IR mic positions and mic distances

[trancegodz]

I recently bought the Modern and Vintage IRs from Ownhammer. I found all the mixes to be a bit bright and lacking in mids, so I used Cab Lab to create mixes that I prefered and I am happy with.

I like many of the stock Redwirez IRs in the Axe FXII so I also downloaded the free RedWirez Marshall 1960A Celestion G12M IRs to try them out, before buying their BigBox.

Red Wire Impulse Responses | Free guitar speaker cabinet IRs

The thing I like about the RedWirez was the fact they used way more mic choices and way more mic positions. Cap, Cap Edge, Cone, Cone Edge, Cap 45, Cap Edge 45. 17 mics and up to 54 positions per mic. Pretty much every mic position you could think of. This versatility is great but makes it pretty time consuming to figure out what sounds the best.

I listened to every single one and discovered that I really did not like many of the mic positions and mic distances at all, regardless of the mic being used. Way too much high end and fizz.

Other mics, mic positions, and distances sounded right to my ears. More Eric Johnson sounding.

The best thing about the Redwirez IRs was that I was eventually able to find mic distances and mic positions that gave sounds that I liked.

The potential problem with Producer Packs and Mix Packs is you get what that particular producer thinks sounds good, which may or may not suit your needs. So if the producer likes bright sounding IRs, or fizzy sounding IRs, or IRs with scooped mids, or huge low end, or not enough low end, etc, etc, that is what you get. His personal idea of a good guitar sound, maybe not yours. I’ve learned from real world recording that not all “professional” producers are created equal. Their ideas of a good guitar sound bass sound, drum sound, can be very different from each other.

The great thing about producer packs and mix packs is that you have mixes already made to choose from and save yourself many hours of trial and error.

I’ve only bought the two Ownhammer Mix Packs so far and I am glad I bought them.

I’d love to see IR producer packs from producers like Eddie Kramer, George Martiin, etc.

 

[GuttaLaser]

Just one though about...
I don't think that just auditioning an IR is the right way to find the right tone... unless they are specifically tuned for a "big amped solo guitar alone live".
Especially those IRs that are the typical variations of the micing of an amp in the studio for cutting a track in the mix!
What i mean is that the "hi-end and fizz" listening to the tone alone can be the "detail" of the guitar in a full mix.
Think the IRs collections (RW, OH, FAS, etc) as a big colors palette you can use and mix together for the best result in the mix.
And finally... the IRs is really a big part of the tone... but not the 100%... and the Axe has plenty of surgical instruments for refine you tone.
My 5cents

 

[trancegodz]

I only used the stock factory IRs until just recently. Cliff saying that IRs made up 50 per cent of your sound and Scott Peterson's thread about how great the Ownhammer IRs were made me take a look at what all was available out there for IRs. So far I've tried the Ownhammer Modern and Studio mix IRs, the free Redwirez 1960A Celestion G12M IRs, the Santiago IRs, and a whole lot of free IRs available out there from individuals. I liked the Ownhammer but not their mixes. The Redwirez was difficult to sort through but I discovered which mic placements and positions sounded good to me (and which didn't), going through the Santiago was informative and helped me see which mic placements sounded best. Some of the Santiago IRs sounded real good to me. I didn't like 99 per cent of the IRs from individuals I found on the internet. I'll be getting the Fractal Producer Packs next, and maybe some more of the Redwirez.

One thing I just now noticed about the Redwirez is that they also have 44.1KHz, 48KHz, 88.2KHz, and 96KHz, all in 16 bit and 24 bit wav files. So it looks like they should be able to be converted to Ultra Res. Someone chime in here and correct me if I am wrong.

Kevin from Ownhammer has already said his IRs will be able to be converted to Ultra Res.

You occasionally see threads with people complaining about too much fizz, or ice pick in the ears, not enough low end, etc. For anyone still complaining it appears to me that this can be fixed easily by how you set your tone controls on the amp and by which IRs you use. The IRs really do make a huge difference. In particular the mics, mic positions and mic placements used while making those IRs.

Using Cab Lab I made 22 different IR mixes from the Ownhammers packs and tried them at rehearsal live with the band. I took notes and we all said what we thought about each mix. From that I chose the ones which actually worked best for what we do. That was educational and helped me see what worked live and what didn't.