Guitar Rig 6 can be used in PRO mode for free with everything unlocked for 30 minutes at a time. Go to File (top left, the three dots to the right of where it says Guitar Rig 6) then click Preferences, then click Library. Where it says "Demo Pro Library" click Activate Demo Mode. You now have the full program unlocked with all of the effects. Sorry if someone else already shared this. Being able to unlock the full PRO mode and try out all of the amplifiers was awesome! The TWANG REVERB amp is what sold me on this plugin. With just a couple tweaks, it sounds just like my vintage Fender blackface with holy grail RCA 6L6 tubes. Without turning on the demo mode, I never would have known. Give it a try, lots of great tones available!
BTW, is it just me or did you face cpu-overload issues with it? I am talking about the meters going 'red' often and the amp sound shutting off. This is sometimes accompanied by clicks and pops too. I have a pretty powerful laptop at my disposal and this was a little discouraging for me. I hope it's just something up with the demo version?
@@Ashufrost Does it have this issue with every amp preset, or just some? Let me know and I'll test them out on my end, and let you know if they are doing the same thing. I haven't experience that yet. Here's my cpu specs: Gigabyte z390 Designare motherboard, i7-8700k processor, 32 GB RAM, SSD storage. Audio Interface: Universal Audio Apollo Solo (lightingbolt 3 version). DAW: Ableton Live Suite.
@@matthewroach4729 Thanks Matt. I think it was an issue with only the ones with heavy effects. I'll check and let you know. Been a while! Sidenote: has it been working smoothly for you on ALL presets? What sample rate and buffer size do you play on?
@@Ashufrost To go against what I said previous I'm thinking I do remember some clipping issues with some of the heavier preset effects. I can't remember exactly how I fixed it, but I can tell you what my current settings are and maybe that will fix it for you. In preferences: audio inputs: I only have the left input channel from my Aud Interface selected, the right channel is set to "not connected". My sample rate is 192000. Now get out of settings and check the Input and Output volume at the top of the main Guitar Rig screen. I have my input volume set to `0`, and output set at `0`. However I do turn down the output volume by -10 to -20 db when using Guitar Rig in Ableton because it comes in way to hot, and sometimes redline clips badly. But, I just turn down the Guitar Rig output volume and it is fine. I can also turn down the Ableton input volume in the DAW for that specific track. Both work. Let me know if that helps!
Great video. I’m very old school when it comes to recording guitars. I have several great amps, both tube and solid state. The other day I was producing a song here in Nashville for a gospel artist. I could not find a tone I liked for the solo. So, I plugged straight in and went into ampire. Took me about 2/minutes to find a tone that worked. First time I had ever even opened it up. So, now I’m headed down into the rabbit hole.
Thanks brother I really needed that I'm a 35-year-accomplished musician and I've never ever recorded through digital recording I've always had an engineer doing it for me and now I'm on my own so I appreciate everything you're doing man I really needed this one thank you very much
Many thanks Mike. One thing worth highlighting on the Amped Roots amp is the inclusion of the free pedalboard that includes, Noise Gate, Drive, Delay and Reverb all within the plugin. ML Sound Lab the maker of Amped Roots also do another free Amp Sim called Amped Stevie T which is also excellent. Cheers Jeremy
Nalex. His stuff is highly under-rated and pretty good sounding. In isolation, it's a toss up between Nalex and Roots, but within the mix, I usually prefer the stuff from Nalex.
Unless you turn it off, Blue Cat amp does have speaker simulation and can load impulses as well. See that blue wave at the bottom right? That's where you control it. One of the big downsides of Amplitude which IK doesn't fix is the fact that the reverb on their amps is too excessive. Any setting past 4-5 is too much reverb already. Version 5 is also slower on more modest hardware as well. You do get Ampire with Studio One Prime and Artist too, but not the full version.
Just so you know, in the Blue Cat freeamp you can load impulse responses directly. Access this feature by clicking the squiggly blue line in the bottom right hand corner of the plugin! Cheers from Memphis!
Same here. After using CW TH3 and Amplitube for long time, I grabbed the TH-U and usually try both products when I search for a certain tone. So many options to dive into and get lost :-).
TH-U is fantastic. Superb quality sounds and response, the rig player especially. Nice UI and somehow they managed to keep the memory/cpu load really low. While there are amazing single amp plugins out there, TH-U is by far my fave "full rig" one.
Downloaded the new IR supercabinet for it the other day. Looks like it could have even more fun options but I haven't had time to play yet. Maybe something Mike could review 🙂
Very cool Mike. Thanks for sharing so much with us out here, you have really made my transition from straight MIDI with rack mount synths to the digital/virtual world so easy and much more fun.
Mike, Your knowledge is vast and communication skills are enviable. I tried your recommended method of extracting proper stereo with Studio One 5 from an Amplitube 5 config utilizing two amp patches running in parallel. as you demonstrated. I especially like pairing a clean amp with an overdriven one. However, I found the result to be what sounds like the same mono blend of the two amps in the left and right channels - certainly better sounding and more possibilities that using just the mono, but the result I found most pleasing (to me) was to create one mono channel with one of the amps muted, and then create another mono channel after switching to muting the other amp instead, thus creating stereo with a clean amp on one side with the overdriven on the other. What do you think?
I've downloaded and installed Amplitube 5. I received the version 3 some years ago with BIAB, but I couldn't know by then what it was for. Thank you for you lessons, and especially for this one. I worked guitar sound for two of my songs with Cakewalk TH3, it was a huge difference to use eq and compressor only. Next step, I will remix other of my songs with Amplitube 5. Thanks a lot, Mike
As a Studio One user, Ampire is incredible! I may need to give Amplitube a go. Of course, I usually double track my guitar parts with different signal paths. One using my live rig and the other going directly into my interface. That's where the plugins come into play.
Indeed you have got the right mindset in my extremely humble honest opinion Brett, it shouldn't come down to one or the other but rather utilizing/exploiting both or any/all options we have available to us in order to maximize one's options. Personally, I've also never been at all concerned with how accurate/faithful something that claims to model something from the hardware world is just so long as it is able to provide quality sounding results that fit well into a mix, that is the one and the only test that has and will matter to me dude. I have gotten fine results from Ampire that have sat along/stacked or layered up just great with my "real" all analogue multi-mic'd hardware setups and one of the more pricey digital hardware devices that I like and use often, namely a Fractal AXE-FX III and Kemper's Profiling Amplifier rack version. Not any of the setups sound better than the other, it is all about how each is dialled in and then treated in order to fit into a modern heavy mix in my case most of the time engineering for bands or my own work. Always keep that same open mindset, use your ears and you'll not go wrong. All the best your way Brett, nice one/cheers man. Dean
An admirable list, but I think you missed some: NaLex Amplex and Crunchman, Lost in the 70's Tone Deluxe and Modern Deluxe, Nembrini Audio's Crunck, Audiority L12X. Ignite Amps TPA-1 is a great plug in for make meh amps great. Most amp sims should be seen as a pre-amp or a pedal, they need to go through a power amp and Impulse loader/cab sim, in my option anyways. Nice work Mike.
But the funkiest clean sound you can get is still a guitar straight into an DI into your DAW (obviously it needs some eq, but not so obviously an amp or even a cab). In the Free Amp demo the clean sound was imho nice already without the cab sim.
Well done Mike,as usual,another GREAT video,and very Informative as well. My personal favorite SIM has got to be AMPLITUBE 5 ...(as you said...a NO-BRAINER!!!) LOL LOL.. Thanks again so much for all you do for the CAKEWALK & Studio One communities of all of us wanna be Producers!!! (LOL) ... Hey,even the best ones had to start out learning at one time right huh??? Its definetly a learning curve,but i would suggest that anyone go SLOW.....I'ts so easy to get Info OVERLOAD these days !!!! Anytime i can, i ALWAYS promote YOU AND YOUR CHANNEL to people...simply because of the ease at which you supply info,and your style of teaching it. Works perfect for me man(and many others as well). Well,enuff brown nosing..(LOL)..Hope ya have a GREAT 2021 Mike,(and ALL OF YOUR SUBSCRIBERS AS WELL)....It seems to be off to a decent start so far!!!! God Bless to All....Make More Music...Get Creative....Then add your sauce...CREATIVE SAUCE that is!!!!!!!! PEACE...... OH YEAH... almost forgot... When YOU record guitar tracks,do you prefer to record them "DRY" or "WET" ??? It seems to me that there are no set rules persay...but more of a matter of personal preference. Just asking because adding fx's individually AFTER recording your track can get a little "time consuming" .... But it all boils down to what REALLY sounds BEST in the mix for ones style and taste !!!!
Thank you so much for this! I am currently using Pod Farm, and I am tired of all the crashing despite doing everything from the forums. Downloading the Amplitude as we speak!
Excellent video as usual, Mike! Always informative and a pleasure to watch and understand. Still just a beginner but your videos have helped me all along the way! Best to you for 2021! Cheers
Your videos are always great, and this one was extra useful for me right now. Thank you so much for consistently making such awesome content, my dude! You rock! :)
There are some quality freeware options that cover guitar and bass amplification, I can't and would never disagree on any of the options mentioned but rather encourage people to try out all options and then just as with the hardware "real" counterparts if applicable, mix and match away, try all combinations as the boost/drive pedal(s) from one developer may work for you with the preamp of a different developer. A few devs that didn't make the top 5 but you'll find offer some quality pedals and preamps and other tools that can be utilized for nailing quality electric guitar and bass sounds, Voxengo's Boogex V3 is excellent for aping a valve power amp section if placed between your preamp and IR loader plugins of choice bypassing or using the built-in DI impulse and not much in the way of gain, the dynamic response is key really and must be dialled in on a case by case basis, it's a great all-in-one simple solution too & the free Tube Amp can also be very useful on DI'd signals used a little or a lot, Mercuriall the amp models are quality but freewise the boost/overdrive/distortion pedal models available for free are where you'll want to look, TSE (The Serina Experiment) ENGL & Peavey aping amps with a nice Ibanez TS-808/Maxon OD-808 overdrive pedal plus a very handy Tech 21 SansAmp BassDriver is also available gratis, AXP/AXP-Softamp/SoftDrive plugs the AXP CharBooster & 3OD are both ace as a boost options when placed before any preamp, the SoftDrive GV does a good job at Marshall's original Guvner & still available 2nd, more compact version covering overdrive crunch to classic JCM800-esque distortion & I can't forget to mention AXP's Softamp PSA which apes the extended, rack version of Tech 21's SansAmp PSA-1, it is at home on both electric guitar and bass signals plus there's also one that covers the SansAmp original or now "Classic" device amongst a few others, Nick Crow Lab along with the already mentioned, excellent ML Sound Lab AMPED Roots is another option to raid for a few quality Peavey 5150/6505 based high-gain preamps if you like your 5150, 5150+/6505, 6505+, LePou/Poulin a slew of decent modern high-gain preamps available covering Mesa's Dual-Rectifier, ENGL's Powerball IRC, A Bonger Extasy or Ubershall and a model not based on any existing high-gain beast but more than capable of delivering the type of sounds in a mix which can be had from modern high-gain amp heads. There are still plenty of others that are well worth your time to hunt down and try, remember to mix and match, try out any combination in order to find sounds you like and will use. As for the mic'd speaker cabinet options well there are so many variations of cabinet model, loudspeaker model and microphone model captured in impulse response format it's obscene! Personally I almost always end up using numerous impulse responses of a cab and speaker model with different microphones and their positions being key along with the relationship they have phase wise, so I use impulse loaders with more than one or two slots if I'm not using an impulse response that I have created from multiple others mixed together then rendered therefore will fit into any impulse loader for real-time convoling, which is exactly the same as I almost always end up using in a mix when micing up any cabinet or the speaker on a combo, It'll mostly be the usual suspects (Dynamic mics - SM7b, SM57, at least 2 used in the Fredman setup, RE-20, RE-320, MD441, MD421 at least 2 used the same as the SM57s, e609, Halo, i5, D6, TGI 51, TG D70, M201 TG, Beta 52, D112, AE2500 which has both a dynamic and a condenser mic perfectly phase/time aligned which are split into their own inputs, it's by Audio-Technica, designed for kick drums but that "dual-element" design works great on bass cabs and combos + I've had some great results with the dynamic capsule when capturing extremely down-tuned/baritone & extended-range electric guitar rigs that despite being very high-gain, the sound needs to be tight, punchy with loads of clarity and not a total muddy, woofy and fizzy mess which is easy to capture if one isn't careful, even more so when such is made up of multiple layers for a truly monsterous, crushingly heavy sound. Ribbon mics R121, M160, Sigma, Sigma II, Delta, Delta II, RNR1, VR1, VR2, X1 R, as anyone can probably tell my ribbon mic collection is mostly made up by the modern, active Ribbon designs/variety, the few older models I use those a number of those little in-lin FET preamp boosters such as Cloudlifter Mic Activators and sE Electronics DM1 Dynamite and the same thing which I do with some of my dynamic microphones also as those inexpensive devices really can and do make life easier for both mics which aren't very sensitive therefore need loads of clean gain but deliver just the type of results I am after and many mic preamps as they don't require the gain to be getting close to maxed out in order to achieve the desired results, the other utilities I have to mention which are extremely useful for deploying when using multiple microphones on any source are the Little Lab IBP devices and Radial Engineerings' dragster variable impedance/load correction superb little things both for obvious reasons. Condensers U47 FET version, U87, C12, C412, C414 pretty much cover the large diaphragms I use with cabs/combos, KM184, 4001, 4006, M5 MP, DM-1S, DM-1T, STC-10, STC-1S make up pretty much anything small-diaphragm wise condenser wise that I use with guitar and bass cabs/combos), I often will throw up or throw down a couple of PZM/boundary layer models also which can come in very handy and they'll already be pretty much ready to go since they will have been used already as part of the numerous microphones used to capture a multi-mic'd drumkit earlier, at the very start of a tracking session. Obviously, YYMV and whatever sounds right/gives you the resulting sounds you want then it is right, don't let anyone attempt to try and tell you differently either because it ain't their guitar sound. Sorry that was quite a long comment, I didn't intend for it to be as long as it has ended up, the video is quality with advice most importantly no one can eff with! All the very best to all, cheers! \m/ Dean \m/
Nalex and Poulin amps are killer! Check those out. They're also free. Also, Audiority makes some nice Marshall amp sims for free. My favorite free amp of them all is the Poulin SoloC (a Soldano amp sim). It's awesome!
I’ve tried lots of sims to get a good practice amp sound and also one that could be used in public, via a powered speaker, from a tablet. I’d almost given up with these and then I found ‘lostin70s’ - and tried ToneDeluxe and it turned out to be excellent. I’ve also tried the ModernDeluxe - which includes 6 pedals - and I’m thinking of making this my main amp - especially after playing with the available cabinets and finding the UK 25W which gives me a great sound!
REAPER's mixer tracks are channel-agnostic by default so dropping an amp sim with stereo outputs onto a track with a mono guitar part is no problem. No need to set up buses or other shenanigans.
Hi Mike Really useful I found back my guitar Rig but will try your number one too :-) I still struggle to find a good crunchy sound to play blues. Any advice on that ?-)
Great review Mike and some useful tips too! As I got the full version of Amplitude 4 in the Total Studio package I'll be using that for any amp sims but agree that the free version has lots to offer and would be my top choice too!
It is worth visiting IK Multimedia (the company that makes AmpliTube) website once per about 2 weeks because they give away some of their stuff for free. I got Amplitube Metal Collection, Mesa Boogie Triple Rectifier amp, Soldano SLO 100 amp for absolutely free.
I can't believe that you preferred the Blue Cat Audio to the NaLex stuff or the HASR free pack V2.0. In my opinion the NaLex amp sims and the ones in the HASR made by Vadim Taranov are way better than the Blue Cats Audio. Also the Nembrini Crank is much better. If you hadn't already, try them. Cheers from Spain.
Thanks for all these tips. I'm new to the plugin world, but this week I tried ML Sound Lab's sim and cab sim amps (first StevieT, then Roots, then Flagship) and loved it (StevieT's Calalaean amp has a magical sound for clean sound, you should take a look) So I tried the Emissary with Nadir and it fit my taste perfectly (those low-mid and high-mid adjustment knobs are its strong point) I will check every of your tips here and other videos in your channel =)
Hi Mike. Every video is a lesson. Super tips on this one! When it's possible, post some ideas on Cakewalk Audiosnap with piano lead and vocals (on a choral). I'd used your tips of CWalk Audiosnap over guitar/drums and was really useful. Thanks for all your time and dedication.
Hey man thank you for your very nice videos.. starting to follow your channel.. hoping you will.explain also where to find and how to use melodyne in cakewalk..
Hi, there, Mike. Do you, or anyone here, had a problem with the STL licenses? When you download the free version, it's $0.00 but I just got the license window asking to activate and it says I don't have any activated licenses. Does anyone know what to do?
The demos recorded with the neck pickup definitely did not suit the high gain ones. Roots is my favorite and I use it everyday for multiple things, in the end it is a 5150 III EL34 and sounds quite close to the real deal. Also something I would always mention to get amp sims to really sound good, is adding an EQ after them and put a low cut at around 150 - 200Hz, you definitely don't want digital flabbiness that makes them sound flubby and boxy and just horrible. Also cut out the high end with a hi cut, everything after 10kHz you don't need. It improves any amp sim by 1000 and also helps them to sit better in the mix. You can tweak a few of the mid frequencies to really tune the sound to perfection.
Are you using some kind of double-tracker or widener? When you demonstrated Guitar Rig 6, the sound was excellent and room-filling. I love the widening effect - or double tracking effect - partially because I'm a huge Boston fan. 😎👍
Really nice and I may be adding to my arsenal soon! Question for you... In your opinion, how much of these amp and cabinet sims are manipulations of EQ and reverb/echo (maybe chorus or flanger as well) over the stock amp plug-ins to achieve the different sounds? To put this another way...achieving the same result (albeit more tedious) as plug-ins like these but using the stock amp sim in your DAW, manipulating those amp settings, adding a PEQ that you sculpt the sound with, and reverb/echo/delay. I ask because there are only so many parameters in audio that can be manipulated, and it seems like these are presets with pretty graphical controls. Thanks and really appreciate the demo of the amp and cab sims!
Hello sir, I am starting new here and I am finding the 'pick and choose' aomewhat complicated. I want to record my guitar solo on top of a backing track. I usually prefer solo tones which carry a lot of thickness, like Guns N Roses. Can you please help me with a plugin/processor software which is free to use. I am using Waveform Free as my DAW. The processor is the missing piece here.
it would've been nice to include a list of what DAWs actually support the plugins listed. I just spent like an hour downloading all the stuff you need for Ignite Emissary, but I use FL and apparently its not supported. So I just wasted all that time and effort
Thank you, Mike, for this excellent video! One thing I didn't quite understand: for amp sims 5 to 2 in your countdown, when you doubled the guitar performance and panned one track hard left and the other hard right, was the amp sim AND cabinet applied to EACH of the two guitar tracks or just applied once on a stereo bus track as you did in the final Amplitube setup? Thanks so much. :-)
The truth is: It's simply NOT important what you use as an amp-sim. If you know how to mix it down, almost everything will sound good enough. As for Amplitube. Yes, seems they improved much in terms of feeling while you actually play your guitar. The "vintage closed" - IR is phenomenal.
Wow I didn't know there was a free version of Amplitube 5. Is it an easy update from Amplitube 4 or should I download it and install it from scratch? Thank you for the video. It was quite a discovery.
Thanks again, Mike! Amplitude looks like a no-brainer for me because I really like THX in Cakewalk and they seem similar. But, to my knowledge, you cant use THX in Studio One?
:IF" you buy it. The "free" version only has 3 basic amp sims available. Honestly, I think its easier for me to mic my Marshall and record direct rather then waste 30 minutes downloading this particular sim..
Nice info! I've been playing around w/NadIR for a while now myself in front of various amp sims to help tune in better sound since I tend to record DI. Btw, have you tried Boogex by Voxengo? I've played around a little with it and I think it might be pretty good if I can figure out all the features as it has many options.
Hey Mike, hope you are doing well. I was wondering if it's possible to split a stereo track into two mono tracks. It would be great if you could answer this.
Hey, Mike! Very nice video. I was wondering if you can make a video with some free or even low buget guitar vst (rock and clasic). I would love one like this! :D
Hey, I don't know if this was just an issue with editing or not. But when you were demoing the Amped Roots you had the Cab switch to On but you were switching through IRs. Wouldn't this mean you were sending the amp sound through it's own speaker then into another IR?
I just loaded Amplitube. I agree, it was not easy at all, and, after 30 minutes of screwing around, I find that only 3 are useable, the rest are all locked, so, whats the point. I am not sure if it's worth keeping or not. It's almost easier for me to set up the drum patterns on my BOSs drum machine, import (or record) that into Cakewalk, then mic my Marshall amp direct and record that way.
I've been using Amplitube for years on my Windows PC. I originally had Amplitube 3 w/Windows 7 and now have Amplitube 4 w/Windows 10. Plan on updating soon to Amplitube 5. I only use the free version, but you can purchase other things through their Custom Shop
You're missing the Coolness and Irony of the name of "Nadir", you're pronouncing it "NAD-I.R.", but if you just say "Nadir", then the definition of Nadir is - "The nadir is the direction pointing directly below a particular location; that is, it is one of two vertical directions at a specified location, orthogonal to a horizontal flat surface. The direction opposite of the nadir is the zenith." LIKE MIC PLACEMENT
Guitar Rig 6 can be used in PRO mode for free with everything unlocked for 30 minutes at a time. Go to File (top left, the three dots to the right of where it says Guitar Rig 6) then click Preferences, then click Library. Where it says "Demo Pro Library" click Activate Demo Mode. You now have the full program unlocked with all of the effects. Sorry if someone else already shared this. Being able to unlock the full PRO mode and try out all of the amplifiers was awesome! The TWANG REVERB amp is what sold me on this plugin. With just a couple tweaks, it sounds just like my vintage Fender blackface with holy grail RCA 6L6 tubes. Without turning on the demo mode, I never would have known. Give it a try, lots of great tones available!
BTW, is it just me or did you face cpu-overload issues with it? I am talking about the meters going 'red' often and the amp sound shutting off. This is sometimes accompanied by clicks and pops too. I have a pretty powerful laptop at my disposal and this was a little discouraging for me. I hope it's just something up with the demo version?
@@Ashufrost Does it have this issue with every amp preset, or just some? Let me know and I'll test them out on my end, and let you know if they are doing the same thing. I haven't experience that yet. Here's my cpu specs: Gigabyte z390 Designare motherboard, i7-8700k processor, 32 GB RAM, SSD storage. Audio Interface: Universal Audio Apollo Solo (lightingbolt 3 version). DAW: Ableton Live Suite.
@@matthewroach4729 Thanks Matt. I think it was an issue with only the ones with heavy effects. I'll check and let you know. Been a while!
Sidenote: has it been working smoothly for you on ALL presets? What sample rate and buffer size do you play on?
@@Ashufrost To go against what I said previous I'm thinking I do remember some clipping issues with some of the heavier preset effects. I can't remember exactly how I fixed it, but I can tell you what my current settings are and maybe that will fix it for you. In preferences: audio inputs: I only have the left input channel from my Aud Interface selected, the right channel is set to "not connected". My sample rate is 192000. Now get out of settings and check the Input and Output volume at the top of the main Guitar Rig screen. I have my input volume set to `0`, and output set at `0`. However I do turn down the output volume by -10 to -20 db when using Guitar Rig in Ableton because it comes in way to hot, and sometimes redline clips badly. But, I just turn down the Guitar Rig output volume and it is fine. I can also turn down the Ableton input volume in the DAW for that specific track. Both work. Let me know if that helps!
Great video. I’m very old school when it comes to recording guitars. I have several great amps, both tube and solid state. The other day I was producing a song here in Nashville for a gospel artist. I could not find a tone I liked for the solo. So, I plugged straight in and went into ampire. Took me about 2/minutes to find a tone that worked. First time I had ever even opened it up. So, now I’m headed down into the rabbit hole.
Why was this Exactly What I Needed Thank you soo Much Mike!!
Awesome! Thanks for watching :)
Thanks brother I really needed that I'm a 35-year-accomplished musician and I've never ever recorded through digital recording I've always had an engineer doing it for me and now I'm on my own so I appreciate everything you're doing man I really needed this one thank you very much
I work a lot with the blue Cat VST. But the idea of working with the cabinet vst you mentionned is worth a try. Hours of pleasure.
:) Have fun!
Blue Cat Free Amp does have an IR loader too. I've always quite liked Voxengo's amp plug in as well.
Wow thank you so much. Recording guitar couple years at home. The I impulse cab plug in is a gold mine. Its the closest to a kemper for free cheers
Many thanks Mike. One thing worth highlighting on the Amped Roots amp is the inclusion of the free pedalboard that includes, Noise Gate, Drive, Delay and Reverb all within the plugin. ML Sound Lab the maker of Amped Roots also do another free Amp Sim called Amped Stevie T which is also excellent. Cheers Jeremy
Nice tips, thank you!
Stevie Ts sim isn't a VST and is only standalone.
@@aiden_macleod Not true. It's a vst plugin too.
There’s only 1 amp in the collection which is free
Thank you for these videos they have been SO incredibly helpful, I would love to here a FREE LIVE BASS AMP SIM PLUGIN.
Nalex. His stuff is highly under-rated and pretty good sounding. In isolation, it's a toss up between Nalex and Roots, but within the mix, I usually prefer the stuff from Nalex.
Unless you turn it off, Blue Cat amp does have speaker simulation and can load impulses as well. See that blue wave at the bottom right? That's where you control it.
One of the big downsides of Amplitude which IK doesn't fix is the fact that the reverb on their amps is too excessive. Any setting past 4-5 is too much reverb already. Version 5 is also slower on more modest hardware as well.
You do get Ampire with Studio One Prime and Artist too, but not the full version.
Oh my Bruno, after all the years I didn't notice that on blue cat!!! Thanks for letting us know!
Just so you know, in the Blue Cat freeamp you can load impulse responses directly. Access this feature by clicking the squiggly blue line in the bottom right hand corner of the plugin! Cheers from Memphis!
Nice selection and another great useful video. I settled on TH-U after using TH3 in cakewalk, I like how simple it is but with so many options.
Its true Rob, it's pretty darn good :)
Same here. After using CW TH3 and Amplitube for long time, I grabbed the TH-U and usually try both products when I search for a certain tone. So many options to dive into and get lost :-).
TH-U is fantastic. Superb quality sounds and response, the rig player especially. Nice UI and somehow they managed to keep the memory/cpu load really low. While there are amazing single amp plugins out there, TH-U is by far my fave "full rig" one.
Downloaded the new IR supercabinet for it the other day. Looks like it could have even more fun options but I haven't had time to play yet. Maybe something Mike could review 🙂
Very cool Mike. Thanks for sharing so much with us out here, you have really made my transition from straight MIDI with rack mount synths to the digital/virtual world so easy and much more fun.
Mike, Your knowledge is vast and communication skills are enviable. I tried your recommended method of extracting proper stereo with Studio One 5 from an Amplitube 5 config utilizing two amp patches running in parallel. as you demonstrated. I especially like pairing a clean amp with an overdriven one. However, I found the result to be what sounds like the same mono blend of the two amps in the left and right channels - certainly better sounding and more possibilities that using just the mono, but the result I found most pleasing (to me) was to create one mono channel with one of the amps muted, and then create another mono channel after switching to muting the other amp instead, thus creating stereo with a clean amp on one side with the overdriven on the other. What do you think?
I've downloaded and installed Amplitube 5. I received the version 3 some years ago with BIAB, but I couldn't know by then what it was for. Thank you for you lessons, and especially for this one. I worked guitar sound for two of my songs with Cakewalk TH3, it was a huge difference to use eq and compressor only. Next step, I will remix other of my songs with Amplitube 5. Thanks a lot, Mike
it's just for fun, but its hard to use it for free lol
As a Studio One user, Ampire is incredible! I may need to give Amplitube a go. Of course, I usually double track my guitar parts with different signal paths. One using my live rig and the other going directly into my interface. That's where the plugins come into play.
Indeed you have got the right mindset in my extremely humble honest opinion Brett, it shouldn't come down to one or the other but rather utilizing/exploiting both or any/all options we have available to us in order to maximize one's options.
Personally, I've also never been at all concerned with how accurate/faithful something that claims to model something from the hardware world is just so long as it is able to provide quality sounding results that fit well into a mix, that is the one and the only test that has and will matter to me dude.
I have gotten fine results from Ampire that have sat along/stacked or layered up just great with my "real" all analogue multi-mic'd hardware setups and one of the more pricey digital hardware devices that I like and use often, namely a Fractal AXE-FX III and Kemper's Profiling Amplifier rack version.
Not any of the setups sound better than the other, it is all about how each is dialled in and then treated in order to fit into a modern heavy mix in my case most of the time engineering for bands or my own work.
Always keep that same open mindset, use your ears and you'll not go wrong.
All the best your way Brett, nice one/cheers man.
Dean
An admirable list, but I think you missed some: NaLex Amplex and Crunchman, Lost in the 70's Tone Deluxe and Modern Deluxe, Nembrini Audio's Crunck, Audiority L12X. Ignite Amps TPA-1 is a great plug in for make meh amps great. Most amp sims should be seen as a pre-amp or a pedal, they need to go through a power amp and Impulse loader/cab sim, in my option anyways. Nice work Mike.
But the funkiest clean sound you can get is still a guitar straight into an DI into your DAW (obviously it needs some eq, but not so obviously an amp or even a cab). In the Free Amp demo the clean sound was imho nice already without the cab sim.
Yeah, I can see which you'd like it.
@@CreativeSauce It was the Blue Cat Audio Free Amp. 🙂
Thanks for another useful video!
My absolute pleasure! Thanks for watching:)
Very cool, man! I use the THX in Cakewalk but this will expand my sound!
Yeah, just the variation is great :) Thanks for watching!
Same i really needed to upgrade
Well done Mike,as usual,another GREAT video,and very Informative as well. My personal favorite SIM has got to be AMPLITUBE 5 ...(as you said...a NO-BRAINER!!!) LOL LOL.. Thanks again so much for all you do for the CAKEWALK & Studio One communities of all of us wanna be Producers!!! (LOL) ... Hey,even the best ones had to start out learning at one time right huh??? Its definetly a learning curve,but i would suggest that anyone go SLOW.....I'ts so easy to get Info OVERLOAD these days !!!! Anytime i can, i ALWAYS promote YOU AND YOUR CHANNEL to people...simply because of the ease at which you supply info,and your style of teaching it. Works perfect for me man(and many others as well). Well,enuff brown nosing..(LOL)..Hope ya have a GREAT 2021 Mike,(and ALL OF YOUR SUBSCRIBERS AS WELL)....It seems to be off to a decent start so far!!!! God Bless to All....Make More Music...Get Creative....Then add your sauce...CREATIVE SAUCE that is!!!!!!!! PEACE...... OH YEAH... almost forgot... When YOU record guitar tracks,do you prefer to record them "DRY" or "WET" ??? It seems to me that there are no set rules persay...but more of a matter of personal preference. Just asking because adding fx's individually AFTER recording your track can get a little "time consuming" .... But it all boils down to what REALLY sounds BEST in the mix for ones style and taste !!!!
Thank you so much for this! I am currently using Pod Farm, and I am tired of all the crashing despite doing everything from the forums. Downloading the Amplitude as we speak!
Excellent video as usual, Mike! Always informative and a pleasure to watch and understand. Still just a beginner but your videos have helped me all along the way! Best to you for 2021! Cheers
Your videos are always great, and this one was extra useful for me right now. Thank you so much for consistently making such awesome content, my dude! You rock! :)
Thank you my friend. My pleasure:)
There are some quality freeware options that cover guitar and bass amplification, I can't and would never disagree on any of the options mentioned but rather encourage people to try out all options and then just as with the hardware "real" counterparts if applicable, mix and match away, try all combinations as the boost/drive pedal(s) from one developer may work for you with the preamp of a different developer.
A few devs that didn't make the top 5 but you'll find offer some quality pedals and preamps and other tools that can be utilized for nailing quality electric guitar and bass sounds, Voxengo's Boogex V3 is excellent for aping a valve power amp section if placed between your preamp and IR loader plugins of choice bypassing or using the built-in DI impulse and not much in the way of gain, the dynamic response is key really and must be dialled in on a case by case basis, it's a great all-in-one simple solution too & the free Tube Amp can also be very useful on DI'd signals used a little or a lot, Mercuriall the amp models are quality but freewise the boost/overdrive/distortion pedal models available for free are where you'll want to look, TSE (The Serina Experiment) ENGL & Peavey aping amps with a nice Ibanez TS-808/Maxon OD-808 overdrive pedal plus a very handy Tech 21 SansAmp BassDriver is also available gratis, AXP/AXP-Softamp/SoftDrive plugs the AXP CharBooster & 3OD are both ace as a boost options when placed before any preamp, the SoftDrive GV does a good job at Marshall's original Guvner & still available 2nd, more compact version covering overdrive crunch to classic JCM800-esque distortion & I can't forget to mention AXP's Softamp PSA which apes the extended, rack version of Tech 21's SansAmp PSA-1, it is at home on both electric guitar and bass signals plus there's also one that covers the SansAmp original or now "Classic" device amongst a few others, Nick Crow Lab along with the already mentioned, excellent ML Sound Lab AMPED Roots is another option to raid for a few quality Peavey 5150/6505 based high-gain preamps if you like your 5150, 5150+/6505, 6505+, LePou/Poulin a slew of decent modern high-gain preamps available covering Mesa's Dual-Rectifier, ENGL's Powerball IRC, A Bonger Extasy or Ubershall and a model not based on any existing high-gain beast but more than capable of delivering the type of sounds in a mix which can be had from modern high-gain amp heads. There are still plenty of others that are well worth your time to hunt down and try, remember to mix and match, try out any combination in order to find sounds you like and will use.
As for the mic'd speaker cabinet options well there are so many variations of cabinet model, loudspeaker model and microphone model captured in impulse response format it's obscene!
Personally I almost always end up using numerous impulse responses of a cab and speaker model with different microphones and their positions being key along with the relationship they have phase wise, so I use impulse loaders with more than one or two slots if I'm not using an impulse response that I have created from multiple others mixed together then rendered therefore will fit into any impulse loader for real-time convoling, which is exactly the same as I almost always end up using in a mix when micing up any cabinet or the speaker on a combo, It'll mostly be the usual suspects (Dynamic mics - SM7b, SM57, at least 2 used in the Fredman setup, RE-20, RE-320, MD441, MD421 at least 2 used the same as the SM57s, e609, Halo, i5, D6, TGI 51, TG D70, M201 TG, Beta 52, D112, AE2500 which has both a dynamic and a condenser mic perfectly phase/time aligned which are split into their own inputs, it's by Audio-Technica, designed for kick drums but that "dual-element" design works great on bass cabs and combos + I've had some great results with the dynamic capsule when capturing extremely down-tuned/baritone & extended-range electric guitar rigs that despite being very high-gain, the sound needs to be tight, punchy with loads of clarity and not a total muddy, woofy and fizzy mess which is easy to capture if one isn't careful, even more so when such is made up of multiple layers for a truly monsterous, crushingly heavy sound. Ribbon mics R121, M160, Sigma, Sigma II, Delta, Delta II, RNR1, VR1, VR2, X1 R, as anyone can probably tell my ribbon mic collection is mostly made up by the modern, active Ribbon designs/variety, the few older models I use those a number of those little in-lin FET preamp boosters such as Cloudlifter Mic Activators and sE Electronics DM1 Dynamite and the same thing which I do with some of my dynamic microphones also as those inexpensive devices really can and do make life easier for both mics which aren't very sensitive therefore need loads of clean gain but deliver just the type of results I am after and many mic preamps as they don't require the gain to be getting close to maxed out in order to achieve the desired results, the other utilities I have to mention which are extremely useful for deploying when using multiple microphones on any source are the Little Lab IBP devices and Radial Engineerings' dragster variable impedance/load correction superb little things both for obvious reasons. Condensers U47 FET version, U87, C12, C412, C414 pretty much cover the large diaphragms I use with cabs/combos, KM184, 4001, 4006, M5 MP, DM-1S, DM-1T, STC-10, STC-1S make up pretty much anything small-diaphragm wise condenser wise that I use with guitar and bass cabs/combos), I often will throw up or throw down a couple of PZM/boundary layer models also which can come in very handy and they'll already be pretty much ready to go since they will have been used already as part of the numerous microphones used to capture a multi-mic'd drumkit earlier, at the very start of a tracking session. Obviously, YYMV and whatever sounds right/gives you the resulting sounds you want then it is right, don't let anyone attempt to try and tell you differently either because it ain't their guitar sound.
Sorry that was quite a long comment, I didn't intend for it to be as long as it has ended up, the video is quality with advice most importantly no one can eff with!
All the very best to all, cheers!
\m/ Dean \m/
Thanks mate, wishing you continued success
How about a top 5 or top 10 free cab IRs vid, that would be a cool follow up
Thanks Mike, nice demo and selection
My pleasure Jeff!
Nalex and Poulin amps are killer! Check those out. They're also free. Also, Audiority makes some nice Marshall amp sims for free. My favorite free amp of them all is the Poulin SoloC (a Soldano amp sim). It's awesome!
Outta all of them... Guitar rig wad the Richerst I ever heard! I'm looking for that
I’ve tried lots of sims to get a good practice amp sound and also one that could be used in public, via a powered speaker, from a tablet. I’d almost given up with these and then I found ‘lostin70s’ - and tried ToneDeluxe and it turned out to be excellent. I’ve also tried the ModernDeluxe - which includes 6 pedals - and I’m thinking of making this my main amp - especially after playing with the available cabinets and finding the UK 25W which gives me a great sound!
Wonderful video! Thank you so much! This is what i need
Cheers my friend:)
REAPER's mixer tracks are channel-agnostic by default so dropping an amp sim with stereo outputs onto a track with a mono guitar part is no problem. No need to set up buses or other shenanigans.
Hi Mike
Really useful
I found back my guitar Rig but will try your number one too :-)
I still struggle to find a good crunchy sound to play blues. Any advice on that ?-)
Mike you are doing a great job!
Cheers Marshall!
Happy new year Mike! I am a big fan of Amplitube and the new version is really nice! Great choice for number uno!
Happy new year Jacques!
Native Instruments are so underrated.
Great review Mike and some useful tips too! As I got the full version of Amplitude 4 in the Total Studio package I'll be using that for any amp sims but agree that the free version has lots to offer and would be my top choice too!
Can you make a detailed video how even have to put up the hardwares and guitar and record through these amps..
Thanks Mike, lots of good info as usual..
It is worth visiting IK Multimedia (the company that makes AmpliTube) website once per about 2 weeks because they give away some of their stuff for free. I got Amplitube Metal Collection, Mesa Boogie Triple Rectifier amp, Soldano SLO 100 amp for absolutely free.
Thanks for this! I've been using a Line 6 Pod pedal or setting up live amps with mikes. Now I'll give these a go for some variation! Cheers!
I can't believe that you preferred the Blue Cat Audio to the NaLex stuff or the HASR free pack V2.0. In my opinion the NaLex amp sims and the ones in the HASR made by Vadim Taranov are way better than the Blue Cats Audio. Also the Nembrini Crank is much better. If you hadn't already, try them. Cheers from Spain.
Thanks for all these tips.
I'm new to the plugin world, but this week I tried ML Sound Lab's sim and cab sim amps (first StevieT, then Roots, then Flagship) and loved it (StevieT's Calalaean amp has a magical sound for clean sound, you should take a look)
So I tried the Emissary with Nadir and it fit my taste perfectly (those low-mid and high-mid adjustment knobs are its strong point)
I will check every of your tips here and other videos in your channel =)
I use TH3 in cakewalk. Would you recommend any of these amp sims over TH3? Thanks for the video!
Just getting the hang of Cakewalk after installing interface drivers. Thanks alot for all the great info
Thank you !! Amplitube sounds great !!! I will download
Any video for feee Drums VST
New subscriber!!! Love your channel, very very useful and your videos are very explanatory! Thanks!
Loved this video. I'm about to move to Logic Pro. I'll keep the Amplitude plugin in mind as I check out what comes with Logic.
Hi Mike. Every video is a lesson. Super tips on this one!
When it's possible, post some ideas on Cakewalk Audiosnap with piano lead and vocals (on a choral). I'd used your tips of CWalk Audiosnap over guitar/drums and was really useful.
Thanks for all your time and dedication.
Thank you so much. As always, its my pleasure:)
Hey man thank you for your very nice videos.. starting to follow your channel.. hoping you will.explain also where to find and how to use melodyne in cakewalk..
Does doing that stereo feature on the amplitube plugin prevent us from having to also record doubles for guitars?
great vid like always.....thanks mate.....do you know if i can use cakewalk band lab with zoom l-8 for interface or have to use other daw??????
Hi, there, Mike.
Do you, or anyone here, had a problem with the STL licenses?
When you download the free version, it's $0.00 but I just got the license window asking to activate and it says I don't have any activated licenses.
Does anyone know what to do?
The demos recorded with the neck pickup definitely did not suit the high gain ones. Roots is my favorite and I use it everyday for multiple things, in the end it is a 5150 III EL34 and sounds quite close to the real deal.
Also something I would always mention to get amp sims to really sound good, is adding an EQ after them and put a low cut at around 150 - 200Hz, you definitely don't want digital flabbiness that makes them sound flubby and boxy and just horrible. Also cut out the high end with a hi cut, everything after 10kHz you don't need. It improves any amp sim by 1000 and also helps them to sit better in the mix. You can tweak a few of the mid frequencies to really tune the sound to perfection.
Hey Mike! Great video. Could you pelase share which drum loops or vst did you use on this demo? thanks
Are you using some kind of double-tracker or widener? When you demonstrated Guitar Rig 6, the sound was excellent and room-filling. I love the widening effect - or double tracking effect - partially because I'm a huge Boston fan. 😎👍
When would you do a demo of you playing this beautiful Gretsch?
Airwindows amps are great too. Try Fireamp or Grindamp. They're hot. And they do not hit your CPU that hard.
HI~Is this NadIR just directly insert after Amp sim (Which dont have cabinet) and It works well??
Really nice and I may be adding to my arsenal soon!
Question for you...
In your opinion, how much of these amp and cabinet sims are manipulations of EQ and reverb/echo (maybe chorus or flanger as well) over the stock amp plug-ins to achieve the different sounds?
To put this another way...achieving the same result (albeit more tedious) as plug-ins like these but using the stock amp sim in your DAW, manipulating those amp settings, adding a PEQ that you sculpt the sound with, and reverb/echo/delay.
I ask because there are only so many parameters in audio that can be manipulated, and it seems like these are presets with pretty graphical controls.
Thanks and really appreciate the demo of the amp and cab sims!
Happy new year!
Happy new year my friend!
A great help, thanks.
Can we use AmpliTube as a vst plugin in cakewalk ? (and how ??? :) ) Grate vid thanks for your work!
Hey Alex, yes you can! This may help.. th-cam.com/video/-ZvyTM6tQEc/w-d-xo.html
@@CreativeSauce Thank you very much sir .
Is there any way to connect a Guitar VST to Amp Sim Plugins so I can play it on my midi keyboard? Thanks.
Hello sir, I am starting new here and I am finding the 'pick and choose' aomewhat complicated.
I want to record my guitar solo on top of a backing track. I usually prefer solo tones which carry a lot of thickness, like Guns N Roses.
Can you please help me with a plugin/processor software which is free to use.
I am using Waveform Free as my DAW. The processor is the missing piece here.
Gracias por revisar los amps con sonidos limpios y crunch. La mayoría lo hace con mucha ganancia, escondiendo las fallas del amps.
it would've been nice to include a list of what DAWs actually support the plugins listed. I just spent like an hour downloading all the stuff you need for Ignite Emissary, but I use FL and apparently its not supported. So I just wasted all that time and effort
Can we install this plugin in studio one prime, if not what else option are there except Ampire..
Thank you, Mike, for this excellent video! One thing I didn't quite understand: for amp sims 5 to 2 in your countdown, when you doubled the guitar performance and panned one track hard left and the other hard right, was the amp sim AND cabinet applied to EACH of the two guitar tracks or just applied once on a stereo bus track as you did in the final Amplitube setup? Thanks so much. :-)
I cannot get that Emissary amp to sound decent on the distorted lead channel. I gave up working w it.
The truth is: It's simply NOT important what you use as an amp-sim. If you know how to mix it down, almost everything will sound good enough.
As for Amplitube. Yes, seems they improved much in terms of feeling while you actually play your guitar. The "vintage closed" - IR is phenomenal.
Wow I didn't know there was a free version of Amplitube 5.
Is it an easy update from Amplitube 4 or should I download it and install it from scratch?
Thank you for the video. It was quite a discovery.
Hi. I have them installed together, and it works fine. Thanks for watching!
@@CreativeSauce
Oh alright. thank you.
Thanks again, Mike! Amplitude looks like a no-brainer for me because I really like THX in Cakewalk and they seem similar. But, to my knowledge, you cant use THX in Studio One?
Good stuff, Mike! AT5 is awesome.
:IF" you buy it. The "free" version only has 3 basic amp sims available. Honestly, I think its easier for me to mic my Marshall and record direct rather then waste 30 minutes downloading this particular sim..
Nice info! I've been playing around w/NadIR for a while now myself in front of various amp sims to help tune in better sound since I tend to record DI. Btw, have you tried Boogex by Voxengo? I've played around a little with it and I think it might be pretty good if I can figure out all the features as it has many options.
Was there a noise gate engaged?
Amplitude and Guitar Rig Free are great. But I use them with VSTs, mainly RealStrat and still cannot get what I want.
Please made some video about Cakewalk Overloud TH3.
Hey. If I connect my Semi Acoustic guitar to my pc through a 6.35 mm to 3.5mm wire, will i be able to record my guitar in cakewalk?
That clean dittie... Am I crazy or do I hear that exact piece playing while pumping my gas at Wawa?
Hey Mike, hope you are doing well.
I was wondering if it's possible to split a stereo track into two mono tracks.
It would be great if you could answer this.
That's what I did - see my comment on this page (to Mike) from today
Hey, Mike! Very nice video. I was wondering if you can make a video with some free or even low buget guitar vst (rock and clasic). I would love one like this! :D
Can I use them in my DAW without any guitar ?
Very nice!!!
What drums were you using in this video?
I’ve been reading that amplitude can get glitchy. True or false?
Man you're a godsend. Did someone ever tell you that?
Thank you :)
Hey, I don't know if this was just an issue with editing or not. But when you were demoing the Amped Roots you had the Cab switch to On but you were switching through IRs. Wouldn't this mean you were sending the amp sound through it's own speaker then into another IR?
Hi William. Good spot. I was actually switching off screen in other plugin instances ( just to save time ). The visual was just the first instance :)
Anyone else having problems using amplitube CS with studio one 5?
What would really be helpful is if someone would show how to download and install any of the apps. They are nearly impossible to find and setup
I just loaded Amplitube. I agree, it was not easy at all, and, after 30 minutes of screwing around, I find that only 3 are useable, the rest are all locked, so, whats the point. I am not sure if it's worth keeping or not. It's almost easier for me to set up the drum patterns on my BOSs drum machine, import (or record) that into Cakewalk, then mic my Marshall amp direct and record that way.
Nice! 🇧🇷
I use virtual guitars. Same deal?
Amplitube was look cool and familiar, I'm not sure if it will work on pc
I've been using Amplitube for years on my Windows PC. I originally had Amplitube 3 w/Windows 7 and now have Amplitube 4 w/Windows 10. Plan on updating soon to Amplitube 5. I only use the free version, but you can purchase other things through their Custom Shop
I'm new to mixing, I wanna learn the basics to it and maybe a couple advanced tricks. If you have any tips just leave 'em in the replies, thanks!!
What's your pick for a good rock/metal tone?
I'm searching for smooth no fizzy ,non scratchy distortions, I've yet to find just one.......
You're missing the Coolness and Irony of the name of "Nadir", you're pronouncing it "NAD-I.R.", but if you just say "Nadir", then the definition of Nadir is - "The nadir is the direction pointing directly below a particular location; that is, it is one of two vertical directions at a specified location, orthogonal to a horizontal flat surface. The direction opposite of the nadir is the zenith." LIKE MIC PLACEMENT
I cant find NadIR can one of yall help me