Although classified as an "amplifier modeler," Chase has disputed the label, stating his priority was not exact emulation of classic guitar amps but rather recreating their sounds in the context of a modern device which emphasized expanded tonal control.

[2] The Axe-FX has been adopted by many notable guitarists, particularly for live rigs, such as Steve Vai, John Petrucci, Matt Belamy, and Alex Lifeson.

[3] The success of the Axe-FX sparked an "arms race" among amp modeler manufacturers, with rivals like Line 6, Neural DSP, and Kemper bringing to market their own products with more advanced specs and build quality.

Fractal's first floor unit was the FX8, which exclusively offered the Axe-FX's effects emulations;[5] amplifier modeling was added with the AX8, which was replaced by the more compact FM-3 and the larger FM-9.

Chase noted in a 2011 interview that demand was so high that buyers were using HTML scripts to ping the website and automatically place orders when stock was made available, and that as a result batches of new units would sell out in seconds.