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1 INTRODUCTION
The Axe-Fx III is the current flagship product in our long line of industry-leading guitar processors, and the world’s
most powerful unit of its kind, with signicantly more raw power than anything we’ve offered before. Our vision for
this platform was to create a product that sounds better, does more, and is easier to use than ever before, with all
of the best and room for more. It features our newest “Cygnus” amp modeling technology, UltraRes™ and FullRes™
speaker cab simulations, our legendary effect algorithms, and much more.
Fractal Audio Systems is known for accurate amp models with the sound and feel of real tube amps. The
Axe-FxIII carries this torch high. “Cygnus” picks up where “Ares” left off, with improvements and upgrades to the
accuracy, sound, and feel. Some may ask: “how can it still be getting better after all these years?” We maintain
that there is always room for improvement and innovation and submit the Axe-Fx III as proof.
The hardware has been completely re-designed around a streamlined workflow. The centerpiece is a dazzling
high-contrast full-color display with 30x the resolution of previous products. This display works alongside ve
endless-rotary push encoders (“push-knobs”). These do different things on different pages, with labels to show
dynamic functions. The end result is a user experience that’s immediately more intuitive. The display also excels
at animation for meters, modiers, and more.
Power and resources are vastly expanded. Two 1-GHz “Keystone” DSPs benchmark at 2.8x the power of the Axe-
Fx II, and there are two additional processors dedicated to graphics and USB. Peripherals include 4Gb of blazing
fast PC1600 DDR3 memory, hundreds of Mb of FLASH memory, a proprietary FPGA and more. The number of
inputs and outputs has more than doubled in comparison to previous products. Routing capabilities have also
been upgraded with dedicated blocks for each Input and Output allowing for highly flexible preset and rig design.
All 1/4" outputs feature our Humbuster™ technology to help reduce the noise caused by ground loops.
Better sound quality has been achieved through an audiophile-grade signal path. The difference is heard as a
lower noise floor, pristine clarity, and USB audio performance that’s even better than most dedicated pro audio
interfaces. As a 24-bit/48k 8×8 interface, the Axe-Fx III allows you to record multiple tracks of processed audio
at the same time, plus a DI. You can playback computer backing tracks or process incoming signals from the
computer. The re-amping workflow is improved with independent monitoring of backing tracks and re-processed
guitar tones while you dial in a sound.
Physically, the Axe-Fx III combines extraordinary design with manufacturing quality rugged enough to withstand
the rigors of life on the road. The unit is housed in a steel enclosure with a one-piece anodized aluminum
faceplate/bezel featuring a glowing Axe-Fx III logo.
Axe-Edit™ III, a fully re-tooled version of our editor for Mac or PC, is packed with great new features including
Quickbuild mode, a Scene Manager, and window scaling on monitors up to 5k and beyond.
Of course the unit features upgradeable rmware, meaning we can offer new features and xes through free
rmware updates—something that our customers greatly enjoy.
This manual also covers the “Mark II” version of the Axe-Fx III, introduced in 2020.
We hope you will enjoy using the Axe-Fx III as much as we’ve enjoyed creating (and playing) it.
WELCOME TO THE AXE-FX III
1 INTRODUCTION
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