Stratus vs StompStation CORE: Three NAM Models, Different Possibilities

Published November 3, 2026. Written by Chaos Audio, maker of Stratus. Specifications and prices were checked against the sources below.

Three NAM models can be the beginning of a rig, rather than the end of its possibilities. Both Chaos Audio Stratus and Sonulab StompStation CORE run three Neural Amp Modeler models at once. CORE runs A2-Full and puts its processing into a focused drive-and-stereo-amp setup. Stratus runs A2-Lite and brings those captures into a broader effects platform: rearrange your chain, create a custom effect in FX Builder 2.0, explore third-party plugins, and save the result for the stage.

CORE has the advantage in NAM model size. Stratus has the advantage in what you can build around your NAM tones. If you want one compact pedal to keep taking on new jobs, that flexibility matters every time your sound changes.

The short version

• Stratus: Up to three native NAM A2-Lite blocks in one preset/chain, 19 free effects covering all effect categories, 30 free AI builds every month, an open Tone Shop marketplace, and a five-minute looper.
• StompStation CORE: Three A2-Full models in its drive-plus-dual-amp arrangement, stereo IRs and reverb, a screen, headphones, and USB audio.
• Both reach beyond factory sounds: Both integrate with TONE3000. Stratus adds custom effect creation and third-party effect plugins to that capture ecosystem.

Side by side

Sources: Sonulab’s CORE overview and CORE manual; Stratus specifications. CORE is a different product from StompStation PRO.

Three A2-Full models vs three A2-Lite blocks

CORE deserves credit for running three A2-Full models. TONE3000 describes Full as its maximum-accuracy architecture and Lite as the more efficient version for embedded hardware. Stratus uses Lite. We would not present those as the same processing mode, or claim a listening-test result for these two pedals that we have not measured.

The arrangement is just as useful to understand as the number. CORE places a drive before two parallel amp models. Stratus lets you use three NAM blocks in a single mono chain—for example, two pedal captures feeding an amp capture—and change their order alongside your other effects. NAM and effects share the available CPU, so the complexity of the complete chain still matters.

On Stratus, Lite also does not mean a smaller TONE3000 catalog. All 600,000+ amp and pedal NAM captures on TONE3000 are compatible with Stratus. TONE3000 captures are available in A2, whose models include Full and Lite modes. You can browse and install them through the Chaos Audio app, or bring your own supported NAM uploads.

The difference becomes obvious when you add effects

A convincing amp capture is a great foundation. Your next song might also need a compressor before it, a phaser, a rhythmic delay, or an unusual texture you have never found in a conventional pedal.

CORE supplies a focused capture chain with gate and stereo reverb. Its current documented chain has no separate delay, modulation, or looper block. If those are part of your sound, you will need to supply them elsewhere.

Stratus already includes 19 free effects across the main effect categories, including compression, drive, EQ, modulation, delay, and reverb. You can mix these with NAM captures, then save different combinations as presets. That makes Stratus useful as more than an amp-model endpoint: it can cover several roles on the board, and those roles can change from one preset to the next.

FX Builder 2.0: make the effect you wish existed

With FX Builder 2.0, you can describe how an effect should behave, audition it, ask for changes, and install it on Stratus. A warm echo with gently drifting repeats is one starting point; making those repeats shorter or changing their movement is part of the same creative process.

This creates effect code with controls you can adjust. You are expanding the pedal’s effects, rather than only choosing another amp capture or saving different settings. Every Stratus owner gets 30 free AI builds each month. Once installed, the effects run on the pedal without a phone or internet connection.

An open marketplace beyond amp captures

Both pedals benefit from NAM’s open capture format. Stratus extends that idea to effects through the Tone Shop: an open marketplace where independent developers can offer plugins for Stratus and Nimbus. The developer tools support building new effects and porting existing work, with submissions reviewed before marketplace release.

For a player, that means three ways to keep expanding: download another NAM capture, create an effect yourself, or install a developer’s plugin. You do not have to wait for a manufacturer’s next firmware release to introduce every new sound.

Two footswitches, 14 hands-free presets

Stratus has two built-in footswitches. The silver switch is one; the black Multiknob presses down as the second. Together with seven RGB LEDs, they let you navigate 14 presets in seven color-coded pairs without reaching for your phone. USB-MIDI can recall all 128 stored presets.

CORE’s screen and three knobs make on-pedal editing straightforward. Its single footswitch can cycle through A/B/C within the current bank, while changing banks uses a knob or MIDI. Stratus’s larger hands-free preset selection is useful when you want to move through several complete sounds with the pedal alone.

US price: compare the delivered total

Stratus is $299 with free US shipping, before applicable sales tax. That includes the effects, NAM workflow, and monthly AI builds described above.

Our own US order of StompStation CORE came to about $330. Against Stratus’s $299 with free US shipping, that is roughly $31 more in our purchase example. This is a real order total, not a universal US quote; destination, exchange rate, shipping, and any taxes or import charges can change the comparison.

Sonulab advertises a €299 launch price and removes Italian VAT for shipments outside the EU; its export checkout showed €245.08 before shipping when checked on November 3, 2026. Compare the final delivered amount, rather than treating €299 and $299 as equal. For US players, Stratus combines a straightforward domestic purchase with the broader effects and creative tools described above.

Which should you buy?

Choose Stratus if you want your NAM pedal to grow with your playing: three A2-Lite blocks, rearrangeable effects, custom FX Builder 2.0 creations, marketplace plugins, looping, and 14 hands-free presets. For a mono pedalboard, that is a lot of creative range in one $299 pedal.

Choose StompStation CORE if A2-Full playback, dual-amp stereo operation, headphones, or USB audio are your priorities and its focused effects chain fits your setup.

Our choice for a compact pedal you can keep reinventing is Stratus. The amp tone is the foundation. What you build around it is where it becomes your sound.

Explore Stratus and its included effects, or hear what FX Builder 2.0 can create.

Sources

• Sonulab — StompStation CORE overview
• Sonulab — CORE user manual
• Sonulab — CORE price and checkout; shipping, customs, and tax terms
• TONE3000 — NAM A2 architecture and Full/Lite modes
• Chaos Audio — Stratus specifications and pricing
• Chaos Audio — three NAM blocks and FX Builder 2.0 on mobile
• Chaos Audio — FX Builder 2.0 and developer portal