Billy86 Posted March 28, 2023 Share Posted March 28, 2023 Would love to hear thoughts/experiences with IR loaders. 90% of what I’m looking to leverage are Acoustic Guitar IRs. Also, various studio/venue/room/hall IRs I could use as a “common space” to put a mix in. I’ve watched video tutorials on how to use, but one thing I’m unclear on is… they all seem to focus on running through amp/cabs, mic’s with certain mics in certain spaces. I don’t necessarily want to run acoustic guitar IRs through amps/cabs. For example there are nice acoustic guitar IRs out there, say Gibson Hummingbird with nice and clean tone. Can I run those and ambient IRs through ANY IR loader? Or are some geared toward amplified instruments? Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Tim Posted March 28, 2023 Share Posted March 28, 2023 IRs are both kind of EQ snapshots (thus the cab emulation thing), and time based snapshots (eg: reverb, echoes, etc.), and can be both things at the same time. I usually use reverb IRs to simulate rooms or even vintage reverb units, and I'm always using them on my guitar sims - that's the absolute key for getting a great tone; the better your speaker sound (real mic, or IR) the better your guitar tone will be. If you're purely talking about EQ style IRs, check out NadIR, which is free. Libra is also on there, and is nuts, but it's a paid VST. You'd typically run these on the track itself with the wet/dry set to 100% wet. There was a great chat about reverb based IRs in THIS THREAD. This sounds more like what you're after, and you'd use them like any other reverb, eg: as a send, or adjusting the wet/dry blend if you're dropping it into a track. It's really going to come down to how you plan to use these things as to what's going to work best, I think. You might find layering them is a good thing - so you'd find a short slapback IR with a particular EQ curve might be good to insert onto your track itself to shape the sound and put it in a basic space, and then running another IR as a send to get the full room sound to blend in. Can't hurt to experiment! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Walton Posted March 29, 2023 Share Posted March 29, 2023 On 3/28/2023 at 12:48 PM, Billy86 said: Would love to hear thoughts/experiences with IR loaders. 90% of what I’m looking to leverage are Acoustic Guitar IRs. Also, various studio/venue/room/hall IRs I could use as a “common space” to put a mix in. I’ve watched video tutorials on how to use, but one thing I’m unclear on is… they all seem to focus on running through amp/cabs, mic’s with certain mics in certain spaces. I don’t necessarily want to run acoustic guitar IRs through amps/cabs. For example there are nice acoustic guitar IRs out there, say Gibson Hummingbird with nice and clean tone. Can I run those and ambient IRs through ANY IR loader? Or are some geared toward amplified instruments? Thank you! Download meldas mconvolutionez it is a free ir loader and works great for acoustic IRs, reverb irs, and also any other ir such as guitar and mic cabs. I use the paid mconvolutionmb but the free ez one is great Any IR loader will work, but not all of them are created equal. The Melda ones I like as it is really easy to switch between irs as you preview them, and the latency is next to nothing, and great sound quality that doesn't downsample or truncate 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mettelus Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 To add briefly to the above for clarification, an IR curve is basically the structural response (resonance) of a sound impulse to isolate a specific physical setting (acoustic guitar body, guitar cab, room, etc.). They are then used in convolution reverbs to better replicate that setup. In that regard, acoustic/cab IRs are identical, just what they capture (why using more than one IR is not a bad thing). Acoustic IRs are focused on replicating the body of a guitar, and work wonders when doing acoustic work off an electric pickup (piezo especially), so that will give you a better Hummingbird sound, but you may still need to add another IR to get the playback mechanism/room response. Always work from instrument->environment with reverbs and be light-handed in their effect the further out you get. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billy86 Posted March 30, 2023 Author Share Posted March 30, 2023 Thanks all! So… anyone used any acoustic IRs they like? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Phillips Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 56 minutes ago, Billy86 said: Thanks all! So… anyone used any acoustic IRs they like? I know nothing about acoustic guitar IRs or IR loaders. So, when I wanted something to use for mixing acoustic guitar DI tracks I record, I remembered someone, on this forum I thing, recommended 3 Sigma Audio Gibs-45 IRs. I bought those and the 3 Sigma Audio Impulsive IR loader VST. I've been generally happy with them. I haven't really tried any other acoustic guitar IRs. I did try using Ignite Amps free NadIR loader which works fine but doesn't seem to work as well on my 3 Sigma Audio Gibs-45 IRs as 3 Sigma's Impulsive. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Walton Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 3 hours ago, Billy86 said: Thanks all! So… anyone used any acoustic IRs they like? Sadly this isn't the way it works with Acoustic IRs The IR that works best with my Taylor 814 with Matrix pick up could sound like absolute garbage with your guitar (with a different pickup and body shape) Look first for an IR created wtih the exact same pickup system you have, then also experiment. I'd start here and use filters to see what might match http://acousticir.free.fr/spip.php?rubrique2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Phillips Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 3 hours ago, Brian Walton said: Sadly this isn't the way it works with Acoustic IRs The IR that works best with my Taylor 814 with Matrix pick up could sound like absolute garbage with your guitar (with a different pickup and body shape) Look first for an IR created wtih the exact same pickup system you have, then also experiment. I'd start here and use filters to see what might match http://acousticir.free.fr/spip.php?rubrique2 I still haven't done any research on this but here's a long, and a little dated, thread by folks who apparently have. @msmcleod starts the discussion saying that the 3 Sigma Audio IR's are made for use on any acoustic guitar which is why i decided to buy the one i mentioned in my earlier post on this tthread. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Walton Posted March 30, 2023 Share Posted March 30, 2023 54 minutes ago, Bill Phillips said: I still haven't done any research on this but here's a long, and a little dated, thread by folks who apparently have. @msmcleod starts the discussion saying that the 3 Sigma Audio IR's are made for use on any acoustic guitar which is why i decided to buy the one i mentioned in my earlier post on this tthread. Yes, you will notice in that same thread I also speak up about the fact an IR to work well with acustic is about how well it matches the source (i.e. pickup system used during the capture process and 2nd the response - usually dicated by things like shape, construction and woods of the guitar. What they have done is try to create even more IRs than usual for you to pick from to get that match with more pickups on the market. From their own website you can see how they suggest like I'm also saying, that is quite important If someone isn't getting a ton of IRs, the point would be to make sure they match what you have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Phillips Posted March 31, 2023 Share Posted March 31, 2023 4 hours ago, Brian Walton said: If someone isn't getting a ton of IRs, the point would be to make sure they match what you have. Unless there are no IRs for the guitar you have Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Walton Posted March 31, 2023 Share Posted March 31, 2023 6 hours ago, Bill Phillips said: Unless there are no IRs for the guitar you have Finding an exact match can be unlikely. But unless you have a pretty cheap acoustic good chance there is some capture using one of the standard pickup systems. Back to my point two, experiment. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starship Krupa Posted March 31, 2023 Share Posted March 31, 2023 What, no love for the REmatrix Solo found in Cakewalk's ProChannel? I have no idea myself how it stacks up as an IR loader, but hey, it has handy and free going for it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billy86 Posted March 31, 2023 Author Share Posted March 31, 2023 22 hours ago, Bill Phillips said: I know nothing about acoustic guitar IRs or IR loaders. So, when I wanted something to use for mixing acoustic guitar DI tracks I record, I remembered someone, on this forum I thing, recommended 3 Sigma Audio Gibs-45 IRs. I bought those and the 3 Sigma Audio Impulsive IR loader VST. I've been generally happy with them. I haven't really tried any other acoustic guitar IRs. I did try using Ignite Amps free NadIR loader which works fine but doesn't seem to work as well on my 3 Sigma Audio Gibs-45 IRs as 3 Sigma's Impulsive. Yes… 3 Sigma is one of the more comprehensive acoustic IR developers I’ve come across. There don’t seem to be many out there focusing on acoustic guitar. Here’s another resource. https://worshiptutorials.com/product/acoustic-ir-sample-pack/. These are free versions from their paid packs. As has been mentioned in this thread, a big key is finding IRs that will match up well with your guitar’s type of pick up. These two suppliers offer a selection of pick up types to choose from. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mettelus Posted March 31, 2023 Share Posted March 31, 2023 As mentioned above, there are a lot of factors that go into the end product. You can also consider the options of isolating the input as much as possible (even by using an electric guitar, but that undermines the feel of playing an acoustic) and tailoring that signal as much as possible to be clean prior to applying any timed-based FX (the convolution reverb). Depending on the reverb, there are also a lot of tweaking options available. Acoustic IRs focus on the body resonance of a guitar (basically a hand-held cab), and even within the same model, they can react differently depending on variations in the build... for that tailoring the reverb is your friend. This link has a nice list of both loader and IR resources with a brief overview of the process. I was just putzing on that and one of his links gave me a chuckle... this guy went to town doing IRs of everything he had available it seems (some of it is good though). I never thought of adding a vacuum tube IR to a vocal before... or that anyone would ever take an IR from a vacuum tube in the first place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark skinner Posted March 31, 2023 Share Posted March 31, 2023 I've used a few free acoustic IRs from "worship tutorials" (I think). They all worked well , but they're a little quiet. They were easier to get the volume up with theTh3 cab IR , than with the pro channel convolution reverb IR loader. These were used on an exotic bodied Washburn. Thin body , arched back, deeep cutaway with a large oval sound hole. It's not real quaky sounding , but the Ir's made a Big improvement. Of course who would take the time to make an IR for a guitar like this ?? "Any" acoustic IR can make an improvement if the signal is properly EQ'd etc.. I've found using the quad curve EQ preset called "Big and Bright" does a pretty good job of reducing piezo quack on it's own. I have to adjust it a little , but when used with an IR it sounds more like the guitar was captured with a mic. mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Phillips Posted March 31, 2023 Share Posted March 31, 2023 6 hours ago, Billy86 said: Yes… 3 Sigma is one of the more comprehensive acoustic IR developers I’ve come across. There don’t seem to be many out there focusing on acoustic guitar. Here’s another resource. https://worshiptutorials.com/product/acoustic-ir-sample-pack/. These are free versions from their paid packs. As has been mentioned in this thread, a big key is finding IRs that will match up well with your guitar’s type of pick up. These two suppliers offer a selection of pick up types to choose from. I'll give them a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark skinner Posted April 1, 2023 Share Posted April 1, 2023 I caught information about this guy on an online IR shootout video. He wrote the program and made it available for free to make your own IR using your own acoustic guitar. I'll probably try him for a few of my guitars. mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billy86 Posted April 2, 2023 Author Share Posted April 2, 2023 On 3/31/2023 at 12:42 PM, mark skinner said: They all worked well , but they're a little quiet. As are the 3 Sigma IRs, according to its developer; the solution is turning up the IR loader’s output, he says Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msmcleod Posted April 2, 2023 Share Posted April 2, 2023 What I tend to do is put the IR loader in an FX Chain and use the FX Chain input/output volume sliders to boost the signal. 1 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruno de Souza Lino Posted April 6, 2023 Share Posted April 6, 2023 On 4/1/2023 at 8:03 PM, mark skinner said: I caught information about this guy on an online IR shootout video. He wrote the program and made it available for free to make your own IR using your own acoustic guitar. I'll probably try him for a few of my guitars. mark If you have the professional version of Studio One, they have tools specific for making impulse responses since version 2. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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