I think I really hate IRs

[Shaw]

I still don’t like ir’s, I like real cabs and I seem to prefer the two notes cab in the loop and using that for cabs rather than using ir’s.

Off topic: I love using my Two Notes Studio for mixing a real amp into the Axe3 ecosphere.
On topic: Two Notes IRs are, well, IRs.

 

[lqdsnddist]

On topic: Two Notes IRs are, well, IRs.

But they are in a different box so must be different things lol

 

[JJunkie]

Hmm maybe try capturing a tonematch / IR of your Two Notes and see if it is still any good?

 

[Shaw]

But they are in a different box so must be different things lol

Ha! Maybe... I will say that the Two Notes Studio has a gorgeous UI on their computer based IR editor. Could be a case of “people hear with their eyes”.

 

[unix-guy]

.I use mostly Ownhammer but Whatever Fractal does to their IR's I don't like. Maybe it's a phase alignment or whatever

There are many OH IRs in the Axe Fx III... Have you tried them?

What do you mean by "their IRs"? Do you mean any factory IRs, or the OH IRs that are in the box, or something else?

 

[mtb]

I hate IRs too..until I find the right one.

 

[symphx]

I prefer Ir's of Ir's , then I mix those and reshoot them myself and mix them with some free Ir's and some from Redd...

 

[APOGEE123]

There are many OH IRs in the Axe Fx III... Have you tried them?

What do you mean by "their IRs"? Do you mean any factory IRs, or the OH IRs that are in the box, or something else?

. I don't like factory IR's...and I don't like OH IR's that are in the box... I like raw untreated IR's

 

[negativefx]

I wasn't super impressed (nor disappointed) with the cab IRs on the XL+ until I went through about 250 of them and found a few that really clicked for me. As soon as I found them though, boom! Every tone I chase now starts with finding the right cab for what I want. I'll slap an "in the ballpark" amp and maybe a drive up front, but the quest begins with the IR. Fortunately moving over to the III was easy because I already had a good idea of what I was looking for and where to start.

 

[Rock Chalk]

You know, it’s funny, but when I had the II with limited space for IRs, seems like I was always worried about which of my purchased ones to keep in the Axe. Now having the III with all the space, the thing sounds so fricking awesome out of the box that I have not loaded one IR! What a great time to be a Fractalite!

 

[unix-guy]

. I don't like factory IR's...and I don't like OH IR's that are in the box... I like raw untreated IR's

Ok... I'm not aware that there are differences between the OH (or other) factory IRs and the same IRs they sell, but maybe there is?

 

[lqdsnddist]

Ok... I'm not aware that there are differences between the OH (or other) factory IRs and the same IRs they sell, but maybe there is?

I'd say if we set up a blind test, and can he pick the "factory" OH vs the "raw" OH, at least 4 out of 5 times, then I'd agree there is a difference. I kind of don't think that would happen though ......

I've purchased OH and ML IR packs based upon the factory 'sample' IR's in the unit and darn if they don't sound identical to me....

Then again, we are talking guitar players, and guitar players can always hear "differences" in things that realistically don't make any difference. I mean lets face it, how many hundreds of times have we heard someone on the forum say "_____ amp sounded better before the update" and then Cliff comes in and says that absolutely nothing changed on that amp model LOL

 

[OldSnail]

ML shared his best-IR-in-the-world.
That should end the ancestral quest for the Holy Tone

 

[666was999]

Still everybody is allowed to bring a truck with a shitload of cabs and amps to their gigs. But you might get older and older and I recommend you start liking IRs now, smart idea?

 

[negativefx]

Still everybody is allowed to bring a truck with a shitload of cabs and amps to their gigs. But you might get older and older and I recommend you start liking IRs now, smart idea?

My band is working right now to condense our entire setup down to a single Axe-FX III, two fearful cabs, four in-ear monitors, and two foot controllers.

 

[bdrepko]

You know, it’s funny, but when I had the II with limited space for IRs, seems like I was always worried about which of my purchased ones to keep in the Axe. Now having the III with all the space, the thing sounds so fricking awesome out of the box that I have not loaded one IR! What a great time to be a Fractalite!

Not sure if it was a change to the cab block or other changes but I like the factory cabs more in the AXE3 than I did in either the AX8 or Axe FXII.

 

[APOGEE123]

I'd say if we set up a blind test, and can he pick the "factory" OH vs the "raw" OH, at least 4 out of 5 times, then I'd agree there is a difference. I kind of don't think that would happen though ......

I've purchased OH and ML IR packs based upon the factory 'sample' IR's in the unit and darn if they don't sound identical to me....

Then again, we are talking guitar players, and guitar players can always hear "differences" in things that realistically don't make any difference. I mean lets face it, how many hundreds of times have we heard someone on the forum say "_____ amp sounded better before the update" and then Cliff comes in and says that absolutely nothing changed on that amp model LOL

Regardless, when I use my ears I don't like most of fractals IR's there is a small few have used in the past and still do. I like some of them.. I don't like all of OH's either but I seem to use them mostly.
Hypotheticals don't mean nada.

 

[APOGEE123]

Ok... I'm not aware that there are differences between the OH (or other) factory IRs and the same IRs they sell, but maybe there is?

The last pack I bought from fractal was made by OH and you get the finished IR's in one folder and the raw wave in another and I convert them myself.. what ever is done to the finished IR's I didn't like

 

[ML SOUND LAB]

The IR technology itself has been proven time after time to be extremely accurate if you do it correctly. I can't speak for other IR producers but I aim for 100% realism and I would argue I get my IR's as close as possible. I've been spending a lot of time at the studio this summer (more about that "soon") and the way I test my signal path at the start of every work day is an A/B test between "real vs IR". A day not so long ago I posted this video on Instagram:



So saying that "you hate IR's" is kind of weird. Once again I stay away from other IR producers work and try to concentrate on my own work and keeping the highest quality possible so I only speak for myself. My IR's are extremely authentic. You have quite a selection of this quality IR's as stock IR's in the Axe-Fx III. Give them a shot... if you don't like them then it might just be that you don't like the feel of a miked guitar sound or your monitors are the problem. I highly doubt that you dislike the sound of a miked signal as that would include every guitar sound you've heard on a track ever.

Try limiting the IR picker results with "ML" and you should see a list like that looks like this:



It's got everything from pre-Rolas to Creambacks to Blackbacks to 80s hair metal speakers to 90s classics and all the way up to the modern options we have these days. Personally as a Mesa guy I really love to have all three versions of the Mesa V30 in there as well.

There is another factor that I've kind of been a bit hesitant to discuss here but I try to stay honest as I've always been so here goes. The IR rabbit hole. Switching between a hundred different IR's trying to find that "perfect IR". Most of the time you will get ear fatigue before you find the IR that you're looking for. This is why all my packs come with "Ace" folders that are limited to my recommendations. Much like the stock IR's in the Axe-Fx III, are my personal selections. I feel very fortunate that Fractal Audio trusted me with choosing those IR's. Those are once again clean captures and some of the best mic positions I've found during the past 5 years of shooting IR's professionally.

But that's the problem with IR's. They are so important and powerful and once you understand the power it's very easy to get lost and spend days going through thousands of IR's. Some people get joy from this... but some people feel like it gets in the way of their playing. This is why I sometimes wish I only gave the "Ace" folders so people wouldn't let fine tuning guitar sounds get in the way of their playing but many people out there really want to have that power to fine tune their guitar sound.

 

[yeky83]

Ok... I'm not aware that there are differences between the OH (or other) factory IRs and the same IRs they sell, but maybe there is?

I'd say if we set up a blind test, and can he pick the "factory" OH vs the "raw" OH, at least 4 out of 5 times, then I'd agree there is a difference. I kind of don't think that would happen though ......

I've purchased OH and ML IR packs based upon the factory 'sample' IR's in the unit and darn if they don't sound identical to me....

Then again, we are talking guitar players, and guitar players can always hear "differences" in things that realistically don't make any difference. I mean lets face it, how many hundreds of times have we heard someone on the forum say "_____ amp sounded better before the update" and then Cliff comes in and says that absolutely nothing changed on that amp model LOL

AFAIK, Fractal applies minimum phase transform to the IRs whereas you can get OH IRs "raw" from OH. I'm guessing this might be the difference heard by @APOGEE123.