good friend who is a well respected engineer recommended Fractal. But the ability to Capture my pedal mods and pedal designs was just too alluring for me. Funny thing is I never even considered a Kemper. But I was forced to get rid of my tube amps at church. The stage volume was an issue. And I was very happy with my stereo amp setup. Using a floor unit has been a difficult transition for me. Using iems with the QC is very different than using them with amps. A good set of iems are the ticket as well as the type of system. We’re using Allen & Heath ME-1s. Very nice but using iems are still a challenge when you’re used to tube amps and not a floorboard. Plus my hearing is not so good too boot.