ML Dizzy: The fattest and meanest Cab Pack yet

[The Last Romantic]

It sounds dark, but in all fairness that could be the boogie amp.
Those rectifiers have always had three settings for me personally: muddy, muddy, and muddy.
Even if it's the cab- there's nothing wrong with a dark cab, they have their place in the scheme of things.

I'm down for more variety, I've never played through K-100's but I've heard good things about them.

 

[ML SOUND LAB]

It sounds dark, but in all fairness that could be the boogie amp.
Those rectifiers have always had three settings for me personally: muddy, muddy, and muddy.
Even if it's the cab- there's nothing wrong with a dark cab, they have their place in the scheme of things.

I'm down for more variety, I've never played through K-100's but I've heard good things about them.

Last year was a huge V30 year for me. I think I shot almost 50 different V30 speakers last year alone. And yes I think the "English" V30 speakers are the easiest speakers to mic and for that reason it's no wonder people like pretty much all V30 packs out there.

The K-100 is extremely difficult to mic and that really interests me. F.ex. the Brit PR55 is so far the most difficult cab to mic out of what I've done and it's Cliff's favorite.

I hope to have some better clips next week!

 

[Chronos]

I have access to some of the greatest V30s

Oh you have some WGS Retro 30's lying around?

In all seriousness though you would really consider replacing the speakers in that cab? Sounds like a nightmare thinking about getting it all screwed in and wired properly with a front loaded 4x12

 

[ML SOUND LAB]

Let's just say that WGS hasn't blown me away yet.

 

[ML SOUND LAB]

Finally I had a chance to start my early stage tests with the "Dizzy" cab. Here's what I got with about 30min of miking:



You likey?

 

[Lionheart]

Finally I had a chance to start my early stage tests with the "Dizzy" cab. Here's what I got with about 30min of miking:



You likey?

Well, it's definitely not bass-heavy anymore, but overall a much better tone. It's a tight sound, but now it's missing a bit too much low-end. It's a nasally and focused tone that could work well depending on the mix, so it's not like it's terrible. Curious to know what amp model and mic you used. I'd guess something mid-heavy like a 5153 for the amp, but I could be way off.

 

[ML SOUND LAB]

Well, it's definitely not bass-heavy anymore, but overall a much better tone. It's a tight sound, but now it's missing a bit too much low-end. It's a nasally and focused tone that could work well depending on the mix, so it's not like it's terrible. Curious to know what amp model and mic you used. I'd guess something mid-heavy like a 5153 for the amp, but I could be way off.

Thank you so much for the feedback Lionheart! I agree that he low end is controllable.

The amp sim I used was the Dizzy V4 Silver 4 with drive at 4, bass at 2, middle at 2.5, treble at 6 and presence at 6, master at 4. I only shot around 30 IR's altogether to kind of play around with them to learn the cab and whatnot. This test clip had an MD421 on the bottom left speaker and SM57 on the bottom right speaker. Both speakers are the G12K100 which by the way is something completely different to what I've done before and I've miked quite a variety of speakers last year. The cap of the speaker is huge which essentially disables the regular "cap edge" position as placing a mic there would be quite dark already. The high end is not neutral. I tend to look for kind of unphasy and neutral sounding mic positions so I felt a bit helpless when miking at first but now that I listened to the mic positions with fresh ears I understand what the Dizzy K100 sound is supposed to be like. I can't wait to hook up the robot and start shooting for real but I'll do some preparation tests before that just so I don't rush things. Definitely some of my best MD421 sounds coming from this cabinet!

 

[Lionheart]

Thank you so much for the feedback Lionheart! I agree that he low end is controllable.

The amp sim I used was the Dizzy V4 Silver 4 with drive at 4, bass at 2, middle at 2.5, treble at 6 and presence at 6, master at 4. I only shot around 30 IR's altogether to kind of play around with them to learn the cab and whatnot. This test clip had an MD421 on the bottom left speaker and SM57 on the bottom right speaker. Both speakers are the G12K100 which by the way is something completely different to what I've done before and I've miked quite a variety of speakers last year. The cap of the speaker is huge which essentially disables the regular "cap edge" position as placing a mic there would be quite dark already. The high end is not neutral. I tend to look for kind of unphasy and neutral sounding mic positions so I felt a bit helpless when miking at first but now that I listened to the mic positions with fresh ears I understand what the Dizzy K100 sound is supposed to be like. I can't wait to hook up the robot and start shooting for real but I'll do some preparation tests before that just so I don't rush things. Definitely some of my best MD421 sounds coming from this cabinet!

Well, kudos to you. I think that you're on the right track and will turn out some great IRs.

K100s can tricky, but if done right, they're another great studio option.

If you get a chance, try it out with a Zakk Wylde-ish setup (JCM 800 boosted with a tube screamer). I think that you'll like what you hear.

 

[Chronos]

I think the first clips had too much gain, and now there's a lot more clarity to tell what's going on. The top end sounds kind of stiff and grating, but knowing how impulse capture sessions go you only just said hello to this cab and haven't even begun to scratch the surface yet.

 

[The Last Romantic]

Honestly, I have nothing to complain about when an IR is missing low end.
Many of us prefer the overly bright IR's- if it's ever TOO bright (almost unheard of, for me), I just bump up the bass knob or add a little 125hz on the EQ page, and everything is back to how it should be.

Whenever I see a new cab pack- regardless of the maker- my friends and I usually go immediately to the straight-on-the-cap sm57, if we can find it, and work our way darker from there.

 

[Chronos]

Okay so what you've talked about is the community being able to have an impact on this cab-pack right? Besides telling you our honest opinions on the sounds we individually like what about adding an inexpensive mic to the selection?

Don't think I've come across other people making impulses with a tape op modded SM57, and the sound you get from removing the transformer is a nice little variance to an already great dynamic microphone. You could just assume buy a second SM57 to do the mod on seeing as they are inexpensive and then have both options to shoot with. Maybe even make an alloy with the two variants and see what happens?

 

[Lionheart]

I'd rather see this added to ML's mic locker. http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/C414XLII

 

[Chronos]

lol I didn't want to suggest something so expensive. I'm also in love with dynamic microphones though. Dynamic mics just beat all if you have a good enough pre. Ribbon mics are a close second

 

[soheil]

Great news. Really liked the 2nd sample by @Irotlas. Fat and chewy.

 

[The Last Romantic]

If anything, I'd rather see more mic position choices in the cab packs.
I still cling to my upbringing where "mic position is king" was the mantra.

A decent mic in the right spot beats a better mic in the wrong spot, if you ask me.
Especially considering this cab has some touchy speakers to work with.

 

[ML SOUND LAB]

I want to thank you guys for the feedback. It's literally priceless for me.

I'd rather see this added to ML's mic locker. http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/C414XLII

If anything, I'd rather see more mic position choices in the cab packs.
I still cling to my upbringing where "mic position is king" was the mantra.

A decent mic in the right spot beats a better mic in the wrong spot, if you ask me.
Especially considering this cab has some touchy speakers to work with.

I already own several mics that I "could" use but what I'm really trying to achieve with my IR's is quality over quantity. Sure I also have quantity f.ex. 1775 IR's in Cab Pack 20 but I definitely focus on getting the best captures and microphone positions and that is what I consider to be my job. Everyone can place a microphone a hundred different ways in front of a speaker and shoot IR's. That would not require skill. So what I consider to be "my job" is to provide people with the very best microphone positions and that is my expertise. My 4x12s have 16 different single mic positions per mic. Those mic positions are real different mic positions where their XYZ positions have been finetuned so they're not variations of distance or slight movements but rather just the best positions giving you the most usable different sounds.

I felt like I wouldn't have done my job well enough if people would have a hard time picking an IR so I created the "Ace" folders for the best of the best IR's. I don't think I've received any bad feedback about the Ace folders yet. People seem to really like those IR's and even though it's just 20-30 IR's it's still hard for people to choose which one is the best. Honestly I have toyed with the idea of only releasing the Ace folders but I've been afraid people might feel like they're not getting the versatility. Also my packs include around 30% of the IR's that were shot. I would feel really bad if the packs only included 3% of the IR's I shot.

I'm not saying that it's a bad idea to have more versatility. It's just that we all know that the majority of people will only be interested in the SM57 IR's. And after that comes the group that uses an SM57 and like to blend it with another mic for beef or a flavor etc. and it's a very small minority that uses a specific mic besides an SM57 for their complete guitar tone. While I wish to please everyone with these packs I have received around a dozen different microphone requests and I will not start risking my quality level by building up the mic quantity. That being said if I ever do add another mic it's going to be a large condenser and for that the 414 would be a good contender for sure. I would love to have a U87 but that's a complete different story altogether. So I'm giving this request an official "soon maybe". Obviously since there's this stupid thing people invented a long time ago called money I'm thinking about all the different cabinets I could buy with the price of that single U87 mic and how most people will never even try those U87 IR's that I spend a lot of time and money on. So sure these are not simple questions.

I do have a question for you guys though!

There's a possibility of me getting another Dizzy cab with V30s in it. If I get that cabinet and shoot it would you want the Dizzy pack to be a bundle including these two cabinets or have them released separately? Bundle price will be noticably lower than getting the two packs separately.

Please share your opinion.

 

[Lionheart]

That being said if I ever do add another mic it's going to be a large condenser and for that the 414 would be a good contender for sure.

Yes. I agree with you there. However, you're mic selection is very good as it stands. I was just throwing that suggestion out there.

If I get that cabinet and shoot it would you want the Dizzy pack to be a bundle including these two cabinets or have them released separately?

I personally would say to bundle them. The V30s really complement the K100s. And since it's "essentially" the same type of cabinet, I say bundle them together. Or you could do them as separate packs, but if you buy one of the Dizzy packs, you can get the other for a discounted price. One last option, is to skip buying another cab and rob some V30s from your other cabs and put them in your current Dizzy cab. Shoot the IRs and bundle them with the K100s into one pack. The last option is a little more work for you, but it would save you some cash instead of buying a whole new cab.

 

[ML SOUND LAB]

Yes. I agree with you there. However, you're mic selection is very good as it stands. I was just throwing that suggestion out there.

I personally would say to bundle them. The V30s really complement the K100s. And since it's "essentially" the same type of cabinet, I say bundle them together. Or you could do them as separate packs, but if you buy one of the Dizzy packs, you can get the other for a discounted price. One last option, is to skip buying another cab and rob some V30s from your other cabs and put them in your current Dizzy cab. Shoot the IRs and bundle them with the K100s into one pack. The last option is a little more work for you, but it would save you some cash instead of buying a whole new cab.

Cheers Lionheart! I'll think about it. I may do that. I do have... a few cabs with different types of V30s around.

 

[ML SOUND LAB]

Okay guys FINALLY I'm finished with the single mic shoot. It was a bit harder this time as the K100 are notorious for being a "PITA" to mic up but with my robot it was a breeze. Here's a clip with an SM57 and MD421 on the bottom right speaker of the cabinet.

 

[Lionheart]

Okay guys FINALLY I'm finished with the single mic shoot. It was a bit harder this time as the K100 are notorious for being a "PITA" to mic up but with my robot it was a breeze. Here's a clip with an SM57 and MD421 on the bottom right speaker of the cabinet.

Damn! Sounds awesome, ML. I'm impressed.