Better Amp Sim Cabs

[Anderton]

I'm always looking for the Holy Grail of the ultimate amp sim sound. Most cab IRs are okay, but they have a sort of digital quality to them. 

 

So I started making custom "cabs" with EQ. I found the overall sound to be smoother and more "analog," for lack of a better term. However, they didn't have as "detailed" a sound as the digital versions. 

 

But I think I've found the next step in the evolution of getting a cab sound I really like. Studio One has an "IR Maker" plugin. It's designed for capturing sounds outside the computer, but you can also capture plugin sounds. What I've found is that EQ-based cabs need a LOT of stages. It typically takes me 12-15 stages of EQ to get the sound I want. Then, I use IR Maker to convert the sound into an IR.

 

Of course guitar sounds are subjective, but I have to say, these IRs sound pretty cool. For example, I created a new cab for the Vox amp in Studio One. Just for kicks, I tried it with the Vox emulation in the Line 6 Helix, which is known for good cabs. Frankly, I liked the EQ-based cab better with the Helix Essex 30 Vox emulation than their default 2x12 Silver Bell Line 6 cab. The default sounds more like the original, but the EQ cab has a smoother sound to my ears.

 

If any of you like to play with cab IRs, feel free to download the attached. It's 2048 samples at 48 kHz, so it's compatible with Helix and Helix Native, the User Cab in Studio One's Ampire, Waves' PRS Supermodels, and various other amps sims. See what you think...

[RABid]

2 hours ago, Anderton said:

What I've found is that EQ-based cabs need a LOT of stages. It typically takes me 12-15 stages of EQ to get the sound I want.

When you say "stages" are you talking about the change in cab response as volume changes? That has always been a weakness in cab sims that I have tried. They put a lot of focus on what happens to the sound of the tubes as you crank an amp, but seem to ignore that change in the speaker response as the energy rises.

[Anderton]

31 minutes ago, RABid said:

When you say "stages" are you talking about the change in cab response as volume changes?

 

Sorry, no. I'm talking about the number of parametric or highpass/lowpass stages needed to create a static frequency response. I don't know of sims that have "hooks" that let you inside the cab to make dynamic changes.

 

However, in a DAW, maybe you could use dynamic EQ to approximate those changes. Can you summarize the changes you hear in cab response as the volume changes? That would be super-helpful, even if it's totally subjective. Then I can see if it's possible to replicate those effects.

[Bill Heins]

From a different prespective I've really gotten into recording clean and using SSL Guitarstrip for drive, eq, etc. Drive, EQ, Compression all in one plugin, a lot of fun to play with!