Maybe it’s the IRs?

stm113

Power User
I’ve had my AF2 since Dec 2011, it served me well through a long stent with a popular and busy coverband but there are many posts In these forums through the years to attest to my struggles with the AF2 for recording.

I recently got into the STL Tonehub game and am going back and forth on my opinion of it’s quality. Reamping with the AF2 is clunky compared to using a plugin, which makes Tonehub more attractive and it lacks that weird mid range that I just cannot dial out of the AF2. BUT while the tones in Tonehub seem to occupy less space in and subsequently seem to sit better in a mix, the drive/distortion character of the “models” just don’t seem to be able to hang with the AF2.

some recent conversation has been making me wonder if part of the issues I’m having is with the tonality the IR’s I’m using are imparting. I’ve been mostly using Ownhammer HHC-1 and the GNR cab until Mikko came out. They are both much cleaner than other the stock and older IR’s I’ve used in the past but I think they may still impart that mid that I’m trying to get around.

so with all of this said, I am wondering if there are other high quality IR makers out there that I should check out that could help me get closer to the Mix ready experience I’ve had with Tonehub?

I apologize for the vagueness of my descriptions but I just can’t put my finger on what I’m hearing in the AF2. It seems to be in the mids I believe. With Tonehub it seems the IR portion (but since you can’t bypass it’s just a guess itS the IR portion) has less mids but not in a scooped metal way but in a more natural way than the seemingly fuller frequency I am getting with the AF2.
Thanks to anyone with any input.
 
I’ve had my AF2 since Dec 2011, it served me well through a long stent with a popular and busy coverband but there are many posts In these forums through the years to attest to my struggles with the AF2 for recording.

I recently got into the STL Tonehub game and am going back and forth on my opinion of it’s quality. Reamping with the AF2 is clunky compared to using a plugin, which makes Tonehub more attractive and it lacks that weird mid range that I just cannot dial out of the AF2. BUT while the tones in Tonehub seem to occupy less space in and subsequently seem to sit better in a mix, the drive/distortion character of the “models” just don’t seem to be able to hang with the AF2.

some recent conversation has been making me wonder if part of the issues I’m having is with the tonality the IR’s I’m using are imparting. I’ve been mostly using Ownhammer HHC-1 and the GNR cab until Mikko came out. They are both much cleaner than other the stock and older IR’s I’ve used in the past but I think they may still impart that mid that I’m trying to get around.

so with all of this said, I am wondering if there are other high quality IR makers out there that I should check out that could help me get closer to the Mix ready experience I’ve had with Tonehub?

I apologize for the vagueness of my descriptions but I just can’t put my finger on what I’m hearing in the AF2. It seems to be in the mids I believe. With Tonehub it seems the IR portion (but since you can’t bypass it’s just a guess itS the IR portion) has less mids but not in a scooped metal way but in a more natural way than the seemingly fuller frequency I am getting with the AF2.
Thanks to anyone with any input.

If you’re curious about the IR being the issue or not, you might want to check out my $1 Mesa 2x12 Limited pack and see if that gets rid of the midrange problem you’re having and sounds more natural to you.

https://www.yorkaudio.co/product-page/mes-212-v30-limited

I’ve done several tests comparing real heads and mic’ed cabs to the Fractal and an IR I shot of the mic’ed cab, and the results were nearly indistinguishable. Fractal’s accuracy
was jaw dropping and didn’t have any odd midrange compared to the real amp. It just sounded like the real amp. So it’s probably an IR thing for you.
 
I didn’t want to say anything in the post to see if anyone recommended your IR’s unsolicited. I tried the $1 IR and really dig it, I will be trying it in a mix today as a matter of fact. I’m going to replace the guitars that I did with Tonehub with the AF2 and your IR.

I checked out your stuff and like your selection, I wish you had a multi-pack with basic 57/421 or 121 mixes that features a couple of different cabs.
 
BMAN 410
MRSH M25
MES 212 V30
MRSH 412 Blackjack
MTCH 212
ZILA 212

My favorite of those is the Matchless pack. I'm a big fan of G12H30 speakers and that one has both G12H30 and G12M25.
 
i don't think the Axe2 or any Fractal product has any EQ frequency that you can't dial out. i don't think it has a "sound" to it that is in every preset or similar.

something like that would definitely come from the IR you use. glad you're making progress on this. York Audio IRs are some of my current favorites. get 'em all :D
 
Does the II have a frequency analyzer, or perhaps the DAW you work with? If you think that's where the issue lies, pulling various frequencies out until you find it should answer that. The analysis will show you where to start.
 
BMAN 410
MRSH M25
MES 212 V30
MRSH 412 Blackjack
MTCH 212
ZILA 212

My favorite of those is the Matchless pack. I'm a big fan of G12H30 speakers and that one has both G12H30 and G12M25.

What did you think of the MRSH 412 Blackjack and BMAN 410?

Are you using the MTCH 212 cabs with any other amps besides the Matchless amps in the Fractal?
 
What did you think of the MRSH 412 Blackjack and BMAN 410?

Are you using the MTCH 212 cabs with any other amps besides the Matchless amps in the Fractal?
I'm mostly using G12H30 IRs but I did find some I liked in the BMAN pack, too.

I need to revisit the Blackjack IRs because I don't recall how they worked for me.

The MTCH pack is used with various amps... Not currently actually using the Matchless amp models ;)

I use them with the Shiver Clean and CA3+ Clean - with a mix of G12H30 and G12M25. I've tried that combo with a bunch of amp models and it just works for me.

I also play with the Speaker Impedance Curve in the amp block to find what works best.
 
My favorite of those is the Matchless pack. I'm a big fan of G12H30 speakers and that one has both G12H30 and G12M25.

Doesn't the MRSH 412 Blackjack have G12H30 IRs also?

The speakers in the Matchless look like they are custom voiced versions made for Matchless. It says they are "loaded with custom voiced Celestion M25 and H30 speakers exclusively made for Matchless". Do the Matchless G12H30 IRs sound different to you?
 
Doesn't the MRSH 412 Blackjack have G12H30 IRs also?
I just checked and yes, it does.

I'm going to revisit them to see because I just don't recall what they sounded like.
The speakers in the Matchless look like they are custom voiced versions made for Matchless. It says they are "loaded with custom voiced Celestion M25 and H30 speakers exclusively made for Matchless". Do the Matchless G12H30 IRs sound different to you?
Honestly, that's hard to say. I have no experience with real G12H30 speakers - I've only discovered I like them based on using IRs over the years and they always seem to be the ones I prefer.

Also it would depend on the specific variant of the speaker. I have the ML Legends pack and use a pair of G12H30 IRs from that the most currently. There are both 55Hz and 75Hz versions in that pack and I like the 55s more.

The York Audio sound different from the ML but I think much of that is just in the ears of the IR creator and the methods they use.

Also, I'm much more into 2x12 than 4x12 so that might account for some of my preferences in IRs.
 
Back
Top Bottom