ML Bulb Zilla preview - high gain, medium gain and clean examples using multiple IRs - PRESETS ADDED

shaunb

Experienced
Howdy.
I was doing some IR auditions for an upcoming recording session and thought I could do a shorter version for anyone who is interested in the ML Sound Lab Zilla cab pack and wanted to hear some more examples of what you can expect.

I have done three clips to cover a variety of applications from heavy rock/metal, to medium gain driven rock and clean/slightly broken up tones as not everyone on here is a "chugga chugga" player.

UPDATE: to celebrate the release of the ML Bulb Zilla pack I have added my presets used in the first two preview clips.
Feel free to grab them if you are interested. Have fun and maybe let me know how they go for you.

For each clip I have used the same IRs in the same order so you can hear how each works in different applications. The IRs auditioned are from the Zilla Mix folder to demonstrate the different characteristics of the IR mixes that Mikko created.

All IRs within the Zilla Mix folder have an accompanying Djent version which work really well for that style and sound as well as heavily de-tuned guitars in general. As I'm a rock guy I have used the "standard" versions and not the Djent versions in these examples.

I played all IRs in alphabetical order as they are listed within the Zilla Mix folder so you can hear them objectively without me prioritising my personal favourites. I had an odd number of IRs, so I picked one of my favourite Alloys to round out the composition structure.

The IRs are as follows.
ML Zilla All Mix
ML Zilla Cream ALN
ML Zilla Cream H Mix
ML Zilla Cream M Mix
ML Zilla Flattest
ML Zilla Green M Mix
ML Zilla K100 Mix
ML Zilla V30 Mix
ML Zilla Vintage Green Cream
ML Zilla Cream H SM57-M160 (alloy)

First up is the high gain test.
My two favourite amps at the moment are the Corncob M50 and the Brit 800, so I threw them together in the mix to see if they would work well. Guitars are quad tracked, Corncob on the left and Brit 800 on the right.


Next is a clean and medium gain test using a JTM45, everything is dual tracked on this one.
It's a little hard to hear the tonal differences on the cleans in this mix but if you listen closely you'll hear the changes. I have done a clean guitar only clip below to demonstrate the differences more clearly.
The medium gain guitars show the differences much more, that kicks in at the 1:31 minute mark.


Last up is the clean guitar only test with a Class-A 30W TB dual tracked with no other instruments.
This test does a much better job of demonstrating how each IR sounds in a clean slightly broken up application.


I hope this comes in handy for anyone who wants to check out this pack.
The Zilla is killer.
 

Attachments

  • Brit800 Zilla SB.syx
    12.6 KB · Views: 72
  • Corncob Zilla SB.syx
    12.6 KB · Views: 64
  • JTM45 Zilla SB.syx
    12.6 KB · Views: 59
Last edited:
This is incredibly useful thanks - there's a huge amount of usable tones there clearly. The Zilla All Mix in particular is really well balanced but also quite unique sounding. Looking forward to the release :)
 
This is incredibly useful thanks - there's a huge amount of usable tones there clearly. The Zilla All Mix in particular is really well balanced but also quite unique sounding. Looking forward to the release :)

Thanks for checking it out, hopefully it comes in handy.
Back when I was starting out buying cab packs I found these kinds of showcase/comparison posts really helpful, so it's a nice thing to be able to do that sort of things for others when I can.

Zilla All Mix is one of my favourites in this pack. It's nice a full sounding and has a different character in the mids and highs to the others in the Zilla Mix folder. It works well across the different gain levels and amp types too. All Mix and Flattest could well become my main go to IRs. They are really well balanced and sit nicely in a mix.

I'm also enjoying playing around with the Alnicos and Greenbacks for some nice glassy tones and I've been really hanging out for some good Creamback H IRs, so this pack makes me pretty happy.


Very well done! I hope everyone has a look at this
Thanks Adam.
These were all pretty fun to knock out.
Might try some of your tips from the tutorial video you posted.
 
That's a huge work Shaun !, I'm using the following IRs in the pack everyday :

ML Zilla All Mix
ML Zilla Cream H Mix
ML Zilla Flattest
ML Zilla V30 Mix

I loved your CLN and Medium Gain sound-clips

Great Job buddy :).
 
That's a huge work Shaun !, I'm using the following IRs in the pack everyday :

ML Zilla All Mix
ML Zilla Cream H Mix
ML Zilla Flattest
ML Zilla V30 Mix

I loved your CLN and Medium Gain sound-clips

Great Job buddy :).

Thanks champ.
I was really happy with the medium gain stuff, I don't usually get a sound I'm super happy with and the JTM45 hasn't really worked for me before.
Unfortunately I didn't save my settings for some reason but I think I remember what I did.
Pretty sure everything was at noon and the gain was around 9. No drive block on this one, all amp.
 
We really wanted to get the message across as accurately as possible so we spent all our proceeds from Cab Pack 13 on a TV ad. Sadly we could only afford a company that's known for creating toy ads in the 90s. Anyways here's what we got in the end:



If you want to hear the pack in action check these videos:





I also made a video of Shaun's higher gain clip:
 
We really wanted to get the message across as accurately as possible so we spent all our proceeds from Cab Pack 13 on a TV ad. Sadly we could only afford a company that's known for creating toy ads in the 90s. Anyways here's what we got in the end:




OMG!!!!! that's so funny!!! we need more ads like that.
 
We really wanted to get the message across as accurately as possible so we spent all our proceeds from Cab Pack 13 on a TV ad. Sadly we could only afford a company that's known for creating toy ads in the 90s. Anyways here's what we got in the end:



If you want to hear the pack in action check these videos:





I also made a video of Shaun's higher gain clip:

That ad is the best thing I've seen in ages.
Nice work Mikko.
 
Cheers mate.

I might celebrate the release of the pack by posting the presets tonight when I get home if anyone wants them?

Any takers?
Most definitely YES! I actually tried the JCM800 thing real fast and I guess I'm not very good at making it work for higher gain or something. I needs your presets.
 
Most definitely YES! I actually tried the JCM800 thing real fast and I guess I'm not very good at making it work for higher gain or something. I needs your presets.
Cool, I'll post them tonight.

Your JCM800 preset was really good, gave me an old Faith No More vibe. I couldn't help but bust out Caffeine, Surprise You're Dead and Epic when I loaded it up.
 
Update:
To celebrate the release of the ML Bulb Zilla pack I have added the presets used in my preview recordings for anyone who wants them.

Have fun and let me know how you go with them.
 
Last edited:
New AX8 owner here and new to the IR game - thanks Shaun for that first post. I play clean to medium and didn't think the Zilla was for me. Was I wrong! Thanks again :)

First off, congrats on your AX8. I hope you have a lot of fun with it (I'm sure you will).

I generally play with high gain tones but love dropping the gain back with this pack. I'm actually playing a lot of amps I haven't used before because they all sound pretty great with these.
Plexi 50W Hi 1 is a favourite at the moment and I've never used that much before.

And all the clean amps sound really full and rich with the Zillas too. All the options are great, the Alnicos are really impressive.
 
Back
Top Bottom