I got to try the most hyped modeler of the past few years for the first time. Besides seeing a few demo videos, I have no prior experience with this unit. Let’s see how long it will take for me to set up my first rig.
Disclaimer: The Quad Cortex in this video/post was a loaner from a friend. I’m doing this video/post completely independently with no affiliation with Neural DSP or any other brand appearing in the video/post.
What is Neural DSP Quad Cortex?
Quad Cortex is a guitar/bass modeler by Neural DSP. Initially introduced at NAMM 2020, the unit saw several release delays before starting to mass ship to customers in 2022.
Some of the key features of the unit include a 7” touchscreen, footswitches that also serve as rotating knobs, and the AI-powered Neural capture, that allows you to faithfully model any amplifier or drive/distortion/fuzz pedal to the Quad Cortex.
Hobbyist and professional guitarists have embraced the Quad Cortex as one of the best guitar modelers on the market.
Plugging Quad Cortex in for the first time
I wanted to capture my true initial reactions to the Quad Cortex, so I created a completely blank preset. My telecaster sounded delightful when played fully DI.
I also wanted to see if the user interface is as intuitive, as some have led me to believe. Also, I didn’t read the manual or watch videos on how to use it beforehand. Though it was impossible to not have at least some idea of how it works.
I like how compact the unit is, though I’m also thinking whether the footswitches are too close to each other. There won’t be testing this unit live, though, so this is something I’ll have to figure out some other time.
First Sounds
The content of this video/post was created in July 2022, so some of the things I mention here might have changed since then through updates.
Starting with a completely blank preset and without any prior experience of using Quad Cortex (QC), I proceed to add an amplifier (Brit 2203). I’m presented with a buzzing unpleasant sound that tells me we’re missing a cabinet. I’m sure Neural DSP had their reasons to do it this way, but I would personally prefer that loading up an amp would also load up the default matching cabinet to that amp.
After adding a matching cabinet, everything sounds way better. Using my self-made tele with Sheptone pickups, I’m getting a killer classic rock sound that also feels dynamic and touch-responsive to play. I think we’re onto something here.
I tweak a few settings on the amp with great results. I’ve had the pleasure of playing some classic vintage Marshalls, and this tone gets me pretty close.
Jumping to the cab block, I decide to move the microphones just a bit to make the sound a bit less bright and bring out more of the midrange. I’m used to mic real guitar cabinets, so having a visual cue of where the microphone is related to the speaker’s cone makes tone adjustment fast and easy.
Adding pedals
No guitar rig is complete without me adding a few pedals in there. As my drive/distortion pedal, I went with the Rodent (a.k.a. Rat). I’m pleasantly surprised how grimy and ‘broken’ it sounds, just like the real thing. When it comes to amp or pedal modeling so far, color me impressed.
A quick test with a delay and reverb pedals in the signal chain confirms what others have been saying online about QC at the time: the modulation effects cover the basics decently, but Neural has a long way to go to catch up with Line 6 Helix, for example.
Guitar Specific Tweaks
As the last thing, I wanted to take my custom semi-hollow VHC guitar and use an EQ as the first thing in the signal chain to fix some of the muddiness that the guitar has.
Using a 9-band EQ, I was able to cut out some of the problematic frequencies, and now my guitar sounded like a semi-hollow with vintage-style pickups should.
I’m so excited about the sounds I’m getting that I forget something crucial: you can rotate the footswitches to adjust parameters! It’s a genius idea that marries the digital brain with analog controls and is something I’ve been missing from a lot of other modelers.
Is Neural DSP Quad Cortex Good?
To be honest, I didn’t think I’d like the Quad Cortex this much this fast. After demoing hundreds of pieces of music gear, you tend to get numb to all the hype and ‘innovation’ the companies claim their products to have. As of July 2022, Quad Cortex is clearly an unfinished product with an amazing promise of things to come.
December 2023 update: Besides additions to the amp, pedal, and effects sections, the Cortex Control (the desktop editor) Beta has now been released. The company is also openly talking about integrating Neural DSP guitar plugins, like the amazing Mateus Asato and Rabea plugins, for example, into the Quad Cortex in some capacity.
If you’re interested acquiring your own POD GO and supporting what I do, you can find affiliate links here:
►►Get Quad Cortex At Thomann: https://thmn.to/thoprod/486992?offid=1&affid=394
►►Get Your Quad Cortex At Sweetwater: https://sweetwater.sjv.io/75e2PY
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