Neural DSP Quad Cortex

Sharing is caring
Expand your sonic palette
with the Cortex app and
give a little back to the
community
P
resumably not wanting to
waste precious resources
on an onboard web
browser, the Quad Cortex
utilises a mobile app (Android/
iOS) to browse the community’s
Neural Captures and presets. To
download either you will need to
browse or search and then add
to your Favourites within the
app. Then, moving back over to
the Quad Cortex you’ll need to
navigate to the Starred And
Shared With Me menu in the
main directory, where you will
have the option to download.
Uploading your own Neural
Captures is somewhat quicker
with a simple drag and drop
motion to upload to the cloud.
routed to one of the four individual
outputs. The signal path isn’t
linear either, with the option to
split/mix the signal at any point.
Quad Cortex’s biggest USP has
to be the Neural Capture feature.
Powered by AI, capturing your own
amps and pedals is blindingly fast,
excruciatingly simple and above all
else, delivers accuracy. The Quad
Cortex guides you through the
process on screen every step of
the way, ensuring the correct
connections are made and
appropriate levels are set. Similar
to Kemper’s profi ling, Neural
Capture sends and receives a test
tone through the target amp, or
overdrive pedal. We tested it on
the Orange Dark Terror and were
completely stunned at the speed
and accuracy with which the
Neural Capture was created.
For those still baulking at the
price, it is worth considering that
this device is able to be updated
over time, which further adds to
the value. Our initial thoughts were
that the unit would be best suited
for studio use, but are now
convinced this is the One Pedal
To Rule Them All. It’s portable,
lightweight, rugged enough and
perfectly adept for gigging. With
an ever-growing collection of user
Neural Captures at your disposal,
the Quad Cortex experience can
only get better.
There are a couple of gripes
though. At the time of writing
you’re unable to use presets from
your desktop Neural DSP plugins,
but it is hoped that will be
implemented in the future, as will
the plugins themselves. So any
Neural DSP plugins you currently
own, should, in theory, be available
for the Quad Cortex at no extra
cost. There’s currently no desktop
app for the Quad Cortex either,
which may also be a future feature
to arrive via an update. This means
that uploading and downloading
Captures and Presets can only be
done with the aid of the Cortex app.
There is so much to like about the
Quad Cortex, and despite the lofty
price, it has us looking around at all
the now-superfl uous gear we could
put up on eBay to make way for
what could be the last all-in-one
digital rig we’ll ever need. Although,
not before we’ve captured
everything fi rst.
Simon Arblaster
KEMPER PROFILER
STAGE
Similar in price,
and like the
Quad Cortex
it lacks an
integrated
expression
pedal, but does feature a looper.
However, tweaking those tones
feels a little cramped.
LINE 6
HELIX
Line 6’s original
flagship Helix
model does
come with an
expression pedal onboard,
so instantly gains points there,
but it can’t match the flexibility
of the Quad Cortex.
FRACTAL
FM3
The FM3 is closer to
the Quad Cortex in
size, albeit still
carrying quite some
bulk. And despite seeming like
a condensed edition of the Axe-Fx
range still has plenty to offer in
the preset building stakes.
ALSO TRY...
FEATURES
SOUND QUALITY
VALUE FOR MONEY
BUILD QUALITY
USABILITY
OVERALL RATING
SUMMARY
€1299
£1230
£1389
88
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TGR346.gear_lead.indd 88TGR346.gear_lead.indd 88 19/05/2021 15:2519/05/2021 15:25