Hi Guys,

I have tracked a small guitar part I have used to reamp and make files to compare the 11r cab in my favorite preset non-EPSi preset to the OwnHammer Modern Mix cab IRs. It is the exact same preset with the only difference being that the internal cab is off and the effects loop is on (at 8:30 and 3:00 on the send- return) when reamping the OH cabs. I used an Ibanez JS guitar with Bareknuckle Abraxas neck and bridge pickups direct in to the 11r and have the EPSi in the effects loop.

OwnHammer IR comparison Modern

I only compared IRs from the Modern Mix set, and only used the Studio Modern Mix (T1 amp) to keep it generic and simple, so this effectively compares all the speakers in that set. I have numbered the OH cabs starting with 141=ALNBLU and ending with 155=V30EN following the order on the OwnHammer page. (I can send someone a pdf of the numbering scheme if this is confusing.) The EPSi also has the 'hi' set at 2.0 but all other controls are stock.

The zip contains the audio files as well as a Reaper session file with the audio already loaded. The download is kind of large (470mb), I figure most people have high-speed internet these days so it isn't too big a deal.

The playing is pretty crummy but was purposed for specific tones for my own comparison so I'm not expecting any grammy nominations (lol), I started with mid volume on bridge pickup, then switched to neck, then full vol, then back to bridge, and finally vol down for last 2 seconds.

I will be doing the vintage speakers in the next few days with the same setup.

Be sure to post back with your thoughts and fave speakers. Let me know if you have suggestions.

space

Here are some audio files on soundcloud, but it's really best to hear them side by side in a daw imho.

11r w 11r cab (About 3db louder than the OH clips.)

11r w OH speaker H-SB-75

11r w OH speaker V30-CH

11r w OH speaker ALN-BLU

11r w OH speaker scumback M-SB-75

Thanks for all the work with the files - quite impressive! I suppose there is a lot of difference that you only feel, not really hear. And I find it hard to make a judgement because you never have a "neutral" or "true" signal. You only compare different flavors...;)
I'm still wondering which IR might serve best for all-around generic purposes (clean, crunch, mid-gain rock rhythm and high-gain solo tones). Guess it'll end with checking them all out...;(

The dry guitar is in the zip file, and I can post it if it is helpful but you are right, there is a lot of feel that you can't see..

I've also noticed that the OH files end up less dynamic, I don't know if that is an artifact of going through the A/D conversion cycle twice or if it is something the EPSi is doing or where it is happening, but that could contribute to the 'feel' that is there when one is playing..

Also wanted to mention that if anyone wants to contribute a better wav file to reamp, by all means pm me to let me know.. This clip is actually a bit unsightly so I may try to redo that before the next round as well..

I've found at this point that I can take my Van Halen patch & change cabs to "open up" sounds, for example Dragonland's "Too Late For Sorrow" sound can be achieved by using the Alnico Blue speakers.

In order to get the dynamics, you have to play with that IR. Reamping won't ever be right when comparing from one speaker to the next. There's also parts that are dialed down & even with the gain cranked up more on that tune, possibly even a distortion pedal for one particular lead part.

The Eleven cabs can be more "open" is some aspects, and my son still likes them, but they don't translate through consumer audio headphones, speakers, etc. Back & forth comparisons to the real thing have to be done to see what I'm talking about, like clips of raw guitars recorded on Tonefinder & Soundcloud. The Ownhammer impulses help get that polished sound. And you can EQ up some fizz if needed. I wouldn't just use them without some para EQ, same thing with 11R.

Just an observation on the whole "vs" thing. Especially when you get to mastering, the noise floor is lower on Ownhammer impulses, the 11R can get real digital sounding and not "solid" any more.

in general; i find the Ownhammer IR's to be more warm/dark vs 11R cabs. i think that's a good thing in many ways. the good part is that you can dial up your amp more like you would if the amp was in your room. the 11R cabs remind me of early axe-fx cabs in that you NEED some eq to tame it most of the time. on the axe-fx we had to roll off lows and highs especially to get the warm tone we wanted....but that is also how it is in the studio, i routinely roll off some top end and bass on mic'd rigs. that's just the nature of real mics sitting in front of a real cabinet, you usually have to eq a little bit to make it sound like your room tone.

on the noise floor observation; i noticed it too, but i figure it's also an effect of loading a warm IR that rolls off highs (like the Ownhammer). i have loaded some generic IR's off the internet and some of them are really hissy, but it's because the cabinet itself is really bright.

honestly, you can get just about any tone you want using only the 11R cabs....check out my superpack of presets and you'll see that i made hundreds of different sounding presets using only stock cabs with eq.

the real issue for me is feel. feel = inspiration. if it feels like crap, i ain't playing. the Epsi has made my axe-fx gas all but come to an end. best $200 i've spend in awhile.

I agree with you guys, though I didn't really set out to have this be a "vs" thread, but more of a guide for those who are wondering what the EPSi and OwnHammer IRs bring to the table. And whether they are worth the money.

I know I had a real 'whoa' reaction the first time I subbed the EPSi/OH in for the 11r cabs, without any extra tweaking, and that's really what I was trying to communicate. There is nothing on the OwnHammer site that lets you directly compare the contents of the packages he has for sale (the clips are so varied they aren't so useful) and I certainly would appreciate a look at what it can do to a baseline guitar sound, that's what this is for.

Yeah, I wonder what exactly they did with the EQs, but the best thing is that they used some high quality analog EQs whereas free IRs are either not EQ'd or just tweaked digitally.

I always like to push some of the frequencies through the OH IRs, there's a sweet spot around 5k that makes me wonder why that's always missing. The Eleven Rack EQs work great though, I didn't even need the editor a lot and could just do some ballpark tweaking. I almost wonder if I'd trust the IRs until mastering, if the sound would be about the same as I'm trying to match album tones with & that's why they're like that.

Or just what guitars & gear are these set up for. Perhaps active pickups were to test the modern IRs. Or since Axe FX has exclusive versions, maybe they were geared toward that.

It's all good. I A/B'd some Eleven cabs and the 57 mics through certain speakers are very similar & could be very useful still.

I'm still thinking I'm gonna love the vintage pack, but am enjoying some of the modern ones immensely. The highs have this feel so that essentially, you can continue using the same dynamic playing you would on the lows, which the Eleven rack really nailed. You could very well do all your riffing without Ownhammer cabs unless okay...I'll put it like this...you can high pass to a greater degree and still retain your dynamics with OH IRs...Hi pass too much on 11R & you'll lose something. That secret sauce in most modelers goes away.
I had my eye on the Kemper at one time bc it didn't rely on low end resonating to solidify the tone or however you want to look at it.