250$ for Metallica Black Album Preset

Metaddict said:
Its not impossible just kinda unrealistic to achieve. Others said it before, there are some factors that are not be able to reproduce. The room mic for example (Neumann U87) to get chunk that James was after. The closest thing is to use the Mesa add the Marshall 800 to it (for certain mid-frequencies) and a Marshall Cab with V30 speakers. Use a 57/421 Combination.
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Having an SSL console and Neve pres I’m sure didnt hurt. Personally for that money, I’d buy a vacation home and live with a bit less tone.
 
IRs can be shot with mics, the Axe simulates some mic preamp work in the cab block, there are compressors and other post processing tools. Can some of that "Studio magic" not be created in a preset?
 
rossipedia said:
I still feel like lots of the Black album is just super cringey and feels so much more "edgy" than a band's 5th album should be. I don't know what happened to James' lyric writing but the RTL->AJFA era had some quality, thoughtful lyrics IMO. And then it just feels like a lot of TBA was just... dumbed down.

It has its place, and a lot of what I consider dumbed down is probably perceived by many as "approachable". So yeah...



This 100%, even if it marks the beginning of the... "not so great" era of Metallica (IMO).
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I remember watching the world premier of the Enter Sandman video when it was released. Good lord did I hate that thing at the time! "No YOU hush little baby!" 🤮 So disappointed in a band in a way I hadn't been up to that time :oops::tearsofjoy:
 
IronSean said:
IRs can be shot with mics, the Axe simulates some mic preamp work in the cab block, there are compressors and other post processing tools. Can some of that "Studio magic" not be created in a preset?
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Probably, but I think it’s the double or triple tracking that makes it sound the way it does.
 
Didn't Guitarjon do a bunch of Metallica tone matches 3-4 years ago for the II? Could those be used with the III?
I think he did them album by album IIRC.
 
One huge issue with this plight is you can get a really convincing tone recorded but live thru a pa it will not translate. Just listen to the live now, not even close to the Black album tone. :eek:
 
JiveTurkey said:
And Hetfield's forearm.

OP; dig through this
https://www.youtube.com/@PlagueScytheStudios/search?query=metallica
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I forget the exact video, but I followed one on that channel that was a tone tutorial for all the albums for the AF2 with a bunch of free irs.
Obviously they all apply to the 3 and imho sound fantastic. They’re still my go to presets for Metallica and sound way better than any others I’ve tried.

I forget who it was, but I’m sure I saw a thread a couple of years ago where someone was trying to pass them off as his own. 🤔
Might have been the other place though……
 
JiveTurkey said:
I remember watching the world premier of the Enter Sandman video when it was released. Good lord did I hate that thing at the time! "No YOU hush little baby!" 🤮 So disappointed in a band in a way I hadn't been up to that time :oops::tearsofjoy:
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Personally, it was load reload that “make me puke” back in the day. To me the black album is a masterpiece. I love the earlier stuff for sure, all of them (except ride that is not so great, sound more like a “maxi single” with 3 good songs than a record).

I don’t know why some guys don’t like the black album. The songs are so good… hits after hits. Yes that’s not “thrash”, maybe that’s it. But as i love “songs” this one is like the Aerosmith’s get a grip, ac/dc’s razors edge, use your illusion or nevermind … up the montain. To me the black album is their last very good album. I still buy, play and know the others but that’s not the same. Death magnetic and the last one are “ok”.
Tastes . But it is one of my favorite band and will ever be I think .
 
My name is mud said:
I don’t know why some guys don’t like the black album. The songs are so good… hits after hits. Yes that’s not “thrash”, maybe that’s it. But as i love “songs” this one is like the Aerosmith’s get a grip, ac/dc’s razors edge, use your illusion or nevermind … up the montain.
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Because I never got into Metallica to listen to hit songs? That's what pop music is for. I got into it for orchestrated thrash metal, oddball arrangements with off time cymbal crashes and mostly epic RIFFS. That era of Aerosmith is abysmal as well. Their best years were unfortunatley tied to terrible habits.

You know how people talk smack about Kirk's leads? Guess when that downhill slide started. Good ol Black Album. Remove the epic backing instrumentation and all you are stuck with is bluesy turds for solos. Again; something I didn't listen to Metallica for previously. I think it's an age thing. If you heard them for that first time then; it was probably a lot more acceptable when going backwards. RTL was my first concert and accordingly; the bar was just set a little different for me because of that.
 
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I on the other hand would love a preset that replicates their current tour sound if anyone has been able to replicate it pretty accurately. There seems to be some thickness in their guitar sound right now compared to earlier sounds that I quite enjoy while not having too much bass to leave plenty of room for the bass guitar. I've gotten sorta close combining a Mk II C++ and a Herbie, but it still feels like there's something missing. And, if I could get there with a single amp that'd be even better so I can have 100% gapless switching between dirty and clean using the multiplexer.
 
Artists change and mature over time. If they kept on rehashing AJFA or MOP, eventually people would have complained that the band didn't evolve and grow.

I think the most valuable aspect of The Black Album is that it took metal in a more commercial and mainstream direction that brought new fans into the genre. Of course, that is also most old school Metallica fans' biggest complaint about the album.

It's because of that album that we see Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus crooning along with Hatfield to TBA tunes. Maybe someday it'll be Taylor Swift. I don't like it anymore than you do. But it's introducing millions of young fans to TBA, and that's the gateway into a lot more metal. So I guess the only real a******s here are gatekeepers like us trying to keep "troo metal" alive.

I have a lot more problems with bands and musicians who are so extreme that the groove, power and musicality of metal went out the window and everything just turned into 10 million shredders sweep picking the same arpeggios on 10 billion videos on Youtube. That's even motivating me to get out of metal and listen to something else.

Of course, that's just me and my problems. Who cares?

Metallica is very successful and I think they'd laugh at the idea of a bunch of forum guys like ourselves lashing out at Kirk, or Lars for that matter.
 
For those of us heavy/hard rockers not that into speed metal / power metal / thrash metal ..., the Black Album made Metallica accessible. I can kinda understand how die hard metal fans maybe see it as a kind of sellout, but it gave the Metallica sound to many like me who would not have paid much attention otherwise.
 
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I think they sound great now and it looks and sounds like you are watching a LIVE band play their songs. Which is super cool. They are great players. Lars and Kirk included.

I came up with them and certainly don't consider myself a gatekeeper. But I am also not going to not have an opinion on something because someone might not become a fan because I expressed said opinion? Whether I need to express it or not is obviously another matter :p

I will also say the moment we went TOO extreme where everything is just grinds and blasts; that's where I lost a lot of that enjoyment of metal.
 
2Strats said:
Didn't Guitarjon do a bunch of Metallica tone matches 3-4 years ago for the II? Could those be used with the III?
I think he did them album by album IIRC.
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Tone Match from Axe Fx II is definitely not going to work on Axe Fx III.

The modeling has changed significantly since those days.

Also, I'm pretty sure it was more than 3-4 years ago :)
 
Someone mentioned it already, but the way to do this is with DI clips from you. That is the most important thing, and I think any one of the dudes on this forum making professional presets can do this for you really well.

Dave Lombardo threw the Black Album down a flight of stairs when it was released; I do the same thing in my mind whenever I think about it. I do like the ballads on that album, as always with the exception of anything having to do with Hammett; I think they should’ve changed their name at that point.

Every bigger thrash band followed suit, and I felt the same way about all their efforts too, so I perpetually live in the heyday of Horrorscope (Overkill), …And Justice For All, Persistence of Time (Anthrax), Twisted Into Form (Forbidden), Oppressing The Masses (Vio-Lence), For Whose Advantage (Xentrix), Victims of Deception (Heathen), etc. thrash. To me it’s just home.
 
State of Epicicity said:
I perpetually live in the heyday of Horrorscope (Overkill), …And Justice For All, Persistence of Time (Anthrax), Twisted Into Form (Forbidden), Oppressing The Masses (Vio-Lence), For Whose Advantage (Xentrix), Victims of Deception (Heathen), etc. thrash. To me it’s just home.
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Quite a heyday. Though I still can't into Violence at all? Interested to see how the reformed Forbidden with a new singer does certainly.
 
Vio-Lence is rough for me, because I still cannot at all stand the vocals, but hey, if I'm listening to thrash metal for the vocals, I've got bigger problems to worry about! 🙂 I suggest trying the songs Officer Nice and World In A World.
 
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State of Epicicity said:
Vio-Lence is rough for me, because I still cannot at all stand the vocals, but hey, if I'm listening to thrash metal for the vocals, I've got bigger problems to worry about! 🙂 I suggest trying the songs Officer Nice and World In A World.
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I got Eternal Nightmare on vinyl when it came out but I can't say as I ever listened to the whole thing.
 
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