Nothing ever sounds like what you hear

[Piing]

""FRFR"" is a lofty goal for a set of speakers set on your desk in your home office without putting thought to how your room and it's objects affect the sound bouncing off of everything before it meets back up with the direct signal at your ears, causing all kinds of phasing problems that I wasn't aware of until I learned about it from a teacher in a classroom. At that point room acoustics for me were kind of an obsession.

Your room, your speakers, and their setup are all important factors in achieving a near-flat response in your listening position

That is true (even though I have high quality reference studio monitors and an acoustically treated room) But if you are doing an A/B comparison between two recordings through the same monitors/amp/DAC at the same room, and you keep your head at the same distance from the monitors, the comparison is valid for noting differences. We are not talking about an ideal recording environment, but about comparing what you hear on the demo and your recording.

 

[Alex Kenivel]

That is true (even though I have high quality reference studio monitors and an acoustically treated room) But if you are doing an A/B comparison between two recordings through the same monitors/amp/DAC at the same room, and you keep your head at the same distance from the monitors, the comparison is valid for noting differences. We are not talking about an ideal recording environment, but about comparing what you hear on the demo and your recording.

I agree 100%

I'm speaking strictly in a sense of I hear vs you hear. I must have misinterpreted what I previously quoted from you

 

[York Audio]

So while there is a whole community out there sharing presets/patches whatever one calls it
every time I download a patch it never ever sounds even close to what I hear on the demo, so i end up creating a new ones myself using some elements of the patch till it sounds good to me

I’d say the two biggest factors come down to the players hands/playing technique and the guitar itself. All demos and presets are dialed in by the player using a specific guitar and twisting knobs to suit that guitar. Their guitar may be brighter or warmer than yours, the pickups may be hotter or cooler than yours, the pickup height may be higher or lower than yours, and the way they hit the strings may be more aggressive or softer than your touch.

I can dial in a great tone with one of my Les Pauls, but still have to tweak the preset if I reach for another Les Paul because they sound very different and have different pickups installed. Even being the same player with consistent playing technique, the guitar I’m using dictates how things are set in the preset.

All that to say, look at 3rd party presets as a general guide for a tone. Tweak the amp settings to better suit your personal playing technique and the guitar you’re using and you should be able to get great results. :)