FracTone probe tool

Coming soon. This page describes the tool as planned. Details may change before the first release.

The probe tool helps FracTone support the Axe-Fx III and FM3. If you own one, you run it once on your own device. It reads how your unit stores presets and models, and sends us a report. We use the reports to build and check support for your device.

  • No AI runs on your PC. The tool follows fixed steps; the analysis happens on our side.
  • It has a window for most people, and a command line with the same steps.
  • Open source, in the FracTone repository.

Requirements

  • Windows for the first version. Mac and Linux later.
  • An Axe-Fx III or FM3 connected by USB.
  • Axe-Edit or FM3-Edit closed, so the tool can use the USB connection.
  • No unsaved edits on the device. The tool stops rather than discard them.

Download and SmartScreen

  • Download links will appear here at release.
  • The tool isn't code-signed, so Windows SmartScreen will warn you the first time you run it.
  • To run it: click More info, then Run anyway.
  • If you'd rather check first, the source is public, and --dry-run prints every message it would send to the device without sending any.

Choose a safe preset slot

The tool asks you for one preset slot it may use.

  • Pick a slot you don't need, such as an empty one or a copy of a preset you have elsewhere.
  • The tool backs that slot up before anything else and puts it back at the end.
  • It never touches any other slot and never changes global settings.

What each level does

Level Time Changes on the device What it checks
1. Identity and reads about 5 minutes Nothing Device, firmware, and that FracTone can read your presets
2. Edit-buffer probes 15-30 minutes The edit buffer only, restored at the end That your device accepts a preset FracTone builds, and what each amp, drive, reverb and other model loads when selected
3. Store check (optional) about 2 minutes Your chosen slot, restored and checked FracTone's way of storing a preset, end to end
  • The edit buffer is what the device is playing now. Level 2 changes it; nothing is stored.
  • Level 3 is opt-in and runs last.
  • An audio level (cab and model sound over USB audio) may come later. It will be optional too.

How your device is protected

  • Identify first. On an unknown device or firmware, the tool stops before changing anything. Firmware without a checked script runs the read-only level only.
  • Back up first. Your chosen slot is backed up, byte for byte as the device sent it, before any change. The backup goes into the report.
  • Read back every change and compare. A change that didn't take is retried once, then the run stops.
  • Always restore. On success, failure, cancel or a crash it catches, the tool puts back your slot and the edit buffer, then checks them. The report says whether the device was left exactly as it was found.
  • A fixed list of commands. No firmware updates, no global or controller settings, no preset changes by MIDI program change.
  • Paced and time-limited. Messages are spaced out, and every step has a timeout.

The report

One zip file per run:

  • the run log and the outcome of every step, failures included;
  • every message sent and received;
  • the presets read back (.syx) and the probe results;
  • device model, firmware, tool version and Windows version.

Anonymised by default:

  • preset, scene and IR names are replaced with placeholders;
  • no user names or folder paths;
  • no Axe-Edit or FM3-Edit files (they are Fractal's and stay on your PC).

Before anything is sent, the tool shows a summary and the file list. You choose to upload it or just save the zip.

Upload codes

Reports reach us with an upload code tied to your FracTone account.

  1. Sign in and open your Account page.
  2. Choose Generate an upload code. The code is shown once: copy it then.
  3. Paste it into the tool when it asks.
  • A code lasts until you revoke it or generate a new one, which replaces it. An administrator can revoke it too.
  • Each upload is tied to your account, and the Account page shows when the code was last used.
  • Lost the code? Generate a new one; the old one stops working.

Limits:

  • 20 MB per report zip;
  • 20 uploads per code per hour;
  • 200 stored reports per account. At the limit, ask us to clear older ones.

The upload itself is a single HTTPS request from the tool. You can always save the zip instead and keep it.

Command line

The command line runs the same steps as the window:

fractone-probe --slot N [--level 1|2|3] [--dry-run] [--out dir] [--device-port name]
Option Meaning
--slot N The preset slot the tool may use (backed up first, restored at the end)
--level 1, 2 or 3 How far to go; see the levels above. Level 3 is opt-in
--dry-run Print every message it would send to the device without sending any
--out dir Where to save the report zip
--device-port name The MIDI port to use, when it can't find the device itself

The tool download is coming soon.