" New IR Tech that sounds like an Amp " ...... what's the thinking on this ?

[dean701]

Which specific one is that?

the york dynacab.

DynaCab Pack - York Audio 4x12 Recto

shop.fractalaudio.com

btw, I'm not saying that FAS doesn't record cabinets well. It's all a preference thing. I think that everyone uses their own methods, preamps, techniques. We all have different ears and guitars so sometimes a few vendors just work better for us than others.
I wish OH would have done a MIkko type product. Back in 2017, he had the world's attention as the foremost IR resource. If he had put a product out, it would have been a big deal for me

 

[dean701]

@dean701 - thanks for the graphs and visualizations! That's a good way to look at things impartially.

One point of feedback is that a single 57 on the speaker cap is extremely bright, so may not be the best point of comparison. I have found that the Tone Factor mixes can be a bit dark, although the 57's are more on the bright side.

I do think that overall, they are good IR's. I have a few of them, the AC30 with Greenbacks, a Marshall 4x12, and the Orange 4x12. The AC30 and Orange are really cool. There's some things they do very well. But I don't think they are necessarily a magic bullet.

Their marketing is stupid IMO. Way over the top hyperbole. I am guessing they decided to basically be cartoonish in the approach, although I do like how they did a detailed comparison video. But that's just marketing, I can look past that.

I personally don't think any brand is head and shoulders better than another. They have different sonic signatures, that's all. I like the tones of and respect the hell out of both Justin York and Kevin from Ownhammer. My two favorites overall. There's a lot of other good brands, and bad brands too.

I will say that ideally you wouldn't need IR's at all. I'd prefer cabs that you can move around and mix, so the modern approach like Dyna Cabs, the newer Helix, Neural, etc. I think that's easier to use.

I agree. Taking snapshots of EQ graphs isn't ideal. Especially since every mic location is going to change things. A 57 CE is going to be bright but sometimes those that know that could look at the graph and know right away how it was EQd. Others may not. Like I said, originally graphs were my way of combatting the fact that each pack could have 10000 IRs. It's not very manageable without a speaker GUI.
In this case I was just showing that TF's so called amp in the room is simply them leaving the lows and highs in the mix. It's certainly not magic. People get worked up about this topic. Some people hate large packs and want simple options. Others like options. Some people want 'mix ready' stuff, others want Amp where I'm at. I argue that there really is no 'mix ready' IR as everyone mixes are different and I even if I found something, I don't want all my songs to sound the same. I like it when a vendor pack has thousands of IRs with specific locations and distances defined. I still like Redwirez for that. Everything is clearly laid out.
Like I said above in a previous post, if Redwirez or OH would have made a speaker GUI for their files instead of drop clicking it would have been a big deal for me years ago. For redwirez, I like the location names as it give me guidance. Some other vendors just use, 57-1, 57-2... and it gives no context. Justin even explained that his numbering system is just random options.
I ended up buying the TF 4x12 GB and ORNG packs. They are good and both sound as they should. The GB has the GB thing going on and the ORNG is definitely an Orange and not overly homogenized.

the only argument I would make is that for those vendors that choose to do an inhouse speaker solution within their platform better do a good job. Line 6 got burnt the first time around and in all honesty I still think Boutique Tones, Solodallas, OH, ML, York, CABIR/Valhallir, Lancaster..all sound better to me and better suit my needs. I liked how Fractal included 3rd party IRs from the get go and thought it was a wise move. Of all the IRs I prefer, none are FAS created.

sidenote, and final annoying graph for now.
Justin may have success because he always seems to make sure there is enough 1k content in his IRs. There is almost always a bump at ~1k/1.2K. It's honestly why I prefer OH

 

[Whizzinby]

I’ve never messed with any vendor that does a mass file dump asking me to demo 1,700 IRs. York is awesome because if you trust his ears you just go straight to the Mix folder, and demo those 15-20. Once you find the 2-3 that catch your ear you move on with your life. Even with the awesome dynacabs I find it easier to just cycle through 10-15 of my IRs than to dick around with mics and their placement.

 

[laxu]

I’ve never messed with any vendor that does a mass file dump asking me to demo 1,700 IRs. York is awesome because if you trust his ears you just go straight to the Mix folder, and demo those 15-20. Once you find the 2-3 that catch your ear you move with your life. Even with the awesome dynacabs I find it easier to just cycle through 10-15 of my IRs than to dick around with mics and their placement.

For me movable mic systems are such a time saver. I don't have to deal with someone else's idea of a good mic setup but can just build my own. Takes me way less time to find something I like.

 

[Whizzinby]

For me movable mic systems are such a time saver. I don't have to deal with someone else's idea of a good mic setup but can just build my own. Takes me way less time to find something I like.

Yeah, I don’t disagree. I think it’s a must for any premium tier device at this point. (And even IR vendors themselves moving forward) That said, I don't mind a curated selection from a source I trust, and generally speaking once you do have a collection of IR’s you like, I think it renders most of it pointless anyways, as it will always be faster and easier to just load your “golden” IR’s rather than fool with any UI, unless you’re bored or it’s a unique speaker/cab combo.

 

[dean701]

For me movable mic systems are such a time saver. I don't have to deal with someone else's idea of a good mic setup but can just build my own. Takes me way less time to find something I like.

Me too, provided I like the way they sound/were recorded. As an example, MIKKO2 is great but it does have the ML sound. Which I do like at times. The Neural plugs are also good but have their own thing going on.

 

[MadMaxG79]

I’ve never messed with any vendor that does a mass file dump asking me to demo 1,700 IRs. York is awesome because if you trust his ears you just go straight to the Mix folder, and demo those 15-20. Once you find the 2-3 that catch your ear you move on with your life. Even with the awesome dynacabs I find it easier to just cycle through 10-15 of my IRs than to dick around with mics and their placement.

I 100% agree.

For me movable mic systems are such a time saver. I don't have to deal with someone else's idea of a good mic setup but can just build my own. Takes me way less time to find something I like.

I think it's just a matter of different work flows for different people. Personally, I have no interest in or knowledge of mic placement or mic choice, I just want the "best" possible sound in the shortest amount of time. York Audio IRs scratches that itch for me. I wouldn't really know where to start if I had to choose mic and placement myself.

 

[Sascha Franck]

I wouldn't really know where to start if I had to choose mic and placement myself.

Having done that stuff myself in the analog world already, I would have a sort of decent idea where to start. And yet, I have pretty much no interest in it anymore, either.
While I had a sort of honeymoon with the latest HX series cabs, I am pretty much exclusively back to using the mere handful of IRs that served me well for the last couple of years already. Occasionally, I take some time to look through whatever new things and I may come up with a new IR blend that I'll then be adding to my favourites. But that might happen once or twice a year.

 

[Polluxx]

I 100% agree.

I think it's just a matter of different work flows for different people. Personally, I have no interest in or knowledge of mic placement or mic choice, I just want the "best" possible sound in the shortest amount of time. York Audio IRs scratches that itch for me. I wouldn't really know where to start if I had to choose mic and placement myself.

Agree with York, i use mix 01 most (SM57/121) and my favorite IR is the MRSH 412 MV30 Dual

 

[laxu]

I 100% agree.

I think it's just a matter of different work flows for different people. Personally, I have no interest in or knowledge of mic placement or mic choice, I just want the "best" possible sound in the shortest amount of time. York Audio IRs scratches that itch for me. I wouldn't really know where to start if I had to choose mic and placement myself.

The thing is that you don't have to be confused about it because you can immediately hear what happens when you move the virtual mic around. That makes it really quick to find something that works for your preferences.

While I love York Audio's mixes, it's usually not easy to figure out which is the "best" one to use as the differences can be quite subtle at times, and there's not e.g a clear brighter and thinner -> darker and thicker lineage to them to help you choose.

With movable mics it's easier to maintain a reference point like "well I like how this sounds, but it could be a bit brighter" -> move the mic closer to the center of the cone.