Amp Listening Challenge 1

socialleper

socialleper

Bringer of doom and top shelf beer
May 31, 2009
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#1
Here's the challenge:
The recording below is of three amps; one is a Mesa Subway D800, one is a Mesa Carbine M9, and the other is a Aguilar DB751. Try to figure out what order these amps are in and post your guess. Sub so you can see when I post the results this Friday.
Comment on which one you like the most as well.
The playing isn't 100%, it is just a practice exercise I set to a drum loop (EZ Drummer.)

Chain:
Spector Euro 5XL -> Amp? DI (flat EQ) -> Focusrite interface -> Studio one (Aguilar 810 cab IR) -> T-RackS Stealth Limiter (for mastering\volume purposes.)



UPDATE:
I made this one with no IRs, and no mastering. Let's see if that makes it easier.
 
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#3
socialleper said:
Here's the challenge:
The recording below is of three amps; one is a Mesa Subway D800, one is a Mesa Carbine M9, and the other is a Aguilar DB751. Try to figure out what order these amps are in and post your guess. Sub so you can see when I post the results this Friday.
Comment on which one you like the most as well.
The playing isn't 100%, it is just a practice exercise I set to a drum loop (EZ Drummer.)

Chain:
Spector Euro 5XL -> Amp? DI (flat EQ) -> Focusrite interface -> Studio one (Aguilar 810 cab IR) -> T-RackS Stealth Limiter (for mastering\volume purposes.)

Click to expand...

metron said:
M9 > DB751 > D800

I like the sound of the first one best. It has the most clarity.
Click to expand...

What he said!
 
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#4
socialleper said:
Here's the challenge:
The recording below is of three amps; one is a Mesa Subway D800, one is a Mesa Carbine M9, and the other is a Aguilar DB751. Try to figure out what order these amps are in and post your guess. Sub so you can see when I post the results this Friday.
Comment on which one you like the most as well.
The playing isn't 100%, it is just a practice exercise I set to a drum loop (EZ Drummer.)

Chain:
Spector Euro 5XL -> Amp? DI (flat EQ) -> Focusrite interface -> Studio one (Aguilar 810 cab IR) -> T-RackS Stealth Limiter (for mastering\volume purposes.)

Click to expand...


I don't have the slightest idea of which is which, but the first amp sounds pretty awesome through the whole recording, and 2 and 3 get progressively worse. 2 and 3 are actually pretty close for the first half of the lick, but 3 mushes out a bit more on the second half. I would be curious if the live sound of the amps live parallels the recorded results.
 
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#5
Wasnex said:
I don't have the slightest idea of which is which, but the first amp sounds pretty awesome through the whole recording, and 2 and 3 get progressively worse. 2 and 3 are actually pretty close for the first half of the lick, but 3 mushes out a bit more on the second half. I would be curious if the live sound of the amps live parallels the recorded results.
Click to expand...
Set flat, 2 and 3 aren't the most lively. I was surprised by that.
 
#8
If IRs (or no IRs) make a difference in which amp you prefer, perhaps what you are selecting is IR combinations rather than one amp over another?
 
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#9
agedhorse said:
If IRs (or no IRs) make a difference in which amp you prefer, perhaps what you are selecting is IR combinations rather than one amp over another?
Click to expand...

IMHO the IR improves amp 1 and degrades amp 2 and 3. I don't necessarily find this suprising. I have a relatively large amp collection and the right amp/cab pairing can make a huge difference. I have three types of speakers: Genz Benz 1288T, Green Boy Dually loaded with Faital 15PR400s, and some home made TL405 cabs loaded with EVM18Bs. I can't get fabulous tone out of all of these speakers, but it definitely helps to select the right amp. The Dually is the most picky and the 1288T is the least.
 
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#10
socialleper said:
@Wasnex @matt11 @metron
I added a second version that has doesn't have an IR, and I didn't do any mastering to raise the volume.
Tell me if it makes a difference.
Click to expand...

It definitely makes a difference. I think I still like one the best, 2 not so much, and 3 is improved in the second clip.

M9 > D800 > DB751?

Cool bass line btw. Sounds like a Spector. I'm surprised you aren't getting more posts here.
 
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#12
metron said:
It definitely makes a difference. I think I still like one the best, 2 not so much, and 3 is improved in the second clip.

M9 > D800 > DB751?

Cool bass line btw. Sounds like a Spector. I'm surprised you aren't getting more posts here.
Click to expand...

Amp 3 sounds like it may be pushed over the edge just a bit too much. I think Amp 3 might have a bit better tonal balance than amp 1 without the IR, but it still mushes out a little bit in the second half of the lick. The IR really seems to accentuate the mush, and it's definitely better without the IR.

Amp 1 is super articulate for the entire riff which I really like, but it's also a bit thin without the IR. By far my favorite with the IR engaged.

Without the IR, it's really hard to say which is best for sure without hearing the bass in the context of a full mix. I suspect I would prefer 1 for my stage sound, but 3 may lay in the mix a bit better. It could go either way to be honest.

Amp 2 sounds like it has an LPF with the IR engaged, and is virtually unusable (IMHO). It's better in the second track, but still my least favorite.

This makes me want a Spector 6-String :woot:.
 
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#13
agedhorse said:
If IRs (or no IRs) make a difference in which amp you prefer, perhaps what you are selecting is IR combinations rather than one amp over another?
Click to expand...
My concern was that the IR was masking too much of the amp's inherent tone and keeping them from guessing. Perhaps coloring the tone too much.
When I played all three of these through an amp, the results to my ears wasn't far off from what I hear in this demo.
I also didn't "master" it for volume, which usually means using a limiter or compression, which can skew dynamics.
 
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#17
metron said:
It definitely makes a difference. I think I still like one the best, 2 not so much, and 3 is improved in the second clip.

M9 > D800 > DB751?

Cool bass line btw. Sounds like a Spector. I'm surprised you aren't getting more posts here.
Click to expand...
It is a Spector Euro 5LX 2015 Limited Ed. Its my #1 right now.
When I EQ it the way I like, with a B7k or X7, it is super grindy.
The riff is an exercise from the Alex Webster book. Traverses 3 strings and each part has a slightly different rhythm; it is very good for building speed.
 
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#18
Huh. Now without the IRs I think I prefer sample 3. 1 might still be better in a dense mix. With the IRs I thought 2 and 3 sounded kind of similar, so figured maybe those for Mesa, and since I never found my db750 murky at all, back when I had one, I thought maybe sample 1 was the DB. Now I really have no idea.

socialleper said:
Here's the challenge:
The recording below is of three amps; one is a Mesa Subway D800, one is a Mesa Carbine M9, and the other is a Aguilar DB751. Try to figure out what order these amps are in and post your guess. Sub so you can see when I post the results this Friday.
Comment on which one you like the most as well.
The playing isn't 100%, it is just a practice exercise I set to a drum loop (EZ Drummer.)

Chain:
Spector Euro 5XL -> Amp? DI (flat EQ) -> Focusrite interface -> Studio one (Aguilar 810 cab IR) -> T-RackS Stealth Limiter (for mastering\volume purposes.)



UPDATE:
I made this one with no IRs, and no mastering. Let's see if that makes it easier.
Click to expand...
 
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#19
socialleper said:
It is a Spector Euro 5LX 2015 Limited Ed. Its my #1 right now.
When I EQ it the way I like, with a B7k or X7, it is super grindy.
The riff is an exercise from the Alex Webster book. Traverses 3 strings and each part has a slightly different rhythm; it is very good for building speed.
Click to expand...

Sounds great! Wow I had no idea Alex had a book. Published 8 years ago I see. I'm clearly out of the loop. :D

Good luck with your amp choice. They are all good options and really come down to what performance capability you need and can you schlep it if it's heavy. I've had all of them except DB750 instead of 751 and an M6 instead of an M9. Of the group I miss the M6 the most. The problem with the M6 and DB amps was the EQ wasn't as flexible as I wanted. I assume that's wouldn't be an issue with the M9 graphic though.
 
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#20
I'm thinking Aguilar > Mesa > Mesa.

I liked the tone of #1 best and I've liked every Aguilar demo I've heard. I can't say I'm educated in Mesa amps much (apart from Dual Rectifier, Mark V, etc), but 2 and 3 both sounded like they had a similar underlying tone.
 
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