Is The Tone Master FINALLY Pro? (Update)

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My personal Thomann recommendations: thmn.to/thocf/...
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Thanks for watching my view on the new Fender Tone Master Pro 1.3.74 firmware update! How are the new high gain amps? Let's also compare them to my Orange Rockerverb 50 MKIII and Soldano SLO-30! Let me know your thoughts in the comments below! Cheers!
Gear used in this video:
- ESP LTD EC1000T CTM
- Gibson Les Paul Custom
- ML Drums by ML Sound Lab
- Cubase 13 Pro
- ML Sound Lab Cabinet Impulse Responses
- RedSeven Amplification Amp Central reactive load
- Klotz Cables & DI Box
This channel is sponsored by:
ML Sound Lab (ML Drums): ml-sound-lab.c...
An original song of mine with me on vocals: • My First Song w/Vocals...
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#fender #tonemasterpro #firmwareupdate
Disclaimer: this video is sponsored but as always all thoughts and opinions are 100% my own!
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[@SonicDriveStudio]

Thomann Affiliate: www.thomann.de/intl/index.html?offid=1&affid=3210 Sweetwater Affiliate: sweetwater.sjv.io/k0mGvx My personal Thomann recommendations: thmn.to/thocf/cv37zixo68 My webstore for Captures, presets etc: ko-fi.com/sonicdrivestudio

[@VisceralDementia]

Still a Tone Master No for me. 👎 Also still find it priced too high for what it offers.

[@MusicheadRick]

TMP has a very loooooonnngg road ahead to ever reach Fractal FM3 turbo. This update was also nothing compared to what Fractal did with the FM3 turbo in its latest update.

[@ookookook]

@@MusicheadRick Yup. I'll stick to the Axe FX 3 - Fractal Audio has been beyond amazing to me as a customer. I can't see this being even remotely comparable.

[@darionunez7717]

Maybe for 50% of it's price :p

[@Civic.]

It sounds great. Based on nothing more than online information and videos I think the TMP is my favourite modeller on the market right now not taking price into account.

[@LonelyRocker]

The big question for the TMP was if Fender was fully committed to developing it. This is a big update for sure but time will tell how often they will push put significant updates. This is a good sign for TMP owners. Let's see how and when they follow this up. Great video!

[@AEP2x]

They are committed to updates like this every 6 months currently. Small little patches, fixes, or quality of life in between so far. I think they are doing great, but would love to see them on a 3-4 month cycle to get it really developed quicker. To be honest it's already moving quicker than QC!

[@nothingchannel111]

They actually just pushed another one a few days ago, Sept. 4th 2024. I think they are committed, they have a big name and reputation they don't want to ruin. Also, stiff competition!

[@themostswood4709]

That Orange sounded seriously great! I know Jim Root is gonna be very happy about that.

[@scottwhitlow8468]

Wow! That orange amp is really good!! That was very impressive! And great job Jon for continuing to provide updates with your reviews. 👍🏻

[@BrianVallotton]

You did a great job on this presentation! I am more of a Fender Amp guy, but the sounds you got out of these two new amps were great! I know a lot of people were asking for the Orange and the SLO. You have a great demeanor and I really enjoyed your playing as well. God bless and rock on!

[@SonicDriveStudio]

Thank you!

[@sircusboy351]

The slo is great, but that orange on my tone master pro really blew me away. Then, i had to rush and see if you made a video on it. Sure enough, you were on top of it! Always great to see your takes on amps/modeling/irs and happy to see you thought it was pretty amazing too.

[@trubin3]

Difference is so subtle. Fender is slighly less defined, but it's not night and day. Both emulations sounded extremely close to the live amps.

[@nouse3771]

big win for fender

[@dustylense]

Nice stuff. The TMP is really quite the machine. Knowing this is only the 3rd update, excited to see where it will continue going.

[@Astoria..]

Man… your riffs are just insane… 😂🤘🏼

[@smeemusic]

Okay they are making wise choices. They are listening to their customers. This video is putting the TMP back on the map for me. I do still wanna see more high gain options but if I were to have to use this for a gig without warning, I’d be able to play my show and enjoy my experience. Which is saying a lot. So I’m excited to see what the future holds for this device. This may be my next big purchase.

[@mooocows]

Jon, I just updated and used some Petrucci IRs he made recording the last LTE and DT albums. I'm staggered how much better the TMP sounds with the curve. It's a keeper, especially knowing they'll add more. Thank you so much for the video!

[@ts8lemonade]

They both sound great! As a TMP user I am very happy with this update :) The Rockerverb sounds so good!

[@metallion0738]

It sounds awesome, in other words very similar on both amp models, almost identical. Great review as usual bro.

[@Sispheor]

TMP owner over here! I'm really happy with this device 🤟. Very well though UI. 👍. I really appreciate the integrated cloud that allows to share presets . Coming from headrush world where the cloud is a joke.

[@samuelalmanza49]

Awesome review as always Jon. Your channel is the one I most look forward to when watching reviews on the equipment I own. Great presentation with honest opinions you can see and hear through the screen. Thank you and keep up the great work

[@DougBsDigitalDen]

My old ears tell me that if you would've tweaked the treble up a tad on the SOLO, they might've been a little closer. Good job tho!

[@picksalot1]

Good on Fender for the significant improvements. This will make it possible for them to compete in the higher end Modeler market.

[@Eric-dd8bk]

As much as I hate Fender as a brand, I really like the tones that come atta that little box. I say this as a around 9 year Helix user.

[@Ferniramirez_]

Both sound really close! The real amps have that brightness but nothing you can’t EQ to fix. Sounds amazing

[@DreidMusicalX]

Sounds decent But I do like the fact it shows you the amps, and all the graphic stuff.

[@berndkiltz]

Sick Riff at 10:00!

[@charliebutcher373]

Yo. I have watched your channel for a very long time. I really like when you compare amp molders to the real amps. Then your guitar collection is dope. I checked your website how come no Helix captures? Then for Ir / cabs do you primary just use Own-Hammer or do you also recommend and other Irs / cabs?

[@aquaxbat]

In this video he used an IR from ML Sound Lab. He’s also used IR’s from York Audio. There are plenty of videos where he shows all of the amp settings in the helix. Search ‘Sonic Drive Studio Helix preset tutorial’. The Helix platform doesn’t ‘capture’ amps like Quad Cortex or Kemper. It’s strictly a molder. Maybe that will change when they release new hardware.

[@Dan_XF07]

Great Video! In your opinion, the TMP amps sound a little better than the fractal ones... or maybe as good as the fractal ones?

[@Civic.]

I'm still happy with my Digitech RP360XP and RP360 and not looking to upgrade any time soon but if I could, if I was able to swap them for anything on the market right now it would be the Tonemaster Pro. The TMP is my favourite product on the market right now in this space. But I honestly can't justify spending that amount of money because there's nothing wrong with the sound of the RP360 IMO and it can get the job done even if it has some flaws or limitations. The thing is the RP360 can be found for less than 1/10th of the price of the TMP and even if I was silly enough to buy one of the new ones from a shop that still has them in stock it's less than 1/5th of the price of a TMP. And specific to my use case the RP360 fits better for me because of the size as I need everything to be as compact as possible. But I really like the TMP now and I think there may be one in my future. This was a great update by Fender. At this point I think the only thing on my wishlist for a future upgrade is a JTM amp model. Now for the ridiculous. Since my current simple rig is a RP360XP combined with a Digitech Trio Plus, if band in a box functionality was added to the Fender so that it could replace both devices then it would be a must buy purchase for me but I don't see or expect that to happen. The point is as much as I think the TMP is a great product and possibly the best modeller on the market right now, it unfortunately doesn't fit my needs ATM and takes too much space for me and is too expensive to justify as an upgrade from my RP360XP that is already great IMO. On that note, I get strong Digitech vibes from the TMP (that's a good thing IMO) and it makes me wonder if some of the old Digitech guys were employed by Fender and worked on this. I also get those vibes from the Hotone Ampero stuff and that's probably why if I had nothing today and was in the market for a new modeller and the RP360 didn't exist I'd be looking at the Hotone Stage and Fender TMP, nothing else on the market at the moment really interests me.

[@justincider4375]

It sounds pretty good, but for the price, I would still prefer a Quad Cortex or an FM9

[@JodySinclair]

Great comparison! This is a very promising update

[@SonicDriveStudio]

Thanks! And I agree ;)

[@IamMusicNerd]

I love the form factor and UI. The biggest issue for me has always been the limitation on how many effects can be used simultaneously. Too many times I turned on 3-4 pedals, and as soon as I did that, others would become grayed out and unavailable to turn on. Especially when trying to stack multiple OD pedals, or multiple delays, etc. If they can update that to allow more pedals to be on at once, while continuing to add more and more amps and effects pedals, then I would be more willing to consider it a valid alternative to the QC or Fractal. But for now it’s still playing catch up.

[@judsongallien]

How many does it take for them to grey out?

[@maxgutnik6227]

TMP has more DSP power than any other modeler. We are modeling every single gain stage, so some amps like the EVH take more processing power. Also certain effects that have lots of parameters or convolution use more DSP than others. Mix and match for the optimal results.

[@DougBsDigitalDen]

Are you using one of the amps with the convolution reverb?

[@judsongallien]

@@DougBsDigitalDen I have a TMP now, and quickly learned why they give you the "amp only" amps. It's so you don't have a convolution 'verb using one whole processor all the time.

[@ZachariahConnor]

Wow…it really nailed the orange

[@alanmiller2172]

I see some naysayers here saying that this video was paid for by Fender and also that Fender might have threatened a lawsuit. Ridiculous, if you saw the previous video "EVH vs modelers" you would know how Fender has improved the Tonemaster Pro dramatically. Great job on this video, and very "legit!"

[@SonicDriveStudio]

Thank you! It's pretty annoying when people call me a liar but it is what it is. It makes me appreciate these comments even more! Cheers

[@OnyxSkiesXIX]

It came pretty close to the Orange but it is missing something in the top end that makes the real amp sound so much more lively.

[@Venemoth666]

95% modelers cant reproduce that bright opennes in top.

[@metallion0738]

The tone master amp models sound very organic and close to the real amps from what I’m hearing, sounds better than the Helix and others in my opinion of course.

[@matzchase]

2349$ here in Canada, I don't think so!

[@cybergnetwork588]

I think so because I've pulled the trigger! 😂 I don't have a single regret!

[@Eldestthorin]

Another reason canada sucks.

[@sb6232]

........ahhh man...I had a friend that was selling his TMP for $700 ..He is a longtime Axe FX user and bought the TMP and wasn't for him (..he also has a lot of $$.)..Should have jumped on it..darnit!!!

[@AEP2x]

Yeah anyone selling it that soon is probably going to regret it as it Continues to develop.

[@gravelrocks5588]

No capturing feature yet? For that reason. I will Get the quad cortex..

[@SonicDriveStudio]

Not yet, maybe they'll add it one day... who knows?

[@patregister5150]

I personally was never a fan of Orange amps. They sound mushy to me. The Soldano sounds promising though, and I'm going to try it out. I will say this though: the factory IR's are ok. I have the EVH IR pack from Celestion and they sound a lot better for heavy tones than the factory ones.

[@FastRedPonyCar]

I just got an OR30 to demo on my channel and it’s extremely tight and percussive. It really depends on where the volume and gain are. More gain = bigger fuzzier sound. Pulling the gain back some and hitting with a boost gives you gobs of saturation without the big fat and fuzzy sound you’re probably thinking of. I don’t think slipknot would be using them if they weren’t punchy and tight.

[@sandrews7760]

I’m sure it took line 6 a few years to get into there stride with amp models that people got exited about. I think our expectations are just bigger because modelling has been mainstream for over 10 years and there are so many players in the game. I sold my QC which I liked to buy the TMP. For me the it feels better under my fingers. I feel like I’m closer to playing a real amp than I did with other modellers and modelling pedals. I feel more settled with the TMP .. never played axe fx… so maybe I’m still missing out.

[@void_snw]

From the other videos I was pretty disappointed with this unit, but now that seems to have turned a new page. Sounds sick. Wish we could get some of that impedance stuff in the Helix as well, but I guess it would be hard to "disconnect" the built in impedance effect of the models that are in there.

[@cidnewman8032]

The Amp setting was only at 50% on the SLO test. It's separate from the standard volume settings on the amp, and can be seen in the lower left corner of the display. It controls the amount the amp effects the signal, so I'd bump it to 100% (like the Orange was) and maybe run that part again?

[@iancurrie8844]

Hey - you know what's a great design where there are bright glaring stage lights? A glossy screen!!!!

[@RezqRabbitVT]

I've been considering getting an amp modeler recently and the tone master pro has been on my radar. This update captures 2 of my favorite amps of all time and is now really tempting 😅 Thank you for another amazing video!

[@slash196]

I feel like in this day and age of AI amp models, the barrier to entry for good high-gain sounds is way lower and so big price units like Fender's really need to bring it to be relevant at all.

[@CamCotham]

I tried to download the new firmware, but when I go to add it onto my Mac (I have 12.7.5 OS, so should be fine) it says that the file is corrupt. I submitted a ticket to support, but nothing so far. If I can't get it fixed I'll have to return it- here goes the 21 day countdown!

[@thomaskuschel89]

I have read on the official TMP Discord channel that some people had that issue with the update from IOS. You are not supposed to open the file on you Mac/PC. Just stick to the official update description on the TMP Update website and you should be fine. Some people reported that they also had your error message but were fine ignoring it. It seems to be more of an IOS issue than TMP related.

[@CamCotham]

@@thomaskuschel89 Thanks! That was it- I asked if they'd add that to the page under the link with an asterisk for us i(OS)diots. :)

[@lokealexander]

Great video! What was the Orange demo song inspired by? It sounded very familiar, but i cant figure it out.

[@SonicDriveStudio]

It's my own

[@jeffbateman2339]

Just curious…. Do any of your modelers have clean tones? Lol

[@KaddysJamKave]

yayyyyyyyyy spend about 2k and hopefully the bugs are fixed with the latest update or some future updates over the years and hopefully get this or that feature or they improve upon this or that. Bahhhhhhhhh I despise the day software merged with effect (pedals). I'll stick to analogue pedals 😆

[@joehuffman1847]

Do you upload your presets? I'm lazy! 🤣

[@thomaskuschel89]

Another great comparison. I tested the two amps the last days quiet a lot. For now the SLO with the matching cab has become my new favorite. At the beginning of your video the SLO sounded quiet muffled to my ears. At the end it sounded just fine. You raised the presence quiet a lot to match the real 30 Watt version. Just a small hint if you have not noticed it yet: The Master Volume of the TMP does not increase the volume itself really much above around 40-50% but the tone opens up and becomes more articulate at around 60-70%. I do not own the real amp therefore I cannot judge if it behaves the same way. If so, the 30 Watt version probably reaches this point at lower master levels. That would explain why you had to crank the presence so much. The impedance curves might also be partly responsible.

[@SonicDriveStudio]

Fwiw, when you crank an amp up until the powertubes start to distort it actually makes amps darker and more muffled, at least in real life. For my tones I usually don't go for those types of tones.

[@thomaskuschel89]

That's actually true but I think the amp is not at that point with these settings yet. Otherwise I could not explain what I am hearing. Maybe the real Version would be? I don't know. Anyway I am looking forward to your new comparison of the older models with the new impedance curves.

[@michaelwilson2497]

Shit!!! I noticed that with my Uber and EVH after the last update. Lot of noise in the house and outside one Saturday and I got pissed, so I cranked my TMP to about 70 (I run direct to a board and JBL studio monitors and it kicked so much ass.

[@thomaskuschel89]

​@@michaelwilson2497 What you are probably refering to is the overall master volume of the TMP and not the master volume of the amp head itself. The TMP Master Volume is raising the volume. The change in tone you describe is probably related to the fletcher munson effect. In short: Our ears have different sensities to mids, bass and treble depending on the volume. Therefore a volume increase is always resulting in a tone shift. But that is not what I hear with the Soldano head when increasing the master volume of the amp itself.

[@davidraymond8994]

I just got a Helix LT how does the ToneMaster Pro compare for anyone that has both? Also, I have a Fender Tonemaster FR12 coming for the 4th of July holiday :).

[@martinignaciodefeo9235]

The TMP has a somewhat close ressemblance to the Helix in its first year. A nice but incomplete product. It lacks too many models and has many things to be improved. If they keep giving free updates for the next ten years like Line 6 did... it'll be an oustanding product. The problem is that Line 6 will be releasing the next generation flagship based in the existant HX technology... and it'll pretty much have the same features available in the TMP (Touch screen, fancy graphics, Blueetooth, Wi-fi and all that). So... I'm waiting for Line 6 to release it while closely watching the TMP updates... Thing is Fender is way back in the run for greater numbers of models and fx. Nice product, anyway. Specially the touch screen... I'd love that included in a Helix Amp. Big enough to use it like a real amp. Reaaally sexy.

[@e-henne]

Orange was extremely close. I thought the “Solo” model didn’t sound very good, it sounds very fake to me.

[@SnakePool]

Makes no sense to buy this modeler at the current price. Other modelers do more for less or around the same price.

[@PaulDario82]

Try one first

[@markpaul3898]

This is by far the most intuitive, and it has the most processing power of all the modelers.

[@Bret_Sanor]

Still sounds like a very overpriced toy. I appreciate your videos.

[@nothingchannel111]

When it's alone by itself I think I can hear a tiny bit of aliasing. But, a TINY bit. In a mix, wow. I'm super impressed. I can't wait to get mine on Friday!

[@Skywalker5150]

I wish that fender would fix the EVH amp in the tone master pro...Nice playing John thanks

[@maxgutnik6227]

The EVH red channel bug was fixed in the last update. In this update we added the ability to apply SIC filters to 3rd party IRs - The EVH sounds amazing, as evidenced by Jon's latest video.

[@SlangJeezy]

This is a fantastic update. I went back and forth between the Tonemaster Pro and the Headrush Prime. I tried both and the Tonemaster Pro was the hands down winner between the two. The built in amps and IR from the Tonemaster Pro sounded so much better compared to everything built into the Prime. The prime has much more aftermarket support, which I believe it needs, but I am happy with how Fender has been steadily updating the TMP, to include these two new amps! PLEASE FENDER....VH4 NEXT!!!

[@valdon116]

I own both, use the TMP exclusively now

[@davepiombino162]

Hello, sorry for the stupid question, but how do you rec this beautiful “stereo” guitar?

[@SonicDriveStudio]

Double tracking

[@davepiombino162]

Thanks man☺️

[@wendelllaffin240]

the SLO sounds great

[@gigivezz]

How do you compare the ml OS ir to the ownhammer one?

[@satarello]

wow !!! Im very surprised !!! TONE MASTER has a little more low end. but this is so close...!!!! Damn !!!

[@SonicDriveStudio]

It's VERY impressive!

[@satarello]

I mean the ORANGE. As you said Soldano is a little far than ORANGE. But TONE MASTEr PRO show that another border is broken....to be almost identical like real amp..

[@Colosphonium]

Seem most of the bad press at launch came from high gain guy.. eich i can understand. the clean and fender amp were spot on from the get go. so im hapoy for this uodate.. doesnt change a lot for me dought. the princeton 62 is all right but not my go too amp. i wish they had put more vintage fender amp. but its a great uodate nevertheless.

[@maxgutnik6227]

We will have more Fender amps in the future!