Here is some good news for all users of the Tone Master Pro – and for anyone with one in their shopping basket right now – Fender has just expanded its flagship amp modeller’s capabilities with a serious firmware update.
The update is free, available now, and comprises eight new amp models, eight cabinet emulations, and 15 guitar effects – plus there is a whole bunch of utilities, such as a second page of footswitch assignments (that means you have a total of 16 footswitches per preset),
This is Fender-heavy update, with some cult classics from its tube amp archive, digitalised for all your electric guitar tone needs. And with the Rumble 800 included in this version, maybe your bass guitar tone needs, too.
There are five Fender guitar amps in the update: the ’57 Champ, which could be the compact studio pinch-hitter you’ve been missing all your life; some silver panel combo royalty in the shape of the ’68 Custom Deluxe Reverb, ’68 Custom Princeton Reverb; and there is the ’65 Twin Custom 15, which is a Twin but with a 15” speaker.
Your expanded cabinet options now include the compact 8” driver of the ’57 Champ, the 1x10 formats of ’65 and ’68 Princetons, plus the 1x12s from a ’65 and ’68 Deluxe. The aforementioned 1x15” of the Twin is also available plus there’s the Celestion G12H from an EVH 5150 1x12 and a 4x12 “British” cabinet loaded with G12Hs.
Speaking of EVH Gear, Fender has added all three channels of the 50-watt 5150 III 6L6 head here, which will mean fun times for any rock or metal guitar player.
There are lots of effects here, some of which will be familiar. There are guitar and bass overdrive pedals inspired by EarthQuaker Devices Plumes and Blumes respectively, a “Seventy Sixer Compressor” which, no prizes for guessing, is inspired by the UA 1176 compressor.
There’s also a Rockbox 100 inspired by the Scholz R&D Rockman X100 headphone amp, so all your Def Leppard tone dreams might indeed come true.
Some will be less familiar, with eight Fender-designed effects including Step Tremolo, Prismatic Delay, Step Filter Delay, Spectral Reverb, Cirrostratus Reverb and Cirrostratus Synthverb.
As for the rest of the new features, search has been improved, there is a new favourites filter, and there has been a redesign of the looper pedal function and the guitar tuner now allows you to toggle between needle and strobe modes.
For more information, head over to Fender.
