FEATURE
MODELING
REALITY
CHECK
Guitar amp and effects modeling has been
around a few years now and has evolved
significantly. It’s high time someone really
put these software and hardware packages
to the test. How do they sound and feel
compared to the real deal? We will also
explore some strategies for using them live
and in the studio to get maximum bang for
your buck. There are quite a few modeling
products on the market these days, with
varying approaches to the concept. Popular
packages such as Native Instruments (NI)
Guitar Rig 3, Peavey ReValver, and IK
Multimedia’s AmpliTube 2 are software ori-
ented and require the use of a computer.
Others, such as Line 6 POD products and
modeling amps, like the Peavey Vypyr and
VOX Valvtronix series, are self-contained
hardware packages. This is not intended
to be an exhaustive review of every single
product available. Instead, we will focus on
a few and see if they can deliver the meat-
and-potatoes sounds all of us as players are
looking for. Let’s dig in!
BY ROGER ADLER
What We Really Need
We started with the premise that
most guitar players are looking for a
few must-have essentials from their rigs.
A priority list would include a great clean
sound, a semi-distorted crunch rhythm
sound and a smooth, sustaining lead gui-
tar sound. Contemporary guitar in most
genres requires at least that much variety.
There are just a few essential effects that
guitarists typically use, such as wah, delay,
reverb and chorus. Of course, there is a
nearly endless array of cool pedals that
provide everything from mild to wild to
crazy. We’ll stick to the basic amp sounds
here. After all, if the amp model doesn’t
sound convincing, no effect pedal will fix
the situation.
What to Look For
One of the primary things to look for in an
amp or modeling amp is convincing tone. If
you’ve been on the scene for years, you’ve
probably played through many of the amps
that have been popular over the last 40
years, such as Marshall, Fender Twin and
Deluxe, Mesa Boogie, VOX AC30, etc. It’s
fair to say that the majority of these classic
amps use vacuum tubes (also called valves)
in their designs rather than solid-state
designs using transistors and integrated
circuits (IC chips). Tubes are old-school
technology from the post World War II era.
The thing to know is that tube amps sound
unique and definitely affect your tone in
many ways. It’s not just something we’ve
become accustomed to; it actually does
sound better to most people’s ears. Typical
words used to describe tube amp tone are:
warm, smooth, brown, complex, creamy
and dynamic. Let’s look at that last one.
Dynamic response in a guitar amp refers
to the ability of the amp to respond in a
positive way to changes in guitar volume,
control settings and picking attack. One of
the great things about a tube amp is that
you can set it so you have a fairly high-gain lead or crunch sound, then “clean up”
the sound by backing off on your guitar’s
volume control, making the sound much
less distorted. Many guitarists love being
able to plug directly into their amp, to set
the controls and then switch between their
lead and rhythm sound just with their guitar volume control. Do modeling products
respond dynamically in a similar way? We
will see and hear later with audio examples
online at premierguitar.com.
Another thing to consider is what your
needs are. For instance, if you play out
live and need a lot of different sounds
within your set, modeling products are
convenient and much more portable than
a multi-amp rig and 25 effects pedals. Of
course, if you have a road crew to do the
heavy lifting, then perhaps a gigantic live
rig is perfect. For the rest of us, considerations such as size, weight and how quickly
we can set up and load out after the gig
are important concerns. This author, having played over 4000 live gigs and still
counting, can attest to the fact that while
it’s fun to set up an elaborate rig before a
