Guitar Amp and FX Modeling Plug-In for Digidesign® Pro Tools® and VST® Platforms User Manual Version 1.0

Guitar Amp and FX modeling plug-in For Digidesign® Pro Tools® and VST® platforms User Manual version 1.0

Guitar Amp and FX modeling plug-in For Digidesign® Pro Tools® and VST® platforms

User Manual version 1.0 4 PLEASE NOTE:

AMPLITUBE IS A TRADEMARK OF IK MULTIMEDIA. ALL OTHER PRODUCT NAMES AND TRADEMARKS ARE THE PROPERTY OF THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS, WHICH ARE IN NO WAY ASSOCIATED OR AFFILIATED WITH IK MULTIMEDIA. PRODUCT NAMES ARE USED SOLEY FOR THE PURPOSE OF IDENTIFYING THE SPECIFIC PRO- DUCTS THAT WERE STUDIED DURING IK MULTIMEDIA's SOUND MODEL DEVE- LOPMENT AND FOR DESCRIBING CERTAIN TYPES OF TONES PRODUCED WITH IK MULTIMEDIA's DIGITAL MODELING TECHNOLOGY. USE OF THESE NAMES DOES NOT IMPLY ANY COOPERATION OR ENDORSEMENT.

5 I Contents

II Interface

III License and copyrights

Chapter 1 What is AmpliTube™? 1.1 Description

Chapter 2 Requirements 2.1 System Requirements Pro Tools system (LE, TDM) Mac 2.2 System Requirements VST system Mac/Win

Chapter 3 Installation and Authorization 3.1 Installation 3.2 Authorization

Chapter 4 Using AmpliTube 4.1 Connecting your Guitar to your a computer 4.2 Input Level – optimal setting 4.3 AmpliTube signal path and effects chaining 4.4 Stomp Module 4.5 Amp Module 4.6 Post FX Module 4.7 Presets 4.8 Recording/Bouncing in Pro Tools 4.9 Recording/Bouncing in VST (Cubase/Logic) 4.10 Automating parameters in ProTools 4.11 Automating parameters in VST

Chapter 5 Stomp Module 5.1 Wah-Wah 5.2 Delay 5.3 Chorus 5.4 Flanger 5.5 Overdrive

6 I - Contents Chapter 6 Amp Module 6.1 Pre Model 6.2 EQ Model 6.3 Amp Model 6.4 Amp Match 6.5 Cabinet Model 6.6 Cabinet Match 6.7 Microphone Modeling 6.8 Tremolo 6.9 Spring Reverb

Chapter 7 Post FX Module 7.1 Parametric EQ 7.2 Stereo Delay 7.3 Stereo Reverb

Chapter 8 General AmpliTube controls/display 8.1 Input Level 8.2 Gate 8.3 Output Level 8.4 Module Bypass 8.5 Presets

Chapter 9 Support 9.1 Support 9.2 User Area

I - Contents 7 Guitar Amp and FX modeling plug-in

5 STOMP effects models: - Wah-Wah - Chorus Stomp Module - Delay - Flanger - Overdrive

3 STEREO POST effects: - 3 band parametric stereo EQ Post FX module - Stereo Delay - Stereo Reverb

8 II - Interface For Digidesign® Pro Tools® and VST® platforms

7 PRE-AMP models: - solid state clean - vintage clean - tube clean - british crunch - modern hi-gain - solid state lead - fuzz 5 EQ models: - tube american - tube american 2 - british class A - tube british - tube british 2 4 POWER AMP models: Amp Module - solid state 30W - solid state 100W - tube 100W - tube 50W 9 CABINET models: - small combo - open back 1x12" - open back 1x12"II - vintage open 4x 10" - modern closed 4x10" - vintage closed 4x12" - modern closed 4x12" - british 2x12" - no speaker 2 MIC models: - condenser - dynamic 2 AMP effects models: - Tremolo - Spring Reverb

II - Interface 9 License Agreement END-USER LICENSE AGREEMENT FOR AMPLITUBE™ SOFTWARE Please read this document carefully before breaking the seal on the media package. This agreement licenceses the enclosed software to you and contains warranty and liability disclaimers. By breaking the seal on the media envelope, you are confirming to have taken notice of clauses of this agreement and you acknowledge your acceptance of the software as well as your acceptance of the terms of this agreement. If you do not wish to do so, do not break the seal. Instead, promptly return the entire package, including the unopened media package, to the dealer from whom you have obtained it, for a full refund. 1) DEFINITIONS "EULA means this end user license agreement" "AmpliTube™ software" means the software program included in the enclosed package, and all related updates supplied by IK Multimedia Production srl - Italy . "IK Multimedia Product" means the AmpliTube software and the related documentation and models and multimedia content (such as animation, sound and graphics) and all related updates supplied by IK Multimedia Production srl - Italy. "Not for resale (NFR) Version" means a version of IK Multimedia Product", so identified, intended for review and evaluation purposes, only. 2) LICENSE The "IK Multimedia Product" is protected by copyright laws and international copyright treaties, as well as other intellectual property laws and treaties. The "IK Multimedia Product" is licensed, not sold. This EULA grants you the rights as specified here below, All other actions and means of usage are reserved to the written permission of the right holder IK Multimedia Production srl: Applications Software. The "IK Multimedia Product" may be used only by you. You may install and use one copy of the "IK Multimedia Product", or any prior version thereof for the same operating system, on a single computer.

Storage/Network use. You may also store or install a copy of the "IK Multimedia Product" on a storage device, such as a network server, used only to install or run the "IK Multimedia Product" on your other computers over an internal network; however, you must acquire and dedicate a distinct license for each user of the "IK Multimedia Product" from the storage device. Any given license for the "IK Multimedia Product" may not be shared or used concurrently or otherwise on different computers or by different developers in a given organization.

3) AUTHORIZATION CODE The "IK Multimedia Product" only functions when you are in the possession of an authorization code. You will receive an authorization code upon completing the authorization code request procedure. Once your authorization code is activated, you may use the product.

You agree to follow the authorization code request procedure and will provide true, accurate and complete information about yourself. If you provide any information that is untrue, inaccurate, not correct or incomplete, or IK Multimedia has reasonable grounds to suspect that such information is untrue, inaccurate, not correct or incomplete, IK Multimedia has the right to suspend or to revoke the license.

The termination of the license shall be without prejudice to any rights, whatsoever, of IK Multimedia.

4) DESCRIPTION OF OTHER RIGHTS AND LIMITATIONS Limitations on Reverse Engineering, Decompilation, and Disassembly. You may not reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the "IK Multimedia Product", except and only to the extent that such activity is expressly permitted by applicable law notwithstanding this limitation of components. The "IK Multimedia Product" is licensed as a single product. Its component parts may not be separated for use on more than one computer. Not for Resale Version. If the "IK Multimedia Product" is labeled "Not for Resale" or "NFR" or "Evaluation Copy", then, notwithstanding other sections of this EULA, you may not sell, or otherwise transfer the "IK Multimedia Product"; Rental. You may not rent, lease, or lend the "IK Multimedia Product" to any party. Software Transfer. You are not allowed to transfer, license or sublicence your rights as Licensee of the AmpliTube software or any IK

10 III License Agreement Multimedia product, as licensed to you under this agreement. The carrier on which the IK Multimedia product has been distributed cannot be transferred or otherwise made available to any third party. 5) UPGRADES If the "IK Multimedia Product" is labeled or otherwise identified by IK Multimedia Production srl as an "upgrade", you must be properly licensed to use a product identified by IK Multimedia Production srl as being eligible for the upgrade in order to use the "IK Multimedia Product". An "IK Multimedia Product" labeled or otherwise identified by IK Multimedia Production srl as an upgrade replaces and/or supplements the product that formed the basis for your eligibility for such upgrade. You may use the resulting upgraded product only in accordance with the terms of this EULA. If the "IK Multimedia Product" is an upgrade of a component of a package of software programs that you licensed as a single product, the "IK Multimedia Product" may be used and transferred only as part of that single product package and may not be separated for use on more than one computer. 6) DUAL-MEDIA SOFTWARE. You may receive the "IK Multimedia Product" in more than one medium. Regardless of the type or size of the medium you receive, you may use only that one medium that is appropriate for your single computer. You may not use or install the other medium on another computer, including but not limited to portable under the exclusive control of the registered developer. You may not loan, rent, lease, or otherwise transfer the other medium to another user, except as part of the permanent transfer (as provided above) of the "IK Multimedia Product" 7) LIMITED WARRANTY IK Multimedia Production srl warrants to the original purchaser of the computer software product, for a period of ninety (90) days following the date of original purchase, that under normal use, the software program and the user documentation are free from defects that will materially interfere with the operation of the program as described in the enclosed user documentation. 8) WARRANTY CLAIMS To make a warranty claim under the above limited warranty, please return the product to the point of purchase, accompanied by proof of purchase, your name, your return address and a statement of the defect, or send the CD to us at the below address within ninety (90) days of purchase. Include a copy of the dated purchase receipt, your name, your return address and a statement of the defect. IK Multimedia Production srl or its authorized dealer will use reasonable commercial efforts to repair or replace the product and return it to you (postage prepaid) or issue to you a credit equal to the purchase price, at its option.

9) LIMITATIONS ON WARRANTY IK Multimedia Production srl warrants only that the program will perform as described in the user documentation. No other advertising, description or representation, whether made by a IK Multimedia Production srl dealer, distributor, agent or employee, shall be binding upon IK Multimedia Production srl or shall change the terms of this warranty.

EXCEPT AS STATED ABOVE, IK MULTIMEDIA PRODUCTION SRL MAKES NO OTHER WARRANTY, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, REGARDING THIS PRODUCT. IK MULTIMEDIA PRODUCTION SRL DISCLAIMS ANY WARRANTY THAT THE SOFTWARE IS FIT FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY SHALL BE LIMITED TO A NINETY (90) DAY DURATION OF THIS LIMITED EXPRESS WARRANTY AND IS OTHERWISE EXPRESSLY AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIMED. IK MULTIMEDIA PRODUCTION SRL SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR OTHER DAMAGES, EVEN IF IK MULTIMEDIA IS ADVISED OF OR AWARE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. THIS MEANS THAT IK MULTIMEDIA PRODUCTION SRL SHALL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE OR LIABLE FOR THE LOST OF PROFITS OR REVENUES, OR FOR DAMAGES OR COSTS AS A RESULT OF LOSS OF TIME, DATA OR USE OF THE SOFTWARE, OR FROM ANY OTHER CAUSE EXCEPT THE ACTUAL COST OF THE PRODUCT. IN NO EVENT SHALL IK MULTIMEDIA PRODUCTION SRL LIABILITY EXCEED THE PURCHASE PRICE OF THIS PRODUCT.

10) GENERAL This Agreement shall be governed by the internal laws of Italy. This Agreement contains the complete agreement between the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof, and supersedes all prior or contemporaneous agreements or understandings, whether oral or written. All questions concerning this Agreement shall be directed to: IK Multimedia Production srl - Via dell'Industria 46 - 41100 Modena - Italy AmpliTube™ is a registered trademark property of IK Multimedia Production srl - Italy tel +39-059-285496 fax +39-059- 2861671 e-mail [email protected] © 2002 IK Multimedia Production srl. All rights reserved.

III License Agreement 11 Chapter 1 What is AmpliTube™ 1.1 Description AmpliTube is an amp modeling and effects plug-in. It gives you the ability to model the complete guitar chain - including stomp boxes, amp modelling, mic modelling and post effects. Thanks to its separate pre, eq, amp and cabinet models, 1,260 amp combinations can be generated to craft your favourite guitar sound modeled on top vintage and modern gear. AmpliTube is organized in 3 easy to use interfaces: Amp Module, Stomp Module and Post FX Module. The Amp Module (fig1) includes: 7 pre-amps models: - solid state clean - vintage clean - tube clean fig. 1 - british crunch - modern hi-gain - solid state lead - fuzz 5 eqs models: - tube american - tube american 2 - british class A - tube british - tube british 2 4 power amps models: - solid state 30W - solid state 100W - tube 100W - tube 50W 9 cabinets models: - small combo - open back 1x12" - open back 1x12"II - vintage open 4x10" - modern closed 4x10" - vintage closed 4x12" - modern closed 4x12" - british 2x12" - no speaker 2 Mic models: - condenser - dynamic

12 1 - What is AmpliTube™ 2 Amp effects - Tremolo - Spring Reverb The Stomp Module (fig2) includes: 5 Stomp effects models: - Wah-Wah - Chorus - Delay fig. 2 - Flanger - Overdrive The Post FX Module (fig3) includes: 3 Stereo Post effects: - 3 band parametric stereo EQ - Stereo Delay - Stereo Reverb fig. 3 It's the complete solution for your guitar-powered-studio

1 - What is AmpliTube™ 13 Chapter 2 System Requirements 2.1 System Requirements Pro Tools® system (LE, TDM) Mac A Digidesign® qualified PCI-based Power Macintosh® running Pro Tools®|24 MIX™, Pro Tools®|24 MIX Plus™, Pro Tools®|24 Mix (with Pro Tools™ software 5.1 or later), Pro Tools |HD (with Pro Tools software 5.3 or later) ProTools® LE with Digi 001™ or ™ III (with Pro Tools™ software 5.0 or later), M-Box (with Pro Tools LE software 5.2 or later). Qualified ATA/IDE or SCSI drive, 128 MB RAM (192 MB recommended), Apple® System software version 8.6 or 9.0, colour monitor with resolution 832 x624 (1024x768 suggested). Optimized for G4. 2.2 System Requirements VST system Mac/Win Macintosh® VST Power Macintosh® G3 with MacOS 8.6 or later system software, 64 MB RAM. Screen settings: 800x600, thousands of colours, 50 MB of free hard disk space. Suggested: Power Macintosh® G4 with 192 MB RAM and 1024x768 screen. An ASIO card is recommended for low latency real time play. Optimized for G4. Windows® VST Intel® Pentium® II with Windows® 95, 98, ME, NT™ 4.0, 2000, XP, 64 MB RAM. Screen settings: 800x600, high colors (16 bit), 350 MB of free hard disk space. Suggested: Intel® Pentium® III 500 MHz with 192 MB RAM and 1024x768 screen. An ASIO card is recommended for low latency real time play. Optimized for Pentium® III. Macintosh® and Windows® VST Sequencers Cubase VST®, Logic™ Audio or any other sequencer compatible with VSTi instruments plug-in. Cubase VST® PC version 3.7.2 or Mac version 4.1.1, (or later), Logic™ Audio PC and Mac version 4.5 (or later).

14 2 - System requirements Chapter 3 Installation and Authorization 3.1 3.1 Installation 1) Insert the AmpliTube CD-ROM into your CD-ROM drive. 2) Double click on the Install AmpliTube icon according to your sequencer type (install RTAS/TDM or install VST). 3) After accepting the license agreement, you’ll be requested to enter your serial number (you will find it on the registration card included in the box). 4) Proceed through the rest of the installation procedure. NOTE: you'll need to install and authorize AmpliTube on the machine where you plan to use the software. Have your registration card available during registration and keep it in a safe place. Once the installation process has beenn completed you should check that: Pro Tools® - Installation: AmpliTube has to be installed inside the Plug-Ins fol der, which is inside the DAE folder within the System Folder. It’s named AmpliTube. - UnInstallation: locate the folder “Plug-Ins” that’s within the System Folder: DAE and delete the files mentioned above. VST® - Installation: AmpliTube has to be installed into the selected VstPlugIns folder. It's named AmpliTube. - UnInstallation: locate the folder “VstPlug-Ins” and delete the files mentioned above.

3 - Installation and Authorization 15 3.2 Authorization The new AmpliTube plug-in requires an authorization code for full installation. Until it is fully authorized, AmpliTube will work only in demo mode and will insert random white noise during processing. Follow this procedure for installation and authorization of your new AmpliTube: 1) Launch your sequencer (ProTools®, ProTools® LE or any VST® sequencer such as Cubase® or Logic™). The AmpliTube plug-ins authorization window will displayed, showing - a Serial Number field: this is obtained from the registration card included in the package. - a Digital ID field: this is a code generated by AmpliTube based on your system’s characteristics. The Digital ID is unique to your computer. If you try to install AmpliTube on another system you will get a different Digital ID. - an Authorization Code field: this is generated by each user registration, and is linked to both the Serial Number and Digital ID. Whenever the Digital ID changes, the Authorization Code will be void and AmpliTube will revert to demo mode. You will need another Authorization Code to authorize AmpliTube again. 2) Copy your Digital ID (copy button) or write it down if you don’t have an internet connection on the machine where you're installing AmpliTube . (note: Digital ID and Authorization Code have no letters ‘I’ and ‘O’. Those you might see are actually numbers: ones and zeroes, respectively). 3) Launch your browser and access the AmpliTube registration page: http://www.amplitube.com/ATReg.html Your browser will need to support frames and Javascript; all recent versions of Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer will suffice. The AmpliTube registration form will be displayed. 4) Complete all the required fields, including your Serial Number and Digital ID. All codes should be entered in capital letters. Remember to provide a working e-mail address: it will be used to send our Authorization Code. Press ‘Submit ’. 5) Open your e-mail client software and check for new mail in the address you’ve just inserted in the registration form. You will shortly receive a message confirming our registration and giving you an Authorization

16 3 - Installation and Authorization Code. Now you have all the codes necessary to authorize AmpliTube. 6) If you had closed our application, launch AmpliTube again. Otherwise, just return to the authorization window. Type carefully your Serial Number in the ‘Serial Number ’ field in the authorization window you can find on the registration card.

NOTE: with your authorization code you'll also receive a user id and password to access your personal user area in AmpliTube' website. Keep them in a safe place, you may need them later to download patches and updates or generate new authorization codes in the event that you accidentally lose the original one (see chapter 9.1).

fig. 4

7) Copy and paste (paste button) or type carefully your Authorization Code in the ‘Authorization Code ’field in the authorization window (fig 4). 8) Press ‘OK ’. If all information has been entered correctly, AmpliTube will now be authorized. Remember to write down your Authorization Code and keep it in a safe place for further reference. If you have no access to the Internet, in the AmpliTube CD you will find a PDF file called Authorization Code Request Form. Open the file (with Acrobat Reader), print the form, fill in the required fields and fax everything to +39-59-2861671 to receive our Authorization Code within 24 hours of our fax (standard business European time). Please write clearly: if we can't decipher the codes, we won't be able to generate a working Authorization Code. If you have no access to a fax machine fill in the aforementioned fig. 5 Authorization Code Request Form and mail it to this address: Tip: AmpliTube VST can IK Multimedia Production srl, Via dell'Industria 46, 41100 Modena, ITALY disply the authorization Information by clicking on You'll be given our Authorization Code by return mail within 15 working days. the lock button (fig. 5).

3 - Installation and Authorization 17 Chapter 2 Using AmpliTube 4.1 Connect your guitar to a computer To achieve the best input signal when using AmpliTube be sure you have an "instruments input" on your audio card (or a guitar dedicated input - fig. 6). The “instrument input” needs a gain control and commonly is an high impedance input, this means that the pickups of your guitar will find an input that matches that found in guitar amplifiers.

be GUITAR AmpliTu

INSTRUMENT IN IN

OUT

COMPUTER AUDIO CARD (running Pro Tools¤ or any VST¤ compatible sequencer)

MONITORING SYSTEM fig. 6 (speakers or headphones)

NOTE: Normal +4 dB low impedance line input (i.e. the ones you would normally use for a synth or a keyboard) are not ideal for directly connecting the guitar because guitar pickups are not designed to deliver such an high level and on a low impedance load, in these conditions the guitar sound will be poor. If your card does not have a high impedance input you will need to use a small mixer with a good high-Z line input to which the guitar can be connected. The best quality connection is obtained using a very good microphone preamplifier with the addition of a quality D.I. box to which the guitar will be connected. This setup will deliver the best possible sound because the signal from the pickups will be treated with extreme care by the D.I. box, because it is designed expressly for these needs. 4.2 Input Level optimal setting For an optimal sound quality the signal that’s fed into AmpliTube from your audio system should be within a certain level range. AmpliTube shows the input signal level with a very simple three LED meter (fig. 7) : - the yellow one shows that a too little signal is present - the green one tells that the signal is OK fig. 7 - the red one which should light only occasionally, shows that the input is close to overload.

18 4 - Using AmpliTube AmpliTube does not have an “input level” control, because it’s very important that the level is actually correct at the analog to digital converters of the audio system. During normal playing the green LED should be the one that lights more often. If the yellow one is the one that’s more often lit then increase the gain of your preamplifier or audiocard break box; if the red one is blinking then reduce it slightly. 4.3 AmpliTube signal path and effect chaining The signal path within AmpliTube is the same as displayed on the interface, from left to right. The input signal is fed to the stomp boxes section first, then to the Amplifier and then to the mono to stereo post FX section. The input signal is mono - in the situation where AmpliTube is inserted on stereo channels or busses it will sum the left and right input to get the mono input. The output signal is always stereo, so it is not possible to open AmpliTube as a ‘mono to mono’ plug-in, while it can be opened as a ‘mono to stereo’ or ‘stereo to stereo’. The very first module that the input signal hits is the Gate, then in order: Wah > Delay > Chorus > Flanger > Overdrive for the stomp boxes. The Gate is the first so that all the Amp and effects tweaks won’t affect the Gate response, which is very sensitive and fast. Then there is the entire Amplifier model, from the Tremolo (at the very first stage) from the output of the microphone model, passing by the Preamp, Eq, Spring Reverb, Power Amp and Cabinet. Mic Model > Tremolo > Preamp > Eq > Spring Reverb > Power Amp > Cabinet After the Amplifier the signal (still in mono) will reach the post stereo FX section in this order: Equalizer > Delay > Reverb After this last stage the signal becomes stereo because of the Reverb and Delay processing. At the end, after all the processes, there is the Output Level knob which determines the amount of signal that AmpliTube will output, this is very useful to balance the level of different kind of sounds and presets.

4 - Using AmpliTube 19 4.4 Stomp Module The first module that the signal goes into is the Stomp effects (fig. 8). The sound of the effects is very different if they are applied before or after the Amplifier. In AmpliTube you have choice of both the options and the units are special- fig. 8 ly designed for the “pre” or “post” operation. This “pre” section recreates the sound of some of the classic pedal stomp boxes and it is patched, as for a real guitar setup, before the amplifier. It is equipped with 5 pedal processors: 1) Vintage wah pedal, with manual or auto wah options and, thanks to the modeling technology, a real-wah sound! 2) Analog delay, delivers that typical warm tone of the early stomp delay units, without the hiss! 3) Analog chorus, modeled after one of the most loved 80’s chorus stomp boxes. 4) Analog flanger, capable of a wide range of flanging effects - from sub tle choruses to jet-plane like extreme effects. 5) Analog solid-state overdrive stomp box, this is the perfect unit for “dri ving” the first stage of all the AmpliTube preamps. A warm, rich and ver satile overdrive pedal, that can saturate itself and overdrive the amp as well. All the connections between the internal stages of AmpliTube (and also of course between these “pedals”) are 32 bit floating point for an unmatched audio resolution that’s essential for a realistic emulation of what happens in the analog domain. 4.5 Amp Module After passing through the stomp boxes section the signal goes into the heart of AmpliTube: the amplifier emulation (fig. 9). Here everything is physically modeled and the signal first hits the opto- Tremolo (fig. 10) unit than feeds into the gain stage, the Preamp (fig. 11) that can be either Tube or Solid State. The preamp stage is very important fig. 9 for getting the guitar tone you’re after. The AmpliTube preamps are directly fig. 10 taken from some of the best preamps ever made, and the tonal spectrum covered by all the AmpliTube preamps is exceptionally wide.

fig. 11

20 4 - Using AmpliTube After the preamp the signal feeds into the EQ stage (fig. 12) , a “tone control” circuit that recreates the authentic response of the tone shaping section of the best amplifiers. Actually this is not a conventional digital eq.. it sound exactly like the typical “low”, “mid” and “treble” knobs you would expect to find on the amplifier faceplate, and, best of all, its “sound” and character changes very much depending on the Eq type that’s been selected. fig. 12 Just after the Eq stage we find the Spring Reverb (fig. 13). This reverb really sounds very close to a spring unit, with all the warmth they have but with that typical metallic and resonant vibe. Of course this reverb is mono. Once the tone is carefully shaped by the Eq and reverberated by the Spring fig. 13 the signal feeds into the Power Amplifier stage (fig. 14). Different types of power amplifiers (both Tube and Solid-State) deliver different sounds. Tube power amplifier will deliver more compression when driven close to the maximum, while solid state ones will give a more crunchy sound. After being amplified, the signal is fed to the Cabinet (fig. 15). Here is where AmpliTube recreates, thanks to meticulous measurements with unprece- dented precision, the magical tones of some of the best guitar speaker fig. 14 system ever made. The speaker frequency response is the most important stage of the guitar system because every subtle nuance of the cabinet frequency response is responsible for a particular tonal character, and the AmpliTube cabinet emulation is very precise. Speakers cabs need to be miked to capture their magical sound both in the studio or onstage. Some miking techniques with different microphones deli- fig. 15 ver various tonal results, that’s why AmpliTube has its own internal microphone type and placement section. Thanks to different Mic types and positions (fig. 16), whose results on the sound are finely modeled, AmpliTube sports a very high number of possible combinations of the sound of the cabinet / microphone system. This number gets huge if you think of all the combinations that are possi- fig. 16 ble with all the Preamps / EQ / Power amplifiers / Cabs and microphones positioning (actually up to 1,260 different combinations). And, best of all, it’s almost impossible to get a bad-sounding combination! 4.6 Post FX Module Now we have the guitar signal coming out from the microphone, placed in front of the cabinet with stomp effects inserted. The next, and final, part of this system is a post processing effects stage fig. 17 (fig. 17) that’s equipped with a digital three band precision parametric equalizer, a digital stereo delay and an high quality “hall” type digital reverb. These processors are based on a different concept from the first two modu-

4 - Using AmpliTube 21 les of AmpliTube, as these are high precision digital processors used to create exactly the sound the user is searching for, and sometimes this goes beyond the stomps > amp > cabinet system. While the first two sections are entirely modeled after real gear which sound is magical and has to be respected, this last section is extremely precise and you can think of it as a set of studio units, that are usually used on the sound recorded from the amp, to add a little Eq or a bit of clarity and stereo reverb ‘shine’. 4.7 Presets AmpliTube comes with a very large set of factory presets. These are divided into two main categories: one is dedicated to the sounds and the presets are named with a “type of sound” scheme, the other is dedicated to famous guitarists and it’s filled with presets that aims to recreate their typical tones, whenever this is possible, of course! AmpliTube is able to emulate the amplification/recording chain but not the guitarist! The two sections are named “Amp” and “VIP”. The first one also contains some bass-oriented presets. 4.8 Recording/Bouncing in Pro Tools Pro Tools LE versions: Use AmpliTube RTAS with Pro Tools LE versions. Pro Tools TDM versions: Use AmpliTube HTDM with Pro Tools TDM systems. Using the RTAS version on a TDM system will not offer the real-time input live processing because Pro Tools TDM bypasses RTAS plug-ins on a record- enabled track. Just create a mono track in the session and setup the input on the same channel where you have connected your guitar. If you are using the M-Box be sure to select the “instrument” input on the front panel, if you’re using the Digi 001 be sure to use a good DI Box for the guitar connection (see 4.1). If you’re using a TDM system you need a quality mic preamp plus a DI box to go direct to the 888|24, 882|20, 96 and 192 I/O interfaces with the guitar signal (see 4.1). Rec-enable the track and if the input is correctly selected you should hear the clean sound. After you can hear the direct signal of your guitar open the AmpliTube mono to stereo plug-in on the first insert slot of this channel (fig. 18). If, for some reasons, the channel you’re going to process is already stereo AmpliTube will open as stereo to stereo, but the left and right channels of the original stereo sound will be mixed to mono because AmpliTube is a mono input plug-in.

22 4 - Using AmpliTube fig. 18 You will immediately hear the sound of the amplifier that opens by default, which is the “Clean Reset” preset. Now start to tweak the sound to your requirements by loading a preset or starting from scratch moving knobs. Pro Tools will always record this track with the pre-Amplitube, clean signal, so that you’ll be always able to change the AmpliTube sound after the take is recorded. No more need to discard a precious take just because the sound of the amplifier was not good! This is one of the major advantages you have by using this technology. Once the track is recorded (remember, the take is recorded clean, from the direct input) you will be able to hear it passing thru AmpliTube during playback. It’s a good idea to keep all the AmpliTube plug-ins you may have in the mix up to the final stage of the process. When mixing a song, being able to tweak the amps makes it a breeze! Of course in a very complex session you may run out of CPU power, then you will need to “print” in “processed audio” the AmpliTube tracks. You can do this in two ways into Pro Tools: Offline processing (faster) 1) Bring up to foreground the AmpliTube that’s processing the track you are going to bounce. 2) Save the preset. 3) Highlight the audio region you want to process. 4) Go to the AudioSuite menu and open the AmpliTube plug-in (fig. 19).

4 - Using AmpliTube 23 fig. 19

5) Load the preset you just saved then click “process”. 6) A new audiofile will be created and Pro Tools will automatically replace the old region with the new, processed one, into the arrangement. 7) Remove the AmpliTube plug-in from the mixer. Realtime bouncing (useful if there are other plugins after AmpliTube and you want to print in audio everything in one single pass) 1) “Solo” the track you’re going to bounce. 2) Highlight the audio region you want to bounce. 3) Make sure the level of the track in the mixer is close to 0 dB (without clipping) on the master level meters. 4) Select bounce to disk from the Pro Tools file menu (fig. 20). 5) Select the most appropriate file properties for the session you’re working on and click “Bounce” 6) You’ll be prompted for new file location and name, then click “OK” and the bounce process will start. This is done in real-time so you will listen to the track while it’s being printed. 7) Load this newly created audio region to your arrangement in place of the old, unprocessed clean, track. 8) Remove the AmpliTube plug-in from the mixer. 4.9 Recording/Bouncing in VST (Cubase/Logic) Cubase VST 5.x. Be sure to work with an appropriate (low latency) ASIO driver.

24 4 - Using AmpliTube fig. 20 This will allow for low latency direct processing by AmpliTube. Any possible delay between the input signal (guitar) and the sound heard from AmpliTube is caused only by the audio card settings and not by AmpliTube. An “as low as possible” buffer size for the card should be used because the lower is the buffer size the lower will be the latency.

fig. 21

4 - Using AmpliTube 25 Simply ensure that the guitar signal (clean) is correctly fed to the Cubase mixer on a mono channel and insert AmpliTube in an FX Insert (fig. 21). The Clean Reset preset will come up as the default. Also be sure to use the software monitoring option because if the ASIO 2 direct monitoring (zero latency) is used the AmpliTube sound will not be heard because the Cubase mixer will be bypassed.

fig. 22 Recording this track Cubase will still record the clean, unprocessed, sound that’s present at the input of the card. The AmpliTube plug-in will be heard during the Playback of the track (fig. 22). And, as in the Pro Tools version, there’s no need to discard a good take only because the amp settings were not right! A big advantage of this system. You can keep AmpliTube opened in the session up to the mix phase - this is something that’s not possible with conventional systems and it’s amazing, but it can happen that in particularly busy mixes and complex sessions the CPU power runs out. In this case you need to bounce the AmpliTube tracks to a “processed” audio file. This is the way to do this: 1) Solo the track you’re going to bounce in the audio mixer. 2) Make sure that the level of the track is close to 0 dB but not clipping. 3) Place the Cubase left and right locators across the area you want to bounce (or the entire song in case you’re going to print the whole track).

26 4 - Using AmpliTube fig. 23 4) Open the “VST Master Mixer” from the Cubase Panels menu and click on the button “Export File” (fig. 23) 5) Select the location and name for the new audio file and if the check boxes “import to pool and audiotrack” are checked the new audio will automatically be imported in the session and placed in a new track per fectly in time. 6) Mute the old track, remove the AmpliTube plug-in from the insert and set the level and pan of the newly created track at the same values of the old one. Logic 4.x: Unfortunately Logic 4.x versions does not allow for real-time processing of the live input while the clean signal is recorded. It is possible, however, to use AmpliTube VST in Logic inserting the plug-in on a recorded track. Logic provides “live” channels. These are mixer-only channel, that cannot record or playback from disk, but can process live inputs, although it’s not possible to get the audio for the live in and for a disk recording track from the same input at the same time. A little tricky, but a workable solution, is to link two input channels of the audio card together so that the clean guitar signal is sent to both the inputs (for example 1&2). Doing that it will be possible to record to disk from channel 1 and listen, processed by AmpliTube while recording, from channel 2 (fig. 24).

4 - Using AmpliTube 27 fig. 24 Another copy of AmpliTube must be opened with the same settings on the playback channel, in order to playback with the same sound we had during the recording, use the Logic’s plug-in copy/paste feature to get the same setting on the second AmpliTube. Once the recording is done and complete you can turn off the AmpliTube plug-in from the live input channel, to save some CPU power.

fig. 25 28 4 - Using AmpliTube You could also bounce to disk the AmpliTube processed track using the Logic’s bounce function: 1) Solo the guitar track you may want to bounce. 2) Be sure the level is close to 0 dB on the master but not clipping. 3) Select with the Logic’ locators the area you want to bounce or highlight the whole sequence. 4) Click on the “Bnce” button on the Mixer master channel, you will be asked for new file name and location and after clicking OK the mix will commence (fig. 25). 5) Once the process finishes load the newly created audiofile to your sequence and remove (or bypass) the AmpliTube plug-in from the chan nel insert. 6) Remove the Solo. 4.10 Automating parameters in ProTools Every AmpliTube parameter can be automated in Pro Tools. A full Pro Tools automation implementation has been adhered to, meaning that clicking on the “auto” button at the top of the plug-in you will able to choose from all the AmpliTube controls to be added to the automation parameters list. A typical use is, for example, the “wah position” control automation. After the controls are added to the automation list they will be highlighted on the AmpliTube interface and the automation will function - moving the knob with the mouse or writing movements from the Pro Tools graphical editor. All the controls have the same name into the list of the controls so that the identification is really fast and simple. When an AmpliTube knob or switch is red marked by the auto this means that it is ready to be written (write mode), when it’s green this means that the automation is controlling the knob (read mode). To learn more about the Pro Tools automation refer to the Pro Tools manual, AmpliTube follows the specifications of the standard plug-ins automation. 4.11 Automating parameters in VST Cubase VST 5.x. These 16 AmpliTube parameters can be automated in Cubase VST 5.x both Mac and Pc: - Wah Position - Overdrive On/Off - Overdrive Level - Tremolo Speed

4 - Using AmpliTube 29 - Tremolo Depth - Preamp Gain - Stereo Reverb Level - Stereo Delay On/Off - Stereo Reverb On/Off - Stomp Delay Level - Flanger Feedback - Wah On/Off - Stomp Delay On/Off - Chorus On/Off - Flanger On/Off To write and edit automation in real-time open Cubase’s “Channel Mixer” and Write enable the automation system by clicking on the WRITE red button on the top left corner of the mixer window. Play the sequence and move one of the 16 controls than can be automated and the movements will be recorded. After that switch off the WRITE button and enable the green READ, Cubase will send the automation DATA to the plug-in. You can also graphically write and edit the automation data by opening the Cubase graphical editor on the automation track and use the standard tools you already know for writing and editing midi controllers. Logic 4.x All the AmpliTube knobs and switches can be automated in Logic. Highlight in the arrange screen the channel where AmpliTube is inserted on, switch to the mixer window and hit the REC button on the transport panel. Now every movement of any AmpliTube knob and switch will be recorded in the arrange window as MIDI data over the audio track. Going to the Event List or Hyper Draw screens will let you edit or write from scratch the events and the movements as well. The midi controller numbers that are assigned to the Plug-In are not always the same because of the way Logic handles the CC’s for the plug-in automation, therefore we cannot show a table here with the CC’s number relation to the controllers. But it is very easy to identify the number of the controller, if this is needed for manual editing, for example: just record a simple movement of the knob you want to edit (as explained above) and go to the even list to see the CC number and values.

30 4 - Using AmpliTube 4 - Using AmpliTube 31 Chapter 5 Stomp Module The Stomp boxes module is accessed by clicking on the “STOMP” button on the lower right side of the interface (fig. 26). Once the Stomp section is displayed the “STOMP” buttons turns red and, in this case, the “BYPASS” button disengages the entire Stomp section. If, for instance, the Delay and fig. 26 the Chorus are active both of them will be turned off by selecting “BYPASS”. This is useful for instantaneously check the sound without all the Stomp boxes in the signal path. 5.1 Wah-Wah The first stomp box in AmpliTube is the wah pedal (fig. 27). It carefully recreates that typical mid-rangey funky sweep of the best vintage units. Click on the “Wah-Wah” big button to engage the effect. The red led shows that the unit is active. Mode: used to select the wah type. On: manual wah mode. The Wah knob determines the cutoff fre quency of the wah. Auto: envelope follower mode: the cutoff frequency is controlled by both the Wah knob and the envelope of the input signal. Wah: sets the cutoff frequency. Then in On mode this is the static cutoff freq, when in auto mode this is the base frequency, that will be fig. 27 modulated by the input signal envelope. 5.2 Delay This is a physical model of a high quality analog delay stomp box. Very fine filters in the delay line and feedback networks provides that warm “full” sound of old analog delays (fig. 28). Click on the “Delay” big button to engage the effect. The red led shows that the unit is active. Level: determines the amount of the delay. Fully counterclockwise is dry, no effect, fully clockwise is only delay. Delay: sets the delay time. From 2 mS to one second. Feedback: determines the number of repetitions. Being an analog delay the sound bandwidth will decrease on each repetition. Full clockwise gives a sustaining effect. fig. 28

32 5 - Stomp Module 5.3 Chorus After the Delay the signal goes into the analog chorus / vibrato unit. This recreates the deep and articulated tone that only analog chorus boxes can deliver (fig. 29). Click on the “Chorus” big button to engage the effect. The red led shows that the unit is active. Level: determines the amount of modulated sound over the direct one. Fully counterclockwise is dry, no effect, normal chorus is obtai ned in the center position, while fully clockwise gives a very nice vibrato tone. Rate: sets the chorus / vibrato modulation frequency. From 0.1 Hz to 6 Hz. Depth: controls the depth of the modulation. When used in vibrato mode determines the amount pitch deviation. fig. 29 5.4 Flanger This stomp box creates a wide effects range, from subtle chorusing up to rich and full jet plane ‘ whoosh’ (fig. 30). Click on the “Flanger” big button to engage the effect. The red led shows that the unit is active. Level: sets the amount of modulated sound over the direct. Fully coun terclockwise is dry, no effect, flanging effects are from 25 to 75% and fully clockwise is useful to get feedback vibrato sounds. Rate: controls the modulation frequency. From 0.1 to 6 Hz. Depth: determines the depth of the modulation. Feedback: controls the amount of feedback. When used at low settings the effect is similar to a rich chorus, when turned up it gives thef ull flanging character. fig. 30 5.5 Overdrive This is modeled after one of the most acclaimed overdrive stomp box ever made. When used with crunch or lead amps it delivers a very high gain, and when used with clean amps it can drive them to produce a rich, warm and thick crunch sound (fig. 31). Click on the big “Overdrive” big button to engage the effect. The red led shows that the unit is active. Distortion: determines the amount of distortion that occurs inside the over drive pedal. High settings of this control will produce a more solid-state sounding kind of distortion because the distortion occurs within the circuitry of the overdrive pedal.

fig. 31 5 - Stomp Module 33 Level: sets the output level of the overdrive pedal. By turning this up the amplifier that follows will be overdriven. To get a more amp driven sound use low distortion settings with an high output level. Tone: Controls the timbre of the overdrive pedal. From extra warm at the full counterclockwise position to extra bright and sharp at the fully clockwise position.

34 5 - Stomp Module Chapter 6 Amp Module The Amplifier module is accessed by clicking on the “AMP” button on the lower right side of the interface (fig. 32). Once the Amplifier section is displayed the “AMP” buttons turns red and, in this case, the “BYPASS” button disengages the whole Amplifier section, including the speaker and fig. 32 microphone emulation. This is useful for instantaneously checking the sound without the Amplifier emulation inserted into the signal path. The Amplifier module is the heart of AmpliTube. Here is where the tone is actually modeled and shaped to be impressively similar to those obtained with very well miked high end amplifiers. In AmpliTube you have different choices for: 1. Preamplifier, the actual gain stage, this offers seven different types 2. Amplifier Tone control, that’s the Eq stage, can be selected among five types 3. Power Amplifier, both solid state and tube with four types 4. Cabinet , the speaker system, this offers eight types plus bypass 5. Microphone model and positioning Also built into the Amplifier circuit are two vintage “amp” typical effects: - Opto Tremolo - Spring Reverb 6.1 Pre Model You have choice among seven different top quality guitar preamplifier circuits (fig. 33). Solid State Clean Modeled after Fender® Solid State combos. Vintage Clean (tube) Modeled after the Vox® AC-30 top boost Tube Clean Modeled after the Fender® Super Reverb™ British Crunch Modeled after the Marshall® JCM-800 Modern High Gain Modeled after the Mesa® Boogie Dual Rectifier™ Solid State Lead Modeled after Fender® Solid State combos. Fuzz Modeled after a 60’s fuzz pedal.

Gain: Determines the amount of gain of the preamplifier stage. It is ghosted when the first three preamplifiers are selected because they’re clean preamps with a fixed gain. fig. 33

6 - Amp Module 35 Here are some suggestions for making the right choice of preamp type: Solid State Clean: This is the most linear preamplifier of AmpliTube. Very good for jazz sounds, similar to Fender® combos and the Roland® Jazz Chorus. The frequency response is only slightly shaped. Vintage Clean: This is the Top Boost version of the Vox® AC-30 preamplifier. It has the best presence and definition in the mids and highs. It is very sensitive to the tone of the guitar and perfect for all pop/rock electric accompaniments and can be easily driven with the Overdrive Stomp to produce crunchy and creamy tones. Tube Clean: This is the Fender® Super Reverb™ - very clean, hard to overdrive, a high-vol- tage preamplifier with a lot of punch. The super responsive attack of this preamp will knock you out! An incredibly precise and clean sound useful for lighter crunch sounds too and with the overdrive stomp box it can be driven with not too much gain. Ideal for thick leads too. Great for fat bluesy sounds with good presence. British Crunch: The Marshall® JCM800 super lead preamp. This is a single channel head, where the GAIN control has a dramatic range of control over the sounds - and we provide exactly the same control here. It is bright and “lite” at very low gain settings, with only a little crunch when the input signal is increased; but when increasing the gain knob the sound becomes more driven AND fatter, up to a quite high gain- useful for leads too but always warm. The higher the gain the warmer is the sound. Astonishingly similar to the real thing! Also useful at low gains for arpeggios in pop music, for slightly crunchy but lite rhythms while at high gains it becomes the most typical British crunch/lead sound. Modern High Gain: This can’t be clean! A lot of gain is provided to deliver all those typical American extra high gain timbres. The sound is very similar to the Dual Rectifier™. Even at low gains it crunches but with a lot of highs and attenua- ted mids. Going higher with the gain it becomes really hard to handle, fitting perfectly with humbucking pickups for getting those heavy sounds. It is the most suitable choice for hard rock and heavy sounds. With the Gain at the max it fires up.. and if you still want more try to engage the Overdrive Stomp! Solid State Lead: This is an alternative to the Modern High Gain for more or less the same kind of target sound. The difference here is that the tone is more controllable and precise. It’s also a little darker at the input. It’s very good for really high gain leads because it is so precise and stable. Furthermore its extra power at the low end makes it very good for all hard rock sounds. Being a little more flexible than the Modern High Gain it can be usefully played at low gain settings.

36 5 - Stomp Module Fuzz: Typical fuzz box sound. Actually the fuzz sound can be truly heard only with the speaker emulation turned off but even with the speakers on this is a quite rough kind of distortion, typical 60’s fuzz sound. 6.2 EQ Model Like in a real Guitar Amplifier after the gain stage, the preamp, the signal reaches the “tone control” or Eq. In AmpliTube you can choose among five different tone control circuits (fig. 34), you will have a set of different tonal characters and also the Low, Mid and High knobs will act in a particular way in each Eq model (fig. 35). Note that some Eq models do not have the MID control, as in those amplifiers where the tone control provided is only Bass and Treble. The controls fig. 34 that affect the Eq model are: Eq Low, Eq Mid, Eq High and Presence. If the Amp Match switch (fig. 36) is ON the EQ model Knob becomes ghosted and it won’t be possible to move it. This is because in this condition the exact Eq circuit that is used in the selected preamplifier is automatically selected when the preamp is switched. For example by selecting the British Crunch Preamplifier model with Amp fig. 35 Match ON the Eq model Tube British 2 will be selected, because the Tube British 2 is the Equalizer circuit that’s most appropriate for the British Crunch Preamp. Try anyway to experiment all the other combinations because the sounds you get will always be very interesting. The Preamp and Eq stage has been kept separated in AmpliTube just to give fig. 36 much more flexibility to the user, it’s like being able to connect part of the circuitry of an amplifier to part of another, this hugely increases the number of possible sound combinations. 6.3 Amp Model After having been tone shaped the sound passes on to the power amplifier, just before reaching the Speakers. There are four different types of power amplifiers to choose from, two solid state and two tube (fig. 37). AmpliTube is incredibly accurate in the emulationing the entire guitar amplification chain and the power amplifier is no less important than the other parts. fig. 37 For example, the subtle, warm and unique saturation sound of the power amplifier that you achieve when the Amp is cranked close to its maximum is beautifully reproduced by AmpliTube - thanks to the accurate power amplifier modeling.

6 - Amp Module 37 Solid State models will, in general, deliver a more clean sound.. becoming a little saturated when pushed to the max, while Tube models will add some frequency dependent compression too. 6.4 Amp Match AmpliTube offers the choice of a number of options for the single stages that an amplifier comprises of, so that you can try to experiment on your own with a huge number of combinations. Even so you have the capability of making things much simpler. By activating the Amp match switch (check the Red led that lights fig. 38) you will notice that the Eq Model and Amp Model to become ghosted and locked. This is because when “Amp Match” is activated the configuration that recreates the exact original amplifier setup fig. 38 is automatically recalled, and everything is controlled by the Preamp model knob. By selecting a Preamp model the most appropriate Eq circuit and Power Amp model are selected. This recreates exactly the original tone of the amplifier used for the measurements. For example by selecting the “Vintage Clean” preamplifier with Amp Match engaged the exact top boost Vox AC-30 from preamp, Eq and power amp is recreated. 6.5 Cabinet Model A guitar amplifier can sound authentic only with its appropriate speaker system. The frequency response of guitar speaker systems is very specific and is far from being flat, because guitar amplifiers use typically full range large single way speakers that cannot exhibit flat frequency response. AmpliTube uses a very high resolution system to capture and reproduce the tone of a guitar speaker system, for example the frequency response of all fig. 39 the AmpliTube cabinets are sampled at very high frequency, this delivers an ultra-accurate reproduction of all the small but so important irregularities in the frequency response, even at the high end. There are eight high quality cabinet models into AmpliTube (fig. 39), and in the 9th position (No Speaker) the Cabinet emulation can be disabled for a “D.I.”, typically for extra fuzz sounds. The available cabinets are: Small combo Fender® small 15W solid state combo (80’s) Open Back 1x12 Ampeg® AX-30 100W Tube Combo (90’s) Open Back 1x12 II VHT® Pitbull™ 50W Tube Combo (90’s) Vint. Open 4x10 Fender® Super Reverb™ vintage Amp (60’s) Mod. Closed 4x10 Marshall® modern 4x10 closed cab. (80’s) Vint. 4x12 Closed Marshall® vintage 4x12 cab (70’s) Modern 4x12 Closed Marshall® modern 4x12 cab (80’s) British 2x12 Vox® top boost AC-30 (60’s) No Speaker D.I. line out (after the power amp)

38 6 - Amp Module 6.6 Cabinet Match Like with the Eq and Power amp sections also the Cabinet can be Matched with the preamp model to automatically get the most appropriate cabinet type for the chosen preamplifier (fig. 40). For example selecting the Vintage Clean preamplifier with the Cab Math active the British 2x12 cabinet will automatically be selected, as this is the real Vox Cabinet. fig. 40 By activating both the Amp and Cab Match simply selecting the preamp will select the entire amplifier in a trice, passing from a Super Reverb to a JCM- 800, for example, with a single knob movement. 6.7 Microphone Modeling A good cabinet must be very well miked to get the right sound in the studio or onstage. AmpliTube even provides accurate miking that’s not fixed (fig. 41)- you can select some different configurations and placement of the microphone in front of the speakers. You can select between Dynamic and Condenser microphone types, in-axis, off-axis, close or far placements. fig. 41 These differences in the sound have also been sampled from the original speakers with different miking techniques and the result is a very accurate emulation by AmpliTube. 6.8 Tremolo The AmpliTube tremolo (fig. 42) is the exact recreation of the Opto-Tremolo that you find inside the 60’s Fender® amps. The shape of the waveform is typically “vintage” and it’s so particular because of the strange interaction that occurs between the lamp and the opto cell within the tremolo circuit. It is placed before the gain stage, so that the overdrive tones are modulated by the tremolo too, as required for an accurate recreation of the majority of classic tremolo sounds. fig. 42 6.9 Spring Reverb There are no digital reverbs that can deliver this tone. For many years the guitar amplifier’s reverb unit was a double metallic spring to which the sound was applied at one side and picked up at the other. It’s a very strange kind of reverb, nothing to do with real rooms or digital devices; it’s a rough resonant sound that is thought to be unbeatable for certain kinds of, mostly, clean sounds. AmpliTube spring reverb (fig. 43) is patched between the fig. 43 amplifier’s stages, like in the real things and the sound is really close to the very particular one of the spring, use it specially on clean non sustained sounds.

6 - Amp Module 39 Chapter 7 Post FX Module 7.1 Parametric Eq This parametric Stereo digital equalizer is the first of the Post FX (fig. 44) modules encountered by the signal. This is a precision stereo digital equalizer that it’s used to finely tune the modeled sound after all of the Amplifier simulations. fig. 44 Treat it as a high end digital Eq you may find on a mixing console, a very flexible processor that can perform both subtle adjustments on the sound or completely change it with heavy and drastic equalizations. The Eq consists of three identical sections that works exactly in the same way, their frequency range can even overlap, and this allows for really drastic equalizations. Each section (fig. 45) is a peaking type filter with adjustable bandwidth. Gain (G): Sets the amount of gain of the selected band, from –15 to +15 dB. Frequency (F): Sets the center frequency of the selected filter. From 50 Hz to 17 KHz. Bandwitdh (Q): Determines the bandwidth of the selected filter, from very wide (fully counterclockwise) to very narrow fig. 45 (fully clockwise). Wide settings are less noticeable and more musical, while narrow settings deliver weird effects and can be creative as well. A Level control is also provided in order to compensate for the level change caused by an heavy equalization curve. This way you are able to switch the Eq in or out with the automation obtaining the desired level in both the conditions. Use the big Red button on the right to engage the unit (fig. 46). fig. 46 7.2 Stereo Delay A stereo delay effect unit is provided after the parametric equalizer. This delay delivers a digital crisp and clean delay effect that can add a lot of space to the sound. Four types of delay are provided (fig. 47): fig. 47 Mono: normal center delay, with analog emulation filters Stereo: alternate Left and Right delays Stereo Multi Tap1: alternate Left, Center and Right delays Stereo Multi Tap2: stereo delay with a very little time difference between L&R.

40 7 - Post FX Module These are the controls available for the Stereo Delay (fig. 48): Mode: Determines the working mode / algorithm of the delay, see above. fig. 48 Delay: Sets the delay time of the effect. From 2 milliseconds to 1 second. Feedback: Determines the number of repetitions. Full clockwise gives a sustaining effect. Level: Determines the amount of the delay. Fully counterclockwise is dry, no effect, fully clockwise is only delay. Use the big Red button on the right to engage the unit (fig. 49). fig. 49 7.3 Stereo Reverb This is a classic high quality hall reverb that can be found in high quality professional effects units. Very useful for adding space and dimension to the sound, it’s completely different in terms of timbre from the Spring emulation in the AmpliTube amplifier stage. The Stereo reverb has these controls (fig. 50): Rev Time: Controls the length of the reverb tail. From 0.3 to around 10 sec. , - depends on the “density” setting too. Density: Sets the average time between the reflections. Determines how “thick” is the reverb. fig. 50 Level: Determines the amount of the reverb. Fully counter clockwise is dry, no effect, fully clockwise is only reverb. Use the big Red button on the right to engage the unit (fig. 51).

fig. 51

7 - Post FX Module 41 Chapter 8 General AmpliTube control/display 8.1 Input Level The input signal level (fig. 52) is very important in AmpliTube because the preamplifier stages are physically modeled after real circuits, where the signal level is affecting the timbre that’s produced. Always check the three LEDS labeled “Input Level” on the right top corner of the interface. - the yellow one shows that a too little signal is present, from - - the green one tells that the signal is OK - the red one, that should light only occasionally, shows that the input is close to overload. AmpliTube does not have an “input level” knob, because it’s very important that the level is actually good at the analog to digital converters in the audio system. If the level is too low the input the A/D converters will work with a lower fig. 52 resolution and the sound will not be as good as it could be, if it is too high there will be clipping even with AmpliTube clean settings. During normal playing the green LED should be the one that lights most often.If the yellow one is lighting most often then increase the gain of your preamplifier or audio card break box; if the red one is blinking reduce it slightly.

8.2 Gate The very first stage of AmpliTube is the noise gate (fig. 53). It is an ultra fast noise gate that is able to cut the input of AmpliTube when the signal is lower than a certain threshold. This eliminates the noise background typical of the guitar pickups / preamp system when the instrument is not playing. fig. 53 Very useful at high gain settings because, being placed before the amplifier, it can effectively clean up the signal during the silence parts of the perfor- mance. Start by setting the Gate knob fully counterclockwise. This completely bypasses the Gate, because the threshold is set at the minimum, which is a very low signal level. You can check the Gate action by watching the red LED positioned near the Gate knob. When the Gate closes the LED lights. During normal play the LED should always be off, and should light only when the strings are not vibra- ting, showing that the gate is closed.

42 8 - General AmpliTube control/display We suggest leaving the Gate OFF (fully counterclockwise) unless you notice high background noise from the guitar signal. In that case try to slightly increase the gate knob up to a point where the LED lights and the Gate cuts the input.

8.3 Output Level This is the main output level of AmpliTube (fig. 54), it has a very wide range and has to be used to set the output level of the various AmpliTube presets. Depending on how AmpliTube is set the level can be quite different at the Post Effect outputs, that’s why this control is very useful. Pay particular attention to the driven / distorted sounds - they must absolu- fig. 54 tely not clip within the sequencer Mixer because the AmpliTube distortion must be followed by an clean audio path, otherwise the digital clipping will corrupt the AmpliTube sound, causing heavy degradation of the overall quality. The optimal value for this knob is where the AmpliTube output signal (you can check it on the level meter of the Sequencer mixer) is as close as possible to 0 dB but not clipping, for the setting you’re using.

8.4 Module Bypass Each AmpliTube module (Stomp, Amp, Post FX) can be independently bypassed (fig. 55). This can be very useful to only bypass the stomp section, for example, or to use AmpliTube as a multi-effects unit bypassing all the Amplifier stage. fig. 55 To Bypass a module click on the “BYPASS” button that’s on the left of the module selection buttons, the module that will be bypassed is the one that’s currently selected.

8.5 Presets AmpliTube comes with a large collection of ready to use high quality presets. They’re organized into main categories:

- Amp Brand new sounds created just for AmpliTube, with references to the best guitar amplification systems ever made. - Bass Presets good for bass too! - Multi FX Stomp and Multi effects only. - VIP This is dedicated to famous guitarists and it’s filled with presets that aims to recreate their typical tones, whenever this is possi ble, of course!

8 - General AmpliTube control/display 43 RTAS and HTDM Versions: The standard Pro Tools plug-in presets management is fully implemented. All the presets are automatically installed by the installer on the CD, and can be selected in AmpliTube by clicking on the Preset filed on the top of the Pro Tools Plug-in window. A pop-up list will appear showing the main folders (fig. 56). Once a preset is selected AmpliTube will change its status and the name of the preset will be shown. Tweaking the knobs will make the preset name to be written in Italic showing that the setting has been modified but not saved yet. The options Save and Save as… in the Plug-In preset menu are used to save the preset as usual.

fig. 56 VST Version: A proprietary file format for the presets has been used, and the presets all reside in a folder that’s called “AmpliTube Settings” - this is automatically created by the installer in the same folder where the VST Plug-In is. This folder can contain subfolders and by default the installer will load on your Hard Disk the prset folders (fig. 57). AmpliTube loads by default with the presets named “Defaults”. Clicking on

44 8 - General AmpliTube control/display this area (Load) will make a popup list to appear, with the main categories shown as folders, and inside these folders you will find all the presets. Simply selecting these files from the list will make AmpliTube to load the preset instantaneously. If the preset is changed the Save button will be enabled in order to save the modifications applied. IMPORTANT! Selecting “Save” will overwrite the preset. The “Save as” button will give you the opportunity of saving the current modified preset to another, new, file.

fig. 57

8 - General AmpliTube control/display 45 Chapter 9 Support 9.1 Support For any question you may have please refer to the FAQ at: http://www.amplitube.com/FAQ.html where you'll find answers to the most common questions. For free support write at: [email protected] 9.2 User Area Together with your authorization code you've also have received a user id and password to access your personal user area on AmpliTube's website. The personal user area is an advanced online service provided to you by IK Multimedia. It allows you to download patches and updates or to generate new authorization codes in the event that you accidentally lose the previous ones. To access your personal user area, simply go here: https://www.ikstore.com/Login/IKLogin.cgi

46 9 - Support In the personal user area you can: 1) Request a new authorization code This is useful for users who need to reinstall their applications with a new authorization code. The codes are supplied immediately with no need to wait before receiving them. 2) Submit a support request Support requests received using this form will follow a preferential line and will be answered first within our standard 24 hours lead time (busi ness hours). 3) Edit your personal and product data Here you can manage all your personal and product data and recall your serial numbers easily. 4) Download software updates and free contents According to the products you've registered, here you'll find the latest patches/updates and free contents to download. 5) Customize your Username/Password Here you can change your Username/Password in order to remember them easily.

9 - Support 47 AmpliTube™ is a trademark of IK Multimedia www.ikmultimedia.com www.amplitube.com

Via dell’Industria 46 - 41100 Modena Italy tel +39-59-285496 fax +39-59-2861671 [email protected]

All specifications are subject to change without further notice.