How much should you really cut out of an amp sim?

[He's Dead, Jim]

Title says it all, really. If you have a solid amp sim (in my case, the LePou ones since I have a mac and the X50 isn't out yet) and a good cab IR (in my case Recabinet and catharsis mostly), should you really have to cut the "mud" around the 300-500k and 800-900 k range that is so common on real amps and cabs? I've been following Ermz' systematic guide since I'm a beginner at all this, and it's true that even on a sim it does help the attack and clarity to subdue those frequencies, but I think it also makes my guitars too thin and "crispy" sounding. What do y'all do, generally speaking?

 

[JasinElric]

You don't have to cut, as in notch out, if its thinning things out. Just do some scoops. Mess around till it sits well. 200-500hz range is a starting point to look for mud, but you still need your ears to find, and subdue the offenders by practical means. Never just cut, because someone says "cut here".

 

[ashgallows]

roll off some of the highs either with a lpf or shelving and make dip somewhere around 2-4k if it still sounds peaky. cutting low mid frequencies in effect makes some of the higher ones more present.

 

[Star Ark]

you are not cutting mud out of the amp sims you are cutting mud out of the speaker sims. Lecto is great i think you need to experiment with the impulses

 

[He's Dead, Jim]

you are not cutting mud out of the amp sims you are cutting mud out of the speaker sims. Lecto is great i think you need to experiment with the impulses

I probably could have phrased it better, but you know what I mean. All IRs have some mud, but I guess what I'm trying to get at is whether you need to do the same relative amount of mud-reduction in the mids that you would with a real cab, or whether impulses remove some of that simply because they're not actual speakers being miced up.

And ^^ I do do a HPF and LPF of course, and I typically use a parametric EQ sweep to get rid of the "whistling" frequencies around 180, 400-ish and 4000.

 

[Bay Studio]

I never use amp sims on productions/mixes etc, BUT, i´ve tried them and i´ve treated them like you would with a real amp, and i had same results as with my 5150 re amps etc. This was with Amplitube 3.

 

[HOFX]

Low Pass, High Pass, notch out resonances I find 2k Hz and above, and attenuate the cardboard zone (500 - 800 Hz).

Your base amp sim sound though should come from a vst at default settings (all knobs at 12 o'clock, right pre-amp selected, adjust distortion to ball park), then spend time to blend cab IRs to get the sound (think about the low end part you want of your tone, find an IR that satisfies the low end [usually found with an dynamic/ribbon mic], then mute that. Then think about the high end crunch you want, go hunting / auditioning for IRs that satisfy that part [usually an SM57 mic], then blend the mics). Then, play with the tone knobs on the amp sim. Then, and only then, play with EQ post cab.

Start with notches. I usually remove resonances as much as I can (which relates to the question, how much do you cut), then boost with an analogue EQ after it's been through VCC, VTM to make up the high end, which then gets further processed with buss plugs (VCC, VTM, VBC).

BTE audio's TS's secret is good stuff too.

However, saying all that, I'm still GASing for a Kemper.

 

[anotherpaul]

I always do a -6.66db cut at 666Hz with a Q of 0.13.

 

[He's Dead, Jim]

I always do a -6.66db cut at 666Hz with a Q of 0.13.

hurr hurr hurrrrr

 

[blue_fAng]

No general rule. Cut and boost until it sounds right to you, don't even worry about how many dbs you cut or boost. Always A/B both the original and the eq'ed guitars.
I've found a new guitar sound that involves cutting 6 dbs in the 3-4k area and I rarelly passed 2 dbs before, it just sounds good. Some other tones only involve hp/lp filters. If it sounds good, it's good.

 

[Daybreak]

If what you're wondering is if you should cut differently in an amp simulator rather than a real amp, I would say that there's really no difference. I give amp sims and real amps the same treatment EQ-wise, so I don't think there's any general do's and don'ts on amp sims specifically.

However, one thing that comes to mind, might just be my interpretation though, is that amp sims generally have a fizzier/more harsh high-end than real amps, so perhaps a more aggressive low-pass and some strategic cuts are in order on the highs.

 

[Axonic Rot]

Keep in mind that the resonance and presence are built into the Catharsis impulses. Don't double up.


I don't usually get the urge to cut or boost anything when using the Catharsis IRs.