Modeler News
Firmware updates, gear announcements, industry trends, and the practical bits that change how a modeler player actually works.
FM9 Firmware 12.00 Hits Public Beta — Catches Up To Axe-Fx III 32.04
Fractal pushed FM9 firmware 12.00 to public beta on May 4 and followed with Beta 3 about ten days later. The headline is parity with Axe-Fx III 32.04 — the reworked power amp model and the catalog re-analysis are now on the FM9. New DRIVE block additions include a 'Swedish Metal' layout and an Oversampling control. DynaCabs jumps to 1.09.
Chase Bliss Ships the Big Time at $999 — A Six-Year Stereo Delay Built Around '80s Rack DNA
Chase Bliss has officially launched the Big Time, a $999 hybrid digital/analog stereo delay built in collaboration with John Snyder of Electronic Audio Experiments. It is the most expensive pedal Chase Bliss has ever shipped, and it is a deliberate attempt to recreate the specific sonic fingerprint of early-'80s rack delays like the Lexicon PCM 70 and the Korg SDD-3000.
MXR Ships the EVH Modern High Gain — A Pedal Built Around 5150 III Channel 3, Not the Brown Sound
MXR's new $269.99 EVH Modern High Gain pedal started shipping April 28. It is not another brown-sound box — it is the 5150 III's third channel (the modern high-gain lead channel) compressed into a stompbox, with a 55Hz/80Hz bass shift switch, onboard noise gate, and a boost. For anyone running a Helix, Quad Cortex, or Kemper that already models the 5150 III, this is a useful reference point in the other direction.
Axe-Fx III Firmware 32.04 Reworks Power Amp Modeling — FM9 In Private Beta, FM3 To Follow
Fractal pushed Axe-Fx III firmware 32.04 on Friday April 24. The headline change is improved power amp modeling and a fresh round of amp model updates based on new analysis methods. There is also a real bug fix in the Chorus block that was costing depth on Auto-Depth presets, and a Multiplexer USB routing fix. FM9 is already in private beta. FM3 is next.
Neural DSP Announces CorOS 4.1.0, Darkglass Ultimate, and a US Price Increase on May 7
CorOS 4.1.0 is the biggest PCOM update Neural DSP has shipped — five Archetype X plugins coming to the Quad Cortex at once. Darkglass Ultimate ships imminently as a free update for existing Darkglass Ultra users. And the Quad Cortex MAP in the US goes from $1,699 to $1,799 on May 7 due to new tariffs.
Keeley RK2000 Funk Siren Delay Ships at $369, Reviving the Ibanez DM2000 Trey Anastasio Has Used for Decades
After weeks of teasing, Keeley has shipped the RK2000 Funk Siren Delay — a $369 floor pedal built around the character of the vintage Ibanez DM2000 rackmount that Trey Anastasio has used for most of his career. It does ping-pong pitch-shifted delays, LFO modulation, and stores presets with full MIDI.
NUX MG-50Li Ships April 20 With Three-DSP Modeling, DeepImage Profiling, and 5-Hour Battery
NUX confirms April 20 ship date for the MG-50Li at $499. It runs TS/AC-4K physical modeling across three dedicated DSPs, includes built-in DeepImage profiling, and has a five-hour rechargeable battery. This is the most capable battery-powered modeler shipping this month.
Fractal AM4 Is Finally In Stock — And V2.00 Firmware Makes It Worth the Wait
Fractal's most accessible modeler just got a major firmware update on the same week it finally hit open stock. V2.00 brings the AM4 fully in line with Axe-Fx III firmware 32.02, adds a new HM-2-based drive model, and improves the gate block in ways that matter for tight, low-tuned playing.
Kemper OS 14.0 Leaves Beta — Profiling 2.0 Is Now Live for All MK2 and Player Owners
After a six-week public beta, Kemper's OS 14.0 reached stable release on March 31. Profiling 2.0's 100,000-point frequency analysis is now in the hands of anyone who paid for a MK2 or Player — including the Player's long-awaited ability to create profiles, not just play them.
Valeton's New GP-150 and GP-180 Put NAM Support Under $200
Valeton's two new floorboard modelers ship with SnapTone NAM file support, 12-module parallel routing, and built-in battery — the GP-150 at $169.99 with an onboard expression pedal. For the budget modeler audience, this is the most interesting sub-$200 release since the Donner Arena 2000.
Goodbye, Old Friend: Line 6 Monkey and License Manager Are Gone
Today Line 6 officially shut down the servers behind Monkey and License Manager — two pieces of software that were, for a lot of us, the gateway into the modern era of digital guitar.
TONEX 1.11.0 Adds Full Preset Sharing to ToneNET — Free for Everyone
IK Multimedia's latest TONEX update goes beyond individual Tone Models with community preset sharing, direct hardware transfers, and a redesigned signal chain UI. The update is free for all users, including the free TONEX CS tier.
Helix Stadium Firmware 1.10 Drops With 8 New Amp Models and Proxy Cloning Improvements
Line 6 delivers the first major update to Helix Stadium's Agoura engine with eight new amp models, improved Proxy cloning accuracy, and a redesigned cab engine that makes dual-cab routing easier than ever.
Quad Cortex Mini Starts Shipping to Pre-Order Customers
Neural DSP's compact flagship is finally landing on doorsteps. The Quad Cortex Mini packs the full CorOS experience into a smaller enclosure at EUR 1,299, and first impressions from early adopters are overwhelmingly positive.
5 Studio Compression Tricks That Will Transform Your Modeler Patches
Most modeler players underuse compression or skip it entirely. These five techniques, borrowed from studio mixing engineers, will add polish, sustain, and clarity to your patches on any platform.
It's Official: Digital Modelers Outsold Tube Amps on Reverb in 2025
Reverb's annual market report confirms what many suspected: digital modelers and profilers accounted for more transactions than traditional tube amplifiers for the first time in the platform's history.
Kemper OS 14.0 Public Beta Brings Profiling 2.0 With 100K+ Frequency Analysis
Kemper's biggest software update in years overhauls the profiling engine with dramatically higher resolution analysis. Early testers say the difference is audible, especially on high-gain amps with complex EQ curves.