Cabinet Impulse Responses
This is a selection of my absolute favorite amp cabinets. In each bundle you're getting a variety of tones captured with high quality microphones, preamps, and converters. For my cab IR bundles, I've decided to focus on really nailing characteristic interactions between different microphones and speakers. There are less files to choose from so you don't waste ages sorting through a near endless supply of IRs. The ones that ended up in the bundle have been thoroughly tested and compared against the many others that were cut. Each IR is available as a single close mic or with an ambience mic blended in for a more pronounced "amp in the room" feel. Supported sample rates are 44.1khz, 48khz, 88.2khz, and 96khz. $10
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Acoustic Instrument Impulse Responses
The acoustic IR bundles are each a collection of specific Match EQs, made to compare the sound of common pickups to mic'd examples of some of my favorite instruments. Read "How do the acoustic IRs work?" below in the FAQ section for more detail. In each bundle, you get a variety of supported pickup types. Select your sample rate (44.1khz, 48khz, 88.2khz, or 96khz) and the type of pickup on your instrument (undersaddle piezo, contact piezo, magnetic, etc.). From there, you have a few variations to pick from that'll get you slightly different results due to the mic position and playing style that I created the IRs with. $10
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Frequently Asked Questions
• How many IRs are in the cabinet bundles? - There are 8 IRs, each available in 3 versions: 1- that single close mic by itself, 2 - the close mic blended with a room mic, and 3 - the close mic blended and phase aligned with that room mic.
• Why only 8? - A lot of IR makers give you every possible combination imaginable from the mic choice, placement on the speaker, distance from the grill, and the angle from the mic capsule relative to the cabinet. The truth is that a lot of these aren’t going to sound great, and while a few of them will, you’ll have to spend hours sifting through the lot to find them. I’ve always hated that. The cab IR bundles I’ve put together come from the opposite perspective. I’m putting in the work on each and every file to ensure that the end result is a capture that truly represents the essence of that cabinet and microphone. This is an active process rather than a passive one. It involves recording an array of tones through the preamp and power amp sections of the guitar amplifier, re-amping those recordings through the speaker/cabinet, and making minor adjustments to the position of the mic as I listen back and find the sweet spot. There might be less files to choose from than competitors, but the ones that ended up in the bundle have been thoroughly tested and compared against the many others that were cut. The result is a collection of impulse responses that genuinely reproduce the sound and spirit of each of the cabs I’ve captured.
• How do the acoustic IRs work? - In full transparency, these are not traditional IRs. However, they work in a similar fashion and your device will not be able to tell the difference. As much as I've tried the normal way of capturing an acoustic instrument, this other way I've come up has yielded much better results. The problem with acoustic IRs has always been that they do not take into account the source signal - that is the sound from your pickup, which is incredibly important. My method of capturing these IRs involves recording a number of common acoustic instrument pickups with different playing styles and comparing them against similar samples of a mic'd instrument. Then, I use software to create a match EQ. Basically, I'm searching for the information that is lacking or in excess from each pickup. My IRs are basically just a very specific EQ to correct the sound and help your amplified tone get much closer to the mic'd tone of the instrument in that bundle. Where a traditional IR measures frequency over time, this method of isolating the EQ side has proved to be far more accurate. I've sampled many different types of common acoustic pickups and am able to provide you with exactly the right IR to match your pickup. Click on each bundle's individual product page for a list of the pickups I used in creating these IRs.
• What if I have a different pickup that's not mentioned in the bundle? - When you open the bundle, I have everything sorted by the general type of pickup that's on your instrument: undersaddle piezo, contact piezo, magnetic, etc. If you use a magnetic pickup for example, open the mag folder and try out what's in there. At least one or two IRs will probably work fine.
• Will a violin IR make my guitar sound like a violin? No. The only way to do that is through MIDI processing.
• Do you make custom acoustic IRs? - I would be happy to. One of the reasons you might want to have a custom IR made is to specifically match your instrument, pickup, strings, and playing style against the recordings I have from the creation of my acoustic IR bundle (read "How do acoustic IRs work" above). I'm not interested in being responsible for people shipping me their instruments, so the best way to do this requires you to have an audio interface. I will send you a recording and click track to play along with. All I need from you is to record your instrument & pickup direct into your interface. You send me the recorded file and I will create a few custom IRs of anything you want from this webpage. I just charge $50 for this service for the time that goes into it on my part. Get in contact with me here if you'd like to try it.