GEAR REVIEW
NEURAL DSP QUAD CORTEX | Doug Doppler
KEY FEATURES
• Massive Processing Power
• 11.42 ” x 7.48 ”
• 50 + Amps
• 70 + Effects
• 1,000 + IRs
So if you ’ re wondering whether the Neural DSP Quad Cortex is worth all the hype , the answer is a definite yes ! While you might not have heard of Neural DSP before this box , they make some of the best guitar plug-ins on the planet . Doug Castro , the founder of the company is also responsible for the Darkglass line of bass goodness . All that to say , this box is not their first rodeo .
So back to the hype convo . Having spent MANY hours with this thing , and it is ‘ all that ’, I ’ d like to say that the mark of a great product is excellence in both design and implementation , and this box scores top marks in both categories . Let ’ s break down the why and the what !
FORM FACTOR If I got my conversions right the QC is 11.42 ” wide and 7.48 ” deep . The frame is made of anodized aluminum , which is both durable and obviously light noting that the unit weighs in at 4.2 pounds . At the heart of the matter is a giant 7 ” touch screen that makes for a great interactive workflow .
POWER DRAW At 12 volts with a 3-amp draw , the wall wort is going to be a reality for most . That said , given everything this unit does , I can see people selling off their pedals once they ’ ve ‘ stolen their souls ’ via the awesome capture function .
FIRE POWER The 6 cores of processing power are fueled by a quad of SHARC and a pair of ARM Cortex A5 processors , hence the Quad Cortex moniker . None of the esteemed gear demo crowd was able to get the unit over the 50 % processing power mark , which is nothing short of phenomenal .
THE GRID To craft a preset , you add blocks to the four row ‘ grid ’ you see when you load a blank preset . You simply select the desired location on the grid , and then select the desired block type from the menu . There are various types of divider / mixer blocks for further massaging of your signal chain .
MODES The QC features three main modes : Preset , Scene , and Stomp , which perform the anticipated behavior . Scene Mode is where many of us will live and to create a new scene you hold down the encoder footswitch for Scene 1 and then select the desired location via the other seven footswitches . Creating dual versions of the same signal chain and then swapping out something like a compressor is a great way to A / B your way to sonic bliss . In turn , you can copy the desired version to the next open Scene and repeat that same process as you select the right delay or reverb for your sound . A / B ’ ing the tones makes for a great workflow , something this box excels in .
CAPTURES I frequently say , “ Not everybody who plays at church just plays at church !” and that includes me . The second capture I made was of a Jose Arredondo-modded Marshall formerly owned by Joe Satriani . Jose ’ s mods were the ‘ cat ’ s meow ’ for the who ’ s who of Rock , and his legend lives on . That said , the Quad Cortex literally guided me through the capture process with ease , and the results were and are outstanding .
ALGORITHMS In addition to the factory captures , the QC has a wide array of amp algorithms . The AC30 being my go-to for PnW . I was super impressed , but I will add that you should use the aforementioned