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Hatsubai « Far from a real metal amp sim »
Published on 06/24/11 at 05:29I play in a few death metal bands, and I consider myself a pretty solid metal guitarist. I know what to look for when it comes to metal tones, and I'm always looking for some sort of modeler that can produce those famous 5150, Recto, Savage 120, etc. tones. This modelers attempts to do those, but it fails miserably. The program works by getting an interface, plugging your guitar into that interface and plugging the interface into the computer. You then just load up the stand alone application or enable the VST in your favorite DAW. I never experienced any compatibility issues, so no problems there. The manual is probably clear, but I never read it. Everything is real simple to access and get to know, but there are a few odd things. Just mess around and you'll be able to get it in no time.
SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE
The biggest issue with this is the tone. There are some seriously problems with what these guys think a good metal tone is. It's super scooped and totally buzzy. I have no clue how they thought that's the metal tone everybody wants. On top of that, it's very stiff and doesn't give like a normal tube amp does. This causes issues when trying to do lead lines especially. If you're constantly fighting the sim, you're not going to be able to play to your fullest potential. I didn't experience any stability issues with this like I did some of the other programs, so they at least fixed that problem. It takes up a little bit of memory, but most of today's computers should be able to handle it no problem.
OVERALL OPINION
The program is thin, buzzy and pretty sterile. It might work in some sort of grindcore or experimental hardcore punk/crust band, but there's no way I could get it to work for the type of metal that I play. It just sounded too fake and felt even worse. There are better free options out there for those that want to try them.
SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE
The biggest issue with this is the tone. There are some seriously problems with what these guys think a good metal tone is. It's super scooped and totally buzzy. I have no clue how they thought that's the metal tone everybody wants. On top of that, it's very stiff and doesn't give like a normal tube amp does. This causes issues when trying to do lead lines especially. If you're constantly fighting the sim, you're not going to be able to play to your fullest potential. I didn't experience any stability issues with this like I did some of the other programs, so they at least fixed that problem. It takes up a little bit of memory, but most of today's computers should be able to handle it no problem.
OVERALL OPINION
The program is thin, buzzy and pretty sterile. It might work in some sort of grindcore or experimental hardcore punk/crust band, but there's no way I could get it to work for the type of metal that I play. It just sounded too fake and felt even worse. There are better free options out there for those that want to try them.