NOTE: FX Loops 1 & 2 are fixed at the front of the signal path. They are special since they are 100% analog, fuzz-friendly loops. Loops 3 & 4 can be moved anywhere in the signal path.
exactly what I imagined, because of the option to link loop 3 and 4 it seemed to me that they would have the option enabled to go post amp, nice feature
I was wondering how it would take drive pedals, it seems they've thought that through! Nice! This Device is a win if Fender continues to support and update it for 5 years until the next model comes out and beyond. That would make Fender a permanent fixture in the modeling world. BTW, if you're listening Fender, add your SuperSonic 22 model to this unit so we can use some Fender gain/distortion instead of relying on other companies models for the "heavy blues/hard rock," sounds!
Two "fuzz friendly" loops and two fully routable loops is what the manual says. "Fuzz friendly" equals, always before effects, analog loop so input impedance of the fuzz pedal is correct for all the roll back volume clean up goodness.
I've watched a lot of reviews of this box on youTube. this is a very good and comprehensive look at it. I get a kick out of the cork sniffers who are nit picking it. It not only sounds great to me, it has a an extremely friendly interface. If you can't do a gig with this, you just can't.
WOW!? Only your demo of this have shown me how much cool thought Fender has put into this great unit!!! Its SO good! The interface is SO easy to understand! Nice thank you!
Hi RJ. Love your channel and your playing is phenomenal. They couldn't have had a better player to show off the unit. My TMP is arriving this morning, just in time for my 63rd birthday! God bless you and all you love.
Holy cow!!!! Ron you did an incredible review of this new product I have been hearing so much about and have done an excellent job to introduce this new Fender product!!!
They better reduce the price quickly, if they want to sell a lot of these. It's not great by any standard and it's way over-priced. I played one yesterday. No better than anything out there and far inferior to many. Sorry, swing and a miss. Great demo on RJ's part as usual. There is still nothing like a great tube amp and pedals. This is one man's opinion of course.
I think the sound quality, particularly the amp modeling is quite good actually. Perhaps his particular demonstration isn't the best representation of this. However I a hundred percent agree with you regarding the price. The unit sounds good, but not in a way where it justifies the price point versus competition. What they've achieved is superior Amp modeling to headrush or helix, but not in a way where results in such a notable difference, where the price is justified. The unit would be a great deal closer to $1,000 price point. If it were to have a bigger brother with a few more foot switches and pedals built-in, perhaps $1600-$1700 would be justified. It's very new, so a lot of things could happen, hopefully the price gets realistic.
@therealtech833 I am anxiously awaiting Doc McFarlands deep A/B between HR Prime/Core and FTMP... but it's a foregone conclusion that FTMP is at best worth the price of the Core. Fender is counting on its name to sell a Honda at Mercedes prices!
Agree that it’s wayyyy too overpriced.. maybe I’ll wait for a discounted or a demo unit at my guitar centre. If not I’ll just get them HR Core which has a bit more features.
I love Fender. That said, the modeling sounds comparable to everything else out there. I wasn’t blown away, it’s not bad at all, but it’s not $1699 good. The interface looks pretty cool though, if this was 800 bucks, I’d be more into this, but 1700 isn’t a price I’d pay when I can get a Quad Cortex or kemper with years of bugs worked out and patches. Plus knowing Fenders history of abandoning Fuse software, Im very hesitant to trust Fender will be updating this unit in 3 years. I’m curious to try it, but not buy it.
I guess this is actually Fender's second try at a floor multifx. Somewhere around 2012 there was the Fender Mustang Floor that apparently didn't catch on. Music Radar has a review that claims it didn't quite keep up with the Zoom G5 (!). I had one at the time that had an annoying top end buzziness that I couldn't get rid of, but then I didn't really understand how to tweak it for optimum sound. The Floor cost $400 at the time (about $540 in 2023 dollars), and today they are available for $150-$200 used.
This was a pretty good look at this product. It sounds great. The three 'cons' you arrived at are completely valid. As for a case--I'm a case guy as opposed to a gig-bag guy--I would suggest looking at a Pelican laptop case. They're not brutally expensive and they are very protective. More, there's enough room in them for cables, etc. and a tracking tag (if you're like me and despise thieves, a tracking tag is essential).
Why are people complaining about the price ? It’s competing with Fractal , Helix, Quad Cortex , this is for pros for live gigs basically , if your a bedroom player buy a NUX mG 30 or a Headrush MX 5 ,those are great and cheap, Thank you RJ , great demo as always !
It's not much of a competition, which is weird why they would try. Cool that they did, just a left field decision when others model amps better. From hearing demos, Fractal still has the edge on amp modeling tech. I really hope Fender can get some updates out to really compete.
GREAT Video R.J.! I've yet to see a Video showing what controls are available to use on the foot switch knobs for the F/X Pedal when you highlight them on the Display (like when you touched the Amp, and all the knobs shown on the Amp could also be turned by the foot switches). Do the knobs on the foot switches mirror the exact same knobs as on the F/X Pedals?
I use Neural DSP plugins through Pro Tools and Focal monitors. Pretty close to this. I am talking about home studio use. I like this unit. It doesn't replace a tube amp, but it is a lot of fun have all the sounds at your fingertips
At 10:14, I heard that of guitar straight into a 50 watt amplifier; fenderish. I'm not moved. It won't make me go out and buy a unit right away, and it's probably a damn good device, but the demonstration doesn't jump right out at my ears within 5 minutes. But that's just me.
Thanks for this R.J. All I've done so far was play with the presets, because I'm afraid of messing something up. Your very helpful explanation has given me the confidence to go have some fun doing my own selections.
They've had the modeling floor pedal with the Mustang Floor for a long time already; and the Mustang Floor is awesome! Unfortunately, at this price, there are much better options, I'm afraid!
From a modeller user - how is it different to other modellers. I.e. why should I sell my Helix? It sounds good (and amazing playing), but, it doesn’t really stand out in a very crowded market.
It’s not different except for the audible digital artifacts. This is a beta product being sold at a premium price. If you’re going to be more expensive than a Fractal, you better justify it, and from that perspective this thing is just sad
@@BrendanMakesMusic It's a shame that no company is really taking things to the next level really. E.g. they could start to integrate units much more effectively with in ears for a live mix and give the user some more control. They could have a unit that can be a modeler as well as a taking snapshots... (although Kemper seemed to have moved that way)... Just same old stuff with more power that I don't think it necessarily needs.
@@MintyBitesBack I build a board around my FM3, I’ve got an xvive IEM transmitter always plugged into the second output, works great. I think building too much stuff into a modeling unit risks things not being compatible or getting outdated. My FM3 will produce the same great sound until the board fries. I’d be really hesitant to ask my modeling unit to do anything other than modeling exceptionally well
@@BrendanMakesMusic but unless musicians start demanding more, you are just stuck with 10 different versions of the same thing. Which is where we are now...
@@MintyBitesBack I generally agree, though my personal take is that the modeling field is in a really great space; using modeling full-time is kind of like being an EV owner: Some people early adopted 10 years ago, there are really great options out there, and it's obviously the future, but the field is mature enough that any new entrants really need to bring their A-game.
I love the UI, navigating it and getting tones seems super intuitive. The price seems crazy though, especially considering I think the Fractal sounds noticably better at the same price or much cheaper
Thanks for a great review/demo. I primarily play through Guitar Rig 7 at the moment and haven't liked the way Native Instruments have moved away from those of us who need/prefer a floorboard form factor/live setup (and generally ignored guitarists full stop). I was looking at the Helix and QC but this review totally adds a third contender and makes for a more complicated decision. The UI looks very impressive and intuitive - and combines the best of other products while adding a lot of flexibility and accessibility. It sounds great too - I was going to ask how it reacted to different guitars and pickups, and then you went right there. :) Lack of a built-in expression pedal - agree, almost everyone is going to need one, and it adds to the significant purchase price too (and having jacks on the sides as well as the back might have been a good move), but this looks very impressive out of the blocks. A significant investment that will hopefully save money (and extra boxes) elsewhere and pay for itself over many years. As for carrying case/gig bag. Whoever spoke about Peli cases below speaks from a good place. Altho if I got one of these I'd be building a custom floorboard/flight case to hold the TM Pro plus pedal(s) and my other offboard stuff. Wondering if you had a chance to look at the MIDI functionality at all? Being able to program the footswitches on this to command external FX/amps/etc would be massive for me, even more if it contained a simple internal sequencer. Looks like I need to download the manual and really check this thing out. Again, thank you!
This seems most comparable to the Headrush Core. But $700 more than the headrush, and no cloning, voice, fewer amps, cabs, effects, etc. It’s nice though, but shoulda come in around $1000 to compete. Look at half the comments- people think it’s too expensive for what it is. I’m interested, but would probably prefer another unit for the same money.
It’s not just that it’s too expensive: There’s no guarantee that this is a long-term investment. A Fractal unit will continue to be supported with software updates and new profiles for 5-6 years at a minimum. If this doesn’t sell like hot cakes, they might abandon the whole thing before they ever get around to fixing the digital artifacts you can hear.
I really appreciate your doing the review. I'm very impressed by the sound quality of the amp models and effects. I'm not as big a fan of the profiling amps as increasing esp for better amp modeling. This results in a much more authentic representation of an amp, not just on one capture, but adjusting tone controls on guitar or on the unit itself still sounds like you're using the actual amp. This is a fault when using a capture algorithm, which is more of a snapshot in time. Perhaps if you only play one specific genre music, with a very limited sound base, then capture may be perfect for you.
At this point it becomes personal preference. I have a QC and an FM3. Both a great! The problem with the Fender Tone Master is it really doesn't bring anything new to the table. That along with the price are big negatives for me.
Can't really disagree overall. But to me, from what I've seen, this thing appears to have taken the crown in terms of current best in class, deeply intuitive GUI navigation. Ola's vid was similar to RJ - no manual, nothing yet both guys were able to dig pretty deeply without much confusion. Truly effective, intuitive GUI design is an art form and I do think this one is the current apex, while sacrificing zero deep dive ability.
8 cores !! a little more power i think than the QC ? I think it's nice out of the gate.... so now it's a question of will they compete on the continuous improvements like the rest who always offer free updates?
The ui and form factor are its bigest selling points the fixed signal routing (like the headrush) high pricepoint and aliasing are its weekest points so far
I like how you could set it on a stand and just touch it if you wanted for destop use. I also like the loops. Plus it models my amp. EVH 5150III EL34 50.
Great honest review , I like it but it would have been nice if Fender included an expression pedal but definitely a carrying case should be there for the price, those little things matter
Excellent review and demonstration- your guitar playing is also fantastic! With a unit like this, I'm not sure why anyone would really need any external effects. It seems like the TMP has everything you could ever want. Your suggestion of an onboard expression pedal is a good one. Sometimes the marketing folks have discussions of what add-on sales could be made. In this case you see the suggestion of the expression pedal add-on on every web site that sells the TMP.
The Tone Master tones are so superior it’s shocking. I hope someone will compare the Fractals to it as nothing else even comes close. Fender would likely do great business selling a reduced IO, smaller unit for half the price once they’ve seen sales on this beauty pick up. An amazing piece of engineering.
It's closer to Mustang DSP than Tonemaster DSP. But to be fair, Shane at Intheblues has been fooling people with blind A/B between even the original Mustangs and the real amp he is modeling for a very long time! It's a shame Fender just abandoned Fender FUSE and the Mustang Floor modeler!
Way 2 go Brother! U Did a great job without a Manual!! Not sure why that would have happened but someone should get a Time-out!?? GREAT RJ Ronquillio You Rocked it Brother 🤘🎸🤠
MISSING: His early version without the update is missing the eight-button looper. It's activated by holding down the FS MODE button. That's a rather huge additional feature.
One thing that perhaps most of your viewers didn't realize is that this device makes a lot more sense for us musicians from the third world, where a fender tube amplifier is very expensive, so for me it makes a lot of sense to sell my old pedals and buy One of these, I'll have all the Fender quality at my feet for a fraction of the price. Note, did this pedal copy the old G System?
Why not buy an FM3? Fractal is a proven modeling company; this is a beta product for Fender. The FM3 uses the same models you’re hearing on pro recordings, and it’s significantly cheaper
I'm not so sure the amp models sound half as good as what this sounds though. The Fender Tonemaster amps literally sound and feel like real tube amps, and in some cases better, simply because the parts don't degrade. This I'm sure is using the exact same technology, and to my ears what I hear from this demo is amps that really, truly sound like their real life counterparts.
It's got more powerful hardware than anything on the market, but it needs more updates to get it anywhere near the capabilities of more mature platforms. The IO, the user interface, and everything else about the hardware is almost perfect. Hopefully Fender don't abandon it.
So far, TheGuitarGeek is only reviewer that tests a British Amp setup and it was not convincing. Early days... hopefully that will be sorted for us Marshall tone fans.
Actually new fm3’s are on sale for like $899 at the fractal site this week. Soundwise the FM3 is much better than this, but gotta say the touchscreen and user interface is pretty cool
@@trevor4533 the fender models in the fm3 sound better than the ones from fender. And there are hundreds of good sounding amps to choose from in the FM3, and the effects are in a totally different league
Thank you RJ, great review and this looks like a great unit. I disagree with the expression pedal con because I like to have the board on the right side of my mic stand with my wah over on the left side. I favour my left foot so more comfortable with the pedal separate to the board and not attached. Thanks again.
This looks and sounds very good. I bought the BOSS GT8 back in the day. Talk about crazy complicated, for me anyway. The Digitech RP series was the ticket for me. Pretty good sound and user friendly. Oh yeah, can't forget the original Line 6 Pod kidney bean. That was cool.
I dont think it's a question if it's good, it's a question of whether it's worth the same as the full monty Helix and Fractal FM9 or the Kemper Stage (it's a 100 bucks more than the Kemper) and the answer to that is sadly, No, The Fender Tone Master Pro lacks the abilities and algorithm that the later three units possess in spades making it an affectation in the high-end Multi-effects processor market. It was a huge swing and a miss from Fender and frankly tone deaf in this economy.
lol, you have no clue if its a swing and miss or not lol, time will tell. I feel like this is the Fractal for old school boomers or traditionalist who would normally avoid a modeler like a Vampire does the cross. I know plenty of working musicians that would never touch a Kemper or a Fractal because they don't want to be overwhelmed with options and parameters, something like this could make life much easier for them.
Sounds good but obviously Fender rushed this product. See the bug at 19:14. After the footswitch displays turn to fs mode, the switch (the halo led of the switch) dedicated to the greenbox is lighted even though the greenbox is in bypass according to the bigger display. Then he presses the switch several times to see which display is telling the truth. Good sounds and good demo though. You can hire me Fender, I can be your test guy.
I jumped on. Looking forward to trying I bought the unit for effects loops 2 x stereo Bit disappointed about the effects loop not moving I don’t understand why you would just not put fuzz before the tone master pro. And have 2 movable stereo loops. I use a drum machine or beat buddy and am always having to look for creative ways to insert them. I also hope fender resolve this in some way. I think most people used to integrating modellers into there analogue setup …will plug there real world gain boards in the front end . Effectively making 2 loops redundant for anything other than external modulation. ?! Hopefully fender have the means to adjust this or I might be sticking with my QC WHICH also can’t do 2 loops but takes pedals really well .. proven.
Putting the fuz before the unit means you have to control it separately. With the loops, your can bring it in and out with your preset changes. It would be nice if you could configure them to be movable OR to be analog at the beginning .
Well. 5th vid i see on that. Interface seems really good. Applause. I hear a certain palasticky spongy harshness familiar from bos gt1000 and pre. Hx stomp got me back from the camp of modelling phobes after my brand new line6 axys crashed and blarred digital screeching mess into the pa for 15 seconds til i coul pull the plug. Neural dsp, uafx ruby, really won me. No more constant tweaking. Hx stomp just does amazing modulation and delays… sorry fender, 1700? Serious? Nope. Not convinced. Looking for that tonemaster vs helix amp modelling shootout vid. Dry. Cmon yt.
Great form factor, but don’t love how it sounds. None of the demos sound very good (sterile like a Boss modeler). I figured if anybody could make it sound inspired R.J. could, but nope. I wouldn’t consider this for more than about $799. Would love a Helix in this form factor though.
Good morning Buddy thank you for your amazing videos. i have a question i just got the Fender Master Pro but i also have the Fractal 3 and 9 can you do scenes like on a Fractal FM9 and FM3 ? please let me know Thnx
$1700 and it can't profile/capture amps & pedals? Did Fender forget to price the competition before they put a price tag on this? This would be a killer unit at $899 or even $999 but as it is I'd wait two or three years to find it at that price on Reverb.
It's priced way too high for a "Johnny come Lately" to the modeling market ! Plenty of options that are well established.. I am intrigued by the powered cabinet !
Perhaps the price will get realistic after the die-hard fender fan boys buy up at the premium price. The unit has some very good qualities, particularly amp modeling and high DSP power. But the price point it's way off base to gain market share. Perhaps the price will get closer to the thousand-dollar mark where it would probably be an attractive option as in that price point, it would stand apart as better than many. At its current $1,700 mark, too many other good units out there, many $500-$600 cheaper.
@@therealtech833 Yep.. Fender always a day late and a dollar short ! They need to realize what made the "HX Stomp" such a big hit is bang for your buck($500) plus they kept improving the Stomp with firmware updates !
The expression pedal that comes as a package deal on Sweetwater, Mission Engineering Fender SP1-TMP Expression Pedal for Fender Tone Master Pro, Sells separately for $175.00. Fender keeps the cost of the Pro lower with the pedal as an add-on. Buying a case is is easy. There will be regular updates so looping will improve. This is Fender's Flagship model. Fender will dominate this market. This is a serious product for a wide range of people.
Fractal, Kemper, Helix and QC already dominate the market and have been doing so for the past 10 years. This needed to be a lot better and cheaper to compete with the established units. This doesn’t. Not even close…
@@x3a3x3 I have been able to get by with Eventide and Boss gear, a Strat and a Precision. I use a Fender Tone Master Deluxe Reverb. Looks like a real amp, operates like a real amp, sounds like a real amp, user friendly IR. Some intelligent friends, PhD level, use a Fractal. Some use a Fractal but only 1% of it's potential. My gear is user friendly. So is the Tone Master Pro. I think I can get 50% of it's potential. I think that gives me an advantage over the Fractal user, who comes over to jam and spends an hour setting up. Some musicians can read manuals and music. Others can do one or the other and yet others neither. Some musicians can think like engineers. Some can't. I can't do both at the same time. I can strum a guitar and sing at the same time but I can't play bass and sing at the same time. I'm good but I am not Paul McCartney. Clint Eastwood says, "A man has got to know his limitations."
You’re assuming there will be updates and that things will improve. This thing doesn’t sell, which it very well might not given the price and the limitations (not to mention the mediocre sounds), they’ll just abandon it
@@BrendanMakesMusic We will see. Decca Records turned down the Beatles in 1962. They said, guitar groups are on their way out and won't make any money in the 1960's. George Martin of EMI saw and heard John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison and said, just get rid of the crappy drummer and replace him with Ringo and you should be okay. Speed up the tempo on Please Please Me and you'll have a #1 hit.
Thanks RJ. I love your demos. I am not convinced by this product. You are amazing! nothing to do with you ever my friend. I just don't feel this unit justifies the price for the functions it includes. Too much stuff to work with. The Mustang Micro Amp, does the job fine and / or the iRig2 new version too for under $200 bux
NOTE: FX Loops 1 & 2 are fixed at the front of the signal path. They are special since they are 100% analog, fuzz-friendly loops. Loops 3 & 4 can be moved anywhere in the signal path.
This is an awesome feature \m/
Great idea!
exactly what I imagined, because of the option to link loop 3 and 4 it seemed to me that they would have the option enabled to go post amp, nice feature
I was wondering how it would take drive pedals, it seems they've thought that through! Nice!
This Device is a win if Fender continues to support and update it for 5 years until the next model comes out and beyond. That would make Fender a permanent fixture in the modeling world. BTW, if you're listening Fender, add your SuperSonic 22 model to this unit so we can use some Fender gain/distortion instead of relying on other companies models for the "heavy blues/hard rock," sounds!
@@70mcnevin The Bassbreaker series delivers serious rock tones and pretty decent cleans as well. Those models are included.
Two "fuzz friendly" loops and two fully routable loops is what the manual says. "Fuzz friendly" equals, always before effects, analog loop so input impedance of the fuzz pedal is correct for all the roll back volume clean up goodness.
Ahh that makes sense. Sure wish I had the manual. Thanks!
I've watched a lot of reviews of this box on youTube. this is a very good and comprehensive look at it. I get a kick out of the cork sniffers who are nit picking it. It not only sounds great to me, it has a an extremely friendly interface. If you can't do a gig with this, you just can't.
WOW!? Only your demo of this have shown me how much cool thought Fender has put into this great unit!!! Its SO good! The interface is SO easy to understand! Nice thank you!
I've been watching guitar stuff for over 2 years now and this channel finally popped up. Really excellent demoing and guitar playing!
Hi RJ. Love your channel and your playing is phenomenal. They couldn't have had a better player to show off the unit. My TMP is arriving this morning, just in time for my 63rd birthday! God bless you and all you love.
Man that's too expensive.
Maybe they'll do a Squier version of this 🤣
lol !!! QC was higher priced but was told they lowered to match this one !!
Absolutely! Give me the Squire TM Pro.😂
It already sounds like an entry-level modeler
@@BrendanMakesMusic You must be joking right? The presets are dialed in perfectly and sound incredible!
Yeah I'm hoping for the Tone Master Amateur...
Thank you. That was the most useful demo for someone new to modelling. Great playing!
A really good in-depth review and demo of the unit, really appreciate the time & effort.
Looks really enticing this unit, a guitar players holy grail.
Holy cow!!!! Ron you did an incredible review of this new product I have been hearing so much about and have done an excellent job to introduce this new Fender product!!!
Thinking of moving from Helix to FTMP, I've watched tons of videos - this one is head and shoulders above the rest. Thank you RJ!!
Have you made the switch after this comment?
If yes, how did you like it?
Sounds good. An excellent option for those who don't want to spent 10 years and several tens of thousands of dollars building pedalboard and amp setup
Though you were going to say several years and thousands of dollars researching and developing your own multi effects unit 😂 🤣
I looked at the price and that stopped me in my tracks. But, very well done demo, thanks R.J.
As always a pleasure to watch a gear review here. Good Job RJ
You can really hear the separation on that ping-pong delay even out of MacBook speakers. Well done, my dude!
They better reduce the price quickly, if they want to sell a lot of these. It's not great by any standard and it's way over-priced. I played one yesterday. No better than anything out there and far inferior to many. Sorry, swing and a miss. Great demo on RJ's part as usual. There is still nothing like a great tube amp and pedals. This is one man's opinion of course.
The price is way too high...I agree.
Using my $300 Sony headphones, it sounded fizzy and not in a good way.
I think the sound quality, particularly the amp modeling is quite good actually. Perhaps his particular demonstration isn't the best representation of this. However I a hundred percent agree with you regarding the price. The unit sounds good, but not in a way where it justifies the price point versus competition. What they've achieved is superior Amp modeling to headrush or helix, but not in a way where results in such a notable difference, where the price is justified. The unit would be a great deal closer to $1,000 price point. If it were to have a bigger brother with a few more foot switches and pedals built-in, perhaps $1600-$1700 would be justified. It's very new, so a lot of things could happen, hopefully the price gets realistic.
@therealtech833 I am anxiously awaiting Doc McFarlands deep A/B between HR Prime/Core and FTMP... but it's a foregone conclusion that FTMP is at best worth the price of the Core. Fender is counting on its name to sell a Honda at Mercedes prices!
Agree that it’s wayyyy too overpriced.. maybe I’ll wait for a discounted or a demo unit at my guitar centre. If not I’ll just get them HR Core which has a bit more features.
I love Fender. That said, the modeling sounds comparable to everything else out there. I wasn’t blown away, it’s not bad at all, but it’s not $1699 good. The interface looks pretty cool though, if this was 800 bucks, I’d be more into this, but 1700 isn’t a price I’d pay when I can get a Quad Cortex or kemper with years of bugs worked out and patches. Plus knowing Fenders history of abandoning Fuse software, Im very hesitant to trust Fender will be updating this unit in 3 years. I’m curious to try it, but not buy it.
Bro I just wanna say YOU ARE A BAD ASS. Not to mention you are the best to watch explain/demo new products. Hats off to ya my brother.
FYI - FX Loops 1 and 2 are always at the beginning of the chain as they are before digital signal path. 3 and 4 can go anywhere.
Good to know thank you!
Loops 1 and 2 are analogue , 3 and 4 are digital. So put your fuzzes in 1 and 2
I guess this is actually Fender's second try at a floor multifx. Somewhere around 2012 there was the Fender Mustang Floor that apparently didn't catch on. Music Radar has a review that claims it didn't quite keep up with the Zoom G5 (!). I had one at the time that had an annoying top end buzziness that I couldn't get rid of, but then I didn't really understand how to tweak it for optimum sound. The Floor cost $400 at the time (about $540 in 2023 dollars), and today they are available for $150-$200 used.
I still have mine. Love it for the cleans, but yeah, there are some high ends buzzies in there.
Looks, cool, but just checked the price on Sweetwater. Priced out of my league for an effects unit.
Its not an effects unit.
That jewel light tho!
This was a pretty good look at this product. It sounds great. The three 'cons' you arrived at are completely valid. As for a case--I'm a case guy as opposed to a gig-bag guy--I would suggest looking at a Pelican laptop case. They're not brutally expensive and they are very protective. More, there's enough room in them for cables, etc. and a tracking tag (if you're like me and despise thieves, a tracking tag is essential).
you clearly don't know good tone. try a fractal, then talk to me. learn son.
Why are people complaining about the price ? It’s competing with Fractal , Helix, Quad Cortex , this is for pros for live gigs basically , if your a bedroom player buy a NUX mG 30 or a Headrush MX 5 ,those are great and cheap, Thank you RJ , great demo as always !
It's not much of a competition, which is weird why they would try. Cool that they did, just a left field decision when others model amps better. From hearing demos, Fractal still has the edge on amp modeling tech. I really hope Fender can get some updates out to really compete.
GREAT Video R.J.!
I've yet to see a Video showing what controls are available to use on the foot switch knobs for the F/X Pedal when you highlight them on the Display (like when you touched the Amp, and all the knobs shown on the Amp could also be turned by the foot switches).
Do the knobs on the foot switches mirror the exact same knobs as on the F/X Pedals?
Nice Demo, I just noticed this system on Fender website yesterday 3/11/24. I like this set up. Infinite sounds really
I use Neural DSP plugins through Pro Tools and Focal monitors. Pretty close to this. I am talking about home studio use. I like this unit. It doesn't replace a tube amp, but it is a lot of fun have all the sounds at your fingertips
Awesome review RJ. Very thorough.
At 10:14, I heard that of guitar straight into a 50 watt amplifier; fenderish. I'm not moved. It won't make me go out and buy a unit right away, and it's probably a damn good device, but the demonstration doesn't jump right out at my ears within 5 minutes. But that's just me.
Great review. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks for this R.J. All I've done so far was play with the presets, because I'm afraid of messing something up. Your very helpful explanation has given me the confidence to go have some fun doing my own selections.
They've had the modeling floor pedal with the Mustang Floor for a long time already; and the Mustang Floor is awesome! Unfortunately, at this price, there are much better options, I'm afraid!
From a modeller user - how is it different to other modellers. I.e. why should I sell my Helix? It sounds good (and amazing playing), but, it doesn’t really stand out in a very crowded market.
It’s not different except for the audible digital artifacts. This is a beta product being sold at a premium price. If you’re going to be more expensive than a Fractal, you better justify it, and from that perspective this thing is just sad
@@BrendanMakesMusic It's a shame that no company is really taking things to the next level really. E.g. they could start to integrate units much more effectively with in ears for a live mix and give the user some more control. They could have a unit that can be a modeler as well as a taking snapshots... (although Kemper seemed to have moved that way)... Just same old stuff with more power that I don't think it necessarily needs.
@@MintyBitesBack I build a board around my FM3, I’ve got an xvive IEM transmitter always plugged into the second output, works great. I think building too much stuff into a modeling unit risks things not being compatible or getting outdated. My FM3 will produce the same great sound until the board fries. I’d be really hesitant to ask my modeling unit to do anything other than modeling exceptionally well
@@BrendanMakesMusic but unless musicians start demanding more, you are just stuck with 10 different versions of the same thing. Which is where we are now...
@@MintyBitesBack I generally agree, though my personal take is that the modeling field is in a really great space; using modeling full-time is kind of like being an EV owner: Some people early adopted 10 years ago, there are really great options out there, and it's obviously the future, but the field is mature enough that any new entrants really need to bring their A-game.
AMP CTRL is for amps that have multiple channels, like a Marshall DSL/TSL or a 5150. Neat!
I love the UI, navigating it and getting tones seems super intuitive. The price seems crazy though, especially considering I think the Fractal sounds noticably better at the same price or much cheaper
That price is truly wild. Curious who actually developed the unit.
exactly what people said what The QC came out lol. Give it time
The Fender R&D team in Scottsdale AZ developed all of the hardware and software, including the model algorithms.
thanks for the demo Kind of liked the powered speaker, seemed to sound good and had the right look. Still a little big for a Travato!
No one does JH like you my Man. Love it! I need more of those JH moments.
Had one for 5 weeks !! Went back way behind helix neural and Light years behind fractal !!
Bit like a Mooer !
Awesome video RJ. It was fun learning that w ya
Thanks for a great review/demo. I primarily play through Guitar Rig 7 at the moment and haven't liked the way Native Instruments have moved away from those of us who need/prefer a floorboard form factor/live setup (and generally ignored guitarists full stop). I was looking at the Helix and QC but this review totally adds a third contender and makes for a more complicated decision. The UI looks very impressive and intuitive - and combines the best of other products while adding a lot of flexibility and accessibility. It sounds great too - I was going to ask how it reacted to different guitars and pickups, and then you went right there. :) Lack of a built-in expression pedal - agree, almost everyone is going to need one, and it adds to the significant purchase price too (and having jacks on the sides as well as the back might have been a good move), but this looks very impressive out of the blocks. A significant investment that will hopefully save money (and extra boxes) elsewhere and pay for itself over many years.
As for carrying case/gig bag. Whoever spoke about Peli cases below speaks from a good place. Altho if I got one of these I'd be building a custom floorboard/flight case to hold the TM Pro plus pedal(s) and my other offboard stuff.
Wondering if you had a chance to look at the MIDI functionality at all? Being able to program the footswitches on this to command external FX/amps/etc would be massive for me, even more if it contained a simple internal sequencer. Looks like I need to download the manual and really check this thing out. Again, thank you!
This seems most comparable to the Headrush Core. But $700 more than the headrush, and no cloning, voice, fewer amps, cabs, effects, etc. It’s nice though, but shoulda come in around $1000 to compete. Look at half the comments- people think it’s too expensive for what it is. I’m interested, but would probably prefer another unit for the same money.
It’s not just that it’s too expensive: There’s no guarantee that this is a long-term investment. A Fractal unit will continue to be supported with software updates and new profiles for 5-6 years at a minimum. If this doesn’t sell like hot cakes, they might abandon the whole thing before they ever get around to fixing the digital artifacts you can hear.
@@BrendanMakesMusic good point.
I really appreciate your doing the review. I'm very impressed by the sound quality of the amp models and effects. I'm not as big a fan of the profiling amps as increasing esp for better amp modeling. This results in a much more authentic representation of an amp, not just on one capture, but adjusting tone controls on guitar or on the unit itself still sounds like you're using the actual amp. This is a fault when using a capture algorithm, which is more of a snapshot in time. Perhaps if you only play one specific genre music, with a very limited sound base, then capture may be perfect for you.
At this point it becomes personal preference. I have a QC and an FM3. Both a great! The problem with the Fender Tone Master is it really doesn't bring anything new to the table. That along with the price are big negatives for me.
Can't really disagree overall. But to me, from what I've seen, this thing appears to have taken the crown in terms of current best in class, deeply intuitive GUI navigation. Ola's vid was similar to RJ - no manual, nothing yet both guys were able to dig pretty deeply without much confusion. Truly effective, intuitive GUI design is an art form and I do think this one is the current apex, while sacrificing zero deep dive ability.
Agree nothing new, tone doesn't beat FM3, Helix or the Cortex. They are a little late to the party.
8 cores !! a little more power i think than the QC ? I think it's nice out of the gate.... so now it's a question of will they compete on the continuous improvements like the rest who always offer free updates?
The ui and form factor are its bigest selling points the fixed signal routing (like the headrush) high pricepoint and aliasing are its weekest points so far
@@YesItsReallyKeith 8 cores 15 cores it doesn't matter it doesn't sound any better than what's already out there.
I like how you could set it on a stand and just touch it if you wanted for destop use. I also like the loops. Plus it models my amp. EVH 5150III EL34 50.
Great honest review , I like it but it would have been nice if Fender included an expression pedal but definitely a carrying case should be there for the price, those little things matter
Excellent review and demonstration- your guitar playing is also fantastic! With a unit like this, I'm not sure why anyone would really need any external effects. It seems like the TMP has everything you could ever want. Your suggestion of an onboard expression pedal is a good one. Sometimes the marketing folks have discussions of what add-on sales could be made. In this case you see the suggestion of the expression pedal add-on on every web site that sells the TMP.
You can move loops 3&4. Loops 1&2 are analog. The manual is now online.
The Tone Master tones are so superior it’s shocking. I hope someone will compare the Fractals to it as nothing else even comes close. Fender would likely do great business selling a reduced IO, smaller unit for half the price once they’ve seen sales on this beauty pick up. An amazing piece of engineering.
Maybe I've been spoiled by my Axe FX. But that AC30 model Edge preset sounds terrible. The shimmer and mod delay is also extremely digital sounding.
Anyone knows what song is he playing ? 19:30 It sounds so familiar but i couldn't find it.
I sure hope they make a plugin outta this! Does it have dual amp capability? How about the Andy Timmons delay? :)
How different are these algorithms from a Mustang? Are they the same code or is this all original component level modeling?
It's closer to Mustang DSP than Tonemaster DSP. But to be fair, Shane at Intheblues has been fooling people with blind A/B between even the original Mustangs and the real amp he is modeling for a very long time! It's a shame Fender just abandoned Fender FUSE and the Mustang Floor modeler!
Way 2 go Brother! U Did a great job without a Manual!! Not sure why that would have happened but someone should get a Time-out!?? GREAT RJ Ronquillio You Rocked it Brother 🤘🎸🤠
Awesome video and production. Thank you for the review
I new to his channel. I love it. The reviews are fantastic.
MISSING: His early version without the update is missing the eight-button looper. It's activated by holding down the FS MODE button. That's a rather huge additional feature.
Fender had a great mustang floor processor. A real classic.
And they abandoned it after one year!
@@joelanderson6777 still, from the sound demos I've heard, it was a great little unit! very organic sounding.
I had one and for some reason I get never get it to sound as good as Mustang III.
@ericajohnson7535 it was a good unit! But Fender didn't support it, so I'm sure not spending $1700 on a new one from them!
3:20 into the video I knew this was something I'll never use. Thanks for the heads up!
Somewhere Pete Cornish is crying - and Hendrix wants to come back for our time! LOL
One thing that perhaps most of your viewers didn't realize is that this device makes a lot more sense for us musicians from the third world, where a fender tube amplifier is very expensive, so for me it makes a lot of sense to sell my old pedals and buy One of these, I'll have all the Fender quality at my feet for a fraction of the price. Note, did this pedal copy the old G System?
Why not buy an FM3? Fractal is a proven modeling company; this is a beta product for Fender. The FM3 uses the same models you’re hearing on pro recordings, and it’s significantly cheaper
Good discovery on not yet being able to alter placing the effects loop in the chain. Update for sure
Pretty cool that Lime 6 Helix has been able to all this an more for years. If helix had the touch screen, that would be great.
I'm not so sure the amp models sound half as good as what this sounds though. The Fender Tonemaster amps literally sound and feel like real tube amps, and in some cases better, simply because the parts don't degrade. This I'm sure is using the exact same technology, and to my ears what I hear from this demo is amps that really, truly sound like their real life counterparts.
It's got more powerful hardware than anything on the market, but it needs more updates to get it anywhere near the capabilities of more mature platforms. The IO, the user interface, and everything else about the hardware is almost perfect. Hopefully Fender don't abandon it.
So far, TheGuitarGeek is only reviewer that tests a British Amp setup and it was not convincing. Early days... hopefully that will be sorted for us Marshall tone fans.
Don’t compromise, just buy a Fractal or Line6, they’re proven
Honestly Strymon needs to make an all in one.
For 4000$ !
Probably true. Strymon makes so much even for cloud pedal that does one thing.
Not sure. Sounds digital. I am not convinced it’s replacing anything that’s out there already. Used Fm3 goes for 1K at most and sounds better
Actually new fm3’s are on sale for like $899 at the fractal site this week. Soundwise the FM3 is much better than this, but gotta say the touchscreen and user interface is pretty cool
@@x3a3x3Agreed, though in the end what matters is what the audience hears, so if it sounds bad that’s the ballgame
@@x3a3x3 Its $899 for a mark I, but I agree it would still mop the floors with the Fender.
@@trevor4533 the fender models in the fm3 sound better than the ones from fender. And there are hundreds of good sounding amps to choose from in the FM3, and the effects are in a totally different league
@@x3a3x3 yeah man no doubt.
I have been using it for a week its great but I feel it needs a digital out aswell as a 2 microphone option with panning on each speaker cab .
1700? It didn't sound 1700 to my ears. Especially that Vox tone. Thanks for your effort here, though. Your playing is always a treat.
Thank you RJ, great review and this looks like a great unit. I disagree with the expression pedal con because I like to have the board on the right side of my mic stand with my wah over on the left side. I favour my left foot so more comfortable with the pedal separate to the board and not attached. Thanks again.
To your opening point about stereo… why the heckin heck didn’t fender make their FRFR cabinet STEREO?! Come on, guys!
wow man, great video! and great review
This looks and sounds very good. I bought the BOSS GT8 back in the day. Talk about crazy complicated, for me anyway. The Digitech RP series was the ticket for me. Pretty good sound and user friendly. Oh yeah, can't forget the original Line 6 Pod kidney bean. That was cool.
price is same as quad cortex and kemper , i think its way too expensive , i bought my quad cortex 7 months a go for 1.300£
Fender tone master is a win.
I dont think it's a question if it's good, it's a question of whether it's worth the same as the full monty Helix and Fractal FM9 or the Kemper Stage (it's a 100 bucks more than the Kemper) and the answer to that is sadly, No, The Fender Tone Master Pro lacks the abilities and algorithm that the later three units possess in spades making it an affectation in the high-end Multi-effects processor market. It was a huge swing and a miss from Fender and frankly tone deaf in this economy.
lol, you have no clue if its a swing and miss or not lol, time will tell. I feel like this is the Fractal for old school boomers or traditionalist who would normally avoid a modeler like a Vampire does the cross. I know plenty of working musicians that would never touch a Kemper or a Fractal because they don't want to be overwhelmed with options and parameters, something like this could make life much easier for them.
@@elevenAD Stupid boomers. Fender is a boomer lover's company.
A slew of these are going to be returned right before return-period expires. They will be all over Reverb used soon.
You sure make it SOUND GREAT! You do that with everything though😁
Sounds good but obviously Fender rushed this product. See the bug at 19:14. After the footswitch displays turn to fs mode, the switch (the halo led of the switch) dedicated to the greenbox is lighted even though the greenbox is in bypass according to the bigger display. Then he presses the switch several times to see which display is telling the truth. Good sounds and good demo though. You can hire me Fender, I can be your test guy.
I jumped on. Looking forward to trying I bought the unit for effects loops 2 x stereo
Bit disappointed about the effects loop not moving I don’t understand why you would just not put fuzz before the tone master pro. And have 2 movable stereo loops. I use a drum machine or beat buddy and am always having to look for creative ways to insert them. I also hope fender resolve this in some way. I think most people used to integrating modellers into there analogue setup …will plug there real world gain boards in the front end . Effectively making 2 loops redundant for anything other than external modulation.
?! Hopefully fender have the means to adjust this or I might be sticking with my QC WHICH also can’t do 2 loops but takes pedals really well .. proven.
Putting the fuz before the unit means you have to control it separately. With the loops, your can bring it in and out with your preset changes. It would be nice if you could configure them to be movable OR to be analog at the beginning .
I’d be interested in seeing how your cable setup was going into your computer?
The main question is, is it good for the price
I'am STUDESLY
Well. 5th vid i see on that. Interface seems really good. Applause. I hear a certain palasticky spongy harshness familiar from bos gt1000 and pre. Hx stomp got me back from the camp of modelling phobes after my brand new line6 axys crashed and blarred digital screeching mess into the pa for 15 seconds til i coul pull the plug. Neural dsp, uafx ruby, really won me. No more constant tweaking. Hx stomp just does amazing modulation and delays… sorry fender, 1700? Serious? Nope. Not convinced. Looking for that tonemaster vs helix amp modelling shootout vid. Dry. Cmon yt.
Great form factor, but don’t love how it sounds. None of the demos sound very good (sterile like a Boss modeler). I figured if anybody could make it sound inspired R.J. could, but nope. I wouldn’t consider this for more than about $799. Would love a Helix in this form factor though.
Feels like everyone got send one but me 😂😂😂
Good morning Buddy thank you for your amazing videos. i have a question i just got the Fender Master Pro but i also have the Fractal 3 and 9 can you do scenes like on a Fractal FM9 and FM3 ? please let me know Thnx
$1700 and it can't profile/capture amps & pedals? Did Fender forget to price the competition before they put a price tag on this? This would be a killer unit at $899 or even $999 but as it is I'd wait two or three years to find it at that price on Reverb.
It's priced way too high for a "Johnny come Lately" to the modeling market ! Plenty of options that are well established.. I am intrigued by the powered cabinet !
Perhaps the price will get realistic after the die-hard fender fan boys buy up at the premium price. The unit has some very good qualities, particularly amp modeling and high DSP power. But the price point it's way off base to gain market share. Perhaps the price will get closer to the thousand-dollar mark where it would probably be an attractive option as in that price point, it would stand apart as better than many. At its current $1,700 mark, too many other good units out there, many $500-$600 cheaper.
@@therealtech833 Yep.. Fender always a day late and a dollar short ! They need to realize what made the "HX Stomp" such a big hit is bang for your buck($500) plus they kept improving the Stomp with firmware updates !
hello,
I am a new subscriber. ❤
Can it sound like a Rockman?
I also want to know!
That 80’s studio clean 😂🤣
Great video - Curious as to how the Fender Deluxe model on this sounds compared to the UA Dream?
Too mutch expensive! Crazy money! For mutch less money, BOSS GT-1000 does it all, and in some cases even more!
Cheers from Portugal 🤘🍺🇵🇹
I'm curious how the pedal into the FRFR would sound side by side with the tone master deluxe, and how much they weigh compared to a TM deluxe.
How do you think the sound compares to others?
Gday RJ. Fantastic review. Could you or someone else tell me how I would power this AC unit remotely in the street? I am a busker. Cheers.
The expression pedal that comes as a package deal on Sweetwater, Mission Engineering Fender SP1-TMP Expression Pedal for Fender Tone Master Pro, Sells separately for $175.00. Fender keeps the cost of the Pro lower with the pedal as an add-on. Buying a case is is easy. There will be regular updates so looping will improve. This is Fender's Flagship model. Fender will dominate this market. This is a serious product for a wide range of people.
Fractal, Kemper, Helix and QC already dominate the market and have been doing so for the past 10 years. This needed to be a lot better and cheaper to compete with the established units. This doesn’t. Not even close…
@@x3a3x3 I have been able to get by with Eventide and Boss gear, a Strat and a Precision. I use a Fender Tone Master Deluxe Reverb. Looks like a real amp, operates like a real amp, sounds like a real amp, user friendly IR. Some intelligent friends, PhD level, use a Fractal. Some use a Fractal but only 1% of it's potential. My gear is user friendly. So is the Tone Master Pro. I think I can get 50% of it's potential. I think that gives me an advantage over the Fractal user, who comes over to jam and spends an hour setting up. Some musicians can read manuals and music. Others can do one or the other and yet others neither. Some musicians can think like engineers. Some can't. I can't do both at the same time. I can strum a guitar and sing at the same time but I can't play bass and sing at the same time. I'm good but I am not Paul McCartney. Clint Eastwood says, "A man has got to know his limitations."
You’re assuming there will be updates and that things will improve. This thing doesn’t sell, which it very well might not given the price and the limitations (not to mention the mediocre sounds), they’ll just abandon it
@@BrendanMakesMusic We will see. Decca Records turned down the Beatles in 1962. They said, guitar groups are on their way out and won't make any money in the 1960's. George Martin of EMI saw and heard John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison and said, just get rid of the crappy drummer and replace him with Ringo and you should be okay. Speed up the tempo on Please Please Me and you'll have a #1 hit.
@@QuoVadis88 That’s kind of an absurd analogy to make, but ok
Looks and sounds great, but the price is way too steep
I predict that steep $1699.00 price will become $1299 in 6 months.
I predict the price will be the same in six months but there will be a „core“ version under $1000. Will see😊
If not sooner. Sounds like an 80's zoom pedal with a few more options and a couple of nice effects. FM9, even FM3 over this...easily.
Or $800 lol Fender build real: guitars, Basses and Amps that’s all!
Dude, this thing has been out for two days, and a seller on reverb has already offered it to me for $1410.99 😂
@@trevor4533 $575 at Guitar Center used rack coming soon
Still sounds compressed, but RJ makes sounds better.
Seems like fender GT mustang in a pedal, I bought the used amp for 169.99
Thanks RJ. I love your demos. I am not convinced by this product. You are amazing! nothing to do with you ever my friend. I just don't feel this unit justifies the price for the functions it includes. Too much stuff to work with. The Mustang Micro Amp, does the job fine and / or the iRig2 new version too for under $200 bux
sounds great....looks like fender took their time on this one
Listen with studio monitors or headphones; it does not sound grear