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Amplifying amp sims?
OK, so we have plenty of great amp sims on iOS now. However, over the past year I've determined that playing guitar and listening in headphones is a real buzzkill. What is the best way of getting a good sound out of an amp sim actually pushing air in the room? I was thinking something like the Kustom KPM210 might work and there's a used one nearby me that I might be able to get cheap. Interested to hear what others use.
Comments
i reckon that would work fine. Should be no different to going out from any other modeller, Kemper Fractal etc.
Awhile back I was trying to route my guitar through an audio interface, through iPad for amp sims and fx, then out a guitar amp. I kept getting only one side of the audio (L/R) not stereo, so the sound went in and out kind of, so I was having trouble gettIng it to work properly? Someone told me there is a pedal that would do the trick but I gotta believe there’s another way? I’ve since given up, and just use headphones or speakers, but I really want to send it all out through my guitar amp and get the proper sound… any suggestions?
more information is needed about how you had things routed on your iPad. it sounds like you took the stereo in and sent it to your amp sim rather than choosing a mono in from your interface. If you take a stereo in that has sound on only one side, you will get sound out on just one side.
I think you could send it over bluetooth to one of these:
https://www.amazon.com/LD-Systems-LDSRJ8-Bluetooth-Subwoofer/dp/B00U75FG9S
No interface required then.
Bluetooth speakers have a ton of latency (at least all the ones I know of) -- it is kind of built into how Bluetooth audio works.
Oh ok, I don’t think I selected mono in, That could be the problem, I haven’t tried recently. I need to give it a go again soon and see what’s, what. Thanks for that.
If you have a problem post some pics of the setup and we can likely get it straightened out
I have used an iPad for live guitar since 2015.
Left channel output of an audio interface into a Jazz Chorus, sounds great.
If I wasn't using that I would go for one of the mid priced powered Yamaha DXR speakers.
You can put it into a keyboard amp and it should be a pretty good representation of the amp/cab sim you’re playing without re-coloring it like a guitar amp would. Will usually have 2-3 inputs too.
Also just any speakers on hand.
It's got an Aux in too. That'd probably work better. I wasn't thinking about latency.
@spiteface the speaker you linked could work really well, but it’s hard to tell just by looking at the specs if it’s an FRFR (full range flat response). It probably is but it’s not specified. 100watts for a powered monitor is probably enough, but for example the Headrush 108 and 112 are listed at 2000 watts, and those could realistically compete with a loud drummer. Anyway for amplifying guitar sims a PA or an FRFR powered speaker is what you want.
One thing to keep in mind is a guitar signal is mono going into an interface as mono and then it gets outputted in stereo to your headphones, usually. So what’s nice about the monitor you linked is that it’s a twin. So it should behave like a pair of headphones, and stereo effects will actually register better and the guitar image will be better. Many sim players are happy with the Headrush monitors, but they’re even more happy with a pair of Headrushes or a two speaker PA for this very reason. Otherwise you’re playing mono or outputting your sim in stereo but to a single speaker. Which is also fine, as many guitar amps feature just one speaker, but it’s something to keep in mind.
There are quite a few powered monitors on the market that are probably better than what you linked, but also more expensive. For example, the Friedman ASC and ASM, they’re made of birch. Also Mission, Tech21, many more make expensive non plastic frfr speakers. A cheap used PA will work just fine, but some frfr cabinets are specifically tuned for guitar and will push air in a similar way to a guitar cab. If you’re on a tight budget, the most affordable option is a used PA, the monitor you linked, or the Headrush.
I have a pair of iLoud MTMs that I use as studio monitors, but they essentially work as guitar sim speakers as well, albeit at medium volume.
On a side note, many people will say don’t amplify a guitar sim through a regular guitar amp, it will sound wrong, and of course they are correct. But recently I’ve been outputting my audio interface and iOS sim to a 15watt tube guitar amp, and I actually think it sounds really good. You just have to tweak the eq a bit to get it as flat as possible and tweak the sim accordingly as well, but it’s a good sound. Perhaps it has some unorthodox background noise that can be obvious in some settings, but it can also sound quite tidy and even as a processed sim would.
I can totally imagine an interface into a jazz chorus sounding great. My sims going into a garden variety 15 watt combo amp (Johnson tr15) sound surprisingly and unexpectedly good. That being said, there must be an frfr market for a reason.
Were you inputting to the guitar amp through the guitar input? There could be a more than one problem with that. Guitar amps expect Hi-Z (high impedance) input. Line out from an interface isn't likely to be Hi-Z. The input level is also likely to be very different than what would come out of guitar pickups, so needs to be adjusted. Then there's the amp's own circuitry acting on top of your already simulated guitar amp tone. That can be a good thing or a bad thing, but unless you have an exceptionally clean and transparent guitar amp, you there's going to be significant change to the sound. Lastly there's cabinet simulation. If you're feeding a signal with cabinet simulation into a cabinet ... well, doubling up again.
Some guitar amps have an FX return loop that bypasses the pre amp. That can help. But if not, you have a pile-up of things that are likely to make what you hear out of headphones nothing like what you hear through the amp.
The Chow Centaur with no
Amp sim sounds great fed into my JC-120 via my iRig HD2.