Free IRs

[aleclee]

Just got my HX this week and have been going back through my IR stash, auditioning them on the new device.  My favorites are the 

• Tonic IRs: I'm particularly fond of the Bogner cabs in this set
• Taylor CE: If you try these, you might decide that an acoustic sim block isn't such an urgent need

Here are some other sets I have.  I don't like 'em as much as the Tonic ones but YMMV.

• Guitar Hack IRs
• Guitar Cab Impulses
• Kathallen Cabs

Anyone else have IRs they'd like to share?

[HonestOpinion]

Lots more here: http://line6.com/support/topic/17076-links-for-free-impulse-responses-ir-here/?hl=free+impulse

[Doug6String]

IRs are a topic I love, but others might be sick of it. I'm still a Helix newbie at about 2 months owning one and I didn't know what an IR was until buying the Helix. I'll check out the first two you you listed since I already have the others. I'm in the group that definitely thinks using IRs gives a better sound than the stock Helix cabs(IRs), although I have a couple presets I made with Helix cabs to get a specific sound (a bit darker). I'm a fan of the RedWires IRs. I also bought OwnHammer and 3Sigma and downloaded a ton from links on this Forum. RedWires has a free Marshall set of IRs you can try, and I liked that and bought a bunch more. Many find ear fatigue going through the zillion options they provide, so I read their instructions and so far have mostly used their recommended mics, distances and pairings. For my ears, their recommendations cover the tones I can get using most of their other IRs (for a particular speaker and cab) with diff mics and distances, based on some direct comparisons I did, solely by my pref. A sound I really like and use a lot is using their Fender Twin IRs (SM57 for more high end) with an Engle IR (R121, I think, for more low end). I use this paring with the Interstate Zed (with tweaked settings) as a baseline for my clean sound. It's all so subjective but the number of options with the Helix and IRs is amazing and I have the time to explore that, so it's great fun!

[aleclee]

Here's a quick and sloppy clip of a preset I created using one of the Taylor IRs I mentioned in my free IR thread.  No piezos used here, just one of the in-between positions on my Strandberg.

 

http://www.aleclee.rocks/media/FauxcousticHX.mp3

 

link

[Doug6String]

Very nice!  I see what you mean on maybe not needing an acoustic sim.  Among my many, I have a Godin that only use with a Roland GR20 synth to add color to my music, but the Godin has piezos and is set up to sound like an acoustic (it's OK, not great).  I may try that with that Taylor IRs for fun.  I did download them - thanks.

[zooey]

Not to be a jerk, but while that's a nice enough tone, it doesn't remind me much of an acoustic guitar. That's what it's intended to be, right?

[aleclee]

At the risk of turning this into a "Let's define 'acoustic' guitar sounds" discussion, what's missing for you?  Is it the sound of "air" in the body?  The ADSR? Cues such as handling noise? 

 

I'd never claim that an IR-based approach would work for nylon string simulation because the attack is so much different than with steel strings but as "acoustic simulators" go, I think using the acoustic IR of choice gets you there about as well as anything else.

[DunedinDragon]

At the risk of turning this into a "Let's define 'acoustic' guitar sounds" discussion, what's missing for you?  Is it the sound of "air" in the body?  The ADSR? Cues such as handling noise? 

 

I'd never claim that an IR-based approach would work for nylon string simulation because the attack is so much different than with steel strings but as "acoustic simulators" go, I think using the acoustic IR of choice gets you there about as well as anything else.

 

I think it might be passable in the context of a full band, but I think some of the characteristics of a solid body limit the amount of depth the sound has.  It makes me wonder how it might sound with a hollow body electric.

[aleclee]

I think it might be passable in the context of a full band, but I think some of the characteristics of a solid body limit the amount of depth the sound has.  It makes me wonder how it might sound with a hollow body electric.

 

Personally, I don't care for too much body sound in my acoustic tone so a preset I dial isn't going to have a ton of that character.  IME working with IRs as acoustic sims, you can dial in more body sound / "air" by boosting around 400Hz.  The effect varies from IR to IR but if you're looking for a bit more of that, it can help quite a bit.  

 

It's fun to speculate but if you have the time, download the IRs linked above. It's pretty easy to try it yourself and see what works and doesn't work.