This is definitely the FAQ #1 for me. I've talked about this "ML Method" a couple of times in the past but there hasn't really been a proper video explaining how it's done so I tried to create a quick explanation video... and failed miserably, so instead here's a 28min video going through the basics and more advanced parts of the "ML Method" of tweaking your amp settings. To summarize:
1) Choose and amp and IR you wish to use.
2) Choose your gain amount and start balancing your tone.
3) Use octaves or a half step up to really emphasize the balance of lows, mids and highs.
4) How to balance your tone:
Play two notes at the same time in this order: f.ex. 5th fret on the low E string and 6th fret on high E string to balance your bass and treble. Then the 5th fret on the low E string and 6th fret on the D string to balance your bass and middle. Then the 7th fret on the D string and 6th fret on high E string to balance your middle and treble. Repeat this process from the beginning as many times as needed until all three notes are balanced together.
5) I tweak presence and depth after that because I consider them strictly power amp controls. Generally I will opt to turn the depth control all the way off. It's not the kind of low end I personally like so I'd rather raise the bass knob and turn the depth control off in most cases. The presence control needs to be set the same way as bass, middle and treble. The way I usually do it is by playing the 12th fret on the low E string and 13th fret on high E string and balance them by using the presence knob alone.
Once you start raising your presence knob you'll start to run into problems if your mic position or IR is not good. F.ex. in this video at 12.30 I have the presence knob super high and it really shows how fine tuned that mic position is. It's very bright but it doesn't hurt your ear. All ML Sound Lab IR's are shot with this in mind as I feel you're supposed to have ultimate control over your tone instead of using EQ settings to cover up frequencies in badly shot IR's. Give it a try with some factory cabinets f.ex. FACTORY 73.
6) Obviously we all have our personal preferences so if you want more of a scooped tone you can easily drop the mids just a little bit to get that character and you'll still have a pretty balanced tone. Same goes for if you want more of a loose low end, you can experiment with raising the bass or even depth control for the desired effect but I strongly advice not to go too far from the completely balanced tone.
I'd love to hear how this works for you guys!