OH Public Beta Redux! (more free stuff)

You're all quite welcome, hope you get some use out of these! :)

Awesome!

Will the 4 voicings (Brit and USA etc.) replace those in the G12M library (Balanced, Vintage, Modern, Classic)?

Yes, but not for a good while.

How does the Live-n-Loud voicings differ from the others? Are the specific to use "live and loud" when playing live or working as good at home when recording or headphones too?

There are a few folks who have asked that I put out darker files as a turn key solution to their need for less high frequency content in an IR file. Those same people usually tend to enjoy a certain 'mad' IR from Axe-Change, and make it a point to throw that in as a reference. The new Live-n-Loud files are just accommodating that request. As it stands, my plans are to do a Live-n-Loud set of (4) files for every mic, so with 14 mics that would put the Live-n-Loud subset at 56 files for the full commercial libraries.

Do you have to be a paying customer with previously purchased items, and this is an upgrade "in addition to" what you've already purchased, or can you just get free cab sims from OH and then if you like what you hear, purchase other cabs from them?

"still dazed and confused"

Thanks

In the original post there is a link that goes to a page on my website. There is a download function toward the bottom where anyone can grab a zip file with 40 unique IR files spread out between Axe 1 .syx, Axe 2 .syx, Kemper .kipr, and Wave Audio .wav in my usual derivatives. The cab is a Bogner 4x12, the speaker is the stock Chinese Celestion Vintage 30, and the mic is an SM57. There is no catch, the only condition is that once I put out the full commercial version of this library, the 412-GTR Bog V31, I will be deleting that page and the files will no longer be available for free.
 
It is my opinion that these IRs are superior to the previous betas, which were already pretty freaking great. From my testing with the Axe-II, these IRs have a little less junk in the mids (not quite as sharp and attack-y but still full), the high end has fewer spikes from 3-5 k which mixes less harsh. Where these IRs are really doing it for me is in the low end (I'm an ass-man after all :D). It's still full and gives that nice cab thump that I'm looking for without the cab flub from 120-150 that I found I had to attenuate with the last betas. Much tighter and more aggressive for the palm mutes which is a huge plus.

I did find on some models I used my cab mix on (V30 SM57 USA Modern 5 + just a touch of the 12M SM57 Balance 5 and R121 Balanced 4) I could come down on the presence just a touch and increase the depth and still get nice clarity. Nice job, Kevin! I'm anxiously awaiting this release as well as the Mesa cab!
 
Can't wait to try these. The freebie from the other day sounded great this morning! Thanks again, Kevin. The live and loud work great in my live situation (imagine that).
 
There are a few folks who have asked that I put out darker files as a turn key solution to their need for less high frequency content in an IR file. Those same people usually tend to enjoy a certain 'mad' IR from Axe-Change, and make it a point to throw that in as a reference.

FWIW I have always been in favour of your live n loud files, but I find that the Fractal mad oak IR, while nice and smooth, is too dark/not enough clarity for me.

ps loving the new betas
 
OwnHammer_412_Bog_V31_SM57_Brit-Modern-5 was my favorite from the bunch!! :) Any public detail on the hardware?

But: OwnHammer_412_Bog_V31_SM57_USA-Modern-6 went into Axe.
 
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I thought the Live N Loud Brit Modern was great. I'm very much looking forward to that IR with other mics and cab/speaker combos. Seems to tame that FRFR high end very nicely.

Kevin, are you close to finalizing your formula to focus on release and variety now? I think the naming convention and different options are great and simple to understand. Now we just need more cabs and speakers! Thanks a ton!

PS...did you keep the old cabs particularly that SLM cab? How about the M75 and H75 speakers? I've noticed the beta and recent focus has been on the 2x12 and 4x12 Bogner cabs with various speakers. I liked your Mesa cab but I really dug the SLM cab from the original files.
 
It is my opinion that these IRs are superior to the previous betas, which were already pretty freaking great. From my testing with the Axe-II, these IRs have a little less junk in the mids (not quite as sharp and attack-y but still full), the high end has fewer spikes from 3-5 k which mixes less harsh. Where these IRs are really doing it for me is in the low end (I'm an ass-man after all :D). It's still full and gives that nice cab thump that I'm looking for without the cab flub from 120-150 that I found I had to attenuate with the last betas. Much tighter and more aggressive for the palm mutes which is a huge plus.

My thoughts pretty much exactly, as well as the overall objective with all the new capture techniques. To my ears, there's also an increase in fidelity as well, almost like a significant converter upgrade, even though there actually wasn't one (was Orpheus before, is Orpheus now). :)

...I find that the Fractal mad oak IR, while nice and smooth, is too dark...

I agree, which is why the Live-n-Loud voicings transition from relative proximity to the highest position number files (9) down to around that 'mad' territory. When I first tried that IR, I thought somebody had taken away my near fields and replaced them with sub woofers. Not for me, but to each their own, there are always many variables that make something great for one person and terrible for another. There is no magic bullet that works in every situation. There is no spoon. :lol

OwnHammer_412_Bog_V31_SM57_Brit-Modern-5 was my favorite from the bunch!! :) Any public detail on the hardware?

Not sure if I'm going to detail at this time, or specifically this time around. I use the same gear as before for various purposes and in various combinations, but upon reflection of a previous statement of mine of the gear accounting for less than 20%, I'd say that was being generous and it's probably more around the 5-10% mark, and I'm talking full signal chain, not just the mic preamp. I think it could give false impressions of the makes and models if people use the files for a Gearslutz-esque shootout since the vast majority of the tonal variation is mic placement and technique. Also, these files have VERY minimal EQ on them, just a couple dB in the useable bass region to compensate for what most people have come to expect and seem to want baked in. What you hear is almost entirely what the sound source and my room, outboard, and mic technique sounds like.

Glad to hear everybody's digging the files, and loving the hands on feedback so far! It's extremely helpful to know how people beside myself use these files, and certainly helps in the march of progress. :)
 
I thought the Live N Loud Brit Modern was great. I'm very much looking forward to that IR with other mics and cab/speaker combos. Seems to tame that FRFR high end very nicely.

Awesome, glad to hear the Live-n-Loud stuff is finding favor!

Kevin, are you close to finalizing your formula to focus on release and variety now?

I know I say this a lot, but yes, lol. :lol I was happy with the different voicings from before but recently felt that I should be using that opportunity to provide a larger scale of tonal diversity and appeal to a broader range of aesthetics. I've always done the in your face sound thing, I think the Vintage portions should prevent me from being pigeon holed to that reputation in the future and was something I wanted to take advantage of.

I think the naming convention and different options are great and simple to understand. Now we just need more cabs and speakers! Thanks a ton!

PS...did you keep the old cabs particularly that SLM cab? How about the M75 and H75 speakers? I've noticed the beta and recent focus has been on the 2x12 and 4x12 Bogner cabs with various speakers. I liked your Mesa cab but I really dug the SLM cab from the original files.

The only thing I don't personally own that I've released in the past is the '72 Fender Vibro Champ. I can't resample that as I borrowed it across a long distance and I don't think the owner still has it, add I'm not really keen on asking him to part with it again, I feel it over-imposing. Not to mention I always hate having anything irreplaceable shipped these days.

Everything else will come out with all new flashy libraries in time. I'm going on memory, but I currently have in my collection:

Cabs:
- Boogafunk Thiele 1x12
- Stone Age 1x12
- Bogner Shiva 2x12
- Bogner 4x12
- Krank Krankenstein 4x12
- Marshall 1960B 4x12
- Mesa Recto 4x12
- Mills Acoustics Afterburner 4x12
- SLM 4x12

Speakers:
- Celestion Alnico Blue
- Celestion Classic Lead 80
- Celestion G12-65
- Celestion G12H (Heritage Reissue, 55 Hz)
- Celestion G12H (late 70's black back, 55 Hz (I think?))
- Celestion G12K-100
- Celestion G12L (late 70's black back)
- Celestion G12M (late 70's black back 55 Hz)
- Celestion G12M-20 (Heritage Reissue)
- Celestion G12T-75
- Celestion Vintage 30 (Chinese)
- Celestion Vintage 30 (English)
- Electro Voice EVM-12L Classic
- Eminence Texas Heat
- JBL D120F (70's)
- Jensen P12N
- Jensen Jet Blackbird
- Scumback H75
- Scumback J75
- Scumback M75

Speakers I do plan to get at some point:
- Eminence Cannabis Rex
- Eminence EJ1250
- Eminence Red Fang
- Scumback Scumnico

So as you can see, I have a lot of work ahead of me. :)
 
Love the LnL!!!! Haven't gigged it, but rehearsed this weekend. Really awesome.

Thanks, Kevin. And bring on the Blue LnL.
 
Cabs:
- Boogafunk Thiele 1x12
- Stone Age 1x12
- Bogner Shiva 2x12
- Bogner 4x12
- Krank Krankenstein 4x12
- Marshall 1960B 4x12
- Mesa Recto 4x12
- Mills Acoustics Afterburner 4x12
- SLM 4x12

I own all old IRs for my AXE I: Would really be great to hear the "old" updated(!) models (like SLM) and the new ones, too!
 
I was just wondering if you have a schedule for updating the old libraries.. The GTR-Mesa V32 is a nice cab but I remember talks of releasing a V2 upgrade early 2013?
In any case I'll meanwhile happily use the old IR's (and the new beta files, thank you very much!). Just looking for a clarification on this.
 
Live-n-Loud IRs are targeted for use through personal FR amplification.
For FOH, the sound guy may prefer 'regular' IRs, to be able to shape the tone himself.
Several methods exist to accommodate both.

1. Use a LnL IR in one side of a stereo cab. And a regular IR in the other. Keep them fully panned. Now send one side to FOH and the other to your monitor. Disadvantages: mono sound, no separate volume control, less IR mixing possibilities.

2. Use two Cab blocks. One for FOH and one for your monitor. Can be stereo. Disadvantage: lot of CPU usage.

3. Ignore the sound guy.
 
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In my somewhat big ignorance in these things I had thought of the difference between personal monitor and FOH.

So the difference in what IRs to use depends a lot on the proximity to the speaker right?
 
This is purely my experience from a stage point of view. A real cab on a stage has a huge low end where as IR out of a monitor will be thin sounding. So to compensate that I'd choose very different IRs for both situations.
 
Live-n-Loud IRs are targeted for use through personal FR amplification.
For FOH, the sound guy may prefer 'regular' IRs, to be able to shape the tone himself.
Several methods exist to accommodate both.

1. Use a LnL IR in one side of a stereo cab. And a regular IR in the other. Keep them fully panned. Now send one side to FOH and the other to your monitor. Disadvantages: mono sound, no separate volume control, less IR mixing possibilities.

2. Use two Cab blocks. One for FOH and one for your monitor. Can be stereo. Disadvantage: lot of CPU usage.

3. Ignore the sound guy.

OK...I'm a little confused on this based on some comments, but let me see if I understand properly. A real amp/cab on stage means you're mostly (if not totally) hearing your amp and cab from behind you and those frequencies are pretty limited (around 80Hz-6000Hz). Obviously that sound is different than what goes to the board and is sent to the mains (if you're getting to the mains...some situations you're probably not). That sound of a close mic'd amp (probably through a SM57) adds some frequencies that are very much in your face and not "natural" in some cases. The sound person is probably going to shape that to roll off the unwanted frequencies and fit you into the mix and they're used to doing this given traditional setups. With FRFR, these Live N Loud IRs represent a customized or idealized roll-off of the highs and lows to get a more natural response through FRFR systems...basically like a preset PEQ or Hi/Lo rolloff in the Axe itself. I guess with sound guys, if they're used to cutting highs/lows at the board, Yek, your option 1 or 2 is to avoid having them roll off an already rolled off IR? To Clark Kent's point, a real 4x12 (like a Mesa especially) carries a ton of bass content naturally. That too would probably need roll off from the board, but, if you want that to your ears, you have to make some choices of what you want to hear on the stage through your monitor vs. what you ask the sound person to do.

This stuff can be a rubix cube. I would lean on the side of a rolled off IR so I'm not getting frequencies that kill my ears from my monitor and just make sure the sound person understands what I'm doing. 95% of the gigs I play are situations where we're running our own sound anyway. The bass player runs it and gets out front wirelessly in the early songs to tweak it. I would think rolled off IRs would actually help me fit in better and I like that Kevin's done the work vs. me guessing through PEQ and otherwise. We'll see how it goes once I test these in a gig situation. I might try both and see what fits better.
 
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