October 2024: Fractal Audio's VP4 Virtual Pedalboard has been added to the wiki.
Axe-Fx Standard and Ultra (legacy)
About the first generation Axe-Fx
The first generation of the Axe-Fx processor featured two models: Standard (2006) and Ultra (2008).
The Ultra had twice the processing power of the Standard, more memory and added Ultra-only effects.
With the release of the Axe-Fx II in May 2011, Fractal discontinued the Standard and Ultra models. Firmware development for these devices was stopped. The last firmware version is v11. The first generation units continue to being used because the effects are still top-notch.
Presets for the Axe-Fx Standard and Ultra are not compatible with later hardware.
"I really wish I could update the Standard and Ultra but it is simply out of memory. There are literally 1309 words left (out of 128K) in the Ultra's EPROM. That's enough room for maybe one or two amp models and that's it. IR slots are limited by the size of the SRAM which is fixed. I'd like nothing more than to bring some of the Axe-Fx II modeling to those old products but it's simply not feasible."
