Who would be considered the "Toontrack" of IR?

[optofonik]

I used Toontrack Superior libraries for my drums and I'm curious as to any company that produces IRs at the same quality level.

[spikey]

Yea there's a few. I own them all so just going by what I've listened to and not hear-say. XLN Audio is another Company you might like, good quality drums there. Then there's fxPansion's BFD-3. Native Instruments has a few drum programs too. And last but not leased, Steinberg has one called Groove Agent and is a monster! Slate Drums 5 is not bad either. ; )

 

LOL just figured out you weren't asking about other drum programs... Sorry ; ) To answer that Id say the Line-6 speaker emulations inside of Helix are pretty much top-shelf. I loaded a few in when I first got Helix,and then just used what was in the box. Now with the Speaker emulations in the "Powercab +'s" I have all the speaker tones I can ever use/need.

 

[DunedinDragon]

I think this is an apples to oranges comparison.  The samplers used on drums and keyboards is a thousand times more complex than an IR.  Suffice it to say I think any of the major companies producing IRs will do a fine job of capturing the IR itself.  What varies significantly is how broad their selection of cabinets, mics and mic combination/positions are.  At this point Ownhammer seems to be the one that captures most of the attention in the marketplace as they have a fairly broad selection and are easily used, but there are others like Redwirez that are VERY deep in not only the type of speaker cabinets they offer, range of mics, mic positions, but also provide utilities that allow you to combine and build your own IRs by combining fundamental IRs into more complex IRs if you're really into doing that kind of stuff.

In a way I guess Toontrack Superior Drummer would compare well with Ownhammer in it's mass appeal and ease of use whereas Redwirez would compare with something like Superior Drummer with it's extensive capabilities for modifying the details of your kit and extensive library of beats, but not as easy to use and deploy.

[gunpointmetal]

ML Sound Labs. (big period)

[themetallikid]

I've recently been using the York Audio IRs, been redoing my core tones with them.  

[Heavyville]

this subjective and depends. 

 

I prefer ML soundlabs Mikko plugin.    I prefer to craft my IR's to each amp and recording.   Although the catalog for this plug in is new, so selection of speakers / cabs is smaller at this time.   but essentially all the "classics" are there.   

Ownhammer has good stuff too. 

I don't mind the L6 cabs, but tend to use custom IR's. 

 

although i'm a toontrack guy mostly, there are plenty of drum libraries out there with really good quality as well.    its how you use it that really matters. 

 

good luck. 

 

[optofonik]

Apparent;y there is a "like limit" so I'll just say thanks to everyone. I feel like I've got a good foundation to start mucking about with IRs when the time comes. I especially like the idea of being able to customize them.

[bypassvalve]

Redwirez and MixIR3 is the Toontrack of IRs, it's not a folder of seven billion wav files you have to dig through, you get a Cab Module similar to what's in the Helix, with mics and mic positions that you can mix and adjust. There is also power amp settings for power amp impedance interaction, different for each Cab Module, and a bass knob that simulates having the cab close to the wall or farther away from the wall. 

 

There are also parametric EQ and Reflection modules that you can add to the Cab Module chain, to add EQ and add small or large room reflections to the Cab Module, then you can shorten the IR length down to a set length IR from Zero ms up to infinity, so you can hear how it will sound when it's cut down to the Helix 2048 sample length (~42ms), then you can export all of that out as either LR stereo IRs or one mono IR, however you want to do it. It's like the Mikko plugin where you roll your own IR, but a lot more surgical, and way better fidelity in the lows and highs when it's running at full length. If you already have BigBox, the upgrade is not only worth it, it's priceless. You can even load in your own IRs, then use the EQ module and Reflection module to process the IR you loaded, then trim it down, then print that as a brand new IR. It's amazing. 

[optofonik]

 

6 hours ago, bypassvalve said:

Redwirez and MixIR3 is the Toontrack of IRs, it's not a folder of seven billion wav files you have to dig through, you get a Cab Module similar to what's in the Helix, with mics and mic positions that you can mix and adjust. There is also power amp settings for power amp impedance interaction, different for each Cab Module, and a bass knob that simulates having the cab close to the wall or farther away from the wall. 

 

There are also parametric EQ and Reflection modules that you can add to the Cab Module chain, to add EQ and add small or large room reflections to the Cab Module, then you can shorten the IR length down to a set length IR from Zero ms up to infinity, so you can hear how it will sound when it's cut down to the Helix 2048 sample length (~42ms), then you can export all of that out as either LR stereo IRs or one mono IR, however you want to do it. It's like the Mikko plugin where you roll your own IR, but a lot more surgical, and way better fidelity in the lows and highs when it's running at full length. If you already have BigBox, the upgrade is not only worth it, it's priceless. You can even load in your own IRs, then use the EQ module and Reflection module to process the IR you loaded, then trim it down, then print that as a brand new IR. It's amazing. 

 

Holy cow, sometimes you ask a question and you don't even know what you're asking; seriously, I'm having a flashback to the early days of the WWW. This looks like an amazing piece of software. It really does appear to follow the TT technical and UI motif.
 

It took me awhile to warm up to the more "left brain" approach of SD2 but I grew to appreciate the nostalgia for, and resurgence of, my right brain. I'm going to check out the Redwirez samples.

 

If these cats ever do an IR library for the HX Stomp/Effects I might be the first in line.