As some of you may know, Iāve been delving into the amp software world after getting my first Focusrite about a month ago.
Have tried out alot of free sims, some of which Iāve found pretty good,some crap. Have been trying out some of the big names suites like Amplitude, BiasFX, Guitar Rig etc.
From a novices perspective, there appears to be alot of chaff mixed in with these big suites, along with endless amps, effects, IRs etc. Found myself getting overwhelmed by the pure numbers. A lot of time caught in the trap of fiddling around, but nevertheless learning along the way.
During my research, I kept seeing the occasional mention of S-Gear by Scuffman Amps, particularly among professional/ semi professional folk. I was still buying into the āmore is betterā mindset of suites like Amplitude, BiasFX etc, but 2 days ago I did download S-Gearās 10 day fully functional trial.
Instantly, I was blown away by the tones I was getting, and just from the presets available. The other sims Iād been using suddenly sounded a bit artificial and plastic by comparison.
Finding it much quicker to get not only the tones Iām looking for, but the sounds seem so rich and organic. This software, at least presently for me, seems to hit the sweet spot of brilliant tones, with minimal fiddling.
Has anyone had experience with this software?
I donāt have any experience with that product, Shane. But it sounds like you have your winner.
Without wanting to muddy the waters, I use Waves GTR (perhaps that is one of your etcs) and it works well enough for me. If youāve not checked it out you can hear how it sounds when used by a novice electric player, me, in this song
Thanks for the response David. I did check out Waves GTR, and it seems pretty good.
Being a novice still in this world, Iām just going by what my ears tell me, along with some other factors like the interface, ease of use etc ( ie minimal fiddling about ) S-Gear just sounds so much better than all others Iāve tried. I believe the guy who developed it 10 years ago, Mike Scuffham, used to work for Marshall designing/ developing amps.
Not used S-Gear but a plus one for Waves GTR and its variants. I also had a āhookyā version of Guitar Rig for a while but it seemed quite expensive to buy compared the one on the Waves package I bought years back. Plus both work as standalone on the desktop, not just in a DAW.
Thanks for the response Toby. Pretty much sold on the S-Gear I think. Theres a fully functional 10 day trial if you ever want to try it out. Works standalone and with a DAW as well.
Iām going to try out some of the free ones but this is very informative, thank you.
I
At the moment I have only one vintage marshall sim that came with the focusrite but Iād like more options.
Thanks!
I used to have a big bank of plugins that I didnāt use.
I came to the conclusion Iām using the same stuff all the time and only experiment when I need something specific.
I have no experience with that suite but it seems like everything I would ever need.
a 10 day full trial is a nice way to get introduced and the price of $129 seems very fair.
The delay and reverb āthingsā would be all I would ever need myself so I must say this particular suite does seem VERY interesting!
Hey mate. Given your knowledge, experience and playing ability, Iād be very interested in your thoughts on S-Gear after trying it out. Iāve not gone near any other sim since I first started using it some months ago. Just never entered my mind.
The guy who designed and built it has a pretty distinguished history in amp design, and is very active on the official forum. And many of the people using it seem pretty advanced performers, which is a great resource for relative newcomers like me.
I could test it but I donāt have a credit card and it would require me to free up some dedicated time. Iāll need to check if they as CC info up front or not and I canāt guarantee any time frame
No worries Lieven. Just curious. You dont need to provide a CC or any other info to test out the full version. It just deactivates after 10 days - although I bought it within 48 hrs. You can buy a license anytime, and activate the licensed version. Various payment methods available.
@sclay Way late seeing this, but if youāre still on the fenceā¦ Iām in love with S-Gear. I discovered Scuffham Amps about the time of your original post and now I rarely use anything else. My real amps now look at me and say āWhy donāt you love me anymore?ā when I walk in the room.
The only other amp sims Iāve found that I like are the Nembrini Audio amp sims. The thing I like about them is that they model a single, specific amp and the controls are the same as the original amp. They are sold as individual pieces and the list prices are exorbitant, but they run sales all the time and you can get a single amp for ~$25 when on sale. I went down the Nembrini rabbit hole for awhile because Scuffham doesnāt really have a Vox sim, but Nembrini has an AC30 model.
) S-Gear just sounds so much better than all others Iāve tried. I believe the guy who developed it 10 years ago, Mike Scuffham, used to work for Marshall designing/ developing amps.