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THU—Holy Grail for Fender sound

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Comments

  • edited September 2020

    For those who are interested and bored here’s a quick test of the following rigs: Super Reverb, Bassman, Edge, Orange, Vox. This is just to give a little flavor of the sounds of these rigs, nothing more. I’m a self-taught rhythm guitarist and songwriter, I don’t know scales or own chord books just FYI. In AUM I set the input gain to 30% and in Overloud the master volume is at -7db, and my interface is at minimum. The rigs are completely unaltered, presented as Overloud has set them. It sounds cleaned up compared to my last clips where the input was in the red, but I still think it’s a bit gnarly. You can’t go wrong with any of these Fender rigs, and the Orange rig sounds really musical with plenty of headroom.

  • McDMcD
    edited September 2020

    TH-U = the worlds largest Guitar Candy IOS Software Store... with free samples.
    Thanks for selling me more clues on which barrels to pick from as I load my basket for
    checkout. So, far the I've been happy with:

    • Fun and R&B collection
    • American Classics Rig (selected due to price...)
    • ChopTones Stereo Reverb (better 1st choice for sumptuous Fender Cleans)
    • LynchBox Clean Amp (pristine highs for cleans that make you cry with the lack of fizz)

    Top of my list would be more of the LynchBoxes at $5 a pop (Tweed first).

    I focused on cleans but the TubeScreamer and turning up the gains gives me a massive
    palate of tones. I just don't know which metal tone is really the holy grail so the "close enoughs" impress me. I can still think I'm Eddie Van Halen with a few tweaks.

  • @McD said:
    TH-U = the worlds largest Guitar Candy IOS Software Store... with free samples.
    Thanks for selling me more clues on which barrels to pick from as I load my basket for
    checkout. So, far the I've been happy with:

    • Fun and R&B collection
    • American Classics Rig (selected due to price...)
    • ChopTones Stereo Reverb (better 1st choice for sumptuous Fender Cleans)
    • LynchBox Clean Amp (pristine highs for cleans that make you cry with the lack of fizz)

    Top of my list would be more of the LynchBoxes at $5 a pop (Tweed first).

    I focused on cleans but the TubeScreamer and turning up the gains gives me a massive
    palate of tones. I just don't know which metal tone is really the holy grail so the "close enoughs" impress me. I can still think I'm Eddie Van Halen with a few tweaks.

    Not trying to convince you or anything, but my favorite clean in the whole collection is the Randall T2 Clean. Big surprise for me. There’s also the T2 Overdrive and T2 Boost, and all together that’s my favorite amp. I’m trying to understand how they’re selling it, in the component store it’s $4.99 and just one Randall is showing, so does that mean you get all 3 Randalls for $4.99 or are the other channels only available in the full pack? Also the Randall Satan Rig is phenomenal for metal if that mattters, but it’s like 4-5 clean patches period and the rest is destruction. Considering the LynchBox amps as well, I think all the licensed Randall amps are a huge winner.

    In the funky pack you get the Jazz 12’o and the SingleMan which are both beautiful clean, and those free 10 rigs have some great metal sounds from the Peavey, and then the Overloud Prog presets in the demo bank. Glad you’re happy.

  • McDMcD
    edited September 2020

    I went back and gave another listen to the @flo26 OverLoud Clean demo comparison and decide the "Polyphase" Amp had qualities I like a lot... you can check it out around the 9:00 mark:

    It's got a nice mellow jazz tone - the background track features "Chris Standring" in the "Session Band Soul Jazz Funk I" app. I'm playing the clunky lead over it with:

    • TH-U with Digital ChorusFX + Polyphase + Digital Reverb + 2x12 Jazz 12'o Cabinet

  • Here is a setup that I like a lot -- great if you want to explore TH-U before deciding whether to invest. This uses two Darkface in series. You can get a range from clean to heavily overdriven. I use a compressor as a clean boost before the amp sim.

  • McDMcD
    edited September 2020

    @espiegel123 said:
    This uses two Darkface in series.

    Talk about an impedance mismatch... you're going to void the warranty on the downstream amp and maybe the upstream one too. If TH-U was real your iPad would emit smoke.

    I created a TH-U set up with 6 amps to be able to quickly turn them on/off to compare tone and TH-U get turning them on without my involvement. It's fun to create amp gumbo.

    TH-U has insane possibilities... permutations and combinations: "Math(s) Concepts for $50, Alex".

  • @McD said:

    @espiegel123 said:
    This uses two Darkface in series.

    Talk about an impedance mismatch... you're going to void the warranty on the downstream amp and maybe the upstream one too. If TH-U was real your iPad would emit smoke.

    🤯🤯🤯 Oh McD, so thankful I never had access to two amps and voided a warranty!

    But seriously, yeah, lots of wealthy professional guitarists use two (or more!) amps.

    Eric Johnson and Joe Bonamassa come to mind instantly, but there are many, many others.

    Often times they will blend a crystal clean amp with a crunchier amp like Marshall or Orange.

    Of course you and @espiegel123 have known that for decades, but perhaps others here do not. It will be interesting to see if more members experiment with this concept.

    I suspect @JoyceRoadStudios is well down the path! 🤗

    However, a warning. Please do not attempt this:

  • @McD said:
    It's got a nice mellow jazz tone - the background track features "Chris Standring" in the "Session Band Soul Jazz Funk I" app. I'm playing the clunky lead over it with:

    • TH-U with Digital ChorusFX + Polyphase + Digital Reverb + 2x12 Jazz 12'o Cabinet

    I like the mellow and honky quality of the sound, no doubt defined by the Jazz cab and the plate/room reverb you’re using. Sounds like you’re playing a hollowbody with a neck pickup, or at least something in the neck/middle position. A lot of these mellow and honky jazz sounds are achieved in the Overloud presets with the plate reverb, vca comp, varimu comp, CHR-2 pedal, Caliper Clean and Markus Clean amps, and the Jazz amp and Cab, so it seems like you’re very covered with the Funky Bundle. In fact the Top 30
    Bright and the Fender Tweed are not too far away from your sound either.

    I went through a few amps with my neck pickup and the Jazz cab, and the Polyphone is totally one of a kind in the collection so you were en pointe for picking it out. There is only one amp I found that’s most similar to it and that is the Lab5 Clean. It has that same mellow woolliness but it’s also very clean without any fretboard clank. The other was the Brit S. Bass with the drive turned down. It’s actually a guitar and bass amp not just for bass. Red frame also. The thing about Caliper, Markus, Randall, and especially the LynchBox tweed is you get more fretboard clank, whereas with the Lab5 and Polyphone you get almost none, and they’re both solid state amps which is perfect for that sound. If you’re looking for more of the same I think you’re almost covered and you could consider a few more cabs or fx, but if you’re looking for metal amps or Fendery tube amps that’s a whole other store. I’m not actually sure the Rigs have anything honky dark like that, maybe a solid state...

  • @JoyceRoadStudios said:
    Sounds like you’re playing a hollowbody with a neck pickup, or at least something in the neck/middle position.

    That amp is good because I want you to hear just that while I'm actually using a shit Mexican
    Telecaster through the neck "Lip Stick" single coil pick up. There's hardly a spec of resonance
    in that slab of wood but this Polyphase makes it sound like a Gibson or Gretsch hollow body expensive axe. When I heard @flo26's Luke sound like it was a jazz guitar I thought... damn, I need some of that. I actually have a PolyTone Amp in the garage with a big speaker. The model with the 2 button foot pedal for the Chorus activation. But, I'm 100% headphones
    these days.

  • @SNystrom said:
    But seriously, yeah, lots of wealthy professional guitarists use two (or more!) amps.

    Eric Johnson and Joe Bonamassa come to mind instantly, but there are many, many others.

    I'm glad you brought this up. OverLoud includes a 2 piece gadget:

    the 1st module has a cross-over that splits the signal into a high frequency and low frequency output.

    Then you can insert 2 amp models

    and into the 2 module that has a blending amp module to get back to a mono signal.

    So, you can make those massive tone complexes with just the right circuits for the right spectrum. Cool huh? Check it out. I think it's in the free set of devices to encourage you to need more amps.

    Many jazz players will spilt the signal and use 2 Fender Twin Reverbs so their stereo chorus
    sounds good to them standing on stage. Lee Ritenaur runs his stage set up that way. I saw him at a venue where I sat close enough to snap an iPhoto shot of his pedal board and the
    tech's notes on the back of his Les Paul and ES-335 mentioning the custom shop guy that made each one. I grew up near Lee and he surfaced as a teenager who played like a 40 year old jazz master and then could pick up a spanish guitar and play Segovia Etudes. I saw him
    for the first time at a cast party for the Disneyland Parade where I got my Xmas gigs as a toy solider in the 1970's. They paid us college kids scale for 8 hour days to do 2 parades that lasted 20 minutes each. Again... they had to pay 4 hours minimum and the parades were 6 hours apart. I would sneak out into the park and see the touring acts... like Count Basie's band. Good times.

  • @McD said:
    I'm glad you brought this up. OverLoud includes a 2 piece gadget:
    I think it's in the free set of devices to encourage you to need more amps.

    Yeah that makes perfect sense! 🤑

    Wow, what cool experiences you’ve had over your life!

    Thanks (as always) for the rig tips. Will be locked away in my humble studio for days once the Overloud sale arrives...

  • @SNystrom said:
    Thanks (as always) for the rig tips. Will be locked away in my humble studio for days once the Overloud sale arrives...

    I got an email from OverLoud announcing a sale... of 2 new Rigs... for the desktop. Arg.

  • edited September 2020

    @McD you’re a brave man calling the tele neck pickup a lipstick - on other forums you’d be eaten alive for that. Maybe you meant to say it was on your vintage Danelectro but please don’t tell me it’s a Charvel Surfcaster - I’ve always wanted the twelve string version of that and then I’d be jealous.

    https://reverb.com/news/a-guide-to-lipstick-pickups

    And thanks everyone for all the enthusiasm for TH-U. I’d kinda forgotten it was so good and I’m enjoying it all over again.

  • This is why I love hanging out here:

    Many people refer to the neck pickup of a Telecaster as a lipstick, but it is actually a traditional single coil with a bobbin and a metal cover.

    My favorite quote is from the Jaime Escalante bio picture "Stand and Deliver":

    They're not stupid. They just don't know anything.

    We are all stupid about something. Today it was Lipstick pick-ups. Tomorrow?
    Nothing ventured... nothing gained.

  • Hehe. I was only joshing. But don’t you love the story of lipstick pickups? They actually were made in lipstick cases because they got a job lot of them. And they are super simple inside - again to keep them cheap.

    I bought some a while ago to try out but I haven’t got around to it yet. I need to alter a guitar to take them first - they are a completely different size from anything else.

    I love that we debate software imitations of glowing metal in glass tubes so that some wire wrapped around magnets can melt our souls.

  • @qryss said:
    I love that we debate software imitations of glowing metal in glass tubes so that some wire wrapped around magnets can melt our souls.

    Did you know that the Magic Death Eye hardware guy wraps his own transformers to get a better sound out of his compressors?

  • @qryss said:
    Hehe. I was only joshing. But don’t you love the story of lipstick pickups? They actually were made in lipstick cases because they got a job lot of them. And they are super simple inside - again to keep them cheap.

    I bought some a while ago to try out but I haven’t got around to it yet. I need to alter a guitar to take them first - they are a completely different size from anything else.

    I love that we debate software imitations of glowing metal in glass tubes so that some wire wrapped around magnets can melt our souls.

    I have a Dano 63, bought in 2008, it’s the first reissue, black and white! Fabulous guitar with the lipstick pickups, light as a feather and I’ve used and kept it whist other have been passed on. Something about that guitar, it does remind me of a tele vibe In the bridge! These were only made for a year or so. The new versions have a sparkle finish and the pickups are modelled on the original that came with a case that doubled as an amp!

  • I was just doing some more testing with the amps and rigs and noticing that as good as they sound, the sound is generally much improved if I turn off the cabinet and use an IR cab (from the OwnHammer rEvolution collection).

    Do the cabinets that come with the amp bundles improve on the free ones?

    How about the rig bundles?

  • I’m getting into all this tomorrow afternoon, first the Cali, then the GL then TH! Just the free stuff from the latter two. Noticed an AC30 for free in the GL app. I’ll use the Dano plus the Variax standard for the experiments! I don’t have AUM so will use GB which is my favoured DAW. I did notice TH were using a Variax on some demos! I may plug in the 91 studio if I can pick it up, weight 13 pounds approx, as dense as a piano. Oh, I took a photo of the Dano but can’t seem to upload it, I tried but it just reverts back to google and the forum disappeared all ten times I tried??

  • @McD said:
    I went back and gave another listen to the @flo26 OverLoud Clean demo comparison and decide the "Polyphase" Amp had qualities I like a lot... you can check it out around the 9:00 mark:

    It's got a nice mellow jazz tone - the background track features "Chris Standring" in the "Session Band Soul Jazz Funk I" app. I'm playing the clunky lead over it with:

    • TH-U with Digital ChorusFX + Polyphase + Digital Reverb + 2x12 Jazz 12'o Cabinet

    Is the Polyphone in one of the amp bundles?

  • @espiegel123 said:
    I was just doing some more testing with the amps and rigs and noticing that as good as they sound, the sound is generally much improved if I turn off the cabinet and use an IR cab (from the OwnHammer rEvolution collection).

    Do the cabinets that come with the amp bundles improve on the free ones?

    How about the rig bundles?

    It looks like the actual real amps in the Rigs were captured using real cabinets as listed in the product description, and for the Rigs they’re using Overloud’s proprietary IRs. Plenty of people and reviewers have said they prefer using their own IRs and disabling Overloud’s. Same with Nembrini, plenty of people disable the cab/IR and use their own. I think it’s important to note that in iOS versions of Overloud and Nembrini the IRs can’t be adjusted at all, you have more parametric control with apps like Thafknar beyond just loading and switching IRs. Something that’s confusing to me is that the Overloud Rigs come as presets with matching cab, and even though you can switch the cab to the ones from other rig presets, aren’t they captured in tandem? So how free standing are the other cabs if they’re tied to capturing a certain preset. Is it the same as Nembrini where you have the free standing amp algorithm and can just cycle through all the IRs? Is the Rig player just a preset list of one amp captured with different cabs tweaked post, or is it many different captures of the same amp at different settings? It just seems like cabs/IRs from different presets could muddy the process....

    Generally the rig cabs sound a little wetter and tighter than the sim cabs, but it’s fun to disable the rig cab and add a sim cab instead, because the sim cabs have so much more adjusting that can be done, mic placement, ambience, angles, shelf filters, etc... Another fun experiment can be to use one of the amp sims but load the rig player and disable the amp and use only the cabinet from a purchased rig or one of the 10 free rigs.

    I haven’t gone through every combination but what makes the sim cabs special compared to the rig cabs is they all have unique character and tonal design, as well as tweakability, even if they’re emulations. The Carolina cab is RIDICULOUSLY good and the most unique in the collection, it has incredible presence that’s somehow not harsh, real woodiness, and it doesn’t muddy up or get too dark no matter what you do to it. It’s the most fun cab. Then you have the LynchBox cab which is the best of the 4x12s and makes every amp sound better and more responsive. The Brunetti cabs in all their sizes are also incredible, I think because Randall and Brunetti are licensed versions they are extra extra good. The 4x10 OB Tweed is also great both for guitar and bass. And the Jazz 12’o cab is unique. Like I said I haven’t heard every single one but plenty of them sound the same while some are instantly different and lovable. Depends on the sizes you’re looking for, I would imagine a 30 watt amp with a 4x12 would be as silly as a 120 watt amp with a 1x8, if that even matters in the sim world. The Rock and Metal bundles have a few great components between the two of them, but the Funk bundle might have the best lineup. You can always go the “Store” and click on each component individually and below it shows you which bundle it’s a part of. I think the Polyphone is only in the full pack. If I hadn’t bought everything already I would just wait for the full pack to go on sale for $80 or so, because I hear there’s no discount later if you buy pieces on the way. The actual best bang for the buck besides the full pack is the all FX bundle, for what you get. Maybe the Funk bundle and a Rig on sale as well.

    btw listening to my vids with different headphones on, there is obvious distortion and digital clipping I hadn’t noticed at all. Was not apparent with the 63 Ohm 7506s or even through iPad/iPhone speakers. I will re-record with lower input gain and re-post. It’s not just the interface it’s also the really hot les paul pickups that are mounted kind of high, my bass is not nearly as hot.

  • @JoyceRoadStudios : some odds-and-ends about cab IRS. For cab IRs, one normally wouldn’t really do any tweaking of parameters in THAFKNAR or other convolution app. So, I don’t being able to tweak convolution params matters for this.

    The Nembrini IRs are actually pretty good ... but you may have to go through them all to find one with the character you are after. I think people that have some go to IRs find that a hassle and will be inclined to go with ones they know. So far, Nembrini beats TH-U for me on the cab front... though I haven’t tried any rigs. With the Nembrini, I have found a cab for each that doesn’t make me feel like I need to replace it. I don’t own any bundles for TH-U. So maybe some of them would be as good. I picked up the polyphone... not realizing the cab was a separate purchase from the amp. I prefer one of my IRs to the Poly cab.

    As for capturing amps and IRs in tandem. You would want to capture them independently as your goal is to capture the characteristics of the individual components.

  • @espiegel123 said:
    @JoyceRoadStudios : some odds-and-ends about cab IRS. For cab IRs, one normally wouldn’t really do any tweaking of parameters in THAFKNAR or other convolution app. So, I don’t being able to tweak convolution params matters for this.

    The Nembrini IRs are actually pretty good ... but you may have to go through them all to find one with the character you are after. I think people that have some go to IRs find that a hassle and will be inclined to go with ones they know. So far, Nembrini beats TH-U for me on the cab front... though I haven’t tried any rigs. With the Nembrini, I have found a cab for each that doesn’t make me feel like I need to replace it. I don’t own any bundles for TH-U. So maybe some of them would be as good. I picked up the polyphone... not realizing the cab was a separate purchase from the amp. I prefer one of my IRs to the Poly cab.

    As for capturing amps and IRs in tandem. You would want to capture them independently as your goal is to capture the characteristics of the individual components.

    I get what you mean, didn’t realize you don’t want to touch the settings in convolution apps. I only have the HASR free pack in Thafknar and there’s just way too many to sift through, I don’t touch any settings but I see that you can. So you can load IRs into desktop versions of Nembrini and Overloud but they’re not to be tweaked? That only validates the Rig cabs as they’re presented.

    Can you get good Ownhammer packs into Thafknar if you don’t own a desktop or laptop?

    There’s are some Nembrini cabs that just sound too distant and muffled, but you’re right there are always a few that are keepers. It also doesn’t hurt that those amps are incredible.

    With the “10 free rigs for logged users” in Overloud you could get a real flavor of what rigs can do, and it gives access to a few of their IR cabs like Celestion Carol Ann or Peavey. As good as the amps were, the free rigs actually led me to buy more rigs, they sounded quite real. I sometimes put the rig player cabs after an amp sim too. Other times I use the Carolina and LynchBox cabs with all the amps. that Carolina cab is extremely unique, for a non IR.

  • @espiegel123 said:
    Is the Polyphone in one of the amp bundles?

    I don't think it's in the low cost bundles... too niche probably. I paid the $5 and didn't get it's Cab but there's a Cab for the Roland Jazz (that I got with the Funk and R&B bundle) that made logical sense. But all these Cab touches are just EQ shifts with the room reverb for me. I don't have years of live guitar experiences I want to re-capture. I have experiences listening to recorded guitars and that's what motivates me... I hear SRV or Jimi or BB King and my neurons fire off: "Get that one."

    Having a reasonable Cab inside the app is a lot less set up than dialing in ThAFKnAR for each set up. And there are plenty of Cab's that get close enough for my tastes.

    I noticed on the Nembrini site that ChopTones made the IR's they use in BST100.

    Anyone that took the OwnHammer route knows that a combo package gets you well over 100 different files to work through.

  • @JoyceRoadStudios : yes you can load ownhammer IRs into THAFKNAR without needing a desktop. I am not sure what about not tweaking IRs validates the overload cabs (which are ok but, imo, not as good as some of the IRs I have but certainly respectable ).

    Typically IR sets include IRs created with various placements and/or mics. I wish mine included some back of the cabinet options.

    Btw, I don't think one needs IRs with TH-U (heck I enjoyed the supplied free cabs fine but the IRs I have made me even happier).

    I plan to get some rigs if there's a sale on some of the bundles.

  • @espiegel123 said:
    @JoyceRoadStudios : yes you can load ownhammer IRs into THAFKNAR without needing a desktop. I am not sure what about not tweaking IRs validates the overload cabs (which are ok but, imo, not as good as some of the IRs I have but certainly respectable ).

    I simply meant that I thought only being able to load IRs but not being able to adjust parameters was a limiting factor, but that is not the case.

  • @espiegel123 said:
    I plan to get some rigs if there's a sale on some of the bundles.

    Don't wait for sales. Just pick one. These rigs may never go on sale and you'll never get to play.

  • I've had a go with TH-U and picked up the Funk bundle and Fender Edge rig, which came highly recommended. I have to say that I've been a little disappointed so far, though it's tough to say how much of that is due to frustration over my own crummy playing, user error, or other factors.

    Of the stuff I've tried so far, the Edge rigs were the most expensive purchase, but also probably the best tones I've been able to quickly achieve.

    But I find the U.I. in the app pretty disorienting. I'm not exactly a gear novice - I've owned 100+ pedals, and have played through a lot of different tube/modeling combo amps. And I've used iOS modelers for guitar, in some form, since around 2013. My current "primary" way to play is with the Line6 HX Stomp. That's a $600, yes, but one that has replaced $1000's of other gear, and I really was hoping for an experience pretty close to that with various guitar apps in AUv3.

    TH-U's layout was leading me to do incredibly silly things. I was listening to heads, thinking they were combo amps, so the resulting lack of cab simulation was predictably terrible. Once I figured out the preamp + cab issue, there was still quite a bit of fizziness through my head phones (Beyerdynamic DT 880 PRO's). On HX Stomp, you also come across this at times, but the solution is usually to adjust the lo/hi cut to eliminate extreme frequencies. Not sure if I'm missing something similar on TH-U.

    My levels are also all screwed up. I'm using a Apogee JAM, which has generally served me well. But I feel like i have the gain slider almost all the way down on that thing, in order not to clip into TH-U. Neither my input or output levels ever seem to be clipping, yet the sound quality sounds as if I am clipping, if that makes sense.

    The THU-U and Nembrini apps were probably only going to be a secondary option for me anyway, but I'm definitely going to need to sort this out before I invest any more money into iOS effects or amp purchases. (I was blown away that Eventide was selling FX algorithms for $10 to $20 in AUv3 - very tempting). But so far, while there are some good tones, the clean/tube amps aren't there for me. Someone above mentioned Flying Haggis - that was by no means a "premium amp", but I swear that (now-abandoned) amp had better tube-like response and saturation than a lot of the stuff I've tried.

    Not trying to be negative here - I trust that a lot of people have had great experiences with this stuff, and I still might as well. But I feel almost obligated to share some of the pitfalls/limitations so that there is some balance to the (overwhelmingly) positive experiences for paid content.

  • edited September 2020

    @StormJH1 said:
    I've had a go with TH-U and picked up the Funk bundle and Fender Edge rig, which came highly recommended. I have to say that I've been a little disappointed so far, though it's tough to say how much of that is due to frustration over my own crummy playing, user error, or other factors.

    Of the stuff I've tried so far, the Edge rigs were the most expensive purchase, but also probably the best tones I've been able to quickly achieve.

    But I find the U.I. in the app pretty disorienting. I'm not exactly a gear novice - I've owned 100+ pedals, and have played through a lot of different tube/modeling combo amps. And I've used iOS modelers for guitar, in some form, since around 2013. My current "primary" way to play is with the Line6 HX Stomp. That's a $600, yes, but one that has replaced $1000's of other gear, and I really was hoping for an experience pretty close to that with various guitar apps in AUv3.

    TH-U's layout was leading me to do incredibly silly things. I was listening to heads, thinking they were combo amps, so the resulting lack of cab simulation was predictably terrible. Once I figured out the preamp + cab issue, there was still quite a bit of fizziness through my head phones (Beyerdynamic DT 880 PRO's). On HX Stomp, you also come across this at times, but the solution is usually to adjust the lo/hi cut to eliminate extreme frequencies. Not sure if I'm missing something similar on TH-U.

    My levels are also all screwed up. I'm using a Apogee JAM, which has generally served me well. But I feel like i have the gain slider almost all the way down on that thing, in order not to clip into TH-U. Neither my input or output levels ever seem to be clipping, yet the sound quality sounds as if I am clipping, if that makes sense.

    The THU-U and Nembrini apps were probably only going to be a secondary option for me anyway, but I'm definitely going to need to sort this out before I invest any more money into iOS effects or amp purchases. (I was blown away that Eventide was selling FX algorithms for $10 to $20 in AUv3 - very tempting). But so far, while there are some good tones, the clean/tube amps aren't there for me. Someone above mentioned Flying Haggis - that was by no means a "premium amp", but I swear that (now-abandoned) amp had better tube-like response and saturation than a lot of the stuff I've tried.

    Not trying to be negative here - I trust that a lot of people have had great experiences with this stuff, and I still might as well. But I feel almost obligated to share some of the pitfalls/limitations so that there is some balance to the (overwhelmingly) positive experiences for paid content.

    I think there have been others that have complained about the Apogee Jam signal being too hot at even the lowest settings. Have you tried TH-U with any other audio interface and if so have you had different results. I’ve been on the fence about making an investment in the full version or at the very least, some rigs. I’m trying to gather as much info as I can to help in that decision.

  • @StormJH1 said:
    I've had a go with TH-U and picked up the Funk bundle and Fender Edge rig, which came highly recommended. I have to say that I've been a little disappointed so far, though it's tough to say how much of that is due to frustration over my own crummy playing, user error, or other factors.

    Of the stuff I've tried so far, the Edge rigs were the most expensive purchase, but also probably the best tones I've been able to quickly achieve.

    But I find the U.I. in the app pretty disorienting. I'm not exactly a gear novice - I've owned 100+ pedals, and have played through a lot of different tube/modeling combo amps. And I've used iOS modelers for guitar, in some form, since around 2013. My current "primary" way to play is with the Line6 HX Stomp. That's a $600, yes, but one that has replaced $1000's of other gear, and I really was hoping for an experience pretty close to that with various guitar apps in AUv3.

    TH-U's layout was leading me to do incredibly silly things. I was listening to heads, thinking they were combo amps, so the resulting lack of cab simulation was predictably terrible. Once I figured out the preamp + cab issue, there was still quite a bit of fizziness through my head phones (Beyerdynamic DT 880 PRO's). On HX Stomp, you also come across this at times, but the solution is usually to adjust the lo/hi cut to eliminate extreme frequencies. Not sure if I'm missing something similar on TH-U.

    My levels are also all screwed up. I'm using a Apogee JAM, which has generally served me well. But I feel like i have the gain slider almost all the way down on that thing, in order not to clip into TH-U. Neither my input or output levels ever seem to be clipping, yet the sound quality sounds as if I am clipping, if that makes sense.

    The THU-U and Nembrini apps were probably only going to be a secondary option for me anyway, but I'm definitely going to need to sort this out before I invest any more money into iOS effects or amp purchases. (I was blown away that Eventide was selling FX algorithms for $10 to $20 in AUv3 - very tempting). But so far, while there are some good tones, the clean/tube amps aren't there for me. Someone above mentioned Flying Haggis - that was by no means a "premium amp", but I swear that (now-abandoned) amp had better tube-like response and saturation than a lot of the stuff I've tried.

    Not trying to be negative here - I trust that a lot of people have had great experiences with this stuff, and I still might as well. But I feel almost obligated to share some of the pitfalls/limitations so that there is some balance to the (overwhelmingly) positive experiences for paid content.

    Me, the Flying Haggis! By far the best I’ve heard! I’ve had to stop my testing today as my wife landed me with an out of date MOT on her car, she’s gone to Manchester and I’ve got that car to sort out!
    I was bought up with valve amps, no trickery just plug in and that’s that. For the life of me I can’t get anywhere nr it with digital, but the dearly departed Flying Haggis had me closer than anything since, no idea why? I’m maybe asking to much, most of these fabulous amps I used are now Around 40 to 50 years old! I’ve got none left, but I do kinda like the Boss Kantana 100 v2 which I do have, not bad at all for a digital! Still got the Tiny Terror and the Jet City Soldano 20, hardly vintage mind you! Anyway I’m not happy about an extinct MOT from July!

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