After I got the FM3 and saw all the amp tweaks,
I thought I would give the amp modeling a real test by trying to put together a Neil Young 5E3 sound.
I was shocked at how well it went -- even as a total newbie.
My biggest surprise was how much I liked this IR combination:
2x12 Double Verb 160 1 ML
1x12 Deluxe Tweed1 160 D AB
Essentially any combination of open-backed
2 x 12 Oxford 12L5N ( from the Magnavox 280)
1 x 12 Jensen C12N ( from the Tweed 5E3)
Some combinations work/align/sound better than others
I have tended to be partial to the Beyerdynamic 160 in the brightest position
But it depends. Just about any of the mics and positions
-- except the Shure 57 (surprisingly) -- seem to suit me at times these days.
I added a 120 Hz proximity frequency bump to the ribbon mic - as a extra faux Shure 57
-- my funky hack
I would like to find similar IR's using
a vintage Sennheiser MD409 U3 and a Shure SM57 - (Neil Young's combination)
I also added a "Hi-Quality" transformer preamp for the mic and spin those knobs a bit.
But, what surprised me the most is that I have never been a big fan of
1) Jensen Speakers
2) open-back cabs
3) Oxford speakers.
But then again, I had never heard the old early small-gap Oxfords from the late 50's and early 60's.
Those are the old Oxfords that Dr. Z is reproducing for some of his amps.
But, I really do like this combination of both IR's -- for a lot of things.
Once I got the correct speaker/cab IR's,
and set up a Deluxe Tweed with 6l6GC's and 12ax7 RCA's
suddenly, a guitar with P90's started to sound a lot like Neil.
I think my favorite flame on Neil's sound was something about throwing a pignose into a dumpster.
If I ever get the preset just right, I will put it out there -- maybe after Cygnus.
It should really be done on an Axe FXIII though.
So, yeah, what was the question? Rabbit-hole something?