NAD: BluGuitar Amp1 Iridium

[Baba]

Question, if I want to set a CC in HX for the 2nd master volume, (CC007), how do I control the LEVEL of that 2nd master volume?

 

[laxu]

Question, if I want to set a CC in HX for the 2nd master volume, (CC007), how do I control the LEVEL of that 2nd master volume?

With the value you send. MIDI channel 1, CC 7, value 0-127. Value 64 would be halfway. Not sure if 0 or 127 is "2nd master off", I assume zero.

If you are using footswitching to toggle it, then it would be best to set a toggle between 0 and your desired level.

If you want to tie it to snapshots, then you'd want snapshot #1 (rhythm sound) to send CC7 value 0, and snapshot #2 (lead sound) to send CC7 value 64 for example. This way it's automated just by switching snapshots.

 

[laxu]

Also, if you don't want to use MIDI, BluGuitar recommends using a "minus booster" as a 2nd master volume. My understanding is that this would be just a footswitchable potentiometer. Basically you set your lead volume with the main master, then use the pedal to toggle to a reduced rhythm level. Now you can control it with a pot.

Second master volume / solo volume without REMOTE1 or MIDI

Minus booster or volume pedal The 2ND MASTER VOLUME function of the AMP1, which can be called up using the REMOTE1 or MIDI, is suitable for a sound-neutral

support.bluguitar.com

 

[Baba]

With the value you send. MIDI channel 1, CC 7, value 0-127. Value 64 would be halfway. Not sure if 0 or 127 is "2nd master off", I assume zero.

If you are using footswitching to toggle it, then it would be best to set a toggle between 0 and your desired level.

If you want to tie it to snapshots, then you'd want snapshot #1 (rhythm sound) to send CC7 value 0, and snapshot #2 (lead sound) to send CC7 value 64 for example. This way it's automated just by switching snapshots.

Got it, thanks! Working like a charm.

I thought CC's were just on and off, I didn't know they were "variable".

Man, the more I dig into this thing, the more I realize it can do. It's ridiculous. Where a preset in my Stomp XL used to be at 8 blocks, for volume boosts, gain boosts and whatnot, because of how much is in the Amp 1, I'm only using like 5 blocks now for a preset.

 

[laxu]

Got it, thanks! Working like a charm.

I thought CC's were just on and off, I didn't know they were "variable".

Man, the more I dig into this thing, the more I realize it can do. It's ridiculous. Where a preset in my Stomp XL used to be at 8 blocks, for volume boosts, gain boosts and whatnot, because of how much is in the Amp 1, I'm only using like 5 blocks now for a preset.

Yeah I've pretty much dropped overdrives and boosts from my boards because I don't need them with either Amp 1. Either use the built-in one or none at all. The noise gate is a similar convenience.

If these things had a half-decent delay and a bit better reverb it might be all I need.

 

[timbuck3]

Well, you guys who love the blue amp just jump on board when the new x is out? Or will you give it some time like a few months after release at least to see how it pans out

 

[2dor]

Well, you guys who love the blue amp just jump on board when the new x is out? Or will you give it some time like a few months after release at least to see how it pans out

Good question for sure..

I'm really tempted to jump on it straight away given the fact that if I grab it from Thomann, I have a 30 day return window.

That said, I always prefer to see as many reviews as possible before a purchase.

 

[laxu]

Well, you guys who love the blue amp just jump on board when the new x is out? Or will you give it some time like a few months after release at least to see how it pans out

I'll have to see more of it in action first. I have zero doubts it will sound great for amps, cabs and fx. I trust Blug on that.

I have doubts it will be as user friendly as the Amp 1 range.

From what I've seen, the Amp X might have the worst of "pedals with presets" issues - that no knob ever points at the correct value after loading a preset, because they went with 0-10 knobs rather than infinite encoders and displays. Even for the "X controls" that do have displays and are therefore ideal for infinite encoders.

With the Amp 1, the only values you don't know are the ones behind MIDI/Remote1 control. Gain range (basically "max gain possible"), Powersoak (attenuation), and 2nd master. That's all "set and forget" stuff.

The other thing will be how they handle the EQ. It seems the Amp X might have traditional tone stack control. The Amp 1 range has a very unique setup where the EQ on the Mercury is like a post-EQ and the tone stack is fixed. It has tons of range and the 3 knobs don't interact with each other. The Iridium goes one step further where the Bass/Treble knobs seem to control both tone stack bass/treble and depth/presence in one knob. It works extremely well and has tons of range, and makes it quick to dial your sound for a different guitar or a different room.

Finally I don't know if I care too much about having the ME and IR sounds in one box that is about 1.5x the size of the Amp 1. That loses some of the portability factor and I don't mind too much that each Amp 1 has its own flavor and feel. It's not a "oh man I wish the ME had this channel of the IR" thing. Since the two amps feel quite different to play, it might be just jarring to switch them like that.

For effects, I already got top tier stuff, enough pedals to build setups for two different rigs.

It's still very likely I'll buy an Amp X anyway, even if it's just to try it.

 

[Count_Drugula]

Well, you guys who love the blue amp just jump on board when the new x is out? Or will you give it some time like a few months after release at least to see how it pans out

Not me, I’m perfectly happy with the ME for everything I need. I can’t imagine a better analog version of a portable amp.

 

[JYD]

I have the Iridium; just got it 3 weeks ago. I play Splawn's, Modded Marshall's, and Ground Zero Hellion V2. I had a fly gig last weekend and was not sure of the backline (ended up being Orange Rockerverb MKII).

I also bought the Aris Effects 51-Filthy 100w Class D amp and the Orange Dual Baby first; both of those are great at home. At band practice, both are cool, but the Aris was not able to keep up as well as expected at higher volumes, but it is a cool AF unit and hope Richard keeps expanding on this design.

The Dual Baby was going to be the winner, as Channel A is great, but lacks depth and Channel B is really awesome for hard rock/metal tones, but is a bit noisy. NOTE: I really needed to spend more time with both of these at band levels, but both units surprised me quite a bit.

Then I tried the Iridium at home, following Euege's tips on his YT channel, and that was the winner for me. It's lighter and smaller than the Orange, more flexible with way more features. I use the Classic Channel with gain on 5-7 for a rock/hard rock tone, then roll my volume down for cleans (cleans up really well), then boost that channel with a Wamper Tumnus or the Teemah! in my Pod Go which I ran 4cm.

The sound on stage through an open back Orange 2x12 was better than the Orange RVMKII and the sound out front on the PA (large room, 400 attendees) was pretty awesome. Had guitar nerds coming up to me asking how I got that tone.

I used to bring two tube heads to all my gigs: not any more. The Iridium fits in my gig back and I would easily use it as a my primary amp at gigs.

I need to spend more time with it.

 

[laxu]

Iridium Classic channel w/ side Tone knob around 7 vs Mesa Mark V 90 ch 3 MKIV mode @ 90W -> Bluetone 4x10 w/ 10" Greenbacks tested. I measured the volume as about 95 dB a few meters away so pretty loud.

I need to record this to properly compare tones, but the feel between the two is very similar. It's tight, responsive and articulate.

Having to do a bit of back and forth cable swapping to switch between the amps, it was a game of "That sounds amazing!" "No, that also sounds amazing!" If I had an amp switcher I could probably get them pretty close tonewise.

The Mesa is obviously way more granularly adjustable and capable of wider variety of tones out of each channel, but it's a huge chore if you need to change it a lot.

The Iridium to my ears has more saturation to its sound, which I like. It's much easier to work with since there's just less stuff you need to adjust to drastically alter the sound, and the only thing I needed to do was turn the Treble knob up a bit to bring in bite to the Greenbacks.

The Iridium seems to be able to handle more "thump" in the low end before it becomes a problem. I had to really push the GEQ 80 Hz slider to get to similar territories on the Mesa, and turn down the Bass knob to avoid flub.

 

[GTR37]

The Classic channel is definitely the highlight of the Iridium. It can be an extension of Vintage, or dialed to be its own thing.

I absolutely love how it sounds for high gain sounds with the side tone knob turned a little above halfway. It feels really good to play where it responds in a very right immediate way, without sounding dry.

I really enjoyed playing through this with my 8-string Skervesen, a guitar I've been struggling with a bit with the Mercury.

The Vintage channel is also really good, but it's more familiar territory for me as I think I could get the same sounds out of the Mercury Edition, just not as modern feel.

What would you say voicings are like on the Irdium
Is it kind of hi fi clean
Vintage like 2203
Classic like HBE
Modern 5150
Like that ballpark ?

 

[laxu]

What would you say voicings are like on the Irdium
Is it kind of hi fi clean
Vintage like 2203
Classic like HBE
Modern 5150
Like that ballpark ?

I think it's harder to pinpoint each channel to a specific thing on the Iridium than on the Mercury.

Both are more of a spectrum because there's a little Tone knob for Clean, Classic and Modern channels on the side. It's a set-and-forget knob that adjusts the voicing quite a bit.

Mercury Edition:

• Clean. Fender Tweed-ish to Blackface to brighter Silverface? I set Tone halfway and it sounds very similar to my Mark V 90 on ch1 Fat.
• Vintage. Marshall Superlead. The reason there's no Tone knob for this channel is because it's perfect the way it is according to Thomas Blug. I agree!
• Classic. Marshall Superlead to JCM800 to something more modern. I use Tone halfway.
• Modern. Soldano SLO to more modern ENGL-ish tones. Think of the left stop on the Tone knob as "thick, fat, smooth high gain leads" and the right stop as "bright and grinding more scooped tones". I think I have Tone halfway as well.

Iridium:

• Clean. Fender Blackface. Think of e.g Fender Twin here, with more or less bright tones depending on the Tone knob. It's definitely a more modern feeling clean than on the Mercury. Again Tone halfway for me.
• Vintage. Somewhere in the modern Marshall Superlead (e.g Friedman) and modded Marshall JCM800 territory. It doesn't have the Plexi looseness that the Mercury's Vintage channel has.
• Classic. Marshall JCM800 to tones reminiscent of boosted Rectos or Diezel. The left stop sounds very similar to the Vintage channel, maybe with a bit less mids. I like this channel with the Tone knob above halfway just to make it more different.
• Modern. It goes from a very mid-forward to more mid-scooped sound. I thought maybe this would do the Mesa Mark thing but I actually got more similar results from the Classic channel. I still haven't found my preference for this.

Here's a cool video with the Iridium compared to a bunch of high gain amps. I don't necessarily love Nils Finkeisen's tones when he switches to a Tele, but it's a neat showcase how much the Iridium can do when set up just right.

 

[laxu]

Here's a little comparison of the two BluGuitar amps vs Mesa Mark V. I didn't try to dial them to sound the same, just dialed how I liked it playing in the room.

• Guitar: Fenix LP Custom copy w/ Mastertone active pickups
• Looper: Digitech Trio+. I think this adds a lot of noise, might be poor power.
• Cab: Bluetone 4x10 w/ 10" Greenbacks
• Mics: Shure SM57 + Austrian Audio OC16. Close miced with each mic on a different speaker.
• Audio interface: Focusrite Scarlett 6i6 2nd gen
• BluGuitar Amp1 Iridium Classic Channel
• BluGuitar Amp1 Mercury Classic Channel
• Mesa Mark V 90 ch3 MkIV mode

Listening to them back to back...I'm clearly the kind of idiot why tries to dial the same thing out of any amp I own subconsciously.

I don't think my mic setup quite captures how it sounds in the room further away because all sounded punchier than I got on record. It definitely does not capture how these amps feel because the Mercury is a much more "old school", looser feel. The Iridium and Mesa feel very similar.

 

[laxu]

I was considering if I want to replace the Mesa with the Iridium. Zero maintenance, more compact, much less money...

But I think I'll keep the Mesa for now. I like how it can do most of what the two Amp 1 units do, with more adjustable feel via the power scaling, tube rectifier, pentode/triode etc. It's much more tricky to dial in to my liking, and it's got its own share of quirks. I have grown to like the Celestion C90 speaker in the combo. Together with the Bluetone 4x10 it sounds great.

I'll recommend both BluGuitars any day though. They have more of that good Marshall sizzle that I miss especially for lower gain overdrive on the Mesa. The Iridium is especially just super easy to work with. The Mercury is a bit more temperamental with its big bright caps.

I think the Iridium has a bit of a boosted-Recto-meets-Diezel thing going on the Classic channel that has a lot of thump to the lows, but still feels tight. I can't get that out of the Mesa without pushing those GEQ sliders really hard.

 

[timbuck3]

Knowing how Thomas seems to be just by his videos and release times I think it might be better to not just buy the first version of the blue amp x ?… odds are after it’s out six months or so maybe even like less than a year knowing him with his OCD he’ll say oh I should’ve done this. I could’ve put this here. Oh, I should’ve designed this there and he’ll probably release another version because it will probably bother him if he doesn’t.

 

[GuitarBilly74]

Knowing how Thomas seems to be just by his videos and release times I think it might be better to not just buy the first version of the blue amp x ?… odds are after it’s out six months or so maybe even like less than a year knowing him with his OCD he’ll say oh I should’ve done this. I could’ve put this here. Oh, I should’ve designed this there and he’ll probably release another version because it will probably bother him if he doesn’t.

I don't think that's the case. His current amps didn't go through multiple hardware revisions.
I'm sure there will be firmware updates to the Amp X but those can be downloaded and installed.

At the end of the day, Thomas's approach of not releasing it until he feels everything is perfect is the correct way to do it

His mistake was announcing it way before it was close to completion. He should have kept it under wraps until it was ready. Other than that, I have no issues with his perfectionism.

 

[timbuck3]

I don't think that's the case. His current amps didn't go through multiple hardware revisions.
I'm sure there will be firmware updates to the Amp X but those can be downloaded and installed.

At the end of the day, Thomas's approach of not releasing it until he feels everything is perfect is the correct way to do it

His mistake was announcing it way before it was close to completion. He should have kept it under wraps until it was ready. Other than that, I have no issues with his perfectionism.

True but this is a whole Nother animal. There’s a lot more involved in this unit. It’s basically meshing the two previous units together plus putting a lot of amps and effects that aren’t in those two units so I think it’s it’s a new for a for him into this and I hope it’s successful and I hope it releases soon And I hope he makes money on it but for some reason if he doesn’t make money on it he probably doesn’t care

 

[2dor]

True but this is a whole Nother animal. There’s a lot more involved in this unit. It’s basically meshing the two previous units together plus putting a lot of amps and effects that aren’t in those two units so I think it’s it’s a new for a for him into this and I hope it’s successful and I hope it releases soon And I hope he makes money on it but for some reason if he doesn’t make money on it he probably doesn’t care

I think that it's true; he's hellbent on making the unit sound the part - everything else seems to be 2nd to Thomas... which is probably the main reason I'll very likely grab one.

 

[timbuck3]

It’s on my radar but I won’t buying it at release. I will see in a year where it is.