This is why I always mention it all. One guy asked me somewhere on here about the spec sheets and 'what relevance' they are, but they DO have relevance IMO, just like the manuals, the software, and importantly the support which I always think is critical for anything that has a high level of software. Thanks for watching - its always appreciated.
I do like that you have been able to find and publish the potential issues with the software. I have been playing with the SE software that comes with the cature box and have not had any of the issues you are having. The software even goes full screen for me. I have done a few captures and I have not gotten that part down yet to get the tones to sound like they do in the room but my room does not have any sound treatment so I am probably hearing more bas then there is in the room. I am glad to see that you feel the hardware is quality, and who the hell reads the manual anyway.
It might be that the software does not like my resolutions (similar problem was with ezdrummer 2/3 at one stage and was a real pain when using the screen in 4k.) Thanks for the post and for watching.
Well done Tony ...people don't complain as they think it's their fault and that they have done something not right... I'm. Really put off by all this and not happy that all this shit has not been talked about by the people that have reviewed.... We need more Tony Mac's
Well thanks Robert for your opinion. NONE of the 'its a breakthrough' or 'its a revolution' reviewers that seemingly got a Tonex for free or were paid fore the review mentioned any of the stuff I did. That's the trouble with many reviews these days, they are just not entirely honest. Sadly. The Tonex has (once again in the simulators marketplace) created another wave of 'best thing since sliced bread' type of mentality generally but I did not find it that way, and had I found it like that I certainly would have said so. Thanks for watching too.
Great review Tony. I bought one recently and yes I find the sw a bit clunky but it does install on my win 10 PC, but I’m not interested in the sw other than to download patches. I must say that having downloaded a Boogie mk4 patch off their library of patch contributors, plugging my strat with single coils and added a splash of reverb, I got the most gratifying tone through my headphones I’ve ever heard. I’ve had helix and current boss products before this and just recently sold on my two notes revolt to get this. Night and day. I don’t care about delays and modulation etc. for the money, it sounds stellar. Totally happy apart from clunky sw.
@@Joe-mz6dc I agree. There's always a learning curve with any software. It'll probably make total sense soon. I used to have IK Stealth pedal, but it needed to be connected to a PC to work. They've been at this game for a good while. Great to see they've got well made products at realistic prices. Definately a game changer.
Great info and glad you like the Tonex. The software I found on win 10 was not a recent problem, it had been there in 2021. However on win 11 it did install and work. Thanks for the post and for watching too.
Thats a fair point, but bearing in mind that issue I saw was there in 2021 exactly when will they fix it all? That's the real question with software. I was honestly surprised to see a problem like that going back to 2021.
Thank you for emphasising the DAC and how important it is. This is well known in HiFi. As we begin to use these devices more and more to convert digital to analog, it will become clear that there is a quality and application range that we all need to consider. It is the voice of the divise since it converts digital signals to analog and ultimately the output signal.
38:42 duuuude, you nail it. I got mine yesterday & the manual situation, well… I used to work with Italians in product & project development over the last 30yrs; & 2 things I took from the experience: 1, it takes them a thousand words to say something that takes everyone else to say in 20; & 2their logic is often very different to ours & although their attention to detail is good they often miss the blindingly obvs. I’m not saying this is typical of ALL Italians but just my experience of working with them (& many other cultures) as a Brit over the last 30yrs.
Ha... well I can assure you that there are less than perfect manuals from almost any source :) The manuals are really not that bad for the main ones, but it does excel itself on the 'effects' for the software (probably Amplitube) where the 550 pages were beyond the time I certainly could apply to this review. Thanks for watching.
Utopia for this guitarist was a 1958 Tweed Bassman I got in '78....which still, to this day, beats any and everything I've ever tried...with a gain pedal into a 4x12...and yes, I've tried almost EVERYTHING...js...Bogner and Mezzabarba are nice toys though...and through a MESA Cab Clone IR all of them can do ANYTHING...with no Chinese slave labor, either. :O)
I have to be honest, I have the Quad Cortex & the Tonex (and I have owned the rest too). The Tonex is 'as good' as the QC, in my opinion. OK, the QC has effects, but what it does have are nothing to jump up and down about. If I wanted a really great set up on a budget, I'd but a Tonex and a TC Electronic Plethora X5, for my effects. I am at the age where carrying amps & cabs around is a struggle, but I still want the 'amp' sound. I always appreciate Tony's reviews, but I differ on this product. Regardless, he's still a superb reviewer, and I love when he says, "I'm back". Regards to you, mate.
Ha I'm back :) I never did 'bite the bullet' for the Quad Cortex... almost a few times. But I still have the Kemper and that remains 'interesting' over the years since 2011 when I bought it. It's not that I did not like the Tonex, and like I said I do have the Kemper among other stuff, but the software became difficult on the first PC (over three hours to try and resolve it and I had to change the PC) which slowed me down dramatically. I have used plenty of this sort of software in general but the time factor I really did not anticipate. The hardware was very good and I did 10/10 for that, but I did think the software could have been improved somewhat. I never had a single issue with Kemper software (but then again the Kemper is much higher cost). Ha not sure you're my age, but trust me on this, I'm probably as old as anyone wants to be carrying gear :) it's hard somewhere near 70! How I do this stuff I am often surprised I still do it. Thanks for the info - its all great information - and that can only help many I think. An interesting unit for sure... and thanks for watching.
@@tonymckenzieofficial Thanks, Tony, good to hear from you. Let's be honest, in a mix it's all subjective. They all sound great these days :) I had your fave rave (the Axe FX) I was never taken too much, a great unit though. The Kemper, I liked it, not enough to keep it though. The QC; well as I managed to get a stunning Engl capture (my dream amp) I kept it. It's excellent, recorded :) The Tonex; I just like gear (sound familiar?) lol. Best regards from Liverpool.
I have both a Fractal AX8 + Headrush FRFR rig, a Neural DSP laptop setup and a few tube amps + about 40 guitar pedals. The tube amp and pedals wins every time when it comes to feel and overall musical experience.
You hit on a very strong point... the FEEL when you play through a decent tube amp - I have yet to find in ANY simulator. Some guys will tell me I'm strongly 'biased' towards tube amps, but in reality nothing could be farther than the truth. I have owned a Kemper since 2011, an FX3 I quickly sold, and I have used so many of the other devices since for both studio and reviews alike. But there IS a difference. A Few years back I bought a used Marshall Plexi (the reissue), and I had not used a real plexi for years, but there was no doubt that when I first plugged in that amp, cranked it a bit (yikes!) and played you immediately literally feel the difference between the two technologies. It's not a bias, its based on real experience on my part. Your comments are absolutely not unfounded... but the way I look at it ultimately, is that whatever technology someone really likes and works best for them is really the one they should use. Great point, and one I'm sure I'll raise off and on with the Tonex device and software. And... thanks for watching.
Incredibly informative as always Mr Tony. Thanks so much for producing fantastic content like this! I must say though, you didn't sound bad on this unit at all
Thanks @MrRandali appreciated. Like I said in the video review I'm not knocking the product - just pointing out generally the experience of a real user... which probably is far more informative than some sales vids. :)
I've been trying/testing the software version of this with my DAW computer, since it was released and I find it works fine. I didn't experience the kind of problems you encountered trying to install. What I do find is that theres too much stuff, too many options...it's like a guitar amp funhouse or something. I can manage the software, but I find it really fidly. Unless I'm playing commercial music, I usually have about 3 versions of the same sound with my guitar amp rigs and pedals. A direct solution is required to have in your toolbelt today, depending on where you're playing. I played venues here in Montreal where they don't want much sound coming from stage (if any). I have yet to buy any type of hardware modeler yet...Thanks for your review Tony. :)
There is no doubt that there is a lot to go through and learn. The Win 10 installation did not work, although they did contact me after two days to be honest I made it work on win 11 so no real use to go back to them... and in any case by the time the reply came the video was made and posted. Personally I do think that making some creations (I'll call them that) and just putting them on the pedal and I would then not really have that much use for the software personally, hence my comments in the video. And thanks for your post that shows another side of things too... thanks for watching.
Scarily I'm not in the business :) - thankfully in many ways really. But I know what you mean and I really appreciate those kind words. Thanks for watching.
I've bought the pedal secondhand for a bargain price a week ago. Ik Multimedia transferred the software to my account. I'm running windows 10. My whole live I play tube amps, I've got 8 of them. Fenders, Marshalls, Vox, Victory. I love them but I wanted to se where all the fuzz is about... Is this new kid on the block a game changer? In two hours I had the software up and running, tweaked some Tone models, compared them to my own amps and came to the conclusion that this device is going to stay. The latest software updates made things a lot easier. When I play specific Di amp captures through my existing amps effectsloop they sound 90-95% the same. In the end I buyed some captures and I could not hear the difference at low volumes and gigging levels. Indeed there are a lot of tweaking options but for me its intuitive. Will I sell my precious amps/cabs? Never!! But for the odd gig where no amps are allowed or where silence stage is a must or for recording purposes or grabbing the unit at the couch and play through headphones this unit for the price is a no-brainer. Not everybody can crank their amps to the sweet spots without getting in trouble with their neighbours. Another advantage of this technolgy is that it is still evolving and software updates will rapidly follow. I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would like the digital AI world but I only see challanges.
You should try the Kemper Player? While it does not capture - it does not need to... it has 22000 profiles of gear already... don't assume its 'no good' and I'm reviewing this right now... IMO it is superior on many ways... watch for the video. And thanks for your take on the Tonex - great to know you like it... and thanks for watching.
@@tonymckenzieofficial , thank you for mentioning the Kemper Player. I was in doubt which unit to buy and in the end I choose for the Tonex system because I have all my effects and modulation already sorted out and I knew that the software was updated. There are some "scientific"tests on youtube where these two units are compared to eachother. A lot of blahblah with nerdy measurements and in the end the conclusion is that NAM and Tonex in the amps department are still superiour. NAM is the best. FWIW I think that all these units (Kemper,Tonex,Helix,QC etc ) are capable of producing convincing amp tones. And I'm 60 years old and after 40 years of rock & roll volumes my ears aren't the best anymore....I leave the whole capturing process to professionals, because they have the best mics/pre-amps and know everything about mic placement and such. It's an art in itself and I'm willing to pay for them. 22000 is enough for a lifetime but I only need a couple of good clean/edge/chrunch/mid gain tones that are convincing. I think the most challaging part of this technology is not the captures itself but a decent accurate monitoring system which satisfies tube amp lovers. I don't like a lot of consumer FRFR systems out there.
The Marshall studio series amps are assembled in England from overseas parts. Jason from Headfirst amplification opened one up and compared the parts to a Origin. And guess what? They look the same.
They might be... I specifically mentioned the 'electronic parts' in the video and did point out that the sourcing of the parts was NOT what I was referring to. Well, I go around Marshall Amplification next month and hopefully I'll be allowed to make another video there (last time was at least 11 years ago). In any case, thanks for watching - appreciated.
Made in whatever means nothing. What matters the manufacturing specs, if you ask the Chinese to make the best pcb they ever made and give the the appropriate budget, this is what you are going to get. If you ask the the best cheap device you can can get for budget X, this is what you are going to get ... the problems happen when budget X is too small and when the QC process is not put in place properly. Any manufacturer tries to minimize costs, so you have to put QC processes to insure their cost cutting measures do not affect your product, this is true for made anywhere.
Well I beg to differ. Go on to Amazon and buy some tech Chinese gear not high up the list... what will you get? Let me tell you, you MIGHT get a good device, but at least equally you might get something that is poorly made and is pretty much unsupported. Chinese product in my experience since 1981 is exactly that. You know better? I think not. The real problems are that there are MANY really bottom end makers in China that frankly don't care and they make the devices down to a price, and not, as you suggested, up to a standard. It IS true that there are some that are excellent manufacturers, but for every great one I can show you two others that are pretty useless. The point about the 'made in Italy' was that it was nice to see a company (if true) that can actually make quality products and compete with the Chinese. If you think that does not matter, then wait a while, watch Taiwan, and even later wonder why you can't buy anything from the far east. Thanks.
The washers are there to take the strain off when you plug in from the outside. They take up the spacing between the socket and the inside of the case to keep it tight. They also help to dampen the clunk as you push in the plug so it sounds less hollow. When I tried the software it played havoc with my USB interface and Studio One, so I had to uninstall it. I had that exact same issue with the hanging. Releasing software with this level of bug and support is completely unacceptable.
Of course I understand why etc. and thanks for pointing that out, I only mentioned those because I'm used to seeing plastic spacers that many makers do use. The washers work fine no problems there from what I see though... The software was clearly for me the weakest point and its one reason I did not spend much time on it - I just don't have the hours messing about, and the original hanging cost me three hours. BTW they did send me an email for support about 2 days in, and I'll follow that up when I get time and see what they say. If I do get an answer I'll probably make a short video of the answer. Thanks Phil... and for watching of course.
I've been messing around with the software version. It sounds great when I send it to the FX in on my Peavey Classic 30, with the cab turned off in the software.
Tony when I turn on my hand wired amp and I see the 6L6's glowing, it makes me feel good in a way a metal box full of surface mounted chips never will. Big difference in your opinion and a retailer trying to flog them to you. Imagine wading thru that instruction manual.....no thanks.
Interesting review. I decided to go for it. I think on balance the pedal sounds great and is far less expensive than other products. Combined with my HXFX it has created a versatile rig at a price point I can afford. I have been using IK software for a fair few years and yes, there are many issues in my opinion however, it does work once you get your head around it. I found the pedal intuitive to use and suggest those unsure to find one to try as this review does raise valid points. Sonically though? I’m a happy camper.
Yes it IS a very interesting unit I agree and before I bought it, I watched a few 'reviews' (always guys that get them free!) and really was entirely unsure of how good or bad the Tonex would be. It was not bad, and I did like the hardware pretty much with little to dislike. The software I found out was (as you might have seen) seemingly dependent on what you're installing it on to. The Win 10 failed miserably, and the Win 11 did work. There IS a lot for the money overall, but having time in a review to start going through it all at the time was hard as I messed about for three hours on the Win 10 episode. This will be a great unit for some guys, a good one for others but anyone that is not really a software guy should walk not run. It IS priced right no doubt. Thanks M - and for watching too.
As always Tony your reviews are detailed and informative. My TSL was struggling until I found you and your extensive information and since then it has worked flawlessly. Keep up the good work, there are many who appreciate and benefit from it.
Hi Tony, like your videos (finally subscribed), Regarding the manuals, When you buy the pedal, you get Tonex MAX and Ampli as part of the deal, even if you intend to capture your own Amps/Pdls, you don't need more than the Pdl and Tonex manuals, if you don't - the quick guide is what you need.
Well thanks for the post about this. IMO they don't make 500+ page manuals to hold the door open. Its one of the biggest manuals I have ever seen!.. thanks for the sub its appreciated and thanks for watching and that post.
@@tonymckenzieofficial Yes for 3 product 2 out of which, you say are NOT relevant to you (for your use case, you only need the librarian page of Tonex), When I buy a midi controller, and get some basic DAW for free, I don't include the DAW manual in the count. Amplitube not needed to use the pedal, it's a "gift" same as the free DAW.
@@tonymckenzieofficial Also as a SW engineer in my day job - they used to (make 500+ page manuals to hold the door open), but now it even dont do that, because no one (but you aperrantly) actually prints them to paper (they all started to care for us trees) from cover to back (but only the must relevant parts - quick guide covers it).
Hi Allan, it was an interesting unit for sure and for the money it offers a lot, but IMO it needs one aspect... your time and that is easy for some and far less easy for other guys. Thanks for watching Al...
Great review as usual! I can't stand amps that rely on software/apps for all the reasons you mentioned. Maybe you could do a series on solid state amps that companies like Quilter specialize in (the cheaper option for us blokes who can't afford/justify an all tube amp).
That's worth considering of course. It is often hard for me to do some gear as I don't own it, rarely am I sponsored, but buying some of it I wont use so largely I don't review it for that reason. But I do have some of the stuff and will consider that... and thanks for watching.
I think if you purchase this pedal, it would be used for live performance using external effects. I downloaded the free version to listen to the amps and was fairly simple and sounded good. Wouldn't have to get into amplitude 5 unless using for recordings. You can't transfer the effects to the box anyways. There would be plenty of captures you could use without having to get into capturing your own. Just use it as an amp, as it was designed for and not mess with all the other headaches.
That's a not invalid comment. If I was going to use this, like you said, there are multitudes of things to downloads, captures etc. I found on the Kemper (a good example really) that some captured gear posted was not always great and you do have to spend time on checking those all out whichever of this type of gear you buy. The capture procedure can be difficult and the guy with all those amps (Tone something or other) got his friend round to make all that work. But once you set up that pedal with what YOU want then really it could just be used like that if someone was not in to the software. Good point and thanks for watching.
Thanks Tony, I generally play live with my marshall jvm and don't own the tonex pedal. I do use and atomic amplifire 6 for short shows and works great thru my pedal board. When I record, I use my tascam model 24. Just don't have the time to play on the computer editing stuff for long periods. Thanks for the review!
I had issues with the installation of the apps. The initial program installs then you authorise the rest from that program if I remember correctly. It took me a week to make it work and I was surprised that problem was on the internet about that program from 2 years earlier. Once installed it does work OK though. Hope that helps and thanks for watching.
Hmm. Very mixed feelings on this review to be honest. What I liked was the in depth look at the hardware, taking a look at the chips. But some of the remarks showcase that you indeed coming from a vastly different background than the audience to which product is catered toward: 1. Price of components: the expensive part is never the components. Not in a tube amp, not in the ToneX. The price lies in the fact that you have software developers in the background coding the entire program for the unit to run smoothly, Quality assurance to properly test every aspect of the software as good as it gets. Think of it as a basket full of gold - the basket has no relevance except for holding the gold in it. 2. Installation problems: I had 0 issues, so had thousand other people not have any issue. The only issues I heard of were from people who know how 5onuse a computer rudimentary, and that's all the knowledge they have on this subject. But, given the state our society is in, it can be expected that you should be able to get installers running, set up windows firewalls and other OS related settings properly to get the thing running. It not, of course this product is not for you, but it then highlights that it's not the products fault, but rather the product is not suitable for the user facing these challenges. What does pose an issue is that the hype generated by content creators is done so by people who mostly have powerful computers - this leads to people believing they will have the same smooth experience on their potato Hardware as all the guys with amazing PCs with strong graphic cards. But also again, a user fault to assume such thing - if I buy an EVH5150III and complain how shitty that amp sounds, and it then is revealed I am running it on a pawnshop cheapo cardbox 4x12 cab, I would get ridiculed by peer guitar players for posing an illinformed opinion based on my own mistakes. Something similar happens to a lot of the negative feedback on usage of ToneX. People have shitty computers or not the proper ReAmping setups, and complain the capturing takes long or sounds like dog poo. ToneX is in fact the revolution it claims, because it brings capturing to the masses. There are more accurate solutions out there, but in Null-Tests it easily beats the Kemper and Quad Cortex. For that fact, if somebody states something else "feels better", it's just shows emotional attachment leading to false conclusions. Stuff like Null tests work in absolutes - either it cancels out perfectly and therefore is a perfect capture, or not. Anyhow, despite my majorly different conclusion on the subjecty I subbed. Hard work has to be respected, and it was entertaining.
I'm not entirely convinced that 'my background' had any relevance whatsoever, bearing in mind I have owned a Kemper since 2011 and a Helix for years. Also Fractal Audio and most other 'stomp' type products in the intervening years... indeed I daresay that I have probably bought, owned and used more simulators than most people with also a longer user period of them also. Of course I like real tube amps too? But those are what simulators pertain to duplicate in most instances including the Tonex. Strangely, the price of the components (back in the day) according to Fractal Audio WAS in the components, although it was clear to me at the time they were not telling the truth. While there clearly IS a cost in the software, you will not that this company sells addon after addon for this system inc. Amplitube, so in my opinion they make the revenue from the software also and not 'just' hardware. Having said that, the hardware in the Tonex pedal was as nebulous as most similarly priced pedals and simulators that I have seen in the last three years or so in reviews I have created. It is not a particularly expensive device. Great that you had no issues with your installation of the software, however, I literally found the very same issues that I had going back to 2021? I reported that problem because it exists, surely that's what genuine reviews do? It did install on the win 11 laptop and I did confirm that. One last thing, I possibly have rather more experience on PC's than you. I started in 1981 in technology, and by 1984 I was using PC's and selling them, networking them, and even later used them for internet service provision, right through to when I personally stopped selling but I'm still involved to this day), but my experience with windows goes back to version 1 Microsoft DOS then on the the earlier windows that we used to throw the 5 1/4 disks across the room as skimmers :) to today. You know, sometimes people do sometimes want to blame the messenger... but please understand that if I had not had the problems then I would not be reporting them. It was not the messenger ;-) Where you comment 'Tonex is in fact the revolution...' etc. that you made comes from is unfounded really. If you mean it's cheaper than a Kemper then it is - certainly I agree with that, and it can be afforded by guys with less funds, but hardly a revolution- its results are only really doing what the Kemper has done since 2011? That is not a revolution. And neither is it a 'game changer' as the guys hyping the unit up to the hilt all over TH-cam does get a little boring after the first... one. Hey I'm not 'having a go' at you either, I really want to say and confirm that, but these devices (whatever they are) all claim a complete change in everything and honestly last time I saw a change was in 2011 with Kemper. Sure the rest 'contribute' and some of the things you mention certainly do contribute to the march forward with simulators, their use and their cause moving it all forward. My own opinion is just an opinion after all, but it is based on my experiences with the Tonex and other previous gear on YT since 2009. Thanks for the post also BTW - as I like to see varying and differing opinions from time to time as it stops me falling asleep :) and thanks for that great response and indeed for watching.
Hmm looks like a couple of hacked in jumper wires near the top at 5:30ish, maybe a mistake in the pcb that they didn't notice until too late to redesign it? Not too major though.
Good review. I think the software issues won't bother people who are familiar with Amplitube. I do agree that there are probably better options for people who don't want to mess with software (Strymon Iridium, UAFX, Walrus ACS1, etc) I also think some companies like Line 6 have a better communication between software and hardware, but they've been in that game a lot longer. I know you are amp guy, but sadly the future is looking to be less about amps. Partially because of the reasons you named, but also because most venues want lower noise. It is what it is.
:) Well, software can be volatile, and one reason I mentioned the support aspect. It was a bit ropey from my experience. I'm sure over time it will improve and be a better experience especially re the install aspect which was surprising that the apps were not published as registered products... (Microsoft said) that was something I have not seen for a while. Well I am an amp guy, but I also own a Kemper, a Helix, Boss gear etc. etc. so I am always open to good gear and software I don't really mind (I have Studio One in the control room also) when it works well. But I'm sure it will get better. As I mentioned in the review finding ANY new amps is particularly difficult since 2020 which is pretty weird. In sectors I work in there is still shortages of electronic components etc. In any case good points you raised and I appreciate that as it helps all round for anyone who comes and reads the posts. And thanks for watching...
@@tonymckenzieofficial I appreciate how you do your reviews. Would you be interested at all in some of the newer solid state and digital amps? The Boss Katana/Katana Artist and Nextone are very well loved. Blackstar also has some interesting tube amps and a new analog solid state amp. There are also the Line 6 Catalyst amps. They may not be as pro level as some of the nice amps you own, but they are what folks are buying and gigging. It might also be fun to try out instead of a device that is mostly used to go direct. Thanks for all you do!
You know I can’t really see me buying a bunch of expensive amps just in case the They might sound better (if they do). But I would like try them out. At $400 the Tonex Is a wonderful option. I don’t know why you bothered 😮to review it, since you admitted it wasn’t your cup of tea.
Simple... whether its my cup of tea or not still shows far more in this video than all the sales videos you will ever see... and that's an important point really. If you think the sims sound 'the same' and feel (importantly) the 'same' then do buy one... remember its your choice and not mine... but this review reflects a real and genuine reflection of what I found with the device. Thanks for the post and for watching...
Sure I'm old. But I have used simulators since 2011. Hey listen snowflake... don't melt because I used one longer than you. As for the other 10 thumbs up boys - seems they only watched the false sales videos.
@@tonymckenzieofficial Hey Tony! I apologize if my words were misunderstood. Where I live "old man" is not an insult or pejorative, it is an affectionate way of speaking to friends. I'm not a native English speaker, that's why. "old man"="viejo" in Spanish. And "viejo" is a friendly way of treating others in my region. My apologies again.
At the price of the Prime... I'm not entirely convinced. I see nothing but hype from the usual suspects for the HeadRush, and from my earlier experiences with HeadRush reviews I question the price somewhat. It might be great, or not, but I won't see it being reviewed as it should be on the hype channels any time soon. Maybe I'll check one but don't hold your breath :) and thanks for watching.
Indeed I still play that amp of course. The Mezzabarba M Zero was expensive at the time, but it remains one of the best amps that I own. Its always shown at the back of the video to hopefully get some guys looking at the brand. Thanks for watching.
Well they are relevant because when you don't in reality you don't even know the capabilities of the product you bought. It DOES matter, as does the support, the warranty and the rest - something that no one ever mentioned except me. At least I hope you took more away from the review than the point of the spec sheets and thanks for watching.
software manager problem is because of your country server. you need VPN. and download at night. the server is slow, you need to wait a very long time.
I must agree the software experience part isn't good. Compared to helix, it's years behind. The only worse was ampero... That was like installing drivers on windows 98. Software issues aside, for me it does the job. I wanted something that emulates an low to mid gain amp i a natural way , and it does that great. No other device in that price range does that . I'm glad it came out now, cause i almost bought a quad cortex... Luckily I don't have to now. Is it inspirational ... Well to a person that not going to own a real 60s marshall or dumble or trainwreck, sure it's inspirational. If i had the original gear that this thing tries to emulate i wouldn't probably bother, assuming of course i'd also have porter who would carry these amps for me, and a security guard who made sure they didn't get stolen
I agree that the software, while not that complex as some I have seen, does need to work... and in my case I had to 'change the computer' to solve that. Ha careful... the S word will strike us all down... so some say ;-) What it offers is a portable box, that once you get past the software will give a reasonable comparison of the tone compared to the original, but sadly not quite the same 'feel' as the original IMO. But, load up those amps, throw away the PC and hey ho it works :) Thanks for the post and for watching this stuff. Appreciated.
@@tonymckenzieofficial addressed the S word. Funny enough, i've connected a Bad Monkey from Digitech to that profiler, a few days before mr JHS did his video comparison of BM to Klon and other insanely expensive boosters. If i knew better , i'd probably could trade that Digitech i bought for 20 dollars 10 years ago. But that is a whole different story.
Great VId - was keen to see what the CPU was - shocked actually - 600mhz to 1ghz (overclocked) thought it would be much more powerful to handle the ML code and CAB IRs + Verb, but it does explain the lack of general effects. I have the pedal and think it sounds really good - best I've heard at that price point. I have a few teensy 4.1 boards hanging around - I'm making a Gate/Expander pedal - still stunned to find out it's basically the same CPU as the Tone-X :)
These processors are commonplace in many simulators and effects units it seems from my viewing in them. It's good for the money I guess. Thanks for watching.
Software seemed 'twitchy' to me, I came from software starting back in 1981 and moved to hardware by 83, and have tended to stay with hardware in what I do. But the software might improve, it is a new release, and I have seen some companies release not so good software that later improved no end... even Roland Boss. Thanks for the post and entirely relevant. Thanks for watching.
Agreed. I’ve had around a dozen or so occurrences of the software becoming unresponsive today. I’ve had to reload the app to get it back up and running. Software can always be updated but if the platform is wrong from the start then even this can be problematic. My initial harsh impressions of Tonex have softened today but I think IK have a lot of work left to do to get this product right. Hats off to them for the price though, they got that right.
I sincerely appreciate the thorough & candid review. It has been a little laughable hearing so many YT channels claim this was a “game changer.” The videos sounded exactly like all the hype for Quad Cortex, or AxeFx, or Helix, or Kemper, or… even the original POD. It’s the same song & dance. The new best gadget ever invented, since the last best gadget ever.
This is a pertinent post and there IS merit to what you said. I agree. There is a guy on YT called TONE WARS but he has about 20+ amps and he reviewed a TONEX in the last week or so. I saw his review a while after completing mine, but it was interesting how he did point out quite a number of things that he found similarly to what I did. He had trouble with the capturing also and had to get a friend to help with that. Here's the link: th-cam.com/video/Fyvk3ugyjE4/w-d-xo.html and @tone wars did talk about the very high levels of hype. I formed a similar opinion re the hype. But the Tonex pedal overall does have some good features etc. Later in his video he did change from that approach to exactly what he found with the Tonex pedal and software. Worth a look - I don't know him but have watched some of his amp stuff before. Scarily back in 2010 and 2011 I heard it all with the Kemper and the FX2 at the time. And indeed I guess they are still saying it :). Thanks for watching.
I got the apps to download but I can't launch anything. The tonex app shows up in my DAW.. but won't do anything or Idk how. And this video is scaring me off ..lol. Might send this thing back. But I do like the stock tones, but need way more
Hope you got the program installed OK and if you did then there is more to look at from the apps which once 'authorised' did work for me. When you have used it a while do come back and post what you think! Thanks for watching.
@tonymckenziecom There's a TH-cam channel called Tone Wars, and he did a comparison beween a Kemper and a ToneX using the same amp he'd captured using both devices. After listening to him A/B'ing them I thought the Kemper sounded better. Wasn't a jaw-droppingly huge difference mind you, but the ToneX sounded a little muffled in comparison tot he Kemper which seemed to preserve more of the high end than the ToneX did. He also mentioned in his review that compared to Kemper the ToneX was a legitimate nightmare to try and capture an amp with.
I have seen TONE WARS and he is a great guy and I like his channel. He did a 'spoof' of the hype about Tonex on one of them which I thought was very apt, and many of his things seemed very similar to mine too which always sort of confirms I was on the right track. He even 'got someone around' to solve the software! Ultimately he also said it sounded OK but the time they invested in that review, to be honest, I decided not to as time was limited, and limited for me by another three hours of work trying to make the darn thing work on win 10. I did solve it on win 11 though. Some say the Tonex is 'revolutionary' and 'ground breaking' and etc. etc. but in reality just as an opinion other than £399.00 I don't really see an improvement over a Kemper that was created in 2011 and uses (it seems) the same hardware today. Tonex is good if you have lots of time and effort to learn the software and also to keep paying IK Multimedia for add ons that they charge for. Thanks for the comment and for watching.
@@tonymckenzieofficial I put off trying the ToneX free demo for a while now. Big mistake, because I was legitimately impressed by how good some of those hi-gain JCM800/Plexi captures actually are. In fact, I decided that I'm going to buy a ToneX myself.
Ha who said it was rubbish? Not me? and as far as 'old school' goes how come Ive owned a Kemper and Helix among many other devices even the Dream pedal starting back in 2011? Nope sorry I don't agree with you on your guess that I'm somehow an old school tube guy... but I understand why you said it! and thanks for watching.
Great video but installing the software was a breeze for me but I will say the ToneX app comes with a slight learning curve but once I got it figured out (1hr or so later) its killer and much better than other products.
Sadly that problem has been around for a few years :( and it still currently does not work on that Win 10 Laptop (that can't be upgraded thanks to Microsoft!). Thanks for the post and your experience... and for watching.
This is not a review, this is a complain to modern technology through the ToneX. That's Not fair. You must see it in its context. Dust of and cheer upTony, tomorrow is a new day. ;-)
So having software that this device is dependent on, and DOES NOT WORK is a complaint? You're right it IS a complaint. Listen, please don't criticise someone that has been involved in software and technology since 1981.. you think you know me, but in reality you do not. If you really knew me then those comments might be rather harder to justify. I get your point, but that point raised is simply because of a bias on your partwithout even considering the issues that I had with a semi working product that I PAID FOR. Thankfully I sold it. Thanks for watchin g and the post - it's nothing personal but I showed the product exactly as it was for a paying customer and the problems I had. Thanks...
Haven't owned an amp for years. Don't want to. Just played a gig Saturday night. Nobody knew or cared that we didn't have "real amps" and we sounded just fine. Own amps if you want to. Do what makes you happy, but there's definitely a place in the world for the modelers and cloners. I'm done lugging amps to gigs. Good riddance.
ToneX, Fractal, Kemper, Helix, you name it … are distracting from that what counts when taking a guitar and making music. That is my view. I will not give up on my tube amps. They have the tone and feel and not a computer which pretends being an amp and turns into electronic waste after plus minus 48 months. Would reckon that this ToneX thing will only make it 24 months before it ends up (hopefully) in recycling yard.
This is the old closed minded thinking of the past. It's time to move on. This technology is helping musicians make music. Trust me, I have my tube amps, and it's a crazy thing to see tube amps become a thing of the past overnight. But, here we are. You don't have to throw away the tube amps, but putting off this tech is really silly considering you can have any amp and tone you want at your fingertips.
@ET Music No one wants to maintain and carry around heavy old tube amps anymore. Guitar players tomorrow won't want or need tube amps, sorry it hurts your feelings.
With all due respect you are just straight up wrong. There is plenty of room in the market for solid-state amplifiers, tube amplifiers and electronic devices such as this. An intelligent and good player can get a solid tone with anything in front of them. In fact, I would bet a year's salary that you have heard guitars in a recording played on a device like this and had no clue what you were listening to. That's just the way things are now. Amplifier Sims are getting so good that it is now extremely difficult for even the most discerning listeners to hear the differences between them and an actual amplifier. Products like this make life easier. They just make it easier to quickly set up a tone and play, FAST... whether it's studio or live. That's just the truth. I use both amplifiers and amplifier sims and I have a Line 6 Pod and a ToneLab SE. Everything has a use. I can get great tones out of any of them. They're just tools in the toolbox.
@@Joe-mz6dc I am not arguing at all, that these devices are there for a reason. Players in a cover band can take benefit from them. However one cannot ignore that these modelers all aim for the same thing: sounding like a tube amp. And that speaks for itself. They are (most often poor) imitators of the good ol’ tube amp sound and not innovators of new (prospective iconic) sounds. They try to compensate this with myriads of features, buttons and menus by meeting a very patient community willing to wait months for a new software update to complete an unfinished product. And: I have yet to play a modeler with a good clean and on the edge of break-up sound. This most likely has to do with that crap solid state amps they are using. Good solid state amps exist (like they do in HiFi), but then they are as heavy as a tube amp and cost even more.
@@Michael-bm8hi You obviously never played a modeler than as you can find ANY tone you want, edge of breakup included. Yes modelers aim to sound like the iconic tube amps, and do it well or better than the real thing. That's the crazy insane thing about it. This technology literally replaces your tube amp. It's just the truth. Our generation is hanging on to tube amps, but my son and the younger generation will probably never pick one up, because they are simply unneeded now.
Wow man. You really missed the mark on this. Not unlike your Torpedo Live "review". Im not convinced you know anything about electronics other than how to google the numbers on chips.
It's not about me? Its about the quality of the product and the 'power of the unit' and also the software that was tosh (and by the way you never even mentioned) - why am I surprised? I'm not.
soft problem is because of your laptop screen low resolution ratio. software designed to be fit 4K display. as you dislike china, I dislike software from Italy also, very bad interface. old people should speak less on computer things, not for your age.
Ha thanks for the info... and guess what, I was in IT since 1981... visiting Singapore, HK and Taiwan many times... we gave up on IT in around 2000 when we could no longer actually make money at it because Dell, HP and many others killed off the hardware dealers. ;-) I don't believe for one second that the software was 4K only... sorry about that - most users out there do NOT have 4K even now. Thanks.
@@tonymckenzieofficial today I update the new version of TONEX and AMPLITUBE software. maybe the very first day of new software the IK has big pressure on its server, can't afford so many download request. just some patience, my download recoveried a week later. all becasue of IK server. not resolution issue on today IK product manager software.
Worst product that I’ve ever bought. Sounds nothing like any amp I’ve ever had. Complete and utter junk. This unit has been promoted by TH-cam influencers who just care about been paid to create presets etc. going back in the morning.
Chris thanks for your post about your experience of the Tonex. It matters because its a real experience from a user... and thanks for watching too. Thankfully I did NOT ascert to being someone who hyped the unit...
I’ve played with the unit for another day. I think I was somewhat over zealous yesterday. I’m sticking with my views on the reverbs, they are pretty bad, especially the spring reverbs. They have really harsh overtones, which are particularly noticeable on clean single coil sounds. They add dissonant overtones that make them unusable in my opinion. To be fair, I’ve managed to get some really great tones together today, so maybe my initial impressions were wrong. I’m happy to admit that. At the end of the day, the quality of the captures are everything, and there’s plenty of garbage on tonenet. I’m going to start introducing some pedals tomorrow, so will share my final thoughts after that.
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Exceptional insite on this that the other 7 or 8 videos I seen they didn't include (manual, software...). Brilliant, thank you sir.
This is why I always mention it all. One guy asked me somewhere on here about the spec sheets and 'what relevance' they are, but they DO have relevance IMO, just like the manuals, the software, and importantly the support which I always think is critical for anything that has a high level of software. Thanks for watching - its always appreciated.
I do like that you have been able to find and publish the potential issues with the software. I have been playing with the SE software that comes with the cature box and have not had any of the issues you are having. The software even goes full screen for me. I have done a few captures and I have not gotten that part down yet to get the tones to sound like they do in the room but my room does not have any sound treatment so I am probably hearing more bas then there is in the room. I am glad to see that you feel the hardware is quality, and who the hell reads the manual anyway.
It might be that the software does not like my resolutions (similar problem was with ezdrummer 2/3 at one stage and was a real pain when using the screen in 4k.) Thanks for the post and for watching.
Well done Tony ...people don't complain as they think it's their fault and that they have done something not right... I'm. Really put off by all this and not happy that all this shit has not been talked about by the people that have reviewed.... We need more Tony Mac's
Well thanks Robert for your opinion. NONE of the 'its a breakthrough' or 'its a revolution' reviewers that seemingly got a Tonex for free or were paid fore the review mentioned any of the stuff I did. That's the trouble with many reviews these days, they are just not entirely honest. Sadly. The Tonex has (once again in the simulators marketplace) created another wave of 'best thing since sliced bread' type of mentality generally but I did not find it that way, and had I found it like that I certainly would have said so. Thanks for watching too.
Love your videos Tony!
Thanks for watching...
Great review Tony. I bought one recently and yes I find the sw a bit clunky but it does install on my win 10 PC, but I’m not interested in the sw other than to download patches. I must say that having downloaded a Boogie mk4 patch off their library of patch contributors, plugging my strat with single coils and added a splash of reverb, I got the most gratifying tone through my headphones I’ve ever heard. I’ve had helix and current boss products before this and just recently sold on my two notes revolt to get this. Night and day. I don’t care about delays and modulation etc. for the money, it sounds stellar. Totally happy apart from clunky sw.
It's not a big issue if there are problems with the software because they can easily adjust and fix a lot of those issues in future releases.
@@Joe-mz6dc I agree. There's always a learning curve with any software. It'll probably make total sense soon. I used to have IK Stealth pedal, but it needed to be connected to a PC to work. They've been at this game for a good while. Great to see they've got well made products at realistic prices. Definately a game changer.
Great info and glad you like the Tonex. The software I found on win 10 was not a recent problem, it had been there in 2021. However on win 11 it did install and work. Thanks for the post and for watching too.
Thats a fair point, but bearing in mind that issue I saw was there in 2021 exactly when will they fix it all? That's the real question with software. I was honestly surprised to see a problem like that going back to 2021.
Thank you for emphasising the DAC and how important it is. This is well known in HiFi. As we begin to use these devices more and more to convert digital to analog, it will become clear that there is a quality and application range that we all need to consider. It is the voice of the divise since it converts digital signals to analog and ultimately the output signal.
And of course the A to D converter too.. often paired by makers from what I see, but I did not check this unit sepecifically. Thanks for watching.
38:42 duuuude, you nail it. I got mine yesterday & the manual situation, well… I used to work with Italians in product & project development over the last 30yrs; & 2 things I took from the experience:
1, it takes them a thousand words to say something that takes everyone else to say in 20;
& 2their logic is often very different to ours & although their attention to detail is good they often miss the blindingly obvs.
I’m not saying this is typical of ALL Italians but just my experience of working with them (& many other cultures) as a Brit over the last 30yrs.
Ha... well I can assure you that there are less than perfect manuals from almost any source :) The manuals are really not that bad for the main ones, but it does excel itself on the 'effects' for the software (probably Amplitube) where the 550 pages were beyond the time I certainly could apply to this review. Thanks for watching.
@@tonymckenzieofficial you’re not wrong, the BOSS ones are at least a better format BUT it’s just the info is really limited😂🤚🏼 we can’t win!
Utopia for this guitarist was a 1958 Tweed Bassman I got in '78....which still, to this day, beats any and everything I've ever tried...with a gain pedal into a 4x12...and yes, I've tried almost EVERYTHING...js...Bogner and Mezzabarba are nice toys though...and through a MESA Cab Clone IR all of them can do ANYTHING...with no Chinese slave labor, either. :O)
Even the name is cool. "Tweed Bassman" Come on man. That's an amplifier. Excellent.
@@Joe-mz6dc Thanks. For what it's worth, Tony is the most honest reviewer I've ever seen on TH-cam :O)
Well thanks @TheDogPa really appreciated.
I have to be honest, I have the Quad Cortex & the Tonex (and I have owned the rest too). The Tonex is 'as good' as the QC, in my opinion. OK, the QC has effects, but what it does have are nothing to jump up and down about. If I wanted a really great set up on a budget, I'd but a Tonex and a TC Electronic Plethora X5, for my effects. I am at the age where carrying amps & cabs around is a struggle, but I still want the 'amp' sound. I always appreciate Tony's reviews, but I differ on this product. Regardless, he's still a superb reviewer, and I love when he says, "I'm back". Regards to you, mate.
Ha I'm back :) I never did 'bite the bullet' for the Quad Cortex... almost a few times. But I still have the Kemper and that remains 'interesting' over the years since 2011 when I bought it. It's not that I did not like the Tonex, and like I said I do have the Kemper among other stuff, but the software became difficult on the first PC (over three hours to try and resolve it and I had to change the PC) which slowed me down dramatically. I have used plenty of this sort of software in general but the time factor I really did not anticipate. The hardware was very good and I did 10/10 for that, but I did think the software could have been improved somewhat. I never had a single issue with Kemper software (but then again the Kemper is much higher cost). Ha not sure you're my age, but trust me on this, I'm probably as old as anyone wants to be carrying gear :) it's hard somewhere near 70! How I do this stuff I am often surprised I still do it. Thanks for the info - its all great information - and that can only help many I think. An interesting unit for sure... and thanks for watching.
@@tonymckenzieofficial Thanks, Tony, good to hear from you. Let's be honest, in a mix it's all subjective. They all sound great these days :)
I had your fave rave (the Axe FX) I was never taken too much, a great unit though. The Kemper, I liked it, not enough to keep it though. The QC; well as I managed to get a stunning Engl capture (my dream amp) I kept it. It's excellent, recorded :)
The Tonex; I just like gear (sound familiar?) lol. Best regards from Liverpool.
I have both a Fractal AX8 + Headrush FRFR rig, a Neural DSP laptop setup and a few tube amps + about 40 guitar pedals. The tube amp and pedals wins every time when it comes to feel and overall musical experience.
You hit on a very strong point... the FEEL when you play through a decent tube amp - I have yet to find in ANY simulator. Some guys will tell me I'm strongly 'biased' towards tube amps, but in reality nothing could be farther than the truth. I have owned a Kemper since 2011, an FX3 I quickly sold, and I have used so many of the other devices since for both studio and reviews alike. But there IS a difference. A Few years back I bought a used Marshall Plexi (the reissue), and I had not used a real plexi for years, but there was no doubt that when I first plugged in that amp, cranked it a bit (yikes!) and played you immediately literally feel the difference between the two technologies. It's not a bias, its based on real experience on my part. Your comments are absolutely not unfounded... but the way I look at it ultimately, is that whatever technology someone really likes and works best for them is really the one they should use. Great point, and one I'm sure I'll raise off and on with the Tonex device and software. And... thanks for watching.
Biased 😂
@@garyatkins4479 He wouldn't be able to tell the difference in a blind test I bet.
Incredibly informative as always Mr Tony. Thanks so much for producing fantastic content like this! I must say though, you didn't sound bad on this unit at all
Thanks @MrRandali appreciated. Like I said in the video review I'm not knocking the product - just pointing out generally the experience of a real user... which probably is far more informative than some sales vids. :)
I've been trying/testing the software version of this with my DAW computer, since it was released and I find it works fine. I didn't experience the kind of problems you encountered trying to install. What I do find is that theres too much stuff, too many options...it's like a guitar amp funhouse or something. I can manage the software, but I find it really fidly. Unless I'm playing commercial music, I usually have about 3 versions of the same sound with my guitar amp rigs and pedals. A direct solution is required to have in your toolbelt today, depending on where you're playing. I played venues here in Montreal where they don't want much sound coming from stage (if any). I have yet to buy any type of hardware modeler yet...Thanks for your review Tony. :)
There is no doubt that there is a lot to go through and learn. The Win 10 installation did not work, although they did contact me after two days to be honest I made it work on win 11 so no real use to go back to them... and in any case by the time the reply came the video was made and posted. Personally I do think that making some creations (I'll call them that) and just putting them on the pedal and I would then not really have that much use for the software personally, hence my comments in the video. And thanks for your post that shows another side of things too... thanks for watching.
Tony were reviews are always in depth and spot on,Cheers!
Thanks for the kind words and for watching.
Tony, you do the most meticulous and thorough reviews in the business. Grateful for everything you’re doing!
Scarily I'm not in the business :) - thankfully in many ways really. But I know what you mean and I really appreciate those kind words. Thanks for watching.
One of the best sound demos yet.
I'm not entirely sure that's the case... there are far better players out there than the likes of me and Alan :) but hey thanks for watching.
@@tonymckenzieofficial It truly was a pleasure to listen to. Thank you.
I've bought the pedal secondhand for a bargain price a week ago. Ik Multimedia transferred the software to my account. I'm running windows 10. My whole live I play tube amps, I've got 8 of them. Fenders, Marshalls, Vox, Victory. I love them but I wanted to se where all the fuzz is about... Is this new kid on the block a game changer? In two hours I had the software up and running, tweaked some Tone models, compared them to my own amps and came to the conclusion that this device is going to stay. The latest software updates made things a lot easier. When I play specific Di amp captures through my existing amps effectsloop they sound 90-95% the same. In the end I buyed some captures and I could not hear the difference at low volumes and gigging levels. Indeed there are a lot of tweaking options but for me its intuitive. Will I sell my precious amps/cabs? Never!! But for the odd gig where no amps are allowed or where silence stage is a must or for recording purposes or grabbing the unit at the couch and play through headphones this unit for the price is a no-brainer. Not everybody can crank their amps to the sweet spots without getting in trouble with their neighbours. Another advantage of this technolgy is that it is still evolving and software updates will rapidly follow. I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would like the digital AI world but I only see challanges.
You should try the Kemper Player? While it does not capture - it does not need to... it has 22000 profiles of gear already... don't assume its 'no good' and I'm reviewing this right now... IMO it is superior on many ways... watch for the video. And thanks for your take on the Tonex - great to know you like it... and thanks for watching.
@@tonymckenzieofficial , thank you for mentioning the Kemper Player. I was in doubt which unit to buy and in the end I choose for the Tonex system because I have all my effects and modulation already sorted out and I knew that the software was updated. There are some "scientific"tests on youtube where these two units are compared to eachother. A lot of blahblah with nerdy measurements and in the end the conclusion is that NAM and Tonex in the amps department are still superiour. NAM is the best. FWIW I think that all these units (Kemper,Tonex,Helix,QC etc ) are capable of producing convincing amp tones. And I'm 60 years old and after 40 years of rock & roll volumes my ears aren't the best anymore....I leave the whole capturing process to professionals, because they have the best mics/pre-amps and know everything about mic placement and such. It's an art in itself and I'm willing to pay for them. 22000 is enough for a lifetime but I only need a couple of good clean/edge/chrunch/mid gain tones that are convincing. I think the most challaging part of this technology is not the captures itself but a decent accurate monitoring system which satisfies tube amp lovers. I don't like a lot of consumer FRFR systems out there.
Another great review man, thank you & hope you well!
Thanks for the kind words - and of course for watching. Appreciated.
I appreciate your personal opion and will respect that... it's about gear and not about people... it's just good opinion because it's yours.
ANY opinion is valid when it covers someone real experiences. Thanks.
That jumperd Marshall is as complicated as I like to get.
Ha brilliant comment :) Thanks for watching.
I hope IK Multimedia watch this video. The software feedback is really valuable.
Thanks. and thanks for watching.
The Marshall studio series amps are assembled in England from overseas parts. Jason from Headfirst amplification opened one up and compared the parts to a Origin. And guess what? They look the same.
They might be... I specifically mentioned the 'electronic parts' in the video and did point out that the sourcing of the parts was NOT what I was referring to. Well, I go around Marshall Amplification next month and hopefully I'll be allowed to make another video there (last time was at least 11 years ago). In any case, thanks for watching - appreciated.
Made in whatever means nothing. What matters the manufacturing specs, if you ask the Chinese to make the best pcb they ever made and give the the appropriate budget, this is what you are going to get. If you ask the the best cheap device you can can get for budget X, this is what you are going to get ... the problems happen when budget X is too small and when the QC process is not put in place properly. Any manufacturer tries to minimize costs, so you have to put QC processes to insure their cost cutting measures do not affect your product, this is true for made anywhere.
Well I beg to differ. Go on to Amazon and buy some tech Chinese gear not high up the list... what will you get? Let me tell you, you MIGHT get a good device, but at least equally you might get something that is poorly made and is pretty much unsupported. Chinese product in my experience since 1981 is exactly that. You know better? I think not. The real problems are that there are MANY really bottom end makers in China that frankly don't care and they make the devices down to a price, and not, as you suggested, up to a standard. It IS true that there are some that are excellent manufacturers, but for every great one I can show you two others that are pretty useless. The point about the 'made in Italy' was that it was nice to see a company (if true) that can actually make quality products and compete with the Chinese. If you think that does not matter, then wait a while, watch Taiwan, and even later wonder why you can't buy anything from the far east. Thanks.
The washers are there to take the strain off when you plug in from the outside. They take up the spacing between the socket and the inside of the case to keep it tight. They also help to dampen the clunk as you push in the plug so it sounds less hollow. When I tried the software it played havoc with my USB interface and Studio One, so I had to uninstall it. I had that exact same issue with the hanging. Releasing software with this level of bug and support is completely unacceptable.
Of course I understand why etc. and thanks for pointing that out, I only mentioned those because I'm used to seeing plastic spacers that many makers do use. The washers work fine no problems there from what I see though... The software was clearly for me the weakest point and its one reason I did not spend much time on it - I just don't have the hours messing about, and the original hanging cost me three hours. BTW they did send me an email for support about 2 days in, and I'll follow that up when I get time and see what they say. If I do get an answer I'll probably make a short video of the answer. Thanks Phil... and for watching of course.
@@tonymckenzieofficial Thanks Tony. I would be interested to know what they say about the installation issue. Keep up the great work. :-)
I've been messing around with the software version. It sounds great when I send it to the FX in on my Peavey Classic 30, with the cab turned off in the software.
So effects unit here we go :) or maybe you leave the amp on too :) sounds fun :) and thanks for watching.
Tony when I turn on my hand wired amp and I see the 6L6's glowing, it makes me feel good in a way a metal box full of surface mounted chips never will. Big difference in your opinion and a retailer trying to flog them to you. Imagine wading thru that instruction manual.....no thanks.
Ha some challenge what I say sometimes, but it really was as my experience showed as a user. Mine will be sold. Thanks for watching...
Interesting review. I decided to go for it. I think on balance the pedal sounds great and is far less expensive than other products. Combined with my HXFX it has created a versatile rig at a price point I can afford. I have been using IK software for a fair few years and yes, there are many issues in my opinion however, it does work once you get your head around it. I found the pedal intuitive to use and suggest those unsure to find one to try as this review does raise valid points. Sonically though? I’m a happy camper.
Yes it IS a very interesting unit I agree and before I bought it, I watched a few 'reviews' (always guys that get them free!) and really was entirely unsure of how good or bad the Tonex would be. It was not bad, and I did like the hardware pretty much with little to dislike. The software I found out was (as you might have seen) seemingly dependent on what you're installing it on to. The Win 10 failed miserably, and the Win 11 did work. There IS a lot for the money overall, but having time in a review to start going through it all at the time was hard as I messed about for three hours on the Win 10 episode. This will be a great unit for some guys, a good one for others but anyone that is not really a software guy should walk not run. It IS priced right no doubt. Thanks M - and for watching too.
As always Tony your reviews are detailed and informative. My TSL was struggling until I found you and your extensive information and since then it has worked flawlessly. Keep up the good work, there are many who appreciate and benefit from it.
Hi Tony, like your videos (finally subscribed), Regarding the manuals, When you buy the pedal, you get Tonex MAX and Ampli as part of the deal, even if you intend to capture your own Amps/Pdls, you don't need more than the Pdl and Tonex manuals, if you don't - the quick guide is what you need.
Well thanks for the post about this. IMO they don't make 500+ page manuals to hold the door open. Its one of the biggest manuals I have ever seen!.. thanks for the sub its appreciated and thanks for watching and that post.
@@tonymckenzieofficial Yes for 3 product 2 out of which, you say are NOT relevant to you (for your use case, you only need the librarian page of Tonex), When I buy a midi controller, and get some basic DAW for free, I don't include the DAW manual in the count. Amplitube not needed to use the pedal, it's a "gift" same as the free DAW.
@@tonymckenzieofficial Also as a SW engineer in my day job - they used to (make 500+ page manuals to hold the door open), but now it even dont do that, because no one (but you aperrantly) actually prints them to paper (they all started to care for us trees) from cover to back (but only the must relevant parts - quick guide covers it).
Good fair review , I can't fault you Tony
Hi Allan, it was an interesting unit for sure and for the money it offers a lot, but IMO it needs one aspect... your time and that is easy for some and far less easy for other guys. Thanks for watching Al...
Great review as usual! I can't stand amps that rely on software/apps for all the reasons you mentioned. Maybe you could do a series on solid state amps that companies like Quilter specialize in (the cheaper option for us blokes who can't afford/justify an all tube amp).
That's worth considering of course. It is often hard for me to do some gear as I don't own it, rarely am I sponsored, but buying some of it I wont use so largely I don't review it for that reason. But I do have some of the stuff and will consider that... and thanks for watching.
Thanks for the Video Tony, did you ever try the Blackstar Amped 1 pedal. Be interested to hear your thoughts 🙂
Not yet! Sorry... but who knows :) and thanks for watching...
I think if you purchase this pedal, it would be used for live performance using external effects. I downloaded the free version to listen to the amps and was fairly simple and sounded good. Wouldn't have to get into amplitude 5 unless using for recordings. You can't transfer the effects to the box anyways. There would be plenty of captures you could use without having to get into capturing your own. Just use it as an amp, as it was designed for and not mess with all the other headaches.
That's a not invalid comment. If I was going to use this, like you said, there are multitudes of things to downloads, captures etc. I found on the Kemper (a good example really) that some captured gear posted was not always great and you do have to spend time on checking those all out whichever of this type of gear you buy. The capture procedure can be difficult and the guy with all those amps (Tone something or other) got his friend round to make all that work. But once you set up that pedal with what YOU want then really it could just be used like that if someone was not in to the software. Good point and thanks for watching.
Thanks Tony, I generally play live with my marshall jvm and don't own the tonex pedal. I do use and atomic amplifire 6 for short shows and works great thru my pedal board. When I record, I use my tascam model 24. Just don't have the time to play on the computer editing stuff for long periods. Thanks for the review!
Nice pickin!!! I just got my tonex pedal. Can't figure out the app
I had issues with the installation of the apps. The initial program installs then you authorise the rest from that program if I remember correctly. It took me a week to make it work and I was surprised that problem was on the internet about that program from 2 years earlier. Once installed it does work OK though. Hope that helps and thanks for watching.
Great video please do Two Notes Revolt
I have/am considering that unit :) Thanks for watching.
Hmm. Very mixed feelings on this review to be honest. What I liked was the in depth look at the hardware, taking a look at the chips. But some of the remarks showcase that you indeed coming from a vastly different background than the audience to which product is catered toward:
1. Price of components: the expensive part is never the components. Not in a tube amp, not in the ToneX. The price lies in the fact that you have software developers in the background coding the entire program for the unit to run smoothly, Quality assurance to properly test every aspect of the software as good as it gets. Think of it as a basket full of gold - the basket has no relevance except for holding the gold in it.
2. Installation problems: I had 0 issues, so had thousand other people not have any issue. The only issues I heard of were from people who know how 5onuse a computer rudimentary, and that's all the knowledge they have on this subject. But, given the state our society is in, it can be expected that you should be able to get installers running, set up windows firewalls and other OS related settings properly to get the thing running. It not, of course this product is not for you, but it then highlights that it's not the products fault, but rather the product is not suitable for the user facing these challenges. What does pose an issue is that the hype generated by content creators is done so by people who mostly have powerful computers - this leads to people believing they will have the same smooth experience on their potato Hardware as all the guys with amazing PCs with strong graphic cards. But also again, a user fault to assume such thing - if I buy an EVH5150III and complain how shitty that amp sounds, and it then is revealed I am running it on a pawnshop cheapo cardbox 4x12 cab, I would get ridiculed by peer guitar players for posing an illinformed opinion based on my own mistakes. Something similar happens to a lot of the negative feedback on usage of ToneX. People have shitty computers or not the proper ReAmping setups, and complain the capturing takes long or sounds like dog poo.
ToneX is in fact the revolution it claims, because it brings capturing to the masses. There are more accurate solutions out there, but in Null-Tests it easily beats the Kemper and Quad Cortex. For that fact, if somebody states something else "feels better", it's just shows emotional attachment leading to false conclusions. Stuff like Null tests work in absolutes - either it cancels out perfectly and therefore is a perfect capture, or not.
Anyhow, despite my majorly different conclusion on the subjecty I subbed. Hard work has to be respected, and it was entertaining.
I'm not entirely convinced that 'my background' had any relevance whatsoever, bearing in mind I have owned a Kemper since 2011 and a Helix for years. Also Fractal Audio and most other 'stomp' type products in the intervening years... indeed I daresay that I have probably bought, owned and used more simulators than most people with also a longer user period of them also. Of course I like real tube amps too? But those are what simulators pertain to duplicate in most instances including the Tonex. Strangely, the price of the components (back in the day) according to Fractal Audio WAS in the components, although it was clear to me at the time they were not telling the truth. While there clearly IS a cost in the software, you will not that this company sells addon after addon for this system inc. Amplitube, so in my opinion they make the revenue from the software also and not 'just' hardware. Having said that, the hardware in the Tonex pedal was as nebulous as most similarly priced pedals and simulators that I have seen in the last three years or so in reviews I have created. It is not a particularly expensive device.
Great that you had no issues with your installation of the software, however, I literally found the very same issues that I had going back to 2021? I reported that problem because it exists, surely that's what genuine reviews do? It did install on the win 11 laptop and I did confirm that. One last thing, I possibly have rather more experience on PC's than you. I started in 1981 in technology, and by 1984 I was using PC's and selling them, networking them, and even later used them for internet service provision, right through to when I personally stopped selling but I'm still involved to this day), but my experience with windows goes back to version 1 Microsoft DOS then on the the earlier windows that we used to throw the 5 1/4 disks across the room as skimmers :) to today. You know, sometimes people do sometimes want to blame the messenger... but please understand that if I had not had the problems then I would not be reporting them. It was not the messenger ;-)
Where you comment 'Tonex is in fact the revolution...' etc. that you made comes from is unfounded really. If you mean it's cheaper than a Kemper then it is - certainly I agree with that, and it can be afforded by guys with less funds, but hardly a revolution- its results are only really doing what the Kemper has done since 2011? That is not a revolution. And neither is it a 'game changer' as the guys hyping the unit up to the hilt all over TH-cam does get a little boring after the first... one.
Hey I'm not 'having a go' at you either, I really want to say and confirm that, but these devices (whatever they are) all claim a complete change in everything and honestly last time I saw a change was in 2011 with Kemper. Sure the rest 'contribute' and some of the things you mention certainly do contribute to the march forward with simulators, their use and their cause moving it all forward. My own opinion is just an opinion after all, but it is based on my experiences with the Tonex and other previous gear on YT since 2009.
Thanks for the post also BTW - as I like to see varying and differing opinions from time to time as it stops me falling asleep :) and thanks for that great response and indeed for watching.
Hmm looks like a couple of hacked in jumper wires near the top at 5:30ish, maybe a mistake in the pcb that they didn't notice until too late to redesign it? Not too major though.
Good point... I missed them! (must have been drunk or something :) - well spotted but not really that concerning. Thanks for watching too!
My issue with Tone X app is that the stomp box in the presets can't be changed.
Thanks for the post and pointing that out... and for watching of course.
Good review. I think the software issues won't bother people who are familiar with Amplitube.
I do agree that there are probably better options for people who don't want to mess with software (Strymon Iridium, UAFX, Walrus ACS1, etc)
I also think some companies like Line 6 have a better communication between software and hardware, but they've been in that game a lot longer.
I know you are amp guy, but sadly the future is looking to be less about amps. Partially because of the reasons you named, but also because most venues want lower noise.
It is what it is.
:) Well, software can be volatile, and one reason I mentioned the support aspect. It was a bit ropey from my experience. I'm sure over time it will improve and be a better experience especially re the install aspect which was surprising that the apps were not published as registered products... (Microsoft said) that was something I have not seen for a while. Well I am an amp guy, but I also own a Kemper, a Helix, Boss gear etc. etc. so I am always open to good gear and software I don't really mind (I have Studio One in the control room also) when it works well. But I'm sure it will get better. As I mentioned in the review finding ANY new amps is particularly difficult since 2020 which is pretty weird. In sectors I work in there is still shortages of electronic components etc. In any case good points you raised and I appreciate that as it helps all round for anyone who comes and reads the posts. And thanks for watching...
@@tonymckenzieofficial I appreciate how you do your reviews.
Would you be interested at all in some of the newer solid state and digital amps?
The Boss Katana/Katana Artist and Nextone are very well loved.
Blackstar also has some interesting tube amps and a new analog solid state amp.
There are also the Line 6 Catalyst amps.
They may not be as pro level as some of the nice amps you own, but they are what folks are buying and gigging. It might also be fun to try out instead of a device that is mostly used to go direct.
Thanks for all you do!
You know I can’t really see me buying a
bunch of expensive amps just in case the
They might sound better (if they do). But
I would like try them out. At $400 the Tonex
Is a wonderful option. I don’t know why you
bothered 😮to review it, since you admitted it
wasn’t your cup of tea.
Simple... whether its my cup of tea or not still shows far more in this video than all the sales videos you will ever see... and that's an important point really. If you think the sims sound 'the same' and feel (importantly) the 'same' then do buy one... remember its your choice and not mine... but this review reflects a real and genuine reflection of what I found with the device. Thanks for the post and for watching...
@@tonymckenzieofficial I have no idea why you think what you said is important,
Certainly not for those, who are people would want it. Your explanation of chip sets is not relevant to making a purchase decision.
Keep going old man. You are gold for us the guitar players who like digital processing.
Bravo, only thing you can do throw an age insult. How about you post a video showing how awesome the tone x is.
Sure I'm old. But I have used simulators since 2011. Hey listen snowflake... don't melt because I used one longer than you. As for the other 10 thumbs up boys - seems they only watched the false sales videos.
Thanks for the support - some guys are like that. Appreciated.
@@tonymckenzieofficial Hey Tony! I apologize if my words were misunderstood. Where I live "old man" is not an insult or pejorative, it is an affectionate way of speaking to friends. I'm not a native English speaker, that's why. "old man"="viejo" in Spanish. And "viejo" is a friendly way of treating others in my region. My apologies again.
Curse TH-cam for only letting me like this video once.
Great comment and appreciated.
I use it with powerstage into 2x12 with v30s. Whats next, HeadRush Prime?
At the price of the Prime... I'm not entirely convinced. I see nothing but hype from the usual suspects for the HeadRush, and from my earlier experiences with HeadRush reviews I question the price somewhat. It might be great, or not, but I won't see it being reviewed as it should be on the hype channels any time soon. Maybe I'll check one but don't hold your breath :) and thanks for watching.
Tony you've had Mzer0 for so long do you play it? Still happy with it?
Indeed I still play that amp of course. The Mezzabarba M Zero was expensive at the time, but it remains one of the best amps that I own. Its always shown at the back of the video to hopefully get some guys looking at the brand. Thanks for watching.
@@tonymckenzieofficial Yes I was thinking of buying one. You didn't want to sell yours🤣
How reading specs sheets can be relevant ?
Well they are relevant because when you don't in reality you don't even know the capabilities of the product you bought. It DOES matter, as does the support, the warranty and the rest - something that no one ever mentioned except me. At least I hope you took more away from the review than the point of the spec sheets and thanks for watching.
software manager problem is because of your country server. you need VPN. and download at night. the server is slow, you need to wait a very long time.
This is incorrect.
I must agree the software experience part isn't good. Compared to helix, it's years behind. The only worse was ampero... That was like installing drivers on windows 98.
Software issues aside, for me it does the job. I wanted something that emulates an low to mid gain amp i a natural way , and it does that great. No other device in that price range does that .
I'm glad it came out now, cause i almost bought a quad cortex... Luckily I don't have to now.
Is it inspirational ... Well to a person that not going to own a real 60s marshall or dumble or trainwreck, sure it's inspirational.
If i had the original gear that this thing tries to emulate i wouldn't probably bother, assuming of course i'd also have porter who would carry these amps for me, and a security guard who made sure they didn't get stolen
It's not a big issue if there are problems with the software because they can easily adjust and fix a lot of those issues in future releases.
I agree that the software, while not that complex as some I have seen, does need to work... and in my case I had to 'change the computer' to solve that. Ha careful... the S word will strike us all down... so some say ;-) What it offers is a portable box, that once you get past the software will give a reasonable comparison of the tone compared to the original, but sadly not quite the same 'feel' as the original IMO. But, load up those amps, throw away the PC and hey ho it works :) Thanks for the post and for watching this stuff. Appreciated.
@@tonymckenzieofficial addressed the S word. Funny enough, i've connected a Bad Monkey from Digitech to that profiler, a few days before mr JHS did his video comparison of BM to Klon and other insanely expensive boosters. If i knew better , i'd probably could trade that Digitech i bought for 20 dollars 10 years ago. But that is a whole different story.
Great VId - was keen to see what the CPU was - shocked actually - 600mhz to 1ghz (overclocked) thought it would be much more powerful to handle the ML code and CAB IRs + Verb, but it does explain the lack of general effects. I have the pedal and think it sounds really good - best I've heard at that price point. I have a few teensy 4.1 boards hanging around - I'm making a Gate/Expander pedal - still stunned to find out it's basically the same CPU as the Tone-X :)
These processors are commonplace in many simulators and effects units it seems from my viewing in them. It's good for the money I guess. Thanks for watching.
Great review. I bought this pedal and the hardware is fine, but the computer software is badly designed.
Software seemed 'twitchy' to me, I came from software starting back in 1981 and moved to hardware by 83, and have tended to stay with hardware in what I do. But the software might improve, it is a new release, and I have seen some companies release not so good software that later improved no end... even Roland Boss. Thanks for the post and entirely relevant. Thanks for watching.
Agreed. I’ve had around a dozen or so occurrences of the software becoming unresponsive today. I’ve had to reload the app to get it back up and running. Software can always be updated but if the platform is wrong from the start then even this can be problematic. My initial harsh impressions of Tonex have softened today but I think IK have a lot of work left to do to get this product right. Hats off to them for the price though, they got that right.
I sincerely appreciate the thorough & candid review. It has been a little laughable hearing so many YT channels claim this was a “game changer.”
The videos sounded exactly like all the hype for Quad Cortex, or AxeFx, or Helix, or Kemper, or… even the original POD.
It’s the same song & dance. The new best gadget ever invented, since the last best gadget ever.
This is a pertinent post and there IS merit to what you said. I agree. There is a guy on YT called TONE WARS but he has about 20+ amps and he reviewed a TONEX in the last week or so. I saw his review a while after completing mine, but it was interesting how he did point out quite a number of things that he found similarly to what I did. He had trouble with the capturing also and had to get a friend to help with that. Here's the link: th-cam.com/video/Fyvk3ugyjE4/w-d-xo.html and @tone wars did talk about the very high levels of hype. I formed a similar opinion re the hype. But the Tonex pedal overall does have some good features etc. Later in his video he did change from that approach to exactly what he found with the Tonex pedal and software. Worth a look - I don't know him but have watched some of his amp stuff before. Scarily back in 2010 and 2011 I heard it all with the Kemper and the FX2 at the time. And indeed I guess they are still saying it :). Thanks for watching.
Is there any latency in the device?
I did not hear any... or for that matter 'feel'any either - good question...
@@tonymckenzieofficial Thank you.
I got the apps to download but I can't launch anything. The tonex app shows up in my DAW.. but won't do anything or Idk how. And this video is scaring me off ..lol. Might send this thing back. But I do like the stock tones, but need way more
Hope you got the program installed OK and if you did then there is more to look at from the apps which once 'authorised' did work for me. When you have used it a while do come back and post what you think! Thanks for watching.
@tonymckenziecom There's a TH-cam channel called Tone Wars, and he did a comparison beween a Kemper and a ToneX using the same amp he'd captured using both devices. After listening to him A/B'ing them I thought the Kemper sounded better. Wasn't a jaw-droppingly huge difference mind you, but the ToneX sounded a little muffled in comparison tot he Kemper which seemed to preserve more of the high end than the ToneX did.
He also mentioned in his review that compared to Kemper the ToneX was a legitimate nightmare to try and capture an amp with.
I have seen TONE WARS and he is a great guy and I like his channel. He did a 'spoof' of the hype about Tonex on one of them which I thought was very apt, and many of his things seemed very similar to mine too which always sort of confirms I was on the right track. He even 'got someone around' to solve the software! Ultimately he also said it sounded OK but the time they invested in that review, to be honest, I decided not to as time was limited, and limited for me by another three hours of work trying to make the darn thing work on win 10. I did solve it on win 11 though. Some say the Tonex is 'revolutionary' and 'ground breaking' and etc. etc. but in reality just as an opinion other than £399.00 I don't really see an improvement over a Kemper that was created in 2011 and uses (it seems) the same hardware today. Tonex is good if you have lots of time and effort to learn the software and also to keep paying IK Multimedia for add ons that they charge for. Thanks for the comment and for watching.
@@tonymckenzieofficial I put off trying the ToneX free demo for a while now. Big mistake, because I was legitimately impressed by how good some of those hi-gain JCM800/Plexi captures actually are. In fact, I decided that I'm going to buy a ToneX myself.
like anything else takes time to learn right?
Actually thats not always the case, but this unit has a few extra spoonfulls. Thanks...
You're back! Hi Tony!
indeed! :)
You're an old school tube amp guy. That's fine. But the product isn't rubbish. It's just not right for you.
Ha who said it was rubbish? Not me? and as far as 'old school' goes how come Ive owned a Kemper and Helix among many other devices even the Dream pedal starting back in 2011? Nope sorry I don't agree with you on your guess that I'm somehow an old school tube guy... but I understand why you said it! and thanks for watching.
Great video but installing the software was a breeze for me but I will say the ToneX app comes with a slight learning curve but once I got it figured out (1hr or so later) its killer and much better than other products.
Sadly that problem has been around for a few years :( and it still currently does not work on that Win 10 Laptop (that can't be upgraded thanks to Microsoft!). Thanks for the post and your experience... and for watching.
The only unbiased reviews on youtube. 'Tony no baloney'.
Requested review, anything that records 32 floating bit.
Very kind and thanks for watching.
This is not a review, this is a complain to modern technology through the ToneX. That's Not fair. You must see it in its context. Dust of and cheer upTony, tomorrow is a new day. ;-)
So having software that this device is dependent on, and DOES NOT WORK is a complaint? You're right it IS a complaint. Listen, please don't criticise someone that has been involved in software and technology since 1981.. you think you know me, but in reality you do not. If you really knew me then those comments might be rather harder to justify. I get your point, but that point raised is simply because of a bias on your partwithout even considering the issues that I had with a semi working product that I PAID FOR. Thankfully I sold it. Thanks for watchin g and the post - it's nothing personal but I showed the product exactly as it was for a paying customer and the problems I had. Thanks...
👌main software problem with it is you need a Mac …
Ha great answer... :) Thanks.
Oh boy … thanks for the review tony .. It’s a hard pass on this unit for me
Thanks for watching.
Haven't owned an amp for years. Don't want to. Just played a gig Saturday night. Nobody knew or cared that we didn't have "real amps" and we sounded just fine.
Own amps if you want to. Do what makes you happy, but there's definitely a place in the world for the modelers and cloners. I'm done lugging amps to gigs. Good riddance.
Ha what will you 'model' when there are no amps, cabs or effects makers left?
ToneX, Fractal, Kemper, Helix, you name it … are distracting from that what counts when taking a guitar and making music. That is my view. I will not give up on my tube amps. They have the tone and feel and not a computer which pretends being an amp and turns into electronic waste after plus minus 48 months. Would reckon that this ToneX thing will only make it 24 months before it ends up (hopefully) in recycling yard.
This is the old closed minded thinking of the past. It's time to move on. This technology is helping musicians make music. Trust me, I have my tube amps, and it's a crazy thing to see tube amps become a thing of the past overnight. But, here we are. You don't have to throw away the tube amps, but putting off this tech is really silly considering you can have any amp and tone you want at your fingertips.
@ET Music No one wants to maintain and carry around heavy old tube amps anymore. Guitar players tomorrow won't want or need tube amps, sorry it hurts your feelings.
With all due respect you are just straight up wrong. There is plenty of room in the market for solid-state amplifiers, tube amplifiers and electronic devices such as this. An intelligent and good player can get a solid tone with anything in front of them. In fact, I would bet a year's salary that you have heard guitars in a recording played on a device like this and had no clue what you were listening to.
That's just the way things are now. Amplifier Sims are getting so good that it is now extremely difficult for even the most discerning listeners to hear the differences between them and an actual amplifier.
Products like this make life easier. They just make it easier to quickly set up a tone and play, FAST...
whether it's studio or live. That's just the truth. I use both amplifiers and amplifier sims and I have a Line 6 Pod and a ToneLab SE. Everything has a use. I can get great tones out of any of them. They're just tools in the toolbox.
@@Joe-mz6dc I am not arguing at all, that these devices are there for a reason. Players in a cover band can take benefit from them. However one cannot ignore that these modelers all aim for the same thing: sounding like a tube amp. And that speaks for itself. They are (most often poor) imitators of the good ol’ tube amp sound and not innovators of new (prospective iconic) sounds. They try to compensate this with myriads of features, buttons and menus by meeting a very patient community willing to wait months for a new software update to complete an unfinished product.
And: I have yet to play a modeler with a good clean and on the edge of break-up sound. This most likely has to do with that crap solid state amps they are using. Good solid state amps exist (like they do in HiFi), but then they are as heavy as a tube amp and cost even more.
@@Michael-bm8hi You obviously never played a modeler than as you can find ANY tone you want, edge of breakup included. Yes modelers aim to sound like the iconic tube amps, and do it well or better than the real thing. That's the crazy insane thing about it. This technology literally replaces your tube amp. It's just the truth. Our generation is hanging on to tube amps, but my son and the younger generation will probably never pick one up, because they are simply unneeded now.
haha i thought he said "im black" --- see what this crazy world does to a person??!?!?
Classic :) and I could imagine the aggravation! Thanks for watching.
Wow man. You really missed the mark on this. Not unlike your Torpedo Live "review". Im not convinced you know anything about electronics other than how to google the numbers on chips.
It's not about me? Its about the quality of the product and the 'power of the unit' and also the software that was tosh (and by the way you never even mentioned) - why am I surprised? I'm not.
soft problem is because of your laptop screen low resolution ratio. software designed to be fit 4K display. as you dislike china, I dislike software from Italy also, very bad interface. old people should speak less on computer things, not for your age.
Ha thanks for the info... and guess what, I was in IT since 1981... visiting Singapore, HK and Taiwan many times... we gave up on IT in around 2000 when we could no longer actually make money at it because Dell, HP and many others killed off the hardware dealers. ;-) I don't believe for one second that the software was 4K only... sorry about that - most users out there do NOT have 4K even now. Thanks.
@@tonymckenzieofficial today I update the new version of TONEX and AMPLITUBE software. maybe the very first day of new software the IK has big pressure on its server, can't afford so many download request. just some patience, my download recoveried a week later. all becasue of IK server. not resolution issue on today IK product manager software.
Worst product that I’ve ever bought. Sounds nothing like any amp I’ve ever had. Complete and utter junk. This unit has been promoted by TH-cam influencers who just care about been paid to create presets etc. going back in the morning.
Chris thanks for your post about your experience of the Tonex. It matters because its a real experience from a user... and thanks for watching too. Thankfully I did NOT ascert to being someone who hyped the unit...
I’ve played with the unit for another day. I think I was somewhat over zealous yesterday. I’m sticking with my views on the reverbs, they are pretty bad, especially the spring reverbs. They have really harsh overtones, which are particularly noticeable on clean single coil sounds. They add dissonant overtones that make them unusable in my opinion. To be fair, I’ve managed to get some really great tones together today, so maybe my initial impressions were wrong. I’m happy to admit that. At the end of the day, the quality of the captures are everything, and there’s plenty of garbage on tonenet. I’m going to start introducing some pedals tomorrow, so will share my final thoughts after that.